JAY

Glad to be done with his conversation with Riley and Mia, he walked to his English class, anxious about the rising problems everywhere he looked. But he was equally interested to see if he shared this class with Sydney. To pass the time, he gazed out the window beside him and distracted himself with the questions flying through his head.

'What will I tell Sydney if the bond between us strengthens? 'Hey, I'm a werewolf. You're my mate even though you're human. I don't know how it happened but it did. So, do you mind going on a date with me?''

'Now you are accepting her?' The wolf asked.

'No.You know I don't believe in blindly allowing fates to tell me who I should end up with. I was just thinking-'

Their conversation was cut abruptly in his mind as the sound of giggling of girls coming through the door. Without looking, Jay could practically feel her presence wafer into the room.

Looking up Jay saw Sydney walking in, an older film camera slung over her shoulder, and a laptop cradled to her chest. Beside her was the girl who drove the car from last night's prank. And walking behind the pair of girls was none other than Mat.

"You guys really did that!?" Mat questioned.

"You betcha!" Sydney answered chipperly, glancing back at him to keep him looped into the conversation. The three, along with two others, gathered at the front of the class, standing near the teachers desk, talking amongst themselves.

He shook his head disapprovingly at the two. "Damn girls. I better make sure I never get on your bad side." Mat said chucking.

"Oh Matty! You're never on my bad side," Sydney childishly bumping into him.

Mat rolled his eyes and shoulder bumped her back.

'Touch her again and see what happens!' Jay's wolf yelled.

'Calm down.' Jay said watching the trio like a predator to see what would happen next—if anything.

"Well you better watch it Matty, because you're always on Meg's bad side and Meg's the really evil one." The other girl with crazy brown hair said.

Mat smiled sheepishly back at her.

"Well, Meg has her reasons...Actually, nevermind, I take back what I said Mat, you piss me off when you eat my tater tots at lunch!" Sydney yelled punching him in the muscle of his upper arm.

His hearty laugh rang throughout the room before he commented, "Well it's payback for you stealing my M&M's!"

"Still think you two would be an awesome couple." Curly haired girl said with a tisk at the end, cradling her binder to her chest.

Jay felt his breath haltered at that statement.

Sydney! Tell her that you two would not be a good couple! Jay thought, unsure if it was his own thoughts or his wolf's.

Sydney and Mat looked at each other and Jay's stomach rolled uncomfortably.

What is this feeling?

But then they did something that totally caught Jay off guard. They broke into laughter.

Sydney placed a hand on her chest while Mat hunched over a desk laughing out tears. Jay's mate took in deep breaths before looking to her friend. "Funny, Em, very funny."

"Emmery, you make the best jokes, I swear." Mat sighed whipping a tear away.

'Thank god.' Jay thought to himself. 'Wait what was I expecting? Them to look into each others eyes and admit their undeniable love to one and other and make out at the teacher's desk? Jesus! What's wrong with me?!'

'He'd better keep his hands off our woman if he knows what's best for him.' The wolf warned.

The first period bell rang and in rushed the teacher, a mess of folders and a rolling cart behind her filled with more class papers, and what looked to be her lunch and an umbrella.

"Hello all! Sorry I'm running a little behind. But let's get this started." She put down her mess at her desk and took in the five standing at the front. "Ahh you all made it! Okay class, as I've been mentioning I have decided to have the journalism team come to collect information for a yearbook spread on our class since the English department is pretty light in material. But the English department has met and we decided it would be nice to showcase our senior honor's writing program because of the amazing work you all have been producing. We feel this would lend well to other academic concentrations, athletic leadership, musical parts, film study, as well as just encourage underclassmen to take this class to help prepare them for college and after high school pathways. " The teacher said walking in the front of the classroom on her bright pink heels. "And with that, I'm going to be sprinkling them throughout our class to interview you all on what you have been working on. They will be here the entirety of today, but then only be here for a half an hour or so before heading back to their class for the rest of the month. They will be coming by each class period, between you guys and my afternoon Tuesday and Thursday honors english session as well."

This piqued Jay's attention. He felt it was fair game with only a hand full of opened seats littered throughout the class. Two were in his proximity. One across the aisle to his left, and one in the set of seats in front of him, but on the right side of the pair.

'We may end up sitting next to Sydney!' His wolf exclaimed making Jay mentally flinch.

"Alright let me see where I want to put you all. Do you all have different jobs?"

The five looked at each other, but it was Sydney who spoke up for the group. "There's two writters, two photographers, and then I'm assistant editor, so wherever you'd like to put us, we plan on collaborating when we get back to class, and Mr. Greg aid it would be ideal if we could rotate around so we can get different interviews and set up times to photograph people and their work if they have any special events going on."

The teacher nodded at this.

"Okay, wasn't sure how Mr. Greg wanted to do this, but I'll just fill you all into empty seats and you can decide amongst yourselves when and how you rotate." The teacher announces.

The five took inventory of the room. Sydney's friend Emmery looked back and her eyes fell on Jay. Jay wanted to laugh when he saw her visabley shrink back. She quickly spotted a desk close to the door, the furthest option from Jay, he noted.

One down, only four seats left.

Jay's stomach started to drop when he saw one of the other two students walk back towards him and claim the seat next to him across the aisle. The guy started talking to the female he sat next to.

'Well can't be mad at him for that. There is still the seat in the pair in front of us, there's still hope.'

Then the most annoying outcome came to mind when Jay looked back up to the front, and didn't find Sydney's eyes on him, but Mat's.

Jay felt his eyes narrow trying to discourage and intimidate him from taking that seat, but apparently that only encouraged Mat. He whispered something to Sydney then walk back towards Jay.

'Tell him no.'

'We can't do that, then he'd know something is off. He's probably trying to spare Sydney and that

Emmery girl from sitting anywhere near me after that incident they pulled last night.'

Watching Mat take the seat in the pair in front of Jay out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sydeny had claimed a seat two rows up and one aisle across from him.

So much for that working in our favor.

"Alright class, if you are sitting near one of the journalism students, I'd like you to show them the piece or project you are working on and what it is for..."

☽✣☾

The class droned on with Jay basically staring at his computer screen, watching the cursor on his page blink. He kept finding his eyes drifting up and falling on Sydney talking enthusiastically to her partner, a girl that Jay didn't really know.

Sydney had pulled her hair up into a ponytail and while asking questions or talking to the girl, would twist the bracelet on her left wrist then pause, and continue, only to stop and jot something with her pen into a mini notebook that rested open beside her laptop, then shift her attention to type in a few notes.

The ball rung after the hour and fifteen minutes their block was. Everyone moved to pack up all their stuff and Jay groaned realizing he had produced all of three measly sentences for a cover letter, to send off to who, Jay didn't even know since is future was tied to the pack.

Slapping the screen shut he pulled himself out of the chair and started slipping things into his bag.

"Hey hey, how did you're interviewing go? Mine was fascinating! I didn't realize how much range was in this class and what it was really for."

Jay only slightly raised his head to see Sydney had approached the front of Mat's desk and was resting her fingers on the table, leaning in to talk to her friend.

"My person is working on writing an article to submit with her internship at the Red Mountain Times."

"See! These people are crazy ambitious, now I see why they want a spread dedicated to this. Maybe I can talk to Greg about designating a section of the school newspaper talk about this as well, or for some of the creative writers in this class to submit some higher level work. Get more people involved."

"There's Syd the inspired and optimist. It's been a second since I've seen you full force, missed it."

Jay became cognisant of how slow he was being, but he was attempting to follow them out and Mat seemed to be taking his sweet time. Slinging his bag over his shoulder, Jay saw Sydney swallowed hard visibly and turned towards the door to no longer face Mat, and effectively Jay either.

"I found him smoking last night after yelling at Racheal."

"Oh." Mat was surprised. Was this an out of character event? "Are you okay?" Mat asked with a concern filling his voice.

The two finally started towards the door, where Jay followed lingering a few strides back.

What's that about? Sibling quarrel? Something more?

"No. He came home a little after me last night, and Recheal was asking if he was home, he yelled at her, and ran off to his room. I stormed upstairs after him and found he was smoking...I talked to him and I think-" Her voice voice got weak. "I think I finally got to him."

The two paused at a locker and without realizing Jay stopped as well drawing their attention. Quick on his feet, Jay turned to see Terrence's locker situated near by and continued walking towards it trying to play off what had just happened. He propped himself up against it, leg bent back and his foot pressed flat on the bottom locker, back resting against the rest of the length. He pulled out his phone, hoping to convince them he wasn't eavesdropping.

He felt Sydney's green eyes piercing into him, so he lifted his gaze to meet hers. Locking eyes with her, he dared her to look away. She looked somewhat surprised with Jay's directness and quickly became unnerved because after about a moment more she looked back to Mat who was watching her intently.

"What did you tell him?" Mat pressed on, suddenly closer to her than before, making Jay's wolf rather on edge.

"I asked him if this is what Dad would have wanted for him. Aaron then said Dad left us and brought up mom for the first time in forever, and I told him that we all knew better than that, and he would turn out to be the same person that killed Dad if he kept up with what he was doing." By now Sydney had sadness dampening her entire person, a complete flip from the person in the classroom.

Mat wrapped her in his arms.

'We need to find out what happened to her dad.' Jay's wolf commanded abruptly.

'I agree.Then we could be there for her when she needs to cry. Not Matthew.' Jay said his packmate's name bitterly.

Jay felt his wolf cockishly smirk. 'Since when is she our mate? All you have done is deny her.'

Jay found it easier not to answer the question.