Chapter 76 Borrowed Light
KAI’S POV
The cafeteria smelled like burnt coffee and forced normalcy.
That was the academy’s speciality....pretending. Pretending we weren’t being watched. Pretending yesterday hadn’t carved something new into our bones. Pretending we were still just students who worried about grades and sparring schedules instead of survival.
I spotted them before they spotted me.
Zara sat curled sideways on a bench, one knee pulled up, fingers wrapped around a mug she hadn’t touched. She looked calmer than she had any right to be, too calm, like a lake that hadn’t decided yet whether it wanted to freeze or flood. Luna was across from her, talking animatedly with her hands, clearly filling the silence with noise on purpose. And Mira....
Mira looked tired in a way sleep couldn’t fix.
Her shoulders were slumped, eyes distant, like she’d taken a long walk and forgotten where she was supposed to stop.
I slid my tray onto the table without announcing myself.
“You know,” I said.
“If this is an intervention, I’d like advance notice.”
Luna snorted. Zara’s lips twitched. Mira looked up last, blinking like she’d forgotten how many of us there were.
“Relax, General Alpha,” Luna said.
“We’re talking about very important things.”
“Such as?” I asked, sitting.
“What animal you’d be if you weren’t a werewolf,” Zara said quietly.
I raised a brow.
“That’s… surprisingly philosophical.”
She finally took a sip of her drink. Our bond hummed, soft, cautious, but present. That alone felt like a win.
Luna leaned forward.
“I’d be a hawk. Obviously.”
“Obviously,” Zara echoed, deadpan.
Mira shrugged.
“A cat. No expectations. No destiny. You eat, sleep, and leave when you want.”
Something in her voice snagged.
I watched her more closely now.
“You okay?”
She smiled too fast.
“I’m having a day off.”
“That’s not an answer,” I said gently.
Mira exhaled and leaned back, staring up at the high, ward-lined ceiling.
“I needed air,” she said.
“From all of it. The rules. The secrets. Being… useful.”
The word tasted bitter in her mouth.
“I love the academy,” she continued, surprising us all.
“Or maybe I loved what it promised. Safety. Purpose. But lately, it feels like a cage made of gold. And I don’t know if I’m allowed to want more than that.”
Silence settled, not heavy, not sharp. Just honest.
Luna reached across the table and squeezed Mira’s hand.
“You’re allowed to want anything.”
Zara nodded.
“Even rest.”
Mira laughed softly, eyes shining.
“Especially that.”
To my surprise, the tension eased after that. Not vanished, nothing ever truly vanished here, but loosened, like a knot someone had finally stopped pulling tighter.
We talked about nothing after that. And everything.
Luna complained about combat drills. Zara admitted she missed the way mornings used to feel before the academy became quiet, unsupervised. Mira told a ridiculous story about mislabeling potion ingredients and accidentally dyeing her hair green for a week. I found myself laughing, actually laughing, and before I could stop it.
For a few stolen minutes, we were just… people.
I let my knee brush Zara’s under the table. It's not an accident.
She froze for half a second, then didn’t move away. Progress.
I leaned closer, lowering my voice.
“You doing okay?”
She glanced at me sideways.
“Define okay.”
“Breathing. Not consuming souls. That kind of thing.”
Her mouth curved despite herself. “Then yes. I’m okay.”
I reached out, careful, and hooked my pinky around hers. The bond warmed, a quiet spark instead of a blaze.
She looked at our hands. Then at me.
“You’re being brave,” she said softly.
I swallowed.
“I’m being honest.”
That earned me a look, one of those looks that felt like standing too close to a flame. Not burning yet. But promised.
Across the table, Luna pretended very hard not to notice. Mira noticed everything and chose not to comment. I liked her for that.
The cafeteria doors opened then, and the mood shifted, not sharply, but enough. A ripple. A reminder.
Time was still moving. Eyes were still watching.
Zara withdrew her hand slowly, regret flickering through the bond like an echo. I didn’t chase it. Didn’t push.
Some things needed patience.
As we stood to leave, Mira stretched and sighed.
“Same time tomorrow?”
“Assuming we survive,” Luna said cheerfully.
Zara met my gaze last.
“Thanks,” she said and I knew that it wasn't just for today, but for the quiet moments, the borrowed light, the almost-normal.
I nodded.
“Anytime.”
As they walked ahead, I lingered a second longer, scanning the shadows, the corners where silence gathered too neatly.
Normalcy was a gift here. Temporary. Fragile.
But today, we’d taken it anyway.
And for now...that was enough.
I returned back to my dorm. It was scattered.... Someone had broken into my room. Papers were flooding everywhere, like someone had been searching for something.
What did they want?
Who could they be?
A million thoughts ran through my head but nothing came to my mind.
Then I heard a voice.
"You've been having the best time of your life Kai." He said.
It was my dad's voice.
"Fa.... Alpha." I called.
"I believe that Dr. Voss brought you here for a reason." He said ignoring me.
"Yes she did." I responded.
"And how has that been going?" He questioned.
"I've reported to her when I can." I said.
"Wow.... You can't keep to simple duties." He yelled angrily.
"Return home for the break tomorrow. No excuses." He ordered.
"No!" I stated.
"Did you just defy my order?" He questioned.
"Look Alpha. I have something to do in the academy and until that is done, please restrain from giving further orders." I responded.
"See yourself out too."
With that, a hand was placed on my throat, restricting my airflow.
"You do as I say or I could as well speak to Zara Night." He stated.
"I'll advise that you don't do that." I said, the threat was bound to show in my eyes.
I could see my father's veins pop out on his forehead. He had no right to come into the academy he abandoned me in and think he could order me around.
"Think about your future. Love makes you look weak." He said before walking out of my room.
"Return his room to the order you met it before theast order I gave you." He instructed some guards just as he left my dorm.