Chapter 3 C3

When he got closer to me, he took off his hat to reveal himself fully. To my greatest shock, he was the Alpha! The person who hated me most in this pack was my mate? I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought he had a mate already, all this while. Who was the girl who was always beside him then? Or could this be a dream?

He stood in front of me, backing me against a locker, one of his hands stretched out beside my face. He was very handsome and masculine, with beautiful eyes. I wanted to touch him, I wanted him to touch me. I let out another breath. No, don't say it. And I hold myself together, not giving anything away.

"Listen carefully, Katerina." He begins, his voice so alluring. "You're not good enough to be a luna. Hell, I don't understand how you can call yourself a werewolf. You have to know by now that you're nothing in this pack. And I can't even begin to understand why I was paired with you as a mate." He slams his fist on the locker, right by my ear. And then, after drawing his breath, in a deeply chilling voice, he states, "I formally reject you, Katerina Bathas, as my mate." And I watched as Kol Knight, my Alpha, turned his back on me like I didn't even exist. I have a gut feeling I'm being watched, and I find myself looking around frantically, my heart racing, only to find no one, thankfully. And before I could stop myself, I took a deep breath and screamed, desperately trying to find any form of release from this pain.

I fell to the floor, watching the crowd form around me, having heard my loud scream. There was laughter from the pack and mumbling from the outsiders. The tears that rimmed my eyes were now falling freely down my pale, chubby cheeks. The hallways were now totally empty, and I was left alone. I was hyperventilating. I was just rejected by my mate, one whom I've been looking forward to meeting for so long. My brother hates me; he practically blames me for our parents' deaths.

Everyone in this stupid school is set out to make me regret living. My own reflection made me angry and sad. I didn't believe them when they said I should have died with my parents. But now, I was starting to believe that, too. Or worse, that I should have died instead of my parents.

I wiped away the tears from my face and scrambled up to a stand. Ignoring my backpack that lay on the ground, I sprinted out of the school doors, pushing past the assholes in the hall and back down the street until I felt the gravel rocks beneath my thin, worn out shoes. I slowed my walking into a fast speed walk as I passed the familiar driveway. I stepped into the empty pack house and, holding onto the railing, stormed up the stairs, skipping two steps each until I reached my door right above them. I burst through it, rummaging through the broken drawers of my broken dresser to take out the few clothes I did have and shove them into a duffel bag. I grabbed my mom and dad's picture from under the mattress that lay directly on the dirty floor, dusted it off, and placed it in the duffel bag as well. I zipped it up, slung it over my shoulder, and sighed.

One thing I had to do before I left was visit Renee's room. When I reached her white, flowery door, I stopped. New tears flooded my eyes. I wanted to inform her that I was leaving, but I couldn't leave now because I had nowhere to go.

When I closed the pack house front doors behind me, I said to myself, "I, Katerina Bathas, accept your rejection." I felt a painful pull, and I held in a whimper. Leaving this pack would make me a rogue wolf, and I knew the Alpha, along with the whole pack, would feel I was leaving. Not that they would care, I thought to myself as I approached the woods, desperate to get the hell away from here. I knew the instant I crossed from our territory to an unknown one, I would feel another pang of pain, and so would the pack. Then would they know I was truly gone, not just from their pack but from this shitty ass town I can no longer call home. But I had to stay and see how much more I could bear all this agony. I couldn't afford to starve myself to death by leaving this pack now. I couldn't predict the dangers a weak and hungry wolf like me stands to face outside in the woods. I finally decided to just return home, in a miserable state.

******

"Alpha! There's an attack. Rogues are forcing their way into our pack, killing anyone in their way!" I heard the pack's alarm sound. It was the middle of the night. What was going on? Everyone was told to stay indoors as the Pack's security hurried to confront the rogues.

The attack happened in the middle of the night. I was resting at home, having made up my mind that I couldn't stay here anymore with all these pains and suffering I was going through. Even if I had nowhere to go, even if I might get killed by wild animals that could prey on my wolf form, I didn't care anymore. I had to leave and this could be an opportunity to leave but at least Renee has to know I'm leaving. There was no time to draft her a letter now, and I may be seen by one of the rogues and be killed, as I'm weak from starvation and hunger.

I heard a loud noise outside. I looked through the window and saw fire coming closer and closer. My brother must have left the house. I wanted to sneak away on a small path. Several roads out of the pack were blocked by rogues, leaving only one that seemed passable.

On the way, I kept walking fast, almost running, as I was frantically looking around me. I saw several houses that were attacked, with blood stains everywhere.

"Katerina! Please help me!"

Suddenly, someone called out to me for help, yelling my name in despair.