Accidentally Marked By The Hockey Alpha

6: Move In With Me

Six

AMERIE

I had never panicked that much in my entire life.

For several seconds, I could do nothing except stare at Axel's blue face while my brain struggled to understand what I was seeing.

He had been standing in front of me only moments ago, arguing as confidently as ever, and now he was lying unconscious on the ground with his entire body turning an unnatural shade of blue.

"Axel!"

I grabbed his shoulder and shook him, but he didn't respond. His head rolled slightly to the side, completely limp, and the sight sent another wave of panic through me.

"Somebody help!"

I barely finished shouting before I heard the sound of a car approaching from behind us. It came around the corner so quickly that I instinctively moved aside, and the vehicle stopped directly in front of us.

The doors opened almost immediately and Mattias jumped out. He was accompanied by an older guy I had never seen before. Mattias didn't waste time asking what had happened. He crouched beside Axel, checked him quickly before sighing in relief.

The older man carried the unconscious girl into the car, while Mattias carried Axel.

“Get in,” Mattias said.

"Is he dying?"

"He'll be fine."

I stared at Mattias in disbelief. "How can you say he'll be fine when his entire body is blue?"

He barely looked at me as he loaded Axel into the car.

“Axel will be fine. Now get into the car.”

I climbed into the car, still staring at Axel's frighteningly blue skin, and unable to understand how these two men could behave as though Axel wasn't lying there at the brink of death.

The drive was fast and mostly silent. I sat beside Axel, watching him, expecting something to change, but nothing did.

When we eventually arrived, they carried him inside and took him to his room. I followed behind them, still trying to process everything that had happened.

Mattias placed Axel on his bed and looked at me.

"You should stay with him."

"Why?"

He glanced briefly at the mark on my neck and for a second, I thought he looked irritated but the look was gone too soon, “because your bond will help him recuperate faster.”

I didn't even have a second to get a word out, and Mattias had already walked out the door.

With a sigh, I sat in the chair beside Axel's bed, watching him as his color so slowly began returning to normal. That should have reassured me, but I couldn't stop thinking about what had happened outside.

The syringe was still burned into my memory, along with the girl's terrified expression and the way Axel had collapsed.

Hours passed and Axel didn't wake up, and every time I looked at him, the fear returned.

What if he didn't wake up?

That thought came unexpectedly, and I immediately pushed it away.

I didn't care about Axel. At least, I shouldn't.

He was arrogant, infuriating and responsible for the mess I was currently trapped in. So I should have been happy that he was unconscious.

But fear slowly began creeping into my chest.

"Axel," I whispered.

There was no response. I swallowed and leaned closer.

"Axel, wake up. You can't die. You hear me?"

My eyes began burning, and I quickly blinked the feeling away.

"You can't just do this to me and then die on me. You're going to wake up, and remove this damn thing. Do you understand me? Open your eyes and get the f**k up.”

My voice shook despite my attempt to keep it steady, and I pressed my lips together, fighting the emotions gathering in my chest.

"I f*****g hate you so much," I whispered, wiping quickly beneath one eye. "You better wake up so I can keep hating you properly."

Right then, he moved, and my head snapped up.

He opened his eyes slowly and blinked several times, as though he had simply woken up from an ordinary night's sleep. He stretched slightly, took a deep breath and pushed himself upright with an bemused smirk.

I stared at him.

This boy looked fine. Completely fine.

His skin had completely returned to its normal color. His breathing was steady, like nothing had even happened to him.

Something inside me snapped.

"You've got to be kidding me."

I shot to my feet, anger surging through me so violently that I barely knew what to do with it. I had spent hours terrified, exhausted, and completely helpless, watching him lie there, convinced that he could die at any moment and here I was, looking like he was having a field day.

I grabbed my bag from beside the chair and turned to leave, but I barely made it two steps before he called out.

"Amerie."

I ignored him and kept walking. He moved faster than I expected, and before I could reach the door, his hand caught my wrist.

I whipped around, glaring at him.

"Let me go!"

That lazy amusement that had been there was gone, replaced by a much more serious expression.

"I was really poisoned. I was injected with Venom's Fang.”

I stared at him, the name meaning absolutely nothing to me even though I spend hours studying the werewolf world.

"Venom's Fang?"

"The most powerful poison in Wolfspire,” he continued, his expression turning more grim,” and that poison wasn't meant for me, Amerie. That little girl was going to stick it in you if my reflexes weren't quick."

My breath stopped for a second.

"You're human, Amerie. If that poison had entered your body, you would've died instantly."

The room seemed to go completely silent, and I couldn't find a single word to say. My mind refused to process what he'd just said, but the memory of the girl approaching us came rushing back with horrifying clarity.

If Axel hadn't noticed that girl on time, that syringe would've gone into me instead of him, and I would've died just like that. All because this silly boy has marked me.

Axel's voice pulled me back.

"It's no brainer thar the girl was sent by people who would stop at nothing to make sure I don't become king,” his eyes darkened slightly, “I have a mate now, human or not. It gives me an advantage and they want to remove my mate.”

He looked at me dead in the eyes, “and they'll keep trying Amerie."

My chest tightened. I had thought the worst part of this entire situation was the mark. But now I understood that the mark hadn't simply changed my life. It had put a target on it. All because of a mark I had never asked for.

The fear in me slowly turned into anger again, burning through the shock until my hands curled into fists.

"Then remove the mark so I'll be free.”

Axel went quiet. For the first time since I'd met him, he didn't have an answer ready.

The usual confidence disappeared from his face, and his eyes dropped briefly to my neck before returning to mine.

"I'm sorry, Amerie."

That caught me off guard. I had expected an excuse. I had expected him to tell me that there was nothing he could do and simply move on, the way he'd done every other time I'd demanded answers.

Instead, he looked genuinely sorry.

"I would remove it if I could. Believe me, I would."

I looked away, fighting the sudden sting behind my eyes and the anger burning through me. I didn't want his sympathy and his stupid apology. I wanted my life back.

"But I'll protect you," he continued. "And once I publicly claim you, the attempts to harm you will be reduced, because trying to kill you will count as treason."

I immediately shook my head.

"I don't want to be claimed, Axel. I don't want to be your mate."

"It's not real, Amerie. We’re just going to fake it. You get the protection that comes with being publicly connected to me, and I get to keep my claim to the throne and it's not going to be forever. It's going to be for a while. I'm already working actively to look for seers who can remove the mark."

I pulled my hand away from his hold and started to walk away, already tired of hearing his nonsense.

"I'll arrange for the humans to have more representation in the government,” he blurted out in a rush. That caught my attention, and I paused in my tracks.

“I know how much you want humans to represent themselves in the government too. You've always spoken, written, and debated about it. Isn't that why you want to study political science? If you agree to be my pretend-mate, I will make it happen for you.”

The first thing that registered was how he knew that about me. It filled me with a swoony feeling and I tapped it down immediately. His idea didn't sound bad. If pretending to be Axel's mate could keep me alive and also give humans a stronger voice in the government, then perhaps I could tolerate the arrangement.

And thinking about it again, I could use my position as his fake mate to implement some policies of my own.

I turned back to him.

"Fine. I'll do it."

For someone who was always uptight and impassive, I've never seen him look more relieved and happy.

I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

But at least now, for the first time since that mark appeared, I felt like I had made a choice for myself.

I adjusted the strap of my bag. "So what happens now?"

Axel's answer came without hesitation.

"You'll have to move in with me.”