| CHAPTER 40 : EYE-RAPING |
I've always had random surges of anxiety attacks or a few moments in life where I start hyperventilating. If I got lost somewhere, I panic. If I lose someone, I panic. If there's a pop quiz I didn't study for, I panic.
I guess it was all Collin's fault for babying me so much. He took care of me like I was a vase that wobbles even if the slightest amount of wind blew by. He had always been the over-protective, over-caring brother. I had no parents and our uncle who used to support us, had also passed away.
It was always Collin and me at the end. No matter what.
I remember quite perfectly the few months I spent without him. He had gone for six months to LA for some school observation trip or something. I had to live with Ava for those six months.
Collin had been so playful, cheery and happy. His blonde hair shone like feathers dipped in gold with his eyes warm and deep as the sea.
We talked every day on the phone even if it was just a plain ol' good morning text. I missed him so much during those times, sometimes I'd fall sick with Ava having to skip school to take care of me.
When Collin returned from LA, I remember running up to him and throwing my arms around him. His first reaction was an 'I'm fucking dead' reaction because of the coffee that spilled onto his nuts.
He didn't mind it after a few seconds except for asking me to give him a moment to change his pants from his suitcase.
Collin had definitely looked different. Puberty hit him hard. His hair and eyes were still the same, but they weren't...childish or playful anymore. They looked more mature with a kind of seriousness. He definitely looked sharper and lean like a needle. Not because he got weak. That's just how his body was, slender and sharp.
When Collin had come back, everything in my life seemed to fall in place. Just because my big brother was here with me.
And now when King Alpha said that a bunch of old Royals who ruled werewolves in their era of time, who lived for more than thousands of years, who have fought battles and wars, who have been majestic, are coming to see me and declare me as the new queen, I didn't know if I wanted Collin more or my death.
Death seems pretty logical at this moment.
"I don't understand," Levi asked in confusion with a horror-stricken face, "Why would they suddenly demand a ball?"
"They heard about King Alpha having a mate and want to secure the future of our kind by making sure King Alpha accepts his mate and gives a...heir." Drew responded, not looking the least bit pale or grim like the others, he looked happy instead. "They don't really trust King Alpha to do so himself, so they're taking matters in their own hands."
King Alpha rubbed a hand on his jaw, looking as grim as ever.
"And they don't mind Ezlynn being a human?" Levi asked.
"They don't know she's human," King Alpha muttered, certain darkness clouding his eyes.
"What do you mean by a ball?" I asked, my hands trembled which I had to press firmly to my sides.
"Every time," Drew spoke, "when a Royal finds his mate, they're supposed to host a ball, as old traditions, and the Royal introduces his mate to the rest of the werewolf kind. It's like an engagement party except for exchanging rings, we just introduce the mate around and get her familiar with the other Royals."
"The Royals are still, like, in contact with the werewolves?" I asked, "I thought they leave for good after ruling in their time."
"They sure do leave," King Alpha responded, "but yeah, they keep full contact on what's going on in Saludom."
"So what are we - what are we gonna do about me?" I asked.
King Alpha gave a lost-in-the-thoughts shrug, "They want to meet you, so they want to meet you. There's nothing you can do about it."
"And if I don't want to meet them...?" I raised my eyebrows.
He turned towards me, looking grim again, "You don't wanna know."
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King Alpha and I entered his room, which was now ours for the time being. The clock displayed 8 o'clock in the night.
As soon as I closed the door, I snapped toward him.
"I am not meeting a bunch of old majestic wolves." I declared, firmly.
"You think I want them to meet you?" He gave me a 'don't be ridiculous' look, proceeding to take out a pair of t-shit and sweatpants from his closet. "They'd all laugh at me for my misfortune to be mated with you."
I frowned, confused, "Excuse me? Was that an insult?"
"Of course not," He gave a sarcastic smile, pulling up his current t-shirt over his head.
My cheeks tainted pink, and I averted my eyes.
"Could you have given a heads up before stripping in front of me?" I muttered.
"Sure." He said. "Ezlynn, I'm stripping. You're free to stare."
I rolled my eyes and waited with my back facing him until he was done changing.
"How innocent." He mocked. "I thought you'd actually stare."
I turned around, facing him again, "I'm not a pervert plus there's nothing interesting to stare at."
"Well duh, I'm fully clothed now." He stated in an obvious tone, falling back on his bed with his arms crossed behind his back. "But I think I look like a jaw-dropping machine every single second of the day, eh Blondie?" He smirked, wiggling his eyebrows twice.
"Can we focus on the problem at hand instead of you trying to boost your own cockiness which has already sky-rocketed and slammed into a satellite?" I placed my hands on my hips.
He shrugged, "I have nothing to worry about. It's all on you. They're coming to see you, not me."
"You can't possibly say that to me in this situation!"
"Uh, I just did."
"Alpha! I'm gonna be meeting your grandfathers and grandmothers. Except they're not normal grandparents but a bunch of deadly werewolves. A little help and guidance to a little panicky Ezlynn over here would be nice."
"Well basically, you brought this on yourself." He gave me a pointed look. "I was actually being fucking nice and erasing your memory to set you free. It was you who catapulted me across the balcony with your freak damn eyes."
"I didn't want you to erase my memory. I just wanted to help you."
"Says the one who'd probably be the buffet for the ball. Are you sure you wanted to stay here to help me or just because you wanted to fuck me sometime?"
I reached forward and whacked him hard with a pillow.
We were now on the bed, sitting across from each other.
He held up his hands in mock defence, "Sex helps too, you know?"
"You seriously think I want to stay here just because I want to do that - thing with you?!"
"Seems pretty logical since you keep eye-raping me all the time."
I whacked him with the pillow again.
"The pillow you keep hitting me with," he glared, "just proves my point."
I sighed in frustration, running a hand through my hair, smoothing it, before looking back at King Alpha.
"What do I do now?" I gritted my teeth.
He looked the least bit serious too now, picking up on my tone, "What else can you do? Just be dressed and pretend like you belong here."
"What if they know I'm human and not actually your pure mate. I mean we're bonded because of the witches, right?"
He gave an uneasy look, "They'd not be happy with that," he gave a frustrated look after a few seconds muttering curse words under his breath, "I'll figure it out."
"How? What will you do?"
He shook his head, a smirk lining his lips, "Not yours to know, Blondie. Right now, you look like you could use some sleep. Scratch that, a lot of sleep."
As if on cue, a yawn came out of my mouth.
"Yeah, but I don't think I can sleep well after you dropped this bomb on me."
He shrugged, lying back down on his side of the bed, pulling up the covers to his body, "As if I care."
I shot him a glare, but he was facing away from me.
Giving up with a sigh, I built the same pillow barrier before slipping under the covers.
It took some time to go to sleep but when I eventually did, my dreams were filled with nightmares of a young man surging into a war with thousands of people dying around him.
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Date: 22 August 2021