Page 12 of Knot Forgotten

But I want to know. No, I need to know what memories he’s held onto. “You can share.” Studying the side of his face, I wait for him to continue.

“You remind me of someone I used to know.” He brings his hazel eyes, that are more green than any other color right now, to mine. My stomach thinks it’s an acrobat as it flips and flops with his admittance. “At one time, I thought she was my whole world. But you know kids, they think everything is so much bigger than it ever is. Turns out, I meant nothing to her. Not even worth a goodbye, and I had to make peace with that knowing my dreams were wasted.”

The air in my lungs seeps out as I blink back at him. I take it back. I didn’t want to know. It is like salt in a newly open wound. Still, I nod. “Yeah, childhood is full of that kind of thing. The people you think will be with you forever just disappear one day, and life goes on.”

He squints at me, attempting to figure out if I’m talking from experience. Slowly, he pulls his gaze from mine, looking over my shoulder toward the river behind me. “It sounds like you get it.”

I force a smile, bringing my knees up to my chest and hugging them. “More than you know.”

CHAPTER 5

Erin

In the worn confines of my dorm room, the harsh glow of fluorescent lights exposes the frayed edges of my emotions. They’ve been raw since my talk with Matt. The sterile walls on my side of the room, stripped of personal mementos, amplify the raw vulnerability that permeates the air. It’s stupid to let Matt’s words sink into me. It isn’t like I thought we would pick up where we left off, that they would welcome me with open arms. But knowing they’ve moved on and only think of me with bitterness and regret, hurts.

More than I thought possible. I rub at my chest, trying to ease the ache that has been there since this afternoon. I’m not sure where Riley is, but hopefully, I can fall asleep before he gets back to the dorm. I’ve had more than enough encounters with my childhood friends for one day.

Distant laughter from neighboring rooms serves as a stark contrast to the solitude that envelops me, emphasizing the broken connection I have with this space. The small campus hum outside the window becomes a dissonant soundtrack to the fresh wave of foreboding that courses through my veins. Maybe coming here is a mistake. A silly childhood dream of being in the same space as the boys I loved.

Not that I expected anything except being on the same large college campus. Probably never even running into them. But deep down, in a place I barely acknowledge myself, I had hoped to find them again.

I snort to myself. I sure got that. Not even the same campus as the boys I loved but the same fucking room.

My luck had never been the best, but this is just another example of what fate thinks of me. An omega sharing a dorm room with four alphas. And not just any alphas. The ones I’ve loved my whole life. Topping that off, they don’t recognize me. I’m not Clark Kent, and I don’t think I’ve changed that much, except for more womanly curves and the lack of braces. And I finally figured out how to make my hair straight. Still, I’m a stranger to each of them. Yeah, fate is laughing at my expense.

The dorm door opens and shuts. Voices sound from the living area, and I am still beneath my blankets, holding my breath and attempting to listen to them over my pounding heart. Cam and Blake. But they aren’t alone. Female voices join theirs, and I swallow painfully at their soft flirty giggles.

“All of us together could be fun,” one of them says. “Don’t ruin the fun before it’s begun.”

Cam’s low voice answers, but even straining to hear, I miss his response.

But one of them giggles a nervous laugh. “You want to watch us?”

“You heard him, Riana. Maybe if you turn us on enough, we’ll join you.”

The first girl lets out a throaty laugh. “Oh, you’ll be turned on, Blake. You’ll need to knot one of us so bad, it will be painful.”

Blake scoffs. “I don’t knot just anyone.”

“Good thing I’m not just anyone,” the girl replies flirtatiously. The creaking of the springs on the couch follows her words. “Come here, Willow, they want a show.”

“Riana–” Willow says. More creaking and then the sound of kissing and soft whimpers follow, mixing with clothing rustling. My imagination runs wild as I lay there staring up at the ceiling. I know it is torture for me, but I have to know what is happening.

“Fuck yeah, eat her pussy,” Blake growls.

Slowly lifting the blanket from my legs, I slip off the side of my bed, careful not to make a sound, and I creep over to the cracked dorm room door. The darkness in here will make me virtually invisible. The girl from this morning is between a blonde's thighs, going to town if the moans from the pretty girl mean anything. But I pull my gaze away from them to the guys.

Cameron is slouching in one of the wooden chairs from the table, his eyes on the pair, as he rubs himself through his jeans. Lust paints his face, and I wonder why he doesn’t just whip it out and stroke his bare skin. Like Blake. Who has no qualms about doing just that. My stomach dips at the sight of his thick cock, the swollen crown tipped with a piercing. He pulls on the ring, eliciting a deep groan from himself as he pants.

I’m not innocent. Not really. Okay, so I haven’t seen any cocks in person, most of them through a screen, taken by alphas that think it is a turn-on to send an omega dick pics. And of course, the fake ones I use to make it through my heat. But this is different.

His musk of sunlight and comfort fills my lungs, and I inhale greedily, leaning forward for a fuller breath. As I take another lungful, I catch what can only be Cam’s musk. If Blake is a summer day, Cameron is spring, right after it rains, encouraging the flowers to bloom and the trees to wake up.

Ignoring the girls, I hyper-focus on the guys. My breasts feel heavy and needy, making me run my hands over my thin T-shirt and cup them. I tweak my nipples before squeezing each one. A need for them has slick gathering between my legs, and I shift, holding back a soft whimper.

Blake squeezes his knot hard with a groan, and pre-cum leaks from his tip onto the floor, glistening the ring in the process. Then he repeats the move from earlier, tugging on the ring in a way that looks almost painful.

“Add a finger,” he demands.

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