He cares.

“Tell the DJ to play something lively," Dior barked, a cruel, satisfied grin appearing on his face as he dropped heavily into a chair. "Looks like we're about to get ourselves a show."

​A ripple of mocking laughter roared through the room. 

I hurriedly wiped the remaining tears from my eyes just as the bass of a fast-paced track began to thud through the speakers.

​"Smile, Granny," Dior called out over the music, his voice dripping with condescension. "Nobody wants to look at a crying face."

​I forced the corners of my lips upward. 

My legs felt heavy, as I climbed onto one of the long wooden tables. The music echoed off the high ceilings of the hall, I began to sway awkwardly. 

I moved my hips and arms just enough, to satisfy their twisted amusement.

​The room instantly erupted into a chorus of cheers, whistles, and drunken jeers.

 A few girls near the front joined in, mimicking my stiff movements and laughing hysterically, treating me as nothing more than cheap entertainment for the night. 

Among them stood Abigail. She watched my humiliation with a satisfied smile. 

I lowered my gaze to the floor, focusing on a single spot, and kept moving until the song finally came to an end.

​"That's it!" Dior shouted, clapping slowly and mockingly. "Our little omega can follow orders after all."

​By now, the commotion had drawn the attention of the entire party. Every eye in the room was pinned on me, including Eren's.

​My breath caught in my throat. His emerald eyes burned into mine from across the room, filled with a mix of anger and frustration. 

 Yet, he remained exactly where he was. He didn't step forward to stop them, and he didn't call me down. 

The realization shattered what little was left of my spirit he simply didn't want anyone to know that a broken, pathetic omega like me was his fated mate.

​"I want more!" someone shouted from the back, and the crowd eagerly echoed the sentiment with loud cheers.

​Dior's grin widened at the crowd's enthusiasm. "How about we make this even more interesting?"

​Before he could pitch his next humiliation, a guy stepped forward, "Why don't you take off that shirt?" He suggesteds mischievously.

 "Let's see what's beneath those clothes. Come on, do a little strip."

​The room instantly seized on the idea, transforming into a mindless, chanting mob.

​"Strip! Strip!! Strip!!!"

​My hands instinctively flew to my upper body, clutching my clothes tightly against me. 

My clothes were the only shield I had left, the only thing that made me feel safe and protected in a world that hated me.

 Now, they wanted me to strip away my final layer of dignity.

​"What's wrong?" another wolf scoffed loudly from the sidelines. "Is an omega really going to disobey with the future Alpha standing right here?"

​A sudden wave of silence covered the room. Every head turned toward Eren, waiting for the future Alpha’s verdict.

​Eren looked up, his gaze locking onto mine once again. My heart pounded painfully against my ribs, suffocating me. 

Please, I begged him silently, crying out through the invisible bond. Just this once... say no. Tell them to leave me alone.

I didn't know if he could hear me but, I hoped he would stop them. 

​Seconds stretched, then, in a calm, entirely unreadable voice, Eren spoke. 

​"Take it off."

​The words struck harder than any physical blow ever could. My heart fractured completely.

​But before the crowd could cheer, Eren’s eyes shifted from me to the wolf who had just spoken. 

His expression darkened instantly, his jaw tightening so hard the muscles jumped. A suffocating pressure began to seep into the air—his Alpha aura, powerful and dominant, wrapping around the room. 

​"You seem awfully eager to watch someone humiliate herself," Eren said, his voice calm. He turned his piercing gaze slowly until it landed directly on Dior. "So why don't you strip?"

​Dior blinked, the smug grin wiping clean off his face. "W-What?"

​"You heard me." Eren took a slow, predatory step forward. "If you're so entertained by the thought of demeaning a woman, then take off your own clothes."

​All the bravado drained from Dior's face, leaving him pale. "I... I didn't mean anything by it, Eren."

​"You didn't?" Eren asked, his voice cutting through the room like ice. "Then why was it so amusing when it was directed at her?"

​No one dared to breathe, let alone answer. The raucous laughter that had filled the Beta residence moments ago vanished entirely. Even Abigail looked uneasy, taking a subtle step back into the crowd.

​"I'm sorry," Dior muttered, lowering his head in submission.

​Eren's eyes remained hard as flint. "Your apology means nothing to me."

​The harsh words echoed through the silent hall. Not another soul spoke. Then, almost reluctantly, his gaze drifted back to find mine. For a brief, moment, the rest of the world fell away again. 

The anger in his emerald eyes hadn't faded, it only increased burning with a fierce, possessive rage.

​His wolf was dangerously close to the surface. I could see it in the heavy, ragged rise and fall of his chest, in the white-knuckled grip of his fists at his sides, and in the faint, golden tint beginning to bleed into his green eyes. 

He looked like he was at war with himself, fighting every predatory instinct screaming at him to cross the room and claim me.

​My heart ached at the sight. He took one sharp step in my direction—

​And then he stopped.

​Without another word, he turned sharply on his heel. The crowd instinctively parted like the sea, scrambling to get out of his way. 

He marched out of the residence, his broad shoulders rigid with a barely restrained fury. The huge front door slammed shut behind him, shaking the walls.

​The silence he left in his wake was suffocating. Everyone stared at the closed door, utterly bewildered as to why the future Alpha had erupted into such a terrifying rage over a nameless omega.

​But I knew. I knew exactly why his wolf was furious. 

Knowing he cared enough to be angry, but not enough to claim me hurt even more.