Luna Who Stopped Giving In Chapter 02

Luna Who Stopped Giving In Chapter 02

The car pulled up to the Alpha estate.

Marcus and Caleb made trip after trip hauling everything inside.

Shopping bags covered every surface in the living room.

“Lily, try these on. Let’s make sure they don’t pinch.”

Mom knelt down with a pair of limited-edition sneakers, already working them onto Lily’s feet.

Lily took a few steps and did a little spin, grinning.

“Thanks, Mom! They fit perfectly!”

I slung my faded old backpack over one shoulder and headed for the stairs.

“Amelia, hold on.”

Mom called after me.

I stopped.

She stood and pointed at a pile of empty boxes on the floor.

“Take these boxes out to the trash.”

“And while you’re at it, wash the dress Lily left out yesterday. Hand wash it. Her skin’s sensitive. The washing machine irritates it.”

“Okay.”

I nodded and crouched down to stack the boxes.

Caleb came out of the kitchen with a glass of water.

He watched me crouching on the floor, a crease forming between his brows.

“Mrs. Caldwell, Amelia’s had a long day too. The dress can wait till tomorrow.”

Mom scoffed.

“Tired from what? She didn’t lift a finger at the mall.”

Caleb sighed and came over to me.

He pulled a mini USB fan out of his pocket.

“Your room doesn’t have AC, right? You can plug this into your laptop at your dorm, too.”

I looked at the fan. The box was crushed flat.

The laptop company’s logo was stamped across the front.

This was what he thought would make up for everything.

A freebie that came with Lily’s two-thousand-dollar laptop.

“Thank you.”

I didn’t reach for it.

“I don’t mind the heat.”

Caleb’s hand hung in the air. Something tightened in his jaw.

“Amelia, it’s just a desk lamp. Are you really still sulking about that?”

“I’m not sulking.”

I flattened the last box and stood up.

“I just don’t need it.”

“You used to be so reasonable. What got into you?”

His voice dropped, the way it always did when the future Alpha in him wanted the last word.

Reasonable.

That word had kept me on a leash for more than ten years.

I was seven when Grandmother Elaine Hart brought me to the Blackthorn territory from her rural Pack.

I’d enrolled late, so Lily and I ended up in the same grade.

Back then, Caleb had taken my hand, nodded toward Lily, and made me a promise.

“You look out for Lily, and I’ll look out for you.”

But protecting Lily had a price.

I lost my parents’ attention. Then the new clothes. Then the bedroom that was supposed to be mine.

And finally, him.

I looked at Caleb’s face. I’d known that face my whole life. Right now, I barely recognized it.

“Yeah. I’m being perfectly reasonable right now.”

I picked up the boxes and walked past him without another word.

Caleb didn’t follow. A low growl rumbled in his chest.

When I came back inside, I went straight to my room.

The storage closet under the stairs.

I dragged my suitcase out from under the bed and folded a few old clothes into it.

Tucked flat against the bottom was my one-way ticket.

Destination: Boston.

My phone buzzed.

I took a breath and picked up.

“Amelia, how’s my girl doing?”

Grandmother’s voice crackled through the speaker, slow and warm, still carrying that small-town drawl.

My eyes burned.

“I’m good, Grandma.”

I kept my voice steady.

“I went to the Pack market today. Sold a batch of my homemade preserves. I transferred three hundred dollars to your account.”

She lowered her voice.

“You’ll need some nice things for school. I don’t want you showing up feeling like you don’t belong.”

A tear hit the back of my hand before I could stop it.

In this family, three hundred dollars wouldn’t even cover one of Lily’s earbuds.

But it was everything Grandma had saved in six months.

“Grandma, I got a full scholarship. Tuition, housing, all of it. I’m okay on money.”

I pressed my hand over my mouth so she wouldn’t hear me cry.

“Take it.”

Grandma’s voice was firm.

“My Amelia worked so hard and got in on her own. Your parents don’t see it, but I do. I love you, sweetie.”

I bit down on my lip until it hurt.

“Okay.”

“Amelia, once you get to Boston, don’t look back.”

Grandma sighed.

“Don’t end up stuck the way I did.”

“I know, Grandma.”

After I hung up, I took the one-way ticket and pressed it flat inside my diary.

Through the door, I could hear Lily at the piano.

Caleb was humming along, low and soft.

My wolf lay still inside me. Not even a flicker.

I closed the diary, and slid the suitcase back under the bed.

One more night. That was all.