Page 27

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The past few months had been a whirlwind of change.

Some days, I still woke up expecting to be just a normal girl stressing about school and boys, but reality had a way of reminding me that normal was long gone.

I was a werewolf.

A shifter.

A part of a world I had no clue about until it forced itself into my life.

And I was learning to embrace it.

I think I'm too hard on myself, like look at me, I'm freaking killing it.

Lies, I'm a total mess, I don't even know what I'm doing. Most days, I feel like running away but looking at how far I've come, with all the support I've gotten from the people who mattered most in my life, I have to pat myself on the shoulders for keeping my shit together and staying focused on the goal.

Frigg had been a godsend.

Since our move to the Netherlands, she has set up a safe training ground for me and Tasha—an underground space hidden from the prying eyes of students and supernatural beings alike.

Every day, we trained.

We fought.

We pushed our limits.

Frigg made sure we understood what it meant to wield power and how to control it, especially me.

My shifts were still unpredictable following my very emotions, so I try to stay neutral at all times especially when I'm in public, so I don't blow our cover, and though I had a better grasp of my senses, the emotions that came with them were harder to handle.

But Tasha... Tasha was thriving, at least from what I can see.

If anyone told me a year ago that my best friend would be using her supernatural gifts to make a powerful Lycan jealous, I'd have laughed in their face. But here we were, living it. Tasha was playing the game perfectly. She was confident, flirtatious, and completely unbothered by the attention she received from every hot-bodied male on campus. It was her way of dealing with the pain, I knew that much but I wished she could talk about it with me. Maybe she doesn't even realize it yet or haven't paid attention to the pain but somehow acknowledging the pain would've been better and she might not have to play this game.

I feel bad for Damon, he has no clue that he's been used as a pawn in Tasha's game for a certain Alpha to know what it feels like to be ignored by the one person that is supposed to see every part of you that even the world doesn't. And weirdly enough, I understand Tasha but I hope no one gets hurt at the long run.

But the Lycan Alpha? He was suffering.

I saw the way he tensed when Tasha laughed a little too loudly at another guy's joke. The way his fists clenched when she walked past him without so much as a glance. He was trying to be unaffected, but I could tell—every moment of silence between them was driving him mad. I kinda feel bad for him but I live for drama and this drama is been dished out by my best girl and I'm a fan!

And honestly? Watching it all unfold was entertaining.

Except... while I focused on Tasha's game, I ignored my own growing conflict.

I had been so busy dealing with my shift, training with Frigg, and adjusting to my new life that I hadn't stopped to acknowledge something that had been bothering me for weeks now. A feeling I kept pushing aside because it made no sense and my wolf wasn't helping.....

The first time I met her, she was fire and fury.

I had expected my wolf to be some distant, quiet presence, something I could suppress if I wanted to.

But no—she was alive, burning like a flame that refused to be put out.

Her voice was always there, whispering in my mind, her emotions bleeding into mine until I couldn't tell where I ended and she began.

You are me, and I am you, she had said the first time she spoke to me. Stop fighting it.

I had fought it, of course.

The idea of another being living within me, sharing my thoughts, my emotions, my body—it was overwhelming.

But the more time passed, the more I realized she wasn't something to be feared. She was fierce, loyal, and protective. She was... me, in a way I had never allowed myself to be before.

It was about him.

Not the Alpha.

His Beta.

Cass.

And my wolf? She lost her mind every time he was near.

The first time I caught his scent, I nearly tripped over my own feet. It was ridiculous. I had faced my first shift, I had learned to fight, I had accepted my supernatural side—but one whiff of Cass, and suddenly my wolf was pacing in my head, restless and impatient.

Mine, she would growl, low and possessive.

And every time, I would push her down, ignoring the way my skin tingled when he was close.

It didn't help that Cass was infuriatingly unreadable. He wasn't like the Alpha—arrogant, commanding, larger than life. No, Cass was quieter, more observant. He never looked at me too long, but when he did, it felt like he saw too much.

And my wolf? She loved it.

She would huff whenever he was near, pushing me to acknowledge the way my heart sped up, the way my breath caught in my throat when he so much as glanced in my direction.

And when he ignored me?

Oh, she would let out a frustrated growl that rattled through my bones, making my fingers itch to punch something—preferably him.

I wasn't like Tasha. I didn't flirt effortlessly, didn't play games to get attention. But my wolf? She had no shame.

Touch him, she would urge. Bite him. Make him see.

And I would groan, pressing my palms against my temples, trying to drown her out.

Cass had no idea the chaos he caused in my head.

And I had no idea how much longer I could keep pretending I didn't care.

I told myself it was nothing at first. A fleeting admiration for someone who carried himself with quiet strength and unwavering loyalty. But the more I watched him, the harder it became to deny that something about him pulled me in. And I hated it.

Because unlike Tasha, I didn't know how to play these games.

Unlike Tasha, I wasn't the confident one.

And unlike Tasha, I wasn't sure if what I felt was even real.

So, I did what I always did—I buried it deep, ignored it, and kept moving forward.

But for how long?

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