~ISSA.
The car hummed beneath us as I drove Yulia back from Canis Academy, the dim headlights cutting through the early dusk settling over the city.
Silence filled the space between us, charged with an energy I couldn’t quite shake, an odd blend of tension and something warmer that made my pulse quicken. I tightened my grip on the steering wheel, trying to keep my focus on the road, but my thoughts kept returning to the way I’d acted earlier in the library, the way I’d laid claim to her, spoken to Pete like he had no right to so much as look her way.
I stole a glance at her. She sat beside me, leaning back in her seat with an air of casualness, her eyes trained on the passing trees outside. And yet, I sensed her awareness of me, felt her tension almost as if it was my own.
“Yulia,” I began, my voice barely above a murmur. “About earlier… I didn’t mean to act so-” I paused, searching for the word. “Possessive.”
She turned to me, an amused smile playing on her lips. “Possessive, huh?” Her voice held a teasing edge. “You mean, you don’t usually get all jealous when someone so much as says hi to me?”
I glanced away, a faint heat rising in my cheeks despite myself. “Look, it’s not… it’s not usually like this,” I said, almost defensively. “I’m not in the habit of staking claims or getting jealous. And I don’t usually… feel this way about anyone.”
She arched an eyebrow, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Really?” Her gaze turned back to the window, though I didn’t miss the slight smirk on her lips. “Last I checked, you had a whole pack of admirers. The Craven sisters, for instance?”
I groaned inwardly, though her teasing didn’t sting as much as I expected. “Those days are over,” I said firmly, feeling the weight of truth in my own words. “Since you came into my life, everything else… it just doesn’t matter. You know that, Yulia.” I kept my eyes on the road, feeling her gaze on me. “You feel it too, don’t you? I know you’re fighting it, but…”
Her playful expression faded, replaced by something softer, almost haunted. She took a deep breath and looked down at her hands. “I… I do feel it,” she admitted, her voice a whisper. But then, her gaze lifted to meet mine, and a faint unease flickered in her eyes. “But your wolf, Issa… Iran… he scares me.”
Her words hit me like a blow, though I kept my face neutral. Iran’s presence stirred within me, as if waking at the sound of his name, his energy dark and restless. “I understand,” I said quietly. “If I’m being honest, Yulia… he scares me too.”
A heavy silence settled over us, her words echoing in my mind, striking at a truth I didn’t want to admit but couldn’t deny. Iran was a part of me, a side I kept chained and hidden, but he was always there, lurking beneath the surface, waiting for an excuse to break free.
Yulia’s eyes softened, a hint of compassion mingling with her curiosity. “Why is he… like that?” she asked hesitantly. “So bloodthirsty, so… different?”
My jaw tightened. How could I explain Iran to her? The darkness, the endless rage that simmered beneath his surface? The secrets I kept buried, hidden from her and everyone else? I opened my mouth to speak, but the words died on my tongue, and I fell silent.
She didn’t press me, her expression understanding. “It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me,” she murmured, turning her gaze back to the window.
The quiet that filled the car now was thick and uneasy, a tangible reminder of the things we both left unsaid, the shadows lingering between us. I wanted to bridge that distance, to reach out to her, but words seemed inadequate.
After a long pause, I broke the silence. “How did you meet Pete?” I asked, though the question came out sharper than I intended.
Yulia blinked, surprised by the sudden shift, but she shrugged and answered anyway. “We met in high school,” she said. “My friend Lana introduced us. He was… nice enough, I suppose.” She paused, as if deciding how much to share. “It wasn’t serious. I was just trying to fit in, to blend quickly.”
I couldn’t help the flash of satisfaction at her words, though I kept my tone measured. “So, you never had real feelings for him?”
She shook her head, a faint smile tugging at her lips. “No. It wasn’t like that. I never felt… this.” Her voice trailed off, her eyes meeting mine for a brief, electric moment before she looked away.
I exhaled, a strange mix of relief and possessiveness settling over me. “I know he still wants you,” I said, my voice barely above a growl. “And I know he’s not going to stop.”
Yulia’s gaze turned sharp, her brow furrowing slightly. “Well, that’s his problem, not mine,” she replied, a spark of defiance in her tone. “I can handle him, Issa. I’ll put a stop to it if he tries anything.”
I felt a grin pull at my lips, my wolf stirring at her fierceness. “I don’t doubt that, but… I hope, for his own sake, he listens.” The words came out darker than I intended, a subtle warning that even Yulia seemed to catch, her eyes narrowing slightly.
“Is that a threat?” she asked, half-challenging, half-amused.
I shrugged, letting a hint of a smile show. “Just a fact,” I replied, glancing at her. “Iran… he doesn’t like competition.”
She smirked, rolling her eyes. “And here I thought you were afraid of him.”
“I am,” I admitted, my tone softer, almost a confession. “But he’s still a part of me. And he’s very… protective.”
The intensity in her gaze softened, and for a moment, the distance between us seemed to dissolve. She looked at me like she was seeing beyond the walls I kept around myself, beyond Iran’s darkness, past my rough edges. And I knew, in that moment, that I wanted her to keep looking, to see all of me-even the parts I kept hidden.
But before I could say anything more, she turned away, looking out the window once again. I let out a quiet breath, fighting the pull of her presence, the way she filled the space beside me with something I couldn’t name, something that felt dangerously close to hope.
We continued in silence for a while, the weight of unspoken words hanging between us. Finally, she spoke, her voice barely a whisper. “Do you think… that things could be different? Between us?”
My heart pounded, Iran’s restless energy mixing with my own. “If you’re asking if I think we could ever have a normal life,” I said, my voice rough, “I don’t know, Yulia. But I know I want to try. And I know that no matter what happens, I don’t want to lose you.”
She didn’t reply, but the way she glanced at me, her eyes filled with a hesitant warmth, told me everything. And for the first time in a long time, I felt a flicker of something I hadn’t allowed myself to feel in years: the faint glimmer of hope.
As we pulled up to our house, I hesitated, not wanting to break the fragile bond that had settled between us. But before I could speak, she leaned over, her hand brushing mine in a silent promise.
“Issa,” she murmured, her voice soft but steady. “Whatever happens, I’ll be here. I’m not going anywhere.”
Her words echoed in my mind as I watched her disappear into the house, her presence lingering long after she was gone. And as I drove away, the shadows seemed a little less daunting, the night a little brighter.
Because, for the first time, I had someone by my side.