His hands trembled as he tried to come to terms with how wretched this body was. He remembered a time when even ordinary clothes were beyond his reach, let alone designer wear.
"I’m doomed. I am so doomed."
He facepalmed and continued muttering to himself until two pairs of shoes appeared in front of him.
The sight immediately reminded him of clowns from a circus he had visited years ago.
Gosh, he hated clowns.
And those shoes were ridiculously close.
All he had to do was look up and see who would willingly wear something that ugly.
The moment he lifted his head, he was met by four pairs of eyes.
Two of them looked familiar.
One belonged to that stuck-up jerk he had seen at the hospital.
The other belonged to—
Wait.
Who was the ridiculous one beside him?
And what exactly were all of them wearing?
"Okay, enough already. Why are you both looking at me like that? Stop it. It’s way too creepy, jeez."
Shuddering, Noah pushed away the huge man standing before him and turned to leave.
Unfortunately, he barely took two steps before a hand yanked him backward.
His arm was twisted behind his back.
Hard.
Pain shot through him immediately.
"Ouch! That’s painful! What is wrong with him, psycho?" Noah snapped. "Are you bored or something? Go play golf. Isn’t that what old buttheads like you do?"
The silver-haired man visibly froze.
His eyes blinked several times as though he couldn’t process what he had just heard.
"I swear to God, if I hear one more word from you, I am going to—"
His deep voice carried an icy edge.
Unfortunately for him, Noah wasn’t intimidated in the slightest.
He glared right back.
Those crystalline blue eyes were undeniably chilling.
Still, who was he to threaten him?
"Going to do what?" Noah challenged. "Don’t you have somewhere more important to be than disturbing me?"
The question hung in the air.
Everyone nearby looked horrified.
After all, this was Damian.
The school president.
The perfect student.
The untouchable golden boy.
And judging from what Noah remembered, Damian rarely interacted with Ashton. Among all the Alphas, he was the one Ashton knew the least.
The silver-haired male looked genuinely shocked.
The boy before him wasn’t acting like Ashton at all.
Usually, Ashton followed them around constantly, desperate for their attention.
Now?
He looked like he wanted nothing more than to be left alone.
"It’s one of your tricks, isn’t it?" Marcus suddenly cut in with an annoyed scoff. "Trying to make us interested in you again. How many times do I have to tell you, dumbass? We don’t do boys."
Noah slowly turned toward him.
Only then did he notice Rose.
She was still kneeling on the floor.
Not just her.
Several others were too.
Most of them were trembling and refusing to raise their heads.
"Gosh, I hate this."
He rolled his eyes.
"Marcus, was it? Mind your business. I believe I was talking to..." He pointed at Damian. "What was your name again?"
A collective gasp swept through the lobby.
The atmosphere instantly became suffocating.
"He didn’t just forget the president’s name."
"Oh dear."
"He’s doomed."
"He’s seriously screwed."
A girl chewing gum smirked from the side.
Noah heard the whispers but ignored them.
He wasn’t pretending.
He genuinely couldn’t remember.
Even while reading the novel, he had never cared enough about any of the characters to remember details about them.
To him, they were all terrible people.
Assholes.
Maybe even devils.
Either way, he loathed every single one of them.
Meanwhile, Rose looked seconds away from fainting.
"God, please," she prayed internally. "I just want to see another day. Please forgive Ashton. He hit his head."
The moment Damian appeared ready to react, Rose shot to her feet.
She moved so quickly that it looked like someone desperately searching for a bathroom.
"Forgive him, Lord Damian!" she cried. "He hit his head during the accident! Maybe he forgot some things!"
Her words immediately sparked another wave of murmurs.
Whispers spread through the crowd like wildfire.
Damian simply stared at Noah.
Noah stared back.
Then his gaze dropped.
First to Damian’s chest.
Then to his legs.
And finally back to his face.
Okay.
That was creepy.
Was this guy undressing him with his eyes?
Because it definitely felt like it.
He was just about to say something when Rose suddenly grabbed his hand.
The pressure nearly crushed his fingers.
Noah almost screamed.
"Oh, that girl. How dare she stop me?"
Before he could continue arguing, a pair of smooth fingers gently tilted his chin upward.
The movement caught him completely off guard.
Damian’s infamous blue eyes locked onto his.
The stare was intense.
Far too intense.
It felt as though those eyes could see straight through him.
Noah felt something burn deep inside his chest.
His emotions.
It had to be Ashton’s emotions.
Because there was no way he would react like this to some arrogant brat.
"What really happened to you?" Damian asked quietly.
His gaze softened slightly.
"And how did you get prettier?"
Noah frowned immediately.
Prettier?
How the hell did that make sense?
Ashton Lane was average.
Painfully average.
The kind of person nobody would look at twice.
A background character.
As plain as a spoon.
Yet Damian was calling him pretty.
Even coming from a cold jerk like him, that was shocking.
"Your hair," Damian continued. "It’s purple now. Did you do something to it?"
The question surprised everyone.
Not just Noah.
Marcus looked equally confused.
He clearly had no idea what Damian was talking about.
Meanwhile, Noah suddenly felt strange.
His body no longer felt like his own.
The earlier confidence was fading.
Instead, a heavy pressure settled over him.
Almost as though he was struggling beneath Damian’s touch.
He knew these emotions weren’t his.
They couldn’t be.
Not for someone he had only just met.
But Ashton?
That shameless fool was another matter entirely.
The guy had apparently been obsessed with people who might have wanted him dead.
As far as Noah was concerned, based on everything Rose had said, these people were potential suspects in whatever had happened to Ashton.
And now he was stuck living inside the guy’s body.
Wonderful.
"Whatever I do doesn’t concern you," Noah finally replied.
His voice came out colder than intended.
"And you don’t own me. So like I said earlier, mind your own damn business."
The moment the words left his mouth, another wave of pheromones crashed into him.
Strong.
Overwhelming.
Before anyone could notice his reaction, Noah spun around and walked away.
Rose hurried after him.
"I’m so sorry!" she called back repeatedly. "I really apologize for that scene!"
The two disappeared down the corridor.
Only then did the crowd slowly begin to disperse.
Damian remained where he stood.
Lost in thought.
"He’s completely different now," Damian said at last.
Marcus shoved his hands into his pockets.
"So?"
Damian glanced at him.
"Do you know what that means?"
Marcus shrugged.
"That we’re finally free from him and his annoying antics?"
Damian shook his head.
"No."
His blue eyes narrowed.
"You’re missing the point."
The air around him seemed to grow colder.
"That isn’t Ashton."
Marcus frowned.
"What?"
"I can feel it."
Damian’s voice was calm.
"Even his energy core feels different. It’s like an entirely different person."
He paused.
"And he’s not affected by our pheromones."
That statement finally got Marcus’s attention.
Damian continued.
"Ashton used to react almost every single time."
A faint ethereal glow appeared within his blue eyes.
Marcus stared at him before shrugging again.
"I think we should leave him alone."
Damian raised an eyebrow.
Marcus sighed.
"That guy is already in enough trouble. And don’t forget the attempted murder case."
His expression darkened.
"We’re still under suspicion by the board."
"I know."
Damian’s gaze drifted toward the hallway Noah had disappeared into.
"Nothing can be done to us."
His voice lowered.
"But something isn’t right."
A strange feeling settled inside him.
One he couldn’t explain.
"He’s trouble."
Marcus snorted.
"You’re overthinking."
Maybe he was.
Maybe he wasn’t.
Either way, Damian couldn’t stop thinking about the small, feisty mouse who had just walked away from him.
"Boys."
A sharp voice suddenly echoed through the lobby.
"Go to class. You’re late."
The command snapped both of them from their thoughts.
Without another word, they turned and headed toward their classroom.
The lobby slowly returned to normal.