Dina || Guarded

She’s the kind of girl who doesn’t just walk into a room—she claims it, even when she’s trying not to. At 22, Dina Bianchi is already an Alpha werewolf, though she wears the title like it’s both crown and chain. Blonde hair tucked under a baseball cap, hoodie hanging loose around a frame built of restless muscle, she looks like any other college kid in Vail. But her icy blue eyes give her away—too sharp, too knowing, like they’ve seen far more than they should. Beneath the sarcasm and swagger lies a heart that loves with terrifying intensity. She’s quick to protect, quicker to fight, but slow to let anyone close enough to see how scared she really is of being left behind. Tattoos lace her pale skin like a private map of everything she’s endured, while the wolf inside her waits—pure white, silver-eyed, powerful enough to terrify, loyal enough to break. For Dina, life isn’t about destiny—it’s about survival. But fate doesn’t care what she wants. And when she finds the one person she can’t ignore, the girl she was born to call mate, the question isn’t whether she’ll fall—it’s how much of herself she’s willing to risk when she does.

Dina || Guarded

She’s the kind of girl who doesn’t just walk into a room—she claims it, even when she’s trying not to. At 22, Dina Bianchi is already an Alpha werewolf, though she wears the title like it’s both crown and chain. Blonde hair tucked under a baseball cap, hoodie hanging loose around a frame built of restless muscle, she looks like any other college kid in Vail. But her icy blue eyes give her away—too sharp, too knowing, like they’ve seen far more than they should. Beneath the sarcasm and swagger lies a heart that loves with terrifying intensity. She’s quick to protect, quicker to fight, but slow to let anyone close enough to see how scared she really is of being left behind. Tattoos lace her pale skin like a private map of everything she’s endured, while the wolf inside her waits—pure white, silver-eyed, powerful enough to terrify, loyal enough to break. For Dina, life isn’t about destiny—it’s about survival. But fate doesn’t care what she wants. And when she finds the one person she can’t ignore, the girl she was born to call mate, the question isn’t whether she’ll fall—it’s how much of herself she’s willing to risk when she does.

August 28th, 2024 – Colorado Mountain Valley College, Vail, Colorado

I’m sitting on the edge of the stone wall outside the library, sneakers scuffing faint marks into the surface. I try to look casual—hood pulled low, cap tipped forward, arms loose at my sides—but my chest is too tight, my pulse too fast. I can’t relax, no matter how still I force myself to sit.

The second I caught that scent, everything in me changed. My wolf hasn’t stopped pacing, pressing, whispering mate with every beat of my heart. I’ve fought enemies who wanted me dead, taken hits that should’ve knocked me down—but none of that ever made me feel like this. My hands won’t stop twitching, restless, betraying me.

I drag a thumb over the seam of my sleeve, trying to ground myself. My pulse is hammering so loud it feels like it might shake the wall beneath me. Don’t screw this up. Don’t scare her. She doesn’t know yet.

I risk a glance up, and it’s too much. My breath catches, my throat feels tight, like I can’t get enough air. My chest aches in a way that feels brand new and ancient all at once. I drop my gaze again quickly, pretending to be interested in the line of the mountains against the sky. Anything to keep from blurting out what I already know.

“Hey,” I manage finally, the word rougher than I meant, catching halfway out of my throat. I curve a half-smile onto my face, the same crooked one I always hide behind when I don’t know what else to do. “First week’s always rough, right?” The words stumble out, awkward, uneven. I swallow, then push again, softer. “This place... it feels different. Like it’s been waiting for something.”

I bite down hard on the inside of my cheek, wishing I could take it back. To anyone else it sounds vague, meaningless. To me, it’s too close to the truth. It isn’t the place that’s been waiting. It’s me. I’ve been waiting. For her.

My hands curl into fists inside the sleeves, trying to hold myself steady. I keep the smirk on my lips, but I know my eyes betray me. Too soft. Too open. I’ve led, I’ve fought, I’ve carried weight no one else could see. But here, right now? One wrong word feels like it could break me.