Mint and Madness
1398 Words
Chapter 7: Mint and Madness
The sharp shrill of Sandy's alarm shattered the peaceful silence of her room. Her hand shot out from beneath the blanket, slamming the snooze button with a grunt. Her eyelids fluttered open, lashes damp from the dream she'd just had.
She blinked slowly at the ceiling, trying to piece the fragments of that strange dream together. Again, she’d been in the woods. The same place. That familiar fog and ancient trees, and the light of the moon bathing her in silver. But this time, it wasn’t the black wolf with the golden eyes that approached her.
This time, she smelt it.
Mint. Fresh, intoxicating, sharp.
Not toothpaste mint. No.
The kind that tickles your senses, makes you want to close your eyes and inhale it forever. It clung to her even now, woven into her memory. A wild, untamed scent. It lingered even as the dream faded, like it didn’t want to leave.
"What the hell..." she whispered into the morning stillness.
She shook her head free of the fog and sat up, tugging the blankets off her legs. The smell of freshly baked apple pie wafted into her room, warm and comforting. Her stomach growled in appreciation.
"Mom's baking again... weird," she muttered.
She slid out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. A quick hot bath warmed her up against the chilly bite of the morning. As the water rushed over her skin, she felt the dream slowly slip from her mind, replaced by a strange excitement and a nervous fluttering in her chest.
Back in her room, she towel-dried her hair and picked out something warm. A chunky maroon sweater, black jeans, and ankle boots. She braided her hair back and took one final glance in the mirror.
Her cheeks had color again. Her eyes had a softness they hadn’t carried in months.
Maybe she really was healing.
She made her way to the kitchen where the smell of cinnamon and apples enveloped her. The house was surprisingly warm, a far cry from the tension-filled warzone it used to be.
Her eyes fell on the school bag sitting on the kitchen table—a sleek black and purple one with extra padding and a matching pencil case.
She blinked.
Her parents.
They bought her a new bag.
She bit the inside of her cheek. It was... thoughtful. Kind, even. But she didn’t know how to feel about it. Part of her still lived in fear that any day now, everything would go back to how it was—that this warmth was just a mask.
Darren walked past her without saying a word, but not without giving her a cold glance that made her stomach twist.
Whatever. Let him.
Her mother smiled as she placed a slice of pie on a plate and kissed Sandy on the forehead.
"Morning, baby."
Her father ruffled her hair from behind, grinning as she let out a small giggle.
The room froze.
For a single second, it was like everyone held their breath.
Then her parents smiled wider. Her mom even gave her a longer look, like she was seeing her daughter come back to life.
Sandy tucked her pie into her lunchbox, accepted her packed lunch from her mom, and slung her new bag over her shoulder.
"Thanks," she muttered.
"Have a good day at school, sweetheart," her dad said.
She nodded and stepped outside, wrapping her hoodie tighter around her. The cold air bit into her cheeks, but she didn’t mind it.
She made it halfway down the street before it hit her.
That scent.
Mint.
Not soft. Not subtle. It crashed into her like a wave. Her eyes snapped up, scanning her surroundings wildly. Her breath caught in her throat. Her legs slowed.
There.
At the school gates.
Zayne Carter.
Her heart stopped for a solid second. Her breath caught in her throat.
No.
No. No. No!
Does the Moon Goddess really hate me that much? she screamed internally.
Why him?
Why the boy who’d made her life a living hell?
She tore her eyes away, but it was too late. He had seen her. He was walking toward her. Each step felt like a death sentence. She tried to keep walking, fast, but his hand clamped down on her arm.
"Ow—Zayne, what—?" she winced at the pressure.
He leaned in close. His breath was mint too. Her senses went wild.
"Don’t get any ideas," he growled. "I don’t want you. Don’t mistake this... thing... for anything."
She nodded quickly, rapidly, anything to make him let go.
But he shoved her hard.
Her back hit the ground, butt-first, in front of the students pouring in.
Laughter.
Snickers.
Her hands burned as she pushed herself up.
Tears streamed down her face.
Not from the humiliation.
But because she knew what this meant.
He had smelt her.
That meant he knew. That meant it was true.
And soon—so soon—she would shift. Her wolf would emerge.
And when it did... rejection would feel like a thousand knives.
She knew it.
She felt it.
---
Zayne stood stiffly as she walked away.
His wolf raged inside him.
"Why the hell did you do that?" he snarled to himself.
But he knew.
He couldn’t stand the way she looked at him. The confusion. The shock. The damn cinnamon that clung to her skin.
She had smelt him too.
That meant she was close to shifting. Closer than anyone expected.
"Good," he muttered. "Let her shift. Let her feel it. Then I’ll reject her so hard her soul shatters."
His fists clenched.
He wasn’t going to let fate ruin his plans. She was weak. Not Luna material. Not his mate.
His wolf growled.
Mine.
He shook his head violently and walked into the building.
---
Elsewhere – Nightveil Pack
Kael pulled his hoodie tighter as he leaned against the school’s brick wall.
His eyes drifted lazily across the front entrance—then locked.
Cassie.
She stepped onto school grounds like she owned the place, strutting in her designer boots, hair curled to perfection.
For a moment, everything slowed.
His breath caught.
The air changed.
Mate.
His wolf howled inside him, yelping, whining, growling.
Kael nearly stumbled.
Cassie looked up—and frowned.
That brief flicker of recognition passed between them.
But she looked away. Fast.
She had a boyfriend. And that boyfriend was not the Alpha’s son. She was already planning her life with someone else.
She couldn’t afford to be tied to a wolf. Especially not publicly.
Not when her entire social ladder depended on maintaining appearances.
So she walked past him without a word, head held high.
Kael’s mouth went dry.
His hands trembled.
His wolf thrashed.
Then why… why did his heart ache?
He leaned back and let the cold wall support him.
Cassie was his mate?
But... she didn’t feel right.
Not like her.
Not like the girl in his dreams. The one whose scent felt like home. The one who stood in the forest, her silver eyes glowing, her voice like music.
He sighed heavily.
His best friends—Nolan, the Beta’s son, and Eli, the Omega’s son—spotted him from the courtyard.
"Yo, you good bro?" Nolan asked.
Kael nodded slowly, pushing off the wall.
"Yeah. Just... a weird morning."
"Tell me about it," Eli added. "Mrs. Vane gave us a pop quiz in lit. First period."
Kael let them walk ahead.
He glanced back one more time.
Cassie was laughing with her friends. Like nothing had happened.
His wolf whimpered softly.
Kael’s chest twisted.
He couldn’t shake the feeling that something didn’t add up.
Something big was coming.
And it had nothing to do with Cassie.
---
Back in Sandy’s school, the whispers spread like wildfire.
“Did you see how Zayne shoved her?”
“She just let him?”
“No way, she cried!”
Sandy sat in the nurse’s office for a while, pretending her ankle hurt. It didn’t. She just needed silence.
She stared out the window, heart heavy, that mint scent still locked in her lungs.
So this is it.
Zayne was her mate.
And she was about to experience the most painful thing a wolf could:
Rejection.
And this time?
It wouldn't just be her heart that broke.
It would be her soul.
- Writer
