later, I sat perched on the corner of the kitchen island inhaling beef kebabs. And obsessing over what had happened earlier when my parents came back, I heard their voices first before I saw them. "You'll never believe who I was on the phone with." my ma announced.

I matched her smile, my mind circling over a name because I could already guess it. "It was Taylor!" hands spread wide she exclaimed with joy and proceeded to hug me. "She told me everything, oh baby. The way the gods have blessed you and your mate?" she shook her head reverently. "It calls for a celebration. Taylor and I have already begun the plans. Dinner. This Friday wear something with a collar, we're going out to celebrate you two." Then she slid out of the kitchen, her event planning journal in her hand and a pen in the other.

Dad perched ma's purse on the counter and said, "I hope you've recited your prayers son. A grateful heart is something the gods bless with favour. Upon favour."

"Yes, sir. I sure did." I saluted him, not because he demanded that from us but because I was lying and all my responses carried an exaggeration I felt in my spirit.

"So," Malia launched to steal a kebab from my hand and narrowed her eyes straight into my soul. "Danielle huh?"

"It's been a long night, I'm going to sleep now. Night." Ignoring my sister I secured a plentiful of kebabs in my hand as I left the kitchen, so as to avoid more questions about my apparent mate.

Earlier when I'd gotten home, my family's doctors had been waiting for me, eyes big and expectant, so I'd lied. Told them, that Danielle - the best friend, I'd already spoken with - was who my mate was. It killed me to lie so extravagantly but it had to be done. Brady was a horrible person, with an especially ugly soul placed in a beautiful vessel and after all the good I'd done I really deserved better than him. On some level, I felt that the gods had to understand. Right?

Besides, it hadn't taken much for them to believe us since we never lied.

Dani was perfect for me, she was my best friend, my mother and her mother were best friends, and our dads got along well enough. Both our families were in the red ribbon circle, which meant we were both affluent and led on the board in equal measure. Dad gave me a pat on the back as I left the kitchen, behind me I heard Malia lamenting to him. With complaints about how she'd only dreamt of her mate's face, whilst I'd already met mine in someone I already liked. On the staircase to my room, I ran into Mateo, "So Danielle huh?"

I lifted a hand to the back of my neck and smiled through a lie, "Yes. Pretty lucky huh."

"So fucking blessed," he said, then his lips twisted into a mischievous smile as he launched into his next whispered question, which started with a statement. "You know, when I found my mate, we fucked first and exchanged names later. I don't smell her on you, does that mean you didn't?"

I laughed and averted my gaze, "No, we're saving ourselves for marriage."

"Good for you. " He nodded and gave me a pat on the back, "I have so much respect for you now."

"Yea," I agreed and sighed. "It's been a long night, I'm spent."

Then I was on my way to my room thinking about Dani.

The only reason she'd agreed to my elaborate plan was because she was desperate to leave our town. Go settle somewhere in Greendale with a large human population so she could play her music for new ears and just be free of the expectations of her family. Her parents were just like mine, except a tad more eccentric. They subscribed to wild conspiracies and believed in every single myth there was from aliens of Krypton to witches and vampires. So, plenty of times they'd argued about her dream and they'd explicitly clarified that there was no way they were allowing their only daughter to move away. To a city rumoured to have been corrupted by the worst of the supernatural as a lone wolf without a mate.

For years Dani had been daydreaming about running away to Greendale after high school, in fact lately, with her that was all she'd been talking about. I was her perfect cover as she was my beard. Our lie saved us both from realities we didn't want to accept. I offered her a chance at freedom because with me by her side, her parents could be swayed. Whilst she offered me refuge for a while because no amount of lying was going to protect me from whatever was coming to me. According to our history and folklore, rejecting a mate meant I was subjecting them and myself to a lifetime of immense pain. However considering who the gods had given me as a mate, I felt the justified conviction in the marrow of my bones.

Later that night, I received multiple calls from an unknown number which I wasn't going to return. It was probably just some pack members calling to congratulate me on finding a mate or more bullies coming for their share after the elite - Brady and his posse had gotten to me first.

I placed my phone down on the dresser ready to go to sleep when it buzzed, again.

I didn't think, I swiped the screen and was flat-out assaulted by a high-quality picture of male abs I ignored. A minute later my phone buzzed again this time with a picture that would have made our sex ed teacher blush. To put it decently, the picture showed someone's male organ, hard, dripping with a hand gripping it. Below it came a typed message that made me cringe so bad. 'I know you want this in your mouth.' I looked at the contact, I chased after the contact and after figuring out that it was in fact Brady, whose number I didn't have nor had ever received a message from before. I fumed, on one hand, I wanted to look at the picture again but on the other, I was incredibly angry that he found me the type to send such pictures to. I mean what the fuck! I deleted the picture and pressed call on a number third on the speed dial list.

"Malik," Danielle's voice was a sweet caress that could've calmed me hadn't I been so angry.

"Hey, hey, hey, slow down Malik. The moon is still full," Danielle reasoned after I'd been complaining to her, "It's no longer at its height but the moon is still full and your emotions are responding directly to its brightness. Breath ok."

I breathed.

She sighed, or maybe breathed with me, "Ok. So, what's wrong?"

"He sent me a dick pic." my hands fisted and I repeated. "A dick pic Dani."

"How did he get your number?"

"I don't even know." I cried, hands flying into my hair.

"Hmm," her tone sounded contemplative, "...I'm no A student but it's my best guess that his blue blood recognises it's half even though he doesn't."

"And never will," I added for clarification. Alphas, blue bloods were meant to be located by their mates. That's the one advantage the gods had given me over him, without me to tell him he belonged to me there was no way he would ever know the truth.

"I'm with you there. Good gods, so a dick pic really?"

I whimpered, on the verge of crying.

"Everyone knows those are the sorts of pics him and his posse send to girls the only wanna smash." she sympathized. "You deserve better."

"That's one of the reasons why he must never know." I cried into the phone, actual tears hot on my cheeks.

"And I'm running with you baby, for myself and for you." She said.

"Thick as thieves." I pledged.

"Thick as thieves," I felt her conviction in the centre of my heart, "One day one of us might regret this but today, from the moment I offered the hail, Mary, I'm right here with you. Brady must fall."