Maria.

The moment his lips brushed against mine, everything inside me stuttered, thoughts, breath, time itself. It was as if the world narrowed to that single point of contact, soft yet overwhelming. I had been crying moments before, my chest tight, tears spilling freely down my cheeks, but the instant he kissed me, the warmth of his mouth stole the ache away. The tears didn’t stop because I chose to be strong; they stopped because, for one brief, confusing moment, I forgot why I was hurting at all.

His tongue pressed gently at first, then deeper, sliding against mine with an urgency that felt like searching, like he was trying to pull something from me, or maybe give something he couldn’t put into words. I knew, distantly, that I should push him away. I knew this wasn’t right, that this wasn’t something I should allow. Yet my body refused to react. I didn’t kiss him back, but I didn’t resist either. I stood there, frozen and hollow, neither surrendering nor fighting, simply allowing him to explore my mouth while my mind lagged somewhere far behind.

Everything felt muted, unreal, like I was watching myself from the outside. The world faded into a dull hum, my heartbeat loud in my ears, my hands hanging uselessly by my sides. I was still trapped in that strange, suspended moment when suddenly the air shifted, sharp, violent, jarring.

Rough hands grabbed me and yanked me backward. I gasped, stumbling as the spell shattered instantly. My eyes flew open properly then, panic flooding in as reality slammed back into place. I barely had time to process what was happening before I saw it, the flash of movement, the blur of bodies colliding, the sound of flesh meeting flesh.

And then I saw the blood.

It was smeared at the corner of Noah’s mouth, bright and unmistakable. My heart lurched painfully as the truth finally settled in.

They were fighting.

Darren stood between us like a storm unleashed, his chest heaving, his eyes wild with a fury I had never seen so naked before. Another blow landed, raw and fueled by rage, and the sound echoed louder than my own heartbeat.

"How dare you kiss my mate!" Darren roared.

The word mate struck me harder than any fist ever could. It tore through me, sharp and wrong and suffocating. My head snapped toward him, disbelief burning through the fear.

What the hell was wrong with him?

What gave him the right to say that, to claim me like that?

Before I could think, before I could stop myself, a scream ripped out of my throat. "Stooooooooop!" My voice cracked under the strain as I clamped my hands over my ears, as if blocking out the sound could somehow make it all disappear. "Stop! Please, stop!"

The shouting, the movement, the violence, it was too much. My chest burned, my vision blurring as I shook my head frantically. I couldn’t watch them destroy each other over something I never asked for.

I turned toward Darren then, my hands dropping from my ears as I fixed him with a look that came straight from my breaking heart. "I am not your mate, Darren," I said, my voice trembling but resolute. Every word felt like glass cutting my throat. "You are married to my sister."

The color drained from his face instantly, the rage faltering, replaced by something raw and desperate. He took a step toward me, his voice lowering as if pleading could undo what he had already done. "But Maria..."

"No buts," I cut him off sharply, tears shimmering in my eyes but refusing to fall. I couldn’t let myself break here, not now. "Don’t say anything else."

Silence stretched painfully between us, thick and heavy with everything unsaid. I didn’t wait for him to respond. I couldn’t. If I stayed one more second, I knew I would crumble.

I turned away from Darren and reached for Noah’s hand. My fingers trembled as I wrapped them around his, grounding myself in the solid warmth of his grip. Without looking back, without sparing Darren even a final glance, I pulled Noah with me, guiding him out of the chaos, out of the suffocating tension, out of a moment that should never have happened.

Behind me, I could feel Darren’s presence like an open wound, burning, aching, unresolved. But I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.

I walked away, leaving him standing there alone, with nothing but the consequences of his own words echoing in the air.

The moment we reached a quieter place, away from the noise and chaos we had left behind, my feet came to an abrupt stop. The silence pressed in around us, heavy and unfamiliar after everything that had just happened. Before I could even think, my hands were already moving. I reached up and raised his face instantly, my fingers firm but gentle as concern crawled beneath my skin, sharp and restless.

"Are you okay?" I asked, my voice barely above a breath.

My eyes scanned his face carefully, lingering where Darren’s fist had connected, then moving slowly, too slowly, over every inch of him. I searched for swelling, for blood, for any sign I might have missed in the heat of the moment. My heart thudded unevenly as I traced the faint redness along his jaw, then his lips, then lower, making sure there were no hidden injuries.

Noah didn’t answer.

Instead, color bloomed across his cheeks, slow and unmistakable. He looked almost caught off guard, his eyes softening as if he wasn’t used to being looked at like this, like he mattered, like someone cared enough to check.

The realization hit me all at once.

I dropped my hands immediately, pulling back as though I had touched something forbidden. I took a small step away, creating distance between us, my pulse suddenly too loud in my ears. But before the space could settle, Noah stepped forward, closing the gap just as quickly.

His hands found my waist, warm and sure, fingers curling lightly into the fabric of my clothes. I sucked in a sharp breath, startled by the contact, my body stiffening even as my heart betrayed me.

"It hurts, Maria," he said, his voice lower now, softer.

Then he pouted.

Actually pouted, his lips pushing forward in a way that was so childish it almost made me laugh despite myself. "Why don’t you help me take care of my wound like you did when we were in school?"

The words cracked something open inside me.

A smile tugged at my lips instantly, gentle and unguarded before I could stop it. Memories flooded in without permission, vivid and warm, wrapping around my chest like an old blanket.

I remembered the Academy, the long hallways, the sharp stares, the whispers that followed me wherever I went. I remembered Noah when he first arrived, awkward and clumsy, always tripping over his own feet, his books spilling everywhere like he didn’t quite fit into his own body yet. People laughed at him, mocked him behind his back, though never too loudly. He was an Alpha breed after all, different rules applied to him.

Still, he was alone.

And so was I.

But for different reasons.

Everyone adored my sister. She was perfect in their eyes, beautiful, strong, worthy of praise. Standing beside her, I was invisible at best, a target at worst. The bullying was subtle but constant, a slow erosion that made me feel small, unwanted.

Noah never treated me like that.

I was always with him, not because I was brave, not because I wanted to play savior, but because I didn’t have a friend either. Somewhere along the way, sitting beside him in empty classrooms, cleaning his scraped knees, pressing tissues to his split lip after another accident, he stopped being just someone like me.

He became Noah.

Different, familiar and safe.

Everything was going on well until he confessed his feelings for me.

The memory tightened my chest, pulling me out of the present for a heartbeat too long.

Suddenly, his hands tightened around mine, fingers lacing together, firm enough to bring me back. I blinked, startled, my gaze snapping up to meet his.

"Come on, Maria," he said, tilting his head slightly, that same soft pout still in place. "I’m in pain."

The drama in his voice was obvious, exaggerated even, but it worked. It always had.

A light chuckle escaped me before I could stop it, the sound surprising even myself. I shook my head slowly, resignation melting into fondness as I squeezed his hands in return.

"You’re unbelievable," I murmured, though there was no real complaint in my tone.

Still smiling, I allowed him to tug me forward, my steps falling into rhythm behind his. As I followed him through the quiet path, something in my chest loosened, just a little. The weight of what had happened didn’t disappear, but it faded into the background, replaced by something softer.

Something familiar.

And for the first time since everything had gone wrong, I didn’t feel completely alone.