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Chapter 5

Ashley pov

Sadly, while my mind is overtaken by so many questions, I also can’t deny that they are, in fact, my mates. The emotions that stir within me - desire, longing, and deep-seated need to draw nearer to the trio are driving me crazy.

But as quickly as the recognition washes over me, a wave of panic crashes me. I know that revealing my true identity is not an option, at least not yet.

As I stand before my mates, a mask of indifference firmly in place, I can’t help but wonder what fate has in store for us. Will they recognize me as their mate or will they keep staring at me like I’m an alien, invading their personal space?

It pains me, but I manage to muster up the courage and force a smile to introduce myself. “Hey, I’m Ash, I suppose I’ll be living with you guys.”

For a while, they all just stand there, frozen in place, staring at me. All I can do is shift my weight from one leg to another and try to find a focus point for my eyes. Looking at them feels uncomfortable, even more so since none of them seems to have caught on who I am.

Maybe that’s for the best…

As the silence drags in, I nearly break it and speak again, just to ease the tension, but thankfully, one of them beats me to it.

“Great, so not a player, this year will suck for me. It’s not enough that I’m stuck with you guys, now we have a full-blown geeky weakling living with us. Pay up, assholes,” he grumbles and reaches for a rag to clean his.. Hockey stick?

I gulp and steal a glance at the other two. One is fully visible while the other seems to act like a shadow, looming in the darkness - someone you know is there, but you can’t fully see the person, just feel the presence.

“I said pay up, assholes, I don’t have the whole day to play games with you. Goddess must be punishing me for the shit season I had last year,” the first guy grumbles under his breath.

While I have no idea why he demands a payment from the other two, I can’t say it’s very promising. Truth be told, I would rather live alone, just lock myself in a room and pretend I don’t exist, but such luck isn’t in my cards.

As I let my mind take me elsewhere, I don’t utter a word. It’s not like I’m obligated to kiss their asses and beg for friendship, right? The only thing I need to focus on is remaining as invisible as possible until I get out of here or come up with a plan of escape.

Since it’s clear that I can’t stay around here until I graduate, I can take some time to come up with an idea where to go before I’m found here, or even worse - these men realize who I am to them, and they, the same as Kaiden, reject me.

A movement catches my eye and effectively pulls me out of my thoughts. One of the guys approaches the one with the hockey stick in his hand and hands him some money.

I don’t comment, just raise an eyebrow, watching their exchange. Funny thing is that they all look.. Somewhat similar? Earlier, I thought they look alike, but the more I watch them, the more I see just how alike they are. Could it be that they are related? Brothers perhaps?

Just as the thought crosses my mind, the second guy turns to me and flashes the brightest smile I’ve ever seen. “Hello, Ash, it’s nice to have you here. Don’t mind my brothers, they were born with a genetic disease, a serious condition of asholeness.”

I barely hold back a snort of laugh, especially when his brother slaps the back of his head and grumbles something about the hockey stick itching to be somewhere.

The nice guy, however, doesn’t bother to pay attention to what is going around him. Instead, he flashes me a sheepish grin and steps closer, offering me his hand.

“My name is Ethan, I play in a band and struggle with chemistry. You look like a smart guy, so I already accept your help with everything I struggle with from now on. There’s no need to offer, I accept the help and appreciate you,” he laughs and grabs my hand in his, shaking it.

All I can do is smile like an idiot. Ethan takes my silence as a sign to introduce his brothers to me. “The one with the hockey stick, the grumpy bastard’s name is Everett. You won’t see him around too much, so don’t worry, you won’t catch a case of grumpy. The other one, a shadow creature as I often describe him, is the oldest of the bunch, although only a few minutes, trust me, he makes his whole personality around that shit. Anyway, his name is Elias and he is a whole prick. Not a little bit, a whole lot. Like a bag of cereal full of shit. But again, don’t worry, you won’t see him too often either, he’s always out and about with his bike buddies. That’s about it. How about you tell us something about yourself? Let’s be friends, yea?”

I can’t really blabber the whole truth about myself, can I? No, that would be as good as signing my own death sentence. But other than my actual life and a few lies I spun, I don’t have much to tell anyone.

My eyes briefly scan the faces again, it’s a little sad to admit that Ethan is the only one who looks pleased to see me, which makes me feel like an unwanted guest.

Everett and Elias both glare at me as if I’m a pest in their way, the intensity of their gazes makes me shudder. I don’t feel like confronting anyone, so I just avert my gaze and mutter, “I don’t mind being friends, but I think it would be better if I found a different accommodation. I don’t want to intrude on your guys’ privacy and honestly, four people in one room has to be way too much.”

Ethan laughs, “I call bullshit. You haven’t seen the rest of the place yet, just because we stand in one room doesn’t mean that’s the only one. Each gets a separate room with a separate bathroom, so we’re good. Want to see yours?”

His words put my mind at ease, if only a little. Again, keeping my identity a secret would be way easier if I lived alone, but if this is the best I can get - who am I to complain?

During this uncomfortable introduction period, the only thing that really seems off is that the rest of the guys don’t talk. Like at all. Everett muttered a few phrases just to show how big of an asshole he apparently is, and other than that - he’s just silent, standing aside, glaring daggers at me.

“Come on,” Ethan calls out, suddenly standing at my side and throwing an arm around my shoulders to pull me closer. “Let’s go, I’ll show you how awesome your room is and in the meantime, you can tell me more about yourself. Maybe we could order some food too, you’re scrawny as fuck, my new friend, gotta get some more meat on these bones before the big bad world uses you as a toothpick.”

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