All Chapters of Mating The Half She-Wolf: Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

I should have gone to sleep. I should have slipped away and gone somewhere quiet to rest my head. But how could I?I ended up staying up most of the night. I couldn’t sleep if I wanted to. Sleep required silence, and silence meant listening to my own thoughts. Regret, doubt, shame...they were louder than any howling wind. They twisted every memory, pulled apart every word I’d said or not said, every glance Levi had given me—or hadn’t.The sky was still a soft purple when I gave up and left the pack house. My steps were automatic, my body on autopilot as I wandered toward the training grounds. No one else was there yet, just the scent of ash still lingering in the air and the faint drag marks in the dirt where bodies had once been.The thought of even having a training session sounded demented in my head. But when Julian had given the announcement that activities were to commence, I’d nodded in agreement. I understood that he wanted life to go on, to prevent people from dwelling on the

The walls felt like they were closing in. I walked in and out of the kitchen, then down the hall in a fog. No tears. No words. Just the quiet numbness that came after something had completely fallen apart.Back in my room, the scent of my shampoo, the pile of folded laundry, the cracked photo frame on my nightstand—it all felt too loud, too full of memories I didn’t want anymore. I knelt by my bed and pulled out the box I’d used when I first arrived here. That day, I’d come with nothing but hope and a change of clothes.Now I was leaving with even less.I wasn’t sure how long I’d been sitting on the edge of my bed when the door creaked open. Valerie slipped in quietly, her presence like a warm breath in winter."Why are you packing?" she asked softly, her eyes falling on the half-zipped bag.I didn’t stop. My hands just kept moving, folding the same hoodie three times over.She crossed the room and sat beside me, placing her hands on mine to make me pause. “What’s going on, Astra? You

The scent of coffee drifted through the air before the sun even climbed fully over the treetops. I turned over beneath the covers, the warmth of my childhood bed both comforting and suffocating. I hadn’t meant to fall asleep in my clothes, but exhaustion had pulled me under too quickly for pajamas or brushing my teeth.My muscles ached—not from training this time, but from emotional fatigue. A different kind of pain.When I finally pushed myself out of bed, my reflection startled me. My hair was tangled, my eyes puffy, and my skin pale. I looked like I’d walked out of a storm, and maybe I had. Not a storm made of wind and rain, but of confusion, regret, and every bottled-up emotion I’d buried in Moondew.Downstairs, the house was alive in the quiet way only my mother knew how to orchestrate—radio playing soft music, a plate already stacked with pancakes as she made some more, sunlight slanting in through the lace curtains.“Morning,” she said, not turning as I walked in. “Have some co

My first mistake was thinking I could get everything back to the way it used to be.I started the morning excited, energetic, and all so ready to crush my first day back to Hartville high. Standing in front of the mirror, tracing the hem of my new dress—the fitting as if it had been made specially just for me. Dark green, hugging my curves just right, and golden accents that made my eyes look like they held stars. My hair fell in soft curls over my shoulders, and my lips were tinted in a neutral pink gloss.Breakfast had been quick. I barely ate, too anxious of what the day might bring and internally planning to capture back the hearts of Shawn and Ella. I also made a mental note to speak with Shawn and address our current relationship dynamics.Of course, I was going to let him know I wanted to be just friends. My heart couldn’t take anymore strain.The moment I crossed the threshold of our front door and into the sunlight, it all became too real, almost hectic. The air was too loud,

The decision came as I stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror, blotting cafeteria spaghetti sauce off my shirt with a trembling hand. My cheeks still burned with humiliation, and the echo of laughter haunted my ears. Shawn had tripped me in front of the entire cafeteria, and everyone had seen.The same boy who had told me he loved me just about two months ago. The boy I thought I’d spend the rest of my life with. He humiliated me, and didn’t feel an ounce of pity.I was done.I pressed the paper towel harder into my chest, not caring anymore if it hurt. I didn’t want to be this girl. The one who got walked over. Who got mocked. Who got treated like a footnote in someone else’s spotlight.If Ella and Shawn thought I’d just take it, they didn’t know me at all.Not anymore.I stared at myself a moment longer, let the image of my tear smudged makeup and ruined outfit sear into my memory—because this would be the last time they’d ever see me like this.They wanted a show? Fine. I’d