LOGINThis was an unplanned chapter, but I wanted to write it, soooo, I wrote it. I wanted to write about Rose's first meeting with her grandparents. I had so much fun writing this chapter, so I hope you will also enjoy reading it. And I am loving all your comments; some of them really cracked me up, so keep them coming.
JuneMy eyes find Caleb’s again, and the way they darken sends something sharp through me. It is not fear. It is not hesitation. It is something else entirely, something that stirs low and deep, something that makes my chest tighten in a way I am not used to, making me shift slightly, making me want to step back and put some space between us.But I don’t get the chance.His grip tightens.Not enough to hurt, but enough to stop me completely. Enough to keep me right where I am as he pulls me even closer, like there is no distance left to close but he is still trying.“What did you just say?”His voice is low, carrying an intensity that makes my pulse pick up.“You heard me,” I reply, lifting my chin slightly, refusing to back down even as my heartbeat betrays me.“I just heard you claiming me,” he says, his lips curling into a slow, dangerous smirk that sends a thrill down my spine. “Is that so, June?”Something in me responds instantly.“Uh-huh.”I tilt my head up and close the small
JuneI sit with everything I have learned, letting it move through me in slow waves that refuse to settle. Faces pass through my mind one after another. People at the Academy. People I have seen almost every day these past few days. Now they do.Now every single face carries something else.They are like me.Wolves.The word still feels strange when I think it, even though it fits more than anything ever has. I try to recall if I ever noticed something off, something that set them apart from everyone else. A look, a movement, a feeling that did not belong.But there is nothing.They blended in so easily. Just like I did.Even Misha.That thought lingers longer than the others. I picture her face, the way she carries herself, the way she smiles like everything is simple. It does not match with what I know now, and yet it has to.The more I understand, the more everything seems to unravel into something bigger than I expected.Questions stack over each other, one after another, forming
JuneThe weight of the confession settles in slowly, pressing into me as the realization fully sinks in. I said it. I actually said it out loud. Something I have kept buried for years, locked away in a part of myself I never allowed anyone to reach. And I did not just say it. I said it to them. To people I barely know. Strangers. The word lingers in my mind, but it does not feel entirely right anymore. Not in the way it should.Because the moment I question why I did it, my thoughts shift without permission. They land on him. On Caleb. On the man sitting so close beside me, like his presence has always belonged there. Something in my chest tightens at that realization. I trusted him. For some reason I cannot fully explain, I trusted him enough to say something I have never admitted to anyone else. Not even to myself in clear terms. It sounds reckless when I think about it. Careless. And yet it does not feel like a mistake. That is what unsettles me the most.I lift my eyes slowly, pul
June“June, Caleb told us that you have some questions.”Jake’s voice pulls me out of my thoughts.I lift my gaze to him before placing the plate beside the glass of water on the table.“I want to assure that you can ask us anything you want,” he continues, his tone calm but firm. “But we also need you to tell us about yourself, and we expect you to be honest with us.”There is something about him that is hard to miss.A presence.It is not loud. Not overwhelming. But it is there in everything he does. The way he sits. The way he speaks. The way his eyes stay sharp even when his tone is even.He feels like someone who carries responsibility without making a show of it.Like someone who watches over everything without needing to remind anyone that he does.There is a stern edge to him, something authoritative that makes it clear he is not someone to be taken lightly. But beneath that, there is something else.Protectiveness... not in a soft way, but in an absolute way.He seems like th
JuneCaleb’s house comes into view slowly as we walk.At first, it is just a shape in the distance. Then the details sharpen. The structure. The windows catching the light.My steps slow just a little as we get closer.Not enough for him to notice.Or maybe he does.I do not look at him to check.We reach the front steps, and something inside me shifts.It happens without thought.Without effort.Instinct.My fingers unwrap from his.The contact breaks, and with it, something in my posture changes. My shoulders pull back slightly. My spine straightens. My expression settles into something calm, controlled.Untouchable.It is automatic.It has always been this way.All my life, I have lived with one rule. Never let anyone know what is going on inside you.It does not matter what you feel.It does not matter if everything inside you is falling apart.From the outside, you do not show it.You do not give anyone that kind of access.You do not let them see where it hurts.You hold it in.
June My head spins for a second, my breath coming in short, uneven bursts as I try to recover. The world tilts, blurs, then slowly settles back into place. Silently, cursing the person who hit me. And then I realize... It's Caleb. Of course it is him. I feel it before I fully see it. The strength in the arms still wrapped around me. The heat of him pressed close. The way he shifted his body so mine would not take the full hit. My chest rises and falls as I try to catch my breath, my body still tense, still caught between instinct and awareness. For a second, I do not move. Then the realization hits harder than the fall did. I free myself from his arms and scramble back, forcing my body upright despite the way it protests. My legs wobble for half a second before I find my balance, my breath still uneven as I put space between us. He is already on his feet. It happens so fast it barely registers. One second, he is on the ground with me, the next, he is standing, faci
AuroraTime slows to a cruel crawl, and all I can do is watch in frozen horror as he pulls the trigger. The sound is deafening, echoing through the café again and again until it drowns out everything else. My chest feels hollow, my world tilts, and I can barely breathe. He doesn’t even look at me. H
AuroraAll my life has been spent behind walls. Not the kind you can see, not the kind you can touch, but the kind that live inside your chest. Invisible, quiet, heavy. The walls of my home were only a reflection of the real ones, the ones that taught me how to smile when I wanted to scream, how to
AuroraThe food is set on the table, three men moving around like they’ve done this a hundred times together. Lucas is laughing about something Caleb said, his voice low and husky, the kind that sneaks into your skin and settles there. Jake stands by the counter, scooping food onto plates with prac
LucasAurora sits beside me, her body turned slightly toward the window, but her attention… it’s everywhere.Her silence isn’t the kind that makes me uneasy or doubtful. It’s the kind that pulls me in. The kind that fills the car in a way noise never could. I can feel it, the quiet hum of her mind







