CHAPTER FIVE: FULL MOON AWAKENING

ARIA POV

I feel something speaking for me, was it fortune? I can’t fathom. I don’t know what it is; it’s like a miracle, but I feel really uneasy.

I wasn’t killed. The temperature in the room rises sporadically. I’m short of words; the attack from the king of alphas really stuns me.

“Help!” I whimper, in a quiet, antagonising groan. The air in the room is choking.

His movements are reckless but precise; one second, he is at the door, and the next, he is inches away from me. I close my eyes to receive the impact, but it never comes.

A dark shadow crashes into Bond, and it sends him flying to the edge of the room. Shock envelops me. The sound from the impact is deafening, and I stare in awe. Alpha Damon stands there, majestic.

My heart pounds against my chest as I watch the drama unfold.

“Enough,” Alpha Damon cautions Bond. “What are you trying to do? Attack a defenseless girl in chains? Just because she talks dirty?” The voice is loud and magnetic, tearing through the room like a blade.

“She doesn’t respect me! Through my conquest around the world, no one has ever spoken to me like that,” the Lycan King groans in annoyance.

“You need to calm down,” Damon says. “She’s been a deviant splinter for years; she’s not exposed to pack life.”

But as they stay there bantering words—

“Ahhhhhh!” I scream in agony. The bells from a distance ring in chilling succession.

It is that hour. The bells from the next day keep blaring. I’m eighteen, and my wolf can’t wait to emerge. She feels the hold of mediocrity has kept her for too long.

Bond can clearly feel the weight too. He stares at me in horror as the wolf in him panics and bangs against his chest.

“What’s going on?” Bond asks hysterically.

The doctor rushes in panic. “She’s turning, and it’s a full moon. Her pain will be intense, sir.”

I feel a flicker of hope within me as I see the concern in his expression. This is someone who clearly wanted to snap my neck some minutes ago. Now he is moved? It feels unreal.

My bones snap; the cracks shackle through the room, making disturbing noises as they shape. My legs are in agony as I feel fire raging through them. Nature is being cruel to me. Why is this birthday now? Why today of all days? The night of the full moon.

“Help her!” Bond yells at the nurse.

“There’s nothing we can do now, sir! Her wolf is trying to heal her broken leg; it’s correcting her injuries and taking over!” the doctor protests helplessly.

Bond tries to motivate me; he holds my hand in concern. When my eyes glow, the nurse shrinks in fear. “She shows the eyes of divinity, sir.” She staggers behind Damon for safety as the shackles and chains on me snap in succession.

He stares at me with a firm look as he stands unfazed. “Look at me, Aria. We’ll get through this.”

I’m not about to give in to him even in this state; I still hold onto the resentment. I push his hands away. I can’t allow him to hold me, not at this moment. But something about his stare gives me chills. It is similar to the way he looked at me when I had that accident—the affection, the confidence.

“Please, I can’t take it anymore,” I scream, and within seconds my vision blurs.

Bond strokes my hair and mutters, “Sleep on, beauty. Tomorrow’s gonna be a long day.”

…………..

I wake up to the smell of antiseptic, but the room feels chilly.

Is this the afterlife? Is this the room where I wait to be carried to paradise? This room is much more comfortable than the previous one. The place is white, and I can see a drip hanging over me. I hear the steady beeping of hospital machines. But this cozy duvet and the scenery don’t feel like a regular hospital; it feels like home.

Then I hear the sound of running water and a muffled voice from him. Something in me yearns for his presence. My heart skips as I stare at the door in fury—forced fury. I can’t bring myself to like him.

He strolls in with a smirk on his face.

“Where am I?” I ask in an angry tone.

“You are in the VIP hospital for the Bloodymoon Pack. Alpha Damon will be taking good care of you till you fully recover; then we can return to the capital.”

“I never asked for any of this,” I refute vehemently.

“You ungrateful, spoiled brat! I would have left you to be devoured by those scavengers that killed your mother!”

I get excited. “Noo, keep it up. At least you ain’t no saint. I was starting to believe you are a good person,” I say, trying to scorn him.

He gives me a bitter laugh. “You ain’t in chains anymore; you could scram away for all I care. Let’s see how well you survive with that passionate young wolf in you. She is like a kid; she’ll need guidance. And if you noticed the colour of your eyes and the way you turned, you’ll realise that I am your only hope. Nobody in their right senses would take you in.”

“I’ll take my chances,” I scorn. But deep down, I don’t want to leave. I am too new to this awakening, too inexperienced to handle the pressure. I enjoy the cozy duvet; the warmth and splendor from Damon’s territory is pure heaven.

If this is how a subordinate of the Lycan King lives in affluence, if this great glamour is the lot of Alpha Damon, how much glory is given to the Lycan King? I am indeed tempted to stay, but my hatred for him overwhelms me.

This instant, I begin planning my escape in my head.

“I need to use the bathroom,” I ask politely.

“Knock yourself out.” He shrugs his shoulders as he collapses into the couch by the bedside.

Damon walks in. “You let her walk freely; don’t you think she’ll run wild?”

“If she wants to elope, I can’t keep watching her like a hungry wolf. The gatekeeping is too much. Let her run wild; let her face the harsh reality of the outside world. Probably she’ll learn from it.”

I pin my ear against the bathroom door. The room is soundproof, but the wolf in me is very attentive. No words from their mouths are a mystery. I pick all the letters and assimilate everything they say. Fear creeps into me, my skin crawls, but I let curiosity get the better part of me.

I thought he was the special one, Damon the Reaper. How comes the barrier in this comfy bathroom is so weak?

The wolf in me hesitates, but with a loud bang, I burst the barrier in the bathroom and stare at the field beneath me. This is four stories down, and I will probably die if I jump. But I have taken this route; there is no looking back.

I jumped.