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Chapter 118
~Valerie’s POV~
I didn’t answer Dristan, nor apologise, explain, or make excuses.
I just walked past.
But my heart pounded so loud I couldn’t ignore it—not even after he was gone.
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~Dristan’s POV~
Ever since I’d watched Valerie disappear down that path without a word, I hadn’t been able to settle.
Not once.
I paced the length of my room for the tenth ti that hour, the wood creaking under my bare feet. The air felt heavy, too thick, like I was choking on silence.
I hadn’t even bothered with a full shirt—just joggers and a sleeveless black singlet clung to my skin, sweat clinging to my neck, but I didn’t stop moving.
Am I not doing enough?
The question echoed again and again, and I hated that I didn’t have an answer. I’d shown her my interest.
I’d spoken—not just hinted, not like so of the others. I’d told her what I felt, declared it. Loudly. In front of others.
And still... she walked away.
My fingers clenched behind my back as I stopped and stared out the window, jaw grinding tight.
"Just do what is needed and claim her already," Soren growled in my head. "Mark her as yours. Accept her."
I didn’t respond right away. My eyes tracked the clouds outside, moving fast like my thoughts.
"Not so easy. I have my father’s eyes on ."
Soren groaned, loud and dramatic. "You didn’t think about that before declaring openly that you ca for her?"
"I..." I shut my eyes, frustrated. "The others were already circling her like hawks. I couldn’t just sit back."
"It may not be what you need to fight, Dristan." Soren’s voice dropped lower, more serious. "Ever consider the fact that you were all given to her for a reason?"
My heart kicked once.
"So you want to share?"
"Will you kill the other Alpha heirs to be with Valerie alone? What about the Lycans?"
His words struck deep. I said nothing, because for the first ti, I didn’t know what I’d do.
"Exactly." Soren’s voice echoed in the silence. "So think, before you lose her entirely."
A knock at the door broke my thoughts. I shifted, inhaling. Kai.
"Co in," I said flatly.
Kai stepped inside, hands in his jean pockets. His black shirt was open, sleeves rolled up like he hadn’t even bothered to dress properly. His hair was wind-tossed, but his expression was sharper than usual.
I wasn’t expecting to see him here to be honest
"You look like hell," he said without preamble.
I didn’t respond. He walked in anyway.
"What do you want?"
"Nothing major," Kai replied, shrugging. "I was thinking of heading out. Patrol or sothing."
"Not interested," I cut in.
He waited a beat. "I ant the club. Blow off steam. Kaiser’s a wreck."
My brow lifted. "What happened to him?"
Kai scoffed, rubbing a hand through his hair. "Valerie happened, D. You’re not the only one struggling. I know you want her. She’s your mate too. And if this were a normal world, I’d probably back off for you. But she’s my mate too."
I didn’t answer at first. My hands stayed buried in my pockets, shoulders tight. I thought I was the only one spiraling over her, but clearly not. The bond didn’t just pull at —it was dragging all of us down.
I scoffed. "It’s funny. We’re like this over a girl who was ready to cut us all off."
"She was overwheld," Kai said quickly, defending her without hesitation.
"I know," I said quietly. "But still."
"So what are you saying?" Kai asked. "That you’re done?"
"I never said that." I t his gaze. "I’m not waiting for a chance. I’ll take one."
Kai nodded slowly.
"Speaking of which," I continued. "Do you have Valerie’s number? Her chat line?"
Kai opened his mouth, then hesitated. "You... don’t have it?"
"Do you?" I asked.
He scratched the back of his head. "Dude... no. I don’t."
A new voice cut in from the side.
"I don’t either."
We both turned to find Axel standing there, arms crossed, leaning on the doorfra.
"Seriously?" Kai asked. "Even you don’t have it?"
Axel shrugged. "We see her so often, I didn’t think I needed it."
I stared at him. "None of us thought to get it? Seriously?"
"Wait... only one person might have it," Kai said.
Dristan and Axel said it at the sa ti: "Xade."
They stord down the hall together, fast and determined.
When they reached his room and found it empty, Kai frowned. "He’s not in. But I sense him... gym."
Of course.
They made their way to the training hall, where the sound of punching bags and grunts echoed down the corridor. Xade was at the far end, shirt off, muscles flexing as he worked through a set of brutal punches.
He stopped mid-motion when he saw them approaching. He picked up his water bottle, took a long drink, then gave them a suspicious once-over.
"What?" he asked. "Did the cat get your tongues?"
He raked a hand through his sweaty hair and leaned back on the bench.
Kai was first to speak. "We need Valerie’s number."
Xade blinked. "What happened to her?"
"Nothing," I replied. "We just need her number."
Xade snorted, putting a hand to his chest. "What, and none of you have it?"
We all stared.
Xade arched a brow, then grimaced. "Okay yeah. That’s... that’s bad. But no, I don’t have it either."
"What?" we all said at once.
"I didn’t bother. We see her so much, I figured—" He stopped. "Yeah, that was stupid."
"Very," I snapped. "Especially considering the Lycans beat us to it. I saw her texting Ash. And it wasn’t just friendly, either."
They all stiffened at that.
Kai growled under his breath.
"Relax," I muttered. "Losing our heads over it will only make it worse. We look like jealous amateurs."
"So what do we do then?" Axel asked.
"I’ll call my brother," Xade said quickly. "He can dig into her student file or sothing."
"I’ll try Isla," I added.
"Good," Kai nodded. "Let’s get to it."
anwhile...
Isla was lounging on her bed, phone in hand, scrolling through a feed she wasn’t really paying attention to. The late afternoon sun filtered through her curtains, casting lazy gold across her walls.
Her phone buzzed.
She blinked at the screen. Dristan.
She sat up straighter. He never called unless it was important.
Just as she reached to answer, a hand shot over her shoulder and plucked the phone from her grasp.
She turned with a gasp. "Val—!"
Valerie answered the call herself.
"Hello, Isla. I need your help," Dristan’s voice ca through, low and straight to the point.
Valerie didn’t miss a beat. "No."
There was silence on the other end.
Then a clipped, "Send Valerie’s number."
"No," she snapped and ended the call without hesitation.
Isla stared. "Val—what the hell? You could’ve at least asked before answering my call," Isla snapped.
"I did you a favour," Valerie replied coolly. "He doesn’t deserve my number."
Isla smiled subtly. "Val, co on. He’s trying."
"Now," she said, turning, her voice sharper. "He’s trying now. After Ash made a move. After he saw texting soone else. That’s not love, Isla. That’s just territory."
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