The Rejected Alpha (Book 1 of the Rejected Series)

Chapter 9

Levi leaned back in his seat. He wanted to talk more about me and wanted me to open up. However, he knew that I wouldn't talk. "Réngrán gùzhí, (Still stubborn,)" he teased. "Wǒ hěn gāoxìng yǒuxiē shìqíng zài wǒ líkāi shí méiyǒu gǎibiàn. (I am glad some things hadn't changed when I was gone.)" He took hold of his tea and drank from it.

I was going to follow only to have my grandmother smack my hand. "Grams," I said, rubbing my wrist. "What was that for?"

"Your tea is cold," she replied. "You took too long to drink it." She placed another cup in front of me and poured some more tea. "Drink that."

I scowled and did what she said. I closed my eyes and let the warmth of it fill me. I opened my eyes and saw Levi stare at me, a wave of emotions going through them.

He looked down at his cup and rubbed the rim of it with his thumb. "Tāmen hèn wǒ, (They hate me,)" he said. His voice cracked, and I could tell that he was tired. He was tired of everything, and I didn't know how I could help. "Wǒ shì yīgè zāogāo de ā'ěrfǎ. (I am a bad Alpha.)"

I snorted and rolled my eyes. "They do not hate you," I said. "And, you are not a bad Alpha."

"Wǒ huì shāle tāmen, Lexi, (I am going to kill them, Lexi,)" he said. "Wǒ wúfǎ kòngzhì tā xiǎng yào wǒ zuò shénme. Wǒ - wǒ wúfǎ duìkàng tā. Wǒ wúfǎ duìkàng mìnglìng. (I-I can't fight it. I can't fight the command.)" He looked down at his hands to see them shaking. A single tear fell from his eye, and it broke my heart. "Wǒ bùgòu qiángdà. (I am not strong enough.)"

"You're right," I said. "You are not strong enough, not alone." I took his face in my hand and wiped the tear from his eye. "But you are not alone." I stared into those blue eyes as he placed his hand on mine. "You have the pack behind you and our allies."

"Wǒmen...... Méiyǒu rènhé méngyǒu, (We... don't have any allies,)" Levi said. "Wǒ, tā, bǎ tāmen jiào diào. Jìdé? (I, well he, called them off. Remember?)" He moved his hand across mine, the sparks appearing again. "Měi gèrén dōu hěn shēngqì, bìng shìtú jǐnggào wǒ, wǒmen zuò zài méiyǒu tāmen de yāzi. (Everyone was pissed and tried to warn me that we were sitting ducks without them.)" He furrowed his brows in confusion. "Nike méiyǒu shēngqì. (Nike wasn't pissed.)"

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean that Nike wasn't pissed? You "called off" the alliances."

Levi shrugged and gave me a weird look. He didn't understand why I had said, "called off," but I didn't care. He didn't need to know. "Tā xiàole qǐlái, jiào wǒ yīgè gōngjī. (He laughed and called me a cock muncher.)"

My grandmother almost choked on her drink, and we looked at her. She set her cup down and cleared her throat. "Sorry, sorry," she said. "It was just funny." She got up from the table and went to the sink, chuckling and muttering "cock muncher."

Levi took my hand off of his cheek and clutched it. He looked at me, and I could tell that he was suspicious of me. "Nǐ yǒu shé me yào gēn tā dǎ diànhuà gěi wǒ yīgè gōngjī ma? (Did you have anything to do with him calling me a cock muncher?)"

"I do not have anything to do with the fact that Nike called you a "cock muncher,"" I replied. "I don't even know why he would say that."

Levi sighed and moved a hand through his hair. He looked older than the man that I loved, but I understood it too. The weight of the pack laid on his shoulders, and it made him feel older.

It felt the same way with me. Not only did I have weight the pack on my shoulders, but I also had the weight of the Werewolf population.

If we fell, then... the packs would fall one by one until none was left. We were the strongest pack and had the strongest Warriors. We were second to the King's pack, but they had to be strong to take care of the king.