The Beta's Daughter

Chapter Two: Fated

My heart sank. 12:01. I was officially eighteen, but I couldn't feel anything except for disappointment. Jacob was struck dumb. He hadn't moved for a full minute now, and I could scarcely feel the movement of his chest rising and falling.

"Jake?" I whispered, pressing myself closer to him. He sighed.

"We're not mates," he murmured, and the heartbreak in his voice made my chest clench. "I asked my mum how we'd know. She said we just would, that our worlds would change, re-arrange so that you were at my centre. It feels the same," he said, choking on the last word. I wrapped my arms around him and furrowed my head even further under his chin.

I still felt safe and at home, but there was no magic spark, nothing mystical or otherworldly. I could feel my love for him pounding against my ribcage, bursting like a firework and then fizzling out over and over as the realisation hit me. We weren't mates. We weren't meant to be.

I could feel tears worming their way up to my eyes, my throat burning as it clasped around nothing. I could feel myself clutching at straws, the desperation pounding against my skull as I tried to think of ways around this.

"Maybe you're not actually eighteen yet," Jacob said into my hair, and it seemed that he felt the same. "Maybe we have to wait until the exact minute of your birth."

I nodded, but I didn't agree. I could feel somewhere deep inside that we weren't meant to be, that this wasn't it. Jacob wasn't the one. The tears started to fall; I could taste the salt on my upper lip, dripping down the sides of my nose and cascading down my chin. I wiped at them with a clumsy hand.

Jacob sniffled above me. When he felt my hand moving he finally looked at me, and he caught my chin with his fingers, wiping my tears away with his other hand. I leant into his touch, feeling comforted.

"This doesn't change anything," he said. "I still want you to be my Luna. You belong with me, Ari." His voice cracked, and my heart tore a little more. It felt as though someone was toying with it, slowly pulling it apart at the seams. My eyes glazed over, and I couldn't find any words to make this better.

My bedroom door swung open then, slamming so hard that it whacked against the wall. "Happy Birthday!" My parents yelled, with Jacob's stood right behind them. They were beaming, but their smiles faltered when they caught sight of us.

"You're not..." My mum managed to choke out, and she shook her head. "This can't be," my dad added, looking crestfallen. Jacob's parents hurried in behind them, their faces stunned.

"They aren't mates," Jacob's mum whispered, her eyes immediately filling with tears. She moved over to the bed and took my hand in hers, my mum moving to sit on the other side of me. Our dads both clapped Jacob on the shoulder, frowning heavily.

"I know this must be disappointing for both of you," Jacob's mum began, regaining her poise. "But the Moon Goddess has a plan, and she'll have a reason for this. It doesn't mean anything has to change between the two of you," she added, squeezing my hand. She wiped gracefully at her tears, and composed herself.

"Trust in your paths," my mum added, smiling sadly at us.

"You two look exhausted," Jacob's dad said. "Why don't you take tomorrow off of training, get some rest, gather yourselves. This is a big shock for us all."

"I'd like to train, sir," I mumbled.

"Are you sure?" My dad spoke up. "It's your birthday, sweetie, don't feel you have to-"