Breakfast Tensions

Lily sat at the head of the dining table, followed by Liam and Lucas, who were engaged in a conversation with their parents. 

She tried her best to blend into the background by being very quiet, her heart racing as she forced herself to take bites of her breakfast.

Lily had barely managed to catch any bit of sleep the previous night, her mind racing with thoughts of the ceremony and the implications of her new life as Luna. 

Now, she felt like an ornament without any use except to be showcased to members of the pack as the new Luna.

“Liam, Lucas, how was last night?” their mother, a striking woman with an authoritative air, asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

“Normal,” Lucas replied with a nonchalant shrug, his mouth full of pancake.

“Good,” Liam added, a smirk playing on his lips as he glanced at Lily, who was desperately trying to keep her composure. 

She felt the heat rising to her cheeks but remained silent.

“Lily?” their mother prompted, her gaze now fixed on her. “How was your first night as Luna?”

Lily’s heart sank at the question. 

“It was… fine,” she managed to say, forcing a smile that felt more like a lie.

“Did you… consummate your marriage?” their mother asked, her tone light but her eyes narrowed, as if she were teasing but also genuinely interested. 

Lily nearly choked on her food, the question hanging in the air like a weight. 

“Um—”

Before she could gather her thoughts, their father, a stern expression on his face, interjected, 

“Rebecca, for heaven’s sake, stop asking such embarrassing questions.”

“It’s not embarrassing; it’s important!” Rebecca shot back, her eyes flashing with irritation. “Lily needs to produce an heir as soon as possible. We can’t have her wasting time.”

Lily nodded her head, her heart pounding. 

This was a conversation she hadn’t expected to be a part of, and the implications of it made her stomach sick.

She stared down at her plate, wishing she could vanish into the beautiful patterns of the tablecloth.

“Don’t worry, Mom,” Liam said, trying to lighten the mood. “We’ll take care of it.”

Rebecca smiled, satisfied with her son’s response, and turned her attention back to her breakfast. 

Lily caught Lucas’s eye, and for a brief moment, they shared a look of understanding—one that communicated everything without the need for words. 

After breakfast, the three of them headed outside, the cool morning air hitting Lily's face as they approached the black car that awaited them. 

The driver opened the door, and they stepped inside, the tension from the dining hall following them like a shadow.

Once they were settled in, Lucas broke the silence, his tone sharp. 

“Lily, you need to be careful about what you say and do around our parents. If they suspect anything, it’ll be bad for all of us.”

“Yeah,” Liam added, crossing his arms as he leaned back against the seat. “We’re not ready for them to know the truth. If you let something slip, you’ll pay for it.”

Lily nodded, biting her lip. 

“I know,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. 

She could feel the weight of their gazes on her, a reminder of the precarious position she found herself in.

They arrived at the school gates, and Lucas and Liam exchanged glances, silently communicating a plan.

“Just wait for us to come out, okay?” Lucas instructed, his expression serious. “We don’t want anyone to see us together in the same car.”

Lily nodded, understanding the necessity of their precautions, and the driver was instructed to drop her off a little farther from the entrance. 

As they pulled up to a secluded spot in the school compound, far from the eyes of other students, she felt a mixture of relief and apprehension. 

When the car came to a stop, she took a deep breath, preparing herself for whatever awaited her inside the school. 

As she stepped out, she looked around, and her heart sank when she spotted Lexa standing with her group of friends, the unmistakable smirk on her face sending chills down Lily’s spine.

Lily’s instincts kicked in, and she knew something was about to happen. 

Lexa’s eyes sparkled with malice, and it was clear that she had no intention of letting Lily’s Luna status go unchallenged. 

Just as Lily began to walk toward the school entrance, Lexa walked over, her friends walking behind her.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the new Luna,” Lexa sneered, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “I hope you enjoyed your first night with the twins.”

Lily forced herself to stand tall, a wave of defiance rising within her. 

“What do you want, Lexa?” she asked.

“Oh, I just wanted to see how you were holding up,” Lexa replied, feigning concern. “Must be hard to adjust to the fact that you’re the Luna now, huh? Or should I say the ‘loser’?”

Lily clenched her fists at her sides, unwilling to give Lexa the satisfaction of a reaction. 

“I’m not a loser,” she said, her voice steady. “I’m the Luna, and you’re just jealous.”

Lexa laughed, the sound sharp and mocking. 

“Jealous? Of what? Of a girl who had to beg her way into a position that she doesn’t even deserve? You’re a joke, Lily. And everyone knows it" Lexa retorted as she looked at her friends who joined her to laugh at Lily.

With that, Lexa stepped back, her friends giggling and whispering behind their hands, their eyes filled with contempt. 

Lily felt her cheeks flush, the humiliation threatening to consume her. 

She wanted to fight back, but she held her ground, reminding herself that she was more than just the girl they thought she was.

As she turned away from Lexa, heading toward the school entrance, she felt the weight of their stares on her back, and the thought echoed in her mind: this was only the beginning. 

The school year was bound to be filled with challenges, and she would have to navigate them carefully.