Alpha Alexandra: The Alpha in Disguise

Exposed

Alex’s POV

I had thought I was ready for this, and I'm not just talking about the pain, the training and the near-death exhaustion, I also thought I was ready to live my life as a girl living among men, and coexisting without getting caught, but what I hadn’t prepared for was how uncomfortable it would be to simply exist in a space that wasn’t built for me.

We stood in the corridor of Dorm Block C, all thirty of us as we were sorted five per room.

“Initiates!” a young instructor barked as he walked down the line.

He had a buzz cut, and even though he was clearly only a few years older than us, I could tell by his eyes that he had seen his own fair share of stupidity. “I’m Instructor Vaughn, and you’ll either address me as ‘Instructor’ or you don't address me at all.”

Vaughn held up a tablet and scrolled. “Rooms are assigned, and you're not allowed to change rooms, or complain. If you don’t like your roommates, learn to like them, or don’t. Either way, deal with it.”

Someone snorted down the line, but it died pretty fast when the instructor's frown deepened, with him making it clear that he didn't appreciate that sound.

“When your name is called, grab your things and get in. Room inspections happen at random, but your beds must be made at all times, and if you break academy protocol at any point, you’ll be out before your next breath. Any questions?”

When no one asked any questions, he started calling names, grouping us in fives. My name came up second-to-last, grouped with J’s, Rowan, Malik, and Theo. None of the names meant anything to me, even though I recognized Malik as the boy who'd placed tenth in the run.

Instructor Vaughn turned to leave but paused dramatically like he remembered something important. “Oh, and one more thing, I'd advise you not to get too comfortable with these rooms, because they're only temporary, just like all of you, and only recruits who make it past the first three ranks get transferred to the upgraded dorms.”

“Upgraded?” one boy asked cautiously.

“Ensuite bathrooms, private showers, and more space. For now, you'll share the outdoor bathhouse at the edge of the training field.”

“What?”

Vaughn nodded, clearly enjoying how horrified we all were. “Thirty of you, one bathhouse, five showers, and all outdoors. You want hot water? Learn how to fight for it, and if you want privacy?” His mouth curved in a mean smile. “Well, tough luck. This is the Alpha Academy, not a damn spa.”

After that, he turned on his heel and left, and once he was out of sight, I let out a frustrated sigh.

I’d known coming here would mean rooming with boys, and I had accepted that, but this? This changed everything.

I couldn't exactly walk into the bathhouse, peel off my shirt, unwrap the bandages around my chest, and calmly take a bath like the rest of them.

Except of course, I wanted to be caught so fast that my feet wouldn't touch the ground before I was thrown out.

‘No,’ I thought. ‘That can’t happen.’

***

After the rooms were assigned, my roommates left for the bathhouse, while I slipped out the back entrance of the dorm block with my towel, a change of clothes, and my flashlight just in case it was too dark.

I didn't exactly have a plan, and the only thing I was hoping for was that there would be a space somewhere in this huge Academy where I could just strip the bandages from my chest and take a bath without getting caught.

I kept walking until I arrived deep into the forest, and pulled out my flashlight, making sure it faced the ground so in case there was anyone else, they wouldn't quickly notice that I was coming.

I was pretty sure I had been walking for probably twenty minutes when I heard the sound that immediately caught my attention. It was the sound of moving water.

It was faint at first, and wanting to confirm, I moved toward the sound, the flashlight in my hand trembling as I did. I didn’t dare get too hopeful, but it was hard not to.

As the trees got thinner and thinner, I finally arrived at where the sound was coming from, and to my pleasant surprise, it was from a lake.

I stepped forward, ready to celebrate that I found what I was looking for, but before I could, something caught my attention and I immediately froze.

There was someone else there, standing by the edge of the water with his back turned to me, and undressing without a care in the world.

I barely managed to yank my flashlight off as my breath caught in my throat, and I hid instinctively behind a tree. For a few seconds, I didn’t move, and I didn’t even dare to breathe.

I peeped around the edge of the tree, trying not to make a sound.

The moonlight was just enough to see him, and I watched as his shirt dropped to the forest floor, followed by his boots being kicked aside.

I knew that body. I didn’t know it, not exactly, but it felt familiar in a way that sent a strange ripple through me, and after trying to recall where I had seen the same physique, it finally clicked.

Jaxon. Jaxon Maddox, the boy who’d beat me in the run. I hadn't been able to see his face earlier because he was standing far from me and didn't look back, but for some very strange reason, his body had burned itself into my brain.

I wanted to look away, and I knew that I should have looked away, but I didn’t, or better yet, I couldn't. It was like my eyes couldn't help it.

I had convinced myself he would see me as long as I stayed still and waited until he was done.

He was already waist-deep in the water with his body half-turned, and I watched as he ran a hand through his hair, hoping he'd be done soon so I would get my chance, but while I was thinking that I was sleek, he suddenly spoke up, almost giving me a heart attack.

“How long are you going to keep staring?”

His voice wasn’t raised and didn't seem to be angry about being watched, but even that was enough to make me ten times more nervous, to the point where I felt like I couldn't breathe.

I stayed perfectly still, telling myself that if I did absolutely nothing, he’d think he imagined it and carry on with his bath, but then he spoke again, and this time, he was more direct.

“Come out,” he said. “Or I’ll come to you.”

My stomach dropped, and I instantly knew that he wasn’t bluffing. I couldn’t explain why, but something about the way he said it made me believe he would come after me, and the last thing I needed was him coming all the way here, just to find me standing here like a creep with a towel and a change of clothes.

‘Run,’ that was all my brain told me, and without giving it a second thought, I turned on my heel and bolted. The mere thought of getting caught was mortifying, so I didn't care where I was going, just as long as I was as far away as possible from the dude, who I already marked as my soon-to-be nemesis.

I was just beginning to think I’d made it and that maybe I could rush back to the dorms without getting caught when a sharp gust of wind rushed past me, and before I knew it, Jaxon Maddox was in front of me.

He wasn't beside me, wasn't behind me, but in front of me. One moment he wasn’t there, and the next, he was.

He was tall, taller than I imagined up close, and his damp shirt was clinging to his chest, while his hair was tousled, and the look on his face was unreadable.

How the hell did he manage to put on his shirt and still catch up to me?

I nearly slipped into the dirt as I stumbled backward, and my breath hitched in my throat.

He was taller up close, and his aura was almost suffocating, not necessarily in a bad way, but in a way that made me feel like the world was way too small to contain him, and then I looked up.

Straight into his bright amber eyes, and the second our eyes met, something in me snapped, and it suddenly felt like the world stopped turning. Then I heard his voice.

“Mate.”

I hadn’t meant to say it, but my lips moved in sync with his. “Mate.”

The second it slipped from my lips, I wanted to take it back, choke it down, and pretend it never happened.

I had thought that Jaxon would look just as horrified as I was, but he didn’t. Instead, he looked confused.

His brow furrowed slightly, and his eyes studied me, not with disgust or suspicion, but with concentration, almost like I was a puzzle he wasn’t sure he was supposed to solve, but he wanted to anyway, and then, to my complete and utter shock, he stepped closer.

I flinched, instinctively taking a step back, but there was nowhere to go, and he leaned in until his face was only inches away from mine.

I could see the tiny droplets of water clinging to his lashes from the lake, and I could practically smell him in a way I'd much rather not.

My entire body locked up, frozen between fear, confusion, and the completely inappropriate awareness that my first reaction to being this close to him wasn’t to run but to just keep staring.

“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, my voice coming out higher and shakier than I wanted.

Jaxon’s eyes didn’t leave mine for a second as he spoke. “You’re a girl, aren’t you?” he asked so casually that I almost had a heart attack.

“What?” I blurted out in utter shock.

“I said,” he repeated, calmly, “you’re a girl, aren't you?”