My Ex Tore Off My Amulet Now Another Wears It

In the end, the ceremony was left unfinished. I forced a smile, apologized to every guest, and returned all the blessing gifts one by one.

Shortly after, I fell gravely ill. By the time I finally awoke, two days had passed.

Once I recovered, the entire pack was abuzz about the upcoming Moon Goddess Festival. My runework was the centerpiece of the exhibition.

The pack's council hall, transformed into an exhibition space, shimmered under opulent moonstone crystal chandeliers.

The moment I stepped inside, I could feel gazes turning toward me.

One of my rivals raised an eyebrow. "Well, well, Elysia. Isn't your mate with you today? I thought you said you wanted to share every success with him."

I mumbled that he was out with friends, hoping the lie sounded natural, but my unease must have shown. Soon, the whispers began.

"I heard her mate ran out on their bonding ceremony."

"Yeah, can you imagine? The nerve of her to even show her face here."

"She's such a workaholic. Finishing a whole set of blessing runes in three days just makes the rest of us look lazy. No wonder no Alpha can stand her."

I held a glass of moonflower wine, a polite smile fixed on my lips, but my trembling fingers betrayed how I truly felt.

I wanted to defend myself, to shout back, but my curse meant I couldn't even tell who was speaking.

I was born with a curse. No matter how long I've known a werewolf, their scent is always foreign to me.

Before, Ethan would always stand by my side.

He would tell me through our mind-link, "That's an elder from the Silvermoon Pack, and that one is an envoy from the Redfang Pack."

With him there, I could face anyone with grace.

Now, he was gone. I couldn't distinguish who was mocking me and who was pitying me.

Muttering an excuse, I slipped away to a quiet meditation chamber off the main hall. But even there, the voices leaked through the walls.

"Who is she kidding? Elysia bragged about her hand-sewn ceremonial gown with three thousand moonstones, and now it's nothing but trash."

"Who knows where Ethan went? He's probably found someone new by now."

I forced myself to focus on the rune diagrams in front of me, but my vision kept blurring. I wanted to believe Ethan hadn't abandoned me, that he really was just out with friends. But what if he never came back?

Suddenly, the door creaked open. A tall Alpha stood there, the moonstone amulet on his chest glowing softly in the light.

I recognized it instantly. It was the one I had carved for Ethan myself, a one-of-a-kind piece. It looked plain on the outside, but I had poured all my heart into the details of every rune.

My heart clenched. His name escaped my lips in a whisper, "Ethan."

He seemed to pause when he heard the name, but he didn't answer.

I dropped the rune diagrams and stumbled toward him, wrapping my arms around his chest. "You're finally back."

For a moment, his body tensed, but when he looked down and saw my tear-streaked face, his voice softened. "Yes."