Else where, the apartment is alive with music, laughter, and the buzz of conversation.
Xiao Jun has outdone himself, throwing a birthday party Ace should have loved.
The room is packed with Ace's highschool friends, some of whom Xiao Jun knows, others whose faces blur together.
Yet none of it feels real. Ace stands near the kitchen, clutching a drink he hasn't touched, his mind distant.
Xiao Jun approaches, his face glowing with excitement and pride. "Happy eighteenth birthday, babe," he says, leaning in for a kiss.
Ace tilts his head away slightly, a move so subtle it might go unnoticed, but Xiao Jun frowns.
"You okay?" Xiao Jun asks, his voice soft but tinged with concern.
"Yeah. Just tired," Ace lies, forcing a smile.
But he's not tired. He's restless. The kind of restlessness that burrows under the skin and gnaws at the soul.
All night, an unfamiliar heat has been simmering within him, growing stronger with every passing hour.
It's not the warmth of affection or the flush of excitement. It's something raw, primal, and terrifying.
Xiao Jun doesn't seem to notice—or maybe he does and chooses to ignore it.
He drapes an arm around Ace's shoulders, pulling him close, but the contact feels wrong.
Ace flinches internally, his skin crawling with unease.
Since he can remember, he has been having this feelings that he can't explain to anyone. Sometimes he does some things that question his normality as a human.
Sharp hearing , vivid scents , he was in olympic club at his highschool and he had never failed to lead , in fact he would run rounds and rounds and never getting tired.
The man and woman who have always claimed to have saved him by the road side used to doubt if he's really normal, he never got sick all his childhood, and if he got injured, he would heal almost immediately.
The couple had no other child because they couldn't. The woman never liked Ace that much , she was bitter of no one knows what.
The man loved Ace and anyone would think that Ace was his real son. And when the man died , the woman became worse to Ace.
The day she found out that Ace is gay and had a boyfriend, she threw him out, Ace didn't have anywhere else to go other than his boyfriend, Xiao Jun.
He started leaving with him at 16.
Xiao Jun was so happy to take Ace in because he loved him genuinely even though Ace was not an adult yet__ Ace made him feel alive, even with him being only 16 and Jun 20, Jun just accepted that relationship.
Although he totally refused to go beyond simple romances claiming to wait until Ace was of Age.
So if it wasn't for that night back then when Ace was just 15, and for the first time visited a Chinese restaurant,__then saw someone that touched his heart and for that reason he never gave that person a break until he accepted him , Ace would have been homeless after being thrown out.
Xiao Jun , works in his father's chinese hotel, and all his salaries and bonuses he uses them on Ace because he wants to give him the best life ever.
He ensured Ace's Continued education, and now he is done with highschool.
°
The party drags on, every second stretching into an eternity. The air is stifling, the laughter grating.
Ace's wolf, usually quiet and subdued, stirs faintly, an alien sensation he doesn't fully understand.
He needs someone to touch him , his boyfriend is not fulfilling the desires inside him.
Today he doesn't even want Jun to touch him , even though he needs the touch.
When the last guest finally leaves, Xiao Jun locks the door behind them and turns to Ace with a playful grin. "Now that we're alone..."
Ace swallows hard, his throat dry. He knows what Jun means. They've talked about this moment before.
They agreed to wait until Ace turned eighteen, then they would go all the way, Ace himself couldn't wait for this moment, but now, standing in the dim light of their apartment, Ace feels nothing but dread.
Kyle steps closer, brushing a hand against Ace's cheek. "You're so tense," he murmurs, his voice soft and coaxing. "Relax."
Ace tries. He really does. But every touch feels like sandpaper against his skin. His chest tightens, and his thoughts are a chaotic swirl of emotions he can't name.
Xiao Jun leans in for a kiss, and for a fleeting second, Ace lets it happen.
But then the image flashes in his mind—silver eyes, sharp and intense, staring into his soul. He pulls back abruptly, his breathing ragged.
Xiao Jun looks at him, confused and hurt. "What's wrong?"
"I... I can't," Ace stammers, backing away. "I'm sorry."
"Ace, talk to me," Xiao Jun says, his voice steady but laced with confusion. "What's going on? You've been acting weird all night. It's okay if you don't want to have sex today , I never said it's a must, you can take your time."
"It's not that," Ace admits, his voice trembling. "Something's wrong. I can't... I can't explain it."
Xiao Jun's concern deepens. "Is it me? Did I do something?"
"No," Ace says quickly. "It's not you. It's me. I just... I need air."
Before Xiao Jun can respond, Ace bolts out the door.
The cool night air hits him like a slap, but it does nothing to quell the fire burning inside him.
He runs, his feet pounding against the pavement, his heart racing. He doesn't know where he's going, only that he needs to get away.
The city fades behind him as he reaches the edge of the forest. The trees loom like silent sentinels, their shadows stretching long and dark. Something calls to him from within, a pull he can't resist.
He stumbles into the woods, his breath coming in shallow gasps. The heat in his body intensifies, spreading through his veins like molten lava. His vision blurs, and his limbs shake.
He collapses to his knees, fingers clawing into the dirt as if grounding himself could tame the storm raging within.
His skin burns, his muscles ache, and his bones feel like they're twisting inside him. He gasps for air, sweat drenching his body despite the chill of the night.
The primal fire consumes him, and his mind spirals into chaos.
What is happening to me?
He clutches his chest, his heart pounding like a drum. His body feels foreign—both too heavy and too light.
Every sound is deafening—the rustle of leaves, the distant howl of wind, even his own labored breaths.
Scents assault him: the damp earth, the sharp tang of pine, the faint musk of an animal nearby.
Yet beneath the cacophony is an ache. A deep, gnawing need. It's unbearable, a hollowness in his soul that demands to be filled.
He presses his forehead to the ground, trembling. His thoughts drift to Xiao Jun, but the idea of him touching Ace now feels repulsive, like oil on fire.
This isn't about him. This isn't about anyone. This is something else—something… someone.
The air suddenly shifts. A new scent weaves through the chaos—heady, warm, and intoxicating. It cuts through the storm inside Ace, quieting the noise for a fleeting moment.
Ace's head snaps up, his body reacting before his mind can comprehend. His eyes dart through the darkness until they land on a figure stepping through the trees.
Tall. Broad. Radiating power. Silver eyes glowing faintly in the moonlight.
The presence hits Ace like a tidal wave, knocking the breath from his lungs. His entire being screams, Mate. Even when he doesn't know it.
A mark that Ace has always thought it was a birthmark on his chest, burns on his chest, a searing heat that spreads outward.
He clutches at it instinctively, the sensation both painful and electrifying. The light shocks both himself and Kieran.
Kieran takes another step closer, his movements measured, his eyes locked on Ace. "I finally found you." Kieran murmurs, his voice low and rough, tinged with something Ace doesn't yet recognize: relief, hunger, and awe.
The sound of his voice sends a shiver down Ace's spine. His body reacts before his mind can make sense of it—his heart racing, his breaths shallow, his skin tingling.