James's POV

When the alarm finally goes off, I breathe a sigh of relief, grateful I no longer have to pretend as if I'm sleeping. When I stumbled into the pack house last night, it was just after two am. I had attempted to get some sleep, but nightmares and phantom noises outside of my door had me wide awake, nervously waiting for the rest of my punishment to come.

   And I almost wish it did.

  At least then my anxiety wouldn't have kept me up all night.

  I get out of bed and head towards the shower, hoping a cold shower will wake me up, Sloan opting out of that particular experience. He fades away as I get into the shower my body shivering from the difference in temperature. I quickly wash up and jump out, my system alert and my body wide awake as I shut off the water.

   I take a second to dry my hair with a towel before entering the room, checking my phone that's laid atop the desk along the long wall next to the bathroom.

  I see a text from Artemis telling me that she's picking everyone up for school, and I relax just a little. I barely have enough bandwidth to keep myself from having a panic attack, much less walk towards school. But as always, the Princess' privilege comes through. I'll have to remember to repay her whenever she needs an escort to the next tea or ball. The least I can do for suffering for the benefit of her dearest friends.

    The joke helps lifts my spirits a little as I get dressed, Sloan, stirring just in time to criticize my outfit.

   'You're dressed both like a tweleve year old human boy and a fifty year old man at the same time. It's giving twenty five year old desperate bachelor.' Sloan tells me and I sigh, giving up on the half assed idea to try to look nice without trying too hard. Instead I made an out of myself. I unbutton the striped shirt I had on and ditch the jeans, sticking to my usual sweats and a hoodie. 'So you were trying to impress someone, hmmm?' Sloan pries but I ignore him, though I'm sure he can feel, as well as I can, the warmth that spreads from my cheeks to my neck.

   'You're an annoying shit.' I inform Sloan but he completely ignores me, his sassiness and know-it-all attitude enough to make me want to throttle my own wolf.

  'It just better not be for Cody. I agree with Zee, you need to get your shit together and think about what you're going to do about Jessica. You don't know if you're his Mate or if he's yours. You just felt a spark. You don't see me getting all tripped up over it, because we're grown virgin men and we have crushes. Don't fuck with his dreams because you haven't figured your shit out yet.' Sloan scolds me and I feel myself get defensive, pain stinging after his words. Callous and rude as they are, there is something I can take from it: that I need to do something about Jessica.

  My ears pink over the unnecessary virgin comment, I finish getting ready before packing my book bag and grabbing my keys.

   Thankful that my dad goes on morning runs and my mom sleeps in, I fully take advantage of their morning routines to hurry down stairs and grab a few things from the fridge and cabinets freely before heading outside to wait for Artemis. As I stand there admiring the view of the forrest around me and the sounds of nature waking up the world, I'm reminded of me and Cody's encounter yesterday outside the pack house.

   I cringe at the thoughts that he must be having about me. I wonder if they sound the same as my dad. I wonder if he would be disgusted to see how weak I am. Disappointed in how sensitive and soft I am. How flamboyant my wolf Sloan is.

  I can feel Sloan's disapproval over thinking about Cody, still not convinced that he's our Mate. But when you know, you know. The way my heart beats and my spine tingles. I know that Cody is the one. And whenever his birthday is, I'll prove it to everyone.

   Sloan rolls his eyes, but his attention quickly shifts from me towards the pearly white limo with gold accents that rolls into the long driveway leading to the pack house parking lot. I can feel Sloan swooning, his appreciation for Artemis' status and privileges growing every time she decides to spoil us all. I walk up towards the door of the limousine and open it, sliding into the beige leather seats comfortably before closing the door behind me. I turn with a smile, a bit of my bad mood lifting- that is, until I see who's sitting beside Jasper on the other side of the limo. Susanna fucking Rosewater, cousin of Artemis, second in line for the Faerie Throne, and my arch rival since the third grade. More accurately, Sloan's, but his battles are my battles. Or so he claims.

   'James you already have a strike against you. Keep fucking with me and I'll dye our wolf fur pink. We'll see what Alex and the pack thinks of that.' He challenges, always threatening to do something that's just crazy enough that Sloan would actually do it.

   'I really hate you.' I tell him sweetly, but I'm not even on his radar, his focus strictly on the Royal Faerie that has always been competing  with Sloan to see who was the best. The only thing they haven't measured is looks, because I refuse to be subjected to that, no matter how much Sloan threatens me.

    "James." Susie acknowledges cooly, I go to respond, but I can almost feel Sloan breathing down my neck, daring me to so much as make eye contact with her. I sigh and roll my eyes, only giving a barely perceived nod in acknowledgment. She scoffs but doesn't answer, knowing that saying anything to me would just start something with Sloan. Though I swear sometimes that has to be her exact purpose.

   I see Jasper and Artemis trying to hide their snickers of amusement, the Prince and Princess always finding some sort of joy in forcing other into the type of skywards situations they endure as royals.

   It's one of Artemis' favorite things to do, and all I can say is more power to her for having the sage control to deal with this shit all the time.

  When I look out the window I see that we're slowing down next to Alex's house, the man taking forever to appear at the front door before striding towards the car. I scoot over to make room for him and end up next to Jasper, the Faerie Prince raising an eye of  annoyance before shifting over to give me more room.

   Alex slides into the limo and shuts the door behind him before turning towards Art. "I am forever in your debt, Your Majesty." He claims dramatically, gesturing wildly as he does a mock bow in the contained space.

  Art frowns, reaching for the closest thing she can find, a pen, and flinging  it  right into his chest, and from the sound of the impact, she throw with some force. I chuckle to myself at their interaction, Alex always doing what he can on peoples nerves and Art almost one prank away from turning everyone into plant zombies.

   Not that she can do that... I hope not anyway.

  'You're such coward. I would say pussy, but that would be disrespectful to my queens.' Sloan chastises solemnly, and I think about how much work it would take to try to get this wolf removed just so I could beat him and get him back for all the shit he gives me.

    As Alex settled down from teasing Artemis, I watch as he turns to look towards the left of her and finds Susie there. His face immediately goes red before he bursts out laughing, a knowing look crossing his face as he looks from me towards her. "Oh man, you Greymont siblings are ruthless. Poor man's going through enough." He tells them, but his continued laughter says he fully supports their villainy.

   "You're all dead to me so it's okay." I tell them and this time they all laugh. And as much as she would never admit it, even Susie cracked a smile, though Sloan resents the fact that I made her smile. How rude of me, I know.

   Within the next ten minutes we arrive at school, everyone getting out of the way when they see a Royal vehicle coming, humans gaping in awe from their car windows.

   We pull in front of the school, the driver getting out to come open the door for us, Supers and humans alike stopping to stare as we get out of the limo. Uneasy with all the attention I advert my gaze, cringing when I remember that soon, I'm going to be the big shot Alpha of my pack. Crazy considering I still feel like a tweleve year old kid, not an almost twenty year old about to take the reigns of life and make the world my own.

   Artemis steps in front of me and I jump, surprised at the sudden proximity. When I look up she's smiling at me sadly, knowingly. "We remember we're just kids in the strangest moments. Kids about to take over the world." She says sympathetically before walking to catch up with her brother. He looks back, his eyes dead as always, but just underneath that mask of disinterest, I can see the panic that resides there as well before he turns away and it's gone.

   In seconds they're swallowed up but Faeries and other species alike trying to talk to them and get information from them. I think I even see a few reporters.

   My temporary good mood spoils and I turn to enter the school through one of the side entrances. Hopefully the rest of the day goes better than my bitter tired morning.

✨✨✨

   The day did not get better.

  In fact, it got much, much worse.

  I got paired up with Susie in Leadership Development, I stepped into an unknown puddle in Physical Recreation, and got a seventy on a pop quiz in Econ. Not a great fucking start to my day.

   I feel my phone buzz and ignore it, assuming it's Jess texting me for the millionth time asking to see me and asking what's wrong. Usually when my dad comes around, I can be with Jess and she'll just sit there and let me talk and never saying anything. Nothing gets fixed but the truth doesn't feel so heavy in my chest anymore. But for some reason I don't want to see her, my mind too busy preoccupied with my father being back and the possibility of Cody.

   With a headache that doesn't seem as if it's going anytime soon, I make my way towards my locker where I place my books for lunch. The last time I had brought them with me, I ended up having to buy a new one for the school to replace the one I ruined.

   Not too soon as I close my locker, Artemis and Jasper appear with Alex in tow, the three talking about the upcoming tests in Leadership this week.

   Jasper is the first to notice me and gives me a slight nod. I can tell by the set of his mouth that he's not in a good mood. Know that he prefers to be left alone when he's like that, I nod on return and fall into step with Alex as they go to pass me. "What's up?" Alex asks when he sees me but when he sees the deadpanned 'I had a shit day and no don't ask me about it' look, he only chuckles and puts his hands up. "Clearly you've had a stellar day" He teases sarcastically. I roll my eyes as he walks towards the cafe entrance, opening the door for us, but just as we go to enter, Cody and the Earth Faerie, Taylor, come through the door. Cody has one hand out as if to push the door open, but instead, he slams into me, his tray of food going to slam right into my favorite Avengers hoodie.

   Artemis and Jasper not seeing what happen, continue into the cafeteria while Taylor, Alex, Cody and I just stare at each other in shock and apprehension.

   "Well this was eventful." Taylor says breaking the silence.

   Cody's face is beet red and I watch as his hands make and break fists, his fingers flexing as if in a nervous manner, his gaze refusing to meet mine. "I-I... I'm sorry. I should pay more attention, I'll help you clean it." He stammers, and I just watch him, a small smile on my lips because when he fell into me and I held him in my arms for just a second, I felt that spark again, stronger this time. And his scent, honey and daisies alluring and intoxicating though not overpoweringly so.

   "How old are you?" I ask suddenly but this time Sloan doesn't groan,

   "I'm 17?" He says though it almost sounds like a question with rhe confused tone and look he gives me. The age confirms my gut suspicion, and the last thing on my mind is my hoodie, only getting to spend more time with Cody and getting to know him.

   "Well maybe you can make it up to me by letting me take you out later?" I ask him, hoping he'll say yes. I watch as school takes over his features, his mouth opening in shock and eyes widening almost like panic. I watch as his eyes dart towards the Faerie who is conveniently looking at everything but Cody.

   He clears his throat a few times. "Actually, I have somewhere I promised to be, so I can't. Sorry, Alpha." He tells me, and though I'm disappointed, I smile and nod, accepting his words, though correct him in one thing.

  "You don't have to call me Alpha, Cody. It's just James to you." I tell him and he just nods awkwardly as Sloan hoots a laugh in my ear, teasing about my apparent lack of flirting skills.

   'Maybe another time then, I'll plan a date for us then, come sneak to my room tonight and meet my wolf and my cock. There were a lot of options and I'm disappointed that's the one you went with.' Sloan mocks, but I ignore him as Taylor turns towards us and make a move to talk.

  "It's okay, Cody, you-" But before he can finish, Cody is shoving the Faerie away, a strained and panicked smile on his face as he desperately pushes his friend away and waved goodbye to Alex and I. I stand there stunned, trying to figure out what the hell just happened.

   "Damn you got shut down son." Alex says, his hand over his mouth for exaggeration. I sigh and roll my eyes, the annoyance of my hoodie being ruined returning as Cody retreats with his friend.

   "Fuck you." I tell him and Sloan and they both snicker at me. But Instesd of listening, to them I think about Cody and how it's time to do all I can to make Cody swoon.

  Maybe then I won't feel so useless anymore.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay okay yes I know these books are a lot different than the original Fruit Series and I kind of like it that way. Scenes, characters and plots needed to mature to be able to tell this story properly, especially for the bigger picture. I hope you guys enjoy it still.

Thoughts?

Comments?

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