Chapter 2 The Unraveling

Elara's Pov

"Arggh!" I groaned, stumbling as I stepped into the apartment. My hand clutched my abdomen, the birthday package in my hand fell to the ground, echoing in the empty hall.

'Kai... please...Kai please don't stop. Ohh.'

My eyes widened as realization dawned on me. But nature wasn't done with me just yet.

A bolt of intense pain shot through my abdomen, weakening my thighs. At that moment, I fell to the ground, unable to balance myself.

My breathing heavy, my eyes heavy, my body quivering. Shit...I needed this to stop, I needed it all to stop.

'You're so freaking gorgeous. Why didn't the moon goddess pair me up with you?' That was Kai, my mate. The bond we had made his voice echo in my ears.

"Why?" I whimpered, my wolf struggled to pick herself up, but the excruciation pinned her down to my mind. "Why..." I curled into a ball so suddenly, trying to relieve the pain. But I couldn't, I wanted to scream, my veins seeming as though they were about to pop out of my skin.

Tears stung my eyes. This betrayal hurt. My best friend and my mate.

I knew why she wanted him so much, mentioning she could never get married to someone who wasn't an Alpha. Why had I not taken hints?

I managed to get up onto the bed after a few minutes of relief and by mistake, clutched a small, silk bag in my hand. Inside, a single item – a crimson lace thong. *Anya's.* I'd found it tucked between the cushions of the couch, a blatant, careless reminder of their intimacy.

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The door opened, and Kai stood there. Frozen for a second, he let a flicker of surprise cross his face before settling it into something unreadable.

He was dressed in the same clothes from the previous night; the shirt was slightly rumpled, and his hair was just a little too disheveled.

He smelled faintly of sandalwood and... Anya's perfume. My stomach churned.

Elara? What are you doing here? I thought you were at work," he said, the tone casual, almost dismissive.

"Where were you last night, Kai?" I whispered. I held up the silk bag, letting it dangle from my fingers. The crimson lace peeked out.

His eyes flickered to the bag and then back to my face. He didn't say anything.

"Don't lie to me," I said, my voice growing stronger, the anger that had been bottled up finally rising to the surface. "I know."

He let out a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, Elara, this isn't what you think."

"Oh, really? Because from where I'm standing, it looks an awful lot like you sleeping with my best friend!" I spat venom in my words.

His face hardened. "Don't be dramatic."

Dramatic? *I'm* being dramatic? You slept with Anya, Kai! In our apartment! On our couch!" I shrieked, the words tearing from my throat.

He winced but only for a moment. "We didn't. sleep together," he mumbled, his eyes avoiding mine.

"Oh, so you just held hands and sang lullabies? Is that it?" I scoffed, the bitterness high in my chest. I yanked the thong from the bag and threw it at him. It landed on his chest, a splash of crimson against his grey shirt. "This says otherwise."

He picked it up, his face reddening a dull red. He didn't say anything.

"Whose is it, Kai?" I persisted in a shaking voice. "Tell me the truth."

He blinked several times, before finally saying something, his voice low. "It's... it's Anya's."

"Thank you for that earth-shattering revelation," I said, sarcasm dripping from my voice. "So, you *were* with her last night."

"Look, it just... happened," he said, his eyes pleading. "We were talking, and... one thing led to another."

"One thing led to another?" I echoed, incredulous. "You betrayed me, Kai! With my best friend! In our home! And all you can say is 'one thing led to another'?"

He looked down at the floor, shame etched into his features. "I'm sorry, Elara."

"Sorry?" I laughed, a hollow, broken sound. "Is that all you have to say? Sorry? That's supposed to fix everything?"

He looked up at me, and his eyes were filled with this weird mix of guilt and resentment. "What do you want me to say? I made a mistake. Everybody makes mistakes."

"A mistake?" I shrieked, my voice cracking. "You call this a mistake?" "You broke my heart, Kai! You destroyed everything we had!

"Don't be so melodramatic," he snapped, his voice rising. "You're acting like I've never done anything good in this relationship."

My heart dropped ten lengths low. "You know what you did, Kai. Why are you shifting the entire blame to me?"

"You were never enough Elara. I was about to reject you today because of how uneven we've been lately."

I looked at him with pure disbelief. "After everything we've been through? Kai? You're going to throw that all away because of your selfish reasons?"

"Don't you dear call me selfish for wanting something better."

"What did you just say?" I questioned, stepping closer to him.

"You heard me." He countered.

"You are abandoning me for that low life bitch?! With all that I've given you?! You didn't even give half as much as I gave to you. You're going to regret this... everything!"

My hand touched my already stinging face. He just raised his hand on me.

"Don't you dare, raise your voice at me. And never call her a low life, she's way better than you, in every sense of the word." He said and my eyes watered once more before he walked past. "You'll be getting the divorce papers by tomorrow. But now. I reject you, Elara Morgan, as my mate. You're no longer welcome into my home."

"Where will I go?"

"Figure it out yourself."

I clutched my chest, the pain surging through my veins like unending rivers of water.

"Kai." I whispered one last time before everything turned black.