The Grateful Rejection

Third person's POV

The screams echoed throughout the hall way of the hospital. Everyone held their breath as their Luna was bringing another life into the world. All the pack members could feel the pain their Luna was going through, it was just a million times duller. Their fear for both the lives were increasing every passing second, the Luna had been in labour for 10 hours now.

Streaks of tears ran down her face and sweat had coated her entire body and face. Clutching the bed handles she cried out for the nth time, "Push Luna!! Pushh. The baby is almost out" the nurse encouraged tapping off the sweat on her forehead. This seemed to have fortified her will, she let out one last shout of agony as she pushed with all her mighty. Feeling exhausted beyond belief she passed out but no before hearing a mournful cry.

When the luna woke up hours later, the first thing she saw was her mother and father sitting beside her bed, crying softly. She furrowed her brows, "Mom, dad?" She said hoarsely. The parents snapped their attention to their daughter who looked feeble, the mother brought a cool glass of water near her daughter's mouth, she drank away greedily. The father couldn't take looking at her daughter so he left the room sobbing softly. The Luna's heart started to pound in fear, "M-my chi-ld? W-he-re is h-e?" She asked, her heart monitor began beeping loudly. She started panicking, "My ba-baby!! WHERE IS MY CHILD!!!" She yelled out. Her mother started to wail trying to calm her daughter down.

She wrapped her arms around her daughter to stop her from thrashing, “I am sorry baby. I am so sorry!! I am sorry!" The mother cried out. The Luna was frozen in fear, for a few seconds her heart stopped beating. Her body started shaking in consternation, she looked wide eyed to her mother and gave out an uneasy laugh, "Wh-what are you ta-talking about?? Haha... Mom i-it's not funny! Whe-where is my child??" She asked her mother who began crying, she spoke her head, "I am sorry love. It was a still born” the mother said with great difficulty.

The Luna started to thrash around, "NO NO NO NO NO!!! YOU'RE LYING!! MY CHILD IS NOT DEAD! NOT THIS TIME" She yelled and pointed an accusing finger at her mother, "You're lying!! Bring my child!! I WANT MY CHILD!" She cried hysterically.

"Janine, baby! I am so sorry. I am so sorry!" Briana pulled Janine in a hug. Janine wailed for her loss, for the loss of her baby again.

The lungs felt clogged, it became difficult to retain air in her lungs, every cell in her body had given up. Her mind was a jumble, still not able to conjure that she had lost her baby once again, the baby was the only thing that made her smile. But now she didn't even have that luxury, her only reason to live was taken away. Snatched away from her fingers and she couldn't do anything but watch as the goddess took away her baby. Being too overwhelmed with her emotions she passed out in her mother's arms.

Janine's POV

Void. The only word that could describe how I felt. Five days back I was over the moon at the thought of having my baby cardling in my arms. How foreboding can one be? All the torture I have been through, don't I deserve the happiness of having a baby. Even my wolf has given up, the only person who “would’ be there till the very end. I can't feel her anymore, she is in the deepest part of her cave. She isolated herself, I don't know how neither do I care. Not anymore.

Stepping out of the car with the help of my mother I made my way towards the alpha house. I looked emotionlessly ahead of me, I didn't meet any of my pack members’ eyes, I am done seeing pity in them. I could feel how sorry they were for my loss. And that's what it is, My loss. Nobody's but mine. I don't want any sympathy from anyone. Sighing I went to my room, "Leave me alone mom" I said robotically. Without hearing her response in had closed the door, not knowing how to distract myself I decided to take a long bath.

I put all sorts of relaxing essential oils in the warm water and mixed it. Once naked, I sat myself in the tub. Throwing my head back, all the events that ruined my life came crashing back to me. I looked at the mirror perpendicular to the tub, I chuckled darkly. Even with “her’ gone, nothing of her is really gone.

Nora. That sister of mine. She was like the bone stuck in my throat and I was happy to have eliminated her. She was just a burden and a reminder of who she really was. We couldn't tell her the truth because if we did she'd know the really reason why we treated her how we treated her. And she would have happily accepted that, she would have been grateful for even being under the same roof as us. No that was the easy way out. We wanted her to feel the pain that we went through. I know whatever happened was not her fault in anyway but we needed some to blame and she being the clueless helpless baby she was she couldn't do anything.

And now karma had bitten us badly, I wouldn't say all the things we've been through is because of her karma but many more reasons. I ran my hands down my black hair and got up from the tub to look at my body, my plus size body. You must be confused. Let me walk you down all the things that happened since Nora's death.

A few days after Nora's death, Justin went feral, he became a murdering machine. He would kill any rouge, harmful or not, that came into his gaze for months. Gilbert somehow had to end his rampage, he tied Justin up in a dungeon for days. He would kept on chanting Nora's name or declaring his love for her. He had gone insane, Gilbert made him swear on Nora's love to stop all the madness. And he did, like a love sick puppy.

After a year there was a big rogue attack on us, we were caught off guard. It was utter chaos, death was pouring in our pack. The rogue came back because of the loss of their own, this all was because how Justin had killed their loved one's mercilessly months back. The rouge were viscious, they killed anyone to everyone that came in their sight, no matter of what age or gender. Thomas and Alice had twins not long after Nora's death and they too were lost in that fight. While fighting a couple of rouges, they managed to powerfully claw Thomas’ lower stomach, resulting in tearing of the reproductive organs from his body. Though Thomas came out alive, a part for him died. Alice too was injured but nothing very severe. They both were devasted when they lost their child, for months they couldn't speak to anyone about it without crying.

But that wasn't the only thing what was the worst at least for Gilbert my love. I lost him too. No he didn't die but something more brutal happened, a rogue had used wolfsbane laced silver to claw his back when he was in his wolf form. I don't know what nerve or bone he ripped off, but he became paralyzed from neck down

The future alpha of the TealRiver pack was doomed and so was the pack’s future.

"Baby Nora?" His voice rang out, I closed my eyes in humiliation and answered back, "Here Justin, in the bathroom" I said pained. He came inside the bathroom looking at me sadly, I sat in the tub looking up at him, "It's okay baby. Everything will be alright. I know the loss of our baby again is a huge trauma to you but we all have to move on" he said caressing my cheeks lovingly. Bile rose in my throat and tears threatened to leak out of my eye. Move on? It hasn't even been proper 3 days and he wants to move on? As I said. It's MY loss, nobody's but mine. I nodded my head knowing better than to start arguing with him, I never do.. never did. Once I did and it ended up with me in the hospital.

"As long as we have each other, we need nothing else” he said lovingly and cupped my face, "I love you Nora" he said and pecked my lips, I faked a smiled, "I love you too Justin” I said into the kiss. Pulling back he striped himself naked and joined me in, degrading me but for him, he was showing me his love.

I laid wide awake on the bed next to a naked Justin. He was spooning me from behind, silent tears slid past my eye as something weighed heavy in my heart. As I said things have changed, drastically. After the rogue attack, Gilbert was left paralyzed from neck down and goddess knows how but even his wolf wasn't able to recover him, no medicine really worked. His father who was the alpha spend every dime he had to recover his only child, after months he finally found a healer witch from India who informed it's more than just an injury, it's a curse by the goddess for the sins he committed and there is no cure untill the goddess sees he is finally redeemed or maybe not even that. There is a huge what if in that.

His father was still the alpha, it was his duty to secure the future of the pack no matter how much it hurt him or his family. It was about the pack. So as a result the pack as well as the title of alpha was taken over by Justin. One of the wort mistake Gilbert's father committed. Gilbert was heart broken and all of that was a huge dent to his self esteem. The big bad alpha was now totally dependent on others, even for the smallest thing like sitting up.

But I loved him, I still do. He would cry his nights away and put up a smile during the days. I know he was in pain, every trauma everyone had gone through changed them drastically.

A year after Justin took over the pack his obsession with Nora only managed to increase in an unhealthy manner. He would bring home big woman who either had grey eyes or had black hair and would moan Nora's name throughout the night. Things took turn for the worst when in the morning he'd realise that those woman were not Nora. He would either beat them till they were black and blue or hospitalized. Reporting Justin was out of the question, for them it was treachery. Pack members would go to the hospital and threaten them if they reported Justin. But even after that he was reported at lest a dozen times.

The pack members were convinced that, their alpha needs a mate and as his destinated mate died years ago there is only one way, chosen mate. But no parent was ready to give up their daughter to a monster like him. So they did what was easiest for them, they pushed me to be sacrificed. Some pack members came to my house that I shared with Gilbert and first nicely asked me to mate with Justin. When I refused, they pulled out a knife and pushed it on Gilbert's neck. A pack for whom their alpha's made so many scarifies, they tried to kill their alpha's son, one who was supposed to lead them. They had no remorse in their eyes, they would have killed him in a heartbeat.

Gilbert yelled at them but they just punched him making him call of his wheelchair, he cried and told me that he'd rather die than to see me with someone else. But I couldn't I was selfish. I wanted my Gilbert alive. I love him, how could I let them kill him knowing fully well that if he dies. Not only will I be too broken and bend to whatever they ask me to do but also they would force me to mate with Justin.

After a long retaliation and fights I agreed. That day was my doomsday. The day I was married to Justin, he forced me to dye my blond hair black and gain a lot of weight when I refused to do so he beated me untill I was half dead and admitted into the hospital. Having no other option, I had to do what he told me, he even started calling me Nora. The first day when he did, I immediately stopped him saying it wasn't my name, he punched me square in my jaw and told me not to lie.

It's been 9 years since then, he got me pregnant several times. All those time I either had a miscarriage or an accident within the first month. Only this time I almost had my baby. Gilbert was distraughted, he was the one to suffer the most. He had given up the will to live and be happy. He refused to see me in any circumstances but I still go to see my real mate.

Through I was the one to stay alive between us two sister, I am dead. I am living someone's live, having someone's else fate and misery. A part of me is glad that she is dead, at least she wouldn't have to go through the things I am going through. I wouldn't wish this life even on my worst enemy. My life is a lie, my identity is a lie, my smile is a lie, everything is a lie. Now that I am in Nora's shoes, I realised how much we took advantage of her, how far we went to break her. We, her own blood killed her in cold blood.

If you can hear me Nora, I just want to say that I am sorry and whatever I am going through, I deserve ever single bit of it.

Sebastian's POV

Nora was jumping in joy as we stood outside our date place. Her grin wouldn't didn't phase, she bounced excitedly clutching my arms, "I love it! I love it! I love it!" She squeaked and ran inside the bowling alley. I chuckled and went behind her. Her sister, Arora told me how much she liked to play blowing and it was one of the places she was herself.

I had booked the entire place for the evening because... Well we like privacy. And I was in no mood of killing people who looked at my woman. She looked absolutely beautiful.

Her feet kept on bouncing as she wore the shoes and looked up red faced with excitement, I was in awe of my Erastis. My woman, my little alpha. She went to the an alley and wrote our names on the screen while I went to the cafeteria that was inside the alley and ordered a few tacos and hot dogs. Who knew the world renounce chef, a millionaire, likes simple things.

I joined her in the game.

I sat on the bench looking sourly as she beated me for the 3rd time in a row. She threw her head back and let out a musical laugh, I looked at my love wonderstuck. How on Earth did I land up with such a precious Erastis?

"Don't be such a pooper, baby. You'll win the next time" I looked at her with soft eyes.

"But if I win I won't get to hear you laugh” I said in daze as her pink lips morphed into a smile and her cheeks painted red. She shook her head and swatted my chest, "You're so cheesy" she snorted and plopped beside me.

I wrapped my arms around her shoulder bringing her in to my warmth, “I have waited centuries for you and now that I finally have you... It's surreal!” I tell her honestly, she looked up with her beautiful grey-blue eyes.

"I loved you from the moment I saw you playing on top of the ball and falling to the ground." I tell her caressing her cheeks, my insides felt they were about to explode with happiness when she leaned into my touch.

"You make me, moya malen'kaya al'fa. You complete me" I said her sweet smell tranquilizing my brain, "I don't know would would I do without you. You colour my world love. You give my existence meaning” I said in all honesty. Silent tears slid down her eyes as she looked at me with such raw and pure emotions it hazed my ability to think, "What did I ever do to deserve you?" She asked softly and brought her hand to my cheeks. Her soft and warm hand made me feel home, "Nothing" I answered and kissed her palm, "Nothing at all" I said and bring her lips to meet mine.

Sparks ignited from my lips and travelled to every part of my body, every cell came alive. Our lips moved in perfect sync, the passion alone in the kiss was enough to make me realise how I am nothing without my woman. My heart started to thump heavily and my lycan hummed in contentment as she started to caress my neck and cupped my jaws. I pulled her on my lap and continued our kiss.

She pulled back trying to catch her breath, but I wasn't done. I left wet kisses on her neck and exposed shoulder, feeling her shiver and tighten her hold on me only made me crazy. I growled and pulled her even closer, I looked into her eyes as she lightly pecked my nose, "Beautiful" she mutter and kissed me again.