Chapter 264: The Birthday Wake-Up

Vivian’s POV

"See something you like?" he teased, his voice dipped entirely in that smug, arrogant confidence he wore like a comfortable second skin.

I did not even bother to dignify that cheeky comment with a proper response. I just flipped him off with a bright glare and stomped my way back toward the house, muttering a string of annoyed complaints under my breath. A hot shower sounded infinitely better than food right now. Not that I was actually hungry for food, anyway.

Over the next few days, the heavy tension hanging over the island slowly began to ease up a little bit. There was still a lingering, bittersweet undertone to almost everything we did, but the crushing weight in the air was finally lifting. Maybe it was the approaching holidays, or maybe we were all just pretending hard enough that it almost felt like real life again.

Zahliver had been constantly busy, slipping away from the house without giving me much of an explanation. Whenever I asked him what he had been up to, he would just give me this strange, guarded look as if he desperately wanted to say something important but simply could not. So, eventually, I just stopped asking him. If it was truly important, I figured he would eventually tell me on his own terms.

Joshula, on the other hand, barely came around at all. And when he did occasionally show his face, the air inside the house grew sharp and uneasy, like it did not quite know which way to settle. Zahliver would try to approach his brother and talk to him, but it was obvious that Joshula was actively avoiding any real conversation. I made a silent mental note to talk to him myself soon. Something was clearly not right between the two brothers.

Then, right on the night before my birthday, I woke up suddenly in the middle of the dark night, feeling foggy and completely disoriented. I was not entirely sure what had disturbed my peaceful sleep, but for a brief second, it felt as though someone had been touching my fingers, lightly tracing the skin of my hand.

Zahliver lay right beside me in the bed, unmoving, but there was this subtle shift in his posture, as if he had just finished leaning back or pulling away. I blinked my heavy eyes blearily and reached out blindly in the dark, looping my arm around his waist to pull him closer to my body. He tensed up beneath my touch for a second.

His hand came up and gently took mine, and for a split second, it honestly felt like he was sliding something off my fingers though that made no logical sense at all. I definitely had not fallen asleep wearing any rings or jewelry.

"What are you even doing?" I mumbled into the dark, my words barely audible as thick sleep weighed heavily down my voice.

"Nothing at all, my love," he whispered back softly, his tone low and quiet in the shadows.

He wrapped a strong arm securely around me and pulled me right on top of his chest, cradling me safely against him. His heartbeat felt a little faster than usual, but it was still comforting all the same. I let the steady warmth lull me right back into a deep sleep.

Just before I drifted off completely, I heard him let out a long, shaky exhale that sounded uneven and heavy.

I was rudely yanked out of a deep sleep the next morning by the sound of loud, shrieking voices echoing in our room.

Happy birthday to me, I suppose?

"Happy birthday, Vivian!"

Startled out of my slumber, my inner beast flared wide awake in my mind even before my human consciousness caught up. If Zahliver had not already wrapped his muscular arms tightly around me in protective anticipation, I probably would have leapt straight out of bed ready to rip someone’s head clean off.

My eyes flashed bright silver in the morning light, and my lips curled instinctively back into a warning snarl. Everyone standing in the bedroom instantly froze dead in their tracks at the sight of my bared teeth.

And then Hannah burst out laughing, bright and delighted, and the thick tension in the room cracked open just like glass. The others quickly followed her lead and started laughing right along with her.

"Happy birthday," Zahliver whispered softly right near my ear, his voice warm and deep, his morning breath gently brushing against my sensitive skin.

Now that the initial panic of the wake-up call was fading away, a wide grin stretched across my face. I sat up quickly, taking in the colorful chaos around the room with a bubbling laugh of my own.

Hannah stood proudly right at the front of the group, one hand rubbing her pleasantly round belly. Her short hair framed her face in soft, bouncy waves, and her light summer dress looked as if it had been playfully splattered with vibrant flowers in the middle of a paint war. She looked absolutely radiant.

Standing right behind her were Mark, Luke, Mila, Johnson, and Cort every single one of them wearing ridiculous party hats with huge grins plastered across their faces. Even Drake and Blake, the twin pack guards, were standing awkwardly near the door. And squeezed just behind them were three girls I had not seen in what felt like absolute ages.

There was Leslie, Luke’s younger sister, her bright red hair catching the morning sunlight. Amber, a tall, dark-skinned girl with warm hazel eyes. And Angela, a lovely caramel-toned beauty with soft brown eyes and a quiet, sweet smile. They all looked just a little bit nervous to be here, but clearly excited to celebrate.

And standing completely apart from the rest of them, lingering close to the back corner of the room, was Joshula. He was calm. Watchful. Utterly detached from the fun.

"Umm..." I blinked heavily, the wide grin still tugging persistently at the corners of my lips. "Hi, everyone?"

Everyone in the room laughed again at my confused greeting.

Even the tough pack guards had completely ditched their usual black tactical gear this morning in favor of normal, casual clothes. It felt entirely strange to see them like this. And yet... it also felt really good. Like we were finally allowed to just pretend to be normal people for once.

Even if it was just for today.

Of course, I would end up getting caught still lying in bed by a crowd of people. Just my ultimate luck.

Internally, I cringed hard at the embarrassing situation, my eyes fluttering open to the very obvious presence of people so many people standing right inside my bedroom. This was definitely not how I had expected to start my birthday morning.

"She is either way too stunned to actually speak, or she just has not figured out what clever thing to say yet. The correct response is usually, Oh my god, you guys! by the way," Hannah teased playfully, clearly enjoying my dazed confusion.

Her cheerful voice instantly snapped me out of my sleepy morning fog. I sat up a bit straighter against the pillows, trying my best to quickly collect my scattered thoughts.

"I was literally just asleep like... two seconds ago," I muttered, lifting a dark brow at Hannah as if that simple excuse completely justified everything.

Hannah smirked triumphantly and pointed a finger right at me. "Well, you are wide awake now, so get moving!"

She rolled her hands through the air dramatically, urging me to hurry up and join the fun.

I let out a heavy, resigned sigh and finally gave in. "Oh my god, you guys!" I gasped out loud with the most exaggerated, theatrical tone I could possibly manage floating somewhere in that funny space between heavy sarcasm and genuine sincerity.

I could instantly feel Zahliver’s broad chest rumble right behind me, his silent, deep laughter warming my back. He was definitely enjoying every single second of this ridiculous show.