Bite of Rejection

Episode 3

~ Athena’s POV

Fridolf was furious with me. His eyes blazed with anger, and before I could even process what was happening, his powerful Alpha aura washed over me like a tidal wave. My knees buckled beneath me, and I collapsed in front of everyone. The humiliation was suffocating.

The crowd that had once respected me turned into a sea of mocking faces. Fingers pointed, cruel laughter echoed in the air, and insults were hurled at me like stones. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. After everything I’d done for them, after I had helped them with my healing, this was how they repaid me?

Alpha Fridolf stepped closer, his towering presence even more intimidating now that I was on my knees. His voice dripped with contempt as he sneered at me.

"Shameless," he spat, the word slicing through the air. "You think your healing abilities are enough to earn my acceptance? Your parents are responsible for the illness spreading in my pack, and you are no better than them!"

I felt like I had been struck. How could he say that? My parents… yes, they made mistakes, but I had tried my whole life to make up for it. I had hoped that Alpha Fridolf would see me for who I was, not as the daughter of two outcasts.

"Your 'healing' doesn’t change anything," Fridolf continued, his words heavy with bitterness. "I, Fridolf Grayson, Alpha of the Snowwhite Pack, reject you, Athena Wood, as my mate!"

The rejection hit me like a blow to the chest, sharp and final. Tears welled up in my eyes, and before I could stop them, they spilled over. I watched through blurred vision as he turned and stormed off, not even bothering to glance back at me. He left me there, on my knees, my heart shattered in front of the entire pack.

For a moment, I sat there in disbelief, the weight of his rejection pressing down on me so hard it was difficult to breathe. I had dared to hope, just for a moment, that my life might change for the better. I had thanked the Moon Goddess for making me the Alpha's mate. How foolish was I? How could I have ever thought that a man like Alpha Fridolf would accept me, a lowly omega, despised by the pack and seen as nothing more than a slave?

My legs trembled from a combination of humiliation, anger, and sadness. I wanted to disappear, to fade into the ground beneath me. But just when I thought I couldn’t take it anymore, I heard a familiar voice.

"Let’s get out of here," Relia said, her voice firm yet gentle.

Without a word, she pulled me to my feet and practically dragged me back to her home. The moment we walked through the door, the floodgates opened. I collapsed onto her bed, sobbing uncontrollably. It felt like my entire world had fallen apart.

Relia sat next to me, her face dark with fury. "I can’t believe that jerk! And those people, after everything you’ve done for them, they turn on you like that? It’s disgusting!"

She was always protective of me, but I could see the rage burning in her eyes now. Her words were comforting, but they didn’t take away the sting of Fridolf’s rejection. I curled up under the covers, shutting her out. I cried silently, tears soaking into the pillow. I cursed the Moon Goddess for what felt like the hundredth time, angry and heartbroken.

Relia eventually left the room, giving me space. The silence that followed was suffocating, pressing down on me until I felt like I might explode. Anger began bubbling up inside me, hot and fierce.

“How could Fridolf do this to me? How could they all turn their backs on me like that?”

With a sharp cry of frustration, I threw a pillow across the room. It hit the wall with a soft thud, but that wasn’t enough. I grabbed a picture frame and hurled it at the floor, watching with some satisfaction as the glass shattered. But that satisfaction was short-lived. All I felt was more emptiness.

My eyes fell on a tray sitting on the table, left there by Relia earlier. The thought of ending everything flashed through my mind. The weight of my despair was unbearable. I reached for the knife on the tray, its cold blade sending a chill through my skin. This was it, I thought. It would all be over soon.

Just as I was about to press the blade to my skin, the door burst open. Relia rushed in, her face pale with fear.

"No, Athena!" she screamed, running over and grabbing the knife from my hand. We struggled, but her grip was stronger than mine, and she wrestled it away. Tears streamed down both our faces as she pulled me into a tight hug, refusing to let go.

"I’m not letting you do this," she whispered fiercely. "I’m not losing you."

I broke down, sobbing into her shoulder. All the pain, all the rejection, everything I had been holding in came pouring out again. Relia held me tightly, her presence grounding me when I felt like I was falling apart.

After what felt like an eternity, Relia pulled back, wiping her tears. Her face was determined, her eyes burning with an idea.

"We need to get out of here," she said, her voice steady now. "We need to leave this place behind, Athena. You deserve better than this. Let’s run away."

I stared at her, not sure if I had heard her right. "Run away? Are you serious?"

"Yes," she replied, her voice firm. "This place is toxic. You don’t need them. We can start fresh somewhere else. Somewhere we can be free."

"But… your parents…" I trailed off, unsure if she had thought this through.

"We’ll leave them a note," Relia said with a shrug. "They’ll understand. And besides, they don’t want me trapped here either. They know how bad it’s gotten."