Melissa.
They said the words with every ounce of force they could summon, as though speaking them aloud was an act of violence in itself. The declaration echoed through the hall, heavy and final, sealing something I had never wanted sealed.
And then we reached that part.
The part everyone waited for in hushed anticipation.
The part where everything would be bound beyond undoing.
The kiss.
Silence stretched again, thick and uncomfortable. The elders shifted uneasily, exchanging glances. The crowd leaned forward, curiosity sharpening the air. Yet the Alpha triplets did not move an inch.
Not one step.
Not one breath in my direction.
I stood there, rigid, my heart pounding erratically as the weight of their refusal pressed into me. It was humiliation layered upon humiliation, my exist
