Page 27 of Collared

From this side of the glass, the Atrium looks glorious. I’ve never seen anything like it, the way the space is bathed in a golden glow, dim lights and torches creating flickering shadows everywhere around us. Silk rustles as Maël leads us further into the lion’s den, straight to where a stage has been placed in the heart of the space. Somewhere in the background I hear the gentle sounds of a piano, its melody reassuring in the way it floats on the thick air that is filled with anticipation and something else. In the first row, right in front of the platform, I watch as two cloaked men, seated wide-legged as they’re kissing each other, both get their cocks sucked. Gold and Bronze Mask.

Holy shit.

I halt at the sight, nerves once more boiling slowly, yet persistently, threatening to take me under. Maël simply pulls on the leash and I scramble to catch up, nearly crashing to the floor by doing so.

We pass the rows of chairs, make our way around the two torches that mark the end of the seated area, and stop right in front of the scene. From here, I can see the piano in the far corner. Someone’s playing it, a guy in a suit and a dark blindfold that covers his eyes. He’s sitting on someone’s lap, and even from the distance, I can see that he’s being penetrated, riding the dick from a brother who hasn’t made any effort to hide his platinum blond hair, though his face is obscured with a mask, and his body is wrapped in a similar black cloak.

I blink as realization hits me. That’s Gaël Deveraux.

It shouldn’t surprise me, yet it feels like a slap in the face. And it puts things right back into perspective. Yes, these guys here are students. They might even be in my class. A thought I’ve had numerous times over the evening, but right now, seeing the proof sitting in front of me as he fucks his boyfriend Dominique, makes it obvious and terrifying at the same time.

But we’re not in the same rank.

Maël takes that moment to flit his fingers on my cheek, slowly lifting my mask from my clammy face. The gesture makes me flinch. I panic and struggle against the collar in an futile attempt to get away, knowing that I’m not going anywhere. He crouches down and pinches my chin between two digits, forcing me to look at him.

“Sshh,” he whispers, then leans in and brushes our lips faintly. “You’ll be alright.” Those words, a whispered promise. I let out a shuddering breath. His eyes search mine and he gives me a barely visible nod. I give him one in return.

“Good boy.” Brushing his fingers on my chin, he sweeps over my sensitive skin as he gives me a small smile. Then he gets up, leaving me alone down here, exposed and feeling naked, for the others to see.

Me.

When I feel the slight pull of the leash, I nearly sigh in relief.

“Thurel Aubert,” someone calls out, and my gaze flicks up to the scene in front of me. Three men are standing in a line, their black cloaks decorated by white fur stitched to their hoods. They’re all wearing black masks. “You won tonight’s contest.” The one in the middle speaks, planting his wooden cane firmly on the ground in front of him. It’s the guy from tonight, the one who introduced the games. He has changed that disturbing mask in the shape of a crow to a plain, dark one. It’s still terrifying.

“I am Elder Jacques,” he says. “The trainer of young Alpha Fraternarii members here, in Monterrey Castle. You’ll see me during every special occasion.” He takes a step forward, leaning heavily on the cane, and stares at me with that void, dark look from behind his mask. “Tell me, Thurel, how did you like the games?” Licking his lips, I can feel his burning stare scorching my skin. I can feel my ass clench at the memory of Maël claiming me, of our fucking back in the stables, of how I wanted it so badly.

It had been my first time.

It had been deranged.

It had been perfect.

My cock slowly fills despite it only having been an hour. I want it again.

“It has been intense,” I croak.

Elder Jacques cracks a cold smile. “Intense? Elaborate.”

“Uhm—” I lick my lips. “I didn’t really know what to expect when I signed up for this. Like, everything was explained and all, but I didn’t really think it would be real?” I inwardly flinch at the way my voice goes up at the end. At the way I am asking him and everyone around me if this is perhaps a joke after all.

Is it?

No one replies. But there is the slightest of tugs at the rope that keeps the collar connected to Maël. That keeps me and him together.

“Are you disappointed that it’s all real?” Elder Jacques asks. The piano stops playing and I drag my gaze toward the instrument, only to see that Gaël now has Dominique pinned to the back of the instrument as he kisses him passionately, his arms tightly wrapped around his boyfriend’s neck. I blink, then flit my stare back at the Elder.

“No,” I mumble, and it’s true.

For too long, I’ve been a side character. Always watching, but never performing. Always looking at others, while keeping myself safely hidden in the shadows.

Average grades.

Average results.

Average looks.

Tonight that has become part of my past.

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