Moonlit Masquerade

One

Could this day possibly get any worse?
    "Ow!"

Oh.
My.
God.

    I glance up at the towering 6'4 figure in front of me. Apparently, the universe is determined to answer that question with a resounding yes.
    I groan. How much more could one girl endure in a single day? A muttered curse snaps me back to reality. How dare he!

    "Hey! It was just an accident. I didn't deliberately bump into you. That curse was uncalled for. Don't you think you're being unfair right now?"

      I had to exert significant effort to resist cowering and gazing up into those penetrating midnight blue eyes... were those silver flecks?

Rigel Night.
     Scion of the wealthiest family in Meriville and heir to the Night Sights.
 
   Of all the people to run into, it had to be the "bad boy." According to rumors, the Nights were among the original settlers in Meriville. His eyes grabbed my attention, subtly widening before quickly returning to normal... Or did I just imagine that? I'm pretty sure I didn't.
  "Why are you staring at me like that?" I asked, unable to endure the piercing gaze any longer. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. With one long, sweeping glance, as if trying to solve a riddle, he walked past me, muttering a "Nothing."

       Hmph! How rude. I picked up my books and checked the time. Shit! I was five minutes late to my calculus class. Mrs. Rudyn, aka The Devil, was strict on tardiness. I made a mad dash to the classroom and peeked in the window. Thank God, she was facing the board. I sneaked into my seat as stealthily as I could and wiped the sweat off my forehead. Phew! That was close.

    "Maybe Ms. Lakewood would like to answer that" Mrs. Rudyn's voice pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked up immediately upon hearing my name.
     "I'm sorry, Ms. Rudyn. I'm afraid I missed the question. Would you mind repeating that, please?"
  In my peripheral vision, I could see my best friend Eleana shaking her head.
  "Of course, my dear. Why don't I repeat that... in your detention this afternoon?" Her tone was so sweet, it made me sick. She then gave me a mega-watt smile, and I could exactly read what she was saying without saying, "You thought you got me there, didn't you, you little prick?"

   Shit. She knew.

    "Yes, ma'am", I muttered, slumping into my seat as she turned around to continue whatever BS she was teaching us. I sighed for the nth time today.

Why me?

  "Ace!"
  
Ace has always responded to me since the day I got him on my 13th birthday, until now. It's been five years, and this has never happened before. 
   Yesterday, I turned 18, and we spent the entire day thinking about meeting our mate. While normal werewolves meet their mates after turning 21, as the next alpha in line, I will meet mine after turning 18, which happened yesterday. Despite it being less than a day since my birthday, I was eagerly anticipating the moment.
    I chose not to mention Ace's disappearance to my parents because they would fuss over me as if I were a child. I believe he'll return soon; his presence hasn't completely disappeared, and I can still feel him in my mind.
    Darn! I was late to my Spanish class, but it was okay. Not because I'm Ms. María's favorite student, but because she's generally a really sweet person. I sprinted through the corrid-

  "Ow!"
  
      I glanced at the girl who had bumped into me. She was a 5'9 brunette in a beige hoodie and dark leggings, and all of her books had fallen to the floor. As I opened my mouth to apologize, a curse slipped out due to the impact.
   I've never seen anyone's eyes snap up so quickly as hers did.

  "Hey! It was just an accident. I didn't deliberately bump into you. That curse was uncalled for. Don't you think you're being unfair right now?"
  
   I think I might have offended her? I swear I was about to apologize when Ace chose that exact moment to appear, say one word, and then disappear again.

I.

Froze.

I kid you not, I just stood there until I regained my senses and got the hell out of there as fast as I could.

    My heart only stopped racing once I settled into my desk, but my mind kept replaying that one word, the word that was enough to change everything.

One.

Word.

Mate