His Mark, My Curse

Chapter Two

Aria’s POV

The room did not stay quiet for long.

At first, it was just whispers.

Then those whispers grew into voices.

Everyone had seen it.

There was no hiding what had just happened.

“A mate bond,” someone said from behind me.

“That’s impossible,” another voice replied.

“But it just happened.”

The words blurred together, but the meaning was clear.

Every eye in the room was on us.

On me.

I felt it in the way they looked at me.

Not surprise.

Not curiosity.

Something else.

Something heavier.

Like I had just ruined something important.

Caleb had not moved.

His hand was still around mine.

His grip was firm, almost like he had forgotten where he was.

Or maybe he had not forgotten.

Maybe he just did not care.

“Caleb.”

Her voice cut through the noise.

Sharp this time.

Not soft like before.

I turned my head slightly.

She was still standing where he had left her.

But she did not look calm anymore.

There was tension in her posture now.

Her eyes moved between us, lingering on our joined hands.

“Let go of her,” she said.

The room fell quiet again.

Waiting.

Watching.

I held my breath without realizing it.

For a second, I thought he would listen.

That he would release my hand and step back like nothing had happened.

That he would fix this.

Because that was what Alphas did.

They controlled situations.

They did not let them spiral.

But Caleb did not move.

If anything, his grip tightened slightly.

My heart dropped.

This is not happening.

“Caleb,” she said again, slower this time. “Everyone is watching.”

That seemed to reach him.

Not her voice.

Not the tension.

But the words.

Everyone is watching.

His expression shifted.

Slowly, his hand loosened.

For a brief moment, our fingers brushed again before he finally let go.

The absence of his touch hit harder than I expected.

The bond did not disappear.

It was still there.

Still pulling.

Still present.

I took a step back immediately.

Then another.

Creating distance felt like the only thing I could control right now.

Caleb straightened.

The change in him was immediate.

The Alpha was back.

Cold.

Controlled.

Untouchable.

When he spoke, his voice carried across the room again.

“This changes nothing.”

The words landed like a stone.

I stared at him.

For a second, I thought I had misheard.

But the look on his face told me I had not.

“This bond,” he continued, his gaze moving away from me as if I no longer mattered, “was not expected. It will be handled.”

Handled.

Like it was a problem.

Like I was a mistake.

A few people nodded.

Relief passed through the room.

Not because the situation was better.

But because he had taken control of it.

That was all they needed.

I felt something tighten in my chest.

Not the bond.

Something else.

Something sharper.

“You can’t be serious,” I said before I could stop myself.

The words came out quiet, but they carried.

Caleb’s eyes returned to mine.

There was a warning in them.

I ignored it.

“You don’t just ‘handle’ something like this,” I continued. “You don’t pretend it didn’t happen.”

A murmur spread through the room again.

No one spoke to him like this.

No one challenged him.

But I was not thinking about that.

I was thinking about the way he had looked at me just minutes ago.

The way his grip had tightened.

Like I mattered.

And now this.

Like I was nothing.

His jaw tightened.

“Enough,” he said.

Just one word.

But it was final.

The air shifted again.

Heavy.

Commanding.

It pressed down on me, forcing silence.

Forcing obedience.

Alpha command.

I felt it.

The instinct to stop speaking.

To step back.

To lower my gaze.

But I did not.

It took everything in me, but I stayed where I was.

I held his gaze.

For a second, something flickered in his eyes again.

Frustration.

Maybe even anger.

Not at me.

At the situation.

At himself.

I did not know.

“Aria will remain in Mooncrest until this is resolved,” he said.

The decision was made just like that.

Without asking me.

Without even looking at me again.

My stomach dropped.

“No,” I said immediately.

This time, louder.

Clearer.

“I’m leaving.”

Every head turned toward me again.

The room went still.

Caleb looked at me slowly.

“You’re not,” he replied.

It was not loud.

It did not need to be.

It was absolute.

“I am not part of this pack anymore,” I said. “You don’t get to decide what I do.”

For a second, I thought I saw something dangerous settle in his expression.

Something that had nothing to do with the Alpha in front of everyone.

Something more personal.

“You’re bound to me now,” he said.

The words were quiet.

But they cut deeper than anything else he had said.

“And until I say otherwise,” he continued, “you don’t leave.”

The room was silent again.

No one questioned him.

No one disagreed.

Because this was normal to them.

Alpha speaks.

Everyone listens.

My hands clenched at my sides.

“This is not your choice to make,” I said.

“It is,” he replied.

Our eyes locked again.

This time, there was no confusion.

No uncertainty.

Just tension.

Sharp.

Unforgiving.

For a moment, I thought about arguing again.

About pushing back harder.

But something stopped me.

Not fear.

Something else.

The bond.

It pulsed again, low and steady.

A reminder.

A warning.

Or maybe both.

I looked away first this time.

Not because I had lost.

But because I needed space to think.

To breathe.

To understand what had just happened.

“I’ll leave in the morning,” I said quietly.

It was the only compromise I was willing to give.

I did not wait for his response.

I turned and walked away.

This time, no one stopped me.

No one spoke.

But I could feel it.

The stares.

The whispers waiting to happen the moment I was out of earshot.

I kept walking until I was outside.

The cool air hit my face, but it did nothing to calm the storm inside me.

I pressed my hand lightly against my chest again.

The bond was still there.

Unchanged.

Unbroken.

This is a mistake.

It has to be.

I took a slow breath, trying to steady myself.

Then I heard footsteps behind me.

I did not need to turn to know who it was.

They stopped just a few steps away.

Close enough for me to feel it again.

That pull.

Stronger now.

More intense.

“Leaving won’t break it,” Caleb said.

His voice was lower now.

Not for the room.

Just for me.

I turned slowly.

He was closer than I expected.

His expression was different again.

Less controlled.

More… focused.

“You don’t get to follow me out here,” I said.

He ignored that.

His gaze dropped briefly to where my hand rested against my chest.

Then back to my eyes.

“You feel it,” he said.

It was not a question.

I said nothing.

Because there was no point denying it.

He took one step closer.

The distance between us disappeared again.

“You’re not leaving,” he said.

Softer this time.

But more dangerous.

I shook my head.

“I’m not staying.”

For a moment, neither of us moved.

Then his hand lifted.

Slow.

Deliberate.

Like he was giving me time to stop him.

I did not.

His fingers brushed lightly against my wrist.

The reaction was instant.

Stronger than before.

The bond surged.

My breath caught.

My body tensed.

This is too much.

I tried to pull back.

But his grip tightened.

Not rough.

Just enough.

“Stop,” I said under my breath.

He did not.

Instead, he stepped even closer.

Close enough that I could feel the warmth of him.

Close enough that it made everything worse.

“You still think this is something you can walk away from,” he said quietly.

There was something in his voice now.

Not cold.

Not distant.

Something deeper.

Something that made my chest tighten in a completely different way.

I forced myself to meet his eyes.

“I know I can,” I said.

For a second, he just looked at me.

Really looked.

Like he was trying to see something.

Or remember something.

Then his expression changed.

Just slightly.

Enough for me to notice.

“Then try,” he said.

And slowly

His grip loosened.

For a moment, I thought he was letting me go.

I stepped back.

One step.

Then another.

Waiting for the pull to snap.

For the bond to fade.

For something to change.

Nothing did.

If anyth

ing

It pulled tighter.

Stronger.

Like it was reacting to the distance.

My breath grew uneven.

This is not right.

I took another step back.

Then another.

The pressure increased.

Sharp.

Unbearable.

I gasped softly, my hand flying back to my chest.

Behind me, I heard him move.

Faster this time.

“Aria.”

I barely heard it.

Because the next step I took

Made everything worse.

The bond snapped hard.

Like it was refusing to stretch any further.

Pain shot through my chest.

I stumbled.

And before I could steady myself

Everything went black.