The Alpha's Forgotten Daughter Never Came Back

On the day of the academy application deadline, my entire family gathered around my twin sister, Ivy Blackwood, arguing over whether she should attend Silvercrest Academy or Moonvale Academy.

My older brother, Ethan, pointed at the computer screen.

"Silvercrest, obviously. I'm already there. If anything happens, your big brother will be around to take care of you."

Adrian Hayes, the boy I'd grown up with and the man who had promised to make me his Luna, slid Moonvale Academy's admissions brochure in front of Ivy.

"Don't listen to your brother. Didn't we agree we'd go to Moonvale together? The dorms are nicer, and the computer science department is right in the heart of the city. You'll be able to go shopping whenever you want. Besides, the second dining hall serves practically everything you love."

Mom and Dad smiled in agreement.

"Moonvale would be a good choice," Mom said. "Both academies are close to Blood Moon territory, and your brother and Adrian will be nearby. We'd feel much better knowing someone was there to look after you."

Dad, the Alpha of Blood Moon Pack, nodded.

With only thirty minutes left before the academy application deadline, someone finally remembered that I had graduated from Blood Moon Academy too.

Mom glanced at me.

"Abby, have you submitted your applications yet?"

Before I could answer, Ethan spoke without even looking up.

"Just pick an academy somewhere near Moonvale. That way, if Ivy needs anything, she can call you over."

Adrian frowned at me.

"And don't mess up your login information again."

He sounded impatient already.

"You're always forgetting things. If you miss the deadline because you can't get your account working, the rest of us will have to clean up your mess."

I looked at the five people gathered around Ivy.

Not one of them had asked which academy I wanted to attend.

In my last life, I'd done exactly what they told me.

I'd enrolled at an ordinary academy just two transit stops away from Moonvale and spent the next four years following Ivy around like her personal assistant.

When Ivy sneaked off on vacation, Ethan made me attend her classes and cover for her for an entire month.

When she failed an academic competition, Mom and Dad handed me money and told me to accompany her overseas until she felt better.

And when Ivy decided, in the middle of the night, that she desperately needed a spontaneous road trip, Adrian abandoned me at the hospital with a raging fever and drove straight to her.

I spent years telling myself there was a reason for it.

Ivy had always been frail. Her wolf had struggled ever since her first shift, while mine had been healthy and strong.

Of course our family worried about her more.

Of course she needed a little extra care.

That was what I told myself every time they chose her.

Adrian had promised that once we turned eighteen, he would finally tell the pack we were together.

I'd believed him.

But when our official coming-of-age ceremony arrived, he never kept that promise.

He told me the timing wasn't right.

Ivy had been feeling unwell, and he didn't want to upset her.

So I waited.

I kept waiting until the day we graduated from academy.

That day, in front of the entire graduating class, Adrian got down on one knee and asked Ivy to become his Luna.

Ethan stood in the crowd, applauding.

Mom and Dad watched with tears in their eyes.

"They've been perfect for each other since they were children," Mom said.

Not one of them remembered that Adrian had once held my hand and promised I was the only girl he loved.

That night, I stood on the roof of the twenty-seventh floor of the academy's residential tower and called every one of them.

Ethan hung up on me, irritated.

"Ivy's getting engaged today. Can you stop making everything about yourself for once?"

Mom told me to be reasonable.

"You can't force someone to love you, Abigail. Your sister's health is fragile. She can't handle this kind of stress."

Adrian stayed silent for a long time.

Then he finally spoke.

"Abigail, I've always thought of you as a sister."

I almost laughed.

A sister?

Then why hadn't he called me his sister when he had me in his bed?

Why hadn't he remembered that when he kissed me, touched me, and whispered that one day he'd make me his luna?

That night, I jumped from the twenty-seventh floor.

And when I opened my eyes again, I was back in my family's living room.

Thirty minutes before the academy application deadline.

Ivy looked up at me, her eyes bright.

"Abby, you'll apply to Moonvale too, won't you? Then we can all stay together forever."

For the first time that evening, everyone turned to look at me.

I didn't argue.

I didn't tell them what had happened in my last life.

I simply turned back to my computer and calmly entered the final academy code.

A message appeared on the screen.

APPLICATION SUBMITTED SUCCESSFULLY.

And not one of them noticed that the academy I'd chosen wasn't anywhere near Moonvale.

It wasn't even in Blood Moon territory.