Chapter 208 Headaches

Chapter 208 Headaches
HAZEL'S POV

We were all just standing around, doing absolutely nothing, while waiting for Zander and the others to come back, and somehow that nothing turned into chaos anyway. Carson was busy being Carson, which meant he had planted himself directly in front of the fairy queen and was asking her a never-ending string of deeply inappropriate, wildly invasive, and completely unnecessary questions, most of which made no sense even by his standards. I tried to tune him out, because if I focused on my beta for even one more second, I was going to lose what little patience I had left.

Instead, I focused on the feeling sitting heavy in the pit of my stomach, because something about this whole plan felt off. Everyone else seemed convinced it would work out just fine, but my instincts were screaming at me that we were missing something important, and I hated that feeling more than anything.

Cedella was humming a soft tune while gently coaxing Tia into grabbing some sleep, her voice steady and soothing. My mother sat on the ground, resting her head on the wall behind her with her eyes closed. I sighed, she looked so exhausted. 

Declan, on the other hand, was doing the exact opposite of soothing. He paced back and forth in the tiny space in front of us like a caged animal, dragging his boots through the dirt over and over again.

"Could you stop doing that," I hissed finally, narrowing my eyes at him. "You're making my eyeballs hurt."

He froze mid-step, then ran a hand through his hair, already looking guilty. "I'm sorry, Luna, it's just that I should have gone with them," he said, his voice tight. "My mate is out there."

I let out a slow breath, because snapping at him wouldn't help either of us. "I know," I said quietly, "and I feel the same way you do. My mate is out there too."

Declan stopped pacing altogether then he crossed the distance between us in two strides, pulling me into his arms without warning. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice rough. "I'm being selfish. Here you are pregnant, while your mate is off trying to save your sister, whom you've never even met, and I'm here whining like a little bitch."

My body stiffened automatically, and Declan felt it immediately. He pulled back, his brows knitting together as he studied my face. "You don't have to feel awkward around me anymore," he said gently. "The moment I saw Harper, I knew she was my mate, and my wolf finally let go of whatever romantic feelings he had for you."

"I know," I replied, shaking my head. "It's not that. I just still can't wrap my head around the fact that I'm pregnant."

"Ah," he said, nodding like this explained everything. "That makes sense. But don't worry. Soon you'll be eating like a linebacker, and my Godson will be here in no time."

The words hadn't even fully registered before a very familiar, very loud voice cut through the air.

"Excuse me, what the fuck did you just say?"

Carson practically whooshed over to us. Before I could react, he slapped his hand on my stomach with zero warning and an alarming amount of confidence.

"My Goddaughter will be as beautiful as our Luna," he declared proudly, as if this was already settled law, "and when she comes of age, she'll be my daughter-in-law. She and CJ will be destined mates."

I closed my eyes. I physically closed them. Somewhere deep inside, my last nerve was about to snap clean in half.

"Oh dear Moon Goddess," Declan scoffed, rolling his eyes so hard I was surprised they didn't get stuck. "When will you ever grow a brain? You know it's a boy, so he won't be mated to CJ, and he'll be my Godson. And after all the headaches you caused our Alpha, I'm pretty sure he won't want you anywhere near the pup, much less to be his Godfather."

Carson gasped. "First of all," he said, jabbing a finger at Declan, "Zander and I talked about our differences, we practically kissed and made up, so I will be the Godfather. Second of all, even if it is a boy, he can still be mated to CJ. They can be gay too, you know."

The two of them stared each other down, chests puffed out, jaws clenched, arguing with the exact same energy as two toddler brothers fighting over a toy neither of them was actually using.

I rubbed my temples, rolled my eyes toward the sky, and shook my head slowly in disappointment.

"This," I muttered to myself, "is what I'm bringing a child into."

"Tell him, Luna, that I will be the Godfather," Declan snarled, pointing an accusatory finger at Carson as if this were a courtroom.

"No, Lun-Lun," Carson shot back immediately, stepping in front of him like a child blocking the TV, "tell him that I will be the Godfather. You know, the man who is mated to your best friend. The man who is best friends with your man. And the man who literally made you and your man his son's godparents." He nodded enthusiastically after every sentence, clearly impressed with himself.

They continued bickering back and forth, voices overlapping, words tumbling out faster and louder, but I wasn't really listening anymore. My head started to throb, the sound of their argument blending into a dull, irritating buzz. The world tilted slightly, and a wave of dizziness washed over me so suddenly that my knees almost buckled.

Strong, familiar arms wrapped around my shoulders from behind before I could embarrass myself by falling flat on my face.

"Hazel, are you okay?" my mother asked, concern sharp in her voice as she gently steered me toward a place to sit. "You don't look so good."

"Is it the baby?" Cedella chimed in instantly, her eyes widening as Tia snored softly beside her, blissfully unaware of the chaos happening mere feet away.

"Look what you caused, Declan," Carson snapped, whipping around dramatically. "You stressed her out."

"Me?" Declan barked back. "You're the one pressuring the Luna like this is some kind of hostage negotiation."

"Shut up. Both of you," Queen Magdalena warned, her voice slicing through the argument with terrifying ease.

Both men froze instantly, shoulders stiff, mouths snapping shut like scolded children.

She turned to me then, her gaze softening. "Hazel, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," I said quickly, waving a hand weakly. "And I think the baby is too. I just have this weird feeling."

I swallowed hard, my chest tightening as a familiar ache settled deep in my bones. Then I felt like a burning sensation in my mate bond. 

"It's Zander," I admitted quietly. "I think something's wrong with him. I can feel it."

The place fell silent after that, even Carson didn't have anything stupid to say.