Mated to alpha triplets at all-boys school Chapter 48

Ashley pov

After that conversation with Nathan while I was still in the hospital, everything changed. More things about my life made sense while others crumbled before my eyes.

I spent two days on bed rest and thankfully, nobody really bothered me. Nathan came and went whenever he could, staying for about five minutes and then leaving, but other than that, I didn’t have visitors.

Sadly, Anno didn’t return as he promised either.

For days, I wondered if Nathan did something to deny Anno any access to me, but that felt like a close to an impossible scenario. The guy might be overprotective, but not batshit crazy.

In a few minutes, I will be able to leave this place and I couldn’t be happier. Yesterday, Nathan told me that Kaiden left with Gio, but the scary man promised to return soon to take his mate home.

If nothing else, at least now I have time to think about my next step.

“Ash, ready to go?” Nathan calls out as he opens the door to my hospital room and flashes me a bright smile.

I nod, eager to get away from the depressing white walls and the insane scent of medicine. I need a ten year long shower to wash the stench off me completely.

“Great. I have a surprise for you,” Nathan beams at me as I stand up and glance at him with nothing but suspicion.

“A surprise?” I repeat his words.

Like a kid, he nods and steps aside, revealing the person who stands behind him. As soon as I notice Anno, I cry out in happiness, stupidly overwhelmed to see my best friend again.

Anno storms inside the room, wraps his arms around me and pulls me into an incredibly tight hug. He rests his face in the crook of my neck and chokes out a weak, “I missed you, best friend.”

I suppose we’re in the same boat now. I can’t hold back any longer, so I wrap my arms around him and let the tears flow as I spill out my fears with no regrets. “I thought you dropped me. I thought you didn’t want to be my friend anymore.”

Anno presses a gentle kiss to my cheek and places one hand on my head to ruffle my hair. “Silly, how could I ever think about dropping you? You’re my best friend in the world and I was mad worried about you. I know I didn’t visit, but I have a good reason for that. Also, while you might think I’m the surprise Professor brought you, I’m just a side dish, not the main.”

“Now that you speak of food, I feel hungry,” I grumble, completely ignoring everything else and focusing on having my friend back. Positive thoughts, I must focus on the positive thoughts.

“Aren’t you going to ask me what your surprise is? I don’t believe you’re not curious. And by the way, pulling it off was nearly impossible, our Professor over here had to pull at a lot of strings to make it happen.” Anno laughs and wiggles his eyebrows at me.

“Okay, I’m ready for my surprise then,” I announce and release him to take a step back.

As I wipe the tears off my cheeks, I glance at Nathan, who is watching us like a hawk. There’s still that glint of distrust in his eyes, but I can’t really blame him for being suspicious of someone who might be an enemy.

“Come on, let us show you then,” Anno cheers and grabs my hand to pull me out of the room.

I think my brain might have turned off for good, because I don’t think anymore, I just do. Like so many times I’ve done before, I follow my best friend’s lead without questioning him about the destination.

Perhaps it feels a little bit more obvious because this time Nathan is right on our heels, following us like some bodyguard, but I don’t pay much mind to that either.

This is supposed to be a happy day. I’m getting out of the hospital and I can finally rejoin the classes again.

What is even better is that Nathan managed to pull some strings and bring in the doctors he trusts. The nurses too. So, the whole medical staff that attended to me are the people he knows - people who won’t disclose my true identity to anyone.

Keeping this secret and remaining hidden sure is getting easier now that I have another person helping me with that.

Anno’s hold on my hand only tightens when we finally exit the hospital for good. Gosh, I missed the color of the sky, the scent of the air around us and the soft feeling of the grass beneath my feet. Funny how those things don’t seem important until you can’t see them every day anymore.

“Ash, stop stalling and follow me. Focus. We have about an hour until the next class starts, the headmaster told me everyone has to join it, including you. Suppose it’s something important again,” Anno mutters the last part, sounding unsure of himself.

If this important thing is that asshole Kaiden again, I don’t want to leave the hospital. Come to think of it, the walls weren’t so bad and the smell wasn’t either. I could live there. Yes, move into the hospital and pretend I’m dying, even make the docs play the part and make it seem like a full-blown disaster.

My thoughts stray until I realize we are walking past the building where I live. Anno even glances over his shoulder to grin at me.

“Where are we going?” I ask.

Anno and Nathan both bark out a laugh nearly at the same time. “And now Ash is asking questions? Only now? You should have asked them before I dragged you out of there, don’t you think? It’s too late, my friend, now you go with the flow and let yourself be amazed.”

I want to tell them both off, but decide against it. This once, I can indulge them, I suppose.

Not long after the quick conversation, we stand in front of the door to Anno’s place and I watch him lift the little carpet in front of it to retrieve a key. Then, Anno takes my hand in his again, opens it and drops the key. “Welcome home, best friend. Congratulations, the Professor made it possible for us to be roomies.” Then, he quickly leans in and whispers, “no idea if he knows anything about the triplets, but I agreed with his idea instantly to get you out of there. No more everyday suffering.”