Not entirely sure what was happening I shook his hand anyway. It had been a while since anyone reached out to shake mine. “Harlyn Sage.““On your way to school? Shall we walk together?“ He chirped excitedly.What a strange boy. I doubted he knew who he was about to walk with.“I don't think that's such a great idea,” I turned on my feet to walk away. However, he stepped right by my side to walk with me.“Why not?“ He asked with a curious tone.He's new after all, he wouldn't know the train wreck and social weapon that I was. I side glanced at him. He looked quite nice. I didn't want him to find out why.“You'll find out eventually,” I simply muttered, picking up my pace.He followed suit.“ Well until then, I would very much like a walk. I haven't made many friends here.““The social type, I see,” I scoffed lightly.“Not really but it wouldn't hurt to get familiar with people in an unfamiliar place,” he retorted with a small grin.“True,” I shrugged. “How many have you gotten familiar
“You shameless whore!“ She screeched before slapping me right in the face.“Tess! Not in public,” Her friends hurried to pull her away from me, swinging their heads left and right to catch who may be looking.Tears pooled in my eyes as my anger brewed. I clenched my fists staring at her as she continued to rage on and her friends held her back. “Let go of me! I'm just getting started with the little bitch.“Not in public? That was all they had to say for me? Since when had my life become so sad that the only defense I deserved was an attempt to save her reputation?“I'm so sick of this,” I muttered to myself.“It's not enough he rejected you, you're still going on to throw yourself at him. How shameless can you get, Who do you think you—” She didn’t finish because a slap had cut off her sentence.My eyes widened in shock as the scene unfolded. Khalid stood right in front of her, shielding me. I hadn’t noticed when he moved. I watched as his hand rose once again before falling to strik
I froze. “Your place?““Sort of,” he admitted. “It’s not far. A quiet spot out of the way. Nobody will bother you there. Well nobody you wouldn't want to bother you would be there, I think.“I bit my lip, torn between skepticism and the undeniable fact that I had no better options. Higan and Tess were both unpredictable, and my mom didn’t need more reasons to worry about me.“Fine,” I relented after a moment, sighing. “But if this is some kind of trap—”“You’ll bite me again?” he teased with a grin.I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help the faint smile tugging at my lips.After all, I could be dead this time tomorrow, I should appreciate the little funny things in life even if it's a bipolar boy with the face of an angel.Khalid hailed a cab and we both quickly jumped into the backseats. I took the time to text Becca about my inevitable absence from school. She sent a thumbs up as a reply. I told myself she cared in her way.The drive was quiet, the tension in the air lingering despite K
“Daughter of who?” I squinted my eyes at the strange statement he made. “Gaiyetre? Who is Gaiyetre?”Did he think I was someone else?The name felt foreign on my tongue like it didn’t belong in my vocabulary or even in my world. Yet in some strange way, it struck something, a peculiar and unshakable sense of familiarity that I couldn’t comprehend.Gaiyetre.Ethan didn’t answer right away. His eyes simply held onto mine with unnerving intensity, as though he were searching for something hidden in them. The silence stretched between us, heavy and stifling, like a thunderstorm about to break.I shifted uncomfortably, my arms crossing over my chest. The way he looked at me made my skin tingle, but not entirely in an unpleasant way. It was a strange sizzling warmth gently crashing over me.“Why are you staring at me like that?” I finally snapped, trying to mask my unease with annoyance. “It’s rude, you know!” I mumbled with a frown.The sharpness of my voice seemed to pull him back. He loo
The sound of my name sent another wave of strange warmth down my body. I forced myself to nod before hurrying past Abigail and out into the living room. “Be careful of what? I already have things to be careful of,” I said to myself, the exhaustion of the day growing heavy on my shoulders. I wasn't paying attention before but the mansion was truly impressive. The study was just as extravagant with dark wood furniture and towering shelves filled with books I couldn’t imagine anyone reading. Khalid was lounging sideways in a chair by the window, his expression lighting up when he saw me. He's way too friendly for someone I just met hours ago. “There you are,” he said, motioning for me to sit. “How was your chat with Ethan?” I hesitated, unsure how to answer, settling to lean against a desk. “We didn’t talk about much.” Khalid raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced, but he didn’t press the issue. Instead, he leaned back in his chair, his playful grin returning. “Who would, se
The peculiar sight of Ethan on the bedroom floor was jarring. His face was twisted in agony as he lay against the wall, his body shaking with visible pain. But his eyes confessed the worst as it glowed an eerie, unnatural gold."I’m fine," Ethan muttered through gritted teeth, but it was clear to me he wasn’t. The glow in his eyes flickered as he locked gazes with me, and his voice faltered. "You need to leave."It was a command, not a request, but my feet felt like they were stuck in place. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from him. I had a growing desire to help, to ease whatever agony he was in.I stepped close despite his protest but to my dismay, another wave of pain seemed to tear through him."Ethan?" I asked softly, stepping forward slowly. I wasn’t sure why but I needed to make sure he was okay.His eyes snapped to mine, wearing his pain and frustration in a look that sent a chill down my spine. "Please," he whispered, his breath shallow. "Get out."Behind me, Khalid’s voice cut
A damp, foggy forest loomed before me once again, its oppressive silence weighing heavily on my chest. This time, the cold was sharper, biting into my skin.I glanced down and gasped. Blood soaked through my torn white shirt, smearing my chest in dark streaks. My breath hitched as I touched the ragged fabric, the pain searing. It was as though claws had raked through me.This again.I took a shaky step forward, my heart racing as fragments of my last dream surfaced—the white wolf, its piercing gaze, its claws tearing through me as it snarled for me to wake up. My knees trembled at the memory. Knowing it was a dream did little to comfort me. It felt real, too real.A low howl shattered the stillness, mournful and filled with pain. I spun around, my pulse pounding in my ears. My voice cracked as I whispered to myself, “Why is this happening? I am here again. This isn't just a dream.”Another set of new questions. Exhaustion overwhelmed me, and I collapsed to the damp ground, clutching m
Ethan’s golden eyes burned through the darkness, and my breath faltered as his hand slowly slipped away from my mouth.His scent caressed my nose. He smelt heavily of the forest like he ran to come here. It was alarming, the way his heat pulled me closer the longer he sat in front of me.“May I know why you're in my room telling me not to scream your name out to everyone on this street?“ I harshly whispered as I tried to push my instincts aside to ask.Every nerve in my body was on edge, screaming for answers, for action—but the way he was looking at me, so raw and gentle, left me unguarded. His eyes were not in their usual green either and the gold was pulling me in.“I couldn’t stay away,” Ethan admitted, his voice low and gravelly. His confession hung heavy in the air. “Being so close to you—it’s not helping.” He clenched his jaw.My cheeks flushed at his words, and my mouth dried up as I gaped. He broke into my room to tell me that.I caught his gaze dropped to my lips, and I felt
Snickers trickled from some groups like a leaky faucet. The spectators around us perked up with thinly veiled curiosity, whispering behind their coffee mugs.“I told you it was her, she just looks different.““... thought she died in the attack.““... returning is so brave.““That's cruel, she's already an omega.“The chattering was incessant. My panic grew. I hadn't lived through any of these humiliating episodes in the months I'd been gone yet one encounter with Tess and I was here all over again. The subject of ridicule.My jaw clenched as I stared down at my thighs, my eyes shimmered with tears of frustration. I felt it. Those old stings behind my ribs, right under my lungs, right at my heart. The bruises pressed too many times.My hands curled around the rim of my mug, fingers tingling with desperation to do something. Why didn't she just leave? Why did she have to do this here?“You really should’ve stayed wherever you disappeared to,” Tess cooed. “But I guess trash always finds
I almost laughed. Almost. Because despite the comical manner in which she said it, there was some truth to it. I would have graver things to worry about. With that in mind, I shouldn't think so much about it.So in the meantime, I settled for enjoying my coffee in my favorite coffee shop like a normal teenager. With the way things were headed, I wouldn't be getting more of those moments anymore.The entrance bell above the door chimed sharply and my gaze darted to the spot out of habit. A gust of wind swept in with it, slicing the warm cinnamon air in two.And just like that, the atmosphere cracked open. Tessandra Harris. She struted in casually, wearing her pride boldly. With her usual entourage of seasonal clones in short skirts, cashmere, tights and jackets, she cut through the shop with her presence.Her gaze sliced the room like a blade looking for someone to gut while her lips were in that perfectly upturned grin that confessed to a false kindness I'd yet to witness.And then, a
Mug shots was one of the few open shops I usually visited when I could. It was smaller with less traction than the popular coffee shop at Town Central. However, it seemed like that had changed. It was peculiarly filled up.As I stepped in, I'm greeted with a wave of cinnamon warmth and curious glances. A glaring contrast from the silence and the occasional texting notifications of the bored barista.The frequently steady hiss of steamed milk and the low murmur of conversations weaving into the hum of Christmas Jazz was not the setting I pictured having a conversation with Becca.But then again, my plans to interrogate her had long been soiled by Abigail's presence.“Quite the hotspot,” said Abigail herself as she swept her gaze through the coffee shop. Many looked away as they met her eyes. Some, albeit dumb boys, threw a few suggestive glances.I tried not to shudder given I'd recognized them from school. “Oddly enough,” I breathe out.“Here,” I blurted, stepping forward to lead. I h
I opened my mouth to argue, but Ethan cut in. “Your mom is right.”I turned sharply toward him, eyes wide and surprised at his agreement. What happened to his initial support yesterday?He exhaled through his nose, clenching his blood-stained fingers. His dark gaze was piercing, locking onto mine with something scrutinizing. “Whatever happened just now, whatever you pushed yourself into, it hurt you. You don’t just bleed from using an ability unless something is pushing back.”He knew there was something more to it. But surely he could tell, I wasn’t going to stop.I forced an easy shrug, running my hand through my hair. “It wasn’t that bad,” I interjected smoothly. “I just got a little too carried away. It won’t happen again.”A lie. One I could tell Ethan didn’t believe for a second. But he didn’t argue anyway.Everyone else watched me for a moment longer as if weighing whether to push further. My dad had long settled down. He had opted to intensely stare at me like he'd always done
“Rebecca Eevecina Geratine, what a mouthful,” Tess had cackled with her friends holding the new student's schedule outside the principal's office.I'd been doing my best to get through the day being invincible but it didn't exactly turn out great. I'd still managed to have Tess dump mop water on me in the girl's bathroom.But then the new student with the odd middle name offered me a change of clothes and kept me company. But that wasn't the moral of the story. I'd seen Becca's full name.Rebecca Eevecina Geratine.My stomach twisted violently. What business did Becca of all people have with a Melbringer?Pain wracked my head, darkening my vision at the edges. My pulse roared against my eardrums, each beat thick and sluggish as if my body was shutting down.I tried to stay upright, to hold on to that last bit of clarity, but the world tipped sideways. I could feel myself seemingly floating and falling at once.But then I stopped, meeting warm hands on the way. Sandalwood permeated my
My heart stuttered in momentary panic as I recalled that moment of blind irrational rage that had my hands around Khalid's head. The voice in that moment. It felt like it took advantage of my unrest and pushed me to hurt someone.What if it repeated itself in this seemingly innocent spar? What if I blur the lines between learning defense and wanting to hurt someone?I sighed, pushing myself up so I was sitting beside her. “Maybe. It's just.” I hesitated, searching for the right words. “I don’t want to lose myself in the urge to win. I feel like there's a part of me that might take advantage of that and hurt someone,” I paused, looking right at her. “Badly.”Abigail was silent for a long moment, her eyes distant. Then, quietly, she uttered, “Khalid.“I ran my hand through my tangled hair, losing the ponytail it was in. “I never really dwelled on it before but suddenly it's right here being a problem.“She hummed again but it had a contemplative tone to it. “Well, sometimes our brains s
“Come on!” the strained words escaped my mouth as I gasped mouth wide.The air was sharp with the chilling bite of winter. It carried with it the scent of damp earth and fresh snow. The sky above was a pale slate, the sun a cold, distant thing barely peeking through the canopy of frost-bitten trees.And I was on my ass. Again.I sucked in a sharp breath hoping to relieve the impact of my back hitting the frozen ground as it was still vibrating through my bones. A plume of white mist left my lips after I exhaled once again, staring up at the skeletal branches above me.Out of the blue, a figure loomed over me, cutting through my line of sight with arms crossed and a smug grin playing at the corner of her lips. “That makes what, eight times?”Abigail. Her dark tresses were tied back in a messy bun, stray strands sticking to her sweat-dampened forehead. Unlike me, sprawled out dirty on the forest floors, she wasn’t winded. She continued standing with that effortless grace she always car
The room was silent, housing only the fading echo of her words.“I saw you at school. You were attacked by Melbringers.”The words sent a pulse of ice through my veins.“Attacked?“ I stared at her, waiting for some sort of clarification. Some piece of information that would make it make sense. Because it didn’t.Yet the situation felt oddly familiar. Something similar had been said before by her when we first met at the back of my school with Becca.“I’ve seen this before, More times than you can imagine.”A premonition? A vision? Wait, that was ridiculous. Werewolves can't have abilities to look into the future. Right? Even with the little I knew about originals, that would be out of place even for them.But then, I felt the weight of everyone’s eyes on me, felt the way my parents tensed, the way even Tyler shifted uncomfortably. I licked my lips, trying to push past the tightness in my throat.It couldn't be true right?“I don’t…” I glanced at Ethan who stared straight ahead hoping
The drive back to the Stark mansion was surreal as if the world outside the car had softened at the edges. Ethan had called snow plowing services to clear out our path and from there, it was easy driving.The storm had passed, leaving behind a stillness that felt almost reverent. The sky was a crisp blue interrupted with bits of clouds being pushed away by a desperate rising sun.There were still bits of winter gloom in the ambiance but it didn't feel so to me. I couldn’t stop smiling.It wasn’t the well-measured smile I had grown accustomed to putting on, it was real. Something delightful was bubbling up from deep within me. A first in years.My fingers danced absently over my lips, still tingling from Ethan’s kiss. My whole body hummed with the lingering warmth of him, the weight of his hands, the gentleness of his hold.I had made the choice. And now I sat here, giddy and restless, my heart fluttering like I had swallowed an entire flock of butterflies on a sugar high. Did butterfl