like a trophy

like a trophy
Theo’s P.O.V. (Continued)

“Are you sure that you are a werewolf, Natalie?” I asked her annoyingly, and she blinked dumbfounded.
“I highly doubted your species now because there is no way that a werewolf can use this strong perfume, given the fact that we are very sensitive to senses and our scent has a crucial role in our existence.” I remarked with disdain.
“Unless you want to hide your natural scent from someone.” I added in the same voice but raised my brow.
Her face went pale, and I could see fear in her eyes.
“It seems that she has found her mate, but she doesn’t want to acknowledge him.” Knight remarked coldly.
We stopped in our tracks, right outside the exit of the building. There were more than 10 guards securing the premises.
They all stopped and looked at us, but I didn’t pay attention to them.
Natalie looked around cautiously, though.
I needed to know if she was really trying to hide from her fated mate.
“It… it’s not like that, Theo. Wh… why do I need to hide my scent?” she stammered hard while answering me anxiously.
“Then stop using perfumes or anything that can suppress your natural scent, Natalie. This way, you will be able to find your fated mate easily.” I instructed her, scolding her a little, but my message to her was clear.
“But I don’t want to find my fated mate, Theo. You know I have feelings for you. I have always been in love with you. Ever…. Ever since I started understanding the romantic relationship, I …. I.” she stopped, looking at me with a hurtful gaze when I raised my hand up to stop her.
This was her second confession in two days, and I was already fed up with her tantrums.
“We are already old enough to get our mates, Natalie, and when I said that I will not take a chosen mate, I mean it. So, stop nourishing this idea of yours to be my chosen mate.” I was cold and stern in my tone, but I didn’t regret it.
There was nothing to regret about it.
“But you were with all the most powerful alpha and beta she-wolves in the academy. You would have found your mate there,” she argued and I scoffed aloud.
“And you are not one of them,” I remarked, and she paused before whatever she wanted to say next.
She blinked in confusion, and I smirked in disdain.
“As you said, all the powerful alpha and beta she-wolves were with me in the academy. You are also a beta, but you are not there, Natalie.”
The jab was filled with the humiliation that I didn’t want to throw on her, but she was asking for it.
“According to what you have been implying by throwing yourself on me, Natalie, I should have a powerful chosen mate instead of waiting for my fated mate because there may be a possibility that she can be weak. If what I read through your statements is right, then I should consider all the unmated alpha she-wolves, right? Even if some of them are not good fighters, they can provide me a good heir.”
I didn’t want to sound sarcastic, but I had enough of Natalie.
“This is the last time I am warning you calmly, Natalie. Come out of your fantasies and find your fated mate instead of running behind me. Come to me again, and I will talk to my father.” I warned her sternly and was about to move away when Nathan held my arm.
“You shouldn’t be this hard on her, Theo.” He said to me with a serious expression.
“And she shouldn’t have thrown away her dignity and come after me like a btch in heat.” I spat, and his eyes widened in shock.
“I value our friendship, Nathan, but it doesn’t mean that she gets a free pass to do whatever she wants to do. The amount of perfume on her? Don’t you find it odd? It seems that she has already found her mate but doesn’t want to acknowledge him. What do you think our alpha will do when he learns about this?” I questioned him angrily, irked by his disrespect towards me, but decided to let this go for this time.
He was stunned, but I had enough of both siblings by now.
I yanked my arm out of his hand harshly, sending him stumbling away and I stormed away from them.
“Let’s have a run.” Knight suggested, agitated just like me, but there was nothing that I could do.
To be honest, I regretted my actions back then.
I regretted being impulsive.
I regretted being a coward and hurting my mate, whom I was supposed to protect.
I regretted losing her, but I was willing to atone for my sin all my life.
I wanted to work hard to get her forgiveness, but this was an impossible task.
I changed direction and started running towards the east side of the pack. We have running trails there, surrounded by greenery, an artificial forest that we built for the purpose of running only.
Our wolves can run here freely, in their original form, hunting the small animals here, satisfying their animal instincts.
I needed some time to clear my head.
All my life, I have lived under the pressure of being the perfect alpha that this pack needs in the future.
The tense competition among all the future alphas of my generation got on my nerves whenever someone from them performed better than me.
My parents were strict about my training, but it was my own insecurities that made me make mistake after mistake and my wrong attempts to hide them.
But now, the way Natalie chased me, and somehow, I felt that Princess Helena also had the ulterior motive; it made me feel like a trophy to all of them.
“All of them are power-hungry. They want us because of our pack, because we are the strongest among all the future unmated alphas around us.” Knight grumbled, voicing my thoughts out.
I hated it, but I couldn't blame them because this was also the reason that I rejected my mate cruelly.
I stopped in my tracks and inhaled sharply when her scent, mixed with so many other smells around me, hit my nostrils.
“She was here. She …. She maybe having a run inside too.” Knight chirped, pacing excitedly at the back of my mind.
I felt relaxed as soon as her scent filled my system.
“Let’s go to her. Let’s go to our mate. I need her.” Knight urged, but I was scared.
He felt agitated and tried to take control from me, and I let him.
Rhea hated me but not Knight.
I never let Knight meet her before, but I am sure that she doesn’t hate him.
He growled lowly in delight and started the trail of her scent.
He ran in human form, entering the forest, her scent getting stronger.