***
My mind had been racing through my mate. I had moved so far away from the werewolf shenanigans to avoid ever having a mate again, but it went over my head that werewolves could be mated with a human. What stupid trick was destiny playing on me? Most rejected werewolves never have a mate again and die single. That's what I had looked forward to and planned my life in.
I had shut my heart to anything that seemed like love, to avoid getting hurt, and now this? “I never asked for a second chance mate!” I yelled at my reflection and resumed angrily brushing my teeth.
“Don’t worry, the university is huge. I would most definitely not find him again.” I convinced myself, trying to stop the tightness that had raveled up my gut since last night.
Plus, he was human, so in his perspective, a girl he was flirting with just screamed at his face and ran away. If that isn’t crazy, I don't know what else is.
Once I was done with my morning rituals, I picked my phone up. There was an email from my economics Professor again.
‘Hey, Class.
Thank you for completing your second exam. Remember that it is worth 30% of your grade, so I hope you all did well. I would like to inform you that if you didn’t do the exam before the set time, do not email me for a make up exam, as it is strictly my rule that no exam shall be given after its due time, so don’t waste your time emailing me, and instead, start studying for your 3rd exam.
Goodluck, folks.
Sincerely,
Dr. Brian Fisher
Instructor of Economics and Finance…’
I read the email over and over again, my eyes widening in the horror each word spewed.
“No, no, no, Lyric , no!” I said, trembling. My heart was about to rip out of its cage from how hard it was pounding. Pacing around, I tried to think of what else to do. “How could I have forgotten about such an exam?! I’m going to fail this class. My scholarship! I’ll lose them all. I’ll have to drop out. All my dreams.” My pitch increased at every word, sweat beads lining up the top of my head.
With shaky hands, I typed back to him:
‘Good afternoon, Professor Brian.
This is Lyric from your Economics 102 class. I unfortunately had a highly stressful night and misunderstood the deadline of the exam. Please can I retake it? My grades, scholarships and future are dependent on this.
Please, please, please sir.” I typed, wiped my sweaty forehead with the back of my palm then hit send.
I waited and waited… and waited… and waited. I missed my class and the next one, still staring at my email, reloading it every second, waiting… Time for work passed, yet I still waited… I was glued to the position, waiting for a response yet nothing… Still, I waited.
***
It had been a whole week! One week, dozens of emails sent to this Professor, numerous calls to his office number, attempts to find his number or social media account (to no avail; he had no social life whatsoever). I had missed classes, missed shifts at work yet he still didn’t didn’t respond.
I had to call the dean of the Business Department's office who helped me with finding his new office room location.
Sucking in a deep breath, I struck the door in a gentle knock. I didn’t want him to think I was a rude child if I knocked aggressively.
A green light beeped, indicating that I was given permission to go in. My heart began pounding faster. Smoothening down on my skirt, I opened the door and walked in, leaving the door open.
The professor had his back to me, his legs crossed and placed on the window sill. All I could see was a very muscular man with a head of thick, gorgeous, dark brown hair.
Turning the swivel chair around, he gazed at me and I froze: a pair of gray eyes were fixed on me. He had a sharp jawline that looked like it had taken centuries to carve to perfection. His face held a stern look that made him seem straight out of a magazine cover. Not to mention that he was in a neatly-ironed white shirt, fitted around the bulkiness of his bicep muscles.
He was damn handsome, because the room was poorly lit, but his naturally-tanned skin still glowed beyond normal.
A bundle of thick eyebrows jerked at me, indicating that I needed to speak. Flinching, I shook my head. ‘Lyric, focus.’ I said to myself.
“I have been trying to send multiple emails to you regarding the second exam. I am Lyric Ashton from your Eco 102 class. I hurried to sit on the chair across from him, joining my hands in prayer form. “Please, I’m begging you. I have a first generation student scholarship, a merit-based scholarship, and financial need aid that are all tied to my success. If I fail that exam, my grade will be a D, and that will make me fail this class and lose all my scholarships. Please, I can't afford that. I’m begging you.” I begged with my eyes, words, and soul.
After all of that, all he could say was, “hm,” as he nodded.
“Hm?” I wondered. “Please, sir. I would do anything to save my grade.”
“Anything?” He quirked an eyebrow. His growl made chills run down my spine. If I wasn’t hyperfocused on my goal, it could’ve swooned me. However, I couldn’t ignore the familiarity of his voice.
Just then, he rose up. I had to jerk my neck backward to watch his tall figure now towering before me. He walked around the table and hummed something as he walked to the door. Taking the stopper off,he slammed the door and locked it twice, shoving the key into his pocket.
“wh–what are you doing?” my chest began rising and falling rapidly, and my body was trembling.
“Anything, you said.” His voice was too familiar. I was in too much panic to try to remember as he crouched in front of my trembling self and gently held my hand.
My eyes scanned around the room for a strong object to smash his head with, but then he said, “You really thought you could run away from me, Mate.” A smirk grazed his lips at the same time my wolf yelled in my head, “mate! He’s our mate!”
It was the day I had been waiting for, the day I had worked so hard to reach. My graduation day. I stood in front of the mirror, staring at my reflection as I adjusted my cap and gown. A sense of accomplishment washed over me, but it was mixed with bittersweetness. The road to this moment had been nothing like I imagined. The journey had been full of unexpected turns—love, loss, battles, and triumphs.In the early days after Brian’s coma, when I learned I was pregnant, I never thought I’d make it to this moment, let alone have my son with me by my side. The idea of balancing motherhood with my education had seemed impossible. But here I was, with my son, my husband, and my pack—ready to take the next step in life, even though I knew it wouldn’t be easy.I smiled softly at my reflection, adjusting my gown one last time. My son, only two years old now, was already napping peacefully in his crib, a reminder of how much had changed in such a short time. Brian had been there for me every s
The first day back in classes felt so unreal. The energy of the students buzzed through the air—laughter, conversations, the occasional groan about assignments—but none of it truly reached me. Not with everything that had happened. Not with everything that still weighed on my mind.Brian walked beside me, his presence a steady force, but even he felt different. Stronger. More protective.As if he could sense what was coming.And he wasn’t wrong.'Goodbye, my love.' He said through mind link, causing my cheeks to flush red. 'Goodbye, my love.' I mind linked back and giggled loud, earning side eyes from two of the girls about to enter my classroom as well. The moment I stepped into my first lecture hall, Professor Jenna’s cold gaze landed on me.Jenna… jeez. How could I forget this witch?A woman who should’ve been nothing more than an ordinary professor, but she wasn’t. She had a fixation on Brian, one she had never hidden well. Before the war, before everything, I had ignored it. Br
~ LYRIC ~ The ray from the sun shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the pack house, casting golden light over the polished wood floors. I stretched my arms above my head, breathing in the sweet fresh morning air as I gazed out over the training grounds. Warriors were practicing, their movements sharp and precise, but today wasn’t about war or battles.Today was about something far more terrifying:School. Yup, you heard that right. I gotta go back to school. I had almost forgotten that the rest of the world hadn’t stopped when Brian was in a coma, when I was learning to rule, when I had been fighting to hold our pack together. But time had moved forward, and now it was time for me to return to the life I had before I became Luna.Not that I minded.I loved being Luna.I loved the power, the responsibility, the feeling of belonging to something greater than myself. The pack respected me. They trusted me. I had spent the past few weeks proving that I wasn’t just Brian’s wife—
~ LYRIC ~Two weeks had passed. It had been. Two whole weeks. Two gruesome weeks. Two weeks of Brian laying in the hospital with no medical diagnosis. No treatment possible because no identifiable problem. It had been Two weeks of ruling without him. Yes, on the bright side, the pack had completely defeated the enemy and wiped out all of them, thanks to my power (not to brag or anything), so I had been leading the pack as Luna completely, with help from Jordan. Poor Jordan was mourning the murder of his beloved. It broke my heart for him, but Anna got what she deserved. It had been two weeks of waking up alone, staring at the empty space beside me where Brian should have been.Two weeks of trying to be strong while my heart ached in ways I never thought possible.Brian was still in a coma. My mother, too.The healers said their conditions were stable—alive, breathing—but that wasn’t enough. Not for me.Every day, I carried the weight of my pack on my shoulders. I made decisions, I
~ LYRIC ~I couldn’t speak— speaking was too much. I couldn't breathe. Brian’s body lay limp in my arms, his warmth slipping away with every second that passed. My hands were soaked in his blood, trembling as I pressed them against the wound that should have never been there. This wasn’t how it was supposed to end. Not at all. What was all that stupid prophecy of saving him about? I had tried all I could, summoned all the power I could find, yet I couldn't heal him quickly. A violent storm of emotions built inside me—rage, grief, desperation—twisting and churning until my body couldn’t contain it anymore. I wanted to explode. Watching the love of my life grow cold and pale in front of me was a sight that stabbed my soul. "I would not let this happen!" I growled and rose up, his pool of blood dripping from me. "No! I screamed."I would not let this happen. A throat wrecking scream tore from my throat, shaking the very ground beneath me. My power exploded outward in a bright
~ LYRIC ~I woke to the sound of gunfire.The sharp, jarring cracks destroyed the peaceful silence of the night, sending a jolt of terror through me. I sat up so fast that the blankets wrapped around my legs scratched my skin, my heart thundering in my chest.Beside me, Brian was already moving. Clearly, someone had experience in years of war and survival that had trained him well because he didn’t hesitate, he didn’t freeze, he didn’t seem fazed. He grabbed his armor and weapons from the bedside, his body tense with readiness.“What’s happening?” I breathed, throwing off the cover and getting off the bed to match his speed. His eyes were already scanning the darkened room, his jaw clenched. “We’re under attack.”Another round of gunfire exploded outside, followed by the distant shouts of warriors and the sickening sounds of metal meeting flesh.My stomach twisted. I was growing tired of this whole war nonsense and just couldn't wait for it to end . We barely had time to pull on o