The girls were almost late to school today. Princess woke up late.

For someone who usually woke up at the exact same time every day, waking up one hour and twelve minutes late was unusual. Her internal clock was normally sharp, but today she had completely missed her early alarm. Luckily, Faye had woken up about 30 minutes earlier. She had already bathed the kids, dressed them and was busy preparing their breakfast.

Princess apologized for waking up late, her eyes still heavy and red from sleep as she stumbled into the kitchen area. But Faye told her that she needed rest too and didn’t have to wake up early every single day. She gave her a reassuring look, pushing a hot choco mug into her hands.

The girls decided to make it an alternating schedule. One person would handle the night duty, watching over the kids until they fell asleep, while the other would wake up early the next morning. It was a fair trade, something to keep both of them from burning out completely while managing 4 alpha pups.

Princess still insisted that she could do better, frowning as she leaned against the counter, but Faye wanted her to rest and get enough sleep. Her girlfriend wasn’t a machine. No matter how strong an alpha she was, everybody had a breaking point.

Lately, Princess had seemed a little down, something Faye had noticed. Her usual sharp energy was fading, replaced by a quiet heaviness that hung over her shoulders. She assumed it was due to the stress of taking care of the kids every morning and afternoon.

She just needed to wait for the week to pass and for the exams to arrive so things could go back to normal. Once the school pressure cleared up, they would have their regular routine back.

The first week went by quickly. Faye now had only one week left before her entrance exams, and things were getting tougher.

The study sheets were piling up, and the nights felt shorter.

First, the so called principal added an extra hour to her study sessions because she had arrived late to school on a monday. It was annoying and exhausting. Faye couldn’t understand why everyone was making such a big deal over an exam. It felt like the entire school board was breathing down her neck just for a few test scores.

She was also studying harder, thanks to Tutor Beam, who wasn’t exactly happy about the arrangement either. Teaching Faye had come at the worst possible time. Beam was supposed to be training with her friends for the Esports League, but now she barely had time. She was also supposed to help her girlfriend at the convenience store until 8 p.m., but now she couldn’t leave until 9 p.m.

Her girlfriend wasn’t complaining, but Beam still hated it. The extra hour away from Tisha made her mood grow darker by the day.

Why had the principal given her two weeks of detention instead of one? And it wasn’t even like she had beaten that student without reason. She had been provoked. The guy had asked for it, but the school administration didn’t care about the context..setting her as an example as the school president.

..

Something else was happening with Princess.

For some unknown reason, her body kept getting cold.

Princess noticed the pattern herself. Whenever she took her medication, her body temperature would drop. The only thing that seemed to help was taking a hot shower.

She would stand beneath the water with the temperature turned all the way up, trying to calm her body. The steaming spray would hit her skin, but inside, the icy feeling remained stubborn.

The cold sensation felt as though it was shutting down her nervous system. It numbed her fingers and made her limbs feel heavy, like moving through thick mud.

She told her therapist about it, but Silviana simply instructed her to continue taking the medication while she ran tests to determine what was happening. She told her it was just a temporary side effect of the adjustment phase.

Princess never doubted her therapist

In many ways, she trusted Silviana more than she trusted her own brothers. Her family always expected her to be the strong one, but Silviana actually looked at her closely.

Silviana had been the first person to take her numb emotional state seriously. She had also been the one who introduced Princess to smoking after Princess repeatedly complained about taking medication. When the pills felt like too much, the smoke offered a different kind of escape.

Before Faye entered her life, Silviana had been the person Princess talked to whenever she needed someone to listen. She had been her sounding board for every dark thought.

So Princess continued taking the medication, even more frequently than before. Every time the pressure built up, she reached for a smoke.

When Faye finally finished her study session, Malo texted her, saying he was busy and couldn’t come pick her up. She would have to find another way home.

Faye considered walking since it was only a twenty-minute trip, but to her surprise, Beam offered her a ride.

Something Beam hardly ever did. She was already revving her motorcycle near the gates, tossing an extra helmet toward Faye without a word.

"Thank you. Who would’ve thought Beamer Frost was this nice?" Faye teased as Beam dropped her off right in front of the clubhouse. She unbuckled the helmet, handing it back over with a grin.

"Well, when you have a nice, kind girlfriend, some of that influence rubs off on you," Beam replied. She rested her hands on the handlebars, a rare, relaxed look on her face.

"You know, this is good for you. You seem a lot happier with Tisha than you ever did with Kiara," Faye said.

"Kiara?" Beam frowned. "Kiara and I were never a thing. We’re just friends. What makes you think we were ever an item?"

Faye immediately went silent.

She had forgotten about the whole Kiara incident.

She simply laughed and brushed it off before she accidentally got herself blamed for something else. She took a step back toward the clubhouse entrance, waving her hand dismissively.

Beam only shook her head, put on her helmet, and rode away.

When Faye got home, the kids were busy playing inside their playground area. Kiara was sitting at her desk scrolling through Instagram.

Faye asked where Princess was.

"She’s in the bedroom," Kiara replied. She didn’t even lift her eyes from the screen, her thumb flicking past another image.

Since another adult was around, Kiara gathered her things and left. She slid her bag over her shoulder and walked out the door, letting it click shut behind her.

30 minutes passed.

Princess still hadn’t come out. The Clubhouse remained quiet, except for the soft babbling of the babies in the corner.

Frowning, Faye decided to check on her. A sudden wave of unease hit her chest, making her put down the baby bottle she was holding.

She walked into the bedroom.

And to her horror,

Princess was lying collapsed on the floor.