One Night

Chapter 151

Audrey

The dean blinked up at us, his mouth agape.

“I’m sorry. Did you say… Fated mate?

Edwin and I just stared down at him, waiting for the understanding to set in. The dean’s eyes darted back and forth between. the two of us, and he spuntered. “But Miss Thatcher.. You’re a human.”

I took a deep breath, remembering what Edwin had taught me that morning before we’d left the apartment.

The sensation was strange, like a tingling behind my eyes that spread outward. The dean jumped back in his chair, nearly toppling over. His face paled, and I could hear his heart rate spike even from where I stood.

“Not quite human,” I said softly as my eyes glowed silver.

Edwin placed a reassuring hand on my lower back as we explained everything-well, almost everything. We left out the part about the Silver Star legend, sticking to the basics of my newfound werewolf status and our fated mate bond.

When we finished, the dean shook his head, still looking bewildered. “L… I’m not sure we can allow this. It’s highly irregular.” He dragged a hand through his thinning hair, clearly flustered.

I straightened my spine, remembering the research I had done.

“Actually, sir, according to the student/faculty handbook, a student and a professor both of legal age who do not share any curriculars may fill out a form giving them permission to have a romantic relationship.”

Edwin’s eyebrows shot up at those words, and I felt a wave of pride through our bond. I glanced at him to see a smile playing on his lips, clearly impressed. I hadn’t told him that I had come so prepared. That I had researched this already, before that fateful night at the party.

The dean frowned, reaching for the handbook on his shelf with a huff. He flipped through it for a few minutes, his frown deepening as he found the section I had just mentioned.

“L… you’re right,” he admitted reluctantly, although he still sounded unsure.

With that, he rifled through his filing cabinets for a while before digging out a form from the bottom-clearly not one that was used often. Perhaps they had never even used these forms during his tenure as dean.

“Fill this out,” he said, sliding the official-looking form toward us. “But I want you both to understand the seriousness of this situation. I expect you both to act with the utmost professionalism while on school grounds.”

His tone was grave, his eyes moving between us with concern.

We nodded solemnly as we filled out the form. The scratching of our pens seemed loud in the quiet office. The dean watched us as we worked, shaking his head.

“I still can’t believe you were a werewolf all along, Miss Thatcher, Fascinating”

“Neither can 1,” I murmured as I signed my name at the bottom of the form. It still felt strange, to be walking around in this new body with all of these new sensations.

Edwin had helped me learn how to dull some of my senses over the weekend so I could navigate the world without going mad from hearing and smelling and feeling too much, but it was still somewhat uncomfortable.

Especially when, on top of all of these heightened senses, there was another being in my mind. And she was talkative.

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08:58 Fri, Sep 20

Chapter 151

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More than once I’d had to shush her over the weekend so I could have a few moments of peace and quiet and solitude. As promised, she e would curl up into herself and nap, or go into some kind of dormant state, or whatever it was

But, still excited after being dormant for so long, those periods never lasted long. She would usually come back, practically bubbling with eagerness to smell our mate and experience the world.

I imagined that she would force my muscles to take off into the sunset at a clip, running wildly, the first time I finally shifted.

The thought made me smile, though. My wolf was an eager and bubbly mess-the antithesis, apparently, to Edwin’s brooding and stoic wolf. Edwin said that my wolf reminded him of whenever I would get excited over fashion and would go

on a rant.

Maybe, at some point during my life, she had absorbed that trait of mine that I had struggled so much to hide and had made it her whole personality.

As we stepped out of the office, Edwin suddenly pulled me close pressing a kiss to my lips right there in the hallway. His lips were warm against my skin, and I felt a surge of affection through our bond. Nearby students gawked at us, their whispers filling the air.

“Edwin,” I hissed, embarrassed by the attention. I could feel my cheeks burning, and I resisted the urge to hide my face in his chest.

He chuckled, his breath warm against my skin. “I know we’re not supposed to, here on campus. But I had to steal one last kiss.”

With that, we parted ways for the day, promising to see each other later. My wolf ached and bristled as we parted, and I, too, felt a bit… empty the further we got from one another. But Edwin and I, as nice as it sounded, couldn’t hang off of each other forever. We still had lives and responsibilities.

And I had friends who were dying to know where the hell I had gone all weekend.

I had texted my friends yesterday when I had gotten my new phone. “Something crazy happened this weekend. I’m okay, but let’s meet up in the cafeteria tomorrow morning so I can explain

As I headed toward the cafeteria for our meeting. I could feel dozens of eyes on me. I knew I looked different-taller, more athletic, curvier, my face subtly changed.

But the stares still made me uncomfortable, my skin prickling under their scrutiny.

“Ignore them,” my wolf murmured. “They are just shocked… And maybe some of them are a little jealous.”

Still, I shivered slightly and wrapped my arms around myself. My physical self was different, but I was still me-still Audrey. Still the girl who had once been stared at in a mocking way, not with awe and curiosity. It would take some getting used

Stepping into the cafeteria, I spotted my friends eating breakfast at our usual table and made my way over. The cafeteria was bustling with activity, the air filled with the smell of food and the chatter of students.

As I approached, Gavin was the first to look up. I saw his nostrils are as he caught my scent-no longer human, but werewolf. His face went ashen.

“Audrey,” he gasped, leaping to his feet, “you’re. You’re a werewolf?”

The rest of my friends all snapped their heads up, various expressions of shock and confusion and awe coloring their features. Avis, who had come to campus today just for this meeting, looked as white as a sheet. Betty’s mouth was hanging open in shock. Tina nearly knocked her tray to the floor as she jumped up.

I stopped a few feet away, wringing my hands as my friends’ eyes wandered my new body, taking in the gleam of my skin, the luster of my hair, my new stature. They all looked at each other, then at me, then at each other again.

08:58 Fri, Sep 20

Chapter 151

“Audrey… What the hell happened this weekend?” Tina whispered.

“It’s… a long sald,

my voice trembling slightly.

For the next half hour, I recounted everything that had happened over the weekend-the fall, my three minutes in death, the awakening of my wolf, and the discovery that Edwin was my fated mate.

As I spoke, I could see nearby students, leaning in, their conversations dying down as they strained to hear. I didn’t lower my voice, didn’t falter, they would all find out sooner rather than later, Better hear it from me than through the grapevine, where details often got jumbled.

When I finished, everyone was silent for a moment. The usual cafeteria noise seemed muted, as if the world was holding its

breath.

Then Betty whispered. “Holy s**t.”

I snorted. Leave it to Betty not to mince words.

Tina stood up again, walking around me in a slow circle. Her eyes narrowed as she examined me closely, her gaze intense. “Your eyes,” she said softly, leaning in. “They’re just like your-

I shook my head quickly, cutting her off. The nearby students were still watching, their eyes hungry for more information. I didn’t want them to know about my silver hair. Not yet.

Tina nodded, understanding flashing in her eyes. She stepped back, her expression thoughtful, and tapped a finger on her lips as she considered.

“Either way,” she whispered, her eyes lingering on that tiny sliver of silver roots behind my ear, “you are special, Audrey. I can feel i

She paused, then added, leaning in so only I could hear, “My my wolf can feel it.”

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