Chapter 25

Eli woke up before sunrise.

Not because he wanted to.

Because something inside him felt… unsettled.

Like his body remembered something his mind refused to accept.

He sat on the edge of his bed, holding his head for a moment.

“…This is getting worse.”

It wasn’t pain.

It was awareness.

That strange pull again.

Stronger now.

More persistent.

Like something inside him reacted every time Kieran existed within distance.

Eli exhaled slowly.

“…I’m not imagining this.”

FLASHBACK — (Eli as a child)

Snow covered the ground.

Small footsteps struggled through it.

A younger Eli stood alone near the edge of a forest path.

Lost.

Cold.

Confused.

He didn’t remember how long he had been walking.

Just that he had stopped crying a long time ago.

Because no one came when he cried.

A shadow moved between the trees.

Silent.

Fast.

Watching.

Then stopping.

A boy stepped out from the darkness.

Older.

Calm eyes.

He didn’t speak immediately.

Just looked at the child.

Eli blinked up at him.

“…Are you real?”

The boy tilted his head slightly.

“…You are not supposed to be here.”

Eli sniffed.

“…I don’t know where here is.”

Silence.

Then the boy stepped closer.

Removed his coat.

And placed it around Eli.

Warm.

Too warm.

Strangely safe.

“…Go home,” he said quietly.

Eli shook his head.

“…I don’t know where it is.”

The boy stared at him for a long moment.

Then crouched slightly.

“…Then I will find it for you.”

END FLASHBACK

Eli blinked hard.

The memory always came like that.

Fragments.

Unfinished.

Unclear.

He never knew what it meant.

Just that it stayed with him longer than it should.

He stood up.

“…Why do I keep remembering that?”

Later that morning—

Eli met Kieran outside the training grounds.

The moment he saw him—

It happened again.

The pull.

Instant.

Stronger than before.

Eli froze slightly.

“…Okay. This is not normal.”

Kieran noticed immediately.

As always.

He stepped closer.

But stopped at a safe distance.

Not forcing.

Just present.

“…It is increasing,” Kieran said calmly.

Eli frowned.

“…You say it like it’s weather.”

Kieran didn’t respond immediately.

Then:

“…It behaves like instinct.”

Eli shook his head.

“…I don’t like that word.”

Kieran studied him quietly.

Then spoke softer.

“…You recognize me.”

Eli scoffed.

“…No, I don’t.”

But his voice wasn’t as certain as before.

Kieran’s eyes stayed on him.

Not pressuring.

Just knowing.

“…You did,” he said.

Eli frowned deeper.

“…What does that even mean?”

Kieran didn’t answer immediately.

Instead—

He looked past Eli for a moment.

At nothing.

At memory.

FLASHBACK — (Kieran’s memory)

A younger Kieran stood at the edge of the forest.

He had been told not to leave the territory.

But he did anyway.

Because he felt something wrong.

Something pulling.

Then he saw him.

A small boy.

Lost.

Frozen.

Eli.

Even then.

Kieran had stopped breathing for a second.

Not confusion.

Recognition.

Not learned.

Not explained.

Just instinct.

He stepped forward slowly.

Watched the boy.

The world felt quieter.

Like something had finally aligned.

“…Found you,” he murmured.

The child looked up.

“…Do I know you?”

Kieran didn’t answer immediately.

Then softly:

“…Not yet.”

END FLASHBACK

Kieran blinked back to the present.

Eli was still watching him.

“…What was that look?” Eli asked.

Kieran didn’t answer directly.

Instead:

“…You were always mine to find.”

Eli immediately frowned.

“…Stop saying that.”

Kieran stepped slightly closer.

This time, Eli didn’t move back immediately.

That surprised both of them.

Kieran noticed.

“…You are adapting,” he said quietly.

Eli clicked his tongue.

“…Or getting used to your weird behavior.”

Kieran didn’t correct him.

Just watched him.

Calm.

Intense.

Soft in a way only Eli ever saw.

LATER — CHARLOTTE

Charlotte met Eli in the afternoon.

She noticed immediately.

“You’re distracted again.”

Eli sighed.

“…I’m fine.”

Charlotte didn’t believe him.

She rarely did now.

She stepped closer.

“…Is it still him?”

Eli hesitated.

Then nodded slightly.

“…Yeah.”

Charlotte went quiet.

Then carefully:

“…Do you ever feel strange around him?”

Eli frowned.

“…What do you mean?”

Charlotte looked at him directly.

“…Like your body reacts before your thoughts.”

Eli paused.

That question hit too close.

Too accurate.

“…No,” he said quickly.

Too quickly.

Charlotte noticed.

But didn’t push further.

Not yet.

Instead she smiled softly.

“…Okay.”

But her eyes said something else.

She was starting to see something.

Something she didn’t fully understand yet.

NIGHT — KIERAN

Kieran stood alone on the balcony of the pack building.

Wind moving past him.

Silent territory beneath.

One of his advisors approached carefully.

“…Alpha.”

Kieran didn’t turn.

“…Report.”

The man hesitated.

“…The bond reaction is accelerating.”

Kieran’s voice was calm.

“Yes.”

The advisor swallowed.

“…Should we intervene?”

A pause.

Then—

Kieran turned slightly.

And the pressure in the air changed instantly.

Not anger.

Authority.

Absolute.

“…No one interferes,” he said.

The advisor immediately bowed.

“Yes, Alpha.”

Kieran looked out into the distance again.

“…He is resisting,” he murmured.

A pause.

Then softer:

“…That is fine.”

Because Kieran wasn’t rushing.

He never was.

Not when it came to Eli.