Birth And Death
1115 Words
When I came to, water dripped down my face and soaked my clothes. I was slumped on a sofa, shivering and my hair clinging to my cheeks.
Kian stood nearby, only in pants, his eyes unreadable. Beside him, Sara, half-dressed, glared at me like I was nothing but a mess she had stumbled upon.
“Thank goodness you’re alive,” Sara said, her voice sharp. “What would people say if she’d been found dead… in your house?” She jabbed the words at Kian.
“What exactly are you doing here?” Kian barked, his tone cutting through me. “Still stalking me?”
“I… I’m not stalking you…” I tried to speak, but the memory of Kian and Sara together, naked and having s*x on his bed, slammed into me, leaving me frozen.
“What the hell are you doing in my house? Barging into my room? What do you want?” His voice thundered, and my stomach twisted.
I tried to compose myself, to answer, but Sara cut in.
“Look at how filthy you are! Gosh, do you even bathe?”
I glanced down and saw it; mud and soil from the forest smeared across my uniform, my hair and my arms.
“And you stink!” Kian snapped, stepping back, his nostrils flaring. “Please leave! Don’t ever come here again, or I’ll have my father deal with yours.”
The thought of my father facing his father's wrath made me freeze, but then, desperation overtook fear.
“I’m pregnant!” I blurted and sat up, my voice trembling. “I’m pregnant with your child! That’s why I came here…to tell you!”
Kian froze, surprise flickering in his eyes. Something softened… for a heartbeat.
Then Sara laughed, cruel and sharp. “My god! She’ll stop at nothing to make you claim her, Kian. She’s so pathetic!”
“You’re lying, right?” Kian’s voice was hard again, almost dangerous.
“I… I’m not,” I stuttered, voice cracking. “You can have me examined by your doctor. I can’t lie about something like this.”
“Liar!” Sara shouted, leaning closer to him. “Don’t believe her!”
Kian’s eyes darkened, and before I could even think, he grabbed me by the collar and pulled me out of the sofa.
“Get out!” His voice was final and cold. “You and your lies. I don’t want you or your pregnancy here… or… anywhere near me.”
I stumbled to my feet, my chest heaving, my hope crumbling into shame. The room spun around me, the weight of rejection heavier than ever.
Kian shoved me out of his house, his rejection striking harder than any blow; me and the child growing inside me, discarded like I was a rag.
My wolf stirred, growling in pain and heartbreak, and before I knew it, she took over, fierce and wild, dragging me forward.
We ran with no path and direction in view, but with one voice echoing in my head: I curse you Kian! I hate you! It’s over! I reject you too!
The world blurred around me, the wind tearing at my hair and my chest burning. My legs trembled, yet the wolf pushed me on.
Finally, I found myself at the riverbank, my strength spent and my body failing me. I sank to the ground, utterly weak, hurt, and broken, the weight of my heartache heavier than the world itself.
***
I don’t know how long I’ve been unconscious. When I wake, a strange but familiar scent fills the air, prickling my senses.
A woman appears before me. She's not a wolf, but there’s something about her, an otherworldly presence that makes the room feel alive. I try to rise, but my body refuses to obey.
“Who… who are you? How long have I been here?” I ask her, my voice, barely a whisper.
“My name is Rhoda,” she says, calm and steady. “A sorcerer, though some call me a healer or seer. I live far from your pack and you are in my home. You’ve been unconscious… about two months.”
Two months. The words make my head spin. I try again to rise, but my limbs betray me.
“You’re weak,” she continues, reading the panic in my mind. “And this pregnancy… it’s taken a toll on you already. Your parents searched for you. They think you’re dead. The whole pack believes you are dead.”
I let her words sink in, the thought curdling in my chest. “Good for them,” I mutter, my voice hoarse. “Because I have no interest in returning.”
Rhoda studies me for a moment, then softens. “I will help you stay strong enough to deliver this child. But you’ll need your willpower. This… this isn’t something I can do alone.”
I stare at her, my body trembling and my chest tight. I want to argue, to deny, to run away but I’m too weak. And deep down, I know she’s right.
My pregnancy months passed in a blur of sleep and waking. Rhoda was always there whenever my eyes opened, a steady presence in a world that felt half‑gone.
Then one day, the pain started. Labor hit like a wave and I could barely breathe. Each contraction folded me over until my whole body shook.
“It’s a boy! An Alpha!” Rhoda called out, her voice close and urgent. “Cecilia, push! Push harder!”
I pushed with everything left in me, fingers clawing at the sheets, the world narrowing to one bright, terrible point. Then a small, furious cry cut through the air; a real and alive sound.
I tried to look, to see him, but I couldn't move again, my strength was leaving me. Rhoda’s hand was warm on my shoulder. “You did so well, Cecilia. Your baby is here.”
Her voice softened, then grew firm. “But, you need a reward.” Clutching the child wrapped in a bundle in one hand, she took my palm with the other. “Before you go, make one wish. One last wish.”
I blinked, the room rocking. My breath came in shallow, ragged gasps, but something in me coalesced; anger, love, and hate.
“I want to be an Alpha in my next life,” I whispered, my voice barely steady. “And when I return, I will kill Kian.”
Those were my last words. And the last sound I hear is the cry of my baby, Kian’s child, before darkness closed in around me like a curtain.
- Writer
