[16] Ezra: 'This Means War.'-1

Dedication: PurplexStar :) ~ Ezra Harland's PoV: "You're supposed to go and make the freaking move, you Alpha-woman!" Micajah face-palms with the most exasperated look on his face, putting the Slurpee down with vigor as he glares at Tatum down his black-rimmed glasses in a seriously pissed off manner. Tatum looks at him with a look of such blank cluelessness in response that it makes Seneca let out an agitated groan. I feel the urge to crack up and ruin the pep talk we're in the middle of-but try very hard not to as I press my lips together to prevent the grin from overtaking my face. Thankfully, no one notices, otherwise, I'd have hell to pay for laughing at the most inappropriate of times. Let me back up a second. When Micajah and I had returned after getting dessert, we had eavesdropped-okay, I had eavesdropped on the girls' conversation and had discovered that apparently, Tatum was a virgin. Yep, a real, live, breathing, twenty-year-old virgin. And then we had been-okay, okay, I had been giving her hell about it when Seneca had noticed the guy we're trying to set her up with, sitting in the lawn directly across from our window in the cafeteria. So now Micajah is trying to get her to get moving and maybe flirt with him. Although I have a feeling that that would be a disaster on its own. "Um, you mean I should go now?" Tatum asks uncertainly. "Yes!" The three of us chorus, flabbergasted, making Tatum shoot up from her seat quickly with the force of our tones. Good. She still doesn't move though, standing there in her place awkwardly as she looks at our faces with an expression akin to that of a small injured kitten. I resist the sucker part of me that wants to let her off the hook this time, setting my jaw firmly as I shove her on the elbow in the direction of the exit, "Go." She makes a move to grab her empty food tray as she reluctantly turns around-still sporting a confused as hell look-and that makes Seneca's palm fly up and meet her forehead in frustration, "Goddess, leave the fuckin' trash. We'll take it. Just freaking go." Seneca's not a woman you want to piss off. Tatum-a freakin' Alpha-to-be, might I add-doesn't mutter a word of protest and puts the tray down quickly, turning around to leave the room in a hurry. We finish the remnants of our dessert in relative silence as we spy her awkward hand movements and body language through our window, not opting to strain our senses to pick up snippets of what's being said because they're too far and Tatum would give us a word-by-word run down when she's back anyway. "And to think she's an Alpha . . ." Seneca grumbles under her breath as she looks at something Tatum just did and Micajah throws his hands up in agreement. I was giving my sole focus to my cupcakes, so I had missed whatever it was. "Speaking of Alphas . . ." I mutter, feeling my face heat up slightly at my own reminder of the very public hug I'd given Nyah yesterday, "Tell me some ways I can prank my Mate, guys. Seriously, I need to get back at her." "Wait-back the fuck up, did you just blush?" Micajah removes his glasses and wipes them on the edge of his tee frantically, putting them back on and blinking at me rapidly. "Yeah!" Seneca chimes in, eyes wide, "Paige told me playfully that you were doing some nosebleed-worthy stuff in the hallway yesterday but I didn't believe her-not because you wouldn't, but because Nyah wouldn't touch you with a ten-foot pole. Looking at you though . . ." She narrows her dark-grey eyes the color stormy clouds, her expression dubious. "W-What?" I sputter, laughing at her words, "Nosebleed-worthy!? I did no such thing!" "Then what did you do?" Micajah raises his pale blond brows, smirking. "We just hugged." I look down nonchalantly at the table and pick up my phone from beside my tray just to give my hands something to do. "Ooooh, a hugggg-wait, just a hug?" He exclaims in shock and I shoot him a glare. "Excuse me, it's none of your business but FYI, it was quite a long hug," I inform him, thoroughly offended. "Looks like someone just got offended," Seneca says in a sing-song voice, and I roll my eyes at the two of them. "You two are of no use. I'll come up with a prank myself." I roll my eyes and stand up to leave because lunch hour is coming to a close, and I have to do something before the end of the day. The stupid test I'd had this morning had taken up all my time last evening and I had crashed in exhaustion after I was done studying, which in turn had made me forget to set my alarm and almost late for class today. Thankfully since I'm a light sleeper, Seneca and Micajah's pattering around in the next rooms had roused me. This is exactly why I had hated college. 'But we met our Mate here, so shut the fuck up,' My Wolf growls, and I promptly agree. "Wait, wait!" Micajah laughs as he grabs my forearm, jolting me back from my thoughts as he forces me to sit back down with a firm shove that surprises me-because that's some good strength there if you ask me. His inner Alpha-Wolf is showing very well these days. "What?" "Tell us more about 'the hug'," He makes air-quotes, pissing me off even more. "Nothing to tell," I shrug, smiling saccharinely. "Fine, who initiated it?" Seneca places her arms on the table, resting her chin on her palm as she gives me a curious, inquisitive smile. "I did," I can't help but smile at the memory of holding her, the way she fit so perfectly in my arms like she'd been made to stay there, and how good it had felt. 'She was, you dumbass.' My Wolf growls again, and I have to agree once again. She definitely was. "Oh, man! You're so whipped! Look at that smile!" My brother laughs in an almost baffled manner, leaning closer to his Mate's side to wrap an arm around her, "Seriously! Our little Beta has grown up!"