Silver Rain

Chapter 14

Felix remembered why he hated school so much.

It was three reasons that he could pick out throughout the day while he followed Olivia and her friend around.  While he had never been in the natural sciences building, he could tell that it wasn't much different from the rest of the campus. The sterile smell of chemicals mixed with the faint scent of paper and ink filled the air as students bustled about, lost in their own worlds of academia.

The first reason he could recall was the unrealistic expectations that people put on themselves.  The pressure to conform to unrealistic expectations was suffocating. Felix watched as students rushed from one class to another, their faces etched with stress and anxiety. It was as if everyone was trying to outdo each other, to prove themselves worthy of recognition and success.

He couldn't help but feel a sense of frustration at the sight. Growing up in the world of werewolves, Felix had seen firsthand the consequences of striving for unattainable perfection. The constant need to prove oneself, and to meet the impossibly high standards set by others, often led to burnout and disillusionment.

And yet, here he was surrounded by young werewolves and humans, and he who were trapped in the same cycle of self-imposed pressure. It was a reminder of the fragile nature of humanity, of the ways in which they struggled to find meaning and purpose in a world that often seemed indifferent to their efforts. 

Olivia was one of them as she would try to prove herself in every class, every assignment, and in her study sessions.  Pouring over countless notes and blinking away sleep in her eyes.

The second reason he hated college was the assholes who thought they were better than everyone else. Throughout the day, Felix encountered numerous individuals who exuded an air of superiority, looking down on those they deemed beneath them. Whether it was the jocks who flaunted their athletic prowess or the wealthy students who reveled in their privilege, Felix couldn't help but feel a sense of disdain for their arrogance.

At one point, a group of idiots tried cornering Olivia and her friend.  Felix had let them use the restroom and gazed at his phone to answer a few messages from his pack warriors.  When he looked up from his phone, he saw Olivia and her friend, Sarah he believed, surrounded.  They seemed uncomfortable, their expressions tense as they attempted to navigate the situation without escalating it.  Olivia's face was full of defiance, shielding her friend with her body as she said something back to the leader of the group.

With a few determined strides, Felix closed the distance between himself and the group of students, his presence commanding attention. The leader of the group, a burly werewolf with a sneer on his face, straightened up as Felix approached, his expression shifting from arrogance to uncertainty.

"Is there a problem here?" Felix's voice had cut through the tension, his alpha authority resonating in every word.

The group of students had faltered under Felix's intense gaze, their bravado evaporating in the face of his unwavering presence. They exchanged nervous glances, suddenly unsure of themselves in the presence of the powerful alpha.

The leader of the group, sensing the shift in dynamics, attempted to regain his composure. "N-no problem, Alpha Felix," he muttered, his voice tinged with nervousness. "We were just... uh, messing around."

"Don't you have exams to prep for?" His eyes had met every single one of theirs and they scampered off.

Felix was no stranger to arrogance and entitlement. He had seen firsthand how power and privilege could corrupt even the noblest of intentions, turning once honorable individuals into petty tyrants. And while he had learned to navigate the intricacies of pack politics with ease, the same could not be said for the rest of the cutthroat world.