~Valeria~The guilt was eating me alive.I wasnโt the one who called Landon. I wasnโt the one who embarrassed him. But I was the reason it happened.Maybe thatโs why Alerionโs words wouldnโt stop echoing in my head.I exhaled sharply and pulled out my phone.I hesitated for a second, my thumb hovering over the call button. Then, before I could talk myself out of it, I pressed it.He answered almost immediately.โVal?โ His voice was deep, groggy, like he had just woken up. And damn, it was the kind of voice that could make any girl weak in the knees.I swallowed. โHeyโฆ are you busy?โThere was a pause. Then a lazy chuckle. โWell, I am now.โDespite everything, a small smile tugged at my lips.โI..uh, Iโm sorry for disturbing you.โโI can never see you as a burden, Val.โ His voice was soft, sincere.And just like that, my heart did a stupid little flip.His words made me even more guilty because he was the sweetest guy ever and I just had to make him look bad with my selfish actions.Cl
~Valeria~The thing with rumors? They never really die. You can suppress them with facts but some people would never accept the truth. They would rather eat me up with their eyes and mutter insults in disgust. And right now? I just wanted the ground to swallow me from this walk of disgrace.I knew appearing in school would be the biggest mistake but I didnโt expect the silence. I thought they would throw crumpled papers at my head, laugh in my face or mutter curses but they didnโt.Not even a single whisper as I passed, just eyes, so many damn eyes watching me like I had their favorite soap opera on my face.Honestly, it was worse than the gossip. At least when people talked, I could pretend I didnโt care but not now.โJust keep walking.โ Lysander muttered beside me, jolting me back to the reality that he was here.I did keep walking, head high, spine straight like a model like I hadnโt read half the school calling me every single name under the sun on social media last night.Slut.
~Valeria~If there was a world record for how fast someoneโs life could go to hell thrice in a row, I was pretty sure Iโd just broken it.I thought everyone went back to paying attention at Amanda but she doubled her game and it made it even worst with the scandals.School had become a torture ground and I dreaded the weekdays badly.Even teachers looked at me with disgust and made snide comments about my grades dropping low.โIf you focused more on school than boys, you wouldnโt have an F on your maths test.โ Mr. Collins said as I approached him in his office about my scores.Right there, my breathing went shallow and I was close to passing out from the drum of insults loaded on me.I expected them to know better. I wasnโt skipping classes to make out under the bleachers. I was suffocating under the pressure of deadlines, assignments and soul crushing comments and drags on my social media.But it didnโt matter to them to stop and think for a second that I was the victim here.Swallow
~Valeria~โYou need a break from that shithole they call an academy,โ Landon said the moment I answered the FaceTime call. His face filled my screen, seeming more upset over the stories he had heard of my suffering. I sighed, shifting against my pillows. โUnless you have a magic wand to make everyone shut up, I donโt see how thatโs possible.โLandon leaned back against what looked like an expensive leather chair. โActually,โ he drawled, โIโve got something even better.โI raised a brow. โAnd that is?โโThereโs a gala this weekendโhigh-end, exclusive, the kind of event that could actually do you some good.โI hesitated. The idea of walking into a room full of powerful strangers, pretending I belonged, made my stomach twist.โI donโt know, LanโฆโHe tilted his head. โCome on, Val. Think of it as a chance to network. Expand your circle. Show people youโre more than the rumors.โI bit my lip, still unconvinced. โIโd rather stay home and study with Caius.โโStudy? Come on, Val.โโThere wil
~Valeria~You know that moment when you're stuck between the Devil and the deep blue sea, and neither option looks pretty? Yeah, that was me.Zane was heading straight for me, eyes dark with anger, jaw tight, walking trouble disguised as charmfor naive little girls. My instinct pinched me to take the nearest exit, but that would only make things worse.So I stood gracefully, glancing around to see if anyone else had noticed the raging tornado that had just entered the room.Caius must have noticed but he didnโt budge and I didnโt expect him to.โZane, what a surprise.โ My lips curled into something resembling a smile, but my teeth were clenched. โDidnโt expect to see you here.โIf his eyes could shoot fire, Iโd be ashes by now. He didnโt say a word but his eyes howled a thousand things I could understand. A few people were already staring and my heart raced from being the center of attraction in a bad way.Without caring at all for his image or mine, Zane grabbed me by the arm and dr
~Zane~Winning had never been just about proving myself to just anybody. I was born a Cassian, raised in a house where strength, dominance, and victory were the only things that mattered. Losing wasnโt an option, not to Alerion, not to Caius, not to Lysander. But tonight, none of that compared to the real reason I was dead set on winning.Valeria. Every display of my manliness in my wolf form that I put into this competition was for her. I had to show her that I wasnโt just another jealous, irrational, possessive freak who couldnโt protect her. I had to prove that I was the only one who deserved to own her. Not Caius. Not Lysander. Not anyone else who thought they could slip into her life by being a goody bag and then snatching her away. โCome on, man.โโYou got this.โ I mentally prepped myself as I warmed up while glancing at her.Damn, she was the prettiest girl in this crowd and I didnโt care how every other girl looked. They didnโt matter. The first event was tracking prey, a
Chapter 32~Valeria~The moment Alerionโs name was announced as the winner, the crowd erupted into cheers. I could hear my brothers' names being called next, Caius and Zane tied for second, and Lysander trailing just behind in third. Not everyone was pleased with their victory but they didnโt care. The competition had been tense and they gained more enemies than we expected. I could feel eyes on me. One that spiked danger in my spine. Then, I saw them. A group of werewolves, unfamiliar but not completely unknown. They moved through the crowd with arrogant confidence, their laughter so irritating and intentional. But it wasnโt just their presence that made my stomach twist. It was them. The ones who had bullied me before. The ones who had made my life a living hell. And now, they were here. I swallowed hard, my palm slick with sweat. My body flinched with discomfort before my mind could fully grasped the danger. I retraced my steps. My brothers, on the other hand, stood still lik
Chapter 33~Valeria~If I had placed a bet on how dirty this could get, I would have been a lot richer than my stepfather. Guys didnโt do words. They did fists. โThe rules are simple,โ the leader sneered, rolling his shoulders as he measured up to Alerion. โOne-on-one. No weapons. Just our wolves and human forms. The loser gets on their knees and apologizes to the winner.โ I didnโt like the idea of that. Sure, I trusted my brothers to win at their best but it wasnโt everytime that one could get lucky. I was going to object to their childish suggestion when Alerion accepted the challenge. โFine. But when I win, I donโt want your apology. I want you to keep your worthless mouth shut and beg for Valeriaโs forgiveness.โ The crowd cheered his boldness in support while our opponents cringed in irritation. The leader smirked, then nodded to his chosen fighter, a broad-shouldered, thick-necked werewolf who looked like he could break bones just by clenching his fists too hard. He was ta
CHAPTER 34 ~Valeria~I swear, my lungs just refused to work right after what I witnessed. My heart was drumming so quickly that everyone close to me turned to stare at me with concern.โAre you sure you still want to watch this?โ A girl by my side asked.I nodded my head without thinking, โYes, I can.โโI donโt think so.โโMaybe, you should take a minute walk away from this.โ She suggested, trying to grab my hand and pull me away from the crowd.โI promise you that Iโm okay.โ I pulled away from the stranger and inched closer to Zane so she wouldnโt bother me again. That was when he also got the hint and moved. Zane blocked my vision with his palm when my heart didnโt stop beating so loudly. The cedar scent of his palm was the quickest remedy I didnโt know I needed. โIโll let you know when itโs okay to watch.โ He murmured. Everywhere was so silent like they had already uttered a last minute prayer for Alerionโs soul. Under duress, I shoved Zaneโs palm away and counted back from
Chapter 33~Valeria~If I had placed a bet on how dirty this could get, I would have been a lot richer than my stepfather. Guys didnโt do words. They did fists. โThe rules are simple,โ the leader sneered, rolling his shoulders as he measured up to Alerion. โOne-on-one. No weapons. Just our wolves and human forms. The loser gets on their knees and apologizes to the winner.โ I didnโt like the idea of that. Sure, I trusted my brothers to win at their best but it wasnโt everytime that one could get lucky. I was going to object to their childish suggestion when Alerion accepted the challenge. โFine. But when I win, I donโt want your apology. I want you to keep your worthless mouth shut and beg for Valeriaโs forgiveness.โ The crowd cheered his boldness in support while our opponents cringed in irritation. The leader smirked, then nodded to his chosen fighter, a broad-shouldered, thick-necked werewolf who looked like he could break bones just by clenching his fists too hard. He was ta
Chapter 32~Valeria~The moment Alerionโs name was announced as the winner, the crowd erupted into cheers. I could hear my brothers' names being called next, Caius and Zane tied for second, and Lysander trailing just behind in third. Not everyone was pleased with their victory but they didnโt care. The competition had been tense and they gained more enemies than we expected. I could feel eyes on me. One that spiked danger in my spine. Then, I saw them. A group of werewolves, unfamiliar but not completely unknown. They moved through the crowd with arrogant confidence, their laughter so irritating and intentional. But it wasnโt just their presence that made my stomach twist. It was them. The ones who had bullied me before. The ones who had made my life a living hell. And now, they were here. I swallowed hard, my palm slick with sweat. My body flinched with discomfort before my mind could fully grasped the danger. I retraced my steps. My brothers, on the other hand, stood still lik
~Zane~Winning had never been just about proving myself to just anybody. I was born a Cassian, raised in a house where strength, dominance, and victory were the only things that mattered. Losing wasnโt an option, not to Alerion, not to Caius, not to Lysander. But tonight, none of that compared to the real reason I was dead set on winning.Valeria. Every display of my manliness in my wolf form that I put into this competition was for her. I had to show her that I wasnโt just another jealous, irrational, possessive freak who couldnโt protect her. I had to prove that I was the only one who deserved to own her. Not Caius. Not Lysander. Not anyone else who thought they could slip into her life by being a goody bag and then snatching her away. โCome on, man.โโYou got this.โ I mentally prepped myself as I warmed up while glancing at her.Damn, she was the prettiest girl in this crowd and I didnโt care how every other girl looked. They didnโt matter. The first event was tracking prey, a
~Valeria~You know that moment when you're stuck between the Devil and the deep blue sea, and neither option looks pretty? Yeah, that was me.Zane was heading straight for me, eyes dark with anger, jaw tight, walking trouble disguised as charmfor naive little girls. My instinct pinched me to take the nearest exit, but that would only make things worse.So I stood gracefully, glancing around to see if anyone else had noticed the raging tornado that had just entered the room.Caius must have noticed but he didnโt budge and I didnโt expect him to.โZane, what a surprise.โ My lips curled into something resembling a smile, but my teeth were clenched. โDidnโt expect to see you here.โIf his eyes could shoot fire, Iโd be ashes by now. He didnโt say a word but his eyes howled a thousand things I could understand. A few people were already staring and my heart raced from being the center of attraction in a bad way.Without caring at all for his image or mine, Zane grabbed me by the arm and dr
~Valeria~โYou need a break from that shithole they call an academy,โ Landon said the moment I answered the FaceTime call. His face filled my screen, seeming more upset over the stories he had heard of my suffering. I sighed, shifting against my pillows. โUnless you have a magic wand to make everyone shut up, I donโt see how thatโs possible.โLandon leaned back against what looked like an expensive leather chair. โActually,โ he drawled, โIโve got something even better.โI raised a brow. โAnd that is?โโThereโs a gala this weekendโhigh-end, exclusive, the kind of event that could actually do you some good.โI hesitated. The idea of walking into a room full of powerful strangers, pretending I belonged, made my stomach twist.โI donโt know, LanโฆโHe tilted his head. โCome on, Val. Think of it as a chance to network. Expand your circle. Show people youโre more than the rumors.โI bit my lip, still unconvinced. โIโd rather stay home and study with Caius.โโStudy? Come on, Val.โโThere wil
~Valeria~If there was a world record for how fast someoneโs life could go to hell thrice in a row, I was pretty sure Iโd just broken it.I thought everyone went back to paying attention at Amanda but she doubled her game and it made it even worst with the scandals.School had become a torture ground and I dreaded the weekdays badly.Even teachers looked at me with disgust and made snide comments about my grades dropping low.โIf you focused more on school than boys, you wouldnโt have an F on your maths test.โ Mr. Collins said as I approached him in his office about my scores.Right there, my breathing went shallow and I was close to passing out from the drum of insults loaded on me.I expected them to know better. I wasnโt skipping classes to make out under the bleachers. I was suffocating under the pressure of deadlines, assignments and soul crushing comments and drags on my social media.But it didnโt matter to them to stop and think for a second that I was the victim here.Swallow
~Valeria~The thing with rumors? They never really die. You can suppress them with facts but some people would never accept the truth. They would rather eat me up with their eyes and mutter insults in disgust. And right now? I just wanted the ground to swallow me from this walk of disgrace.I knew appearing in school would be the biggest mistake but I didnโt expect the silence. I thought they would throw crumpled papers at my head, laugh in my face or mutter curses but they didnโt.Not even a single whisper as I passed, just eyes, so many damn eyes watching me like I had their favorite soap opera on my face.Honestly, it was worse than the gossip. At least when people talked, I could pretend I didnโt care but not now.โJust keep walking.โ Lysander muttered beside me, jolting me back to the reality that he was here.I did keep walking, head high, spine straight like a model like I hadnโt read half the school calling me every single name under the sun on social media last night.Slut.
~Valeria~The guilt was eating me alive.I wasnโt the one who called Landon. I wasnโt the one who embarrassed him. But I was the reason it happened.Maybe thatโs why Alerionโs words wouldnโt stop echoing in my head.I exhaled sharply and pulled out my phone.I hesitated for a second, my thumb hovering over the call button. Then, before I could talk myself out of it, I pressed it.He answered almost immediately.โVal?โ His voice was deep, groggy, like he had just woken up. And damn, it was the kind of voice that could make any girl weak in the knees.I swallowed. โHeyโฆ are you busy?โThere was a pause. Then a lazy chuckle. โWell, I am now.โDespite everything, a small smile tugged at my lips.โI..uh, Iโm sorry for disturbing you.โโI can never see you as a burden, Val.โ His voice was soft, sincere.And just like that, my heart did a stupid little flip.His words made me even more guilty because he was the sweetest guy ever and I just had to make him look bad with my selfish actions.Cl