Chapter 41

KATHERINE.

It took me a couple of seconds to register what Poppy just did before my skin became aware of the cold liquid seeping through the dress and I glanced down at the wet spot on the royal blue dress… Lenore’s dress. ‘Oh my God.’

“Oh my God. I’m so sorry,” Poppy said in a rush, an apologetic look on her face like she accidentally did this, and she dropped her empty champagne glass on the table before grabbing a napkin. She proceeded to dab at the wet spot on the dress and it was then I realized that most of the people around us were staring. “I’m– Why’d you have to bump into me? You should have looked at where you were going.”

A few snickers circled around and I saw that those who weren’t smiling were either staring at me with indifference or annoyance. I didn’t mind the indifference because that was exactly what I expected from people like this, but the annoyance… the annoyance got to me. It was like they felt ‘I’ was the one that caused the scene and I wasn’t worthy of the attention it drew. It was like they saw me as trivial and the look on their faces reminded me of when Dean Bryman called Poppy pushing me into the pool when I couldn’t swim a trivial matter.

Just as that came to mind, I caught sight of the Dean among the people staring at me and she pinned me with a withering glare.

“See?” Poppy whispered, still dabbing at my dress. “You don’t belong…” She rose to her full height and gave me a sweet, innocent smile, before pressing the napkin into my hand as she leaned closer to whisper, “Get lost, bitch.”

I squeezed the napkin in my hand, my cheeks burning and my eyes filling with tears, while she pulled away and gave me that sweet smile again.

“Watch where you’re going next time, okay?” With that, she walked away and after glancing around to see that only the people laughing at me still had their attention on me, I walked as quickly as I could to the secluded balcony I had planned to go to before Poppy showed up. Snickers followed me as I did so and I walked even faster. Right now, I felt about one inch tall, but I did ‘not’ want them to see me cry because the assholes would love that.

The moment I stepped out of the ballroom and onto the balcony, I took a deep breath with my back pressed against the double doors and it shuddered with the intensity of my emotions. The moon was bright and full, casting a soft silvery light on the balcony and this place was a quiet and peaceful respite from inside. I took another deep breath and moved to the right side of the balcony where no one inside would be able to see me before plopping down on the bench there and letting it all out.

I hated this place. I hated these people. I hated crying like this because these people weren’t worth my tears.

I sniffled, trying to get the waterworks to stop, and the fact that I couldn’t wipe my face because of my makeup made me a bit annoyed. ‘Why didn’t I carry a handkerchief?’

“Really?” The voice came from behind me and I jolted before quickly turning in my seat to see Theo. He was sitting on the balustrade and leaning against the wall, and the reason I hadn’t seen him when I walked in was because a giant flower pot hid him.

“What are you doing here?” My words sounded pathetic because I was still crying and I felt even worse because this was the second time he was seeing me like this.

“It’s a public space,” he replied in a matter-of-fact way and I gave him a dismissive wave as I looked away, not wanting him to see my tears anymore.

“Please, go away.”

He didn’t respond to that and for several moments, the only sounds in the balcony were soft noises from the ballroom and the sound of me sniffling before Theo got down from the balustrade. I heard him walk past me so I glanced at him, wanting to watch him leave the balcony, but he stopped a couple of feet away from me instead. ‘What–’

He turned to face me and I frowned at him before he cocked his head. “Why do you let her treat you like that?”

“What?”

“Dawson.”

“Excuse me?”

He didn’t respond and my frown deepened before I realized he must have seen what she did in the ballroom and knew she was part of the reason I was crying. He’d also been there when she pushed me into the pull and when she threw a tantrum about me joining the CMES during the orientation meeting.

“What do you know?” I muttered because I really didn’t think he understood anything.

I mean, he was Theodore Falone, one of the most respected students in Blackwood. He was from Dark Moon, the biggest and most powerful pack, and though I didn’t know what position his parents held in the pack, he was in a relationship with his Alpha’s daughter. His life was pretty good.

Meanwhile, I was at the bottom of the hierarchy here so I was not important. I was the Alpha of a small pack that might soon cease to exist because of the father of the girl who had made herself my nemesis here, and said girl was way stronger than me and was a fire elemental so I’d most definitely lose in a fight against her, meaning I couldn’t exactly stand up for myself when she picked on me.

Theo didn’t understand what it meant to be me.

“You know what kind of school this is, with the hierarchy and all,” he said and I understood that he was referring to the way students used the hierarchy against each other. “Dawson doesn’t respect you, that much is clear, and the thing is…” He walked over to me and took his handkerchief out of his breast pocket, stretching it out to me. “No one will respect you if you don’t stand up for yourself.”

I blinked up at him before my gaze slid to the handkerchief he was holding out to me, then back to his face.

He was right. With the way some of the students laughed at what Poppy did, they might want to start pulling shit with me too and that was the last thing I wanted. It was easier said than done though.

Sniffling, I collected the handkerchief from him and used it to dab my tears, clearing away the lines of moisture that marked the moment I cracked, while he began to head back to the ballroom. “Theo,” I called out and he came to a stop in front of the double doors, his hand on one door’s handle. “Thank you,” I added. “For this…” I held up the handkerchief. “And for that time in the woods. I’ll return them after getting them cleaned.”

He gave me a nod and with that, he walked into the ballroom.