The Alpha Next Door ✓

Chapter 18- "The cries of a broken wolf"

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Dominic ran a hand through his midnight black hair and laughed melodiously. He gripped my hand as we ran through the forest and into an empty open field. 

I laid down next to him, ignoring the tall strands of grass tingling at my bare feet. Although the night sky was full of stars, I gazed at him; His sharp cheek bones, his muscular arms, his cool gray eyes that sent a chill through me on the hot summer night.

He turned to face me, his face close to mine. I could feel his breath on my neck as he whispered,

"Dest, wake up"

Wait. He just called me 'Dest'.

I suddenly woke up from the dream, and rubbed my eyes. From what I could tell through my blurry vision, it was still dark outside.

I put on my glasses to see Alex in my room, hovering before my bed. I was wrapped in my soft blanket and was ready to sock him in the face so I could go back to sleep, but I noticed the urgency in his eyes.

I sat up slowly, ignoring the fact that I was in some hideous graphic t-shirt. He'd seen me in worse.

"Alex? We don't have work today," I murmured, through a long yawn.

Alex shook his head frantically. He seemed as if he was at a loss for words.

"Wait, how the hell did you even get in my room?" I asked, remembering I hadn't given him a key.

"Nevermind that, Dest--Lucy's missing," he cried, closing his eyes as if it weren't real. His mouth wavered.

"What do you mean? She's probably out for a run or something. . ."

"At 4 o' clock in the morning? I-I don't know, I'm worried as fuck. Did she say anything to you at your party last week when you pulled her aside?"

His voice was rushed yet strained, portraying that he'd gotten no sleep. He was acting very unlike himself. He was always calm, composed, and relaxed, but this, it made me uneasy. 

I grabbed his arm and sat him down on the edge of my bed.

"Alex, just take a deep breath," I demanded. He simply put his head in his hands, whispering things to himself.

"Don't worry, she'll. ." I couldn't bring myself to finish my sentence. I couldn't promise him that she'd come back, the way my Mom had done all of those years ago, placing a false and meaningless hope in my heart. I took a shuddered breath and focused on the situation right now.

He was up again, pacing around my room, mumbling something like, "It was all my fault". I wanted to get up and scream at him, tell him that nothing was his fault. Yet the moment I parted my lips open the door closed and he was out of my room. 

I couldn't breathe. What had just happened?

I knew what he was feeling like, I knew it all. What it felt like to be abandoned, over and over again. To never be good enough for your mate.

Although it was 4 am, and the sun was far from rising, I didn't sleep. I couldn't. After what had happened, echoes of his shaky voice rippled through my mind. It sickened me to see Alex in this state. The same Alex who sang his heart out, the one who smiled at everyone he saw, the one who was my best friend.

I felt useless, I hadn't even helped him. My Mom didn't want me to be a wolf and I only dissapointed her. My mate never saw me as someone to share his life with, and I ran away from him. My best friend needed me more than ever, yet I sat there silently.

I was such a fucking coward. I couldn't stand up to my Mom, I couldn't stay in my pack and be strong, but I could help the guy who'd turned my life around.