That hurt Thomas almost as much as the loss of his pack, though he didn’t say it out loud.
I knew, though. He was my Alpha, and I knew.
MARK WAS eighteen. I kissed him because I wanted to and because I needed it.
He kissed me back briefly. I tried to deepen it, but he wouldn’t let me.
“You’re young,” he said, eyes flickering orange as if he was trying to retain control. “I can’t do this. Not yet.”
I shoved him away and stalked into the woods.
He didn’t follow me.
“OYE,” RICO said as the clamor of the lunchroom rose around us. “Look. Gordo. We’ve been talking.”
I looked up to see them all staring at me, Rico and Tanner and Chris.
I almost got up and left. Instead I said, “I don’t even want to know.”
“Yeah,” Chris said. “We figured you were going to say that.”
“So this is an intervention,” Tanner said. “But with friends.” He frowned. “A friend-tervention.”
“Stop,” I told him. “Please.”
He looked relieved.
“We’ve been talking,” Rico repeated. “And now we need to talk to you.”
“About?”
Chris leaned toward me from across the table. He didn’t seem to notice his elbow was in his macaroni and cheese. “Love.”
I hated them so much. “Love.”
Rico nodded. “Love, papi.”
“Love,” Tanner added, completely necessarily.
“What about love?” I asked, even then realizing how ridiculous that sounded.
“Your love for boners.”
I wondered then if I could get away with causing the ground to open up beneath them and swallow them all whole. I would need to act distraught, of course, and maybe even cry a little at the loss of my friends. But it would be worth it. “Rico. What. The fuck. Are you talking about?”
“You like penis,” Rico said sagely. “Like I love the titties.”
Chris nodded.
Tanner said, “I’ve got macaroni on my elbow.”
“I hate all of you,” I told them. “You have no idea.”
“Chris,” Rico said.
Chris pulled out a notepad. He flipped it open and waved it in my face. “I’ve written down seventeen instances in which you were staring at Mark with a gross look on your face. I have dates and times and everything.”
“I was supposed to be the one writing it,” Tanner said, “but my handwriting is terrible.”