I used to dream about this day..
My eighteenth birthday.
The day I would finally find my mate.
The day everything would make sense.
I couldn't wait to finally feel that excitement.....
But standing at the edge of the training field, I realized something no one ever talks about....
Dreams don't always come true the way you imagine them.
The pack had gathered under the full moon, its pale silver light spilling across the open field like something sacred.
Laughter echoed through the air.
Wolves....young and old.....moved in circles,
celebrating, waiting, watching.....
Waiting for moments like mine.
I stood apart from them.
Not because I wanted to sadly....
But because no one had asked me to join.
A group of girls stood a few steps away, their voices low but not low enough.
"Still nothing?"
"She's already eighteen…"
"Maybe she really doesn't have a wolf."
A soft snicker followed...
I kept my eyes forward.....
I had learned a long time ago that reacting only made it worse... right?.
Still…
Their words settled into my chest like stones...
Heavy...
Familiar.....
Wolfless...
Useless...
Unwanted...
My fingers curled slightly at my sides, nails pressing into my palms just enough to ground me.
Phewwwww.....I breathe out.....
Not tonight.....
I wouldn't let them ruin tonight.
"Still nothing?"
The voice came from behind me, warm and familiar.
My chest loosened before I even turned.
Ethan.....
I didn't need to see him to know the exact expression on his face.....the small crease between his brows, the softness in his eyes whenever he looked at me.
Still… I forced a smile before facing him.
Ufffffff.....
"Not yet."
He stepped closer, and just like always, the noise around me seemed to fade.
That was the thing about Ethan.
When he was near, everything else felt… distant.....
Safer...
Relax.....
"You're just a late bloomer," he said gently.
His voice dropped slightly, like he didn't want anyone else to hear.
"It'll happen."
I nodded slowly....., even though we both knew what people were saying.
What they had always been saying.
For a second, neither of us spoke.
Then his hand brushed mine.....
Light.....
Barely there....
But enough.
"I meant what I said, you know," he added quietly.
My breath caught.
"I'll still choose you. Even if you never awaken your wolf."
My heart tightened...
Not painfully...
But enough to remind me how much those words meant.
How much he meant.
Ethan wasn't just the future Alpha....
He was my best friend.....
The boy who sat beside me at my parents' funeral, his hand wrapped around mine as I tried not to cry in front of the entire pack.
The one who walked me home when the others whispered behind my back.
The one who looked me in the eye and said.... Ariel....
"You're not weak. They just don't see you the way I do."
I wanted to believe him...
Of course.....
I always did.....
"Thank you," I whispered.
But something about tonight felt… wrong.
The air was heavier than usual, pressing against my skin.
Felt a little suffocating too...
The wind had gone still.
Even the laughter around us felt distant now, like it was happening somewhere far away.
And the moon…
It looked brighter.
Too bright....
Phewwwww...
Almost like it was watching me.....
Waiting.....
Then....
Pain...
It hit me so suddenly I gasped, my hand flying to my chest as my knees buckled.
The world tilted.
"Aria—!!!"
Ethan's grip on my arm tightened as he steadied me.
"What's wrong?"
"I.....I don't…" My voice broke. "I don't know..."
My heart slammed against my ribs.
Too fast.....
Too loud.....
Like it was trying to escape.
And then.....
A voice.
Soft.
Feminine.
Echoing through my mind like it had always been there....
My body trembled....
Mine.
My breath caught.
No....
No… this couldn't....
"My wolf…" I whispered, disbelief flooding my voice.
For a second, everything else disappeared.
The whispers.....
The stares....
The years of feeling like I didn't belong.
Gone.....
She was here....
After all this time…
She was finally here...
I was thrilled.....
A laugh broke from my lips.....half sob, half disbelief....as tears blurred my vision.
Uffffffff I breathe excitedly....
"I have a wolf," I said, turning to Ethan. "I finally have a wolf."
This was it.....
This was the moment everything changed.
But Ethan didn't smile....
He didn't look relieved..
Or happy.....
Or proud....
He just…....like...stared at me....
And slowly, something in his expression shifted.
I immediately felt disappointed.....a little.....
The warmth I knew so well....
Gone....
Replaced by something colder.
Darker.
My smile faltered.
"Ethan…?"
And then it happened.....
A pull.....
Sharp...
Unavoidable...
Like something deep inside me had snapped into place.....
A thread connecting us....
Tightening...m
Binding....
Mate....
My breath caught.
Of course...
Of course it was him....
Relief flooded through me so fast it almost made me dizzy.
It made sense.
Everything made sense.
"Ethan…" I breathed, my voice soft, almost afraid....
But he didn't say anything.
His grip on my arm tightened.
Too tight....
Pain shot up my wrist, but I barely noticed.
Because the way he was looking at me....
It wasn't right.
There was no warmth...
No softness.....
No trace of the boy who promised me forever...
Only distance....
Only rejection....
Before the words even came.....
"I, Ethan Vale…" he said, his voice loud enough for the nearest group to hear.
The chatter around us began to quiet.
Heads turned.....
Eyes watched....
My heart dropped....
"…reject you as my mate."
The words hit harder than anything I had ever felt.
My body Trembled....
For a second....
I couldn't breathe.....
Tears flowing down my eyes.....
My head felt heavy.....dizzy...
Phewwwww I breathe weakly....
The world didn't just go silent.
It shattered.....
And this time…
There was no one there to catch me.