The first meet
1502 Words
(Isla)
“You’re my mate?”
The disgust in Alpha Zayden Ashcroft’s voice shattered something inside me.
For the first time in my life, I understood that finding your mate could hurt far more than never finding one at all.
Nobody spoke as the entire hall remained silent.
I wished someone would laugh or someone would say something.
Anything at all because the silence felt worse.
The silence meant everyone was thinking the exact same thing.
Poor Alpha Zayden.
My eyes burned as I blinked rapidly, refusing to cry.
I would not cry, not here, not in front of them, and definitely not in front of him.
The whispers started anyway. They were quiet at first, but gradually they became louder and crueler.
“The Moon Goddess made a mistake.”
“Poor Alpha.”
“Look at her.”
“How embarrassing.”
Every word felt like another knife sinking into my chest.
I lowered my head, but it was not out of shame. At least, that was what I told myself.
The truth was that I couldn’t bear looking at the pity on their faces. Pity hurt more than mockery.
Mockery was honest, and pity meant they genuinely believed my existence was tragic.
“Zayden.”
Serena’s voice broke through the whispers.
The beautiful blonde stepped forward until she was standing beside him. She was close enough that her shoulder brushed his arm.
The gesture was small and insignificant, but yet, it made my wolf whimper.
My stomach twisted painfully at the feeling.
My mate standing beside a gorgeous woman.
For years, everyone had assumed Serena and Zayden would end up together.
Looking at them standing side by side, it wasn’t difficult to understand why.
They looked perfect together, like they belonged in the same picture.
Fate should have chosen her instead of me.
Something flashed across Serena’s face as she looked at me.
It was victory… pure, undeniable victory.
Then it disappeared behind concern.
“Something must be wrong,” she said softly.
Several wolves immediately nodded.
“The bond can’t be right.”
“There’s no way.”
“It has to be a mistake.”
The whispers spread like wildfire.
My chest tightened in pain.
Everyone was judging the decision of fate simply because of how I looked… different from the others.
I wanted to disappear, or run, or better still, lock myself inside my room and never come out again.
Unfortunately, my humiliation wasn’t finished.
“The Moon Goddess does not make mistakes.”
Elder Rowan’s voice echoed across the hall.
The entire hall fell silent as nobody dared argue with an elder directly, or openly at least.
But I could still see the doubt, disbelief, and disappointment in their eyes.
The entire pack looked disappointed, and I knew it was not because fate had chosen the wrong Alpha but because fate had chosen me.
My throat tightened as I glanced at Zayden.
For one foolish second, I hoped he would say something… anything.
I hoped he would tell them to stop, defend me, or claim me, but instead, he remained silent.
The disappointment that washed through me was so sharp that I nearly gasped.
His silence spoke louder than any rejection ever could because Serena’s cruelty didn’t surprise me.
The pack’s laughter didn’t surprise me, and even the whispers didn’t surprise me, but my mate standing there while everyone mocked me… that hurt more than I thought possible.
The bond pulsed painfully inside my chest.
It was as though my wolf was trying to understand what was happening.
Trying to understand why our mate looked at us as though we were a punishment.
Then something unexpected happened.
Zayden took a step forward, and the entire hall went still.
His silver eyes swept across the crowd.
Everything about it was cold, dangerous, and powerful.
Every whisper died instantly as nobody wanted to become the target of an Alpha’s anger…..not even Serena.
For several long moments, nobody spoke.
Then Zayden finally looked at Elder Rowan.
“The ceremony is over,” he said coldly.
Confusion immediately spread through the room.
The elder frowned.
“Alpha—” he started, but Zayden wasn’t having it.
“The ceremony is over,” he said in his Alpha voice.
His tone left no room for argument.
Murmurs erupted throughout the hall.
Several unmated wolves looked annoyed, others looked confused, but everyone looked shocked, including me, because that wasn’t what I had expected.
I had expected rejection, humiliation, or maybe even laughter, but not this… not whatever this was.
Without another word, Zayden turned around and walked away, just like that.
The crowd immediately parted for him as his warriors followed, and within seconds, he was gone.
The silence he left behind felt deafening.
“What just happened?” someone whispered.
I wished I knew.
My heart still hadn’t stopped racing, and my emotions were a tangled mess.
I was feeling everything at once: humiliation, confusion, pain, and hope.
The last one made me angry because hope was dangerous.
Hope was what had gotten me here in the first place.
“Isla.”
I heard my name from behind me.
Maya appeared beside me instantly.
Concern filled her eyes.
“Let’s go home,” she said softly as if she was scared of my reaction.
I nodded. For once, I didn’t argue.
I was exhausted… mentally, physically, emotionally… just exhausted.
The evening that was supposed to change my life had done exactly that, but not in the way I imagined.
The walk home was quiet. Maya tried talking and joking a few times, but I barely heard her.
My thoughts remained trapped inside the Moon Hall. Inside that moment and Zayden’s expression.
The horror, the disbelief and the disgust.
By the time I reached my small cottage on the edge of the pack grounds, I felt completely drained.
“I’ll stay with you tonight,” Maya said.
I shook my head.
“You don’t have to.” I argued.
“I’m not asking.”
Her response made a weak smile appear on my lips.
That was Maya. She was stubborn but loyal and annoyingly impossible to argue with.
After making sure I was inside safely, she finally left.
The moment the door closed behind her, the silence became overwhelming.
I leaned against the wood and slowly slid to the floor.
The tears I had spent hours holding back finally escaped.
They came one after another until I sobbed.
I cried harder than I wanted to admit.
I cried for my shattered hopes and for the humiliation.
I cried for the mate who looked at me like I was his worst nightmare.
Eventually, exhaustion won.
I wiped my face and forced myself upstairs to sleep.
Sleep was all I wanted at the moment.
Sleep and maybe a few hours where none of this existed.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
I had barely changed into my nightclothes when a strange sensation spread through my chest.
I froze in my tracks.
The mate bond… something was happening.
My pulse quickened as the feeling intensified.
It was warm, insistent, and unavoidable.
My wolf stirred restlessly.
Something was wrong or maybe not wrong.
Maybe someone was pulling on the bond.
My heart started pounding.
No, surely not.
There was no reason for him to—
A sharp knock interrupted my thoughts, and I froze completely.
The sound of someone knocking echoed through the house.
It was three slow knocks, but it made my stomach drop.
Nobody visited me this late, and especially not unannounced.
Another knock followed, then another.
The bond pulsed again, stronger this time.
My breathing became uneven with disbelief and anticipation.
No. No way.
I slowly made my way downstairs as the knocking stopped.
The entire house fell silent as every instinct screamed at me to ignore it and pretend nobody was there.
Instead, I found myself moving toward the door, one step at a time.
The bond grew stronger with every second.
My hands trembled, and my pulse raced until I reached the door, then I stopped.
I was consumed with fear, hope, and confusion, but mostly fear.
Who was I kidding?
I already knew.
My hand wrapped around the doorknob, and I took a deep breath before pulling the door open.
I immediately forgot how to breathe because Alpha Zayden Ashcroft stood on my doorstep… alone.
His dark hair was slightly disheveled, and his silver eyes were locked onto mine.
For several long seconds, neither of us spoke.
The bond between us surged violently. It was powerful and impossible to ignore.
The same confusion I had seen in the hall remained on his face.
Only now, there was something else mixed with it.
Something far more dangerous.
Something that made my heart begin to race because for the first time that night…
Alpha Zayden Ashcroft wasn’t looking at me with disgust, but what I saw in his eyes was far more terrifying…
Desire.
He was looking at me with desire.
- Writer
