Mila froze mid-sentence, her face turning pale.
"Now, what is that?" Isabella mumbled fearfully.
Mila rushed to the window, her steps quick but careful. Her eyebrows furrowed as she observed the crack in the window.
Isabella watched her from where she stood, her heart pounding.
"Is... is that normal?" She inquired, dreading the response.
"No, it's not." Mila told her, almost in a whisper.
Isabella exhaled sharply but tried to collect herself so her fear wouldn't show that much.
"Should I be worried?" She asked carefully.
"I didn't mean to scare you, but..." Mila turned to face her.
"Yes, you should be worried. You need to know that..." The older woman had begun but couldn't finish her sentence again.
A knock on the door cut her off. Isabella jumped, staring at the door in shock.
"Uhn..." Mila exhaled deeply before moving to answer the door.
The door swung open to reveal Lucas's smiling face.
"We need to get going now, Isabella. We don't want to be late on your first day." He said to her cheerfully.
Isabella swallowed hard.
"Just give me a moment to finish getting ready." She told him.
At that exchange, Mila quickly excused herself.
The moment she was gone, Lucas's fake smile dropped.
"I don't like to be kept waiting." He told Isabella firmly.
She gritted her teeth but said nothing in response.
However, she noticed how Lucas's eyes drifted to the cracked window. His expression didn't show any surprise – he just looked away and walked out of the room.
"What kind of trouble am I in?" Isabella whispered to herself.
~~~~~~~~~~~
A few minutes later, they were at the school.
As Lucas parked his expensive car in the student lot, Isabella noticed how everyone – especially the girls – flocked around them.
"They are like moths to a flame. They probably do not know how much of a hypocrite he is." Isabella thought in displeasure, watching the crowd gather.
A tall girl with perfect features and designer clothes pushed through the crowd. She carried herself with the confidence of someone who knew they were admired.
"Hey, Lucas! Who is this?" Her voice was sweet, but her eyes were cold as they swept over Isabella.
"This is Isabella, the Alpha's granddaughter. She just returned home." Lucas announced, his perfect smile back in place.
"Oh, the mysterious granddaughter we have been hearing about! The one who has been missing for years, right?" The girl's lips curled into a smirk as she asked.
Isabella could observe she was up to no good.
"Yeah." Lucas nodded to the girl's question.
"I'm Selena Miller, by the way. Student Council President and the most popular girl around here." The girl proudly and confidently introduced herself to Isabella.
"Hey." Isabella muttered, totally feeling out of place amongst the crowd.
Her meek response seemed to flatten the girl's ego and her face contorted with anger.
But before Selena could respond, murmurs broke out amongst the crowd of students.
"That is the Alpha's granddaughter? Are they sure about that?" A girl in expensive boots scoffed loudly.
"Right! Look at how she carries herself. Definitely not Alpha bloodline material." Another girl commented.
"Well, I didn't expect anything better. I heard she grew up in some low-ranked pack." Someone else chimed in.
"I see. No wonder she looks so... common." Another person added.
Isabella clenched her fists tightly and swallowed hard, trying not to snap.
The gossip seemed to appease Selena's anger and a smile crept up her face.
"Right, my dear, if you are going to be part of the Alpha's family, you really need to work on your... everything. We have a certain standard to maintain here." She told Isabella, raising an eyebrow at the latter's outfit.
At that comment, Isabella's cheeks burned with humiliation. However, she was able to provide a comeback immediately.
"I didn't realize there was a dress code for existing." She retorted, but her voice was low.
Several students gasped at her response and Selena's eyes narrowed dangerously. She felt disrespected.
"Hello there, upstart crow!" Selena began, letting out a dry, humorless chuckle.
"You really don't know anything about our world, do you? Being part of the Alpha's family isn't just existing. It's about power, presence, and perfection." She stated, looking Isabella up and down.
"Three things you clearly lack." Selena continued. Isabella's nostrils flared up in anger.
She wanted to give the girl a piece of her mind but Lucas beat her to talking first.
"That is enough, Selena." Lucas said, but his tone was more amused than stern.
"Isabella will learn. Eventually." He maintained.
Then the bell rang, and Lucas turned to Isabella.
"Your first class is in Building C. Try not to get lost." After saying that, he walked away, with Selena falling in step beside him, and the crowd behind them.
Isabella stood alone in the parking lot, her hands shaking with a mixture of anger and embarrassment.
"I can handle this. Definitely!" She whispered to herself then she breathed in and out deeply.
As she tried to find her way around the massive Academy grounds, something caught her eye.
There, between two buildings, was a wolf with glowing eyes watching her.
Isabella froze.
"No, that can't be right.Werewolves would definitely not be allowed to shift during school hours, especially with human students present. It is a rule in any mixed academy." Isabella muttered to herself.
The wolf's eyes seemed to bore into her soul, and for a moment, she remembered Mila's words about her parents and rogue wolves.
"I'm just seeing things. It's just because of what happened this morning. Just stress and fear playing tricks on me." Isabella told herself and shook her head vehemently.
She exhaled sharply and quickened her pace, searching for a bathroom.
"I think I need to splash some cold water on my face and get my nerves under control." She stated, walking briskly.
She finally found a bathroom at the end of an empty hallway and stepped inside.
She quickly walked up to the faucet and had just turned it on when she heard it – an angry, guttural growl coming from one of the stalls behind her.
"What the heck is that?" She wondered fearfully then at that moment, the fluorescent lights overhead and suddenly went off, intensifying her fear.