Her Christmas Redemption

1: Running Away

Zeraphine pov

I sat in the airport, the murmur of voices around me almost too much, like a static drone in my ears. The wheels of luggage scraped across the floor, one after another, dragging a pace that couldn’t follow. I was just there watching, stuck in a place where nothing felt like mine anymore. I felt myself stare at the excessive Christmas decorations which was supposedly meant to give feelings of happiness and joy of the season but that wasn't enough to sweep away the feeling of dread, sadness and sorrow draped around my already broken heart.

People moved around, fuzzy and loud, like a rushing tide. Families embraced, their laughter sharp and bright, something I once understood but couldn’t reach. One could tell most of these families were either on their ways for a vacation or going back to met their loved ones in other countries but here I am running away from my family and home.

I closed my hands into a fist, nails digging into my palms. Where did my world go? Where was the warmth? The promise?

At that moment, when I thought I'd seen it all, A couple passed by, their laughter like that of a shining glass, so bright. Their arms linked together as if nothing could tear them apart. I watched them disappear, a weight pressing down on my chest. It hurts but why this much? My heart is sore.

Two weeks ago, I was standing at the edge of something that felt like perfection. Our wedding plans, the flowers, the invitations, the settings, everything falling into place. Varin, my fiancé, the man I thought I would spend forever with, was beside me. We had this vision of what our life would be, it was like a yule tree so full of joy and it was so real.

"Can you imagine it?" I’d asked him, my fingers scrubbing against the fabric of the dress I thought I’d wear down the aisle. “me and you forever.”

He smiled, that smile I thought was meant only for me. "I can’t imagine anything else, Zera. You’re it. You always were."I had believed him. I did.

But now, sitting in this airport terminal, everything felt... wrong. The words, and his smile, were like pieces of a puzzle that didn’t fit anymore.

How had I been so sure? So blind? So...How did everything I had dreamed of come crashing down in the twinkle of an eye?

I didn't even knock. The door was cracked open just enough for me to see them. Varin. My Varin, the man I had planned my entire future around, was on his knees, his hands tangled in Rivara’s hair. His bare back glistened, and my stomach dropped as I realized where he was and what he was doing.

Rivara, my twin b***h of a sister, looked up at me. There was no shame. No apology. Just that cold, calculating smile she always wore when she knew she’d won.

"Oops look who we've got here," she said, her voice soft and sweet, like she hadn't just destroyed everything.

I felt like I couldn’t breathe. My feet were frozen, my legs numb. The room seemed to rotate, the air thick with everything I couldn’t say, everything I didn’t want to know….

I slowly shut my eyes to escape the memories of that day and just when I thought I'd seen enough of the lovey-dovey couples at the airport, each one a painful reminder of my mess, another pair walked past, hands intertwined, completely oblivious to the chaos around them.

I was lost in my thoughts again, my mind rotating in a thousand directions until wave of nausea hit hard, sudden, and intense. I barely made it to the restroom, stumbling toward the sink as my stomach twisted. I didn’t have the strength to fight it.

As I stood there, clinging to the cool sink, the world felt distant. When the wave passed, I pushed myself up, dizzy and empty.

I noticed a woman by the doorway. You could tell she was older than me, maybe in her forties, but there was something timeless about her, something that made the air around her feel still. She didn’t say a word, she just watched me. Her gaze wasn’t soft, but it wasn’t judgmental either.

As soon as the woman looked at me, her eyes softened, and she leaned in slightly. "Are you feeling those pregnancy hormones?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper.

I froze. My heart skipped a beat. How did she know? My hands immediately went to my belly, and I just nodded, not trusting my voice to form words.

She studied me for a moment, then smiled gently. "You don't have to say anything," she added, her smile warm but knowing. "I can tell."

I swallowed hard, the knot in my throat tightening. The world around us seemed not too visual, and all I could think was, How could she know?

"You don't look too okay. Are you traveling with your husband?" she asked, her tone light, but something in the question caught me.

The words hit me like a wave, unexpected and heavy. For a brief moment, everything around me seemed unclear. It was as if time slowed down just enough for me to feel the weight of the question deep in my chest.

"No," I managed to reply. My voice betrayed the sadness I hadn't anticipated.

Her smile faltered, just for a second, and then she quickly nodded, as if to dismiss the awkwardness. "I see". Her voice was so soft it suddenly reminded me of my late grandmother.

Just then, I could no longer hold it. The pang of sadness hadn't come from missing a specific person or the absence of a relationship.

It was the reminder of a path not taken, of the plans and dreams that had once felt so certain but now seemed like a dream never coming through. I had always imagined traveling with someone by my side, sharing the adventure, the quiet moments, the small joys. Instead, I was here alone, with no partner, no companion, just me, a lone traveler, not just a lone traveler "but a pregnant lone traveler ".

I didn't mean to cry. But before I could stop it, the tears were there, falling silently down my cheeks.

"I...I caught them," I said, the words coming out in a whisper, as if saying them out loud would make the reality even worse. "My fiancé and my sister. They... they

I wiped my eyes, trying to regain control, but my voice shook as I started to speak. “I… I don’t even know where to begin,” I whispered, feeling small. “I caught them. My fiancé and my sister." I swallowed hard, trying to force the words out. "I walked in on them, and they were just… so casual about it. Like nothing had changed.”

The woman’s expression softened, her eyes never leaving mine.

“I thought I knew them. I thought I knew him, and I thought I knew her. But… How could she do that?” I said in a low tone. “How could she, my sister..betray me like that? And… he was just sitting there like it was nothing. Like I meant nothing.”

I felt the tears come again, and I didn’t try to stop them this time. They slinked down my face, each one carrying a mix of pain, disbelief, and rage that I couldn’t quite sort through. “How could they just sit there? How could they look at me like everything was normal? Like I didn’t matter at all?”

I sat there, staring down at my hands, unsure how to begin. She was waiting for me to say something, anything, but the words felt like they were lodged too deep in my throat. How could I be telling a stranger about all this but I just needed to just pour my mind out.

I took a breath. "I didn’t mean for it to happen. I went to that bar… I wasn’t thinking straight, you know? I was so angry. So lost ."

"I just wanted to forget it all. To feel nothing for a while," I continued, my voice thin, almost like I was talking to myself. "So I drank. A lot. And then... I woke up the next morning. Alone. But not really." I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting the Aching in my chest. "I don’t even remember how he got there. Or his name.”

I couldn’t look at her now. I could feel the weight of my shame pressing down harder with every word I spoke. She would be judging me now.

"I was gone before he even woke up. I just… left. I couldn’t face him. I couldn’t face what I had done." I laughed, but it sounded void. "I don’t even know what it was. Was it a mistake? Or just... a moment? I don’t know. I don’t know."

"I thought I’d forget about it. But then...just then I found out." swallowed hard, the words sticking in my throat. "A few days later, I found out I was pregnant."

The silence that followed was suffocating. I felt like I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t escape the heaviness of it all. I wanted to disappear.

"I’m so... so sorry," I whispered, though I didn’t even know who I was apologizing to.

She leaned in just slightly, her voice gentle but steady. "You don't need to apologize dear. It was not your fault.”

"When I confronted her," I continued, fighting to steady my voice, "right there, in front of our parents... do you know what they said? They supported her." The words cut through me, like pieces of glass. "Because she’s a beta. Because it’s ‘better’ that way. They said it was right for her to mate with an Alpha."

I shook my head, the frustration, the betrayal, clawing at me. I couldn’t breathe. "I wasn’t even... I wasn’t even worth a second thought. I’m an omega. To them, that’s not enough. I’m not enough. It felt as though they weren’t even listening. My mother and father stood there, unmoving, repeating that it was for the best, that she, being a Beta, had her place, while I... I was simply an Omega. To them, I didn’t matter in the same way."

The betrayal had hit me so hard that I couldn’t breathe. It was like my entire world had collapsed, I didn’t know what hurt more.

And now… now, I was carrying this weight inside me, a secret I couldn’t share with anyone, especially not with my parents. Not after what just happened.

"I hadn’t told anyone yet. Not my parents. I don't even know who the father is. Hell, I hadn’t even told myself what I was supposed to do with it. With this."

The pregnancy test was still Folded in the back of my bag as if ignoring it would make it vanish. I couldn’t stay here. Not like this.

"Just then, I made the difficult decision to leave the city before they discovered I was pregnant, knowing they wouldn't believe me. Instead, they'd label me a cheater, and I couldn't bear the weight of that judgment. I would prefer running away from this country and life."