Golden Destiny

Chapter 4. - Realizations

I stood there for I don't know how long, feeling as though my heart was breaking into tiny pieces. I had found my mate. And my mate did not want me.

I felt pain all over my hand and I looked down and saw that my drink had spilled its scalding contents all over my skin. I felt a hand take mine and heard a concerned voice call out for some ice.

"Oh Goddess, Mia. What did you do?" I heard Harper mutter as she ran an ice cube over the sting. I looked on disinterestedly and tried to take my hand from her. She held tight.

"We've got to stop the burn. It's eating into your skin still," she said. She guided me back to sit in my chair and I heard her phone vibrate on the table. She turned it over and when she saw who was calling, she gave me the ice and ordered that I keep it on my skin.

"Yeah, we have to revise and reschedule. Now is really not a good time," I heard her say into the phone before hanging up.

I kept the ice cube on my hand until I felt some tingling. I looked down and saw that my skin was starting to heal.

Curious. I shouldn't be healing this fast.

As a latent shifter, while my healing abilities were much faster than those of a human, it was nowhere near those of a regular shifter. And at the rate my skin was healing, it was even faster than any wolf I knew since the burn had indeed penetrated deep into the skin. A moment later and I was fully healed.

Harper gave my hand a once over before pulling me up and out of the coffee shop. She led me to her car before getting in the driver's seat and starting the engine. We drove to her house where she handed me some water before sitting us down in her couch.

"Mia, what happened back there? We were all happy and talking about shopping and then you just shut down. Are you okay?" She asked me.

I realized that I hadn't spoken since before Adam walked through the doors when I tried to speak and my voice came out hoarse.

"Mate," was the only thing I said.

Mia scooted closer and wrapped me in her arms. "Oh, Mia."

I gave myself a mental shake and the words came rushing out. "He was there, Harp. He walked into that coffee shop and we recognized each other instantly. What they say it's true. You'll know once you look into your mate's eyes. I looked into his and felt all these... feelings. I felt like I was flying, Harper. I felt like finally, I had something a regular wolf had. I had a mate. And then he looked at me with disgust and walked out." I was sobbing by the time I had finished talking.

Harper didn't say anything. She just let me cry into her shoulder while running shooting circles on my back.

"Why, Harper? Why doesn't anybody want me? My dad looks at me like I disappointed him by being born. My brothers regret that I'm their sister. And now my mate..." I sobbed even more.

"Mia, your dad loves you. I know he does. Your brothers, too. You know they do. Well, maybe except for Jessie, that little brat," she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

I knew they did. But it wasn't the same way I saw other wolves loved their daughters and their sisters. I sort of understood why they were the way they were, though. It couldn't have been easy, being kin of the two members of the pack who were considered the weakest. There had always been talk that our family didn't deserve Beta status because of my and mom's existence.

I shook my head. "I know that, Harp. But still—"

"But nothing" she cut me off. "Look, I know you can't see it, especially now, but you are loved. You are special."

She stood up and got her phone.

"Mrs. Larkin, it's Harper. Mia's here in my house. Do you think it'll be okay if she spent the weekend here?" There was a pause. "I think she needs it." She paused again. Then she whispered, "Yes."

My ears, tried as they might, couldn't hear anything being said on the other side of the line.

"I'll let her know. Thanks, you- Mrs. Larkin." She hung up. "Sleepover!"

———0———

I spent the weekend moping around at Harper's house while she spent it trying to cheer me up. She told me stories about her family, particularly her father, who, she said, was the most celebrated warrior of their pack. Her mom was the Head Educator, which meant that she supervised the teachers in the pack school. Her sister, who was still alive, was brought at a young age to the Temple of the Goddess, an institution in the shifter world that housed talented shifters who had demonstrated an ability for the magickal arts. When I asked her why she hadn't told me about her sister, Harper explained that her sister was younger than her and was inducted into the Temple when she was a mere five years old. Harper had lived more than half her life without her sister.

My second oldest brother, Jarick, brought over a bag of my clothes from home. Before he left, he took a look at me while I tried to not fall apart. He then took me into his arms and gave the tightest hugs he had ever given and then whispered into my ear, "Just say the word, sis. That good-for-nothing Alpha-hole will get what's coming to him." I shook my head and held on tighter.

After he'd gone, Harper and I started on bingeing on a tub of ice cream Jarick had also brought over while watching Lord of the Rings. We fell asleep before we finished the second movie, which we finished up the next day.

"Penny for your thoughts," Harper said as we were getting ready for bed.

"It's nothing. I was just thinking that maybe my mate rejecting me is for the best. I mean this pack does not exactly tolerate my existence. I shudder to think how they would take me being the Luna."

"Mia, anyone who doesn't see your worth doesn't deserve you. It shouldn't matter what you are, an Alpha, a Beta, an Omega, specially not a latent wolf. No one should be discriminated based on something that they have no control over."

"Thanks for standing by me, Harper. You really are the best friend a girl could have."

"Don't mention it, sweetie. Now, we better get to bed. I still haven't finished that math homework for tomorrow. You'll do it with me tomorrow, right?"