Not the gullible one

Serenity,

The impact was soul-crushing, as though someone had grabbed something precious from inside my chest and ripped it out with bare hands. The bond snapped loud enough to deafen us. Pain exploded through every vein, every nerve, every breath. It felt like my soul had been torn apart and thrown onto the floor.

" Wh... What did you do?" he screamed, his nails digging into his chest, his wolf flickering violently in his eyes as painful growls ripped out of him. He coughed up a mouthful of blood. His knees hit the floor with a heavy thud.

" This is extreme, isn't it?" one of his friends asked, looking utterly petrified.

I swallowed the pain. My body had endured far worse than a mere mate-bond breaking apart. I didn't fall to my knees. I didn't cry. I stood there while every single nerve inside me throbbed violently. My Wolf clawed at me from within, scratching against my soul like a wounded beast desperate to escape.

But she was tired too. Tired of being neglected by her own mate. Tired of being disappointed every single day.

She wanted to be pampered. She wanted to be acknowledged by him. But he failed. Again and again.

" Extreme? You said?" I laughed, hollow and humorless, bitterness coating every word. " What do you think your mate would do if you stole from her account every single week? Called her a pig and disgusting?" I asked, my voice shaking yet stubbornly firm.

They lowered their heads. None of them dared to look at me anymore.

" He is eating my food, wearing the clothes I bought, and living under the roof I paid for. Because he was my husband and the only family I thought I could count on. I bleed to earn that paycheck, enduring humiliation, shame, and violence. After everything, I return home hoping to feel peace. But what have you all done here today? Do you think I deserve this?"

They looked around in shame. Nolan was already curled up on the floor, trembling in agony.

" He never even gave me a fucking artificial flower. Not once did he kiss my forehead and make me feel like someone worthy of love. Why? Because I am overweight? Obese? Because I don't have that sexy body? Does that make me less of a person with a soul?" I asked, my jaw tightening painfully.

Rage burned behind my eyes so fiercely that I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from screaming. The metallic taste of blood spread across my tongue.

" Why do I have to listen to your bullshit and your so-called beauty standards? Why does my body concern any of you?" I spat, my jaw clenching sharply.

" Does beauty pay the bills? Does a woman with a nice figure survive for free? No. None of you pay my bills. It's my body. Who the hell gave you the right to comment on it? Am I depending on you?"

I took a deep breath and looked at all of them. " This pig provided everything for your so-called handsome best friend. Except for his face and that filthy mouth, what exactly has he contributed to this pack?"

Silence returned, broken only by Nolan's painful whimpers and ragged breathing.

One of his friends looked at me, then at Nolan. Confusion and disbelief crossed his face.

" What's going on? Why are you standing as if you don't feel anything while he is practically dying from the rejection?" he asked, shock flickering in his eyes.

" Because I have a few layers of fat around my mate-bond. It doesn't hurt me!" I snapped, my jaw tightening again.

He immediately avoided my eyes and grabbed Nolan's arm. " Guys. Pack his stuff. We should leave."

" Take the clothes only!" I said, returning to the couch. My legs nearly gave out from the pain, but I refused to show weakness. I bit my tongue harder and swallowed every ounce of agony. " Everything else is mine. I have every receipt."

" You -!" Nolan screamed, his face twisting sharply with rage. " Do you think this is over? We are married. I am taking everything from you. Including your father's inheritance!"

My eyes darkened the moment he mentioned my father.

I looked at him coldly while the mate-bond between us gradually faded into nothingness. Thankfully, he never marked me.

" Seems like education hasn't taught you anything, Nolan," I scoffed, watching his friends drag him back to his feet.

" This pack protects women's rights. Here, she-wolves are not chained down by men like you."

" What do you mean?" he asked through clenched teeth.

" Do you think I am stupid? A fat woman can't possibly have a brain?" I laughed bitterly.

" Everything I spent on you, everything I sacrificed for this marriage, has been documented. Every receipt. Every payment. Every transaction. I kept everything. I wonder if the Court of Marriage will help you after seeing all that."

Nolan stared at me as though I had suddenly become someone else entirely. He couldn't believe that I, who had once treated him with loyalty and unconditional devotion, could now turn the tables on him this way.

" You can't make me homeless over a small joke. Everything was a joke, right?" He looked desperately at his friends.

None of them answered. Shame filled their faces as they looked away.

" What? Dude, tell her. It was just a joke." He turned toward me again, trying to grab my hand.

But I jerked away instantly. " Don't touch me!"

" Serene. Babe. I am sorry, okay? Whatever I said, whatever I did, it was wrong. Let's not do this. You love me, right?" he cried, tears filling his eyes. " I love you too. You know that."

For one weak second, I almost gave in. Because for the last two years, I had done everything to make this marriage work. I treated him like he was irreplaceable. Like he was my person. My forever family.

But now I was done. Truly done.

" Honey." He dropped to his knees, tears streaming uncontrollably down his face. " You know I would die without you. I have no family. No money. You can't possibly kick me out. This is cruel. If something happens to me -"

" You are an adult, Nolan. Twenty-two years old and fully capable of finding a job to survive. But living off my paycheck while stabbing the hand that fed you? No."

Something inside his expression twisted into something ugly and terrifying. Before I could even process it, he lunged toward me and grabbed my throat.

His claws unsheathed instantly. " You fucking bitch! If I had to work, then why the hell did I marry you? I could have married my first love from the beginning." He screamed at my face, his scent thick and suffocating,

"If you can't do your duty as my wife, then you better die!"

His claws dug straight into my throat. A gush of blood splashed across my skin and clothes. Burning pain tore through me.

" What the hell, man!" one of his friends shouted, grabbing him by the shoulders and yanking him away from me. " Stop it! You already lost every privilege to demand anything from her!"

I coughed violently, blood staining my clothes as it dripped down my neck. Everyone seemed to be very interested in my thick neck today.

I laughed at myself in my head.

" Let me kill this bastard," my Wolf growled inside me, rage vibrating through every vein.

" Hey! Call an ambulance! She is bleeding!"

" No need!" I rose to my feet despite the dizziness threatening to drag me down. My blood soaked the front of my shirt, warm and sticky against my skin. " Make sure you put some sense into his brain. Otherwise, I will destroy him."

They were far too stunned to respond. Not when they had always believed I was a gullible, pathetic woman who couldn't survive without Nolan.