You sat behind the kitchen door, ears drooping, tail twitching. Five minutes of silence before the next round. Your apron was stained, your shoes worn thin, your wallet emptier than the tip jar. Rent was due in three days. You hadn’t eaten since yesterday. You lived in a world where if you were the more dangerous and the higher your status was, the luckier you were. Alphas and Betas had it easy, especially Alphas, and for your luck, you were a bunny Omega.

The door slammed open.

“Slacking again?” grunted Ulrich, the pig hybrid manager. His snout curled in disgust. “You think this place runs on pity? Get up. Table seven’s waiting.”

You didn’t speak. You grabbed the tray with trembling hands, balancing the plate of steaming pasta like you’d done a thousand times. The dining room buzzed with chatter and clinking glasses, until—

A chair scraped. A man stood abruptly, voice raised, shoulder colliding with yours. The tray flew. The plate shattered. You hit the ground, pain blooming across your hip and elbow.

You looked up, heart pounding, ears flattened. Words spilled in a flood of apologies. The man blinked, startled, then softened.

“I’m so sorry,” he said, crouching beside you. His voice was low, warm, threaded with concern. “That was my fault. Are you okay?”

Caelum with his older brother, Vesper. Snake hybrids, AND Alphas. Known as the Cobra Twins. Ruthless, cold, untouchable. Caelum, 23, golden hair, blue eyes, sweet but could end your life with a snap. Vesper, 24, white hair, red eyes, and a gaze sharp enough to make CEOs fold from a business out of fear. Their suits were tailored, watches gleaming. Their conversation was venomous.

They were at a family reunion with their mother, Seraphine, known as the Deadly Viper, anyone who annoyed her disappeared in 24 hours. Their father, Elias, known as the King Cobra, is known to ruin any enemy companies that he considered a nuisance, but that meant the workers and leaders of those companies were never found. And their sister, Elavira, the international idol and also the deadliest, she's known as the Black Mamba, any idol that she felt was a threat was missing by the week. The thing they were mostly known for was their eyes, they had the most intimidating snake pupils any had ever seen in a hybrid. Many had passed out just from a glare of them.

Caelum had accused Vesper of arrogance, of building his empire on ego. Vesper smirked, calling Caelum naïve, too soft for the real world.

You reached for the shards, hands trembling. Caelum reached to stop you, but too late—a jagged piece sliced deep into your palm. Blood dripped instantly.

“Don’t—” Caelum began, but Ulrich was already there.

He grabbed your ears, yanking you up. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he hissed, then turned to the brothers with a fake smile. “Terribly sorry, gentlemen. She’s new. Clumsy. Won’t happen again.”

Vesper’s gaze flicked from your bleeding hand to Ulrich’s grip. “She’s bleeding,” he said flatly.

Ulrich didn’t let go. “She’ll be fine. Just a scratch.”

Caelum stood, jaw tight. “You treat your staff like this?”

“She’s lucky to have a job,” Ulrich snapped, then turned to you with venom. “Clean yourself up. You’re embarrassing the restaurant.”

You bowed, clutching your injured hand, your bunny ears dropped down covering your eyes. Blood dripped. Vesper noticed.

“Maybe the service problem isn’t your staff,” he said coldly, stepping forward. “Maybe it’s you.”

Ulrich froze. His mouth opened, then closed. He bowed stiffly to the brothers, face pale. But when he turned back to you, his eyes were ice.

“Get out of my sight,” he said, voice low and dangerous.

You couldn't even look up embarrassed. But little did you know, Vesper was already making a call that would shut down this shop in a matter of minutes. Elavira hugged you gently, her tail coiling protectively. Caelum was intimidating the manager with his sweet stare, and Seraphine and Elias were already texting one of their contacts to "take care" of Ulrich.