Chapter 5 CHAPTER 5

Celia’s POV

The restroom door swung shut, cutting off Krystal's angry sputtering and the crowd's laughter. I put my phone in my pocket, feeling a warm glow of victory in my chest. I took a breath, made my face look worried, and pushed the door open again.

The scene was even better up close. Krystal was on her hands and knees, gagging, bright blue slime dripping from her hair onto the floor. The pink dye had already started turning her platinum blonde hair into a garish candy color. A few girls stood in the doorway, laughing behind their hands.

"Krystal! Oh my God!" I rushed forward, my voice full of fake panic. I knelt down, avoiding the slime puddle, and put my hand on her shaking back. "Who would do this? Are you okay?"

She turned her head. Slime and glitter covered her eyelashes. Her blue eyes, wide with shock and humiliation, met mine. For a second, I saw pure hatred flash in them. Then tears covered it up. "C-Celia... it's everywhere..."

"I know, I know. Let's get you up." I hooked my hands under her arms, pretending to struggle to lift her. She was like dead weight, totally stunned. As I pulled her to her feet, the main door burst open.

Kaiden Hale stood there, his reddish-brown hair messy, his game jersey covered in dirt. He must have come straight from the field. His eyes scanned the scene—the crying, glitter-covered mess that was Krystal, and then me, holding her up.

His expression changed from confused to understanding. He took a step forward, his eyes locking on me. "You."

I made my eyes go wide and innocent. "Kaiden! Thank God you're here! Help me with her, she's—"

He didn't let me finish. In two quick steps, he was on me. His hand, large and rough, clamped over my mouth from behind. His other arm wrapped around my waist, yanking me back against his chest. The move was so fast it stole my breath. My back pressed against the hard muscles of his body. I could feel his heart beating fast through our clothes, smell the sweat and grass on his skin.

So this is how he does it, I thought, fear spiking through me before my plan clicked into place.

"You think you're clever?" he growled in my ear, his breath hot against my skin. His arm tightened, pulling me completely against him. I felt every muscle, the aggressive strength of an angry Alpha. A traitorous wave of heat shot through my body. I hate him. I hate him. But my stupid, primal body reacted to the dominance, the raw physical power.

I didn't struggle at first. I went limp for a second, making him hold all my weight. Then I acted.

I brought my heel down hard on his foot. He grunted, his grip loosening just a bit. That was all I needed. I twisted and drove my elbow back into his ribs. As he bent slightly, I shoved backward with all my strength, breaking free. I didn't run. I spun to face him, then immediately threw myself toward Krystal, who was staring with her mouth open.

"Get away from her!" I screamed, my voice bouncing off the bathroom tiles. I put myself between Kaiden and Krystal, spreading my arms wide like I was protecting her. "Don't you dare touch her! You animal!"

Kaiden froze, confusion wiping the anger off his face. "What?"

"I saw you!" I shrieked, turning my head to the growing crowd at the door. My whole act was frantic, terrified energy. "He came in here and grabbed me! He was going after her! He was trying to... to assault her while she was hurt!"

The accusation hit like a bomb. Gasps ran through the watching crowd. More phones came up to record.

Kaiden's face flushed dark red. "You lying little—"

"Get away!" I sobbed, pushing a stumbling Krystal further behind me. "Someone get Xavier! Get security!"

Like magic, Xavier appeared in the doorway. His silver eyes scanned everything with cold precision. He took in Krystal's ruined state, my heaving chest and tear-streaked face, and Kaiden's furious, guilty-looking posture.

"What is going on?" Xavier's voice cut through all the noise.

"He attacked us!" I cried, pointing a shaking finger at Kaiden. "He grabbed me, and he was going for Krystal! Look at her!"

Xavier's gaze shifted to Krystal. The pink dye, the slime—it looked like someone had assaulted her. His jaw clenched tight. Dark, possessive anger flashed in his eyes. Krystal is his, publicly. An attack on her, especially implied sexual assault by his own brother, is a challenge to him.

He didn't ask for Kaiden's side of the story. He just moved.

One second he was in the doorway, the next he had Kaiden by the front of his jersey, slamming him into the row of sinks. The crash was terrifyingly loud. "You touch what's mine?" Xavier snarled, his voice low and deadly.

Kaiden shoved back hard. "She's lying, you idiot! She set this whole thing up!"

But the evidence was against him. He'd been caught holding me in a room with a vulnerable, humiliated Krystal. The crowd murmured, their sympathy and anger shifting toward him. I watched from behind my mask of fear as the two brothers fought—a tangle of fury and muscle. It was brutal and primal. Jasper and Ryker appeared and pulled them apart, but not before Xavier landed a solid punch that split Kaiden's lip open.

Look at them. Stupid, arrogant assholes, tearing each other apart over a lie I created. The secret laugh bubbling inside me was ice-cold and sweet.

I turned to Krystal, making my voice gentle. "Let's get you out of here. You're in shock." I put her arm over my shoulders and led her away from the chaos, through the crowd that parted for us. She leaned on me, trembling, but when I glanced at her face, her eyes were clear and fixed on Xavier with a desperate, calculating look. She knows the truth. But she can't say it. Not without exposing herself.

I got her back to our old dorm room. She disappeared into the bathroom immediately. The lock clicked. "I need to shower... it'll take a while," she called out, her voice hollow.

"Take your time," I said sweetly, sitting on my bed. The adrenaline was fading, leaving me buzzing and exhausted at the same time. My phone vibrated.

A message from an unknown number: 'Celia. It's Ms. Carter's colleague. I found her notes. I heard you. We need to talk. Meet me tomorrow after third period. -Prof. V'

The teacher. She listened to Ms. Carter. A real, fragile hope—different from my vengeful fire—sparked in my chest. I typed back quickly: 'Thank you. I'll be there.'

The shower ran for over an hour. The sound was steady background noise. The exhaustion from everything, the emotional whiplash, pulled at me. I lay back on my pillow, still in my hoodie and jeans. The image of Kaiden's body pressed against mine flashed behind my eyelids—the heat, the strength, the unwanted pulse of response it sparked in me. I fell asleep with the memory of his grip still imprinted on my skin.

The next day, the academy halls felt different. Whispers followed me, but they had a new tone—curiosity, even a hint of respect. I held my head high, walking with purpose. I was turning a corner toward the library when I saw them.

All four of them. Xavier with a fresh cut on his cheekbone. Kaiden with his lip swollen and bandaged. Jasper and Ryker flanking them like silent guards. They formed a wall across the hallway.

The old fear tried to rise. I pushed it down. I didn't slow down. I didn't change my path. I walked straight toward them like they were just furniture in my way.

As I tried to pass, Xavier shifted, blocking me. I stopped and finally looked up at him. His silver eyes were impossible to read.

"Think you won something yesterday?" he asked quietly.

I said nothing. Just stared back.

Kaiden took a step closer. His usual smirk was gone, replaced by cold intensity. "You're playing a dangerous game, Omega."

This is it. Their tactic—intimidate me in a quiet corner. My tactic was different. Louder. I took a deep breath, and before Kaiden could say another word, I let out a sharp, piercing scream.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!"

The sound echoed through the hallway. Doors opened. Heads popped out of classrooms. Students stopped walking and turned to stare.

I hugged my books to my chest, making my eyes wide and scared. "Stop following me! Stop asking me out! I've said no a hundred times!" My voice shook perfectly. "Just because I'm an Omega doesn't mean I want any of you!"

The effect was instant. A snicker ran through the crowd of students. Then another. Someone laughed out loud. The mighty Hale brothers, reduced to pathetic Alphas harassing a girl who doesn't want them? It was the funniest thing anyone had heard all week.

Xavier's composure cracked. Pure fury twisted his handsome face. Kaiden looked ready to explode. Jasper's cold gaze swept over the laughing crowd, calculating the damage to their reputation. Ryker just watched me with a strange, thoughtful look in his gray eyes.

Xavier leaned down, his voice a low, venomous whisper meant only for me, but carrying in the sudden quiet. "You foolish girl. You have no idea what you're doing."

I met his glare without flinching. "I'm rejecting you. All of you. Publicly. Deal with it."

He straightened up slowly. A cold, cruel smile spread across his lips, but it didn't reach his eyes. He raised his voice so the entire hallway could hear. "Reject us? You can't reject what's already claimed."

The laughter died instantly. Confused silence fell over everyone.

Xavier's gaze never left mine. His next words dropped into the quiet like stones into water.

"You're not being harassed, Celia. You're being courted. By your mates."

My breath stopped. The world narrowed to just his face, to the absolute, terrifying certainty in his eyes.

"What?" The word came out barely a whisper.

"All of us," Kaiden added, his voice rough, his swollen lip twisting into something that wasn't quite a smile. "You're ours."