[`~♠CORAL~♠]
It seemed as though the mechanism of my world, once hovering euphorically about me, spotted a cog and came to a crushing stop. Three familiar gazes watched me as everyone turned their attention to the one place I couldn’t take my eyes off. My heartbeat was an ever palpitating organ in my chest, threatening to implode and crush my bones. My mates… were the very people that held a very special place in my life. My triplet brothers; Raegan, Damian and Rune. It couldn’t be possible. The moon goddess was surely playing some sort of cruel, sick game on me. Surely, this was just all a dream… No. This was no dream, because dreams don’t give you the worst event of your life. This was dark and twisted. A nightmare. Raegan was the first to start an approach, his gait exuberant and domineering and for some strange reason, it felt so very… arousing? I felt the blazing heat of his icy-blue gaze pinned at me—like he didn’t care at all about the world around him, all the gazes watching in astonishment, confusion, disbelief, and some others even jealousy. The hues of his ice-blue eyes were now a smocking silver colour, I wasn’t sure if they glowed from the candled chandeliers reflecting into his orbs or the moonlight itself. He seemed bigger than life at this very moment and I felt like the smallest cub ever born. I couldn’t move. My mind screamed to reject this moment. I wanted to be anywhere but in this horrid dream. Anywhere but where my fate had been thrust to. I didn’t want to believe that I’d just been mated to my brother and not one but three of them. Whatever had I done to deserve such punishment? But still, I couldn’t look away from his imposing figure. Raegan looked absolutely regal in his dark attire. His short silver hair, combed back, gleamed under the light as well and a dark, incomprehensible look filled his stoic features but the look on his face wasn’t incomprehensible because I couldn’t decipher it. I could. I’ve seen this look on his face before. I know it because it was a look I’ve seen sharpen the rough edges of his face so often, it was stuck like a captivating picture. It was the look he gave the younger boys whenever they seemed to even breathe the same air as me—the undeniable gleaming darkness of his possessiveness boldly molded his face. And it was no different from my other two brothers as they tagged behind him. And they were all looking at me like I was the only thing they ever wanted. As though this incident was not ridiculously alarming. How could they look so calm and collected? Like they were absolutely fine being mated with me. I was their freaking sister for goddess sake! There was nothing more insanely wrong than this. Then I heard them; the whispers. The once deafening silence had shape-shifted into a maddening connotation of muffled words—the words regardless of how quiet they were, I could still hear them. “Three mates?” The surprise was mutual but what was even more surprising and cruel— “Goddess… her brothers?” “Is that even possible?” “It’s Alpha Raegan…” “This has never been heard of...” “What’s going to happen now?” Their words sprang from weariness and unease as my brothers closed the space between us with each step they took. And their scent, blending together to give off the most mouth-watering, heavenly potent and exquisite aroma I could ever fathom. And stuck still to the floor, my wolf running wild inside me, I could only stare with a conflicting desire to be or not to be near them, at their powerfully enchanting figures, wide eyes and gaping lips. Breathless. My breath clung to my throat, stuck, pulling, as though we were two different beings seeking the last oxygen in the air before it faded away. Pain. My chest tightened as though my windpipe was slowly being crushed and I was helpless to the ever crushing fact of the fate that was now my reality. It felt as though I was drowning while breathing in the most soothing air. The scent of my brothers and they stood before me now, eyes filled with molting glazed look and they were looking at me like a lost rare gem they’d finally found adrift pebbles. The whispering didn’t deter their attention either My gaze held my eldest brother’s swirling pool of smoking silver orbs and for a moment I thought I saw his taunt lips curl into a faint smile before his arm stretched forth to catch my face in his palm. My body moved on its own accord as my body sizzled and I shuddered from the overwhelming sensation that woke every sense as a frisson shook my entire body backwards, away from his touch. “No…” The very first words I’d spoken since this revelation. Raegan’s thick brows furrowed as I stepped away from his touch. “This… this can’t be… it’s not real.” I muttered and his mouth seemed to twist in a distasteful way. “Corrie…” My name spilled over the quiet that’s spun between the four of us. Damian’s voice called to me beside Raegan. “No!” My voice picks up with a sudden force that puts him to an automatic halt as I take another step backward, then another to steady myself. It felt as though my body was starting to melt from the heat wafting off them to wrap around me like shackles. It frightened me but the most frightening thing was that it excited me. Their scent. Their close proximity. Their domineering presence. Everything about them in this moment made me feel lightheaded. “You’re not real.” “We are real.” I hear my youngest brother’s voice speak up. He stood beside Damian but a little further away from him. “This has to be a nightmare.” I intoned quietly, staring up at him, at them, helplessly hoping that their faces would somehow contort into someone else’s—to reveal to me that this was truly a dream. A really bad dream. That I was probably seeing things—that my dread was taking the thrill of this moment to torture me even more with twisted games—because there was no way my brothers would have such sour expressions painted across their faces. That they weren’t looking at me like I'd plunged a blunt knife through their chest, into their hearts—like my words had cut through the essence of their very soul. I couldn’t understand why and my the more I stood in their presence, the more I wanted to be closer to them, to have their body engulf me and to get lost in the heat of their scent but the rational part of my brain kept screaming at me and then my feet made its final decision when Raegan started towards me again. My hands clutched onto my chest as I felt the painful thumps of my heart and I turned away from them as my emotions overwhelmed me. This couldn’t be real. I just needed a clear space to breathe properly and maybe… maybe all of this mirage would just disappear. So I ran… away from them and from everyone else in this room. Ignoring all the stares and whispers; their words cutting through my heart as I passed through the multitude. “Coral, wait!” It was Raegan’s voice calling out to me, urging me to stop and turn back to him… to them. But I knew not to turn around. I couldn’t… wouldn’t. Because I was afraid. Afraid that once I do, I’d get lost in those smoking eyes, I’d get drunk off their scent and I'd lose all rational thought of the facts that the three individuals I’d just been mated to were none other than my handsomely, possessive and overprotective brothers. Taking the stairs seems like a journey into the Netherlands. My feet felt like they were taking a walk through iced stepping and the higher I climbed the more unsteady I felt. And then I felt their powerful scent again. On edge, I glanced behind me, three hulking forms stalking towards me, their breaths raged as they stopped midway across the hall, their gazes caused me to stop on my tracks and I stared back at them, caught in the wanton heat of the glowing orbs. And again, I ran, faster now, dashing across the hallway to my bedroom and slamming it shut. Their voices came and with it several panicked banging that had me clutching my chest that held my heavy heart. “Corrie!” “Moonbeam!” “Cora!” Their deep sultry voices rang out simultaneously against constant heavy tapping against my bedroom door. And then it stops abruptly. My heart lodged into my throat and my feet carried me a little closer to the door, the sudden silence was questioning. I hadn’t made three steps when a deeper voice broke through the silence, it was my father's voice and his gruff tone had caused them to stop banging against my bedroom door. “You three, come with me.” His voice was slightly muffled but I heard the hint of something uneasy when he spoke to my brothers. They sort to protest against his calling, “Now.” But his voice held a cold command and left no space for argument. Heavy booted footfalls turned into a distant echo as they padded away down the hall but the potent scent they carried still lingered. My knees buckled and I came crashing onto the wooden flooring cushioned by the large soft fur of the rug that occupied the center of my room. My heavy heart felt a little lighter as though it waited for them to leave and I didn’t realize just how long I had been holding my breath. And then my tears came flooding, streaming no softer than the turbulent flow of a river in stormy weather, down my face as I wailed into the floor rug.[~♠CORAL♠~] I had cried myself to sleep again and when I awoke, wrapped around myself, the sun was already high up in the sky. The blinding rays filled my room and filled my senses with the same heavy sensation I’ve been carrying for a week now, locked in my bedroom.And despite the trials of my parents to reach out to me, I just couldn’t pull myself together to communicate with anyone. My brothers— or should I say, my mates now, didn’t fail to show their turbulence as well. But I’d refused to see them either, ignoring the pounding sensation in my chest that wants me to be nowhere else but in their embrace.My bedroom had become my solace and crying myself to sleep right after pleading to the moon goddess for forgiveness, if I had done anything to dishonor her, had become a routine. But each day, still, I wake up with the same churning feeling in my chest and inkless inscription, that I’m still mated to my brothers.The burning feeling, a raging evidence of the reality of my fate.M
[~♣RAEGAN♣~] A week ago should have been the happiest moment of my— our lives. I guess I was wrong, woefully. It had morphed into an intricate, heart wrecking nightmare, one that has plagued my mind for a week now. The entire length of the days my moonbeam had locked herself away from the world, from us— her mates and family. And I’d realized that I was probably in my own world thinking she’d be happy about it. I knew deep down, below my selfish soul but I didn’t think it’d be this bad. My moonbeam had locked herself up in her bedroom, shutting out everything and everyone—that didn’t exclude us, her mates. But we’d been a proper family until a week ago when she’d finally turned eighteen. When she had finally become aware of our mate bond. It was a secret I held… we held, my brothers and I. We’d always known about it… since that night. I was the first of the bunch to realize it. And it’s been years since then. My selfishness hadn’t let me reveal the truth to my parents. Her swee
[~♠CORAL♠~] My father’s words has me halting in an instant. The heaviness in his words melded with the rage that kept wafting off him and I felt, deep within me that something wasn’t right. The panicked expression that now splashed across the faces of my brothers didn’t do anything to soothe my racing, worried heart. As a matter of fact, it only made my curious yet worry filled heart plummet in my chest. My breathing is ragged and I wait for my father to respond to me. When he finally turns to look at me, his rage seem to taper down a bit because the fierce silver glow in his eyes reverts back to its ice-blue colour. “Pearl…” He breathes and starts towards me. He catches my face in his hands when he reach me and drawing our foreheads together, he takes in another breathe. “Are you alright? How are you feeling? You’ve been locked up in your room for so long… I was worried.” I smile at my father’s soft gesture, I guess I really did make him worry. Catching his hands with min
[~♠CORAL♠~]I wail against mother’s body as she sits with me, holding me down as I poured out the suffocating emotions that threatens my sanity. She just let me pour it all out, not saying a word to me and simply combing her soft fingers through my hair as she plants soft kisses.“It— it’s not true, right?” I sniffle, my voice croaky and low. I pull out of my mother’s embrace. “Raegan’s isn’t telling the truth, right? He’s just trying to be selfish, right?” I question with a bitter laugh. “I’m your daughter, aren’t I?”“Coral… Honey, I—” Mother's words clips off and she turns her face away and the possible truth sticks in.I turn to my father, looking up at him for a hopeful answer. But there’s a look on his face that I can’t properly decipher and he doesn’t meet my eyes either. And I feel my world being blown away like a hurricane.“This... can’t be happening… how is this even possible?” I mutter. Questioning no one in particular.“You were found on our land’s boarder,” Father’s deep
[~♠CORAL♠~]A knock came through the door before it was pushed open. Kiara, my best-friend stood at the threshold, a small wooden tray in her hand. “I brought you some sandwich.” She smiles softly at me.“I’m not hungry.” I mutter, leaning deeper against my knee, I draw my blanket tightly over my body.Kiara sighs, stepping into the room. She drops the tray on the bed-side table and takes a spot on the bed, beside me.“Come on Coco, you need to eat. You can’t keep doing this to yourself. You’re making me worried.”“I’m fine.” I whisper, resting my head on my knee. My red hair curtains my face as I tuck myself, wishing the darkness would swallow me whole.“No you’re not, Coco! You’re barely eating. No, scratch that, you’ve not been eating at all! It’s been a week now. You’re not taking care of yourself and that just makes me more miserable as your best friend because I feel like I’m not doing my best to help you.”“I’m not dead yet, am I?” I question, flatly.“You can’t give me that r
[~♠CORAL♠~]I stare at Rune, waiting for him to respond but time only seems to pass by as we both stand, stalemate.“I’m so sorry, Coral. I try to stop him—”“That’s alright, Leon. It wasn't your fault.” I redirect my gaze to Rune. “I won’t ask again, Rune. Why are you here?” I ask, sternly.The air about us is starting to thicken with tension as Leon, Kiara and her mother were left to watch from the corner. They look a bit shaken, wide eyes and still holding onto themselves.Well, I can’t actually blame them, it’s quite frightening when you can’t do anything but watch your father and husband get plummeted on the ground in front of you.Rune’s throat bobs as he swallows. He stares at me as though he was afraid to speak and it's hard to not notice the physical change in his appearance, though subtle. His porcelain pale skin looks a little drained, his eyes were a bit drab and sunken, his dark shoulder-length hair, disheveled. I'd like to say that my eyes are deceiving me, but he looks
[~♠CORAL♠~]“He’s been like that for a few days,” Mother explains, her voice croaks as she turns to look at Raegan. She looks as though she was about to cry. Now that I look at her she does seem worn out, like she’s been crying all week.As a matter-of-fact, everyone looked worn out in some way or the other. Even father. His hair is slightly ruffled and his shoulders are tensed. There’s a worried look in his gaze even though he’s trying to hide it, it slips out sometimes when he looks at mother.Damien looks like he hasn’t had a wink of rest. Even though he looks somewhat composed on the surface, I can tell he hasn’t had a moment of rest. He’s even spotting a scruffy five o’clock shadow and a slight dark circle underneath his eyes. Why was this happening? It didn’t have something to do with me leaving, did it? And why was I the only one that seems unaffected physically, despite all the turbulences.Catching my bottom lip between my teeth again, I let my shaky gaze fall scrutiny aroun
[~♣RAEGAN♣~]I stir when I catch a familiar scent. It was sweet and warm and caused a deep aching stir in my gut. But not the kind of ache you get from a stomach trouble. It’s the kind of sensation you feel when you know someone that means the world to you is close.And I feel it, in every fiber of my being as her scent washes over me like rain on a steep hill.My eyes peel open and her close proximity jerks me up. I blink, assuming her presence was a façade and that my desperate need for her must have conjured my mind to dream her up and placed her here. After all, it was in her bedroom that I had purged myself into, on her bed, where the sheets still had her scent on.It was the closest I could get to being close to her after falling prey to her scorn. I had wanted to apologize, for the pain and distraught that I’d unimaginably put her through because of my selfishness.When she pushed me away, I felt a cord in my soul snap and I let my anxiety take over me. It felt as though my so
[~♥CORAL♥~]“Do you need me to come with you?” Reagan asks. There's a look of worry etch on his face when I turn around, my hand pausing mid-air from reaching for the front door, to face him.My red hair bobs around me, caressing my face and shoulders. “No, I'll be fine.”“Are you sure?” His pries, his soft ice blue gaze narrows as he watches me intently and I force down a bundle of nerve threatening to push it's way through.Gifting him a warm smile, I grab unto my bag’s straps on my shoulders. “It's not my first day in school, Reagan. I'll be fine.”I tell him, trying to tamper his worries but even my false affirmation doesn't seem to be working either.My smile cracks when he says, “Yes, I know that but, this is different.” He takes few steps towards me until he was closing in on me. I don't drift in my step and let the soothing aroma of his scent seep into me.“We've not exactly made a public announcement.”He was referring to our mating bond. A lot of things has definitely happen
[~♥CORAL♥~]Today's been like a dream. A fluffy, fairytale like dream and I'm floating on clouds, delirious from the ecstasy I feel swirling in me. The sun is slowly setting, casting warm, bright light over us. The river overhead glimmers with the reddish orange hues of the setting sun. The fairy lights glow brighter under the glow it casts over them, it makes the flowers look like they're surrounded by a couple of fireflies.It's perfect. It's beautiful and serene, just like today and I can't help but feel grateful. Being outside has never felt so refreshing and it's because of them.This moment has unexpectedly been exactly what I needed. And as I watch them, sharing in the many snacks and dessert that they'd prepared—mostly by Reagan—a feeling of serenity percolates in my chest.I'm stuffed with so much food and desserts but I slowly munch on the last of my biscuits, enjoying the sweet, creamy flavor and chewy texture when I catch Reagan make an eye gesture to Damian and Rune and
[~♥CORAL♥~] We follow a hidden part into the forest grounds. The part resonates with my memories with every step I take. Rune leads, his hold on my arm, firm, he touch feels gentle, like he wants to keep hold onto it infinitely.Above us, the sky is clear and the trees shield us from the late-noon sunlight, casting shadows around us. Birds chirps in the distance and I could hear the soft rustling of the little forest creatures that move about their nature land.My blood steams with excitement; the smell of the forest—the deep earthy roots, the smell of grass and plants—is something I’ve missed in a while and walking down the familiar part again has an even deeper curiosity festering through me. Rune has remained quiet, refusing to give out any other piece of information that could damper my curiosity. But I did find out that Reagan and Damian were a part of this dern plan that he’d refused to lay out for me. And now the suspense is just really eating at me to know.“We’re here.” Rune
[~♥CORAL♥~]A Week Later…“Where are we going?” I ask Rune as he rummages through my wardrobe, finally picking out a blue sun dress, he finally turns around to face me.He had come into my few minutes ago, demanding that I get dressed but he wouldn’t spill a word about what the occasion was. Then he proceeds to run through my closet of clothes to fasten my prep up when I’d all but assault him with question after question; my curiosity and confusion remains unattended to.What is he up to now?“This would look lovely on you.” He says with a little smile, the pale cotton dress hangs down the length of his sturdy body and I run my gaze over it, agreeing with him.Taking a proper look at the dress though, I realize it's one of the dresses he bought me last year at a festival. Did he pick it out intentionally? Did he recognize it as well?I don’t get any chance to find the answers when I’m pulled off my bed to my feet and driven to the doorway of my bathroom. “Go on. Freshen up.”“But—”“I
[~♥CORAL♥~]“Hmm, those would definitely taste as good as they smell.” Damian’s voice fills the air, his large frame filling the entrance as he walks into the kitchen. “I hear we’re having a picnic.” His ember eyes find mine the instant he crosses the threshold and they immediately flash with excitement and something else as he stalks towards me with measured steps.“That’s right, and it’s going to be a big one!” Kiara chirps enthusiastically from the corner but without taking his eyes off me or responding to her, Damian stops two feet away from me and cocks his head to the side. A thin layer of his combed back hair falls free, the dark lock feathers his temple with the movement.“Hmm? Was this your grand idea, sweet girl?” He flashes a smile that could steal breaths away. With his left hand inside his pocket, his right hand reaches for my face and his fingertips caresses the hollow of my cheek.A subtle shiver runs down my skin at the contact but I make a manageable attempt to respon
[~♥CORAL♥~]“We’re having a picnic!” Kiara sing-songs, throwing her hands up as she waltz into Reagan's office like she owned the place.“Kiara, you can't just burst in without knocking, what if he's busy or something?” I complain, my voice a low yell as I tail behind her, entering the office without taking my eyes off her.“Nah, he wouldn't mind at all.” She says over her shoulder, her hazel gaze catches mine monetarily before she faces front again, flipping her curly blonde hair and the short length bounces on her shoulder.I knew it wasn't routine and Reagan doesn't let anyone into his office without his permission, I also knew she hadn't been in here, often and without me being present with her but the confidence she oozed walking into Reagan's office like she's been in it countlessly, gave room for an unfamiliar feeling to curl in my belly.“Right, Reagan?” Kiara face breaks open with a smile and that's when I turn to face him too.He has his gaze locked on Kiara and there's a lo
[~♥CORAL♥~]“Y-You’re going to give them a chance?!” My best friend shoots as she abruptly gets off her feet, surprise riding the fine, smooth lines of her face as she holds my gaze. “Which technically means, no rejection? You're willing to accept them as your mates?” She adds, still seeped in shock and I almost chuckle at her outburst.As before, my response to her stunned expression is a simple, vehement nod.“Just to be sure,” She puts her hands out between us and twirls an index finger in a circular motion before adding. “All three of them?”I nod again, my resolve getting firmer with every answer I give, with every moment I think about it.Her gaze shifts to the door, lingering as though she’s expecting someone to pop out from the corner. A look crosses her features before she mutters.“Why?”There’s a hint of an emotion in her voice that I don't recognise but it almost sounded wistful. It sparks an alarm in my head and I frown, my brows lowering with confusion.“What do you mean
[~♥CORAL♥~]Overwhelming.Everything in this moment is utterly overwhelming and I feel it all at once. The fast pacing of my heart, the warming body heat of my mates around me, the sudden sense of warmth and safety I’ve always not let myself sink into, the happiness and heat in their stunned gazes but most of all… relief. It encompasses all other emotions that I feel in this moment.Relief that they still want me even through my tantrums…Shifting my gaze between all three of them, waiting for the flash moment where I’d catch a hint of hesitation or something that would set them back on their decision but also making sure this moment was real and not a dream. If my hands were free, I’d probably pinch myself to check if I was awake or still asleep and this was all a blissful dream.They didn’t hate me for it.“Thank you.” I say, my voice a quiet whisper.“No, moonbeam,” Reagan supplies quickly. His smile is warm and bright and beautiful when I look at him, his beautiful ice-blue eyes s
[~♣REAGAN♣~] The air is thick with something heavy and the curator of this burning nerve is our very much antsy looking mate sitting across from us in the living room. Her summon this morning had been abrupt and unexpected but it had left an air of intuitive preconception in its wake, though even without that feeling, her summon alone would have stirred the same pull it did right now, to respond to her call and it was the same for my brothers as well. And that was why we were all seated here, awaiting the moment she’d speak. The tension swirling even though I’m trying not to let my nerves get to me because I think deep down, I have an inkling of what this moment was all about as I try not to let the negative thoughts break free in my mind. Curiosity and wariness races through my bloodstream. This was probably that moment. The one that hangs the fate of our new relationship in the balance; one that could build or destroy us. The last few hours have been a whirlpool of gut twis