Chapter 5 Persona

The moment Pearl fell on one side, the boy rushed inside the washroom and slammed shut the door.

Not wanting to give up, Pearl covered the stairs in a hurry, reaching the shared washroom downstairs. As she had expected, it was locked by the little prince of her family.

He always played pranks like this on her. For the next two hours, he would stay in the washroom, and since every member of her family had their own washroom, no one was bothered, except Pearl.

As for complaining to her parents? They will shoo her off, saying it was a small prank by her little brother, and she shouldn't think much.

With difficulty, Pearl reached the public washroom and relieved herself there. The receptionist, an aging old wolf, Mrs. Rudwig, sighed,

"Pearl, I can say this with certainty, your parents are cracked in the head."

Pearl managed to give a weak smile, her hand twitched nervously, and a stabbing ache in her heart.

Even she couldn't understand why her parents had shown such negligence toward her.

Suppressing the bitter taste in her heart, she smiled and tried to be optimistic,

"Today is a mating ceremony. I will find my mate. Maybe then... they will pay a little attention to me?"

Mrs. Rudwig shook her head in dismay, her heart aching for the naive girl in front of her.

"Did you select what dress you are going to wear? Or are you planning to wrap yourself in more of those baggy clothes, looking like a fashion disaster?"

"Mom must have prepared something for me," Pearl said with conviction. Even though she was practically non-existent in her house, surely preparing Lucy's clothes, her mother will remember her too, right?

A sparkle of hope ignited in Pearl's eyes as she flashed an endearing smile to Mrs. Rudwig, who couldn't bring herself to break the heart of the young maiden.

The walk to her home was a short one, and yet Pearl treaded carefully, as if a monster might lurk behind the calm and serene green forest on either side of the road.

On reaching home, Pearl heaved a sigh of relief. A conversation attracted her attention.

"Lucy, try this one. I have finalised three dresses for the ceremony today. This is Midnight Frost, this one is Gentle Sway, and this one is Fae's Beauty."

Curiosity got the better of her, and Pearl peered into the living room. Three beautiful dresses came into her view, making his heart skip a beat.

Midnight Frost was a royal purple dress with a slight shimmer, each sequin catching the light like frost on moonlit leaves.

Gentle Sway was a soft peach gown that flowed like a whisper, adorned with delicate floral embroidery and pearls sewn around the waist.

Fae's Beauty, however, stole the show. It was ethereal, like something spun from magic, a pale silvery-blue fabric with sheer sleeves, embroidered with thread that glowed faintly under the light.

Her mother clapped excitedly,

"Lucy, you'll look like a dream in any of them. The Alpha Aiden will fall for you the moment he sees you."

Lucy had a look of distaste as her eyes scanned the dresses, before she pouted,

"Mom, I told you! I want a dress from Persona!"

"Sweety, Persona has stopped making dresses for the past 3 years. All the other dresses of Persona have already been bought. It is impossible to acquire one."

Lucy, however, was unfazed, "No! It's either Persona or nothing!"

With that, she stomped off.

Pearl took a hesitant step inside, her voice barely above a whisper, "Mom... Did you pick something for me, too?"

Her mother glanced at her, startled, as if just realizing Pearl existed. "You?"

"Yes," Pearl forced a smile. "For the ceremony. I thought..."

"Oh. Right." Her mother blinked. "There should be something in the storage box. Check there."

The storage box. That was where they dumped old decorations, broken appliances, and things no one used anymore.

Still clinging to a shred of hope, Pearl hurried to the storage room and opened the box. Her smile faltered.

Inside was a wrinkled, outdated dress, probably from ten years ago, mustard in color, with a broken zipper and a tear on the hem.

Her heart sank.

She held it up anyway, trying to imagine herself looking elegant in it. Maybe she could fix it. Maybe she could still look decent.

A soft voice startled her.

"Pearl?"

It was Lucy.

Pearl turned, trying to hide the dress behind her back.

Lucy looked at her with something between pity and smugness. "You're not really planning to wear that, are you?"

Pearl didn't respond.

Lucy gave a dramatic sigh, then said sweetly,

"Why don't you just stay home, sister? You know, these ceremonies can be a bit overwhelming... not to mention the Alpha Aiden would never look your way. You'd just get hurt."

Pearl's fists clenched, nails digging into her palms. But she said nothing.

She would go. No matter what she wore, she would go.

She would stand with everyone else and wait for the Moon Goddess to show her a mate.

Seeing determination in Pearl's eyes, Lucy rolled her eyes,

"Just keep on being stubborn. Don't cry when I turn out to be Aiden's mate!"

Pearl's heart sank...

Aiden's mate... the term made a stabbing pain in her heart. The mere thought of Aiden being with someone else made her feel downcast. Sorrow consumed her, as even the simple task of breathing seemed laborious to her.

Seeing her desired result, Lucy left smugly.