?


    "We''ll all have to go," Lori said, tucking a strand of ck hair behind her ear. "Close out the semester on a good note."


    Lori''s words were bittersweet. Because unbeknownst to anyone, Enzo had an announcement to make. A big, huge, life-altering announcement. And it was bound to ruffle some feathers.


    We were silent for a few moments, staring out at the campus before us. I felt at peace for the first time in a long time. The Crescents hadn''t reared their heads in some time, the Luna was dead, and our beloved town of Mountainview was safe once more.


    But as I stared out at the athletic fields, I suddenly felt a pang in my chest.


    There was something-or maybe someone-standing by the edge of the forest, watching. It was almost as though they were.. beckoning to me. I felt as though I could make out their features, their ckened eyes, their grinning mouth. They wereing to hurt me. To take away my peace once more.


    "Nina?" Jessica''s voice broke through my reverie. "You disappear again?"


    I snapped back to reality, and blinked, realizing that what I had ''seen'' hadn''t been there at all. It was just a misshapen tree.


    "Um... I''m good," I said, forcing a weak smile.


    Lori and Jessica shot each other a concerned look. Jessica, putting her hand on my leg, said, "Nina, I think it''s time you talk to someone. You worry us sometimes."


    I pulled away, shaking my head. "I''m fine," I said. "And besides, it''s not like a therapist here would ever believe me about anything that happened."


    *So find someone in the werewolf realm," Lori chimed in. "Please, Nina. Sometimes, when you disappear like that, it looks like you''re not even in your body anymore."


    Lori was right, but I wasn''t ready to admit it. I was capable of handling my own trauma after everything that happened. No one no one could ever understand what I went through.


    "I should head out," I said, standing abruptly. "Enzo will be finished with practice soon."


    Lori and Jessica looked concerned, but neither of them said anything else.


    We bid our farewells, and I made my way to the hockey arena. I could already hear the distant tter of sticks against the ice. When I stepped inside, a st of cold air greeted me. The rink was alive with movement, each yer a blur of color.


    My eyes sought out Enzo, his familiar stance, the way hemanded the puck. And then there he was, gracefully skating across the rink, a force to be reckoned with.


    The hockey rink was always cold, but the shivers I felt weren''t just from the temperature. They were from watching Enzo on the ice. His every move was a symphony of raw power and grace. His muscles, taut and pronounced beneath the uniform, contracted and rxed with every stride, every swing of the stick. It was mesmerizing, almost otherworldly in its beauty.


    Errant curls of his brown hair peeked out from beneath his helmet, catching hints of the overhead lights. The vibrant chestnut waves were often a point of teasing amongst his teammates, but to me, they were a marker of the man I had fallen so deeply in love with. His eyes, a piercing shade of brown, always seemed to find mine, even from across the ice. They would shine with mischief, challenge, and sometimes, if I was lucky, a bit of the love he reserved just for me. Those eyes spoke volumes, revealing depths of a soul that had lived longer than any human''s.


    Every time he dashed across the rink, I was reminded of our shared secret. Enzo''s supernatural speed and agility weren''t just the results of rigorous training-they were gifts of our werewolf lineage. The same lineage that had drawn us inexplicably together.


    I never envisioned falling for someone like Enzo, not only a popr hockey yer and a ''bad boy, but also a... werewolf. And I especially never imagined that I would be a werewolf too, and that this hockey yer ''bad boy'' would be my fated mate.


    The universe sure has a peculiar way of making things fall into ce, doesn''t it?


    I leaned against the cool barrier, my heart swelling with pride and love as I watched him practice. Werewolves or not, we had found each other in the vast tapestry of life. And nothing could ever tear us apart.


    As the yers finished up, Enzo nced towards the stands, his gaze locking onto mine. A grin spread across his face, and he skated closer.


    Skating to the edge where the fence separated us, he leaned forward, a yful glint in his eyes. Our lips met briefly, a promise of more moments toe.


    "You ready for tonight?" I asked, my breath forming a small mist against the cold.This content ? N?v/elDr(a)m/a.Org.


    He gave a nod, the confidence evident in his posture. "Always am."


    My eyes searched his, and a quiet understanding passed between us. It was a conversation we had been skirting for days.


    "Have you told the team about your decision?"