Chapter 90: ⁹⁰: thoughts

Athena’s POV:

I took the card in my hands and couldn’t help but roll my eyes when I read what was written on it.

Ripped your uniform shirt yesterday. Might rip more, so thought to be prepared.

"Arrogant," I muttered, putting the card back with the shirts before pushing the entire pile aside.

That man really had a way of getting under my skin even when he wasn’t physically anywhere near me.

I tried to ignore the shirts, but my eyes inevitably drifted toward the food sitting beside them. The delicious smell was practically impossible to ignore.

"I don’t have much time..." I murmured, debating whether I should eat it or not.

My stomach answered for me.

"Might as well eat it than let it go to waste."

I pulled out a chair and sat at the table, bringing the food closer. It was still warm, almost as if it had been delivered only moments ago. When had he even arranged all this?

I picked up the first bite and immediately closed my eyes as the flavour spread across my tongue. "This is so good," I mumbled, unable to stop myself from taking another bite.

While eating, I fiddled with the packaging, trying to figure out where he had bought it from. My eyes widened when I finally saw the name.

Riven...

"Of course!" I muttered, placing another bite into my mouth. There was absolutely no way my broke ass could afford to dine somewhere like that.

I shook my head, deciding not to think about it too much. Whatever Kael wanted to spend his money on was his business.

Soon, my breakfast was finished. But now that my hunger had been satisfied, all the thoughts I’d been trying to suppress came rushing back.

And, annoyingly enough, every single one seemed to be connected to Kael Dreven.

I sighed, leaning back in my chair. After the way he had left me last night, I felt like a completely different person. Whenever I wasn’t keeping myself occupied with something, my mind automatically returned to him.

All I could think about was Kael’s words, all I could feel was his touch, all I could concentrate was on the fact that he left me yearning for an orgasm!

The fact that he had left me feeling completely overwhelmed and wanting more before simply walking away as though nothing had happened.

I immediately shook my head. "No. Stop." I was getting distracted again. I quickly got up and began clearing the table. "I have an Academy to get to."

I gathered everything and put it away before grabbing my things and rushing toward the door.

The moment I stepped outside, another problem struck me. "How will I even reach the Academy now?" I muttered, looking around. "Will I even get a taxi from here?"

Then I stopped. My gaze landed on the sleek car I had arrived in yesterday. It was still parked exactly where I’d left it.

"He didn’t take the car away?" I walked closer, staring at it for a moment.

"Am I supposed to use this car from now on?" I frowned, thinking about it. It seemed like the obvious answer. Otherwise, why would he have given me the keys yesterday and then left the car here?

I was still staring at the car when I suddenly remembered that I was getting late. No longer wasting any time, I dashed back inside to look for the keys.

I had kept them in my pants pocket yesterday. They might still be there.

The thought came to me just as I reached the stairs, and I immediately turned toward my room. I rushed inside, checked the clothes I had worn yesterday, and, to my relief, found the keys exactly where I had left them.

I picked them up, staring at them for a moment before another thought crossed my mind. "Could it be that he didn’t take the car because he didn’t know where the keys were?"

I frowned. Well, whatever the reason was, I would have to be shameless enough to use it without asking him today.

I can always ask him later. Besides, it wasn’t as though I had another convenient way to reach the Academy from here.

Without further hesitation, I grabbed my things, hurried back outside, and got into the car. I started the engine and drove toward the gate.

It was only when I turned toward it and the gate automatically began opening after an image appeared on a nearby screen that I realised just how technologically advanced this place was.

"Well, it seems Kael has used technology to keep this place completely devoid of unnecessary disturbances. He barely even needs a guard here."

I shook my head, amused despite myself, before driving away from the house.

The thirty-minute drive toward the Academy should have been enough time for me to think about my plans.

Instead, it gave my mind thirty uninterrupted minutes to think about Kael.

And that was exactly what I had been trying to avoid.

By the time I reached the Academy, I quickly parked the car near a small restaurant a little away from the Academy gates. It was on my usual route toward the packhouse, so leaving it there would be much safer.

True to his status, Kael had given me a car that probably cost more than my 2hole existence right now.

There was absolutely no way a scholarship student like me could explain where she had suddenly gotten such a luxurious car.

What was I supposed to say if someone asked?

Oh, this? The Alpha King gave it to me because he decided I should move into his private villa?

Absolutely not.

I quickly stepped out of the car and headed toward the Academy, determined to reach my classroom before anyone noticed how late I was.

The entire thirty-minute drive had been a battle with my own thoughts, all I could think about had been Kael, which I certainly didn’t want to happen.

I needed to make him dependent on me. Not the other way around.

If I wasn’t careful, my entire plan could turn against me before I even got what I came here for.

"Hey, Rosié!" I called the moment I spotted the sweet girl.

She immediately looked toward me. "Oh, what happened?" she asked as soon as I dropped into the seat beside her. "Why does your face look like you’ve been bullied?"

I quickly shook my head. "Nothing. I’m just feeling a little unwell today."

"Is it something serious?" Her expression immediately changed, concern replacing her usual curiosity.

"No, nothing serious." I gave her a small smile. "I just feel a little weird sometimes without any reason."

Rose studied me for another second before finally seeming satisfied with my answer.

I lowered my head onto the desk, letting out a quiet sigh. There was no way I could tell her the truth. How could I possibly explain that I wasn’t sick at all?

I was simply distracted. And worse, I was distracted because I was craving something - or, more precisely, someone.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Get a grip, Athena.