Jade’s POV
The forest had always been a place of quiet for me. Somewhere I could hide when the walls of Crescent High felt like they were caving in or when the whispers of the pack became too loud. Out here, with nothing but trees and wind, I could pretend none of it mattered—that I wasn’t an omega, that I wasn’t bonded to the boy who had made me hate my own skin.
But today, the forest felt different. Restless.
I didn’t plan to come this far. I just needed space—to breathe, to think. After everything that happened at the Moon Ball, after Hunter’s confession and the kiss that made my chest ache, I couldn’t be around anyone. Not Ashley. Not my parents. And definitely not Hunter.
So I ran.
Through the school gates, past the town border, deep into the woods with nothing but the sound of c
