The room was too quiet.
Except for the sound of Noah's breath—heavy, uneven, rasping like wind through broken glass.
Sam stood near the window, fingers still trembling after sending the emergency text to their group chat. The moonlight spilled in across the floor, casting silver shadows against velvet drapes. Behind him, Noah moved… slowly.
Not like Noah.
Sam turned just as Noah stepped out of the shadows—head tilted, eyes glowing faintly gold.
"Noah…" Sam said, voice low, soothing, "I need you to breathe for me, okay? You've been drugged. This heat isn't natural. Something's wrong."
Noah blinked.
Then a soft, amused chuckle left his throat—almost dreamy, almost unhinged.
"Wrong?" he repeated, voice deep and slick like molasses. "Oh, little alpha… I feel incredible."Sam's heart skipped.
This wasn't Noah's usual teasing voice. It was heavier. Rougher. Possessive in a way that made the air in the room too thick.
"You're not in your right mind," Sam warned, taking a step back. "I need you to sit down, and just hold on until the others get here."
Noah laughed.
"Why? You think I need them to stop me?" he said, walking slowly toward him, shirt clinging to his damp chest. "You think you can't handle me alone, Sammy?"
"Stop calling me that when you're like this," Sam snapped, voice tight.
"Like what?" Noah asked, coming even closer. "Like the part of me you've been trying to ignore? The one you know has always been there?"
He leaned in slightly, and Sam could feel the heat radiating off him. It wasn't just physical—it was chemical. Magnetic.
It wasn't fair."Noah…" Sam's voice faltered. He tried again. "You need to fight it. This isn't the bond acting naturally. This is a violation. Your body is responding to something that was never supposed to happen."
Noah stilled for a moment.
His eyes flickered.
For a split second, Sam saw his Noah—confused, scared, shaking.
"I can't…" Noah whispered. "I can't control it. It's not just the drug, Sam. It's you. It's always been you."
Sam felt something twist in his chest.
Then Noah's scent spiked, and his pupils dilated.
And that other side returned.
He moved closer.
"Do you know what it does to me," Noah murmured, "when you flinch from my touch? When you pretend you don't feel the bond clawing under your skin?""I feel it," Sam said softly. "Every goddamn second. That's why I stay away."
Noah paused, confusion flashing briefly across his face. "Then why are you still standing there?"
Sam's voice cracked. "Because I'm terrified."
Of him.
Of himself.
Of what he was hiding.
And of how easy it would be to let go and let it happen.
Noah took another step—and Sam stepped back. Again.
It was instinct.
A mistake.
Because the second he moved, Noah froze.
The shift in his scent was instant. Hurt. Rejection. Rage.
His chest rose and fell rapidly. His hands clenched at his sides."You're afraid of me," Noah said slowly.
"No, I'm afraid of what this will do to us if we rush it," Sam replied. "You're not in your right mind, and I won't take advantage of that."
Noah's eyes gleamed with something dark, and for a moment, Sam saw the madness that came with unclaimed bond heat—twisted by chemicals and suppressed instincts.
"I would never hurt you," Noah said.
"I know that," Sam whispered. "But this heat will."
Noah turned away suddenly, hands gripping the back of a leather chair until the frame groaned under his strength.
"I want to mark you so badly it feels like I'm dying," he hissed.
Sam's breath hitched.
"And I want you too," Sam said, voice barely audible. "But not like this. Not like this, Noah."For a moment, silence hung between them like a tightrope.
Then—
BANG!
The door burst open.
Max. Silas. Lucien. James.
All of them stepped into the room like a pack of wolves smelling fire.
Lucien's eyes scanned everything instantly—Noah's posture, Sam's flushed face, the lingering heat-slick scent that clung to the walls.
"Move away from him," Lucien said calmly—but it wasn't a request.
Sam didn't hesitate.
Max moved beside Noah in an instant, placing a firm hand on his shoulder. "You with us, pretty boy?"
Noah's head dipped. He was shaking now—his breathing short, shallow, unsteadyNoah's head dipped. He was shaking now—his breathing short, shallow, unsteady.
"I don't know who I am anymore," he said softly.
Silas stepped up, face serious but gentle. "You're ours. That's all that matters. You're not alone."
Lucien approached him slowly, hand out.
"Let's get you cooled down, Noah. We're here now. We've got you."
Noah let out a shuddering breath.
And this time—he didn't resist.