You Rejected Me. Remember?

Leo

I stared at the shimmering water of the lake. Ducks swam in the water. The cool evening breeze blew, ruffling my shoulder length hair, yet it brought no coolness to my aching heart.

I was going crazy and I had excused myself after the regular drills. It had been a month since they took her. Ever since that night, everyone had been working non-stop to find her. Yet, to no avail. There was no trace of her, not even a whiff of her scent.

Her parents, along with mine, had arrived at the Lycan Palace when they heard about what had happened. Everyone had been working together, and still, we couldn’t find a clue. Our endless efforts were simply being wasted.Content rights by NôvelDr//ama.Org.

I remember how happy I was when I saw them come back safe and sound. Zelda was unconscious and Sir Elliot also wasn’t truly awake. Nonetheless, after being treated in the infirmary, both of them recovered.

What bothered me was when I couldn’t find Astrea. She was gone. I couldn’t believe my ears when Xander told me that they had taken her in exchange for Zelda, who was unconscious. I thought he was joking. However, when Sir Elliot faced me, I knew that they were dead serious. Somehow, they had gotten their hands on the young princess and asked for Astrea in exchange. As soon as I heard about what had happened, I knew that was true. I didn’t want to believe them, yet I couldn’t deny the fact. She was an alpha and a brave girl. And she wasn’t going to back off in a situation like that.

I picked up a pebble and threw it into the water. It sank into the water, forming ripples on its surface. Those ripples somehow reminded me of how her absence was influencing me. It was affecting my whole life, rippling its effects throughout everything I did. The training arena reminded me of her, hence I had to force myself to complete the drills. The game room in the Palace was worse. It reminded me of the day I confessed my feelings for her. Each time I passed by the closed door of her room, my heart shattered. I lost my appetite and I couldn’t sleep. My entire life has become tedious. If it hadn’t been for Zoro, I would have gone insane.

“We will find her,” Zoro’s voice echoed in my head. I chose to ignore him. He had been telling me that the entire time. A whole month had passed by with no results. As time passed, I knew the chances of finding any clues were diminishing.

What if we don’t find her? What if they take advantage of her? They are rogues…

I lícked my lower l*p and speculated about the situation. They demanded that we give her, in exchange for the Royal Princess and that too, on the night of the b***d moon. That could only mean that they were there for her.

My lips parted as I recalled what my great-grandma had told us. Could that mean that they were trying to form a bond with her? My heart raced. I couldn’t understand why they would make that demand.

Even mom had spoken of it. I heard her mention it in one of their meetings. My heart broke into a million pieces when I heard that. I wasn’t prepared to see a day when she would be bonded with someone else. Especially if it was with someone who wasn’t her fated mate.

“We will break that bond!” Zoro growled. Obviously, he was listening to my thoughts. Closing my eyes, I heaved a breath.

“I would love to do that. But what if she no longer wants us? Being bonded to someone is really weird. It’s called being bonded for a reason. We won’t yearn for anyone else,” I responded.

“But she loves us. She wants us. Remember how she used to look into your eyes? Remember how she melted into your arms, each time you held her? Do you remember the sound of her sweet m***s?” he complained. My chest constricted painfully as I closed my eyes. Her memories were sweet and bitter at the same time.

“Of course, I remember that,” my voice was hoarse. Silence followed. Zoro was the only one who would understand the pain I was enduring.

“I miss her,” I finally mumbled under my breath. A lone tear rolled out of the corner of my eye.

“Me too, buddy,” Zoro whispered back. “I hope that she is safe, wherever she is.”

I nodded my head.

The sun lowered itself and the light of the natural torch slowly diminished. Another day was over with no results. I forced myself to get up and move. I had to leave before it was too late.

“Hey Leo,” as I was passing by the hedges in the park, a familiar voice made me halt.

Wrinkling my brows, I squinted at the figure.

“Natasha?”

“Yeah,” she giggled as she strolled towards me. “I went for a walk when I noticed you were all alone. I thought I could give you some company,” she smiled.

I raised my eyebrows. She went for a walk alone? That was not too strange, I guess. Nevertheless, I didn’t like it when she attempted to talk to me. She hadn’t tried to get close to me for a long time. However, I started to notice that she was trying ever since Astrea had gone missing.

“Uh, I’m fine. I am going back now, anyway,” I waved my hand and turned to leave.

“No, wait, Leo,” she held my hand. I glanced at her hand and then at her face. She was looking intently at me. I frowned. What was this woman up to?

“I need to tell you something,” she seemed to be reluctant. “Please hear me out?”

She uttered, giving me a hopeful glance.

Sighing, “cool. But I need to go back as soon as possible, so hurry,” I replied.

“Okay,” she wheezed and stepped closer and placed her hand on my chest, making me go stiff. She bit a lower l*p and traced circles on my torso with her index finger.

My frown deepened. She glanced at me, and batted her eyelashes.

“The fúck dude! She is bad news!” Zoro exclaimed in my head. He was right. This chick didn’t seem like she was going to say anything I wanted to hear.

“Stop it!” I demanded and removed her hand.

“Why, Leo?” She whispered. “I think we should try something. We should try to become more than just friends… you know, like Xander and Danisha. We would look great together,” she forcefully clung onto my torso.

“What the fúck, Natasha! Leave me alone. I’m with Astrea. You know that,” I retorted as I tried to peel her off me.

“Astrea? But she is gone!” She responded rather strongly.

Grimacing, she faced me. “I don’t understand why you are so after her. She is just a wolf…”

I clenched my jaws and let out a growl as I thrust her away. She staggered backwards with the force I pushed her away with and she almost landed on the grass.

“She isn’t gone. She will be back. She sacrificed her safety for the sake of a little girl who still couldn’t recollect what happened to her that night. Yes, she is a wolf. So what? She is fearless and wouldn’t hesitate to do the right thing,” I growled with barely contained rage and paused for a while. I was heaving deep breaths, hoping to control myself before I lost control of my anger. Her disrespect was unacceptable.

“If you want to make yourself a bit useful, you could stop getting on my nerves. All of us are concerned about her safety. A massive threat is looming over us and we aren’t safe yet. Staying out of my way would be a great help,” I was furious. Natasha shouldn’t have insulted her.

“I know you don’t like her, but guess what? She is the girl I want,” I started firmly, looking her right in the eye.

She huffed out in annoyance as she straightened her skirt.

“What are you going to do when she finds her mate? Wolves literally worship their mates. They are everything to them. Some of them kill for their mates. God forbid that happening to you. I am sure that she will leave as soon as she meets her fated one. Then you will be left alone,” she snapped back, clenching her fists.

“What makes you so sure? We are in love. I love her and she loves me. I don’t care about anything else,” I hissed back, and took brisk steps away from her.

I knew she was after me. This was the first time she made such a blunt statement, and when she did, she truly crossed her limits.

“You’ll come back! I just know you will!”

Her shrieks got carried away with the wind as I rushed out of the park. Scoffing, I dashed towards the Palace. I couldn’t care less about what she surmised. To be honest, even if Astrea left me after she found her fated mate, I just couldn’t see myself being with Natasha.

Not even in a million years. I was still fuming when I ran up the stairs and hurried towards my room. Running into Natasha had riled me up and I needed to vent off… alone. However, I encountered my mom in the aisle who seemed to be looking for me.

“Leo, let’s go and have something to eat,” mom invited me as soon as she saw me. I sighed and glanced at her. I wasn’t in the mood to eat anything. I just wanted to go to sleep, hoping to wake up to a better day.

“You haven’t eaten anything, even during lunch. Please, Leo. For me?”

She pleaded before I could decline. My muscles relaxed. She was begging me to have some food. My lips parted. I just couldn’t say no to her. How could I decline my mother’s pleas? A sad smile curled on my lips, yet I nodded. At least my little gesture brought some amount of pleasure to her. Her face lit up when I agreed and led me towards the dining room.

When I saw the food on the table, my gut clenched uncomfortably. All I could think of was her – Astrea.

“Zoro? Do you think she has eaten anything?” I asked my Lycan.

He let out a humourless chuckle before shrugging his shoulders.

“I sure hope so,” he mumbled and retreated to the back of my mind.

The meal time was extremely silent like it always had been during the past month. No one joked or spoke much. Everyone was baffled and worried.

I glanced at Alpha Miles and his mate, who was putting up a brave face in front of everyone. They hadn’t left the Palace ever since they arrived. Our pack was under the supervision of the gamma couple while they joined the search. Seeing them around was hard. It reminded me more of her. I looked away and focused on my food. They didn’t question my silence. I suppose they were reckoning I was worried about my best friend. Honestly, it didn’t matter much even if the Queen had told them about our relationship. I didn’t care about what they might say. I just wanted her back and safe.

“Leo, have some chicken,” mom said, placing some meat on my plate.

I gulped.

I sure hope you are okay, Rea.

After dinner, Xander walked me to my room. He didn’t say anything and I appreciated the silence.

“I’m sorry I didn’t stop her that night. I was hoping that her little plan would work. You know, trick them and save everyone. I just didn’t expect them to… I’m sorry,” he sighed.

I forced a smile. “It’s okay. You had no control over what happened. It was the dark wizards. I’m sure,” I paused. “Xander, I’m sorry. I know I haven’t been very active recently…”

He clicked his tongue and patted my back, smiling.

“Hey, I understand. We are all worried. I just wish I had been able to stop her that night,” he told me.

Shaking my head, I smiled sadly.

“You wouldn’t have stopped her anyway,” I told him. I knew her well. She wouldn’t hesitate to go with the rogues if it meant saving a life. Besides, the dark wizards were cunning. None of us would have predicted that they would cast a spell.

I went to my room and he went to his. After freshening up, I laid down on the bed. I closed my eyes wishing I had something to remember her by.

***

I woke up in the middle of the night. Zoro was agitated. The unrest in my head had caused me to lose sleep.

“What happened, Zoro?” I asked, yet I received no answer.

That was strange. I could feel the internal chaos and it was giving me a headache. Kneading my temples, I grunted. Something wasn’t right. Thinking that some fresh air could help, I walked over to the window and opened it. It was a full moon night again and the silvery light of the moon reminded me of the necklace I had given her.

I forced a smile. “I hope it’s still close to your heart, Rea.”

Knitting my eyebrows together, I tried to contact Zoro once again, yet my efforts were in vain. I sighed and leaned against the windowsill. At least the cool breeze of the night was enlivening.

I remained like that, hoping it would convey some solace to the internal mayhem of my lycan. Minutes ticked by with no progress, until Zoro’s gruff command resounded in my head.

“Shift!”