Page 63 of Red River

I watched through the window, waiting for a moment when Milo was alone. That only happened after Oliver brought them lemonade. Milo went to the bathroom, and as he came out, I caught up with him.

"Hey, Milo!"

He raised his eyebrows slightly and nodded at me.

"Can I ask you something?"

He looked a little surprised but followed me to the living room, flopping onto the couch. I sat down next to him.

He was a lanky teenager, presenting as a beta, with curly black hair and light amber eyes framed by long lashes. He was pretty but very skinny, with slightly hunched shoulders—it was obvious he could use more exercise on the obstacle course.

"I wanted to ask how Igor’s doing at school. It’s been a week and a half, and he hasn’t said a word about it."

Milo made a weird face, stayed quiet for a moment, then scratched his cheek.

"Well… Igor’s been keeping to himself a lot in class. I’m not sure that’s such a good thing."

I blinked, surprised. "What do you mean?"

Milo shrugged. "The alphas in our class are pretty mean. They like picking on anyone who stands out."

I still wasn’t sure what he meant. "Igor stands out how? By walking around looking miserable?"

"That too. They’ve also been teasing him about his looks."

That caught me off guard. "His looks?"

"Yeah. They say he’s as pretty as an omega and make fun of him. He gets really upset, and the more they see it bothers him, the more they tease him."

It had only been a week and a half and this was already happening? I sat there in silence, at a loss for words.

I had never thought something like that could be a reason to tease anybody—my experience as an omega had been the complete opposite. Back in high school, I constantly heard how beautiful and gorgeous I was. Every compliment was meant in a positive way. Almost all alphas were interested in me—I was considered the most attractive omega in school. It never crossed my mind that good looks could be used for mockery.

But… Igor was an alpha.

And in a twisted way, I couldn’t help but feel partly responsible—it was my genes that gave him that feature. Thomas (and Archer, for that matter) was handsome in a very classic, masculine way: chiseled, symmetrical features. But he didn’t have that extra charm my DNA had thrown into the mix—long lashes, full lips, big eyes. You’d think that’d be a good thing, but… turned out, teenage alphas were judged differently from teenage omegas.

"So, is this a serious problem or just playful teasing?" I inquired.

Milo shrugged again, avoiding eye contact. "At first, I didn’t think much of it. On the first day, Philip made some comment, everyone laughed, but Igor got pissed. I guess if he’d just acted like he didn’t care, the whole thing would’ve been forgotten. But instead, he’s walking around all angry, and people are starting to notice. He’s an easy target now—provoking him… it’s entertaining for them."

I studied Milo’s face for a moment.

"Igor’s going through a tough time right now, with his father’s death and all. He’s not happy about the move either. It makes him vulnerable."

Milo looked like he didn’t know what to say, and honestly, I wasn’t sure how I should react to all of this.

"Alright. Thanks for telling me. I have a favor to ask, though—if anything bad happens, let us know, okay? Just make sure Igor doesn’t find out."

Milo nodded hesitantly. He looked like he wanted to say something else but decided against it.

When Archer got back with the boys after practice, and we all sat down for dinner, I spent some time watching Igor, who had finally emerged from his room to join us.

He looked the same as always—sullen, staring down at his plate.

When dinner was over and Archer headed upstairs to work, I followed him.

I knocked lightly, and he opened the door with a slightly surprised look.

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