Chapter One

Zoe’s Point of View

“Don’t… don’t do this, please…” I cried out my plea to the man standing at the edge of this tall building.

His ocean blue eyes stared back at me plainly. And though tears kept streaming down from his eyes, his face remained emotionless.

“If…” his voice cracked from all the screaming and crying he did. “If you were in m-my place, living like a personification of anger and unkindness… would you still want to live?”

I shake my head. “There has to be another way-”

“Another way?” He scoffed. “Do you think we didn’t try everything we could? We fucking did! My father spent every penny he has, and used all the resources he has just to find a fucking way to get rid of this fucking curse! And yet here we are… here I am.”

I shut my eyes tightly as I bit my lips. My heart aches so bad, yet there’s nothing I could do to help him. 

But I refuse to give up like him. No, I won’t ever give up. Not on him.

“I’ll… I’ll find a way. I’ll do everything in my power to help you! I’ll defy my parents, my siblings, everyone!” I exclaimed, a choke sob following after as I took a step closer to where he stood. “Just please don’t leave me… don’t give up.”

A glint of hope rose in my chest when I saw him smile. The most genuine smile I’ve ever seen from him. 

Only for the hope to shatter when he takes a step backwards.

“There’s no hope for a cursed man like me, Zoe. I have no more hope for this life.”

I sobbed at his hopelessness.

“But thank you, Zoe. For looking past my curse, and for loving me as I am.”

It’s the first time he said something like that using his real voice- his deep yet soft voice that’s full of love and kindness.

My eyes widened. What he did next was the utmost fear I’ve been feeling ever since I saw him standing at the edge of the building.

Closing his eyes despite the pain he felt from fighting against his curse, he let himself fall.

I ran as fast as I could towards his direction in hopes of saving him, of holding him.

But it was too late. I could only watch and yell as he fell from this building.

“Yashiel… no…”

“Yash! YASHIEL! No! NOOOO!”

“- AKE UP!”

My eyes shot open as I gasped for air. The first thing that I registered in my still hazy brain is that I’m inside a car, and that my parents were with me.

“W-what happened?” I asked, sitting properly on my seat as I wiped the sweat on my forehead.

“You had a nightmare, sweetie. You kept on yelling ‘no’ while you stretched out your arms, like you were trying to reach something.”

A nightmare?

It took me a few minutes before it dawned on me what my dream was. The scene was still vivid in my mind, but I couldn’t recall the face of the person I’m talking to. I couldn’t picture out his whole face though I remember his voice and his words. 

I couldn’t even remember his name, the name I was yelling for while hopelessly watching him fall on his demise.

“- etie? Zoe?”

I was pulled out of my thoughts upon hearing Mom’s voice.

“What were you saying? Sorry, I was a bit out of it.”

“I’m asking if you’re alright? You just had a nightmare in the middle of the day,” Mom worriedly asked.

“I’m… fine. It’s really just a bad dream.”

“What did you dream of?” Dad asked, glancing at me from the rear-view mirror.

I debated whether to tell them about my dream. In other circumstances, I would’ve told them in a heartbeat. But this one made me hesitate.

Because the dream feels so real. Everything from it looks real. 

And the fact that my parents were mentioned there as well…

In the end, I decided not to tell them.

“No, I don’t remember it.”

It might sound absurd or stupid of me to think so much about a mere dream, but something in me tells me to keep it to myself. It was an odd dream, so odd yet it feels so real.

-

“Dramont Town?” I blurted out the calligraphed word written on top of this humongous gate we just passed by. “What’s this place?”

“It’s where your siblings are staying at, Zoe,” Dad answered.

“And it’s where you’re going to stay as well.”

My forehead creased in confusion.

“I thought you said I won’t get to see them until I reach the legal age? That’s like two months away. So why am I here?”

“Because your Dad and I have stuff to do and we couldn’t just leave you by yourself in our house. So we decided to bring you here. At least, you can be with your siblings now and attend the university they’re studying at. Also, you can live with them again. Don’t you like that, sweetie?”

“I like it, but you could’ve informed me beforehand. I didn’t even get to pack my things,” I pouted.

“You don’t have to worry about that. You can buy your things here,” Dad said. “This is a relatively small town compared to where we used to live, but this place is quite fancy. You’d love this place, Zoe. I’m sure of that.”

“Well, I don’t really have much choice about that seeing I’m already here and I don’t know the way back.”

My parents just chuckled at my statement.

They pulled the car in a parking lot just in front of what seemed like a high-end tower. I squealed in excitement not because I’d probably live here. It’s because I just saw my older siblings standing right at the entrance of the building.

I didn’t wait for my parents, I just hurriedly climbed out of the car and ran towards them. The familiar sweet scent of strawberries and the strong scent of citrus and clove was what welcomed me when I practically jumped on them, hugging them tightly at the same time. It earned a hearty laugh from them as they returned the hug.

“I missed you both!” I exclaimed giddily. “It’s been a while since we’ve last seen each other…”

“I missed you too, my baby sis!” Zari said, a sigh following after. “You had no idea how much I’ve missed you. It’s so hard living with Zandrick!”

“That’s rich coming from you,” Zandrick scoffed. “Anyway, I missed you as well, Zoe. There’s no one I can cuddle with while watching movies because hugging Zariyah is never an option. No way.”

I laughed at their banters. They didn’t change a bit, not like I wanted to. I prefer listening to their bickering than to see them silent.

“Seeing as the three of you missed being together that much, then I guess it’s safe to leave Zoe in your care while your Dad and I will meet someone?” Mom’s voice resounded behind us.

We pulled away from the hug to face our parents.

“She’s safe with us, Mom. Don’t worry,” Zandrick responded.

“Go and let her look around. Or buy and eat something. I already sent some money on your account, treat her whatever she wants,” Dad said. “Be good to your sister, Zari, Zandrick.”

Zariyah huffed, seemingly not amused at what she heard, “What do you mean? We always treat her well.”

“Lessen your bickering in front of her is what your Dad meant,” Mom said. 

I whined, “I’ll be fine, Mom! I’m used to it, anyway. That’s just how they show their love to each other.”

I chuckled when I heard my siblings fake gagging after hearing what I said.

“Fine. We’ll head somewhere else first. Be at your place before dinner. We’ll eat together, okay?”

All three of us nodded in response.

We watched as our parents drove away to meet whoever it was they needed to talk to. Once they’re out of sight, I immediately turned to face the two.

“Is there a milk tea shop here? I want to drink some milk tea! I haven’t had it for a while. Let’s catch up there as well!”

-

“I don’t want to hear any more of your troubles here. I might tattletale it to our parents because of how stupid it is,” I rolled my eyes for the nth time.

Rather than looking offended, they even looked smug. 

“You think our parents wouldn’t know? Every trouble or fight here in the town would be reported immediately to the Prefect of Discipline in the University, or to the town’s alpha. And of course, they’ll contact the parents or guardians of those involved in the fight.”

My brows furrowed, “Really? Then how come I never know?”

“Maybe Mom or Dad didn’t want you to find out. I guess they’re afraid you’ll get worried.”

I let out a snort, “Worried? Not at all.”

“Why did you-”

Zandrick wasn’t able to finish what he’s about to retaliate when we heard a loud crash, like some glass had fallen and shattered. All the people inside the shop snapped their heads in a certain direction- just near the entrance where a group of girls and boys were seated. They were the loudest customers here when we entered, and no one dared to scold them for it because most of the guys were alpha. 

One of them stood angrily in front of a guy who’s lying down on the floor, just near the shattered glasses. The furious guy looks terrifyingly mad, his hands balled tightly in a fist. The vein on his neck and arms were so prominent and his ocean blue eyes glared darkly at the man lying down.

Wait…

Ocean blue eyes? Why does it look familiar…

“I will not hesitate to fucking feed you that shattered glasses the next time you open your mouth and nothing good comes out of it,” the guy spits out, his voice eerily cold. He was unconsciously releasing angry pheromones and his already sour scent became more potent. The omegas inside the shop were cowering in fear, and I was never this thankful that I haven’t presented yet because I’m pretty sure I would cower as well if I were an omega.

“It’s not like I lied!” The man on the floor shouts back. “Jeckah really said that!”

It seems to anger the already furious guy as his eyes impossibly darkened once more. His scent became stronger as he emitted a deep growl. He prepares to land a punch on the guy, but is held back by all the remaining men in their group.

“Drake! Get a hold of yourself!”

“Stop it, Drake!”

“Calm the fuck down, man! 

“You’re all so fucking annoying!” The man who they called Drake growls ever so loudly, pushing away all the men who were holding him down. My mouth fell open, in awe and surprise at his brute strength. He just managed to rip away from the hold of four alpha! And he didn’t just pried their hands off him, he pushed them away!

He glared at all of them before he returned his dark gaze on the guy who’s just as shocked as the rest of us by the brute strength the Drake guy had just shown.

“Don’t ever say her name in front of me, or I’ll rip your tongue out. Do you fucking understand?” He said, almost growling as he leaned down on the guy.

The latter just nodded his head as he looked away.

The Drake guy stood up properly. With one last look around the shop, he scowled at us before leaving.

Only when he left did the others aid the poor guy on the floor. The staff immediately approached the scene to clean the shattered glasses. They repeatedly apologized to the staff for the scene and damages they did. They also apologize to the rest of the customers for the disturbance before they leave.

That Drake’s guy’s sour scent lingers as well as his angry pheromones which caused some of the omega customers to just leave. Meanwhile, my older siblings pulled me back to sit down.

Once I’ve glanced at Zari’s face, realization kicks in that she was an omega, and that she might have been affected by that guy’s pheromones.

“Hey, Zari, are you alright? Do you want us to leave this shop?” I worriedly asked.

But she just chuckled and waved her hand off, “I’m completely fine, Zoe. I wasn’t affected at all. Zandrick has been releasing comforting pheromones around me so I wouldn’t get bothered by Drake’s pheromones.”

I heaved out a sigh of relief. I was so engrossed in the scene I didn’t notice it.

“Do you know that guy?” I curiously asked. “You just casually called his name. Are you somewhat close with him?”

“Close?” Zari snorted. “Never, not even in my wildest dream.”

“But you know him?”

“Everyone who lives here in Dramont Town knows him,” Zandrick responded. “It’s impossible not to know him. Aside from his extremely foul attitude, he’s also the pack alpha’s only son.”

“The pack alpha? Do you mean the one who built this town?” I asked.

They both nodded.

“And he’s the only son…” I muttered. “No wonder he’s known.”

“It’s not all of that. He’s really popular because of his attitude.”

“What’s with his attitude? You mentioned that he has an extremely foul attitude. What do you mean by that?”

“It’s like what it means. He’s disrespectful, short-tempered, foul-mouthed. He’s always mad. You can never see him smile or laugh. It’s just a frown or glare. If he ever did laugh, it’s to mock and taunt someone,” Zandrick explained. “It was as if he’s the personification of the word anger.”

“He never- as in never, showed any act of kindness to anyone. Even the one he flirts with and sleeps with, he wasn’t kind to them. In fact, all his ex-flings said he didn’t even seem capable of loving someone,” Zari added.

Personification of anger and unkind…

Why does that sound familiar as well? Why does it ring a bell in my mind, but I couldn’t pinpoint it?

“And oh! There’s another reason he’s known.”

I raised an eyebrow, “There’s more?”

They both nodded.

“He’s a pureblood alpha.”