The academy courtyard was loud as usual — laughter, footsteps, the faint hum of gossip traveling faster than the wind.
Ayan had learned to tune it out. He always did.
But today, something felt off.
Maybe it was the way people's voices lowered when he walked by.
Or how the student from Class B — the one who'd seen him at the stairwell that night — suddenly couldn't meet his eyes.
He froze mid-step.
That student — Jin, that was his name — was whispering urgently to someone near the lockers. Their gaze flicked toward Ayan, then away.
Too fast to be casual.
Ayan's throat went dry.
No. It couldn't be. He'd been careful. Too careful.
He turned sharply and headed toward the library, the only place he could think.
But the moment he reached the hall, Kairo was already there.
Leaning against the wall.
Waiting.
Their eyes met — and something in Kairo's expression shifted.
"You look nervous, Omega," he said softly.
It wasn't mocking this time. It was searching.
"I'm fine," Ayan replied, too quickly. "Don't you have someone else to stalk?"
Kairo's smile didn't reach his eyes. "Not when the one I'm watching looks like he's about to break."
Ayan tried to step past him, but Kairo caught his wrist — gentle, but firm. "Tell me what happened."
"Nothing happened."
But the scent that hit Kairo was faint, instinctive — something he'd never caught before.
Not perfume. Not cologne.
Something deeper.
Something wrong.
He froze. "Ayan…"
Before he could finish, footsteps echoed behind them. Jin turned the corner — stopped dead when he saw them together.
Ayan's pulse crashed.
He yanked his hand free, whispering, "Don't say anything."
But Kairo wasn't listening anymore. His jaw was tight, his eyes darker than before.
He could feel it now — what his instincts had been trying to tell him all along.
Jin hesitated, swallowed hard, then took a step back — almost tripping as he turned to run.
"Wait—" Ayan started, but Kairo's voice cut through the hallway.
"What did he see?"
Ayan's silence was answer enough.
Kairo's eyes narrowed, his alpha aura pressing just slightly — not to threaten, but to protect. "If he opens his mouth, it's not just your secret that burns. It's both of ours."
Ayan's breath caught. "What are you saying?"
"I'm saying," Kairo whispered, leaning close enough that the world disappeared, "I'll make sure no one ever touches what's mine."
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