Mated to the Bully Stepbrothers

Chapter 6

ARIELLE’S POV

“Welcome to burger splats, what can I get you today?” I chimed, a courteous smile on my lips as I gazed at the customer in front of me.

It was a man who seemed like he was in his late fifties. He was a bit robust, and he had double slanted eyelids. He kept his gaze on the menu, occasionally stroking his chin as be hummed.

“Give me a double cheese burger, extra cheese. Add some nuggets on the side, hm, yes and a bottle of cola,” he announced.

I nodded, jotting every word he said down in the small notepad I held in my hand.

“Would that be all?”

“Yes, now get my order quickly,” he barked.

I smiled and nodded, bolting back to the counter. This was a daily occurrence in my life. Coming here to work after school, getting talked to rudely by the customers, it was a regular thing, and it did not phase me one bit.

I was getting paid, and that was all that mattered to me.

I dropped the man’s order in the kitchen and strolled out to take more orders. As I walked around the restaurant, ready to take my orders, my eyes fell on Alisha and a group of her friends.

They were seated on the far left, beside the window. They seemed to be having fun, laughing, giggling and occasionally whispering to each other.

All the blood drained from my face and I turned as pale as a ghost. What was she doing here? Alisha was not to type to eat at a shabby restaurant like this one.

I made a U turn quickly, as I did not want her to notice my presence. The last thing I wanted was to deal with her right now.

“Waiter! We’re ready to order!” I heard her voice ring through the restaurant.

I cursed under my breath, hoping she was not referring to me.

“You, waiter with the paint-stained red hair, I’m talking to you.”

I let out a sigh and slowly spun around. Alisha and her friends were gazing at me intently. Some had a smirk on their lips, while the others had their noses wrinkled up in disgust.

Alisha, on the other hand, was looking at me coldly with her caramel orbs. I steadied myself, gathering courage as I marched up to them.

“Welcome to burger splats, are you ready to order?” I said, trying to be as professional as possible.

I did not want Alisha to start a scene at my workplace, and get me fired eventually.

Alisha and her friends gazed at me for a few seconds before they burst out laughing. My face burned red with embarrassment as they giggled mockingly.

Alisha raised an eyebrow at me, her eyes sizing me up.

“You looked utterly pathetic in school, but this, this takes the cake,” she giggled.

I looked down at myself, wondering what was so amusing to them. I wore the restaurant’s uniform. Black pants, a red t-shirt, and a red cap that has the restaurant’s logo embedded at the front.

“But then again, isn’t this better than how she always dresses,” one of Alisha’s friends piped up.

“I know right?” Another chimed in.

They all giggled again, and I prayed that the ground would open up and swallow me whole.

“Would you like to order now?” I said, my voice barely above a whisper as my hands trembled.

Alisha grinned. “Yes, yes, of course. Get me a drink, a cola.”

I nodded and took her order down. In seconds, I was away from their table and walking towards the soda machine. I placed a cup underneath the dispenser as I exhaled.

All the tension began to leave my body, but the storm has not past yet. I carefully covered up the cup when it was filled up, and walked back to her table, handing the drink over to her.

“Here’s your order ma’am,” I smiled as I placed the drink in front of her.

Alisha frowned and clicked her tongue. “What is this? I specifically told you to give me lemonade.”

My mouth dropped open as my eyes widened. “But you said co-“

Alisha poured the whole drink over my head, cutting me short. Her friends giggled and the scene began to invite stares from the other customers. I felt the heavy weight of their stares on my back, but I did my best to ignore it.

“Have fun getting that sticky thing off your body. Oh wait, do you even shower?”

The girls roared with laughter as they all got up from their chairs and exited the store. Not only were they bullying me at school, but also in public. I was filled with shame, disgust.

But then, my mind slowly trailed back to the words all three brothers had said to me at school today. They were coming to see me. My wolf relished the thought as she became excited. And she was not alone.

I, was excited as well. Everything that Alisha had done to me, seemed irrelevant now.

Throughout my shift, all my mind was focused on, was seeing my mates.

After my shift, I practically ran home, and breezed into my room. The first thing I did was to fish my best nightgown out of the closet and throw it on.

I gazed at my reflection in the broken-down mirror, checking out the lace, the see-through night gown I had on. It was an old night gown, but it seemed presentable enough. My hair was tied up in a pony tail, which trailed down to my shoulders.

My heart was racing and my stomach was filled with butterflies as I anticipated the brothers' visit. While I was having a conversation with my sister earlier, I recalled her asking me why I was so giddy, but I brushed her question off, and told her that it was nothing.

There was no way I could tell her I was mated to three men.

I pranced to my bed, flopping down on it. I waited, occasionally glancing at the wall clock. Slowly, the night for darker and I soon realised that the brothers were not going to show up today.

I felt a pang in my chest at their deceit. But what did I expect? These were the same people that did not take my side when I was being bullied by Alisha.

I bit my inner lips and crashed down on the bed, curling up into a fetal position. I must have been a fool to trust their words.

Tears ran down my cheeks as I shut my eyes tight, waiting for sleep to whisk me away and make me forget about all the hurt I was feeling in my chest, and so I did. I drifted off into a deep sleep, and the hurt I felt in my chest slowly dissipated.

I woke up the next morning, feeling more tired than ever. Reluctantly, I got out of bed and decided to get ready for school. Once I was done, I slipped out of my room.

I trudged down the stairs groggily, my eyes puffed up from sobbing all night. Sarah popped out of the kitchen, and our eyes met.

“Hey, good morning, did you sleep well?” I asked, a smile on my face as I tried to mask the pain.

Sarah frowned, however. “Sis, you look a bit sad. Is everything okay?”

I blinked at her. I had underestimated how perceptive my little sister was. I waved my hands in front me dismissively and grinned.

“I’m alright. Don’t you have school today? You’ll be late.”

“Well,” she walked over to me. “I actually need money to pay for a school field trip, but if you don’t have the cash, it’s fine, I’ll just skip it.”

I went grim as I reached into my pocket and handed her the only money I had left on me. I was saving it for my lunch break, but she needed it more than I did. I wanted her to have fun with her friends, and not feel left out.

Sarah’s face lit up and she wrapped me in a tight hug.

“Thank you,” she beamed.

Sarah waved me goodbye and bolted out of the apartment. I let out a sigh. Today was going to be a tough day. I slung my bag across my shoulder, and made my way out of my apartment.

The moment I walked into the school building, I could feel a sense of foreboding crawling up my spine. I ignored everyone and made my way to my favourite and most quiet spot on the whole campus.

As I scribbled in my notebook, eager to get my homework done, I felt a wind kick in. It blew past me, ruffling my hair and flipping the pages of my book.

I tore my eyes away from my book, and gazed at the surroundings. I was at the college’s outdoor cafeteria. It has fewer tables, and people barely eat there. I always came here for the solitude and it was a nice place to relax due to all the nature around.

It was lunch break, and I needed to her my homework done before the next class. I had forgotten all about it because of how busy I was at work, and getting in trouble with the professor was the last thing I wanted.

I switched my gaze back to my homework, when my stomach rumbled. I let out a sigh and grimaced inwardly. I had been unable to eat a decent meal since last night, and I feeling the effects of it.

As I groaned over my empty stomach, I heard footsteps approaching me. I snapped my head back and my eyes fell on Alisha and her gang. As if my day was not bad enough.

As they walked past me, they did not say a word, and it left me dumbfounded. I was not going to get bullied today? I let out a sigh of relief and went back to getting my homework done, when a fountain of chocolate milk came raining down on my book.

I jolted back, my eyes snapping upwards. They landed on Alisha, who was smirking at me.

“Oops,” she grinned at me.

Everyone around us erupted in giggles and I felt rage flare up within me. I switched my gaze back to my book, as I desperately tried to do away with the stains, but it was impossible. My homework was soaked, with no hope of revival.

At that moment, my stomach rumbled and the whole surroundings went silent.

“Aw, looks like someone is too poor to buy herself some food. Why don’t you eat sand instead?” Alisha giggled.

“Eat sand! Eat sand!” The crowd chanted.

My cheeks reddened and I could not take the embarrassment anymore. I shot up from the chair and bolted down into the hallway when I felt a hard mass collide with the back of my head.