Rejected Before the Moon
Seraphina’s POV
The night air was cold… but not as cold as the stares.
I stood at the center of the pack grounds, my heart pounding so loudly I was sure everyone could hear it. The full moon hung above us, bright and merciless, casting silver light over the gathered wolves.
Tonight was supposed to be sacred.
Tonight, I was supposed to find my mate.
My fingers trembled as I stepped forward, drawn by an invisible force I couldn’t resist. My wolf stirred inside me, restless… excited.
Then I saw him.
Kael Draven.
The Alpha.
Powerful. Untouchable. Feared.
And my mate.
The realization hit me like lightning, stealing the air from my lungs. My heart leapt with a joy so sharp it almost hurt.
I took another step toward him, my voice barely a whisper.
“Mate…”
The word slipped out before I could stop it.
Silence fell.
Every eye turned to us.
Kael didn’t move.
Didn’t smile.
Didn’t react the way I had dreamed he would.
Instead, his piercing gaze locked onto mine—cold… distant… almost cruel.
“No.”
The single word shattered something inside me.
I froze. “W-what?”
A low murmur spread through the crowd.
Kael stepped closer, his presence suffocating, his aura pressing down on me like a storm. Up close, he was even more intimidating—his sharp jaw clenched, his dark eyes void of any warmth.
“I said no,” he repeated, louder this time. “You are not my mate.”
Gasps rippled around us.
My chest tightened painfully. “But… the bond… I can feel it—”
“That’s your delusion speaking,” he cut in, his voice like ice.
A wave of laughter broke out behind me.
I felt it—every whisper, every mocking stare, every ounce of humiliation crashing down on me.
My wolf whimpered.
Tears burned my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not here. Not in front of everyone.
Not in front of him.
Kael leaned in slightly, his voice dropping so only I could hear.
“Look at yourself, Seraphina,” he said coldly. “Weak. Insignificant. Do you really think someone like you could ever be my Luna?”
His words sliced deeper than any blade.
I staggered back as if struck.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to be.
Mates were destined.
Sacred.
Unbreakable.
So why… why was he doing this?
“I…” My voice cracked. “I didn’t choose this.”
“Neither did I,” he replied, straightening. Then, with a voice that echoed across the entire pack, he declared:
“I, Kael Draven, Alpha of the Nightfall Pack… reject you, Seraphina Vale, as my mate.”
The world stopped.
Something inside me snapped.
A sharp, unbearable pain tore through my chest as the bond fractured, leaving behind nothing but emptiness.
A scream clawed its way up my throat, but I swallowed it down, choking on my own agony.
The bond… it was breaking.
He turned away like I was nothing.
Like I had never mattered.
And in that moment, under the cold, unforgiving moon…
I realized something.
This wasn’t the end of my story.
It was the beginning of his regret.
