I shuffled into the corner of the seat and the shelter wall, and stared at the ground. I prayed the bus would come faster so I could melt into a crowd and get away from them.
Unfortunately, I had no such luck. The alphas huddled into the shelter, exclaiming about the cold, but watching me from the corners of their eyes. I suspected they weren’t cold at all - just wanted an opportunity to get closer to me.
Yeah, right,I thought bitterly. No alpha had been interested inme, specifically. Not my personality or appearance. Not since my ex, Daniel. All he and other alphas cared about was my omega status. I wasn’t in one now, thank god, but an omega in a heat was like a drug for alphas. I wasn’t on heat suppressant pills - I couldn’t afford them - but generally, I had to take time off work until it passed. That time off work wasn't something I couldn’t afford right now, either.
To my discomfort, one of the alphas pressed closer to me.
“Man, the bus is late, huh?” he said with a grin.
I was in no mood to make small talk. I nodded, not looking at him.
“Wow, touchy,” he muttered. He turned to his friends and sighed. “Guess I’m too ugly for omegas to talk to, huh?”
One of them quirked a brow at him, then glanced at me with disdain. “Shut up, dude, you’re too good for thatfatomega.”
I flinched and my stomach flipped upside-down. That word felt like a slap to the face. I curled up tighter in my corner, desperately wishing the bus would arrive already.
But it wasn’t enough. The alphas closed in. Now all their eyes were on me, scrutinizing my body. Even though they weren’t actually touching me, it felt like a massive invasion of privacy. I wanted to shut my eyes and escape to the darkness of my mind, but I didn’t dare look away now.
“What’s wrong, fatass?” another alpha jeered. “You got a problem with my friend? Think you’re better than him? Well, you’re not. Just look at you!”
I winced at the cutting words. Could I stand to lose a few pounds? Sure, if I wanted to. Was it any oftheirgoddamn business? Hell no.
Still, that didn’t make the sting of their words hurt any less - especially with the fear now gripping me.
The alphas moved in like a pack of wolves, inches away from me. I barely had room to breathe. My heart thumped rapidly against my chest. My fingers dug into my knees hard enough to scrape the skin beneath my jeans, as if hurting myself would make the fear dissipate. But it didn’t.
“Aww, did we upset you?” one asked in a mock sympathetic voice.
To my horror, he reached down and grabbed my chin, forcing me to look up at them. My eyes widened with fear.
“His face is pretty ugly, too,” another one added with a cruel laugh.
Defiant anger rose up within me, but it was tainted by my anxiety and terror. I couldn’t stand up to these alphas. I couldn’t…
“Maybe we should make it even uglier,” the one still grasping my face muttered. “Give him a scar or something. It’s not like anyone would even notice.”
A flash of panic made me jerk backwards, out of his grip. “Stop!”
They laughed. The callous sound reverberated in the bus shelter.
“Is the little omega scared?”
“He’s notlittle.More like the big omega.”
My temper finally snapped, overpowering my fear. I shot up and shouted, “Get away from me!”
The alpha closest to me didn’t even hesitate. As soon as I stood, he shoved me back. My knees caught on the shelter seat, and my upper body crashed into the bus shelter wall. The sudden force and awkward position made me accidentally bite down hard on my tongue. I let out a muffled yelp of pain. My teeth tore the flesh. Blood instantly began welling in my mouth.
“Shit,” I whimpered as the blood trickled from the corner of my lips.
The sight of the blood didn’t make the alphas back off. Instead, they seemed even more bloodthirsty - like their initial excitement at the idea of hurting me had escalated.
I was trapped, and surrounded. I didn’t know what was going to happen to me now.
All my defiance melted away, and I succumbed to fear.
2
