“This was maybe three years after you left. She was
s crying so hard I could barely understand her.”
Mrs. Brown’s eyes grew distant with the memory.
“She knew you weren’t happy after the binding. She cried and told me she was sorry, that she had dragged you down with her medical bills.”
My heart clenched. Mother had known. She had known all along.
“She said she watched you change. Saw the light leave your eyes. And she blamed herself for forcing you into that situation.”
“I told her what I’m telling you now–mothers sacrifice for their children. It’s what we do. She made the best choice she could with the information she had.”
Mrs. Brown cupped my face gently.
“Aria, you’re grown up now. I don’t have much advice to give you, but no mother doesn’t love her child. Your mother wouldn’t blame you. She only wants you to be happy.”
I buried myself in Mrs. Brown’s arms and sobbed.
I wanted to pour out all seven years of grievance and heartache.
The infidelity. The humiliation. The slow death of hope.
Mrs. Brown held me tight, rocking me like she used to when I was small and had scraped my knee.
After crying, my emotions settled considerably.
Past regrets could no longer be remedied.
Fortunately, though I’d been skinned alive, I had still managed to struggle out of that golden cage.
Support
Share
+25 Bonus
I hadn’t continued sinking endlessly.
I held a simple funeral for my mother in my hometown, burying her beside my father who had died in battle.
It was peaceful. No drama. No politics. Just love and remembrance.
All the neighbors were incredibly warm and helpful, offering assistance with matters both big and small.
Mrs. Peterson brought casseroles. Mr. Williams helped repair the house’s broken front step.
The entire community wrapped around me like a warm blanket.
I made up my mind to stay in my hometown.
With my excellent credentials and pack management experience, I successfully became a teacher at the local school.
The principal was thrilled to have someone with my background. Pack politics had taught me patience. Managing Luna duties had taught me organization.
Most of my colleagues were young people fresh out of college.
They were the same age as Scarlett, but they were sunny, cheerful, and positive.
There was Maya, who taught first grade and always had glitter in her hair. James, the gym teacher who made everyone laugh with his terrible jokes.
Sarah, the art teacher who painted murals in her spare time.
In our free time, we would chat and go shopping together.
We’d grab coffee after work. Go to the movies on weekends.
Life was simple and pleasant.
For the first time in seven years, I felt like I could breathe.
No walking on eggshells. No wondering who Garrett was sleeping with today.
Just normal, healthy relationships with people who actually liked me for me.
Until one day, three months into my new life, Garrett appeared before me.
I was leaving the school building when I saw him leaning against his expensive car.
The alcohol on his breath gave me a headache.
Even from ten feet away, I could smell the whiskey.
I tried to avoid him, but he blocked my path.
“Aria, wait. Please.”
He looked awful. Unshaven. His clothes wrinkled. Dark circles under his eyes.
He looked at me, his eyes filled with an emotion I couldn’t understand.
“Aria. I miss you so much.”
His voice was slurred, desperate.
“Garrett, we’ve already dissolved our bond.”
My expression was calm, as if I were looking at a stranger.
Because that’s what he was now. A stranger who used to share my bed.
But Garrett kept shaking his head, stubbornly holding that ring up in front of me.
The Luna ring I’d left behind. The symbol of everything I’d lost.
“I don’t agree. Aria, I can’t live without you.”
1/3
“The whole time you were gone, I missed you like crazy. I never dared tell you before, but I genuinely liked you.”
I almost laughed at the absurdity.
“Those early days when we were first together were the happlest time of my entire life. I thought someone in this world could finally love me wholeheartedly. I thought I could finally have a home.”
His words sounded rehearsed. Like he’d practiced this speech in the mirror.
“But that agreement you signed with Grandfather shattered all my illusions. I couldn’t accept that the woman I loved so deeply had approached me with ulterior motives. To get back at you, I did all those ridiculous things…”
Garrett spoke through his tears.
As if he had suffered some great injustice.
As if I was the villain in this story.
I looked up at Garrett with new eyes.
“Do you remember which day our mating ceremony anniversary is?”
The question was a test. One I knew he would fail.
Garrett froze.
His mouth opened and closed like a fish out
of water.
He stammered for a long time but couldn’t give an accurate date.
“June? July? It was summer…”
I let out a cold laugh and said slowly, “I remember. I’ll
“April 15th. We were married on April 15th.‘
His face went red with shame.
never forget.”
“Because your lover told me that the first time she slept with you was on our mating ceremony day.”
“While I was getting ready for our wedding night, you were in the garden shed with your bridesmaid.”
That girl had been Garrett’s chosen bridesmaid.
His so–called distant cousin.
She had revealed their relationship to me shortly after our mating.
Not out of guilt, but out of spite. She wanted me to know that even on my wedding day, I couldn’t hold his attention.
1
But Garrett quickly grew tired of her.
When new lovers appeared, she became a discarded woman before I did.
Exposed, Garrett was speechless.
His face drained of color. His hands shook.
But my long history of compromise and tolerance made him think that with just a little effort, he could win me back.
After that day, Garrett began sending me flowers and gifts, just like during our courtship period.
Roses appeared on my doorstep. Expensive jewelry in my mailbox.
Mrs. Brown would shake her head and mutter about “that fool boy” every time another delivery arrived.
But I was no longer that naive, ignorant girl.
I threw away the flowers. Donated the jewelry to charity.
And I would never make the same mistake twice.
Just when I had decided to never see Garrett again for the rest of my life, I received a call from the pack’s beta assistant.
マ
2/3
“Miss Aria? This is David, the beta assistant. I’m calling about Alpha Blackwood Senlor.”
My blood went cold.
“The old Alpha is critically ill. He wanted to see you one last time before he died.”
