CHAPTER 50: 50-DON’T LISTEN TO THE ALPHAS

Clementine:

"Guys, don’t you think we should give it another thought?" I whispered, almost too timidly, which was unlike me. But they didn’t listen. They kept walking forward, headed toward the main hall.

And then we arrived. Food was being served on the tables, but the students still hadn’t been let in. I noticed the four alphas looking around with determination, whereas I wasn’t so sure. Like I said, I had this strange feeling that we might be doing something wrong.

Then they pointed toward the basement door as it opened and the ringleaders walked out from below. The moment Miss Rue saw us, a huge smile spread across her face.

"Here is my winning team," she said with a proud smile on her lips. I watched the other ringleaders glance at us before stopping behind the row. It was pretty clear we hadn’t come alone, we had our bags tossed over our shoulders.

Once Miss Rue noticed the bags on our shoulders, her smile began to fade. I guessed she wasn’t so naïve that she couldn’t tell what was going on, but it’s customary to ask the question anyway, so she did.

"What’s going on, guys?" she asked, trying to keep the playfulness in her tone, though I could hear cracks of uncertainty in her voice.

"We need to speak with you," Troy began, but Ian quickly took the lead.

"We don’t want to be the crusaders," he announced, not even waiting for us to step aside and speak in private. And right away, that was the problem. Miss Rue looked awkwardly stunned, and the ringleaders behind her began exchanging glances.

It was Lenora Walter who stepped forward and patted Rue’s shoulder.

"Your winning team is certainly making you proud. Didn’t you tell them there’s no such option as quitting?" she asked, taking the opportunity to make Miss Rue feel small.

"This is why it’s important for everyone to keep a stern stance with the crusaders," said the ringleader of the White Squad.

"Now tell your squadmates that the breakfast we prepared for them—and the lunch we prepared for them—is going to waste. And not only them, all the other crusaders will be punished because of this foolery," ringleader Rick nearly hissed, too angry even though it wasn’t his place to speak.

We had a ringleader, and she could speak for herself.

"I think it would be better if you only made decisions for your own squad," Haiden said. Already infuriated, he didn’t hold back, and he gave it right back to Rick. The others looked at Rick in shock.

Rue was our ringleader. Lenora was Red Squad’s. Rick led White Squad. Anna was Blue Squad’s ringleader, and beside her stood Mr. Brian, the Green Squad’s leader. Brian and Anna looked quite similar, both with black hair and brown eyes. Brian had a thin mustache and styled his hair with heavy gel, slicked carefully to the side. Anna wore her hair in a braid and was probably in her late forties with her big eyes hiding behind her even bigger glasses.

Miss Rue seemed to be the youngest among them.

"Do you know it’s forbidden to speak to your ringleader like that?" Rick stepped forward, trying to intimidate Haiden, but I knew his alpha ego was too inflated to back down. So Haiden stepped ahead, trying to stand face to face with him.

That’s when Miss Rue had to step in, creating space between them.

"She is our ringleader, so I can’t speak to her this way. But you? There’s a reason the squads are separated from each other, so it’s better if you stay out of our matters," Haiden said, shocking us all. I had goosebumps on my skin. I didn’t want to mess with the ringleaders.

"And don’t stand there wasting our time. Go ahead bring your squadmates and put a leash around their necks to make them follow your instructions," Ian added, his tone even harsher.

The others just looked at Ian and clenched their jaws. I guessed it was because Haiden had already made it clear they wouldn’t be listening to anyone but Miss Rue.

"Okay, enough," Mis Rue said, her voice shaky. She seemed anxious from the confrontation.

"I’ll speak with my squadmates. Please give us a moment," she added, turning to the ringleaders and bowing slightly, showing visible remorse.

"Now, all of you, please come to the side with me," she asked, trying to step away, when Ian spoke again.

"No thank you. We’ve made our decision. We are leaving."

"And you have come here too?" Miss Rue asked, waiting for any one of us to finish her question.

"To talk about this matter with you," Haiden said, his voice stunned but his posture confident.

"That is why I’m asking you all to come to the side so we can talk about it."

She hit us right back with a good reason to step aside.

However, the alphas still seemed pretty stunned. They had their arms folded over their chests, almost as if they were challenging her.

She looked at all of their faces one by one before her eyes landed on me. I guess she could tell I was the only one who didn’t have such a stern look on my face, as if I were ready to burn the world if they didn’t listen to me.

"And we know you will try to convince us to stay," Yorick stated but his voice much respectful than the others.

Miss Rue slowly walked back toward us, her face full of embarrassment. Then she turned to look at me.

"They don’t want to listen to me, but maybe you do." The way she said it made my heart skip a beat.

"If you think you can convince her, then you’re wrong. She’s more stubborn than us," Troy intervened. His arms stretched out in front of me to block my way, making it clear I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere with her.

Miss Rue noticed. She gave herself a small smile and shook her head, as if in disbelief. Then she looked up and met my eyes directly.

"Are you really an alpha? Then I suppose you can make your own decisions and not let others lead you."

Her words stung a little, and I guess she was right. I had every right to make a decision, and if I wanted to hear what she had to say, I would.

But that earned me harsher gazes from all the alphas in my squad.