MISSY

“Just hold still!” Sol scolded.

“This is taking way too long,” I told her.

“Then cut your hair!” she argued.

“Maybe I will!” I pouted.

“No, you won’t!” Maddox called from the other room. Sol laughed.

“Yea, he won’t have anything to grab,” she giggled.

“Would you stop?” I yelled. Sol just walked into the house the other day when Maddox and I were having fun on the couch. She has not stopped relentlessly teasing me since. She hasn’t found her mate yet, but it’s only been about a month since her birthday. Allie’s birthday fell on our graduation, so we all were running bets on if hers was Emmett or not.

Emmett was meeting us at graduation, and Sol, Julie, and Allie were getting ready at my house. Julie and Allie were in the bathroom doing their makeup while Sol attacked my hair with a curling iron. She arrived in rollers this morning so she could tackle my hair first.

“You guys have less than an hour until we have to leave,” Maddox called.

“We know!” Sol called back. “Alright there, everything is curled. Let me pull my rollers out, then I will come back to style it.” She unplugged the curling iron and hurried from the room.

I rolled my eyes as I stood and stretched. My hair was getting long, I noticed. Maybe it was time for a change; we were graduating after all. It was time for adulthood. I went to the closet and grabbed my dress from the hook on the door. All the girls were told to wear white dresses under our yellow gowns; The boys were told to wear black under theirs. I got Maddox a white tie to go with his.

I carefully pulled my dress on, taking extra care not to mess up any of my hair. I moved over to the mirror and started putting on some makeup. Sol came rushing back in when I was almost done.

“Okay, sit,” she said. She looked beautiful with a bouncy wave now in her hair. Her white dress was similar to mine, but it had a little black broach in the shape of a heart on it. We all had one for Sulien.

She yanked and pulled, pinned and sprayed until my hair was braided and twisted back from my face. It was brought together lower on my head to accommodate my cap. “You’re really good at this,” I told her.

“I know,” she smiled.

“He would have wanted you to go,” I told her. She bit her l*p. Every time this discussion was brought up, she looked like she wanted to cry. Sol decided she wanted to become a doctor after everything because Sulien intended to. But we knew she didn’t want to. She wanted to go to cosmetology school.

She shook her head. “Not today,” she whispered.

“Alright,” I told her. I stood and moved away from the mirror so she could finish putting the final touches on her own hair and makeup.

“Hey,” Maddox said from the doorway. I turned to see my dashing mate looking downright mouth-watering. “You girls almost ready? Emmett said he can leave whenever.”

“I think I am about ready. Did you see where I left my shoes?” I asked. His hand appeared, holding up my heels. “You’re the best.”

I went to grab them from him, but he pulled them away, shaking his head. “I should be compensated, I think,” he smiled. I rolled my eyes but kissed him anyway. When we parted, he handed me my shoes.

“I will wait downstairs,” he said, leaving us again. Julie and Allie came in looking perfect.

“I can’t believe we are graduating!” Julie said. Sol joined us, happy with her reflection now.

“Feels like we had to fight to get here,” Sol said.

We all wrapped our arms around each other, pulling together in a group hug. “We are survivors,” I smiled. “And no matter where any of us end up, we’ll always have each other.” Everyone nodded.

“Okay, you are going to make me cry, and I don’t want to ruin my makeup,” Julie laughed. “Let’s go figure out of Allie has a mate!”

“Okay, you are going to make me cry, and I don’t want to ruin my makeup,” Julie laughed. “Let’s go figure out of Allie has a mate!”

MADDOX

When we got to the school for the graduation ceremony, I texted Emmett to see where he was at. She was quiet, but I could tell Allie was nervous. She told Missy that ever since the attack, she just felt drawn to Emmett, and she couldn’t explain it.

We stood outside the front doors, waiting for him to arrive. A few minutes later, Allie stiffened, and we all stopped our conversation. She turned around, and Emmett was standing at the bottom of the stairs. He held a small bunch of flowers in his hand, but his mouth was agape as he stared at her.

“Mate,” Allie said after a drawn moment. He rushed up the stairs and picked her up, swinging her around. We all burst out in a round of cheers. This was the best way to start our graduation ceremony.

–

Alpha conducted our graduation ceremony and even took a minute to pay tribute to the couple of wolves that didn’t make it to graduation with us. During it, I saw a tear leaving Sol’s eye.

Afterward, we all headed to the packhouse. Luna was throwing us all a combined graduation party. First, we all had to endure the endless torment of a thousand photos. Even if they were Alpha and Luna, Liam and Azalea really loved their kids, and today, they were just crazy proud parents.

Missy took a bunch of pictures with Alpha and Luna last, so we all went to talk with our other classmates. Allie and Emmett disappeared, and none of us knew if we would even see them at the party.

When she was done, Missy came bounding over to me. I opened my arms, and she sped up, jumping right into them with a laugh. “All done,” she said happily.

“Luna looks very happy today,” I told her.

“She is,” Missy agreed. “She never told me why but she didn’t get to graduate. She’s over the moon that you and I finished like we told her.”

“Good,” I told her. “I like making my future mother-in-law happy.”

“What?” she laughed. I set Missy down on her feet and pulled the box I had been holding onto for weeks out of my pocket.

“I said, I like making my future mother-in-law happy. At least, I am hoping you’ll let me make that happen,” I smiled. I opened the box, and Missy looked down with a gasp.

“Maddox,” she started.

“Missy, I never thought I would find you. I came dangerously close to losing you, and I know I will never live without you. So marry me and make me the happiest man on the planet,” I said.

“Yes,” she smiled. “Yes, yes, a thousand times, forever yes!”

I pulled the ring from the box and slid it onto her finger. Her eyes misted when she realized whose ring it was. Our bond was nothing but joy on both sides. She jumped again, landing hard against me as she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me. I squeezed her to me tightly, never wanting this moment to end.

–NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

When we arrived at the party, Alpha saw his mother’s ring on her finger. His look was one of appreciation and acceptance. I was happy that Missy would have a symbol of my love and her grandparents’ love and acceptance all in one item. There were a lot of people at the packhouse for the party, and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Alpha Michael and Luna Quinn came as well as Alpha Langston and Luna Emma.

Being the Alpha’s daughter and the star of the party, Missy had many people coming to talk to her. Two hours in, and we hadn’t been able to sit down and eat, so I decided to pull her away. Little L and Delilah were arguing about something when we got to the table with our plates, Lucas was playing with Azly in her chair, and Leo was sitting in Sol’s lap, telling her about his action figures.

We had barely taken a bite of our food when Alpha, Luna, Langston, and Emma came over. “There you guys are,” Luna said happily. “Having a good time?”

“The best,” Missy smiled up at her mom. “Thank you for throwing the party for all of us.”

“You don’t have to thank us, sweetheart,” Luna said warmly.

“Missy, Maddox, Alpha Langston and Luna Emma were wondering if they could have a word with you,” Alpha said.

“Sure,” Missy said, looking at me. I looked down sadly at my uneaten cheeseburger before nodding. Missy pulled me up with her, and we stepped away from the table with Langston and Emma.

“Congratulations, you two,” Emma started.

“Thank you,” Missy said.

“I know you two have some plans already, but Liam said you haven’t set anything in stone,” Langston said.

“Well, not really yet,” Missy said. I still wanted to continue being a warrior for the pack, but Missy was still debating exactly what she wanted to do. We both agreed that we wanted to wait to have pups for a while.

“Well, I have thought a lot about this,” Langston said.

“And I didn’t need to think about it at all,” Emma added. Langston shook his head.

“Maddox, what would you think about becoming the next Alpha of Serenity Waters?” he asked.

I thought my eyes were going to bulge from my head. “W-what?” I stammered.

“You’re a smart young man and clearly strong and capable. You saved my life, and you have a good head on your shoulders. I think your potential is wasted as just a warrior, and I am in need of someone with a lot of potential,” he explained.

“Missy, we have adored you since we met you. You have a warm heart, and you will make a superb Luna. You have a great role model for the job, too,” Emma smiled.

Missy looked up at me, just as lost for words. “What do you think?” she asked.

“I don’t know. I never dreamed of being an Alpha,” I told her.

She reached down and intertwined our fingers. “I’ll do whatever you want. This is your decision,” she told me. I looked back at Langston, who had a calm smile on his face. Could I do it? Could I really become Alpha? What if I failed?

“You wouldn’t have to start tomorrow, but I would like to train you soon. Most Alphas have years to train, and well, I would like to retire,” Langston said.

“But I am not an Alpha by b***d,” I said.

“No, but you are one in your heart,” he told me. I looked back at Missy, who just nodded.

“Okay,” I said, not taking my eyes off of my mate. “I’ll be your next Alpha.” Missy smiled brilliantly at me.

“That settles that then,” Emma chirped. “Missy, I think we should go tell your father and mother.”

Missy nodded and headed away with Emma to give the news to her parents. Langston held out his hand. “Thank you,” I told him.

“No, thank you,” he said. “I have been waiting to ask you this since we returned from our little adventure.”

“Really?” I asked.

“Of course. I knew you needed some time,” he answered. I looked over at Missy, who was hugging her mom. “You know, she may not have some unexplained power like Azalea, but you are lucky to have a good one like Missy.”

“I know,” I told him. “I wouldn’t know what to do without her.”

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