Chapter 2: Kissing The Masked Alpha

BRAVE'S POV

My heart raced faster than the tears that instantly blurred everything before me.

"You want to reject me?" I gasped between breaths, supporting my weight with a chair.

Dan's brows knitted on me. "You were expecting something else?"

"You saved me repeatedly, helped me when others bullied... I thought..."

Dan's expression hardened. "You shouldn't go around making assumptions, omega. You were needed in the pack and I couldn't have them hurt you. Because of your size and blood type, the healers could take more blood from you."

I pressed back the tears that burned in my eyes, swallowed back every one of my emotions and stared back at him.

"Right!" I whispered.

I was stupid to have thought anything would have happened between me and the Alpha heir.

And even more stupid to have thought that he was different from any of them in this pack. Only Genea was different.

"Go ahead, then," I said, forcing myself to meet his eyes. "You wanted to reject me, didn't you?"

"Yes, we should get this over with."

The ease at which he said it hurt me more than the rejection itself. Dan straightened his shoulders and spoke loudly enough for everyone in the hall to hear him. To know that he was rejecting me.

"I, Alpha Dan of Crescent Pack, reject you as my mate!"

My hands trembled under my garments, sheer pain crashing right into my bones. I tried to accept the words, but they tightened around my chest. I could barely breathe.

Dan blinked sourly at me.

"Yes... I... I." My teeth chattered so violently they hit my tongue. The metallic taste of blood spread through my mouth.

"I, Omega Brave, accept your rejection."

The raw agony instantly flooded through my body as the bond between us shattered. My breath caught and I pushed back my tears as I crumbled to the ground.

Even when the hot feeling that burned in my chest gradually faded, I could not breathe, I couldn't sob.

I picked myself up from the ground, lowering my head not to look at the Alpha.

"I will go on with my duties now!" I bowed.

Whispers spread through the hall as I turned to leave. I could feel everyone watching, but I refused to look at any of them. I tried to walk at a normal pace, pretending that my heart had not just been ripped apart in front of the entire pack.

At least, I was able to make it through the doorway before I broke into a ragged sprint.

I didn't head for the kitchen or to continue with my duties. I raced down to the pack's basement.

It was dark, cold and mostly abandoned. It was perfect and I felt a connection with the place. It was one of the only places I could be free to be me without all the mean comments.

The moment I shut the door, the strength holding me together disappeared.

Hot tears poured down from my cheeks and gathered on my lips. I palmed my face, to push them back, to act strong.

How could I when one of the only few people in the pack that I thought genuinely loved me just made me look stupid? He had cared for me only because of my blood.

All along, I had been living in a delusional fantasy I had created in my mind as a coping mechanism.

I remained on the floor until the salty liquid formed a crust on my face and there were no more tears for me to pour out.

My wolf continued to whimper inside me, mourning the broken bond, and I tried to console her despite my pain.

"I knew that you would be here!" A voice came from behind.

I didn't realize that my assistant chief maid had been standing beside me all along until she touched me right from behind.

When I turned around to look at her, more tears spilled from my eyes almost instantly and she pulled me into a warm tight hug.

"He doesn't deserve you, Brave. He's a dick and you're going to show him that. By not showing him that you're hurt!"

"Right!" I replied.

"I should go ahead with my work now." I tried to step away but Genea caught my wrist.

"Gurl, you're going to remain here and bawl out your eyes for as long as you need to. But you will not come out of this place looking all washed up and defeated."

She stretched her hands and handed me a piece of bread.

"Take it, it seems you will be staying here for quite a while."

"Genea, I still have work to do!"

"I don't think we should be friends if you think that I cannot cover for you! I am personally offended by your lack of faith in my talent of lying."

I could see the pain that she was trying to hide. Still, that look on her face was doing the polar opposite of what she wanted.

She didn't know how to console me, that I could tell and her presence was very much appreciated. She didn't need to say anything else.

"Trauma bonding? Or let's say patheticness bonding!" The familiar clicks of Helen's heels echoed through the basement.

The vixen and her cohorts descended the stairs with the dripping looks of disdain on their faces. I was too exhausted to react. Fortunately, Genea was here. She shielded me quickly and snarled at them.

"Have some decency, witch, she's grieving."

Before she could even finish, a slap tore right into her face and Helen held up her chin tightly.

"Thank your stars that I am not here for you!" She scoffed before tossing Genea off to her cohort.

She struggled to break loose from their grip watching Helen make her way towards me with a vicious sneer while I flinched.

Helen stood before me with a glare. She held my chin tightly and slapped me in the cheeks repeatedly.

"So you really thought that Dan would be your mate, didn't you!"

"Leave her alone!" Genea rocked harder with deep anguish in her eyes. It only made Helen even more vicious.

"You thought that the Alpha heir would want anything to do with a fat ugly butcher like you? How pathetic!"

"He rejected you first?" I said flatly. "We should share a drink, Helen."

Her eyes turned wild. Frankly, I wanted her to hit me. I needed anything that would distract me from the pain of the bond, and from the sting of being hurt.

I thought I was already used to pain. I had gone through every one of it and I thought I had become immune. If I could just keep quiet, it would be gone before I knew it. It took longer for the wounds.

Yet, nothing prepared me for this.

"You bitch." I had never seen Helen search for words.

Her palms struck my cheeks hard, until my face and my heart had gone too numb to respond. I just stood and stared blankly and it provoked her to her bones.

"I know just the right punishment for you for even daring to entertain such a thought!" She held me so tightly by my chin, lifting my head to hers.

She dragged me closer to the conference hall. The scent of powerful men hit my nostrils. Some of the Alphas were around already and socializing, not that I cared.

Her fingers jabbed at one of them, the one in a mask and I flinched, really hard...

'What's she thinking?'

My trembling body carved a smile into the face of Helen; her friend trilled behind me with Genea in their grip.

"You will go and kiss Alpha Callum, and I will let you off the hook for what you have done."

"Are you mad? You want her dead?" Genea roared and my feet buckled.

She wanted me dead. Nobody had ever crossed the masked Alpha's path and lived to tell the story.

My nails dug into my thighs, pulling out blood. I was tired, exhausted of being their little runt. Losing my mate was more than enough already, I didn't plan to die on the same day.

"I will... not, Helen." My voice broke up into multiple shatters and her gaze instantly turned devilish.

"You dare to refuse me!" She slapped me, harder, and harder until my face was swollen red.

That was the worst that she could do, nothing more.

I was wrong. Her lapdog dragged Genea forward and my breath caught.

"Your friend stole food from the stores and I have evidence that she did.

"I know she did it to comfort you, you know how dire the consequences would be if I reported her to the Alpha."

'She will be dead.' I trembled under the weight of her words.

The last omega that dared to steal from the pack was executed. No matter how little it was.

I couldn't let my best friend die, not when she was trying to help me. I would never be able to live with the guilt.

My heart and my hand hardened. I rose off from the ground and Helen smiled at me.

"That's a good little fat omega."

"Please, don't, Brave." Genea begged, trying to reach out to me.

I smiled back at her, a dry smile that didn't reach my teeth. "Make sure you add rose flowers to my grave."

With that, I drowned out every one of her pleas and walked straight into the hall. Nobody recognized me. To them, I was another serving omega.

Until I turned my lifeless body towards the Alpha. It wasn't hard for me to spot him. With his mask on, he was at the far end of the hall.

I never realized that it would be so easy, walking over to him. Then I realized even to myself, I was dead already. I had told myself my death would be a quiet one. Most likely to be after I had been overbeaten.

Nobody would care actually. But now, it seemed my death was going to cause some drama.

Whatever it was, I hoped it was a really big one, enough to shatter the pack and hopefully give Genea her freedom. Because every single one of them deserved it.

With each step that I took closer towards him, it became even more difficult to breathe. I could feel his gaze thrilling me. It wasn't dripping with malice however.

Or maybe I was just romanticizing my death as always. Either way, if I was dying by my first kiss, I would be giving it a really good one.

I walked to him, tiptoed and pressed my lips firmly against the open space in his mouth.