[12] Ezra: 'A Lose-Lose Situation.'-2

The drinks have been flowing endlessly for the past hour, and it's safe to say that I'm in that comfortable state of tipsy where everything is soft around the edges and just all around perfect. Everyone is talking over each other, while I'm just reclining on this comfortable-ass couch, in the mood to just sit back and observe silently. Tatum's raised voice reaches my ears and I turn my head to the side to see that Micajah is having serious a whisper-conversation with her. The few phrases and words I catch in-between let me know that they're discussing our biological mother, Victoria, who had gone batshit crazy after my stupid Beta of a Dad had rejected her and taken me back to the Mordecai pack. The reason for his rejection is a long list of bullshit that I don't want to get into. But apparently, the main one was the fact that the two packs were at war at the time and people were forbidden from interacting with each other. Even Mates? Yep, apparently. Basically, Micajah was telling Tatum about it to let her know how proud he was of her for not losing her sanity like the egg-donor had-and abused had him physically for most of his life by beating him up and treating him with zero respect. I see Tatum's face cloud with emotion-a bit of bittersweet happiness, and feel happy that Micajah was thoughtful enough to do tell her all that, knowing that I'm nowhere near as thoughtful and kind as he is. And it took him and Seneca long enough to get over themselves and love each other. If that's the case for a guy like him, I wonder how long it'll take before I reach a happy compromise with my Mate. Or if I'll ever make it. The thought is not happiness-inducing. I'm lost in my head for a while, having no idea what the fuck I'm doing with my life. "This is Alpha Marcus Blythe." Anders introduces from beside me and I sluggishly look up to see that a familiar-looking muscular man is standing at the edge of the couch, "He used to go to school with me. Marcus, this is . . ." Anders goes on, introducing everyone seated along with their titles, and gestures for the man to take a seat. I sit up straighter and nod in hello when he looks at me, but Angier, who's a bit distracted fails to notice his presence as he seems to be looking around fervently in search of something. Alpha Marcus Blythe ignores the guy's lack of response and goes on. Tatum elbows her best friend to drag him back into the convo, and Angier jumps slightly, interrupting Marcus with the suaveness of a bull in a china shop. "Oh yes! Nice to meet you, Alpha Blythe!" I resist the urge to face-palm, and from the look on her face, so does Tatum, "You'll have to excuse him. He's a bit drunk." "Oh yeah, it's fine," Marcus says, throwing Angier a mocking grin, "Not everyone can hold their liquor like us with the Alpha blood." An awkward silence befalls the group at that insult, and Marcus looks around with an expectant look to the other Alphas, who have no choice but to agree politely. Tatum looks pissed-off at the rude Alpha, and at that moment I have a glimpse of a memory of Tatum defending Angier when they were kids, during one of the events when a pompous Alpha kid had asked why he was there if he wasn't a high-ranked Wolf. Looks like after all these years and after everything she'd been put through by the Goddess, the one thing that hasn't changed is their iron-clad bond. "Excuse me, but he's gonna-" She starts to say but is interrupted mid-sentence by a high, feminine cry, "Brother, there you are!" All of us turn to look at the newcomer, a petite blond girl with big blue eyes who looks like an animated character come to life. She grins widely as she flashes her pearly whites at everyone, "Oh! Hi, Alphas, Alephs. I'm Francesca Blythe." Ah, another pompous second-born Alpha kid. Explains the fact that she ignored the Beta-me-present. Everyone mumbles their hellos and so do I half-heartedly, but a low growl from Angier makes me turn to him with interest. I watch in fascination as his blue eyes flash a bright gold, and just as I glance at Francesca, I realize that her surprised wide eyes are no longer the blue they were, instead, having turned into a dark brown. "Mine," Angier claims with another growl, making his Mate purr in response. Everyone lets out gasps and shocks of surprise and happiness, but all I can think about is the fact that my own Mate hadn't been even a fraction of the happy Francesca is now, to have met Angier. And I'm hugely to blame for that fact. Marcus stands up to pat his sister's back in congratulations, pulling the shocked girl out of her reverie. Her eyes shift back to its normal blue and she nods in response to her brother, not tearing her eyes off her man, "Wow . . . I'm quite surprised. I definitely didn't expect that." "So am I," Angier stands up as well, giving her the biggest grin ever. "I'm Angier Wellington, Francesca Blythe." The returning smile she gives him is blinding. "Would you maybe prefer to go outside for some air?" Angier asks with hope in his gaze and Francesca nods eagerly, grabbing his proffered arm. He steps out of the circle of the couches, leading the away happily for his Mate and the two of them disappear in the direction of the stairs to the ground floor. Once they're out of earshot, everyone bursts into an excited conversation about how beautiful it is to watch people find their other half. No matter how much I try, I can't muster up the same happiness or the thrill to join in on the chatter. Because my brain is stuck on one thing. On how Francesca seemed to have been utterly swept off her feet at the moment she'd laid eyes on her soulmate. While my Mate, on the other hand, couldn't have waited two seconds to leave the room. "Excuse me, I think I drank too much," Tatum mutters in a choked voice as she stands up all of a sudden, placing her bottle of beer almost blindly on the coffee table as she rushes to leave the place. As I watch her pain-filled eyes and heart-broken expression, I wonder just how much of the bond between her and her best friend consisted of platonic love. She stumbles out quickly and leaves the room, and my heart aches for it all. For the fact that there's an Alpha who's destined to be alone. For a guy who seems to be absolutely clueless about the feelings, his best friend has for him. For Nyah who's no doubt torn about the fact that her Mate is the guy who made her life hell. And for me, because I was the most stupid asshole on the planet. At that moment, I vow to myself that I'm gonna do my best to turn this lose-lose situation into a win-win. ~ * ~ ♡