Oscar:
I never understood why people enjoyed such events. The lights, the music, the polite chatter that was neither honest nor interesting... it all made my skin crawl.
The ballroom glead with golden chandeliers and mirrored walls, the orchestra playing a soft waltz in the background, the scent of polished wood, perfu, and wine blending into sothing that felt suffocating.
I stood near one of the tall columns, with a glass of sothing fizzy in hand that I hadn’t touched in ten minutes, and smiling politely at the group of instructors gathered around . They were talking about sothing or other... but my attention had long since drifted. My mind was elsewhere.
To be more specific, it was near the ballroom entrance.
Every few seconds, my gaze flicked toward those double doors. I did it subtly, of course, but not subtly enough to fool anyone who might have been watching closely.
Draven was nowhere to be seen... not surprising, since my younger brother usually arrived fashionably late. Kieran, on the other hand, stood across the hall, deep in conversation with Alpha Raine and Alpha Morgan. As headmaster, it was his duty to entertain the chief guests, and I knew better than to hope my older brother would co rescue from the tedium of small talk.
Still, that didn’t stop from silently begging for it.
I nodded absently to a comnt from Professor Halloway, pretending to listen while my eyes again darted toward the entrance. Nothing. No trace of her.
My jaw tightened.
Where was she?
I had been waiting since I stepped inside the ballroom about fifteen minutes ago. Waiting for that one mont... when she would walk through the doors and my world would just... stop.
I didn’t even bother lying to myself about it anymore. She had that effect on . She always had.
A light tap on my shoulder pulled out of my thoughts.
"Waiting for soone, Instructor Thorne?"
I turned and found Professor Varys studying with a knowing smile. The older man’s sharp eyes missed nothing, apparently... not even my not-so-subtle glances toward the door.
"Hmm?" I played it off smoothly, giving the man a cool, polite smile. "Just wondering when the students will finally start arriving so this whole thing can begin."
Professor Varys chuckled. "And end, I assu?"
I allowed myself a wry smirk. "You know too well, Professor."
"Indeed I do." The man’s laughter was low and knowing. "You have never been one for social gatherings. Though I must admit, you look like you would rather be anywhere but here."
"You are not wrong," I replied dryly.
Before Varys could respond, a new voice interrupted us.
"Instructor Thorne," ca the calm tone of Instructor Corey. "If I may steal you for a mont. We need to finalize the dispatch orders for the warriors during the break."
I almost sighed aloud but managed to school my features. "Of course."
The conversation was all duty - numbers, locations, patrol schedules, the upcoming security arrangents for the holidays. My responses were crisp, efficient, and detached, as always. But even as I spoke, sothing inside stirred.
A quiet, familiar pull.
I felt her before I saw her.
It was always like that. A subtle shift in the air, a flutter deep in my chest, a sudden awareness that belonged only to her.
I turned my head slowly toward the entrance just as the grand doors of the ballroom were pushed open.
A small group of students stepped inside, laughing softly, the sound swallowed by the music. But my gaze didn’t linger on any of them... only her.
Evaline.
And Moon Goddess help , she was breathtaking.
For a mont, I forgot how to breathe.
She wore black. A sleek, off-shoulder gown that clung to her like a shadow carved from moonlight. The fabric shimred faintly with every step she took, flowing effortlessly around her legs until the high slit revealed a glimpse of pale skin, smooth and flawless beneath the soft glow of the chandeliers. The neckline dipped just enough to be daring, balanced by the long line of her neck and the elegant curve of her shoulders.
Her hair - those silvery curls she had styled this morning - was now swept to one side, cascading like liquid starlight down her back. And speaking of her back... the gown’s dangerously low cut revealed far too much for my sanity. The contrast between her pale skin and the dark fabric drew every eye in the hall, mine included.
I swallowed hard.
Her makeup was subtle - just a sweep of eyeliner, a whisper of shimr around her eyes, and lips painted the faintest shade of rose. But it was her eyes that killed . The warm amber of them reflected the lights, calm yet alive, confident yet unguarded.
My mate.
Every instinct in scread to move, to cross the distance between us, to pull her into my arms, to remind her and everyone else in this cursed room who she truly belonged to.
But I couldn’t.
I couldn’t ruin the illusion.
Because to everyone else, she wasn’t mine.
She was Draven’s.
The thought barely ford when my younger brother appeared, erging from the crowd like the devil himself. Draven’s stride was unhurried, confident, but the look in his eyes when he saw her was enough to tell that my brother was just as undone as I was.
Draven didn’t hold back.
Within seconds, he reached her, his hand sliding around her waist in a way that made my chest tighten painfully. The entire hall turned to look, whispers rising imdiately - half awe, half envy. And Draven, damn him, looked proud of it. Proud of her. Proud that everyone knew she was with him.
My grip on my glass tightened, my knuckles whitening.
I wasn’t angry at Draven - not truly. I couldn’t be. My brother was just playing the part the world expected him to. Protecting her in his own way.
But still, it bothered .
Because while Draven was allowed to touch her, allowed to look at her like that, allowed to show the world what was his... I had to stand in the shadows, silent. Watching.
I saw the way the other n looked at her too - the hunger, the awe, the admiration. Every last one of them. I could almost read their thoughts, their wandering eyes, and each one ignited sothing possessive and primal inside .
I wanted to break every single gaze.
To make them look away.
To remind them she wasn’t for them to admire.
My restraint hung by a thread.
"Beautiful, isn’t she?" ca a voice beside .
I turned slightly. Professor Aldric had appeared, watching the sa scene with a smile.
"Draven and Evaline," the professor continued, shaking his head in mild amusent. "They look quite good together, don’t they?"
I forced my lips into a smile. "They really do."
Aldric nodded, seemingly unaware of the storm brewing behind my calm eyes. "Young love. It’s refreshing to see among all the politics and pressure."
I humd in response.
I was happy for Draven... truly. But that didn’t stop the ache. The longing. The silent yearning to hear soone say ’you and Evaline look good together’.
I wanted to see her laugh with like that in public. To be the one she smiled at across the room. To have her look at the way she was looking at Draven now.
A low exhale slipped past my lips, quiet and controlled. I lifted his glass and took a slow sip, more for the sake of having sothing to do than any real thirst.
Then, across the room, movent caught my eye.
Kieran.
He stood near the Alphas, his expression unreadable as ever. But I knew him too well. I could see it - the faint tightness in Kieran’s jaw, the flicker of emotion he couldn’t quite hide. His gaze was fixed on her too.
For once, the sight didn’t make feel so alone in my misery.
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