I forced a smile and said lightly, "It's nice to meet you, Lana. Good luck trying to tame this one."
Lana laughed warmly. "I like you already! You're funny. Hopefully we can hang out more, I really need more female friends."My stomach twisted at her words. She was so genuinely nice, and that only made it harder to dislike her.
"Of course. I'd love to hang out with you," I replied with a smile then I winked at her.
Ahg, Damn me for being polite. Why couldn't I just say I didn't want to?
Lana smiled back, and then she and Hunta moved down the line together. Cain had slipped away, and suddenly I was left alone with nothing but my thoughts.
A soft touch on my shoulder made me flinch. Zara stood beside me, her eyes filled with sadness, sadness for me. I sighed and shook my head. I didn't want to talk. I didn't want sympathy. All I wanted was to crawl into bed and cry as soon as possible, but I couldn't leave yet.
So instead of watching Hunta and Lana, I fixed my gaze on Cain, who was deep in conversation with the council members. When he finally turned, he caught me staring. His expression softened, and he walked straight over.
"Go home, Anaa," he whispered gently. "I give you permission. Don't stand here falling apart. You need to leave."
Tears stung my eyes. My voice came out broken, barely a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Cain's face fell, guilt written all over him. He brushed away a tear that had slipped down my cheek.
"Oh, Smiley… I didn't know how. I couldn't tell you over the phone or in a letter. I wanted to do it face-to-face, but I never got the chance. I'm so sorry."
I sniffled and gave a small sigh. "It's not your fault. I just…But I need time to accept this."
Cain nodded in understanding and pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead. I turned and walked away, heading home. Behind me, I heard him telling my family and the others that he had sent me home because I was tired.
As soon as I stepped through the door, I rushed upstairs and changed into comfortable clothes. For years, I had slept in one of Hunta's t-shirts, but tonight I pulled it out of my cupboard and tossed it straight into the trash. I had no right to wear it anymore. Hunta belonged to someone else now, his mate. And that was fine. Everything would be fine eventually.
Everyone said mates were supposed to be magical, but I no longer believed it. To me, mates meant pain. Mates meant heartbreak.
And who in their right mind would ever want that?.
The tears didn't stop as my family came home. I heard my mom stop outside my door and I hoped she wouldn't come in. I held my breath to stop my sobs. If mom heard me cry, she wouldn't even hesitate to come into my room. "Tesa, let her sleep. We have an early start tomorrow." My dad's voice said quietly. I heard the footsteps fade away and I glanced up at my ceiling. Dad was right, we had an early start tomorrow I needed to get some sleep.
Closing my eyes, I let myself get lost in my world of dreams…
**A loud buzzing made me groan as I rolled over and turned off my phone alarm. Today was the day of the Lycan ball. I was dreading it because I knew I would be tired. Hopefully I could fall asleep in the car.
Forcing myself out of bed, I got dressed and cringed when I saw the bags under my eyes. Clearly last night was not the night that I was going to get a good night's sleep.
Sighing, I got ready and put some makeup on to look a little more alive. When I came downstairs, my parents were drinking their cups of tea and Sai and Zara were eating breakfast. Suddenly, four pairs of eyes turned to look at me and I saw the same thing in them. Sympathy. I didn't want their sympathy.
All I really wanted was to lie in bed and cry all day, but I knew that wasn't going to happen. I needed to prove to Hunta and to myself mostly, that I was a strong wolf. My dad handed me a cup of coffee and I smiled. Mom and Zara talked about how amazing the ball was to me since this was my first time.
I was grateful for the distraction. Once we had eaten, it was time to hit the road. I got into the car and immediately blasted my music out of my headphones and rested my head against the cool glass. Dad and mom left me alone as I let the music take me into my own world, before long sleep took over giving my body a much-needed break it deserved.
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"Anaa, wake up." My mom gently shook me. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and realised we were at a service station. Stretching my arms, I got out of the car. Zara and Sai got out of their car and
waved to me. "Go and get something to eat and make sure you go to the toilet. We still have two hours left." Mom told me, handing me some cash. Sighing, I walked into a shop to get some food.
I think I had a permanent scowl etched on my face, because everyone looked at me but then quickly looked away. "Smiley. Or should I say scowly? Why the long face?" Cain ruffled my hair.
`"Ugh, seriously? Why the hair?" I groaned, pushing Cain's hand away and trying to fix it.
"Because I haven't been able to do that for four years, and your reaction is still priceless," Cain laughed.
I rolled my eyes and walked through the shop, but froze the moment I heard that fake, sugary laugh. It was none other than the last person I ever wanted to meet anywhere, it was Lana. Just my luck. The last people I wanted to see were her and Hunta.
"Come on, Smiley. Let's grab some food quickly," Cain said gently, steering me toward the other side of the shop.
I grabbed a wrap, a chocolate bar, and a bottle of water. While standing in the line, I heard her laugh again. They were right behind me. My chest tightened. Breathe, Anaa. Just pay and get out. Don't even look at them.
I set my things on the counter, rolling my eyes as Lana laughed once more. What on earth was Hunta saying to her? Actually, no. I didn't even want to know. After paying, I rushed outside, desperate for fresh air.
Part of me wanted to wait for Cain, but the other part wanted to avoid running into Hunta and Lana altogether. Yeah, the second option was best. Straight to the car.
Sorry baby Cain. Lots of kisses…
Thankfully, Dad was already inside. He smiled as I slid into the backseat. I turned to look out the window and, of course, there they were. Hunta and Lana. Even from a distance, they looked like that overly lovey-dovey couple everyone rolls their eyes at, the kind that can't stop with the PDA.
Hunta had his arm draped over her shoulder, kissing down her neck. In public. Seriously? If I could see it, so could everyone else. Lana, of course, was eating it up.
I pulled a face right as Cain walked out. He caught my eye, gagged dramatically behind them, and I couldn't help but laugh. He grinned, happy to see me smile, and pretended to slice his throat. At least I wasn't alone in hating their show.
When Mom finally got back to the car, Dad said we had just under two hours left. It was already 11, so we'd be there around one.
As dad started driving, I spent the first hour eating my food and reading my book that I had packed. No more romance novels for me, this was a thrilling mystery book.
Definitely more up my alley. The second hour, I fell asleep yet again. It was probably a good thing, I needed sleep before the Lycan Ball tonight.
Mom woke me up when we arrived at the hotel. Cain came over to our car and grinned when he saw me rubbing the sleep from my eyes. "Sleeping beauty finally awakens." He says, handing me his hand. I took his hand and said, "Whatever. I needed sleep, otherwise I wouldn't be able to survive tonight."
"I also needed sleep but no!! I had to do the damn drive here." He complained as we walked into the hotel reception.
I laughed at Cain's face and said, "Well, get some sleep when we check in."
"So smiley. Tonight, be my date to the Lycan Ball. I can't imagine going with anyone else. You're the oxygen I breathe, the…" Cain dramatically said. I playfully hit him, "Ok Mr dramatic. Tone it down. I guess I will go with you." Well, not like anyone else asked me. (Definitely not thinking of Hunta, never!!)
"Good. If you said no, I would have just forced you anyway." Cain winked at me and went to where his parents were checking in. I giggled at how silly he was. Cain was doing a good job at distracting me though and I knew that was why he was acting more sillier than usual.
As I walked over to my parents, my ears zoned unintentionally on Hunta and Lana's conversation. "I can't wait till we get our room. I just want to tear these clothes off of you." Hunta said. "You can't say that! Everyone can hear you." Lana exclaimed. "Let them hear, I don't care. I just want to show you off tonight at the ball." Hunta replied. Shaking my head, I focused on anything else.
I felt like I intruded on their private conversation, but it still stung. Hunta clearly didn't remember what happened four years ago, or he doesn't care.
Sighing, I made my way over to my parents who handed me my room key. Thank God I had my own room because right now I was trying so hard not to let the tears fall. I quickly unpacked and plugged my phone in to charge.
The images of Hunta and Lana haunted me. It was 2pm, I had to do something before my thoughts consumed me. I walked
into the bathroom and stripped, turning the shower on. When I got into the hot shower, the tears started falling. They wouldn't stop and I decided to just let them fall. I needed to get this out of my system. I let it drown my tears and sorrow.
But I wasn't sure how much tears it would take before the hurt stopped.