Fractured (by N.O Darling)

"I know," Chase says, voice distant now, like he's already retreating into himself.

I don't look back. I don't dare because I'm not sure what I will do. As much as he terrifies me, he's also my bond, and it's in my nature to want to be with him.

Archie closes the door behind us and we

all stand in the hallway for a second, dazed, whilst we process what just happened.noveldrama

"You okay?" Dillon asks, scanning my body as if checking for injuries.

"No," I admit, voice cracking. "He's my bond, and he's insane."

Nobody speaks. Not for a long beat. The

silence hangs heavily between us until Finley finally exhales a low whistle.

"Well," he says dryly, "that's one way to make a first impression... congratulations, I guess."

I'm still trembling, though now that Chase's suffocating presence is gone, it feels like the adrenaline has nowhere to go. My head

spins and my knees buckle. Archie catches me before I hit the floor and scoops me into his arms without asking. I don't argue.

"He could've killed you all," I whisper into his shoulder, my voice hoarse. "How are we going to form a bond group with him when he could snap at any moment?"

"But he didn't," Archie says, jaw clenched tight. His whole body is tense beneath me, his muscles

coiled like a spring. "We will work it out."

"I hope you're right," I murmur.

"Chase is intense, and he has

some control issues, but he's not a bad guy. I think having a bond will be good for him. As soon as you're bonded, I think he might

mellow," Finley says as we follow him towards the door that leads out of the dorms.

"That doesn't mean I'm ready. I don't want to bond with him," I snap, too harshly.

"No one's saying you are," Dillon says quietly behind us. "But that doesn't change what he is."

I bite my lip so hard I taste blood.

There's no guidebook for this. No training to prepare for being physically claimed by a near-feral stranger in a pitch-black dorm room. This is not how bonds should be introduced. Chase didn't exactly hurt me... but he didn't give me a choice, either. What would have happened if the guys didn't come for me?

"He didn't shift though, which is a huge accomplishment for him,” Finley points out, grabbing a blanket from the couch where students still party. He tosses it over me whilst I stilling to Archie like a lifeline. "He was close, but he didn't."

"He was cuddling me like I was a freaking stuffed animal!" I burst out. "That's not normal."

"No," Finley agrees. "But it might be the only thing keeping his wolf calm. You might be the key to him finally mastering his control."

Great. So now I'm some kind of emotional support person.

Back at our apartment, Archie sets me gently on the couch and crouches in front of me, both hands on my knees. "Listen to me, Harper. You're safe now. We won't let him near you unless you say it's okay. Got it?"

I nod, barely able to meet his eyes.

"Are you sure you saw the bond?" Archie asks softly.

I want to say no. I want to deny it and pretend the shimmer saw was a trick of the light, but there was no light. I can't lie again, not to them.

"Yes," I admit. "It was a small shimmer, but it's there."

Finley swears under his breath and throws himself

down on the couch, raking a hand through his light brown hair.

I glance between him and

the guys. Why is he in our apartment? Have they told him he is my bond too?