Afterparty

Once upon a time, there lived an Alpha who found his Mate and they happily lived ever after. Well, not even close. A series of mishaps followed as if scripted for a tragicomedy.

The ceiling of my room was peculiar, in texture. Old oak wood, neither visibly aged nor new neither dry nor damp, just weird. I did my usual ritual and stared at it for a good twenty minutes, contemplating the choices that led me to this very moment.

My door swung open abruptly, and I instinctively flinched. Of course, it was my sister Inana. Sisters, right?

"What are you still doing in bed, Ari?" I could feel the old crinkle above her eyes, just like Mother's.

"Go away," I muttered, throwing a pillow vaguely in her direction. I didn't need this. Perhaps silence would work?

The bed suddenly canted rightward, and before I had a chance to intervene, my face was set hard onto the floor. Perhaps staring at the ceiling was more appealing than inspecting the rug up close.

"Up and at 'em," Inana ordered in her dismissive fashion. "It's the end of school, and we've got an after-party," I whined.

"You mean prom?" She teased. "No!" I finally looked up, catching her in a positively radiant pink checkered dress.

Wait a minute. Checkered dress? "What day is it?" I asked suspiciously, though I had a faint inkling buried beneath layers of forgetfulness. Mundane things had a habit of slipping my mind—chores, homework, birthdays, Pack Stu–. "It's the Mate Ball," she sighed dramatically, rolling her eyes. "Duh."

It hit me like a wrecking ball in less than a second. Why today, of all days? "No!," I gasped. This couldn't be happening.

"What do you mean, no?" Inana's glare was steely. Oh, dear Inana, she knew precisely how Mom would react. But attending that insufferable ceremony wasn't an option for me. It was a pointless tradition meant to pair off mates. Blah, blah. "I have prom," I argued weakly.

"HELL NO! You know how Mom gets!" Inana sounded authoritative now. "She's desperate for a Luna in the family." True, but that sounded more like her problem than mine.

"Come on, Sis, we put up with this for years now, and what do we get from it?" I tried to cajole, but Inana was adamant. That was kind of expected Mother was a force.

The second daughter of the Leona Family is obsessed with marrying into Alpha status since her beta failed to do so for her.

An awkward silence brewed.

"If you're so insistent on skipping, then tell her yourself," it was an ultimatum as she stormed out, leaving me to face Mom head-on. I'd rather wrestle a werewolf than confront her with this.

---

Mom cleared her throat at the table with a low growl, and Inana and I winced, our eyes suddenly riveted on our plates, to stare at the food which only moments before had been too dull to pay much attention to. My love for Mom was already reasonably small, and her cooking skills were questionable, as though she'd learned from rogue pirates aboard a stolen ship.

"Eat up and gather your strength. Someone might find their mate today," Mom said in high spirits, almost adorable spirits, on these rare occasions.

"Perhaps the gods of Luna will smile upon us, and we will be accepting an Alpha into our fold." She looked at us hopefully again. I rolled my eyes involuntarily.

"You said the same thing about Ruth," I whispered loud enough for Mom to overhear; the sound of her spoon clattering onto her plate resounded in the room. Oops.

Inanna and I looked at each other, the mirror image of my dread. Dad was distant, lost in thought as if Mum was the only thing that mattered between heaven and earth; Mom's wine-sipping was getting a little threatening, her stare boring holes through me.

"Just because Ruth never became a Luna does not mean you and Inana will not," her words were more command than assurance. I nodded silently to myself, burying myself into my plate so she would leave me alone.

---

Inana squeezed my arm as we went into the grand hall. It was the first time either of us had ever seen such a display in decoration. I suspect Inana did too throttle the beginnings of a gasp, catching herself before she stared inordinately at the scale of the affair.

Inana, age nineteen, and I, nearly eighteen, were roughly the same height, twinlike. "I have never seen that many people all in one place," she whispered to me.

"Yeah, me neither. I'm sure you'll find your Alpha here," I whispered back loud enough for Mom to overhear and get a nod of approval.

I smiled back briefly, but Mom's smile was gone the second she'd laid eyes on her-the Luna-her sister. She sized her up from pregnant belly to expensive dress, then promptly guided us in the opposite direction.

At least the drinks were decent here. I poured my third glass, and Inanna eyed me suspiciously.

"Still thinking about prom?" she teased.

"Afterparty," I corrected her.

"Same thing," she shrugged, but she had a point—I needed to see my friends. "If Mom finds out."

She trailed off abruptly, her gaze fixed on something—or someone—in the distance. "Inana?"

"Doesn't that guy look a little.," she paused, her eyes doing that crazy glowing thing for no reason. What was going on? I leaned forward to touch her arm, but Mom's firm grip pinned me in place. "Don't. She's found her mate. Don't interrupt."

And just like that, my last sister was gone.

I drained my wine and headed for the door. With Inana paired off, she would soon be leaving-which meant I was about to face Mom's wrath all by my lonesome. I might as well enjoy what was left of my solo existence in peace at the afterparty before the storm hit.

Half-exhausted, half-elated, and half-drunk, I tumbled into the room where my best friends, Mia and Daphney, wrapped me in a joint hug.

"We thought you wouldn't make it because of the Mate Ball," Mia blurted out, excited.

"My mom made me go," I admitted, peeling off the stifling dress. "But Inana just found her mate, and."

They both gasped in unison. "Inana has a mate?!"

"Yeah," I shrugged, basking in the melodic crinkle of paper cups. "The plan is simple: get drunk and pass out."

The party went on to the wee hours of the morning. I was inebriated just enough but still could stand, unlike Mia, who lay sprawled on the floor. Daphney was in a chair nearby snickering at something said by someone-evidently Cole, her little crush.

But speaking of crushes, maybe tonight would be a good time to tell Damien how I felt. Who knew? Maybe the two of us would click.

A sip of my new cocktail burned pleasurably down my throat.

"Excuse me. Do you know where Damien is?" A deep, melodious voice broke through my thoughts.

"Who's asking?" I returned with a somewhat haughty glance; I saw Daphney wobble towards the table.

"His brother," he replied simply. "Oh," I stammered. Meeting my crush's family member-what a small world.

"He's. Somewhere, I guess," I said, studying him curiously. He looked kind of like Damien, but buff. "Maybe if you check."

I stopped abruptly, suddenly entranced by some weird vibe he gave off. For the first time, our gazes met, and I felt a jolt from his bright red eyes.

Red eyes? An Alpha? Damien's brother? A Beta? Was he staring at me? Were we? Mates?

Before I had it all registered, he growled softly, almost imperceptibly, but the command was clear.

"Mine."