CHAPTER THREE

The sound was small, like skin on skin and fingers closing. But the force behind it was undeniable, and Rowan froze.

I blinked through the pain, and another figure stood there, silent and immovable. He was taller and colder. His shirt hung open, revealing tattoos on his chest; he had the unique type of dark and dangerous beauty as before, but without a grin—only a look of steel.

Whispers of terror erupted behind me. Though different, Lioran Veylar was the other twin. Cold, dangerous, and silent, he does not rely solely on words to express himself and achieve his goals. However, he was not as loud as his brother.

"Enough." His voice was low and dangerous, like a blade honed to perfection.

Rowan snarled, "He insulted me…"

"I said enough." Lioran tightened his grip, his eyes gleaming, not wild, but controlled and calculating. The distinction between chaotic and quiet destruction.

The air thickened and pressed down on the courtyard, like gravity itself. I looked up at him, chest heaving and blood dripping down my chin. Something about his presence drew me in, sharp and undeniable.

And then, inside him, his wolf stirred, and I could feel him snap. The bond struck like lightning, raw and violent, threading through his mind with brutal certainty.

His gaze fell on my sharp jaw, cropped hair, and blood-stained lips. His wolf snarled, furious and confused.

My mate is a boy.

The courtyard erupted with whispers, laughter, and gasps, but Lioran heard nothing. I only knew he felt the bond snapping into place, a chain he couldn't break.

"Leave."

The word echoed across the courtyard like a whip. Lioran did not raise his voice, but the command echoed through the bones of every student who stood frozen.

His brother shifted uncomfortably, as if torn between staying and talking. But Lioran's dark gaze pierced him like a blade. "That includes you, brother."

Murmurs rippled, feet shuffled, and the crowd dispersed. Gasps remained in the air from what they'd seen, the weight of disbelief heavy on their tongues. No one lingered when the cold heir issued an order. Within seconds, all that remained was wind and the sound of two heartbeats.

His and mine.

I swallowed hard, every instinct in me screaming to run, but my feet remained rooted to the ground. His presence was suffocating, like a predator cornering its prey.

Lioran demanded, his voice low and unyielding, "Your name, new kid."

I squared my shoulders, refusing to shrink from my fear. "Why? Are you planning to engrave it on my tombstone?"

My tongue was faster than my good sense.

The corner of his mouth twitched, but not into a smile, more like a shadow of one. Both dangerous and amusing, the stray has a sharp tongue, boy. "Be careful, stray, or I will rip it out."

"I'm not a stray." I shot back, my chest tightening. "And I don't recall asking for your opinion, man."

His eyes narrowed as sharply as blades. He took a step closer, and I could feel the heat roll off him. My pulse betrayed me; it was racing wildly, but I didn't dare to back down. I'm not the Aria who would run away at any word, but the Arian who chose to stand his ground for now and forever.

"Name," he repeated, and I despised how my voice faltered when I responded. "Arian."

The sound lingered between us, evoking defiance and fear. Then his eyes flashed silver for a split second, a glimpse of his wolf fighting to emerge. Sparks crackled between them, and invisible threads tightened and pulled. My throat became dry, and I knew what it was before he could speak.

Then he said the thing I had been dreading. "Reject me."

My chest tightened; I wasn't supposed to be here. Rejection wasn't meant to bind me to him. It was supposed to release me; it had to.

"I, Arian Vale, reject…" I lifted my chin. The words burned in my mouth and ripped out of me with more force than I expected. My heart thudded painfully, waiting for the bond to snap, break, and release me. But nothing occurred.

I reject Arian Vale.” He spoke raspily. 

The bond held firm and unwavering. My breath caught, panic gripping my chest.

"No." I whispered, shaking my head as I tried again, louder and more desperate, "I reject you."

The string didn’t snap, and the fire didn’t fade; instead, I felt it ignite even more.

Lioran's expression darkened, and something primal flashed in his eyes. He tilted his head slightly, as if listening to an echo that only he could hear. With a low, cold laugh, he spoke.

"Rejected, and yet, still burning, we are still bound to each other, fascinating." His eyes narrowed, tracing me like a puzzle that he couldn't decide whether to crush or keep. "It seems the moon goddess has done something that has never happened in a lifetime: fated me with a boy."

My stomach twisted, and his words cut through the fragile denial I had been holding.

"Do you think this is funny?" I bit out, but my voice trembled at the edges. I bit out, but my voice trembled at the edges.

"No." His tone lowered, colder, and sharper. "I think it's dangerous."

He moved closer until I could feel the heat radiating from him, and his scent, a mix of cedar, smoke, steel, and something darker, filled my lungs.

"This bond," he said, his voice low and sharp like a blade, "stays between us. Speak of it, even if it is a whisper, and you won’t live to regret it."

My throat dried up, and I wanted to spit out a cleverer response, but the weight of his threat coiled around me, chilling my skin.

Still, my tongue couldn't stop saying, "And what if I don't care about your threats?"

He leaned down, close enough for his breath to ghost over my ear, his finger trailing through the tiny cut on my face, sliding the blood away. "Then I'll make sure caring is the only thing you'll ever learn."

The fire erupted again, scorching hot, as if the bond itself had responded to his words. I took a step back, gripping myself, reminding myself that I am now a boy.

"This is insane," I whispered to myself rather than him. "It's supposed to break. I don't even know you. I don't even want… you."

"Yet here we are," he interjected smoothly. "Bound, despite both of our rejections. A tie that the goddess herself forged."

His gaze hardened, his lips curling into something dark. "You feel it, don't you? Every breath, every shiver—you can't lie, boy."

I hated him for being correct, but I hated myself even more for the way my pulse betrayed me. He stood straight, shadows clinging to him like armor.

Then his words fell, final and merciless.

"Since this bond refuses to break, I'll make you regret it. Every second. Every hour. I'll be your nightmare until the bond between us breaks."

The air in the room became thicker, crushing me in its grip. His promise was not a mere threat; it was a vow, and my heart sank in fear because I believed him.