“Ms. Brown!” I heard a voice yell, jolting me from my sleep. I looked up to see my math teacher, Mrs. Jacobs, scowling down at me.

“You may be top of the class, but I won’t allow you to sleep in my class,” she firmly said.

“I apologize; it won’t happen again,” I said, and she rolled her eyes, walking back to the board to continue with the lesson. I haven’t been having much sleep together with the assignments I have to do plus those of other people . I have no time to sleep.

The lesson went by in a daze. Before I realized it, it was already lunchtime. I had some pieces of bread that I took from the park house when our Luna asked me to throw them away.I planned to have them instead of buying lunch from the cafeteria. I make a little bit of money by doing other people’s homework and helping some in their tests, so I can use it for lunch money. But as our departure draws near, I plan to save every penny I have.

I walked out into the busy hallway. Everyone was talking about the coming-of-age celebration of the Alpha’s son, Elijah, and no one noticed me, which was a relief.

I pulled my hoodie up as I made my way down the crowded hallway to my locker, trying to blend into the throng of students.

Suddenly, Elijah materialized before me, clad in his leather jacket, jeans, and boots, his imposing frame blocking my path with an air of entitlement, his figure menacing, his dark presence casting a shadow over my small frame. I felt a sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach, making me swallow hard and take a step back.

“Where are you going, carrot head?” he said, taking a step closer, his gray eyes piercing through me with an icy coldness that sent shivers down my spine. His smirk filled with malice.

Elijah was a true Alpha; not only was he the captain of the football team and the most popular guy in school, he had a commanding presence with a strong, muscular build and a confident demeanor. His dark hair is usually kept short.

He bears the mark of leadership with pride, exuding strength and power in every movement. He was a guy every girl had a crush on, a modern-day Adonis. But most importantly, he was my bully; he, like everyone else in town and the pack, hated my guts.

One of his cronies, Isaiah, who was also his best friend, trailed behind him, his smirk mirroring his own. Isaiah was usually nice to everyone else but me; people in the pack even call him the nicest guy around, fitting his position as Elijah’s Beta perfectly.

He too was part of the school’s football team. His lean, toned physique, and athletic build speak of agility and endurance.

“Well, well, well, look who decided to grace us with her presence,” Isaiah sneered, his voice dripping with disdain. “Do you have our homework, carrot head?” he asked.

“Y-Yes,” I stammered and reached into my shoulder bag.

“I don’t like what you did with your hair,” Elijah said, touching a short strand of my brownish-red locks. I have always had ginger hair, but everyone growing up kept calling me carrot head, so I told Maria to dye my hair. But that didn’t stop them from calling me that name up until now. A few days ago, somebody stuck bubblegum in my hair while I slept in class, so Mariah had no choice but to cut my hair short.

I frantically looked and looked, but his homework wasn’t in my bag, and then it hit me; I remembered rushing out and leaving it on the kitchen table because of how late I was.

My heart pounded in my chest as I braced myself for the inevitable onslaught of insults.

“You’re wasting our time,” Elijah said impatiently.

“I’m so sorry,” I said and began apologizing.

“You worthless idiot!” he yelled, and I cowered from his anger. Not only because he bullied me but because he was soon to be Alpha.

“I need my homework first thing tomorrow; get it!” he gritted in anger before storming off.

“Better not forget it,” Isaiah said and tugged painfully onto my short hair. I heard everyone whispering and giggling; even the teachers turned a blind eye to my bullying, so I learned to take it. I learned the hard way not to fight back or tell any of the teachers.

“You rat!” Olivia yelled and almost launched at me but was held back by Austin.

“Beat it!” he snapped.

“But…” she muttered in embarrassment.

“Didn’t you hear?” Alex coldly gazed at her.

“Can I come over tonight?” she asked all slutty but was just glared at. She looked at me like it was my fault before leaving, and I knew I was in big trouble.

“What did you do to your hair?” Austin took a step closer and asked, yanking me from the ground.

“I liked pulling on it,” Alex said, he too taking a step closer to me sandwiching me between them.

“Do you get off on spying on people?” Austin asked, smirking.

“No, I was just curious; I didn’t know it was you guys. I’m so sorry,” I pleaded as tears rimmed my eyes.

“Now that you have cut your hair, you look like a little perverted old guy,” Austin said, shoving me to the ground while his brother, Alex, laughed before they left. I landed onto my elbow and screamed in pain as I watched them leave; I haven’t gotten my wolf, so my wounds heal slowly even though I heal faster than a human.

It seems as long as I was at school, I was not safe anywhere, even when I tried my best to hide from my bullies. I was used to this treatment by now; it gave me the driving force to work hard so I can finally leave this place. Because of my injury, I got a pass and went home. I walked through the town and saw big SUVs owned by the Umbral Order driving into town. In preparation for the full moon. Just thinking about it made my hairs stand on edge.