Beneath the Alpha's Moon Chapter 231: The Great Escape

Liam’s P.O.V.

Mai’s grin was pure mischief as she clasped her hands together. "Alright, it’s settled! We’re going. And Liam, don’t be scared. We’ll be fine."

I stared at her, feeling anything but fine. "Mai, this is—"

"Wait here," she interrupted, waving off my protest. "I need to get Ollie."

Eldur frowned, tilting his head. "Why? He’s not grounded as we are."

Mai shot him an exasperated look. "Because he’s my brother, duh. And I don’t want to have new mories without my twin. Besides, we can’t leave him out of this—he’d be heartbroken."

I sighed, rubbing my forehead. Of course. This was Mai we were talking about. She might seem hard and unkind on the surface but everyone knew she loved Ollie very much.

"Fine, but hurry up," Eldur said lazily, leaning against the wall. "The sooner we leave, the sooner we can break more rules."

Mai smirked before vanishing down the hall.

As soon as she was gone, silence settled between Eldur and . I shifted awkwardly, then turned my attention inward.

"North?" I called, hoping for so kind of response.

He stirred but didn’t speak right away. I felt his hesitation, the way he pulled back slightly.

"What do you think about all this?" I asked. "Sneaking out, disobeying the Alpha...?"

North was quiet for a long mont before finally answering. "Do what feels right to you, Liam."

That was...not what I expected.

He used to have strong opinions about everything, but lately—ever since the witches incident—he had grown distant. He didn’t argue, didn’t push, didn’t tell when sothing felt wrong to him. It was like he was afraid to make the wrong call.

I exhaled, rubbing my chest. I needed to do sothing about that—find a way to help him. But not now. I didn’t have any solutions yet.

"Well?" Eldur’s voice pulled out of my thoughts.

I looked up to see him watching with those eerie eyes of his, amusent flickering behind them. "Did your furry friend tell you to be a good little pup and stay inside?"

How did he know I was talking to North?

I rolled my eyes. "No. He told to do what I feel is right."

Eldur snorted. "How diplomatic."

Before I could reply, the door burst open, and Mai strolled in—Ollie right beside her.

Ollie’s eyes sparkled with excitent as he clapped his hands together. "Oh hell yes, we’re breaking out!"

I groaned. "Why am I not surprised you’re happy about this?"

Ollie shot a grin that was way too similar to Mai’s. "Because I have an adventurous spirit, Liam. Unlike you, who probably finds joy in reading instruction manuals."

Mai snickered. Eldur outright laughed.

I crossed my arms, scowling. "I have common sense. Soone in this room has to."

"Common sense is overrated," Mai declared, flopping beside onto the couch dramatically. "Now, the real question is—where should we go?"

Eldur stretched, his white hair falling over his face. "Sowhere fun, obviously. I’m thinking a new town, maybe a casino—"

"We’re underage," I pointed out.

Eldur smirked. "No, it’s just you."

Mai turned to suddenly, her eyes gleaming. "Liam should decide."

I blinked. "What?"

"You choose," she repeated, a smile tugging at her lips. "Where do you want to go?"

I hesitated. "Uh..."

"Oh, co on," Ollie groaned. "Pick sothing!"

I fidgeted. I didn’t like being put on the spot, and it wasn’t like I had a bucket list of places to go when breaking the law. But if I had to choose...

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Well... there is one place I’ve always wanted to visit."

Mai leaned forward, intrigued. "Where?"

I hesitated, feeling a little ridiculous. "I’ve never been to an amusent park before."

Everyone went silent, and then, there was laugher.

All three of them burst out laughing like I had just told the funniest joke in the world. Even Eldur, who usually found amusent in other people’s misery, was chuckling.

Heat crawled up my neck. "Forget it," I muttered. "We don’t have to go."

Mai, still laughing, suddenly pulled into a hug. It was unexpected—warm, tight, and breathtaking. My heart stuttered.

"You," she murmured against my ear, "are so adorable."

I swallowed hard.

She pulled back slightly, her arms still looped around , her eyes locked onto mine. "We’re going to the amusent park."

I was very aware of how close she was. Too aware. If only we were the only ones in the room... My breath hitched as her fingers brushed against my wrist.

Eldur, who had been watching with his usual impassive expression, suddenly raised a hand. Without a word, a swirling vortex of deep blue light crackled in the center of the room.

A portal.

Right into an amusent park.

I gaped. "We’re—using portals?"

Eldur smirked. "What, you thought we were gonna walk there?"

I shook my head in disbelief. "You people are insane."

Mai grinned. "But deep down you love us for it."

I didn’t respond. Because she wasn’t wrong.

Ollie was already bouncing on his feet. "Co on! Before Dad and Mom finds out and throws us all into the dungeon."

Mai extended a hand toward . "Ready?"

I hesitated, looking at her outstretched fingers.

This was reckless. This was dangerous. This was against every rule I had been taught to follow.

But then I looked into Mai’s eyes. The way they shimred—not just with excitent, but sothing deeper. Sothing only ant for .

My chest tightened.

I exhaled slowly and took her hand.

"Yeah," I murmured. "Let’s go."

And together, we stepped through the portal.

*********

The mont we stepped through the portal, the world around us changed.

Gone was the room we had left behind. In its place, an explosion of color and sound surrounded us—a symphony of laughter, music, and the distant screeches of people on roller coasters.

Bright lights blinked overhead, neon signs flashing bold letters in every direction. The scent of cotton candy, fried dough, and sothing heavily grilled wafted through the air, making my stomach growl. The ground beneath my feet felt different—warr, smoother.

I turned in slow circles, taking it all in.

So, this was an amusent park.

Gosh, it was beautiful.

A laugh bubbled up inside , unexpected and light, and for a brief second, I forgot everything. The past. The scars. The shadows of old mories. I was a kid again, seeing sothing magical for the first ti.

Then reality hit.

I was here with them.

Ollie was already gaping at the massive roller coaster in the distance, practically vibrating with excitent. "Holy crap, this place is insane!"

Eldur crossed his arms, unimpressed. "Seems loud."

Mai turned to , silver eyes twinkling. "Liam?"

I exhaled, still overwheld. "This is... I don’t even know how to describe it."

"Try ’amazing,’" Ollie offered.

Mai smirked. "Try ’we’re about to have the best night of our lives.’"

She grabbed my wrist, and the sudden warmth of her touch sent a jolt through . "Co on!" she urged. "We have so much to do!"

And just like that, we were off.

The first mistake we made was letting Ollie pick the first ride.

He chose The Vortex.

The na alone should have been a warning, but I didn’t argue. Not when Mai looked so excited. Not when she was still holding onto my wrist like she had no plans of letting go.

The ride was insane.

It started off simple enough—slow, deceiving. But then, without warning, the entire structure twisted, spinning us upside down, sideways, and through what felt like the depths of hell. I swore I saw my life flash before my eyes.

When we finally stumbled off, I was dizzy and gripping a railing like my legs had forgotten how to function.

Mai, of course, looked perfectly fine. She stretched her arms, her curls bouncing as she turned to . "Liam, you good?"

I groaned. "I think I just t death and shook his hand."

Ollie, who had been laughing a second ago, suddenly clutched his stomach. His face turned a very unflattering shade of green. "Oh, no."

We barely had ti to step back before Ollie violently emptied his soul onto the pavent.

Eldur recoiled. "Disgusting."

Mai covered her mouth, eyes wide. "Oh my goddess."

I should have been sympathetic. But instead, I bit my lip to stop from laughing. "You wanted the most extre ride, Ollie," I reminded him.

He wiped his mouth, glaring. "Bite , Rivers."

Mai definitely wasn’t helping. She pulled out her phone and took a picture. "This is going on record."

Ollie groaned, but Eldur—despite pretending he wasn’t enjoying himself—was smirking. "This trip might be worth it after all."

After dragging Ollie to a food stand (where he weakly sipped on a soda like he had survived a war), Mai and I wandered over to a booth selling the most ridiculous carnival food I had ever seen.

Fried Oreos. Funnel cakes. Churros drowning in cinnamon sugar.

I was already overwheld when Mai pressed a pink cloud of cotton candy into my hands.

"Try it," she insisted.

I raised a brow. "Mai, I know what cotton candy is."

"Yeah, but have you experienced it?"

I huffed but took a bite. It lted instantly, dissolving into sugary nothingness, and I had to admit—it was kind of amazing.

Mai grinned. "See? Perfection."

Before I could respond, sothing unexpected happened.

Eldur, who had been standing by himself like the brooding nightmare he was, froze.

I followed his gaze.

A girl—probably our age, maybe a little younger—stood a few feet away. She was breathtaking in the softest kind of way. Deep brown eyes, sun-kissed skin, and a dimpled smile that could make flowers bloom. She wore denim shorts and a yellow tank top, her curly black hair pulled into a high puff.

And Eldur—fearless, rciless Eldur—was blushing.

Mai and I imdiately locked eyes.

"Oh, this is gold," she whispered.

I smirked. "Think we should help?"

"Obviously."

We exchanged a silent agreent before approaching the girl.

"Hey," Mai said, flashing her charming smile. "My friend over there thinks you’re really pretty."

The girl blinked, glancing at Eldur—who visibly paled.

I nearly died holding back laughter.

The girl giggled. "Really?"

Mai nodded. "Unfortunately, he’s a bit of an idiot when it cos to feelings. But you could help with that."

To our delight, the girl didn’t run. She tilted her head. "I’m Nova."

"Nova," I repeated. "Nice na. You wanna join us?"

She hesitated, then smiled. "Sure. But can my friend co too?"

Her friend—a tall, dark-skinned guy with a sharp jawline and an easy smirk—stepped up. "Na’s Trey."

Ollie took one look at him and grinned. "Dude. You look like you’d be cool as hell to hang out with."

Trey smirked. "Sa vibe, man."

And just like that, we had two new mbers in our chaotic group.

We spent hours exploring every corner of the amusent park.

Nova, despite her sweet appearance, was terrifying on rides. She dragged Eldur onto the biggest roller coaster there, and I swear I saw him reevaluate his life choices mid-loop.

Trey and Ollie, anwhile, were like long-lost twins. They bonded over carnival gas, trash-talking each other over who could win the most prizes.

As for and Mai...

There were monts. Soft monts.

Like when we rode the Ferris wheel together, the city lights stretching beneath us.

Like when she casually kissed in front of strangers, leaning into as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Like when she looked at —not just like she usually did, but there was sothing more intense in her eyes.

And that terrified .

Because I wanted my birthday to bring us a miracle.

But I didn’t know if it would.

Eventually, the night had to end. We said our goodbyes to Nova and Trey, not without getting their numbers, especially that of Nova because we noticed Eldur couldn’t stop staring at her. We all promised to et up again. Then, in a secluded alley behind the park, Eldur raised his hand. A portal crackled to life.

"Sa place tomorrow?" Mai asked, looking at .

I swallowed, nodding. "Yeah. Sa place."

With one last glance at the amusent park, I stepped through the portal.

And we disappeared back into our apartnt.