Melina POV.
I was in the library. The place had slowly become my escape over the past few weeks. Quiet, calm, and filled with answers I didn't even know I needed. Selena had been helping me a lot lately, teaching me what it meant to be a Luna, giving me books about leadership, responsibility, and strength. Right now, I sat by one of the long wooden tables, a book open in front of me, but my eyes weren't really reading. My mind was somewhere else. Weeks had passed. Days flew by so fast they barely felt real, and before I knew it, a whole month had gone by. And in that time, everything had changed.
Mason and I… we weren't the same anymore. Our relationship had grown stronger in a way I didn't expect. It wasn't just tension or confusion now. It was something deeper, something real. He had this habit of stealing kisses from me when I least expected it, like it was normal, like I belonged to him. And the worst part? I was getting used to it. A small smile tugged at my lips before I could stop it. "Oh wow," the voice in my head said immediately. "Look at you smiling like a lovesick puppy. This is embarrassing." "Shut up," I muttered under my breath, turning a page I hadn't even read.
But it was true. I had stopped thinking about running away, not because I couldn't, but because I didn't want to. If I ran… I would go back to Thomas, and that thought alone was enough to make my chest tighten. If he got his hands on me again… I might not survive it this time. Mason had changed that for me. He made me realize something I never thought I would feel in a place like this. I wasn't a prisoner. I was his mate, his human mate, and somehow… he had grown to love me. That part still confused me.
What confused me even more was why he hadn't marked me yet. From everything I had read in these books, especially about Alpha Kings, they were supposed to mark their mates almost immediately. If they didn't, they would lose control, go wild, become unstable. But Mason? He was nothing like that. He was patient, too patient. Even when I could feel the tension between us, even when he was close enough to lose control, he held back for me. And I didn't know if that meant he cared more… or if it meant something else entirely.
"You're overthinking again," the voice said. "Maybe he just likes the chase." I rolled my eyes slightly. "You're impossible." "And you're in denial," it shot back. Before I could respond, the sound of footsteps echoed through the library. Slow. Confident. Familiar. I didn't need to look up to know who it was. A small smile slipped onto my lips. "Well," I muttered quietly, "here comes the perfect Luna."
"What are you grinning at, you wretched human?" Right on cue, I lifted my head and met Jessica's gaze. She stood a few steps away, arms crossed, her eyes already filled with irritation like my existence alone annoyed her. If this had been before… I would have looked down, stayed quiet. But not anymore. Darius didn't train me for nothing. And if I was going to stand beside Mason… if I was going to be Luna… why should I be afraid? Even if she was a werewolf.
"I'm talking to you," she snapped, stepping closer. "I heard you," I replied calmly, closing the book in front of me. She didn't like that. I could see it clearly. "You know what," she said, her voice dropping, "I'll make this simple for you. Mason is mine. Mine alone. So you better leave this place and go somewhere far away. Because you don't belong here."
For a second, I just stared at her. Then I laughed. Her expression darkened immediately. "Then who exactly is supposed to take that position?" I asked. "You?" Her jaw tightened. "Wake up, Jessica. Mason is my mate. Not yours." "Woah," the voice in my head cut in, amused. "I didn't know you liked our hot mate this much." I ignored it. Jessica stepped closer, her presence sharp and intimidating.
"You think being his mate makes you worthy?" she snapped. "You think you can stand beside him?" "Yes," I said simply. That one word seemed to hit harder than anything else. Her eyes flashed. "You don't belong here," she said again. "You don't have the strength, the power, or the blood to be Luna." Something inside me stirred, that same quiet strength I had been feeling lately. "You don't get to decide that," I replied. She laughed coldly. "Oh, I already have."
I tilted my head slightly. "Then why are you still trying so hard to convince me?" That shut her up for a second. Then her lips curled. "If he really belonged to you," she said slowly, "he would have marked you by now." My chest tightened. I hated that those words got to me. "And yet," she continued, watching me carefully, "he hasn't." Silence. "And do you know why?" she asked. I didn't answer.
Her smile widened. "Because he doesn't see you as enough." The words hit deep. Then she leaned in slightly. "He was with me yesterday," she added. Everything inside me went still. "And he loves me," she finished before turning sharply and walking away.
For a second, I didn't move. Didn't think. Didn't breathe. Then the voice in my head spoke again. "Wow. She's really trying to mess with your head." I blinked, forcing myself to breathe again. And then I realized something. "She's lying," I said quietly. "Obviously," the voice replied. "If it were true, she wouldn't be this desperate." I let out a slow breath, my fingers tightening slightly against the book. Jessica's words still lingered, but this time they didn't break me. Instead, they made something else clear. Something inside me was changing.
And this time… I wished she could hit her head on the wall, and as she stormed out, she actually did, stumbling into it hard. What just happened.