Rise of the rejected mate

Chapter 2

ARIA

The forest swallowed me.

Barefoot, trembling, and still wrapped in that too-thin blanket, I didn’t stop walking.

Branches lashed against my skin, roots rose from the ground to catch my steps, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.

Each step was a desperate attempt to escape his voice echoing in my head.

“I reject you.”

“Weak.”

“Barely useful.”

I clenched my jaw.

The air was cold, biting at my damp skin, but the fire in my chest burned hotter.

His words weren’t just spoken—they were branded into me. And what made it worse wasn’t the rejection.

It was the silence.

No one said a word. Not the Alpha. Not the elders. Not even Callie.

They had watched—watched—as he shattered me like I was nothing.

The pack had never been kind. But tonight, they were cruel.

By the time the trees opened up and the scent of ash and ruin filled my nose, I realized where I was. The old training grounds.

The place where my parents died.

Charred remnants of the combat circle lay scattered, overgrown with moss. Stone walls cracked and blackened by fire still stood defiantly.

I sank to my knees by one of the walls, the cold stone biting into my skin. My arms wrapped tightly around myself, but it wasn’t enough. Nothing would be.

Then the dam broke.

Sobs tore from my throat, harsh and uncontrollable. I didn’t bother muffling them. There was no one around to hear me. No one who would care.

My wolf whimpered inside me, a broken echo of my own grief. She felt it too. The bond hadn’t just been severed—it had been ripped from us.

A spiritual tether, torn by the very one who was supposed to protect us.

It hurt. Goddess, it hurt.

We cried until there were no tears left. Until our throat was raw, our soul frayed at the edges.

Then came silence.

I stared up at the stars through the trees, their cold light mocking me. But beneath all that grief… i felt something else. Not sadness. Not despair.

Anger.

How dare he reject me like that? Like I was beneath him. As if the Moon Goddess made some kind of cosmic error.

She didn’t. She couldn’t.

The Goddess never made mistakes.

And if she paired me with Damon Blackwood, it wasn’t a fluke. It was fate. He just didn’t like what fate looked like.

Fine.

Let him choke on his arrogance.

The sky had begun to lighten when I returned to the pack house.

I mean I had to eventually. This was my home. This was the only home I've known. I had no where else to go.

My body ached with every step. My feet were cut and dirty, my skin scraped from thorns, my hair wild and tangled. Still, I held my head high.

Whispers buzzed like flies around me.

“She’s the one, right? The Omega?”

A girl near the steps leaned in, eyes wide with disbelief, as if seeing a ghost. Her friend nodded, whispering behind a cupped hand like the words might burn.

“Can you believe the Goddess picked her for him?”

Someone scoffed from the side, lips curling in distaste.

As Aria walked more heads turned to stare.

“Must’ve been a fluke," An older wolf muttered under his breath, shaking his head as if the idea alone was offensive.

A few others mumbled in agreement, their eyes tracking Aria like she was a walking scandal.

I didn’t stop. Didn’t flinch. My spine remained straight, my expression blank.

Let them stare. Let them talk.

I would have to admit, though—their words hurt.

But I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing me cry.

I kept my chin high, my steps steady.

I didn’t do anything wrong.

That was the chant in my head, over and over, like a shield against the shame they wanted me to wear.

I was nearly to the stairs when a soft hand caught my arm. Elder Maren, the pack healer.

Her white hair was braided down her back, and concern clouded her usually unreadable face.

“You need rest,” she said, voice gentle but firm. “And food. Come, Aria.”

“I’m fine,” I said automatically, my voice hoarse.

She looked at me long and hard, her pale green eyes sharp. “No, you’re not. But I know you won’t let anyone see that.”

From the folds of her robe, she withdrew a small vial filled with faintly glowing liquid. “For the soul ache. It won’t heal it. But it will dull the edge.”

I stared at the vial.

Did I want to dull the pain?

I took the vial. “Thank you.”

Maren squeezed my hand once before letting me go.

I turned toward the Omega quarters, footsteps heavy. But then I heard it—raised voices coming from the Alpha’s office upstairs. The thick wooden door was cracked open just enough for sound to spill out.

I froze.

“—you can’t just reject the Moon Goddess’s will!” Aria heard Alpha Rowan’s voice clearly through the cracked door.

“She made a mistake,” Damon snapped.

My breath caught.

Silence followed his words.

Then Alpha Rowan’s voice dropped, quieter but no less intense. “Be careful, son. Rejecting a mate has consequences. You might not feel them now—but you will. I know and i understand that you don't want her as your mate and to be honest no one in their right mind would. But the bond isn’t just sacred—it’s anchored in the Goddess’s will son.”

“She’s an Omega,” Damon hissed. “A mutt. What kind of Luna would she make?”

“One the Goddess chose,” Alpha Rowan said. “She sees things we don’t.”

“She’s weak,” Damon insisted. “I need someone who can stand beside me. Someone worthy of my future. Not someone I have to carry.”

Alpha Rowan took a deep sign, running a hand through his hair.

“She’s not good enough,” Damon continued. “I have someone better. Stronger. Someone worthy of Luna.”

"I don't need her. All she will bring to this pack is embarrassment and disgrace," Damon said.

"I wish she had died along with her miserable parents. Then I wouldn't have to go through all this," Damon spat through gritted teeth.

There it was.

The final blow.

A sharp gasp tore from my lips as I slapped both hands over my mouth.

I knew he didn’t like me—he never had. But to hear him disrespect the memory of my parents… to hear him wish I had died with them...

That was something I never imagined he’d be capable of.

Tears welled in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.

Then I saw it.

Through the narrow crack in the doorway, I caught a glimpse of Alpha Rowan.

And he was nodding. Slowly and Silently in agreement.

He wasn’t angry. Not horrified. Not even surprised.

He agreed.

For a moment—just a moment—I’d believed he might be on my side. That maybe, just maybe, he stood against what his son had done. That he disapproved of the rejection.

But now I saw the truth.

He wasn’t worried about the pain Damon had caused me. He was worried about the consequences of it.

He didn’t care about me.

What was I even thinking?

I didn’t cry this time. Didn’t tremble. Didn’t feel that burning twist in my gut.

I just turned away and walked.

I didn’t look back. There was no point. What was I going to look at? The place where I’d spent my whole life pretending I belonged? The people who never really saw me, not even once?

I passed the Omega quarters without slowing down. I could feel eyes on me. They just watched, whispering to one another like I couldn’t hear them. Like I didn’t know exactly what they were saying.

I kept walking, my head up, even though my body was sore and heavy. Every step felt like I was dragging my whole life behind me, but I didn’t have a destination in mind. I just knew I couldn’t stay there.

I passed the runes carved into the stones at the edge of the pack lands. Old marks meant to protect us from the outside world. Marks I had grown up believing would keep me safe.

But they didn’t stop what happened last night. They didn’t stop the hurt, the silence, or the rejection.

I didn’t stop to grab anything. Not clothes. Not food. Not even shoes. I had nothing valuable. No money. No supplies. Not even a bag. But honestly, there was nothing I owned that I wanted to take with me.

Everything important was already gone.

My parents had died years ago. The only people who ever truly cared about me. After they were gone, it was just me and this pack. And now, not even that.

Damon made sure of that.

He didn’t just reject me—he did it in front of everyone. And no one stood up for me. Not the Alpha. Not the elders. Not even my closest friend. That kind of silence speaks louder than words. I got the message.

There was no place for me here.

No mate. No title. No family. No future.

I didn’t belong. And maybe I never really had. I was just trying to convince myself otherwise all these years.

So I walked.

I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t know where I was going. I didn’t know what I was going to do tomorrow, or even tonight. All I knew was that I had to leave.

Staying would only break me more.

I didn’t know what I’d find out here. I didn’t expect much. But whatever it was, it had to be better than what I left behind. At least out here, the pain made sense. Out here, no one promised to love you and then changed their mind.

Out here, I could be free—even if it was just a little bit.

I didn’t know how far I’d walk before I stopped. I didn’t know where I’d sleep, or if I’d even make it through the night. But for the first time in a long time, I felt like I had a choice.

I could go anywhere. Be anything.

I wasn’t someone’s rejected mate anymore. I wasn’t the Omega who was always last. I was just Aria.

And maybe, just maybe, that was enough.

So I kept walking.

Away from Mooncrest. Away from the cold stares. Away from the empty promises and betrayals.

I didn’t know what was ahead. But whatever it was, it couldn’t be worse than what I was leaving behind.

And that was good enough for me.