13

New student.

Henley

Parker lets go of my hand when we arrive at school. We're still in the parking lot, but I am hit with an overwhelming amount of voices. My head spins, so I stay in my seat, knowing if I tried to get up, I would end up falling. Since Parker likes opening the door for me, he smiles when he opens the door.

"You usually don't wait," he says. "Even though you should wait for me every time."

But his smile quickly fades as he takes in my appearance. I'm sure my face is pale. He reaches his hand to mine and the moment our skin touches, I'm hit with a soothing calmness that only my soulmate can provide.

"What's wrong?" His eyebrows furrow as he studies me cautiously.

"Loud." I take a deep breath, calming my racing heart. "I'm better now."

"It usually doesn't bother you when we're outside." His lips turn downward and he looks between me and the school. I know him well enough that I can tell he's considering leaving.

I shake my head. "We can't leave. I skipped yesterday. And we missed three days last week when we went to the dragon's island. If I skip much more, I'm not sure I'll be able to graduate."

He leans closer to me. "I will compel whoever I need to. Don't worry, Henley. You will be graduating." He sighs. "I will be talking to my father about homeschooling again. At the very least, you should be homeschooled."

I shrug. "And be home without you, Will, or Blaine to entertain me? No thanks. I see you little enough already. The rides to and from school are the highlight of my day."

"Henley." He growls out my name and leans forward to give me a quick kiss on the lips. "You're maddening, you know that?"

My lips tip upward. "And you think being mated to an alpha is that much easier?"

He snorts. "Fine, fine. Let's go inside. But I will not allow it to get as bad as it did yesterday. The moment you even get the slightest twinge of a headache, we're leaving."

I frown but nod.

Parker may be an alpha, but he's also my mate. I know he only wants what's best for me. If our roles were reversed, I'd probably be just as protective as him.

Parker puts my backpack over his shoulder and holds my hand as we head toward the front of the school. Others still turn to look at us though nobody is surprised to see us holding hands. They've seen us kiss in the hallway too many times to be shocked. All the humans know that Parker and I are dating. If only they knew that we're more than just ‘dating.' We're forever.

A wolf sees us coming, so they hold the door open for us. The younger guy bows at Parker and Parker nods back.

The humans refer to the wolves as the ‘Beautiful Clique.' They've long since gotten used to the weirdness of the pack, especially considering the pack has gone to school with the humans since kindergarten. But it doesn't stop the humans from wishing they could be a part of the group. They don't realize that we're different in more ways than they can imagine.

"Why don't supernaturals tell the humans the truth?" I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear with my free hand as Parker leads me toward my locker.

Parker shrugs. "I don't know. I guess because humans would likely panic. And even though supernaturals are numerous, humans still outnumber us."

"How many supernaturals are there?" I ask, curious.

"A lot. Probably a few hundred million, but compared to the billions of humans, it's minuscule." He raises an eyebrow at me. "And other supernaturals don't come back to life."

But we don't know how many times I can come back to life before I won't anymore. We don't know much about me or my species. It's not something I wish to test either.

When we get to my locker, Will is waiting for us. Since I have my first two classes with him, he always meets up with Parker before class begins to get updates from him. For the first time in a long time, Will smiles when he sees me. I let out a breath of relief when I see that he's not scowling. I guess our talk yesterday really did help.

"Hey, Will." I lift my free hand to wave at him.

Parker eyes him warily. "You're smiling. Should I be worried?"

Will rolls his eyes at Parker. "You're paranoid."

"Sure." Parker narrows his eyes but nods. "I don't care why you're in a good mood. It's a nice change. Henley doesn't need your snark, especially today."

Will squares his shoulders. "Why especially today?"

"She was overwhelmed even from my Jeep." Parker frowns. "I'd take her home now, but she's being stubborn."

Will turns to me, looking like he wants to argue for me to go home.

I shake my head. "I can't just skip. Besides, how am I supposed to learn how to block the voices if I stay home?"

Parker narrows his eyes. "I hate when your argument makes sense."

I beam up at him. "Get used to it. I plan on winning lots of arguments."

Will laughs. "Good luck with having her as your mate."

But even I can see the amused light in Parker's eyes. He grins as he looks down at me. "Come on. I'll walk you to class."

I don't argue because I'll take any excuse I can to spend more time with Parker.

Will is behind us as we walk to class. I soak in the feel of my hand in Parker's. His hand is so much larger than mine and my fingers feel so small laced between his. The contentment that I feel in my chest when we touch will never get old. I imagine when we're old, it'll still feel exactly like this. Better, even. Because then, we will have years of memories to go with the feelings.

I almost feel bad for supernaturals who don't meet their soulmates in high school. We may have longer to wait until we can complete our mate bond than older supernaturals do, but we also get to have memories of high school together.

When we get to class, Parker bends down and kisses me softly on the lips. Will sighs heavily behind me, but I ignore him as I kiss my soulmate.

"If you need me, I will come. Just tell Will, okay? Don't try to hide anything." Parker gently touches me. He pushes a strand of hair behind my ear, making me shiver.

The feelings I have for this guy…

He turns to leave, so Will steps up beside me. The voices are loud, but I'm prepared for the loss of contact.

"You okay?" Will inquires, watching me carefully.

I nod. "I'm fine."

He nudges me toward the classroom. "Good. Let's go inside so you'll stop drooling over your soulmate."

I shoot him an annoying look, but I allow him to lead me into the room. We take our usual spot at the back of the room. I notice groups of people talking excitedly to one another. Their thoughts are exceptionally loud today.

I rub a hand at my temples, hoping to ward off the oncoming headache.

"Are you okay?" Will asks.

I shoot him a glare. "You asked that five seconds ago."

"Yeah, but you didn't look this pale five seconds ago."

"It's fine. I'm okay." I wave a hand at him.

As the teacher begins class, the voices lower to a dull roar. That is when I can finally understand what everybody is thinking about.

…new student…

…so hot…

…wonder if…

He probably…

…where?…

…cute…

My head spins and I can't focus at all on the lesson, but I am able to stay upright at my desk.

I just need to make it through two classes. Then, I can be with Parker. He'll help block the noise.

I breathe through my nose and slowly exhale.

A piece of paper lands on my desk.

Are you sure you're all right?

My hand shakes as I reply.

No, but I'll be okay.

Will frowns as he reads the words, but he doesn't push me. And when Parker doesn't come barreling into the room, I relax.

The new guy is so cute. I hope the beautiful clique doesn't adopt him like they did Henley.

I wonder if he has a girlfriend.

There is a new student? How did I miss that? Then again, how would I know? It's not like I ever talk to anybody outside the pack. Not that it matters—whoever the new student is, they're human. Like Parker always says, humans aren't in the same world as us.

When the bell rings to signify the end of class, Will and I head to second period together. He keeps one hand on my lower back, but before we can walk into class, he tugs me to a stop.

"Your nose is bleeding." Will's entire body tenses up.

I reach into my backpack and grab a tissue, putting it to my nose. "Sorry."

He rolls his eyes. "Don't apologize for things you can't control."

I wipe my nose and grab another tissue. "But I should be able to control this."

He doesn't say anything—likely because he knows I'm right. I should know how to control my powers.

But how am I supposed to learn about my powers when I come from a supposedly extinct species?

"Do you need help?"

I turn at the familiar voice and stiffen when I see the phoenix approach us.

Will takes a step forward, half putting himself between me and the phoenix. But the phoenix doesn't even glance at Will. His focus is solely on me.

"I can help, you know," he says. "I can teach you how to block out the voices."

I look at him, noticing how normal he looks. On my first day of school, I was puking in a trash can. But he looks perfect.

Does he really know how to block the voices?

"I don't need your help," I say, through gritted teeth.

He nods to my nose. "If you want to keep having nose bleeds, be my guest."

"Real nice," Will says through gritted teeth. "I can see why history wrote such kind things about your species."

The phoenix isn't at all effect by Will's attitude. He just chuckles, keeping his attention on me. "I see the wolves treat you well."

It's not hard to hear the sarcasm in his voice.

My head spins, so I lean against Will for support. Before he can ask me if I'm okay, I spot Parker rushing down the hallway toward us. He nearly knocks into the other phoenix to get to me. He pulls me into his arms and the moment our skin touches, I sigh at the relief.

Parker pulls back just enough to look at me. "Are you okay?"

"I am now." I let out a breath of relief. "Thanks for coming."

"I will always come for you," he promises.

The phoenix clears his throat, once again bringing my attention to him. But with Parker now holding my hand, the phoenix's presence doesn't bother me quite as bad.

"Can I help you?" Parker asks, his voice is deceptively calm. But I swear I can almost taste his anger as it seeps out of him.

"No." The phoenix scoffs at Parker, looking at me once again. "But I can help you."

Parker growls deep in his throat. "The only way you will be helping her is if I am by her side the entire time."

The phoenix stiffens. "I won't be around a disgusting wolf shifter."

Parker stands up straighter. ."And I won't allow my mate and the future luna of the pack to be around an unknown phoenix without protection."

He furrows his brows. "Mate? No. Impossible. Phoenixes don't have soulmates."

"Well, I do." I stubbornly set my jaw. "And Parker is right—I won't be around you unless he's there too. I'm sorry, but I don't know you well enough to trust you."

"But you trust a pack of wolves?" He wrinkles his nose in disgust as he looks between Will, Parker, and me. "Do you know none of our history? Wolf shifters led the charge against our species long ago. They're the ones who convinced the other supernaturals to hunt us down to what they thought was extinction. But we will be strong again. The wolves will regret what they did to us."

Parker and Will both growl.

I stand between the two wolves, making my stance clear. "My dad is a wolf shifter, and these guys are my pack. Parker is my soulmate. Nothing you say is going to change my mind. Our long forgotten history doesn't matter."

"You will regret that, Serephina." His eyes seem to glow with his threat.

"My name is Henley," I say through gritted teeth. "My parents abandoned me so it doesn't matter what they wanted to name me. They must have wanted me raised away from the rest of the phoenixes or they never would've dropped me off at that hospital."

And just like that, I can forgive my parents for what they did. It must've been for a reason. And I was raised by the best man for the job. Dad may not have been perfect, but he loved me.

The phoenix turns and stomps down the hallway, toward the exit. Parker and Will both stay at my side until he disappears. Will backs up, looking at Parker and me.

"What are we going to do about that?" Will asks.

Parker sighs, rubbing the back of his head. "I think we should talk to my dad about what happened. I don't think he's going to let that go."

I don't either, but I don't voice my concerns aloud. I will trust Parker and his dad to take care of things.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Will offers.

Parker nods. "Blaine, too."

A moment after he says that, I spot a blond walking toward us. He has his signature smirk on as he approaches.

Once, I thought of Blaine as a major flirt—and he is—but he's also really sweet and sensitive. Despite the fact that half of the things out of his mouth are flirtatious, he's never dated anybody before. He's waiting for his soulmate, a fact that I'm certain the woman who is mates with him will appreciate.

Parker puts his arm around me and pulls me close to his side as he leads me from the school. Will walks in front of us, vigilantly looking around, and Blaine walks behind us. I feel safe with the three of them protecting me. I know that they're the strongest members of the pack, as Parker will take over as alpha one day, and Blaine and Will are his betas. I don't understand a lot about pack dynamics, but I do know the alpha and betas are the strongest members of the pack.

Will and Blaine get into the backseat of Parker's Jeep. I know for a fact that the two of them drove their own cars, Will's car is parked right beside Parker. But I'm sure somebody will bring them to get their cars later.

On the drive home, Parker holds my hand. Part of me wishes I could know what he's thinking right now. I can almost feel how worried he is, which I know is a mate thing, but it isn't supposed to happen until after the mate bond is completed.

"Are you okay?" Parker asks.

I nod, turning to look at him. "I'm fine. I'm not worried—not when I'm with you."

He squeezes my hand.

Being with Parker isn't the problem. It's the times when we're apart that is the problem. I don't know how I'm supposed to sleep at night after the phoenix's threat earlier, especially since I'm not sure how strong phoenixes are. For all I know, I've only scratched the surface of my power.

When we arrive at Parker's house, we walk right inside and head for Mr. Thorne's office. I'm not surprised to see him waiting for us at his desk. A middle aged man stands behind him, and I recognize him as the current beta. I know Mr. Thorne used to have two betas, much like Parker, but my dad was his second beta. Since my dad left the pack for twenty years, he won't be given back his position.

Mr. Thorne motions for the four of us to sit down and he gets right down to business. "You said the phoenix approached Henley at school. What happened?"

Parker and I sit down across from him. As soon as we're sat down, Parker laces our fingers together. Will sits on the other side of me and Blaine stands by the closed door.

"I was with her." Will leans forward as he addresses his alpha. He then goes into the story of what happened—including my bloody nose and how difficult school was for me. Mr. Thorne gives me a sympathetic look but listens diligently to the rest of the story. Parker takes over from the point where he showed up, making sure to mention the threat.

Mr. Thorne leans back in his chair, sighing heavily. "There is nothing we can do about him going to school—pack land doesn't extend to the town."

"Dad, maybe it's time to consider homeschooling for the pack—at least for Henley." Parker gives his dad a pointed look.

Mr. Thorne nods. "Not for the whole pack and not all at once. It would draw too much attention to the pack if we did that."

Parker starts to argue.

Mr. Thorne holds up his hand. "But I do agree with you that Henley doesn't need to be at school any longer. It's clear that it's too much for her to handle. She doesn't have enough control of her powers to be there. And with the threat of the phoenix, it's a risk the pack simply can't take."

Parker sighs, leaning back in his chair. The relief is clear on his face. "Good. So, what are we going to do?"

"I will pull you, Blaine, and Will from school for the time. Henley is going to need around the clock protection. I will talk to her father—he works too much for her to be safe at her own house. She'll move into our spare room." Mr. Thorne gives Parker a pointed look. "The two of you will not be alone behind closed doors. It's not that I don't trust you, I do. But I know the temptations. You two love each other, but you're not married yet."

My cheeks grow warm.

Parker growls. "Dad."

Mr. Thorne chuckles. "I can't imagine the mate bond while I was still in high school. Girls held very little interest to me back then. But when your mother and I found out we were mates, waiting two weeks to marry her felt like torture."

I sink a little in my chair, not wanting to hear about this.

"Do we really have to hear about this?" Parker groans. "It's so gross, Dad."

Mr. Thorne, still smiling, shuffles some papers on his desk. "All right, all right. Let's get down to business. We need Henley to have protection with her at all times."

Parker sits up straighter. "I will protect her. I will not leave her side."

"You will certainly be with her often, yes, but you do have alpha duties to attend to," Mr. Thorne says, leaving no room for argument. "When you are not with her, either Will or Blaine will be. But I will also have wolves guarding the house. He won't get within a mile of here without us knowing."

I chew on my lip. "Not to undermine what you're doing, but he can teleport. If he wants to get to me, it would be easy for him to teleport directly to where I am."

Mr. Throne shares a look with his beta. I don't know him well enough to know what he's thinking, but I don't like the look.

"The powers of a phoenix are certainly a problem." Mr. Thorne rubs at the back of his neck. "I'm beginning to understand why phoenixes were so feared. They seem unstoppable."

"And then there is the whole cheating death thing," Will pipes up.

Parker glares at him.

Will grins at me. "Sorry, Henley."

I wave a hand. "It's okay. It's not a big deal."

"It is a big deal," Parker insists. "I don't want anybody to think of you as a threat. I couldn't stand it if something were to happen to you."

I squeeze his hand, not sure what to say to comfort him.

"Let's worry about the current situation for the time," Mr. Thorne says. "Henley is right that the phoenix could just teleport at any moment and try to harm her. It just means we will have to be extra diligent. I have made a pack wide announcement about what Henley is and everybody knows about the rogue phoenix that has been sneaking around pack land. We will make sure everybody is very aware of the danger. We won't take any risks when it comes to her safety. Henley is the future luna and the pack won't take her safety lightly."

My heart thumps a little faster at the mention of my future title as luna of the pack. I know that being mated to Parker means that one day, I will rule at his side, but the thought is a little daunting. I don't feel like I could lead anybody.

Will they really want me, a phoenix, to help lead them?

"Dad, I should be with her at all times," Parker says. "I know that I have duties as alpha, but can't I just bring her with me?"

Mr. Thorne gives him a pointed look. "Sometimes, yes. But you can't always be there."

Parker sighs in defeat, thumping back in his chair.

"We'll keep you safe." Blaine takes a step closer to my back. "Don't worry, Parker. We've got her."

And I do feel safe. With Parker, Blaine, and Will protecting me, I'll be the safest supernatural alive. Nobody will be able to get through their defenses, not even a teleporting phoenix.