The locker room smelled faintly of sweat and metal polish, the fluorescent lights buzzing faintly above. Asher trailed quietly down the corridor, following the sound of hurried footsteps. His pulse quickened. He was about to step inside when—
"Stay away from me!" a voice screamed.
The crash of lockers trembling echoed through the room.
Asher froze, pressing himself against the doorframe. Slowly, carefully, he leaned just enough to peer inside. His eyes widened.
Scott was moving unnaturally—on all fours, muscles taut, climbing across the tops of the lockers like a predator. His eyes gleamed with something animalistic. His teeth… sharper.
And Stiles—he scrambled backward, stumbling from row to row, trying desperately to put distance between them.
What… Asher thought, chest tightening. What the hell is happening?
Scott leapt, landing on another locker with a metallic clang that reverberated through the room. His movements were wild but calculated, like a wolf stalking prey. Stiles ducked, weaving, panic clear on his face.
He darted toward the open entrance—toward Asher's side of the wall—eyes fixed only on escape. He didn't even notice Asher standing there.
But Scott pounced.
Scott crashed down in front of Stiles, pinning him with a snarl, his fangs bared.
Stiles, in a desperate scramble, grabbed the red fire extinguisher mounted on the wall by the entrance. "Oh—come on!" he shouted, squeezing the trigger, a weak mist spraying uselessly.
Scott shook it off, unfazed, his jaw opening wider, teeth gleaming as he leaned down to bite—
"Move, Stiles!" Asher shouted.
With pinpoint precision, Asher hurled his sneaker. It flew clean through the air and jammed perfectly into Scott's open mouth, wedging against his fangs.
"Ugh!" Scott gagged, choking and thrashing.
Asher didn't waste a second. He lunged forward, yanking Stiles by the collar of his lacrosse uniform, dragging him out of harm's way. In the same motion, his hand snatched the fire extinguisher from Stiles.
With a sharp swing, Asher slammed the metal canister against Scott's head—not with full force, but enough to stun. Scott staggered back, dazed, his claws scraping against the lockers before he collapsed to the ground, panting, blood trailing from his forehead.
The shoe stuck awkwardly out of his mouth.
...
"Scott! Are you alright?" Stiles dropped to his knees beside him, panic etched across his face.
Scott groaned, clutching his head where the fire extinguisher had landed. His chest rose and fell in ragged breaths. "What… happened?" he panted, voice raw, barely conscious.
"N-Nothing, Scott…" Stiles stammered quickly, darting a glance toward Asher. His hands fumbled as if trying to help Scott sit up. "You should just take your meds more often—"
"Scott..." Asher cut in, stepping closer, his usual shyness buried under the weight of his need for answers. His eyes locked onto Scott, fierce and unrelenting. "What's happening to you? And why were those men trying to kill you yesterday?"
The room went silent except for Scott's shallow breathing.
Stiles froze, his mouth half-open, clearly scrambling for excuses. "Wait… how do you—?"
"Well…" Asher rubbed the back of his neck, awkward but determined. "An… animal human thing jumped on my car. I got curious."
Stiles blinked at him. "…And it seemed like a good idea for you to follow something like that?"
"Now that I think about it… yeah, that was a bad idea." Asher shrugged, lips curling in a weak grin. "But I'm still alive though…"
...
The back of the school was alive with chatter and laughter. Madison leaned casually against the brick wall, surrounded by her circle of friends, all of them sipping sodas and gossiping.
"Have you seen Asher during training today?" one of them asked, smirking.
"Yes…" another girl sighed dreamily, her eyes half-lidded as if replaying the memory. "When he lifted that shirt up… my god—"
Her words were cut off when she was suddenly shoved to the ground, hard.
"Hey—!" Madison spun around, anger blazing in her eyes. "Who the hell—"
The fury froze in her throat.
It was Erica.
"You little bitch! What do you think you're—" Madison's voice broke off into a strangled gasp as Erica's hand shot forward, gripping her throat and lifting her effortlessly off the ground.
"Kyaaaaaah!" the rest of the group screamed in unison, scattering in blind panic. Even the girl who'd been pushed down scrambled to her feet and bolted.
Erica tilted her head, eyes glinting with cruel amusement. "Great friends you've got, huh?" Her grip tightened, cutting off Madison's breath.
Madison clawed at Erica's hand, her face reddening. "P-please… Erica… l-let me go—"
"Let you go?" Erica's voice was low, cold, almost playful. "Hmm… no. I don't think I'm gonna do that."
Her eyes flashed yellow.
Madison's own eyes widened in horror.
"I think…" Erica whispered, leaning in close, "…I'm just gonna cut open your throat. Ear to ear."
Tears welled in Madison's eyes. "N-no… please, I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything—!"
"Oh, oh…" Erica mocked softly, tilting her head as if studying prey.
"We—we were just jealous! Jealous of you! Of your beauty yesterday!" Madison's voice cracked, desperate, the words spilling out without thought.
Erica's stare didn't waver.
"A-Asher…" Madison croaked.
The name snapped something inside Erica. Her eyes narrowed, glowing brighter. "What about Asher?" she hissed, her voice sharp and dangerous.
"I-It was a lie!" Madison sobbed. "He never came to my place! I don't even… have his number!"
A slow, wicked smile curled Erica's lips.
"C-can you let me go now?" Madison pleaded, her neck raw and red under Erica's grip.
Erica's smile widened. She leaned closer, whispering, "Did I ever say I would let you go? Funny… you started spilling your guts all by yourself. I didn't even ask."
Her hand balled into a fist, cocking back. Madison squeezed her eyes shut—
Warm wetness spread down her legs.
Erica stopped her fist just short of Madison's face, smirked, and let her drop to the ground like trash.
Madison collapsed in a trembling heap, soaked in her own fear.
Erica turned without another word, her heels clicking softly against the pavement as she strode back into the school.
...
The late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the schoolyard as the three of them walked toward the parking lot. Scott's hood was pulled up, Stiles shoved his hands deep into his pockets, and Asher walked alongside, still trying to process everything he'd seen today.
"So… you became a werewolf a couple days ago?" Asher muttered, his voice low, almost casual. "Really interesting—"
He never finished the sentence.
A hand yanked him back firmly. Asher spun around—and froze.
"Erica…" His voice softened, guilt flashing across his face. "Look, I'm sorry for cancelling our date yesterday, I—"
But Erica didn't let him speak. She pressed her lips to his in a sudden, heated kiss. The world blurred around him, the warmth of her mouth stealing his breath.
Scott blinked in shock. Stiles' jaw dropped.
"Uh—wow," Stiles muttered, voice cracking with disbelief. "Guess somebody just skipped the whole PG-13 rating and went straight to R."
Scott elbowed him, but even he couldn't stop staring.
Erica's body pressed against Asher's, her hand trailing down his chest. Without hesitation, she grabbed his hand and guided it lower, placing it boldly against the curve of her waist, sliding it down the line of her body.
Asher's eyes widened. He tore his lips away, face burning crimson. "Whoa… Erica, slow down." He stepped back a little, stumbling over his words. "Doing these kinds of things without even—uh—having one proper date is…"
She silenced him with a soft bite at his ear. Asher's breath caught, his entire face flushed scarlet.
"We've had plenty of dates already…" she whispered, her voice sultry, eyes gleaming.
"E-Erica…" Asher stammered, utterly lost between confusion and desire.
She leaned closer, lips brushing against his ear. "Tonight. My place." Her voice dripped with promise. "I'm gonna make you crazy."
With a final, teasing graze of her fingers along his arm, Erica turned and walked away, hips swaying, her confidence radiating with every step.
Asher stood frozen, dumbfounded, his lips tingling, his face burning hotter than ever.
What… just happened?
To be continued...
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Also, do you like the character dynamic so far? Do you find Asher's shy/curios personality irritating or is it fine?