Chapter 3 The rebirth
\## SELENE'S POV
It's been three days, the pain hasn't stopped, my chest felt ripped open, it was like something vital was torn out and left me bleeding.
Mia said time would help me heal, but Mia didn't feel what I felt. This emptiness, this hole where something used to be. I had always wished to have a wolf mate. I had always imagined it long even though it wasn't Caden but someone who would protect it. Just when I thought I found someone I was rejected and my bully was fully accepted by my mate.
I stared at the ceiling. I hadn't slept, every time I closed my eyes I saw him. Seeing Caden's face when he said those words, I heard his voice saying I was nothing.
My phone buzzed, u didn't look, I hadn't looked at it since that night.
I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep, I just lay here and hurt.
Monday came anyway.
The hallway felt wrong when I walked in, people stopped talking, murmuring things I couldn't hear, some just stared at me as I walked past.
I kept my head down, walked to my locker, just to get through today.
"There she is." Brielle's voice. Sharp. "The girl who tried to trap my mate but got the shock of her life when Caden rejected her."
I froze. Trap? What? How did I try trapping him?
Brielle walked over, her friends followed. Zara. Two cheerleaders. They circled me. Trapped me against my locker.
"You really thought you could lie about the mate bond?" Brielle laughed. Cold. "You thought Caden would believe you?"
"I didn't lie." My voice came out weak.
"Everyone knows what you did. Trying to seduce him. Claiming some connection. Pathetic."
My face got hot. "That's not what happened."
"No? Then why did he reject you? Why did he choose me?"
Because I wasn't enough. Because I was human. Because he didn't want me.
"She can't even deny it," one cheerleader said. "Look at her."
They laughed. All of them.
"Stay away from Caden," Brielle said. Eyes flashed gold. "Next time you won't like what happens."
She shoved past me. Hard. I hit the locker. They left me standing there while everyone stared.
It got worse.
Everywhere I went, whispers. Points. Laughs. Pity looks.
Brielle made sure everyone knew. That I tried to trap Caden. That I lied. That I was desperate and pathetic.
Nobody asked my side. They believed her. Brielle Knox. Future Luna. Powerful.
I was just the human who didn't belong.
The chest pain got worse. Some days I couldn't breathe. Like that torn piece was killing me slowly.
Mia tried to help. Sat with me. Walk with me. But she couldn't stop the stares. The whispers. The way people treated me like dirt.
Two weeks of hell. Of hurting. Of wanting to disappear.
Then my phone buzzed.
Brielle: We need to talk. Just us. I want a truce.
A truce? After everything?
It was a trap.
But I wanted to go. I wanted to face her. Tell her she didn't break me.
Even though she did.
Brielle: Old bridge. 4pm. Come alone.
I shouldn't go. Should delete it. But my fingers moved.
Me: I'll be there.
The old bridge sat at the edge of town. Nobody used it. Too dangerous. Cracked stone. Loose railing.
Perfect for a trap.
I got there at four. Brielle was waiting. Zara next to her. Two cheerleaders behind.
Four against one.
"You came," Brielle said. That means smile. "Didn't think you had the spine."
"You said truce." I stayed back. Near the path. In case.
"I lied." She stepped closer. "Wanted to tell you something. Face to face."
"Tell me what?"
"That you're worthless. Nothing. There will always be nothing." Closer with each word. "Caden was disgusted by the bond. Did you know? He said it made him sick. Being tied to a weak human like you."
The words hit hard. Landed in that empty space.
"He said rejecting you was easy."
"Stop." My voice cracked.
"Can't handle the truth? You're pathetic, Selene. Always were. A weak human pretending she belongs."
Something snapped. That last thread broke.
"Maybe you're scared," I said. Steady now. "Maybe you're scared Caden has real feelings for his actual mate. That he made a mistake choosing you."
Brielle's face changed. Twisted. Eyes flashed gold. Stayed gold. Burning.
"What did you say?"
"You heard me."
She moved fast. Too fast. Her hand on my chest. Shoved.
I stumbled back. Hit the railing. Old stone cracked.
"You think you matter?" Voice growling. Not human.
She shoved again. Harder.
The railing broke. Stone crumbling. My feet left the ground.
I fell.
The water hit the cold. Knocked air from my lungs. Went under. Deep.
I tried to swim. I tried to kick. But the dress was heavy. Pulled me down.
My lungs burned. Screamed for air.
This was it. Drowned by Brielle while her friends watched.
Then light. Underwater. Bright. Getting brighter. Coming from below.
That made no sense. No light down there. Just darkness and rocks.
The light swallowed me.
When it faded, I wasn't in the water. Somewhere else. Ancient. Powerful.
A woman stood there. Beautiful. Glowing. Silver hair. Eyes like galaxies.
"Selene Ashford," she said. Voice everywhere. "Do you know who I am?"
I couldn't speak. But I knew.
"Moon Goddess." Whispered.
She smiled. Sad. "You were never meant to die like this. Broken. Destroyed by those who feared you."
"What?"
"You were never human, child." Closer now. "You carry ancient blood. Powerful blood. Sleeping inside you your whole life."
"I don't understand."
"You're a hybrid. Born of wolf and something older. Something they fear. Your blood never woke because you didn't need it. Until now."
My chest ached. That empty space throbbed.
"I'm giving you a choice," she said. "Stay here. Rest. Let death take you. Or go back. Go back with power. Show them what they destroyed."
I thought of Brielle. Her face when she shoved me. Caden rejected me. Everyone treated me like nothing.
"I want back." No hesitation. "I want them to know. I want them to see what they killed."
She smiled. Not sad this time. Fierce.
"Then wake up, Selene Ashford,wake up and show them the truth."
Light exploded, it was bright, burning and power rushed through me, it was like fire in blood and the strength in bones.
For the first time since Caden rejected me, I didn't feel broken. I felt whole and I'm back to revenge on everyone that caused my death. I want them to know who they killed, I want to pay them back for all the times I had been bullied by them and now I'm back with a new identity.