THE ALPHA WHO HATED ME - Chapter 26: Chapter 26
You are reading THE ALPHA WHO HATED ME, Chapter 26: Chapter 26. Read more chapters of THE ALPHA WHO HATED ME.
EVANGELINE POINT OF VIEW
After lunch, I head to the library. It's always been my sanctuary, the one place where I could disappear completely. But today, I don't hide in the back corner with a book over my face. I sit at one of the main tables with my journal open in front of me.
For weeks, I've been writing about them. About Ronan's rejection and Celeste's cruelty and how much it all hurts. Page after page of pain and longing and desperate hope that maybe, somehow, things would get better.
Today, I flip to a fresh page and write something different.
*I spent so long trying to be small enough that they might tolerate me. Quiet enough that they might forget to hate me. But being small didn't protect me. Being quiet didn't save me. It just made me easier to hurt.*
*I'm done being small.*
The words flow like they've been waiting inside me, building pressure until they had to come out. I write about the weight of carrying everyone else's opinion of me. About how their hate became the voice in my head telling me I wasn't worth anything. About the moment I realized that voice was lying.
*They don't get to decide what I'm worth. They never did.*
*My wolf is awake now. Really awake. She's not the scared creature who's been hiding in the back of my mind. She's something else. Something that makes the air around me feel electric.*
*Something that makes me dangerous.*
Mrs. Chen, the librarian, walks by and glances at what I'm writing. She doesn't comment, but she sets a fresh cup of tea next to my elbow and squeezes my shoulder gently before moving on.
"Be careful," she whispers so quietly I almost miss it. "The quiet ones are watching."
I look up, but she's already walking away. Her words send a chill down my spine. The quiet ones. Who is she talking about?
My wolf paces restlessly, sensing something I can't quite grasp. Threat. Opportunity. Change coming whether I'm ready or not.
The final bell rings, and I pack up slowly. No rush to get out, no desperate need to escape the building before someone else decides to make me their entertainment. I walk to my locker at a normal pace, like any other student ending any other day.
But as I'm putting my books away, I feel someone watching me. I turn to find Ronan leaning against the lockers about ten feet away, not quite looking at me but not exactly looking away either.
"What?" I ask. My voice comes out steady, maybe even a little annoyed.
He pushes off from the lockers and walks closer. Too close. Close enough that I can smell his scent, feel the heat from his skin. My wolf doesn't crave him like she used to. She studies him, cold and calculating.
"You're different," he says quietly.
"I'm exactly the same," I reply. "You just don't like what you're seeing."
His jaw tightens. "Don't think yesterday changes anything. Don't think—"
"Yesterday changed everything," I interrupt. "Not because of what you said, but because I finally heard it. Really heard it. You called me weak and pathetic and a sick dog. You made it clear that protecting me had nothing to do with caring about me and everything to do with your precious image."
He takes a step back, something flickering in his eyes. My wolf growls low in my chest, a sound he can probably hear. A warning.
"So thank you," I continue. "Thank you for finally being honest about what I mean to you. Which is nothing. Now I can stop hoping for something that was never going to happen."
"Evangeline...."
"No." The word comes out harder than I intended, backed by my wolf's strength. "You don't get to say my name like it matters to you. You don't get to look at me like you care. You made your choice. Live with it."
I slam my locker shut and walk away, leaving him standing there. My hands don't shake this time. My wolf is too steady, too sure of herself to let fear creep in.
Behind me, I hear him call my name once more, but I don't turn around. Whatever game he's playing, I'm not playing it anymore.
At home, I sit on my bed with the journal in my lap and a pen in my hand. Outside my window, the sun is setting, painting everything gold and orange. Beautiful, even after the ugliest day.
I think about the girl I was this morning. Broken and bleeding and barely holding on. Then I think about the girl who stared down Ronan Nightbane and walked away without looking back.
They're the same person. But one of them was carrying the weight of everyone else's hate, and the other decided to put it down.
I pull the crumpled note from my pocket and smooth it out on my bedspread. The threat stares back at me in neat handwriting. Someone wants me to be afraid. Someone wants me to run.
My wolf snarls softly, and I feel her strength flow through me like fire in my veins.
*Let them come,* she whispers. *We're ready.*
I write one more thing before closing the journal:
*They wanted me to disappear. To break so completely that I'd save them the trouble of finishing me off. But I didn't disappear. I didn't break. I changed.*
*And now they're going to have to deal with who I really am.*
*Someone left me a threat today. They think I should be scared. They think I should run. But I'm done running from shadows. If they want to try me, they know where to find me.*
*My wolf is awake now. She's not the frightened creature who used to hide in the corners of my mind. She's something ancient and fierce and tired of being treated like prey.*
*Tomorrow, they'll see what happens when you back a wolf into a corner for too long.*
My wolf settles into comfortable stillness, no longer the whimpering creature of weeks past. She's alert, powerful, ready. Like she's been waiting for this moment her entire life.
I close my eyes and feel something settle into place inside me. Something that's been broken for weeks, maybe months. Not healed – that will take time. But... aligned. Like pieces of myself clicking back together.
When I open my eyes, the girl in the window's reflection looks different again. Still tired. Still scarred. But there's something in her eyes now that wasn't there this morning.
Fire. And behind it, something that looks dangerously like a storm gathering strength.
I turn away from the window and walk to my dresser. In the bottom drawer, wrapped in tissue paper, is a necklace my mother gave me before she died. A simple silver chain with a small crescent moon pendant. I haven't worn it since I came to Blackclaw Academy, afraid it would make me stand out even more.
Tonight, I fasten it around my neck. The metal is cool against my skin, but it warms quickly. Like it's been waiting to come home. Like it's been waiting for me to be brave enough to wear it.
My wolf hums with approval as the pendant settles against my chest. There's something about the weight of it, the way it catches the light, that feels right. Like armor. Like a promise.
Tomorrow, they'll see me coming. Really see me, maybe for the first time. Not the broken Omega they've been tormenting, but the girl who survived everything they threw at her and came out stronger.
And if they think they've seen the worst of me, they're about to learn how wrong they are.
The moon rises full and bright outside my window, and for the first time in weeks, I sleep without nightmares. But my dreams are full of silver light and the sound of my wolf's voice, strong and sure and ready for war.
*Soon,* she whispers in my sleep. *Very soon.*
After lunch, I head to the library. It's always been my sanctuary, the one place where I could disappear completely. But today, I don't hide in the back corner with a book over my face. I sit at one of the main tables with my journal open in front of me.
For weeks, I've been writing about them. About Ronan's rejection and Celeste's cruelty and how much it all hurts. Page after page of pain and longing and desperate hope that maybe, somehow, things would get better.
Today, I flip to a fresh page and write something different.
*I spent so long trying to be small enough that they might tolerate me. Quiet enough that they might forget to hate me. But being small didn't protect me. Being quiet didn't save me. It just made me easier to hurt.*
*I'm done being small.*
The words flow like they've been waiting inside me, building pressure until they had to come out. I write about the weight of carrying everyone else's opinion of me. About how their hate became the voice in my head telling me I wasn't worth anything. About the moment I realized that voice was lying.
*They don't get to decide what I'm worth. They never did.*
*My wolf is awake now. Really awake. She's not the scared creature who's been hiding in the back of my mind. She's something else. Something that makes the air around me feel electric.*
*Something that makes me dangerous.*
Mrs. Chen, the librarian, walks by and glances at what I'm writing. She doesn't comment, but she sets a fresh cup of tea next to my elbow and squeezes my shoulder gently before moving on.
"Be careful," she whispers so quietly I almost miss it. "The quiet ones are watching."
I look up, but she's already walking away. Her words send a chill down my spine. The quiet ones. Who is she talking about?
My wolf paces restlessly, sensing something I can't quite grasp. Threat. Opportunity. Change coming whether I'm ready or not.
The final bell rings, and I pack up slowly. No rush to get out, no desperate need to escape the building before someone else decides to make me their entertainment. I walk to my locker at a normal pace, like any other student ending any other day.
But as I'm putting my books away, I feel someone watching me. I turn to find Ronan leaning against the lockers about ten feet away, not quite looking at me but not exactly looking away either.
"What?" I ask. My voice comes out steady, maybe even a little annoyed.
He pushes off from the lockers and walks closer. Too close. Close enough that I can smell his scent, feel the heat from his skin. My wolf doesn't crave him like she used to. She studies him, cold and calculating.
"You're different," he says quietly.
"I'm exactly the same," I reply. "You just don't like what you're seeing."
His jaw tightens. "Don't think yesterday changes anything. Don't think—"
"Yesterday changed everything," I interrupt. "Not because of what you said, but because I finally heard it. Really heard it. You called me weak and pathetic and a sick dog. You made it clear that protecting me had nothing to do with caring about me and everything to do with your precious image."
He takes a step back, something flickering in his eyes. My wolf growls low in my chest, a sound he can probably hear. A warning.
"So thank you," I continue. "Thank you for finally being honest about what I mean to you. Which is nothing. Now I can stop hoping for something that was never going to happen."
"Evangeline...."
"No." The word comes out harder than I intended, backed by my wolf's strength. "You don't get to say my name like it matters to you. You don't get to look at me like you care. You made your choice. Live with it."
I slam my locker shut and walk away, leaving him standing there. My hands don't shake this time. My wolf is too steady, too sure of herself to let fear creep in.
Behind me, I hear him call my name once more, but I don't turn around. Whatever game he's playing, I'm not playing it anymore.
At home, I sit on my bed with the journal in my lap and a pen in my hand. Outside my window, the sun is setting, painting everything gold and orange. Beautiful, even after the ugliest day.
I think about the girl I was this morning. Broken and bleeding and barely holding on. Then I think about the girl who stared down Ronan Nightbane and walked away without looking back.
They're the same person. But one of them was carrying the weight of everyone else's hate, and the other decided to put it down.
I pull the crumpled note from my pocket and smooth it out on my bedspread. The threat stares back at me in neat handwriting. Someone wants me to be afraid. Someone wants me to run.
My wolf snarls softly, and I feel her strength flow through me like fire in my veins.
*Let them come,* she whispers. *We're ready.*
I write one more thing before closing the journal:
*They wanted me to disappear. To break so completely that I'd save them the trouble of finishing me off. But I didn't disappear. I didn't break. I changed.*
*And now they're going to have to deal with who I really am.*
*Someone left me a threat today. They think I should be scared. They think I should run. But I'm done running from shadows. If they want to try me, they know where to find me.*
*My wolf is awake now. She's not the frightened creature who used to hide in the corners of my mind. She's something ancient and fierce and tired of being treated like prey.*
*Tomorrow, they'll see what happens when you back a wolf into a corner for too long.*
My wolf settles into comfortable stillness, no longer the whimpering creature of weeks past. She's alert, powerful, ready. Like she's been waiting for this moment her entire life.
I close my eyes and feel something settle into place inside me. Something that's been broken for weeks, maybe months. Not healed – that will take time. But... aligned. Like pieces of myself clicking back together.
When I open my eyes, the girl in the window's reflection looks different again. Still tired. Still scarred. But there's something in her eyes now that wasn't there this morning.
Fire. And behind it, something that looks dangerously like a storm gathering strength.
I turn away from the window and walk to my dresser. In the bottom drawer, wrapped in tissue paper, is a necklace my mother gave me before she died. A simple silver chain with a small crescent moon pendant. I haven't worn it since I came to Blackclaw Academy, afraid it would make me stand out even more.
Tonight, I fasten it around my neck. The metal is cool against my skin, but it warms quickly. Like it's been waiting to come home. Like it's been waiting for me to be brave enough to wear it.
My wolf hums with approval as the pendant settles against my chest. There's something about the weight of it, the way it catches the light, that feels right. Like armor. Like a promise.
Tomorrow, they'll see me coming. Really see me, maybe for the first time. Not the broken Omega they've been tormenting, but the girl who survived everything they threw at her and came out stronger.
And if they think they've seen the worst of me, they're about to learn how wrong they are.
The moon rises full and bright outside my window, and for the first time in weeks, I sleep without nightmares. But my dreams are full of silver light and the sound of my wolf's voice, strong and sure and ready for war.
*Soon,* she whispers in my sleep. *Very soon.*
End of THE ALPHA WHO HATED ME Chapter 26. Continue reading Chapter 27 or return to THE ALPHA WHO HATED ME book page.