Wrong Way, Wrong Mate Chapter 03

After my fever finally breaks, I take the placement test to determine my combat rank.

When the results come out, I rank first by a huge margin, earning an SS-Rank.

My academic advisor specifically calls me into her office. She stares at my score report in astonishment.

“Willow, with scores like these, you could get into a much better school. You could even apply to a university in the Lycan Realm, where the warrior training programs are far more advanced.”

“Why did you choose Lunaris Academy?”

I freeze.

Why did I choose Lunaris Academy?

Because Paxton and Zane are here. Nathan is here. And Lacey wants to come here, too.

I thought this was my chance to stay close to my family and my fated mate.

Before I can answer, the office door swings open.

Lacey pokes her head inside, grinning as she answers for me.

“Because Willow can’t bear to leave us!”

“She’s been attached to her brothers and Nathan since she was little. She’d probably cry her eyes out if she went to another school.”

A few students passing in the hallway overhear her and join in the laughter.

My ears burn. I instinctively glance toward the door, where Nathan is standing in the hallway.

He hears what Lacey says, but instead of directly denying it, he simply mutters, “Stop making things up.”

For a brief moment, my heart softens.

But in the next second, Lacey turns around and tugs at his sleeve.

“Nathan, I couldn’t understand anything in this afternoon’s class. Will you come to the library tonight and help me study?”

Nathan frowns slightly.

“I promised Willow I’d help her troubleshoot the tactical simulation system for the Warrior Selection Trials at seven.”

Lacey’s smile immediately disappears. She gently tugs on his arm.

“But we have a quiz tomorrow!”

Standing beside the desk, I remind them, “The system has to be submitted for review tomorrow.”

Nathan glances at me, a flicker of impatience in his eyes.

“You can handle it yourself. It’ll just take you a little longer. Lacey’s struggling with the basics, so she needs my help more.”

I don’t know when Paxton arrives at the doorway, but he’s carrying snacks he bought for Lacey.

Zane follows behind him. After hearing the conversation, he immediately hands the snacks to her.

Paxton casually chimes in, “If Lacey fails, she’ll hide under her blankets and cry all night. Can’t you cut her some slack?”

I look at their utterly unapologetic faces, fold the score report showing my first-place ranking, and slip it into my pocket.

“Fine.”

That night, I sit alone in my dorm room, troubleshooting the system until two in the morning.

At last, it runs without a hitch.

But then I discover something unexpected. To save time, Nathan has reused the code from the old cloud drive we shared as children, embedding it directly into the underlying structure of the warrior system’s message board.

The original notes from that cloud drive are still there. Among them is a sentence I typed when I was twelve.

[Nathan, will you always help me find my way?]

I stare at those words for a long time, my finger hovering over the delete key.

My phone suddenly vibrates with a new post from Lacey.

In the photo, Nathan is sitting beside her, his head bent as he writes calculus formulas on a sheet of scratch paper.

Her caption reads: [It feels so good to have someone hold the umbrella for you.]

Just then, a new email pops up on my computer from the admissions office at Apex Fang Academy.

“Your full scholarship has been activated. Your reserved place will expire in 48 hours. Please confirm your enrollment and submit your flight information before the deadline.”

I stare at the screen, the cursor hovering over the Confirm Enrollment button.

But I can’t bring myself to click it.

Eighteen years of love and attachment are hard to let go of.

Even when I finally decide to walk away, it still hurts.