THE ALPHA’S VENGEFUL LUNA

CHAPTER 21: BOUNDARIES

ICARUS

Freya was driving me crazy. Literally.

After the incident at the shopping mall and the kiss afterwards, Freya seemed to have shut down. Our ride home that afternoon was quiet and awkward, and it was eating me up inside.

I realised that she must have been really upset about what happened, so I decided to cheer her up. I organised a special dinner for her as a peace offering, hoping she would forgive me.

I was wrong.

She kept herself locked up in her room all evening and she refused to come out to have dinner with me even after I had sent five different servants to inform her about dinner.

I decided to go down myself, thinking that maybe my presence would make a difference. I guess it was safe to think that my presence actually made it worse because she refused to open the door when she found out I was the one.

I had taken a master key with me, with the grand plan that if she did not open the door, I would get in myself. Apparently, she was determined not to see me because she left her own key in the keyhole, so there was no way my key would have gotten in.

After waiting for hours, it was clear that Freya was not going to change her mind about seeing me, so I went back to eat my cold dinner. Alone.

All my efforts to get her to talk to me or give her attention proved abortive, but I was not willing to give up. I was not ready to accept defeat, so I let her be for the evening, with plans to intensify my efforts the next day.

The next morning, I made breakfast for Freya, taking Ava with me with the hope that if she heard Ava's voice, she would open the door.

She eventually did, and I was happy to finally get the chance to see her even though she was not particularly pleased about my presence.

“Good morning, Freya. How was your night?” I had asked.

I got no response. She just eyed the tray of food by her bedside, looking away without a word. All efforts to get her to talk were futile. It was like I was dead to her, nonexistent, and it bruised my ego in ways I could not explain.

I would have really preferred it if she was yelling in my ears, not avoiding me like a plague or staring through me like I was a ghost.

Her silence was loud in my ears, screaming at me for terrifying her at the boutique and for making everything worse by kissing her without her consent. For a brief moment, I felt she enjoyed it, but I guess I chose the wrong moment to have kissed her.

We were meant to travel for the masquerade ball the next day, but I was not sure if she still wanted to go with me. I knew asking her would be like talking to a rock, because I would not get any response so I decided to still prepare like she was coming along with me, despite not confirming from her.

It was finally the day of the masquerade ball and everything was parked up and ready for our trip. I decided to try once again to talk to Freya, so I walked down to her room. I had barely landed a knock on her door when it cracked open, with Freya stepping outside.

I had seen Freya many times before, but at that moment, she was so captivating that all words seemed to have disappeared from my mouth. I just stared at her, my hand still hanging in the air.

Her beauty had cast a spell on me, and I was willing to drown in it. She was adorned in a beautiful gold dress which glimmered as the morning sun cast its rays on it.

Freya, on the other hand, barely acknowledged my presence. She spared me a wary glance before walking away, with some servants following behind who were carrying her travel bags.

Even after she had disappeared, I stood transfixed on the spot. My heartbeat was wild and so were my thoughts.

I had always wanted Freya, but the desire had never felt as strong as it did at that moment.

The invisible force pulling us together seemed to grow stronger and it was almost uncontrollable. It was the reason I kissed her on impulse that day at the mall.

I yearned for Freya, like a growing hunger that could not be satisfied.

“Snap out of it, Icarus.” I muttered, smacking my face before walking away to the car. The earlier we began our journey, the better.

By the time I arrived the car, Freya was already seated in the backseat so I joined her. Maybe we would be able to talk during the journey. It would take a lot for us to sit together and not talk, so I was willing to give it a shot.

Like she had always done for the past few days, she barely acknowledged my presence. As much as I wanted to say that I was already getting used to it, but I still felt that painful jab in my chest whenever she acted like I was nonexistent.

I could not take her act any longer, so I decided to play her game and act like she did not exist to me as well. It was possible for a few hours into the journey, but even as we drove in awkward silence, my mind was reeling with questions.

Why exactly was Freya upset with me? Did she really mean not to kiss me back at that parking lot? How long did she plan to keep avoiding me? How would she react if I tried talking about it?

I cleared my throat, casting a furtive glance at my Luna who was seated at the far end of the car, legs crossed as she read a book.

I needed to find a good way to start a conversation with her. All my social skills seemed to have evaporated and I wracked my brain for answers.

“What... book is that? Looks interesting...” I began, tapping my feet on the floor in anxiety. “Must be a good read because you have been buried in it all day…”

Freya glanced at me coldly before going back to the book she was reading.

“Well, that was mean…” I muttered.

Now, she was really getting on my nerves, so I snatched the book from her fingers, thinking she would give me her attention when I did.

Once again, Freya proved me wrong.

She went ahead to bring out another book, and I mentally facepalmed myself. I never knew I would feel this upset about being ignored, but I did and I was not going to hide it anymore.

“Freya, it has been days now and I have been trying to have a simple conversation with you but you just keep acting like I do not exist!” I flared up in frustration. “All I am asking is just a few minutes for us to talk, that is all.”

Freya paused for a moment, dropping the book she was reading face down on her thighs before looking at me.

“Now you have my attention. What is it?” Freya asked curtly.

I ignored her tone and decided to ask her one of the questions that have been on my mind lately.

“That day at the parking lot…when we kissed…”

“What day?” Freya asked and my face scrunched up in confusion.

“What do you mean what day? It literally happened a few days ago.” I replied. “You can deny it all you want Freya, but it did happen...What I just want to know is...if it meant anything to you-”

“No. It meant nothing.”

I had barely finished speaking when Freya dropped her cold response.

I felt my chest heat up as a searing hot pain shot through my heart after hearing Freya's response. My wolf whined at the pain. It was not supposed to hurt so much, and I could not explain why it did.

“Oh…” I muttered. “Okay.”

I stopped bothering her after then, as we continued to journey in silence while I nursed my aching heart and my hurt ego.

***

FREYA

The journey with Icarus was a long and uncomfortable one, so you can imagine the relief that washed over me when he announced that we had arrived at Rivendale.

“Finally.” I muttered, looking out the window to take in the city.

It was already dusk and the setting sun cast its golden rays on the entire city, giving it this special light and airy feel.

It was a bright and cheery city which smelt of fresh baked goods and blooming flowers. We were headed straight to the castle.

My jaw hung loose when we drove into the royal castle. It was magnificent and dreamy, like something from a fantasy book borne from wild imaginations.

I had almost forgotten Icarus was in the car with me until he called my name.

“Freya…”

I snapped my head towards the sound of his voice and there he sat, looking dejected. I knew he was hurt after what I said, but he deserved it. I would not give him the pleasure of knowing that he had any effect on me.

“We're at Rivendale now, and we can't carry this awkward atmosphere into the masquerade ball.” He said.

I hated to admit it, but he was right. We needed to put on our best behaviour, even if it was just for a night.

“Okay.” I replied, pulling out my mask from my purse before slipping it over my face.

“So you'll be okay with us acting as couples for the night?” Icarus asked me.

“Just... don't cross your boundaries.” came my response, and Icarus nodded in understanding.

“Good.” I muttered, before stepping out of the car as soon as it came to a halt.