Page 15 of Rejected and Regretted

It set my heart alight.

“You’re right. It’s truly beautiful,” she agreed.

10

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A V R I L

“That’s the leastgenuine smile I’ve ever seen,”Kea reprimanded me.

I resisted the urge to frown.“What did you expect? I’m not genuinely happy!”I argued.

Though I couldn’t deny that having Koen bring me here did stir something inside me.

I still remembered the first and last time I’d been here. Not that it was utterly memorable; it was just one more incident among a sea of times when I was picked on by other pack members. But it was the first time I stood up to my bullies.

Chad was the name of the gang leader. He and his minions had been tormenting me at every chance they got for a few months, and I’d had enough. When I saw him walking toward the exit of the packhouse, leading his group of annoying mutts, while I was cleaning the bottom floor, I saw an opportunity to get my revenge. I didn’t think twice before sticking the broom right in front of him, too fast for him to notice it. He tripped and fell face-first on the floor, hitting the ground so hard his nose bled. To everyone else around us, it looked like an accident; no one could tell it was a carefully-crafted plan.

Well, no one except for Chad. I barely had time to celebrate my success; just as fast as he had fallen, he was back on his feet.Next thing I knew, I was running for my life, with no idea where I was going. By the time I made it here, I was out of breath, and I knew they would be able to catch me soon. Out of pure instinct, I started climbing, only to find myself trapped before I could even feel the relief of being safe.

Fourteen-year-old-Koen stumbled upon me shortly after. I was scared to accept his help, afraid he would hurt me like everyone else always did. Instead, he took me in his arms and brought me back to safety.

I remembered how flustered I felt in his embrace. As an Omega, I had only ever looked at him from a distance; I wasn't supposed to approach him. Yet, he came to me, like a knight in shining armor. From that day on, I saw him as my savior - until he destroyed that image the moment I turned eighteen.

Either way, I hadn’t realized how Chad and his gang had indeed left me alone after the incident until Koen mentioned it. Was it true, though? It made sense, but I couldn’t begin to understand why he would care to defend me when his father clearly didn’t think I deserved it.

“You could at least try to be convincing!”Kea continued to scold me, pulling me back from my brief trip down memory lane.

I frowned internally, but before I could start arguing with her, Koen’s voice caught me by surprise.

“You know, I missed that smile,” he half-whispered.

When I looked up at him, the glisten in his eyes stunned me, making it even harder to process his words.Did he really mean that?The question crossed my mind, but I shrugged it off almost immediately. He was obviously just trying to be nice because he wanted to get on my good side.Right?

“Seems like I was convincing enough,”I teased Kea, who rolled her eyes at me, but remained silent in defeat.Silly wolf.

“Anyway, uh…” Koen cleared his throat, once again catching my attention. “It’s getting late. You must be tired.”

I nodded eagerly, though not for the reason I anticipated. This time, I didn’t yearn to leave Koen because being near him made me sick, but rather because I couldn’t stand how confused his incomprehensible kindness made me feel. I needed to be away from him before he drove me mad.

“I’m sure you have to be up early tomorrow too,” I agreed, and he sighed tiredly in confirmation.

What appeared to be a hint of disappointment flashed in his expression before a smirk quickly overshadowed it. “Do you still need my help to get down?”

Kea squinted her eyes in annoyance. The alpha in me didn’t appreciate the challenge, even if his tone was lighthearted. Still, I forced a smile, though I was sure it was even less convincing than my previous one.

“I’ll be fine on my own this time around, thanks,” I politely declined - or at least I tried to, but my sharp tone might have given away my vexation.

Koen let out a short chuckle before raising to his feet again, jumping down without hesitation, and I prepared myself to do the same. Thanks to werewolf dexterity, a fall from that height posed no threat to us, as long as we landed correctly. Unfortunately, maybe because I was in a rush to prove that the little scared omega had grown, I got up too fast and ended up slipping on the branch where we had been sitting. Losing balance, I fell backwards with a loud gasp.

As I plummeted downwards, my heart raced in terror, the rush of wind deafening in my ears, yet all I could do was brace myself. While a cat-shifter might have been able to work around this situation and land on their feet, my reflexes weren’t quick enough to avoid the inevitable crash.

I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for impact, but instead of the harsh jolt of the forest floor, I felt strong arms wrap around me, catching me right on time.

Adrenaline still rushed in my veins when my eyes flew open in shock, meeting Koen's wide-eyed gaze as he held me securely against his chest. His muscles tensed beneath me, absorbing the force of the fall effortlessly. My heart drummed in my chest, but not because of fear. I was out of breath, though that wasn’t the reason why I found it hard to speak.

And for a moment, I was too entranced to be bothered by how vulnerable I looked.

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