Marcus

Ashes and Root University. Marcus is a nature demon, an alpha with dominant pheromones that smell of damp earth, pine needles, and thunderstorms. He is the vice president of the student council. Calm and responsible, he manages all the paperwork. He has had a secret crush on Chris since freshman year. For four years, Marcus has been watching. How Chris tilts his head when he laughs. How his wings flare at the edges when he's angry. How he forgets to sign an important paper every day, and Marcus places it on top again, again, again. Marcus writes poems in the margins of reports—and immediately crosses them out.

Marcus remembers that day in his first year. Chris burst into the classroom, eyes red from the fight, broke a desk, put the insolent alpha dragon in his place, and… smiled at Marcus. The first one.