Chapter 95
Jackson's POV
The glow from my iPad cast a blue-white light across the pages of Gray's Anatomy spread open on my desk. My Apple Pencil traced the intricate pathways of the nervous system on the 3D model rotating on screen—specifically the brachial plexus, which would definitely show up on next week's exam.
C5, C6, C7, C8, T1, I mentally catalogued the nerve roots, making notes about their branches. Professor Chen had emphasized understanding the clinical correlations—what happened when each nerve was damaged, which muscles would be affected.
My mind wandered briefly to dinner at the restaurant. Ellie thanking me for "always being there." The way her amber eyes had caught the candlelight when she'd looked up at me. The slight tremor in her voice when she'd said my name.
Focus, I told myself firmly. Anatomy exam. Medical school. Priorities.
The brachial plexus diagram blurred slightly. I blinked, refocusing on the screen, but my thoughts kept drifting back to her expression when I'd helped resolve Megan's situation. Gratitude, yes, but also something warmer. Something that made my wolf—usually so controlled, so carefully suppressed—stir with possessive satisfaction.
I was deep into memorizing the branches of the radial nerve when my door exploded open.
The sudden movement made me jerk forward, my Apple Pencil skittering across the screen and leaving a jagged line through my carefully annotated diagram. Before I could react, hands grabbed my shoulders from behind, shaking me with enough force to make my vision swim.
"Jackson! Dude! I did it!"
Ryan's voice boomed directly into my ear, his enthusiasm so overwhelming that he literally shook me like a rag doll. My chair rocked dangerously on its wheels. The iPad started sliding toward the edge of my desk.
"Ryan—" I managed to get out, trying to steady myself. "Don't—"
Another vigorous shake. My stomach lurched. The room spun slightly—or maybe that was just my equilibrium protesting the treatment.
"I'm officially dating Lily! We're together!"
"Ryan, please stop shaking me." I gripped the edge of my desk, trying to anchor myself. "I'm getting dizzy."
He completely ignored my plea, continuing his victory shake with renewed enthusiasm. "Can you believe it? She said yes! We're actually dating!"
"Congratulations, seriously," I said, my words coming out slightly breathless from the continued jostling. "But could you maybe let me maintain my balance first?"
Finally—finally—Ryan released my shoulders. I slumped forward, catching my breath, then turned in my chair to face my roommate. He was practically bouncing on his feet, his whole face lit up with joy. His phone was clutched in one hand, the screen showing what looked like a message thread with heart emojis.
"Sorry, sorry." Ryan didn't sound particularly sorry. He was too busy grinning like he'd just won the lottery. "But dude, I had to tell someone. Look!" He shoved his phone in my face. "She called me 'boyfriend'!"
I squinted at the screen, trying to focus on the message while my vision was still slightly spinning. Sure enough, Lily's last text read: "Goodnight, boyfriend"
A genuine smile spread across my face despite my dizziness. "That's great, Ryan. Really. Lily's amazing."
"Right?" Ryan started pacing around our room, too energized to stand still. "We walked to the student center after dinner—it was snowing, which was perfect, you know? And we got hot chocolate, and she was laughing at my dumb jokes, and then when we were walking back, she just... she reached for my hand first. She reached for my hand."
He said it with such wonder, like it was the most miraculous thing that had ever happened. Which, for Ryan, it probably was.
"And then at her dorm entrance," Ryan continued, spinning around to face me, "I finally asked her properly. Like, officially. 'Will you be my girlfriend?' And she said yes without even hesitating!"
I rubbed my temples, trying to make the room stop tilting. "I'm happy for you. Lily's... she's one of the good ones."
Even as I said it, a small knot of envy formed in my chest. Not jealousy exactly—I was genuinely thrilled for Ryan. But watching him describe these simple, perfect moments with Lily made me think about my own situation with Ellie. How every interaction felt loaded with unspoken complications. How I couldn't just reach for her hand without worrying about pack politics, family expectations, the weight of what claiming her might mean.
"You know what the best part is?" Ryan dropped onto his bed, still grinning. "She didn't play games. No 'I need to think about it' or 'let's take it slow' stuff. Just... yes. Immediate yes. Like she was waiting for me to ask."
"Maybe she was," I suggested, turning back to my desk to salvage my iPad. The wayward line across my diagram looked like a lightning bolt now. I'd have to redraw this section.
"Man, I was so nervous." Ryan flopped backward on his bed, staring at the ceiling. "My hands were literally shaking when I asked her. But she just smiled and said yes, and then she kissed my cheek, and—" He broke off, his face turning slightly red. "Sorry, I'm rambling."
"You're allowed to ramble when you're this happy," I assured him, attempting to fix my diagram. But Ryan's joy was infectious, and I found myself smiling despite my ruined annotations.
Ryan propped himself up on his elbows, studying me. "You know what your problem is?"
I glanced over my shoulder. "I have a problem?"
"Yeah." Ryan sat up fully, his expression turning analytical. "You're completely oblivious when it comes to romance. Like, aggressively oblivious."
I frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I mean—" Ryan stood up, walking over to lean against my desk. "No wonder you've been chasing Ellie forever without making any real progress. You just don't pick up on the signals."
My stomach dropped. "I'm not—I haven't been chasing anyone."
"Bull." Ryan crossed his arms. "Don't even try that with me. The whole dorm has noticed how you look at her."
Heat crept up my neck. "How I look at her?"
"Like she's not just another person," Ryan said matter-of-factly. "Like she's... I don't know, special. Different. The way you look at her is completely different from how you look at, say, your anatomy textbook."
I opened my mouth to deny it, then closed it again. Was I really that obvious?
"She thinks I'm just a friend," I said quietly, turning back to my iPad. "That's what matters."
"That's exactly what I'm talking about!" Ryan threw his hands up in exasperation. "You just... accept it. You don't try to change her mind, you don't make a move, you just stay in the friend zone like it's a comfortable apartment you've decided to rent long-term."
"It's not that simple—"
"It literally is that simple." Ryan sat on the edge of my desk, forcing me to look at him. "You like her. Tell her. Ask her out. Do something besides hovering around being mysteriously helpful all the time."
I was quiet for a moment, actually considering his words. The thing was, Ryan didn't know about the pack complications. Didn't know that Ellie was a wolf too, that there were family dynamics and territorial politics involved.
But... did any of that really matter? Or was I just using it as an excuse to avoid taking a risk?