Page 11 of Hexmate

Closing my eyes, I let the darkness swallow me and dreamed of strong arms and golden eyes.

Chapter 5

Atlas

Practice was grueling despite our competition the night before. Coach Harding put all of us through the wringer. It didn’t matter if my teammates were werewolves, fae, vampires, or beasts, we all had to endure the same torturous training session. By the time we were done, barely any of us could move. It was only the thought of getting lunch with Caden that peeled me off the mat and got my sweaty ass to the showers.

By the time I’d finished showering, my other teammates were starting to file in and peel off their sweaty shirts and shorts. Being a werewolf, that meant the room was ripe with the scent of testosterone, body odor, and pheromones. Like many of the guys on the team, getting my blood pumping with an intense workout made me fairly horny. Unlike most of them though, my wolf senses meant I could smell each and every one of their intentions.

I did my best to focus on dressing while everyone else stripped naked and hit the showers. Before Caden, I wouldn’t have thought twice about seeing my teammates naked. It hardly even registered. But now that I’d found myself attracted to another man for the first time in my life… I was a bit nervous.

“Did you hear about the dean’s upcoming announcement?” Silver asked, his purple skin and white hair gleaming as he stepped under the showerhead. He was a dark elf, one of the rarer species found at Widdershins Academy. “Pretty fuckin’ crazy, right?”

“Whatever they say, I ain’t givin’ up my girlfriend,” Zander shot back. He was another werewolf on the team. “She sucks cock like a champ.”

“Of course she does, she’s a vampire,” Silver shot back. “She doesn’t have to breathe. Which sounds great except I’m not into teeth.”

“Her fangs are retractable,” Zander grinned. “She hasn’t bitten me yet.”

“That you know of.”

“Do they really mean it though?” Karrick asked, the beast tossing his towel over the divider. “I mean… how are they going to keep everyone apart like that? We all go to school together.”

“Nobody gives a shit about us,” Silver scoffed, soaping up his chest roughly. “They just want those fuckin’ witches to be on a higher pedestal than the rest of us.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, this time next semester, you’re gonna have witch-only dorms and witch-only bathrooms. Next, they’ll need their own cafeteria because the rest of us are too dirty to be around.” He let out a disgruntled sigh. “They’re acting like a bunch of shitty humans a hundred years ago.”

I tried to tune out the conversation as I finished getting dressed, but Silver’s words made my stomach churn. The implications for everyone were troubling. And Caden was a witch. Would he be forced into the witch-only spaces and me excluded from them? He didn’t seem to like the other witches very much or fit in… so I couldn’t imagine he’d be happy about it.

“Hey, you okay man?” Karrick’s deep voice rumbled beside me. “You look a little pale.”

I forced a smile. “Yeah, just tired from practice. Coach really worked us today.”

Karrick nodded sympathetically. “Tell me about it. I’m gonna be feeling that for days.”

I quickly finished tying my shoes and grabbed my bag, eager to escape the locker room chatter. As I headed for the door, Coach Harding stepped in, his broad frame filling the doorway.

“Listen up, boys,” he barked, silencing the room. “I know there’s a lot of talk going around about the new policies. But I want to make one thing clear - on my team, we’re all equal. Witch, werewolf, vampire, doesn’t matter. You’re all wrestlers first. Anyone who can’t handle that can turn in their singlet now.”

A few murmurs of agreement rippled through the room. Coach’s eyes landed on me.

“Faolan, a word?”

My stomach dropped as I followed him into the hallway. Had he noticed something off about my performance? Or worse, had he somehow figured out about Caden and me? But how could he? It wasn’t like I told anyone and Caden definitely wouldn’t. But that Rowan character? I wasn’t sure about him.

“You seemed distracted today,” Coach said, his voice gruff but not unkind. “Everything alright?”

I swallowed hard. “Yes sir, just tired from the match yesterday.”

He studied me for a moment, then nodded. “Alright. But remember, if you need to talk, my door’s always open. You’re one of our top wrestlers, and I need you at your best.”

I nodded, relieved. “Thank you, Coach. I appreciate that.”

As Coach Harding walked away, I let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. I hurried out of the gym, eager to meetup with Caden. The thought of seeing him made my heart race in a way that had nothing to do with our grueling practice.

I found him waiting outside the student center, his blonde hair catching the sunlight. My breath caught in my throat at the sight of him. It was such a strange feeling that he should affect me so. I didn’t even know the guy. And honestly, my reaction was a bit frightening. I thought I’d been making it up. But the more I saw him, the worse it got. Those feelings needed to stop.

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