Too Late, Alpha: I Choose Your Rival

Ch 16: 'My' Elisa

Ethan’s POV

“Rawcrest! What the hell was that?!”

Coach Maddy’s roar shattered through the freezing arena, loud enough to shake off the plexiglass.

Indeed, my mind had drifted far away from ice.

This was the third time I blew past the blue line and missed such a clean cross-ice pass, the kind of pass which I could usually catch blindfolded during the practice drill today.

“You’re playing like a blind pup out there!” Flaring his nostrils, the coach slammed his clipboard against the glass while the rest of the boys exchanged nervous glances with each other.

“You’re the damn captain, have you forgotten that, Rawcrest? Now that we are close to our first practice match in the tournament, are you planning to showcase your skills like this?”

“Coach, that was—”

“Shut up!” His loud, agitated grunt paused me as I noticed him anxiously rubbing his hand across his temple while he glared at me. “I have high hopes for you! We have worked blood and sweat for the tournament…and now do you want to blow up everything?

“In a few weeks, all the superior hockey teams are going to come at us to tear our throats out, including Blood Fang, and yet how could you make such a ridiculous mistake thrice today? Get your head back in the game, or I’ll strip that ‘C’ off your jersey next time!”

I stood silent, but my jaw clenched so hard that my teeth throbbed.

“Training’s over for today! All the boys…off the ice right now.”

The moment he gave the final command, I didn’t wait for the rest of the squad. Swinging over the boards, I glided towards the bench, even though my chest heaved from exhaustion under the weight of my gear.

“Ethan, man, wait up,” Desmond called from behind, while trying to catch up. Then, he skated to stand beside me, as his brow furrowed with concern.

“Hey…What’s with you today? How come your mind has been completely off the ice today? I know how much you’ve always treated practice drills seriously…Ethan.”

I ignored his question, but my jaw hardened. Ripping off my right glove, I reached straight into my gym bag on the bench and grabbed my phone.

But the moment I tapped the screen, my breath almost hitched.

There were no new messages or missed calls. All of my 67 outgoing calls were left unanswered.

At that moment, an unknown emotional turmoil clawed at my throat.

Ever since last night, when I saw Elisa for the last time in my dorm room with her gentle hands pulling sharp glass shards out of my bleeding palm…after that…she completely went off the radar.

Born as the future Supreme Alpha, my injured palm had already healed its skin by morning, but the hollow knot formed in my chest still felt very vivid.

For the past decade, there hadn’t been a day when Elisa had missed a call from me, or even if she did…she would get back to me immediately, within minutes.

I was always the priority in your life…so why am I still unable to reach her?

Since the moment I woke up today, I heard all those ridiculous rumors about her spreading across campus like wildfire.

The rumors grew twisted with every second and claimed that she had played me to enroll here, then threw herself at that bastard Kael Blackthorn just to climb the ladder of becoming their cheer squad captain.

Honestly, my inner wolf, Grymph, had been clawing under my skin all morning, ready to rip apart anyone who started those disgusting rumors about her.

But the real blow came right before practice today.

Desmond had pulled me aside to tell me what actually happened from the info I had ordered him to collect.

A group of our pack girls had vandalized her room and had cornered Elisa. They tried to force her to step down as the cheer captain of Blood Fang, or get kicked out of the werewolf wing, being labeled as the ‘traitor.’

And Elisa…my Elisa, who was too timid to even pick up an argument with anyone, surprisingly had looked them dead in the eyes, packed her bags, and walked straight over to head towards the Lycan dorms.

Yes…she indeed went to the Lycan wing.

The major law of this academy was simple — wolves won’t set foot on Lycan grounds without special permission. Thus, from the moment I heard this affirmation from Desmond, I couldn’t keep myself calm anymore.

I spent a long time pacing around the lycan dorm border like a caged animal, staring up at those dark, tall towers while helplessly spamming her phone until my thumb went numb.

Why wasn’t she picking up my calls or answering my texts? Was she hurt or terrified to even check her phone?

Or was she actually…staying in his territory willingly?

“Ethan, hey man, I am talking to you! Did you listen to a word I just said?” Desmond grabbed my arm, pulling me back as we walked down toward the locker room.

“What do you want?”

“Get your head together, Ethan. The official tournament begins soon…and if you mess it up by any chance, you know that very well…your Dad will not let it slide. He’ll lose his mind.” Desmond gulped, sounding quite concerned in his tone.

“Besides, did you forget that the Pack Council is watching your every move? This coach has been officially assigned by them after all.”

“I know that already, Desmond,” I growled, my eyes still glued to my dark phone screen. “Just... shut up for now.”

“She’s just a wolfless girl, Ethan!”

All of a sudden, Desmond snapped under his breath, making me halt my steps. “I know you’re thinking of her, but…as your friend and your future beta, I am worried about you. Elisa isn’t worth screwing up your future completely!”

A dark, crimson flare snapped in my mind the moment I heard those words. My claws almost began to tear through the leather of my remaining glove.

And in the flick of a second, I slammed Desmond against the concrete wall, as a low, murderous growl gnawed from my chest.

“You dare say that again.” My raging aura spiked so hard that Desmond flinched, his throat swallowing nervously. “If you ever speak of her like that one more time, I don’t care if you’re my Beta or not, I’ll break your neck.”

Desmond raised his palms in submission, stepping back with a long sigh. “Fine…I will leave you alone. Whatever…Just get showered.”

I turned around and walked through the heavy locker room door. Inside, there was a profound silence along with the smell of cold ice, sweat, and damp gear.

But at that moment, more than anything, I needed a freezing shower to tone down the rage I had felt from hearing his words, surging through my bloodstream.

Dropping my stick, I unbuckled my shoulder pads and tossed my jersey onto the wooden bench. Standing there in my compression shorts, my chest rose and fell as I couldn’t stop thinking of Elisa for one damn second.

In every thought, I found myself reminiscing about her scent. Even though she was a wolfless girl, her unique faint scent that mimicked the fragrance of honey and peony always calmed my nerves whenever she was around me.

Her soft ocean eyes, the way they used to light up when she looked at me like I was her everything…I reminisced about them.

Suddenly, two warm arms wrapped tightly around my waist from behind as I felt a delicate frame pressed against my bare back.

My heart hammered loudly against my ribs as I could feel a gush of relief flood my body so fast that my knees almost gave out.

She came back. I knew she wouldn’t be able to stay away from me for long. She couldn’t.

“Elisa...” I breathed out, a tender smile curving my lips when I spun around, reaching to pull her tight in my embrace. “You came—”

But then, the words trailed off in my throat.

Instead of her soothing scent, all I could smell was the scent of lavender masked with the rich scent of a luxury perfume.

Maria stood holding me in her arms, wearing a tiny cheer skirt and crop top, which was way too short for the official uniform designed for the cheer team.

She smiled at me, completely blind to the emotional turbulence running in my head while rising on her tiptoes when she placed a kiss on my cheek.

“Ethan! I saw you throughout the training session…you worked so hard out there!” Maria giggled, hands resting on my shoulders. “I brought you fresh towels. Also…look, I designed the cheerleader uniform just like you wanted…short and sexy to uplift your spirit during intense matches.

“By the way, you kind of looked tense during practice, so…I thought maybe…I could help you cheer up.”

The surge of relief I had felt in my chest a second ago instantly turned into a restless knot. She wasn’t Elisa after all.

Standing still, I stared down at her bright, clueless smile, even though my stomach was twisting with nausea.

“Maria,” I said, my voice sounding very flat. “What are you doing here?”

“Of course, I came to see you, silly!” She brushed a hand over my bare chest, oblivious to my tone.

“Besides, did you hear those crazy rumors about Elisa? I don’t believe them myself, but…I wonder if there’s something wrong with her? Don’t you think she’s behaving a bit differently since yesterday?

“Anyways, don’t worry, I’m right here by your side, and I will always—”

VRRR…

The sharp vibration of my phone on the bench almost made us flinch hard.

Maria almost gasped in surprise when I shoved past her, ignoring her entirely, and lunged for the glowing phone.

My heart hammered against my ribs. Was my Elisa finally getting back to me?