A DESPERATE PLEA

(Kael's POV)

"I love solitude," I say, a mantra I've repeated so often it feels like a truth. But the stars above me, cold and distant, seem to whisper a different story. Maybe I don't love solitude as much as I'm used to it. Maybe it's a shield I've constructed, one brick at a time, against a world that doesn't have a place for me. Aaron came along and showed me what it was like to have a space in someone's world, to be seen, appreciated, even…treasured. Now he's gone, back to his own kingdom, his own life, and I'm left with the unsettling echo of what could have been.

I don't have the luxury to travel to his kingdom, I belong to the royal family so I don't even have free will to go anywhere.

Here I am, lying on the cool grass of the palace gardens, the scent of night-blooming jasmine doing little to soothe the turmoil within me. Alaric's apology replays in my mind, a broken record of remorse that I don't know if I can, or even want to, listen to anymore.

He rejected me. He, my mate, rejected me. He rejected me for being what I am, something I never chose to be. If I had a choice I'd choose to be an Alpha too and I'd make sure my mate is envied for having the best Alpha.

A shadow falls over me, and I already know who it is. I don't need to look. Alaric.

"Can't sleep, Kael?" His voice is low, hesitant.

I roll onto my side, facing away from him. "What do you want, Prince Alaric?" The title feels like a weapon, a way to put distance between us, even though we’re already worlds apart.

He sighs, a sound that carries too much weight. "I had to come. I had to apologize again."

I scoff, a harsh, humourless sound. "Did your conscience finally get the better of you? Or are you just afraid I'll start a rumour about your… inability to accept fate?"

"Don't," he says, his voice strained. "Please don't do this, Kael."

I sit up, turning to face him. The moonlight catches his face, highlighting the sharp angles, the worry etched around his eyes. He looks… wretched. But then, so do I.

"Do what? Speak the truth? It's not like I haven't been living a lie my whole life." I push myself to my feet, feeling a strange sense of defiance. "Tell me, Prince, do I even have a choice? Whatever you say I'm to abide. You reject me and I'm meant to be okay with it, you want to take your words back and yeah, whatever the Prince says the servant does. You let decisions be made for you centuries ago, by dusty old scrolls and prejudiced minds?"

He flinches as if I've struck him. "It's not that simple."

"Isn't it? You're the Alpha Prince, heir to the throne. Bound by duty, tradition, expectations, all those things… and utterly terrified of what people will say if you choose… me." I spit the word out, the taste bitter on my tongue. I don't know where I got the courage to talk to him like I'm doing right now but I just can't keep it within me anymore.

He takes a step closer, his eyes pleading. "That's not true."

"Then what is it, Alaric? Tell me! Convince me that I'm not just a… a mistake. A freak of nature that you wish would disappear."

He closes the distance between us, his hand reaching out, then hesitating. "Kael… I… I was wrong. Terribly, horribly wrong. I let fear, and pride, and stupid ancient beliefs get the better of me. I looked at you and saw only an obstacle, a threat to my throne. But that's not who you are. You're… you're everything."

I laugh, a broken, disbelieving sound. "Everything? Everything what, Alaric? Everything that's wrong with me? Everything that makes me an abomination in your world?"

He drops to his knees, and even though this is the second time he's doing that, the gesture is still so unexpected that it steals the air from my lungs because Alphas don't submit, especially not to an Omega. "No! No, Kael. You're… you're everything I never knew I wanted. Everything I'm terrified of losing." His voice cracks, tears welling in his eyes. He looks up at me, his expression raw, vulnerable. "Please… please believe me. I was a fool. A blind, arrogant fool. And I'm so, so sorry."

I stare down at him, my heart a tangled mess of anger, hurt, and a desperate longing that refuses to be extinguished. This is Alaric, the Alpha Prince, the future king, grovelling at my feet. And a part of me, the Omega part, the part that recognizes him as my destined mate, wants to reach out, to forgive him, to pull him close and never let go.

But the other part, the part that's been ridiculed, hidden, and rejected, screams in protest.

"Get up," I say, my voice barely a whisper. "Get up, Alaric. This… this changes nothing."

He shakes his head, tears streaming down his face. "It has to. I can't… I can't live like this, knowing I hurt you, knowing I almost lost you… knowing that I was too blind to see what was right in front of me."

He reaches for my hand, his fingers brushing against mine. I flinch, but I don't pull away.

"Seeing you with Aaron… it was… it was like a knife twisting in my gut." His voice is thick with emotion, barely audible above the chirping of crickets. "Seeing you smile, laugh… being yourself with him, when I… when I…" He chokes on the words, unable to continue.

"When you what, Alaric? When you treated me like I was dirt?" I pull my hand away, stepping back. "Aaron saw me, Alaric. He saw me. He wasn't afraid of who I am. He didn't see a threat. He saw a treasure."

"And I'm a damn fool for not seeing it too!" He slams his fist against the ground, the sound echoing in the silent garden. "I hate it! I hate seeing you look at him, I hate the way he looks at you! I hate that he knows the real you, and I pushed you away! I hate myself for being so blinded by what everybody thinks is right!"

He breaks down completely, his shoulders shaking with sobs. I watch him, my own tears blurring my vision. This is the Alpha Prince, the man who holds the fate of a kingdom in his hands, reduced to a broken mess because of me. And because of his own prejudice.

God, I hate this. I hate him. I hate myself. I hate everything.

"Please," he gasps, his voice hoarse. "Please, Kael… give me a chance. Let me show you… let me prove to you that I can be the mate you deserve."

I don't know how long I stand there, staring at him, my mind a battlefield of conflicting emotions. Finally, I can't take it anymore. I drop to my knees beside him, reaching out to cup his face in my hands.

"Alpha," I call out, my voice trembling. "Look at me."

He lifts his head, his eyes red and swollen. I wipe away his tears with my thumbs, feeling the rawness of his pain.

"I'm scared," I confess, the words tumbling out in a rush. "I'm so scared of being hurt again. Of being rejected again. Of not being enough."

He takes my hands in his, his grip tight and reassuring. "You are enough, Kael. More than enough. You're… you're everything I've ever wanted, everything I've ever needed. And I promise you, with everything I am, I will never, ever hurt you again."

His words are a balm to my soul, a promise I desperately want to believe. I lean forward, pressing my forehead against his, feeling the warmth of his skin, the steadiness of his breath.

And then, I do something I never thought I'd do. I pull him into me, wrapping my arms around him, holding him as tightly as I can. He returns the embrace with equal force, burying his face in my neck, his sobs muffled against my skin.

We cling to each other, two broken souls finding solace in the darkness. The stars above us seem to shimmer with a newfound hope, a fragile whisper of possibility. Maybe, just maybe, we can find a way to navigate this treacherous path, to break free from the chains of prejudice and expectation.

But as I hold him close, as I feel the weight of his regret, I know the journey ahead will be long and arduous. And I know, with a certainty that chills me to the bone, that our secret is far from safe. There are forces at play, powerful forces that will stop at nothing to keep us apart; the King for example, if the King finds out his heir is fated to a male Omega he'll go far and beyond to break that abomination apart. That even, is too far-fetched; if the King finds out his heir is fated to a Beta servant, he'll behead me. And I fear that our bond, our fragile, forbidden bond, may be doomed before it even has a chance to bloom.