Book 8 Part 10

Book 8 Part 10
I could hear the murmurs from the other side of the classroom as Rick and his friends talked about the girl. She had an odd scent to her but I got the idea that she was used to the whispers. Something about realizing that fact didn’t sit well with me.
“Was your mom too busy mopping our floors to drive you to school?” Rick called from the back and a few people laughed as her head went even lower.
“That’s enough, Mr. Jackson,” the teacher said as the laughter died down.
“Asshole,” Miss Charles muttered and I smiled at that.
The day passed swiftly, although Miss Charles, whose name I didn’t know and the other girl whose name I also didn’t know were in most of our classes. Rick and his friends only shared English with us and I was glad because I didn’t like him and I knew that sooner rather than later we’d be meeting with our fists.
We were walking towards the cafeteria when we heard Rick’s voice and a grunt coming from the hallway where the lockers were. Slade and I both stopped in our tracks and turned back. I hated bullying and Slade could sometimes lose his whole personality over it.
“I see you’ve slept in your clothes again,” Rick said to a boy as he pushed him up against the lockers.
I could see that he had potential as a fighter, but he probably didn’t train enough. He was a wolf as was Rick and his friends, the difference being that Rick was part of a pack and the boy wasn’t. We walked closer to them and one boy glanced in our direction and whispered something to Rick.
“Let him go,” Slade said.
“Or what? You’ll make me?” Rick asked.
“Yes,” Slade said and looked at him.
Rick grabbed a hold of the boy’s collar and threw him against the floor ripping his shirt as Slade grabbed Rick and pushed him away from the boy. Rick lost his balance and skidded over the smooth floors.
“Motherfu…..” the boy began as he jumped up and looked down at his shirt.
“Easy there, killer,” I said and stepped in front of him.
“Big mistake, asshole,” Rick said as he stood up and they walked past us to the cafeteria.
“Bastard took my lunch money,” the boy said, looking somewhat defeated.
“Come on, we'll buy you lunch,” I said to him and he turned towards me.
“You’re an Alpha,” he said in a whisper and Slade nodded.
“What’s your name?” Slade asked him.
“Leon and you do realize that I’m a lone wolf, hence the bullying,” he said.
“We don’t care,” Slade said and put his arm around Leon’s shoulder as we walked into the cafeteria. Slade’s friendly demeanor confused Leon, but I already knew that things were about to change.
We got our lunch and sat down at an unoccupied table and Slade started his interrogation as Leon wolfed his food down. I got the impression that he probably only ate once a day. His clothes were old but clean and I could tell that money wasn’t something he was used to. 
“So why aren’t you in Rick’s pack? What’s the deal with him?” Slade asked Leon.
“Our pack was small and I barely escaped when rogues attacked us,” Leon said.
“Leon, are you all alone out there?” I asked him and he nodded.
“I get some odd jobs now and then, it pays for a night at a motel, school fees and keeps my bike on the road,” he said. “How are you an Alpha at your age?”
“Slade…” I said and he looked at me.
“Yeah, I agree,” Slade said before I could finish my sentence.
“What?” Leon asked as we both looked at him.
“Join us for dinner tonight, then we’ll talk,” I said to him as the bell rang and we all headed out of the cafeteria.
“I’m never saying no to dinner,” Leon said with a smile as we walked to class.
I had History alone and there were two empty seats at the back of the class. I got a lot more stares as I sat down and opened my books. I stared out of the window as I realized that we had already covered this back in Scotland.
“Hey, I’m Melissa,” a girl next to me said.
“Hey,” I said as she smiled at me.
“You shouldn’t start on the wrong foot with Rick, he’s the leader here,” she whispered and I just looked at her.
“He’s an asshole,” I said to her.
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she said and stood up as the bell rang.
I already knew that I’d never be friends with Rick. He was self-centered, cocky and he really believed his status as future Alpha gave him an edge over everyone else. I wanted to shove my fist down his throat and make him whimper with the strength of my aura.
Kai had spoiled us, yes. We were also taught respect and that the Alpha worked for the pack, not the other way around. Your role as an Alpha was to care for everyone weaker than yourself. Their welfare came first and there was no way Kai would eat, knowing that someone in his pack was starving.
I hated Rick for thinking he was better than Leon. Leon had fallen on hard times, things that were out of his control, but that didn’t make him any less important than anyone else.
After school, Slade and I waited by our bikes for Leon and I saw that he had parked close to us. Rick and his friends stood next to two BMW’s. I turned around suddenly and saw the girl I only knew as Miss Charles as she headed down the sidewalk looking down.
“Leon!” Slade called as he came through the front doors. Leon looked up and smiled when he saw us.
“So you guys were serious?” Leon asked and Slade shook his head.
“Come on, keep up if you can,” Slade said as we got on our bikes and Leon laughed.
Leon followed us home and he did keep up. We drove the bikes into the garage and Leon parked next to Slade as he looked at the house from the outside.
“You guys live here?” he asked in amazement.
“Perhaps you will too,” I said as he followed us inside.