Chapter 8. Parents

8. Parents

I couldn't make sense of what my brother was saying. So Skylar had been Charlotte's mate all along?

I couldn't believe he was still sane after everything he'd been through. I'm curious how long he knew she was his mate.

"Sky, tell me you're not joking," I asked my brother. I knew it was ridiculous to question him; he wouldn't joke about something as serious as this.

I know what goes on inside my brother's head. Right now, I might appear ridiculous in his eyes for not believing his words.

"How can you even ask me that, Astrid?" he exclaimed, looking at me in bewilderment.

"I'm sorry; it's just that I couldn't handle rejection, and it may have gotten into my head." I sighed and shrugged.

"Oh, okay," he could only remark.

I know Sky prefers silence at the moment, and I want to respect that without pressuring him or bringing up the issue again.

We sat there for a while longer, and Sky's gaze was drawn to me.

"Astrid?" he called out.

"Hmmm?" In return, I responded.

"Why didn't you accept his rejection? You're hurting yourself much more by not doing so," he pondered.

"Sky, I wasn't aware of this; I didn't realize we had to say it loud and clear that we accept the rejection. It's not like he gave me a chance to say anything; he just slapped his words on my face and walked away." I told him.

I could only admit that I wasn't entirely familiar with the protocol, defending my actions.

"Oh, I see," he said, nodding his head and resting his back on the tree trunk, when I suddenly recalled something.

"Sky!" I yelled quickly. "I'm not even nineteen yet, yet how am I able to feel the pain from rejection?" I shook my head.

"I've been telling you all this time that you're adopted, but you wouldn't believe me," he said boringly, but I could sense the sarcasm in his voice.

"Very funny," I muttered. "It's not humorous, believe me."

"Okay, jokes aside, but to answer your question, I'm not sure why this is happening to you when you don't have a say in it, but let me go into your case and ask someone why it's happening," he said.

"I suppose that would be better," I said, nodding.

"But, Astrid, are we going to tell Mom and Dad?" he asked.

"I'm not sure what you should do, Sky, but I'm not going to tell anyone about it." I shook my head.

"I'll do the same and try to move on from her, but you have to come right to me if you have this pain back," he said sternly.

"Aye Aye, Captain," I saluted.

"Drama queen," he joked.

"Yes, I am," I laughed.

"Now, returning to the serious point, I want you to go to Edward and tell him the unambiguous words of rejection," Skylar commanded.

"Come on, let's go," he said as he took my hand in his firm grip and began heading towards home.

I expected my parents to be at the "Union" gathering, as Edward had most likely completed the mating procedure by now. It was expected that they would be crowned as Alpha and Luna, respectively.

"Sky, should we join the gathering again? Our absence will be questioned if we don't," I pointed out.

I came to a halt and looked at him. He groaned softly as he massaged his temples.

"I'm not sure what we should do, Astrid, and even if we go, how will we watch our mates with someone else?" He shook his head.

"However, our absence will be noticed because, according to pack norms, anyone from the elite group who does not attend the ceremony will be considered a traitor," I informed him of the pack's rules.

"What should we do now, Astrid?" He asked, getting worried because the rules were very strict.

"After all we've been through, I'm sure we can handle even more," I said, giving him a wry smile.

"Okay, let's do this one more time," he said as he took my hand in his and turned away from us, leading us to the ground.

The ground was bustling again as we arrived. Skylar took my hand in his firm grip, smiled at me, and began heading inside.

When we did, our parents' attention was drawn to us, and everyone else followed their gaze as if we were aliens.

Mom began to walk towards me, her teeth clenched in rage.

She smiled at everyone, grabbed my free hand, and began taking me away from the people around us.

I had my hand in Sky's during the process, and he was dragged alongside us.

"Where are you taking me, Mom?" I asked.

"Shut up and follow me, Astrid," she shouted.

I became quiet and followed her commands.

Mom yanked my hand from her hold once we were out of sight of everyone.

"You did nothing but make us look bad. Even after being warned, you had to attend the event and disrupt everyone's serenity. What did you receive after coming here, huh?" Mom yelled at me in a accusing tone.

"But, Mom..." I attempted to tell her the truth, but she wasn't ready to listen.

"But? it's not like you found your mate or anything," she said, disgusted.

Skylar cut in, "Mom, she did find her Mate."

Mom stared at him in surprise and blinked at him.

"What are you saying, Skylar?" Mom exclaimed.

"Yes, Mom, and so did I," Skylar revealed, making my eyes widen in shock.

She shifted her gaze to me. "Who is it, Astrid, and why aren't you and your Mate together?" Mom asked; she looked pissed, and that is totally justifiable.

"It's... It's" I couldn't think of any words to describe my scene to her.

"Who exactly is it? Tell me who it is right now," she asked once more.

Then she noticed the mark on my wrist. She took my wrist and looked at it. Her face turned red from anger as she decoded the name hidden behind the mark.

Her eyes widened in surprise as she stared at me. "Astrid, please tell me I'm wrong," she begged.

"No, Mom, you might be correct," I answered honestly, least expecting her to understand my pain, but she turned towards Skylar.

"Why aren't you and Sky both with your mates?" Mom asked, an inch away from breaking down into sobs and feeling helpless.

Skylar responded, "Mom, Edward is her mate, and Charlotte is mine."

"What!!" There came a surprised gasp. When we turned around, we saw Dad standing there.

I lowered my head in shame as Dad rushed to our sides.

"Did you just say Charlotte and Edward are your Mate?" Dad repeated it.

Skylar said, "Yes, Dad."

"Then why are they both mated and claiming to be each other's mates?" Dad asked.

Skylar and I stayed silent. Mom shifted my gaze back to her.

"Astrid, tell me why Edward is with Charlotte and what happened to both of you." Mom became terrified.

I assumed Mom would understand our situation and try to console both of us. I thought it would be better if I told her the truth. I decided to inform her about my situation first, hoping she would have some insights to share with Skylar about his experience.

"Mom.... Edward rejected me," I replied, my eyes welling up.

I expected her to console me and assure me that everything would be fine. I guess I was mistaken because a harsh slap landed on my cheek.

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