The Four Beta Brothers

Chapter 8 - Be Prepared

ASHER

	“The library will be closing in five minutes,” a woman on the intercom announced.

	I looked over at Juniper, who was face first in one of her textbooks. She fell asleep about thirty minutes ago, and I couldn’t bring myself to wake her up. I could tell she was sleep deprived based on the bags under her eyes, and I wasn’t surprised with everything going on with her.

	It was incredible how much she had grown up. She still looked like the Juniper I once knew, except her body had filled out. Her hair was longer, and it was clear she had grown stronger than before. But she was also alone now in a way she had never been before. 

	She was once a spunky kid who stood up to bullies, so it was a little weird seeing her being bullied. She even punched a kid once for making fun of Axel and myself. She was always looking out for us, and now it was my turn to look out for her, even if she didn’t remember who I was.

	I wanted to tell her the truth. I wanted to make her remember just how special she was to all of us, but I knew there would be consequences not only for my brothers and myself, but also for Juniper. My father made it clear that she couldn’t learn the truth about her past or else, and his “or else” often led to werewolves being forced out of their homes. I didn’t know if he’d go that far, but I didn’t want to risk it.

	Standing up, I moved around the table and gently shook her awake. She slowly craned her head up, rubbing her neck in the process. She blinked slowly, processing exactly where she was. When she noticed the little pile of drool on her book, she quickly slammed it shut. I pretended I didn’t notice, like the gentleman I was.

	“How long was I out for?” Her eyes were wide as she tried to process her surroundings, but sleep was still weighing heavily on her.

	“Just a few minutes. The library is closing. We need to head out.” I leaned against the table next to her. All of my stuff was already packed.

	She started shoving everything into her bag. I heard the papers crinkle and resisted the urge to cringe. Creases in papers drove me crazy, but it wasn’t my place to nitpick Juniper’s stuff.

	“Why didn’t you wake me up?” She stood and zipped up her bag. “I still wanted to study more for my next test.”

	“Your test is in two weeks. You finished your homework, and you looked like you needed the sleep.” We had studied for nearly three hours before she fell asleep, so I hadn’t been worried about waking her.

	“Still, I like to study ahead. Cramming only leads to temporary knowledge. I like to actually learn what I study.” She slung her bag over her shoulder, and it seemed to weigh her down. I wasn’t surprised with how many books she carried around with her.

	“Then we can study together again tomorrow.” I was eager for any excuse to see her again.

	She hesitated, as if she wanted to say no. “Okay,” she said. 

	I held out my hand to her and said, “Come on. I’ll walk you to the dorm, since it’s late.”

	She glanced at my hand but didn’t take it right away. “I don’t need you to walk me home. I’ve walked home by myself several times this late. The campus is a safe place.”

	Stubborn, stubborn girl. It was like she needed to prove she didn’t need anyone to look out for. I knew she didn’t need it. She had made it this far in life without me, but I wanted to break past her barriers. I wanted to show her it was okay to rely on others every once in a while.

	I dropped my hand, feeling defeated. “It would make me feel better if you let me walk you back.”

	She didn’t fight me this time. She grabbed my hand, making butterflies explode in my stomach. Maybe I was actually getting through her barriers.

	“So, are you going to give me any hints on how to ask you out on a proper date?” I asked.

	“You’re going to have to figure that out on your own. It’s no fun if I give you the answers.” She tugged me along out of the library, smiling. 

	It was a relief to see her happy, especially after seeing her distraught and frustrated the first time I’d seen her again after so many years.

	“You’re not going to make this easy for me, are you?” I didn’t mind a challenge, especially when it came to Juniper. I lost her once, and I knew I would go to the end of the world to stop from losing her again.

	“I just want to make sure you’re serious about going on a date with me,” she said with a smile.

	I wanted to do whatever I could to see that smile every day for the rest of my life. “Oh, I’m very serious about you, and if it takes a little extra effort to show you that, then that’s what I’ll do.”

	“I look forward to it.” She slowed down and stopped in front of the door labeled 206. “This is me.” She turned, tucking her arms behind her back. She swayed as if waiting for me to do something.

	I wanted to kiss her, and she looked like she wanted to be kissed. However, she was insistent that this wasn’t a date, so I wanted to save my big moves later. If she wanted to be wooed, I planned on making her dizzy.

	“Have a good night, June.” I leaned forward, cupping her cheek gently as I kissed her forehead.

	Her cheeks flushed, making her look stunning. It took everything I had to pull back. When she looked at me that way, it made me want to kiss her and never stop.

	“Good night,” she whispered, stepping back and fumbling with the door. She took out her keys and struggled to unlock the door. When it finally clicked, she glanced back and tried to say, “Bye,” but no words came out of her mouth.

	I watched her enter her dorm and didn’t leave until the door clicked shut. My stomach filled with butterflies from the day. Juniper liked me, and whether or not she was too stubborn to act on her feelings didn’t matter. She liked me.



	***



	JUNIPER

	I shut the door, trying to get the butterflies in my stomach to stop. I fully expected Asher to kiss me again, so when he kissed me on the forehead, it threw me off. There was something different about a forehead kiss. It was sweeter and more gentle, and it rocked my senses almost as much as our first kiss.

	Laughter burst out from the common room, bringing to my attention the fact that there were other people in the dorm right now. Moira had company, and whoever was with her likely despised me just as much, if not more, than her.

	I went straight to the kitchen, making a point to avoid eye contact, since the two rooms were connected. I just wanted to get a quick drink before slinking into my room and trying to get some sleep. My heart still raced from Asher’s kiss, so I knew it would be a little while before I fell asleep.

	As I walked into the kitchen, I noticed the trashcan was overflowing with beer cans. Several were even littered on the floor around it. I glanced into the room, frowning at the disrespect for our shared area. Moira, Ashley, one other girl, and two guys sat around the coffee table, all with various drinks in their hands. They laughed, and it seemed like they hadn’t noticed my presence yet.

	One of the guys crumpled his beer can and then chucked it towards the trash. I jumped back, just barely getting out of the way. “Watch it,” I muttered, completely understanding the mess now.

	“What did you say?” the guy challenged.

	He was drunk, but I still didn’t want to deal with the disrespect in my own home. If I couldn’t change rooms, I had to find a way to deal with Moira and her friends, and I wasn’t about to bow my head like a defeated dog.

	“I said watch it. You almost hit me.” I made my voice clear this time. “Also, you guys made a mess.”

	“Who cares what you think?” Ashley giggled, taking a big swig of her drink. They were all several drinks into the night based on their flushed faces and laughter. They didn’t care that we still had classes tomorrow, but that was on them.

	“I do. Even if you don’t like me, I still live here.” 

	Moira smirked. “You don’t have to pretend to be so stuck up anymore. We all know what you’re like.” She waited for my reply, watching me carefully. She wanted to get a reaction from me, and I didn’t want to give her the satisfaction.

	I turned away and started gathering the trash bag in my hands. It wasn’t my responsibility to take out the trash when they were the ones who made the mess, but I wanted the excuse to step out for a moment. I ignored their cat calls and went straight for the door. I even heard a few boos when I didn’t react to them. 

	It was quiet outside of the dorm, which made me want to stay out here a little longer. Today had been a good day, and I didn’t want to ruin it because of Moira and her friends. I found the dumpster and tossed the trash inside, but I didn’t leave right away.

	“Rough night?” The sudden voice made me jump.

	I whipped around, terrified of who might be there. Shadows hooded his eyes, and if I hadn’t recognized him, I would have been concerned for my safety.

	“Axel,” I breathed, grabbing my chest. My heart was still pounding from the initial jump. “What are you doing here, lurking in the shadows?”

	He shrugged, keeping his hands in his pockets. “I just happened to be passing by and noticed you. You look frustrated.”

	“I’m fine.” 

	“You’re lying.” He didn’t hesitate to call me out. “You don’t have to pretend to be okay all of the time. You’re allowed to be frustrated.”

	My shoulders sank as he said that. There was something about his words that made all of the negative feelings flush to the surface. “Yeah, I’m frustrated.”

	“Wanna talk about it?” He kept his distance, making no effort to move towards me.

	“I don’t think talking about it will fix anything. My roommate is a treacherous being who takes pleasure in trying to destroy me. My home is filled with her horrible friends, who have no regard or respect for the fact that it’s my home too. Only it’s not my home anymore. I don’t feel comfortable there. I don’t want to go home, and I can’t transfer rooms. I can’t make the students stop talking about me. I’m stuck, and I don’t want to just tuck my head and hide, but I also don’t know where to begin.”

	After the last word came out, I took a deep inhale, realizing I barely breathed as I ranted. My lungs burned from lack of oxygen, but my chest felt lighter. Asher had done a great job of distracting me, but actually letting it all out like that felt like a relief.

	Axel raised his eyebrows. “You’ve been holding a lot in.”

	“If you’re planning on trying to give me advice, I’m not interested. I’m tired of talking about it.” Talking about it didn’t change anything at this point.

	“I’m not interested in giving you advice. Now, if you want a distraction, I can help you with that.” Axel didn’t smile. He wasn’t using any kind of charm to woo me over. He was just there, watching me with that storm in his eyes. Something about it made me want to know more about him.

	I took a step towards him to get a closer look at him. “What kind of distraction are we talking about? Because I’m not really interested in talking right now. My brain is fried from the day.”

	Axel took a step towards me. “I didn’t take you for that kind of girl, but we can do that if you really want.”

	My eyes widened when I realized what he was implying. “I wasn’t—I didn’t mean—I just…” My cheeks flushed, and I was at a loss for words. With the rumors going around, I wasn’t surprised Axel would jump to that conclusion. I hadn’t thought before I spoke.

	“Relax. I know you’re not like that. I just saw an opportunity to tease you and took it.” He was only a step away from me now, and I wasn’t sure which one of us stepped closer to the other.

	“Right.” The air felt thin as I tried to ground my head again. Axel’s teasing me flustered me to the point that my brain practically shut off. “I should probably get back to my room. It’s late after all.”

	“Sure.” Axel stood there and watched me for a moment. “Aren’t you going to go?”

	I looked at my feet. They didn’t want to move. “Yes.” I still didn’t move.

	Axel stepped forward, grabbing the back of my head. His other arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me flushed against him. My hands pressed against his chest, which was firm and steady. His lips crashed against mine with feverish intent.

	It was completely different from Asher’s kiss. His was soft and warm, but Axel’s lips were firm, and his stubble was rough against my skin. This kiss was all encompassing, taking everything I had. His hand pressed firmly against my waist, holding me like I might disappear at any second.

	When we finally parted, my body and mind felt like they were floating. 

	Axel still held onto me, and we shared the same air. “I hope that was a satisfactory reward.”

	“Reward?” I repeated, unable to think.

	He smirked as he looked down into my eyes. “For guessing my name. I don’t like having debts hanging over my head.”

	“Ah.” I willed my mouth to move and come up with some sort of reply, but my brain was empty.

	Axel released me from his grasp and walked backwards. “Hope that was a sufficient distraction. Have a good night, J.J.”

Chapter 9 - The Four Beta Brothers