LOVE MAZE | VKOOK

➴ four.

As soon as Taehyung opened his eyes, pain immediately consumed him. He couldn't move once again, feeling as if being stabbed in his chest with little thorns.

That's when he noticed he woke up in an empty bed, the alpha who held him ever so sweetly last night was again nowhere to be found. He felt a tear escaped on his tired eyes, feeling aweful for his poor self.

Is he ugly? Is he not enough? He couldn't understand, why his mate refuses to claim him. His mate could even fight the mate bond just to get away from him. He's that desperate to reject Taehyung.

At this point, he just wanna die. Since his mate doesn't want to claim him, what's even his purpose now? He'd be a shame to his a pack. An omega who's  mateless. What a pathetic life he have.

A scream once again rose from his hoarsed throat, feeling the pain all over, again and again. He couldn't take it anymore.

Moon. Please. Help me.

***

It was now night time, when Jeongguk came back in the pack house. Everyone turn their heads, as a strong, very dominant scent of the future alpha scented the place.

Every mated couple ofcourse knew that smell.

Jeongguk entered the council room, seeing his father on the center of the long table along with some of the betas and alphas who's incharge in taking care of different resources. There at the very end of the table sitting was Namjoon, who also could smell the reeking scent from the alpha.

Namjoon snarled, thinking that Jeongguk touched his brother. In a speed of light, he was clutching Jeongguk's shirt in anger. The other wolves step back as both of the alphas fight.

"You dare lay a hand on my brother but won't claim him?" Namjoon viciously growled. His eyes twitched when Jeongguk smirked at him.

"Was he the one I fucked though?" Jeongguk teased and Namjoon once again saw darkness as infuriation consumed him. He gritted his teeth and gripped tightly at Jeongguk's shirt.

But Namjoon came back to his senses, lowering his hand as a wave of sadness filled him, his chest rumbling as he breath out heavily, pain evident in his eyes. He looked at Jeongguk. "What did my brother do to you? W-why won't you claim him?"

"Jeongguk, is this true?" Jeoun asked, grumbling under his breath. "You're the mate of Namjoon's brother? You..rejected him?"

Jeongguk snapped his eyes as his father looked at him, disappointed and furius. He replied, "Yes."

The wolves around them started to whisper, saying the future alpha rejected his luna. Jeoun shook his head.

"You are the future of the pack and in your side should be the rightful luna that the moon gave you! Stop this madness, Jeongguk!" Jeoun spoke.

"Y'all are blinded by this fucking mate bond!" Jeongguk growled. Jeoun and the others widened their eyes. "You don't understand it, father. If you expect me, to acknowledge someone who I don't even know and make him my other half, then you're wrong. I'm not going to be chained into this mate bond, father. I'm the only one who knows what and who's the best for me." He looked at the door. "And clearly, he's not the best for me."

In that very moment, he saw the small figure of the omega, his mate, peeking by the door. Exhaustion written all over his face. He locked eyes with the omega, who as well looked at him with glassy eyes.

A soft whimper slipped from the omega, running almost immediately after hearing those painful words of the future alpha.

The moon must be aware of how much pain he's experiencing, for the rejected pain subsided, enough for the omega to shift in his little icy white wolf. He run in the forest, letting whimpers and sobs as he let his little limbs bring him to the forest. Along with his sorrow, thick wind and clouds clouded the beautiful night sky. He looked up. No, Taehyung. Control yourself.

But he really had enough. He's done hoping for the alpha to claim him, done having faith in having the happy mate life he had envisioned since the very start of his life. He experienced nothing but pain since the day he met his mate, far from everything he had been expecting.

The wolf saw the cliff and slowly walked over the edge. He dipped his head down, seeing he's in fact in the higher part of the forest and if ever he jumps, he'd fall on the pointed pine trees. There's no any possibility of being alive.

He looked at the moon, eyes begging. He could not help himself but to feel betrayed. He had devoted all his life, offering everything he do for the moon.  Followed every pack rules and accepted his rank whole heartedly, hoping that if moon made him an omega, then there must be a rightful reason.

But moon gave him a mate who doesn't even claim him. And he was beyond heartbroken that the moon let that happen.

There's no use of being alive now. I have failed to fulfill my duty of being omega as soon as my mate refused to claim me.

He slowly shut his eyes and only listened to his heartbeat. 'I'll be okay. No more pain, taehyungie. No more pain.'

His little limbs bended, ready to jump. But a wolf behind him pushed him to the side, making the poor white wolf whimper as he heard a warning growl.

The black wolf shifted, only to find it was Jeongguk.

"Shift." The alpha commanded. Taehyung immediately do as what he say, pulling his clothes that he put around his ankle.

"W-what are you doing here?" Taehyung asked.

"I feel your heartbeat, omega. So I come here." The alpha greeted his teeth. "You're this stupid? You're going to waste your life because your mate rejected you?"

"You know nothing." Taehyung shook his head, tears in his eyes. "You know nothing how I devoted all my life, living with the rank that is given to me, anticipating and making sure to be the omega that my mate and my future pups needs, only to find that my mate rejects me. You don't know that so don't call me stupid!"

Jeongguk greeted his teeth. "You're stupid for living your life the way they told you and for believing in some sick old myth that some mate will claim you. Do you know the reason why I rejected you? Is because I know what I want. And I know, that I'm not going to let myself be chained in this mate pull."

Taehyung looked at Jeongguk with wide eyes. It's too late for the omega to even reply back when the alpha shifted back and left him there.

That very night, Taehyung witnessed, how all of his dreams and hopes crashes right before his eyes. That all that he believed in eversince he was born, all of sudden, lose it's matter.

Within those few words from Jeongguk,  everything that Taehyung believed in withered and lose its value. For he knew in his heart, Jeongguk's somehow right.

It wasn't love that he felt for Jeongguk. It's nothing but the mate pull.

***