From Rejected Mate to Luna Chapter 117

Julia's POV

I closed the door to my apartment and leaned against it with a sigh, the lingering sensation of Matthew's kiss still tingling on my lips. The past few hours had been a whirlwind.

Moving to my bathroom, I opened the medicine cabinet and reached for the small circular pack of pills tucked behind my face wash. Despite the conveniences we enjoyed as werewolves, our reproductive systems worked just like humans'. I popped the small white tablet from its plastic bubble and swallowed it with a handful of water from the tap.

Staring at my reflection, I felt a strange mixture of maturity and vulnerability. This was what responsible adults did—made choices about their bodies and futures.

A rapid knock at my door startled me out of my thoughts. "Julia! Open up! I have news!" Sophia's excited voice called from the hallway.

I barely had time to wipe my mouth before she knocked again, more insistently this time. "Coming!" I called, hurrying to the door.

The moment I pulled it open, Sophia burst in like a whirlwind of energy, her eyes bright and cheeks flushed. "Julia! You won't believe it!" She threw her arms around me in an unexpected hug.

"What happened?" I asked, "Is Jason back?"

"No, no—nothing like that." She pulled back, practically bouncing on her toes. "I got waitlisted for the photography program at California Arts Institute! The admissions director called me herself!"

I blinked, trying to process this information. "You... applied to art school? When did this happen?"

Sophia's smile faltered slightly. "I've been working on my portfolio for months. I didn't tell anyone because I didn't think I'd get in." Her eyes glittered with a determination I rarely saw in my younger sister. "It's just the waitlist, but the director said my night photography series was 'evocative and technically sophisticated.'"

"That's... amazing," I said, genuine pride washing over me despite my shock. "I had no idea you were so serious about photography. After that one conversation we had, I didn't hear anything more about it, so I thought it was just a passing interest and you'd decided not to apply after all."

Sophia's face lit up again. "Can I stay over tonight? Like we used to when we were little? I brought all my stuff—I can show you my portfolio!"

Before I could answer, she was already heading back to the hallway where she'd apparently dropped her bags—plural. She returned lugging a camera bag, a portfolio case, and an overnight duffel.

"Did you bring your entire room?" I laughed, helping her with the bags.

"Just the essentials," she replied, already unpacking her camera equipment onto my coffee table. "I brought my lighting setup too. I thought maybe I could take some photos of you."

I froze. "Me? Why would you want to photograph me?"

Sophia looked up, her expression suddenly serious. "Because you're beautiful, Jules. And I don't think you know it."

I didn't know how to respond to that, so I busied myself clearing space for her equipment.

As night fell, we ended up sitting cross-legged on my bed surrounded by stunning black-and-white photographs—forests bathed in moonlight, wolves moving like shadows between trees, pack members in human form gathered around bonfires, their faces illuminated in ways that revealed something deeper than their everyday expressions.

"These are incredible, Sophia," I said, genuinely impressed. "I had no idea."

She smiled, tracing the edge of a particularly haunting image of a lone wolf silhouetted against the full moon. "Nobody does, really. Everyone sees me as the shallow, social media-obsessed teenager."

"I'm guilty of that," I admitted. "I'm sorry."

Sophia shrugged. "It's okay. I've not always been nice to you either." She hesitated, then added, "Especially about the whole mate thing with Nathan. I didn't understand what you were going through."

The mention of Nathan sent a familiar chill through me, but it was less intense than before. "What changed?" I asked.

"I've been thinking a lot about the whole fated mates system," she said, gathering her photos into a neat stack. "What if the Moon Goddess gets it wrong sometimes? Or what if she gives us the mate we need at one point in our lives, but we outgrow them?"

I stared at my sister in amazement. These were thoughts I'd had myself but never dared voice aloud—they bordered on blasphemy in traditional pack circles.

"What about you and Jason?" I asked carefully.

A blush crept up Sophia's cheeks. "I don't know if he's my mate. I just... feel something when he's around. But he's older, and he has responsibilities to the pack, and..."

"And you want to go to art school," I finished for her.

She nodded, looking vulnerable for the first time. "Is it wrong to want something for myself first? Before I commit to the pack life forever?"

"No," I said firmly. "It's not wrong at all."

We sat in silence for a moment, the weight of tradition and expectation hanging between us.

"Okay," Sophia said suddenly, jumping up from the bed. "Enough serious talk. Let me do your makeup. I want to take those photos."

Before I could protest, she was already setting up a small portable studio in the corner of my bedroom—backdrop, lights, reflectors appearing as if by magic.

"I don't really do glamour shots," I protested weakly as she guided me to a chair.

"Trust me," she said, her fingers already working through my hair. "This isn't about glamour—it's about revealing."

For the next hour, I surrendered to Sophia's artistic vision. Her hands were confident as she applied makeup with a lighter touch than I expected, emphasizing my eyes and cheekbones rather than masking my features. She positioned the lights, adjusted the backdrop, and directed me with the authority of someone who had done this a hundred times before.

"Turn your chin slightly to the right... now look toward the window, but keep your shoulders facing me... perfect."

The camera clicked rapidly as she moved around me, occasionally pausing to adjust a light or my hair.

After what seemed like hours, Sophia finally lowered her camera. "I think we got it," she said, a note of satisfaction in her voice. "Want to see?"

She connected her camera to my laptop, and we huddled together on the bed as the images loaded. When the first photo appeared, I gasped.

The woman on the screen was undeniably me, but she wasn't the me I saw in the mirror every day. This woman's eyes held depth and strength, her posture spoke of quiet confidence, and there was a sensuality to her that I'd never associated with myself.

"That's... really me?" I whispered.

Sophia nodded, scrolling through more images. "This is how I see you, Jules. How Matthew probably sees you too."

My cheeks warmed at the mention of Matthew. "Would it be okay if I sent him one of these?" I asked hesitantly.

Sophia grinned wickedly. "Sending sexy photos to your Alpha boyfriend? Scandalous." When I started to backpedal, she laughed. "I'm kidding! Of course you can. These are yours now. And they're tasteful—sexy but not explicit."

I selected one where I was looking slightly away from the camera, a small smile playing at my lips, and texted it to Matthew with a simple message: *This is how Sophia sees me. What do you think?*

His response came almost immediately: *Beautiful. Sensual without being objectified. Your sister has talent. Though I admit it's making me feel things that are entirely my responsibility, not the photographer's.*

I laughed out loud, showing Sophia the text. She rolled her eyes but looked pleased. "Typical guy response, but at least he's owning it."