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Aftertaste
Last Updated:
2025-08-02 02:18:14
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Claimed By The Predator Shadows And Consequences
Thorne's POVThe blood was stubborn. It clung to my skin like a memory I couldn’t wash away, streaks of red mingling with the grime of the mission. The hot water in the shower felt almost cruel, burning my skin, and yet it wasn’t enough. Not nearly enough. The smell of iron hung in the air, and I closed my eyes, letting the steady stream pound down over me, trying to scrub out what I had done.And all the while, Ari was in my head. Seven days. Seven fucking days without him in my arms. My mind couldn’t let him go. Every twitch of his ears, every tiny movement, every small, fragile thing I knew about him—I replayed it over and over, as though it could anchor me in something pure amid the chaos of my world.I could still feel the hollow ache in my chest from leaving him, the constant tug of the bond gnawing at me, relentless and demanding. Every drop of blood on my hands was a reminder that my duty had no room for weakness. That I could never let Ari see what my life really was. And yet
Claimed By The Predator The Pull Of Absence
Ari's POVIt had been a week since Thorne left. Seven long, quiet days where every corner of my room seemed to ache with his absence. The bed was cold, the blankets heavy with emptiness, and even the faint smell of him lingering on the sheets had faded to nothing. I tried to keep myself busy, telling myself he must have his reasons, but the bond—our bond—was relentless. Every heartbeat, every pulse of longing reminded me that I wasn’t whole without him.I went through the motions of the day like a ghost. Classes felt longer, the chatter of other students distant and hollow. I kept my head down, books clutched tightly to my chest, pretending the world wasn’t spinning faster than I could keep up with. The bond was always there, tugging, a constant reminder that Thorne wasn’t here. That he had gone somewhere without me—without explanation.By the time I returned to my dorm that afternoon, my legs felt leaden, and my chest ached in a way words couldn’t describe. I unlocked the door, expec
Claimed By The Predator Fracture
Thornes POVI slipped out of bed before dawn.Ari’s breathing was steady against my chest, warm and soft in a way that almost made me stay. Almost. His ears twitched once when I moved, but he didn’t wake. He trusted me too much for that. Trusted me enough to curl against me and fall asleep without fear.And I was about to break that trust.The air outside the blankets was cold, biting against my skin, but it was nothing compared to the heaviness pressing down on my chest. I told myself it was necessary—this absence, this distance. My people demanded things from me that Ari couldn’t begin to understand. Things I couldn’t drag him into, not without painting a target on his back.So I left. Quiet, efficient. A shadow slipping through the door without looking back.But the second the latch clicked behind me, I felt it.The bond.It tugged sharp, like a thread snapping taut. A pull low in my chest, alive and insistent. It told me Ari was waking, that the warmth he reached for wasn’t there.
Claimed By The Predator Shallow Steps
I woke up to emptiness.The sheets were cold where Thorne should have been, and my heart sank before my mind even caught up. My fingers reached for the space beside me, clumsy and desperate, but there was nothing there—not even the faintest trace of warmth. Just the hollow weight of absence pressing down on me.My chest tightened. For a second, I thought I might cry right there, curled up in bed like some abandoned thing. Pathetic. Weak. I bit down hard on my lip, but the ache in my throat was harder to silence.He was gone.And I… I didn’t even know what to do with myself without him.The morning light trickled weakly through the curtains, pale and indifferent, and I hated it. I hated the way the world kept moving, like it didn’t care that my one anchor had slipped away.Dragging myself out of bed felt pointless, but I did it anyway, like some puppet going through motions. My uniform felt stiff against my skin, my ears heavy against the side of my head. Every movement was slow, delay
Claimed By The Predator The Leash In The Shadows
Thorne’s POVThe message came when the water was running.Steam curled under the bathroom door, carrying Ari’s humming with it, clumsy and soft, like he thought no one could hear. My phone buzzed against the nightstand, sharp enough to slice through the fragile moment, sharp enough to drag me back into a world I had no patience for.Report back. No delays.Four words. That was all it ever took to pull the chain tight again.My fingers flexed around the phone until the screen dimmed. I wanted to crush the damn thing, fling it across the room, silence it for good. But destroying it wouldn’t destroy them. Wouldn’t destroy the leash they thought was invisible.The hiss of the shower cut off. Ari’s humming too.I shoved the phone away, shoving my rage with it.When the door opened, steam spilled out with him. Damp hair sticking to his forehead, towel hanging from his neck, ears twitching as he padded barefoot into the room. He moved like he had no idea monsters were waiting outside. He mov
Claimed By The Predator The Thought Of Leaving
Ari’s POVThe door clicked shut behind us, muffling the cafeteria noise until it was just us, just the sound of my pulse in my ears.My room was still the same—plain, too quiet, too small—but with Thorne here, pressed against me, it felt different. He filled the space, made the walls feel smaller, the air heavier. I should’ve been suffocating. But instead, I breathed easier.I dropped my bag on the desk and sat on the bed. Thorne followed without hesitation, dragging me down until I was tucked against his chest like it was where I belonged.Maybe it was.I curled closer, cheek pressed to the steady rise and fall of his breathing. His tail brushed against my legs, his hand stroking the curve of my back in slow, absent passes.“You’re too much,” I muttered into his shirt, but the way my fingers clung to the fabric gave me away.His chest rumbled with a low chuckle. “And you’re still here.”I tilted my head, meeting his gaze with a glare that wasn’t half as strong as I wanted it to be. “
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