Morning arrived with the city already alive. Shyla stood before the mirror, brushing her hair with hands that trembled ever so slightly. Her locket, hidden beneath her blouse, pulsed faintly as if in rhythm with her racing heart. It wasn't nerves about college—not entirely. It was the whisper that still clung to her dreams, the one that left her unsettled.
"Big day, huh?" Lily smiled softly from the doorway, watching her daughter. "First day of college… You'll do great."
Nora peeked from behind their mother, grinning mischievously. "Don't get lost, Shy! And make a friend for me, okay?"
Shyla laughed weakly, tucking the locket beneath her collar. "I'll try." And she left for college.
On arriving there the campus was sprawling, alive with chatter and excitement. Students hurried across lawns, books clutched, voices overlapping in a hundred of conversations. Posters flapped against notice boards, and clubs shouting invitations, laughter spilling from groups already forming bonds. For Shyla, every sound was sharp, every glance unfamiliar, and the weight of her locket never quite eased.
She sat quietly in her lecture hall, notebook open, eyes darting around the room. A part of her longed to sink into invisibility, yet another part felt something, she didn't fully understand, it felt as though eyes were already on her. Watching. Waiting.
Leo's faint whisper brushed her mind. "Stay guarded. The air here is restless."
Her pen stilled against the page. She swallowed hard. "Okay," she thought back silently, though her gaze stayed forward.
It was after class, in the bustling corridor, that she felt it, an unavoidable magnetic pull. The crowd blurred, voices dimmed, and then… he was there.
Tall, composed, carrying himself with the easy grace of someone who belonged everywhere and nowhere. His dark eyes scanned the hallway until they landed on her. For a heartbeat, Shyla forgot to breathe.
To her, he was no shadow-dweller, no predator lurking. To her, in this moment, he was a stranger who carried an aura too strong to ignore.
He smiled not too wide, not too eager, but perfectly measured. "You must be new here," he said, voice smooth, carrying a warmth that didn't reach his eyes. "First day?"
Shyla blinked, words caught in her throat. "Uh… yeah. Just moved in yesterday."
"Thought so," he said easily, stepping aside as someone bumped past them. "I'm Ash." A hand extended, polite, confident.
She hesitated, then shook it. His skin was cool, colder than she expected, but not enough to alarm her. Instead, the contact sent an inexplicable shiver up her arm, the locket beneath her blouse pulsing harder as if protesting.
Leo's hiss sharpened in her head. "Danger. Turn away."
But Ash's gaze held hers, steady and calm, and in it she felt something different, an odd familiarity, a quiet pull that whispered against her chest the same way the unseen presence had. She released his hand quickly, stepping back.
"Shyla," she said softly. "That's my name."
"Shyla," he repeated, as though tasting the word. Then he smiled again, smoother this time. "Welcome. If you ever need help finding your way around, I'd be glad to show you."
She nodded, unsure why her pulse raced, unsure why the locket burned against her skin. Ash tilted his head slightly, as though he could sense her hesitation, then disappeared effortlessly into the crowd, leaving her breathless, unsettled, and strangely drawn all at once.
That night, as she sat by the window again, the city buzzing beneath her, Shyla traced the locket with trembling fingers. She could still feel the imprint of his touch, still hear the smooth cadence of his voice.
Leo's whisper was sharper than ever. "Do not let him in, Shyla. That one… he is Bluemines. They are watching you. For what, I cannot yet see—but it is not kindness they seek."
Her breath caught. "Bluemines…?" The word felt foreign on her tongue, chilling.
"Yes. Stay away from him. And remember that Nickolas is your true bond, your husband by the law of our kind. Not Ash. Never Ash."
Shyla shut her eyes, heart pounding. "Then why," she whispered shakily, "why does it feel like I know him?"
Leo did not answer. The silence pressed heavier than his words.
And somewhere in the distance, across rooftops cloaked in night, Ash's gaze lingered on the faint glow of her window. His lips curved into the faintest smirk. The game had begun, and he was certain that piece by piece, he would make her offer what he desired most.