The Ball II
1158 Words
MARISA
I didn’t remember leaving the center of the hall. One second, I was standing in front of him breaking. Next, I was moving blindly.
My feet carried me through the crowd as whispers followed me like shadows. “She got rejected…”
“By the Alpha’s son…”
“Isn’t she the one without a wolf?”
“An orphan too…”
Each word dug deeper than the last, I could feel their stares and judgment It burned me.
“Marisa!”
Ella’s voice cut through everything. Warm hands grabbed my arm, pulling me to a stop. I didn’t even realize I was crying until she wiped my cheek.
“Oh my God…” she whispered, her voice breaking. “Marisa…”
“I’m fine,” I said quickly, even though my voice came out uneven. “I’m—I’m okay.”
“No, you’re not,” she snapped, her grip tightening. “Don’t lie to me.”
“I said I’m fine,” I repeated, more firmly this time. But my body betrayed me.
My chest tightened painfully, and I gasped softly, clutching at my dress. It felt like something inside me was being torn apart.
Ella’s eyes widened. “The bond…” I nodded weakly. “It hurts…” I whispered.
“Of course it hurts.” A new voice joined in.
I didn’t need to turn to know who it was. It was Ivy Sanchez.
“Well,” she continued, stepping in front of us, her bright blue eyes scanning me from head to toe, “what exactly did you expect?”
Ella’s expression darkened instantly. “Ivy, not now.”
“No, I think now is the perfect time,” Ivy said, crossing her arms. “She needs to hear it.”
I forced myself to look at her. “What do I need to hear?” I asked quietly.
A small smirk played on her lips. “That this was inevitable.”
Ella stepped forward. “That’s enough.”
Ivy ignored her completely. “My brother is the Alpha,” she said, her voice dripping with superiority. “He needs a strong Luna. Someone worthy of standing beside him.”
Her gaze hardened.
“And you’re not that person.”Something inside me cracked.
“I didn’t ask for him to be my mate,” I said, my voice low but steady.
Ivy raised a brow, clearly amused. “But you didn’t refuse either, did you?”
“Ivy!” Ella snapped. “Stop it!”
“What?” Ivy shrugged. “Am I lying?”
She stepped closer to me now, lowering her voice slightly.
“You don’t belong here, Marisa,” she said. “You never did.” “Say one more word, Ivy, so help me”
“That’s enough.” The voice was deep and instantly silenced everything.
My breath caught. Carmín.
He stood a few steps away, his presence alone enough to shift the entire atmosphere.
Everyone went quiet. Even Ivy. Though the slight roll of her eyes told me she wasn’t pleased.
“I was just telling her the truth,” she muttered.
Carmín’s gaze flickered to her briefly. “Leave.”
“But brother”
“I said leave, Ivy.”
Ivy huffed softly before turning on her heel. “This isn’t over,” she threw at me before walking away.
Silence settled between us, I didn’t want to look at him, but I did anyway.
He seemed Unbothered and Untouched by what had just happened, like he hadn’t just shattered something inside me.
“Why?” I asked. My voice was barely above a whisper.
But it felt louder than anything.
His jaw tightened slightly. “What do you mean?”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
“What do I mean?” I repeated. “You rejected me. In front of everyone.”
His expression didn’t change. “You know why.”
“Say it again,” I said, my voice trembling now. “Say it to my face.”
Something flickered in his eyes. He was clearly annoyed. “You don’t have a wolf,” he said flatly.
Each word hit just as hard as the first time.
“And I need a Luna who is strong.”
“I could have been strong,” I shot back, surprising even myself. “You didn’t even give me a chance.”
“This isn’t about chances,” he replied. “It’s about what is.”
I swallowed hard. Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall again. Not in front of him.
“You felt it too,” I said quietly. He didn’t respond immediately and that told me everything. “The bond…” I continued. “You felt it.”
His silence stretched. “It doesn’t matter Marisa, you are young, you wouldn’t understand .”
That was the last straw that was the moment something inside me… changed. “It mattered to me,” I said.
My voice was calm now no longer shaky. “And it still does,” I admitted softly. “Even now… it still hurts.”
For a brief second, His gaze softened, just slightly.
“But it won’t for long,” I added. That got his attention.
His brows pulled together slightly. “What does that mean?”
I took a step back putting a distance between us, where I should have been all along.
“It means,” I said, meeting his eyes one last time, “you won’t ever have to worry about me again.”
Before he could respond to me I turned and walked away this time I didn’t stop.
“Marisa!”
Ella caught up to me again, breathless.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“Home,” I said simply. She grabbed my hand. “I’m coming with you.”
I shook my head. “No. Stay.” “I’m not leaving you like this!”
“I said stay, Ella,” I repeated, more firmly. She froze because she heard the difference in my voice.
“Marisa.…” she whispered. “You’re scaring me.”
I looked at her, at the only person who had always been there for me, and for a second I almost broke down again. I didn’t want her to see me cry.
“I’ll be okay,” I said quietly.
Because as I walked out of that pack house, one thing became clear. I had spent my whole life trying to belong, trying to be accepted, trying to be enough and tonight just proved one thing that I was never going to be enough for them.
So I would become something else and one day When Carmín Don Sanchez looked at me again he wouldn’t see the girl he rejected. He would see the woman who could destroy him. I will make sure I pay him back for this.
- Writer
