REJECTED BY MY MATE, FATED TO HIS RIVAL.

chapter 2

CHAPTER 2: Admit it.

Blossom.

“Grab her!” Millien’s command sliced through the air like a blade, sharp, absolute, leaving no room for hesitation or mercy.

Before I could even react, two hefty men stepped forward. Their presence loomed over me, suffocating, as rough hands seized my arms from both sides. Their grip was unforgiving, fingers digging deep into my skin as they yanked me upright. A sharp cry nearly escaped my lips as pain shot through both arms at once, spreading like fire through my veins.

I struggled instinctively, my body trembling under their hold, but it was useless. They were too strong.

And yet… even as pain consumed me, one thought refused to leave my mind.

Why does he hate me so much?

It echoed over and over, louder than the chaos around me, louder than the murmurs, louder than my own ragged breathing.

“Vanessa, darling…” Millien’s voice dropped into something softer, almost affectionate, but it only made everything worse. “I have always told you, that no matter how this slut tries, she will never take your place.”

Slut?

The word hit harder than any physical blow.

My entire body went still for a moment, my breath catching painfully in my throat. Slowly, I shut my eyes, as though doing so could shield me from the sting of it. But it didn’t. It only made the pain sharper, more suffocating.

Growing up, I had learned to endure many things…loneliness, rejection, the aching emptiness of not having a mother by my side. I had told myself that someday, somehow, things would change.

That when I found my mate… whoever he would be… he would become my escape.

My safe place.

My home.

And when I realized it was Millien… I had believed, foolishly, that my prayers had finally been answered because I had been crushing on him.

But now…

Now, every single one of those hopes lay shattered at my feet.

Because the moment Vanessa wrapped him around her fingers, I had already lost. I just hadn’t realized it then.

I was still drowning in those thoughts, still clinging to the fragments of what could have been, when suddenly…

A crushing force slammed into my stomach.

The impact stole the air from my lungs instantly. A broken gasp tore from my throat as my body folded inward, pain exploding through me like something had shattered inside. My mouth opened helplessly, and before I could stop it, blood spilled out, dark, thick, staining my lips as it dripped to the ground.

My vision blurred, my ears rang and then I realized…Millien had hit me.

He stepped forward again, his presence overwhelming, suffocating, as if he intended to break me completely. My legs trembled violently beneath me, the strength draining from them all at once. Even with the men still gripping my arms, my knees gave out.

They hit the ground with a loud, echoing thud.

“How dare you fall?” Millien’s voice thundered, laced with anger as his hand shot forward, gripping my chin harshly. He forced my face upward, his fingers digging painfully into my skin.

I winced, my eyes fluttering open despite myself and when I met his gaze…My heart shattered all over again.

The eyes that once held warmth… care… something that felt like love…Now held nothing but cold, unfiltered disgust.

“This is what you get for doing that to me two years ago, Blossom,” he said, his voice dropping into a low, dangerous whisper.

Two years ago?

The words echoed in my mind, confusion cutting through the pain like a blade.

What exactly did I do?

Because whatever it was… it had turned the man who once protected me…Into the one now destroying me.

“Millien, it’s okay… please, Blossom is still a lady after all.” Vanessa’s voice came quickly, almost too quickly, laced with a softness that didn’t belong to her. Her face shifted into one of concern, her brows knitting together as though she truly felt something for me. “She won’t be able to take it.”

I scoffed inwardly, the sound bitter even in my own mind.

If I hadn’t known Vanessa, if I hadn’t lived beside her, watched her, endured her, I might have believed her. I might have mistaken that carefully crafted expression for genuine pity. But I knew better. I knew exactly how vile she could be. Hadn’t those same hands just struck me moments ago? Hadn’t that same voice spat venom at me without hesitation? Hadn't I pleaded with her?

There was nothing kind about her.

“Can you see, Blossom?” Lurgard’s voice cut in sharply as he stepped forward, his presence heavy with judgment. “Vanessa still shows you mercy, but all you do is try to get on her nerves.”

His words pressed down on me like a weight I could no longer carry.

Slowly, I lowered my head, my gaze falling to the ground as exhaustion seeped into every part of me. I was tired—tired of the accusations, tired of the lies, tired of this endless, suffocating cycle that never seemed to break. No matter what I said, no matter what I did, it always ended the same way.

Blame.

Pain.

Silence.

Lurgard didn’t stop there. He turned to Vanessa almost immediately, his tone shifting into something that sounded almost respectful. “Vanessa, I would advise you not to stop him,” he said firmly. “So she can learn her lesson and change.”

“But…” Vanessa started, her voice softer now, hesitant, as though she truly wished to intervene.

“No buts,” Millien interrupted coldly, his voice final, leaving no space for argument.

And just like that, whatever fragile illusion Vanessa had tried to create shattered completely.

Before I could even brace myself, Millien’s hands came down on me again. He grabbed my head roughly, his grip tight and unrelenting as he forced me upward. Pain shot through my scalp, my neck straining under the sudden movement.

Then…

Another blow.

His fist drove into my stomach with brutal force, stealing what little breath I had managed to regain. My body convulsed under the impact, my chest tightening as air refused to fill my lungs. A broken gasp escaped me, my breathing turning uneven, shallow, desperate.

Pain flared through me, sharp and consuming, as if my entire body was being torn apart from the inside.

Tears spilled instantly, hot and uncontrollable, blurring my vision as they streamed endlessly down my face. I couldn’t stop them. I didn’t have the strength to.

“Do you admit you were wrong?” Millien’s voice came again, calmer now…too calm.

A sly smirk spread across his face, as though he found satisfaction in this… in breaking me piece by piece.

My lips trembled, but I bit down on them hard, forcing myself into silence.

I wouldn’t say it. I wouldn’t admit to something I didn’t do, no matter how much it hurts, no matter what they do to me.

“You still won’t talk?” Millien’s voice rose again, anger flashing across his features.

And then, another hit.

The force of it sent a sharp ringing through my ears, loud and disorienting, drowning out everything else. My vision blurred instantly, the world around me spinning uncontrollably as if it had been ripped from its axis.

I couldn’t focus.

I couldn’t breathe.

The pain, the noise, the weight of it all, it became too much and without realizing it… without being able to fight it…darkness closed in slowly and completely…until it swallowed me whole.