Chapter 3: The Word That Broke Her

Julia is a workaholic. When I woke up, she was already gone. The other side of the bed was cold—just like her personality. Figures.

The sheets still smelled faintly of her—a little like cedar, and something wild I could never quite name. Morning light crept in through the blinds, slicing the room into stripes. I lay there, staring at the ceiling. How had I missed so much?

Maybe her tenderness was only for the male lead. Never for me.

I lay in bed, reading the comments. It felt weird—like watching live commentary scroll by on a web novel.

[Noah is dumb and lazy, just lying in bed all day, while our Mason works hard every day. Also, the heroine clearly saw Mason but walked away? Heroine, get ready for the heartbreak arc!]

[I just messaged the author. The plot’s changed a little, but the story’s still on track. Let’s sit back and wait for the heartbreak arc.]

[When is Noah getting written out? I want to puke just looking at him. Just hurry up and disappear already!]

[Is it really necessary to curse the backup? Don’t these people have jobs? All they do is dream about getting everything handed to them.]

[I can’t stand it either. The backup doesn’t deserve to be erased. He actually loved the heroine, but on the day he confessed—without realizing she was in heat—he said something thoughtless and made her misunderstand...]

That last comment jolted me upright. Like I’d been slapped.

I remembered now. The day before my confession, Julia and I went to a class reunion.

She drank for the first time, and in her clumsiness, spilled soda all over herself.

It was sticky, and as I helped her clean up, I said offhandedly,

“Julia, you must feel gross with all that soda on you.”

It was just a joke. But as I said the last few words, she froze. She stared at me, disbelief in her eyes.

[Lol, at that moment Julia was out of it and only heard the word ‘gross,’ thinking Noah was disgusted by her. As a werewolf, she’s always been insecure. That one word just broke her.]

[So that’s why Julia never drinks.]

[...]

My breathing quickened. My mind filled with the hurt look on Julia’s face that day.

Maybe... I misunderstood her. Maybe I was the clueless one.

[Hey, something’s off with the heroine—she drove back home half an hour ago.]

[She’s still in heat, eyes all red.]

[Here we go, is my ship finally going to do it? Love and hate, what a combo!]

[No way, the heroine belongs to Mason. I don’t buy your nonsense, male lead stans!]

[Just FYI, the werewolf heroine never even touched your Mason, not even at the end. Take note.]