Ronan POV
Laughter rippled through the cafeteria, sharp and cruel.
I barely heard it.
I was watching her.
Raine stood there, tray clenched so tightly in her hands that her knuckles turned white. But it wasn't fear. Not this time.
No, something shifted in her.
I saw it in the way her shoulders squared, in the fire burning in her eyes, in the way she was looking at me—not with the usual resentment or exhaustion, but with something dangerous.
Something that made my wolf stir.
A deep growl curled through my mind, a sound of interest, of approval.
"She's done running," my wolf rumbled, ears perked forward, watching her as if she were prey that had finally decided to fight back.
I forced my smirk to stay in place, feigning boredom. "What is?"
I expected her to waver. To hesitate.
She didn't.
"You," she said, letting the word slice through the air like a blade.
Something inside me twitched.
My wolf growled, but not at her. At me.
"You pushed her too far."
Shut up, I snapped at him, locking my jaw.
But I could feel him—restless, pacing beneath my skin, eyes locked onto her like she was something worthy.
And that infuriated me.
This was supposed to be simple.
Raine was nothing. She was the outcast, the one too weak to even sense her wolf, the one the rest of the pack looked down on.
She wasn't supposed to have this.
This strength.
This fire.
This power made my wolf growl in satisfaction when she turned her glare on Ava and said, "Shut up, Ava. Your voice is as grating as your desperate little attempts to get Ronan's attention."
Ava sputtered, her face burning red.
Kai snickered. Jaxon let out a low whistle.
And me?
I sat there, watching her, feeling something dark and unfamiliar coil low in my stomach.
Because I liked this.
And that pissed me off.
My wolf, on the other hand, was pleased.
"Good," he growled. "Finally."
Finally?
I clenched my fists under the table. What the hell does that mean?
But I didn't have time to dwell on it, because Raine wasn't finished.
She turned back to me, her voice steady, unwavering. "And you," she said, eyes locking onto mine. "You think I'm a charity case?"
I didn't answer.
I couldn't.
Because for the first time, I felt something unfamiliar tighten in my chest.
And my wolf—traitor that he was—wasn't on my side.
He let out a low snarl, ears flattening. "Fix this."
She doesn't matter, I shot back at him.
He bared his teeth. "Then why do you feel like this?"
I shoved him down, burying his presence deep in the back of my mind.
But I couldn't ignore the way his growl hummed through my bones when she took another step closer, voice dipping into something quiet.
Something deadly.
"You, Ronan, are nothing but a spoiled, miserable little boy."
Something inside me snapped.
Not at her words.
Not at the sharpness in her voice.
But because of the way my wolf didn't fight her on it.
Because he wasn't snarling or snapping or raging.
He was listening.
"She sees you."
I shoved my chair back slightly, exhaling slowly through my nose, locking my jaw.
Raine wasn't supposed to be this.
She was supposed to be the easy target, the one who folded under the weight of words like these.
Not the one delivering them.
Not the one making me feel like I was the one being stripped bare in front of an audience.
And worst of all?
My wolf approved.
He rumbled in my head, something almost smug curling through his tone. "She's stronger than you thought."
I didn't answer.
Because I hated how right he was.
I forced myself to smirk instead, tilting my head slightly. "That so?"
She didn't falter.
Didn't even blink.
"Yeah," she said, crossing her arms, mirroring my stance. "That's so."
For a fraction of a second, I forgot how to breathe.
I didn't realize how silent the cafeteria had gotten until Ava scoffed beside me, rolling her eyes. "Please, Raine. Don't act tough. Everyone knows you're just a scared little nobody, desperate for attention."
My wolf growled—not at Raine. At Ava.
I stiffened.
The sound was deep, warning, furious.
Ava was still talking, still spitting her venom, but I wasn't listening.
Because my wolf— was really pissed and I pushed down the urge to tear into Ava to make her shut up. I clenched my fists tighter. What the hell is wrong with you?
I asked my wolf?
He ignored me.
And when Raine stepped forward, voice like steel, he purred.
"Yes."
She turned on Ava first, tearing into her without hesitation, slicing through her with words so precise that Ava was left speechless, burning with humiliation.
And then, she turned back to me.
And I knew.
I felt it before she even spoke.
She wasn't just fighting back.
She was done.
"You have everything," she whispered, just loud enough for me to hear. "Power. Friends. This entire damn school wrapped around your finger. And yet, you still feel the need to pick on me."
Silence.
I could hear my own heartbeat.
My wolf let out a slow, pleased hum. "She's right."
Shut up.
I wanted to smirk. To roll my eyes. To dismiss her like I always did.
But I couldn't.
Because my wolf—my own damn wolf—liked the fact that she was standing her ground.
And that changed everything.
She turned, grabbed Lena's wrist, and walked away.
I should've been relieved. Should've been amused.
Instead, I was sitting in the wreckage of her words, my jaw tight, my wolf watching her like he'd just found something worth chasing.
And for the first time in years, I felt completely, utterly unsteady.
My wolf rumbled, something dark curling through his voice.
"You're losing her, Ronan."
I exhaled slowly. I never had her to begin with.
A beat of silence.
Then, a single, damning response.
"Not yet."