The Wolf Girl's Secret Box

Chapter10

After saying goodbye to the coach, Adren retreated to a quiet corner. He steered clear of the overly enthusiastic girls, settling by the fence to stare blankly at the practice field.

He couldn't shake the feeling of obligation towards Olivette for helping him—Olivette, who rarely paid anyone any mind. It was surprising enough that he hadn't been brushed off as a nuisance, let alone offered help voluntarily. After all, the nickname “Monster Olivette” hadn't come from nowhere. Of course, when Adren first transferred, the moniker hadn't stuck yet.

Ultimately, it all came down to his own peculiar nature. If he’d just spoken more, managed a smile for the girls occasionally, and hadn't worn that perpetual scowl every day, things would surely be different now.

Truth be told, Olivette was exceptionally good-looking. Even by Adren's admittedly selective standards, the guy was a stunner. His black, perpetually tousled hair was stylishly neat, his eyes deep and intense, and his face was all sharp, angular lines. Combined with his height, he stood out vividly in any crowd.

He was only sixteen, yet already stood well over six feet and was probably still growing. Being young, his frame was still somewhat lean. But since they shared PE, Adren had seen him shirtless—beneath the T-shirt lay solid, compact muscles absolutely brimming with explosive power. It was the kind of physique most guys could only envy.

Incidentally, he was also the captain of this year’s school football team—an absolute star player.

Oh, and he was also, by a significant margin, the most unpopular football captain in the history of Xiba Middle School.

Adren genuinely couldn't wrap his head around it. A person with such undeniable physical advantages should be nearly impossible to dislike. Yet Olivette managed it with effortless grace. It was almost a talent (a deeply twisted one). If Adren was the universal charmer, then Olivette was the universal antagonist.

Unless you witnessed it firsthand, it was hard to imagine how someone with so many redeeming qualities could be disliked by so many girls. This had to be one of Xiba Middle School’s top ten unsolved mysteries, Adren mused—at least a solid top three.

“Hey! Hawkeson! You stop right there!”

Adren’s reverie was shattered by a sudden shriek from the field. He looked up and saw three girls trailing Olivette, clutching the hem of his T-shirt and refusing to let go.

Olivette, for his part, dragged the girls along without breaking stride, marching determinedly forward. Adren had no doubt he intended to haul them all the way back to the classroom.

If memory served, these girls were members of the cheerleading squad? How utterly... humiliating. Adren covered half his face with his hand, unable to watch.

“Hey—you lot!” The physical education instructor, equally fed up with the spectacle, bellowed from a distance, “The girls in the blue, red, and orange skirts—yes, you! What is this? Stop harassing the boys!”

The named girls jumped in surprise, instantly letting go of Olivette’s shirt and scattering like startled rabbits.

“...?” Now, Edlen felt a strange uncertainty. Did these girls truly dislike Olivette? It certainly didn't look that way to him.

The newly freed Olivette smoothed his crumpled shirt and nodded a quick thank you to the coach. Adren noticed he was still barefoot. Only someone like Olivette could tolerate such harassment from girls without losing his temper, Adren thought helplessly. He couldn't begin to understand what high school boys and girls were thinking these days.

Regardless, it was Adren's nonsensical outburst that had caused Olivette to be targeted, leading the girls to act out. While Adren hadn't directed them, failing to intervene sooner was his fault.

He felt terribly apologetic about it, especially since Olivette had gone out of his way to help him. Before his brain could process the decision, his body acted first. He called out to Olivette’s retreating back: “Hey.”

Too late to back out now. Olivette paused, turning with a questioning look.

“Um...” Adren mentally steeled himself, getting up to walk alongside the tall figure. “About the fitness test... thanks.”

“No big deal. The coach told me to give you a hand.” Olivette’s tone was as flat as discussing the weather.

At this point, Adren felt an obligation to defend the poor coach—he’d only asked Olivette to “gently” guide Adren, not make him run an extra lap. That would have been against the rules.

Olivette’s response left Adren speechless, and the air grew thick with awkwardness. Adren quickly pointed at Olivette’s bare feet and asked politely, "Need some help? I mean, help you find your shoes?"

All Adren truly wanted was for him to refuse. Just open his mouth and say “no,” like he always did. Then Adren could look suitably regretful and walk away. Perfect.

Olivette considered this for a moment before replying, “Sure.”

“...” This wasn’t right. Why wasn't he following the script? Adren screamed inwardly. You’re not usually this agreeable—how could you accept someone else’s suggestion so readily?

But he dared only think these thoughts secretly. He couldn't very well ask Olivette to take the suggestion back and politely decline.

The concept of “courtesy” likely didn't even exist in Olivette’s dictionary.

Given that Adren had made the suggestion himself, he just had to accept his bad luck if it wasn't rejected. To complete the task quickly, Adren swiftly devised a plan. Pointing toward the classroom building, he said, “I’ll start on the fourth floor. You take the first floor. We’ll check one floor at a time. Meet me on the staircase between the second and third floors.” The classroom building was huge; hiding a pair of shoes would be incredibly easy. Their task felt daunting.

Olivette wasn't actually in a hurry. He could have waited until the school emptied, then shifted into wolf form. His keen sense of smell would locate the hidden shoes in under five minutes. But now that Adren had offered to help... Beneath his calm exterior, his heart skipped a beat, making refusal impossible.

Adren nodded, accepting the plan.

The task proved more extensive than Adren had imagined. Starting from the top floor, he checked each classroom one by one. It was dismissal time, and many classrooms were locked. He could only peer through the windows like a curious voyeur. Fortunately, the rooms contained few items, making everything visible at a glance. Adren quickly finished checking the third and fourth-floor classrooms.

He paused outside the third-floor changing room, hesitating about going inside. After a moment of deliberation, he pushed the door open. Besides the locked lockers currently in use, many were empty—perfect for concealing items. He could hear people humming songs inside the bathrooms. Adren silently prayed they wouldn’t emerge right now. Searching through empty lockers fully clothed in the changing room would look highly suspicious. He didn’t want his good reputation ruined over a pair of sneakers.

Adren searched every empty locker but found nothing. He was nearly driven mad, tempted to pry open every locked cabinet just to look inside. Of course, he only dared to think it.

When they met at the stairwell, both were empty-handed. Adren felt low—in fact, utterly disheartened. They’d spent nearly half the afternoon searching together, yet still hadn't found anything. He couldn't imagine how Olivette had endured this period of endless losses, endless provocation, and endless searching. But it was Olivette's hapless situation caused by the girls. He couldn't fathom how Olivette managed to endure it.

If Adren hadn't instigated it, the girls from the support group might never have acted this way. Ultimately, it was all Adren’s fault.

“I’m sorry,” Adren apologized sincerely. “I need to take responsibility for the support group’s actions. I shouldn't have let them get away with it. It’s all my fault. How about I buy you a new pair of sneakers?”

“No need,” Olivette replied. With Adren around, he probably wouldn't find them today. He was already considering arriving early tomorrow morning to search for the shoes while no one was around.

Adren didn't know what he was thinking. He wondered if Olivette meant he didn't need the shoes, or the apology, or both. Whichever it was, he hoped the other would accept his offer.

“No, no, I insist,” Adren pressed. “Consider it compensation for all the harassment these past few days. Besides, you really do need a new pair.”

Adren’s gaze kept drifting involuntarily to Olivette’s feet. Suddenly, a basic question struck him: If shoes were worn on feet, how could they be hidden?

“...Pardon my curiosity, but why would your shoes be hidden? You... didn’t come wearing them?”

“...” Olivette was speechless.

Sorry, he truly hadn’t arrived wearing shoes. He kept a full change of clothes at school for occasions when, well, he had to run to class in wolf form—like today. Arriving early, he opened his locker to find a pair of shoes missing—no need to guess who took them. Thankfully, they’d only taken the shoes, leaving behind a complete outfit to cover himself. At least he wouldn’t have to run around naked at school. Come to think of it, he should thank the girls for showing a measure of mercy.

But this was definitely not something he should mention to Adren.

“...Alright, I shouldn’t have asked so many questions.” During Olivette's few seconds of silence, Adren's mind had conjured up all sorts of bizarre reasons for losing his shoes. Any of them touched on personal privacy, making the questions genuinely inappropriate.

Adren wisely changed the subject: “It’s getting late. Are you heading to practice?” He pointed his attention back to Olivette’s bare feet. Practicing football barefoot might just lead to crippling injuries...

Sure enough, Olivette wisely shook his head and declined. Then he added something completely unexpected: “Maybe in the ladies' room.”

Adren stared at him in utter confusion. If he were a robot, question marks would be spinning over his head right now.

Perhaps deciding that actions spoke louder than words, Olivette paused briefly before striding toward the women's restroom with his long legs.

“Hey—where are you going? That's the women's restroom!” Adren hurriedly grabbed the hem of Olivette's T-shirt, planting his feet wide apart and lowering his center of gravity to block him.

Olivette halted, turning to face Adren.

“...”

This scene felt strangely familiar? After gym class, hadn't three girls once tugged at him like this?

Adren quickly released Olivette’s shirt and asked, “What could possibly be in the ladies' room?”

“Sneakers.” Olivette had to explain verbally—a difficult task for him. Worried Adren wouldn't understand or that he'd stumble over the words, he added, “Sometimes they hide things in there. I’ll go in now, but I need someone to stand guard.”

Adren shrugged. Guard duty seemed tailor-made for him. His only hope was that no girls would show up while Olivette was inside—especially girls who knew him. Of course, that was impossible. Every girl in this school knew Adren, unless she was blind.

Adren paced back and forth outside the girls' restroom, pretending to wait for a girlfriend (if he had one), trying his best not to look like a complete creep. Fortunately, few people roamed the building after school, and no one appeared in the hallway for now.

Olivette had been inside for at least two—no, three minutes. Why wasn't he coming out? Adren anxiously glanced at his watch, then furtively scanned the surroundings before pressing his ear against the door of the girls' bathroom.

Inside, the sound of creaking metal frames being dismantled echoed.

What on earth was he doing? Taking apart the vents? Could those frail little girls really hide shoes in the vents?

As it turned out, one should never underestimate girls' imagination and determination. The shoes were eventually found, just as Adren had suspected—tucked inside the ventilation ducts in the girls' bathroom ceiling.

“... ” While celebrating the recovery, Adren’s mind raced with dread. Had Olivette ever gone in alone before, when no one was guarding the door? Did he already know the women's restroom layout by heart? What had this terrifying creature been doing when no one was around? —Alright, he was just trying to crack a joke. Considering humor might not even exist in Olivette’s vocabulary, Adren swallowed that lowbrow joke whole.

Of course, even if he had voiced it, Olivette wouldn't have laughed. In wolf form, retrieving items through ventilation ducts meant none of Adren's scenarios would have played out. —Still, if Adren hadn't been here, retrieving the shoes would've been far easier for Olivette. And if not for the harassment from the support group, he wouldn't have needed to do any of this at all.

“Roof tank, sewer, library, faculty office.” He listed a few representative locations. Adren marveled at himself for instantly grasping the meaning: these were all places where hidden items had been found before.

“Your temper isn't nearly as bad as they make it out to be,” Adren observed. “On the contrary, it’s remarkably good.” Anyone else would have lost their temper long ago (Adren didn't know about Olivette hoisting the girl onto the wall, but even that wasn't overly harsh—the height was easily jumpable).

“Can't be too hard on them.” Olivette replied, his tone surprisingly earnest. “You have to give them leeway.”

Olivette’s mother was human, and though his sister was a werewolf, she was only six. The two most important women in his life were both relatively vulnerable in terms of strength. Olivette had to carefully control his power in daily life to ensure he didn't hurt them, a habit that had ingrained a sense of humility and restraint in him from a young age.

To a large extent, he carried this habit into school. —This created a situation where Olivette, though appearing fierce and unapproachable, was surprisingly easy to bully. Of course, this only applied to girls. Try it with boys, and Olivette’s fists would leave an impression so vivid they’d remember it forever.

Adren pondered Olivette's words and chuckled, “So you just let them push you around?”

“No.” Olivette answered without looking up, tying his shoelaces while seated on the steps.

“Then why?” Adren asked, puzzled.

“Because you get angry.” Olivette brushed dust off his sneakers, stood up, and stamped his feet twice.

“Me? I wasn't angry.” Olivette's answer caught Adren completely off guard. He scrambled to defend himself, “Why would I be angry? What do I have to be angry about?”

“You... stop being angry,” Olivette said earnestly.

“...” Fine, he had been angry earlier, Adren thought gloomily.

What frustrated him even more was that he couldn't articulate why he'd been upset. It stemmed from some nonsensical incident, an inexplicable irritation that had nothing to do with Olivette whatsoever. Even more absurdly, he'd forgotten about it entirely after venting, only remembering when he needed a favor today.

Thinking about it now, he felt downright awful. How could he expect the victim to apologize to him in a submissive tone? He was the one who should apologize. Even though he’d already said it once, he should make a proper, formal apology.

...Wait a minute. Earlier, Adren had asked if Olivette let the girls bully him “because he was being considerate of them.” His response was “because you got angry.”

So this was Olivette's way of apologizing to Adren? By letting the girls run wild? Even without knowing what he'd done wrong?

Adren was momentarily at a loss for words. If he hadn't been imagining things, could it mean he held a special place in Olivette’s heart? Why? Was it loneliness? ... That kind of loneliness that comes from never having had friends.

Another apology choked in his throat, suffocating him.

“No, I’m not angry,” he finally said after careful deliberation. “Really, I’m not angry. Don’t let girls bully you anymore, Olivette.”