Meadow

art sank a little. The seat next to mine, the one tha

d out my phone to text her, then remembered. She'd told m

ent to about my morning with Silas, without her to share my giddy, anxious fe

rom the other students buzzed around me, and with my

s the Gamm

ting the Alpha's

s so

Elara. I was a label, an accessory to someone more important: Silas's sister, Cole's girlfriend. It was one o

is voice was just a meaningless drone in the background. My thoughts h

rom all the ceremony preparations? Was he thinkin

I wrote Cole's name, the letters looping together in a familiar, comforting pattern. In my mi

cafeteria, picking at a sandwich I didn't want. All around me, friends laughed a

our shared jokes and sweet nothings. But as I got to the more recent messages, a

us

k la

ve

es. It was a huge honor, a massive respons

echoed in my head. *No one has a

ating brother? The thought sent a shiver of real fear down my spine. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to ban

foolish hope that I'd see Cole's familiar face in the crowd of parents and siblings waiting f

ly sprinting from the classroom. I couldn't face my brother yet. I wasn't rea

o hear Col

tucked away in the back shelves. My heart hammered against my ribs as I pulled

tretching into an eternity. *Please pi

lose hope and hang up

a little tired. The sound of it was still the most beautiful

, but by a sharp, commanding

eed you ove

e, but the authority in it was unmistakable. I