Chapter 01.

Ariana’s POV

“Why is that good-for-nothing girl still sleeping?” Grace, my adopted mother, shouted, her voice echoing through the hallway with rage.

Fear of the daily lash made me jump and open the door. Immediately, she gave me a resounding slap across my cheek, and the sting burned my skin. I held my cheek, trying to adjust to the pain.

“What audacity you’ve got to still be sleeping, knowing full well there’s so much to do today!”

She brought out a piece of paper from her pocket. “Take this list and go to the market, buy everything we need for your sister’s birthday party. I give you fifteen minutes to get back and start cleaning everywhere. I need it sparkling.” She looked around my cubicle and scrunched her nose in disgust. “I'd better leave here before I get contacted by the bacteria.”

Today marks a new age for my twin sister and me. Unfortunately for me, I was never celebrated. My adoptive parents always treated our birthday like it was made just for Ariel alone, while I was left with a heap of dirty dishes to wash, serving the guests, and doing all the chores, but today, I didn't mind.

I have waited for so long for this day to come, because this particular birthday is a special one that will change my life for good. It’s the day I turn 20 and finally meet my mate. I put on my clothes and hurried to the pack market.

“Look who it is. It’s the cursed twin!” a pack member shouted, followed by the murmurs of the other market women.

“What a misfortune she is to the family, being an omega without a wolf.”

The words of the market women stung me deeply. I looked down in shame as tears threatened to fall.

“All of this would soon be over.” I muttered a word of encouragement to myself, and kept going.

Although we are identical twins, Ariel is the perfect daughter. She got everything she wanted, while I was treated like a slave and given the worst of everything. She is also praised and respected by our pack members for her beauty and brains, while I, on the other hand, am the wolfless twin, jest of the pack.

I endured all of this, in hopes that when I finally find my mate, I can leave this hell and be with him. I hurried back home with what I was able to buy.

As I got to the front porch of our house, I entered the living room and met Ariel sitting and fuming.

“Where the hell have you been, weakling! Are you trying to ruin my birthday party?” She screamed.

“Erm… It’s not my fault. The list my mother gave me was long.” I mumbled.

“How is that my business? Mother sent you on an errand since you decided to sleep there, and now Xavier is around. Thank goodness I was able to tidy up the living room. Leave here before I lose my temper!”

Xavier, the Alpha’s son, is the future Alpha of our pack. He and Ariel have been hooking up for years now. They plan to become Alpha and Luna when the right time comes. The Alpha’s son and Beta’s daughter getting married will definitely be the talk of the pack.

I carried the vegetables I had bought. As I turned to leave, that’s when it hit me, my nose flared up—a scent so raw, unlike anything I’ve smelled before. A raw, woody scent. It was foreign, crisp like early morning dew. My pulse quickened, my breath hitched.

Could it be…?

I looked around for who it was. It drew all my senses together, and I couldn’t think of anything else.

Immediately, Xavier came in shirtless, with a different glow around him. His broad muscles and abs glistened under the chandelier in our living room. “Babe, I heard your voice from—”

He stopped dead in his tracks and looked at me.

Then it all dawned on me.

“Mate!” Xavier growled. A glint of anger filled his voice.

Ariel looked between the two of us, shocked and confused, but most importantly, angry. “Someone please tell me what is going on here!”

Xavier quickly covered it up and rushed towards Ariel. “Baby, my wolf just alerted me that you are my mate.”

“Really?” Ariel squeaked, jumping into his arms like a lost puppy.

I stood there frozen on the spot, too shocked to believe what had just happened. It felt like I was being stabbed with silver. Xavier is my mate, and just before I could process anything, he hid it from Ariel right before my eyes.

Although I didn’t have a wolf, I was sure as hell he was my mate. He leaned down and captured her lips, kissing her while staring at me. I knew he was sending me a message, a message that tore my heart into pieces.

My heart felt very heavy watching them, and it was getting harder to breathe every second. I ran to my cubic room, each step becoming harder as I moved. I entered my room and broke down in tears.

“Why?” I screamed. “Why him?”

Why did it have to be him? Why would the Moon Goddess pair me with such a dick?

The only reason I stayed this long in this pack was because I was hoping that when I found my mate, all of this would be over.

How do I deal with my mate being in my sister's bed, locking lips with her?

The door flung open, and Xavier stormed in, strangling me and raising me off my feet. I coughed, struggling and gasping for air.

“Xa—Xavier, you are hurting me,” I choked as tears fell on my cheek.

“You must be fooling yourself if you think I would accept being mated to a filthy, wolfless omega like you. Let’s cut to the chase and get to it. I, Xavier, future Alpha of Crystal Pack, reject you as my mate,” he said and threw me to the ground.

“Pathetic!” he said with venom, and with one last disgusted glance, he left the room.

I crawled to my bed and faced the ceiling, my heart pounding, all the strings of pain coming at me all at once. It hurt so much I couldn't even cry again.

“I need to escape this place,” I mumbled to myself, wiping away the tears streaming down my cheeks.

I had no reason to stay. I had endured all of this pain and abuse all in the name of my “fated mate,” a mate who didn’t even spare me a glance before putting me through so much pain of rejection.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

A loud thud interrupted my wailing. I gently stood up, wincing from the hit earlier, wondering who that was again. I opened the door and met Ariel’s evil smirk.

“Look here, I know everything that happened earlier. As you can see, he doesn’t want you.” She yanked my hair aggressively, laughing.

“A—Ariel, you are h—hurting me…” I protested, gripping her hands to keep her from ripping my hair off, but she was stronger.

“That’s the intention, dumbass. I’m expecting that you would keep your mouth shut about it. It’s not like anyone would believe you anyway.” She finally let go.

“So you knew, Ariel! Why are you doing this to me? I am your sister!” I screamed, my tears dropping effortlessly. This was the worst kind of betrayal I could ever receive. I knew Ariel hated me, but I never imagined she could do this to me.

“Why am I doing this? Do you think I will ever forgive you? Just because we are living a new life in a new pack with our adoptive parents!” She screamed, rage burning through her eyes.

“You are the reason our parents are dead, b***h! If you hadn’t shouted Mummy’s name that night, she wouldn't have been killed!”