The Human Among Wolves Chapter 82

Aurora

Kael started driving, the engine rumbling beneath us as the city lights faded in the rearview mirror. For a while, neither of us said anything. The kind of quiet that makes you hyper-aware of every little sound—the hum of the tires on the asphalt, the faint creak of the seatbelt, even your own heartbeat.

Then, after what felt like five minutes, he glanced over at me, his eyes narrowing just slightly. “You seriously didn’t put on a jacket?”

I looked down at myself, suddenly aware of the thin black shirt clinging to my arms, the way the night air would slice right through it once we reached the woods. My stomach sank. Fuck, he was right. Of course he was right. I’d completely forgotten something so small, so basic, yet it felt monumental now. The chill of autumn nights in the woods wasn’t subtle—it was bone-deep.

“Fuck… yeah, I forgot,” I muttered, feeling heat rise to my cheeks—not from warmth, but from embarrassment. My hands fidgeted in my lap as I tried to cover myself, but there was nothing to do.

Kael didn’t say anything at first. He just kept driving, his jaw tight, and I could feel his gaze flicking toward me again and again, like he was trying to decide whether to comment further. Then, without a word, he shifted slightly in his seat, reaching one hand back toward the empty space behind him.

I watched, curious, as his fingers closed around something and he pulled it forward. A black leather jacket sailed through the small gap between the seats, landing softly in my lap. My eyes went wide.

I froze. His jacket. The one that still smelled faintly like him, a mix of leather and something else I couldn’t name, something that made my stomach clench.

“Oh, I couldn’t—” I started, my voice trailing off, fumbling for the right words.

“Just wear it, Princess,” he interrupted, his tone flat, almost impatient, but there was an edge there that made me swallow.

I rolled my eyes, pretending I wasn’t secretly thrilled, and slipped my arms into the sleeves. The leather was cool at first, then slowly warmed against my skin. It hung off me, oversized, swallowing me up, but I didn’t care. Somehow, having it on felt… safer.

Kael glanced at me one more time, his expression unreadable, and then focused back on the road, leaving me to adjust to the way the jacket enveloped me.

“Uh, um, so… how have you been?” I asked, my voice coming out higher than I intended. Immediately, I winced inwardly. The words sounded painfully forced, like I had rehearsed them in my head a thousand times and still managed to trip over them. Small talk had never been my forte. Honestly, talking to people in general wasn’t something I excelled at. Especially not him.

Kael glanced at me briefly, just enough to catch my awkwardness, and smirked—a slow, easy curve of his lips that somehow made my stomach twist. “Boring… until now,” he said, his voice low, teasing, casual, yet somehow deliberate.

I turned my gaze out the window, feeling heat crawl up the back of my neck. I had no idea how to respond. My brain went blank. I could feel the hum of the car, the tires rolling over the darkened streets, the soft purr of the engine… and yet all I could hear was the steady thrum of my own heart in my ears.

It wasn’t like with Zayn. With Zayn, I could talk freely, my words flowing without effort, laughter coming easy, shoulders relaxing. With Kael, it was different. I was tense, aware of every small movement, every glance, every shift in his posture. It was… unsettling.

"I know you're lying" he suddenly said and I looked at him.

“About… what?” I asked, confused, my brow furrowing.

“About why you really need the translation,” he said, voice dropping even lower, sharper this time. There was no smirk now—just that steady, piercing gaze that made it impossible to look away. “I kept quiet when your roommates asked me for help. But come on, Princess… no one goes to a witch because they need a book translated for a school project.”

I looked away, staring out the window instead. The night outside was dark and still, the world blurring past us. I could hear the tires crunching over the gravel, the car’s engine humming beneath us, and the faint rustle of leaves in the wind. And yet, all I could feel was the weight of his gaze, pressing into me, making it impossible to forget what he just said.

“I—look,” I tried again, fumbling with my words. “It’s complicated. You wouldn’t… understand.”

Kael glanced at me, one eyebrow raised, his smirk fading into something sharper, more calculating. “Try me,” he said simply, and the words landed in my chest like a weight.

I swallowed. I wanted to retreat into silence, to hide everything I was feeling behind that safe, familiar wall I always carried with me. But the truth was already leaking through, fragile as glass, and I couldn’t ignore it—not with him there.

“Fine,” I finally said, my voice quiet, almost hesitant, as I bit the inside of my cheek so hard I could taste the coppery sting. My fingers fidgeted with the strap of my backpack, twisting it around nervously. “I… I’m not a werewolf,” I admitted, the words tasting strange and heavy as they left my mouth.

For a moment, there was silence in the car. Just the low hum of the engine and the soft rustle of leaves brushing against the windshield. I exhaled shakily, expecting him to say nothing, to let it go, or maybe to scold me for lying for so long.

And then he laughed.

A real laugh. Loud, clear, completely inappropriate for the moment. My stomach twisted. Laughing? What the fuck. What’s so funny about me finally admitting something I’d been hiding?

“Kael—” I started, my voice sharp now, anger creeping in, the heat of humiliation blooming in my chest. “What’s so funny?!”

He glanced at me, that smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were calm, almost amused, like he’d been holding back for a while and finally let it slip. “I know,” he said, simple, quiet, like it was nothing at all.

My mouth fell open, shock rooting me in place. “Wait… what do you mean, you know?” I stuttered, my words tripping over themselves.

“Princess,” he said, his voice dropping into that casual, effortless tone that always somehow made me tense, “I’ve known since the Halloween party.”

My mind froze. Halloween party? I blinked, trying to process.

“When you told me you were an alpha-born werewolf,” he continued, eyes briefly flicking to the road, hands steady on the wheel, “I could smell you.”

My breath caught. My stomach sank. I felt the words hang in the air, heavy and impossible to ignore. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.

He laughed again, softer this time, like he was enjoying my flustered silence. “I decided to play your game,” he said, turning slightly so his gaze met mine, sharp and knowing.

My hands clenched into fists in my lap. “You… you knew all this time? And you didn’t say a word?” My voice cracked slightly, part disbelief, part anger, part the heat of embarrassment spreading through me.

He shrugged, just slightly, but the look in his eyes wasn’t casual. It was… deliberate. Calculated. Like he’d been watching, waiting, deciding when to reveal it. “Didn’t want to ruin the fun,” he said simply, almost teasingly. “Besides… I kind of like watching you squirm.”