Kaden sat in his usual corner of the school cafeteria. He picked at his food silently as he stared at a table few meters from him. Two boys and a girl sat there, eating, chatting and laughing happily. He huffed quietly. They were his friends, or rather his former friends. But as soon as he turned 17 few days ago and his wolf status couldn't be determined, they all left him. Afterall they couldn't be seen mingling with the wolf prince who had no wolf status. He was almost as useless as humans.
Kaden was the first wolf prince, he was the first son of the king Constantine II. His mother had died at childbirth and he grew up alongside his half human stepmother and his younger stepbrother, Cyrus. Everyone in the kingdom awaited the 17th birthday of the first prince expecting him to earn the royal status of alpha so he could be crowned heir to the throne. To everyone's dismay, his wolf status came out "undetermined". "Princes were not meant to be "nothing." but now, Kaden was nothing to everyone in the kingdom. his brother's birthday was in few months and if he came out Alpha, Kaden might be deemed a bastard in the royal family and start being treated like an omega.
Kaden huffed quietly. I'm already being treated like an omega anyway, he thought as he rose from his seat and made his way out of the cafeteria amidst the snickers and disgusted whispers.
He made his way to the school garden to clear his head before the next lesson. As he walked between the colorful rows of flowers, he stopped in his tracks at the sound of someone's voice. It was a deep and rich voice and far too close. But that wasn't what made him freeze, it was the scent. It wasn't familiar, it wasn't an omega wolf, or an alpha wolf, it wasn't a wolf at all. And it wasn't human or half human either. Kaden blinked in surprise, who the hell was that?
Out of curiosity, Kaden rushed around the bend but to his dismay, whoever it was wasn't there anymore. Kaden sighed, maybe he was overthinking and driving himself crazy, what was he even thinking? Someone with no known scent throughout the kingdom was casually walking around, singing in his school garden? He sighed again and walked back to his class.
By the time Kaden reached the class, a teacher was already in the middle of the lesson. every eyes in class turned towards him. "Why are you late to class, Constantine?" the teacher asked sternly as she glared at him. "coming late to class next time would earn you a punishment, is that clear? off to your seat now" She said before he even had any chance to reply. He nodded gently and turned to walk back to seat.
Kaden froze. There was a guy in his seat long, messy black hair falling into stormy gray eyes that shouldn't have looked that good under the harsh classroom lights. His skin was pale against the dark uniform, sharp jaw dusted with the faintest shadow like he hadn't bothered to shave. A small silver ring glinted in his left ear, catching Kaden's gaze for a second too long. Broad shoulders slouched in his chair as if the whole room bored him, one hand tapping lazily against Kaden's desk like it already belonged to him
He walked to his desk and sat down silently beside him. No one had really sat next to Kaden since the incident, so the fact that this newcomer had chosen that seat surprised him. He had to know, right? There were plenty of other empty desks in the class.
Just then, Kaden froze in shock. It was him...the guy from the garden. He could never forget that distinct smell
The newcomer leaned toward him, voice dropping to a murmur meant only for his ears. "No introductions, and you're staring at me like that? Careful, or you might make me think the wrong thing."
He held Kaden's gaze, gray eyes locking onto his, that voice as deep and rich as Kaden remembered.
Kaden blinked in surprise and leaned away. "What… what do you mean?" he stuttered, before looking away and pulling out his books, forcing himself to face the teacher at the front of the class.
"Oh, you know what I'm talking about, my dear."
He paused, a small smile in his voice. "Even though you didn't ask, my name is Sirius. But… you can call me whatever you want," he said after a minute of silence, before turning to face the lesson too.
* * *
The rest of the day passed in a blur. Kaden did his best to ignore his new seatmate, and Sirius stayed quiet as well. When the final bell rang, Kaden shot to his feet, grabbed his bag, and headed straight for the door. Behind him, Sirius looked up and huffed softly as he watched Kaden leave the classroom.
Kaden walked down the hall toward the library and slipped into his favorite corner, settling into the worn seat as he pulled out his books to read. A few minutes later, footsteps approached. He glanced up—and to his surprise, it was Sirius again. Kaden dropped his gaze back to the page, choosing to ignore him as Sirius sat down beside him.
"You didn't tell me your name..." Sirius said after few minutes of silence.
Kaden remained silent without glancing away from his book.
"You're just going to remain silent?" Sirius asked again. He let out a soft sigh, turning away as he pulled a few books from his bag and opened one to read.
"Damn it." Sirius snapped his book shut with a sharp bang and twisted in his chair to face Kaden after what felt like an hour of silence. "would you just....say something at least? I..." Sirius was saying when the female librarian walked towards them and asked what that sharp noise was.
"It was nothing." They both responded, their voice almost in sync. The she wolf nodded and left.
"oh...so you're not dumb after all." Sirius said. "Good to know."
Hours pass by before Kaden finally, silently packs his bag. "My name is Kaden." He says almost quietly before turning to leave.
"Kaden..." He heard Sirius repeat as he left the library.
Kaden drove home in silence and slip into his room wanting to avoid his father or any other person who seemed to stare at him in disgust these days. He was already too tired to deal with any of it. He freshened up and climbed into bed letting himself drift off to sleep.