Kael walked back inside the gym, exhaling a breath of relief. He walked towards Jaden and stood before him, his face still flushed and his hands still sweaty as the events of the bathroom continued to replay in his head.
"Sorry about last night," Jaden's words pulled him out of his thoughts, and he blinked as he looked up at him.
Jaden dropped the instrument he was working with and stood in front of Kael. "About Jeff… I'm really sorry that you had to witness that last night, which led to all this. He's really an asshole…"
Kael sighed as he recalled what happened. Truly, if Jeff had just kept his mouth shut, he wouldn't have kissed the unknown Alpha and wouldn't have someone on his neck, caging him against a wall.
"Are you okay?" Jaden asked, concerned, after Kael didn't respond to his apology. He felt really guilty about the situation, especially since he was the one who took Kael to the club.
Kael scratched his neck as he responded, "I'm okay. And yes, Jeff is an asshole, and I'm just a fool who can't keep his emotions in check. If I had just kept my cool when he said those words, I wouldn't have done that…"
Jaden shook his head. "No, don't say that. You behaved the way anyone would. Besides, you were drunk…"
"I understand," Kael said, then sat down on the bench in the gym, and Jaden followed suit.
He sat shoulder to shoulder with Kael and asked, "So, where did you go last night? I mean after kis—"
Jaden stopped and looked at Kael's face, which was currently giving him a death glare. He swallowed and quickly changed his words. "I mean, after pulling that stunt yesterday. Where did you sleep? And what's up with one of your legs missing a shoe?"
As Jaden asked that, flashbacks of what happened before getting to the gym resurfaced in Kael's mind. He couldn't help but cover his face with his hand and sigh. Looking back up at Jaden, he blurted, "You wouldn't believe what happened…"
"What happened?" Jaden asked eagerly.
"Calm down… why are you so eager?" Kael raised his eyebrows at Jaden, a little amused by his interest.
"Sorry… I just wanna hear the full gist," Jaden said with a small chuckle.
"Trust me, it's not a gist, and I'm so annoyed. Like, I met a weirdo..." Kael said, his hands spreading in frustration.
"You met the Beta?" Jaden raised an eyebrow.
"No…" Kael said flatly, rubbing his temples. He scratched his head. "I woke up in a huge bed, and when I stepped out, I cut my foot and this guy licked my blood and his eyes changed color… long story short, I think I met a vampire."
Jaden just stared at him, and Kael looked annoyed. "Hello?"
"Sorry," Jaden said with a small laugh. He chuckled for a while before adding, "It's just funny. Are you sure you weren't too high and mistook a dream for reality?"
"Why? Is it so hard to believe I met a vampire? I mean, there are already Alphas and Betas in this world. What's a vampire compared to that?" Kael scoffed, not bothering to hide the fact that he just referred to this place as this world, as though there's supposed to be another.
"Dude…" Jaden said, his tone suddenly serious. "I can't believe you don't know this, but vampires aren't that common. There's like zero in a hundred chance of seeing one in a night let alone living to tell the tale."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know. But I'd rather believe you had a dream. Because if you lived to tell the tale of seeing a vampire, especially one that drank your blood, maybe that vampire wants you as his and didn't kill you so he could keep you forever. Who knows…" Jaden said casually.
But it wasn't the same for Kael, who suddenly felt the gym's temperature drop. He hugged himself and looked at Jaden. "Are you saying I might be targeted by a blood-sucking monster?"
"Perhaps…" Jaden replied. "But that shouldn't worry you. The chances of that happening are one in a million. Vampires don't usually meddle in our business, so it's probably all in your head."
"Why would I imagine a vampire licking my blood?!" Kael shouted, glaring at Jaden.
"I don't know, ask yourself!" Jaden shouted back, then softened his tone. "So… what did the gym instructor drag you off to say?"
"Huh?" Kael looked at him, still catching his breath. Part of it was from shouting, but mostly from the fear that he might be hunted by an ancient blood-sucking monster.
"I mean, after you kissed him last night without his consent…"
"I don't understand. Yes, I know I kissed someone last night, and that guy turned out to be in the gym today and dragged me to the bathroom. But why are you saying 'gym instructor'?"
"Ah… you didn't know?"
"Know what?"
"That the person you kissed last night is Leonhardt—the gym instructor here. You know Jude is the assistant. Leonhardt's the main one. So… what did he drag you off to say or do?"
"What?!" Kael exclaimed, suddenly standing up.
'Why am I so with a bad much!'
He stared at Jaden, hands on his shoulders. "The person I kissed last night is my gym instructor senior? Tell me! What else don't I know about him? Who is he?"
"Ermm… since you finally want to know about this school, I'll tell you. See, Leonhardt is like a demigod here. When he was in his fourth year, he was president of the student union. Now, in his fifth year, he's president of the first-year Alpha dorms and also volunteers as our gym instructor and mentor.
"That's not all. He's the son of the top electronic company in the country and is currently in a political war with his brother over who will become the next CEO. He's known as the strict Alpha—the cold, ruthless, and dangerous one. Once, he made a guy wet his pants just for dropping a drink while passing by. Another time, a guy was being boastful toward him, and we didn't see him for a week. When he returned, he was on crutches. People call him the Alpha of Alphas."