Imara Diversifies The Beastmen World

Chapter Ninety Five: A Mirror Held Up

Qean POV

I should've known better. Every smile, every hug, every moment we shared—it had to be a part of her plan. Imara, with her warmth and unwavering kindness, made me feel something I always wanted safe. But it was all a lie, wasn't it? From the first gift basket to the day I gave her that dress, she was just setting me up to take everything I ever wanted.

When I first met her, I wanted to despise her. Her beauty, her confidence, the way she commanded a room without even trying—it irritated me. Females like her didn't exist. Not here. Not in this city. Yet there she was, offering me friendship as if it were something as simple as a handshake.

I didn't trust it. How could I? No one had ever offered me kindness without wanting something in return. But she didn't push. She gave me space, let me come to her on my terms. I remember how she smiled when I called her strange and frustrating, how she never took offense, how she respected my space but never truly left me alone.

And the gifts—oh, the gifts. Who gives without expecting anything back? Yet she made me feel like my life had just begun. Excitement, Adventure, Curiosity of what I could get into. I had never I could do these things before. I hated it. I loved it. I didn't know what to do with it. I let her in, little by little, until I found myself seeking her company, craving the warmth she brought into my life. She taught me what friendship could be, and I thought I had finally found something real. Someone real.

Then came the moment I gave her the dress—the one I had painstakingly woven from seaweed and delicate netting. I had stayed awake the whole night, fretting over every stitch, wanting it to be perfect—not because I cared, I told myself, but because I owed her for all the gifts she'd given me. When I saw her eyes light up, I almost believed it wasn't just a transaction. Almost.

But now?

Now, she betrayed me and claimed the man I had set my sights on for years.

I thought back to the gathering earlier today. When Shugh came to fetch me, excitement bubbling within me, anticipating seeing Winston again after what felt like an eternity. I felt encouraged from being around Imara to confess.

And then I saw her—standing there beside him, her eyes mirroring mine, filled with a genuine affection that crushed me. She had claimed him before the entire city, leaving no room for doubt.

I had waited six years, quietly holding onto the hope that Winston might one day be mine. I convinced myself that if I just stayed patient, I would have him eventually. No one had eyes for him anyway and Rosa didn't have a chance. I knew that. But Imara? She walked right up to him and took what I waited and planned over time in one day.

For her to betray me like this... it was unthinkable.

How could she smile at me, call me her friend, and then snatch away the one thing I had longed for most? Was this her plan all along? To disarm me, to make me trust her, only to steal everything I wanted when I wasn't looking?

Frustration, anxiety, and a sense of betrayal weighed heavily on my shoulders. I felt sick with it. I demanded that Winston choose between us, convinced that once he saw the truth—once he saw me—he would come to his senses. But his body language, the way he looked at her, told me everything I needed to know. His heart already belonged to her.

The realization shattered something inside me. Was it Winston I was mourning, or was it the friendship I thought I had with Imara?

When she interrupted our tense exchange, her unexpected response caught me off guard, leaving me stunned and reeling. But even in the midst of my shock, I couldn't rationalize her actions.