Leilani
I was 6 when it dawned on me that I was the defective twin with wild blonde hair and purple eyes while every other member of my family was auburn and sporting blue eyes.
I was 12 when I finally understood the meaning of a 'crush', and maybe I was foolish, but at that young age, I knew I liked our Alpha's triplet sons a little too much.
I liked the way their dark hairs gleamed in the sun. The way their dimples deepened whenever they smiled— even though they never smiled at me. I knew I liked the way they looked at me a second too long.
And I knew that they liked me too— I could feel it.
Until my twin, Chalice read my diary. She found out about my crush on them, and for that, due to her overwhelming desire to have everything that was supposedly mine, she befriended them.
I wasn't so surprised though when they clung to her like everyone else did; but that didn't take away the fact that it hurt me like a bitch. I also wouldn't lie that it didn't hurt when they never dared look at me because they adored my sister.
But that's besides the case.
I was 16 when Chalice shifted for the first time, and of course, I didn't.
And at age 18, when I still wouldn't shift, I was known to be defective. Weak. The curse. A stain to my family's very porcelain reputation.
And my father, the power hungry Beta, absolute-fuckingly abhorred me for it.
On our nineteenth birthday—Chalice's birthday party, if I was being honest, Father announced her engagement to the triplets. I could still remember his words, they were branded into my skull like a tattoo, etched into my soul like a mark.
I had watched him as he made his way to the front of the hall, clinking a fork against his glass, his eyes gleaming with greedy delight.
"Attention everyone!" His loud voice boomed around the room, forcing everyone's attention to the front of the room where he stood looking sharp in his navy blue Armani suit, with a wine glass in hand and a smile on his face.
And then he delivered the blow;
"On this special day, I'd love to announce the engagement between my favorite person in the whole wide world. My golden girl, my only daughter, Chalice Blackthorne, and the future Alphas, Kael, Caelum and Zevran Stormborn!"
The crowd erupted into wild cheering at his words but I didn't miss the subtle jeers. The snorts and the pitiful looks that some of our pack members threw at me.
He'd called Chalice his only daughter. In. Front. Of. Everyone.
He'd just made the world see how unimportant I was to him, and that was the most embarrassment I've ever received.
This was nothing like the times he'd hit me in the past. Or the times he and every member of the house had taken Chalice's side when she was wrong. This wasn't like how it felt when he made me a slave in his house… and even gave his employees the authority to bully me.
This was different.
This was him putting me in my place— even though I've always known my place since I was six.
First came the pain… the hurt. And then there was rage.
The blood in my ears rushed loudly, dulling all sounds into nothing but white noise. Tears blurred my vision, making it hard for me to see anything; but despite my aching heart and my trembling limbs, I managed to stand tall, even though the snickers around me were growing louder.
Even though the paparazzi wouldn't stop taking my pictures.
Then as if to mess up my already messed up life, the triplet Alphas waltzed into the party just then. They were all lovey dovey with my sister, brandishing gifts for only her, even though it was clearly our birthday.
They treated her like she was a rare gem, a piece of porcelain. Like she was the very air that they breathed.
Until Kael stopped and took in a very deep breath.
The hall stilled. Everyone froze in fear.
Zevran did the same shortly afterwards, followed by Caelum. They pranced around the hall like mad men, sniffing at giggling young girls, and only stopping before me; And then like a movie, their eyes suddenly went dark.
"Mate!" They moaned so loud that everyone gasped.
I froze. I swear I literally stopped breathing.
"No!" Zevran growled. "Not the curse. We should reject her."
His words, so carelessly said, shredded whatever was left of my tattered dignity. I staggered back, my breath hitching in my chest as more tears sprung free.
"I— I…"
"Save it!" Now, it was Kael who spoke. "I do not wish to hear more words from you. Stay away and do not ruin Chalice's party… and later, we'll do something about that pesky mate bond!"
Chalice was the first person amongst the audience to snap out of the momentary surprise, she weaved her way through the crowd, lodged herself between them and cried; "Kael, Caelum, Zevran? What are you saying?!"
Zevran looked conflicted. His eyes darting between Chalice and I occasionally before he said; "She's our… I feel the mate bond with—"
"With me!" Chalice snarled sweetly— if that's even a thing. "I am your only mate, remember. You guys promised me!" And then dropping her voice until it was a whisper, she said, "my stomach hurts. I think I am going to be sick."
And just like they were in a trance, their gazes softened. They turned to her like they were charmed, their very perfect smiles returning to their faces; the fussing over her returning.
"Ignore this." Caelum spat. He didn't even have the decency to refer to me by my name. I guess he doesn't even know my name.
Growing up, I hoped that even though I never got my wolf, that I would find my mate. And I hoped that whoever it was would be my ticket out of this miserable life. But I was wrong.
I instantly knew that when I realized that the Alpha's triplets were my mates. That the men wrapped around my sister's little finger were meant to be mine.
And I knew when I saw the look in their eyes.
Disgust.
They didn't reject me. They didn't acknowledge me. They never spoke to me after that day.
*Beep.beep.beep.beep*
The sound of the heart monitor echoed throughout the vast space, snapping me back to the present, and I wiped the tears off my face with the back of my hand as I listened to the sound of my mother's choked sob from across the hall.
A few rows away from where I sat, my sister and mother were hurdled together, sporting the perfect image of a loving family; and our elder brother, Gavin, stood to the side, his eyes red and puffy, but despite that, he still managed to throw scornful looks my way, scoffing whenever our eyes met.
He hates me.
They hate me.
I shouldn't be here…
"Doctor, how's she?!" My mother spoke up suddenly, rushing to her feet when a woman in a white scrub walked out of the ICU.
The doctor sighed, shaking her head, she whispered; "she's not good. Her condition is very bad. She may not survive this."
The world spun. Sounds dissolved into white noses in the background. Her words shattered every hope I had left in me, and I staggered backwards until I hit the wall behind me, my heart lurching in my chest as a choked sob slipped past my lips.
Grandma was the only family who loved me— at least she tolerated me and stood by me whenever everyone seemed to be against me. She didn't deserve this.
"This is all your fault!" Gavin's voice boomed and suddenly, my head whipped to the side as something crashed against my cheek.
Tears sprung into my eyes when it dawned on me what this was… what this is. He'd slapped me, which was usual, and I was about to be blamed. Again.
And I was right. "It's your fault that Grandma is in this condition. If you didn't pick a fight with Chalice then this would've never happened! She wouldn't have been so stressed that her BP skyrocketed!"
"But I didn't…" I began to say, but the look in his eyes had me biting down on my lips, swallowing my words. He never listens… he wouldn't listen.
"If anything happens to her, I'll end you. I promise you. I'll kill you and I'll feed your carcass to the dogs even before father returns from his trip!"
"Gavin, ignore that reject," my mother's harsh words came next, and oh hell, it cut through me more than any knife could.
By the heavens, I should be used to it by now. I should be used to their hatred, their scalding words, the quiet way I've been exiled from this family; But I wasn't.
It still hurts like a bitch. My heart still throbbed whenever they spoke so illy to me.
Suddenly, the main doors swung open and I was soon assaulted by the most divine scents to ever exist.
My mates.
I smelled them before I saw them, but as usual as soon as their eyes snagged on me, they looked away. Their hatred was palpable.
Gods, I wonder what I ever did to them.
"Kael, Caelum, Zevran!" Chalice cried out softly, her tears leaking out of her eyes as she rushed over to them. "I wasn't expecting that you guys would come. Grandma… the doctor… she says she might not make it." She sobbed, playing the perfect part of a damsel in distress even though she's the reason for the distress in the first place.
I watched with a heavy heart as Kael pulled her into his strong arms, and Zevran on the other hand plucked her hands into his, bringing it up to his lips.
"We'll always be here for you," Caelum whispered to her, "anytime… and trust me, your grandma would survive. Okay?"
"I hope so." Chalice croaked. "It was all my fault. I didn't mean to… I only wanted to make peace with Leilani and she picked a fight with me. Grandma tried to separate us. She tried to… she pushed her!"
The more the lies tumbled out of her mouth, the colder the room grew. Everyone turned to me in obvious contempt, but I was used to it.
However, I wasn't so used to getting these looks from Kael, Caelum and Zevran; and for that reason, it shredded me completely. I cowered. "I didn't…" I began to say but upon realization that they probably wouldn't listen, I snapped my lips shut and looked away.
"I really didn't."
Crack.
Now it was my mother who slapped me.
My head lolled to the side as more tears sprung free. I shuddered, my breaths coming in short harsh gasps.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Chalice's discreet sneer. I saw the way she smirked at my misfortune. She enjoyed taking pleasure in my suffering. It was a known fact. But what always annoyed me was how no one else could see through her 'too perfect' facade.
Something about her smugness however, made me mad, and in rage, I straightened my back, looked my mother dead in the eyes, and was just about to speak when the doctor rushed out of the ICU again.
This time, her face was grimmer than it was the last time she stepped out. She wasted no time, and didn't give any preamble. She simply said; "We've lost her. Grandma Aurora is dead."
Those simple seven letters tilted my world in its axis. It shook me to my core. I stumbled back and crashed to the floor, a loud cry tearing from my throat as my tears blinded my vision.
My Grandmother is gone.
My only loving family. The unshakable force that brought nothing but kindness to me was gone.
The pain lanced through me so much that I feared I would pass out, I groaned, squeezing my chest as if to stop the pain that way but it was futile.
And just then, the main doors burst open again, and now my father stormed in, looking everything like the Beta that he was, and the boogeymen that he was… to me.
He snarled; "Leilani!"