The morning breakfast siren rang, and I relentlessly busted out with energy as I walked out of the tent. It was a bright, sunny day and the feel of nature made me wish my father would be here. After a deep breath, I focused my attention on the sound of the nearby river and morning birds. It was indeed a splendid view to have wakened up to.

The morning was filled with young, energetic volunteers who rushed through the grounds filled with leaflets and flowers that dropped from dry branches of nearby trees. "Inform section 10 that there will be a delay in their roll call!" The teenage Alpha dressed in a blue security shirt yelled as he rushed past me.

"Which team is instructed to survey the mountains for today's events?" Two ladies discussed. I yawned, a little thankful for my dismissal of the training. Thereafter, it took less than five minutes to reach the main dining hall. When everyone in section one was settled, the final bell rang in the hall. The volunteers under the hospitality department began serving the guests.

When all was served, I felt a growling noise from my tummy and that made me giggle shyly. I was comfortable by myself before four girls joined my table. I heard the pink haired girl click her tongue loudly after she gazed at me.

"I haven't seen you before." The girl beside her whispered as she twirled the folk between her chubby fingers. I felt the sudden urge to change seats, but failed because of the eyes that were fixed on me — filled with anticipation to either befriend or tarnish my presence.

I rubbed my thumbs unconsciously, then swallowed hard on the spicy meatball. A little smile crossed my face as my hand held on to my warm cheek — immediately, vivid memories of the spicy wings with Noel crossed my mind.

"Is she ignoring you?" A soft voice muttered. "Who is she?"

"Uh, I'm Aurora." I whispered, "what about you?"

"Oh?" The girl who muttered earlier smiled widely. Her black, half-shouldered hair moved gracefully when her head titled. "I'm Fiona; this is Rose, Emily, and Tasha."

"Which family are you from?" Emily crossed her arms, a little sarcastic as her eyes rolled. Slowly, my eyes were fixed on the wooden table that was beautifully decorated with flowers and white table cloths.

"Hexion." I placed the folk down, ready for the usual comments that I had always received at school. Several seconds passed as the quietness filled the area.

"... Your family might not be well–known." Fiona smiled, her mono-lid eyes closed. It seemed genuine, unlike the others who giggled at her mannerism.

"In short, she's irrelevant." Emily chuckled, then snorted. "They let anyone on the VIP lists these days."

I closed my eyes, then took a deep breath. My hands shivered at the thoughts of any further humiliation. Truthfully, I being a media-addicted person and uninformed about their identities meant they were irrelevant too. With that, I stood up and walked out of the nosy dinning hall.

When outside, I heard the mid-morning events siren. "To all volunteers, immediately report to your respective departments." The calm voice echoed through the speakers. "Participants, the dinning halls, must be evacuated immediately."

I had been immersed into the announcements that I collided with someone. The short-lived bump caused my loss in momentum; as my body uncontrollably fell to dusty grounds. I frowned at my misfortune, then dusted off the leafs stuck to my short, black jeans. A creepy smile crossed my face as I mentally tried to formulate a lie.

"I apologize for bumping into you." I calmly smiled, then froze when my eyes fixed on dark brown eyes and messy straight hair that caressed his thin, dark eyebrows.

"Linyu?" I rubbed my eyes, unbelievable that he would attend such an event. "You are here?"

I noticed a cocky smirk when he stretched his arm for me to hold on to. After an awkward moment of silence as I stood on my feet, Linyu laughed. "Is the place to your liking?"

"So far, better than I expected." I paused, "you?"

Linyu hummed, then moved forward— my eyes widened at the sudden action. I unhesitatingly held my hands away from my front, still unsure of what I could do. A soft chuckle filled the silence before he pulled out a leaf from my tangled hair. "It's beautiful."

"Oh, yes!" I flinched, then moved backwards.

"I'm a little sad..." His tone begged for a clarification, which I went along with. I questioningly hummed as I tilted my head. That was all the sign he needed before he continued. "A certain girl tore my neatly written note."

"Which note?" I decided to play dumb whilst my long eyelashes uncontrollably hinted the opposite. The second siren was my saviour because before he could emphasize that I indeed tore it, I clapped my hands excitedly. "It's finally time for the events!"

Linyu frowned, then crossed his arms before smiling. "See me at the lawns near the river after the events." I sighed as I turned around, I was grateful for his father's program; and hence I had to accept for father's sack.

"At six in the evening. Bye." Without hesitation, I rushed to prepare for the hiking event.

The hiking event was like non-other that I had experienced. The joyous moment felt fulfilled by the urge to explore a new land. Although, we were grouped and led by a team leader — I was proud of the group of active participants. We were assigned the river route, which gave us access to the beautiful view of the still water as we walked up the mountains. Moreover, the riverside had shiny stones and tiny, uncommon insects that we collected.

The leader advised us to take numerous pictures to share with the media. Thereafter, we met with the other groups at the centre of Rockville camping area. Surprisingly, the place had a hidden garden filled with bright flowers and butterflies. Minutes later, Evangeline led the ladies to the Eastside, where a picnic was planned.

It was finally evening, and I brushed my hair into a high puff. Directly, I wore black sweatpants and a pink crop-top before I walked out of the tent. The bright night sky was brought to life by numerous camp-fires that lit up the site. Many danced and sang, whilst the minority coupled up.

I chuckled, then sighed as I walked toward the vacant lawns. The area was covered by trees and had stone sculptured seats close to the riverside. Lights shone dimly; which made it easier to appreciate the stars' brightness. The more I moved closer, the clearer the path toward the seated figure became visible. The rearview provided me the opportunity to analyze his black cap that covered his face; eyes focused on the stars. I slowly walked toward him, then stood behind.

"Lin—"

"Evan—"

It felt like an earthquake that suddenly cracked the earth open. I gasped when our gaze met, then smiled at the view of his frown. "Aurora?" He whispered, though puzzled by my presence.

"Hey." I felt the warmth that built within, followed by a wide smile on my face. Noel tapped on the space next to him, and I took that as a hint to sit beside him. Though cheesy as it might sound, I preferred meeting him under the night sky. "I thought, you would be busy."

"Hmm?" He shrugged, then sighed. "I have insomnia."

Without hesitation, I turned to stare at him. Then, touched his cold cheeks that slowly warmed up. "I can't notice any signs of dark under eyes, maybe stop taking coffee." His eyes widened at my sudden actions, but I was very invested to think clearly. There was no way that I would let him look like a sleep drained beauty.

"You really have a habit of touching people without permission?" Noel's hand tightly grabbed mine as he moved it away from him. Immediately, I closed my eyes as a shiver ran down my spine at the sudden realization of my behaviour.

"It's uncontrollable." I bit my bottom lip when he scoffed. "What? Don't you do things so suddenly without realization?" My pitch was higher than I intended.

He titled his head, then nodded. "If I did that, you could charge me for harassment."

"What?" I gasped, "Over a cheek rub?"

"... and hair grabbing." His soft-spoken tone unchanged as he engraved an invisible word on the stone. There was silence for several seconds before we busted out in laughter. Our voices echoed in the night breeze that caused goosebumps throughout my body. Suddenly, Noel's whispered. "Aurora, how was your childhood?"

I flinched when buried memories of my past flashed through my mind. I was slowly taken by the good old days when mother's flowery scent filled the house; the kitchen was her domain and had every meal executed perfectly. Moreover, the house was bright when she was around — despite the dark days that were filled with her cries and pleas for attention.

I heard it all, the sounds of broken glasses and her yells whenever father left for work. I noticed it, when her smiles slowly faded and were replaced by her facade. Furthermore, I smelt the fierce pheromones of an unknown alpha, whenever father was away. The numerous times that she blamed me for father's sudden disinterest were a scar of the past. I should have done something when my family slowly shattered.

"Aurora?" I felt Noel's arms as he pulled me into a warm embrace. Tears ran down my cheeks, but my cries were stopped by a soft rub on my back. At that moment, I held on to him; flashbacks of Ruby's tendency of back rubs made me giggle. If she were here, I would be embarrassed to be babied by someone else. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

From the position, I could feel the pace of his heartbeat. My head rested on his shoulder, closer to his neck that my breath could caress his skin. "It's unfair." I whispered, then Noel flinched. Thereafter, I closed my eyes whilst his scent became stronger the closer I got. "...unfair."

My hands clenched on to his hoodie when he whispered below my ear. "What's unfair?" I could have moved back, yet his unusual husky voice made me still with anticipation of what would happen next. Noel's cold fingers traced my back as he drew invisible designs.

A frown appeared on my face, clearly unsatisfied by his response. I rolled my eyes, then moved backwards; my eyes fixed on the sculptured seat. I felt the urge to silently walk away and befriend him another day. But, I had to know the truth. "Am I ... unattractive?"

I couldn't see his reaction; hence I sighed and closed my eyes. Though my head faced the ground, I imagined him irritated, which caused me to bite my lip. "I might not know what your definition of attractiveness is."

"You are doing it again!" I glared at his dazzled face, then rubbed my forehead. I shouldn't have done that, it was clear that he would be confused. After all, how could I claim to be led on by his little attention toward me? That would be funny, a girl like me only deserved to admire him from afar. "It's nothing."

Noel cleared his throat, then moved his cap lower. "It's late, you shouldn't be here at this hour." I rolled my eyes. "It can be dangerous."

"Wouldn't you protect me, hmm, Noel?" My lips stretched into a smile. He chuckled, then shook his head. Although the night got darker, I noticed an interesting playfulness in his eyes.

"I would definitely save myself first." I laughed at his words.

"Then, I might just be the alpha because I'll save you." I smiled when his dark, widened eyes reflected my figure as he gazed at. His hands slowly traced my ribbon as he leaned closer. When my hair was loose, I felt cold fingers that traced down the back of my neck. He was so close that his breath warmed my face.

"It's unfair, how you get so close and leave me hanging." He paused, "that's what your eyes depicted."

I held on my breath when his voice echoed at the base of my ear. "I d–didn't mean t-that." My breathing was uneven as Noel moved closer.

He stopped an inch away from my lips and when our eyes met, there was a sudden spark of desire. I felt the sudden shivers through my body — unready for anything further yet excited for it. It seemed that Noel noticed because I felt his hand as it gently caressed mine. "Relax." At that moment, his warm lips gently caressed mine, then smirked before he deepened the kiss. We both moved at the same pace and rhythm, his fingers interlocked with mine.

I heard a sound from the trees which made me slightly open my eyes. A figure stood at a far distance, and before I could analyze who it was, Noel diverged my attention back to him. "Mm?"

Maybe, it's just a stranger.

"Aurora." Noel whispered, then sighed. His hot breath caressed my lips whilst warm fingers brushed the back of my neck. Thereafter, chestnut-brown eyes warmly stared at mine, which made me too captivated to respond. "What's on your mind?"

My mind was clearly full of him and his scent. Wasn't it obvious? It was the milestone that I had long awaited to stand on. Honestly, it felt more of an achievement and a green light for the year.

I felt the soft rub on my hand that was previously interlocked with his. My eyes closed at the sensation, then I giggled at the tinkling on my earlobe. "Come on, stop that!" I laughed.

"Hm?" Noel twisted my hair, then smiled. "You have a pretty voice and such, adorable cheeks." He pinched both sides of my face.

"Ouch, I don't have cheeks." I pouted, then stared at the stars. I could feel his gaze on me before he laughed.

"Really?" He playfully whispered. I felt a warmth on my head, which made me turn to face him. Although the twisting feeling in my stomach made me blush, his gestures showed a different side to him. I fixed the black cap on my head, then stared at the dusty grounds.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I whispered, then bit my lower lip.

"Because you look adorable in my cap." Noel chuckled at my expression. I hadn't thought that flirting back would be so hard, moreover, I had been single since birth. "Okay, I'll stop." He raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.

The next hour was spent discussing stars and music. Noel told me how his childhood experiences with music influenced him to learn the piano. Surprisingly, he was six years old when he got his first music instructor for violin lessons. Thereafter, at ten years old, he began piano lessons.

When the conversation reached it's peak, the roll-call siren alerted us about the end of the night event that we had missed. We hadn't noticed the time, but we finally had a reason to leave the lawns. With that, Noel escorted me toward the camp fires, then instructed the guard to escort me back to the tents.

"Goodnight." He whispered in a way that only I could have heard.

🦋
Thanks for reading this chapter, support the story by commenting or upvoting.

In case you forgotten some major characters, here is a list. Who is your favourite?

AURORA
NOEL
VICTORIA
KATANA
EVANGELINE
RUKI
LINYU
AURORA'S DAD
RUBY
LETICIA
FIONA (new character)

What do you think will happen next?