Chapter 138: ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-EIGHT

NICHOLAS’S POV

"What are you all doing here?" The principal’s voice came out unevenly as she stared at the four brothers standing in front of her.

Her phone was still in her hand, but she had completely forgotten about the person on the other end of the call. She looked from Adrian to Cassian, then Roman and Elijah, as though she was hoping one of them would explain why all four Blackthorne Alphas had suddenly appeared at her office.

Adrian remained calm. "We need to speak with you."

"Yes, of course. I mean, yes. Certainly." She quickly ended her call and straightened her clothes. "Please, come inside."

She stepped aside immediately and we followed her into the office, and she closed the door behind us before moving behind her desk.

She looked nervous, but she tried to hide it as she gestured toward the chairs.. "Please, sit."

Adrian took the seat directly opposite her while Cassian, Roman, and Elijah settled around him. I remained slightly behind them until Adrian glanced toward me.. "Nicholas, sit down."

So I did.

The principal folded her hands on the desk. "May I ask what this is regarding?"

Adrian didn’t waste time.."We’re here because Nicholas is returning to school."

Her eyes moved toward me. "I understand," she said carefully. "But there are still certain policies regarding—"

"He is our brother," Adrian interrupted.

The principal stopped and Adrian continued before she could recover. "He’s also our mate." 𝑓𝑟ℯℴ𝓂

My head snapped toward him.. For a second, I genuinely thought I had heard him wrong.

Their mate?

He had actually said it in public. They were claiming me in public now?

I looked at Cassian, expecting him to react to Adrian’s decision to announce something that had been kept private for so long, but he didn’t seem bothered. Roman looked equally calm, and Elijah simply sat there as though there was nothing unusual about what had just been said.

The principal, however, looked completely stunned.. "Your... mate?"

"Yes," Adrian said.

Her eyes moved between the four of them and me again. "All four of you?"

Cassian leaned back in his chair. "Yes."

She stared at me as though she was seeing me differently for the first time.

Adrian’s voice remained firm. "We know the school has a policy regarding Omegas. We’re aware of what happened before Nicholas left, and we’re aware that the school doesn’t ordinarily allow Omegas to attend. That’s no longer relevant to him."

The principal opened her mouth, then closed it again.

"He’s an exception," Roman added. "Whatever policy you have, it does not apply to Nicholas."

"But the regulations—"

"The regulations can remain," Adrian said. "We’re not asking you to change the entire school today. We’re telling you that Nicholas will attend this school, and he will be treated with the same respect as every other student."

The principal looked down at the papers on her desk, then back at them. "I understand."

Adrian held her gaze. "Do you?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"Good."

She nodded quickly. "Nicholas will be allowed to continue his studies. I’ll speak to the relevant staff myself and make sure there are no problems."

Something about the way she said it made me realize she wasn’t simply agreeing because she was frightened of them anymore. She seemed genuinely careful with the way she spoke about me now.

Adrian stood. "Then we’re done."

The principal stood as well. "Of course."

As the others headed toward the door, I remained behind for a moment. She looked at me and gave a small, respectful nod. "Nicholas, if you need anything, you can come directly to my office."

I nodded. "Thank you."

We left the office together and once we reached the corridor, Adrian looked at me. "We’ll leave you and Elijah here. You both know where your classes are."

Elijah nodded and Adrian turned toward me. "If anything happens, tell us."

I straightened. "I can handle myself."

"Just call."

Cassian gave me a brief pat on the shoulder. "Yes. Still, call if you need us."

"I will."

The four brothers eventually left, leaving Elijah and me standing in the corridor.

Elijah looked at me. "You heard what he said. If anything happens, come to me."

I gave him a look. "I’m not a child."

He smiled. "Fine. But I’m still your brother, so I’m allowed to worry."

I couldn’t help laughing as we stood there for another moment before heading toward our respective classrooms.

When I entered mine, the room immediately became quiet as several students looked up.

I ignored the hushed whispers and placed my bag down, but the murmuring continued behind me.

"That’s him."

"Did you see who came with him?"

"I heard they were his brothers."

"I heard something else."

"What?"

"They said he’s connected to all four of them."

"Seriously?"

I kept my eyes on my desk as another voice joined the conversation. "I heard he’s not even from a proper Alpha family. His mother was—" The person paused before continuing with a laugh. "And he’s an Omega too. I don’t know why everyone is acting like he’s special."

Fuck no.

My chair scraped against the floor and the room went quiet as I stood and walked toward him.

He looked up when I stopped in front of his desk. Whatever confidence he had shown while talking to his friends disappeared almost immediately.

"What did you say?" I hissed.

He swallowed. "Nothing."

My brows furrowed. "You were talking about Omegas."

He blinked. "I didn’t mean—"

"You meant exactly what you said." I leaned slightly toward him, keeping my voice low enough that everyone in the room could hear it without me having to shout. "You seem to have forgotten something. You wouldn’t be sitting here talking about Omegas if Omegas hadn’t helped build the world you live in. You wouldn’t have the people protecting you, treating you, feeding you, or working around you if every Omega decided they were going to disappear because people like you looked down on them."

He stared at me and I straightened. "So don’t stand in this classroom and speak about Omegas as though we’re beneath you. If you have a problem with who I am, keep it to yourself. I don’t want to hear it again."

His hands were trembling slightly. "I apologize."

I watched him for another second before turning around and walking back to my seat.

The moment I sat down, the whispers started again, only quieter this time.

"I told you not to mess with him."

"Didn’t you hear who his brothers are?"

"They’re the Blackthornes. All four of them."

"And he’s their mate?"

"Apparently."

"That explains why the principal let him back."

"I wouldn’t go near him if I were you."

I heard everything, but I didn’t react to it.

There was something satisfying about knowing that nobody was going to look down on me so casually anymore. I had spent too long being treated as though being an Omega made me weak, and now the same people were suddenly rethinking their words because of the people standing behind me.

I leaned back in my chair with a small smile.

A few minutes later, the professor entered the classroom, placed his books on the desk, and called everyone’s attention and I opened my notebook.

Whatever they wanted to whisper about could wait.

I had a class to attend.