Lahat ng Kabanata ng Mated To My Stepbrother : Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 30

Novah’s POV I didn’t sleep.Not really.I stared at the ceiling all night, counting the cracks like they could answer for the way my world had just... folded in on itself.I waited for the sun to rise.Waited for the house to stir.Waited for the moment when the door would creak and someone—anyone—would ask if I was okay.No one did.Eventually, the light bled through my curtains in thin lines, golden and soft. It was morning. The kind that never felt fresh, only heavy. I climbed out of bed, my limbs stiff, my eyes sore, and I moved like a ghost toward the bathroom.I didn’t look in the mirror.I couldn’t.Instead, I brushed my hair slowly, listening to the hum of the pack house below me—voices rising and falling, plates clinking, footsteps echoing through the halls. Life had moved on.Like it always did.I got dressed.A hoodie that swallowed my frame and jeans that had seen better days. No makeup. No perfume. Just plain, ordinary Novah.Pathetic, invisible Novah.I padded downstair

Novah’s POVIt started with Ashton’s voice.Rough. Low. Sharp in that way only he could manage. “What’s going on with you and Lucien?”I hadn’t even made it to the bottom of the stairs. The pack house was buzzing—chatter, the smell of roasted deer from the kitchen, someone laughing down the hall—but his voice cut through all of it.I stiffened.Of course he would catch me.Of course.I turned around slowly, hugging my arms to my chest like they could keep my heart from thumping out of it. Ashton stood there in that way he always did—shoulders straight, expression unreadable, like nothing could touch him. He wore that black long-sleeved shirt he always did when he trained, the sleeves pushed up to his elbows, veins flexing against his skin like he was permanently braced for a fight.“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked quietly.He narrowed his eyes. “It means I saw you last night. With him.”I blinked, not ready for the heat that rushed to my face. “So?”“So?” he echoed, walking a s

Novah's POVThe school hallway always buzzed on Fridays.Maybe it was the scent of weekend freedom, or maybe it was just the way the tiled floor echoed footsteps more loudly—as if the walls knew we were all waiting to escape. But today, something else lingered in the air.Tension.Thick. Unspoken. Dangerous.I clutched my books tighter against my chest as I walked toward my locker. I could feel the stares before I saw them. The whispers. The subtle nudges.“She actually came to school?”“After what happened yesterday?”“She’s so desperate.”I didn’t meet their eyes.I never did.But I knew they were talking about me.Again.The slap of a locker door slamming to my right made me flinch. My gaze jerked sideways before I could stop it—and of course, that was all the invitation Ashton needed.He leaned against the metal, tall and casual, like nothing in the world could touch him. His smirk was lazy. Cold.And it was aimed at me.“Well, look who decided to show her face,” he said, loud eno

Novah’s POVThe Moon-Star Pack house always looked prettier at night. At least, that’s what I told myself.Soft lights blinked along the roof like fireflies too tired to fly, and the garden outside swayed in the wind like it hadn’t just witnessed a storm inside.I sat at the edge of the stone steps, arms hugging my knees to my chest, chin resting on top. The pack house was quiet now—eerily so. My father’s yelling had died hours ago. Ashton had gone to bed. Or maybe back to wherever he usually vanished to when he didn’t want to deal with me.The night air was cold, but I didn’t move.I liked the stillness.Sometimes I thought if I sat still long enough, the world might forget I was here.A soft crunch of footsteps pulled me from my thoughts.I didn’t turn.Part of me hoped it was Ashton.Most of me hoped it wasn’t.“Novah?”Lucien’s voice floated toward me, unsure and quiet.Of course.Of course it would be him.I turned my head slightly. “You shouldn’t be here.”“Probably not,” he adm

Novah’s POV The hallways quieted down. The laughter dimmed. The air felt thick with whatever people didn’t say to my face but whispered behind my back. I kept my eyes low, my books tight against my chest again, like a shield. They weren’t even books I needed. I just… held them. Because if I didn’t, my hands would tremble.I walked slower today. My feet dragged like they weren’t mine. Like they didn’t really want to be going wherever I was going. I didn’t even have a real destination. I just needed to not be seen sitting alone in the cafeteria again. That always made it worse. Sitting. Waiting. Hoping no one would come over just to laugh.I thought maybe I could go to the back garden. The one place Loveth never went. She said it was full of bugs.“Novah.”My name made me flinch before I turned around.Lucien.He was wearing a black hoodie, sleeves rolled up, and he smiled at me like I was someone worth smiling at.“Oh—hi,” I said, my voice too small.He caught up to me in a few easy s