Chapter 5

Elena.

Jane let out a dramatic sigh, leaning against our lockers. "I figured I failed the math test," she said casually while checking her perfectly manicured nails.

"I'm surprised you haven't failed a class," Sasha replied, her eyes wandering from her sketchbook. "You never show up."

Neither Jane nor Sasha questioned me when I came to school. They both casually circled the elephant drawing in the room, and for that, I was very grateful.

"If it's any consolation, I have already failed two classes."

Jane looked at me with a smile. She reached out her hand towards me as the bell rang loudly. We started walking languidly towards the classroom.

Killian was already sitting at his desk when we arrived, reading the papers on his desk. Lexi started whimpering as we passed him, before finally retreating again.

I really felt sorry that Lexi had to endure Killian with me. The pain of his rejection was hitting her hard.

I sat down in my chair, letting my bag fall to the side of my chair. Killian glanced at me, before calmly looking back down at the papers he was working on. My stomach churned with fury over the fact that he seemed completely unconcerned over the loss of his mate. How could it not be that big of a deal to him?

Then I picked up my notebook, trying to forget about it.

The classroom slowly began to fill up. The bell had already rung when Killian called me to the front of the class. I stood up slowly, clenching my hands into my jacket. My body moved but my mind remained still.

Killian looked at me as I stopped in front of his desk, setting down his pen. He wore dark-rimmed glasses, which he took off to look at me.

I try to stop the pain that swells inside me, it hurts. Lexi retreats back into my mind, which hurts just as much as seeing him.

I took a slow breath as Killian took a stack of papers from the storage bin on his desk, writing in perfect block letters the due date at the top of the papers. He then wrote my name at the top and stapled them together.

"These are the papers you missed yesterday, due next Monday," he told me, before handing them to me. He stared directly into my eyes, and realization washed over me.

He didn't feel it. That's impossible. A mate will always feel when their mate is in pain, especially if they are rejected. Even though he was the one who rejected me, he would feel the pain because our souls were separated.

I felt a kind of sadistic comfort in knowing that.

Clutching the papers to my chest, I said nothing as I turned around and walked to my seat. My mind was spinning and continued to do so throughout the lesson.

Killian did not call out to me. In fact, he called out to everyone but me. Maybe he knew that I would not be able to answer him, or that I would embarrass myself if I tried. It doesn't matter, because it didn't come to that.

When class ended, I put the messy papers into my bag and walked over to Jane. She slowly put the papers into her bag, and I knew she was just procrastinating on math. However, I really did not want to buy any time, so I forced her to leave faster.

Then I looked at him one more time before we left. As we passed, I saw him stop writing, but he did not turn his head. It seemed like he was having an inner conflict. Never mind. Once we stepped out of the door, his pen once again touched his paper, and he started writing again.

For the rest of the day, I tried to forget about it and focus on my schoolwork. My teachers even commented that I was very quiet, unlike usual.

The day passed quickly, and when we got home from school, Jane asked me to go to the Coffee House Café, a local café, with Sasha and her.

"I don't drink coffee," I reminded them, leaning back in my seat as Jane chattered. I had a feeling that she was not going to leave without me coming with her.

"They have hot chocolate!" Jane tried to reassure me, shaking my shoulder to get my attention.

Suddenly I remembered what my mom had said earlier, about how I should not go with Jane or Sasha today. Still, I was upset and needed some time with friends.

I sighed, looking at them. Although Sasha was more or less uninterested, Jane's bright face sealed the decision. It was always a challenge to say no to Jane.

Jane looked at me expectantly, and after a moment of consideration, I agreed. She clapped her hands, a smile on her lips.

The drive to the Coffee House was short. Sasha was riding with Jane while I followed behind them.

The Coffee House café was our pack's favorite spot, with its trendy interior and friendly staff. It was almost empty, which was a nice sight.

Jane says that the coffee is the best. Sasha was always impartial, but I knew she enjoyed it.

"Sasha's in the competition again," Jane says, brushing her curls off her shoulders. Sasha's eyes widened, and she glared at Jane.

"She did not want me to tell anyone, but I couldn't help it," she said with a grin. I just chuckled, taking a sip of my hot chocolate.

"It's not a big deal," Sasha said quietly, fiddling with the straw of her wrapper. "I probably won't go too far."

Jane shook her head. "It's a big deal! It seems like if you become a finalist, they will put on an art show for you."

Sasha looked away. "As if my parents would allow me to do that."

"I'm sure your parents would be proud!" Jane said, her voice insistent.

Sasha looked off into the distance but gave a small smile. "Sure."

I stared at Sasha for a few moments before looking away. Her parents could not be described as the supportive type. They were politicians and traveled most of the year. They fixed each other's packs and helped keep our pack safe, but they did not pay much attention to Sasha. When they did pay attention to her, it was always out of their dislike for Sasha being an artist and not following in their footsteps.

I laughed at them both, and soon we were all laughing. It felt good to talk and to forget about the terrible few days I'd just had. Letting those thoughts get away from me for a while.

We were at the cafe for about an hour, Jane and Sasha left with a cup of coffee, and I left with a sugary drink. Jane said that she would take Sasha home, and they soon left.

The ride home was quiet, but I enjoyed it. There was so much noise going on in my head, so just the pure silence was soothing. Pure silence usually drives me crazy, but this was a nice change.

When I arrived home, my parents' car was parked in the driveway. I could feel my stomach twisting as I remembered that we were going to have dinner with him.

It felt like I was not ready. I hated feeling like I was completely unprepared, but I was not even sure I could have dinner with him. Lexi certainly did not think she could.

'But you went to all your classes with him,' I reminded myself as I opened my car door, slamming it shut quickly. My parents always told me to close the door hard.

Well, I had to agree with myself on that idea. I have been sitting in class and listening to him talk the whole time. If I can do that, I'm sure I can sit through the entire dinner.

My parents were preparing dinner when I walked in. They always went overboard in receiving guests, wanting to look their best.

My mom seemed to be looking up at me from the carrots she was cutting as I stepped through the door, her mouth forming a thin line. She put down the knife, and put her hands on her hips, looking at me with a motherly gaze.

"Elena, what did I tell you yesterday?" she asked, desperately hoping for an answer. I just smiled a small, nervous smile, shrugging my shoulders. She narrowed her eyes at me, taking a step away from the kitchen table.

"Well, how about I remind you. Does this make you remember-"

She then proceeded to repeat the entire conversation we had the night before. The simple answer was to tell her that she wanted me to come home after school, but my mom did not think that way.

"Okay, Mom, I understand. I will listen next time," I raised my hand to show that I was giving in, and she smiled softly.

Moving from behind the desk, she hugged me. It was unexpected, but I hugged her back.

"I knew you would since you were punished over the weekend," my mom said, planting a quick kiss on my temple before returning to her carrots. My jaw dropped as I watched her walk away, trying to process what had happened.

"Mom, isn't that too much?" I asked, and she shook her head while chopping her carrots with vigor.

"No, when you add in the fact that you did not listen to anything I said for the past week. Now, Elena, I know you didn't mean to be rebellious, but that doesn't change the fact that you need to pay more attention!" my mom said sternly, before smiling and going back to her carrots.

The only good thing that came out of that was Lexi bursting out laughing. I wanted to tell her that it meant I would not be able to shift, but I kept it to myself.

The whole time my father just kept quiet, focused on the onions he was chopping. I was getting cooking skills from him, which were completely nothing.

Then I ran upstairs and went straight to my room. I tried to avoid the objects on the floor as I fell into the soft blanket on my bed.

If only I could sit there longer, I would, but soon the thought of seeing him once again dragged me out of bed. I figured if I was going to see him, I'd better look good, so as not to look like I was dying inside.

I smeared on concealer and put on mascara. It seemed to disguise the dark circles and redness on my face for a while. Once I was done, I put on a pair of jeans and an oversized sweatshirt.

I quickly left my room and ran down the creaking stairs to go to the kitchen. My parents were arranging the food, and my brother was setting the table.

"You look nice, El," my mom commented as I joined them, but she swatted away my hand as I stirred the pasta. I let out a long sigh, leaving my parents to go to the living room. I plopped down on the couch facing the front window, closing my eyes.

For a few minutes, I left it like that, listening to my parents walk around and chat with each other mindlessly. Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door. My eyes immediately widened as I lifted my body up onto my elbows.

"Elena, open the door," my mother said to me.

Stifling a groan, I rolled off the couch and stood up a moment later. When I got to the door, I just stared at it, wondering what to say once it opened. Using my werewolf hearing, I listened to his breathing, and when I heard him raise his hand to knock on the door, I opened the door.