Evaline:
Everything hurt.
It wasn’t just my head or my limbs, not just my stomach that felt tight and was cramping with dull pain. No - this ache went deeper. Into my bones. Into the very core of who I was.
When I opened my eyes and realized I was lying on a hospital bed, I was surprised. Everything around was unfamiliar. The last thing I could recall was the pain that made lose consciousness.
As I recalled that mont, a familiar face flashed through my mory.
Jasmine Bills.
Her laughter. The way she threw herself into Oscar’s arms like she belonged there. Like she had every right to touch him like that. Like I didn’t exist at all.
And Oscar...
Just when I started thinking that I had no more tears left, that I had cried enough for past couple of days while my heart quietly fell to pieces, I was proven wrong. The sight of Jasmine Bills wrapped around my mate... it torn open a new wound. A rawer, deeper one.
"Miss Evaline?"
I was jerked out of the painful mories at the sound of the doctor calling . I fixed my gaze on him and tried to give him a polite enough smile to let him know I was listening.
"You are doing better," he said gently. "Your blood pressure has stabilized. You’ll need to stay under observation for the night, but with rest and food, you’ll be okay."
I nodded quietly.
He didn’t ask any questions. Didn’t ntion what I suspected he had discovered during his examination. The pregnancy.
I watched him leave, and finally took in my surroundings. It was a modest private room, neat and quiet. Not overly fancy, but definitely not the infirmary where I should have been.
That was when confusion set in.
The Academy never allowed students to seek treatnt outside unless the infirmary itself referred them. I wasn’t taken to the infirmary.
Rowan must have brought here directly. But how? And more importantly - why?
No matter how much I thought, there was only one possible reason - he knows about my pregnancy.
Because if I was taken to the infirmary, the healers would have done their usual tests and checkups and would have discovered the pregnancy. And once word got out...
I closed my eyes and took a slow breath.
No rule at Silver Moon Academy said a pregnant student couldn’t continue their studies, but rules weren’t the problem. People were. Whispers. Judgnts. The isolation. The sha. I didn’t even know if I would have been allowed to continue my internship. My entire future would have been changed overnight.
But Rowan... he had protected . Without even asking.
A soft sound pulled from my thoughts as the door was pushed open.
"Rowan?" I called weakly, expecting him.
But it wasn’t him. It was... Oscar.
My entire body went still.
I blinked, thinking for a second that I was imagining him... but no, he was real. Very real. And the second his eyes landed on mine, he rushed forward like gravity itself was pulling him toward .
He was by my side in an instant, and wrapped his arms tightly around before I could even react.
His scent - so familiar, so intoxicating - surrounded . And his warmth, it wrapped around like a cocoon.
He held like he was afraid I would disappear. Like I was the most precious thing he had ever touched. His heart was racing against mine, and when I felt his lips brush the top of my head, sothing inside cracked.
"I’m sorry," he whispered. "I’m so, so sorry..." His voice was trembling, and sounded full of desperation.
I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing ca out. Was I dreaming?
"Oscar..." I managed softly, resting my palms against his chest and gently pushing him back so I could see his face.
He pulled away slowly, just far enough to et my gaze. And what I saw nearly brought tears to my eyes again.
His eyes were red-rimd, glistening with unshed tears. Pain. Guilt. Fear. They were all there.
"I was a coward," he said in a low and broken voice. "I hurt you. I didn’t listen to my wolf. I didn’t listen to you. I walked away when I should have held on tighter. I should have protected you, not pushed you away."
I swallowed hard. My chest was aching with every word he spoke.
"I didn’t-" he broke off, shaking his head. "That night, after you told us everything, I-I couldn’t handle it. I didn’t understand. I was confused, and scared, and selfish. And instead of talking to you, I pulled away. I acted like an idiot."
I stayed quiet and let him speak. I needed to hear this.
"And then Jasmine-" he winced at her na, "-she ca out of nowhere. I didn’t ask her to. I didn’t want her to. She threw herself at , and I swear to you, I didn’t touch her. I didn’t hug her back. I didn’t even speak to her before she did that."
My fingers curled into the blanket.
"I’m not getting engaged to her. Or anyone else. There’s no deal, no arrangent. I told River no. I told Jasmine no. Because I already have soone. I have you, Evaline. My mate. My only mate."
A sharp breath escaped , and his hand ca up to cradle my cheek.
"I was stupid," he whispered. "And I don’t expect you to forgive right away. I just... I need you to give a chance to prove that I can be better. That I will be better. For you."
His hand was trembling against my skin. "Let fix this," he said. "Please."
There was silence. A heavy, suffocating silence as I processed every word.
I had longed to hear this. For days, I had wished, cried, prayed for him to say these exact things. And now that he had...
There was one thing still unsaid.
One truth he hadn’t acknowledged yet.
I looked into his eyes, and searched his face. Then, slowly, very slowly, I asked the question.
"And the child I’m carrying..." I whispered, my voice so quiet it was barely more than a breath. "Are you ready to accept them too?"
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