Guarded by the Alpha

(Elena’s POV)   Straight, until you see the woman’s restroom on the left. Run to the restroom, change your clothes quickly, and exit to the right. Keep going until you see the signs for taxis.   This is the only thing I can think as our plane begins the descend into Greece. My knees are shaking, and my hands are sweating, and my brain is racing, trying to memorize directions for an airport I’ve never been to, in a country I’ve never been to, with a language I’ve never spoken.   I look around at the other people on the plane. Nobody’s looking at me, of course. I’m surrounded by the other senior honors students of Torrey Pines High School, the pride and joy of Del Mar, California. There are about 20 of us in total, and only 3 chaperones. The other students are sitting next to each other, laughing with glee and preparing their plans for the next week. For the first time in the school’s history, the board of education announced that the highest achieving students of the senior class would be awarded with an educational adventure to Greece, starting in Thessaloniki. The idea of being able to finally drink legally since the legal age is 18 in Greece is already intoxicating to these students.   I’m sitting on my own, as I always am. I’ve never been one to be part of the “in crowd.” I’m not unpopular by any means – just… invisible. And I’m happy with that, especially in this instance. This will be easy, I say to myself, just to ease the nerves. In the back of my mind, I know no part of my plan will be easy. I’m minutes away from taking the biggest risk of my life. I’m jeopardizing my college scholarship and my relationship with my mother, who is at home with likely no idea what I am about to do. Thank god for that.   Straight, until you see the woman’s restroom on the left. Run to the restroom, change your clothes quickly, and exit to the right. Keep going until you see the signs for taxis.   I repeat this, somewhat anxiously, until the plane hits the tarmac. I continue as the plane begins the slow chug towards the gate. Could this plane be going any slower? It’s almost as though the pilot is deliberately trying my patience. Finally, the plane door opens and the fasten seatbelt sign dings off. The students ahead of me bounce out of their seats, radiating with excitement. They quickly deplane, with the chaperones right behind them. Unsurprisingly, nobody remembers that I’m a few rows back – this invisible thing is really working to my advantage. I wait for the rest of the plane to disembark before I slowly get up out of my seat and pull my backpack out of the overhead compartment. I imagine at this point, the rest of my group is well on their way to the baggage carousel, where they’ll pick up their checked bags. I deliberately didn’t bring one of those – everything I need is in my backpack, including one solitary change of clothes. That’s the least of my worries.   I make my way off the plane and can only nervously smile back when the flight attendant tells me to enjoy my stay. I won’t be staying very long, but I appreciate it, nonetheless. As soon as my foot reaches the airport floor, I increase my pace significantly. Straight, until you see the woman’s restroom on the left – that’s the first step. I try not to look frantic as I look around for the restroom. When it finally comes up, on the left as I had memorized, I nearly dive into the first stall I can find and begin ripping off my clothes. The sweatshirt I wore to the airport is swiftly replaced with a white V-neck tee shirt, black running shorts, and a pair of tennis shoes. Most importantly, I tuck my blonde ponytail into a baseball cap. While I might be invisible, the most recognizable part of me would be my long blonde hair, which nearly reaches my butt at this point. Once I’m satisfied with my inconspicuous look, I re-pack my bag and walk out of the bathroom the same way I came.   Exit to the right. Keep going until you see the signs for taxis – step number two. I follow the directions in my head and keep my focus as best I can. Almost immediately, I see the sign for cabs. Thank god this airport has English signs. I follow the highlighted directions and walk into the hot Greek sun. There’s no line for the cabs, so I’m able to hop into the first one.   “Makedonias Bus station?” I ask. I can hear my voice shake with nerves. The gruff, Greek cab driver nearly nods and is instantly on his way. I roll the window down and for the first time, take a deep breath. Here goes nothing.     (Mystery POV)   I’m sitting at the beach bar, staring down into the whiskey that I hadn’t touched for the past hour that we had been here. Something was different. Not wrong, just different. I could hear my wolf, Thor, whining in the back of my mind, in distress. There was no obvious danger that I could discern, no reason why he would be panicking.   “What’s wrong, Thor?” I ask him again, irritated. All Thor did was whimper. Since when has my wolf been so… so… soft? I sigh, trying to distract myself now.   I look towards the dance floor now. I see my Beta, Petar, dancing with his mate, Liliya. They look so blissful, so at peace, just to be in each other’s arms. Petar and Liliya had it easy – they both grew up on the Bulgarian compound with the rest of us, and always knew since childhood that they were fated to be together. The moment they turned 18, their instincts were proven right, and they tied themselves to each other in every sense of the word. I almost felt nauseated, but at the same time, jealous. I would be so lucky to be connected with my mate, the woman who was made for me by our Goddess. I would worship her, take care of her, submit to her every need. The thought almost made me laugh – the Alpha, submitting to their anyone. I would gladly do it, for my mate.   My eyes shifted once again, and landed on Petra, the sister of my Beta Petar. She was, as usual, staring right back at me with a level of intensity that simply could not be replicated. This look was familiar to me – I had been resisting for the past 5 years ever since I turned 18. Petra and Petar were twins, and she was someone I had known since birth. At one point I considered her a close friend, but Petra had always wanted more. She had always hoped that we would be true mates, and that it would be revealed when we turned 18. When that wasn’t the case, she had made it her personal mission to get me to succumb to her will. Even though we were not true mates, she believed we could be a powerful duo, and she yearned to be the Luna, even if she was not linked by the mate bond.   I looked away and sighed deeply once again. As Thor stirred once again, I couldn’t help but feel deeply in my core that my mate may be closer to me than I imagined.