11: Taking her side
11: Taking her side
Sophia's POV
I looked at Alpha Ryven and he smiled at me and put the drink of coffee on his lips. I looked at Alexander's father and he was just minding his business like he didn't just look at me like his treasure.
I was feeling so awkward at the table with both men speaking a language of their own.
"How are you doing, Sophia?" Alexander's father asked me and I tightened my hand on the cup which was getting cold. They only went there to have a conversation. But it seemed like I was in some kind of show.
"I'm fine, thank you," I said looking at my hands. I felt so hot. I wanted to excuse myself. But that would be considered disrespectful.
"You will be better soon. I will make sure of that," Alexander's father said. And there it was again, the hidden meaning to his words.
I looked up just in time to see a glint go off in his eyes. Maybe I was feeling paranoid for no reason. Alpha Ryven held my hands and it was at that time I realized I was shaking. Something wasn't right. I could feel it in my gut. But what could I do rather than pretend I was enjoying the men's company?
Alpha Ryven began to draw little circles on my hand and I became uncomfortable with it and withdrew my hand from his. I was too scared to look into his eyes for fear of what I would see there. Maybe it was one of their Alpha jokes I wasn't aware of.
And when Alexander's father stood up, I knew I was about to faint from the tension that was building up inside of me.
They didn't say anything more. And we all stood up. Alpha Ryven made to pay for the coffee.
"Oh no, it's on the house," Alexander's father said with a wide smile. For some reason, I felt like Alexander's father was so happy about something.
He was a brooding type of man since his wife died, the former Luna of the pack. Maybe that's when Alexander became the monster I thought him to be. It all started from there. Not like I was close to Alexander, to begin with, but he was this little cheery kid everyone was so happy to be around. And the death of his mother broke him just like the death of my parents broke me.
I could barely eat and had to be taken to the hospital to be on drugs. The man standing by my right who was talking excitedly with Alpha Ryven cared less about what I went through.
For heaven's sake, he was the Alpha of the pack. Isn't it the duty of the Alpha to make sure everyone is well in the pack? But no, I was left alone until the Beta's wife came to take me in.
But Dianne made sure I got kicked out two years later. I hated her. I wished I would never have to see her face again. Her face reminded me of all the dark years spent in her house. It was a living hell. My life isn't any better now but it is still better than living with her.
"It would be my pleasure. Sophia?" My name from Alpha Ryven's mouth brought me to reality. I was always zoning out. Perhaps because I was too tired of my reality.
"Yes?" I asked, looking between both men. I saw anger flash in the former Alpha's eyes. I think he kept up with me for so long because of Alpha Ryven. This brought me to the question of why he would be so polite to a younger man.Content provided by NôvelDrama.Org.
"Alpha Caden had been so kind to invite us over to dinner at his house. Would you like to come with me?"
I opened my mouth to say yes but the look on the former Alpha's face stopped me. "No, I think I'll pass. I have a lot of work to do at the pack house," I said and looked to my feet, biting my lips which were chapped already.
"We could drop her off at the pack house. Thank you so much Alpha Caden for gracing us with your presence," Alpha Ryven said and they did a little handshake and parted ways.
Alexander's father went in another direction. I looked at him while he walked. There was a slight limp to his left leg where he had gotten into a fight with a rogue a few years back.
"Did I make you uncomfortable back there?" Alpha Ryven asked when we got to his car. I smiled awkwardly at him and scratched my neck.
"Not really. I'm not just used to being amid two powerful Alphas. The aura was suffocating," I said to him and he nodded in understanding.
Not many people can withstand the auras of Alphas. And it was a miracle I was able to hold the contents in my stomach without spilling them out.
We got to the car in silence. Alpha Ryven didn't seem to mind the question he asked me earlier. And I was happy about that. I didn't want to tell him my story. One which I had never told anyone.
We got to the front of the pack house where he dropped me and I walked into the house. It was time to prepare dinner. Alexander had not yet told me I could no longer work as a servant because he wanted me back. And I didn't want that either. I would be bored out of my mind.
I liked reading, that was a given. But I needed human company. A lot of girls would flock around me when they heard I was Alexander's mate. And I didn't want that either.
I wanted someone who would love me for me and not because of my status or position. I got to Alexander's room and changed out of his hoodie which, unfortunately, attracted a lot of attention to me.
I quickly got to the kitchen and did the dishes that were used in the morning. But I was still getting stares. The news of me going about in Alpha Ryven's car must have spread by that time.
The attention was too much and what I would have done in thirty minutes, I did in an hour. When I was done, the head maid delegated tasks to each of us and I would be the one to serve the pack.
On getting to the dining room, my feet halted in their position because of the person who was chatting excitedly with her two friends - Dianne. It was avoidable. I would get into trouble with her. And receive one or two beatings from her, one of which I wasn't prepared for.
"Here comes the mutt," Dianne said when I was serving a pack member. I kept my eyes glued to the table. Any eye contact with Dianne will give her a perfect reason to shame me in front of everyone.
Everyone went about their business. This wasn't new to them and me. They have seen over the years how I have been constantly bullied by the devil incarnate and her two friends. Dianne's friends were just like her if not even more evil.
They made sure to make the most cruel suggestions on how Dianne was to torture me.
"I think she has gone deaf," Selene said, Dianne's best friend since childhood. She was a member of the higher werewolves as her father held a high position in court.
She could be seen as one spoiled rotten brat who gets what she always wants. My heart was beating fast in my chest. Even if I tried to tell myself it was still the old ways of bullying, I could never get used to it.
"Come here," Dianne said when she found out I wasn't going to say anything to her. I bit my lips and walked over to where the girls were sitting. They were sitting away from the other girls as they were mostly known as the three musketeers.
"What did you tell Alexander?" Dianne asked out of the blue, her eyes shining with evil. She was angry at whatever happened between her and Alexander and wanted to drag me into it.
"I didn't tell him anything," I lied. The last thing I wanted was for Dianne to know I spilled telling Alexander to be my prince charming. And he, in turn, took my words seriously. I would be in a lot of trouble.
"Liar!" Dianne yelled and threw a glass cup my way which hit me squarely on my cheeks. The force of it breaking with the impact and cutting me in various parts of my skin.
I tried to muffle the sound of pain that threatened to rip out of me. My eyes blurred with unshed tears and I looked at my feet which were blurred.
"I'll ask you for the second time, What did you tell Alexander?" Dianne asked slowly while she stood up from the chair. The sound of the chair scraping against the tile floor put my heart in more jeopardy.
"I promise I didn't tell him anything," I shook on my feet and refused to look up as my blood flowed from the cut on my face.
I felt pain on my face in three areas; my cheeks, my temple, and below my eyes. The one which stung the most was my temple as a glass shard was still lodged in there. I was too scared to remove the glass shard.
Dianne said she would get back to me when I refused to give her Alpha Ryven's bracelet. Was this her way of getting back at me?
"Liar!" A loud slap resounded in the room. It took me a moment to realize I had been slapped by Dianne as I fell to the ground with my lips bleeding.
The tears couldn't be stopped as they flowed freely from my eyes like a leaked dam. But no sounds were heard from me. The pain was much because of the cut to the same cheek I was slapped.
And then, there was silence. I smelled him before I heard his voice.
"What's the meaning of this?!" Alexander asked, his voice as cold as the attic which brought goosebumps to my arms. Luckily I wasn't at the end of his wrath.
"She asked for it," I heard Dianne's voice before I felt Alexander's rough hands grab me. He raised my face and inspected it. He was livid. I felt pathetic, like a failure. When would this ever stop? And I was sure as hell Alexander would take sides with Dianne. He looked deeply into my eyes without blinking.
"Slap her back," Alexander said and turned to face Dianne whose face was white with shock. I was sure the expression on my face mirrored hers.