I was insignificant!

Joye

"Mate?" I wondered in my head. Surely this man had mistaken me for someone else. Just yesterday I had confirmed that Ethan was my mate, and now this? A lowly omega like myself couldn't probably be able to pull two mates. Or could I?

"Stop it!" I yelled at myself mentally. I was head over heels for myself and was losing touch with reality. This was all just one clumsy mistake. Very soon this man will see me for what I'm truly worth, and in no distant time will disregard me, just like everybody else.

"Mate? That's impossible." It was Ethan who spoke this time. If I didn't know better, I would have said he was being defensive about this whole thing. Why the hell would he care? He never wanted me to be his mate, so why on earth was he trying to go against this stranger's claims?

Although I had no idea who this man was, and my eyes were far too weak to comprehend his looks clearly, I wanted him to take me away from this place. Don't judge me, I understood he was a stranger, and from his scent, he was far superior to the wolves here. If anything, he could turn out to be worse than them. But I would take the risks.

"What do you mean impossible? There's no way my senses could be mistaken. I'm certain, she's my mate." The confidence in his voice was almost compelling. If the others hadn't been there last night at the revelation, they probably would have taken his words to be the truth.

"It's impossible because she's my mate!" Ethan yelled out. Was this a dream? Two powerful men fighting over me. If the pain in my body didn't sting every passing second, I would have mistaken this to be one of my numerous daydreams.

"Your mate?" Came a question from the confused stranger, in whose arms I was currently getting comfort. "Didn't you tell me that girl was your mate?" He asked, with a finger casually pointed at Aurelia.

"You seem to be mistaken, I never confirmed your question myself."

I had no idea what went down between them, but I could already imagine that Aurelia must have lied to this stranger about being mated to Ethan.

"It doesn't matter Ethan, let him take her. We can finally be rid of her for good." Aurelia suggested, but I knew from one glance that Ethan wasn't on board with that plan. I had no idea what he wanted me for. He didn't like me, so why on earth was he fighting so hard for my custody? All he wanted to do was to make me his sex toy, but I'd rather escape with this man than give in to his lustful desires.

"She's a nuisance anyways," Aurelia added. In a flash, I was laid carefully on the floor, and in the next moment, Aurelia was pinned to the wall by the stranger. His rage was visible, and if Ethan hadn't intervened, he definitely would have harmed Aurelia.

"That's enough from you." He cautioned. "Trash like you aren't permitted to speak a foul word against my mate. Insult her one more time, and I'll feed your corpse to the vultures."

He was serious, everybody in the room could tell that much.

"You're mistaken. king Kaelan, Joye here is Ethan's mate. Could it be you've sensed wrongly?" It was the Luna speaking this time. For someone who had physically harassed me, and thrown me into jail just last night, she appeared almost angelic. I always thought she was one of the good people in this pack. But yesterday taught me otherwise.

"My senses aren't wrong. I am sure that Joye here is my mate."

'Kaelan...' I made a mental note of his name before another figure entered the room, the Alpha was here.

"What's with all the commotion?" He inquired, but as soon as he saw that Kaelan was here, he soon forgot about the drama and proceeded to welcome the stranger, who I now knew was a king.

"King Kaelan, you're here. How was your trip?" The Alpha asked. I was surprised he said nothing concerning the presence of a dirty maid in front of his guests. He had seen me but didn't show any regard for my existence. Unlike the others, I sensed no hostility coming from him.

"It was a good journey. I'm happy to have entered the gates of this pack." Kaelan answered with a slight bow. He was younger than the Alpha, but still, he was respected like an equal. I knew he was a king, probably from another pack. But to be treated like this, especially by this despicable pack, revealed that he was somebody that shouldn't be messed with.

"That's good to hear, shall we have dinner now?" The Alpha suggested and Kaelan nodded in affirmation. Now that everyone was leaving for dinner, I picked myself up from the ground and quickly made for the exit. I was already prepared for my punishment for causing such drama. But before I could take further steps from my initial spot, a firm, yet gentle grip restrained me.

"I'd love for her to come with us to dinner," Kaelan suggested much to the surprise of everyone.

I could see the rage on Aurelia's face, and Ethan was already green with envy. The Luna had a disgusting stare in her eyes, but the Alpha remained indifferent. I wanted to believe he was acting, but again I sensed no hostility from him. How could such a good man end up having a cruel family?

The room was massive when compared to the regular dining rooms I've seen. And the opulence within did well to represent the wealthy persona that Nightfall Pack had built up over the years.

The rectangular glass table took up little of the space, and the polished wooden chairs were completely covered by thick yet soft fur. From one glance, I could tell that this was an exclusive spot for royalty. People like me weren't even supposed to lay eyes on this type of good life.

The food was already laid out on the table, and it was an all-you-can-eat buffet. I was scared, was I supposed to join these people at the same table, and eat from the same plate as them?

While the others spent time serving themselves, I just sat down without moving an inch. I shouldn't act out of line, or I might be killed.

Now I was mad at this stranger, he was only making life more difficult than it already was. I couldn't imagine the type of punishment that I would undergo after all this was over.

"Here, eat." Kaelan offered me a plate. My eyes darted around the room trying to find the judging eyes of my enemies. But Kaelan stopped me. "Don't pay attention to anybody, just eat."

I was starved. I hadn't even had water to drink since last night. And in no distant time, I was done with the contents of my plates. Seconds later, Kaelan dished me another serving, and I ate it up without regard to the stares of the others. If this was going to be my last meal, then it was best to savor every last bit of it.

When dinner was over, Kaelan and the Alpha got lost in some important conversation I couldn't follow. And throughout that period, I had my head hung down to avoid eye contact with anybody.

That was until I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"I'd love to take her home with me." Kaelan proposed to the Alpha who seemed to be in disarray because of his choices.

"Ohh, has one of my servants caught the king's eyes? As long as she is fine with it. I find it lovely that the king finds the maidens of this pack to be beautiful."

“What are you saying Father?” Ethan’s question came, and the Alpha raised his head from his food confusedly.

I could already tell the Alpha's reasons for accepting that proposal. Nobody had informed him about the drama earlier, and he was still in the dark about everything.

"Why so? The Lycan king wants her. Do you want to incur the wrath of the Lycan king?."

“But she is my mate, Father,” Ethan clarified. And this time, the Alpha's eyes widened expressively, as the colors drained from his face.

“I presume you are making one of those jokes again.” Kaelan’s voice came, and in contrast to the smile that danced on his lips, his aura was intimidating. “Have we not already established that Joye is my mate? And that I don’t want you spilling that trash?”

At that moment, I was confused. My eyes shuffling between everybody seated on the table.

But that wasn’t the issue.

They were talking about me, who I was mated to, and I who I should be with, and no one had even asked me anything.

Where and who exactly I wanted to be with and who I wanted?

Was I that insignificant?

It was definitely me rating myself again. Aurelia and Ethan had always been right.

My takes on things mattered less, and with the life I was born into, I could only get tossed to where the wind blows.

Beautiful.