Chapter 7 The Jealous Mate

• Cody POV
• I stood at the door's entrance, waiting for him to finish picking up our books. The bathroom incident lingered, and I couldn't shake the memory. It had happened suddenly, catching me by surprise as we both stumbled, lips meeting. The mental replay of it left me wanting more.
• "Now you're thinking about it again when you promised to stop," Ezra reminded me.
• I sighed, recalling that I'd made that promise ten minutes ago, yet the memory still consumed my mind. This mate bond was becoming aggravating, making me feel like a relentless, uncontrollable desire to be with Rain, which was frustrating.
• "Your Highness," Rain announced his presence as he stood before me, waving his hand.
• Frowning, I wondered what he was doing and walked away toward the elevator. Once inside, the enclosed space heightened my inner turmoil. One voice urged me to kiss Rain, while another told me to reject him. I groaned audibly, unable to bear it any longer. I leaned against the elevator frame, took a deep breath, and then the doors dinged. I rushed out of it and headed toward the lobby where Lara was.
• "Your Highness," she greeted me as soon as she saw me. "Your schedules have been sent to your email, and Rain here will be your guide," she informed me.
• I frowned briefly before nodding in acknowledgment. After checking my email and seeing that I had a class soon, as Cody had informed me earlier, we both left the lobby. As we stepped outside, I noticed the surrounding buildings, each constructed like skyscrapers with almost 32 floors, making me wonder about the school's size. Each building had a distinct color and a name engraved in the center.
• Ours was blue, with others in red, green, and white surrounding it.
• "Cody!" somebody shouted from behind me. I turned, ready to reprimand the caller, when I realized it was my brother, Caden. His obsidian eyes glared at me, and he smirked as he approached. I thought he might hug me, but he punched me in the face instead.
• I knew I deserved it, considering I'd distanced myself from not just Rain but also my siblings, Caden and Cara, over the past two years. Our interactions were rare, occurring once every three months, if at all.
• I tasted blood in my mouth as my face turned to the other side. Faking a smile, I looked at Caden. His expression had softened, and a bright smile adorned his face. He grabbed my hand and pulled me into his arms.
• "My dear brother," he chuckled, patting my back. "I have to admit that I never expected to see you this year again, but then," he paused, clearing his throat. "Mother and father announced to me and Cara last night. I would have come to your room but had no idea where it was, so I stayed back."
• "Caden," I called his name and slowly pushed him away. His hug was suffocating, leaving me no space to breathe. "I must say it's great to see you again," I chuckled.
• He nodded in response and waved at Rain. "Hey, Rain," he said and then pointed towards me. "Why are you both together? Did—"
• I raised my brows, wondering what he was about to ask, but my sister's voice resounded from beside me before he could continue. As I looked towards her, I noticed that she was coming out of the white dormitory, accompanied by Amaya.
• At the sight of her, I glanced towards Rain, and as expected, he was staring at her with eyes full of love. Whether it was my overthinking or reluctance to see them together, a pit formed in my stomach as they gazed at each other as if anticipating to undress each other with their eyes.
• Frowning at the thought, I clenched my fist tightly.
• "Cody!" Cara jumped into my arms. "I'm so happy to see you again," she said, and if Caden's hug felt suffocating, this was worse. She held me so tightly, as if afraid I would disappear.
• "Cara," I managed to say, slapping her hands around my neck. "You're too... tight."
• Cara chuckled and released me. "Forgive my manners, dear brother. I've missed you so much because I expected I would be the first you'd call, but you didn't," she said, kicking my legs and flipping her hair.
• I bit my lower lip, groaning in pain. "Cara, I'm sorry. I never knew that—"
• "Save it," she interrupted, raising her hand to stop me. "All that matters is that now you're back, and we're all together again."
• "Except for the jackass," Caden added, laughing.
• Cara lunged at him, and they began running around. I smiled, wondering when their childish antics would end, but I couldn't ignore the exchanged glances between Rain and Cody.
• "Your Highness," Amara bowed her head in respect. "Welcome back," she added.
• Arms folded, I initially hesitated to reply until Rain nudged me on the shoulder. Turning to face him, I scoffed before turning back to Amara. "Thank you, Amara," I told her.
• "Let's all go to class, dear people. We all have history together now!" Caden announced, and we headed towards the blocks of classrooms. The structure resembled a glass skyscraper but not exceeding ten floors. As we entered, I noticed all eyes on me. Those on their phones raised their heads, and those walking stopped to look at me.
• They must have recognized me, I thought, waving at them. Strangely, when they saw me waving, they continued with what they were doing, which struck me as odd.
• When we finally reached the classroom, the professor was already inside. As we walked in, he suddenly stopped and bowed his head, and the students followed suit.
• "Your Highnesses," he said, pointing towards me. "You may be the crown prince, but this is the royal college, and you are not allowed to act like this, especially in my class."
• "Forgive my manners, Professor..."
• "It is Professor Adams, Your Highness."
• "Professor Adams, I apologize for my tardiness, but this is due to..."
• "Please find your way to your seat, Your Highness," he stated. I smiled, agreeing with him without saying anything else, and made my way with the others to an empty row at the back of the class. Rain didn't sit with me; instead, he sat beside Amara, seated two rows away from Caden and me.
• Throughout the class, I didn't listen to what they were teaching, instead focusing on Rain and Amara as they talked. I burned with anger, feeling as if I was about to explode. The heat radiated through me, and I shook my legs tirelessly, clenching and unclenching my fists to suppress the anger that threatened to burst.
• "Let me take over and get her away from mate," Ezra growled in my head. "I want to be by his side instead."
• His ideas were tempting, and I agreed with him, but attacking Amara would draw attention, and everyone would wonder why I suddenly attacked her, exposing my identity. Rain was supposed to be by my side as my guard, but he was with her instead. It made me laugh as if he was doing it intentionally. Just staring at Amara beside him made me think about ripping her head off. She was not supposed to be close to my mate. I should be the one there beside him. Unable to take it any longer, I jumped to my feet, and just then, Professor Adams announced that the class was over and left.
• I hurriedly walked out of the class after him, ignoring Caden's call and Rain, who was rushing to meet me. I was almost close to shifting.
• ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
• ~Rain~
• It was happening again. Throughout the history class, I could feel his intense glares directed at me, even though I avoided eye contact. If looks could kill, Cody would have already taken my life.
• Amara shared details about her upcoming birthday party, and we reminisced about our history while she laughed it off. When I turned around, his once bright blue eyes, now darker, were fixed on me. I visibly gulped, forcing myself to focus on the professor and ignore the erratic beating of my heart.
• The overwhelming feeling persisted—one moment, he ignited my emotions and the next, he made me regret encountering him after two long years. Throughout the class, I nervously rubbed my sweaty hands together, concealing them from Amara, who was still immersed in her birthday party discussion.
• As the class concluded and Cody exited the room, I hastily rose and caught up with him. Finding him alone, as Caden had abandoned him to flirt with others, I attempted to speak as I approached him. However, he abruptly halted, causing me to stop in my tracks. Turning around, he casually brushed a strand of hair from his forehead.
• "Rain!" he called out, drawing attention from everyone in the hallways. Murmurs circulated as my name echoed through the crowd. Disregarding the onlookers, I concentrated on Cody. With each step toward him, my body yearned to get closer.
• "Kneel," he ordered. Initially, I struggled to comprehend his words until he repeated the command. "Kneel, Rain," he insisted, shocking me with his behavior. Despite my confusion, I lowered my head and bowed to the ground. A crowd had gathered to witness the spectacle, leaving me perplexed about Cody's demeaning orders.
• "I need you to tie my shoelace," he stated, extending his sneakers. Shakingly, I reached out, but he stopped me with his hand. "Any problem?" I inquired, only to be met with laughter as he stepped back and walked away. "Meet me at the school cafeteria," he said, leaving me on the ground.
• I wouldn't say I liked this new facet of him—mean-spirited, seeking revenge without reason. He behaved like a spoiled prince, starkly contrasting with the sweet and welcoming Cody I once knew. His sudden transformation stemmed from an incident two years ago, and now, he reappeared as someone unrecognizable.
• Remaining on the ground, I felt a hand on my back. Finally, someone was offering help. When I turned, it was Amara. "What's happening here?" she asked. Groaning, I stood up and faced her. "Thank you," I muttered, relieved she rescued me from embarrassment. "I should go guard the prince in the cafeteria. Right now, I believe he needs me."
• "Are you the prince’s guard?" Amara asked, shocked by the newest discovery. "I see," she sighed, and then we started walking down the hallways of our faculty, heading towards the cafeteria.
• "Have you found your mate yet?" she asked.
• I shook my head in response. "My mate might not be a part of this pack, but I believe she is here somewhere."
• "Great," she responded. "I…" She paused as we reached the entrance of the cafeteria. "What about you?"
• She shrugged her shoulders and laughed. "I haven't found one," she muttered. Just as I was about to reply, someone appeared out of nowhere and rushed towards us, knocking me off balance. Amara and I lost our balance as we stood close to each other at the entrance. As I tried to stand up, somebody else kicked my legs, and this time, I accidentally landed a kiss on Amara’s lips.
• "Oh no," I thought.