Maria.
The atmosphere shifted the mont we stepped into his room.
It beca... awkward like there were too many unspoken things hanging between us, pressing down on every breath, every movent. I hadn’t really discussed leaving the pack with Noah—not properly, not in a way that made it real.
And yet, here we were.
Honestly, I wanted to leave with him.
I really did.
The thought of walking away from everything, from the tension, the confusion, the constant pull and chaos the quadruplets brought into my life, was tempting.
But at the sa ti...It felt rushed.
Impromptu.
And going against the quadruplets so openly—it sent a chill down my spine.
They weren’t the kind of people you simply defied and walked away from without consequences.
"Naoh," I called out, my voice softer than I intended as I turned to face him fully. "Are you really going against the quadruplets like this?" I asked, my brows knitting slightly as I searched his face.
He didn’t answer imdiately.
Instead, he looked at , deeply, intently, like he was trying to read sothing beneath my question.
"Maria... don’t you want to leave?" he asked instead.
The question caught off guard.
I an completely off guard.
For a second, I just stared at him, my thoughts scrambling to catch up.
"Of course, I want to!" I answered quickly, almost instinctively, the words leaving my lips before I could even think them through.
I let out a small breath afterward, turning away slightly as I moved toward the bed and sat down, trying to steady myself.
Because it was the truth.
I did want to leave.
More than anything.
But wanting it and actually doing it were two very different things.
"Then my answer is yes," he said.
I looked up.
He had moved closer without noticing, closing the distance between us until he stood right in front of , his eyes locked onto mine with a seriousness that made my chest tighten.
"And we are leaving now."
Now?
The word echoed in my head.
That was when it truly hit .
How serious he was.
This wasn’t just talk, this wasn’t sothing he was planning for later.
He ant it.
Right now.
"Maria," he called again.
This ti, his voice was softer and gentler.
There was sothing in it that hadn’t been there before, sothing quieter, almost careful, as his hands ca to rest on my arms. The warmth of his touch seeped through instantly, steady, grounding, like he was trying to anchor in place.
"Go pack your things."
I swallowed hard.
My throat felt tight, my heart beginning to race as his words settled deep within , sinking in slowly but surely.
This was real and sohow... I still couldn’t understand why I was sitting there.
Noah had made it clear.
So clear there was no room for confusion, no space left for doubt.
I was supposed to go pack my things.
We were leaving.
Now.
And yet...My body refused to cooperate.
It was like I was frozen in place, stuck between what I knew I had to do and everything I was still trying to process. My mind felt slow, heavy, like it was struggling to catch up with the sudden shift in everything around .
It all felt too fast.
Too sudden.
Like I hadn’t been given enough ti to breathe, to think, to understand but then, almost forcefully...I pushed those thoughts aside.
I had to.
Because staying like this wouldn’t change anything.
With a sharp inhale, I stood up abruptly, the movent quicker than I expected, like I needed to prove to myself that I could still act, still move forward.
A smile found its way onto my lips but it didn’t feel right, it didn’t reach my eyes, it felt strained, uncertain and fragile.
Still, I turned away from him, focusing on the door ahead of as I began to walk toward it.
One step.
Then another.
Each one steady, deliberate, even if everything inside felt anything but.
"Maria." His voice ca again.
I froze mid-step, my hand hovering just slightly as I paused. I didn’t turn around, though. I couldn’t, not yet.
My heart had already started beating faster, anticipation and nervousness mixing in a way I couldn’t quite explain.
I heard his footsteps, slow and asured, closing the distance between us and then, it ca, warmth.
His arms wrapped around my waist from behind, pulling gently but firmly back against him. The contact sent a subtle shiver through , my breath catching slightly as I stilled in his hold.
"I... I..." he started, his voice hesitant, almost unlike the usual confidence he carried. "I don’t want us to pretend anymore."
And that...
That made turn.
Instantly.
My brows lifted in surprise as I twisted slightly in his arms to face him, searching his expression, trying to understand what he ant.
He looked... serious.
Different.
Like this ant more than anything he had said before.
"I want us to beco a couple for real," he continued, his voice steadier now, though there was still a trace of awkwardness lingering in it.
He paused briefly, then lifted one hand, scratching the back of his head in a rare display of uncertainty.
"Follow to my pack... as my Luna-to-be."
Everything in stilled completely.
The words echoed in my mind, louder than anything else.
Luna-to-be.
For a mont, I couldn’t breathe.
Couldn’t think.
It was like ti had slowed, like everything around us had faded into the background, leaving only him... and those words hanging between us.
I hadn’t expected this, not now, not like this, not when leaving the pack hadn’t fully settled.
Before I could even begin to process it, before I could form a response or even gather my thoughts...
He moved quickly, leaning in and losing the gap between us I had created earlier and then...his lips t mine, soft at first but firm enough to steal the breath right out of my lungs.
My eyes widened slightly at the suddenness of it, my body reacting before my mind could catch up. The warmth of his lips, the closeness, the intensity of the mont, it all hit at once, leaving montarily lost.
Everything else disappeared—the tension, the fear, the uncertainty.
All replaced by the overwhelming sensation of him, anchoring in that single mont.
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