The Human Among Wolves Chapter 96

Aurora

For a while after the call ended, I just sat there—phone still in my hand, her words echoing in my head.

Be careful.

It took me a minute, maybe longer, to pull myself together enough to move. My body felt heavy, like the conversation had drained the last bit of energy I had left.

Finally, I exhaled, long and shaky, and forced myself to get up. The cold air hit my skin the moment I tossed the blanket aside, grounding me a little. I made my bed slowly, almost absently, smoothing the sheets that were wrinkled from a night of twisting and turning. The small, mindless task helped—something about order, about making things neat, when everything else felt so wildly out of place.

When I finally straightened up, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

My eyes looked tired, the kind of tired makeup couldn’t really fix. I looked away.

Classes.

I needed to focus on something normal. Something boring.

I reached for my skincare pouch, my hands moving automatically through the familiar routine—cleanser, moisturizer, a quick brush through my hair. My mind wasn’t really in it, though. It kept replaying her voice, the hesitation, the way she’d said dangerous.

By the time I pulled on a sweater and jeans, my roommates were starting to stir. Mira was the first, her hair a mess, squinting at the clock like she couldn’t believe it was morning already. Lira followed with a groan that sounded borderline dramatic, rolling out of bed with her blanket still half-wrapped around her shoulders. Riven just mumbled something unintelligible and pulled a hoodie over her head before heading straight to the bathroom.

It was strangely comforting, that little slice of routine chaos. The sound of them moving, talking, existing—it made things feel normal again, even if just for a moment.

No one said much at first, not until coffee was involved. Then came the quiet chatter, the half-awake complaining about schedules, tests, professors. I smiled faintly, letting their noise fill the space where my thoughts had been spinning too fast.

We left together, like we always did, walking down the hall in our usual tangle of mismatched energy—Mira talking a mile a minute, Riven barely awake, Lira adjusting her bag strap for the tenth time.

And then, like every morning, we split off at the main hallway.

“See you after class,” Mira said, flashing me a grin.

I nodded, forcing one of my own. “Yeah. See you.”

As they disappeared around the corner, I adjusted my backpack and turned toward the lecture wing, trying not to think about the call, or my mother’s voice, or the quiet warning that still rang in my ears.

Just another day, I told myself.

Just get through it.

*** * ***

By the time I got to my first class, I’d almost convinced myself everything was fine.

Normal. Manageable. Just another day.

Except… it wasn’t.

It started with the whispers.

At first, I thought I was imagining it—those small, sharp bursts of laughter that died the second I walked past. The sideways glances, the sudden silence when I entered the room. It was early, I told myself. People were tired. Weird.

But then my phone buzzed with a text.

Mira: don’t freak out but check lycannet rn

I opened the app—our academy’s unofficial gossip feed—and there it was.

Pinned to the top. Hundreds of comments.

Me.

And Kael.

In his car.

Outside the academy gates.

Kissing.

The shot was close, like whoever took it had been right there. You could see the rain on the window, the way his hand was in my hair, how my eyes were half closed.

And the caption underneath it:

“Guess the Lycan prince’s tastes aren’t as royal as we thought." #MoonboundScandal”

The room seemed to go quiet all at once. I could feel people’s eyes on me, feel the weight of it. My throat went dry.

I locked my phone and shoved it into my bag before I could read the comments. I didn’t have to read them to know how they went—half the academy either drooling over Kael or tearing me apart. A freshman. A nobody. Kissing the future king like I had any right to.

When I sat down in class, I kept my head low and stared at my notebook, even though I didn’t write a single thing. Every time someone shifted in their seat or coughed, I flinched.

By the time the lecture ended, I was already halfway out the door.

The hallways felt smaller than usual. Louder.

I caught fragments as I passed groups of students:

“—saw it this morning—”

“—can you believe it? With him?”

“—she’s just a Beta-born, right?”

The words blurred together until it all just sounded like noise.

Then I saw him.

Zayn.

He was standing near the courtyard steps with a few of his friends, his phone in hand. He wasn’t talking — just staring down at the screen, his jaw tight. For a second, our eyes met across the hallway.

And then he turned away.

Something in my chest ached in a way I didn’t want to name.

So I kept walking.

Outside, the courtyard was slick with leftover rain. Mira, Lira, and Riven were waiting by the fountain, and the second Mira saw me, she stood up.

“You saw it,” she said quietly.

“Yeah.” My voice sounded flat.

Riven crossed her arms, eyes sharp. “Someone took that on purpose.”

“You don’t say,” Mira muttered, pulling her hair into a ponytail. “Half the academy’s reposted it already. Charlotte’s probably celebrating somewhere.”

I sank onto the edge of the fountain, rubbing my palms together. “This is bad.”

Mira sat next to me, handing me a coffee. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Let them talk.”

Lira perched beside me, her voice soft. “Kael’s not gonna care, Aurora. You know that, right? He’s not the type.”

We sat there for a while, the four of us, pretending not to notice the stares from passing students. The gossip would burn itself out eventually—it always did. But the damage? That was already done.

My phone buzzed again.

Unknown number.

I frowned, unlocking it.

Aurenya. Stop digging. You won’t like what you find.

My whole body went cold.

The name—the one no one here should know—glowed on the screen like it was alive.

I didn’t move. Didn’t breathe.

Mira leaned over, peering at the screen. “What the hell is that?”

Riven grabbed the phone, her expression darkening. “That’s not a random message. That’s a threat.”

Lira’s voice was barely a whisper. “No one here knows that name, Aurora. No one.”

Be careful.

My mother’s voice echoed again in my head.

And suddenly, the photo didn’t feel like a scandal anymore.

It felt like a warning.

For a long moment, no one said a word.

The sound of the fountain behind us filled the silence — steady, calm, completely at odds with the cold rush building under my skin.

I just stared at the message, the words burned into my mind.

Riven leaned in first, her voice low. “That’s… not a coincidence.”

I locked my phone, heart hammering in my chest. The sound of the courtyard faded until all I could hear was blood rushing in my ears.

“This isn’t about the photo. They wanted to get your attention.”

“Riven—” Mira started, but she cut her off.

“Think about it. The timing. The photo goes viral, everyone’s talking, and then this shows up? Whoever sent that message wanted you distracted.”

Lira’s voice was barely a whisper. “You think someone from the academy…?”

Riven shrugged, but her eyes were already scanning the courtyard, sharp and calculating. “If they got close enough to take that picture, they’re closer than we think.”

“Let’s just… not talk about this here,” I said quietly. “Please.”

Mira nodded, her usual sarcasm gone. “Yeah. Lunch. We’ll figure it out later.”