“Everything I Am”
408 Words
The fire crackled low.
MaLeeka lay beside it, wrapped in Seth’s arms, her fingers tracing the scars on his chest. They were silent for a while, letting the crackling wood fill the space between breaths. Outside the den, the pack was quiet. Healing.
But she could feel it in him—tension, like a storm caught in his throat.
So she asked softly, “How did you become Alpha?”
Seth didn’t speak at first.
Then, he took her hand and laid it flat over his heart.
“You sure you want to know?”
“I want all of you,” she said.
His eyes met hers—gold and haunted.
And he told her.
⸻
“My father, Kael, ruled with fear. Not strength. Fear. He trained us like soldiers. Told us love was weakness. That wolves only respected dominance.
My mother, Liora… she was the only light in that place. She used to sneak me honeycomb and whisper stories about the first Luna—Ajah.
She said there’s strength in surrender… not to anyone else, but to truth.
I didn’t understand it then.
One day, I came home and found her body in the river. My father said it was rogues. But her throat was cut clean. Precise.
My father’s lover, Soraya—she was in the house when I got there. Her mouth still tasted like wine.
And my brother, Draven? He stood beside them like nothing had happened.
I realized that night… I wasn’t a son. I was a threat.
So I made a choice.
I challenged Kael for the Alpha seat.
And I killed him.”
⸻
Seth’s voice broke—just once.
MaLeeka didn’t interrupt.
She just pulled herself closer, skin to skin, heart to heart.
“Draven ran. Coward. Said one day he’d return. Said I didn’t deserve the pack.
And maybe he’s right.
I didn’t earn Shadowfang.
I took it. With blood. With fire.
And I swore I’d never trust another soul again.”
His eyes found hers.
Fierce. Honest. Wounded.
“Until you.”
⸻
MaLeeka cupped his face, her thumbs brushing over his cheekbones.
“You were made for this,” she whispered. “Not by Kael. Not by fate. By fire. By pain. By choice. You didn’t take the pack, Seth. You rescued it.”
He leaned in, forehead to hers.
“And if Draven comes back?”
“We end him,” she said.
Together.
- Writer
