Fated To Mate

Determined

KAEL

I DON'T LIKE HAVING FRIENDS

He wrote and my heart dropped, how am I supposed to get close to him if he wouldn't even give me a chance?

“I am sorry I got ahead of myself, I should have started by introducing myself, but I just have so many things to say, and I don’t know where to start. so let me try again,” I took a breath and forced a smile. “I’m Kael Berleville. Nice to meet you.”

He stared at me, face unreadable, and then scribbled in neat, deliberate letters:

AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHO YOU ARE?

My smile faltered just a little. Okay, so he wasn’t impressed or curious. Or anything, really.

This was going to be harder than I thought. I leaned slightly closer, lowering my voice even though the room was empty now.

“No, you’re not supposed to know,” I admitted, trying to keep my tone casual. “But you will, eventually.”

He raised a brow like he was already regretting giving me even this much attention, then started to pack his bag.

“Hey,” I reached out again, my fingers brushing his wrist. “Look, I just want to get to know you. As a friend. Nothing weird.”

His pen scratched over the notepad.

YOU ARE ALREADY BEING WEIRD.

That earned him a small grin from me. “I know, better that than being creepy, right?”

He sighed, glancing toward the door like he was debating escape. But he didn’t pull away this time, and for now, that was enough of a victory for me.

I took the chair beside him again, ignoring the way he gave me a pointed look like why are you not leaving yet?

“Look,” I said, leaning my elbows on the desk, “I’m not here to bother you. Well… not much.”

His hand moved quickly across the page.

THEN WHAT ARE YOU HERE FOR, REALLY?

That made me pause. Good question. Why was I here? I could give him the safe, human answer, or the truth that might send him running off.

“I told you,” I said at last, keeping my voice steady. “I think we’re supposed to know each other. I can’t explain it yet, but…” I let out a helpless shrug. “It’s the truth. You’ll understand, all I need is a chance."

He stared at me for a long moment, then wrote:

I DON’T DO FRIENDS.

The words hit harder than I expected, but I forced a smile. “Good thing I’m stubborn, then.”

His lips twitched, not quite a smile, more like the ghost of one, but he didn’t tell me to leave. Once he sat back down, I started sharing bits and pieces about myself, carefully skipping over the whole werewolf part of my life. Just harmless little tidbits, easy for any human to follow.

He listened intently, his gaze steady, only scribbling to ask the occasional question. Thirty minutes later and he probably knew more about me than I knew about his entire existence.

“Now it’s your turn,” I said, leaning forward with a hopeful smile. “Tell me about yourself."

He stared at me like I had just asked him to hand over the keys to his soul. Then, slowly, he picked up his pen and began to write.

THERE’S NOTHING TO TELL.

I rolled my eyes. “Oh, come on. That’s the universal way of saying I don’t want to talk about it. Which is fine, but you owe me at least something after sitting through my ridiculous rambling.”

He hesitated, tapping the pen against the page, then scribbled again.

MY NAME IS MAX BUT YOU ALREADY KNEW THAT. I LIVE WITH MY MOTHER AND SISTER. I LIKE TO READ.

That was… unexpectedly normal.

“That’s it?” I asked, tilting my head.

He gave me a look that clearly said yes, that’s it, and then added another line.

I DON’T LIKE PEOPLE PRYING.

I grinned. “Good thing I’m not people.”

This time, he did smile, just barely, but it felt like winning some kind of impossible game.

"I still want to know though, how old are you? I am twenty-one, by the way."

He looked at me for a long moment, as if weighing whether the number was some sort of secret worth guarding, then finally lowered his gaze and scribbled across the page.

CLOSE TO TWENTY

I blinked. "Seriously? You look way younger."

One corner of his mouth twitched, not quite a smile, but enough to tell me I’d surprised him. He tapped the pen against the notebook again, then added beneath it:

PEOPLE SAY THAT A LOT.

"Well, it’s not a bad thing," I said, leaning back in my chair. "Makes you seem… I don’t know. More grounded."

His brow furrowed slightly at that, like he wasn’t sure whether to take it as a compliment or a strange observation. He didn’t reply this time, just slid the notebook back toward me so I could see the last line he’d added in smaller, neater handwriting.

DOES AGE MATTER TO YOU?

That question hit harder than I expected. I caught myself staring at the words, chewing on the inside of my cheek. My first instinct was to say no, but my thoughts drifted somewhere deeper beyond years and birthdays, to the bond I felt humming under my skin.

"Not to me," I said quietly, meaning every word. "Not in the way you think."

For a moment, neither of us moved.

Then the bell rang, shattering the stillness. Max looked up abruptly, pen moving in quick, slanted strokes across the page.

THAT’S FOR ME.

I hadn't come to school for class anyway so I said the next thing that came to my mind.

“Can I walk you there?” I asked.

He hesitated, then scribbled again.

WHY? PEOPLE WILL STARE.

“Let them stare. I don’t mind.”

A pause.

THEY WILL GOSSIP.

“It doesn’t bother me either,” I said, meeting his eyes. “Unless you mind.”

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, his gaze drifted toward the window as if weighing something heavy and personal. A full minute passed before he let out a long, reluctant sigh and gave a small nod.

We rose together, the scrape of chairs loud in the nearly empty room. Out in the hallway, the tide of students was already moving, some slowing just enough to watch us. Their whispers weren’t loud but I can still catch their words, but it doesn't matter, I had been on the receiving end of that kind of attention before.

Max walked beside me, trying to shrink into the background, it was obvious he wasn't use to having so much attention, his pace were unhurried, like he was determined not to rush under their stares. I let my steps matched to his, my expression calm, though inside, my pulse thrummed with a strange mix of triumph and protectiveness. This was how it was going to be from now on. Even Blade purred with contentment in my mind. We have never felt this much peace.

Halfway down the hall, I caught him sneaking a sideways glance, as if checking whether I regretted walking beside him. I answered with my best, award-winning smile, a silent reassurance that I can never be embarrassed to be seen with him. If he weren’t human, we wouldn’t even be here right now.

By the time we reached his classroom door, he stopped and turned toward me. This time, he didn’t write, just met my gaze, steady and searching. It was a silent plea for me not to walk in with him. I was prepared to, but seeing how uncomfortable my presence is making him, I held back. After all, we had only just met, forcing myself into his space wouldn’t do either of us any good.

“You’ll get used to it,” I said softly.

The corner of his mouth twitched, not quite a smile, but he gave a small nod before stepping inside. I stayed there a moment longer, the echo of his presence clinging to me far more than it should have.

****

MAX

I wished he would just go away, but he didn’t. The look in Mary’s eyes told me she would blow this out of proportion the moment we got home. She was determined to find out what he wanted with me, but he clearly wasn’t interested in talking to her. Instead, he waved her off, an action she definitely wasn’t used to. Mary had always been the center of attention, the one everyone noticed and talked to. But now, some cute guy had just dismissed her like she was any other regular kid. She seethed before leaving, and I knew I’d pay for every ounce of humiliation she felt.

I just wanted to be left alone, but since this guy seemed set on talking to me, I decided to see where this was going. Like everyone else, I was curious why the three had singled me out.

For reasons I couldn’t quite explain, once we were alone in the classroom, I found myself relaxing a little. His chatter filled the silence in a way that wasn’t entirely unpleasant. He talked about so many things, most of which had nothing to do with me.

I don’t believe his talk about wanting to be my friend either, but it felt nice, in a strange, unexpected way, to have someone like him, someone so effortlessly attractive, choose to talk to me for the first time in my life.

To me, someone like him doesn’t just pop out of nowhere and offer friendship to a nobody like me. People like him always have hidden reasons.

I knew what Mary was thinking. I could practically see the wheels turning in her head earlier, and I had no doubt she’d act on it. Which meant this was possibly my last day in school.

Maybe that was why I decided to stay, to listen to him and let the moment stretch out a little longer, even if I knew it wouldn’t last.

Even though I didn’t want him to, he followed me to my next class, only stopping when I refused to walk in with him and let him sit beside me again. Something about the way everyone stared still made my skin prickle, like their eyes were peeling back layers I didn’t want exposed.

"You will get used to it," he said it like he was sure we will meet again, I just nodded and walked into class. I had barely set foot inside when Mary swooped in, grabbing my arm.

“Who are those guys? How did you meet them? The one with you earlier is totally my type. You’d better put in a good word for me, or well, you know what I can do.”

Was I surprised by her tirade? Of course not. Scared by her threat? Absolutely not. She had done worse before, and right now, I was starting to think the school itself wasn’t safe for me anymore.