Mated to alpha triplets at all-boys school Chapter 50

Ashley pov

I don’t comment on anything. Knowing how Ethan is, as sweet and caring as he comes across most of the time, deep down, that guy is a vicious, soulless warrior. I’ve stood against him, if only to pretend to fight and I know what he is capable of.

Since I don’t have anything to say, Anno encourages me to eat while he gets something for me to change into, takes a quick shower and we can leave after.

Although I don’t feel hungry anymore, I still eat. Mainly because in the small amount of time I spent at the hospital, I truly grew to miss the flavor.

By the time I’m done, Anno’s out of the shower and I’m already washing my plate. “I could have done that for you, no need to force yourself,” he says and approaches me from behind.

I’m a little surprised when he wraps his arms around my waist and rests his head on my shoulder. It feels a little too close to a thing that couples do, but once I remind myself my best friend is gay and feels nothing towards women, I manage to relax a little.

“It’s the least I could do. Not only are you going through all that trouble to let me stay here, but you also cooked for me. The food was delicious, by the way. I can do my plate, it’s no biggie.” I finish with an awkward laugh and place the plate on the little towel I laid on the kitchen counter.

Anno pulls away from me and kisses the top of my head. “Thank you for agreeing to this with no prior warning. You’re literally my only friend, the only person around whom I can act like myself, without pretending to be someone else. Also, you make me feel less lonely so I appreciate you more than you can imagine.”

Every one of his words is like a dagger aimed straight at my heart. I’ve been so caught up in the drama of my life that I managed to overlook how my best friend has been doing. I don’t remember the last time I even bothered to ask if he is okay. What a friend am I, right?

“I chose some clothes for you, by the way. They’re on your bed, you can get changed into them while I get dressed and we should leave then. I don’t want to be late, the headmaster stressed that the class is very important. Important enough to pull you out of the hospital,” he ruffles my hair again and leaves for his room.

I stay back for a bit, scanning the kitchen as if there’s something I need. In reality, I’m just trying to gather my thoughts because once again, I’m falling into the rabbit hole of overthinking. Too many ideas and fears assault my mind at the same time. It’s literally the last thing I need right now.

After a few deeper breaths, I brace myself, pull my hands into tight fists and head to my bedroom. Anno has laid a simple workout set on the bed - a t-shirt, a pair of sweatpants, socks, underwear and to my utter surprise, a binder.

I can’t help but grin at the thing. Finally, I won’t have to spend an insane amount of time to wrap my breasts. Yes, sure, I’m not sporting a pair of amazingly juicy ones, but I still prefer to hide whatever little nature gave me.

With a smile on my face, I quickly get dressed, pull on my shoes and return to the kitchen, where Anno is standing leaning against the kitchen counter, sipping on coffee.

I take a moment to study him. Why this man is so lonely and alone is beyond me. Perhaps he does that on purpose - isolates himself before anyone gets a chance to get to his heart and break it..

But still, Anno is a man who looks like a work of art. No idea how I’ve missed that many details about him so far, but he’s truly beautiful. Inside and out.

“You’re staring,” he chuckles and places his cup in the sink. “Ready to go?” The question feels so light and casual, it makes me feel like we have been living together for years, not minutes.

“Yes,” I nod and spin around to face the main door. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Anno appears next to me, tosses his arm around my shoulders and kisses the top of my head again. “Let’s go, best friend.”

I laugh nervously. Is it me, or is it that Anno suddenly changed into a brand new person? Sure, he might be like this in the privacy of his home, away from curious gazes, but he does feel more touchy.

It must be my imagination. Yes, that. Anno’s gay, I’m a woman, there’s no way he’s hitting on me. Not to mention the fact that he knows I have three fated mates, all of them attending the same school as we do.

Thankfully, we both remain silent as we head back to the school building. To my surprise, he doesn’t pull away, just keeps his arm around my shoulders even when we enter the assigned room and I instantly feel gazes on me - so intense, they nearly burn me alive. Great, just what I need these days.

Anno guides me to the furthest end of the room and we sit down at the same table. The room is buzzing with voices, some of the students even approach me to check in and ask if I need anything, which is surprisingly nice of them.

Only when the headmaster enters the room do the voices quiet down and everyone finally sits down, eagerly waiting for his announcement. “Ah, it’s such a pleasure to see all of you gathered here,” he says in a fake nice voice.

Anno and I share a look, both clearly thinking the same thing - whatever comes next, we won’t like it.

“I gathered you all here to share some exciting news. The king himself has hand picked all of you to join the royal pack after the graduation. He believes each has a trait he appreciates and wants to see among his men. That’s the first part of the good news. Even better news is that starting next week, the next king, Kaiden, himself, will join you and become the first royal blood student in the history of our Academy.”