Page 102 of Toxic

"Yep, publicity stunt to improve their public image. Winter mentioned it too," Father grumbled.

There were a few seconds of silence, and I let out a shaky breath, trying to calm myself.

"I have to agree with your father," Dad added, looking apologetic. "Think this through carefully. You might get the job, but what if that guy doesn’t want to see you? You’d be setting yourself up for more disappointment and rejection. All that effort, and it could be for nothing."

Then something unexpected happened.

Snow lifted his head again.

"If he loves him, then it’s not for nothing."

Wow. I blinked in surprise. That was the first thing I’d heard Snow say in two months! I stared at him, but his pale violet eyes quickly went back to his laptop. He tilted his headdown, and soon all I could see was the short white hair on top of his head.

My parents eyed him, while I sighed nervously.

"Yeah, it’s not for nothing to me. I just have to do something, or I’m gonna go crazy. Sometimes I have these thoughts… really dark ones, ones you wouldn’t want to know about. Either I try this, or I’ll lose it."

Dad still seemed unconvinced. "If that’s so urgent, why don’t you just talk to him? Go there, wait for him to come out of the building, and ask to talk. Why do you have to get a job there?"

It was a fair question, but something deep inside me—a gut feeling—told me that if I just showed up for a quick chat, I wouldn’t get the outcome I wanted. I needed more time, more chances to see him every day, to rebuild that connection slowly. A quick, awkward meeting in the parking lot? No, that wouldn’t work with Soren.

"I don’t know why, but I just feel like this is what I have to do. Maybe it’s another dumb impulse, but that’s how I see it. I don’t want to just walk up to Soren like some stranger and surprise him. I need time, chances to see him every day, to recreate a situation where he might open up to being with me again. We split up under… very bad circumstances."

Both my parents looked at each other, and I could see the doubt and uncertainty on their faces.

Dad gazed back at me, staring into my eyes for a long time, seeming perplexed.

I whispered, almost begging, "Please, Dad, I wouldn’t ask for this if I didn’t feel in my heart that this is the right path. I feel it in every cell of my body! I can’t just… leave it like that, forget him."

Finally, he slowly nodded.

"If that’s what you feel, son—if that’s what your heart is telling you—then okay, maybe you should follow it. I won’t lie, normally I’d try to talk you out of this, but Storm… His words are what made me think I should help you. Contrary to you—both—I do think he has a gift, an intuition. I know he’s helped some people find their High Mates. He’s a purple alpha and… you know, they’re a bit different from the rest of us."

I rolled my eyes. It annoyed me how Storm would constantly go on about his abilities as a purple alpha. But Dad always bought into it! However, now it could come in handy—to calm my parents' nerves and doubts.

"You see, he is on my side. So I’ve got to try and get a job at that company and find out what happens. But I need your help because Winter will never want to talk to me."

After a long silence, Dad sighed. "Okay, I’ll try to call him today and speak to him. I’ll let you know what he says."

My father glanced at him with a weird grimace but didn’t comment.

Not wasting any time, I stood up, feeling like I needed to move, to run. I was bursting with energy, all of it driving me toward getting Soren back… Crazy!

"Whatever happens with that call, I’m going there anyway. I’ve got to do something, anything. I know you’re worried, and I won’t lie, I’ve got some doubts too, but I can’t keep fighting… my stupid heart. It’s killing me, slowly but surely," was my dramatic conclusion.

Dad nodded, and Father threw up his hands like he didn’t want to get involved anymore.

Later that day, Dad went to the garden and had a talk with Winter.

When he came back, he didn’t look too happy. Once again, Snow was there while we talked.

"Well, I explained your situation to him. He said he knew you were in the same major as Soren but didn’t think you two were romantically involved. He pointed out that there are a lot of reasons why he can’t support your application at the company. First, his CEO has been pushing for years to hire alphas, and Winter has consistently fought against it. Second, he doesn’t want any romance drama at work, and that’s one of the main reasons he’s against employing alphas—there’s always some mating games involved. And third—you already know this one. A while ago, the CEO wanted to hire his own son in Winter’s department, and Winter barely managed to stop it. Imagine how it would look if Winter now gave a job to his own brother in the same department where he refused the CEO’s son? Winter said that would be the height of hypocrisy."

I clenched my teeth. Three pairs of eyes were on me—my parents’, full of concern, and Snow’s, with an unreadable expression. I clenched my jaw.

Yeah. I was on my own.

Slowly, I turned around and left.

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