THE HEARTLESS ALPHA

"Help me. Please. Is anyone there?" A woman's voice. Helpless. Coming from the dark part of the jungle. Everything was black. The trees just stood there. Like they were watching. No wind. No leaves. No animals. Just silence. The kind that gets inside your chest and sits there. And in that silence, that voice broke me. Fear doubled. Every part of me wanted to run. Run as fast as I could. But I couldn't leave someone like that. Not alone. I made myself move. My feet dragged over the dirt. Toward the sound. Then I heard it. Clank... clank... Chains. I stopped. My legs wouldn't move. And then more voices. Dozens. Each one felt like a knife. I wasn't brave. My hands were shaking. But I kept going. Then I saw it. The field. My stomach dropped. I forgot how to breathe. Two people. Chained. And around them, fire. Coming right out of the ground. Like the earth was sick. The heat hit me from here. It was so hot I thought my skin would melt. I could feel it. Their pain. People think I don't get it. My friends call me cold. Heartless. But they don't know. There's a heart in here. I feel it. I just hide it. I took another step. To pull them away from the fire. And then one of them spoke. I looked closer. A woman. Her hands and feet were in chains. Her hair was stuck to her face with blood. Her whole body... cuts. Bruises. Like they did it for fun. Again and again. I forced myself to look her in the eyes. And they looked... familiar. Her lips were cracked. She spoke slow. "Protect yourself, James. And run. Get out of here. Come back only when you've found your true power." My heart was pounding. Who was she? How did she know my name? What power? Before I could say anything, I heard another voice. Far away. "JAMES!" And then the door opened. I woke up. Gasping. My eyes opened heavy. Ceiling. White walls. Sun through the window. No jungle. No fire. No blood. All gone. Standing there was Mr. Albert. My dad. Like every morning. He came to wake me himself. He looked tired. Worried. Holding a glass of water. Same routine. Every time I had that dream, he was there. I couldn't breathe right. Sweat was running down my face, my neck, my chest. My heart felt like it would break out. I took a deep breath. My shirt was soaked. Dad put his cool hand on my forehead. It calmed me down a little. "That dream again?" His voice was quiet. It hurt. I nodded. My throat was dry. Couldn't talk. He held the water to my lips. I drank it all. Like I was dying of thirst. Then he pulled me into a hug. It was the only thing that made me feel okay again. "You alright?" he asked. Same worried voice. Like it was the first time. "I'm used to it now, Dad. Same dream. 10 years." I tried to smile so he wouldn't worry more. "That's my boy." He smiled a little. I closed my eyes. His words made me feel safe. For a second I forgot the jungle. Forgot the fear. "Alright. Get up. First day of college today. Go have fun. Make friends. Maybe even meet a girl." He winked and walked out. I got ready. FIRST DAY AT WESTMERE COLLEGE 8 AM. The big iron gate opened. Gold letters on top: "Westmere College of Arts & Sciences - London" Trees on both sides. Students walking in. Blazers, skirts, expensive bags. And then there was Alen. Plain uniform. White shirt, navy pants, old black shoes. Hair tied back. Just a notebook and pen. No bag. No makeup. She walked in with her head down. Heart pounding. New place. New people. She only got in because of her dad's boss. "Hey. Look. Even beggars are getting in now." A loud laugh. Three guys. Expensive blazers. Coffee in hand. Fake smiles. The popular group. The one in front - tall, fair, gel in his hair. Ryan. He looked her up and down and laughed. "Wow. Where'd you come from? Charity shop?" His friends laughed too. "Man, look at those shoes. From the 90s." The third one bumped into her on purpose. Her notebook fell. "Oops. Sorry. Didn't see you." Some kids stopped to watch. Some laughed. Some ignored it. Alen bent down. Picked up her notebook. Face red. But she didn't cry. Didn't shout. She just took a breath. Ryan stepped in front of her. "Listen. Only rich kids go to Westmere. People like you don't belong here. Got it?" Alen looked up for the first time. No fear. "I came here to study. Not to fight." And she walked past them. To the building. Behind her, Ryan glared at his friends. "Did you see that? We're gonna teach her a lesson." Alen walked faster. One thought in her head. Being poor isn't weakness. I'll show them. CLASSROOM Big windows. Whiteboard said "Welcome to new class". Literature. Ms. Helena walked in. 40s. Strict. Glasses. "Good morning, class." "Good morning, Ma'am." She opened the register. "We have new students. Small test today. Alen Wright. Stand up." Every head turned. Alen stood up slow. Hands shaking. "Alen. In Hamlet. 'To be or not to be'... what does it mean?" Silence. Alen opened her mouth. Closed it. She hadn't slept. New house. New book. "S... sorry Ma'am. I don't know." "HA!" Ryan from the back. "What kind of student is this? Doesn't know Shakespeare and still got in?" The class laughed. Someone banged the desk. Someone recorded on their phone. Alen's face burned. She looked down. Tears in her eyes but she held them. "Enough!" Ms. Helena snapped. "Sit down, Alen." She tried to listen. Couldn't. All she heard was whispering. Bell rang. The second the teacher left, Ryan walked over. Grabbed her notebook. Threw it. Papers everywhere. Alen bent to pick them up. Ryan kicked her chair. BAM! She fell. Knee scraped. Everything scattered. More laughter. "Get up! That fast?" Alen felt empty. She grabbed her stuff and ran. Down the hall. The laughter followed. THE COLLISION 10 AM. Bell rang. VROOOOM! Everyone stopped. A black Lamborghini pulled in. Door opened. Black blazer. White shirt. Expensive watch. Messy hair. Tired eyes. The moment he stepped out, girls grabbed their chests. "Oh my God. James Albert!" "Why's he late again?" Sophie stepped forward. Hair down. Dark lipstick. "Handsome and late. I'm gonna go talk to him." Her friend laughed. "Are you dumb? His dad runs this college. He's the richest guy here. No one cares if he's late." Sophie fixed her hair. Other girls did too. But James didn't look at anyone. He hated that. On the other side, Alen was coming down the stairs. Head down. Eyes wet. Holding her torn notebook. Bella, Ryan's friend and James's cousin, stuck her foot out. Alen tripped. "Ahhh!" She fell hard. Knee bleeding. Forehead cut. Notebook flew. And her crystal necklace came out. A sharp flash of light. Hit James right in the eyes. Something pulled in his chest. He ran. Alen was falling again. He grabbed her arm. Stopped her. Alen was breathing hard. Face pale. "You okay?" James asked. She jerked away. Stood up. All the anger from today was in her eyes. "You done? Anything else you rich people wanna do to me?" Her voice shook. "You all think we're nothing. That you can laugh at us. Because you have money." Tears fell now. "What does it matter if you're rich? Doesn't mean you can crush people." The whole place went quiet. Alen pushed him back. "Don't think your fake sympathy will work on me. It won't. I'm gonna stay here and prove you all wrong. That's a promise." James just stared. No one talked to him like that. Girls stood with their mouths open. Sophie was shocked. Everyone thought James would get her expelled. But he said quietly: "I didn't push you. And I wasn't making fun. I was trying to help." Alen picked up her notebook. Wiped her tears. "Whatever. You're just a rich kid." And she limped away. James stood there. Staring at the crystal around her neck. He didn't know why, but he felt bad. "She's not normal," Bella's friend whispered. Bella just smiled. An ugly smile. A plan forming in her mind .