Beneath the Alpha's Moon
Chapter 258: Life Of The Party

Chapter 258: Life Of The Party

Eldur’s POV

Magic is simple. People are not.

I would take conjuring a hydra over trying to understand Nova’s smile any day. Because a hydra, at least, doesn’t make your chest ache in a stupid, fluttery way or make your brain short-circuit when it tucks a loose strand of hair behind its ear.

Nova does. And she doesn’t even know it.

We were walking back home, her arm brushing against mine with every few steps, the fading sunlight giving her skin a kind of golden glow that made her look like something painted, something sacred.

I was busy pretending not to notice any of that.

Nova was busy, oblivious to the fact that I had just bent the fabric of reality to get her a bookstore job.

"So... just to recap," she said, grinning. "You somehow got a grumpy old man to give me a job. How did you do that?"

"I gently influenced fate."

"Eldur, I’m serious."

"I call it persuasion."

Nova shook her head, laughing. "You’re so—"

"Magnificent? Dashing? Heroic?"

"I was gonna say ridiculous, but sure, go off."

We turned a corner when we spotted Lara walking toward us, oversized sunglasses on even though the sun was dying out behind the buildings like a candle. She was all swish and strut, phone in one hand, iced coffee in the other.

"Well, well, if it isn’t Barbie and her scary boyfriend," Lara said with a grin, raising her brows at us.

"I’m not her boyfriend," I said, immediately and with what I thought was a neutral tone.

Nova coughed, suddenly very invested in the sidewalk.

Lara smirked. "Right. Sure. And I’m a vegan."

"You ate bacon off my plate this morning, and stop teasing Eldur," Nova muttered.

"What? Anyway!" Lara clapped her hands. "You guys have to come to the freshman bash at Ember & Ash tonight."

Nova groaned, dramatic and long. "Lara, no. Please. I just got a job today. I want to, like, celebrate quietly. By sleeping."

"You can sleep when you’re dead."

"That’s comforting," Nova said flatly.

"You can’t miss it," Lara pressed. "Everyone will be there. Free drinks, live music, glow-in-the-dark face paint. They even rented one of those stupid fog machines."

Nova blinked. "Didn’t someone choke on the fog last year? I saw it on the school do and don’t website."

"Exactly. Tradition."

Nova looked at me. "You’re not going, right?"

"Of course not," I said immediately.

Lara narrowed her eyes at me. "Wait. Why not?"

"I don’t do... crowds. Or mingling. Or... fog."

"Oh, come on, Prince Glarey," she teased. "Loosen up."

Nova sighed. "I’ll go for a bit. But only because I don’t want to hear about how fun it was for the next six months."

I tried to play it cool. "Then I’ll meet you both there. Later. I have... things to do."

"What things?" Lara asked.

"Laundry," I said solemnly. "Very dark laundry."

That evening, I stood in front of the mirror, frowning at myself like I owed me money.

Clothes.

Why was this so hard?

I wanted to look nice. For Nova. But not too nice. I couldn’t exactly show up in an embroidered coat laced with moon-thread and sapphire buttons. I was supposed to be "one of them," struggling to pay rent and buy cheap ramen.

So I summoned something simple—a black T-shirt, sleeves hugging my arms just right, dark jeans that weren’t too clean or too ragged, boots that said "I walked here through mild peril."

I let my white hair fall loose for once, a soft tumble down my shoulders. My silver eyes caught the light.

Okay. Maybe a little impressive.

I took a deep breath, stepped through a portal in my closet, and landed softly on the sidewalk in front of Nova and Lara’s apartment building.

And there she was.

Nova stood by the entrance in a simple black dress that looked anything but simple on her. Her hair was pulled back, a few curls escaping to frame her face, and she had that look—nervous, excited, like she’d stepped into a world she wasn’t sure belonged to her yet.

Lara was beside her in sequins and red lipstick, looking ready to start a riot.

"Oh my God," Lara said when she saw me. "Nova. You’re blushing."

Nova’s eyes widened. "I’m not!"

"She is," I said helpfully.

Nova slapped my arm, then winced. "Sorry. Reflex."

"I accept your violence," I said. "With grace."

Lara leaned over and whispered, loudly, "Someone’s got a cruuuuush."

Nova looked like she wanted the pavement to swallow her whole.

"I hate you," she muttered to Lara.

"No, you don’t."

She didn’t.

We made our way to Ember & Ash, which looked like a bar that couldn’t decide if it was classy or chaotic, so it chose both. Neon lights painted the walls in shifting hues of pink and green, and the music throbbed through the floor like a living heartbeat. The bar itself glowed faintly, the glass bottles behind it reflecting light like gems in a dragon’s hoard.

The place was packed.

Freshmen screamed over each other, couples danced like no one was watching (even though everyone was), and someone had somehow found a confetti cannon. The air smelled like citrus, sugar, and ambition.

I had barely stepped inside when the swarm descended.

A group of students—girls, boys, and the undecided—flocked to me like moths to a very sarcastic flame.

"Dude, you made it!"

"Where’d you get that shirt?"

"Seriously, do you model?"

"You look like a villain in the best way."

"You should totally sit with us."

"Want a drink?"

"No," I said.

To all of it.

"Come on, man," someone said, handing me something neon in a glass. "One drink."

"I have a strict policy against beverages that glow."

A girl with blue braids giggled. "You’re funny."

"I try not to be."

"You succeeding."

"Unfortunate."

More laughter. I didn’t even understand what was funny anymore.

Then—horror descended.

A brunette girl with glossy lips and zero shame reached out and stroked my chest.

"Oh," she purred, "muscles."

"Those are for lifting books," I said, stepping back like she had a contagious disease.

"You’re like... mysterious. Are you in theatre?"

I stared at her. "Do I look like I enjoy monologues?"

"I love a guy with mystery."

"Try loving someone with a restraining order."

They laughed again.

Goddess help me, these people were insufferable.

I scanned the crowd, desperate, searching for Nova. Where was she? She had been right beside me when we walked in—

She was gone.

Panic struck, sudden and sharp. I wanted to teleport instantly, to burst through dimensions and find her. I wanted to throw up a wall of flame, scream WHERE IS SHE? and silence the entire building.

But I couldn’t.

Because I was supposed to be normal. Human. Harmless.

I took a deep breath, forcing down the fury, the magic pulsing in my fingertips.

I turned to the girl still petting my shirt. "I have to go."

"Where?"

"To find someone who doesn’t think my chest is a petting zoo."

She blinked, offended.

I didn’t care.

Nova was gone.

And suddenly, this whole glowing, noisy room was too loud, too bright, too empty.

I pushed through the crowd, heart thundering—not because I was afraid, no. But because I cared.

And that was infinitely worse.

Nova—where did you go?

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