I used to dream about this day.
My eighteenth birthday.
The day I would finally find my mate.
The day everything would make sense.
But as I stood at the edge of the training field, watching the other wolves celebrate under the pale glow of the moon, something inside me felt… off.
Wrong....
Like I didn't belong here.
"Still nothing?"
I didn't need to turn around to know who it was…..
Ethan…
I forced a small smile before facing him. "Not yet."
His eyes softened, the same way they always did when he looked at me. It used to make my heart race.
Now it just made me nervous.
"You're just a late bloomer," he said gently. "It'll happen."
I nodded, even though the whispers around me said otherwise.
Wolfless...
Useless...
Unwanted...
I had heard it all before...
"I meant what I said, you know," Ethan continued, stepping closer. "Even if you never awaken your wolf… I'll still choose you."
My chest tightened.
He had said that before. Many times.
And every time, I wanted to believe him.
Because Ethan wasn't just anyone.
He was my best friend.
The boy who held my hand when my parents died.
The one who promised me forever under a sky full of stars.
"Thank you," I whispered.
But something about tonight felt different…..
The air was heavier.
The moon… brighter.
Almost like it was watching me.
Waiting...
Then it happened.
A sharp pain tore through my chest.
I gasped, clutching at my shirt as my knees nearly gave out beneath me.
"What's wrong?" Ethan grabbed my arm…..
"I….I don't know…"
My heart pounded wildly, louder than anything I had ever felt before.
And then…..
A voice…..
Soft….
Feminine….
Echoing inside my head…..
Mine...
My breath hitched…..
No…..
No way…..
"My wolf…" I whispered in disbelief.
After all these years….
She was finally here.
Relief flooded through me so fast it almost made me dizzy.
I laughed…..actually laughed as tears filled my eyes.
"I have a wolf," I said, looking up at Ethan. "I finally have a wolf."
For a moment, he stared at me.
Then his expression changed.
Something dark flickered in his eyes.
Something I had never seen before.
And then the bond snapped into place.
Like a thread pulling tight between us…..
Unbreakable…..
Undeniable…..
Mate….
My heart soared.
"Ethan…" I breathed.
But he didn't look happy.
Not even a little.
Instead, his grip on my arm tightened…..
Too tight…..
And the next words he said shattered everything I thought I knew....
"I, Ethan Vale… reject you as my mate!!!"
The world went silent...…