ログインAria’s POV: “BLACKWELL!” I froze. I knew that voice. “Open the damn door! I know she’s in there!” Archer. Of course…Because apparently the evening hadn’t been humiliating enough. Lucien’s expression darkened, and Jasper stood so quickly that his chair scraped against the floor. “That arrogant bastard,” Jasper muttered. Another series of blows rattled the door. “Lucien! Let me see her!” The doctor glanced toward the hallway. “She needs to remain calm. Stress could worsen her symptoms.” “Then he shouldn’t be shouting outside the door,” Jasper snapped. I pressed my fingers to my forehead. I did not have the energy for this. The door opened somewhere beyond the bedroom, followed by a burst of angry voices. I couldn’t make out everything that was being said, but I heard Archer’s voice rise above the others. Then footsteps thundered down the hallway. A moment later, Archer appeared in the doorway. He looked nothing like the polished future Alpha who had stood beside Lorie earli
Aria’s POV:The first thing I noticed when I woke was that I was unbearably hot. Not the comfortable warmth of being wrapped in blankets or lying beneath the afternoon sun, but an uncomfortable heat that seemed to have settled beneath my skin, spreading through my arms, my chest, and my legs until even the sheets felt too heavy against me. My head was foggy, my limbs felt weak, and I couldn’t quite remember how I had ended up in bed.I tried to open my eyes, but the light in the room seemed too bright. I closed them again with a quiet groan. What had happened?The last thing I remembered clearly was standing in the ballroom with Jasper and Lucien. I had been drinking fairy wine, trying to ignore Archer and Lorie, and making a terrible attempt at pretending that everything was fine. Then I’d started feeling dizzy. The room had tilted, my thoughts had become muddled..A blank space stretched between that moment and now. I swallowed, trying to clear the dryness in my throat, and slowly f
Lucien’s POV:I forgot how to breathe. Aria was on the floor, her beautiful violet eyes unfocused, her body frighteningly limp in my arms. The shattered glass lay beside us, fairy wine spreading across the marble in a pale, shimmering puddle. Guests stood frozen around us, whispering amongst themselves, but I heard none of it. All I could hear was the frantic pounding of my own heart.“Aria.”I brushed the hair away from her face, searching her expression for any sign that she could hear me. Her eyelids fluttered, but she didn’t respond. Her skin felt too cool beneath my fingers, and her breathing was shallow enough to send a wave of panic through me that I immediately forced down.Panic would not help her. I had to think.“Get the doctor to my dorm,” I ordered one of the attendants. “Now. Tell him I expect him there before we arrive.”The young man hurried away. I was already shifting my arms beneath Aria, preparing to lift her, when Archer shoved Jasper out of the way and dropped be
Archer’s POVI had known this evening would be hell. I just hadn’t realized how much worse it would feel to stand beside Lorie while watching Aria fall apart from across the room.My hand rested against Lorie’s waist, exactly where it was supposed to be, and I wore the expression expected of a future Alpha attending his own Luna ceremony. I smiled when people congratulated us, nodded when the elders spoke about our future, and listened to Lorie talk about how beautiful everything was as though I hadn’t spent the entire evening wishing I were somewhere else.Somewhere with Aria. The thought had become so familiar that I barely bothered trying to suppress it anymore. I had spent months telling myself that staying away from her was the only way to protect her, that choosing Lorie was a necessary sacrifice, and that whatever existed between Aria and me needed to end before it became something the Council could use against her.I had repeated those reasons so many times that they should ha
Aria’s POVLorie stopped in front of us with a smile so sweet it made my teeth ache. Up close, she looked even more beautiful than she had from across the ballroom. Every detail of her appearance seemed carefully chosen to make her look like the perfect future Luna. She carried herself with an effortless confidence, her chin lifted slightly as she glanced between Jasper, Lucien, and me. Then her eyes settled on me.“Aria! I’m so glad you came.” Her voice was warm enough that anyone listening would have thought we were friends. “I know these sorts of events can be overwhelming, especially when you’re not familiar with our traditions. It means a lot that you made the effort to attend.”I almost laughed. There it was. The first little jab, wrapped in a pretty bow and delivered with a smile that would have fooled anyone who didn’t know her. She wasn’t glad I had come. She was glad I had been forced to come. There was a difference, and she wanted me to understand it.“I’m sure it does,” I
Aria’s POVThe moment I stepped into the ballroom, I understood why the elders had insisted that every student attend.The room was breathtaking. Crystal chandeliers hung from the vaulted ceiling, scattering light across polished marble floors and towering windows draped in deep burgundy velvet. Golden candlelight flickered along the walls, illuminating elaborate floral arrangements and tables covered in white linen. A string quartet played near the far end of the room while elegantly dressed guests mingled beneath the glittering lights, their conversations blending into a steady hum of laughter and music.Everything about the evening screamed wealth, power, and tradition. It was beautiful. I hated it. Because somewhere in that beautiful room stood the man I had been trying desperately not to think about.I kept my hand wrapped around Jasper’s arm as Lucien walked beside us, the three of us moving farther into the ballroom. I tried to focus on the conversations around me, on the music







