The Human Among Wolves (Aurora) novel Chapter 198

Chapter 198

Aurora

4 ཏཱི,85%u

His eyes fluttered shut for a moment like the words hit somewhere deep. Then he finally loosened his arm, letting us shift apart.

“We should move,” he murmured. “Before the day disappears again.”

We slipped out of his bed together. I fixed my clothes–jeans, shirt, sill warm from sleep–while Zayn pulled on the hoodie he’d tossed over a chair last night. He didn’t rush me, didn’t look away either. Just… watched in that quiet, present way of his.

When I finished tying my shoes, he reached for my hand.

“Food?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Please.”

We left the room side by side, and he never once let go of my hand. Everything felt too normal–students in their rooms, laughter, footsteps echoing down the hall–but Zayn kept me close, shoulder brushing mine, like some part of him still didn’t trust the world

to stay steady.

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The cafeteria was loud, crowded, but he found us a table tucked in the corner. We ate slowly, comfortably. He brushed his knee against mine under the table, and this time it wasn’t accidental. It was grounding.

When the plates were cleared, I fidgeted with my fork for a moment before looking up at him. My chest tightened a little. “Zayn…

about tonight…” I began.

He raised a brow, giving me his full attention.

“I think I want to sleep in my room tonight,” I said, biting my lip. “I want to… talk with my roommates for a little while. Catch up. It’s been a while since we actually sat down together.”

His expression softened, though there was a shadow of hesitation in his eyes. “Your room?” he asked quietly.

I nodded, giving him a small, reassuring smile. “Yeah. I’ll come back tomorrow, I promise.”

He let out a slow breath, running a hand through his hair, and nodded. “If that’s what you need,” he said softly, his voice low,

almost reluctant.

I reached out, brushing my hand against his, feeling the warmth linger for a moment. “It is,” I said.

He gave a small, tight–lipped smile, then stood. “Okay,” he said finally. “Tomorrow.”

The weight of his presence followed me as I walked back to my dorm and I felt a pang in my chest that I tried to ignore. For tonight, though, I had my roommates, normal life, and the space to breathe–and that was enough.

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12:19 Thu, Jan 29 BGB.

Chapter 198

零85%面

The next morning, my alarm clock buzzed insistently, dragging me at of a half–dream I didn’t even want to leave. I groaned, burying my face in the pillow for a few seconds longer, trying to will myself back to sleep. When I finally opened my eyes, blinking against the dim light slipping through the blinds, I saw the numbers on the clock: 6:30.

I hated waking up early. Absolutely hated it. Last night, I had linger longer with my roommates than I’d planned, laughing and talking over small things that didn’t even matter but somehow felt portant. We had shared stories, jokes, quiet confessions between the messy piles of our blankets. I hadn’t noticed the time slipping away, hadn’t realized how little sleep I would actually

get.

Sitting up slowly, I rubbed at my eyes, my hair sticking out at odd angles, and groaned again. My room was quiet except for the faint hum of the heater and the occasional creak of the building settling around us. My roommates were still asleep–well, mostly. I could hear the soft murmur of breathing from their beds, and I imagined they would be up soon. Not too long now, probably.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed, feeling the cold floor against my feet. It was always a shock in the mornings, that first touch of chill against warm skin. I pulled my robe tighter around me and padded over to the desk, moving slowly, almost lazily. My thoughts drifted, half awake, half still clinging to the quiet warmth of last night.

I thought about Zayn. I always did, even when I tried not to. The memory of his arms around me, his steady, grounding weight, lingered in my chest, and it made me both smile and frown at the same time. I hadn’t slept in his room last night–my roommates had needed me, and I had wanted the small comfort of talking to them, of ordinary connection after the chaos of everything else- but the absence of him still felt noticeable. A little hollow.

Dragging myself toward the small mirror above the desk, I ran a hand through my hair, trying to smooth out the mess. My reflection looked tired–dark circles under my eyes, a slight crease in my forehead–but also strangely content. Even with the lack of sleep and the early morning grogginess, I felt a strange calm, like I had survived something that had almost swallowed me whole, and I had

come out of it intact.

I moved around the room slowly, tidying a little, brushing the sheets flat, making sure my things were in place. The morning smelled faintly of laundry and coffee from the dorm kitchen down the hall. I could hear footsteps and muffled voices beginning to stir outside my door. Soon, my room would be full of noise, chatter, and life, and I would have to move through it all like nothing

had changed.

I picked out my clothes for the day carefully, ignoring the little pangs of guilt that came with choosing comfort over style. Jeans, a soft shirt, sneakers. Easy. Practical. I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and tugged on the outfit, moving slowly as if trying to delay the inevitable rush of the day. My reflection caught my eye agn, and I gave a small, tired smile. Maybe today would be boring, normal, nothing like the chaos of last night. Maybe.

I finally pulled my hair into a loose ponytail, grabbed my bag, and glanced over at my roommates again. They were still curled up under blankets, faces relaxed and peaceful. I envied them, briefly, before shaking it off. There was nothing to envy–not really. I had my own routines, my own quiet moments to hold onto, even if they felt smaller now with the memory of Zayn hovering at the

edges.

Stepping out of the room, I moved through the dorm hallways slowly letting the familiarity of the walls and the quiet murmur of waking students ground me. Class awaited, lectures, lunch, the ordinary rhythm of a school day. Everything mundane and predictable. But even in the normalcy, I could feel the tension stretching quietly in the air, like a thread pulling at the edges of something I wasn’t quite ready to face.

And yet, despite that, I kept moving, Slow, careful steps, letting each breath pull me fully into the morning, letting the ordinary

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12:19 Thu, Jan 29 BGB.

The Human Among Wolves