Pregnant by The Fake Mate

05- Madson P.O.V

I woke up in my room, feeling the warm and fluffy bed fabric. I looked around, everything seemed to be in place. I grabbed my phone to check the time, but there were already six notifications from Vic covering the digital clock on the device. "Oh my God, Vic!" I grumbled. I barely had time to open her message when Lizzie burst into my room, slamming the door. The small, cheerful girl practically bounced with happiness.

"Yes?" I said, already in a bad mood.

"You won't believe this!" she exclaimed, jumping onto the bed.

"Here we go," I muttered, covering my face with the blanket.

"Stop that, Madson!" she pulled the blanket away.

"Alright, tell me!" I replied, now in an irritated tone. "Please."

Lizzie raised her eyebrows, took a deep breath, and completely ignored my bad mood, behaving like a stubborn child. "The Alpha is going to honor Dad for his years of service as a consultant to the pack," she said excitedly.

"That's wonderful. I'll buy a nice tie for Uncle Half for that," I replied, grabbing the blanket back.

Lizzie didn't let go of my blanket as I expected, so I decided to give up trying to pull it away before it turned into a mess of torn fabric and tangles of thread.

"Anything else, cousin?" I asked, batting my eyelashes in a mocking tone.

She rolled her eyes, let go of the blanket, and got up with the same enthusiasm as before. "There's going to be a dinner in honor of Dad tonight."

"Alright, tell me how it went afterward," I said, snuggling into the warm bed.

"It's for the whole family to attend, Madson," she crossed her arms.

"Why?" I asked, sitting up in surprise. It made no sense to include me in any kind of event; I was literally a black sheep in the pack's history. A constant reminder of what happened when werewolves took their offspring away from "civilization and race." I was worse than the rejected ones because the banished ones were ignored, but I couldn't be banished due to my parents' mistake. I couldn't be ignored under the watchful eyes of everyone around. I would always be a constant reminder within our society, a wolf too defective to fix. Downgraded by lycan society, yet still a living member of the pack.

"It's the Alpha's orders; all family members must attend the honoring dinner," she informed me from outside the room.

"But if I don't go..." I argued.

"Please, Madson, Uncle Half doesn't deserve this humiliation," she countered, sadness in her voice. "Especially after what your parents did."

"What my parents did?" I exclaimed, anger rising. Growling.

"You understood, Madson," she replied. "You may not like it, but my father's life was a living hell when yours decided to leave."

"Wow, now my dead father is to blame for all of this?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

Lizzie recoiled, realizing she had gone too far. "I didn't say that... I just meant that..."

"I understood perfectly what you meant, Lizzie. My family embarrassed yours," I responded, sharply.

"I'll make sure they don't go through this humiliation a second time. Have a great day," I said, slamming the door in her face.

There was a long moment of silence on the other side before Lizzie's deep breath gave way to hard footsteps down the stairs. Only then did I run to the bathroom, turn on the shower, and cried out of anger.

"Never let them see you weaken," my she-wolf whispered, comforting me. "Never in front of others."

"I know, Luna... I know," I replied to my wolf, huddling in front of the mirror. I swallowed hard, taking deep breaths several times before looking at myself in the mirror, knowing that this day had barely begun and was already going to be long.

"I hate all of this," I muttered.

"I know, I know," she replied, comforting me.

It was already past 7:30 PM when I started getting ready; the noise downstairs was audible even to a human. Everyone there was eager to have dinner with the Alpha, so it was no surprise when I received an elegant dress for the occasion. I wanted to wear jeans and an old t-shirt out of defiance, but deep down, I knew that Uncle Half didn't deserve this humiliation. Despite how everyone saw me, Uncle Half was the only one who had never treated me like a burden to the pack. And I knew I should repay him in some way, show him how grateful I was for everything he did for me.

"Damn it, I'll have to wear heels," I said as I opened the dress inside the bag. My cousin Raquel had chosen the dress using Lizzie's taste as a parameter, and the only thing about it that suited my taste was the black color. The dress had spaghetti straps, was short, and in a body-hugging style that made slim women look stunning. But not someone like me, someone who was neither slim nor overweight. I didn't quite fit into either of those categories; I had too much hip and butt to be slim and too much waist to be fat. The kind of body that some found attractive, but not me... the owner of it.

I took a deep breath, ready to throw the fabric and give up on participating altogether, but deep down, I knew that Uncle Half would be disappointed if I abandoned him now. I bit my lip, took a deep breath, and put on the damn tight dress.

I looked at myself in the mirror, slightly surprised at how the dress looked on me. The damn dress hugged the right places on my stomach and accentuated my hips in a beautiful way. Even my small chest looked accentuated in the dress.

"Wow, they know how to make a dress," I said, twirling and looking at the back of the dress. I tossed my hair back, watching the red-tinted strands ripple down to my waist. The curling iron had done an impeccable job with my hair, but in the end, it was the straightener that tamed the frizz in my bangs as I wanted.

I gave my makeup one final check, making sure one eye's shadow wasn't more intense than the other, applied a nude lipstick to my lips, and a light blush on my cheekbones to enhance my freckles. Finally, I went to get the only pair of heels I had in my wardrobe, a nearly pristine black platform that had never been worn.

I felt beautiful and empowered in front of the mirror, but then insecurity hit me, and I went back to the wardrobe to get my leather jacket, something to cover the little skin exposed on top since my legs wouldn't have the same luck without pantyhose, which I didn't have.

I looked at myself in the mirror once again, giving it a final glance before heading downstairs, ready for the unknown dinner. I rolled my eyes when I entered the living room, clearly seeing the picture-perfect family image. Lizzie wore a light blue dress in the same shade as her father's tie and her mother's dress, except for a darker detail on my Aunt Raquel's outfit. Even though I didn't want to admit it, I clearly understood the purpose of the chosen color. I was literally the "black sheep" of that family, and she had made that very clear.

"You look beautiful, Madson," my uncle said, coming to hug me.

"Thank you, uncle," I replied, pleased.

"Congratulations! You deserve all this recognition from the pack," said sentimentally as he let me go.

"Thank you, Madson," my aunt added, her tone also sentimental as she released me. "You could have been recognized earlier, of course... if it weren't for..." She whispered.

"Enough!" my uncle interrupted abruptly, glaring at his wife. "Enough, Raquel! Don't let this happen again in this house."

"I'm sorry, dear," she replied, looking at me out of the corner of her eye.

Lizzie remained silent, staring at the floor, and eventually, we headed for the door, the palpable silence hanging in the air.

"So, where's the dinner going to be?" I asked, trying to make conversation and avoid that awkward situation until we got to the car.

"At the Alpha's house," Lizzie replied, sounding disheartened. "Darn it," I thought. "Crap! Crap! Crap!"