Chapter 8 : Hell All Over Again

Astrid

The sound of my phone ringing pulled me from a deep sleep. It took me several seconds to realize where I was.

The short, white dresser across from me was covered with stuffed animals that were staring back at me blankly. The sight scared me at first, but once I remembered where I was, my heart rate slowed slightly.

I sat up and snatched my cell phone from the nightstand.

The screen was displaying “Charles” in big black letters. Part of me wanted to throw it across the room, but despite my better judgment, I answered it.

“Astrid?” he asked hopefully.

“What do you want?” I snarled.

“Thank god you finally answered. I’ve been worried sick about you! I haven’t been able to get a hold of you for days!”

I rolled my eyes. He knew exactly why I hadn’t been answering his calls. Now, suddenly, he was pretending to care about me? What a joke. He must really think I was stupid.

“What do you want?” I asked again. “I don’t have time for this, so unless this is some kind of an emergency, I’m hanging up.”

I was kicking myself for answering. I should have blocked his number. Nothing good could come of this.

“Look, I recognize that what I said before was insensitive and I’m sorry that you were upset by it,” he started. “But I still need your help. This project is my chance–”

“Are you joking?” I whisper-shouted. “I’m hundreds of miles away helping my grieving father to settle my dead mother’s affairs and you’re calling me because you want me to do your work for you and let you take credit for it?!”

My wolf was growing in my mind. The anger that I felt was so sudden that it almost knocked the breath from me.

“That’s not– look. You owe me. I took care of you so you could get your promotions, you need to–”

I gasped in disbelief. He never did a thing to take care of me. I did all of the cooking and cleaning in our apartment. The only thing he did was pay half of the bills. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to force myself to sound more calm than I felt.

“Charles, I don’t know how to make this any clearer, so listen carefully. I never want to hear from you again. Stay out of my life!”

I heard a growl come from the other end.

“You’re going to regret that decision,” he said calmly.

A chill ran up my spine at the tone in his voice. All of the false concern and anger had vanished in an instant. I could hear him starting to say more, but I hung up before he could.

I sat my phone on the nightstand beside me and put my hands over my eyes.

“This was not the wakeup call I needed,” I muttered as I looked at the time. Great, five minutes before my alarm.

I got out of bed and took a quick shower. Normally, a hot shower helped to improve my mood, but not today.

I got dressed and started to get ready for the day. It was my first full day of classes today, so I didn’t have a lot of time to mess around.

As I was brushing my hair, there was a knock on my door.

“Come in,” I called out.

The door opened and my dad walked in. I forced a smile at him.

“Good morning,” he said cheerfully. “Breakfast is almost ready if you want to join me.”

I shook my head. Talking to Charles had soured my mood and ruined my appetite. Dad looked disappointed, but he shrugged.

“In a hurry to get to class?”

“Something like that,” I replied. “I’ll make a smoothie before I go, if that’s alright.”

“Of course,” he stated. “Help yourself to anything in the kitchen. I’ll see you at dinner?”

“Sure,” I noted with a tight smile.

He hesitated before turning to leave.

‘Things are awkward between you,’ my wolf pointed out as the door shut.

I sighed and put my hairbrush down.

“I’m well aware,” I answered her. I loved my wolf, but sometimes, she could be demanding.

I grabbed my shoulder back and went down to the kitchen. I threw some fruit in a blender with some milk and ice and poured it all into a large cup with a straw. With my breakfast ready, I hurried out the door. I wanted to stay busy. If I kept my mind occupied, then I wouldn’t have time to be anxious.

I didn’t recognize the driver that took me to campus, so it was a quiet drive. I was grateful to get out of the car when we arrived.

Campus was busier than it had been last night. I kept my head down as I walked, hoping that no one would give me a second look. I knew that word of my return had most likely gotten along by now.

The crowd outside of the student commons was so thick that I had to keep my head up and avoid walking into anyone.

‘Don’t want a repeat of yesterday,’ I thought. Falling on top of Tristan was probably the most embarrassing thing that I’d ever done. I didn’t know how I would ever face him again.

As if on cue, I felt a pull in my chest. I cursed softly and looked around. I spotted him ahead of me in the crowd. He was walking towards me.

I felt my face heat up as I dropped my chin and looked down at the sidewalk. I walked slowly forward, hoping that he wouldn’t see me.

I watched the legs of the people around me as they passed hurriedly. I thought that I was in the clear, but when I lifted my eyes he was standing just a foot in front of me.

“Astrid?” he said in surprise.

“Good morning, Dr. Ward,” I said politely.

He smirked slightly. “Where are you heading?” he asked.

“Thermo dynamics,” I answered. I think it’s in–”

“Harper Hall,” he answered. “I’ll walk you there.”

I wanted to argue that I could find my way, but honestly, I wasn’t sure I could. I nodded my agreement. “I really appreciate that, thank you.”

“It’s not a problem,” he replied. “I’m heading there, anyway.”

I felt my eyes go wide. “Is it your class, too?”

“It is,” he confirmed.

I bit the inside of my cheek to hide my reaction.

He motioned forward and I started to walk that way. He kept pace with me and we walked on in silence for a few minutes.

I really should have looked more carefully at the classes I was signing up for. Even if I had, I wouldn’t have guessed that T. Ward was the same Tristan I had grown up with.

“It seems like we’ll be spending a good deal of time together,” he said thoughtfully.

“I don’t think I’ll be in town for long,” I answered quickly. “I’m only staying until my dad can find someone else to take over my mom’s duties.”

He inhaled deeply. “I’m sorry—about your mother. It’s good of you to come back to help out the pack.”

I shrugged. I could feel myself blushing at his compliment.

“It’s not a big deal,” I said softly.

He must have picked up on my unease, because he quickly changed the subject.

“Where have you been living?”

“Great Falls,” I answered.

Tristan hummed. “I see. What’s it like in a big human city?”

“It’s a mid-size city, really. It’s nice once you get used to it. It probably helps that I’ve been living out there for so long.” I wasn’t sure how to talk about the human world with other shifters. I was young when I got there, so it was second nature to me.

He wasn’t looking at me while we walked, so it was hard to know what he was thinking. At least he couldn’t see me blushing like an idiot. My wolf

“You don’t really know what it’s like to live in a shifter city do you,” he asked softly. “You left before your wolf emerged.”

I stared at him in surprise. I wasn’t sure if he was taking a shot at me or if it was just an observation. His expression was impossible to read.

“That’s true,” I noted.

“What do you do?” he asked. “For work.”

“I’m a projected engineer at White Mountain Motors,” I explained. “Though, I’m in the running for a big promotion to a director position. The company wants me to get my degree before they officially offer it to me.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “That’s impressive,” he said. “I often wonder if I made the right move by teaching instead of working in the field.”

“You’re a good teacher,” I stated. “I mean, from the little experience I have and everything that I’ve heard about you. It sounds like you’ve put a lot of work into it.”

He glanced at me and smiled. “You don’t think it’s just a calling? That’s what everyone always says about good teachers.”

I shrugged. “I mean, maybe. I think it’s more likely that teaching is like any other job; if you work hard at it then you’ll be good at it.”

“I agree,” he said.

We finally reached Harper Hall and Tristan opened the door for me. I thanked him as I walked into the building.

I was surprised by how easy it was to talk to him. He seemed rough around the edges yesterday, and when we were kids, I always found him too intimidating to talk to. Then again, he was just being polite right now. He was speaking as my professor.

‘That’s all he is,’ I reminded myself. There was nothing else between us. This was just professional small talk.

“Thank you for walking with me,” I noted.

“You’re welcome,” he replied. “It can take a little time to learn to navigate the campus.”

I nodded. “I should have prepared a little better,” I admitted.

He shrugged. “You’ve had a lot going on,” he said. “We’re here.” He stopped and opened the classroom door for me.

I took note of the room number, then went inside. Tristan followed after me.

There were several people in the room already, but it was quiet. A couple of people were chatting, but most were on their phones or resting their heads on the tables.

I spotted Lilian sitting at a table in the center of the room. I started to walk towards her, but I quickly realized that there was a dark look in her eyes. She was staring at Tristan, but as I approached her, her glare turned to me.

I was surprised to see how angry she seemed. So, I decided that it was a better idea to sit by myself today.

But the thought wouldn’t leave my mind. Was she really mad at me?

I sat down and looked at Tristan as he prepared for class. Lilian was looking at him, too. Was that the problem? Was she angry that we showed up together?

No, she couldn’t be—could she? She didn’t seem too phased yesterday. Only, then I remembered the look she gave me when I was leaving class and my heart fell into my chest.

I felt an odd sensation move up my spine. I looked out of my peripheral vision and saw Lillian’s eyes narrowed in on me again. I didn’t move, but I kept my attention on her. Even as Tristan’s voice filtered into my ears and the lecture began, Lillian held her gaze on me.

And it was then that I knew, somehow, I’d made an enemy, and life here was going to be hell all over again.