054
1431 Words
~ Alice
Getting ready with Iris always felt like a small ritual.
Not the dramatic kind,no loud music or chaos. just soft moments that reminded me why I liked loving her. Why it felt easy. Safe.
She sat on the edge of the bed while I stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the strap of my dress.
Every now and then I caught her staring, eyes unfocused, like her mind was somewhere else entirely.
“You’re doing it again,” I said lightly.
“Doing what?” she asked, blinking.
“Disappearing.”
She smiled, a little guilty. “Sorry.”
I turned toward her. “You nervous about the gala?”
“A bit,” she admitted.
That surprised me. Iris never got nervous about crowds. Or attention. Or people. She was the kind of girl who walked into rooms like she belonged there.even when she didn’t try.
I stepped closer, resting my hands on her knees.
“Hey. It’s just parents, teachers, and free food. You’ll survive.”
She laughed softly. “When you put it that way…”
I leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to her lips.
She kissed me back, her hands settling at my waist, thumbs brushing absently like she always did when she was thinking too much.
“You look beautiful,” she said quietly.
I grinned. “Obviously. I’m your girlfriend.”
That earned me a laugh,real this time.
She stood and reached for her outfit: a simple dress, not flashy, but somehow perfect on her. Iris never needed effort to stand out. She just… existed that way.
I helped zip her up, my fingers lingering just a second longer than necessary.
“You okay?” I asked softly, my forehead resting against her back.
“Yeah,” she said. “I’m okay.”
She said it like she was convincing herself.
We left the dorm hand in hand, her thumb tracing slow circles against mine as we walked. The night air was cool, the campus buzzing with excitement. Lights everywhere. Laughter drifting through open doors.
“Dad’s probably already there,” I said casually.
“He hates being late.”
I felt it then.
A subtle pause in her step.
Just a fraction.
“You okay?” I asked again.
She nodded quickly. “Yeah. Of course.”
I didn’t push. Iris hated being cornered with questions. I trusted her enough to let it go.
The auditorium was glowing when we arrived,warm lights spilling onto the steps, voices overlapping, music floating through the open doors. Parents mingled. Teachers smiled too hard. Everyone looked… important.
I squeezed Iris’s hand. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
We stepped inside.
And that’s when everything shifted.
The energy in the room changed suddenly,like a current snapping tight. Conversations dipped.
Heads turned. Whispers spread like wildfire.
I didn’t need to ask to know why.
My father had arrived.
Alpha Duncan.
Even without looking, I could feel him,his presence heavy, commanding, impossible to ignore. People moved instinctively, creating space around him like the air itself respected him.
I turned slightly, expecting to see Iris rolling her eyes or making a joke.
Instead..
She was staring.
Frozen.
Her hand tightened around mine before slipping free.
I followed her gaze.
Dad stood near the entrance, flawless in a dark suit, guards flanking him, power radiating off him like heat. He wasn’t smiling. He rarely did.
But his eyes..
They weren’t scanning the crowd.
They were locked on Iris.
My stomach twisted.
Iris noticed it too.
I saw the moment it hit her, the tension in her shoulders, the sharp inhale, the way her face closed off like a door slamming shut.
Before I could say anything, she stepped back.
“I need some air,” she said quickly.
“Iris..”
She was already moving.
Gone.
I stood there, confused, watching her disappear through the side exit while my father was immediately surrounded by parents and staff eager for his attention.
Something felt… off.
Dad never looked at anyone the way he’d looked at Iris just now.
And Iris?
She looked like she’d seen a ghost.
I swallowed, forcing a smile as someone greeted me, but my eyes kept drifting to the doors she’d left through.
Whatever this night was supposed to be..
It wasn’t going to be simple.
Not anymore.
I forced myself to breathe.
Whatever that look between Iris and my father had been,whatever strange tension had cracked through the room, I couldn’t unpack it now. Not here. Not with everyone watching.
So I did what I’d done my whole life.
I straightened my spine and walked toward my father.
People parted as I approached him, some smiling at me warmly, others nodding with that reverence they reserved for his bloodline. I felt it then, the weight of being his daughter. Of being expected to belong exactly where I stood.
“Dad.”
His head turned immediately.
For a moment, just a moment, the Alpha disappeared.
He smiled.
Not the sharp, intimidating smirk people feared, but the real one. The one he saved for me.
“Alice,” he said, his voice softer than anyone else ever heard it. “Come here.”
I stepped into his space and he pulled me into a brief, firm hug,one arm around my shoulders, protective and grounding. It smelled like him: leather, something woodsy, familiar. Home, even when I pretended I didn’t need it.
“I didn’t know you were coming,” I said as we pulled apart.
He raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t?”
I laughed lightly. “I mean..I hoped. But Eunice didn’t say anything.”
His mouth tightened briefly at her name, but he said nothing. Instead, he looked me over slowly, assessing in that way he always did.checking that I was healthy, safe, whole.
“You look well,” he said finally.
“So do you,” I replied. “Busy, I assume.”
“Always,” he said. Then, quieter, “But I wouldn’t miss this.”
That made my chest warm.
“You hate things like this,” I teased. “Crowds. Small talk. Pretending.”
“True,” he admitted. “But some things are worth enduring.”
His gaze flicked over my shoulder briefly,toward the exit Iris had disappeared through.before returning to me.
I didn’t notice.
I was too focused on the fact that my father was here. That he’d come. That he’d shown up when it mattered.
“I’m glad you came,” I said sincerely. “It means a lot.”
He studied my face for a second, like he was memorizing it. “You asked,” he said simply.
I smiled. “Still. Thank you.”
Parents and elders hovered nearby, clearly waiting for their turn. My father placed a hand at the small of my back, subtle but unmistakably protective.
“You enjoying the evening?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “It’s… nice. Different.”
“Your classes?”
“Good. Stressful. Normal.”
“That’s good,” he said. “Normal is underrated.”
I laughed softly. “You’d know nothing about that.”
He chuckled,actually chuckled,and a few people nearby looked startled, like they’d just witnessed something rare.
I leaned in closer, lowering my voice. “Eunice’s been… extra lately.”
That earned me a look. Calm. Measured.
“I’m aware,” he said.
“She really wants the spotlight tonight,” I added.
“She always does,” he replied evenly. “That
doesn’t mean she owns it.”
Something about the way he said it made me feel steadier.
“You okay?” he asked suddenly.
I blinked. “Me? Yeah. Why?”
“You seem… distracted.”
I thought of Iris. The way she’d slipped away. The tension I couldn’t explain.
“I’m fine,” I said, because I believed it, or wanted to.
He nodded, accepting my answer without pushing. That was another thing about him: when he trusted you, he really did.
“I’ll circulate for a bit,” he said. “But don’t disappear.”
I smiled. “I won’t.”
As he turned to greet an elder, I stepped back, watching him for a moment.
Alpha Duncan. My father.
Strong. Commanding. Controlled.
And yet… something about him tonight felt different. Like he was holding back. Watching something unfold just beyond my sight.
I shook the thought away.
I had a girlfriend to find.
And no idea that this night, this gala, was about to change far more than I could imagine.
- Writer
