KAEL DRAVEN POV
I hadn't expected to find her so soon. Lycanridge University felt cavernous now, endless halls of stone and echo, a kingdom of whispered power plays and hidden allegiances. As the Alpha heir, I had walked these corridors since I could shift, but today something unfamiliar tugged at me. A phantom pulse, a reminder that what, or who, I thought I had left behind might still be here.
My steps carried me toward Dorm 13B, a wing reserved for Betas and scholarship students. I wasn't supposed to linger here, protocol dictated that I stick to my own territory, socialize with heirs and Elders' children, solidify the alliances my engagement to Celene Greyfang promised. But the fragments of a bond, old and raw, pulled me off course.
The door to 13B stood ajar. A faint light glowed within, spilling down the stone corridor in gentle arcs, I paused outside, listening.
Footsteps shuffled, a soft mutter of words I couldn't make out.
I pushed the door open just enough to peer inside.
She was there, Aria Valen, as unmistakable as the moon itself. Curled on the single window bench, her profile bathed in dawn light, shoulders hunched against an invisible weight. Her hair fell across her face, hiding the scars I knew too well. For a moment, I simply watched, heart hammering with regret.
Then he appeared, another boy, one of the quieter students I would pass every afternoon on my way to council lectures, Elias Crowe. He crouched beside her, hands resting lightly on her knees. He spoke quietly, his words lost in the soft rustle of dawn through ivy-laced windows. But I could see in her shoulders that his tone was gentle, that he offered comfort I once promised but never delivered.
A tumult of emotions crashed over me, guilt, longing, anger, pride.
I stepped into the room, and both of them jerked upright, eyes flicking to me. Aria's expression hardened, icy blue eyes cold as the winter moon. Elias stood slowly, folding his arms as if preparing to defend her.
"Kael," I said, voice measured. I closed the door behind me, earning a sharp glance from Elias. "I didn't mean to intrude."
Aria didn't answer. Instead, she folded her legs tighter, as though curling into herself might shield her from me. Elias took a half-step forward, but I raised a hand.
"I know what this looks like," I continued. "I wasn't coming here to speak with him. I…" My throat tightened, I hadn't rehearsed this. "I came for you."
Her laugh was bitter. "You came for me," she repeated, "or you came to gloat?"
I dropped my gaze. "Neither." I cleared my throat. "I came because I owe you an explanation."
Elias shifted, the wood floor creaking beneath him. "You don't owe her anything, Draven."
The title made my chest tighten. Here, I was more than just Kael, I was Kael Draven, the future Alpha, expected to carry my family's legacy on my shoulders. But Elias's words reminded me that despite titles and bloodlines, I was still just a man who had made a terrible mistake.
I fixed him with a steady look. "I owe her honesty."
Aria rose from the bench, the motion smooth, controlled, Luna's grace incarnate. She folded her arms, meeting my gaze head-on. For a heartbeat, we stood like that, two wolves sizing each other up, each wounded by the same betrayal.
"I don't need your apologies," she said finally. "I need you to stay away from me."
Her tone stung, but I nodded once. "Understood."
She opened her mouth to retort, but Elias cleared his throat. "Aria"
She cut him off with a sharp look. "Not now."
Her dismissal stung me more than her rejection ever did. Years of pride, years of training for this moment, reduced to a single look. But I didn't argue, I turned on my heel and moved toward the door.
"Wait," I heard her say.
I stopped, hand on the doorknob, and paused. She lowered her head, fighting something inside, I hesitated, the second her eyes flicked up, I put a hand on my chest, an unspoken plea.
"Why are you back?" she whispered, voice trembling.
I closed my eyes, gathering myself, she deserved the truth. "Because when I rejected you, I killed part of myself, and for three years I lived with that death."
Her eyes widened. Elias shifted beside her, offering a faint sign of solidarity.
She drew in a trembling breath. "You made me believe I was dead."
"I know," I said, voice low. "I believed it too. That act tore the bond, shattered everything, I convinced myself I was stronger without you, but stronger only meant less broken."
She leaned back, her face a mask of conflicted fury. I realized then how much I had underestimated her strength, and her pain.
"Why come here?" she pressed. "Why not leave me alone?"
I turned fully to face her, chest bare beneath my shirt, every instinct screaming to reach for her scar, to smooth it with my thumb. I forced my arm down.
"Because," I said carefully, "I found out you didn't die and I couldn't" I swallowed. "I couldn't accept that I contributed to your death, I needed to know you were alive."
Her eyes glistened, I detected the faintest tremor at the corners, the first crack in the ice.
Elias's voice broke the tension. "You have my word, Aria. I'll not let him hurt you again."
I shot Elias a look, both warning and gratitude. He held my gaze steadily, both of us recognizing that loyalty meant defending her, not competing for her favor.
She folded her arms again, head tilted slightly. "You want honesty," she said softly. "Fine, Kael Draven, you humiliated me in front of every member of the Moonshade Pack, you denied our bond like it was a lie."
I closed my eyes at the memory, her eyes molten with hope, then ice. "I was young," I confessed. "Blinded by ambition, I thought I could protect our pack better without a mate who" I paused, ashamed. "who wasn't ready."
Her lip curled. "You made up your mind for me."
I bowed my head. "I did and I'm sorry"
"Sorry, doesn't unmake the moment," she snapped.
"No," I agreed. "But I plan to start making amends."
Her laugh was hollow. "Amends?"
I squared my shoulders. "I know you don't want me near you but I'm going to prove to you that I understand how to be an Alpha. One who doesn't decide a mate's worth alone, one who listens."
She stared at me for a long moment, then she expelled a slow breath. "We'll see."
Her dismissal felt less harsh this time, I gave a curt nod and turned to leave.
Before I reached the door, Elias called softly, "Kael"
I paused and glanced back, Aria had stepped aside to let Elias speak.
Elias looked at me with solemn gray eyes. "Thank you"
I frowned. "For what?"
He gestured toward Aria. "For coming."
His words settled heavy in my chest, I nodded once.
Then I slipped through the door and closed it behind me, leaving two figures silhouetted in dawn light, the girl I once betrayed, and the boy who chose to stand by her side.
In the silent corridor, I closed my eyes and whispered into the empty air, "I will not fail you again." And for the first time in years, I meant it.