Chapter 10 Alexander
2105 Words
“Here we go.” Ian said in a voice of dread as he walked into my room.
“It’s not a funeral Ian, Goddess.” I shook my head at his attire. He was dressed in all black, from his shoes to his pants, his shirt, suit jacket, and tie.
“What? I look good in black.” Ian shrugged.
I was standing in front of the mirror in my closet, looking over my outfit. I, too, was wearing black slacks and a black suit jacket, but my shirt and tie were dark green. I smoothed my hair down, tucking it behind my ears. Where Ian’s hair was shaved on the sides and tossed lazily on the top, my hair was all one length and fell down to my shoulders in thick waves. I hardly ever wore my hair down, usually throwing it up in a messy bun, but today was a special occasion.
“The cars were pulling in all bloody day.” Ian grumbled, moving towards my window and pulling back the curtain.
“That’s kind of the idea.” I said, rolling my eyes at his dramatics.
The Mating Ball wasn’t just one day, it was an entire weekend of activities started by my parents as a way to bring together our entire species. Instead of forcing wolves to scour the world for their mate, hopping from pack to pack and hoping to meet their mate at some random meeting or pack treaty, they created a mutual event for everyone. Every single unmated, of age wolf was invited, no matter what pack they belonged to, if any pack at all.
On the first night, the introductory ball was held, the main event. This was the night you would meet your mate, if she or he were there. It was a grand night of food, drinking, and dancing. The only rules were simple: no mating, no s*x, no marking, and no leaving the ball with each other. Day two was the “dating” period where mates got to know each other. Special events and activities were set up in and around the castle to help break the ice.
Sunday, the final day, was decision day. On this day, mates would decide to accept or reject each other, or to remain in limbo until they could better get to know each other, although this option was a rarity. The crown helped mates make arrangements if needed, making decisions on whose pack to move to and helped handle any treaties or negotiations that needed to take place. Occasionally, enemy packs mated and it was a huge mess for everyone involved.
“She’s here, Alex.” Ian said, pulling me from my thoughts.
“What?”
“She’s here, I can feel her.” His tone was serious, his eyes thoughtful.
“I know.” I agreed, “I dreamt about her last night. It was the most real one, yet.”
“She’s a redhead, should be easy enough to spot.” Ian said,
“Listen, man, if she really is from our high school then she’s probably going to have some….feelings about us.” I said hesitantly.
“I know, I know. She’s gonna need her moment.” Ian grumbled.
“Her moment? I think she’s gonna need more than that.” I chuckled.
“She’s our mate and we're the kings. She’ll be fine.” Ian waved his hands around lazily. I eyed him with concern,
“I don’t know….”
“It’ll be fine, Alex.” He huffed, annoyed at my overthinking. I decided to push it to the side for now.
“Come on, let’s go, it’s time.” I said, adjusting my suit jacket and opening the door to my bedroom.
We walked side by side to the elevator and rode it to the bottom floor. Navigating the hallway, we found ourselves face to face with the entrance to the ballroom. To prevent any premature meetings, all of the men were ushered into the ballroom first, while the ladies were kept in the hotel right up until the start of the ball.
Built just behind the castle, connected by an underground tunnel, was a hotel large enough to separate and fit all of the visiting pack members. It was built specifically for the Mating Ball but was used for a variety of other occasions inside the realm as well.
“Your highnesses.” The doorman bowed his head at us before opening the doors.
Tonight, there would be no royal entry, no official announcement of our arrival, and no thrones to sit upon. We weren’t dressed up in our regal coats, jewels, and crowns. Tonight, we were just like any other unmated male wolf.
Dylan, Carter, Owen, and Hudson were waiting for us inside. Dylan was only here as a guard while Carter, Owen, and Hudson were also here to potentially meet their mates. They were all dressed in similar fashion to us, looking uncomfortable as hell with the rest of the men. It was ten minutes until the she-wolves would be released into the crowd, and there were nearly a hundred men waiting here already.
“You two look exactly how we feel.” Carter grumbled. Dylan was positively beside himself with humor,
“This is the best day of my life.” Dylan was bent over with laughter.
“I hate you so much, there aren’t enough words in the English language to describe my hatred of you right now.” Carter growled at his friend who easily avoided his fists.
“Relax. It’s gonna be a long night, boys.” Hudson said, clapping Carter on the back as he laughed without humor.
All attention turned to my father as his arrival was announced. He stood on the balcony above the ballroom, my mother making a similar arrival to the ladies in the hotel.
“Welcome to the Mating Ball, gentlemen. Today will hopefully be the day that you meet your mates, your Goddess destined love, your future. Right now, you think I’m spewing nonsense and sound like a Hallmark greeting card,” Dad chuckled at his lame joke, “But, hopefully, in a few minutes, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. The ladies will be here in three minutes. Please, prepare yourselves.” He finished his speech, and found Ian and I in the crowd, offering us a wink before sitting on his throne.
“Goddess have mercy on our souls.” Ian grumbled and I rolled my eyes, knocking my shoulder into his.
They instructed us all to move to one side of the ballroom, the farthest side away from the doors. We stood in a nervous cluster, bumping into each other as we swayed on our feet and chatted away like our anxieties weren’t getting the better of us. Three minutes drug by like days until a bell chimed and the double doors swung open.
There were more ladies than men, that was for certain. Their heels clicked loudly on the marble flooring as they flooded into the room, their candy colored skirts sashinging back and forth with the movement of their hips. They were whispering amongst themselves as they inched into the room. Growls and snarls were heard instantly as the men sensed their mates and began throwing themselves across the room to find them. Ian and I stayed rooted in place.
“Do you sense her?” Ian whispered to me and I shook my head,
“Not yet.” I answered, straining my eyes to search the crowd.
It didn’t take long for the more than a hundred she-wolves to fill the room, the predatorial men stalking through the crowd. Ian and I slowly joined them, circling the perimeter of the ballroom as we searched for our mate.
All at once, her scent knocked me over. It was an overwhelmingly sweet scent, delicious and alluring all at once. Cupcakes, she smelt like cupcakes. I sniffed the air and saw Ian doing the same, his eyes were as dark as mine must’ve been. Our search became more frantic until we saw her.
A blob of red hair bobbing up and down through the sea of werewolves. She was in the back, among the last of the women to enter the ballroom, clinging to the wall. It was clear she was uncomfortable, not wanting to dive into the hoard of people. Ian and I didn’t need words to know what each other was thinking. We practically ran through the crowd to get to her, shoving anyone and everyone out of our way.
We burst through the last line of people, and there was finally clear air between us and our mate. It was then that she seemed to sense us. Her dark eyelashes blinked up towards us, her eyes narrowing and her lips remained in a steady frown. She pushed off the wall and tensed when she saw us hurrying towards her.
Ian and I stopped a mere five feet from our mate. I was leaning back on my heels, primed and ready to throw myself at the feet of the gorgeous red headed wonder in front of me. She seemed to be studying us, her lips pressed together, and her eyes wandering up and down our bodies. We stood in front of her, silent and scared. At least I was scared, I’m not sure what Ian was feeling, exactly. After what felt like an eternity, she shook her head slowly,
“No. No thanks.” She said and I was so lost in the sound of her voice that I didn’t even register what words she had spoken.
“No thanks?” Ian heard her, though, clear as day. His voice came out as a husky growl.
“Yes, no thank you.” She repeated herself and began to move away from us.
“Excuse me?” Ian’s voice was dangerous. I grabbed his arm and forced him to stand still.
“My apologies, your highnesses,” She spat our title, “I didn’t realize you were hard of hearing. I said no.” Her eyes were on fire and her cheeks flushed, her tiny fists shaking at her side.
“How dare you….” Ian started to yell.
“Wait,” I shushed him, pulling him away from her, “What’s wrong?” I asked her.
“What’s wrong?” She laughed humorlessly, “Perfect, it’s perfect, you don’t even know who I am.” She replied bitterly.
“No, I do. You were a first year when we were seniors. You fought Stephanie and Angel when they tried to shove you in a locker and you never stopped fighting them, the entire year.” I answered quickly.
“And you watched, both of you.” She said, crossing her arms over her chest and seeming not at all impressed that I had remembered her.
“We were seniors.” Ian answered like it explained everything. I glared at him. He really needed to just shut up.
“Oh, excuse me.” She bit.
“I’m….” I started to introduce myself, my palm pressed against my chest in greeting, but she cut me off.
“I know who you are.”
“Are you usually this rude?” Ian grunted.
“Are you usually this cruel? King Sebastian.” She snapped, proving that she could tell the difference between us.
“We’re your mates. You shouldn’t call us king.” I argued.
“Speak for yourself.” Ian grumbled.
“Ray of sunshine, you are.” Our mate muttered.
“You’re acting like this just because of something that happened ages ago?” Ian said,
“Salaud.” She snarled at him, speaking in a language I didn’t recognize.
“What did you just say to me?” Ian looked offended.
“Is that French?” I asked and she turned her glare towards me, nodding.
“She just called me a bastard!” Ian looked irate.
“Did she?” I said, laughing, “I didn’t know you spoke French.”
“I don’t.” Ian grumbled.
“Let’s just get this over with, shall we?” She said,
“I don’t even know your name.” I argued, stumbling towards her. She recoiled,
“Stella Dubois-Summers. Remember to speak clearly.” She said and I narrowed my eyes at her,
“What?”
I could hardly focus, though. Her name was outrageously beautiful. Elegant and strong, just like her.
“She wants us to reject her.” Ian explained angrily.
Now that I heard.
- Writer
