Overwhelmed and underestimated

It's later

Elia's POV
He looked me up and down and suddenly I felt self conscious. We were both silent for a few seconds just staring at each other before he finally spoke. "Where are you headed?" He asked in his deep voice that sent shivers down my spine. The eye contact alone was making my heart beat way faster than I'm used to. Suddenly my throat was dry and I had to clear it before responding. How embarrassing. "I'm headed home" I said awkwardly looking in the direction of my house. Which was about another 3 miles away if I take a shortcut through the woods. "Do you want a ride?" He asked looking at me intensely. I bit my lip and nodded my head yes. I normally wouldn't mind walking but I couldn't resist sitting in a car with him for the next 20 minutes. I get in his car and his scent hits me hard like a slap to the face. I hesitated when I closed his car door locking me in with his scent surrounding me. I instantly relaxed once I was engulfed in his scent. "We need to talk" he said reaching over me to put on my seatbelt not caring about my personal space or the anxiety attack I almost had having his face soo close to mine. I nodded my head yes and looked him straight in his eyes showing him he has my full attention. He paused and stared at me speechless for a few seconds before clearing his throat and putting the car in drive. His face heated up slightly and the first few minutes of the drive was quiet. This made my face heat up and I couldn't help but stare out of the window. "We're mates" he says aloud as if he just figured this out at this very moment. I looked back at him and smiled. It made me happy to hear him say it. "I need time to decide what to do with that information?" He says with a blank expression on his face. Okay, so he just needs time? I can give him time if that makes him happy. I whisper an "okay" while turning my head back towards the window. It took me a second to realize he never asked where I live. "Aries?" I ask looking at him confused. He glances over at me with a slight smile on his lips. "Don't worry I know where I'm going" I nod my head okay and just then he hits me with "Elia" my goodness my stomach flipped. My name has never sounded so good before. I was not prepared to hear him say my name. I look at him knowing my cheeks are blazing red right now, I am trying to hide my obvious smile but failing miserably. He glances over at me and bursts out laughing. I turn away hiding my face embarrassed. "All I said was your name Elia. You look like a red apple" he chuckled at me shaking his head. I looked back at him scrunching my nose up in irritation. We catch a red light as his laughter subsided and suddenly he's looking at me with a serious expression on his face. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He wants to say something, I know it. Something that's going to hurt me, I know it. "Elia, I am just honestly not sure if you're what I want for a mate and Luna of this pack." I flinched at his words. That hurt. That hurt soo bad. I look away from him knowing at any moment the tears will fall. He gently grabbed my chin to face him. I didn't fight him. I couldn't. His touch felt too good. Nevertheless the tears still fell. We're so close and he looks soo sad.  Just then someone honked their horn and he let go of my face to continue driving. "fuck" he says under his breath in frustration. I wiped my tears and tried to calm down. I don't want him to feel awkward or guilty for speaking his mind. "It's not that you aren't great." He continued making me roll my eyes internally. "I just have a million things on my mind right now with graduation and the Alpha ceremony coming up so fast" He explains and I want to be understanding, I really do. It just hurts so bad. "I just feel like I need a strong alpha female by my side to help run this pack." Is he trying to make me feel better or is he just insulting me? "I didn't mean it like that" he sighs sounding frustrated. "I just mean that you may be too nice to be in charge of this pack." He sounds defeated at this point. I keep wiping my tears as they fall but it's no use. I physically cannot stop the tears from falling. "It's okay" I said shakily unable to keep my voice steady. This is the longest car ride ever. Are we almost there? "I am not rejecting you Elia. I just need time and space to think." He sounds like he's begging me to understand. Finally he pulls over in front of my house, I unbuckle my seatbelt and reach for the door when he puts his hand on my shoulder making me freeze in my spot. Everything froze. My heart, my mind, and the air around us. I used that moment to calm down and fake a smile. "I just want you to be happy. Take as much space and time as you need" I said as steadily as I could without looking back at him and rushed out of his car and into my home.