Aria
The pain was undeniably excruciating. It suffocated me. It was killing me, little by little. My heart shredded into pieces as those words came out of his mouth. I couldn't help but cry as I digested those painful words.
Just when I thought the torment was over, he leaned down to kiss my sister in front of my face. I felt betrayed. My devastation couldn't be expressed in words. That hurt me a lot. How could they do this in front of me like I didn’t exist?
“There’s still a way to get him back, Aria. Tell him that he is wrong. Tell Adrian that we are not weak!” My wolf yelled at the back of my head. However, I silenced her as I didn't want her to take over without my prior knowledge.
“Wake up, Aria! We will lose our mate if you're not going to tell him the truth!"
My fist clenched as those words were uttered by my wolf, Cleo. I could feel her agony. She was in deep pain as well after witnessing our mate kissing another woman.
Cleo was already frantic, and she was begging me to speak up. But no words formed on my lips. Something stopped me from unveiling the truth to our mate about who we really are.
However, I had no plans of telling him the truth because he didn’t deserve that. He wasn’t entitled to that anymore after he hurt my feelings.
It was every werewolf’s dream to find their destined mate. At least, that was what I grew up to believe. I waited for him, dreamt of him, and longed for him. I waited for years to finally have a connection with him, only to be rejected like a worthless piece of shit.
Should I just accept this cup of suffering? Of course, not!
“Y-you can’t do this to me, Adrian!”
My legs trembled. I fell to the ground, kneeling in front of them, asking and waiting for whatever Adrian could respond to me. I was aware that my sister was prettier and more powerful than me, but would this be a valid reason to disobey the goddess's will?
Cassie looked at me with disdain. She rolled her eyes twice and cared less about how I begged the man she was trying to take away from me. I knew that in the first place, Cassie didn't treat me as a sister. She didn’t want to be associated with her regular-looking, weak, and unpopular sister.
“You, slut! You’re really saying those things in front of me, huh?”
I was shocked by Cassie's sudden movement. She grabbed my hair and made me get up from kneeling on the ground. I was howling in pain when I felt my scalp stretch, almost to the point of tearing. My sister was fuming in rage.
”Cassie, please... It hurts. Stop it, please!" I begged for her to let go of me. And with every strike that she made, a buzzing sound rang in my ear. Cassie finally let go of me after a minute, throwing me onto the cold ground.
My gaze turned to Adrian, who remained unaffected, still standing in his position. I thought he was going to side with me after what Cassie did, or just to comfort me from my shameful beating, but he did not. Instead, he let my sister hurt me. He just watched like nothing was happening. And what was more painful? He even kissed my sister—the woman who attacked his mate.
I was enraged. My teeth gritted, fists clenched, and eyes darkened as anguish filled my heart. I rose to my feet to attack them, to make them feel the pain that I had gotten from them.
However, a strong hand stopped me from my plans. The rhythm of my heart raced when I recognized that familiar warmth of the man. Ash, my brother, was holding my hand above.
“What are you planning to do, Aria? Are you crazy? Why would you hurt our sister?"
Tears fell from my eyes when Ash asked me those questions. His cheeks turned pink, and I knew he was furious at that moment. However, his face softened as his gaze turned to my face. He let go of me, looking worried.
"Where did you get this? Who hurt you?" He asked worriedly, and I swallowed my saliva in fear.
"I was the one who smashed Aria's face, Ash. And believe me, I didn't do it on purpose."
Cassie spoke up, admitting what she did to me. But I was surprised when she began sobbing. Her green eyes were already filled with fake tears. I knew she was faking it because Ash was here.
“What's your reason for hitting our sister, Cassie? You shouldn't do that!“
I couldn't stop myself from smiling when I saw how Ash cared for me. Aside from Mom, Ash was the second person who treated me like family. He cared for me.
“Aria tried to destroy my relationship with Adrian, Ash." I was shocked by what she had said. Her evil face earlier turned into an innocent angel. “She tried to seduce Adrian, and when he rejected her and told her I was his girlfriend, she started attacking me!”
I could feel my mouth widen at the lies that Cassie told Ash. “It’s not true, Ash! Cassie is lying. I didn't attack her!" I explained myself, begging him to believe me.
“Just don't lie, Aria! You did that!“
“Shut up, Cassie! I wasn't lying.“
“Oh really—“
“The two of you! ENOUGH!“
Cassie and I shut our mouths when Ash's voice echoed in the whole area. We both knew our brother. It was not good to make him mad. And by staring at his face, Ash's aura darkened. He was gritting his teeth, and his eye color changed, threatening that anytime, his wolf would take over.
Ash looked at me, and I could feel my legs tremble. And then, he spoke. “You explain yourself, Aria.“
I gulped and gathered all the courage within my system as I explained myself to him.
“Adrian is my mate, Ash. I just learned about that early this morning.“
Ash opened his mouth widely as he heard those words. “What did you say, Aria?“
And I replied, “Adrian and I are mates. I'm not trying to seduce him as Cassie said. We just—“
Pak!
I could feel time stop after Ash's hands landed on my face. I couldn't believe he would do that to me. The only man whom I thought was my ally had also turned his back on me now.
“I know how desperate you are to find your mate, but you don't have to do this. Stop lying, will you?" He exclaimed, and then I bit my bottom lip to stop tears from flowing.
“I wasn't lying, Ash! Adrian and I are mates!” I shouted back.
Pak!
Ash smacked me in the face for the second time. My heart seemed to crash into pieces because of that.
“Talk again, or I'll beat you more!” I just cried at those painful words. I didn't talk, as no words would come from my mouth because of the extreme shock.
And then, Ash turned to Adrian. “Alpha, sorry for the trouble that my sister caused. Please tell me anything you want; I will be willing to be punished in her stead.”
“No worries, Ash. Just make sure that she won't bother me and Cassie anymore.” Adrian said, tapping his shoulder while planting a kiss on Cassie’s head.
Ash bowed his head. “Thank you for your kindness. I will make sure Aria will no longer cause you any trouble.” He left after that without looking at me.
I was hurt by what my brother did. But what could I do? He didn’t believe my words like he used to.
Cassie wrapped her hands around Adrian's waist, and Adrian did the same. My sister even smirked at me as they both walked away, leaving me in vain.
I slowly took a couple of steps backward, trying to process what had happened. I felt like my heart was ripped out of my chest. My wolf was howling in pain as well. I clung to the hope that this was just a bad dream, a nightmare that I would surely wake up from.
If my mate couldn’t love me, what more could I expect from the people around me?
So, I ran. No, I sprinted. I ran as fast as I could. I desperately wanted to get away from that place, from everyone, from everything.
I felt a cold brush of wind on my cheeks as I went deeper into the forest. I ran as long as there was land to brush my feet against.
I never prayed for an alpha or an alpha heir to be my mate. I couldn’t care less if he was an omega. All I wanted was a man who would love me for being me. The whole me. Only me. All of my flaws, all of my ugliness, all of my shortcomings. Everything about me.
But the moon goddess, once again, proved that she hated me. She had given me a cold-hearted man for a mate, who cared about nothing except for his status and position in the pack.
I ran through the forest with tears still falling from my eyes. Nothing could ever explain the pain that I felt right now.
I woke up feeling hopeful that I would finally have a taste of heaven with my mate. Too bad I got a heartbreaking rejection in return.
Aria The day was about to end. My legs hurt as I continued running through the forest without stopping. I didn't realize that I had been running for a while now. My head tilted up to the sky. The sun was about to set. Darkness would arrive soon, and I had to go back to the house before a tracker saw me. I had always felt pressured to be Ash and Cassie's sibling. Running through the forest helped me to be at ease. This was my solace. I would feel better afterward and ready to face the world again when I came out of the forest after a short sprint. However, the pain that I carried deep within my heart was still there. That pain shredded my heart into pieces. The rejection of my mate was the worst experience I have ever had in my life. Being rejected by my mate was beyond compare. Minutes passed, and I could already see our home from afar. We had the best in life, a luxurious home, and anything we could need. Our cabin was one of the best homes in the pack. The Alpha gave us this home
Ash Just as I remembered a quote from one of Robert Dunn's works, my sister crossed my mind. Guilt is what I feel right now for what I did to Aria. I still can't imagine that I did those things to her. Aria didn't deserve that. Maybe she was the youngest and the weakest, but definitely the sweetest. All her life, people looked down on her because of us. She was always known in the pack as the “weak” sister of the great Williams siblings. Despite all the disdain they threw upon her, she remained strong and unbothered. She only dreamed of one thing, which was to find her destined mate. She was kind, innocent, and pure. But the question is, why did I smack her? Obviously, I was an asshole for doing that to her. Aria's fantasy of being mated to our alpha's son was something that I couldn't handle. I love my sister, but I won't make her believe a lie. I couldn't let her believe that she was fated with the man who would become the next ruler of Moon Valley. Do I believe it wasn't possib
Adrian “Take me…” It was more of a desperate plea than a command. She moaned seductively as she caressed her fingers to my chest. The gesture made the hairs at the back of my headstand. Without hesitation, I claimed her lips. I had been tasting the same set of lips for a while now but I had never seemed to get over it. Lust claimed my reasoning. My lips traveled down to her neck. I paused when I reached her collarbone. I stuck my tongue out and licked it. Cassie moaned, sending me into a frenzy. I began to take off her upper garment. Her white, smooth breasts were revealed to me. The next thing I knew, I was sucking her breast like a hungry child. I held my teeth in between her nipples, pressing them slightly to put pressure on them. Then, I continued to play with it using my index finger. This action made Cassie go out of control. “Ohh ..” A soft moan escaped from her mouth. This was the signal I was waiting for. I immediately laid her on the bed. Then, I took off my shirt
Adrian A million and one things were circulating inside my mind. Mind games had never been my thing. This was something my father had always warned me about. In his words, I needed to balance my brain with my brawn if I wanted to be a successful alpha someday. I wasn't saying I was dumb; instead, I knew I still had so much to learn. One of those things was discerning people, knowing what was going on inside their minds, or predicting their next steps to help me screen the people who would become my future leaders. So, it was crucial for me to find out what was going on with Ash. What was the deal behind his sudden change in behavior? Why had he acted so weird earlier when he called me? I must have fallen deep into my thoughts because I failed to notice that the Williams Residence was within reach. I had decided to walk from my place to theirs since it was just a couple of blocks away. Their home was one of the biggest houses in the pack, making it easy for me to spot in my location
Adrian This probably was the longest day of my life. It had been less than an hour ago since I went to the Williams Residence and found out that Aria ran away from our pack to live on her own. I was already at my own home trying to comprehend what just happened. Was that enough reason to leave the comforts of Moon Valley and live as a rogue? At the back of my head, I saw my wolf Rickon roll his eyes at me. He gave that “Are you stupid?” look that I kept on getting since I decided to date Cassie. I shook my head in disbelief. Even my wolf was not supporting me with my decision to not be with Aria. Well, it should be obvious. He would always choose our mate over any girl that I would be with. Why did I feel that the world was despising me for not choosing her? Am I that selfish to think about the future of my pack ahead of my happiness? I heaved a sigh. I looked at the cassette tape sitting on top of the bedside table and began to ponder whether l should play it or not. I mean, wha
Aria This was the unluckiest day of my life. I curled into a ball while I camped under that big, old, ragged tree. My body was dripping wet from the sudden rainfall. Winds started to blow stronger than I anticipated. The trees, which were motionless a while earlier, were now swaying side to side because of it. My body was shivering because of the cold. When I ran away from our pack, I didn’t bring any camping supplies. I only brought two sets of clothing and some canned food to munch while looking for a place to stay. Nothing could have prepared me for this condition. I had never felt so alone in my life. All of a sudden, a bright, flashing surge of electricity struck the nearby tree. A loud, booming sound followed afterward. I let out a high-pitched piercing sound as a response. Smoke came out of the tree while a slit formed in its trunk. Then, its body gave up on its weight making it split in two. The scene made me shiver in fear. What if the tree, where I was seeking temporary
Aria All my life, I thought rogues lived in caves with rocks for a pillow and a pile of leaves for a bed. But after meeting Peter, my views about them totally changed. Rogues had a reputation for being the worst criminals in werewolf society. The majority of them were plunderers, thieves, and killers. They were known to have committed the worst crimes you could possibly imagine. To be called one was not only derogatory but a curse to carry as well. In our laws, the worst possible punishment you could receive was not the death penalty. Rather, it was banishment from your own pack. To live alone in a world where staying in solitude would mean danger, it wasn’t surprising that most rogues die young. If not murdered, they mostly passed away due to hunger. They were men of discord and haters of peace. But Peter Scott was different. His life as a rogue was one of a kind. “Welcome to my humble home.” I scanned the place as Peter guided me inside. The log cabin was not as big as ours yet
Aria Today, I found myself standing on top of a rough boulder, my heart throbbing inside my chest like crazy. “What are you waiting for? Jump, Aria! Jump!” “I-I can’t do it,” I whispered, looking down with my mind filled with doubt. “Yes, you can, young lady! Don’t give me that lame excuse that you can’t!” I looked at him, still terrified about what he asked me to do. He was standing at my back and purposely convinced me to kill myself. This man wanted me to jump off this mini cliff and shift in mid-air! “I’m sorry, but I really can’t do it. It’s too early for me to do this. I am not yet ready.” I couldn’t be as honest as I could possibly be, stating those words. It had been two months since Peter asked me to stay with him. As promised, he started supervising my training. I thought he would go easy on me, but I was wrong. Every day, I would go hiking with him. While he ran in his majestic, black wolf form, I was on my bare feet. My soles grew calluses running through the thick