I shoved my headphones deeper into my ears, letting the heavy bass of a rock anthem drown out the morning chatter.

Senior year. Just a handful of months left. I closed my eyes and leaned back in my plastic chair, silently celebrating my impending escape from this hellhole.

A sharp tap on my desk broke my rhythm.

I pulled out my left earbud. Mr. Gallagher, the first-period English teacher, stood at the front of the room, clapping his hands for attention.

"Settle down, everyone," Mr. Gallagher ordered, his voice echoing off the cinderblock walls. "We have a new student joining us today."

A tall figure stepped through the doorway.

It was him. The guy from yesterday's assembly. The one who had dropped into the seat next to mine and sent the entire auditorium into a silent panic.

"This is Jude," the teacher announced.

Jude stood perfectly still by the whiteboard. He possessed a rugged, undeniably handsome face, framed by dark hair that sat messily across his forehead. A tight gray t-shirt stretched across a broad, muscular chest. He didn't fidget. He didn't smile. He just surveyed the room with a calm, unnerving quietness.

"Care to share a little about yourself, Jude?" Mr. Gallagher asked.

"No," Jude replied. His voice was a low, gravelly rumble.

A few girls in the front row giggled. The Alphas in the back sat up straighter, their postures turning rigid and defensive.

Mr. Gallagher cleared his throat, clearly thrown off. "Well, where did you transfer from? Pack affiliations? We usually need to log secondary genders for the school registry."

"I moved here with my parents," Jude said, completely ignoring the questions about his bloodline. "That's all."

Whispers instantly erupted across the classroom.

"Is he a rogue?" a Beta girl murmured.

"He doesn't smell like an Alpha," someone else muttered.

"He doesn't smell like anything," Jax added from the back row.

Jude remained entirely unbothered by the rising tension. He didn't offer a single extra detail. His mysterious refusal to claim a rank was a direct violation of the school's unwritten social hierarchy.

"Alright," Mr. Gallagher sighed, giving up. "Find an empty seat. Let's open our books to page forty-two."

There were two empty desks near the front. A perfectly safe spot next to a group of friendly Betas.

Jude didn't even glance at them.

He walked straight down the middle aisle, his heavy boots falling silently against the linoleum. The scent of rain and crushed pine needles washed over me just a second before he dropped his bag onto the floor.

He slid into the empty chair directly to my right.

Again.

I gripped my pen, my knuckles turning white. Was he doing this on purpose?

I turned my head slightly. "Hi," I whispered, forcing my tone to sound casual. "I'm Stella."

Jude slowly turned his face toward me. His eyes were a striking, stormy gray.

I offered a small, polite smile.

He didn't return it. He didn't nod. He didn't speak. He just stared at me, his gaze entirely blank.

My smile dropped. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.

"Right," I muttered, turning back to my textbook. "Nice talk."

I jammed my earbud back in. What a total weirdo.

For the next forty-five minutes, I focused entirely on the poetry assignment. I pretended the massive, silent guy next to me didn't exist. He didn't take out a notebook. He didn't hold a pen. He just sat there, looking straight ahead at the chalkboard.

The shrill ring of the bell finally shattered the quiet.

I immediately zipped my backpack, eager to escape to the library.

Before I could stand, a wall of bodies blocked my row.

Chloe slapped her hands down on the desk directly in front of Jude. Jax and a bulky Alpha named Wyatt flanked her, effectively trapping us in the corner of the room.

"Hey, new guy," Chloe purred, batting her eyelashes. "You must not know how things work around here."

Jude didn't look at her. He calmly slung his bag over his shoulder.

"She's talking to you," Wyatt growled, stepping closer.

I sighed, grabbing my bag. "Excuse me. I need to leave."

Jax shoved my shoulder hard, forcing me to stumble back into my chair. "Sit down, Omega. Nobody asked you to speak."

I clenched my jaw, swallowing the angry retort burning on my tongue. Fighting back only made them worse.

"Listen to us, Jude," Chloe continued, her voice turning sharp. "We're trying to do you a massive favor. You don't want to sit next to Stella."

Jude finally shifted his gaze. He looked at Chloe, his expression devoid of any emotion.

"She's a weak, pathetic Omega," Chloe sneered, pointing a manicured finger at me. "She acts like she's better than everyone else, but she's just a dirty breeder. She doesn't even have a proper scent."

"She's defective," Jax added, laughing cruelly. "If you hang around her, you're going to catch her loser disease. Nobody in this school wants anything to do with her."

I studied the floor. The insults were old, recycled garbage, but having them broadcasted to the new student still stung.

"Stay away from her," Wyatt warned, flexing his arms. "Or you'll end up completely isolated. Just like her. We don't tolerate freaks in our pack territory."

I waited for Jude to apologize. I expected him to scramble out of the desk, thank them for the warning, and join their ranks. That was how it always went.

Instead, Jude simply stood up.

He towered over Wyatt by several inches. The sheer size of him forced the three bullies to take a collective step back.

"Are you finished?" Jude asked. His voice didn't rise in volume, but the low timbre rattled the windows.

Chloe blinked, clearly taken aback. "We're just telling you the truth. She's—"

"Move," Jude interrupted.

Wyatt bristled, his Alpha pride flaring. He planted his feet, blocking the aisle completely. "Watch your tone, new kid. I'm an Alpha. When I tell you to stay away from the school trash, you listen."

Jude didn't flinch. "I don't take orders."

"You will from me," Wyatt barked.

Jude tilted his head. A dangerous, icy calm settled over his features. "Try it."

The classroom grew suffocatingly tense. Wyatt’s fists curled, but he hesitated. Something in Jude’s deadpan stare made the Alpha second-guess his own strength.

Jude didn't wait for a punch. He stepped forward.

His shoulder clipped Wyatt's chest with enough force to send the bulky Alpha stumbling into a nearby desk. Jude didn't look back. He strode out of the classroom, leaving a stunned silence in his wake.

He had ignored them. Exactly like he had ignored me.

"What a freak," Chloe hissed, her face flushing a dark crimson.

"Did you see that?" Jax demanded, rubbing his arm where Wyatt had bumped into him. "He didn't even release any pheromones to challenge me. He just walked away."

"He's a coward," Wyatt spat, glaring at the empty doorway. "He refused to state his rank because he doesn't have one worth mentioning."

Chloe flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder, her eyes narrowing with disgust. "He's probably just a lowly Omega too. That’s why he sat next to her. Trash attracts trash."

"Let him be a loser," Jax sneered. "We'll make sure he regrets it."

They shot me one last look of pure hatred before storming out into the hallway.

I sat alone in the empty classroom. My heart hammered against my ribs.

I didn't know what Jude was. I didn't know why he refused to speak, or why he provoked the worst bullies in school without batting an eye.

But as I walked out into the corridor, catching a faint, lingering trace of rain and pine, I noticed a piece of folded paper resting on the floor. It sat exactly where Jude’s heavy boots had been.

I bent down and picked it up.

Leaves crunched beneath my sneakers. I glanced over my shoulder.

Thirty feet back, Jude walked at a steady pace. His hands rested deep in his jacket pockets.

I stopped on the sidewalk. He stopped too.

"Are you following me?" I called out, my voice carrying down the empty street.

"No," Jude replied. His tone remained entirely flat.

"You've walked exactly thirty feet behind me every day this week."

"I live on Elm Street now," he said, not closing the distance between us. "This is the way to school."

I crossed my arms. "There are three other routes."

"This one is fastest."

"You're creeping me out," I told him.

"Don't look back, then," he suggested.

He wasn't trying to be friends. He wasn't trying to bully me, either. He just existed in my orbit, a silent, looming shadow.

"Whatever," I muttered, turning around.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

I froze. Nora stepped out from a nearby driveway, her cheerleading skirt swishing around her legs. She carried an air of absolute entitlement, a trait she inherited directly from her Alpha father.

"Nothing, Nora," I said.

She pointed a manicured finger at me, then at Jude. "You two are walking together."

"He's thirty feet behind me," I pointed out.

"Don't play dumb, Omega," Nora snapped. "You planned this. Trying to snag the new guy before anyone else can?"

"We just happen to take the same street," I argued, my jaw tightening.

Nora scoffed, her eyes darting to Jude. "Is she bothering you? I can have her dealt with."

Jude ignored Nora completely. He stepped off the curb and walked past both of us, crossing the street without a single word.

Nora flushed crimson. "See? He can't stand your stench. Keep away from him."

She spun on her heel and marched off toward the main road.

The rest of the morning passed in bizarre neutrality.

Jude took the seat next to mine in English. He didn't speak. He didn't pull out a notebook. He just stared at the whiteboard.

Nobody else approached him. The Alphas kept their distance, and the Betas were too intimidated by his size. We were a matched set of outcasts, though he chose his isolation while mine was forced.

The lunch bell rang, sending a rush of students into the hallways.

The cafeteria buzzed with teenage chaos. I navigated the crowded room and sat at my usual tiny table in the far back corner. Just me, a turkey sandwich, and a carton of milk.

A plastic tray slammed down onto the table.

I jumped, nearly knocking over my milk.

Jude slid into the chair directly across from me.

I stared at him. "What are you doing?"

He unwrapped a foil packet. "Eating."

"There are fifty empty tables in this room," I said.

"I sat here."

"People are going to stare."

Jude took a bite of his food. He didn't scan the room. He didn't care.

"Are you trying to make a point?" I asked, leaning forward. "Because if you sit with me, they'll turn on you. They already think you're defective."

"I don't care what they think," Jude rumbled.

"Then why sit here?" I pressed. "You don't talk to me. You don't want to be my friend. You don't even look at me during class."

Jude met my gaze. His gray eyes were cold. "I don't like crowded places. This corner is empty. Don't overthink it."

I sank back in my chair. "Fine."

We ate in silence for exactly three minutes.

Then, a piercing shriek shattered the noise of the cafeteria.

"Oh my god!"

I winced. Nora stood ten feet away, her hands clamped over her mouth in exaggerated horror.

Three of her friends flanked her, all holding up their phones. The camera lenses pointed straight at us.

"Are you kidding me?" I muttered, dropping my sandwich.

"Look at this!" Nora yelled, making sure the entire lunchroom heard her. "The pathetic Omega finally found someone desperate enough to tolerate her!"

The cafeteria went dead quiet. Every head turned toward our corner.

"Turn the cameras off, Nora," I warned, pushing my chair back.

"Why?" she mocked, stepping closer. "Don't you want everyone to know about your little romance? First you sneak around walking to school together, and now you're on a lunch date!"

"We aren't on a date," I said, my voice rising.

"Liar!" one of her friends shouted. "We saw you this morning! Sneaking around the neighborhood together."

Nora laughed, a sharp, cruel sound. "Jude and the damn Omega are hooking up! How disgusting is that?"

"Shut up," I snapped.

"Or what?" Nora sneered. She leaned over the table, shoving her phone right into my face. "You're a dirty breeder trying to infect the new guy. You probably begged him to sit here."

I reached up to push her phone away.

Before my fingers could make contact, a large hand clamped around Nora's wrist.

Jude didn't stand. He didn't yell.

He just squeezed.

Nora gasped, dropping the phone onto my tray. It clattered against my milk carton.

"Drop my arm," Nora demanded, her voice shaking slightly.

Jude tilted his head, his grip tightening.

"I said, unhand me!" she shrieked, her Alpha pride surging.

"You're too loud," Jude stated, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.

The cafeteria doors banged open.

Principal Croft marched in, flanked by two security guards.

"What is going on here?" the principal bellowed.

But my eyes weren't on the principal. They were glued to Jude's hand.

Dark, thick veins bulged across his knuckles, and a new scent suddenly flooded the air around us.

It wasn't just rain and pine anymore.

It was the unmistakable scent of blood.