Chapter 115

My head snapped to look up at Lucas. He shot me a quick wink and gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.

A rush of butterflies swarmed in my stomach, and I blushed furiously. Walking hand in hand with Lucas in public felt like a huge step, one that was bound to stir things up at Shadow High.

Entering school, hand in hand, was like setting off a bomb.

Everyone's eyes fell on us as if he had a spotlight over our heads. Whispers and muted conversations quickly filled the air, and I could practically feel the weight of countless eyes on us, something I'd experienced before, but never like this.

Every eye in the building was on us as if we were celebrities. Everyone wanted to get a closer look at what was going on. Even a few teachers seemed to be giving us curious looks.

"Ignore them," Lucas said with his head held high.

"Easy for you to say," I mumbled under my breath, trying to stand closer to him. "I hate this so much."

My palms grew damp, and my discomfort escalated. Lucas noticed and gave my hand a reassuring squeeze, his voice gentle and soothing, "Shana, just take a deep breath. Everything's going to be okay. We're in this together. I'm not letting you go."

"Please don't," I said. Each step forward felt like it was taking all of my effort and strength. "If you do I might fall over."

Lucas smiled, trying to bring some humor to the situation. "Then you'd be falling for me...”

I rolled my eyes. He would say that.

As we walked through the packed hallways of Shadow High, I couldn't ignore all the hushed whispers and murmurs from our fellow students on Lucas and me.

I didn't think things would be this bad, but it seemed worse than what I thought it would be.

The one word that I kept hearing thrown around was that I wasn't "good enough" for Lucas.

"She has nothing to offer him!"

"What does he see in her?"

"I thought they were just friends?"

"They were probably together all this time and just lied to everyone."

Their words hit me like icy daggers, and I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment. This was humiliating, and I wanted to tell Lucas it was already too much for me.

Would every day with him be like this?

We turned down another hallway and there were even more whispers.

They were talking about us, about Lucas, the alpha hockey captain, dating me, the wolfless girl, the freak. It stung, but I tried to ignore it, focusing on the warmth of Lucas's hand in mine.

I had to keep reminding myself that their opinions didn't matter to me. I was happy with Lucas. I was happy he wanted to hold my hand in front of everyone, and I was happy he didn't care what they thought about us.

Just then, we turned down the hallway where our lockers were, and there he was—James. His mouth dropped open in shock when he saw Lucas and me holding hands.

He looked like a dear caught in headlights, or like a fish out of water with the way he was staring at us.

"Is it true?" James blurted out, his eyes wide with astonishment. "You? Shana? And you? Lucas? You're together? Officially?"

Lucas and I exchanged glances, not sure how to respond.

James seemed like he was trying to put all of the pieces of the puzzle together.

But before Lucas or I could say anything, James launched himself at Lucas, wrapping him in a tight bear hug.

"Oof!" Lucas sounded, surprised by James's sudden attack.

James gestured for me to join in on the hug, and I stepped into the embrace. I immediately regretted it because James suffocated me and pushed me in between him and Lucas.

Oh no. I was in a male alpha sandwich.

"Guys! You don't understand!" James began to fake-cry, his dramatics in full swing. "I've been waiting for this moment! You guys are finally together!"

"Um, James?" I couldn't help but laugh as James continued to freak out with happiness. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay!" James shouted. "I mean, I'm more than okay, but I'm kinda freaking out here! My two best friends are finally together!"

"James, dude," Lucas said, sounding slightly embarrassed. "Could you calm down? People are starting to stare at us."

"I don't care!" James grinned, showing no sign of stopping his over the top theatrics. "Let them stare! You two are the talk of the school now. Seriously, you look good together, and you seem happier. Is it because of your date last night?"

Lucas chuckled, shaking his head at James's antics.

"Where did he take you?" James asked me, finally releasing me from his hug. "I bet it was romantic."

I took in a much-needed breath of fresh air.

"Ignore him, Shana," Lucas said with an eye roll. "You're impossible, James. But thanks for the support. I wouldn't have told Shana how I felt if it weren't for your advice."

Advice? My ears perked as curiosity coursed through my body.

"What advice are you talking about, Lucas?" I asked.

I couldn't picture James offering Lucas any kind of solid advice. And Lucas had just admitted that him and James talked about me.

James was about to speak when Lucas shushed him.

"Did you just shush me?" James asked, astonished.

"Have you ever heard of bro code?" Lucas turned to James with a raised brow. "You can't go around revealing all of my secrets to Shana."

"Why not?" I asked with a pout. "I want to know what you guys said about me!"

"It was nothing bad, and that's all you need to know," Lucas said.

"But—"

"No buts!" Lucas playfully cuts me off.

"Ugh. Whatever. Fine." James rolled his eyes, still beaming. "Your secret's safe with me."

"I hate being ganged up on." I crossed my arms over my chest feeling defeated. "It's not fair."

"Sorry, Shana, but my loyalties lie with Lucas." James shrugged. "But back to the two of you... Seriously, I'm so happy you guys finally came to your senses and told each other how you felt. I was starting to think it would never happen."

Lucas snorted, saying, "You're one to talk, James. Now it's your turn to make your move with Victoria."

James's carefree demeanor shifted, and he became more serious. I almost wanted to laugh at how still he got. James was never still.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said dully. "I hate Victoria, and she hates me. We hate each other, and I'll always hate her."

Lucas and I exchanged knowing glances before we both burst into laughter.

"Sure, you do," I teased. "Just like you hate Grandma Jo's cookies."

"Or her cakes," Lucas added, recalling James's wild appetite during our last visit to Grandma Jo's house.

It was so obvious that he was trying to keep his feelings hidden. Victoria, too. There was more to their love-hate relationship than either of them wanted to admit.

But just as James had been rooting for Lucas and I, I was rooting for him to figure out how he felt for Victoria.

James rolled his eyes, clearly wanting to change the subject. "Anyway, Shana, your 18th birthday is this weekend. Have you thought about what you want to do?"

I had almost forgotten about my upcoming birthday in the whirlwind of recent events.

It seemed like so much time had passed since our vacation at the beach house, but really, it had only been a couple of weeks.

I guessed it was true what they said... Time flies when you're having fun, and these past few weeks have been nothing but fun, and it seemed as if things were only getting better and better.

"Yeah," Lucas added. "What do you want to do? Turning 18 is a big deal."

"Finally, an adult," James commented and teased, "which seems like it would be impossible for you."

I paused for a moment, contemplating. What did I want to do for my birthday?

"Is there anything you want?" Lucas asked again. "Any presents?"

Did I want anything? My mind was blank. In that moment, I felt incredibly content and happy, as if I already had everything I needed.

"I'm not sure, guys," I admitted with a smile. "Honestly, I feel like I have everything I want right now. I don't think I need anything else."

Lucas looked at me with a soft, affectionate gaze, and I knew he felt the same way.

James saw the way the two of us were staring at each other and pretended as if he was throwing up.

"Gross guys," he fake gagged. "Get a room. Is this what I'm going to have to put up with now? Because I didn't think through things this far ahead."

Lucas and I laughed, and secretly, I thought that I would enjoy tormenting James like this.

Suddenly, a bout of dizziness hit me and I felt the world spin.

I reached a hand out to hold on to something, afraid of falling over.

“Shana?” I realized I had grabbed onto Lucas’s t-shirt to steady myself. “Are you okay?”

The more I blinked, the worse my vision got.