058
1161 Words
~ Duncan
The door closed behind her.
The sound was quiet,barely anything,but it landed in my chest like weight.
I stood there longer than I should have.
Too long.
The house felt different the moment she left, like something essential had been pulled out of it. The air thinned. The silence stretched. Even the walls seemed to listen, waiting.
I clenched my jaw.
That was the problem
I had let her leave.
I moved toward the window, staring out into the night, my reflection staring back at me,composed, unbothered, Alpha. That was what everyone saw.
Not the hunger sitting just beneath my ribs.
Not the pull.
Not the way my instincts had surged the second her presence slipped away, sharp and demanding, like a warning bell that wouldn’t stop ringing.
I had wanted her to stay.
That truth sat heavy.
She grounded something in me I hadn’t realized was unraveling.
And now she was gone.
I dragged a hand through my hair, exhaling slowly, forcing control back where it belonged.
This was why distance mattered.
This was why restraint existed.
She was young. Untouched by the realities of power, of bonds that reshaped lives whether you wanted them to or not. And I—
I had no right to let instinct speak louder than reason.
Still… my chest ached.
A low, quiet ache. The kind you ignore until it becomes unbearable.
“She doesn’t belong to you,” I muttered to myself.
That's was a lie I kept telling myself.
She was my f*****g mate. And f**k I was hard.
The door opened behind me.
I didn’t turn.
I didn’t need to.
Her presence announced itself loudly, confident steps, practiced grace, the faint edge of irritation she tried to mask with charm.
“You didn’t tell me,” Eunice said, her voice smooth but tight, “that you planned to award her.”
I picked up my glass and took a slow sip before answering.
“I didn’t need to.”
Silence stretched.
I could almost hear her recalculating.
She moved closer, heels clicking softly against the floor. “She’s my n
Student, Duncan. Don’t you think that’s something I should have known?”
I finally turned to face her.
My expression was calm. Detached.
Alpha.
“The award was based on merit,” I said evenly. “i know you would never award her.”
Her lips curved into a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Still… it was quite a statement.
People noticed.”
“People always notice,” I replied. “That isn’t my concern.”
Eunice folded her arms lightly, studying me. “You looked very… invested.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Did I?”
She hesitated.
Good.
I stepped past her, setting my glass down with deliberate care. “I recognize excellence when I see it. That’s all.”
“That’s all?” she echoed, skeptical.
“That’s all,” I repeated, voice cool.
She searched my face, clearly looking for something,interest, guilt, curiosity.
She found none.
“You could have told me,” she said finally, softer now. “We work together.”
I met her gaze, my tone unchanged. “We don’t work that closely.”
The air shifted.
She laughed lightly, brushing it off. “Fair enough. I just don’t like surprises. You know im going to be Luna soon.”
I scoffed.
Iris was going to be my Luna, it was just a matter of time.
Her smile stiffened.
But she said nothing.
After a moment, she turned away, smoothing her dress. “Well… I'm heading back to the dorm.”
I watched her leave, the door closing once more.
The door had closed twice tonight.
The first time was when she left.
The second was Eunice.
Neither sounded loud. Neither should have mattered.
Both did.
I stayed where I was, staring out into the dark long after Eunice’s footsteps faded down the corridor. The grounds below were quiet, moonlight washing over stone and trees like a held breath. The pack slept. Or pretended to.
I didn’t.
My wolf paced under my skin, restless, unsettled. Not aggressive,alert. The kind of awareness that came before storms.
That was new.
I hadn’t felt this kind of internal friction in years.
I flexed my fingers slowly, grounding myself in the familiar discipline of control. Control was survival. Control was leadership. Control was the reason this pack still stood.
And yet tonight, control felt like something I was losing, not exercising.
I thought of Iris again before I could stop myself.
I wanted to f**k her so bad, I wanted her on my d**k.
I exhaled slowly through my nose.
This was exactly why I had kept my distance.
Why I needed to.
She wasn’t like the others who came through my orbit,ambitious, eager, obsessed.
I straightened, rolling my shoulders back as if resetting armor. Alpha posture. Alpha mind.
Then a thought surfaced, unwelcome and sharp.
Eunice noticed.
Of course she had.
Eunice noticed everything,every shift in attention, every deviation from routine. She survived on it. Thrived on it. I know my sister. Control wasn’t just a habit for her; it was hunger.
Her comment echoed again in my head.
You looked very… invested.
I hadn’t corrected her because there was nothing to correct.
Instead, I’d denied her confirmation.
That was worse for her.
I turned from the window and crossed the room, stopping beside the desk where reports lay neatly stacked. Numbers. Borders. Security rotations. Things that made sense. Things that didn’t pull at me.
“Thorne!” I called.
He appeared almost instantly.
“Get the car keys,” I said, already moving. “Let’s take a drive.”
He didn’t ask questions. Just nodded and disappeared, returning moments later with the keys in hand.
Throughout the journey, the city blurred past the windows, lights streaking into long, meaningless lines. The silence inside the car was thick, but not uncomfortable. Thorne kept his eyes on the road, steady as always, while my thoughts refused to settle.
I leaned back, staring at the ceiling.
I was heading for the club, my body wired with restless energy, instincts coiled too tight beneath my skin. It wasn’t just desire,it was agitation, hunger tangled with frustration, the kind that made my jaw ache from clenching it.
And then it struck me.
This wasn’t about the club.
It never was.
I exhaled slowly, realizing I was running from the wrong thing. Noise wouldn’t drown it out. Music wouldn’t quiet the pull gnawing at my chest. No distraction could touch it.
“Turn around,” I said suddenly.
Thorne glanced at me in the rearview mirror, surprised but obedient. “Home, Alpha?”
I hesitated for half a second,then nodded.
“Yes,” I said, voice low. “Take me home.”
Because whatever this was, whatever had lodged itself under my ribs tonight, I couldn’t outrun it.
And deep down, I knew exactly whose name it carried.
- Writer
