Surrounded
~Euphoria~
I couldn’t believe what was happening.
“Now, let us enter the room together.”
I gulped.
I was nervous.
Why was I so nervous?
I was just entering class.
But I was entering class alongside him.
The prince.
There was bound to be talk.
I just wanted to make friends and sleep in a warm bed, not attract all this attention.
When he opened the door, escorting me inside, his hand rested against the small of my back.
I stumbled nervously, but he caught me with practiced ease.
“Watch your step,” he almost purred.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Artemis?” I heard a familiar voice growl from across the room.
Oh no.
The Fox Prince.
What am I supposed to do?
I shifted anxiously from one foot to the other.
Prince Artemis stepped closer, pulling me against his side and wrapping an arm around me possessively.
“I am coming to class, same as you, Aries.
Isn’t that obvious?” Prince Artemis sneered.
In the blink of an eye, Prince Aries had crossed the distance from the back of the classroom to the doorway we’d just entered through.
Now, Prince Aries stood directly in front of me, while Prince Artemis remained at my side.
I couldn’t breathe.
Their suffocating, dominant auras pressed down on me.
The entire classroom could feel it.
Everyone was watching.
Some with intrigue.
Some with annoyance.
And the worst emotion of all…
Jealousy.
“You know what I’m talking about.
Why are you with her?” He emphasized the last word.
“She’s my pet, of course.
Why are you acting so immature, Aries?
I rarely choose one.” His amusement seemed piqued, which only intensified my nervousness.
“Your pet?” Prince Aries laughed.
“Your pet?
In your dreams.
I claimed her first.
She belongs to me.”
His growl deepened, carrying a clear warning beneath it.
He reached out and grabbed my wrist, jerking me toward him.
I stumbled, only to be caught when Prince Artemis yanked me back.
I tripped, falling against his chest.
The two princes fought over me, pulling me back and forth.
I was shaking.
What was going on?
Why was this happening?
“Aries, you’re testing my patience.
At first, this was amusing, but I don’t like being challenged.”
Prince Artemis’ voice overlapped with another.
It was deeper.
More guttural.
Like something ancient was clawing its way to the surface.
I felt the air shift.
The other students abandoned their desks, retreating toward the back of the classroom.
Danger was brewing.
And here I was…
Stuck in the middle.
“I’m not afraid of you, beast boy.” Prince Aries matched his glare.
The next second, I was mortified.
Prince Artemis shoved me aside.
I fell hard against the tiled floor, pain shooting through my hip and lower back as I landed.
A small whimper escaped my lips.
When I looked up, two completely different men stood before me.
Prince Artemis had sprouted magnificent horns from his head.
Electricity danced around his body as power crackled through the air.
His brilliant blue eyes glowed with enough intensity to illuminate the room.
Prince Aries now had large white fox ears perched atop his head.
His crimson eyes burned with fierce determination.
Prince Artemis grabbed Aries by the front of his shirt and hurled him across the classroom.
But Aries landed gracefully on his feet, almost catlike. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
One hand braced against the floor.
The other stretched outward to steady himself.
Without hesitation, he lunged forward.
Chairs flew aside from the sheer force of his speed as he tore through the room with inhuman swiftness.
“Lizard bastard!” he shouted.
Prince Artemis grinned and stepped aside.
But Prince Aries had anticipated it.
At the last second, he twisted his body.
His leg shot upward, the first kick barely missing as Artemis ducked beneath it.
But Aries wasn’t finished.
The second kick came from the opposite direction.
It connected squarely with Prince Artemis’ jaw.
The impact sent him skidding backward into several tables, splintering them as they crashed across the floor.
Using the wall behind him, Prince Artemis pushed off and launched himself straight back at Prince Aries.
“You sly little puppy.” Prince Artemis laughed, his voice dripping with mockery.
“Acting all big and bad in front of a girl.
You’ll lose to me now, just like you’ve lost every lifetime before.
Everything you have belongs to me.”
The two of them reached for one another at the same time, each gripping the other’s neck.
Their bodies began to convulse.
Muscles rippled.
Bones shifted beneath their skin.
Oh my goddess…
They’re about to shift in class.
What do I do?
A warmth bloomed inside my chest.
It felt like a soft, comforting light glowing somewhere deep within me, hidden where no one else could see.
It only happened when I felt a very specific kind of desire.
Not when I simply wanted to sing.
Not when I casually wanted to play music.
This feeling came only when someone truly needed it.
It was the same warmth I felt whenever patients at the hospital were dying…
Or when families were saying goodbye to the people they loved.
Without thinking any further…
I stood.
And I did what I do best.
I began to sing.