TESSA I wiped my eyes with the heel of my hand. The room felt too full of his scent, so I slipped out quietly.The hallway was still, painted in soft gray dawn light leaking through the tall windows. My footsteps echoed faintly as I walked, each one feeling like I was moving farther from myself.I just wanted to go home. Home—though even that word didn’t mean much anymore. But anywhere else was better than here.I was almost at the main door when his voice broke through the quiet.“There you are.”I froze.Rowan was standing there, a little bit breathless, eyes fixed on me. The silence that stretched between us was deafening.I wanted so badly to close the distance. To touch him. I wanted to feel his arms around me again, even if it meant pretending for just a moment that everything was different.But I didn’t move.He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, a nervous gesture I’d seen some times before.I braced myself. I was waiting for the rejection.“I’m not going to reject y
TESSAI couldn’t say I didn’t see it coming. After my parents died, it felt like nothing in this world was truly for me. But knowing it was coming didn’t make the blow hurt any less. It still hurt. In fact, it really, really hurt. There was a bond between us now, so the pain transcended mere emotional pain, also becoming physical. In that small space, I felt like I had no place between the two of them. The race hadn’t even started yet, and I already lost. In fact, I had no right to compete. My heart began aching. I told myself not to make it obvious. Don’t let him see. Don’t let anyone see. Every single time I hinted at how I felt, make it emotional or physical, I was accused of “acting up” again. Until now, my heartache was nothing more than a childish tantrum. My pulse was racing in panic and pain, even though I tried to keep my face calm. In the end, it didn't work, especially with Rowan’s eyes on me like this.He continued looking at me, and as much as I liked his attenti
TESSA I felt like a shadow in this place—which, if you think about it, was actually an upgrade.Achievement unlocked: invisibility.Nobody here cared that I existed, and I wasn’t going to complain. Being invisible meant fewer whispers behind my back, fewer pitying glances from relatives who didn’t know what to do with me, and most importantly… fewer chances of running into the people I didn’t want to see.Unfortunately, I still had eyes. And my eyes found him almost immediately.Rowan.The moment he stepped into the hall, heads turned like they always did, attention pulled toward him as though the moon herself had decided to spotlight her chosen Alpha. He looked impossibly handsome. Tonight was his night. Midnight would decide everything.And I, the self-proclaimed queen of bad decisions, had shown up to witness it.Was I a martyr? Probably. Was I a masochist? Definitely.I told myself I was here for closure. That maybe seeing him with Ellana, fated and bound under the moon, would r
ROWAN My father came in without knocking, his shadow falling over the room before I even turned around. He stood there, arms crossed, his expression clipped. “Happy birthday,” he said.It was awkward. My father didn’t usually bother with birthdays. He wasn’t the type to hand out greetings unless it was attached to some sort of lecture or order. I straightened up from tying my shoes and turned to face him, bowing slightly out of habit.“Thank you,” I replied.He stepped closer. “You might meet your mate today,” he started off. “You might not. But with you nearing the age to attend Elite, I hope you remember how your older brother was.”The inevitable comparison was never going to disappear. I kept my face neutral even though I sighed internally. “Yes, Dad,” I said simply. He studied me for another moment. Then he stepped aside and gestured toward the door. “Someone’s here for you.”I walked past him, already guessing who it was.Ellana stood in the hallway in a soft white dress
TESSA My eyes dragged over the sharp lines of his shoulders, the way his muscles caught the bathroom light. I couldn’t help it. I stared at his body. I told myself I was just appreciating, not lusting. Appreciating. Because how could a seventeen-year-old look like this?It was my first time seeing something like this in real life. Not in books, not in passing glances at training grounds from afar—this was here, in front of me, close enough that I could feel the faint heat radiating off his skin.My thoughts must’ve been far too loud, because his mouth curved into the smallest smirk. Then, I heard him chuckle. The sound rolled through my chest, setting my nerves alight.I snapped my gaze up to his face, eyes wide, my mouth opening like I could form an excuse, a reason for standing here like some kind of lovesick idiot. But before I could speak, he tilted his head slightly. “Zaria spilled her drink on me,” he muttered. That was when I noticed that we were quite close. Every strand
TESSAI was halfway through chopping onions when Cameron’s voice carried from the living room. “Tessa, get me some food.”I didn’t even look up. “In a minute.”Before I could blink, Myrna’s voice floated in from the other side of the kitchen. “Just do it, Tessa. Cameron’s tired. Finish that up and go.” David grunted in agreement from his spot. My grip tightened around the knife. Tired? Cameron was tired? We had one class together today! I dragged myself through them while Cameron leaned on every excuse to coast. But somehow, he was the one too drained to get up and walk to the kitchen? I swallowed the words before they could escape my mouth. I didn’t have a death wish.Wiping my hands on a towel, I turned toward the fridge, already mapping out what I could throw together fast enough so he’d stop yelling for me. Myrna and David doted on him like he was some rare gem. Meanwhile, I was more like a tool they remembered to keep sharpened because it was convenient.The door opened. I