Chapter 46 Another glitch
Kai's POV
I heard footsteps in my dorm. I was the only student who lived in this wing so whoever was walking down that path must be looking for me. My senses were heightened and I immediately grabbed my table knife before heading to the door.
My door handle turned twice but it wouldn't budge because it was locked. Then her smell hit me quickly. I hurriedly opened up the door. Her eyes seemed puffy like she had been crying the whole walk over to my room.
I helped her step into my room. She hugged me gently, the way an egg is being taken care of. I helped her move towards the bed so she could settle down. No words were exchanged between us. I rubbed soothing circles around her back while I caressed the scalp of her hair.
"I think I'm okay now." She finally said.
I let her go in an attempt to give her space. She had used an unseen kerchief to wipe her face.
"I don't want to talk about what had happened." She said.
"Alright then... You could freshen up and change into one of my dress shirts then sleep." I simply said.
She nodded before standing up from the bed. I grabbed a book to read in order to conclude an assignment for a class tomorrow.
The bathroom door opened with a soft click and steam drifted out in a thin wave that carried her scent with it. Warm vanilla. A little citrus. A hint of something wild beneath the surface. Zara stepped out wearing one of my dress shirts. It reached mid thigh on her and the sleeves swallowed her wrists completely.
My throat tightened.
"You had my wash in there." She said.
Caught red-handed.
I scratched the back of my neck.
"I may have gotten them during my last shopping spree." I said nonchalantly, trying to avoid that conversation.
Her damp hair fell over her shoulders and a bead of water slid down her neck, disappearing into the open collar of the shirt. She tugged gently at the hem as though unsure of how she looked. She did not need to ask. My wolf answered for me. He pushed forward with a low rumble that vibrated in my chest.
She noticed.
Her eyes flicked up to mine. Slow. Curious. Bold.
“Is the shirt too big?” I asked, though that was not the question I really wanted to ask.
“It is comfortable,” she replied softly before walking toward the bed.
She sat on the edge, smoothing the fabric over her thighs. Her knees brushed mine. The room was suddenly smaller. Warmer. Louder.
I closed my book because I was not reading anymore. I was staring at her.
She drew one leg up onto the bed, tucking it under herself.
“You never told me what you like,” she said.
“About what?”
“Food. Colors. Things.” She shrugged lightly.
“I want to know the parts of you that are not tied to the academy.”
Her voice was calm but her eyes were searching. She wanted distraction. She wanted grounding. She wanted something human.
I pushed my chair closer to the bed.
“Alright. My favorite food is roasted goat meat. I like storms more than sunny days. And I like the color black because it reminds me of peace.”
She smiled a little.
“Black reminds you of peace?”
“It is quiet,” I said.
“It does not pretend to be anything. It just is.”
She hummed softly.
"Black reminds me of war." she shrugged.
“I like blue. The dangerous kind. The one you see before lightning strikes.”
Of course she did. She was lightning.
“What else?” I asked.
She hesitated before answering.
“I like sweet things. And soft blankets.
"And I like sleeping near someone who makes me feel safe.”
I felt that in my chest.
"So I make you feel safe?" I asked.
She just chuckled slightly.
“What about you becoming the general Alpha?” She asked quickly, changing the subject before that moment lasted too long.
“What does that look like?”
I leaned back slightly.
“I am supposed to lead. Protect the academy. Reinforce the boundary laws. Attend councils with the high court. Make decisions that could affect every pack.”
“And your Luna?” she asked, tilting her head.
My chest tightened.
“She stands beside me. She keeps me balanced. She challenges me. And she…” I trailed off.
“She anchors the wolves inside me.”
She raised a brow.
“And you already know who your Luna will be?”
“I might,” I answered slowly.
"Depends on whether she will be willing."
Zara laughed, light but nervous.
“You are joking.”
I chuckled softly to match her mood even though my wolf was not joking at all.
“Maybe I am.”
The air thickened again. Her eyes dropped to my lips. She noticed my breathing shift. I noticed hers. Something unspoken stretched between us, pulling tight until the room felt too small to hold it.
“Kai…” she whispered.
My restraint thinned dangerously.
I dragged a hand through my hair.
“We should run. Just to loosen some steam.”
Her eyes remained on mine for a moment before she nodded.
“Okay.”
We stepped out of the room and walked toward the dark field behind the dorm. The night air was cool against our heated skin. She turned away from me, letting her form shift. Bones cracked lightly as her body transformed, fur spreading along her back with a ripple.
Her wolves stood in front of me. Massive. Beautiful. Dangerous.
I shifted beside her, paws digging into the soil. The world sharpened instantly.
Scents. Sounds. Heartbeats. Her heartbeat.
She nudged my neck and took off into the woods.
I chased her.
We ran through the academy grounds, weaving between trees, splashing through shallow streams, racing beneath the moonlight until our lungs burned and our wolves were satisfied. She tackled me once. I tackled her back. We circled. Teased. Played like we were made from the same storm.
An hour later we padded back toward the dorm, exhausted but buzzing with adrenaline.
We shifted back inside my room. She was still breathing hard, hair wild, skin flushed. Sweat glistened on her shoulders and slid slowly down her spine. She wiped her forehead with the sleeve of the shirt and laughed breathlessly.
“That was… intense.”
“You are fast,” I murmured.
“Too fast.”
“I had motivation.”
“What motivation?” I asked.
She looked at me the way someone looks at a flame they know will burn them.
“You.”
The word hit me like an impact.
I moved before I thought. She met me halfway.
Our mouths collided in a kiss that was messy and desperate and real. I cupped the back of her neck while she grabbed my shirt and pulled me closer. Her breath mingled with mine. Her lips parted. She tasted like the night, like danger, like something I had been hungry for far too long.
She tasted like passionate sex.
She shivered when my hand slid down her waist. I pushed her gently onto the bed. She tugged me with her, fingers curling around my collar like she needed me pressed against her.
The kiss deepened. Her legs circled my waist.
My hands found her thighs, her hips, her back. She moaned softly against my mouth and that sound almost snapped my control in half.
I kissed down her jaw. Her throat. The spot below her ear that made her inhale sharply.
“Kai…” she whispered again, but this time it was not a warning.
It was an invitation.
I pulled back just enough to meet her eyes.
“Zara… tell me if you want to stop.”
Her fingers slid into my hair.
“I do not want to stop.”
"Fuck me Kai."
And just like that, everything burned.
The rest of the night moved like instinct. Like heat. Like destiny pulling us into each other until nothing else mattered. Clothes fell away. Restraints fell apart. She held me like she needed me. I touched her like she was the only thing keeping me sane.
The night stretched on, long and breathless and unforgettable.
And when sleep finally claimed us, she lay on my chest, breathing softly, her fingers curled lightly over my ribs.
Like she belonged there.
Like she had always belonged there.
But.... I glitched... Next thing, I heard a howl from outside my dorm.