C’mon moon goddess, he can’t be my mate

Aria’s POV

“That isn’t true at all,” I snapped, turning to the Headmaster with wide eyes.

Alistair’s gaze was unreadable, but the crease between his brows deepened slightly. “Aria, I’d like a word. Alone.”

I didn’t need to look at Ryker to know the smug smirk still painted his stupidly handsome face. But I gave him a glare so sharp I hoped it singed his soul.

With a reluctant breath, I followed Headmaster Alistair down the corridor, his long strides forcing me to pick up my pace.

“I’ve been hearing about your unique stats at the training grounds,” he said as soon as we rounded the corner, out of earshot. “Very impressive. But also… concerning.”

I blinked. “Concerning?”

“You’re getting more envy than admiration. And not just from the students. You’re an Omega. The more you shine, the more you paint a target on your back.”

He stopped walking and faced me fully, his expression severe. “Keep up the good work. But don’t get involved in anything that might tarnish your image. If you do, I won’t have any choice but to expel you. You’ll be back where you started. With your stepmother.”

The blood drained from my face.

No. I don’t ever want that.

“I’ll avoid trouble,” I said quietly.

“See that you do.” He gave a short nod before turning and walking away.

I stood there for a long moment. How hard can it be to avoid trouble now?

**

I arrived at the classroom and could feel the eyes on me the moment I stepped into the classroom.

I kept my head high, forcing myself to walk to my seat like I couldn’t hear the murmurings—like I didn’t know they were all looking at Ryker’s shirt on my body.

“Okay, what the hell,” Eliza whispered, sliding into the seat beside me. “Are you actually wearing Ryker’s shirt?”

I sighed. “Someone tampered with my locker. My clothes were gone. Ryker just… happened to be there.”

Eliza’s eyes narrowed like she was solving a murder mystery. “So, what, you two just coincidentally found yourselves alone and he decided to strip and give you his shirt? What spell did you use on him?.”

“I didn’t cast anything.”

She leaned in closer, voice low. “Did you do it?”

“What?” My cheeks flamed. “No!”

“Are you sure? Because your face is doing that thing where you’re reliving something very not PG.”

I shut my eyes tightly, trying to erase the stupid image of his shirtless body and the smirk that screamed sin. I shook my head hard. No. Nope. Never going to happen.

“I’m avoiding all of them from now on,” I muttered.

“Good luck with that,” Eliza said, rolling her eyes. “Anyway, the test material failed. We’ll have to start again.”

Great. Just what I needed.

*

Closing hour has reached. The cool air brushed against my skin as I made my way across the campus, eager to get to my dorm without running into any more Apex-level chaos.

Then I saw him.

Thane.

He stood by the path, looking entirely out of place among the usual chaos of students. Calm and gentle.

Before I could duck away, he stepped into my path.

“Look,” I said, crossing my arms, “thanks for helping me with my bag today, but I’m pretty sure we don’t have anything in common for you to be approaching me.”

He raised his hands. “I’m not trying to bother you. There’s just… something you need to see.”

His voice was soft. It sounded so Honest. No ulterior motive.

I blinked at him. “Why do you hang out with the rest of them? You don’t seem like their type.”

His lips curved into a barely-there smile. “I ask myself that every day.”

I hesitated. “What is it?”

“My brothers forbade me from telling you. Said you had to see it for yourself.”

That could mean anything.

I should have walked away. But something in his voice—calm, grounded—made me follow him.

He led me toward the parking lot.

That’s when I saw them.

Ryker. Caspian. Kaid. All of them gathered.

But it wasn’t them that stopped me in my tracks.

It was a bike. It looked so sleek. My mouth parted slightly.

Caspian caught sight of me and groaned. “Just to be clear, this wasn’t my idea.”

I stared at the bike, unable to stop the grin tugging at the corner of my lips.

I hadn’t asked for this.

I quickly pushed the smile down.

I looked at Caspian, raising a brow. “Okay… so what exactly is going on?”

Before he could reply, Kaid stepped forward, his arms crossed over his chest, expression unreadable. “It’s from me,” he said. “I’m giving you the bike. It’s to repay you for what you did for me.”

My brows furrowed. “What did I do?”

He let out a low breath, clearly irritated. “Stop pretending like you don’t know.”

Thane chimed in gently, “We found out you were the one who helped Kaid after his accident. You took him out of the car. If he stayed a bit longer in it, he would have…”

“Oh,”

Kaid took a step closer. “So if the bike isn’t enough,” he said, voice low, “I can add something else. I don’t want to owe you anything.”

I scoffed, folding my arms. “Do you seriously think I helped you so I could get rewarded?”

His jaw tightened, but he didn’t say anything.

“I didn’t even ask you to pay back for the food you wrecked when you crashed through that restaurant,” I snapped. “And I could’ve, trust me. That was my dinner, and it looked amazing.”

Caspian snorted, and Ryker tried to muffle his laughter with a cough.

I rolled my eyes. “Honestly, I’m this close to rejecting the bike.”

I held up two fingers with a narrow space between them.

“But,” I glanced at the bike again, practically hearing my legs sigh in betrayal, “my legs say otherwise.”

I walked right past them, the wind playing with the hem of Ryker’s shirt on me, and made my way toward the bike. My hand ran along the seat, and I couldn’t help the small smirk that curved my lips this time.

It was sleek, fast, powerful—everything I couldn’t afford, and everything I’d never admit I wanted.

“So,” I said casually, glancing back at them, “who’s giving me the keys?”

Caspian tossed them up and caught them again, his gaze narrowing. “That depends. You planning to ride off into the sunset, or are you gonna say thanks first?”

I rolled my eyes and reached out, grabbing the keys from his hand. “Thanks,” I muttered, turning toward the bike again, trying not to look too excited.

But then—something shifted.

A sudden, burning pull surged in my chest.

My hand froze on the handlebar.

A scent hit me. Sharp and wild. Something primal inside me responded.

My wolf stirred, like it had been asleep all this time, and now it was clawing its way to the surface.

MATE.

The voice echoed through me like thunder.

No. No, no, no.

I turned around sharply, eyes wide, breath caught in my throat.

The four of them had gone unnaturally still.

Ryker’s cocky grin had vanished. His jaw clenched, shoulders tense.

Kaid’s eyes glowed faintly, golden flickers behind dark lashes.

Thane had taken a slow, shaky breath, his hand pressed to his chest like he was trying to calm something raging underneath.

Caspian stared at me like I’d just knocked the air out of his lungs. “What the hell…” he muttered.

And then my knees buckled.

A searing heat flooded through me, my heart pounding so fast it hurt. My wolf wasn’t just stirring—it was pushing. Desperate. Hungry.

Mate. Mate. Mate.

The world tilted, blurred, spun—

And I collapsed.

The last thing I saw was all four of them rushing toward me, voices shouting my name, before the darkness swallowed everything.