Enzo
The cool an of the indoor hockey arena was a welcome relief as I stepped onto the ice. It was just us, the Leam, gathered for a friendly scrimmage. No crowd, no roaring fans, just the sound of skates and sticks and our own voices echoing off the walls.
As I skated onto the rink, the familiar sensation of anticipation and adrenaline coursed through me, instantly helping my shoulders to release the built-up tension. I could feel my teammates’ energy, a mix of competitiveness and camaraderie. I joined them, tapping my stick against the ice in greeting
“Oh, look who decided to show up,” Matt teased, skating toward me as he dribbled the puck around his stick.
I chuckled, adjusting my helmet. “You thought I was gonna let you morons play by yourselves?” | teased.
The team had planned on playing a friendly scrimmage that day, and I jumped at the opportunity to join in. I needed it. Like, really needed it. My frustrations had to go somewhere, and what better place than to let them out on the ice?
The puck dropped, and the game began. I could feel the tension in my body, the need to release the frustration that had been building up inside of me after everything. I chased the puck faster than I had in what felt like far too long, my skates carving sharp lines In the ice. The sound of my breath was loud in my ears, rhythmic and steady.
*Enzo, over here!” Matt shouted, positioning himself for a pass. I flicked the puck towards him with a swift motion of my stick.
“Got It!” Matt caught it smoothly, dodging an opponent before passing it back to me
The game was intense, our movements fluid and fast. I weaved through the players, feeling a sense of freedom in the speed and precision of each turn. Visit Job n i b .co m to read the complete chapters for free. The frustration with Mila, the uncertainty of what to do, it all’faded into the background as I focused on the game.
“Coming your way. Enzo!” yelled Jake from across the ice. I turned just in time to see the puck sliding towards me
I shot forward, intercepting it and skäting towards the goal. The goalie, Ryan, prepared to block, his eyes fixed on me. I feinted left, then quickly shot to the right, flicking the puck towards the net.
“Nice try!” Ryan shouted as he deflected the shot with a swift move.
I circled back, ready for another go. “Good save, Ryan! But I’m just getting started!”
As we continued to play, I could feel my tension begin to slip away. Nothing else mattered except for the puck. The glint in Mila’s eyes finally felt miles and miles away, just as it was supposed to.
“Enzo, heads up!” Matt called out, sending the puck spinning towards me.
I caught it on my stick and looked up to see Jake barreling towards me.”
Not this time, Jake!* I said, swiftly maneuvering around him.
The scrimmage went on for a good while, each of us giving it our all. I could feel my muscles burning with the effort, my mind clear and focused. By the time the last point was reached and the puck slid seamlessly into the net, we were all out of breath and covered in sweat but utterly satisfied.
“You were on fire today, Enzo, Matt said, coming up beside me as we skated off the ice.
I nodded, feeling a sense of satisfaction mixed with exhaustion. “Thanks, man. I needed that.”
We gathered our gear and headed towards the looker room, the sound of our laughter and chatter filling the air. It was moments like these, surrounded by my team, that I felt most at home, most like myself.
But it seemed that the tension could never fully slip away. Something-or someone-was always reminding me of it.
“Hey.” Matt began, finding me in a quiet corner of the locker room: “you good? You were going pretty hard out there.”
Removing my helmet, I ran a hand through my damp hair. There was no point in lying to Matt, not when he already knew about my predicament. “It’s just.. this whole situation with that team doctor.” I said quietly, keeping my voice low so as not to be overheard by the rest of the team-but they were all too busy being rowdy as they stole Jake’s hat, throwing it around and laughing, to notice.
“You wanna talk about it?” Matt asked
I shrugged. “There’s not much else to say.” I said. “I tried calling Tim, but… I couldn’t tell him. I think I might wanna go and talk to him in person instead.”
Matt’s expression turned to worry. “Is that the best idea, though?” he asked, leaning against the wall of the locker room. “I mean, if you have to see her in person, that might just make matters worse.”
I let out a heavy sigh, realizing what it seemed like. “I don’t know what the’ best idea is at this point, if I’m being honest,” I said after a moment of . hesitation. “I guess I never thought I’d wind myself up in a situation like this.
When the moment came to tell Tim, I clammed up.”
“And so talking to him in person is supposed to remedy that?” Matt asked
I swallowed. “Maybe,” I answered. “Maybe not. I don’t know. I guess, in a way, l’ve convinced myself that If I man up and talk to him face to face instead. of hiding behind a phone screen, I’l….
“Don’t say It,” Matt said sternly. “I know what you’re thinking: that it would make you less of a coward.” He emphasized the word coward” with air quotes, signifying just how silly it seemed.
“You know me too well,” I said with a chuckle.
But Mätt wasn’t laughing. He shook his head, his eyes earnest. “Enzo, listen to me. No matter how you go about it, it doesn’t make you any less of a man. Sexual misconduct is no joke, regardless of gender. You’re handling a tough situation, and it takes strength to face it.”
I knew his words were supposed to be helpful, but honestly, they just made matters feel worse. “It’s just… ‘ve always thought I could handle anything.” I said, my voice barely more than a whisper. “But this? I feel so… powerless.”
“Powerlessness doesn’t equate to weakness,” Matt replied, placing a hand on my shoulder.
“It takes courage to stand up against something like this.
Don’t let traditional notions of masculinity dictate how you should feel or act. You’re doing the right thing. And besides, by turning her in, you might even protect others in the future.”
I nodded slowly, realizing-once again-that he was right. But I still had a lot to think about.
“Thanks, Matt,” I finally said. *I needed to hear that. Thanks for listening to me whine, at least.”
“It’s what a friend is for,” Matt said with a grin. “Listening to your whining. and playing a damn good game of hockey.”
Later that evening, I finally arrived home, feeling both exhausted and maybe even a little liberated.
But that feeling was short-lived.
I opened the door to the living room, expecting the usual calm of our home-and what I saw stopped me dead in my tracks.
There, standing imposingly, was Aldric, his arms crossed and his expression stern. Beside him was Angelica, Nina’s mother; her eyes were filled with a mixture of concern and hurt. And beside her stood Tyler, shockingly, looking just as uncomfortable as I felt.
And Nina was there too, her eyes wide with shock.
Nina
“A wolf?” he asked, shooting me a quizzical look. “T sent a bird shifter as a spy. Not a wolf.”
The moment my father dropped that revelation on me, it felt as though the world was tilting beneath my feet. I thought back to the intense chase Luke and I had had earlier, the way the wolf seemed to be luring us, leading us on And then I thought back to the wolf that had caused Jessica’s accident, and how it had almost killed her.
If it wasn’t my dad’s spy, then who the hell was it?
“Wait,” I said, passing my hand over my weary face, “say that again. You said you sent a… bird shifter?”
“Yes,” my father replied tentatively. “A shifter with a bird form rather than a wolf one.”
“Nina, are you sure this wolf you saw was a shifter, and not just a regular
wolf?”
I scoffed, throwing my hands up in the air. “Mom, it led us on a wild goose chase,” I said. “It caused Jessica’s car accident, too. It hasto be a shifter.”
A heavy silence fell over the room at that point. My brother, who had been standing off to the side, shifted uncomfortably where he stood. It was clear to me then that my parents had likely brought him along just to make me more likely to go back with them.
I was just about to open my mouth to tell them to leave, however, when the sound of the front door opening suddenly filled the silence. We all spun around, surprised by the sudden entrance. A moment later, Enzo slowly walked into the room with his hockey bag slung over his shoulder.
When he saw us all standing there, he stopped in his, tracks. The hockey bag slipped from his shoulder and fell onto the floor with a thud, and then the room was silent once more.
“What’s going on?” Enzo asked, his eyes flicking between my visibly shaken figure and my family standing tensely in our living room.
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my voice. “My, um… My dad just told me that he sent a bird shifter to spy on us, not a wolf. We’ve been chasing the wrong creature all this time.”
Enzo’s brow furrowed, a look of disbelief crossing his face. “A bird shifter?” he asked. “Then who is the yellow-eyed wolf?”
Before I could speculate any further, my father suddenly stepped forward his presence imposing even in the familiar setting of our home. The living room, usually a haven of warmth and comfort with its plush sofas and soft lighting, felt suddenly like a battleground with the way he was staring sternly at the both of us.
“Nina,” my father began, his voice firm, “I came here to apologize and explain. But now, learning you’re being stalked by an unknown shifter, you must return to the werewolf realm. It’s not safe for you here.”
I felt a surge of defiance at his words. Sure, the yellow-eyed wolf was a problem, but this was my home. I-no, we-had already made the decision to stay here. I wasn’t going anywhere.
“No,” I finally said after a moment. “I’m not going back to the werewolf realm.™
My father let out an exasperated scoff. “Nina, this isn’t a choice. You’re coming back with me.”
“No, thank you.” I folded my arms across my chest, leveling my father with a gaze that was just as fiery and stern as his own. “‘m perfectly safe in my own home, dad. We’ve got everything under control here.””You need protection. Nina,” my father insisted.
“No, dad. Look, H love you, and lappreciate the concern, but I’m not some delicate flower that needs constant guarding. Okay? So please just leave me in peace.”
My father’s expression hardened. He took a step closer, and it was clear that he wasn’t going to back down so easily. “You are a princess, Nina.” he said through gritted teeth. “Your safety is paramount.”
“Being a princess doesn’t mean I lose all my freedom,” I shot back, the frustration clear in my own voice as I took a step closer to him. “Just because I’m aware of my true lineage now doesn’t mean I have to be caged.”
My father and I were almost face-to-face now, our anger palpable. Don’t get me wrong; I was fully aware of the irony of the situation, of the glaring similarities between our shared stubbornness and anger.
But I wasn’t going to back down. This was my home, and I had made a decision to be here. Screw being a princess; I belonged here. The werewolf realm, a place where I was under constant surveillance and where my own friends weren’t even welcome, was no place for me.
“Nina, you’re acting as insolent as ever,” my father said, his voice rising now. Even at its current octave, it boomed across the room. “Unless you want to end up like your sis-™
A gasp came over the room. “How dare you!” I cried out, my eyes widening, my voice trembling at the mere mention of my dead twin.
My father, realizing his transgressions, turned away. The room fell silent as I watched my father, his shoulders trembling with a mixture of pain and anger. The sight would have normally made me soften-he had, after all, lost his daughter-but I still couldn’t bring myself to back down.
“Nina,” Enzo said softly, reaching out to touch my shoulder, “he didn’t mean it.
“To hell with what he meant,” I muttered, pulling my shoulder away. “Dad I’m staying here, whether you like it or not. I’m sorry about what happened to Selina, but… no amount of coddling could have fixed that. Just as no amount of coddling will ever keep me completely safe.”
“Fine,” my father hissed, his shöulders still trembling. “When you come to your senses, I’ll be waiting for you, Nina. Your realm needs its princess.”
‘It’s not my realm,” I retorted. “It never was, and it never will be.”
My father froze a gain, stiffening as though he was about to say something.
But he didn’t. Instead, he opened a new portal, filling the room with the crackling electricity that swirled in front of us. He turned then, shooting me one last painful glance before stepping toward the portal.
“Come, Angelica,” Aldric said; gesturing to my mother.
But to everyone’s surprise, my mother didn’t move toward him. Instead, she stepped closer to me, her decision clear. She took her hand in mine, and I looked down at it, blinking with shock.
“No, Aldric,” she said. “I’m staying here. I will stand by my daughter.” My father turned, his eyes widening. “Angelica-”
“You heard me,” she said. “Go home without me. I’m staying here, with Nina.”
For a few moments, the room felt silent despite the swirling vortex hovering . in front of all of us. My father looked over at Tyler next, who had been silent throughout this whole exchange.
“Tyler?”
My brother looked back and forth between the three of us, his eyes searching our faces before he stepped to my other side, taking my other hand.
“If mom’s staying, then I’m staying too,” he said. “We’re a family. We stick together.