It's hair. It'll grow back.

I stared at myself a little more in Penelope's locker mirror and frowned.

Who am I kidding. I look like a boy.

I swallowed thinking about how much I wanted to hide away from one particular Alpha: my mate. I hated that I even cared for a second what he thought of my hair. Thankfully, West didn't say anything about it- not even a joke. But he was a painful reminder of how much I've been slacking.

I've been slacking since school started. I haven't been doing my extra training. I've been too distracted. School is important, I know it is, but I forgot the most important thing: getting my life back.

Silas cutting my hair isn't going to stop me from anything.

I stared at the mirror still. Apparently, I was an embarrassment to Silas for his friends because I said the wrong thing. His friend wanted to see my hair down, and I refused him.

After they left, Silas dragged me by the hair and started cutting it, shouting at me if I liked my hair now. Stabbed the scissors in my shoulders. Distraught, I called Penelope to come over and fix the hair. When she saw the mess I was and the bruises, her eyes hardened but she got to working on cutting my hair so it all was one equal length, a "stylish bob cut" she called it. Then she told me I look like a cool elf which didn't help any matters. I've never had my hair this short.

The bags under my eyes didn't help my appearances either. When I shut my locker, Blaine was continuing with his speech. "You're overworking yourself," Blaine told me. "And you need to sleep. Rogue watching isn't your problem."

"It is my problem because it's my pack's problem," I snapped at him. I regretted it the moment his eyes were pained. "I'm sorry Blaine it's-"

"I know what it is," Blaine said, looking away. "I wish I was there to stop it." As if Blaine could stop it. He'd just get beaten up too. His thought was what counted, and I wished nothing would ever come harm him ever. 

"I'm glad you weren't," I said sincerely. 

"Why'd his friends want to see you anyways?" Blaine asked me. There was a pregnant pause. Blaine turned to me, furrowing his eyebrows and looking at me. "Edith? What did they want? What did Silas want?"

"He said I'm the eligible age to get married off to."

Blaine's eyes widened in horror. "You're only 19-"

"I know, but it's not uncommon. Many packs have been finding their mates in these years."

"You found your mate!" Blaine exclaimed incredulously. 

"Like I could tell him," I gritted my teeth. "Now more than ever." Blaine sunk back in the seat, looking angry. 

"West will do something about that," Blaine said. "I think if you ever think about getting married, West will do something. Especially if he knows it's forced."

"West doesn't care," I lied. I needed to drive West far away from me.

Just reject him, a sick voice in my head whispered. Won't it just be easier for all of us?

My problems keep adding up. 

On my 21st birthday, I'm going to challenge Silas for the Alpha title. Naturally, it should be handed down to me, but I know Silas is going to challenge me for it, so I'm going to just get it over with and call the shots. He won't be expecting that. 

My mate is persistent and won't stop leaving me alone. I haven't rejected him yet because I just don't have the guts to let go of something that for once in my life I could have control over.

Another added to the list is now I might be married off to some stranger. I'm not going to- there's no way I will do it. Over my dead body will I be forced into that.

History class was boring.

"Do you know the packs that still have the punishment of the collar?" our teacher asked. No one answered and she tsked. "It's important to know. The Alpha's Council have banned it, making it illegal in packs, yet there are still packs that enforce this method."

"What about the post?" someone asked. I know my father banned the post, but Silas wanted it back.

"Fun fact: today, the collar is more common than the post." Students shivered.

The collar was absolutely barbaric. 

Our teacher continued, "So it important that we educate you guys on why it should never be repeated again. You guys are part of your packs- some of you Alphas, Betas, Trackers or anything else and each and every one of you have a duty to call out injustices that you see."

"So you're saying we should just leave our packs if we see our Alpha using it?" the same person asked.

"You could," our teacher answered, shrugging a little. "But Alphas always use fear instilled in their packs so pack members don't leave because they are too scared to. Of course, that kind of Alpha is a different story altogether, but an Alpha without the pack's support is no Alpha."

I smiled a little at that.

After class, I met Penelope at the pizza lunch lane. Penelope was already there, waiting for me and when she saw me I saw her sizing me up.

"Stop staring," I grumbled to Penelope.

"I'm looking at my artwork," Penelope sniffed as she looked at the vegetables in the tray. "I did such a good job surprisingly."

I narrowed my eyes at her, "You told me that you knew what you were doing."

"Pish posh, I did. Kind of. A little."

We both decided we wanted to eat outside, and I saw Callie walking towards us in the middle of the cafeteria, but not before I heard someone in a table mentioning Callie's name.

I stopped, and looked at two girls who I recognized as Sophie and Noelle.

"I heard she slept with like half the school," Sophie chuckled.

Maybe I'm just tired of everyone and everything. Maybe I just needed to blow off some verbal steam. To say that about Callie, one of the nicest ones in this school while she is right there is plain crude. Knowing she cannot defend herself because the entire school believes in the lie too is also something that makes my blood boil.

"So?" I asked coldly, making everyone look at me. Penelope raised an eyebrow at me. "Literally like all of the wanna-be Alpha macho pricks here including the Betas probably slept with the entire school but no one ever calls them out on it." I paused, and the whole cafeteria stopped talking. Werewolf hearing was a curse. They wanted to know what was going on at the cheer leading table. "And so what if she's sexually free? Maybe you need to get laid and shut up about things that don't concern you or anyone else. It's none of your business. So what if she wears clothes that show her body? So. What. She's not hurting anyone except what seems like your frail mind."

The girls at the lunch table looked at me horrified. Callie was frozen standing just three feet from the table, her throat bobbed up and down, and I really didn't want her to cry, but why did they have to be so ugly about it? They made it seem like they were better than her which wasn't the case.

I turned away from them, walking out of the cafeteria with no craps left to give, annoyed and irritated with everyone today. I found a place to sit under the shade, and saw my best friend huffing behind me.

"Wow you really know how to make a statement," Penelope chuckled behind me, joining me sitting on the grass.

"You didn't have to do that," I was surprised Callie was there too. A tentative smile on her face made me feel all the more sorry for her. No, I didn't pity her, I just felt bad that she had to take on all of this crap from everyone in the school. No one deserved that.

"Would you tell us what really happened? Obvi no judgement." Penelope looked at Callie with interest. Callie swallowed, and I could see it still stuck with her. Was it what they were saying or something else?

"It was Keaton." Of course it was. Who else. If P.E. was any indication, he was straight out bullying her. "He- I was drunk. I know we don't get drunk unless we really waste ourselves, but he gave me some special concoction, and one thing I knew he was on me and I-" Callie let out a shaky breath, and I was going to stop her from telling us her traumatic experience, but she kept going- "I kicked him, he ripped my shirt off, but I kept kicking and I ran I didn't know what to do. Why would he do that? I thought he liked me. For me. Then he told the entire team that I was easy and made up the rumors."

"And all the girls believed him." A statement from Penelope. That's what usually happened.

"Yeah," Callie choked. "And the worst thing is- why just why didn't they just ask me, you know? If I did. Why does everyone have to just talk about it behind my back and assume the worst?"

"Because it's easier," I answered her, taking a sip of coke. "Everyone wants to believe in the worst about someone just so they can feel better about themselves. I say it's an insecurity."

"Big insecurity," Penelope agreed. "There's no point of girl on girl hate- we already have the male wolves hating anything and everything we do. Thankfully, it's getting a little better, but like even 20 years ago? All of us she-wolves had to obey the males no matter what, and no one questioned it."

We chatted for the rest of lunch, and saw Callie getting more relaxed. The next time I hear anyone saying that about her, they were going to get their facts straight.

As I was putting my lunch tray in the garbage, I noticed Wyatt walking towards me, a notebook tucked underneath his arm. From the looks of it, the bruises are gone, and he looks like nothing happened. His longish hair was pulled into a pony tail, and it was interesting that as much as he is West's twin, there was something significantly different about him than West. Where West looked muscular and ripped- okay, it was hard not to notice his bulging biceps- Wyatt had a slender build, but he was definitely built like an Alpha.

Our eyes met for a second and he nodded at me. "Thank you."

"Thank you for what?" I asked, confused.

"For not telling him."

"How do you know I didn't?"

Wyatt smiled at me. It wasn't like West's smile where it brightens his whole face, but a more relaxed secretive smile. It was so strange that this guy was West's twin. They were complete opposites. 

 "Trust me, I'd know."

I cleared my throat, "Well I think you should tell him what happened." On second thought maybe he shouldn't. West didn't need to get into another fight at school. Even though his brother obviously did- and was in the beaten up receiving end.

"It's better for him not to," Wyatt said, sounding ominous. "Good day, Edith."

Unlike yesterday where West was trying to talk to me, he was quiet in gym, and didn't come near me. I was thankful for that because I didn't want to answer any of his probing questions. But I felt bad because that just meant he cared.

My stomach turned weirdly at the thought.

During the last few minutes of gym class, West and I were called up to the Principal's office. I didn't meet West's eyes, but prepared myself for the worst. Technically, they thought I was involved in the whole Jared thing, so I guess my punishment will be the same as West's.

Principal Greer beckoned us to come in her office, and we both sat down in her chairs.

"After some consideration, I decided the best punishment for you guys."

"Edith didn't do anything!" West protested. Principal Greer shot him a glare. 

"You both will have detention for an entire week. Not only that, but you will also be volunteers for the Student Body's events that they host for the entire school year." Out of all the clubs I could have joined in this school, that was on my bottom list. "Lastly, you guys will be supervising some of the elementary school pups after class too."

We both didn't say anything. West had his arms crossed, a blank expression on his face. 

"Well. Detention is waiting for you both."