The Human Among Wolves (Aurora) novel Chapter 292

Chapter 292

Zayn

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As we stepped into the academy halls, the quiet hit me first.

Not the comfortable kind–just the hollow stillness that settles into a place when it’s been half–abandoned. There were a few students around,

sure. Someone passed us with a duffel slung over their shoulder, another voice echoed faintly from a distant corridor. But most of them were

gone, already home for the holidays, already detached from this place unt a few days before the ski trip dragged them back.

I didn’t mind the silence.

It made everything feel slower. Less watched.

We walked side by side, our footsteps soft against the polished floor, until we reached the Holloway–the long corridor that split our dorms in opposite directions. It was familiar, almost comforting, and for a moment just stood there, letting the weight of the past days settle into my

bones.

Then I stopped.

Aurora took one more step before realizing I wasn’t beside her anymore. She turned, brows lifting slightly in question, and I reached out, gently catching her wrist and turning her fully toward me.

“Hey,” I said quietly.

She looked up at me, and there it was–that look that still managed to disarm me no matter how many times I saw it. There was something about her eyes I still hadn’t learned how to prepare for. Not the color itsel–I’d made my peace with that–but the way they held things. Too much truth. Too much feeling. Like she saw more than she ever said.

And somehow, it fit her perfectly.

“Go to your room,” I told her, keeping my voice low. “Take a shower. Pack our things. Then come to my room in an hour.”

She listened without interrupting, like she always did when I spoke to her like this–when I wasn’t asking, just grounding us both.

“Your roommates aren’t there anyway, right?” I added. “They went home.”

She nodded. “Yeah. They’re gone.”

“Good,” I said, not because I didn’t like them–but because right now, I needed quiet. I needed space. I needed her without the world pressing

in from every direction.

She studied my face for a second longer, like she was checking for something beneath the words. Then she nodded again, softer this time.

“Okay,” she said.

The word was barely above a whisper.

And then–suddenly–she smiled. Just a small one. The kind that sneaks up on you when you least expect it. Before I could say anything else, she rose onto her toes and pressed a quick kiss to my lips.

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Chapter 292

It wasn’t deep. It wasn’t lingering.

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But it hit me anyway.

Like a promise. Like a reminder. Like she was saying I’m still here without using words.

She pulled back just as quickly, her fingers brushing mine for half a second longer than necessary before she turned away. I watched her walk down the corridor toward her dorm, her steps steady, her shoulders squared, like she hadn’t just unraveled me with the simplest gesture.

I didn’t follow.

I stayed where I was, watching until she disappeared around the corner.

Only then did I let out the breath I’d been holding.

Ten days.

That’s all I could think about.

Ten days with her. No classes. No schedules. No pretending everything was fine when it wasn’t. Just time–real time–to think, to plan, to exist together without constantly looking over our shoulders.

I wasn’t thrilled about the ski trip. Crowds, noise, too many eyes. But ten days with Aurora? That part I wanted more than anything.

I turned toward my own dorm and started walking, already running through what needed to be done next. There were things to pack. Things to secure. Thoughts I hadn’t allowed myself to finish yet.

I entered my room, quietly grateful–for once–that I didn’t have a roommate waiting inside. The door closed behind me with a soft click, sealing me off from the rest of the academy. I dropped my bag by the wall and turned toward the bathroom, already thinking about the shower, about letting the hot water wash the road and the fear and the exhaustion out of my body.

Then I saw my bed.

I froze.

Right at the center of the sheets, perfectly placed like it had always belonged there, lay a small black card. I was certain it hadn’t been there before. I knew it. The room had been empty the last time I’d left it–undisturbed, untouched.

My pulse picked up as I stepped closer, every instinct screaming at me to be careful. Slowly, I reached out and picked it up, the cardstock cool and smooth beneath my fingers.

Two words were written across it in stark white ink.

Call me.

No name. No number.

It didn’t need either.

My fingers tightened around the card as a familiar chill slid down my spine. There was only one person arrogant enough to leave something like this behind. Only one person who would turn a threat into an invitation.

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Chapter 292

Zade.

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I clenched my jaw as I crushed the card in my fist and tossed it into the nearest bin. I didn’t watch it land. I didn’t need to. With a slow breath meant to steady myself, I turned toward the bathroom and shut the door behind me.

An hour later, I was clean, changed, the sheets replaced and the room put back into order–like I could scrub away everything that had followed

us here.

A knock sounded at the door.

Finally.

I crossed the room in long strides and opened it without hesitation.

She stood there in loose sweatpants and an oversized hoodie, her hair still slightly damp, her bag slung over one shoulder. Simple. Comfortable.

And somehow more beautiful than anything else I’d seen in days.

I didn’t say a word.

I reached for her, catching her by the waist and pulling her inside, kicking the door shut behind us. In the same motion, I backed her against it,

the solid wood pressing into her shoulders as I leaned in and kissed her–Hard, urgent, like I’d been holding myself together by sheer will

alone.

She was startled for half a second before melting into me, her bag slipping from her grasp and hitting the floor as her arms came up around my

neck. The kiss deepened, unrestrained, full of everything I hadn’t said–the fear, the relief, the fact that she was here and safe and real.

My hands were everywhere, roaming hungrily over her body, squeezing her breasts through her hoodie and gripping her ass firmly as I held her

like I was afraid she might disappear if I let go.

I’d missed her.

Even an hour apart had been too long.

12:39 Thu, Jan 29 BGB.

The Human Among Wolves