Chapter 4 Who am i

The second blood moon stares down at me like it's watching. Judging.

I wrap my arms around myself, but the cold still gets in. Not the kind of cold from wind or weather but the kind that crawls under your skin when you know something's wrong. When something's coming.

And it's coming for me.

I turn around and see them.

Jace, standing tense like he's ready to fight the whole world.

Eric, calm but unreadable, a shadow in human form.

Both watching me.

Both waiting.

"I need air," I mumble, already stepping away.

"You're not safe alone," Eric says, voice velvet and warning.

"Then don't let anything find me," I snap, not looking back.

I don't wait for a reply. My feet carry me through the sleeping town like I'm nothing but a ghost. Every porch light feels too bright. Every shadow too thick, like it's breathing.

The weight of what they told me presses harder with each step. Half-vampire. Something else. Something rare.

But I still feel like... me.

And that's the scariest part.

Because I don't even know who "me" is anymore.

Was I ever just human?

Was anything real?

My hands shake as I grip the railing by the old bridge. I stare into the dark water below. I don't cry. I want to, but it won't come. Not yet.

I hear footsteps behind me. Slow. Familiar.

I don't have to turn to know it's Jace.

"You shouldn't be alone right now," he says quietly.

I don't answer. I can't.

He stands beside me, not touching. Just breathing with me. Matching the stillness.

"I was scared," he finally says, his voice rough. "When I shifted in front of you... I thought I'd lose you."

I stare harder at the water.

"You almost did."

He swallows hard. "I never wanted this for you. Any of it. I thought I could keep you safe from it all."

"You were my best friend, Jace."

"I still am."

I finally look at him. His eyes are soft. Worried. Full of something I haven't let myself name.

"I don't know what I feel anymore," I whisper. "Everything's changing. And I don't even know what I am."

He reaches out, fingers brushing mine before gently taking my hand.

"You're still Aria," he says. "That hasn't changed."

"But what if that's not enough?"

He squeezes my hand. "Then I'll remind you. Every day, if I have to."

The wind picks up again, lifting my hair into my face. I close my eyes. And I feel it.

Something inside me.

Buzzing.

Pulling.

Waking up.

Like my blood's learning how to speak in a language I was never taught.

I don't sleep.

By the time I make it home, the sun is barely rising, just a pale smear behind the hills. Greg's car isn't in the driveway. No note. No call.Nothing

Not that I expected one.

I step into the house and close the door behind me.

But something's off.

The hallway feels... wrong. Cold. Heavy. Like the shadows are thicker than they should be.

I walk slowly to my room. My heart pounding.

I open the door.

Eric is sitting on my windowsill like he belongs there.

"What are you-" I start, my breath catching in my throat.

He raises a finger to his lips. "I came to warn you."

I cross my arms, trying to hide how fast my heart is racing. "You broke into my house to warn me?"

He doesn't smile. "They're watching now. The Council."

"Because of me?"

"Because of what you might become."

I sink onto my bed. "So what do they want?"

"You," he says. "To join them... or to erase you."

I look up. "And what do you want?"

He's quiet. Looking at me like he's searching for an answer inside himself.

"I want to protect you," he says at last. "But I also want you to understand something. You were born for more than this town. More than hiding. There's something in you, Aria. Something that doesn't belong to either side."

He stands, steps closer. I don't move.

"You feel it, don't you?" he asks. "When you're angry. When you're scared. When you look at the moon and your blood rushes through your vein."

I do. But I'm terrified of what it means.

"You could be more powerful than both of us," Eric says, voice a whisper now. "More than a vampire. More than a wolf. You're something new."

"And that's supposed to make me feel better?" I snap. "I didn't ask for any of this."

"No," he says, meeting my eyes. "But you can't run from it anymore."

THE NEXT DAY...

School feels like a joke.

I walk the halls and everything feels smaller. The lockers. The voices. The people.

Like I'm outgrowing it all too fast.

Jace walks beside me, quiet but protective. Every time someone gets too close, he stiffens. Like he can sense danger before it happens.

And Eric... he's across the hallway. Leaning against the wall like some dark daydream, calm and untouchable. Girls whisper about him already.

He doesn't even look at them.

Only me.

Every time.

At lunch, I sit alone. I need space. I need to breathe without them watching me.

But their eyes follow me anyway.

Like I'm the thread holding everything together.

Or the spark that might burn it all down.

And the worst part?

They're right.

I feel the storm inside me building.

A pressure under my skin, behind my eyes, in the space between each breath.

"WHY CAN'T I JUST BE NORMAL?!!". I scream the question in my head.

like i was gonna get an answer.

The rage is sudden. Sharp. I feel it spike like fire behind my ribs. The plastic cup in my hand cracks before I realize I'm gripping it too hard.

A tray crashes somewhere across the room and someone yelps. My vision flares red.

It felt like i was gonna black out....