All Chapters of THE WEREWOLF AND VAMPIRE'S MATE: Chapter 51 - Chapter 58

CALI'S POV: I’ve never been this pumped for anyone’s birthday in my entire life, not even my own. But this isn’t just anyone, it’s Aurora. And she deserves a night that says, “You made it. You’re still standing. And damn, you shine.” It’s just after 8 PM when we pull up to my house. Music is already vibrating through the walls, lights glowing softly from the windows. I glance at her as we step out of the car, she's biting her lip, nerves etched on her face even though she's trying to hide it. “Come on,” I say, nudging her shoulder with mine. “It’s your night, birthday girl. You ready to slay?” She rolls her eyes, but her smile flickers through. “I’m only doing this because you threatened to cry if I didn’t.” “I still might. Don’t tempt me.” I grab her hand and pull her inside.The house is packed. Teens are already dancing, laughing, flinging themselves across the room like they own it. There’s a tower of soda bottles on the kitchen counter, streamers dangling from the

ARC’S POV:11:46 PM She’s getting worse.The weight of her in my arms doesn’t register anymore. I can’t feel anything but the fever radiating off her skin, like she’s a living star trying to burn itself alive. Jon's flashlight cuts through the thick forest ahead of me, bouncing off branches and pine needles that whip across my face. I don’t flinch. I don’t stop. Her whimpers dig deeper into me than any thorn ever could.We reach the clearing. It's quiet here. Untouched. The ground is soft and thick with moss, the air heavy with pine and the kind of stillness that only comes before something monumental. The sky above is black, no stars, no moon. Just clouds and her. I kneel, lowering her gently to the earth. Her body curls in on itself, a tight coil of pain and heat. Her fingers claw at the dirt, nails digging into the soil like she’s trying to anchor herself to this plane of existence. Jon kneels across from me. He brushes her sweat-drenched hair from her face, his voic

AURORA'S POV:I don’t sleep, I can't sleep. Not really. I drift, restless, caught somewhere between dreams and nightmares. Every time I close my eyes, I see flashes of silver fur, crimson eyes, trees blurring as I run too fast, too wild. My body still aches, my muscles twitch with phantom memories. My wolf is awake now. She doesn’t sleep, so neither do I. By the time the sun spills through my curtains, I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck. Twice. Then reversed over. I sit up slowly, the oversized hoodie Jon gave me still wrapped around my body like armor. My limbs feel heavier than they should. My skin doesn’t quite feel like mine. I get dressed in autopilot. Loose jeans, a hoodie of my own this time, and hair pulled into a messy braid that I don't bother perfecting. My eyes are rimmed red, but I don’t wear makeup today. What’s the point? Everyone will stare anyway. They always do. Downstairs, the house is quiet. My foster parents are gone already. Probably didn’t even not

AURORA'S POV: I wake up to feeling like I'm in a fire I don’t remember starting. It’s not real, not exactly. There’s no smoke or flames licking at the walls, but it’s there, burning beneath my skin, coiling through my veins like liquid heat. My sheets feel like lava. My thighs are pressed together, tight, but it does nothing to stop the ache that pulses low in my belly. Something is wrong with me. Or maybe... something is finally right, in the worst possible way. I toss the sheets off me, panting. The air in the room is cool, but it does nothing to ease the tension winding through me. Every inch of me feels sensitive, raw, and... needy. It’s a kind of hunger I’ve never known before. Not food, not thirst, but craving.Craving their touch. Craving them.Jon and Arc. I sit up too fast, my vision spinning. My body is vibrating with something primal, something wild. My instincts scream for one thing: go to them. Be near them. Let them fix this. I stumble out of bed, nearly