The Lycan King and his Substitute Bride

 LIA BLAKE

 

With force I pushed open the door and stormed into my room. The moment I slumped onto my bed, all the emotions I thought I had held back broke free and tears streamed down my face. 

I clutched my face in my hands and wailed. I wailed like I hadn't done before. 

As my tears flowed, the memories of the day flooded into my head. 

A day supposed to be one of the best days in my life turned out to be a painful one for me. 

<<A FEW HOURS AGO>>

Snatching myself up in the most pretty dresses I ever owned with a perfect make-over, the type I rarely do, I had dolled up myself  for my school prom night. The last I would have as a high school kid. Yes, it shouldn't just be my last but my best as well, I had thought. 

I was totally over the moon and It wasn't just that I was attending my last school prom night but a part of it was that I would be attending it with my crush. I couldn't have been more excited. 

"Please have you seen Carlos?"  

"Have you seen Carlos? He is handsome and has this… curly pretty hair. He is tall and…"

The extremely busy guy merely flashed me a glance as his eyes focused back on the cleavage he was gawking at. 

 

"Get lost bitch! Don't you see we are busy?!" The girl barked at me. 

 

I hissed and continued on. Bunch of lusty sex- starved simpletons!

 

I kept asking whoever I bumped into as I surged and wriggled my way forward through the clustered sweaty bodies.

 

The blasting music from the speaker didn't help matters. They banged at my head more than they drifted into my ears.  

"Gosh, where on earth would Carlos be…" I had wondered. He wasn't taking his calls nor did he return my numerous calls. I was beginning to get worried. The Carlos I know would never intentionally screen my calls.  

We were supposed to come to the school prom together for fuvk sake! 

Poor me. This was supposed to be my last prom in high school where I would have all the fun…but there I was running around. I feared how ruined my dress and makeover would be.   

I finally managed to struggle my way out of the crowd and dashed into the classrooms in search of Carlos. I figured he would probably be in one of the classes taking a rest or something. Carlos didn't like noisy places that much.  

I had checked like three classrooms when I heard a loud cheer from the dance hall followed by an abrupt stop of the music. I halted in my steps wondering what had happened to grab their attention.  

I was about to take a step to continue my search for Carlos when I began to hear chants of Carlos! Carlos! Carlos!  

I spun around and dashed back into the hall.  

That jerk! I would so punch him hard on his face. How dare he come to the prom without me. 

I had barely made it past the doorpost when my feet got stuck to the ground and my body went stiff. 

There, Carlos had his arms around the body of a girl and they were deeply immersed with each other, lips locked together. 

My whole world stopped that second. I totally forgot how to breathe as I stood there watching with a wrenched heart as my crush suckled the lips of another girl. My feet wobbled weakly and impulsively I had gripped the doorpost for support. The sadness that enveloped my heart, I doubt I had ever felt it before. It was so painful watching my crush make out with another girl that the pain reached into the core of my wolf and inside of me, she whined painfully. 

I must have been foolish thinking and hoping all these while that I could be with him in the beginning.  

When their lips finally pulled away, I saw his now deeply yellow eyes and then it dawned on me he had found his mate. 

Unable to watch while everyone cheered them, I had dragged my heavy legs and fled. 

The sound and vibration of my phone jolted me out of my thoughts. I sighed, making a mental note to ignore the phone until much later. 

The thought of my crush lips against the girl still felt painful to imagine.  

But my phone wouldn't stop ringing. I rose to totally shut it off but couldn't find it when I searched my purse.  

When I didn't find it in my purse, I forced myself to sit up and then I noticed it  was ringing under the bed.  

How come…I was still wondering how it had happened but then I figured it could have fallen off my purse when I had angrily flung my purse towards the edge of the bed on storming into the room.  

The phone momentarily stopped ringing as though it saw through my hesitation to pick it up. 

But the ringtone brought up yet another sweet memory now turned painful. Carlos and I use the same ringtone. He had suggested we used this particular one. 

I swallowed painfully, forcing the memory away.  

Then I lay back in bed and pulled the covers over me.  

My whole life is over. My whole life… 

I have crushed on Carlos literally all my life and I waited like an obedient child for the moment, the moment he will finally ask me out. How cruel could the Moon goddess be? 

Tears sting my eyes as the memories of all the times I spent together with him came rearing up in my head. He made me have a crush on him and he looked at me like I mattered in his life. All those times he held my hands and hugged me, was it all a joke to him? How could he treat me so well knowing he would abandon me the moment he finds his mate without a second thought. Even a distant friend doesn't deserve to be treated this way. I thought we were close and cool. He promised me…He swore to always be by my side. But now he doesn't even remember I ever existed. Fuck…Carlos…how could he forget his words. 

I could feel my heart knot painfully against my chest. I couldn't even shed another tear as I had probably shedded it all already.  

I was going to ignore my phone until much later since it stopped ringing but it soon started to ring again.  

Angry, I dragged my tired body out of bed and searched for it grudgingly.  

After a few minutes, I sighed as I sank back into the bed with the phone in my hand.

Who else would be draining my battery with calls if not my best friends.  

Jimmy: eleven missed calls. 

Emily: twelve missed calls.  

I opened our group message where it was only the three of us and began to type.  

"I'm sorry Jimmy, Emily but I just feel like dying. I promise to call you both when I feel a little better…" 

I felt a sharp pain in my head as I tried to tap the send the button. My phone dropped from my hand and on impulse, I clutched my head in pain letting out a painful groan. 

 

My head was aching so much I thought I would die. The pain from my heart must have transferred to my head. 

 

A knock sounded on my door at the same time. 

 

"Lia!!! Are you in there?? Open up!!"

 

 I couldn't have missed that voice. I scrambled to my feet and dashed towards the door. Pulling it open and standing before me was my best friends, Emily and Jimmy. It couldn't have been anyone else. 

 

They both had a pity look in their eyes. 

 

"Come here you cute poor thing…group hug…" they pulled me into their arms and patted my back in a consoling manner. 

 

"It's fine baby. You will get your mate, I promise. The Moon goddess surely has the best charming man for you. Okay?" Jimmy said, pulling me in tighter. 

 

"What's even so good about him anyways? Toor! Right now girl, he is average! That jerk Carlos! How could he abandon you in such a manner! Middle finger for his darn self!" Emily cussed out Carlos.

 

I thought I was past the sobbing stage but hearing the name Carlos triggered my tear gland again. I pressed my face against my friends' shoulders as I cried. 

 

"It's okay. It's fine…let it all out and you will be fine…"

 

After some moments of mushiness, we gently pulled away. 

 

"Get dressed, we are painting the town red!!!" Emily screamed and gripped me playfully.  

"What?" I turned towards Jimmy and he flashed me a smile in agreement to Emily's words. 

 

"No guys, I don't feel like partying…" I said and got back into bed. 

 

"No no no…it's a must and we are not asking you for permission." Jimmy pulled the covers away and dragged me up. Emily had already flung open my wardrobe and had picked out a red dress for me.

 

"Shhhhhush.. don't say another word and put this on!" She winked at me and shoved the dress into my hands. I let out a deep breath, unable to argue with them anymore knowing they would win at the end. I dragged my feet into the washroom where I changed into the dress after a quick wash. 

 

"Isn't this looking too short…and skimpy?" I said as I stepped out of the bathroom fully changed. 

 

"Of course not! This is perfect!" Emily squeaked and twirled me around.  

Jimmy drove us to one of the busiest clubs in town. 

Inside the car, Emily and Jimmy did all their best to get me out of my sour mood. Well, it sort of worked as I soon began to snap out of it and the fun mood started to grow on me. 

 

Minutes later, we were driving into the clubhouse. 

 

"And here we are!!"

 

Stepping down from the car and my eyes jamming with my biggest fear happened at the same time. 

 

Carlos' hands were wrapped across his mate's waist as they sweetly walked into the clubhouse.  

Tears stung my eyes as I watched them step into the clubhouse looking like the best couple in town. 

 

"No, don't do that…come on girl, you can find better men." Emily held me.

 

Maybe…Maybe there are better men out there but my heart has always longed for one man. Carlos. 

 

As if that wasn't enough, the chatt of people for the few minutes we got into the club were totally centered on Carlos and his mate.

"I will be right back guys. Let me get us more drinks." Jimmy said and headed towards the bar counter. 

"More drinks!! Yeeey!" Emily squealed with excitement. 

I just chuckled. Emily sure isn't much of the party type but seeing her squeak and squeal tonight, I wonder if I knew her at all. 

 A few other people sat beside us. There was a table with people across us and two mini ones by the right and left. 

This particular table by our right had three girls sitting around it. They were so loud their conversation got picked up by my ears. Bottles of drinks and glasses sat on the table as they gisted and drank. 

"Hey, did you hear?" One of them said to the other two.

"What? Is there any recent news?"  The blonde one asked, her eyes piqued with interest as she pushed her chair closer to the table. She looked like the most curious one amongst them. 

Seeing it was gossip, I mentally forced my ears away from their discussion. I had a lot going on already to care about some gossip about someone. But the words of the first girl swept into my ears without my consent. It wasn't just any news but the news about me.

"See her over there." She stylishly pointed at me to the other two who snickered the moment they saw me.

"Well, I feel bad for her. It must be hard being mateless and having your crush find his mate." The second girl added with a shake of head. 

"But then, why is she in the club? She should go kneel and beg the moon goddess for a mate or something!". The other girl who hadn't said a word all these while finally spoke and the other two laughed. 

They kept on snickering and giggling to themselves as they pointed at me calling me unlucky and mateless. The rest I couldn't hear as everything began to turn hazy in my eyes. 

At that point, every urge to have fun had fizzled away and left me a broken shell. Tears slipped down my cheeks. I couldn't hold it back anymore.  

"Pull yourself together, Lia!" Emily yelled and gripped my shoulders.  

"How can I? Just how can I…" I stared at her, my eyes welled up in tears. 

"Should I go teach them a lesson?" She charged up. 

I held her back and stopped her. Being unlucky and mateless was enough. I couldn't let my friends soil their names because of me. 

Jimmy came back with drinks but my mood had already gone sour and all the effort my best friends made to get me back to a happy mood failed. 

Suddenly, I began to feel something charge up my throat as if I would puke. 

"Lia? Are you alright?" Emily asked as she rubbed my back. I looked up to meet her eyes and she understood at once. 

"It's all right…take a deep breath…you will be fine…" she continued to say as she patted my back. 

It wasn't new. I sometimes feel nauseous when my wolf is in a bad mood. Heck, why does it have to be right here of all places. 

I thought I could hold it in but it came rushing up my throat again that I could feel the taste in my tongue. Onions, cabbage…

I quickly stood up and dashed out in search of the restroom.