LOGINGianna.School felt unbearably loud today.Not loud in an actual way.Nobody was screaming. Nobody was causing chaos in the hallway. Conversations blurred together normally around me, lockers slammed shut, people laughed too hard at things that probably weren’t even funny.Normal.Everything was painfully normal.And somehow that made me feel worse.I know what you're thinking. Why does that make me feel worse?Because it seemed like the world kept moving anyway.People still worried about assignments. About failed quizzes. About who was dating who. Someone somewhere was probably crying over a situationship while I was actively trying not to spiral over the possibility of dying or turning rogue.And the craziest part?I still had to sit here and pretend my life wasn’t quietly falling apart.I still had to blend into normal when nothing about my life felt normal anymore.My head leaned back lightly against the chair as the lecturer continued talking from the front of the room, his voic
Gianna.Ivan exhaled softly before pressing one quick kiss against my forehead.“Stay here,” he murmured.“Absolutely not.”A faint breath of amusement escaped him despite everything.Then he turned and walked toward the door.Marcus's eyes landed on Ivan's neck.Silence.Heavy silence.I watched Marcus’s expression change in real time.Confusion.Realization.Then disbelief.“What have you done?”My chest tightened instantly.Ivan barely reacted.“You make it sound criminal.”Marcus looked genuinely frustrated now.“Ivan.”He dragged a hand down his face slowly.“She marked you?”The words made heat rush straight to my face.God.Hearing someone else say it out loud made it feel even more intimate somehow.Like the mark suddenly became real in an entirely different way.Not just ours anymore.Visible.Noticeable.Something other people could see and understand.Ivan didn’t hesitate.“Yes.”Marcus stared at him for a second longer like he was waiting for him to realize the problem on
Gianna.My fingers stayed curled lightly against the back of his neck.Still hesitant. Still nervous.But no longer uncertain.Because this wasn’t fate forcing my hand.This was me choosing him back.The room had gone quiet again.Not awkwardly quiet.Heavy quiet.The kind that made every breath feel louder.Ivan didn’t rush me. That somehow made it worse.Because if he pushed, maybe this would feel easier. Less terrifying. Less real.But he just stood there patiently, his hands resting carefully against my waist like he was giving me room to decide even now.Even after asking.My eyes flicked toward his neck briefly.Marking.God.My heartbeat sped up again.I knew what it meant for wolves. Everyone did.It wasn’t casual. It wasn’t temporary. It wasn’t something you took back after emotions settled.It meant mine.Not ownership in the cruel sense.Recognition.Trust so deep it became instinct.And suddenly I became painfully aware of the fact that Ivan was standing here willingly ask
Gianna.“I can’t question fate, sis.”Alina’s lips curved slightly after she said it. Not enough to count as a smile. Just enough to make something cold crawl beneath my skin.Then she walked away.Just like that.Calm.Like she hadn’t just admitted she wanted me dead.I stood there staring after her for a second too long, my fingers tightening around the wine glass so hard I thought it might crack.The ceremony around me continued anyway.Music still played softly somewhere behind me. People still talked. Laughed. Moved through the glowing lights and flickering bonfires like the world hadn’t just tilted sideways beneath my feet.But suddenly all the sounds felt distant.Muted.My chest tightened slowly.Not explosive anger. Not heartbreak.Something quieter.Something worse.Because deep down…a part of me had already known.Alina stopped being my sister a long time ago.I think I just never wanted to say it out loud.My throat tightened painfully.Images flashed through my mind too
Gianna.The Hall of Crescent Flames.That’s what the elders called it.A ceremonial gathering held before an heir officially stepped fully into Alphahood. Part celebration. Part presentation. Part warning.Because according to pack tradition, the night wasn’t only about honoring the future Alpha.It was about seeing the future beside him too.I hated that already.“You’re staring at the dress like it personally insulted your ancestors,” mum said from behind me.I looked up through the mirror slowly.“I think it did.”A faint laugh slipped from her lips as she walked closer, fingers smoothing invisible wrinkles from my shoulder like she needed something to do with her hands.The dress itself wasn’t bad.Actually… it was beautiful.Dark silver fabric clung softly around my waist before flowing down to the floor in slow waves. The sleeves rested slightly off my shoulders, exposing my collarbones and the curve of my neck in a way that suddenly made me too aware of my own skin.Too aware o
Ivan.The house felt… normal.That was the unsettling part.Nothing about it matched the weight sitting in my chest.Voices downstairs.Cutlery faintly clinking.Doors opening and closing like any other day.Like nothing had shifted.Like the world hadn’t quietly tilted under our feet.I stood by the window in my room, fingers resting against the frame, my gaze unfocused as it drifted past the compound walls.Cars moved.People lived.And yet—It had already begun.The seer’s voice didn’t echo.It didn’t need to.It stayed.Quiet. Certain.I exhaled slowly, dragging a hand down my face.Gianna.The image of her earlier slipped in without warning.The way she paused before answering.The slight tension behind her eyes.The way she said “I’m fine” like she needed it to be true.My jaw tightened.That wasn’t just stress.I knew stress.That wasn’t it.A knock sounded at my door.Firm. Familiar.“Come in.”The door opened, and Dad stepped in, closing it behind him.No hesitation.No small
Gianna. The atmosphere changed the moment I crossed into the city. It wasn’t dramatic. No sign, no sudden shift in scenery. Just a feeling. Like the air itself remembered me. Memories pressed in from every direction, uninvited and relentless. It felt strange being here again, but also painfully
Gianna.I woke up with tears already sliding down my temples, soaking into the pillow before I even understood why I was crying. My chest felt tight, like someone had wrapped a band around my ribs and kept pulling. Another memory. Or fragments of one. Faces that were now easily recognizable. Voice
Gianna.And just like that, it was the weekend.I’d been having small flashbacks, which annoyed the shit out of me because I was eager to literally get my life back. I felt like a foreigner in my own memory. It was scary, standing behind a closed door, knowing if it opened I might not exactly like
Gianna.I had already gotten dressed and made my way to the training room for combat.The building loomed ahead of me, solid and cold, the air inside carrying the faint smell of sweat, stone, and something metallic. Training always left a weight in my chest, not fear exactly, but awareness. Like my







