Heightened Discomfort

Lily’s head began spinning as she found herself cornered by Lucas and Liam, the hard glares from her mates piercing into her with an intensity that left her unsettled. 

She had barely had a moment to catch her breath but the twins seemed determined to confront her, their eyes blazing with barely-contained anger.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Lily?” Lucas spat, his voice low but brimming with fury. 

His fists were clenched tightly at his sides, his gaze unwavering as he waited for her to answer.

Lily swallowed, struggling to keep her voice steady. 

“I told you, I was just talking to Alex,” she stammered, her words faltering under their scathing stares. “There’s nothing wrong with that.”

Liam scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned closer, his eyes narrowing.

“Nothing wrong?” he sneered.

She felt a surge of indignation rise within her, and she fought to hold her ground, even as her heart hammered in her chest. 

“It’s not like that! Alex is just my friend,” she argued, though she couldn’t shake the feeling that her words were falling on deaf ears.

Lucas’s face twisted into a look of disgust, his gaze raking over her as if she were a stranger. 

“Friend?” he echoed, a harsh laugh escaping his lips. “You think it’s appropriate to be all over some random Alpha in public? You’re making a fool of yourself—and us.”

Lily’s cheeks flushed with humiliation and anger, the sting of their words hitting harder than she cared to admit. 

She took a steadying breath, clenching her fists as she tried to defend herself. 

“I’m not making a fool of anyone! I’m allowed to have friends, just like you are. Or is it only a problem when it’s me?”

The twins’ expressions darkened further, and Liam took a step forward, his voice dropping to a menacing murmur. 

“You’re crossing a line, Lily,” he said, his tone sharp as a blade. “And if you’re not careful, you’ll regret it.”

There was a flicker of protectiveness in his eyes. 

“I've told you to stop talking to her like that” Alex said, his voice steady as he looked between the twins, his gaze unwavering.

Lucas and Liam’s eyes turned to Alex, their anger now directed fully at him. 

“We're not talking to you,” Liam snapped, his voice filled with venom. “Stay away from her, Alex.”

Alex’s calm demeanor didn’t waver, though there was a look in his eyes as he met their gaze head-on. 

“I think that’s Lily’s choice to make, not yours.”

The challenge in his tone was unmistakable, and Lily felt the tension between the three Alphas grow, the atmosphere thick with hostility. 

She could see the anger simmering beneath the twins’ calm exteriors, their patience wearing thin as Alex continued to stand his ground.

“Listen here,” Liam said, his voice low and dangerous. “I don’t care who you think you are, but you don’t get to interfere with us. Lily belongs to us.”

At his words, Alex’s expression shifted, a flicker of defiance crossing his face. 

“Belongs to you?” he repeated, his voice edged with disbelief. “She’s not a possession.”

The tension exploded as Liam lunged forward, his fist swinging toward Alex. 

Lily gasped, her hands flying to her mouth as the two Alphas collided, a storm of fists and growls as they grappled with each other. 

She tried to shout, to plead with them to stop, but her voice was drowned out by the sounds of their struggle.

“Stop! Both of you, stop!” she screamed, her heart pounding with fear and frustration as she watched them clash.

But neither of them seemed to hear her, their focus solely on each other as they fought, their anger boiling over into violence. 

The scene felt surreal, like something out of a nightmare as she watched her mates and her friend battling, their faces twisted with fury.

Frustrated and desperate, she turned and ran down the hallway, her steps quickening as she searched for a teacher or someone—anyone—who could intervene. 

After what felt like an eternity, she found a teacher, and she explained what was happening.

When they arrived, the teacher stepped between them, his authoritative voice cutting through the chaos.

“Enough! Stop this, now!” he commanded, his tone firm and unyielding as he held his hands out, forcing the Alphas to separate.

Liam and Alex glared at each other, their chests heaving as they caught their breath, but they reluctantly stepped back, their anger still simmering beneath the surface. 

Lucas stood nearby, his expression tense as he watched the teacher with a mixture of frustration and resentment.

The teacher turned to Liam, his gaze hard as he addressed him directly. 

“Liam, I expected better behavior from you. Fighting on school grounds is unacceptable. You’ll be dealing with the consequences of this.”

For a brief moment, Lily thought she saw a faint smirk flicker across Alex’s face as he watched Liam being reprimanded. 

It was gone in an instant, replaced by a look of concern directed towards her, but the sight left her feeling unsettled.

As the teacher led Liam away, Lucas shot her one last, furious glare before following them, leaving Lily standing alone in the aftermath of the chaos. 

She felt a mix of emotions—fear, anger, confusion—swirling within her as she tried to process everything that had just happened.

Alex looked at her, his gaze softening as he noticed the worry etched on her face. 

“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice gentle as he reached out to touch her arm.

Lily nodded, though her heart still pounded in her chest. 

“I… I don’t know. That was… intense.”

He gave her a reassuring smile, his touch steadying her as she tried to regain her composure. 

“They had no right to treat you that way. Don’t let them make you feel like you don’t have a choice.”

His words were comforting, yet they only added to the confusion swirling within her. 

As she looked back at the hallway where Lucas and Liam had disappeared, she couldn’t shake the feeling that things were only going to get more complicated from here.