Chapter 2

Moon's POV

Immediately I utter those words, it is as if everyone in the dining hall heard it because they all turn to gaze at me like I have two heads, Aiden gazes at me in that manner too and I start to wonder if I might actually have two heads. Surprisingly one of Aiden's friends sitting among us bursts into laughter. He clutches his chest tight and laughs causing everyone to gather around our table. Why is he attracting so much attention and most importantly why is Aiden not saying a single thing?

I turn to gaze at him with a raised brow and it only makes him chuckle nervously and wave it off.

"Wow, you really got me there Moon." Aiden says shaking his head at me. Wait, he does not think I am serious? 

I shake my head in disagreement. I need to make it clear to him. It is either now or never.

"I am serious here Aiden. I meant what I just said." I say rising to my feet and feigning confidence meanwhile inside of me, fear is eating me up very slowly.

"What do you mean you are serious? Moon, can you even hear yourself?" Aiden asks glaring at me in disbelief. I nod my head in agreement and shrug.

I gather all the courage in me and repeat myself. "I love you Aiden, I have always loved you and I think, I mean I know we are meant to be mates. The Moon goddess has destined you as mine." I blurt out. I pour out all my feelings and the only thing I get from Aiden is a loud scoff which makes me stagger backward. My heart races extremely fast in anxiety. My mind tells me to turn around and leave before things get more complicated than this but I do not listen, instead I push further.

"Accept me as your mate Aiden. You and I both know that we are meant to be." I say. I hear laughing noises coming from the people watching us but I ignore all of that and stand my ground.

"No Moon." Aiden deadpans. I stagger backward and almost trip if not for my fast reflexes that make me hastily grab the wall for support. I raise a brow at Aiden and ask "No? No what?" It can not be that he is rejecting me, no that can not be the case. Aiden can not be rejecting me right now.

"I said no Moon. Has something gotten into you? Where did you get the courage to say such crap? You and I are only friends, nothing more." Aiden says.

I blink twice to see if I might wake up from this nightmare but nothing happens. I hope that the floor opens up and swallows me but none of that happens either. I pinch myself to see if I might wake up from this horrible dream but I only feel the pain that comes from pinching myself.

I am not dreaming, this is reality. The reality is that I just got rejected by the one person I thought was actually my mate.

I clear my throat and manage to ask "Why?" My voice is shaky and full of doubt. I really can not believe it. My chest hurts and my wolf howls in pain.

"Why?" Aiden chokes out a bitter laugh and shakes his head at me. "Why? Moon, it is so obvious that you and I are meant to be nothing more than just friends. Why would you even go as far as thinking that you and I could ever be mates?" Aiden asks. I shake my head in disbelief and slowly walk away. I bury my hands in my face and burst into tears as I run out of the dining hall. I accidentally trip on someone's legs causing everyone in the dining hall to burst into series of laughter. I look up to gaze at the culprit and it is no one other than Diana, she laughs at me and it makes my heart throb in pain.

I rise to my feet and slowly walk out of the dining hall with my head bent low. 

I successfully make my way upstairs and once I get into my room. I throw myself on the bed and burst into tears. I run a hand through my hair and cuss under my breath. Aiden is right, I am so stupid to have ever thought that someone as good as Aiden would be my mate. Why did I ever expect so much from him? I do not deserve him at all.

I cry my eyes out and I eventually fall asleep.

The next days are a horror for me, no one seems to have forgotten that I asked Aiden to be my mate. I knew it would take a long while before people stopped talking about it but it has been days now, almost a week and I am still mocked about it. Worse of it all is that Aiden is doing absolutely nothing about it. I once caught him laughing at an insensitive joke that was thrown at me.

I feel stupid and embarrassed, I can not even face Aiden anymore, the slightest glimpse of him makes me run far away.

Today, just a few minutes ago, I saw Aiden with Diana. They were both laughing about something and I could not help but wonder if it was about me.

I stride the quiet streets and allow the cool breeze to calm every one of my thoughts. I decided to take a walk outside of the pack house, although I had to return before nightfall. I only needed some fresh air outside, at least no one outside knows that I got rejected by Aiden, this makes me feel a bit free.

I walk past a bunch of grown-up men arguing about something. 

"Hey, You!" I hear one of the men yell. I turn around to gaze at them and ask  "Me?" 

The last time I checked, I did not know them from anywhere.

"Yes, you." The same man yells walking towards me. I gulp a lump down my throat and shiver in fear. I attempt to turn around and run but the man gets a grip on my wrist and pulls me close to him.

I have heard stories of people from my pack complaining about how dangerous it is to leave the pack house by this time but I felt so suffocated, I needed some fresh air to calm my thoughts. 

I spit in the man's face and that is enough for him to loosen his grip on me. I take that as an opportunity for me to start running. I pick up my pace and start running until I accidentally collide with something hard. I groan in pain as my body collides with the floor. I slowly open my eyes and I come in contact with an unfamiliar pair of yellow eyes.

I slowly rise to my feet ignoring the pain. I look up to gaze at the muscular man standing a few feet taller than me. He gazes at me and a small smile spreads on his lips as he utters the word "Mine."