ISTRIKU BUKAN ISTRIKU

After five years in a world ruled by werewolves, I still haven't found a way back to the human world.

So I did the only thing I could. I married my fated mate, Ryan Darcy, a devastatingly handsome Lycan Prince with a towering frame.

The night we sealed our mate bond, we traded secrets.

Leaning close, I whispered in his ear, "The truth is, I'm not from this world. Treat me wrong, and I'll disappear back to where I came from. You'll never find me again."

Ryan immediately swears he'll love me more than life itself. He pulls me close, holding me so tight it's like he's afraid I'll disappear any second.

But then Eleanor Darcy—his stepsister, sent away for a political marriage in another pack—returns. Bit by bit, I watch as Ryan's attention shifts to her.

Devastated, I start looking for a way back to the human world. I throw myself at walls, try to hang myself, even jump into the lake, but nothing works.

Ryan grows more distant with each passing day.

"Susan, I expected better from you. Since when have you stooped to cheap attention-seeking stunts? 'Crossed over from another world?' You can't honestly expect me to buy that nonsense."

That's when I realized he hadn't believed a single word I'd said.

...

Ryan frowned, snapped at me sharply, then turned and walked out the door without looking back.

I lay on the bed, listening as a familiar, crisp voice spoke outside. "Is Susan okay? Should I go in and explain to her?"

Ryan shook his head slightly.

Eleanor sighed in resignation. "You've spoiled women like her rotten. All she cares about is fighting for attention. She'd even jump in a lake to get you to notice her. How am I supposed to make her understand?

"After surviving the brutal snowfields and empty wilderness of the Frostfang pack up north, I know what real freedom is. Silly little games over romance? They don't mean a thing to me now."

"Eleanor, don't talk like that..."

Ryan's voice wavered slightly, as if her last words were too much for him to take.

Lily Hayes had been quietly feeding me a bowl of herbal remedy at my bedside when she finally snapped. She slammed the bowl down and flung the door open.

"You dare say you know what real freedom is? And that nothing else matters to you? Who's a bigger hypocrite than you? Last night, you were whining about the roof leaking and called the Alpha to fix it.

"What, can't you afford a handyman? Or did you think a noble pack's Alpha's only job is to patch your damn roof? Forget the roof. Your brain's the thing that's broken!"

"Lily…" I struggled to sit up in bed. "Stop. Come back."

But it was too late. Ryan's Alpha dominance was already surging forward.

Eleanor reached out as if to stop him. "Ryan, don't be reckless. The humiliation I faced when I was sent to the Frostfang pack for that political marriage was far worse than this. She's just a maid. Why bother?"

Ryan's voice roughened with heartache. "Eleanor…"

He couldn't hold back any longer. Whirling toward my room, he snapped, "Susan! Get your maid under control. If this happens again, you'll answer for it!"

Lily was so frightened that she darted back to the room and crouched beside my bed. I caught her making a derisive noise under her breath as Ryan and Eleanor retreated.

"Don't be so reckless next time, especially when I can't protect you," I said, torn between amusement and exasperation.

Lily nodded meekly, but I knew she wasn't really listening.

She'd been by my side since I entered this world of werewolves. I was gentle by nature, and she worried I'd be taken advantage of. That was how she slowly became fiercer.

Back then, Ryan loved me, so he always took Lily's side, supporting her for my sake. However, things were different now.

With a sigh, I realized I had to ensure Lily was in good hands before leaving this world.

I was lost in thought when a bowl of dark, murky herbal remedy suddenly appeared before me. The smell alone made me gag.

Lily looked at me with pity. "Luna, you have to drink this. No matter how awful you feel, you can't ignore your health."

"It's not that I don't care. I just—"

I retched.

I just wanted to go home—my real home, where only humans existed. In this world of werewolves, no one knew I was human, except Ryan.

I never thought of myself as particularly clever.

In the werewolf world, survival meant staying out of trouble and keeping a low profile. I never pushed my luck or tried to force human logic onto werewolf politics, customs, culture, or anything else.

So, for all these years, I played my part as the gentle, well-mannered daughter of the Bloodmoon pack's Beta while quietly searching for a way back to the human world.

But five years had passed, and I was still stuck here. Even after turning 18, when I awakened my wolf and the Moon Goddess assigned me a fated mate, nothing changed.

Ryan was my best option.

He'd fallen for me at first sight during the hunt. At first, I didn't feel anything special for him. I even used his status as the Lycan Prince to gently reject him, telling him I didn't want to get caught up in royal politics and power struggles.

But then, he gave up his right to become the next Lycan King. He petitioned to leave the political center, and once he secured his own territory, he declared he wanted to marry me.

Everyone said Ryan was utterly devoted to me. Over time, I found myself starting to care for him too.

Then came the mate-bonding ceremony. Ryan took my hand, his voice shaking with emotion as he spoke. "Susan, claiming you means I could die without regrets."

That night, we clung to each other.

For the first time since arriving in this strange world, I felt some of the tension inside me ease. I shared my secret with Ryan.

After hearing it, he buried his face in the crook of my neck, his breath warm, and let out a flustered laugh. "Guess I'll have to treat you twice as well then. If you ever get hurt and really leave me one day, I'd regret it for the rest of my life."

I kissed him. "Good. You'd better remember that."

It felt like it was just yesterday, but only now did I realize that Ryan never truly believed me.

Back then, he treasured me, so he took everything I said at face value. Now, with all his focus on Eleanor, he had no patience left for my "tall tales".