Chapter 21 Temporary #3
The sound is low and dangerous, rumbling from deep in his chest with a warning that makes the hair on my arms stand up.
"Watch it, Rafe."
But Rafe is past the point of heeding warnings. He is fully wound now, his anger feeding on itself, escalating with every word that leaves his mouth.
"Whatever." He waves a dismissive hand. "I am glad I get to leave this clusterfuck.
Figure out your pack dynamics without me.
Aside from team obligations, I am tired of this entire situation.
Tired of pretending Cal and Etienne are worth calling packmates when they spend more time sniffing around some new Omega than actually having my back. "
Cal's expression cycles through hurt, anger, and finally something that looks like resignation.
"You are going to throw away our friendship and our entire pack dynamic over a room change?" His voice is quieter now, the heat replaced by a tired disbelief. "Be for real, Rafe. We have been through too much for you to walk away over this."
"Fuck off." Rafe's response is immediate and brutal. "You should be for real since you are so smitten over fucking pussy. Both of you. Pathetic."
Raphael speaks for the first time since Rafe began his rant.
"Do not let the door hit you when you leave."
The words are delivered with such casual disinterest that they land harder than any heated response could have. No anger. No defense. Just a dismissal so complete it makes Rafe's face flush with a rage that has nowhere to go.
"Fuck you," Rafe spits at his brother.
Then he turns and storms out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him hard enough to rattle the frames on the walls.
The silence that follows is immediate and profound.
For a long moment, no one moves. We stand in the aftermath of Rafe's explosion like survivors assessing damage after a storm, waiting to see what has been destroyed and what remains standing.
Then the atmosphere shifts.
It lifts.
Like a pressure that has been building for months has finally been released, the apartment feels suddenly lighter. Easier to breathe. The tension that Rafe brought with him, the constant edge of hostility that I have been navigating since I arrived, simply evaporates with his departure.
Cal exhales loudly.
"Well. That happened."
Etienne sinks back onto the couch, running his hands through his dark hair.
"It has been building for a while. We just did not want to admit it."
Raphael pushes off from the counter, crossing to stand near me with an expression that carries genuine regret.
"I apologize on behalf of my brother. His behavior was inexcusable, and his words were deliberately cruel. You did nothing to deserve that."
I shrug, surprised to find that I mean it when I say, "I do not take anything he said to heart. I have heard worse. I am not a kid like before, when he and his friends bullied me in sixth grade. His opinions do not define my worth."
The three Alphas exchange glances at that revelation, a new piece of history clicking into place.
Cal clears his throat.
"Right. So. Breakfast." He moves back to the stove, rescuing the bacon that has been sitting neglected throughout the entire confrontation.
"MaeMae, what do you like on your eggs? Cheese?
Hot sauce? Both? I have both. I have everything because I stress-grocery-shop and now we have enough food to survive a minor apocalypse. "
"Cheese," I answer, grateful for the shift in focus. "And hot sauce. Both sounds perfect."
"A woman after my own heart." He cracks eggs into a pan with more force than necessary, channeling residual tension into culinary violence. "Laurent, you want your usual boring plain eggs, or are you feeling adventurous today?"
"Plain is fine."
"Boring. Confirmed."
Etienne ignores the jab, his storm-blue eyes finding mine across the room with an intensity that tells me he has not forgotten the conversation we left unfinished.
"We should talk," he says quietly. "About what I asked last night. About the temporary pack situation."
Cal's spatula pauses mid-flip.
"The what now?"
"Last night," Etienne continues, "I asked Mae if we could be her temporary pack until Valentine's Day. While she figures out her permanent situation. Cal, Raphael, and I discussed it briefly when we brought her back from the nurse's office, but we never formalized anything."
Cal sets down the spatula, turning to face the group with an expression that suggests he is rapidly processing new information.
"Okay. So. Temporary pack. To help her stay enrolled and access the stuff she needs. And now Rafe is out of the picture, which changes the dynamic."
"Significantly," Raphael agrees, moving to lean against the kitchen island near me.
His vanilla and musk scent mingles with the cooking aromas, creating a combination that is distracting in ways I refuse to acknowledge.
"Without Rafe, we need to figure out a new structure.
The university requires documented pack status for Omega students by Valentine's Day.
If Mae does not have that documentation, she loses access to athletics, housing assistance, and potentially her scholarship. "
I frown.
"Wait. If Rafe is no longer part of this pack, how is he going to continue playing hockey? Does the athletic requirement not apply to Alphas too?"
Etienne's jaw tightens.
"He probably made a deal with Bastien," he mutters, the name landing with a weight that I recognize from earlier conversations.
"He always goes to him to get out of shit.
Bastien has connections, resources, and absolutely no moral objection to bending rules for people he considers useful.
If Rafe needed a pack sponsor to stay on the team, Bastien would provide it in exchange for future favors. "
Bastien. The older Laurent brother. The ghost that haunts this pack even from across an ocean. Every time his name comes up, the air gets heavier.
Raphael redirects the conversation with the practiced skill of someone who has chaired meetings and knows when to keep discussions on track.
"The question at hand is what we are doing about Mae's situation. The temporary pack arrangement that Etienne proposed last night is actually ideal. It gives her the documentation she needs, gives us time to determine if this dynamic is compatible, and puts no permanent pressure on anyone."
He turns to look at me, his gray eyes carrying a warmth that contrasts with his businesslike tone.
"And who knows. Maybe this dynamic could be more than compatible. If the three of us prove worthy of you, Mae Rose, you can decide whether temporary becomes something else entirely."
My cheeks flush with heat that has nothing to do with the bacon Cal is plating.
Three Alphas are looking at me.
Cal with his open warmth and his easy humor. Etienne with his quiet depth and his secret stories. Raphael with his calm authority and his scent that makes my entire body hum.
They are offering me a lifeline. A chance to stay enrolled, to pursue skating, to exist in this university without the constant threat of expulsion hanging over my head.
And beyond the practical benefits, they are offering the one thing I have wanted for so long I had stopped letting myself admit it.
A place to belong.
Even if it is temporary. Even if it ends on Valentine's Day when I have to make a real decision about my future.
For the next five weeks, I would not be alone.
I would have people who notice when I am cold, who remember to save me breakfast, who ask about my knee and mean it when they want to know the answer.
Is that not worth the risk?
Is it not worth trying, even if it might hurt?
I think about my father's words, the ones he said when he sent me away. About needing to grow, needing to find myself, needing to stop being stuck in a standstill. About being independent and humbled and grateful.
But independence does not have to mean isolation.
And accepting help does not have to mean surrendering control.
I take a breath.
"Okay," I say, my voice steadier than I expected. "Why not?"
Three sets of eyes widen slightly.
"Seriously?" Cal asks, his expression brightening with hope he is clearly trying to temper.
I nod, feeling the decision settle into my bones like the first morning of a new season.
"I would like to try it."