Chapter 4
Olivia's Point of View
I pull to a stop in front of the dorm building assigned to me by the training center, my heart thudding with a strange mix of excitement and nerves. The three story building rises in front of me, clean and modern with large windows and warm stone walls that reflect the morning light. This is it, my new home for the next few years.
Kael’s already here waiting for me, he is leaning casually against his beat up black Jeep, arms crossed over his chest like he owns the place. His dark curls are a mess, like always, and he is wearing that easy grin that makes it hard not to smile back.
I kill the engine and climb out of my car. Kael pushes off the Jeep and walks towards me with open arms.
“About time,” he teases, wrapping me in a hug. “I was starting to think you bailed.”
“As if,” I say, hugging him tightly before pulling back. “I over slept... slept right through my alarm.”
“That tracks,” he says with a smirk, already reaching for one of the boxes in my backseat.
We grab two each and make our way up the stone path, past the trimmed hedges and freshly mowed grass, towards the dorm’s front door. The air is cool for summer, and it smells like pine and possibility.
Inside, the building is bustling. Other trainees move past us, lugging their own boxes or chatting with new roommates. The halls are wide and polished, the scent of fresh paint still lingering.
Kael shifts the box in his arms and glances at me. “So… what happened to you last night?”
I hesitate, eyes flicking to the staircase. “I was not feeling too great,” I lie quickly. “So I went home early.”
Kael gives me a look, one that says he does not totally buy it, but he nods his head anyway. “Fair enough.”
We reach the second floor, and I spot the number on the door. Room 207.
“This is me,” I say, already feeling the butterflies start up again.
We step inside. The room is small but clean, with two single beds, matching dressers, and one shared desk by the window. Neutral tones, simple bedding, and the scent of new fabric. It is plain, but it is mine, for now at least.
Kael sets his box down on the bed closest to the window. I place mine beside it and stretch my arms out, shaking off the stiffness of the drive.
“We better go grab the rest of your stuff so I can give you a proper tour.” he says, already turning towards the door.
I nod my head and follow him back out, the weight of the moment settling slowly into my bones. A new chapter. A fresh start.
Even if I already feel like I left a piece of myself behind at that party last night.
Kael and I place down the last of my bags with a satisfying thump. My arms ache a little, but there is something oddly satisfying about seeing all my things stacked neatly in one place. The room already feels more like mine, just with the simple presence of my stuff.
Kael exhales dramatically and wipes an imaginary bead of sweat from his brow. “There. My good deed for the day is done.”
I roll my eyes, a smile tugging at my lips. “You barely broke a sweat.”
He is about to fire back with something smug, as we both to leave the room. Then the door suddenly clicks and opens to reveal.
A tall girl with rich, warm brown skin and dark braids steps into the room, a suitcase rolling behind her. Her wide, curious eyes flick between us before landing on me.
“You must be Olivia,” she says with a bright, confident smile.
“That’s me,” I say, stepping forward. “You are my roommate?”
She nods her head, setting her suitcase against the opposite bed. “Yep. I am Liana. Liana Graves. From Emberpine.”
We shake hands, and her grip is firm but friendly.
“This is Kael,” I add, gesturing to him. “My best friend. He is from Stonehowl.”
“Future Alpha,” Kael adds, ever the show off, giving her a crooked grin.
She chuckles. “Impressive. No pressure or anything, right?”
“You have no idea,” I mutter.
“Well,” Liana says, brushing invisible dust off her jeans, “I am just here to keep up and not die. Hopefully.”
We all laugh lightly at that, the ice officially broken.
“Well, I am heading out,” Kael says, already inching towards the door. “I promised Liv a tour. She would get lost trying to find the bathrooms if I left her on her own.”
Liana raises an eyebrow. “Sounds like a true best friend.”
I grab my phone off the dresser and grin. “He is. I will catch up with you later, yeah?”
“Totally. I have got unpacking to do,” Liana replies, already opening her suitcase.
Kael and I head back out into the hallway, the buzz of voices and the thrum of footsteps all around us. I let out a breath I had not realized I had been holding.
“Ready?” Kael asks as we reach the stairs.
I nod my head. “More than ready.”
And with that, we step outside into the late morning sun, where a whole new world waits to unfold.
Kael pushes open the tall steel doors, and we step into the massive indoor training center. The ceilings are high, with exposed beams and skylights that let in natural light, casting soft rays over the polished mats and sparring rings.
It is a little overwhelming. There are people everywhere, training with punching bags, practicing maneuvers, lifting weights. The low hum of conversation and the steady thuds of fists hitting pads echo across the space.
My eyes wander towards the main sparring ring in the center of the room, and that is when I see him.
Two men are fighting, shirtless and moving fast. One of them has dark hair and broad shoulders, but it is the other man who steals every shred of my attention.
He is tall, lean, and cut from something wicked. His skin is sun-kissed and glistening with sweat, and black ink twists over the sharp lines of his upper body, tattoos that snake down his arms and across his chest like a story I suddenly need to read. His short blond hair is damp, sticking to his forehead, and there is a dangerous confidence in the way he moves, like he knows exactly what he is doing and exactly how good he looks doing it.
I know I should look away, but I do not.
As if he senses my gaze, he flicks his eyes up mid-fight and smirks. Not just any smirk, but the kind that slides under your skin and stays there. It is cocky and self-assured and entirely unearned.
He dodges a punch at the last second, ducking and spinning out of reach with practiced ease, and I force myself to snap my eyes back to Kael.
“Who is that?” I ask, trying to keep my voice even as I nod my head towards the ring.
Kael glances over his shoulder, then lets out a low chuckle. “That would be Ripley Parker. Future Alpha of Stormfang.”
Of course. Of course he is a future Alpha.
And of course he would be from Stormfang.
I take one more glance at him. He is laughing now, taunting his opponent with words I cannot hear but a tone I definitely recognize, arrogant and electric.