Wolf Moon

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Pha scowled when he noticed the Med Star from last year, Pring. When he and Mimma, the Engineering Star and Campus Star alongside him two years ago, were mentoring the freshmen Moons and Stars, Pring had taken an obsessive interest in Pha, practically stalking him when she could, and even showing up at the Engineering Faculty to see him while claiming it was "coincidence". He wasn't happy to see her come along on the beach trip. Pha himself had only come because Forth couldn't. He'd forgotten that meant Pring would be here.

Fuck.

Pha refocused his attention, reading the list of rooms and who was in which room. It pleased him to find that he'd been assigned the same room as Yo and Ming. To be close to his future mate...his wolf was prancing around in the back of his mind, happy as a pup.

"P'Pha!" Yo came out of nowhere, hugging the older boy from the side. "We're roommates! Isn't that amazing?"

"Very," Pha agreed. He lifted Yo off the ground and hugged him tightly. It didn't matter everyone could see and was most likely gaping at the spectacle he was making. All he cared about was currently in his arms.

"P'Pha!"

Pha growled quietly in his throat at the familiar call. "Yo, stay close."

Yo frowned in confusion as he was set gently back on his feet. "Why? What's going on?" He spotted a pretty girl heading their way. "Who is that?"

"That is Pring, the Med Star from last year. She's here to mentor the freshmen Med Star. And to annoy me again."

"Annoy you?" Yo raised an eyebrow. "P'Pha, she's just a human. You're a shifter. Can't you scare her away or something?"

Pha snorted. "If I did that, my dad would find out I scared a "vulnerable, fragile human girl", and I'd never hear the end of it."

Yo scowled at that. "Your dad needs his eyes checked. Human girls aren't as delicate as he seems to think."

"I couldn't agree more," Pha lowered his voice as Pring drew near. "N'Pring, don't you need to help your Star settle into her room?"

Pring smiled as if Pha had just complimented her outfit. "She's already there, P. I was wondering," she looped a small lock of hair around her finger, twisting it in a flirty way, her smile turning coy and seductive. "If you had time? Some of us are planning to go out for dinner instead of ordering in, and-"

"I'm sorry, Nong," Pha interrupted coolly. "But if I eat out, it would have to be with my mate."

"M-mate?" Pring repeated in disbelief. "But...you're not mated."

"No, not until the Wolf Moon. But he's as good as my mate already. And I won't step out on him. It isn't our way."

Yo inched behind Pha to partly hide from the frost in Pring's stare. She really doesn't like me. I don't care. I don't like her, either. Hmph.

"I see," Pring responded tightly. She turned and walked away without another word.

"I wish I could say that'll be the last of her, but," Pha wrapped an arm around Yo's shoulders, pulling him closer. "I know her too well. Please make sure you're never alone, Yo. I don't trust her not to pull something."

"Ming is always with me when I'm away from the science faculty, P'Pha," Yo assured him. "And when I'm at the faculty, I have my friends. I'll be okay," he stretched up on tiptoe to kiss Pha's cheek. "I promise." His giggle was swallowed when Pha turned his head, stealing a quick kiss.

"Come on, let's go get settled," Pha clasped Yo's hand in his own, escorting the young cat down the hallway to their shared room.

Ming was already there, lounging on the bed and scrolling through something on his phone. He looked up as the other two came in. "Hey. P, did you know last year's engineering Star is inviting people over for drinks? Something about good relations with our competition, or something."