Chapter 443
Judy’s POV
By the time we reached campus, both our minds were reeling with possibilities. Something was up with Sammy, and we were both determined to find out what it was. We didn’t see Sammy all morning, so we didn’t bother traveling to school with her.
I had a morning class, so I had to part ways with Nan pretty early on.
Because we were so wrapped up talking about Sammy, I haven’t told her about my date yet. But I made a mental note to tell her all about it later.
As I reached class, I caught sight of Lukas who met my eyes and froze. His eyes were big and he kept his head down as he passed me and went into the classroom. My brows furrowed at his reaction, and I followed him into the room, saying hello to Professor River’s as I passed.
Lukas sat at his seat, which was beside mine. He rummaged through his backpack, pretending not to notice me taking my seat beside him. My eyes never left his reddened face as he struggled to pull out his notebooks and books, placing them on the table before him. He grabbed his pens as well, his hands trembling as he placed each one down in front of him. It was an unnecessary amount of pens for one class and I knew he was only doing this to keep himself busy.
But my question was… why?
I knew Gavin freaked him out the other night; I should have probably warned Lukas that it was technically Gavin’s mansion and that I was living in it. Lukas had Lycan blood because of his family history, so I should have been a bit more considerate. But I didn’t think it meant that Lukas and I couldn’t be friends.
“Are you mad at me?” I finally asked, breaking through the tension; or at least I attempted to break through the tension, but it seemed to make him more tense.
“Mad?” He squeaked out. “No… why would I be mad?”
I narrowed my eyes at him, though he wasn’t looking at me to see the expression on my face or the look in my eyes.
“Because you are avoiding my eyes,” I tell him, cocking my head to the side.
This was the first time that I’d seen him since our study session at the mansion the other night. I assumed he’s been busy these last few days and that’s why I hadn’t heard much from him. I’ve been busy too, so I didn’t really take his silence as anything other than living our lives. But now I’m beginning to think that his silence was starting to mean more.
“I’m not avoiding your eyes,” he told me, though his actions proved otherwise.
I folded my arms across my chest and leaned back in my seat.
“Oh, yeah?” I asked. “Then look at me, Lukas.”
When he didn’t make any movements, I leaned closer, assessing the side of his face carefully and watching as his neckline grew redder with each passing second.
“Lukas…” I said again, my tone was low and filled with a hidden warning. “Look at me.”
His eyes finally moved in my direction, and I knew it was painful for him to look at me, though I had no idea why.
“What’s wrong?” I asked him, my tone softening as I looked into his eyes. “Why are you having trouble looking at me?”
He pulled his eyes away from me and let out a breath as if it were the most painful thing in the world to look at me. I’m not sure why it hurt a little, but it did.
“Because I was commanded not to,” he admitted, his voice in a low murmur.
I raised my eyebrows.
“I’m sorry, what?” I asked.
Gavin came to me and ordered me to not look in your direction again. He even called my uncle and let him know of the situation. My uncle reprimanded me and said if I fuck up again while I’m here… he’s pulling my tuition f*e and forcing me to return to his territory.”
My heart fell deep into my stomach as a rage like no other boiled inside of me. “Gavin did what??” I asked, my voice came out much harsher than I intended. He swallowed; his eyes fixed on his notebook.
“What do you expect? I was close to someone he considers his… and he’s a Lycan. They are possessive creatures, Judy. I would know…”
I shook my head, my rage at an all-time high but I was suppressing it because I was in a classroom right now and it was quickly filling with other students.
“I do not belong to him. He is not my mate…” I tell him in a harsh whisper. “I’m not sure where you got that idea from but-“
So, you didn’t just go on a date with him last night?” Lukas asked, his brows raised, but his eyes still fixed on the table.
I was startled by his knowledge of my date last night. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out.
“I…” I tried to say.
After a few seconds of silence, he sighed and grabbed his phone. He swiped along the screen for a bit, typed something, and then he turned the screen to face me. That was when I saw today’s headline on Shifter Daily.