Mated to alpha triplets at all-boys school Chapter 261

Elias pov

I feel like my head’s been put through a blender. After talking to mom, I thought I’d feel a little clearer about things, maybe even have a plan. Instead, I feel like I’ve been shoved between a rock and a hard place, with no way out.

Ash, our mate? Not just mine. Not just Everett’s or Ethan’s. Ours.

It sounds ridiculous, like something out of a bad romance novel. But the more I think about it, the more mom’s words echo in my head. And the worst part is, I can’t figure out if it makes things better or worse.

I need to do something, anything to clear my head. So, I head back to my brothers. Maybe talking to them will help. Or maybe they’ll just annoy me enough to make me forget everything for a little while.

When I reach the door to Ethan’s room, chaos greets me.

“Give it back, Everett!”

“You don’t even need it, Ethan! You’re too old for this thing!”

“It’s not about needing it! It’s about principle!”

I push the door open to find Everett and Ethan wrestling on the floor, a small, bright green toy clenched in Ethan’s hands. It’s shaped like a broccoli, of all things, and they’re both red-faced, grunting like toddlers fighting over a lollipop.

“You absolute troll! Give it back!” Everett shouts.

“Why? It’s not yours, Ev! Besides, broccoli suits me better. I have the personality of a vegetable.”

“What does that even mean?” Everett growls, practically foaming at the mouth.

“It means I’m healthy, green, and totally amazing,” Ethan screams.

“You’re about to be dead!” Everett snaps, grabbing for the toy again and missing by inches.

“What the hell is going on?” I shout over them, standing in the doorway, arms crossed.

Ethan looks at me, clutching the toy to his chest. “Tell him to leave my broccoli alone!”

Everett pauses, glaring at Ethan like he wants to strangle him. “This imbecile stole my stress toy. I need it back. It’s not his broccoli!”

“Stole?” Ethan gasps, holding the broccoli plush to his chest like it’s his firstborn child. “I saved it. There’s a difference. Also take the insult back, you’re scaring the broccoli with your growling and attacking!”

“Ethan, give it back,” I say, my voice low and tired.

“Fine,” Ethan says, dramatically tossing the toy at Everett’s chest. “Take it. But when your stress levels spike, don’t come crying to me.”

Everett catches it and immediately squishes it in his hand, glaring at Ethan like he’s considering whether or not jail time would be worth the satisfaction of punching him.

I’ve had enough. I pinch the bridge of my nose, feeling a headache creeping in. “You’re grown men. Why are you fighting over a toy?”

“Because, this little guy has been with me through thick and thin. He’s seen things you wouldn’t understand, Elias. He’s family.” Ethan announces. 

Everett snorts. “Family? It’s mine and you just stole it. It’s been with you for minutes and you already act crazy in love. Did you sniff the glue again?”

“You are the one sniffing the glue!” Ethan snaps.

“Enough!” I shout, cutting through their argument. Both of them freeze, looking up at me like deer caught in headlights. Taking a deep breath, I step inside and shut the door behind me. “We have bigger problems than a stupid broccoli toy.”

Ethan frowns, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “He’s not stupid.”

I ignore him and look at both of them. “I just talked to mom.”

Everett raises a brow. “And?”

“And she thinks,” I pause, the words feeling heavy on my tongue. Finally, I let them out in a rush. “She thinks Ash might be our mate. Not just mine or yours, but all of ours.”

The room goes silent. Ethan’s jaw drops, and Everett blinks at me like I just told them the moon is made of cheese.

“Come again?” Ethan finally says, his voice higher-pitched than usual.

“Mom thinks Ash is our mate,” I repeat, slower this time. “As in, yours, mine, and Everett’s. All of us.”

Ethan looks at the broccoli toy in Everett’s hands, then back at me. “I need to sit down.” He drops onto the floor with a thud, then gazes at the toy like it’s his emotional support vegetable.

Everett tosses the broccoli at Ethan and rubs his temples. “That’s not possible. Is it? I mean, can that even happen?”

“I don’t know,” I admit, running a hand through my hair. “Mom said it’s rare, but it’s not unheard of. She thinks that might explain why we’ve all been having weird dreams about Ash.”

Ethan groans, leaning his head back against the wall. “Dreams about her don’t mean she’s our mate. Maybe we just, I don’t know, miss her or something.”

“Do you?” I ask, looking at him sharply. “Miss her, I mean.”

He hesitates, fiddling with the broccoli toy. “Well, yeah. She’s Ash. Our Ash. Of course I miss her. But that doesn’t mean she’s my mate. Or yours. Or Everett’s.”

Everett crosses his arms, pacing the room. “It would explain a lot, though. The dreams. The pull we’ve all been feeling. The way she fits with us.”

“Fits?” Ethan echoes, raising a brow. “What does that even mean?”

Everett shrugs. “You know what I mean. She gets us, even when we don’t get each other. She’s always been different.”

Ethan snorts. “Different, sure. But mate-different? I don’t know, man.”

I sit down on the edge of the bed, my head in my hands. “Look, I don’t know if mom’s right or not. But if she is,” I trail off. “If she is, what does that even mean for us?”

“It means we’re screwed,” Ethan says bluntly, tossing the broccoli toy onto the bed.

“Ethan,” I snap and glare at him.

“What?” he says, throwing his hands up. “Think about it! If she’s all of our mate, then what? Are we supposed to share her? Take turns? Draw straws?”

Everett groans. “You’re not helping.”

“Neither is this conversation!” Ethan shoots back. “We don’t even know if it’s true. Mom could be wrong, you know.”

“Do you really think she’d say something like that without considering all the possibilities?” I ask.

Ethan opens his mouth to argue, but no words come out. Instead, he sighs and leans back against the wall again. “I don’t know, man. This is a lot.”

Everett nods, sitting down next to me. “It’s a lot for all of us. But if it’s true, we need to figure out what to do. Together.”

The word “together” hangs in the air, heavier than it should be. I look between my brothers, their expressions a mix of confusion, frustration, and something else - something I can’t quite place. If mom’s right, if Ash really is our mate, then everything changes. Everything. And I’m not sure any of us are ready for that.