Diminished hope

Chapter 2 – Meya's POV

I ran.

Not just from the scene or the man who hurt me, but from Arthur. From the way he looked at me. From the way I almost believed someone like him could care about someone like me.

My promise to repay him had barely left my lips before I turned and bolted, the word "thank you" still hanging in the air between us. I didn't look back. I couldn't.

The cold marble floor stung my bare feet as I rounded the corner—

And crashed into someone.

Thick muscle, broad chest, the familiar scent of pine and dominance.

My stomach dropped.

Rowan.

His arms steadied me before I could fall. I blinked up at him, chest rising and falling too fast. His dark brows furrowed, eyes quickly scanning my face—dripping hair, wide eyes, trembling lips.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he snapped.

I tried to speak, but my voice caught in my throat.

"I—" I swallowed, forcing out a weak, "I just wanted to see the Alpha pursuit. I thought if I stayed hidden—just a peek—"

"You snuck into an Alpha gathering?" His voice cut through the corridor like a blade. "Are you insane?"

I flinched at the sharpness. "I didn't mean harm. I just—I was curious. That's all."

"You don't belong here, Meya!" he roared, stepping back like the sight of me disgusted him. "You're not even ready to attend a Beta-level event, and yet here you are, playing spy at the Alpha summit?"

His words landed like punches. And yet, I didn't argue. I couldn't.

"You're an Omega," he hissed, quieter now, but no less cruel. "You don't get to walk these halls. You don't get to play with power. You stay in your lane, Meya. That's what you're meant for."

"I just wanted—"

"I don't care what you wanted!" he snapped, his voice echoing down the long hallway. "Guards!"

"No—Rowan, please," I said quickly, grabbing his arm. "Don't do this. Please."

But his face was already turned from me, his jaw clenched. "Take her. Lock her in her room."

Two guards moved in. I tried to pull away, begged him with my eyes.

"Rowan—I'm your sister! I didn't do anything wrong!"

He didn't look at me.

The guards' grips were firm, and I didn't fight. Because deep down, I knew this would happen. I always knew my place.

The door slammed behind me.

And then, silence.

The kind that wraps around your throat and doesn't let go.

I sank to the floor. My body folded into itself as the sob rose from somewhere deep—somewhere dark and tired. The tears came hard and fast, splashing down my arms, soaking into the hem of my dress.

I felt stupid. So, so stupid.

For running. For sneaking out. For thinking, even for one moment, that someone like Arthur might be meant for me.

Time passed. I wasn't sure how much. Maybe an hour. Maybe three.

Then a soft knock.

I didn't answer.

"Meya?" came a voice through the door. "It's me. Natalia."

The door creaked open, and warmth flooded in behind her—her scent, her calm.

Her eyes landed on me, and she dropped her satchel immediately.

"Oh, sweetheart…" she whispered, kneeling in front of me. "What happened?"

I told her everything.

Every detail. The man in the corridor. Arthur stepping in. The way his eyes softened when they met mine. The way his voice had wrapped around me like a blanket in a snowstorm.

"And I know it's insane," I whispered. "But I think—I felt something. Like… a pull. A bond. And I swear, I think he felt it too."

I braced myself for her reaction.

Natalia didn't say anything at first. She just stared at me, her brows drawn tight. She reached out, brushing hair from my face, the way she always did when she needed to find the right words.

"I love you," she said softly. "And because I love you, I need to tell you the truth."

My chest tightened. I already knew where this was going.

"You're an Omega, Meya. You know what that means."

"I know what it means," I snapped, surprising even myself with the sharpness of my tone. "But what if—what if we're fated? What if the bond is real?"

"Even if it is," she said gently, "that doesn't mean he'll want it."

I looked down, the truth in her words cutting sharper than Rowan's.

"He's Arthur," she said. "The Alpha of the ruling twin's line. Do you know how many wolves respect him? Fear him? He has power, Meya. Real power. And you…"

She didn't have to finish the sentence.

"I'm just an Omega," I said bitterly, the words like ash on my tongue.

Natalia reached for my hands. "You're not 'just' anything. But you are vulnerable. And if you let your heart run with this fantasy, it's going to get crushed."

I nodded numbly.

She sighed. "Alphas like Arthur don't mate with Omegas. Not for real. Maybe for a moment. Maybe out of curiosity. But not forever. Not when the world is watching. You know that."

I did.

Of course I did.

"And if he finds out who you are," she continued, "who your family is… how you were raised… do you really think he'll still look at you like that?"

The final thread of hope in my chest snapped.

"I don't know what I was thinking," I whispered. "I really don't."

Natalia pulled me into a hug, and I leaned into her warmth, burying my face in her shoulder.

"You were thinking like a girl who's never been looked at like she mattered," she whispered. "I don't blame you for that."

But it didn't make it hurt less.

I wanted to believe that look in Arthur's eyes meant something.

But maybe it didn't.

Maybe it never did.

Maybe fate got it wrong.

I had to hang on and fight for my sanity,my life, my freedom and a hope for myself with the twin alpha brothers.