His Truth
432 Words
Chapter 17
It happened after school, the sky washed in shades of fire and gold.
He cornered me just beyond the gates, his chest heaving as though he’d run miles just to catch me.
“No more lies,” he said, voice hoarse. “No more running. You want to know why I can’t leave you alone? Why I keep saying you’re mine?”
I swallowed, heart hammering painfully. “Why?”
His eyes glowed faintly, unnaturally, like embers sparking in the dusk.
“Because you are. Not just my step-sister. Not just some girl. You’re my mate.”
The world tilted. My breath caught.
Mate.
The word echoed inside me, terrifying, thrilling, impossible.
And somehow, deep down, I knew it was the truth.
The word echoed in my head like a drumbeat, relentless and terrifying. Mate.
I stared at him, my lips parting, but no sound came out. My mind rejected it, clawing for logic. This was insane. He was my stepbrother. My mother’s husband’s son. We weren’t supposed to be anything.
“Stop,” I whispered, shaking my head. “Don’t say that.”
He took a step closer, eyes glowing with that strange, impossible fire. “You feel it too. I know you do. That pull between us—it’s not in your head. It’s fate.”
I backed away until my spine pressed against the cold iron gate. My heart hammered so hard it hurt. “No. You’re just… you’re just playing some twisted game.”
“Do I look like I’m playing?” His voice cracked, the cocky mask slipping for the first time. Beneath the arrogance, I glimpsed something raw. Desperate.
And that scared me even more.
“You’re wrong,” I forced out, though my chest ached with the lie. “I don’t feel anything for you. Nothing.”
For a moment, silence hung between us, heavy and suffocating. His jaw clenched, his hands fisting at his sides.
“Then why can’t you look me in the eye when you say it?” he asked softly.
The words cut deep, because he was right. My gaze dropped, betraying me, and the truth surged inside me like a secret I couldn’t bury.
I did feel something. Too much.
But if anyone else found out… if Mom knew… if the school knew…
My peaceful life would be ruined.
So I did the only thing I could. I shoved past him, my voice trembling. “Stay away from me.”
And though I didn’t turn back, I felt his gaze burning into me long after I walked away.
- Writer
