Page 29 of Bullied Forced Omega
She chose to get loud and free. I chose to get quieter and retreat into my work. Maybe tonight, I’ll take a page from her book and let my hair down too.
I give in to it, and the night improves drastically.
Music thrums over me, pulsing in my veins, moving through my body. It turns out I can dance. As long as I let myself enjoy the music, it’s easy to let it guide me.
I’m smiling with my head tilted back and my eyes closed, swinging my hips and moving my feet in time to the beat.
Kelsey grabs my hand. “It’s time for another shot,” she shouts loud enough for me to hear her.
“OK, but I need to pee first,” I reply.
She gestures to let me know she’ll be waiting at the bar, and I nod.
I have to wiggle and push through the crowds to get to the ladies' bathrooms.
Luckily, there isn’t a long line, and I slip into one of the cubicles before I have to start doing the pee dance to hold it in. I was having so much fun on the dance floor, I kept putting it off.
Sighing in relief when I sit down, I giggle at myself. Tonight really is fun. I should do this more often. And I really, really should stop caring what other people think.
Standing up, I adjust all my clothes and finish up in the cubicle.
It's emptier when I come out, and I smile a quick smile at the girl waiting by the mirror while I wash my hands.
Then I slip out the door into the passage to head back to my friend.
Except right outside the door, I bump into a group of familiar faces that instantly churns my stomach.
Five betas, a mix and match from other packs, are walking past. They stop when they see me.Fuck. They recognized me.
Remmington, Shev, Brick, Drez, and Luke. They’ve been a tight-knit group since elementary school. The big boys. Jace used to hang out with them, too.
“Isn’t this incredible, guys? It's little Miss Piggy!” Shev scoffs in surprise.
My heart sinks, and I try to keep my head down, but my insides are tight, and panic is rising in my chest. That all too familiar shame. The embarrassment. The knowledge that I am not like everyone else, and no one will ever like or accept me.
“Hey, Miss Piggy, how’s life?” Drez says as he takes a step toward me and forces me to back up against the wall.I can’t believe Jace used to hang out with these assholes.What did he see in them? Yes, they were bigger, stronger, and fasterthan other shifters… but they never missed an opportunity to let others know about it.Jace was one of them. He used to lead this pack. This pack of cruel, heartless boys. He was just like them.
I whimper and quickly press my lips together to hide the sound. I hate the fact that they can smell my fear. They can smell the chemicals pulsing through me. Adrenalin, shame, confusion…
I learned, time and time again, to keep my mouth shut. To keep my eyes averted and to shut the hell up until it’s over. They will eventually get bored and move on. If you talk back or show emotions, it lasts longer.
“Little Miss Piggy looks like she ate a few more of her babies over the past couple of years, right?” Luke snorts. Their remarks are pathetic. Immature, nasty, and not even creative. That’s the worst part. They insult me as though they have the brain capacity of a toddler. How do you even come back against an insult like that?No, I didn’t eat my babies because I’ve never had a baby.What the hell? What’s the point?
“Those jeans are barely holding you together, girl. Maybe you want to try wearing something with stretch next time?”
“Maybe she needs a real man to make those thighs jiggle?” They back up laughing.
“What are you doing with your life, Miss Piggy? Still rubbing around in the mud, hiding away without any friends?” Remmington snarls.
“She’s useless. She can’t even open her mouth to answer us,” Brick scoffs.
I have to fight hard to stop the tears from escaping my eyes as they burn the back of my closed lids.Don’t even let them see they’ve hurt you.
It’s so strange. It’s been a few years since anyone was this forward with bullying. I thought I would handle it better. I thought I’d be stronger, but the truth is that same pain is still so raw and fresh it feels like I’m right back in high school.
One of them places his hand beneath my jaw and tilts my chin up. It takes everything inside me to open my eyes and hold his stare. My eyes are glittering with emotion.
“You’re so weak, I don’t understand how your pack can possibly allow you to stay. If you were in my pack, I’d have exiled you long ago,” Remmington snarls.
