04 Watching Him Choose Her

Nyra’s POV

The next day, my body screamed when I woke.

Bruises bloomed dark along my ribs and stomach. My jaw ached. My lip was swollen. I moved like someone twice my age.

But my heart felt… lighter.

Because he’d promised.

Because soon was a word I clung to like a lifeline.

My mother was away all morning so I didn’t have to explain what happened to her. I wasn’t a child anymore, I was grown woman now and for that she let me have my space. When she arrived in the afternoon, an envelope arrive too. The postman delivered it as if it were a heavy burden but since we were used to the treatment it didn’t matter.

I examined the envelope. In it was a thick paper with an official seal.

My mother’s eyes narrowed as I removed the sealed paper.

I broke it open with shaking fingers.

Mandatory attendance. Graduation honour ceremony. Alpha Ethan Whitewolf will be presenting gifts to the ace students.

A graduation party.

My stomach dropped.

I wished I didn’t have to go.

I wished I could disappear into the woods and stay there forever, safe inside a secret that still hurt, but at least was mine.

But it was mandatory.

And this was my last day.

One last time.

I could endure one last time.

The hall was crowded that evening, music, laughter, the scent of roasted meat and expensive perfume. Wolves filled the room in bright clothes, shining smiles, easy belonging.

I stood alone near the edge, hands clasped tightly in front of me, trying to make myself disappear.

People glanced at me and looked away.

Some smirked.

Some whispered.

No one came near.

My heartbeat thudded loudly in my ears.

I scanned the room instinctively, searching for one face.

Kieran.

He was there.

Of course he was.

Standing with his friends, Louis and Charles among them, laughing, relaxed, handsome in a way that made my chest ache.

I waited for his eyes to meet mine.

Waited for him to remember his promise.

For him to come to me.

To introduce me.

To do something, anything, that proved last night wasn’t just another secret dream.

His gaze flicked to me.

For a second, hope surged.

Then he looked away.

Just like always.

My stomach twisted.

I forced a breath. It’s nothing. He’s just being careful. It’s just for tonight.

I repeated it in my head like prayer.

The head of the academy took the stage, calling the room to attention. The music lowered. The crowd gathered.

Alpha Ethan Whitewolf stood tall beside him, proud and powerful, and the room practically bowed beneath his presence.

Awards were announced.

Cheers followed each name.

Then,

“Top student,” the headmaster said, smiling. “Beverly Crestwood.”

Applause exploded.

Beverly stepped forward in a shimmering dress, her wolf practically glowing beneath her skin with confidence.

She accepted her gift, beaming.

And then the headmaster announced, “A dance to honour the ace students.”

Music swelled.

My throat tightened.

Beverly turned toward Kieran as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

And Kieran,

Kieran stepped forward.

He offered her his hand.

In public.

In front of everyone.

My heart stopped.

Beverly’s fingers slid into his like she owned them. Like she belonged there. Like she was exactly what the pack wanted beside him.

And Kieran pulled her close.

Not at a polite distance.

Not formal.

He held her with a hand on her waist, firm, intimate, guiding her across the floor as if he’d done it a hundred times.

As if she mattered.

As if he wasn’t terrified of being seen touching the wrong girl.

As if… I had never existed at all. And it hurt. 

The pain tore through me like nothing I’d felt before. I tried to stay calm, but my heart wouldn’t listen. It ached from the bond, from the weight of my feelings, from loving and being kept in the shadows with no hope of ever seeing the light. My heart hurt in a way I didn’t know how to survive.

I stood there, frozen, watching.

The room blurred at the edges.

My chest tightened so hard it hurt to breathe.

It’s just for the evening, I told myself desperately. It’s politics. It’s appearances. It’s nothing.

But my body didn’t believe it.

My body only knew the sight of him holding someone else.

Holding her openly.

Holding her the way he’d never held me anywhere the world could witness.

Something cracked inside me, softly, quietly, completely.

I turned before anyone could see my face.

Before the tears could spill.

I walked fast, too fast, out of the hall, down the corridor, and into the cold night air.

The garden was empty, moonlight silvering the hedges and stone paths. My breath came out in shaky bursts.

I pressed a hand to my chest like I could keep my heart from falling apart.

I wasn’t jealous.

I wasn’t.

This was fine.

This was nothing.

This was,

A sound behind me.

Footsteps.

I spun, my heart pounding so violently it made me dizzy.

Kieran stepped into the garden, his expression unreadable in the moonlight.

“Nyra,” he said softly.

My throat closed.

He walked toward me, slow and careful, like I might shatter if he moved too quickly.

And then he stopped a few feet away, eyes locked on mine.

“I need to talk to you,” he said.

The way he said it, low, urgent, almost afraid, turned my blood cold.

Because suddenly I couldn’t tell if he’d come to comfort me…

Or to destroy what was left of me.

And my heart, already breaking, waited, trembling, to find out which.