12
Kael.
Humans aren't supposed to get under my skin. They break too easily, they talk too much, and most of them are gone before I've bothered to remember their names. But Adrian Elowen? He's turning into the one exception I wish I could ignore.
When I woke that morning, the first thing I saw was him sitting on the edge of his bed, lacing his boots with the kind of focus you'd expect from someone preparing for a duel, not breakfast. Lucien was already up, of course, flipping through some book with those slow, measured page turns that make you want to rip it out of his hands. Rowan was sprawled sideways, one leg hanging off the bed like he'd fought a war in his sleep.
I pulled on my shirt and didn't think much about the day until we hit the dining hall. That's when I saw them.
Elias. Sitting across from Elowen like it was the most natural thing in the world.
I slowed halfway to our usual table, just long enough to catch the way Elowen's shoulders were a little less tense, the way there was an actual curve small, but there, at the corner of his mouth. I've never seen him look like that with anyone here.
Lucien brushed past me. "Are you coming, or are you going to stand here and glare all morning?"
I sat down at our table, but my eyes stayed fixed across the room. Elias was leaning forward slightly, talking in that low, easy tone he uses when he's pretending to be harmless. Elowen said something back, and Elias grinned. It hit me harder than I wanted to admit.
Halfway through my bread roll, Rowan followed my gaze and smirked. "Jealous, wolf?"
"Eat your food," I muttered.
He laughed like he knew exactly what I wasn't saying.
When Elowen and Elias finally left together, some part of me wanted to get up and follow. Not because I cared, at least that's what I told myself, but because Elias Blackwell doesn't just take an interest in people without a reason. And whatever that reason is, I don't like it.
Training didn't help my mood. The instructors decided today was the perfect day for endurance drills, which meant running laps around the field until half the humans were ready to collapse. Elowen kept up better than I expected, though his face was pale and his breathing was too fast by the end. When we moved to sparring, fate, or the instructors, paired me with him.
I told myself I'd keep it light, but the second he blocked one of my swings, my competitive streak kicked in. I pressed harder and faster, testing how far I could push before he broke. He didn't break. Not completely. But when he stumbled, Elias was suddenly at the edge of the ring, watching with that calm, assessing look.
I landed one more hit than I needed to, just to remind everyone, including him, who Elowen was up against.
After drills, I caught Elowen's arm before he could walk off with Elias. "You need to keep your guard higher," I said.
He gave me a flat look. "I was fine."
"You were slow."
"And you were trying to prove something."
I opened my mouth, then shut it again. "Just watch yourself."
He pulled free and walked toward Elias without looking back.
Classes weren't much better. Lucien was in one of his moods, correcting everyone like he was the only person who'd ever read a book. Rowan kept flicking bits of paper at me from two rows back. But what really had me on edge was how, every time I glanced toward the back of the room, Elias and Elowen were bent over the same notes, talking quietly like they had their own language.
By the time we hit lunch, I was wound so tight I nearly snapped at Rowan for breathing too loud.
And of course, Elias found him again. Same table. Same leaning posture. Same easy conversation. I took the seat directly across from them without asking, planting my elbows on the table.
Elias didn't even blink. "Kael."
"Blackwell." I let my eyes drift to Elowen. "Thought you'd be tired after this morning."
"I'm fine," he said, voice clipped.
"Good," I said, tearing into a piece of bread like it was the other guy's throat.
The silence stretched until Elias chuckled under his breath and went back to his food. I stayed until they both left, and if that meant I skipped my next class to shadow their path through the courtyard, that was my business.
I told myself it was strategy. Wolves keep an eye on what's theirs, and our dorm is my territory. If Elias thinks he can waltz in and start pulling pieces off the board, he's got another thing coming.
The day dragged after that. More drills, more glances I didn't mean to send Elowen's way, more of Lucien's silent, knowing stares. By the time we got back to the dorm, the tension was thick enough to chew.
Lucien set up at his desk again. Rowan flopped on his bed, coin in hand. Elias hadn't come back yet. Elowen was by the window, reading in the last scraps of daylight. I didn't bother pretending not to notice how the light caught the strands of his hair or how he chewed the inside of his cheek when he was focused.
When the lamps dimmed and the room settled into quiet, I lay back on my bed, eyes closed but senses wide open. I could hear Elowen shift under his blanket, could tell by his breathing when he started to drift toward sleep. Every small noise from the hall; the creak of the floorboards, the faint echo of laughter, had my muscles tensing.
If anyone came in here with bad intentions, I'd be up before they crossed the threshold. Not for the dorm's sake. For his.
I told myself it was just instinct. Just protecting the pack, even if he wasn't really part of it. But I knew better.
And if I stayed awake longer than I needed to, listening to his steady breathing and telli ng myself it meant he was safe… well, that was my problem to figure out.