SERAPHINA’S POV
Maya and I talked long into the night, our laughter muffled against pillows, our voices dipping low as we shared fragments of our lives.
She told about how she was the fastest runner in her pack and beat half the boys in combat. She told me of her goth phase when she was fifteen and all the ridiculous, inane ways she’d tried to dye her light brown wolf fur black as a result.
I told her about my writing, how it felt to have people—even if they were strangers—appreciate me when no one else did.
I told her how Daniel’s laugh sounded like sunlight breaking through clouds, and how holding him was the best feeling in the world.
We compared heartbreaks and half-healed scars, dreams and hopes we hadn’t dared to speak out loud.
Somewhere down the hall, muffled voices of other OTS members still carried, but here it was only us—two women wrapped in warmth, trust, and the rare kind of friendship that made the world feel bearable.
