Elara Wynn

After Atei left, I felt lighter, even my steps quickened.

“Look, there’s a squirrel!” I exclaimed, unable to hide my excitement. “Aren’t they supposed to be hibernating?”

I pointed to a pine tree, where a small squirrel was curled up, holding a snow-covered pine cone. Every now and then, it would nibble on it gently—so adorable.

“There’s another one here! So cute!”

Without waiting for Kael’s reaction, I quickly turned away and ran to the other side of the ...