Chapther 2 : Know Your Place

Milana

What told me that this wasn't a dream was the pain that hadn't completely disappeared from my chest. With what was left of my pride, which to them was probably nothing, I got up, trying to stand up straight and desperately holding back my tears.

My hopes of finding a mate were high, though it was unlikely I would find one as soon as I connected with my wolf. It could be that the one destined for me was on the other side of the world. But really, there isn't a single cell in my body that hopes to get an alpha born as a mate. I only wanted a low-status man-wolf and to be able to spend my life with him.

Now, my hope to be free of Wanda was gone. I don't know what I've done wrong for the Moon Goddess to punish me this severely. The rejection of my fated mate had never crossed my mind. I hadn't even felt the electric sensation when I came into contact with my mate, as many people had told me. My life felt like an endless nightmare.

I was too focused on myself to notice where Riana had appeared from. She stopped at Magnus' side with her chin up, haughty. Her arms were folded across her chest, and her expression was the same as every time she saw me; she was disgusted.

She clucked before snapping, "This bitch. Aren't you going to take a rejection from Magnus?!"

With everything that had happened, I couldn't quite digest what Riana was saying. The hurt and pain in my chest hadn't even subsided yet. How could she order me to do things according to her expectations?

Beside Riana, I saw Magnus looking at me with the same expression. He was waiting for me to do something I hadn't thought of yet. The three people exchanged glances while Joan smiled mockingly.

"Looks like she's thinking of becoming Magnus' mate," she mocked.

"Tsk! How come a filthy omega dares dream of being a mate of an alpha," Riana chimed in.

"Are you stupid?! Hurry up and accept my rejection!" ordered Magnus in an annoyed tone.

My heart was aching. However, who was I to defy the future Alpha, especially since he had rejected me. I raised my head and said, "I, Milana Adams, accept Magnus Barrett's rejection as mate."

Not wanting to be in a ridiculous situation, I turned to leave the place. I heard Riana squeal happily, and from the corner of my eye, I saw that she was hugging Magnus, who smiled happily and hugged her back.

It hurts, but I'm grateful that I was able to reject my mate before getting marked and claimed to be his. I heard the pain would have been many times what I felt earlier.

I staggered home and decided to sleep off the day since the house was still clean. Wanda was nowhere to be seen, and my uncle, Wanda's husband, had been on a mission for two weeks and hadn't been heard from.

Thirst woke me up from my restless sleep. I looked at the water beside my makeshift bed and saw that it was past six. The pain in my chest was gone. However, my head was still dizzy, and my body felt weak.

How am I supposed to live my life after this? My parents were gone, and I was mateless. I was pensive for a while, gathering energy until I remembered that I still had Moon Goddess. I believed that this was just a test she gave me and that there would be a rainbow after the storm.

The house was still dark when I walked into the kitchen and filled my tumbler from the water tap. That means no one else is home yet; this way, I don't have to clean up anything. The door to Riana's room is open. Seeing her made my thirst disappear. I hurried back to the room because I didn't want to get bumped with her.

"I hope you can keep your secret and not say anything about Magnus being your mate and you guys having rejected each other," she said coldly.

Even without her saying so, I would have done it. After all, we had rejected each other and had no relationship whatsoever. I didn't want to make a scene and nodded my head before heading back to my room.

The dizziness made me not care about my rumbling stomach and lay back down. Sleep picked me up. Luckily, tomorrow is Saturday, and I don't have to go to school.

As usual, I woke up earlier than everyone else in the house and cleaned myself up before cooking breakfast. I set aside a little to put in my lunch box and planned to eat it later since I still didn't have an appetite.

I changed into sweatpants and a hoodie before heading out, deciding to go for a morning run. Life had to go on, and I didn't want to keep drowning in pity parties. I went down the terrace stairs and stretched for a while before running on the streets around the pack land that was still quiet. I felt better after running for a while.

After the sun got a little higher, I decided to go to the park. The plants there made the air cleaner, and I could get some warm morning sunlight. Seeing people interacting also always cheered me up. The park was crowded when I arrived.

Several people had been looking at me earlier, and it made me uncomfortable. I decided to go home after seeing them whispering to each other and pointing at me.

I had just stood up when one of them asked, "Are you really Magnus' mate?"

I was quite surprised to hear his question. Only a few people knew about this, and we immediately rejected each other after Magnus found out that I was his mate. How did they know?

I shook my head. "No, you may have been mistaken," I said.

Out of nowhere, Riana walked over and stopped near them. Of course, she was stunning as always, wearing a maroon sports bra and black yoga pants that revealed her beautiful stomach and accentuated her perfect curves. Her gorgeous hair was in a ponytail.

She looked at me with a disappointed expression, teary eyes, and lips that even trembled slightly before saying, "Hey, how dare you tell people that Magnus is your mate. We're brothers, and you want to take away my mate?"

What did she mean by saying that? People might misunderstand-

The girl who had been talking to me gave Riana a concerned look, then a disgusted look at me.

"You're such a quiet girl. I can't believe you're filled with envy. Have pity on Riana, you ungrateful bastard!" she said before turning back to her friends, who were only a few steps further away.

"You're really pathetic. Why don't you just die with your parents?" said her friend.

There was a small male laughter not far from where I was sitting. When I turned to the source of the sound, I saw Magnus, who was only wearing basketball shorts and running shoes. Her glorious upper body was glistening in a thin layer of sweat that made him look even more stunning.

"Stop fantasizing, girl! Don't be so obsessed with me!" he said in a louder voice than he should have as if intentionally doing so so that everyone would hear.

"I-I never thought of it that way," I said, trying to defend myself, but everyone didn't care.

All eyes were fixed on me with condescending stares. Magnus, meanwhile, was smiling with satisfaction at having made everyone believe him.

Riana wiped away her fake tears before saying, "Never mind, guys. It's not entirely Milana's fault. Magnus is charming. I'm sure he'll learn from his mistakes. Don't you think so? Milana?"

She came closer to me and hugged me as she whispered, "Know your place, Bitch."