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Chapter 3

Author: Heart
On the night of the coming-of-age feast, Ella suddenly stood up and suggested we dance. "It's pack tradition. When you come of age, you dance with the person who matters most to you."

She spread her arms with a smile and twirled.

"Who wants to dance with me?"

The words were barely out of her mouth before Jack was on his feet.

"Then what are we waiting for?"

He held out his hand to Ella in the pack's traditional invitation to dance.

Before she put her hand in his, though, Ella looked over at Kyle, her eyes shining.

"But I want to dance with Kyle too."

"Then you can dance with each of us."

David raised his glass with a grin. "Tonight's all about you. Have as many dances as you want."

So Jack took the first dance.

David took the second.

For the third, Kyle stood up and glanced at me. But in the end, he walked over, put his arm around Ella, and danced with her.

They kept her at the center of their little circle, one dance after another.

After every dance, they told me to wait. My turn was coming right up.

But I sat off to the side of the bonfire, and my turn never came.

I'd always thought every kid in the pack got a first dance at their coming-of-age feast, when they turned 18.

I was wrong.

Once Ella came along, there was never going to be one for me.

Halfway through the dancing, a few of Ella's friends wandered over to me, drinks in hand, swaying on their feet.

Their ringleader looked me up and down and snickered.

"Well, well. Sitting out here minding the bonfire all by yourself? Who are you waiting for?"

"The guys have been all over Ella all night, and you can't even get one dance. Doesn't it bother you, being such an eyesore?"

The others burst out laughing and jumped right in.

"I heard she even tried to smooth things over. Got a coming-of-age gift for each of the three of them."

"Boots she paid for with three months' wages from the mines, and he didn't even look at them."

"A moonlight watch she hunted all over the black market for, and he took it and still called her dramatic."

"The best part is that wolf-fang ring."

The ringleader dragged the words out on purpose and pointed at Ella's hand. "Did you all see? It's on Ella's finger now, isn't it?"

"Something you treasured for more than ten years, and Kyle just gave it away like it was nothing."

"Sasha, honestly, how pathetic are you?"

They roared with laughter, and people at the tables around us turned to look at me.

I clutched my skirt until my knuckles went white.

I looked over at Kyle by the dance floor.

He was standing right there. He'd heard every word, start to finish.

But the first thing he did was cover Ella's ears, afraid the words might spoil her fun on the dance floor.

Only then did he stroll over and snap at them. "Who said you could come over here and run your mouths? Keep it up and I won't be so nice about it."

He waited until they'd left, then softened his voice and tried to comfort me. "They've had a few drinks and they're talking nonsense. Just let it go."

"Ella's been looking forward to this feast for ages. Cheer up. Don't ruin it."

Cheer up?

I was the one they'd mocked in front of everyone as the girl nobody wanted.

I was the one they'd pointed at and called pathetic to my face.

And he wanted me to cheer up.

Jack spun Ella toward my seat, keeping his eyes on me.

"They were just joking around, Sasha. Lose the long face. All that scowling isn't doing your looks any favors."

David was even blunter. "How old are you? Still throwing tantrums like a kid? We can't hover around you every second like we did when we were little. Could you grow up a bit?"

They kept Ella tucked safely between them. I sat in the shadows as the last of my hope slowly drained away.

Kyle saw how disappointed I looked and frowned. He opened his mouth to say something.

Before he could, a teary-eyed Ella tugged at his sleeve.

"Kyle, did I take Sasha's place?"

"Maybe... I should let Sasha have the rest of the dances?"

Kyle bent his head right away to soothe her. "Of course not. She's not really mad at you. She's just being a little moody."

He fixed his eyes on me and sighed. "Sasha, Ella's already offered to give you her turn. Stop making a scene."

"If you keep making a scene, I'm not giving you another chance."

I looked around at the circle of faces.

Suddenly I didn't want to say anything at all.

"You guys go on. I'm going to get some air."

I stood up, and just then a message from Maren came in. "Tomorrow night. You leave for the North."

Good. I don't need that kind of chance anymore.
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