Chapter 14: First Day Of School
—(Mark)—
I was able to catch an extra hour of sleep by skipping my morning run today. I did enough running last night. When I got ready for the day, I saw that James had already left to go back to White Hill Lake, where our territory is.
I had my breakfast and took my coffee to go. As I left the house, I saw Scott getting ready to leave on his bike. He looked a bit taller, not by much, and a bit more toned with muscle—not to the extent that happened to me, but he looked more active at least.
James was right; it's easy to tell if someone is a werewolf by their scent alone. It's difficult to explain, almost imperceptible, but if you have heightened senses, you can tell that there's something there.
When I got near, Scott stared at me for a moment before greeting me.
"Morning, Mark. Ready for the first day of classes?"
"Yeah, I think so, at least. I got a truck now. If you want a lift, it's out back." I offered him a ride because I wanted to see if he'd say anything about last night.
"Sure, sounds great."
I led Scott to my dark blue Ram truck.
"Nice ride, Mark."
"Thanks. It's great because I can comfortably fit in it," I chuckled. "Anyway, let's get going. I don't want to be late on my first day."
He got in, and we both put our bags in the back.
I started to drive off to school.
"So, what happened last night?"
"Stiles got caught by his dad, who's a sheriff, by the way, so he got in trouble. I stayed hidden and waited until they left. The craziest thing happened, though—I swear I was attacked by a wolf! I have the bite to prove it," he said, showing me his blood-covered bandage.
"Looks like a lot of blood."
We eventually arrived at the parking lot. I got out of my truck and went to the passenger side to help get our stuff out. As I handed Scott his things, a car pulled up next to us and hit me in the back of my legs as the guy opened the door.
He was about to open his mouth when he finally looked up at me. "Hey, watc—Oh, my fault. Sorry."
He was the same height as Scott, so about eight inches shorter than me.
He got called away by someone before I could say something.
I clenched my jaw; that guy was an asshole. I could tell just by the way he talked and acted. I took a deep breath. James warned me I would be more irritable for a short while. I just needed to make sure I could keep myself in check.
Scott must've noticed my slight pause. "Are you alri—"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Go ahead without me; I have to wait for the vice principal anyway," I said, sending him away.
Scott looked like he was about to ask me something but chose not to.
I took a seat on a bench when a girl my age came and sat next to me.
"Hey, I'm new here. My name is Allison," she greeted me.
"Mark," I replied simply, not feeling like talking.
"Well then, nice to meet you, Mark," she kept her upbeat tone.
I grunted in response. I was already trying to keep a semblance of calmness. I should have expected that the noise and scent would be overwhelming with my now even more heightened senses since becoming a semi-alpha or half-alpha.
"Hey, not to sound rude, but do you have some issue with me?" She took me out of my line of thinking.
"No, not you. I've got sensory issues," I kept it simple enough.
"Oh, you don't look like the type of person who would have those problems."
"Why? Just because I'm tall and buff I can't have issues?" Annoyance crept into my voice.
"No, not that. You just look well put together."
"Well, news flash: you can still look fine outwardly and be a mess inside."
"I think we got off on the wrong foot."
Another grunt from me.
"I apolo—" she began.
"Don't worry," I interrupted. I hated apologies; they're just words people use to make someone feel like they have to be forgiven. "I'm just not in the best place right now." I didn't want to scare her off and give everyone the impression that I'm unapproachable. I already stood out because of my size.
Her phone rang, causing me to flinch due to the abrupt noise, and she mouthed a "sorry."
"Hey, Mom, three calls before school even starts is a bit too much," she rummaged through her bag. "Yes, I have everythi—no, I completely forgot to bring a pen. Yes! I'm serious, I'll be fine, Mom. Yes. I'll call you later. Bye."
I went through my bag and grabbed an extra pen I had and handed it over.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
The vice principal arrived and greeted us.
"Hello, here are your schedules. I'll walk you to your first class and introduce you two."
When we reached the classroom, he did the normal introduction and said my name first. "We have Markus Ambrose joining us this year alongside Allison Argent."
Oh, fuck me sideways.
I decided to keep her at arm's length now. She took a seat behind Scott, who turned her way and offered her a pen, only to be rejected. He must've overheard her. He gave me a look as if I peed in his cereal. I gave him a confused look like I didn't just block his opening.
When class ended, Allison and I were stopped by what I could describe as the popular girl by the looks everyone was giving her.
"Hi, I'm Lydia, and I'm hosting a party for everyone this weekend. I was wondering if you guys were interested in going."
"Sorry, I got a curfew," I said.
"I got a family thing," Allison responded.
Lydia began to try and make physical contact with me, but I immediately backed away. She looked offended, but I didn't pay it any attention as I moved to my next class. The dickhead from the morning glared at me, but I just ignored it. If he did anything more, I'd take it as a challenge and completely snap.
When I got to my gym class, I entered the locker room and almost lost my balance from the smell. I stripped to my underwear and put on my gym clothes. When I looked back up, people were staring. "What?" was all I said before people went back to changing.
Instead of seeing the lust in someone's eyes, I could smell it. That was new and going to be annoying because now it would be the only thing on my mind.
I left the locker room to get away from it. That's when a hand went on my chest and stopped me. I looked at the hand and then at the person attached to it.
He saw the look on my face before he removed it.
"Whoa there, you giant of a boy. I'm Coach Finstock. You thinking about joining the lacrosse team?"
"No, I've got anger management issues."
"All the better; you can get those things out on the field."
"Here's my therapist's number. They'll explain why I shouldn't join," I handed him Lyla's business card.
"Ah, crap, you're one of those."
My eye began to twitch.
"Whoa, didn't mean to offend anyone. We accept everyone. Just ask Danny! He's gay."
I gave him an are-you-serious look.
I looked at the guy he pointed at, who was facepalming.
I just continued on with my day, ignoring him. I stopped by Coach Harris to double-check that tryouts were on Friday before leaving for the day. As I was leaving, Scott asked if I could stay so he could get a ride back home after tryouts. I agreed.
And yes, he's definitely a werewolf by his reaction speed. It's also clear as day that he has a crush on Allison by the way he can't keep his eyes off her.
When practice ended, Scott and Stiles discussed something, but I ignored it. I'll follow James's advice for now and let him solve his pack problems. I drove us back to our street, and Scott went home.
Later in the night, I got a message from Scott asking if he could get a lift from work since it was pouring outside. I agreed; I'm no monster.
When I pulled into the vet clinic where he worked and entered, there was a knock at the door. It was Allison, completely soaked and asking for help for a dog she accidentally hit.
Allison asked why I was there, and I just said that I lived next to Scott and was giving him a ride home.
I carried the dog in, who instantly submitted to me. But as Scott neared, it growled. When Scott thought no one was looking, he shifted his eyes, which were a yellow hue, to make it submit to him.
He treated the dog with a splint before offering Allison his dry shirt. She went to change in the other room with a clear view. Scott's eyes began to wander, but I stepped in his way with my arms crossed. He had the decency to look ashamed, but I didn't mention it to Allison.
After that, I left them alone because I didn't want to be a third wheel. When Scott mentioned he convinced Allison to go to the weekend party with him, I congratulated him. He said I should go, but I told him I would think about it.
I was finally about to sleep through the night without being woken up by some emergency.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
FilteredWater
FilteredWater word count 1637
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone