Desired By Three Alphas; Fated To One novel Chapter 74

Chapter 74: Ignoring Her

Nathan’s POV

That feeling when you break up with someone—or at least, try to—tell them to stay away, that you’re done, that you have to be done... but somehow, you’re the one hurting the most?

Yeah.

That’s the hell I was going through.

The teacher’s voice droned on at the front of the classroom, something about the structure of persuasive essays, but it all sounded like static in my ears.

My focus?

It was three seats in front of me.

On my Hailee.

Her shoulders were stiff, her head slightly bowed like she was doing everything she could not to look back.

I’d spilled everything last night—my pain, my jealousy, the betrayal I felt. I said things I’d been holding back for days.

And still... here I was.

Watching her like a lovesick idiot.

Missing her like we’d been together for years instead of whatever this was.

And the worst part?

I didn’t even hate her.

I wanted to.

God, I wanted to hate her so bad. It would’ve been easier. Cleaner. I could’ve walked away and never looked back.

But no. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

I kept remembering her laugh. The way she used to look at me like I was the only one in the room. The softness in her voice when she’d whisper my name.

Now?

Now it felt like there was a wall between us I couldn’t break through—even if I wanted to.

She shifted slightly in her seat, her fingers fiddling with the edge of her notebook.

And just like that, I was spiraling again.

Was she thinking about me, or was it them who made her heart race now?

Was I just a temporary feeling to her?

I tore my gaze away before I lost my mind again.

This was the consequence of letting someone in. Of falling in love.

And maybe I only had myself to blame for thinking I could be enough for her.

Maybe I never was.

But damn it... I still wanted to be.

I looked at Dane and noticed his eyes were on her. He was gawking at her and wasn’t even hiding it. My frown deepened, and I looked away and settled my gaze on Callum, who sat right beside Hailee.

I observed that from time to time he kept staring at Hailee—and God help me, I felt so miserable in my seat.

Why does it have to be her?

There were thousands of girls drooling over them. Why did it have to be my Hailee?

A girl I’d been into for years.

"Alright, everyone, that’s it for now. We’ll continue after break," the teacher announced, snapping her folder shut.

Chairs scraped against the floor as students got up, chattering and heading toward the hall or the courtyard. I stayed in my seat a moment longer, trying to gather the pieces of whatever was left of me.

A few of the guys walked over to my desk—Eli, Trey, and Dave.

"Yo," Eli grinned, slapping my shoulder as he sat on the edge of the table. "You in for the game this evening? Lotus Pack and Black Fur Pack are showing up. Should be lit."

"Yeah," Trey chimed in. "Alpha said it’s a friendly match, but you know the other packs don’t know what that word means."

Dave smirked. "Friendly, my ass. It’s gonna be war. You better bring that rage you’ve been holding in, Nate."

I gave a half-hearted smirk and nodded. "I’ll be there."

Honestly, a fight on the field sounded like the one thing I did want right now. Something I could throw myself into without thinking. Without feeling.

Just then, I heard footsteps approach.

My pulse shifted.

I didn’t have to look up. I already knew who it was.

"Hey," Hailee’s soft voice broke through the circle of noise, and I slowly raised my gaze to meet hers.

Her expression was guarded, but I knew her well enough to recognize the nervousness behind it. She clutched her notebook against her chest like a shield.

"I, um... I thought we could talk about the rest of the project?" she asked.

I nodded once and motioned to the empty seat beside me. "Take a seat."

She hesitated, then sat slowly, placing her notebook on the desk. My friends all turned to look at her, some with mild curiosity, others with obvious smirks.

"Yo," Dave said with a grin, "you coming to watch the match tonight?" he asked Hailee.

She shook her head. "I don’t know yet."

"Oh, you should," Eli laughed. "Everyone’ll be there—including Belly."

My jaw tensed immediately.

"Belly?" Trey chimed in with a laugh. "Damn, you remember what happened between her and Nathan, right?"

Dave cracked up. "Bro, how could we forget? That girl was obsessed. Didn’t she show up outside your window in lingerie once?"

I didn’t respond. I just clenched my fists under the table, wanting them to shut up.

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