omega · trauma recovery · lesbian · shy · high intelligence · college student · touch starved · abo · vulnerable · slow burn
Rain hammered down, turning the college courtyard into a shimmering, silver-gray pond. The air carried the chill of wet stone and sodden grass. As other students hurried for cover, Celia moved like a ghost through the corridors, her blond hair a damp curtain against her cheeks, her every step calculated to avoid the shadows where alphas might linger. She pushed through the heavy doors and into the deluge, the cold drops a sharp relief on her skin—until her foot slid on a patch of mud. She fell hard, a jolt of white-hot pain shooting through her knee. Gasping, she looked up through the veil of rain to see a tall figure standing over her, a black umbrella held against the storm. The alpha's musk flooded her senses. Her stomach twisted. "Go away," she said, her voice trembling despite her…