Part 2 I think I fell in love with the idea of running away when my grandfather was dying and we traveled to see him. All of it was so exciting; the airport, the commotion, the flight. The moment the plane pushed from the ground and that strange floating feeling spiked in my gut, I was hooked. My eyes never left the window. My father was apprehensive about the whole thing, but he wouldn't dare keep my mother from saying one last goodbye to her father. While he was quiet and reserved the entire time, I knew being around humans and pretending to be one of them wasn't his style. Like David, he is prideful in what he is, who he is, and the traditions he so passionately keeps alive. It's our culture, our sense of self, and he liked these distinctions between us and them. Humans were so painfully singular—selfish, h

I take my pajamas into the bathroom to change and prepare for bed. After I do so, I notice a crack in the door. I position myself so my eye sees right through it, right at the bed where David is sitting against the tufted headboard, reading something on his laptop. The artificial light of the screen glows on his skin, and I hold my breath, leaning closer into the sliver of space, seeing he is bare from the waist up. My eyes widen and my brows tug together. When he mindlessly glances at the bathroom door, I spring away and make no sudden movements. I look at myself in the mirror, reconsidering my decision to wear a snug-fitting shirt with a thinner fabric. If he sleeps like that—which I'm assuming he is—then when he holds me—which he always does—I'll almost feel his bare skin. This stupid shirt will be the only barrier between our skin. It's not just our hands touching; it's plains of bo

I crash onto the bed and let my limbs fall limp and helpless, tired of holding the weight of conversation with Alphas and Lunas for far longer than I thought. Yet there's only a short break before we have to get ready for the ultra-fancy dinner tonight—another commencement since one is not enough. I swear the first day is to welcome us, the second is to work, and the third is to say goodbye; two whole days wasted. I'm sure Aurora and Bonny could secure our daughters' place as Alpha in the time spent mingling. David stands before me and I lift onto my elbows. My lazy smile falters when his face shows concern. "I've been thinking about sending you home early," he says, his words causing me to overlook his questionably dismissive tone. "After today I'm sure you'd rather go back and bother Jeremy than sit through boring meetings and dinners."

"I'm not leaving," I protest. "Get your things together. We're flying back tonight." "I'm not leaving, David. I mean it. I'm not done." "I don't care," he says, looking from our bags for a moment between his frantic packing. "I knew this would happen. I knew I shouldn't have let you come." I sigh and sit on the edge of the bed, watching him. "They're making Nicodra leave—you saw what happened. He's probably already gone." "I don't care." "I'm not leaving." "Yes," he says louder and shoots upright, "you are. Look what he did." He motions to my neck. "What he could ha

David speaks to me about our return trip home as we wait for the meeting to begin. We sit in the same seats as we have the past two days: bottom row, nearly center, important-feeling. He rambles to distract me and calm my leg as it relentlessly bobs, but no matter how hard I try to pay attention to him, his details of our travels do not compete with the looming results of my last-minute plan. Alpha Leloup-Nicodra's replacement-takes center stage at the podium. He nods to the crowd before beginning. "First, I will announce the surveyed results of the first issue: Luna Amin's and Luna Godoy's call for females of Alpha blood to be eligible for the Alpha position. I clench my fists. This is it-whether or not Nicodra's crushing grip came to good use. "At this time, we are willing to cons