Omega. Playboy

8. CHAPTER EIGHT

I descended the stairs at a snail’s pace, dreading the family gathering that was to come. My mum had been too tired from work to witness my first shift and my dad just did not care enough. Jessy was still fast asleep and I felt guilty for dragging her on a futile journey. 

“Clara, baby, I’m so sorry I couldn’t make it to your first shift,” Mum said immediately she caught sight of me. Dad briefly glanced up from his tablet to peer at me before huffing and going back to his reading. 

Quinn was coming down the stairs, right behind me and he scoffed loud enough to draw attention to him, mocking me with that single sound. 

“What’s wrong?” Mum asked in confusion “What colour is her wolf?” She directed her question at him while I settled into a seat with an air of silence surrounding me. 

“She doesn’t have a wolf,” There was something suspiciously like glee in his voice. My dad’s tablet clattered out of his hands into the table as his mouth fell open and his brows scrunched up. 

“What?” Mum asked with a small choking sound. 

“She doesn’t have a wolf. Maybe it’s too weak – too pathetic to come out,” He said, settling directly opposite me. A small grin meant for me alone graced his lips for a second. 

“How – that’s not possible, “ my dad’s quiet rumble sounded from the head of the table. His small, beady eyes were blown wide like a strangled animal’s as he looked from me to Quinn. 

“Maybe it’s dead then,” Quinn shrugged, starting to serve himself some eggs. “Maybe they swapped your child at the hospital. I don’t know guys – she just doesn’t have a wolf at least not one that made an appearance yesterday during the full moon,” He stressed innocently, forking some eggs into his mouth.

“Is this true, Clara?” My fathered demanded harshly as if it was my fault my wolf had not made an appearance the previous day. As if it was my fault Nora had suddenly vanished from my life. 

“Yes,” I whispered in shame, hanging my head limply.

“Speak up and look at me when I address you!” My father growled. His eyes were starting to turn red, not an alpha's red but the red of anger. 

“Yes!” I all but exclaimed, staring into his hate filled eyes. 

“Clementina, whose child is this?” My dad demanded from my mum and I gaped in shock. 

My emotions were reflected on the faces of the other two at the table. “What do you mean by that, Bill? This is our daughter,” My mum said as Quinn exclaimed.

“Dad!” in a strained voice.

“You are lying to me. First you bring home two omegas even if we are both deltas and now I’m being told that one of the omegas does not have a wolf? We are wolves, Clementina. Wolves birth wolves not human!” My dad shouted at my mother, slamming his hands down on the table so that eggs and orange juice splattered about.

“Dad!” Quinn exclaimed again.

“Are you accusing me of something, Bill?” Mother growled out, rising to her entire five feet eleven inches, two inches more than dad’s five feet eight frame. 

“No child of mine can be human! It is impossible except their father is human! Clementina, I said nothing when your brought these omegas to me, considering your grandmother was an omega, but human! Wolves do not have human children! So this child who you have masqueraded as mine for the past eighteen years is obviously a fraud!” My father was heaving with every breath he took and his big stomach danced with each laboured breath. 

“Bill Christopher Hansen! Are you accusing me of cheating!?” In the anger that coated her voice, I could hear disbelief and pain. 

“You have been having an affair and these omega children are proof! You disgusting b***h! Utter embarrassment to the werewolf community! Shameless slut!” My father went on a long tirade of insults against my mother until she walked up to him calmly and punched him square on the mouth. 

Blood immediately started to drip from a loose tooth and surprise made my father shut up instantly then he raised his fist and tried to hammer back at her. She was quicker though and right there in our kitchen, my parents started to brawl. Quinn jumped into action to separate them. I picked up my bag and quietly slunk out of the house. 

****

Everyone at school knew. I couldn’t fathom who had told them or how the news had spread so fast, but they just knew. Whispers broke out as soon ad I crossed through the double doors into the school. A lot of them were loud so I did not need my wolf to hear.

“She did not shift,” A girl said

“They say her wolf is dead,” another girl whispered to her friend. 

“I don’t know what happened last night but word out there is that she has a deformity – I don’t know man, she looks kind of weird,” a human boy was saying to his mate.

“She’s not a wolf,” My pack mate was saying. 

“She is human,” another whispered and I froze in my tracks. All around me, people were talking, pointing at me, some even bumping into me and calling me a freak, a weirdo, but it was that loud whisper that made me stumble slightly. 

To a shifter, being called a human was one of the worst insults ever. It was like calling a human a dog or a rat, downgrading them from what they were to something much less. Werewolves belonged to the preternatural and it seemed I was going to be downgrades from a lowly preternatural to a human. A part of me ached, my god!

Getting to my locker, the word ‘freak’ was painted in bold red. I could deal with that later, I just had to get my books and prepare for the first class. I opened my locker and a multitude of rubbish started to fall out. Banana peels, dead fish, snack packets, leftover meals and other contents of a trash bag fell to my feet. 

“Because you are trash” A single pink note on my biology textbook read. I was too numb to cry.

“Hey omega – oops I meant human,” Ashley said, cackling with her clique as they passed by. 

“Who did this?” Remi was at my side and she was growling slightly, glaring individually at each student. Everyone suddenly found something interesting to do with themselves. “Oh, no one huh?” She said into the silence. My head was bowed , looking at all the dirt on my shoes. 

“Well then, I’m going to say this once. I will find who did this and I will make sure they pay. If this ever happens again, I will find you and I will rip your limbs off one by one and I will enjoy it,” She snarled. “Clara, come with me,” She grabbed my hand and started to tug me away. 

As we weaved through corridors, I caught sight of Jake, my mate. His hazel green eyes stared into mine and I faltered then he turned his head and started to grin slyly at the petite redhead next to him. 

Remi pulled me into an empty classroom and started to grill me. 

“Who did that?” Her anger made me flinch even if I knew it wasn’t directed at me. 

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly, meekly, with my head downcast. 

“I’m sorry. I’m not –“ She sighed. “I didn’t mean to sound cross. I’m not mad at you. You really don’t know who did it?” She asked and I shook my head. “Alright, do you have an idea of who?” She pressed.

An idea? It could be one of many of the wolves in school who found it funny to pick on me. It could be any of the numerous humans who liked to bully me for no reason. It could be Ashley showing more nerve. It could be anyone really. 

“I don’t know. It could be anyone,” I answered quietly. 

“Alright then. I’ll try to find the person and make a scapegoat out of them. No one messes with my best friend. No one messes with my pack,” A growl started to climb up her throat.

It was a great affirmation and it worked for me. With my wolf gone, as if she had only been a figment of my imagination for the past year, I needed all the reassurance I could get to remind myself I was still a supernatural. She could feel the connection an Alpha felt with their pack member and that would not be possible if I wasn’t a wolf. I was part of her pack and she would protect me at all cost because with or without a wolf form, I was still her pack. 

“I’ve spoken to Dylan’s parents, the former Alpha and Luna and they admit your case is quite – unique,” She paused unsurely. She could have said weird. I didn’t have the energy to be upset anymore than I already was.

“We’ve spoken to an elder from Canada and he recommended therapy for you and your wolf. He also recommended physical training for you in case the problem is well – your body might be too weak to shift so we’re going to train you,” She said, all business like. 

“My wolf – she’s gone,” I confided and fear flashed through her eyes. 

“What do you mean she’s gone?” she asked in a quiet tone. 

“I can’t feel her anymore. I can’t talk to her. I can’t hear or smell like I used to. My wolf is gone,” I answered with a hanging head. Was she going to kick me out now? A werewolf without a wolf was human and humans did not belong in werewolf packs. 

“How long?” She questioned thoughtfully.

“Last night. When the moon rose – I felt – I felt a change over me and I know it’s silly but for a moment I was sure that I was going to shift. Everything became clearer and sharper and a certain peace – like everything was finally right – washed over me but then it vanished as quickly as it had come and my wolf went with it,” I said. Her eyes were fixed on me with rapt attention. 

“Maybe she found out she was in the wrong body and then she left me,” I confessed my deepest fear to her and she shook her head. 

“Oh, Clara,” She pulled me into a tight hug and when she let me go she said “A wolf is never in the wrong body. Something has happened, I know it, and I can’t explain it but your wolf will return. I can still feel a connection to you and it’s because of your wolf. The most likely reason I can think of for her disappearance is that she’s found something – something has been awoken in you and your wolf has gone exploring. Not dead, not gone, just not where you’re used to seeking her out,” She said “We have sent for a therapist and I’m sure she’ll be able to help you seek your wolf out,” She assured me.

“You don’t have to go through all this trouble for me,” I muttered with a blush.

“Nonsense, “ She dismissed. “We’re your Alphas, Dylan and I, and we owe you everything we can do to make your happy,” She finished. 

“Anyway, Warrior Chan, the head trainer, just had a baby and he is taking a break from training so we’ll have to find a free warrior to train you. It might take up to a week or even a month to find one, but your brother has volunteered to start training you from Friday, “ She said with a smile and my heart stopped for a second then two. 

“Are you alright?” She asked in alarm, hearing the skipping and banging of my heart. 

“I’m fine,” The lie came out so naturally I almost believed it myself.

As I walked home at the end of the school day, relieved to be away from the whispers that had followed me about from first period to the closing bell, I met a boy.