My Secret Mate

Chapter Four

After that incident on Saturday, I spent an hour crying, then another hour pretending everything was okay with Bella, and apologizing to her about avoiding her at the party. She was understanding, nice, and even sympathetic. I felt so bad, I felt like I was using her. But at the same time, a part of me didn't care. I wanted to be numb. I thought for a brief second if I should just reject him, if he'd just accept without knowing what it meant, but then thought of an idea. It was horrible and great at the same time. Seth had strung me along, and he would pay. What was the plan? I'd steal his girlfriend.

That seemed too simple, and I huffed to myself in my car, alone. Then I smirked. I'd steal his girlfriend, while making him fall in love with me. Too cruel? I shook my head, determined not to go through with something so cruel. Yet I still wanted to make him feel what I felt, I wanted to make him feel used. No. I'd just reject him after school, then force him to accept.

I slammed the car door behind me, and immediately was approached by Trent and Bella.

"What's up, Fabio?" Trent lightly punched my shoulder and I laughed.

"Nothing much, how about you?" He shook his head with a smile.

"Just chilling."

"Good morning, Xavi." Bella peered up at me with a small smile.

"Morning, beautiful." I smiled back down at her, placing an arm around her while avoiding Trent's huff of annoyance. As we walked through the double doors and into the school, I could smell the familiar scent of my mate as strong as the day I met him. Which meant he was nearby.

I spotted him. Seth was walking down the hallway with his girlfriend, Cassie. About a second after his eyes looked to me, I swiftly bent down and gave Bella a sensual kiss. She tasted somewhat sweet, like caramel. But not as sweet as him, Sirius' gruff voice spoke in my head, and I tuned him out as she kissed me back deeper.

"Ew! I don't need to see that so early in the morning, Xavi." It was Monsè's voice, and I pulled away with a huff. Monsè had refused to ride with me today, saying she'd tag along with Lance, which I didn't object to. On Sunday, I had gone over to Bella's, and she knew damn well why. So now, she was mad at me because of how I was treating Bella; I didn't mind if she was mad, I deserved it after all.

I glanced over to see if Seth was still there, and he wasn't. Good.

"Want me to walk you to class?" I looked down to Bella and bit my lip as I tugged on her hand. She nodded with a blush. God, I hate myself.

I ignored my friends and sisters disapproving glares, and did as I offered. I held her hand the whole way, and was happy that she kissed me again when we arrived in front of the door. When her hand slipped from mine, I was suddenly reminded of the cold I felt without Seth. Bella was like a warm blanket. It didn't make the pain go away, but it helped. I walked to my class, begrudgingly annoyed in general.

I walked in a couple minutes late, noticing it was a free-day to study since we took the test on Friday. As soon as I sat down, Lindsay and Trent started grilling me.

"What the hell are doing with Bella, Xavi?" I rolled my eyes at Trent's protective tone. He growled, and Lindsay patted his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down. It obviously didn't work.

She raised an eyebrow, expecting me to respond.

I sighed, feeling tired of even thinking about it. But I had to tell them. They deserved an explanation.

"At the party, Seth and I..." Their eyes widened.

"Is that his name?" Lindsay perked up, loving the details despite her annoyance about Bella and I.

I nodded, before continuing with a grimace. "We talked. Then we kissed. Talked some more, kissed some more..." I trailed off, not knowing how to continue.

"What happened?" Trent noticed my change in demeanor, and seemed to lose his edge as he spoke, now concerned.

"We didn't sleep together, but he stayed the night. He even met my parents..."

Lindsay placed her hand on mine, worried about what I was going to say that had me acting differently. I suddenly noticed the wetness in my eyes, and rubbed it away before continuing.

"I drove him home, and found out he has a girlfriend."

Trent and Lindsay gasped. Her voice was almost shrill, "No!"

"Silence." Mr. Damocles glared at her, and she sheepishly waved an apology.

"You've gotta be f*****g kidding me." She whispered, offended for me.

Trent sighed, "Damn. That's harsh."

I shrugged, "It is what it is."

"So what are you going to do now?" She placed her chin on her fist, her eyebrows furrowed in wonder.

"I invited him over today so I can reject him..."

"Oh." She frowned, "Well, yeah. Not much else you can do anyways."

I scoffed, "What did you expect?"

"I don't know, something romantic like wooing him. I mean, you're soulmates for crying out loud."

I frowned, "Yeah. And he's a closet gay, or bi, or whatever he is. And he used me. So no, I'm not going to woo him."

"Well you still shouldn't be messing around with Bella." Trent interceded, and I shrugged again.

"What do you want me to do?" He was about to speak before I held my hand up to stop him, "Never mind. Shouldn't have asked. Anyways, it's not like I'm going to be mated for long."

"Yeah, whatever you say." Trent sighed, and I pulled a book out of my bag to distract myself.

The minute the lunch bell rang, I raced towards Bella's class without a second glance anywhere else but ahead. My shoulder bumped against someone roughly, and I felt the sparks engulf my body. It felt like a punch in the gut at this point.

I heard an 'oof', and looked down to see I had knocked Seth down. I froze, looking down at him. He was so pretty, so handsome. It made me want to cry then and there.

"Hey, watch where..." He looked up, trailing off as his eyes took me in. My breath hitched at his green eyes, and I cursed mentally at the way they affected me.

I noticed some curious glances, and I stuck my hand out to help him get up. He hesitated, searching my eyes before deciding to take my hand. His touch was annoyingly soothing. It distracted me, so I helped him up too aggressively, because his head bumped into mine when he stood. I winced, glaring at him silently as I rubbed my forehead. He looked at me, guilt written all over his face.

"Thanks..." He mumbled, a small blush on his face spread, causing me to clench my fists in frustration. Why the f**k was he cute?

"Whatever, dude." I started to walk past him, just wanting to let myself be lost in Bella's embrace, wanting to forget I ever kissed him. He grabbed my arm to stop me, and I glared at him again. The way he made me feel was honestly dangerous, and I snatched my arm away.

"What is it?" The venom in my voice made him falter a bit, and a small pang of guilt entered my chest. He looked up at me with furrowed brows, almost determined.

"We need to talk."

"After school at my place. Or did you forget?" I raised an eyebrow.

"No." He flustered, "I just didn't want-" I leaned in suddenly, my voice a hushed whisper as I interrupted him.

"What's wrong? Scared you might cheat again?" I smirked.

Seth's eyes widened, he was speechless, and I couldn't help but feel worse because of the way I was acting. Yet I couldn't stop myself.

"I'll drive you there myself. Besides, your car is still in my driveway." I pulled away, still smirking.

Fifth period came by, which was English. I wasn't bad at it, because I loved reading so writing came easily. What was bad in English, was Seth that was across from me. Had I never noticed him being in front of me until now? I felt stupid suddenly, but then again I was always stupid so I disregarded the feeling quickly.

My friend in that class, Frida, smiled at me as she greeted me. She was a human I usually said hi to in the halls, but in the classroom we were practically besties.

I smiled back, "What's up, Frida?"

"Same old, I guess." She played with her pen, "So how was the party?"

I tried not to glance at Seth. But I couldn't help remembering his lips on mine, especially when he was straddling me. I let out a nervous laugh, "It was okay. It sucks you weren't there. My friends got a little drunk, I got a little action..."

She raised a brow with a smirk on her lips, "Oh really?"

Seth visibly tensed, but I ignored him once again.

"Yeah. They were hot. Great kisser too." She seemed interested, wanting to know who it was, but I wasn't that cruel. "Unfortunately, it was just a one-time thing."

She pouted, being sarcastic as always, "Must suck to be such a player."

"You're one to talk. You have, like, three boy toys."

"Touché." She bit her lip, "I wouldn't mind adding you to the list, you know?"

The thing about Frida is that she flirted with me, but she never really meant it. It was just our friendship. We flirted and played around, but we never got close like that.

I leaned in, whispering loudly enough for Seth to hear, "Don't make me act up. You know how great I am with my tongue, right?"

She suddenly snorted into laughter, and I shook my head with a grin at her break in character. Seth was obviously annoyed as he opened his folder, barely even glancing at me. It was amusing to see him, out of all people who had the right to be mad, get his feathers ruffled.

The other student who was at our table sat down next to me. His name was Spencer, and on the cheerleader team. He was cute, with his little uniform, and I wondered if I had ever spoken to him before.

I heard the teacher approach, and I straightened up before getting my stuff out onto the desk. Frida discreetly slid a note towards me, and I opened the small note while hiding behind Spencer since he was in front of me and facing the teacher.

'Is it just me, or is Seth being weird?'

I chuckled, glancing at Seth before writing back. He noticed, and was practically seething at the mere thought that we were gossiping about him.

'Who's Seth?' I wrote, and flicked it back to her. It almost slid off the table. She scoffed, and got another piece of paper before writing back. She flicked it back, hard, and I caught it before it flew off the table with ease. She looked surprised, then annoyed with my small triumph.

'The fact you don't know his name screams your asshole tendencies. It's the guy next to me. He usually talks a lot more to me, we even hang outside of school sometimes too. But now, in this class at least, he's ignoring me.'

I looked at her confused, wondering what it would be that set him off. I suddenly glanced at Seth, his scowl etched on his beautiful lips, and I smiled. I wrote it down hastily, 'Watch this.'

Frida furrowed her brows, wondering what I meant. I reached my hand over, and grasped hers gently. I interlaced our fingers, and gave her a charming smile. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Seth grimace at the act and look away when I raised an eyebrow at him.

Frida giggled under her breath, and leaned forward to whisper in my ear. "I think he's jealous we're friends."

I chuckled lowly, "Probably."

The whole time, I made sure to flirt with Frida, even when she pulled her hand away and tried to talk to Seth. She has success eventually, but he would still scowl when we would talk. Spencer laughed and joined in when I made a joke with Frida, then the teacher scolded us for being a little too loud. We didn't have much schoolwork, just some class work that would become homework if unfinished.

I leaned over to Spencer to whisper in his hear, "Hey, I have a question. So like, who do you think is cuter? Frida or Seth?"

He shrugged, "I'm ace. So I don't really think either are appealing in general."

"Ah." I nodded, "I get it. You have a special someone?"

"Not really. I mean, I don't know if I want one." He scratched the back of his head, and shook his head. I c****d my head, confused and he explained, "Most people are s****l. I'm not, so dating anyone would be frustrating for the other person."

"Oh yeah, I get you." I wondered if anyone in the pack would be mated to him, and was curious to how that would go. "Well, if they really liked you I don't think they should mind."

He nodded in agreement, "See, that's the thing. I can feel s****l arousal, and I can have a s****l attraction to someone I have a crush on or something. But it takes a while for me to open up in that way to them, and a long while for me to decide I have an attraction to them. I have to really get to know them."

I listened attentively, genuinely interested in his situation rather than school.

"But nobody sticks around for long when you won't kiss them for months."

"Yeah." I sighed with a shrug, "Romance is tough. The person I like is taken, and they kind of led me on, so I'm annoyed about everything."

He nodded in sympathy and placed a hand on my shoulder, "Must be tough. Hang in there, bud."

The bell rang for class, and I said bye to Frida and Spencer, glancing at Seth's gaze before grabbing my backpack and leaving. I left the class and waited in the hallway for a second, pondering if another class with him is worth it. I could leave right now, but then I wouldn't be able to reject him afterwards.

I saw him leave the classroom after a minute, and I grabbed his arm. He tried to resist, but gave up when he saw I wouldn't budge. I c****d my head as a signal for him to follow me, and he huffed before obliging.

"Where are we going, Xavier?" Hearing Seth say my name was kind of exhilarating. I almost wanted to ask him to say it again.

"We're skipping sixth." I unlocked my car as we left the school, and made it to the parking lot. He scoffed at me.

"What makes you think I'll actually go?" He narrowed his eyes, and I shrugged with a smile.

"'Cause I know you want to." I opened my passenger door with a raised eyebrow, "And maybe because after this, you'll never have to talk to me again."

He contemplated for a second, before going around, slipping off his backpack, and sitting in the passenger seat. I closed the door, and ran around to the other side in a hurry. I closed my driver's side door, and started the car hurriedly. The radio played the Jonas Brothers, and even though 'Sucker' was a love song, I shrugged and turned it up as I pulled out of the school lot. I glanced over to see Seth clenching his fists in his lap, and I was suddenly reminded of us dancing together that night. My imagination drifted, and now we were dirty dancing to this song. Our faces close, both of us panting and smiling, his arms around my neck and pulling me closer.

I shook the thought away as we pulled up to my house, and I turned off the engine. I looked over, seeing his face flush when he saw me looking. I cursed under my breath and got out of the car, walking towards the front door and unlocking it. I could sense he was behind me, and opened the door for him to walk in first. He rolled his eyes at my chivalry, and I walked in after him with a low chuckle.

We both walked towards my bedroom, and I closed the door behind us gently. That last time we were here, it was blissful. Now, it was awkward.

I sighed seeing him stand there, seemingly out of place. I approached him, and his eyes widened a little at my close proximity.

"Listen, I'm going to say something to you. Something weird..." His eyes were cautious now, "And you have to accept, okay? Without asking questions."

He huffed, "And why would I do that?"

"Because if you do, we'll never have to interact again." I consciously took a step back, realizing this was too close for comfort or for my concentration. My wolf Sirius was suddenly growling, Don't you dare reject mate! He is perfect-

Perfect or not, he doesn't want us. My harsh reminder made him whimper, and I could practically hear his shallow breaths at the thought of it. I myself found this hard to do, looking at him and his nervous fidget, his beautiful body and face.

"I, Xavier Ramon of the Blood Moon Pack, reject you, Seth..." I paused, and leaned in to whisper a question, "What's your last name?"

He scoffed, "Truman."

"Ah. Okay, let me start over." I took a deep breath, preparing for the supposed pain that would happen as soon as I finished the sentence. "I, Xavier Ramon of the Blood Moon pack, reject you, Seth Truman, as my mate."

We both flinched backwards, obviously feeling the pain in our chests from the attempt to sever the bond. The only way to completely sever the mate bond was for him to accept, otherwise it would slowly mend again. I clutched my shirt in the area above my chest, feeling like I couldn't breathe.

Seth looked at me, confused and shocked before he scoffed again. "No. I don't accept."

I gasped, feeling my emotions bubble to the surface, and my voice broke. "What? Why not?"

"I don't want to." He looked sad now, and somewhat confused still. I was desperate now.

I didn't want to see him and think of the times we kissed. I didn't want to embrace him, I didn't want to want him. I wanted him gone from my mind, my soul, my heart. I wanted to forget the touch of his skin as easily as I forgot about Bella's.

"You have to." I could feel my eyes tear up, and he backed up as I took a step towards him. "You have to, so this can be over."

"Accept the rejection." Another step. He shook his head, and I could feel a sob threaten to escape. Another two steps. "I need you to accept it."

He bumped into the desk, and panted before speaking, "What happens if I don't accept?"

I clenched my fist, thinking of the situation. Well, between now and four months, assuming I won't be mating, I'd go into a rut. Seth, if a werewolf, would go into heat, but since he wasn't, there was no telling what he would go through.

"I-I..." I stuttered, not knowing exactly what to say as Seth bothered my focus. Then I thought of it, and I suddenly grasped his hand. "This would never go away. These sparks, this attraction will stay forever. We'll always be connected, no matter what." He searched my eyes, and was about to speak when I interceded. "It'll only get worse. Please, just accept it."

He frowned, before shaking his head. "No. I don't accept your rejection..."

I faltered, letting go of his hand completely. "Why not?"

He chewed his lip, silent and looking at the floor. We stayed like this for five minutes before I spoke again.

"You can't string me along like this." He looked up, eyes guilty and sad. "I need to be able to..." I couldn't find the words, and I honestly didn't want to. I didn't want to think of a world without him, but I needed it.

"To what? To make out with Bella? To flirt with both Frida and Spencer?" He scoffed, his eyes suddenly void of the guilt or sadness he felt. "You seem to be doing just fine without my acceptance."

I didn't know what to say, or how to explain that those things were completely different. Sirius seemed to be able to speak for me, to find the words I couldn't, and I shut my eyes before they spoke so he wouldn't see the way my eyes flashed yellow. "That doesn't change the way I feel about you. Just from the other night, I can't get you out of my head. If you accepted... I'd be able to properly move on."

Seth's breath hitched, and I opened my eyes as Sirius properly receded to the back of my mind. His green eyes were practically glowing, and I couldn't stop the way they made my heart clench.

He was at a loss for words. "I gotta go." He pushed past me, and I didn't stop him. I was frozen. I know he was human, and that he didn't know about us being mates, but this was still so cruel.

If he wouldn't reject me, I'd make him. I'd force him to hate me, force his hand, and then he'd accept. Even though I had initially swore I wouldn't, I decided that I would. I would invade his life. I'd make him feel like I do. First step of the plan: steal his girlfriend.

I sat on the bed, looking through my social media before finding Cassie's account. It wasn't that hard to find when you looked to who followed the school account, and just looked for the profile picture. I requested to follow her. I didn't know how long it would take for her to accept, so I texted Bella if she could come over. She quickly denied, saying she was hanging out with her friends.

I sighed, bored now. It was an hour before she accepted and followed back. Probably because they just got out of school, and I quickly texted her.

_Papi_Xavi_: Hey, I'm Xavier from the other day. Seth's buddy, remember me?

QT.Cassie.uwu: Oh yeah, the one who got Seth to take a bunch of shots?

I winced before replying.

_Papi_Xavi_: Pretty much. It was the only way he'd loosen up, so you can't really blame me.

qt.Cassie.uwu: Watch me.

I scoffed under my breath.

_Papi_Xavi_: Anyways, I texted to see if you wanted to see if you could study. I need help with History since Seth bailed.

qt.cassie.uwu is typing...

_Papi_Xavi_: I don't mean to be weird, or anything. I'll ask someone else if you can't help, I mean not everyone is good at history.

I smirked, knowing what I'd done. Using the word 'can't' made it look like she was incapable. If there was one thing girls hated, it was being told they couldn't do something.

After a minute, she replied.

qt.Cassie.uwu: When can you meet?

Triumph. Hah, suck it Seth.

_Papi_Xavi_: In an hour at this cafe.

_Papi_Xavi_:

_Papi_Xavi_: It's my favorite.

qt.Cassie.uwu: K.

I got up, strolling towards the shower giddily. I had a date tonight. In no less than twenty minutes, I was out of the shower and almost ready. I ruffled my hair, wearing my favorite pair of silver, dangly earrings. I had on a black Tee, some pale blue and ripped skinny jeans, and vans. The finishing touch was the silver rings that accentuated my hands, and I grinned in the mirror. I was hot.

I suddenly thought of what I would bring for the study session. I didn't have history at all. I went to my desk, opening my laptop and looking for history packets for seniors. My story, you asked? I didn't need one. Most history teachers were lazy anyways.

"How was your day, honey?" I walked into the kitchen with a smirk.

"Okay." She was peeling lemons, no doubt to attempt making lemon meringue pie. She was great at cooking, but Monsè was better for some reason.

"And that mate of yours? How is he?"

I grimaced, "Not single."

She winced, looking at me with concern. "Are you okay?"

I shrugged, trying not to think about it too much.

She placed a hand on my shoulder, "Any plans to win him?"

I smiled, "Yeah. I'm actually gonna go work on it right now."

"Have fun." She gave me a wink, smiling wide.

I shook my head, heading out the door and towards my truck.

It was a short drive, of course. And I was there five minutes early, so I ordered a blueberry croissant and a caramel apple pie shake. I sat down, munching away on my croissant while scrolling through my social media. I got a notification from Spencer, wanting to follow me. I accepted, and followed him back.

The door rang, and I saw Cassie walk through the door with a hoodie, leggings, and some slides. A pink pair of glasses were perched on her nose, and I thought she looked cute. Her hair was in a low ponytail, certain black strands framing her face.

I swallowed my food quickly, and waved her over with a grin. "Cass!"

She looked over, and nodded as she walked over, her satchel on her shoulder. "Hey."

She placed the satchel on the table, and proceeded to get some things out of her bag: flash cards, highlighters, sticky note arrows, a notebook, and pencils. Her face was very serious, and I got my packet and pencils out of my backpack too.

"So how was your-"

She held her hand up with a raised brow, and I immediately closed my mouth.

"So, what exactly is it that you needed help with?"

I held up the packet, and her eyes widened. I laughed, "Don't worry. It's just pages one through ten, but I'm still having a little trouble."

"Okay, but all you have to do is look up the answers in the textbook. And if not that, then the Internet-"

"Ah." I scratched the back of my neck, feeling embarrassed about thinking only about the fake packet, and not how to get the information for it. I sighed, "Listen, this was honestly all just an excuse to hang out."

She c****d her head as I continued speaking, "I mean, all my girl friends sometimes catch feelings for me. Even when they say it's fine, I feel bad. But then I get lonely so..." This was the hardest bullshit I've pulled. " I was originally going to hang with Seth but..."

"But he bailed." She narrowed her eyes, doubting my story. Time to go Plus Ultra...

I nodded, smiling sheepishly, "And since you're taken, I thought it'd be fine to hang out because you wouldn't catch feelings..." She frowned, but it didn't meet her eyes. It was the kind of frown when you said, 'Fair enough.' "I didn't know if you'd agree, so I used this kind of as a ploy..."

She stayed silent, just staring me down. I feigned a sigh of defeat as I packed my things away, stood, and started to walk away.

"Wait." She called out to me, I smirked to myself before turning and pretending to be surprised. She beckoned me over and I sat in front of her, still with the same expression. She chewed at her lip for a second before continuing, "I don't blame you. I mean, you're a really nice looking guy, and it can be tough to find a genuine friend who isn't looking for more. Yet, that girl from this morning-"

"She's... yeah." She placed her chin on the palm of her hand, no doubt waiting for an explanation. With a chuckle, I continued. "Technically, we're friends with benefits, but I've been meaning to distance myself because she has feelings." I needed to make it known I wasn't taken, so I'd be even more appealing. Or was that not appealing? I wasn't sure, but I figured it'd be better to not be taken.

"And you don't? She's super pretty." Cassie was confused, and I wondered the same thing. Why couldn't I like her? It's not like I was gay, I was bisexual. I couldn't explain it. Some people just don't click that way, I deduced. I looked down, playing with a piece of paper I ripped from her notebook.

"Well, it's not like she isn't a great person. It's just that, recently I've set my eye on someone..." I looked up now, making it so it was hinting at her without being too direct. I grinned as she blushed when she said that, and she blushed even deeper when I pressed my teeth at a piece of the paper as to gently and precisely fold it.

She scoffed, obviously nervous but trying to play it off. "I guess we can hang out regularly. Though, we should actually study from time to time. Maybe a subject you actually have."

I placed my folded origami heart in front of her with a seemingly genuine smile. "Sounds like a plan."