Quentin

Devil's spawn. Evil. Psychopath.

That's just the names my brother uses to address me. Other people usually are not so bold when they're standing in my presence.

When I was younger, my middle school teacher once told my dad that the competition he had instilled between me and my brother wasn't good for my mental health.

I was still in my formative years and being told my own twin brother was my opponent wasn't good for the formation of my character.

My dad obviously didn't pay any attention to that advice. In his mind, the competition was good for us to develop the killer instinct he thinks all Alphas must possess.

Well, be careful what you wish for, daddy.

It's kind of a funny story. When we were younger, my brother and I were inseparable. We did everything together, from playing games to sleeping in the same room.

We were each other's best friend growing up. But at some point, the "truth" was revealed to us that we were the twin sons of Geoffrey Atwood, Alpha of the Ruckerford Falls pack.

Unfortunately, only one of us can succeed my father as the next Alpha, so he told us we'd have to compete for it.

At some point after we turn 18, my brother and I will have to fight before the entire pack. And to the victor goes the spoils. Meaning he becomes the next Alpha of the largest werewolf pack in the country.

And yes, I want it. Badly I might add. I am Alpha. I was born for this. My brother can suck it because I'm going to win.

My name is Quentin Atwood, I'm 17 years old and am going into my senior year of high school next Fall.

I live my life with a commanding presence and authority. Students fear me, teachers avoid me whenever they can and girls...

Well, who doesn't love a bad boy?

Who doesn't want a man who knows how to take charge? Because I do. I make sure people call me Alpha just so they can get ready for MY ascension ceremony.

At school, I rule with an iron fist. Respected by everyone, I crush those who oppose me. No one stands in my way. Not if they know what's good for them.

In some ways, it's like I'm already campaigning for Alpha, even though we don't vote for it.

Sadly, my brother doesn't exactly put up a good fight. It seems that as I got more competitive growing up, he got less.

I think he lost the taste for it. Or he never had it in the first place. There's nothing wrong with being a follower instead of a leader. We need these people.

But I think he never recovered from losing our brotherhood bond. We grew so far apart that nowadays we look more like acquaintances than brothers. Even if we still share the same appearance.

Some things we can't escape.

And though my father is not giving up on our fight, my brother on the other hand seems to gladly forfeit the match on my behalf.

Some people really don't develop the killer instinct.

I once choked a boy for so long, he was this close to dying suffocated. Trust me, I got it.

It's August, the last days of summer. Time to enjoy our freedom before school starts over again.

Though freedom seems like a loose concept for the son of an Alpha. Not only does my dad force both my brother and I to train with warriors, he also makes sure we learn something about pack leadership.

Because he doesn't know which one of us will succeed him - I mean, really? - my dad makes sure we're both taught and trained at the same level.

He says he doesn't want to play favorites.

Sure, dad. Whatever.

Everyone knows I'm the favorite candidate for the position. My brother doesn't even care about becoming Alpha. He'll gladly go to college with his best friend.

Speaking of friends, it's lonely at the top. So I found myself a duo of killer friends to keep me company.

Jalensky "Dragon" Dragomir, 6 feet, 180 pounds of pure muscle. He's a [not so] lean, mean, killing machine who's poised to become my Beta once I ascend as Alpha.

On the mat, he's a vicious fighter unlike you've never seen before. His family immigrated here from an European country a long time ago, succeeding where so many have failed before. They found their niche and are now successful business owners.

Owen Hathaway completes the trio of mischief. He's not built like Dragon or I, but what he lacks in muscle he more than makes up for in brain capacity.

He's the guy you ask for help when you have a test to study for or you need a partner for a project. I can't tell you how many times his notes saved my ass in school.

I never failed any classes, but let's just say my focus lies elsewhere. Anywhere else, to be quite frank with you.

Life has been good so far, but no matter how hard I train or how much I prepare myself, there's still the impending conflict with my brother for Alpha.

Losing is not an option for me. It's Alpha or death. So if somehow my brother pulls out a miracle on the day of our fight, he better finish me off entirely. Because I'm not going to be merciful.

It's just not in me. I have to win, no matter what.

I wake up on another hot summer day, ready to start my day with purpose. The sun is shining outside and its rays almost manage to penetrate the blinds on my window.

Yawning from the late night before, I get up from the bed and walk out of my bedroom towards the bathroom. But once I try to open the door, it's locked.

You'd think sharing a bathroom with only one other boy would be a breeze, but not my brother and his thirty minute skin care routine. I'm not exaggerating for effect, it really takes about thirty minutes for him to get ready.

I bang on the door loudly.

"If you don't open the door, I'm pissing on your mattress!" - I threatened him, legs closed, dying to relieve my bladder.

He unlocked and opened the door, glaring daggers at me.

"Calm down, psycho! I'm just finishing up here!" - He said, standing in front of the mirror with several cream bottles opened all over the sink.

I rushed past him towards the toilet, hurrying to relieve myself which I do, with my back turned to him.

"I don't care that you spend an hour taking care of your pimples. I care that you monopolize the bathroom. Why do you need to lock the door to apply cream anyway?" - I inquired, really annoyed at him.

"Because I'm shirtless." - He replied as if that was supposed to make any sense.

"Wow. And who do you think is gonna barge into the Alpha's house to sneak up on you without a shirt on?" - I'm genuinely baffled by this.

"Fuck you, psycho!" - He barked at me, then caps all the bottles, stored them inside the cabinet and left the bathroom.

I put the toilet seat down, flushed and washed my hands. Looking at the mirror, an evil instinct took over me and I grabbed one of his creams to apply on my face.

I swear he uses more products than my mother. It's actually not that bad once you apply it to your skin.

Later on, I get downstairs to have breakfast. My mother is finishing up her delicious waffles while my dad is setting the table.

My brother takes a whiff of me and snarls.

"Stop using my creams!" - He shouted at me.

"Hey, it's not my fault they smell so nice!" - I snickered. He growled at me and I laughed.

"Quentin, stop provoking your brother." - Mom reprimanded me with her particular glare.

We sat at the table, having a nice breakfast together as a family. I do love my parents, but my brother and I stopped getting along a while ago.

"So, what are your plans for this sunny day?" - Dad asked as we finished up.

"I'm taking my car and going out with my friends." - I replied, excited at the prospect.

"OUR car!" - My brother interjected, annoyed at me.

"Why would you need a car? You don't have any friends!" - I teased him and I can already feel my mom glaring at me again.

"I do have a friend. And even if I didn't, it's still OUR car!" - He shouted at me, irritated.

"Right. Well, I'm taking OUR car today." - I stated, confidently.

"That's what you said yesterday!" - He refuted, clearly annoyed at me.

"It's not my fault I'm a popular guy..." - I smirked.

I can see my brother's eyes glow in anger and so can my parents. My mom hates when we fight, which is hard to avoid these days.

"Sweetie, you can take my car if you need. It's not a problem." - She interjected in a soft tone, looking at us like the sweet person she is.

"That's not the point, mom! You can't enable him! He can't take possession of the car without talking to me!" - He rebuked, angrily.

My parents release a deep sigh at this discussion.

"Well, I tried. Sort yourselves out then." - She dismissed it, getting up from the table.

"See, now you annoyed mom." - I told him, who's about to pounce at me.

"If I hear any more words about this freaking car, I'm selling it and then you both can take the bus to school. How does that sound?" - My father interjected, aggravated.

My brother grunts in annoyance, fuming at me. I'm quietly boasting, pretending to be annoyed.

Later on, I arrived with my car near the waterfalls that name our picturesque small town.

Ruckerford Falls has a population of just under 25 thousand werewolves, making it the largest of its kind in America.

Being solely raised in a small town has its challenges but I like it. Even if our idea of summer fun is to hang out by the river.

Hey, at least we're not bothered here by the adults. And someone always brings booze.

A few dozen teenagers are spread out by the river shore. Some are already cooling the hot summer day in the water. Others talking and drinking.

I see my friends sitting by Dragon's truck, so I approach them, greeting everyone as I walk along. There's music being played while people talk.

"Good morning, guys." - I greet my friends, highfiving them.

"Good morning, Alpha." - Dragon replied, smiling at me. Everyone seems to be in a good mood. I love Summer time.

"Good morning, Q." - Cassie greets me, kissing me on the lips. I welcome her into my arms with a strong embrace.

Cassandra McPherson is my girl, my main squeeze. We've been going strong for almost two years now, though sometimes off and on.

She's accompanied by two of her girl friends, plus Owen and one other male friend of ours.

After the loving kiss, she offered me a beer that Dragon snatched from one of his parents' stores. There's an employee that provides him with goods straight from the inventory in exchange for cash.

It's a good system for both of them, which only increases Dragon's popularity at parties.

"It's crowded here today..." - I commented, standing next to Cassie looking at the numerous teens present.

"Yeah... I blame global warming. This summer is a few degrees hotter than the previous ones." - Owen chimed in with a concerned face. We all laughed at that statement only he could say.

I turned to Cassie and asked her if she wanted to get in the water, to which she replied:

"No, thanks. It's too crowded right now. We should have gone to Dragon's house. They have a pool just waiting to be used." - She said playfully.

"Right. And how am I supposed to explain to my parents all the beer cans?" - He countered, slightly annoyed at the suggestion.

"I don't know. Do they look at the trash too?" - She wondered, grasping at straws.

"It's best not to take any chances. If I have to explain the origin of the beers, I'll get an employee fired and then no more cold beverages for us." - He spoke with fear in his tone.

Dragon's parents are not the rich folks who summer in Europe and don't care about their children. They are hard working people who built their own small empire of chain stores all around the south of Texas.

We do live in a small town, so don't expect big city treatment. Bottom line is they care. And if Jalensky is intimidating, you should see his father.

"Besides, you can't beat the view here." - He drools looking at the hotties by the river shore in bikinis.

"You should get yourself a girlfriend, Dragon. Then you wouldn't be so thirsty." - I snickered, then he glared at me.

"Why would I set myself up for heartbreak? I'm months away from being mated. Getting a serious girlfriend now would only bring misery to us both." - He refuted, still gawking at the half naked females.

"Besides... I'm not thirsty. I get plenty of drinks, trust me." - He boasts, looking around for his next victim.

Cassie frowned at his assumption, but I take his point. There are more than 100 girls I could be paired with, between juniors and seniors. That's without taking into consideration the college freshman.

I would be very arrogant to think I already found my soulmate at 17. But what can I do? When you know, you know...

Cassie leaned in to kiss me.

"I don't care who makes your eyes shine. You're mine, Alpha." - She stakes her claim boldly, before touching my lips with hers.

"I'm yours." - I surrendered to her kiss. If I say anything to the contrary right now it would only make her mad at me. And I'm smart enough to know that a happy girlfriend equals a pleased boyfriend.

But there's no delaying the inevitable. I'm fortune's fool. My Luna will be chosen by the Moon Goddess, not me.

If there's one universal truth in life is that you can't fight the moonlight, so I won't even try.

Dragomir was about to take a beer to an unsuspecting teenager when my brother arrived with his friend.

Walking around with a basket and a backpack, the pair made their way across the shore looking for an empty spot, though these are hard to come by at this hour.

"What are they doing here?" - Dragon grimaces at the unwelcome sight.

"It's a free country after all." - I said, resigned. It's already a very crowded space for me to care about who comes and goes.

He can have fun with his freak. Besides, I'm way more entertained just by making out with my future Luna. Maybe. Fingers crossed.🤞🏽

https://youtu.be/WXBHCQYxwr0

A|N: This is the first time ever that I wrote a chapter with a song in mind that I never listened to before. I heard of it and thought it perfect for this introduction, but I didn't actually play it until I searched for the music video.

I set out to write the meanest character I could come up with. Let's see what I can do, but I'm probably too nice to write a real villain. LOL

Love,

Léo.