Kneel Ex: I Am The Lycan King's Reborn Luna

Aria’s Pov Today didn’t start off on the right track as the café shop I work part time at suddenly shut down without heads-up, leaving me feeling miserable. Except the feeling didn’t last the entire day and the rest of today might end up well, and possibly be my happiest. After receiving a tip-off from my best friend, Olivia, who works at a jewelry store that my mate had dropped off at her workplace to shop for a ring, my happiness knew no bounds. Because finally, Derek was going to propose to me. My dream of spending a lifetime with him was going to come true. It felt so surreal. But this… this wouldn’t be one of my daydreams. In a matter of minutes, it was going to become reality. “I’m at his place now, Olivia. I’m going to let you know how it goes when I—” I pushed his apartment door open only for the phone to tremble in my hand, my words coming to an abrupt stop as I was met with the sight of Derek sitting intimatingly close to another woman. There was a grin on his face, bright and excited in a way I hadn’t seen in so long as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. “Oh my goodness, a ring?” The woman gasped, her hands flying to her mouth in disbelief. I didn’t realize when I flinched, my body recoiling from where I stood. My face went pale as my gaze flicked between them, unsure how to feel. The woman was unfamiliar. She could just be someone he’d called over to flaunt the ring before I arrived. Nothing more. That was what I tried to convince myself. But even to me, the excuse was too ridiculous to accept. “Will you marry me, Cassandra Owen?” I was ripped out of my thoughts when he lowered himself before her, right on one knee. As he opened the ring box and took her hand in his, a sharp pain sliced mercilessly through my heart. But that didn’t stop anything. I felt my knees starting to give way beneath me as the lady, Cassandra nodded her head joyously, “Y…yes. Of course, I will.” There was a proud contented smile on Derek’s face as he proceeded to take out the ring to put it on her finger. That was all it took for what was about to happen to sink in. All it took for rage to boil up inside me. I felt it. My heart was screaming at me to leave. To act and pretend like I never saw any of this, just to preserve what I thought we were. But the rage, the evidence that I was being betrayed, the disbelief at what I was seeing, they all completely blinded me. “What is going on here, Derek?” I stepped in. The air inside was sour and suffocating. I could hear my own heartbeat hammering in my ears. Derek jerked upright even before he saw my face. “A..Aria…” He drawled, attempting to come closer but I put a hand out, shaking my head. “No. Just tell me this isn’t what I think it is.” I demanded, trying my hardest to steady my voice. I wanted the truth, a confirmation, even if it would hurt. He gave just that. “I…It’s what you think. This is real, Aria,” He said, his tone serious but strange. “But it doesn’t mean I’m leaving you.” He added fast, like the words were something he’d been memorizing for days. I could feel my hands shaking. It suddenly became difficult to breathe. I always believed our relationship was built on solid ground. It never felt like it would fall apart anytime soon. There was never a sign Derek would wake up one day and change his mind about us. Was this because we were of different status? Is his normality about this because he thought an omega like myself would have no choice but to condone his actions? As if noticing my vulnerability, Derek took a step forward, and wrapped his arm around my waist. While the other fumbled to tuck the box with the ring away in his pocket. Soon as I realized his hand was on me, I shrank back from his touch, as though I’d just been burnt. Then I raised my eyes back to his face and disbelief flashed across my face. It occurred to me Derek had turned into another man entirely. The Derek I had fallen in love with, the one that marked me under the moonlight with the promise of unwavering loyalty, would never admit to cheating on me with someone else, then shamelessly tell me he still wanted me like it was the most normal thing. As though we hadn’t been together for years. As if his promises to me had been false, and our bond was never tight to begin with. My heart picked its pace, beating violently against my ribcage as I struggled to form a response. But I was cut off before I even began. “Baby, what’s happening? Does she not know about me?” Cassandra’s—or whatever her name was—voice hit me like a physical blow. I froze for a moment. A pang of chagrin settled in the pit of my stomach. Now that I took the time to look at her closely, she was starkly different from me… far from ordinary. She just asked my mate if I didn’t know about her. A few conclusions rushed into my head but only one of them stood out. I’d been the side piece…? I shook my head quickly, a cold doubt settling in my chest. A prank. It just had to be a prank. I said to myself before I resolved to just ignore her existence. My gaze flicked back to Derek. “Can you even listen to yourself, Derek? You cheated on me and still have the gut to say it to my face?” I finally snapped, the words sounding so absurd that I almost laughed. “And what did you just say? That it doesn’t mean you’re leaving me? What gives you the impression I’d want to continue this relationship after this, Derek?” I demanded but I already knew the answer. It was because he thought I was a pushover. Derek was quiet for a second. Then he sighed frustratingly, like someone having a hard time talking to a kid throwing a tantrum. “You don’t understand. Yes I know this is totally bad but I’m doing this for you. For us. So please, just let me explain. I have my reasons, Aria.” He spoke with desperation, yet devoid of any guilt. That struck something in me. The anger and hurt inside me suddenly turned numb. Arguing with him over a decision to have another mate that he’s already made would only make me more stupid than I already felt. “You meant the world to me but you must be delusional if you think you can propose to another woman and still get to call me your mate.” I told him, using the last bit of restraint to hold back my tears, and then I stormed out. If I had a wolf, maybe I would have felt it writhing within me, drowned in a sea of abject pain. But I have been wolfless since as long as I could remember. A sob was lodged in my throat but I refused to let it out. I suppressed it as I darted down the road under the heavy downpour of rain. I had no idea where to go. Aside from Derek, I had only one person left who was my safe place sometimes and that person was my father. I settled on a bench by the road side and tapped on my phone’s screen, only to realize it was dead. Somehow, I was washed with relief. I was on a call with my best friend when I walked in and witnessed the betrayal. I guess my phone died at the right time, because if Olivia had heard everything, she would’ve ran over ready to rip Derek’s head off. And no. I wasn’t giving Derek the satisfaction of knowing he’d gotten to me that badly. I dialed my father’s number. I could hear the rasp of my breathing as it rang. He picked up on the third ring. I let everything out without allowing him a word. When I finished, and he spoke, it was with an icy coldness. “I didn’t think I’d be the one to tell you this since it's common knowledge but fated mates make each other stronger, Aria.” I felt the blood drain from my face. “What do you mean by that, father?” “Derek told me he found out he and Redfang Pack’s heiress are fated mates,” He began. “As you know, you never gained your wolf. The poor guy needs someone strong and formidable as his Luna so it was only right he marries her.” My father hissed, confirming what I had known he meant but didn’t want to believe he would say. “Are you being serious, father? If this is your idea of a joke, it’s sick.” I let out, searching for the smallest hint that he was kidding. I found none. “We are omegas, Aria,” He spat out the reminder, annoyed and dismissive. “You might not be the first Luna of the Shadow moon pack once everything is done but you’ll be the second. So if you know what’s good for you, stop being ungrateful and go back to him.” He shut me down coldly, as brutal as a whip and the next thing I knew, he had hung up. My fists clenched as his words that hurt me more than it should replayed in my head. For a split second, I almost laughed at the irony. Because I should have expected it. My relationship with Derek was never perfect. Whenever we had a fight, my father didn’t wanted to know who was at fault, so far as I apologized to Derek with immediate effect and everything returned to normal. My father never cared about me or how I felt. He just wanted to secure his status as a relative of An Alpha to be and the future Luna’s father. I felt a tear about to escape my eye and I quickly wiped it off with the back of my hand. Then I rose to my feet, my face forced into a blank mask. My father was right. I needed to go back to him. But unlike he wanted, I wouldn’t grovel.