Chap-2*She Married My Mate*

I had been out for hours; it seemed. My sister poisoned me right before my mating ceremony. I should have ordered to lock her up because her one last chance to strike me seemed to have worked.

“Wake up! All the guests have arrived and you are the only one sleeping without a care in the world.” my mother’s voice sounded recognizable.

I was beginning to wake up and the realization of where I was struck me. I was not on the floor, so somebody must have found me and saved me from whatever my sister had planned for me?

The assumption helped me to let out a sigh of relief.

“Ahh!” I groaned in the bed, changing sides before I sat up to see my mother gathering my stuff from around.

Before I could even get a chance to take a look at my nightgown, I was met with bewilderment when found myself in Arlene’s bedroom.

“What?” I gasped in surprise, bestirring up from the bed and then looking down to see I was wearing her white nightgown.

“Oh My God! That bitch!” I screamed, getting my mother’s attention to me.

 “You shouldn’t even have been invited over, but your uncle thinks it will be a bad idea if the guests acknowledged your absence at your own sister’s wedding,” she hollered while trying not to raise her voice too much.

I had many questions involving the entire room and gown change, but her words were the ones that took most of my attention now.

“My sister’s wedding?” I had to repeat after her just to be certain I heard her right and clear.

“Get ready and don’t cause any trouble today,” her words made me frown at her. What did she mean by that?

 “Where is my dress? Why am I in this room?” my head was still hurting, making the words come out of my lips in a mumble jumble.

“Look! You have already hurt her a lot. Don’t make me lock you up until her mating ceremony comes to an end.” she dropped all the clothes and items she had picked from the floor once she got angry at me.

She didn’t even want to spare another glance at me and decided to leave the room, which she didn’t because I interrupted her.

“Mom! What is going on? Why are you so an---,”

My heart flipped inside my chest when my eyes landed on my reflection in the mirror.

More like my sister’s reflection.

“What is this?” I pointed at the mirror. “is this some sort of sick joke?” I yelled, trembling at the sight.

“Arlene!” My mother rushed my way and grasped my arm. “I told you to stop it. You are not ruining this day for her,” she scolded me, referring to me as my evil sister.

“I am not Arlene! Oh My God! What has she done? I am Serena!” I was on the verge of losing my mind. How was it even possible?

How can I be in her body?

“Mom! There is something wrong. I am not in my body.” I frantically delivered my concerns to her, but her face darkened even more.

“Oh No! not you lying about stuff again.” My mother stepped back and slapped her forehead. “what am I ever going to do with you, Arlene? Why are you like this? Why do you love hurting us all?” her eyes held so much sadness for my existence that I flinched, feeling unsafe around her. No wonder I was in Arlene’s body. Everybody knew she was gross and now I was in that revolting skin.

“I should have known you will try to mess up Serena’s ceremony. You know what? I am going to keep you locked up until they mark each other and sign the papers.” She didn’t believe a word I said and exited the room.

I heard her lock it from the outside, and my body froze.

“No! I should not be locked up here. I need to inform them that I am the real Serena.” I was in such a state of bafflement that my emotions were all over the place.

One second, I was panicking and the very next second; I was determined to expose my sister and get my body back from her. It had been hours since my mother left me locked up.

My mate is going to marry Arlene, who stole my body!

The thought shook me into sprinting towards the door.

“Hey! open the door,” I shouted while banging the door. I was the bride today and in a few minutes, I was going to be a Luna.

She didn’t only swap our bodies, but our lives too.

As my hands turned red from knocking vigorously, my prayers were finally answered. Vinona, a young maid, answered the door.

“Princess Arlene! Do you need anything?” she asked from the other side.

“Ye---s!” I was restlessly breathing loudly enough for the rise and fall of my chest to become visible.

“I umm—I ate something and no---w I don’t feel right,” I lied to get her to open the door for me.

“What did you eat?” the panic in her voice was the hint of her concern for me. She would never want a princess to die while she stands on the other side and does nothing.

“I---,” I purposely left it at that to give her the idea that I am having trouble breathing normally.

“Oh My God! princess Arlene! Are you alr---,” she hastily opened the door but her eyes widened when she saw me standing on the other side, all fine.

“Get out of my way.” I pushed her to the side when she tried to close the door again.

“Please! Get back in there. I will get punished if you did anything reckless,” she was constantly begging me while trying to match pace with mine.

I was angry, flustered, and frustrated.

When does this all stop? When is Arlene going to stop punishing me for her fuck ups?

Just when I thought maybe I would be able to convince everyone and get back into my body, I met the reality. What I was dreaming about seemed farfetched now. Especially when everybody saw Arlene as a sad pathological liar.

How would they believe anything that comes out of her lips?

Which in this case are my words now.

With my receeding steps, my wishes too withered away when seeing the crowd cheering for Daxon and Arlene.

They have accepted each other and even signed the marriage documents. She had finally stolen my all by imprinting her thumb on the marriage papers and becoming his legal mate.

“STOP THIS!” I shouted in tears. The crowd turned near their necks at me and shook their heads.

“You Stole my everything,” I screamed, getting on my feet to reach Arlene. I couldn’t get my frustration out because now she had a mate to shield her.

A hard slap from Daxon knocked me over to the ground.

He was ready to defend the one he thought was me. Feeling a burning sensation on my cheek and tears coming out of my eyes, I tried to get up but my uncle held my arm first.

“I need to speak to you,” I spoke in a murmur, trying to get out of the shock Daxon’s slap has left on me. It was something entirely new to me. I have never been mistreated like that. Today I got humiliated and beat down, all because of my sister, who stood with Daxon with a smile on her lips.

She didn’t even utter a word; she didn’t have to. Everybody was ready to defend and protect her like she was some fragile doll I was trying to hurt.

Uncle Charles hastened me back to the room, followed by my mother.

“You dirty little hoe,” after he shoved me into the room, he pushed me back and tripped me on the bed. There was a brief moment when his eyes scanned me. Maybe my brain was messing up with me, but that look was something else.

“Why couldn’t you control her?” he shouted at my mother after averting her gaze from me. My mother only lowered her face and nervously bit into her cheek.

“I am telling you all, she is not Serena! I am,” I pointed at my chest and got the same ridiculing reaction from my uncle as my mother from earlier.

“She has been telling this new lie since morning. I locked her up but---,” My mother, instead of taking my side and trying to hear me out, was watching me in disgust. The wrinkles forming between her eyebrows every time she watched me were traumatizing me.

They were not ready to hear me out at any cost, and why would they? Arlene was known for making up lies.

“I don’t care. Shut her up or I will,” the threatening tone used by Uncle Charles followed with his eyes peering at my body.

It was too much for me. He had never done anything like that when I was in my own body. Serena never felt uncomfortable. Or maybe it was Arlene’s body that was making me notice things out of context?

“Adra! Teach her silence,” he grunted before exiting the room.

“I cannot believe you did all that,” my mom finally raised her voice now that he had left the room.

I hadn’t been able to recover from the trauma of the slap. It was my first time getting hit by someone. Not to mention, by my mate.

My life turned upside down overnight. I didn’t only lose my mate, but she snatched away my entire identity from me.

“And now she is sitting there so stubbornly,” Aunt Marissa walked into the room to check up on us. I bet Uncle Charles sent her just to make sure my mother was doing a better job this time.

These people were my family, but sadly, they were now looking at me with quizzical stares.

“You need to listen to me. She is not Serena! I am.” I closed my eyes, giving up hope, and whispered lifelessly.

“Not that bullshit again.” Marissa sounded tired of me. They were getting upset because the others were feasting on the delicious ceremony menu while they were stuck here with me.

The knock on the door diverted our attention. As Marissa opened the door, Arlene walked in wearing my dress and comfortably resting on my body.

My skin got filled with goosebumps seeing her act all fine, like me.

“I want to speak to her alone.” She had adjusted well to my body. The way she took a deep breath, I almost thought I was watching a mirror.

“Serena! You shouldn’t. She is like a disease!” My mother pointed at me and spoke bitterly about me. I don’t know if I should be upset at the words spoken about me or understand they weren’t even about me.

“It is fine. I am happily accepted by my mate now. She cannot separate us,” she kept her eyes on me, not blinking even once when delivering her words.