Falling in love with my Ex's Alpha Chapter 15

***Katherine***

After talking a few words with Chad, we started running through the park.

We were running side by side in the park, but there was an uncomfortable silence between us. The winter air is cold and biting, making our breath visible as we exhale.

The trees around us stand tall and majestic, their branches heavy with snow, creating a beautiful but eerily quiet landscape. Despite the beauty of the scene, we stay distant and disconnected, lost in our thoughts.

I was rewinding everything that had just happened. How have I studied here for 2 years and never seen him?

Will he be okay? I hope he's all right... I can't control the urge to run back to see Kaiden one more time. I'm completely stunned!

I don't know what Chad talked to him about, but it sounds like it was serious. He wanted to take me away from Kaiden in such a hurry he didn't even introduce me...

Apparently, I'm not the only one lost in my thoughts. Chad is also focused on his, despite now and then, he steals a furtive glance at me but quickly looks away, avoiding eye contact.

It felt so good when I touched Kaiden's face, and now I can't stop thinking about him. I feel horrible about this because I feel like I'm betraying Chad in my thoughts.

I wasn't supposed to feel this way about Kaiden. I can only feel this way with Chad. But why don't I feel that way about Chad?

Ugh, what's happening to me? I have an amazing boyfriend, but I keep thinking about another man. I need to think of something else. These thoughts are driving me crazy. When I steal a glance at Chad, it looks like he is also fighting his own battles in his mind.

The tension is palpable. As we run, the silence between us becomes more pronounced, punctuated by the sound of our feet crunching in the snow and the occasional rustling of our clothing. We both know that something is wrong, but neither seems willing to break the silence and address the issue.

The snow-covered landscape seems to be mocking our discomfort, a stark contrast to the beauty that surrounds us.

As we pass by a particularly magnificent tree covered in a thick layer of snow, Chad tries to break the silence. "It's really beautiful here," he says, his voice tentative. I nod and smile, but I don't speak.

I felt too guilty about my thoughts on Kaiden to respond to Chad's genuine smile.

Despite the fact that we continue to run, enjoying the beauty of the winter landscape, our discomfort remains, each of us lost in our thoughts as we move through the park. As we come to a stop, neither speaks, our silence stretching out like a chasm between us. The snow-covered trees seem to be closing in on us, amplifying the feeling of loneliness and disconnection.

"This isn't how I expected our first run together to be, baby," Chad said sheepishly. He looked a little sad. He took a bottle of water from his bag and handed it to me. I drank two sips and gave it back to him.

"It was the first time I saw the Alpha," I said. Oh, Goddess! How come the first thing I say to him after hours is about Kaiden? Will he notice? I hope not. I need to control myself.

"I was going to introduce you to him... I was just waiting for an opportunity, you know, he's one of my best friends," he said before asking with a curious look, "What were you guys doing before I arrived?"

"I saw him on the ground, and I offered him water. That was it, and then you arrived." I lied, I felt even more awful for lying to him.

He widened his eyes for a moment and then just nodded, and we were silent. I don't know if he believed me, if he did or not, he didn't say anything else.

We walked a little more until we reached my place, we said goodbye, and I entered the apartment.

Every time I go out with Chad, it's always been so pleasant, but today it was a glaring discomfort. And I know it's all my fault.

🐺 🐺 🐺

It's been two days since my run with Chad. He picked me up from the hospital, and we had dinner together last night. At least there wasn't an awkward silence, but I felt guilty the whole time.

I felt terrible because a part of me kept thinking about Kaiden. Hence, I decided to block out these thoughts otherwise, I'm going to go crazy. There's no reason for me to keep thinking about Kaiden, and it's not fair to Chad, either.

I made up my mind, I'm not going to think about those enigmatic blue eyes anymore.

Today is different, instead of going to see my patients, I'm in the meeting room with all the students and doctors responsible for coordinating us.

As usual, Dr. Smith began his speech by emphasizing the importance of patients' well-being. His repetitive speech almost asleeped some students until he said something that caught everyone's attention.

"It is with great pleasure that I come to you to present these awards today. It was not planned for you to be rewarded with them, but you did an excellent job during this semester, so I would like to congratulate you all." He started to clap, and everyone clapped too.

"First, I would like to present these 4 awards to last week's volunteers. You have no idea what a difference you made to those people. Please accept these awards as a reward for your efforts, Katherine Wright, Mark Smith, Mary Wilson, and Oliver Brown." He called everyone up front to pick up the awards.

I was stunned. I hadn't expected this. Thank Goddess that nobody found out about Jasper. However, I didn't imagine there would be this commotion.

As soon as he said our names, we shyly stood up, took our awards, and went back to our seats.

"Also, I would like to present these other 2 awards to professors Dr. Campbell and Dr. Pomfrey. You guys have been amazing and a great help."

Doctors' awards seem to be different from ours. They took it, and Dr. Smith continued his speech.

After another two hours of meeting, we were dismissed, and some people started congratulating me, as well as I congratulated them too.

"Congratulations, Katie! You deserved it! I hope my shift this week at the hospital will be at the same time as yours." Mark said shyly and blushed.

"Thank you, Mark. You also deserved a lot! I had several of your patients during this semester, and in all of them, I saw how much you did a good job!" I smile at him.

"It's easy to win awards being the son of the person who gave the awards," venomous Laila said to the person next to her. She said it loud enough for only us to hear. Mark got even redder and looked down at the floor.

"Don't mind her, Mark. Regardless of Dr. Smith being your father, you did a great job. You deserve this award as much as the people who received it. Dr. Smith is a very fair man. He would never give you this award if you didn't deserve it." I said, encouraging him. He looked up and smiled shyly at me.

"Thanks, Katie," he said, and we started walking towards the exit until Dr. Smith called out to me.

"Miss Wright, may I speak with you for a moment?" he asked, I started to get scared.

Will he find out about Jasper? Oh, my Goddess!

"Yes, of course. Is there a problem, Dr. Smith?" I replied. He waited until there were just the two of us in the meeting room and started talking.

"I would like to congratulate you personally. I am thrilled with your performance this year, Miss Wright. You have taken several cases with critically ill patients and are committed to making them better. Although we live in a society in which we, werewolves, have almost no illnesses, many ways can affect us, like witchcraft," I just keep listening and nodding in agreement, "Anyway, you've been a great help in the hospital and beyond. I'd rather you stayed here in Diamond Claw at the end of the program, but since you already turned it down several times," he shook his head, not agreeing with my decision, and continued, "but I'm sure when you get back to your little pack you'll make a huge difference!" he concluded with a smile on his face.

"Thank you, Dr. Smith. It has been an honor and a great opportunity for me to study here, Sir." I smile back.

I was relieved he didn't mention Jasper, I'm relieved no one found out because I couldn't explain it.

I looked down at the award in my hand, and my smile widened. The award has an elegant rectangular glass shape, with some engraved words and my name written underneath. When I move it from side to side, a greenish wolf appears.

Winning this award after finding out I'm a healer reminded me of all the people I've helped so far. Sometimes the routine ends up letting us get used to the little things, and we don't realize the difference we can make in people's lives.

This is not the first award that I have won here, but for me, this is the most special.

🐺 🐺 🐺

*Author's note:*

*Hello, my lovelies!*

*Did you like the chapter?*

*Are you team Chad or team Kaiden?*

*xoxo,*

*Sadie*