No Return Ticket for Our Lost Love Chapter 02

No Return Ticket for Our Lost Love Chapter 02

Outside the lounge, the late-night air blew crisp and cold, cutting through most of the lingering noise.

Our friends were splitting into groups, hailing cabs to head back to campus.

Matthew stood on the steps, his gaze landing on me as he offered his usual routine question. “It’s getting late. Do you want me to walk you back?”

Before I could answer, a wolf beside me—the one who had been cheering the loudest during the game, interrupted with a drunken, mocking laugh.

“Matthew asks her that every single time. But since their schools are on opposite ends of Southerland, it’s a solid two-hour drive. Hannah always protects her boyfriend, so she’s never actually made him do it. Talk about devoted.”

“Seriously, Matthew, where do you find a fated mate that selfless? I want a she-wolf who’ll just sit back and watch her mate lose himself kissing another girl.”

My face flushed a bitter mix of red and white. I knew exactly how pathetic and ridiculous I looked to everyone tonight.

Glancing past Matthew’s shoulder, I saw Rebecca standing there, waiting for him. I forced a tight, artificial smile.

“Sure. Why don’t you walk me back tonight?”

The second the words left my mouth, the air around us turned to ice.

Everyone locked their eyes on Matthew, waiting to see what he would choose—his fated mate, or the junior who never left his side?

A flash of genuine panic crossed Matthew’s face. Behind him, Rebecca froze.

Just as Matthew found himself backed into a corner and began to reluctantly step toward me, Rebecca suddenly bit her lower lip.

She looked up, her expression radiating fragile distress. “Matthew, it’s fine. Really. I mean… I am terrified of the dark, but I’d hate myself if I came between you and Hannah.”

In an instant, the reluctance in Matthew’s eyes hardened into pure irritation. His voice dropped to a cold, biting snap. “Hannah, grow up. Your campus is miles away. If I take you back, how am I supposed to make it to my morning lectures?”

“Besides, Rebecca’s afraid of the dark, and she’s just a fragile Omega. What if something happens to her on the road?”

“Stop acting like an unreasonable, territorial bitch. Find your own way back.”

He was the one who had asked to walk me home. Yet the moment I accepted, I was the one branded an unreasonable, territorial bitch.

He was terrified of Rebecca facing danger.

Yet for the past four years, I had made that journey back alone after every single date. He had never once stopped to wonder what might happen to me if I ran into danger on the road.

Every time I finally made it back to my dorm, it was easily two or three in the morning. Was I some kind of sleepless superhero who didn’t need rest before a full day of classes?

A self-deprecating laugh slipped past my lips. “Just kidding. I’ll take care of myself.”

The moment I turned around, I distinctly heard two sharp sighs of relief behind me.

By the time my Uber pulled up, Matthew and Rebecca had already slid into the back of a cab together, disappearing into the distance.

I got in, leaning my head against the cold glass of the window, staring at the exhausted reflection staring back at me.

Matthew was the Alpha heir of the Nightveil Pack and a famously detached golden boy back at Nightveil High. Nearly every girl had a quiet, desperate crush on him—including me.

Four years ago, I confessed my feelings to him.

He didn’t reject me. He just gave me a cool, indifferent look and said, “If you can get into a college in Southerland, we’ll see.”

So, I practically killed myself studying.

In the end, while I didn’t make the cut for Argent Academy, I managed to get into a respectable college within the Southerland district.

On move-in day, Matthew came to the freshman drop-off. Watching me drag my heavy suitcases toward him, a look of mild shock crossed his face. “You actually made it.”

Back then, I thought he was moved by my dedication. Now I understood—he just realized he was trapped.

For four years, I spent every single weekend crossing the entirety of Southerland just to wait outside Argent Academy for his classes to end. Gradually, his classmates came to recognize me.

They would smile and ask, “Hey Hannah, what department are you in at Argent?”

I could only offer an awkward smile and name my actual school.

The air would go still for a heavy, agonizing second before someone would laugh and smooth it over. “Oh, that school. Yeah, that’s a nice place.”

I had spent four years swallowing that thinly veiled condescension. And Matthew, as my fated mate, had never once opened his mouth to defend me.

When I got back to my dorm, my roommates were up chatting.

Seeing me walk through the door, Vanessa rolled over in her bed. “Hannah, there’s a career fair on campus tomorrow. Eastgrove Publishing House is going to be there—your absolute favorite. Want to check it out?”

Before I could even open my mouth, Uma laughed.

“As if she’d go. Matthew is the Alpha heir of the Nightveil Pack, and they’re the oldest pack in Southerland. Since Hannah’s his mate, she’s obviously staying here to prepare to be the future Luna.”

The rest of the room hummed in agreement.

I walked over to the vanity and turned on the faucet. The girl in the mirror looked entirely calm, showing no outward trace of the agony her inner wolf had just endured.

“I’m going,” I said.

The dorm room instantly fell into a dead silence.

Vanessa bolted upright, staring at me in sheer disbelief. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah. What time does it start? I’ll head out with you,” I said, grabbing a towel to dry my hands.

Uma offered a cautious, hesitant whisper. “But… what about Matthew?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

I hung the towel back on its rack, my voice completely flat.

“My future doesn’t include him anymore.”