The Lycan King's Fated Mate

Chapter 1- Ride or Die

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Clio

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One Year Earlier

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I pull into the parking lot of the restaurant, the scent of grilled steaks and garlic wafting through the air. Just as I’m about to step out of the car, my phone buzzes with a text message. “You stood me up, didn’t you?” It reads and guilt creeps into my face, but I quickly grab my phone, a sly smile forming as I text back that I’m right outside.

But before I can breathe a sigh of relief, another message pops up: “Sorry, kiddo, but I’ll have to see you when I get back. I had to go, or I was going to miss my flight.” My heart plummets, and I type a quick apology, only to receive another text instructing me to look up.

Confused, I glance up to the restaurant’s balcony, and there stands Lio, waving with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Haha, very funny!” I shout from the car before grabbing my purse and heading inside.

I inform the server at the entrance that I’m meeting someone as he greets me and offers me a table, and with a quick nod, he leads me in. Lio rises from his seat as soon as he spots me, and we share a tight hug.

“Why did you do that?” I ask, amusement in my voice, and he chuckles, his eyes sparkling with mischief. “Just getting you back for always being fashionably late.” I roll my eyes, a smirk breaking through. “I’m not always late. You just have a knack for scheduling things when I’m busy.”

He shrugs, still grinning. “Well, consider us even now.”

As we settle down at our table, I ask if he’s really running late, and he leans back, a smug expression on his face. “Nope, I scheduled our meeting time way earlier than necessary because I know you. Always caught up in something.” I can’t help but smile at his teasing, shaking my head. He’s right, but to my defense, there’s always a reason. “But you love me, anyway.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he replies, scanning the menu.

I explain to him I had to help Dame with last-minute things before we leave tonight, and he understands and agrees that we will do our thing when he gets back.

Lio and I are twins and he's the only family I’ve got left in this world. Our grandparents passed away five years ago, and not long after, our mother followed suit—killed by a beast that still haunts my dreams.

We never knew our father, and it’s just been Lio and me since then, ride or die as we try to find our way in this life. He is going away for the weekend. It’s an annual work function that everyone who secured a promotion in the company in the past year attends and this past year Lio snagged a well-deserved promotion.

He’s a software engineer and I’m proud of my brother. There was a time during all the hardships in our lives that it seemed he might not even complete his degree, but he hung in there and this is his first year in the workforce and his career has already taken off.

I know Mom, Grandpa, and Granny are sure proud of him up there.

They may bring a plus one to the function as it is more on the informal side, and he wanted to take me. I wanted to go but when the date was announced; I realized I couldn’t go as it clashed with the plans Dame and I already made.

Dame is my boyfriend. We have been dating for two years and we’ve been going through a rough patch. So he planned this to rekindle the spark that’s been flickering between us.

This is not the first trip he planned for us; two previous ones were canceled because of work obligations on my side. The company where I work was restructuring, and it kept throwing everyone’s schedules into chaos. Dame understood, but I could still see the disappointment in his eyes, and this time he pleaded with me not to cancel.

So, even though I yearn to be by Lio’s side, I had to decline. Dame deserves this time together, and I can’t let him down again. Plus, it’s my fault our relationship is rocky. He is a good man, loving and patient, but there’s a void inside me that refuses to be filled. I don’t know where it comes from or why it persists, but it feels like there’s this hunger in my soul that just won’t go away. I can’t even explain it, not even to my brother, and it’s led me to question if I even love Dame anymore, though I feel I should. He deserves my love, and I don’t want to break his heart.

I’ve always been apprehensive about relationships, convinced they weren’t my thing, and for a long time, I even told myself I never wanted a boyfriend. Then I met Dame, and he was wonderful—kind, supportive, and loving. My brother also met someone, which meant I had to give him some space and I don’t know if that contributed, but I fell for Dame.

However, somewhere along the line, I just started involuntarily drifting away, even though he continued to be a good man. The connection just waned, and I feel like he deserves better than that; he deserves me to at least try to understand what’s happening because I know he loves me.

“How is Lena?” I ask about my brother's girlfriend. Her job makes her travel a lot, so I haven’t seen her in a while. He says she’s fine, adding that she’s coming home next week and that maybe we can do something together this coming weekend.

We toast to that and just then, the server takes our order. We continue our conversation as we await our meals, and twenty minutes later, our plates arrive, and we dig into our food.

Between bites, Lio brings up the idea of visiting our mother’s grave when we return. It’s a tradition we’ve maintained but we don’t have set dates, so we just reach out to each other when we feel it's time or have something to tell her. We take fresh flowers and just keep her updated on where we are in life. We also go on our own sometimes, but we always let each other know when we are going, even if we want to be alone.

Once a month we go to our grandparents' graves too. But for their visits, we have a set date. The first day of every month.

As we savor the last bites of our meal, Lio glances at his watch, and he signals the server for the bill, but before he can reach for his wallet, I stop him.

“It’s on me,” I insist, and he protests, as he always does, but I stand my ground. “Consider it my parting gift,” I say, a small smile playing on my lips, and he eventually relents.

I settle the bill, and we rise from our seats, making our way out of the restaurant. The cool evening air greets us as we stand next to my car in the parking lot. “Come here,” he says, pulling me into a hug and we linger in the embrace.

“I love you,” I murmur, and he echoes the sentiment as we break the hug. He opens the door and I slide inside, blowing him a kiss.

“Call me when you land,” I request, and he says he will as I start the engine. We exchange one more wave, and I pull away from the parking lot, the city lights blurring past me as my mind drifts back to my own departure this evening.

My flight leaves in three hours and I hope that this trip truly does what it’s meant to do.

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……

Eli

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“Are you sure you don’t want to come with me?” I ask, shooting my girlfriend my best puppy-dog eyes, hoping to sway her decision, and she chuckles.

“Don’t try to make me feel bad, Eli. You know I can’t go,” she replies, shaking her head as her eyes meet mine and I chuckle back, leaning in to peck her on the lips.

“You don’t really have a reason, you know,” I tease, though deep down, I’m well aware of the reason. Malia doesn’t do well with crowds, especially when they consist of strangers. She’s the definition of an introvert, a quality that sometimes bothers me because I want to take her places and show her off to the world. She’s never even been to my workplace.

One of my colleagues once joked (or not) that she was ashamed of me, hence her reluctance to be seen in public. But that’s far from the truth. I can sense lies; it’s a werewolf thing. I would know if she were stringing me along. Plus, I tell myself that maybe her introverted nature is a blessing in disguise, a barrier that could soften the blow if my worst fears come true.

I am a werewolf, and according to my father, one day I may meet my mate, forcing me to break Malia’s heart, as I would fall madly in love with her. Fate, he calls it. But I refuse to accept it. I love Malia, and the mere thought of breaking her heart for anyone breaks my own heart.

“I love you,” I remind her, leaning in to capture her lips in her passionate but tender kiss this time and she reciprocates before telling me to have a good time as we break the kiss and I pull her into a hug.

We linger in the embrace while I tell her I will, and just then, my phone vibrates next to me. I grab it and it’s my father reminding me of the time. I share that with Malia and we are both amused. My father is always like this if we are going somewhere together.

He even tells me the wrong time sometimes so I can be ready on time. My always rushing at the last minute frustrates him. I tell Malia I have to go, and I peck her on the lips again before grabbing my beanie, putting it on, and heading out. Her house is only five minutes away from mine, so I didn’t drive and it doesn’t take me long to get there, even with my human speed.

As I push the door open, I find my father standing there, and he shoots me a look, causing me to raise my hands, saying I packed already; I’m just going to grab my bag.

I rush towards my bedroom, grab my bags, and head to the front. He helps me with one and we head to the car while he asks if I’m not going to eat anything. We are out of the house already, so I think it’s a little late for that unless he’s talking about making a stop on the way, but it doesn’t matter because I’m not hungry.

Malia cooked, and we had dinner first before... other things. I tell my dad that I ate as we throw the bags in the trunk before asking him about the incident at work that he wanted to tell me about earlier but I was rushing off to Malia’s place.

He begins to tell me what happened as we climb inside the car and I feel that familiar knot in my stomach all over again as he narrates the story.

In the last year, the mine where my father works has been hit by two earthquakes that resulted from excessive blasting that destabilized the geological structure and ended up inducing the seismic event.

One would never find that in their report, of course as they always cover their tracks. I can’t wait for my dad to finish at the end of the month, even though he’s not happy about it. But I won’t have him risking his life like that, werewolf or not.

He’s all I have in this world and I’ve got a good job and can support us while he finds something else to do. I’m a software engineer and just got my first promotion, which is why my father is taking me to the airport.

My company holds an annual function for everyone who got promoted the previous year. They have branches internationally as well, and we all come together at these events.

Some of my colleagues have already gone ahead and are already at the prestigious hotel. I mention to my father that I can’t wait for the month to be over. I didn’t even want him to work the notice, but he insisted. He must always do things by the book; that’s just how he is. Same as his word. If my father gives his word, he never goes back on it, and I admire that about him a lot.

He’s never lost who he is and even now, living as a commoner, after all he’s lost, he’s still a king through and through.

Six months ago, my father told me something that flipped my world upside down. He told me that my name is not Eli King, as I know it to be.

My name is Helios Athan Calimeris, after my grandfather, the last king of Eldermyst. I am the last heir.