***A few years later***
"Damon! You're hurting me! Let go!"
Jacob's cry echoed through the vast hallway as he struggled against the iron grip wrapped around his wrist. Damon did not slow down. He did not answer. He dragged Jacob forward with relentless force, pulling him across the cold marble floor and up the grand staircase of the Lunar Fury Pack house.
Jacob stumbled more than once, barely managing to keep his footing. His arm burned where Damon's fingers dug into his skin, the pain sharp and unyielding. Panic clawed at his chest as pack members turned away, pretending not to see. No one dared intervene when Damon Blackfang looked like that.
There was nothing human left in Damon's expression.
His face was carved from stone, devoid of emotion—except for the wild madness blazing in his eyes. The Alpha's blue irises glowed faintly, an unmistakable sign that his wolf was dangerously close to the surface.
When they reached Damon's bedroom, the door was flung open with violent force. Damon yanked Jacob inside and slammed the door shut behind them. The sound thundered through the room, making Jacob flinch and squeeze his eyes shut.
For a brief second, there was only silence.
When Jacob opened his eyes, his heart nearly tore itself from his chest.
Damon stood directly in front of him.
Too close.
Too suffocating.
"D-Damon—"
"Didn't I tell you not to play with them?!" Damon roared, his voice shaking the walls.
Jacob instinctively stepped back. "T-There's nothing wrong with that," he said shakily. "I just wanted to have more friends—"
He never finished his sentence.
Damon grabbed his arm violently, fingers locking around Jacob's smaller limb with crushing strength.
"No!" Damon shouted. "I'm the only one who gets to be close to you. I'm the only one who gets to be your friend!"
Jacob winced, his eyes squeezing shut as pain shot through his arm. His breath trembled as he tried to pull away, but it was useless.
"B-But—"
The next moment, Damon shoved him hard.
Jacob gasped as he fell backward onto the bed. Before he could recover, Damon was on top of him, pinning him down with his weight. One of Damon's hands restrained both of Jacob's wrists with terrifying ease, while the other gripped his jaw, forcing him to look up.
"Damon! Let me go!" Jacob cried, fear flooding his voice as he struggled beneath him.
"Do you even understand what I'm saying?!" Damon shouted back.
Their faces were inches apart. Jacob could feel Damon's breath, heavy and unstable, washing over him. His entire body trembled.
"P-Please… calm down first," Jacob whispered.
He knew.
The man above him wasn't fully Damon anymore.
It was the beast.
Jacob could see it clearly—the unnatural brightness in Damon's eyes, the overwhelming dominance radiating from him, the oppressive aura that pressed down on Jacob's chest like an invisible cage.
Damon was losing control again.
"No!" Damon snarled. "You belong to me, Jacob. I'm the only one allowed to talk to you. I'm the only one who gets to stay by your side in this pack!"
His grip shifted.
Where his hand had been holding Jacob's jaw, it now wrapped around his neck—not tight enough to crush, but tight enough to steal air.
Jacob froze.
His hands clawed weakly at Damon's arm as panic surged through him. His lungs burned as he struggled to breathe, his body writhing beneath Damon's crushing weight.
"D-Damon… I c-can't… breathe…"
His vision blurred. His face grew pale as the lack of oxygen made his head spin. Fear unlike anything he had ever known flooded his veins.
He didn't know how, but desperation gave him strength.
Jacob shoved with everything he had.
Damon stumbled back, nearly losing his balance.
Jacob immediately rolled onto his stomach, coughing violently as he sucked in air. His chest heaved as if he had just clawed his way back from death itself. Every breath hurt, but he welcomed the pain—it meant he was alive.
He barely had time to recover.
Damon was on him again.
This time, Damon pinned him from behind, forcing him back down onto the bed. The Alpha's presence was overwhelming, his body a heavy weight that crushed Jacob into the mattress.
One of Damon's hands returned to Jacob's neck—not tight this time, but threatening. His other hand fisted into Jacob's hair, pulling his head back just enough to force him to look up.
Tears streamed down Jacob's face, blurring his vision.
"P-Please… stop," he begged weakly.
Damon's lips curved into a chilling smile.
To him, Jacob's trembling pleas sounded like music.
He leaned closer, his voice dropping into a low, dangerous murmur near Jacob's ear. "You need to learn," he said slowly, "that disobeying me has consequences."
Jacob shook uncontrollably beneath him.
The fear dragged him back to memories he desperately wanted to forget—the first time Damon had lost control, the first time Jacob realized how dangerous his attachment to the Alpha truly was.
That day had left scars far deeper than bruises.
Damon had nearly crossed a line he couldn't return from.
And it was for the same reason as now.
Jacob had spoken to others.
It had traumatized him.
Since then, Jacob learned to limit himself. To stay quiet. To avoid attention. To make himself small so Damon wouldn't explode.
But how was he supposed to do that forever?
He was still young. He still wanted friends. He still wanted to laugh and belong.
After years of living in the Lunar Fury Pack, Jacob had finally started to open his heart again. He had allowed himself to hope—just a little. He played with others. He smiled.
And Damon noticed.
From the very first day they met, Damon had grown possessive. Their bond, once innocent, had twisted into something dark. Damon wanted Jacob's entire world to revolve around him—and him alone.
Every time Damon saw Jacob talking to someone else, the beast inside him raged.
"Please…" Jacob sobbed as Damon pressed down harder, his presence suffocating.
Minutes passed before Damon finally moved away.
Jacob sagged against the bed, his body weak and trembling.
Relief barely had time to settle before Damon grabbed his hands and yanked him upright.
Damon seized Jacob's face, forcing him to look into eyes burning with fury.
"Listen carefully," Damon growled. "If I ever catch you talking to those brats again, you'll regret it."
He shoved Jacob back onto the bed and turned away without another word.
The door slammed shut behind him.
Jacob was left sitting there, shaking uncontrollably. Tears soaked his cheeks as his heart raced violently in his chest. His body felt cold, hollow, and broken.
Alone in the silence, Jacob curled in on himself—terrified, trapped, and painfully aware that the cage around him was tightening.