Jade
I couldn't focus.
Not during Literature. Not during the endless silence of Myth and Folklore. Not with Zade’s voice playing on repeat in my head like a curse I couldn't shake.
You’re mine.
There were only five of us in the class—silent, aloof, like shadows that didn’t want to be touched. No one talked. No one asked why my hands were shaking when I reached for my notebook. And I was glad for that.
As soon as class ended, I left. No small talk. No detours. Just straight back to my dorm, my footsteps echoing in the empty halls like a heartbeat too loud in the wrong place.
Now, I sat on my bed with my laptop balanced on my knees, staring blankly at the search bar as if it could somehow give me back my sanity. The soft hum of the dorm’s heater filled the quiet room, but it did nothing to calm the storm inside me.
Taking a deep breath, I typed the words slowly, feeling ridiculous even as I did it:
“Werewolf delusions symptoms.”
The results popped up instantly. My screen filled with articles, medical journals, and random forum posts that looked even more insane than I felt. Titles like “When Fantasy and Reality Blur: Clinical Lycanthropy” and “Signs You’re Suffering from Supernatural Delusions” blinked back at me.
I clicked through a few pages, skimming the text, desperate for some logical explanation that could wipe away the memory of what I had seen in Zade’s eyes. Something that could explain why his voice still echoed in my head, low and rough, claiming I was his.
None of it made me feel better. If anything, it made me feel worse.
Slamming the laptop shut, I pushed it aside and dropped my head into my hands. My fingers dug into my hair, trying to anchor me back to something real. I wasn’t crazy. I knew what I had seen. I knew what I had felt. And yet, every part of me screamed that none of it could possibly be real.
A soft knock at the door made me flinch. My heart jumped into my throat. I wasn’t expecting anyone, and part of me already knew who it had to be.
Pushing myself up with a sigh, I crossed the room and opened the door.
Zade stood there, just as calm and composed as if nothing out of the ordinary had ever happened between us. His dark eyes locked onto mine, and for a moment, neither of us spoke. The air between us grew thick and heavy with tension.
“Can I come in?” he asked, his voice low but steady.
I hesitated, but the part of me that had been searching for answers all night finally won. I stepped aside, letting him into my space, even though every nerve in my body buzzed with warning.
Zade walked into the center of the room, turning slowly to face me. His presence filled the small space, making it feel even smaller, even more intimate. I crossed my arms tightly over my chest, needing some kind of barrier between us.
“You think I’m insane,” he said, his tone almost casual, but I could hear the pain hidden underneath.
“You told me I’m yours,” I replied, my voice sharp with disbelief. “What was I supposed to think? That you’re just some intense guy who likes to scare girls in the woods?”
He didn’t smile. He didn’t even flinch. He just watched me with those dark, unreadable eyes.
“It’s not about scaring you,” he said. “It’s about telling you the truth, even if you don’t want to hear it.”
I shook my head, the denial rising up in me like a wave. “There’s no such thing as fated mates. There’s no such thing as werewolves. That stuff belongs in books and movies, not real life.”
“You felt it,” he said simply. “You know you did.”
I hated that he was right. I hated that every time he looked at me, something inside me shifted and stirred, something primal and unfamiliar. I hated that I couldn’t explain it away.
“You’re just intense,” I snapped, needing to push him back emotionally if not physically. “You’re the kind of guy who makes everything feel bigger than it is.”
Zade stepped closer, his movements slow, giving me plenty of time to back away if I wanted to. But I didn’t move. I couldn’t.
“The bond between us is real,” he said, his voice softer now. “It’s not something you can choose or ignore. It’s part of what we are.”
I let out a shaky laugh that sounded more like a sob. “I’m not part of anything. I’m just a girl who wanted to start over in a small town, not get dragged into some… some fantasy world where people shift into monsters.”
He frowned, and for the first time, a flicker of genuine sadness crossed his face. “We’re not monsters. We’re protectors. We’re family. And you… you’re meant to be part of it.”
The desperation in his voice scared me more than the idea of werewolves ever could. It wasn’t just a story for him. It was real. It was everything.
“I don’t believe you,” I whispered, even though the words tasted like a lie on my tongue.
Zade’s eyes darkened slightly, not with anger, but with a kind of heartbreaking acceptance. He took a deep breath, as if preparing himself for something painful.
“You need proof,” he said.
Before I could ask what he meant, Zade stepped away from the window, his jaw tight, his chest rising and falling like something inside him was fighting to stay caged.
Then… he closed his eyes.
I didn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. The air around us thickened, pulsed with something electric, ancient. Like the universe had just decided to stop pretending it was normal.
When he opened his eyes again, they weren’t human.
They glowed.
A deep, golden amber, burning, untamed, feral. The light in them flickered like wildfire, primal and endless, and it felt like it could see every inch of me. Not just my face. My soul.
I gasped and stumbled back, my spine hitting the wall behind me, hand flying out to steady myself.
My brain screamed, run.
But I didn’t.
Because somehow, in the middle of all that fear and disbelief, I felt… calm.
His body began to shift—bones cracking, reshaping. Clothes tearing. It should have been terrifying. It should have made me turn and bolt straight out the door. But it didn’t. It was hypnotic. Painful to watch, yes. But also beautiful.
His skin rippled and shimmered, limbs elongating, fur breaking through as his form melted down onto all fours. And then, where Zade had stood just moments ago… now stood a wolf.
Not just any wolf.
A stunning, silver-gray creature, larger than any normal wolf had a right to be. Muscles coiled beneath thick fur. His eyes—still glowing gold—locked onto mine.
And still, I didn’t run.
I should have been screaming. I should have been trembling. But my heart, traitorous and wild, recognized him. Even in this impossible form.
Right in front of me, where the wolf had stood just seconds ago, Zade now knelt on the dorm floor—bare chest heaving, jeans hanging low on his hips, his entire body slick with sweat and wildness. He didn’t even reach for clothes. He just looked at me, his eyes still glowing faintly in the low light.
My mouth went dry. I swallowed hard.
He was naked, or nearly. And yet that wasn’t the most jarring part.
“You saw it,” he said, breathless. “You believe me now.”
I blinked at him. My pulse roared in my ears. “What the hell are you?”
His lips parted like he wanted to explain, but I beat him to it.
“No—don’t. Don’t come near me. I don’t care what you are.” My voice cracked. “You’re a freak.”
The word came out before I could stop it.
Zade flinched like I’d hit him. His jaw tightened, but he didn’t move, didn’t even cover himself. “You don’t understand yet,” he said softly. “But we’re fated. I was made for you.”
I backed toward the door, my hand trembling on the knob. “Get out.”
He held my gaze for a moment longer, something unreadable in his expression. Then he nodded once, stood, and walked out of the room, barefoot, bare-chested, and silent as a ghost.