Chapter 13
CHAPTER 13
One week later
LORELEI
L istening to Phenex teach about the history of omegas and monsters in class today and how they were wiped off the earth by a sickness no one could figure out the cure to, I bite my lip as I shift worriedly. It was a bold move for my parents to create me from a lab and steal the DNA from ancient times.
It explains why I enjoy science though, and makes my mind race as I think about the implications of it. Phenex gave me my own private lesson about this a week ago, but now I have time to really think about it all as he speaks.
Humans and monsters haven’t been on the best of terms over the years, constantly fighting despite at times being the other’s perfect match. I’m discomfited with the idea that omegas lived secretly with monsters, as if they were a concealed affair. I don’t want to hide forever.
It’s something I’m currently struggling with as I listen to Phenex. He’s very passionate about this topic, and I can understand why.
“There were monsters who didn’t survive losing their fated mate, and they also died alongside their omega,” he explains. “Think of the epidemic and the loss that occurred on both sides. Family members would go visit their homes to check on their loved ones, and there would be several deaths.”
“Doesn’t a love that strong make you weak?” a student asks. “To be bound so tightly that you literally die of a broken heart.”
“You can have a broken heart and be dead inside, but still survive it,” Phenex counters. Thinking of Alecto, I wince in sympathy. “Would you rather have everything around you feel broken because you’re half a person? The bond between an omega and her or his alpha was said to be so strong that they could speak to each other in their minds and knew when the other was suffering.”
Raising my hand, I frown. “Does that mean that as their omega was dying, they felt all of it?”
I’m horrified by the thought, my eyes threatening to water.
Is this what Phenex did by biting me? God, it’s a death sentence.
If I don’t find and bond to all of my scent matches, does that mean he’ll fall asleep for a hundred years as well?
I check out of the rest of what Phenex says until the end of class, numbly packing up my things. As I’m walking down the stairs, I stumble as a voice breaks through my fog. Only it's coming from within my mind.
“ I’ll always want to be as close to you as possible, no matter the cost,” Phenex says.
My head swings to the left to find him smiling smugly as he discusses something with a student.
“ As soon as you’re no longer my student, I plan to kiss the fuck out of you as often and as publically as possible,” he adds.
Hiding a smile, I nod as I finish walking down the stairs and out of the classroom. A few days ago, my favorite boots disappeared and in its stead were a brand new pair. I was upset until I saw the note that was attached to the laces.
I want to keep you for a long time, so I’m taking these to a cobbler to fix the bottoms of your boots. I refuse to allow you to break your neck with these death traps.
Love
-Samael
The gesture was incredibly sweet, and these boots feel as if I’m walking on clouds.
My next class is Favored Theatrical Plays. I have it once a week for ninety minutes, and I’m enjoying it more than I thought I would. It fulfills my literature requirement for my sophomore year as well.
My professor is also a riot. He’s dramatic, has a good sense of humor, and keeps me entertained for the entire class. The reading material isn’t boring either. I have a paper due at the end of the course that’ll count for a large majority of my grade as well as a midterm and a final.
Otherwise, it’s very straightforward.
“Did you eat yet?” a voice asks next to me, making me squeal with fright.
Samael just smirks as he walks with me as if he always has been. I’m sure he did this on purpose. He’s been trying to find ways to scare me. I shouldn’t be this turned on by this, yet here I am, holding back my perfume.
“I just had a delicious snack,” he says, chuckling. He’s been finding new and inventive ways to scare the shit out of me so he can feed.
I think I have a fear kink, because my panties are currently working overtime. I can feel the slick pooling in them, my heart beating hard as my hand sits on my chest.
“Samael,” I hiss.
“Well, have you eaten yet? You have a few minutes to grab a smoothie before class. My treat,” he says, his hand wrapping around my bicep to tug me into another direction.
“Thank you,” I murmur instead of arguing. I am hungry, and it’s going to be a long day.
“You’re welcome. We all got up really early today,” he says.
Things have shifted into a very comfortable place between us all. Samael and Phenex make sure I eat and that I’m taking care of myself throughout the day. It’s all so normal and sweet. It’s hard to get used to.
Occasionally, I’ll see Alecto as well, though I haven’t seen him at work at all. He promised me a date soon, and I’m looking forward to it.
“Phenex mentioned not wanting to cook tonight,” Samael says, interrupting my thoughts. “What do you think about going into town for dinner?”
My classes all end before the sun sets, which means I’ll be done in time.
“In public?” I ask.
“Contrary to the things you tell yourself, you are not our secret,” Samael says, pulling me out of the flow of foot traffic to kiss me senseless.
While there are some wolf whistles and yells, no one else says anything.
“You don’t have any classes with me, so I get to kiss you whenever I want,” he says, grinning.
“Maybe a little less on the public displays of affection,” President Christa calls out as she walks past us, amused.
“Oh my God,” I whisper.
“We did nothing wrong,” Samael says, shrugging. Leaning in, he adds quietly, “Phenex would maybe get a slap on the wrist, you know, if you two came into the open. Scent matches have always been revered, but that’s your secret and a dangerous one.”
Nodding in agreement, I grin as he tugs me back onto the path to get a smoothie.
Twenty minutes later, I’m sitting in my literature class, happy and full of smoothie. It’ll tide me over until later, and the sugar is helping to wake me up.
I swear, Phenex’s class should be illegal due to the time alone. Thankfully, he loaded me up with coffee and an orgasm before I left the apartment. Smirking, I get comfortable as I pick up my notebook and pen.
Dr. Opus is getting his things together when another professor walks in to speak to him. He is dressed well, is gorgeous, and there’s something about him that I can’t explain that’s drawing me toward him.
I’m up toward the top of the auditorium because I was late, so I have to squint to see what’s going on. Ugh, this is why I try to be early so I can get a better view.
The professor speaking with Dr. Opus has brown spiky hair, deep red skin, and hooves for feet. He’s wearing a comfortable sweater and dark gray pants, his hands pushed into his pockets as he gazes out at the auditorium. His dark eyes are intense as they land on me for a moment before continuing on, making me wish they’d stayed for longer.
“Students!” Dr. Opus says. His voice is loud enough that he doesn’t seem to need a microphone, as he can amplify it on his own. “My dear friend needs some help, and I think we are just the ones to give assistance. He is putting on a musical, with auditions being tomorrow. The benefactors helping to fund the show asked for some new faces.”
“It’s true,” the other professor says. His voice is familiar, and I realize it’s because it’s the same one who has yelled at me for taking a shower so early. Fucking Professor Dalca. “I believe in continually finding new talent, and this is just the push I need. Dr. Opus has graciously agreed to help by making it mandatory to audition. In the case that you aren’t qualified for a role in the musical, we will absolutely take you as a stage hand.”
Fuck me. As if I don’t have enough to do this semester. Growling under my breath, I kiss the rest of my free time away. Maybe dinner in town is off the table after all. I’m going to need to prepare a song to audition with.
BAST
“Thank you so much, Dr. Opus,” I say once we present the addition to the syllabus to the class.
“They’ve had it too easy,” he says shrugging. “I may make this a requirement moving forward. Everyone jokes that I’m the class to take if you want to skate through. While I’m sure they do enjoy the readings, I know that I’m not their most difficult course.”
Smirking, I nod as I say my goodbyes. Lorelei Rose glares at me from the nosebleed seats of the auditorium as I walk out. Ah well, too bad for her.
It doesn’t work for me that she’s moved out for all intents and purposes. While her things are still there, she no longer sleeps there. Her roommates have also been grumbling about it, and feel insulted. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them reports it to the housing department to fuck with her.
Whistling under my breath as I leave the English building, I walk next door to where I’m currently holding auditions for the musical I’m producing. Some roles have already been cast, and others I haven’t found the right person for yet.
I wonder if Lorelei can sing…
The next day, I see a fear demon walking with Lorelei, their fingers interlocked. They’re chatting, and I’ve seen them together before this. I’ve found myself behind them several times as I’ve moved around campus.
I swear I’m not stalking her, it just happens. Whenever I leave to head to another location, there they are.
It’s not my fault that fate keeps throwing us together. Sometimes she’ll look around, and I wonder if she can feel me. It’s a pretty fairytale to imagine that she can.
“I’ve heard you sing on the drive home from work, baby,” he says. “You’ll have to fake it a bit if you don’t want a role in this musical.”
Samael sounds smug, and while I don’t know him well, I’ve seen him at enough faculty events that I can recognize him on sight. I’m just unsure as to what he means by his words.
“I really doubt I’ll be cast in anything, Samael,” Lorelei says, snorting. “There’s no way Professor Dalca is going to trust me with it either. The male thinks I’m an idiot.”
No, never that. More like a nuisance I can’t get out of my head. Also, if she’s any good, I’ll be sure to cast her. I want more reasons to bump into her.
Did she recognize my voice? She had to have. Questions filter through my head as I also wonder if she’d recognize my scent if she smelled it again. Is a human capable of that?
I sincerely doubt it, when monsters are the superior race.
Fuck! Why does her ass have to look so fucking good in those jeans? It’s cold today, and she’s wearing a puffy jacket I don’t remember seeing. Did Samael buy it for her?
Maybe she is a gold digger.
Smoothing out the sneer as quickly as it appears on my lips, I enter the theater through a different door than the “happy” couple. I’m jealous that Samael gets to have so much more time with her, yet I despise myself for these feelings.
This door takes me through the back of the building, and I nod at the theater students who are already here. During one of my observations with a dean of the arts, he asked me if I thought I could turn someone who was untrained into a performer.
I’m afraid I may have talked myself up too much, and now I’m in this mess. I’m confident that I can make this work, though. I have to.
The theater seating is filling with both monsters and humans as I grab my clipboard and make my way to the front row. While I went specifically to Dr. Opus’ classroom for a favor, I still have an open casting call to the theater department for auditions.
I have a list of creatures and humans who signed up to audition, and I’m impatient. I want to know if the little bird is a songbird or not.
“Lorelei Rose!” I call out. “You’re up! Are you here?”
While I’ve heard her voice before, my cock still twitches hard when I hear her yell, “Coming!”
Great, now all I can imagine is how pretty she looks when she comes. Fuck my life.
Crossing my legs, my hoof sways back and forth impatiently as I watch Lorelei walk across the stage.
“If you need musical accompaniment, tell the pianist what you’ll be singing,” I say dismissively.
Her class was given a few different songs to learn in case it was needed, and I raise my brow at her in indifference. Sing or don’t, I pretend not to care all while desperately wanting to know if she can fucking sing or not.
Moving over to the pianist, she murmurs something to him before walking back to the microphone. He begins a song that I vaguely recall, and then she’s singing. It’s… beautiful. The notes are solid, lilting, and the words are crisp.
My bottom lip drops open as I get lost in her audition, the last note releasing me from my stupor. This little slip of a girl can hold her own. It’s a shame she’s not in a theater concentration.
“Thank you Miss Rose,” I grunt. “Someone will contact you about what we decide.”
Because of her class with Dr. Opus, she’ll receive a job either way, but her audition just earned her a singing role. That is not helping to lessen my obsession with her in any way. It doesn't need to at this point, I’ll gladly drown in it.
The rest of the auditions drag on once she’s gone, yet she’s the one that sticks in my mind. I hope she’s ready to see a whole lot more of me.