JUSTINI still couldn't fathom why Astrid couldn't see that Hunter wasn't a good person. He wasn't the type of person who should even be considered a friend. I knew she had seen me and must have exchanged contacts with him just so she could rile me up. “Yo, J. What's up? I can feel your anger from way over there. You need to chill. What's got you mad though?” Jonah asked as he put his hand on my shoulder. I was startled for a minute but relaxed when I saw it was him. “You should know only one person can make me this angry.” I motioned towards Hunter and Astrid who were still talking regardless of the fact that their class had clearly started. “This is messed up.”“I agree with you about that but we also have a class to get to.” Jonah managed to pull me away into my own class which I spent thinking about Astrid. I couldn't for the life of me remember when the teacher came in and left. As soon as the bell rang, I rushed out of class to go look for her but stumbled upon Hunter instead
HUNTERMy plan was working. It made me happy to see that despite how much Justin was trying hard to be the good guy, Astrid was beginning to see through his bullshit. He was trying too hard, when it was obvious he could never be. His attempts were pathetic and they disgusted me. He was as predictable as I had hoped. He got angry at anything that had to do with Astrid and would flare at even the slightest mention of her. That was perfect for my plans. I was going to exploit that as much as I could until it was too late for him to realize what he had been doing. Astrid on the other hand was every bit as naive as Audrey had told me she was before she left to be with Justin. Astrid trusted way too easily and I planned on using that to my own benefit. For now, I think I had managed to get her on the palm of my hands. She was eating up every single lie I told her, hook, line and sinker. It was easy to manipulate her and soon she would fall into my plans of making her hate Justin. She wa
JUSTINI knew what I had to do to get the truth about Hunter’s intentions but I needed to do it fast before it was too late. It also wasn’t something I could do on my own, I needed both Jonah and Ryder in on this with me. I stared at the ceiling and decided that I couldn’t wait until I got to tell them about it. I reached for my mind and eased my walls down. “Are you guys there?” I asked through the mind link making sure I only got through to the guys and no one else. “I am,” Jonah called back though the link almost immediately.“Did you have to wake us up this early?” Ryder grumbled but he was awake and I was glad they were listening. “Yes, now shut up and listen. It’s clear that Hunter and I hate each other. But I think I have a plan on how to know why he’s really in this pack. But this isn’t something I can do, alone. I’ll need you guys to do a thing or two to help me expose his ass. Meet me in the school’s parking lot, in ten minutes.” I waited for a response but I was met wit
JUSTIN“I am only doing this to protect Astrid. The fucker wants my mate, I can’t let him have her, J. I only just got her back. Plus, you and I both know that he couldn’t possibly be here just to be friends with her.” Ryder was already even more convinced but Jonah looked rather skeptical, his brows were knitted into a frown.“If it is to protect Astrid then I am in,” Ryder said and I smiled at him. Thanks buddy.A minute passed and Jonah still hadn’t agreed to this plan.“Look,” I started. “This is my chance to show her that he’s not friend material and to get on her good graces. I need her to forgive me and want me back. I can’t lose her, J.” The corners of my lips already started to tug into a smile from the expression I saw on his face. I had him where I wanted him.“Fine geez. You look like you’re about to hug me or some shit. I’m in…” he frowned as he moved closer, “...but I still think it is a bad idea though.”“Thank you,” I said sincerely, already backing away to head to cla
JUSTINI couldn’t do this!I couldn’t pretend to be friendly with Hunter, not when every nerve in me was screaming at me to put him in his place. But I had no choice. If I wanted to protect Astrid, I needed to keep Hunter close. I don’t have a choice but to play this game.“For Astrid,” I muttered under my breath, my voice raw. “I have to do this for myself.”I gripped my hands tightly together, trying to steady my breathing. Hunter couldn’t win. Not now, not ever. And now with this Raina girl showing up, things were only going to get more complicated. There was something off about her, something dangerous. She wasn’t just some random new student. There was an unsettling familiarity between her and Hunter, like they shared a secret and they made them both even more of a threat. I had no idea who she was or what she wanted, but whatever it was, I knew one thing- Astrid had to be shielded from it all.I saw them moving closer to where I was staying so I moved away to hide myself from t
ASTRIDA date, he said. The words tumbled through my mind, jumbled and disorganized, like a storm of thoughts I couldn’t control as I gently closed the door behind me and walked to my room. Justin asked me out, and even though I despised him, the thought of spending a day with him made my heart race. It was absurd, really. I had never been asked out before, and the one time it happened, it was him- the same person who had caused me so much pain. I hated him, that was true. I hated him for the way her made me feel, for how he had seen the truth and now wouldn’t leave me alone. He was asking me out only because I hadn’t killed his sister and I was his mate and not because he had feeling for me. It wasn’t a genuine invitation- it was just something he had to do as per his duty or maybe some misguided form of redemption. Yet, the thought of being with him, even in a purely formal sense made my pulse quicken. I walked to the mirror and glanced at my reflection in the mirror, trying to
JUSTINI stood outside Astrid’s house, feeling like my chest was about to burst out of my chest. My palms were sweaty, and no matter how many times I wiped them on my jeans, they stayed damp. The butterflies had been relentless all day, twisting my stomach into knots since the moment I woke up. I could still hear Jonah and Ryder’s teasing voice echoing in my head from earlier. “So, you are taking Astrid on a date?” Ryder smirked, folding his arms over his chest, clearly enjoying my discomfort. “Yeah, she finally said yes...” I had replied, trying to play it cool. “So where are you taking her, man?” Ryder asked, now grinning like a child with candy. I chucked nervously, shaking my head. “It is a secret,” I said, smirking. There was no way I was letting this out. The truth was, I hadn’t completely figured out whether the spot I chose would be the right one, but I hoped it would make her happy. Jonah laughed, nudging my shoulders. “Oh come on, Justin. You have been acting like a lov
ASTRIDI was not sure how to feel when Justin told me he wanted to come with me. It was meant to be a simple request for permission to leave the pack to find a witch, I had known he’d say he wanted to come along but now it seemed like everything was about to spiral out of control. His insistence on coming along with me only complicated things further.How was I supposed to find a way to leave if he was right there with me?I stared blankly at his moving lips, barely hearing what he was saying. My mind was racing. I could not let him accompany me. He might have been sincere with his offer, but I didn’t want to risk another emotional entanglement or worse, being blamed if something went wrong. Justin was so adamant about keeping me safe. I understood that he was trying to protect me, and I knew that deep down he cared. But I didn’t want to be the cause of him getting hurt or worse, getting myself imprisoned again because he got hurt for my sake. I wanted to avoid that possibility altog