My Werewolf, The Alpha

Chapter 1 Part 3: Aberdeen

Having mostly been home-schooled due to her parents' constant travelling, Nat's only frame of reference for the politics of high school were movies she watched in hotel rooms while her parents attended meetings. Fortunately or unfortunately, real high school wasn't quite as exciting as Mean Girls had made it out to be. She did take a childish delight in recognising several of the stereotypes the movies had portrayed.

In any case, her schoolmates, while not overtly friendly, were nice enough, and Nat's education with private tutors had ensured she was well-equipped to handle the trials and tribulations of senior high academia. By the time lunchtime rolled around, Nat had become desensitised to the constant introductions in front of the class and the curious glances from the teenagers around her.

The movies did get one thing right though: it wasn't fun being the new kid at lunch. After picking up her suspicious tray of prison slop, Nat's heart sunk as she gazed around the crowded cafeteria. As far as she could see, everyone had settled in with their respective friend groups, chatting away as they bonded over their congealed goop. Surely there had to be an empty seat somewhere, or maybe she could just –

Someone collided into Nat, and the girl let out an empathetic oomph as she was knocked to the ground. Luckily, her tray didn't fall with her.

Unluckily, it did land on the person she had collided with.

An apology was already forming at the tip of her tongue, but before Nat could form words, the girl she had bumped into turned around with a ferocious scowl on her face. 'Hey, watch where you're going!'

'What – you bumped into me!' Indignation replaced whatever guilt Nat had felt. By the time the words had left her mouth, she had had some time to size up the other girl. She would've been pretty if it wasn't for the terrifying expression marring her features, chocolate-brown eyes narrowed in anger and full lips bared in a snarl. Her wavy brown hair was pulled into a high ponytail, complimenting high cheekbones and a bold jawline. Perhaps most importantly was the letterman jacket wrapped around a slender but athletic frame. Jock, Nat realised in horror.

'You wanna say that again?' The Latina stepped forward menacingly. Around them, Nat could feel hushed whispers starting, the concerned gazes of other students turning towards the scene. The nape of her neck started to feel hot, and she felt her cheeks start to flush.

'Relax, Castillo.' A lithe body stepped between Nat's cowering form and the jock. Briefly, Nat flashed back to golden eyes and a misty, moonlit clearing.

The newcomer was small, even smaller than the jock Nat had bumped into. Castillo, she catalogued mentally. Her features were Asian, dark brown eyes staring Castillo down intensely, and her tousled brown hair hung loosely just past her shoulders. She was similarly adorned with a letterman jacket with 'Xu' emblazoned on the back.

Castillo growled low in her throat. 'She bumped into me, threw her food at me and then tried to blame it on me,' She protested as she took another step forward, fists clenched hard at her sides.

'Maria,' The other girl's voice rang with finality, and she placed a hand against Maria's chest, effectively halting her in her steps. Behind Maria, a massive jock barked out a guffaw and placed a hand on her shoulder. 'Come on, spicy. Zelda's right. Let's go wash out your jacket before the stains set in.'

The two jocks disappeared into the crowd. With the situation diffused, the students in cafeteria resumed their mundane chatter. As Nat made to pick herself up, a slender hand extended before her. Nat accepted the help, and the girl tugged her to her feet with a strength that didn't quite match her size.

'Sorry about that, it probably wasn't a great introduction to your first lunch period.'

Warm earth-coloured eyes met Nat's own emerald green ones, and Nat couldn't resist returning the impish smile the girl threw her way. 'I'm Zelda. You're Nat, right?'

Of course gossip about Aberdeen's latest newcomer had spread like wildfire. Nat sighed, 'Yeah, that's me. Thank you, I think you just rescued me from a beating... or from getting my head shoved down a toilet bowl.'

Zelda laughed. 'Don't worry about it, you wouldn't be the first person to piss Maria Castillo off, and you certainly won't be the last. Although,' she stage-whispered as she turned to walk away. 'Just between you and me, she's all bark and no bite.' Another flash of her mischievous smile, and the girl melted away into the pool of students, leaving Nat with a warm feeling in her chest that reminded her of golden eyes and mildew.