{"id":43,"date":"2026-02-11T14:15:17","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T20:15:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/?p=43"},"modified":"2026-02-11T14:15:17","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T20:15:17","slug":"once-you-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/once-you-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Once You Know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nathan\u2019s footsteps had barely faded down the hall when Gabriel dropped from the top bunk, landing in front of me with a soft thud<\/em>. He didn\u2019t look scared \u2014 not the way most people would. His expression was steady, almost too steady, like he\u2019d been rehearsing this moment in his head since the first time he saw me do something impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlright,\u201d he said quietly. \u201cTell me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I leaned back in the chair, arms crossed. \u201cTell you what?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His eyes narrowed. \u201cDon\u2019t play dumb, Thane. I just saw claws. Not the fake kind. Not a trick. Real claws. And I\u2019ve seen everything else \u2014 the reflexes, the way people clear out around you, how the wildlife bolts when you\u2019re near. You can\u2019t tell me that\u2019s nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a moment, I didn\u2019t answer. My pulse was steady, but the wolf in me was pacing, alert. This was the line \u2014 the place where things changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou sure you want to know?\u201d I asked. \u201cOnce you do, you can\u2019t unknow it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure,\u201d he said without hesitation. \u201cI\u2019ve felt<\/em> something for as long as I can remember. Not like this, but\u2026 close. Like something\u2019s there under my skin, waiting. If you know what that is \u2014 I need to hear it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The room felt smaller somehow, like the air was holding its breath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m a werewolf,\u201d I said finally. No buildup, no dancing around it. Just the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel\u2019s face didn\u2019t twist in disbelief or amusement. He just stared at me, blue eyes sharp and searching. \u201cYou mean like\u2026 full moon, howling, silver bullets?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I shook my head. \u201cNot like the movies. I can change when I want to. I\u2019ve got control. And yeah, I\u2019ve got the claws, the teeth, the strength. The healing. All of it. It\u2019s not a curse. It\u2019s\u2026 what I am.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was silent for a few seconds, like he was weighing my words against everything he\u2019d seen. \u201cAnd that thing I\u2019ve felt all my life\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I met his gaze. \u201cIt means you\u2019ve got it too. You just haven\u2019t woken it up yet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Something flickered in his eyes then \u2014 not fear, not even surprise. Recognition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo you\u2019re saying I\u2019m like you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m saying you can<\/em> be,\u201d I corrected. \u201cIf you want to be. And if you\u2019re ready for it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He sat down on the edge of the bed, looking at his hands like they might change if he stared hard enough. \u201cYou\u2019re gonna have to show me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I nodded once. \u201cYeah. I figured that\u2019s where this was going.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And in that moment, I knew \u2014 whether he realized it or not \u2014 that my pack had just doubled in size.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nathan\u2019s footsteps had barely faded down the hall when Gabriel dropped from the top bunk, landing in front of me with a soft thud. He didn\u2019t look scared \u2014 not the way most people would. His expression was steady, almost too steady, like he\u2019d been rehearsing this moment in his head since the first time […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-high-school-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43\/revisions\/44"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/threewerewolves.com\/firstsemester\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}