Chapter 1After senior year ended, I randomly scrolled through a pack forum thread.
[Which major would you pick?]
A ton of wolves said they'd switch. Regret came in all flavors.
But one answer stood out from the rest.
[I'd pick English Lit.]
If I could do it all over,
[That way, her and I wouldn't have to worry about that third wolf, and we wouldn't have missed the four years we should've had together.]
I smiled and was about to scroll away - then I saw the profile pic and ID. Exactly the same as my childhood packmate, Drake Anderson.
I clicked in. The personal info matched too, except the age was ten years older.
My heart dropped. My wolf went still.
So this was him from ten years in the future.
No wonder I was the only one cheering when we got into the same major.
No wonder he spaced out for so long after seeing my best friend, Laura Mitchell, receive her acceptance letter to the English Lit program.
Turns out I was the third wheel who caused him so much regret and remorse.
Fine then -
I quietly clicked confirm and accepted the offer to study abroad.
Let me end this mistake ten years early.
...
[Who's this third wheel you're talking about?]
I took a deep breath and typed out that question.
Just a few seconds later, his reply came.
[Someone who grew up with me.]
[Basically, she's this she-wolf who grew up in my pack.]
[Her parents died saving me back in the day, so my parents took her in. Out of guilt.]
[And she used that guilt to latch onto me. Every single thing. Let everyone think she was basically my future mate or something.]
[But I never asked for any of that.]
I blinked. Tears splashed onto my screen. My wolf whimpered low in my chest.
I thought of my parents, frozen forever in photos.
In that landslide, my dad pushed him out of the way and got crushed by a boulder.
My mom used all her strength to lift him out, then got buried under the collapse.
Drake once said that from then on, his pack would be my pack.
And that he would stay by my side and protect me for the rest of my life.
But in the end, to him, I was just an entitled brat using my family's sacrifice to manipulate him.
[God, I hate emotional blackmail. Congrats on getting out, OP.]
[Skip the drama. Give us the cute details! How'd you and your real she-wolf get together?]
Replies kept coming. Drake was quiet for a while, then posted two sentences:
[It's simple. When that she-wolf wanted me to bond with her, I came clean.]
[I told her straight up that I'd already slept with the wolf I really loved.]
My fingers started shaking uncontrollably. My claws nearly pierced my phone screen.
[Wow! What an Alpha, so direct!]
[So the clingy one just backed off? No drama?]
[She made a scene.]
Drake replied.
[Didn't matter.]
[I had dirt on her. The company she worked for belonged to my uncle.]
[Her grandmother was really sick and needed one last surgery. I held back her bonus.]
[So in the end, she had no choice but to let go.]
The thread in my brain snapped. I could barely breathe. My inner wolf howled in denial.
No way. No way Drake would use my own family to hurt me like that.
[So where are you and your current girl at? Mated yet?]
Someone else asked.
Next second, a photo popped up. Two hands with mating bands, fingers intertwined.
And my heart plunged into an abyss. My wolf keened.
The freckles on those hands were identical to Laura's.
And the locket on her wrist - at this very moment, was on mine.
The Andersons had given it to us, said it was a pack heirloom passed down through the generations. Something to keep us safe.
"One for each of us, so we'll never be apart!"
That year, Drake held my hand and made that promise. In the end, he gave that forever to someone else.
I gritted my teeth, fighting through the pain that made my breath tremble, and sent a private message to that account.
[Hey. I'm in a similar situation. There's someone in the way, so I can't be with the wolf I love.]
[Can we talk?]
I needed to know what happened in those ten years.
And soon, I got a reply. [Sure.]
[But I wouldn't say I'm love-locked.]
[Actually, that summer after high school graduation, I secretly booked a couples' tour package and took her to Maui alone.]
[By then, we'd both already caught feelings.]
I squeezed my phone so hard it hurt. My wolf snarled.
Maui. A vacation.
Drake told me he wanted to travel alone that summer, enjoy some free air without anyone bothering him.
But really, he'd already taken Laura to the island I dreamed of the most.
I spaced out for a long time. Then went back to the chat and sent a message to the present-day Drake.
[Drake, did you actually want to sign up for the same major as me?]
He answered right away.
[Why else?]
[Mom and Dad said I have to take care of you for the rest of your life.]
Have to take care of me. Not want to.
So Drake's words had already changed.
I gave a bitter smile, clicked confirm, and accepted the offer to study abroad.
It's okay.
Drake, from now on, I don't need you anymore.
Chapter 2
Drake returned to the pack house three days later.
At dinner, he slid a box across the table. Said it was a gift.
I opened it. A bookmark. Cheap. No pack insignia.
"Hey, did you and Laura go to the same place?" Mom leaned over, sniffing.
"Laura came by today too, and she gave Rachel the exact same present."
Drake's hand froze over his fork. His wolf's hackles rose for a flicker of panic.
But I didn't even look up. Kept chewing. "No worries. Getting two is fine."
Cheapest bookmark. One or two, no difference. My wolf didn't care.
Drake stared at me, mouth half open, but Mom kept rambling.
"Anyway, you three have such deep ties. Same college, and you and Rachel even in the same major - "
"Mom. Dad." Drake cut in, his voice flat.
"I might change majors after freshman year."
My heart pricked. A sharp sting. My wolf whined low in my chest.
The future Drake had told me every time he brought up switching, I'd cry, and my wolf would howl until his parents lectured him.
[She cries, then they guilt-trip me. So all four years, I was stuck with her like gum I couldn't scrape off.]
I shoved the pain down. Forced my wolf to settle. Looked up with a smile.
"Sure. I think you should go with what you like best."
The air went dead.
Drake's parents choked on their words. And Drake - he didn't look relieved. His eyes flickered amber for a second, dark and confused.
Dinner ended. He grabbed my arm - too rough, claws nearly grazing - and dragged me into my room.
"What was that about?"
I looked at him, calm. "Exactly what I said. If you don't like it, switch anytime. I'm not going to cling to you."
"Rachel, you - " He frowned, his scent souring. "What's actually bothering you?"
His voice dropped, an Alpha edge bleeding through.
The old me would've caved, let my wolf submit. Not now.
"Just say it. Don't hide it. I can't read your mind." He leaned in. "Can't you be more straightforward? Like... like Laura?"
I dug my claws into my palms until they nearly drew blood. My wolf stayed silent.
Then Laura's call blazed through.
"Drake! My faucet won't tighten - get your hot butt over here!" Her playful howl carried loud and clear.
Drake didn't hesitate. His wolf perked, and he was gone before I blinked.
I watched his back, and my wolf curled into a tight ball.
Last week, his parents were away. I was cooking and sliced my finger clean open. Blood pooled across the cutting board, the scent filling the kitchen. My wolf yelped.
All I wanted was for Drake to grab me a healing salve.
He said, "You're an adult now. Learn to be independent. Can't rely on me for everything."
I walked to urgent care alone, hand drenched, blood dripping. He never showed. Not even after I got bandaged.
But Laura howled once, and he sprinted.
Ten minutes later, I scrolled to her post.
A male who works hard is the sexiest thing.
A photo: Drake squatting in her bathroom, wrench in hand, muscles taut.
Comments flooded. [Ooh, is that your mate?]
Laura shot back, [Shut up! That's my best friend's male. Don't even go there.]
I watched her cover, my wolf snarling quietly.
Then I messaged the future Drake, claws trembling.
[If the third wolf had stepped aside, would you be happy with your she-wolf now?]
He didn't reply right away. Silence stretched so long my wolf held its breath.
Then the message dropped.
[Happy? Not really. But at least I wouldn't feel guilty.]
[Because then she probably wouldn't be dead right now.]
Chapter 3
My breath caught. My blood turned to ice.
Dead?
I die ten years from now?
My wolf whimpered low, but I forced myself to type back. [How?]
Drake didn't hesitate.
[Because she was stubborn.]
[After I forced her to call off the bonding ceremony, her grandmother still died.]
[But that was just an accident. That day, she visited her grandmother and accidentally let something slip about us.]
[Her grandmother's emotions spiked too high. They couldn't save her.]
My whole body went cold. I bit my lip until I tasted copper, my wolf clawing to howl.
I knew "she" meant Laura.
And my grandmother was the only blood I had left.
[But she didn't mean it. She just wanted to invite her grandmother to our ceremony.]
[You believe whatever she says?!] I shot back, pain ripping through me.
But Drake stayed calm.
[Of course. I know her. She's straightforward, no tricks.]
[Not like the other one.]
My hands dropped. My wolf curled in defeat.
Yeah. Laura was direct, open, loved hard and hated harder.
And me? I was the gutter rat, full of schemes.
[What happened next?] I asked, tears burning my eyes.
[Next, she lost it. She wanted to go after the wolf I loved.]
[I lost control. Slapped her. She fell, lost her balance, and miscarried.]
[I didn't even know we had a pup together.]
His words sliced through me like claws.
[I felt some regret. Wanted to take care of her. But after she woke up, her mind was gone.]
[So I locked her in a pack rehabilitation facility.]
[Then last week, she had an episode and took her own life.]
The screen went dark.
I was sobbing so hard I couldn't see. My wolf howled inside my chest, raw and broken.
So that was my ending.
My heart seized. Cold sweat drenched my fur. My claws extended and retracted uncontrollably. I dry-heaved over the floor.
Then I bolted - paws barely touching the ground - straight to the elder den.
Grandma sat by the window, soaking in the sun. Her eyes crinkled when she saw me. She opened her mouth, but I cut her off.
"Grandma, I'm going abroad to study. Will you come with me?"
I would never leave her here again.
She looked confused, but nodded anyway.
"Of course. Wherever Rachel goes, Grandma follows."
She stroked my hair. "And Drake? You two - "
"He's nothing to me anymore." My voice was stone.
"Grandma, remember this. I don't like him. And I will never, ever mate him."
She frowned, but in the end, she agreed.
A weight lifted. My wolf relaxed. I chatted with her a while, then left.
But I didn't expect two wolves waiting outside.
Drake and Laura.
Drake stared at me, jaw tight. My heart clenched - how much had he heard?
Then Laura piped up.
"Rachel, did this jerk do something? Is that why you said you don't like him?"
She raised her hand to smack him - but he caught her wrist, his grip firm.
A tiny bandage wrapped Laura's finger.
"Careful with your hand. Is it healed?" He asked, his voice soft.
I looked down at my own hand. Still wrapped in thick gauze, a week later. Still seeping. My wolf's healing had stalled from all the stress.
Drake followed my gaze. A flash of shame crossed his face. He cleared his throat.
"Let's talk at home. Your hand also - "
"No."
I looked up and gave him a smile - cold, final.
"You heard exactly right."
"Drake, keep your distance from now on."
