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CHAPTER THREE

I had been seated in the garden for almost an hour now, with each of the guards coming to check on me at intervals.

If it was to be sure I wasn’t a criminal or to be sure I was okay, I don’t know… but it is indeed thoughtful of them either way.

The night was full and the wind got colder

But it was a lot better to me than getting crammed up inside that claustrophobia integrating space.

To spend the time, I was playing away at games on my phone. To my success I had finished a ton of levels I was sure I wouldn’t have been able to in my geography class.

That was enough reason to be proud of myself.

It didn’t take a few minutes when I heard someone coming again. I had already assumed that it was one of the guards coming to check on me once more but when the voice spoke it was unfamiliar.

“They said you were sick?”

I jolted at the sound and almost allowed my phone to kiss the ground at the same time. If it had, my mother wouldn’t give me a centimeter breathing space about my device.

“Be careful?” he said again when he had gotten close enough to where I was seated.

“Your highness” I said and rose to my feet instantly before procuring a bow to follow.

It was Blake, a former senior at my school and the prince of Adal pack. Dressed in a blue suit and his hair rolled up neatly in a donut behind his head which was an unusual look for him.

“It’s okay, please sit” he ordered but, nicely.

I obeyed the instruction and he continued from his last question “They said you were sick?”

“I did feel a bit rough earlier”

“Do you need a nurse to check you out?”

The question was a bit baffling but I ought not to be surprised. He was going to be the Alpha soon, so it was in his best interest that he begins exhibiting characters like this

“No, thank you your highness. It was just the social scene; I wasn’t ready for it”

I don’t know where in my above sentence that I had cracked a joke, but he was chuckling to it.

“I can relate… it’s the same reason I am not inside with my mother” he says and crosses his arms across his chest “Do you mind if I join you?”

Another baffling question but like I said earlier, I ought not to be surprised.

“It’s your palace your highness, I should be seeking your permission to remain here”

He took a seat right beside me on the bench and we just stayed silent for a moment. I wasn’t sure if he wanted me to bring up conversations or he just wanted the peace and quiet but I chose the silence because I also preferred it.

To avoid stuttering.

“What is your name?” he asked, being the first to break the serenity.

“Athena” I replied

“Athena…” he whispered under his voice and in an awkward way it made me feel strange in my belly.

“That’s a unique name. I think that’s the first I’ve heard in this pack” he adds

“Oh… I guess so”

“I’m Blake but I have a feeling that you already know that”

“Who wouldn’t?” I asked back but he just shrugged

“Would you be going inside soon?” he asked, this made me think he wanted to have a conversation

“I don’t know… what about you?”

“I don’t really have a choice. Even though all I want to do right now is crawl into my bed and count sheep till my eyes shut”

“Count sheep? Does that really work?”

“Nope, but I like the idiom”

His reply caused the both of us to laugh and another silence came between us again.

I looked around us to scan for anything that could cause an impeding danger…

Just kidding

I was rummaging through my thoughts for something to say that wouldn’t make me look stupid but the weather was getting too cold and the pollen filled plants around were giving off their seeds, hence most of my focus was centered on trying not to sneeze.

But I failed afterwards and my squeal spiked another conversation.

“Are you cold?” he asks, looking at me with interest. I already knew the next question that would follow up if I gave him an answer.

It’s the same question that arises anytime anyone sees me react to extreme temperatures in the pack.

“Yeah, a bit”

I saw the way he battled with himself to not ask me further questions to avoid being rude but it was already clear what he wanted to know and there was no point being silent because it was actually nothing to be ashamed of.

“Yes, I am” I added in the silence

“You’re a matrix?” he finally let it out his mouth

“Yes”

Like he had already planned it in his head, he took off his jacket and held it in my direction. Waiting for me to collect it “You might want this”

You might be wondering what a matrix is?

Well, a matrix is a werewolf breed that cannot shift or change form.

So, in summary, I have a werewolf DNA. I would have a mate, I can hear ultra frequencies, have a sharper sense of smell etc. like every other normal werewolf

The only thing I am unable to do is shift. Research said it was a genetic mutation that has affected five percent of our populace; thus, we are quite few who have this condition.

Why people are able to tell from my sneeze?

The gene responsible for shifting is also a body temperature regulator. I do not recall the explanation they gave me in my biology but I think it went something like this

‘Werewolves with the ability to shift naturally have a gene to adapt to extreme temperatures whereas matrixes would be affected by the weather like a random human would’

It was the major thing that gave me away in most cases

“Thank you” I replied as I accepted his jacket.

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