Page 35 of Broken Alpha

I sighed heavily before opening my eyes, my gaze falling on Erik before me. He looked apprehensive, as if he didn’t know if it was okay to approach me— it wasn’t. I did not have the energy to continue our argument, least of all in public.

“Go sit down,” I responded, eyes narrowing.

“I want to apologize for this morning,”

“You’ve been apologizing a lot today, and it’s not even lunch. Go sit down.”

“Don’t be a dick—”

Oh my fucking god! Me? Be a dick? Are you fucking kidding me right now?

“Then fucking go sit down,” I growled, an edge to my voice that had a few of the students looking in our direction again.

Erik glared at me before resuming his seat on the other side of the classroom, which was fine by me. I wanted him nowhere near me right now. Before the rumors and questions could begin, the eyes of every Alpha and Omega turned to the door, with some whimpers coming from the Omegas, mine included. Despite the suppressant use regulation the university had in place, the distressed pheromones of a Dominant Alpha still reached us before Luke had entered the classroom, and it hadn’t registered until this moment that he was having difficulty controlling his pheromones. God, I was slow today. When he entered, Luke looked no better than when I left him, and myOmega whined again, desperate to soothe our Alpha. When he spoke, his voice was cracked as if his throat was parched, resulting in him clearing his throat before trying again.

“I’m sorry, but class is canceled for the week. Please review Chapters 22 and 23 of your textbooks, and we’ll have a quiz next week. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

His words took a moment to take root, with students looking at each other before gathering their things and slowly exiting from the classroom. Luke didn’t leave, however, his eyes dancing from student to student, giving an apologetic smile, but his gaze flicked toward me as I left. The desire to scent Luke was strong, and I gripped my backpack tight against my body, my gaze downward as I entered the hallway. I made it to the stairs when a voice stopped me, and I groaned in frustration. How many assholes did I have to deal with today?

“Not so superior now, are you? Typical Omega behavior, spreading their legs for any Alpha and getting knocked up.”

“What’s your problem?” I asked, turning around to see the Alpha I had fought with months ago.

“You think I don’t notice how the teacher looks at you? He sure was aggressive after our debate,” he said, ignoring my question and moving toward me. The emphasis on the last word told me that he didn’t see it as a simple debate. In his eyes, it was an offense to challenge the Alpha way of thinking.

“Couldn’t pass his class without sleeping with him? Now look at you. Pathetic.”

“What’s pathetic is you accosting me in the hallway for some one-sided vendetta. You’ll have to help me understand; I am a dumb Omega, after all. Are you pissed that I might’ve slept with the teacher? Or because I busted your little Alpha bubble when I challenged your way of thinking? Or is it because I have the second-highest score in the class? Or is it because, despite youtrying to paint me as a whore, I still wouldn’t spread my legs for a lowly Alpha like yourself?”

The Alpha growled at me, and he released his pheromones, causing me to involuntarily gag. It was a mixture of ketchup and spoiled milk, and the combination had my eyes watering as I met his pheromones on my own, putting more of my energy into it as a dominant Omega. I watched his eyes flash in anger as he realized that I technically outranked him as a dominant. I foolishly expected him to back down and try to have a final say before walking away. I hadn’t expected him to shove me. Whether he shoved me out of his way or shoved me in anger as he realized where he ranked with me, I wasn’t sure. I was, however, fully aware of Luke screaming my name as my body fell backwards down the stairs.

Luke

Icouldn’t breathe. The scent of a burning forest reached me from inside the classroom, and I instantly knew Aidyn was in distress and angry at something. I exited my classroom just in time to watch Forester push him. I watched as Aidyn lost his balance on the flight of stairs behind him and fell backwards before landing on the small landing, his arm around his stomach, pain etched into his face. My tunnel vision narrowed on Forester, a deep, angry growl emitting from my chest, and the next thing I knew, I was across the hall, Forester pinned against the wall by my arm across his neck.

I had clearly punched him, not that I remember doing so, but his eyes were bloodshot, with a bruise forming on his cheek, blood spurting down his face from a broken nose. I released a pool of pheromones, my anger evident at the Alpha who dared to hurt my mate. I growled at him as the color drained from his face, his fingernails clawing at my arm in a desperate attempt to release himself from my grasp, scratching until he drew blood. My face twisted in a snarl as I let out an inhumane sound.

“LUKE! Stop!”

I turned to my left and found Aidyn struggling to get off the floor. Reaching for the handrails to pull himself up, he limped up the stairs, his eyes wide. But there was fear in his expression. He clutched one wrist close against his body, the other around his stomach. Instantly, my Alpha took over, desperate to check on our mate. His scent was drenched in fear and distress. I moved to his side, my face nuzzling into his hair as I scented him, ignoring the students in the hall. I could still smell the scent of burning forest, but the light floral scent of our pup was there. I couldn’t tell anything more than that, and the way Aidyn clutched at his stomach, I could tell he was concerned the fall hurt the pup.

“I think…I think I hurt my wrist. Can you drive me to the clinic?” he asked softly. He moved his arm away from his belly to wrap the fingers of his good hand around my wrist.

I nodded, my arm around Aidyn’s lower back, cautiously watching him as we descended the stairs. I stopped for a brief moment to grab his backpack that lay on the landing before I guided him into the parking lot. I opened the car door for him and eased him into the passenger seat, my Alpha growling at the hiss of pain that Aidyn exuded. I wasn’t mad at him; I was pissed at Forester, who decided to push Aidyn, and I would bring this before the board for harassment, but for now, my focus was on Aidyn.

I handed him his backpack, and he struggled to take the otter out, clutching it close against him as I made my way to the driver's side, starting the car. I drove past the clinic, and Aidyn watched it go with a curious expression on his face. His scent spiked in mild fear, but it didn’t last long. He trusted me to know what to do and where to take him. Ryan didn’t work at the clinic on Tuesdays unless he had something scheduled, so taking Aidyn to the hospital was the better option. I needed the best to help my mate.

Pulling into the hospital parking structure, I stuffed the parking ticket into my pocket before exiting the car and helped Aidyn remove his seat belt. He left the otter on the floorboards of the passenger seat, but I grabbed it before locking the car, and I could see the relief on Aidyn’s face when he saw it. It pained me that he felt so insecure to leave the stuffie behind, but I knew he needed it at that moment. We checked in at the front desk, and after providing my name and requesting Ryan, we were immediately put into a private room to wait for my best friend.

“I thought you didn’t want Dr. Easton to know about us,” Aidyn mumbled, trying to get onto the exam chair but struggling without using his injured wrist.

Without seeking permission, I moved over to him, effortlessly lifting him up and placing him on the table, the sanitary tissue paper crinkling under him. I offered him the otter, and he placed it on his lap as I moved awkwardly to stand beside him.

“You’re injured, and I’m taking you to the best of the best. I just didn’t want him to know who I was seeing, he knows far too much about my life as it is.”

A knock interrupted us, and Ryan walked in, his eyes wide in surprise as he looked at both of us. He looked down at the chart in his hand, then up at us both before sighing.

“The Omega you’ve been seeing is my patient?” He turned his gaze toward Aidyn. “And your Alpha is my best friend? This is a huge conflict of interest, you know that, right?”

---