Chapter 1: Runaway Bride.

MIA.

"Mia, you look beautiful." My father said, running his hand across the ends of my white flowing gown. A hard lump slipped down my throat as I stared into the mirror, tears threatening to fall down my cheeks.

Today was supposed to be my eighteenth birthday, the happiest day in the life of every teenage girl, the day one truly became free. But here I was, dressed in my mother's pale wedding gown, about to wed a man whom I feared more than I could ever love.

The thing is, I was never really your average teenage girl. No one from this part of Rosewood was but besides the fact that I was a werewolf, I was also just an Omega which from here, was way worse.

They always said an Omega was only good for two things, as a breeder for whatever Alpha was willing to settle down for her or to become a slave to your own Pack.

It's either one of two, never anything else.

Born an Omega, I was often considered the weakest and lowest of the Pack hierarchy. It didn't matter that my father was the Alpha of Blood Moon, Pack rules would always be Pack rules. And amongst those rules, was the eighteen-year-old one.

"Happy birthday" He whispered, my father's words piercing right through my ears as a shiver went down my spine. My eyes caught a glimpse of the cake in the corner of the room and the decorations all around.

I could understand how much my father wanted this to be easy.

But I'm afraid there was no easy way to put the fact that he was literally pimping me off to Alpha Ezra, a man whose ruthlessness the whole town knew of but who my father swore by for the sakes of politics and whatnot. I was to be exchanged for whatever it was that was on the line and my only crime was being the Omega daughter.

Girls my age already saw their wolf, it most certainly didn't help that I had yet to see mine. Eighteen years was too late, even when I stood beneath the moon the day before, there was still nothing. And sometimes, it felt as though I wasn't human but I also wasn't a wolf.

It was almost impossible to fit in growing up, being the outcast, I was often bullied and looked down on by everyone else. Making friends wasn't easy but finding love was the hardest. Especially when all I've ever wanted was a love like my father and mother's.

And although she was no longer with us, some days, it still felt like she was. Days like this when I wished she was here but she wasn't. It had been twelve years, even though it felt longer. Twelve years since she fell ill and never recovered.

Twelve years since I last saw her.

Everyone moved on, even my Dad, by law had to remarry Eileen soon after who became my stepmother. They bore two kids, Daniel and Kyra. Like I said, everyone had moved on but me.

Wearing her dress now, it was hard to not feel overwhelmed by her presence. Her scent, her aura, her vivid smile engraved in the back of my mind. The tears did fall at that moment and my Dad noticed.

"Mia" He called softly but I cowered my head. "Hey hey" He whispered before reaching for my cheeks. "What's the problem? You look beautiful, and Ezra is going to love you." He said.

"You know Dad," My voice broke. "You know I don't want to marry a man that I don't love. A man I could never...love."

"Oh, Mia" He called.

"How do you think your Mom and I met?" He asked. I lifted my gaze to him. "Look, what I'm trying to say is," He paused. "It may not be now but one day, you're going to realize that everything I'd ever done was for your own good"

"I don't want to marry him, Dad. Please." I pleaded.

"Mia"

"When have I ever lied to you?" He asked. I sobbed.

"I don't...I don't love him." I whispered before feeling his fist clench up. He pulled away. "Well, love isn't real! Okay, Mia!" He yelled and the sound of his voice shredded my heart.

His words, however were a lot worse.

Through my blurry eyes, I stared at him in disbelief.

A breath hitched in my throat once he looked back at me. My father's arms fell beside him.

"You know what I mean," He said. "Because if it was, she'd still be here right now" And in that moment, the hurt was evident in the tone of his voice. He didn't need to say anything else for me to understand because I did.

"Just," He sucked in air through his lips. "You know the Pack rules. You're eighteen and without a wolf, trust me you're better off with someone who could take care of you. Someone I'm sure would be able to protect you if anything ever happened"

"Ezra is—"

"Ezra would, Mia" He stifled his lips. "Enough, please."

"Don't make this harder than it already is. If it was any other person, they would already be down that aisle." He straightened his back before walking towards the table. He picked up the bouquet of flowers resting on it and then he halted.

Slowly, he turned around to hand it over to me.

"One more thing," He buried his hands into his pocket before hesitantly bringing out a piece of paper. "This is uhm," He cleared his throat. "This was from your mother." My heart sank in my chest as I looked up at him.

"You were only supposed to read it before you walked down the aisle. Those were her instructions" He said and with shaky hands, I reached for the letter, clenching it tight.

"Please, Mia" My Dad whispered, holding onto the door and there was a crack in his voice. "Ezra is waiting outside for you." He said. I heaved a deep breath. "Can you...Can you give me a moment?" I whispered and he nodded before walking out.

As soon as the door closed, I sat by the edge of the bed, opening up the letter, and as I read through, for that moment, it was almost like I could hear her voice.

"My Dear Mia,

If you're reading this, then I assume you are seconds away from walking down the aisle. I wrote this letter for your father to give you on your special day, only because I know I won't be able to.

And I want nothing more in this world than to be right there when you say yes to that lucky man, whoever he is. Nothing more than to have watched you grow into the amazing, fierce woman I always knew you'd become.

I'd give anything you know, anything to be able to fight this.

Anything to not leave you behind. But unfortunately, I have to.

I love you, Mia, from the moment I first laid eyes on you and held you in my hands, I've loved you because you reminded me so much of me. And I wanted to so badly protect you from the world. And the little time we spent together, I could tell you had a big heart.

And a whole lot of love to give, which is why I'm writing this letter because I don't want you to make a mistake, the same mistake that I did. Mia, you deserve to be loved the way you love.

You deserve to be seen by that one special person who'll be able to move your heart and sweep you off your feet. That person that you're going to look at and you'll know immediately that they're your person. Mia, if the man waiting for you at the altar isn't your person,

—then don't walk it.

Please, please don't walk it. Don't live a life of regret like I did. But if he is, if he's the right person and you know, only then do you have my blessings.

Please, Mia."

I sucked in a deep breath through my lips as I closed the letter at once but the words kept echoing in my ears. "Don't live a life of regret like I did." Tears streamed down my cheeks.

A million questions raced through my mind.

Was she talking about my father? Was their love not as perfect as I thought? And most importantly—was I really about to marry Ezra, a man I knew wasn't for me?

I got up, straightened my dress, and wiped my tears before walking out.

At that moment, my brain was foggy and my palms were cold. And it wasn't until I stood facing the chapel doors about to open that I came to a halt.

There was a ringing sound that pierced my ears.

"What am I doing?" It hit me suddenly.

"Are you having cold feet?" A voice echoed from behind amidst chuckles and I knew exactly who it was before I turned back. "Kyra" Her name slipped off my tongue, leaving a sour taste.

"You look hideous in that dress, as always" She struck out a finger and laughed loudly and on cue, the rest of her dolls did the same. This was all they did, the three of them, ever since I was little, they sought to make my life miserable. But absolutely not today.

"What happened?" She puckered her lips. "Did Ezra reject you too?"

"Did he realize that beneath all that makeup and fancy dress is a worthless, and wolfless piece of shit?" She gritted while I clenched my teeth. "Oh fuck you." I cussed, walking towards her and sticking the bouquet of flowers in her face.

"You know what, you're right." I snapped back, to her surprise.

It was the first time an Omega ever got a word in.

"How about you do everyone a favor and marry Ezra instead? You're just as heartless and soulless as he is. A perfect match." I hissed and a gasp escaped her lips. The look on her face was priceless but unfortunately, I immediately turned around to leave.

And it hit me in that moment exactly what I knew I had to do.

Without saying another word, I ripped my veil and took to my heels, the ends of my dress in one hand as I ran the opposite way from the chapel—where the whole Pack was waiting for me inside.

I found the stairs and without saying goodbye to either Ezra or my father, I fled.

My mind was racing, and so was my heart but I knew one thing, that I was desperate to leave this place and to put it all behind me. And so for the first time in my whole life, I left the Pack.

Even though I had no idea where I was going now.

But fate had other plans because that was the same day I met Him.