I'm the Alpha's Crush (18+)|✔️

Chapter 4

Slinking into the second floor staff lounge, I settled down at one of the small, circular tables.

River, who'd been staring at the microwave when I entered, turned with a confused look.

"What happened to eating on the patio?"

"Apparently there's an impromptu Alpha meeting out there."

"Oh?"

"Yep," I nodded, "And I just waltzed right into the middle of it."

"Oh."

I groaned, burying my face in my hands. "If I'm late coming home, it's because I've found a rock that's big enough to hide under."

"About that..."

"About what?" I muttered.

"Tom and I are going out tonight-"

Perking up, I asked, "Anywhere fun?"

"Dinner, then Tooley's." River shrugged, naming the one dance hall in the county. It was the closest thing to "night life" that their small, Pennsylvanian town offered, outside of the handful of dingy bars and a bowling alley.

"Ooh, nice! Tonight's line dancing, right?"

"Oh, god." River's shoulders sagged, "I forgot."

"Hey," I chided, "line dancing can be fun."

"Line dancing is the dorkiest thing I've ever done, and I was a Mathlete."

Snorting, I teased, "C'mon, River – it's like regular dancing, but with instructions!"

"Soph, that's why it's so dorky."

"Seriously, it's beginner friendly! You don't even have to have rhythm!"

"Excuse you," River's eyes narrowed, "I have all of the rhythm."

Opting for diplomatic silence, I just bit my lip and nodded.

Living with River for the past few years had taught me exactly how much rhythm they had.

With a glare, River opened the microwave and pulled out their lunch. "Whatever. It's moments like this when I wonder why I moved to this Appalachian backwater."

"Your dedication to Archival Science?" I shrugged.

It worked for me...

I mean, the opportunity to work for the Archives – North America's largest collection of werewolf historical records – was too important to pass up.

Started by the Syracuse Pack, the Archives began as a collection of their records only. As it grew, it was eventually brought under the control of the Lycan Council. With their funding and influence, the project had turned into the massive behemoth it was today, encompassing almost a million documents, photographs and recordings, both physical and digital.

They could have located it in the northernmost reaches of Alaska, and I still would have jumped at the chance to work here.

Giving me a sour look, River stabbed a fork into their leftover pasta.

"Look, at least Tom's mixing it up. Hanging out and watching movies gets old, right?"

Like I would know...

"But country music?" River whined.

"Counterpoint: the intimacy of dancing with a partner-"

"Line dancing," River interrupted, "Do you know, the first time I went to Tooley's, I felt like I was walking into some sort of cult ceremony? All these people, making these strange motions in perfect sync with each other..." River trailed off, staring into the distance.