CHAPTER 32

CHAPTER 32
Tatum and I stayed together for a while, and his presence was soothing.
Not in the way Dolphus’s dominance once steadied me, or the way Zephyr’s protectiveness wrapped around me like a storm. No, Tatum’s calm was different—quiet, gentle, and disarming. It didn’t pull me in; it eased me in, until I found myself smiling at things I didn’t think could make me smile again.

We talked about classes, about how he hated early morning lectures but went anyway because he wanted to make his mother proud. He had dreams—simple, human dreams. To finish school. To travel. To open a coffee shop near the lake.

And while he talked, I watched his hands move as he spoke, his voice light and steady, his eyes warm and unguarded. There was no pack bond here. No supernatural pull. Just… peace.
And I didn’t realize how much I’d missed that.

When we parted ways, he smiled at me again. “You’re smiling more these days, you know that?”

I blinked. “I am?”

“Yeah,” he said softly. “Whatever it is that used to weigh you down… it’s losing, isn’t it?”

If only he knew.

He waved and walked away, leaving me in the hallway, watching his back until it disappeared. My chest felt strange, it was both light but heavy at the same time. I shook the feeling off and when I turned around, I saw Skai leaning against a wall, watching me with an all-too-knowing smirk. I squeezed Tatum's hands, a way of saying goodbye, then walked down to Skai.

“Oh, don’t even start,” I muttered.

She raised her brow, her dark curls bouncing as she pushed off the wall. “Start what? I’m just standing here, minding my own business, watching my best friend melt over a human boy.”

“I’m not melting,” I protested, walking past her. “I’m… appreciating his company. I mean, you'd told me it was alright to be there for him.”

“Appreciating his company,” she repeated, teasingly. “Sure, Aurora. That’s what they all say before they start writing his name on their notebooks and daydreaming in class.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re ridiculous.”

Skai laughed, looping her arm through mine as we headed out of the building. “I’m observant. There’s a difference.”

The afternoon sun was golden, stretching shadows across the school courtyard as students trickled out. I tried to focus on the sound of chatter, footsteps, and every other thing that was actually going on—but Tatum’s words replayed in my mind. His smile. The way he looked at me like I wasn’t hiding anything.

Because around him, I wasn’t Alaya the Alpha, or Alaya the werewolf, or Alaya the girl holding together a pack on the brink. I was just… me.

And that terrified me.

Skai noticed my silence as we reached the parking lot. She nudged me gently. “You’re thinking about him again, aren’t you?”

I exhaled, not bothering to deny it. “He’s… different. Easy to be around. It’s like—when I’m with him, everything stops spinning.”

“Sounds to me like you like him.”

I gave her a look. “It’s not that simple.”

“It never is,” she said, tossing her bag into the car. “But maybe it doesn’t have to be complicated either.”

I leaned against the door, watching the sunlight shimmer across the windshields. “You don’t get it, Skai. He’s human. I’m not. I live in a world where bloodlines matter, where secrets mean survival. If I care about him, if I let him in… it could destroy him.”

Tears filled my eyes, but I wasn't going to let them fall, “it destroyed my mother.”

Her expression softened. “Alaya, listen to me. You’ve spent your whole life thinking about what could destroy others. Maybe it’s time you asked what could heal you. You're not your mother.”

Her words hit harder than I expected.

She climbed into the driver’s seat, starting the car, and I followed quietly. The ride home was quiet for a while—just the sound of wind rushing past, the soft hum of a song playing faintly from the radio.

I stared out the window, the city blurring into color and light. My mind drifted back to the pack—to Dolphus, now recovering, probably pacing restlessly and bossing everyone around. To Rory, still learning to control his instincts. To the others—Edward, Lark, Zephyr, and Kellan—each a thread in the tangled web of my life.

They were all my world.
But lately, my world had started to shift.

Tatum’s face flickered again in my thoughts—his laugh, his steady gaze, the warmth that reached me even when he said nothing. I didn’t want to think about him this much, but I couldn’t help it. He had found a way into the quiet spaces of my mind, and somehow, it felt… right.

When we finally pulled into my street, Skai turned to me before I got out. “You’re scared.”

I frowned. “Of what?”

“Of falling for someone who can’t fight your battles,” she said simply. “But Alaya, maybe he’s not meant to fight them. Maybe he’s just meant to remind you what peace feels like.”

Her words hung between us, and for the first time in a long while, I didn’t have a comeback.

“Don’t overthink it,” she added with a smile. “If he makes you happy, let him. You’ve carried too much pain already.”

I managed a small smile. “You always make it sound easy.”

“That’s because love should be easy sometimes,” she said, gripping the steering wheel again. “Even for girls like you.”

I stepped out of the car and stood for a moment, watching her drive off. The air was cool, the sky dimming into shades of violet. I pulled my jacket tighter and started toward the house, her words still echoing in my head.

Maybe she was right. Maybe I deserved something simple, something untainted by duty, by blood, by destiny.
Maybe I deserved to feel normal, even if it was just for a little while. I wondered if Tatum felt the same way.

But as I reached the door and the familiar scent of my pack hit me—the mix of pine, smoke, and wild energy—I realized how far from normal my life would ever be.

Still, for the first time, that didn’t stop me from smiling.

Because somewhere out there, a human boy with warm eyes and a soft voice had reminded me that even wolves could crave quiet hearts.

And most definitely, I couldn't wait to see him again tomorrow.