Vlad's POV
Sitting in World Government class, I watched the enthusiastic newbie teacher, a twenty-something-year-old inexperienced Lycan eager to teach us.
He used a butt load of words that annoyed my classmates. No one took him seriously, especially the vampires because all he did was ramble about some of the world's Lycan leaders.
"Go ahead with the teaching already," I groaned, tired and struggled to stay engaged in class. I tapped my pencil on my desk and didn't bother taking any notes.
"This dude is going to cause trouble," I took a sip of water and whispered to Thorne who was playing games on his phone.
"Whatever. it's not like I like school anyway. Any plans for the weekend? We're hosting another party tomorrow night at the valley. "
I slouched in the chair and was about to respond when a huge argument ensued.
"Vampires shouldn't be allowed in StoneCrest. Their king is an anarchist. He wants to overthrow King Jalen but that's never going to happen."
Everyone turned in my direction. I rolled my eyes. I'd heard worse about my father from the Lycans and their claim was becoming stale.
My dad ruled the powerful and ancient vampire dynasty. He was a just and fair King who had one weakness, invading other people's territories.
He had a huge grip on the Lycan king, Raven's dad. The only way the Lycan king could overthrow us was by having access to my dad's special scepter of authority which was safely tucked away in my dad's special room.
"These aliens want to take over our world," the Lycan continued rambling. "They have no place here."
"Look who's calling us aliens. Meat-hungry freaks. You eat organs, kidneys, and hearts. Yuck!" A vampire retorted and pretended to gag.
The teacher's lips pressed together in a slight grimace and his smile wavered. "Guys, let's keep it down. We don't have to quarrel."
"No," Another vampire blurted. "I need to clear this up. We live in a free world and we can do whatever we like. If not, let your king dare send us out."
"I live for chaos," I whistled and Thorne chuckled.
"Leave our pack and stop trying to take over our towns," Lulu, one of the Lycan girls curled her lips in disgust. "Since you invaded our pack, terrifying flies and rats crawl with diseases. Let's not even talk about the damn bats. Just go and never return."
This wasn't funny anymore. My breath sounded low in my ear and my heart beat pounded with hate for the brat.
A vampire and Lycan male began exchanging blows while Lilith, Thorne's girlfriend faced the Lycan girl.
"Lycans and werewolves are insane, stupid, unintelligent, primal, classless. All you care about is your stupid mating ritual. You're not even special because you're nothing more than animals that can shift into humans. Be lucky we are not demons or undead vampires with crimson claws who take pleasure in taking over souls. You all would have been dead if we levitated before you."
The vampires cheered Lilith and the fighting Lycan gripped the vampire's shirt roughly, baring his teeth.
"Enough already!" The teacher's reddened face pleaded as he separated the boys.
The fight became more intense among Lycans and vampires. "Come on, join us," Thorne got on his feet.
"I'll pass."
Thorne's freckled face scrunched in disgust. "Are you serious that you're not going to defend your dad?"
"It's just a baseless argument."
"Ah. I see. It's because of your little woman, right? I hope you don't abandon your kind and become an asslicker someday."
"You're not getting my point," I leaned against the desk. "Vampires and Lycans can coexist just fine."
"Please," he rolled his eyes. "That's never going to happen, and you better not take that girl seriously because it's going to end in tears. She's making you a boring piece of shit."
It wasn't about Raven. Thorne wasn't seeing the bigger picture. We were all supernaturals and it wasn't impossible to live in peace.
"Don't forget we're invading their territory. We are the troublemakers."
Thorne's gaze narrowed on mine. "I see. You're defending them now?"
Principal John rushed in screaming at the top of his lungs and separating the fighting students.
"This is gross incompetence from you, Mr. Frank!" He yelled at the teacher. "You clearly lack class management."
The teacher looked purely embarrassed. Raven turned back and our eyes met. She turned away almost immediately and I broke into a smile.
****
"Rise and shine, lazy bums!" Coach Francis blew his whistle, pushing recruits to their limits.
The coach was a mean piece of shit. His trick was, the more you hate him, the faster you learn. Our training was usually from hell.
I carried a soccer ball under my arm while waiting for my teammates. We began passing the ball back and forth after doing warm-up exercises, running ahead of the ball.
Quickly, I dribbled the ball between my teammates' legs, letting out a playful laugh as he groaned in frustration.
After about thirty minutes of practice, we took a break. I stood on the sidelines, chugging water greedily as sweat trickled down my face, and wiped my mouth with the back of my hands.
"Vlad, hi."
I turned my head quickly after hearing my name. Nova, Raven's sister, approached me from the bleachers, smiling widely and waving her hands enthusiastically.
What did this bitch want?
I took off my running shoes and faked a smile, watching her close the distance between us.
"Hi," she played with her hair and her eyes raked boldly over me, lazily appraising me with a double-ended meaning.
"What do you want?"
There was a resemblance between her and Raven, except that they had different hair and eye color, and Nova was at least a foot taller than Raven.
She held my hand, watching me with smug delight and a wave of irritation filled my body.
"I came to watch you play and maybe drink in the comfort of your nearness."
"I'm flattered."
"No, I'm serious," she laughed. "How about going to get some ice cream?"
She moved closer and my heart thundered in my chest, threatening to explode with irritation.
"No, thank you."
"I insist," her eyes dazzled with determination, unconcerned that I was frowning.
"I've got stuff to do at the… "
"When will you get the hint that I like you?" She purred. " I can't help the way I feel about you. Please be mine. "
"I'm sorry, Nova, but I don't feel the same way. I like your sister and I was wondering if you could help me talk to her," I said with unwelcome frankness.
She paled. I watched her fight against the tears she refused to let fall.
"You like Raven?" Her voice broke, and her face clouded with sadness.
I cleared my throat, becoming increasingly uneasy. "Yes, I do. You could try to talk to her for me, right?"
"And why would I do that? She's never going to like you."
"Why won't she?"
"For starters, she just returned from rehab after being caught with a male teacher. I'm not sure my dad would be so pleased to hear that she's seeing a vampire."
Alarm bells rang in my heart. Now it all made sense to me as to why that idiot Troy brought down his cock.
"Well, I'm sure that teacher tried to attack her. And even if they had a thing in the past, it doesn't stop me from liking her."
Nova's face reddened. "Well, I won't let it happen," she barked, glaring at me with burning, reproachful eyes and unbridled anger in her voice. "I was here before her. I've given you several signals for you to notice me. I really like you, Vlad."
Way not to sound desperate. She tried to touch me but I pulled back.
"Nova," I began calmly. "You're a very beautiful girl, you're one of the boys' biggest fantasies. But liking you back has to be natural. And for now, I like your sister. Why not help me talk to her?"
"Here's what I'll do," she chuckled nastily. "I'll tell my dad instead and trust me, my parents believe every word I say. Imagine what will happen when they hear that their rebel daughter is causing another mischief in school by dating a vampire. Raven wouldn't like that. She'll hate you forever."
Her tone was odd and gentle. It made my heart race. "You're going to put your sister in trouble just because of some stupid crush?"
"It's not a stupid crush," Her finger traced my chest. "If I can't have you, Raven won't. Get that straight."
She gave me a peck on my cheek.
"You wouldn't dare," I flinched back.
"Try me," she laughed and whispered in my ear. "See you later."
I watched her walk away with a cat-like grace and I groaned loudly. This was trouble.
Raven The week dragged on and I tried as much as possible to avoid Vlad despite the countless times he tried to talk to me. My crush on him grew like a weed, taking over every rational thought in my brain. Guilt gnawed away at my heart and mind. A small, selfish part of myself wanted to play my fantasies out but I knew better. We were from two different worlds and my feelings for him were forbidden. Ms. Alicia was my saving grace because she always kept a tight leash on him. "Hey Romeo, I see you've been working hard on calculating your chances with Raven," Ms. Alicia whispered to him when he bullied my seatmate and sent him to the back. But let me tell you, calculus is the only equation you need to focus on right now before trying to solve the equation of love." Vlad laughed and winked at me. His laugh was the most beautiful sound I ever heard. It was light and musical and made all other sounds seem bland by comparison. "What can I say? She's cute." My cheeks flushed and I l
Vlad I stopped walking when I saw Raven sprint out of the matron's house with her hoodie pulled low over her face. She was running so fast that she stumbled and fell to her knees, scrabbling at the stones and whimpering in frustration. "Raven, what's wrong?" I asked, taking her hand. She yanked her hand away, pulling her hoodie lower, almost as though trying to disappear beneath it. "Mind your business," she snapped, wiping away her tears with a sleeve of her hoodie. "Whoa! Easy tiger. I'm just worried about you. Tell me what's going on." I held on to her hand gently, but she pulled away abruptly, her whole body stiffening. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. "I don't need your help, Dr. Phil," Raven retorted, her voice growing snarky. "I can handle my problems, thank you very much." A gust of wind blew, causing her to shiver and wrap her arms tightly around her body. I reached out again to touch her shoulder, but she stepped back out of my reach. "You can't go in look
Raven's POV The cozy common room buzzed with activity. It was Friday evening and we were happy that another school week had passed. William and I sat on the well-worn leather couch, playing chess. Some boys and girls had their arms draped around their shoulders, talking and stealing kisses. Leaning forward, I studied the chessboard intently. William adjusted his glasses and took a sip of water before making a move with a sly grin. I nibbled on a corner of my bottom lip, deep in concentration. He countered a move while I scrutinized my options, weighing each decision with care. "Checkmate!" I clapped after making my last move. William's sour face made me double over in laughter. "You're something, aren't you?" He said softly, his eyes fixed upon mine, his gaze almost reverent as he watched me. His light brown fringe was against his forehead, partially obscuring his deep blue eyes that were wide with wonder. An inner voice whispered in my head, hoping that he didn't like m
Raven The sight of my aunt's white BMW made my heart skip with excitement. My legs sprinted into a run as I dodged a delivery truck driving in with the school's stationery. Aunt Jaela, my dad's twin, rushed out of the driver's seat skipping towards me with her arms open wide and I flew into her embrace. She showered my face with kisses and the slightly sharp metallic scent of petroleum hit my nose. No matter how many times my aunt cleaned up, the scent stuck with her even when she was wearing clean clothes. "My favorite girl," she cooed. "I missed you so much." "I'm sure you did. I'm kind of a big deal around here you know." She laughed, her hearty, wholesome laughter, and my eyes caught sight of my little cousin Tommy, sitting in the back seat and bouncing up and down in excitement. "Where's Nova?" Aunt J asked, searching around and squinting to catch her from a distance. "She couldn't join us. She's preparing the yearbook. You know she's the head of the editorial team."
Vlad Seeing Raven again made my heart soar. Her steps slowed and her lids slid over mine. "Hey," I smiled at her. "How was your weekend?" She stood on the spot, staring at me and fumbling with her backpack. Her hoodie came off, and my eyes immediately drew to her hair. Deep, midnight black contrasted beautifully against her skin, and pulled up into a tight ponytail that accentuated its length and thickness. A janitor walked past us to set up trash cans while other students hustled into the school building. "It was fine," she said with a less-than-enthusiastic tone, proceeding to walk past me, but I stepped in front of her path. "Hey, are you okay?" I asked her, thinking that I had broken the ice on Friday at the rooftop. Her mouth pulled into a sour grin. "Do I not look okay?" Irritated and confused by her tone, I took a step back. "Why are you acting hostile?" "I'm not," she responded with a short monotone answer. "I know Monday is everyone's least favorite day," I said, t
Raven I was in my coding class and, for some weird reason, my school didn't offer any AP computer science courses. Fortunately, living with Clarissa exposed me a lot to tech and ICT. So, this was a waste of time for me. When the Prof, an elderly female who looked like she would rather be anywhere else but here, pulled her canvas and began downloading a Word document for over 15 minutes, we sat in silence waiting for her. Without noticing that the file had finished downloading, she was busy with her phone. Someone tried to call her attention to it, but she rudely cut him short. "Are you going to teach me about my job?" She raised her yellow-coated eyeballs and gave an exhausted sigh. "You kids think you're smarter than us, the adults." It was obvious that she didn't care if she got fired as long as the money came in. Pathetic. We sat for a few more minutes, waiting for the so-called file to d******d while she made a phone call. "Oh," she raised her head. "I'm sorry, my computer i
Raven After about an hour of pouring over the complex math problems, Vlad tossed himself into his chair, rubbing his eyes and stifling a yawn. "Struggling to keep up?" William mocked. "There's no bed in the library, so if you're tired, you can head back to your dorm." Vlad tossed him the middle finger. Our eyes met and explosive currents raced through me. His scent was like a drug, lulling me to euphoria. My cheeks burned and I took deep, steadying breaths, pretending not to be affected by his presence. I stared intently at my worksheet, trying desperately to focus on the blurry equations. "Have you gotten the answer to this?" William showed me question four, and when we compared our answers, they were the same. I smiled, giving him a quiet high five while Vlad groaned, crumpling up his worksheets and stretching his arms above his head. "Vlad, you better not sleep off," I nudged him, secretly craving to run my hand over his beautiful hair. "I'm awake, I'm awake," he mumbled
Raven The sky was pitch black, except for a few twinkling stars scattered across the sky. The only sounds were from the crunching of leaves beneath my feet as I headed toward the dorm, clutching my backpack with one hand and shivering as a gust of chilly wind blew by. "I'll see you tomorrow," I said to William as I opened the gates slowly, the hinges creaking in the quiet of the night. "Are you sure we shouldn't have woken Vlad?" I asked him. "Well, perhaps he wants to read," he replied with nonchalance. Exhausted, I rubbed my eyes and felt fatigued in my body. Without warning, William hugged me, and with a smile on his face, he turned to leave. Feeling a bitter tang in my mouth while fiddling with the rope on my joggers, I groaned, wondering if I had made a mistake agreeing to be William's fake girlfriend. I crept inside, trying not to wake my sleeping dorm mates. One hugged a teddy bear tightly while another was snoring so loudly that the sound could make the floor beneath he