Epilogue

Epilogue
  Springville wasn’t the town I knew a year ago. It was something new now, mostly scarred, but not entirely broken.
  After Becca's and Vorare’s end and the dismantling of the Crescent ranks, everything had shifted.
  I didn’t realize how much of the town’s air had been soaked in fear until it started to lift. Though some humans did leave, people were stepping outside again, and werewolves were healing from their losses.
  It was unfortunate to realize some people died in the fight against both the Melbringers and Vorare's summoning. Some I knew, some I didn't, but they were mourned all together.
  The Melbringer's collectively decided to leave me behind because my sorcery had weakened from the sacrifice I made. According to them, I was not whole enough to be considered a lupomancer or a threat anymore.
  To their best knowledge, the prophecy had been revoked.
  To my surprise, they actually thanked me for destroying their most ancient shame and left open room for an alliance.
  I didn't want to take it. After all, they were still responsible for taking away the life I could have lived with my birth parents. But it wasn't just me anymore, so I did.
  I had somehow become a centerpiece in the events that followed the fight. How? I was doing my best to understand.
  The Moonstone pack looked to me without hesitation to be their Alpha, and with former Alpha Harris's help, the Crescents fell into place after discovering my bloodline.
  The Crescent Moon pack accepted it, some more easily than others. But they didn’t challenge it. The recognition came from more than blood. It came from the weight of what I’d done, what I gave, and what I’d fought to protect.
  That had never happened before. Not with them, not with anyone. I’d always been the outlier; no one quite knew what to do with me. But now, I was their Alpha. Certainly a far cry from the rejected omega they once knew.
  The ceremony to announce my new title had been quietly tense but hopeful. It took place at Crescent Park close to the forest. There weren’t many words spoken, but they didn’t need to be. The full moon had shone bright, and every werewolf in Springville had howled together out of grief and unity.
  Higan's original betas had stepped down from their roles willingly, given that they participated in the summoning and got their friends killed. Unfortunately, that meant having random people push their kids to me to be chosen for the roles.
  The conversations were exhausting, but thankfully, I had Khalid and Tyler taking over to give me room to escape when I needed to.
  I knew they couldn't be killed, but I was still frightened when they lay still in that parking lot then. Seeing them so giddy and unserious helped relieve some tension.
  Abigail offered to be my guard. It came as a surprise to me, but she felt like she owed me in some way and needed to repay me with her loyalty. I insisted she didn't, but she had made up her mind to.
  Ethan had barely left my side. Our bond had always been peculiar in the way that it was made out to be, but after the nightmare with Vorare, there was no hiding from each other anymore.
  He knew every corner of me now, and I knew him just as deeply.
  When the formalities ended and the guests started to scatter, Ethan’s hand found mine under the table. He leaned close and murmured, “We’re leaving.”
  I didn’t ask where, I simply nodded and excused myself. Away from the prying eyes and expectations, I felt my shoulders relax as we walked through the empty streets.
  It wasn't as eerie this time, but it was unsettling in its way. “This still doesn't feel real,” I absentmindedly uttered.
  Ethan hummed as a response and didn’t say anything else until we arrived at my old house, which I hadn’t returned to since I woke up.
  Standing at the porch, I let out an exhale, realizing I would never be able to come home to my parents and their smiles again. I visited them on my birthday a week ago, and I cried as horribly as I knew I would.
  I didn’t realize how tightly I’d been holding my breath until we stepped inside after he tugged me through the dark hallway toward my room. “Come on,” he urged gently, and I followed.
  My bedroom looked almost untouched. It was uncanny how close it looked to how it was before everything began. I suspected Ethan had a hand in that.
  My bed was neatly made. There was still a cracked photo frame on the desk, tilted sideways, and my curtains swayed softly. I took the room in.
  Ethan sat down at the edge of the bed as he glanced around. “Do you want to keep everything?” he asked casually.
  I nodded, running my palm over the edge of the mattress. “I don't think I have the heart to pack it all up.”
  Besides, I had a lot of memories I'd like to keep alive in the room. Especially one of a certain green-eyed boy breaking into my room to kiss me senseless.
  “You’re thinking about it," Ethan stated out of the blue with a playful tone I was growing used to.
  I turned to him, feigning confusion. “Thinking about what?”
  “That night.” He leaned back on his hands, staring up at me. “The kiss.“
  In a few strides, I closed in on him. “You broke in,” I pointed out, jabbing a finger at his chest.
  He shrugged. “I couldn't help it.“
  “You’re lucky I didn’t break your nose,” I scoffed at his casual demeanor.
  “Yeah?” His grin grew sharp. “Can’t say I’d complain if you tried now.”
  I narrowed my eyes at him, but my pulse ticked up as he leaned in closer with his hand sliding up my knee from under my dress. I tried not to blatantly flush at the heat from his touch.
  “You’re easier to read, you know,” he murmured dangerously low, and it tickled my ears.
  “Is that so?” I kept my face still, resisting the urge to bite my lip or rather bite his.
  “Your guard’s down, so I can feel everything clearly.” His hand traced upward deliberately. “You want me to kiss you again.”
  I lifted my chin before resigning to sit on his legs. “Maybe I do.”
  He hummed a note of surprise before leaning in to kiss me. My fingers found the hem of his collar and held tight. The warmth of him poured into me as his lips moved over mine with a growing hunger.
  His hand slid behind my neck with the other firmly grabbing my thigh as he pushed his tongue into my mouth to deepen the kiss.
  I answered it with everything I had.
  My fingers curled in the front of his shirt, dragging him closer until our bodies met fully. His other hand gripped my hip to pull me closer, ignoring the fabric of my dress rilling up.
  Our breathing grew erratic with each movement, filling the quiet room with slow gasps and low exhales.
  “Tell me to stop,” his mouth moved against mine as his breath fanned mine.
  “I don't want you to,” I whispered back, threading my fingers through his hair.
  That was all he needed.
  He shifted, lifting me slightly before laying me back onto the bed. His weight pressed into me, but he held himself up just enough so he could look down at me. His bright auburn eyes burrowed into mine, and I could tell what he needed to hear.
  I cupped the side of his face. “I’m here.”
  His mouth returned to mine with more fervor this time. I arched into him as his hands steadily roamed over my ribs, my waist, and my thighs. He kissed the corner of my mouth, trailing down to my throat, till I'm a tangled mess.
  My legs curled around his waist instinctively, holding him in place as our breaths sang together. The heat built slowly at first, but then it burned all at once.
  My dress's zip slipped down under his fingers while I worked at his belt. His palm slid up my spine when my body was left bare to his undoing.
  I couldn’t stay still as my hands kept moving over his muscles and the soft trail of skin I’d only ever brushed in passing before.
  “I love you, Harlyn,” he rasped.
  “I love you, Ethan,” I repeated, curling my hands around his shoulders.
  He kissed me again, deeper this time, and there were no more words after that. Just the slow press of skin against skin, the creak of my bed, the shift of limbs, and the grounding ache of wanting finally met.
  We moved together, every touch claiming something primal and right. I didn't need to question it, I didn't need to fear its rejection.
  When it was over, we stayed there breathless and twined in my sheets. And for the first time in a long, long while, I let myself rest in his arms.
  THE END.