He who feared he would not succeed sat still

Omir

This was unbelievable. I couldn't even meet their eyes. One glance, and I knew the price would be too high.

I know what you're thinking, why run from them? Why run from the very people every part of me screams to be near? It's simple. I don't belong. I was never meant to be their soulmate. The goddess made a mistake.

Both of them? Ethan Wolfe and Aria Ambers? The heirs to two noble houses from rival empires? That's not fate. That's cosmic irony.

Soulbonds don't form like this in my family. Not with nobles. Not with royalty. We're the kind who pass unnoticed, who live quiet lives. I can't be near power without risking everything. Even now, I feel like I'm walking a tightrope.

You're breaking something sacred, Lynx said quietly inside my mind.

I know what I'm doing.

You're running from them, Omir. From us.

Lynx wasn't wrong. But he didn't understand the stakes. I was barely holding on. One misstep and everything I've hidden will unravel.

Both Ethan and Aria had returned to their seats after realizing there was no space beside me. Thank the goddess. But the way their eyes met mine from across the room made me feel like a cornered animal.

"You weren't lying," Liam whispered beside me. "I can't believe it. Aria Ambers and Ethan Wolfe actually sought you out."

Liam. My tether to normalcy. We met as kids after I moved to the Allerick Empire to live with my grandmother. His magic affinity is unusually high for someone of common birth, just like mine. He's always believed in me, even when I didn't believe in myself. But truthfully, it wasn't Liam who pushed me to apply to the Academy. It was the dream, a vivid, strange dream I'd had nearly every night for a month before the letter arrived. In it, I stood beneath the shattered moonlight at the cliffs of the Genovian Islands, the sea roaring below, and someone whispered a name I'd never heard, followed by, "Go where the magic calls you." It haunted me. Drove me. I never told anyone about it. Not even Liam. Though, of course, I couldn't hide it from Lynx. He knew. He always knows. He never said anything, but I felt the way he watched me afterward, quiet, patient, and waiting. He knew the dream scared me more than it inspired me.

I always dreamed of finding my soulmate, of what that connection might feel like. I just didn't expect it to arrive in double. And certainly not now. Not like this. I can't even let myself imagine having just one of them. Because if I had to choose, I'd want both. And I'm not allowed that kind of selfishness.

"Maybe they're just curious," I muttered. "That bond... It's rare. Unheard of. They probably just want answers."

You don't really believe that, Lynx replied.

The auditorium buzzed with whispers as the principal began to speak. His voice was like thunder wrapped in silk.

"Each of you has been chosen for your extraordinary magical affinity. Here, your titles mean nothing. Whether royal or common-born, you stand as equals. Few of you will rise to the ranks of the Magic Tower and will serve as defenders of the Isles, should you prove yourselves worthy."

He had presence that seemed timeless and unmoving. His voice settled into my bones, deeper than I wanted to admit.

If I were free, I thought, I might have wanted to stay here. Learn. Teach. Belong.

But I wasn't free.

We're in control, Lynx whispered. Stop fearing yourself.

I wasn't afraid of myself. I was scared of who I might become if I let go. Afraid of the truths inside me, I hadn't yet dared to speak aloud.

All around me, students sat in perfect rows. Sixty of us, maybe more. Royals. Nobles. A few commoners like me, lucky enough to slip through the cracks.

"Your schedules will appear shortly," the principal continued. As he raised his hand, shimmering papers began appearing in front of us. One floated down to me like a falling leaf.

Liam groaned. "Oh gods. Did you also get Magical Arts and Combat Strategy together? I swear the fates are out for us."

I managed a smile, distracted. My thoughts drifted again. "They're engaged, you know. Ethan and Aria. That bond between them, it's strong. They don't need me."

"You sure about that?" Liam asked, eyes narrowing. "Because the way they looked at you says otherwise. Most people don't ignore soulmate bonds. And they definitely don't chase someone they're not interested in."

Before I could reply, the principal ended his speech with a final wave. "You are dismissed. Head to the dining hall. Classes begin tomorrow."

I stood quickly, hoping to disappear into the crowd.

Too late.

A sudden gust of wind knocked my hair out of place.

"Don't you dare run," Aria's voice came, firm and sharp.

I froze. She snatched my schedule right out of my hand.

"Omir Igwe," she read aloud, and something about the way she said my name made my pulse jump.

"Omir Igwe," Ethan echoed beside her.

They were close now. Too close. I instinctively grabbed Liam's arm and ducked behind him. Pathetic. I knew it. But I didn't know what else to do.

"Who the hell are you?" Aria asked Liam, She was also staring at me like I was a puzzle she had to solve.

Ethan looked at Lynx, who stood calmly beside me, his fur shimmering faintly. Lynx's feathers twitched, and to my horror, he chirped. Chirped.

Traitor, I thought.

"Hey," Liam said quickly, stepping forward. "I'm Liam Hawke. Don't think we've met yet."

"I'm Omir Igwe," I said softly, eyes flicking from one soulmate to the other.

They both paused, as if realizing their intensity, and stepped back.

"Hi," Aria said with a lopsided grin. "I'm Aria Ambers."

"And I'm Ethan Wolfe," Ethan added with a voice so steady it made my breath catch.

Even their voices sounded bewitching.

The wind stirred around us again, not from Ethan this time, but from the storm brewing in my chest. I was teetering between fear and longing.

And then Ethan asked, gently, "Will you have breakfast with us?"

A simple question.

But I couldn't. I couldn't let myself step over that line.

"No," I said, the word like glass in my throat. "I... I can't. I'm sorry."

Their smiles faltered, and for a moment, everything went still.

I looked toward the arched windows of the hall. Morning sunlight spilled through them in golden beams, dust motes dancing like fireflies. Beyond them, the spires of the Academy glowed with enchantment, rising above the misty cliffs of the island.

But I couldn't breathe in that beauty. Not yet. Not while I still carried the weight of what I was hiding.

"I'm sorry," I said again, more quietly, before I turned and walked away.

And this time, the wind didn't follow.