Chapter 2

I had chanced upon that Instagram account purely by accident.

I had been scrolling through my "Explore" tab when the algorithm suggested that I follow a random account that was based in the same location as I was and had a black-and-white photo of a street in a rather familiar photography style.

I then tapped into the account out of curiosity.

The account had fewer than a thousand followers. The latest story posted was from last night, during my bachelorette party, after I'd gotten drunk at home.

It was a photo of a parking garage late at night, and the caption in the photo was quite long.

"He said that he wasn't going home today, wanting to wait with me until the rain stopped. But he still put his coat around my shoulders, leaving himself in just a thin shirt."

I tapped into the next highlighted story.

"He shielded me from trouble again today. The problem would have been solved with just a simple explanation, but he still insisted on shielding me behind him first.

"I complained to him that he was being too quiet. He then took off one side of his earbuds and handed it to me, saying that I wouldn't call him 'cold and distant' anymore like that.

"He doesn't like taking photos, but he's always willing to let me take photos in our wolf form. He said that it was a way for us to leave our mark on each other.

"He's always so busy, but he never forgets what kind of perfume I like. He even bought it for me while walking past the store."

There were plenty more Instagram stories in the account's highlights, and I felt as though something just struck my heart, very lightly.

The subtle gentleness the account described somehow struck a chord within me.

Misty licked her lips and said, "Well, if you like these, you can tell the Alpha about it so he'd do the same things for you."

I nodded, thinking about leaving a comment on the stories, but I realized that I couldn't. So, I ended up following the account instead.

However, I never imagined that those seemingly unrelated moments were, in fact, all related to me.

Misty howled, and I could hear the sorrow in her voice.

The account owner said that they had been in love for eight years.

Meanwhile, Xavier and I had also been dating for eight years.

Queenie and I had known each other for 19 years. When I was ten years old, she and her clan had joined the Moonshine pack, and that very night, she knocked on my door in two cute pigtails and a sack of wild berries over her shoulder.

"Hi! My name's Queenie Blackrose. We're going to be best friends from today onward!"

Ever since then, we grew up together, trained together, and basically were glued to each other at the hip.

Queenie eventually became my closest friend in the pack.

When I was 18 years old, a group of Rogues in the pack broke through our border. The werewolves in our pack who weren't skilled in combat began running off in all directions, and I was shoved to the ground in the chaos.

Just as sharp claws were about to strike me, a strong arm suddenly pulled me behind his back.

"Stay next to me."

It was Xavier. His voice was authoritative and intimidating since he was an Alpha, but it somehow made me calm down and feel safe with him.

At that point in time, he was already the Alpha leader of the Shadow pack, and his grayish-silver wolf silhouette was particularly striking and fierce under the moonlit night.

However, when he looked at me, his golden-brown eyes were tender and full of gentleness instead.

Soon after, I learned that Xavier had suddenly shown up because he was here to discuss a potential marriage alliance between his pack and ours, and he had unexpectedly felt an attraction toward me. His wolf had resonated completely with Misty.

When I told Queenie about it, she got so excited that she began dancing around me, saying, "I can't believe that you and the alpha of the Shadow pack are actually fated mates! You're so lucky, Vanessa!"

The marriage alliance progressed naturally after that, and Xavier had always been nothing but gentle and caring toward me.

He would find time to share anecdotes about his tribe with me, accompany me as we cultivated our wolves, and hold my hand during the annual offering ceremony.

I always thought that our relationship would be unbreakable.

Queenie also often came over to our place as a regular guest. At times, she would even stay for dinner.

Xavier didn't seem particularly affectionate toward her, but he never stopped her from coming close to him.

I used to laugh and joke, saying, "Hey, you're going to be our witness, so you'd better keep a good eye on him for me next time!"

Queenie would keep laughing and nodding at me in response, but her eyes were also filled with a rather complex expression I couldn't understand.

I always thought that this was the perfect happiness I'd always have.

However, after going through all of the highlighted stories on the Instagram account, I realized that the gentleness and tenderness I'd always thought were exclusively reserved for me had been shared with someone else without my knowledge.

Misty roared in anger. "We can't take this anymore! They're desecrating your feelings and emotions!"