/Aiden's POV/
"I like you" Those three words rang in my ears, but instead of Ria, I saw my mate Rose to stand in front of me, pouring her heart out. She had uttered those exact words in her drunken state, lips glistening and cheeks flushed. Guilt swarmed my belly as I recalled the way it scared the living daylights out of me.
Those words were all it took for me to flip and start treating her like a stranger. Maybe even worse. A lump wedged in my throat at that, hands awkwardly patting at Ria's back. With my clueless behaviour, I have managed to hurt not one but two people. The weight of it fell on my shoulders, body going stiff.
My friend placed a hand on my chest, taking a step back, still not meeting my eyes. I t
The following day I woke up with a funny feeling in my stomach and a crick in my neck. It may be because of how I slept the night before with an extra pillow instead of my usual one. Also paired that with me overthinking about Aiden's behaviour turned my night into a long one. What was with his strange behaviour anyway?Shaking my head, I stepped out of the room, freshly showered, closing my room door behind me. Aiden walked out simultaneously, wearing a thick black jumper, a bag slung over one shoulder. He had a pair of earbuds in and was scribbling in his notepad; the Alpha didn't even look up this time, not even when I knocked my feet loudly on the ground.I sighed and slowly turned around towards the stairs. That's when Aiden rushed to my side,
/Aiden’s POV/Liam kept his eyes narrowed the entire time, making me almost shift in my seat at the silence that settled over the room. Why was the beta judging me for answering the question? Shouldn’t he be content after hearing the answer? The beta abandoned his drink, fully twisting the chair in my direction.“You are a fool!”“Hey! That was uncalled for. I answered your question.”He crossed his arms together, lips pressed in a straight line, the light from above falling onto the side of his face. Shaking his head, Liam opened his mouth. “You have a strange way of showing someone you like them, Alpha.”“W-What
As I felt his watchful eyes on me, my cheeks heated up. Why was he staring at me so intently? For a second, I thought that there might be something on the side of my face but quickly brushed that thought away. Whirling around, I turned to face him, to which the Alpha pointed towards the little arrangement, my eyes falling on a brown picnic basket.Slumping down, I brushed at the edges of my pants, legs pressed together. We were a lot closer than I anticipated, almost feeling the heat of Aiden's body blending through the space between us."So," He started, and from underneath my lashes, I noticed his lips twitch."So," I echoed, saying nothing else. I was not quite sure what to say if I was being honest. It still felt odd, this d
My body froze upon noticing the intruder as he was none other than Alpha Caden. He had a glimmer in his eyes, with his back straightened and staring at Aiden without any fear. The Alpha was rooted on the same spot for a few seconds now, his hands falling by his side. Caden did not even bother greeting the future Pack Alpha, his body fully angling towards me. I shifted awkwardly on my feet, my head cocking between the two of them, lips pressed in a straight line at their staring contest.“How could you interrupt us like this?” Aiden lowly growled, his eyes turning stormy and fingers curling into fists. “Did you not learn any manners when you were young?”A sudden silence befell us at the rage in his voice, my inner wolf tensing at his sudden shift in behaviour. From the corn
/Aiden's POV/It's a miracle, in my opinion, that I somehow managed to walk back to the cabin in one piece. With my shoulders sagging, I shut the door behind me. I was still having trouble taking deep breaths, and my heartbeat was fast and erratic, hands curled into fists by my side.After all the planning, I did get Rose alone and apologise for my stupid mistakes; that Alpha trainer had to be the one to ruin it. Why couldn't he give us more time? I huffed under my breath.I wanted this—her apology and sincere smile so much so my body trembled with it, so tense that I was almost going to empty the sandwiches I ate because my stomach kept twisting. Cursing under my breath, I threw my body on the nearby couch, head lolled back, deep in th
I woke up with a bright smile on my face, slowly exiting my room and peeking at the Alphas closed bedroom door. He must be still sleeping, I thought with a twist of my mouth. Aiden did appear fatigued the other day, almost dozing off on the couch.Heading back into the kitchen, I noticed the biscuit crumbs on the dining table and started cleaning them before moving on to wash the dirty dishes stacked in the sink.It’s quiet. Apart from the steady stream of water from the tap and cups clanking together, there’s not a sound to be heard. I used to hate the depressing silence that would settle over this place from time to time, but my entire body was too energised to feel anything.&nbs
We didn’t exactly hold hands on the way back to the pack house, but walked close, our knuckles brushing with almost every step. I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders; knowing where Aiden stood made it a little easier. The Alpha trusted me enough to ask me anything else about Zain. I had been itching to know about Ria, though and why the beta accompanied him to this side of the woods. There was a mere hunch in my mind that she might be the one to drag him here. My stomach churned at that, palm feeling wet and clammy as I gripped onto the dress. Ria found her mate, a Pack Alpha no less, but instead of following that, she was busy chasing Aiden. I firmly believed that the beta would let go of her obsession and stop meddling between us
The afternoon was cold and misty, with a possibility of storms rolling in, the ground muddier than the firm as I walked back to our shared cabin. On my way, I played Ellen’s suggestion about meeting the healer wolf over and over again. The plan appeared to be risky at first, but the omega trainer promised to accompany me and hinted to take Caden along with us.Beth asked me to read up on some old files the previous Luna kept as a record. They were in the study, so I gathered them and decided to take them back instead of sitting back in the packhouse with the noisy pups running around.My black boots sank with every step forward, hands wrapping around the coat. I shivered fiercely, breeze rolling by me. There was also a looming worry about telling Aiden, but I had no idea
As the winter bled into spring, the sky grew more explicit and the clouds turned bright, unlike the gloomy days we had so far. I was nostalgic seeing the snow gone, but spring was a time of rebirth, a new beginning that I eagerly welcomed.Striding down the aisle, I twisted my head, staring at the faces that gazed at me and smiled. There were Alphas, betas, and omegas everywhere, and every single one of them sported an expression of joy and pride. Never in my life did I expect that this day would come, but it's happening.In the very front row, I spotted my father, my chest tightening painfully. My stepmother passed away a year ago, finally succumbing to her illness. Cara, along with her husband, had visited her in the last few days, but she humiliated both of them, not wanting to see their faces. I received the same treatment in the past, but still, it sadde
/Aiden's POV/Everything hurts. That's the first thought that dawned on me as I slowly drifted into consciousness. My hands twitched helplessly, and even though I could flutter my eyelids, they felt too heavy to open my eyes.My chest felt strange, uncomfortable sensations filling it up and throbbing in my ears, alongside horrid sounds that made it impossible to concentrate.I tried to open my eyes, just a little, and it's bright, blindingly so. It had been peaceful and dark seconds away, then an intense pressure in my chest made me hit the ground.I realised I was on a bed, covered by a thick duvet, sunlight spilling through the open windows at the opposite side of the room, so bright that it
/Rose POV/As soon as the dull thud echoed around the woods, it sent a searing pain through my skull. I was unable to move, taking a few more seconds to process that Aiden was on the floor, unconscious.With my sight going fuzzy around the edges and limbs twitching and shaking uncontrollably, I tried to work my muscles. Once that was under control, I put my body weight onto the palms, which burned and felt numb at the same time.Standing up, my chest lurched, and soon after, my stomach jumped violently. A fit of loud coughs escaped my lips, throat constricting, instinctively curling in."A-Aiden..." The sting was sitting deep inside as I finally scrambled forward, heart hammering
/Aiden's POV/My world stopped at that moment, mouth dropping open in shock, breath knocked out of my throat. I could feel the heat of my skin, feet automatically staggering back in the process. The people in front, the trees surrounding us, everything went blurry, a rush of memories surging through me, and suddenly I remembered.That strange encounter in the forest, his mark on my body and a promise to find me soon, those dreams with blurred faces and deep voices. It all made sense now."I-Its you..." My throat was burning, words jagged and breathy, tears were in my eyes. "Ronald," I uttered the name with so much venom that it made him chuckle. At the familiar sound, my hackles rose, goosebumps pricking.
/Aiden's POV/I had no idea what was it that woke me up. Suddenly, I was sitting up in bed, the sheets sliding off my chest along with my mate's arm and every last bit of fatigue that had been clinging to my body. It's still dark, no light shining in from outside and no ray of sun pouring inside.Instead, the window was still wide open, puddles of water covering the ground right in front of it.I slipped from beneath the duvet and got to my feet, mind-wiped blank and steps steady but languid as I made my way towards the window. When I looked ahead, far away in the distance, a hint of light on the horizon stared back at me, a line in the darkened sky.For a moment, I soaked the silence around me, the chilly a
/Aiden POV/I didn't know where I went wrong in my life. No. I was aware but did not want to acknowledge it for the sake of my mind. However, the problem is that I cannot change anything now. Staring into Slyvies desperate eyes only made me realise how much of a fool I have been.Rose was right all along. I sent her away in hopes that my guilt towards Sylvie would ease. When in reality, she's a pawn from Reece side, thrust into my life for my failure. Even though she had no choice but to surrender to fate, I couldn't help the resentment gnawing in my chest.I would never be able to trust her on anything again. As harsh as it may sound, I did not want to be fooled by her again.
A frown settled on her face, the hold of her hand loosening around my wrist. "Why? Do you not like chicken curry?"I let out a chuckle at her child-like pout, running my thumb across the plump of her cheek. "No, it's not that, baby. I love anything you make except for that pasta.”A squeal escaped her lips and she slapped lightly at my arm as if recalling the incident. Even though I almost died, it’s fun to tease her that the first dish she made gave me an allergy. The omega gets truly flustered every single time.“Don’t remind me of that ever again.”“Alright.” I fondly rolled my eyes.“Tell me why don’t you want
/Aiden's POV/Damon insisted on calling his mate to inform her that we were leaving for the clinic. I asked him to tell Rose about my location, not wanting to worry her. Along with my beta, we both stepped inside the room, finding Slyvie on the bed.The doctor bowed as soon as he saw, greeting politely. I waved at him, my eyes flickering towards the frail body of the omega. My heart clenched at sight, guilt swarming in my belly as I recalled the way I behaved with her in our past meetings. I should have given her another chance to explain instead of letting it go."H-How is she now?" I croaked, turning to the doctor, my hands falling by my side.
/Aiden's POV/To distract myself after the near depressing talk with my father, I decided to visit the training ground. I silently leaned against a tall pole while observing the guards shoot with a bow. Their targets were dead birds carcasses strapped up in a low hanging stand, and the goal was to hit either three or four within a few minutes.Crossing my arms together, I watched as one of the guards shot an arrow—with the wrong technique, of course, it missed and flew feet away from striking any bird. I could sense the tension in the air that vibrated in waves from the guard from being observed. With the war looming over us, we had no choice but train.I felt sick to my stomach as I watched him completely mess up the whole process.&nb