Four

Ari

My jaw clenched. Facing their stares I was frozen.

In the end I didn't even need to come to them. They had come to me instead.

"Look at you. All grown up I see." Zayn said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

The reminder of the past left me shaky. Whenever they ganged up on me like this, it was nothing good.

But I wasn't the weak girl who would cry. I could stand my ground now, and that was exactly what I was going to do.

"What do you want?” I asked, trying to keep my cool despite the butterflies in my stomach.

"Oh, we just wanted to welcome you to the family. You know, make you feel at home." Zachary chuckled, leaning on the other end of the doorway.

"Save it, Zachary. I'm not buying it." I snapped.

"Look who's grown feisty,” Zachary smirked, “You’ve really changed in the year you've been apart haven't you?”

And from the looks of it, they hadn't changed one bit.

A part of me wanted to snap back but I stopped myself. So far, there were no cruel remarks compared to the past. For them it even seemed courteous.

And I couldn't forget the reason I wanted to meet them in the first place. Taking a deep breath, I looked at them and spoke.

“Listen, I don't want any trouble. I'm willing to call a truce, for my mother's sake. She and Alpha Jason deserve happiness, and I'm willing to bear you two for their sake. I'm sure that you feel the same about your dad as well.”

Something shifted in their gazes and I knew I was right.

“Goddess knows that I want nothing to do with you two. So for this summer break while we're here I don't want any drama, any insults, any rehashing of the past. You stay in your lane and I do mine. Can we agree to that?” I asked,

The place went silent, tension so thick it was suffocating. I leveled my stare against them, waiting even though my belly roiled.

Zayn and Zachary exchanged a look, and for a moment, in what seemed to be a silent communication before they turned to me.

"Alright then. For our parents sake. we'll agree to your truce.” Zachary finally spoke up for the both of them.

"Let me make one thing clear though. I'm agreeing to this for my mother, but if any of you try anything , I won't hesitate to fight back.” I narrowed my eyes.

"We wouldn't dream of it,” Zayn smirked.

I searched their faces, looking for any sign of deception. But all I saw was a glimmer of curiosity, and amusement .

A sigh left me. This happened faster than I expected, but it was good. At least I got it over with.

Before I could tell them to leave, Zayn cut me off.

"You're forgetting something," Zayn said, his voice low and smooth as his eyes cooly met mine

“What?” My brows furrowed. There was nothing else to talk about unless he was referring to…

Oh.

"The mate bond,” he said my thoughts out loud . I swallowed thickly at the reminder.

“What about it?” I forced myself to sound casual even as his dark gaze penetrated mine.

“Don't tell me you're planning on ignoring it.” He asked, looking at me like I'd said something amusing.  Irritation filled me at his look.

“That's exactly what I'm going to do.” I said “I'm not interested in either of you and I never will be and I'm sure it's the same for you two. The bond is a mistake and it's best if we completely ignore it.

For a moment, I could have sworn Zayn's smirk had faltered for a moment. Turning to Zachary I was met with a narrowed stare.

Why were they acting like that?

"Alright then.” Zayn's voice made me turn back to him. The strange look was gone.

“In that case, everything's settled.”

I nodded, in silence, ignoring the tumble in my belly.

With that, they stepped out of my doorway. Before closing the door, Zachary turned to me.

“We'll be seeing you around, Ari.”

The moment the door closed I moved towards the bed, closing my eyes.

Too many things had happened within the span of one day. It was like I had been run through by a rollercoaster and this was only the beginning.

There were still three months of summer break and all I wanted was to spend time peacefully but could I?

With the newfound revelations Zayn and Zachary in the picture, everything felt unlikely. I couldn't shake the feeling that my life was about to get a whole lot more complicated.

But I had to try and make the best of this situation. For my mother's sake, and for my own.

Sighing, I began to unpack, trying to push the twins and their mocking smirks out of my mind.

….

I spent hours arranging my things in my new room, trying to make the space feel like my own. As I finished up, I couldn't help but look around.

With my belongings placed around and the familiar scents, this place really looked like my own aside from the fact that I was in the Alpha's house.

Goddess, I was actually staying in the Alpha's house with my mother. I was his step daughter. What did that mean for me?

Shaking my head, I pushed the thought aside. I couldn't think about that later. For now, I needed to get out. I had been gone for a year, and I was curious to see how things had changed.

The sun was going down when I stepped out, walking across the streets. As I looked around at the familiar sights and met familiar faces, something in me eased.

I made my way to what used to be the coffee shop I worked in. As I pushed open the door, I was hit with the familiar aroma of freshly brewed coffee before I saw them.

The owners, Mark and Sarah, looked up and saw me, their faces breaking out into wide smiles.

“Ari! Oh my god!" Sarah exclaimed, rushing over to hug me.

As we separated, I couldn't help but smile.

“It's so great to see you. It's been a whole year. God, you've grown so much,” she smiled looking over me.

“Yeah, I'm spending my summer break here,” I replied.

“I remembered how you wished you went to a college in the city. I'm so proud of you,” she said.

Something in my chest lightened. How had I forgotten about this? Most times thinking about the pack reminded me of my time in highschool to the point that I had forgotten other things. Places like here and people like them who  supported me in their own way.

“It feels good to be back eh?” Mark asked and I nodded sincerely.

It felt good to be back, despite the circumstances.

The cafe was closed for the day and so spent the next hour catching up. They told me about the changes in the pack, and I filled them in on my life since leaving.

“Oh, I heard that there's a pool party at Staten House this evening with all the kids going. You should go and catch up.”  she said, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

“I don't know if I'm in the mood for a party Sarah,” I said hesitantly.

It was the truth. I didn't know if I was ready to face the rest of the pack just yet but there was more to it.

When there was a party involved, they were no doubt there.

“Come on Ari. A lot of people are going to be there and some also returned for summer break. This is the first party in months from what I hear. You should go.” Mark said.

Against Mark's words and Sarah's infectious enthusiasm, there was no fighting it.

“Fine,” I relented.

Moments later I was on my way, bag holding a swimsuit with me.

As I arrived at Staten House, I could hear the sound of music and laughter. I followed the noise to the backyard, where a large pool party was in full swing.

I scanned the crowd, looking for familiar faces. I could recognize most of the people surrounding the place, but thankfully they were so focused on the party that they didn't notice me.

That was when I saw them.

Zayn and Zachary were standing by the pool with two girls I recognized. Fallory and Dina, the former Queen bees of our high school, and two of the people who had helped make my life a living hell.

My eyes narrowed as I watched them. As I caught their eye, Zach smirked, pulling a giggling Fallory next to him. They were clearly enjoying themselves.

Of freaking course.

I rolled my eyes in disgust and annoyance. They hadn't changed one but.

Turning away, I slipped into the nearest bathroom inside the house, dropping my bag outside as I took a quick shower before I changed. Once I was done, I made to leave only to stop at my reflection.

It wasn't just my mindset that was different. I had changed physically too.

I could recall the days in highschool when I was constantly picked on by them because of my skinny frame. The most common insults were when they called me a boy and saying I was flat-chested.

As it turned out, I was just a late bloomer.

College had been kind to me, and my body had filled out with curves that weren't there before. Now, I felt confident about going out.

Settling into my underwear, I reached outside the door to grab my bag, only to find…nothing.

What?

Confusion set in me until I opened the door.

My bag was gone.

Panic set in as I frantically searched the bathroom.

Where had it gone? It was just here, unless…

My breath hitched. There was no other possibility. Someone had taken it.

Without thinking I rushed out of the bathroom and towards the pool area where people were still partying, looking around. There were only a few people who would still do this. Yet as I looked around they weren't in sight.

“Who took it?” I said out loud.

Something crept up my spine, forcing me out of my thoughts. As I looked around, the realization made me freeze.

Without thinking I had waltzed in here in only my underwear in public and now people were staring at me.

Suddenly a harsh force pushed me from behind, and before I knew it, I fell straight into the pool.