Sweeny
Thundering footsteps woke me.
I peeked one eye open, the one that wasn’t smashed against my soft pillow, and sunlight greeted me from a crack in our curtains. The clock hanging on the far wall read 6 AM.
Who is up this early running in the hallways? Don’t they know I need at least 8 hours, or my inner hag comes out?
My roommate, Abigail, swung our door open and halted in the doorjamb.
I could tell she had the tea because she wore that twinkle in her eye. Her blonde hair was pulled into a tight bun on the top of her head, showcasing her flawlessly constructed face. Her sports bra and leggings told me she’d been out for her morning run.
She normally didn’t come back with news that caused such a scene.
When she slammed the door, I glared at her. “This better be the best gossip I’ve ever heard...”
“The hurricane hit Alpha University. All twelve hundred alphas are on their way here.”
I sat up, my head spinning from the movement, and searched for my breath.
Alpha University, the university that held every alpha in the southern states, was coming here? To Luna University?
My gaze shifted toward Abigail’s big brown eyes. “You’re joking? Should I pinch myself because this feels like a fever dream? Grab that trash can. I may puke.”
Abigail sat on her bed, grabbed her shoe, and began removing it. “I’m not joking. Some runners were talking about it at the crosswalk. I can’t freaking believe this,” she mumbled, tossing her shoes and socks wildly at her closet door.
My eye twitched, but I swallowed it down.
This is her room, too, Sweeny.
My ADHD screamed at me to pick them up during her shower.
Abigail braced her elbows against her knees, her brown eyes studying mine as they often did. “I don’t know whether to be excited or scared. Alphas, Sweeny? In our university. In our dorm rooms...”
“Wait a minute,” I barked, pulling back my covers. “Our dorms? We are packed. How are they going to fit them in here? We have like five empty dorms on the entire campus.”
Abigail gave me a knowing look. “Looks like they are going to shove as many as they can in the practice basketball gym.”
I watched her smile grow. “What aren’t you telling me? Where are the rest going to sleep?”
Abigail’s grin broke across her face. “With us. They are shoving one more bed into the middle of each dorm room. Looks like we’re getting an alpha roommate.”
My heart stopped as Abigail walked toward her closet to grab a change of clothes. She was good with guys, but I was not. If awkward had a face in the dictionary, it would be mine.
Abigail looked over her shoulder at me. “It won’t be that bad. I can think of worse things than having an alpha in our room.”
“Really?” I asked, standing up to grab my cell phone. “Because I can’t.”
Abigail laughed while I checked my notifications. Sure enough, I had a new email from the administration. “They’ll be here tonight at 7. We have a meeting at the gym then.” I groaned and hit the phone against my forehead.
“We may find our mates. I don’t know why you’re torn up about it,” she said, putting T-shirt options against her chest.
A rush of heat settled in my stomach at the thought of finding my mate. Wolves dreamed of the day they found their match since childhood.
At least, I did.
The thought of finding my other half, the person who could and would fulfill me in every way, rushed me with an unimaginable heat.
Shaking the thought away, I grabbed my bathroom caddy and turned to Abigail. Her gaze caught mine in the mirror. “What is it?”
I nibbled on my bottom lip. “Tomorrow is my combat test. I don’t need the stress of a new roommate.”
Abigail looked over her shoulder. “You’re going to be fine, Sween. We’ll practice a bit before the alphas arrive. I promise.”
The irony of a clumsy werewolf wasn’t wasted on me. Wolves were supposed to be stealthy, smooth, and strong. I held none of those characteristics, but sadly, I had to pass my combat class to complete the semester.
“Thank you,” I said, walking toward our dorm room door. “I’ll run by the café and grab a bubble tea for us after lunch.”
Abigail held up two different shirts. “Which one should I wear for the alpha’s arrival?”
I smiled. “The red one makes your boobs look bigger.”
“Red it is.”
The showers were oddly empty of rushing she-wolves. I grabbed the best shower in the far corner and turned on the heat. Slipping from my T-shirt, I ran my fingertips along the crescent moon on my shoulder. Every Luna was born with one.
It was how we knew which university to attend.
Where I wasn’t a super strong Luna, I was smart—book smart, at least. I wasn’t experienced with men, seeing as I’d lived with all women in this university for the last three years.
Most of the she-wolves went to parties at local bars on weekends.
I rarely joined them. My wolf was quiet. She was happy to wait for our mate. So was I, most days. Some days, I wanted the touch of rough fingertips against my skin.
Untying my dark brown hair, it fell against my back as I stepped into the hot shower.
The water drenched me, waking the morning grog from my bones when I felt it.
A sharp pinch hit the middle of my stomach, making me stumble against the shower wall and flail to catch myself.
With my forearm braced against the tile, I placed my palm against my stomach and stared as water dripped down my face.
This wasn’t happening. It wasn’t time.
Another cramp rolled deeply in my stomach.
Fear laced its fingers around my throat, and I swallowed the inevitable.
My heat was coming and so were the alphas.
