Hiding from the Alpha

"Thank You."

Riley's POV 💫

I feel nauseous, like my body is spinning around and around. I can feel myself begin to regain consciousness, and the more I begin to wake up, the more the pain in my head pushes itself forward. My head is throbbing and I feeling a tingling pain in my fingers, arms, and shins. But the pounding pain in my head overrides the everything else, and the people screaming in the room don't help.

I am about to yell at the voices to shut up, but I soon recognize one of the voices. The sound of his booming voice makes my heart pound rapidly in my chest. Whether it's from the mate bond or the fact that the very thought of him makes me want to jump out of a window, the answer is still not certain. So I'll delay this as much as physically possible. I don't know how I feel, and I don't want to make a stupid choice and end up regretting it later. I'm a fantastic procrastinator, and I plan to do just that. I'll do everything in my power to put off the conversation we are bound to have. So I busy myself with listening to their conversation.

"You're completely over reacting! It was an accident! She didn't intentionally injure herself, and a babysitter wouldn't have changed anything. Just calm down." A very familiar voice whisper-yells with anger laced in her voice.

"No Bella! I will not fucking calm down, okay? She's hurt! I let her have her space and she manages to break bones and get a traumatic head injury! We don't even know what she was doing downstairs-" He screams loudly, making my head and my heart pound harder, before Isabelle cuts him off.

"She's part human too! We all are! She needs her basic necessities just like we do. She was weak, she was tired, she was hungry. You can't shield her from everything in the world! You two don't have any form of relationship, friendship, you have nothing! You don't know a single thing about her-" she screams back before he interjects, fuming with rage.

"She's my mate! It-"

"It doesn't matter! You haven't even touched base with each other and you act like some over protective husband! You don't own her!" She cuts him off again, retaliating just as much anger.

"I didn't sign up for this Bella! I never wanted a fucking mate and look, I got one. I don't know what to do, this is all new to me! I'm just trying to make this work, okay?!"

I feel my heart pound hard, like it's trying to leap out of my chest. He didn't want me. I should have known that he wasn't a commitment type, it's expected from a heartless Alpha. I don't know how I thought that it might work at all. It's obvious that there was some kind of mistake, we aren't meant for each other.

My head is spinning with reasons why it wouldn't have worked, but I am overcome with a deep sadness. It's like a heavy fog that clouds my entire being. In my mind, I can pretend to be relieved and glad that I can just cut ties all together, but part of me is completely devastated.

The sad part of me seems to take control as a tear streams down my warm cheek. I don't think they notice as they continue to scream at each other. But I'm not listening now. I'm in too much pain, physically and now- mentally. I want them to shut up and get out. Now.

I open my eyes as tears flow from them. I weakly turn my throbbing head to look at the siblings that are screaming, only a few feet from the bed. I attempt to speak but the words feel stuck in my raw, dry throat. I look over at the two of them.

He has his back to me but Isabella is facing me. I look at her, glad that I don't have to look at him. She seems to notice my gaze. Her face lights up, multiple emotions flowing through her features. She immediately grabs a glass of water off of the vanity and walks over to me swiftly, disregarding whatever he had just said.