The Unsuspecting

Chapter 2

*Sean's POV*

    Classes started a couple weeks ago and so far Tommy and I have had to turn down three fraternity invitations as well as four intramural teams. With the amount of time we're already spending away from the pack for our classes, we don't really need to add any more activities.  We've also made a couple friends on the soccer team since about half our history class seems to be on it. They all seem like really laid back yet joyous people and not at all like the arrogant football players. A kid named Josh was assigned with us for a group project due at the end of the year. Sometimes when I'm around him, I swear I can detect small whiffs of the wonderful scent I smelled on that first day of class. I keep meaning to ask him if there's a garden nearby that he likes to hang around in, but I haven't been able to come up with a way to ask without sounding like a psychopath. However, the more I smell it, the more it drives me insane. I've brought it up to Tommy and he says he doesn't smell anything strange on Josh.

    It's Friday night and Tommy is currently begging me to go to the club Josh mentioned during class on Thursday. We're currently sitting in my room hiding from his imminent future alpha responsibilities. His father, the current alpha, has been trying to transition Tommy into his role since he will be taking over in two years when he turns 20. Tomorrow there is a big meeting with surrounding alphas where they start to plan the yearly mating party. Each year all the packs get together in a central location and participate in games and events in hopes of increasing the chances of mates meeting each other. It's one of the most joyous times of the year and takes months of planning.

    "Come on man. They won't even be serving alcohol there and we can smell if anyone tries to spike any drinks and it's not like a human could do any damage to us anyway." 

    "You know humans aren't the only danger we could find in the city. And you have big plans tomorrow that you can not be late for."

    "Okay I'll wear the family pendant to catch any magic and we'll leave by midnight so we can get plenty of sleep." Tommy replies and puts his hands together as he mockingly begs me. One look at him and I know I'm going to cave. I can see that living this college experience to the fullest for the next two years is all the freedom he will get for the rest of his life. As his future beta and the guard his father has assigned to him, it is my duty to keep him safe and I know he'd go without me if I said no.

    "Fine! Get the pendant and we'll leave around 9." I hope I don't end up regretting this.

*Annabelle's POV*

    I'm currently standing in line for the club wearing a tight V-neck tank top and jean shorts with a pair of Converse. My roommate Haylee is standing next to me in a similar outfit, yet she seems to look like she actually belongs here. Haylee is medium height with a curvy body, shoulder length hair, and deep brown eyes that seem to scream "I am being nice at this moment, but I have done some dark shit in the past". I've seen that look look on Stella, so I know that she'll talk about it when she's ready. 

    There's a strange guy a couple people behind us in line who won't stop staring after I accidentally made eye contact with him. Through the corner of my eye I see him pull out a cigarette and light it as he leans against the brick wall. I shift to the side a bit more so all he can see is my back and shiver from the thought of him still watching me. I slightly tilt my head to Haylee and express my concern in a low voice so no one else can hear me. I see her eyes shift to me as she assess my expression then she turns her head to open her purse slung around her shoulder to retrieve a lip gloss and compact mirror. I watch as she applies another layer of lip gloss as a cover so she can get a good look at the creeper behind us. 

    She subtly leans her head towards me and whispers "Stay calm and continue to face away from him. Go up to the body guard first and wait for me inside." I turn my head towards her and am about to ask her why when she nudges me forward towards the bouncer. I quickly show my ID to prove I'm over 18 and he lets me into the club and signals for Haylee to come forward next.  

    After a few seconds waiting inside alone, Haylee walks in with a nonchalant nod and says the creeper will not be allowed into the club tonight. I stood there and gawked at her as I wondered what she said to the bouncer to convince him to not let someone in on opening night. 

    Haylee signals me to follow her further into the club and after briefly scouting the area, we settled at a table in the back corner and order a couple appetizers and then go out on the dance floor. I'm not the best dancer, but with this many people surrounding me, I'm sure no one really notices. For some reason, I've always felt more comfortable around strangers because I know they won't ever see me again and hold embarrassing information about me over my head. As I'm dancing though, I get this sense that something life altering is about to happen and the longer I dance, the more nervous I become. 

    It's quickly getting really hot in here and it's starting to become difficult to breath. I look around for a way to get a breather and see an exit door someone is coming in through after what I'd guess to be their smoke break. I get Haylee's attention by tapping her shoulder, create a quick fanning motion with my hand, then point to the exit door. She nods her head signaling she understands and keeps on dancing. I turn towards the door and move in that direction as fast as I can. My body is starting to go into a panic attack about something and I don't even know what it is. My body slams into the door and I move through it gasping as I try to calm myself down. The night air feels refreshing on my skin and my body starts to calm down as I lean against the building.

    As I'm about to go back inside, I heard a cat call come from down the alley. My eyes settled on the source and I realized that I recognized the man who made the whistle noise. It's the creeper who wasn't allowed into the club because of me.