Seraphine caught up to Jasmine just before her fingers could close the cafeteria door. The massive room stretched empty and silent under the low lights, every trace of the evening meal already cleared away.
This was the all-pack cafeteria, yet the private section tucked in the back remained reserved for leaders alone. Jasmine's hand had barely brushed the wood when Seraphine's palm shot out flat against it, holding the door open with firm insistence.
"Jasmine, we need to talk."
The quiet command cracked whatever thin shell of composure Jasmine still carried. Her knees buckled hard.
The full weight of everything she had done, the public rejection, the shattered bond, the love she could never claim, crashed down across her shoulders at once.
Her body folded toward the floor as if the ground itself had opened to swallow her. Seraphine moved faster than thought, catching her by both arms before she could collapse, and pulled her straight into a fierce, unyielding embrace.
