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Aria. The moment I stepped into the dorm building from school, I was greeted by the familiar sharp tap of heels against the tiled floor.Mrs Holt.She appeared from behind the reception desk with her usual expression, tight-lipped and annoyed at the world. Her eyes narrowed when they landed on me.“There you are,” she said, arms folded. “Classes ended two hours ago. Where have you been?.”“Tutoring.” I said easily, remembering my session with Kai who thought it would be funny to not listen during the lesson and would rather stare at me. After a series of smacking him, he finally engaged in the session. Her gaze swept over me like she didn’t believe a word of it. “I was just about to come find you. I’ve been instructed to take you to your new room.”“I know,” I said, holding up the silver key Kai gave me. “I already got it.”She blinked. “Got it? From whom?”“Kai,” I said casually, though the way her brows shot up told me that maybe I should’ve just said ‘Mr Blackthorn.’“The future
AriaThe badge in my hand looked harmless. A small silver plate with my name etched into it.Aria Lagnston. Below it in bold lettering, Omega from Silverwood. Then in smaller numbers beneath that, Rank 6 in Ravencrest. Strength: 3/10. My fingers closed around it tightly before pinning it to my uniform.“They finalized the results this morning, the rest of your pack would get theirs from their guides” Maya said beside me as she handed Lila hers.Lila squinted at hers. “Rank 6. Strength 2. Wow. That’s generous,” she muttered, slipping it into her pocket without another word.“They based it off the ranking program we did last week,” Maya added quickly, as if trying to ease the awkwardness. “Physical ability, strategy, wolf control, all of that. It’ll all be announced officially at the Ranking Ceremony.”I raised an eyebrow. “Ceremony?”“Yeah,” Maya nodded. “It’s a Ravencrest tradition. New refugees from allied or defeated packs get fully accepted once the rankings are displayed. Everyon
KaiI could feel my fingers twitching where they played with the ring on my thumb. The silver band spun slowly, a habit I’d picked up from my brother. Something about the motion kept my mind from cracking.The weight of the field pressed down on me. Every head was lowered. Even Logan, who had the temper of a cornered wolf and hated silence, stood still. His arms were crossed tightly, but his head was down. Adrian’s chin dipped just slightly. Even Elliot was peeking sideways, keeping one eye low while the other flicked toward me.But Ryder… he didn’t look away. His stare was sharp, unblinking, like he was waiting to see what I would do. Like he already knew what I had done.I turned my head back to him. To my father.Alpha Magnus Blackthorn.His shadow fell across the grass like it had its own weight. The air tasted colder with him standing there. His voice didn’t rise. It didn’t need to.“Where have you been?”His gray eyes pierced through me, searching, stripping me down to nothing. T
KaiThe wind was cool against my face as the bike sped down the quiet forest road, but all I could feel was her.Aria.Her arms were wrapped tightly around my torso, her chin brushing my shoulder every now and then when the road curved just slightly. She was so close I could feel the rise and fall of her chest with every breath. My hands gripped the handlebars, but my mind, my mind was still back there, by the lake, where her lips had touched mine for the first time.I had been scared. Not of her, never of her. But scared of what it meant to want her so badly, of how deeply she had already sunk her way into me. That look in her eyes before I kissed her, the green soft and glowing under the sun, framed by the flowers and water and light, it wasn’t just beautiful. It was breathtaking. She stood there like a dream, surrounded by nature, the same green as her eyes, with the lake reflecting all that soft magic back onto her face. And I…I lost it.Her lips were parted slightly, and I coul
Aria. I was drying the last of the dishes when I heard Kai cursing softly from the living room. I peeked around the corner to see him crouched beside the old PlayStation that looked like it belonged in a museum. He was trying to plug something in, his brow furrowed like he was defusing a bomb. "Need help, tech genius?" I called, smirking. He grunted, holding up a tangle of wires. "I swear this thing used to work." Eli was sitting cross-legged in front of the TV, holding a controller that wasn’t even plugged in, pretending to drive a race car. I shook my head, drying my hands on a towel before walking over. But before I could say anything, there was a knock at the door. Kai stood up slowly, stretching his arms before moving to open it. His shirt was slightly wrinkled from lying around, and his hair was still damp from his shower earlier. He turned the lock and pulled the door open. Standing on the porch was a woman. She looked exhausted, her eyes sunken and her clothes dusty. He
Aria. I stirred awake slowly, the weight of sleep still clinging to my limbs like a heavy blanket. My cheek was pressed against something warm, solid… Kai. His arms were around me, steady and calm, his breathing deep and even. I blinked at the ceiling for a moment, confused at how peaceful I felt. How long had it been since I’d woken up without the sting of fear or the pull of nightmares? The moment didn’t last long. A sharp cry pierced through the room, loud and sudden. I jolted, eyes flying toward the doorway where Eli stood, small fists rubbing his eyes as tears streamed down his cheeks. His bottom lip trembled, and his cheeks were wet and blotchy. “Mama,” he cried softly, voice thick and broken. Beside me, Kai groaned into the pillow, his voice muffled as he dragged it over his head. I sighed, my entire body aching. We hadn’t gotten much sleep, between the late night, the confessions, and the nightmares, I had maybe dozed off for a couple of hours. I tapped the bed gently,