Chapter 393 Is That Really You?

Chapter 393: Chapter 393 Is That Really You?

Emilia’s POV

"Leighton?!"

His name escaped before I could think.

I stared at him, struggling to match the man standing in front of me with the boy I remembered.

He still had those enormous blue eyes and golden hair as soft as corn silk. But the boy who used to cling to my sleeve, trust everyone without question, and think like a little child was gone.

The man before me was tall and broad-shouldered. He moved with the confidence of someone who knew exactly what he was capable of. One of the thugs was still pinned against the brick wall, Leighton’s hand gripping his collar as if he weighed nothing.

"Walk away," Leighton told the other two.

His voice was calm, but there was something in it that made the warning clear.

Of course, they didn’t listen. They exchanged a glance, apparently deciding that three against one were still good odds.

They were wrong.

The first man lunged. Leighton stepped aside, caught his arm, and used his momentum to send him face-first onto the pavement. It happened so quickly I barely saw it.

I took a step forward, ready to let Eve join in.

"Finally," Eve growled.

But before I could do anything, it was over.

Leighton hadn’t lost control or gone savage. He’d simply put all three men in their place without causing any lasting damage. Then he pulled out his phone and held it up.

"The shop across the street has cameras," he said. "They caught you following her down the block. Walk away now, and we’ll leave it at that. Stay, and I’ll call the police and press every charge I can. Trust me, I’ll find plenty."

The three men looked at him, seemed to reconsider their choices, and hurried out of the alley.

I watched them go before turning back to him, still trying to take it all in.

"Leighton?"

He faced me, and the familiar warmth returned to his blue eyes.

"Hello, Emilia."

Even his voice had changed. It was still gentle, but the childish lilt was gone. He sounded like a grown man now.

I stared at him, momentarily at a loss for words.

The Leighton I remembered used to hide behind me whenever strangers raised their voices. He believed everything I told him and became upset if I so much as left the room. But the man who had just taken on three grown men without hesitation was sharp, composed, and completely in control.

Leighton glanced down and straightened his cuff.

"You don’t have to look so surprised and frightened," he said with a slight smile. "I’m not going to let my father tie you up and drag you to an altar."

It took me a moment to catch the joke. Then I realized he was referring to our old betrothal.

The boy I remembered would never have talked about that arrangement so casually, let alone made fun of it.

"You’re making jokes about that now?"

"I’ve had plenty of time to realize how horrifying the whole thing was." He shrugged. "A woman bought to look after me for the rest of her life. Very romantic."

I laughed, and some of the tension from the alley finally eased.

"God, it does sound awful when you put it like that."

"It was always awful. I just didn’t know enough to understand why."

I had about a hundred questions, but I wasn’t going to ask any of them in a filthy alley beside a rusty dumpster.

So I did what came naturally. I reached out and tugged his arm.

"Come on. Let’s find somewhere that doesn’t smell like garbage and bad decisions."

It was an old habit. But the moment my fingers closed around his forearm, I was reminded of how much had changed. His arm felt solid beneath his sleeve, all muscle where the boy I’d known had once been thin and fragile.

Leighton glanced at my hand but didn’t pull away.

"Lead on."

We left the alley and found a quiet little restaurant two streets away. It had mismatched chairs and a chalkboard menu that looked as though nobody had updated it in weeks.

Even after we sat down, I kept catching myself looking at him.

His features hadn’t changed all that much. It was the way he looked at the world that felt so different. The old Leighton had faced everything with wide-eyed wonder. This one checked the room before sitting down and knew where the exits were. When I started to ask a question, he often seemed to know what was coming before I finished.

He was familiar, yet somehow a complete stranger.

"All right," I said, resting my elbows on the table. "Tell me what happened. The truth, not the polite version."

Leighton slowly turned his water glass in his hand.

"After you left, my body started shutting down. I collapsed and eventually fell into a coma. It lasted a very long time. The human doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong, and the pack healers couldn’t help either."

My stomach tightened. "Leighton..."

"Everyone thought I’d never wake up." He paused. "Then the wolf inside me woke first."

I fell silent.

"The fever I had as a child never actually killed my wolf. It put him into such a deep sleep that no one believed he was still there. When he finally regained his strength, he started repairing the damage the fever had done. First my body, then, little by little, my mind."

"It wasn’t an overnight miracle," he added. "When I first woke up, my memories were a mess. Some belonged to the child I used to be. Others came from those years when I was barely conscious. I spent months learning things all over again. I went through therapy, took lessons, and got to know my family and pack as if I’d only just met them."

He opened his hands.

"Now I can control my wolf. I can live on my own. I’m... whole."

I leaned back, my chest tight with relief and something harder to name.

"You have your wolf," I said softly. "You have your whole life back."

Leighton watched me from across the table.

And I meant what I said next.

"Leighton, I always hoped you’d get to live your own life. A real one. Not a marriage someone arranged for you, not a future someone else chose, and certainly not a wife bought to look after you forever." My voice grew unsteady. "Now you get to make your own choices. I’m so happy for you. I really am. As your friend."

His gaze stayed on me for a moment before he smiled.

"Yes," he said. "Your friend."

There was a slight pause before the last word, but I assumed we were both still getting used to this new version of our friendship.

"What woke your wolf, though?" I asked. "After all those years, why then?"