Chapter 3

"W-what?" Mira's eyes filled with tears as they fell down her cheeks. Her eyes were full of disbelief as she gazed at the Alpha, Jason with an agonized face.

"How could you?" Mira's hand reached out to tug at his clothes.

Jason frowned, looking at the human girl in front of him in displeasure. He moved away, causing her to almost stumbled in the process. 

"Can you tell me why?" Mira's voice quivered, her eyes gazing at him with such sadness.

Jason faltered slightly. The momentary silence hung uncomfortably. However, his eyes suddenly turned cold.

"You are not worthy."

The ruckus between the two had begun to cause some people to look their way. She was so loud that people would soon come to find out what happened.

Rejecting one's mate was still a taboo in werewolves' world. It was considered blasphemy against the moon goddess. After all, she was the one who watched over the werewolf race and bestowed them with mates.

He wanted to get out of here.

Jason gave one last look to the girl, wanting to quickly depart before others come and find out what he had done. However, when he turned his head to look at her again, his pupil constricted at the sight before him.

Mira was wiping her tears with a tissue as she looked at him solemnly. "That's what you want to see, right?"

She blinked, looking to the side at one last cookie in the bag. She popped it into her mouth, then continue to look at Jason nonchalantly. "How's my acting? Should I try to be an actress? Hmm, I definitely should."

So, that tears earlier was an act.

"Aren't you a cocky one?" Mira changed her tone. She swallowed down the cookie in her mouth, savoring the taste without the care to the world.

"Well, I reject you too." She said almost playfully, not the slightest bit bothered, unlike the earlier crocodile tears. She even still had the gall to enjoy her cookie in this supposedly tense atmosphere.

Jason was so stunned that he froze in his place. Even humans were supposed to felt pain when they got rejected by their mates. He had been holding the unbearable pain as if his heart was getting ripped out earlier.

He stood there, falling into a trance of deep contemplation. By the time he came to his senses, Mira was no longer sitting on the chair in front of him.

She was humming while looking around at the books on the shelf. She acted as if nothing had happened at all.

Jason frowned.

Mira continued to look for a book to read until she stopped in front of one in the high row. She was pretty tall, but it wasn't enough to reach for it. She looked adorable while trying to grab the book she intended to read.

Jason shook his head. He was about to leave when he noticed someone walking toward Mira in large strides. It was a man in glasses, he was quite tall that he can easily manage to snatch the book Mira was trying to reach.

The Alpha narrowed his eyes, yet he didn't stay to watch the two any longer. Without looking back, he could even hear Mira's voice.

His expression was gloomy. When he arrived at the door of the library, there was already a girl waiting outside. 

Did that human girl was putting an act to catch his attention?

***

"Rias, give it to me," Mira said, looking at the book in Azarias' hand. Azarias raised his eyebrow and looked at the title, "The Murder in Stormy Night."

"Why do you like this kind of book so much, hmm?" He muttered.

Mira snorted, waving her hand without too much care. "Hey, don't judge my preference."

"Of course, alright." Azarias just went along with her, his hand reached out to ruffle her hair.

"No, not my hair," Mira jumped away. She narrowed her eyes at him unhappily, her hands covered her hair and busily fixing it. She had tied her hair into a ponytail. Now, it was a bit messy. Thanks to Azarias.

"Give me the book." Mira glared at him. 

Azarias chuckled. "Who are you planning to murder?"

Mira pouted, then she protested. "It's just a story. Give it to me."

"Alright, Bossy Little Miss." Azarias put his hand up in surrender, handing the book to her. Their hands brushed together in the process.

Mira beamed, hurriedly snatching it from Azarias in case he'd changed his mind. He probably would if he take a look at the bag which was previously full of cookies.

Azarias took out something. It was another bag of cookies. Instantly, the sight caught Mira's attention.

Azarias glanced at those shining eyes of hers. She looked cute while pretending as if nothing happened. But how he wouldn't have known that this girl was practically addicted to sweets.

"You heard about the recent rumors, right?" Two students suddenly appeared out of nowhere, much to Azarias' displeasure. Mira had her expression went back to normal as sat on her chair like an obedient student.

"What's rumors? The one about that werewolf guy who got attacked this morning? I couldn't believe that something like this happened within the college ground."

Mira took a glance at the two of them. They were a pair of human males; one was wearing thick, round glasses with average height while the other was so tall and burly like a towering mountain.

"Right? He was a werewolf, yet he has been reduced into such situation where he had lost his left hand." The other student muttered, his voice quivered slightly.

"Has the perpetrator gotten caught yet?" 

"From what I have heard, not yet. I hope that the authority will soon catch the perpetrator. Otherwise, there might be another victim." 

They continue to chat, oblivious to the fact that someone was eavesdropping on their conversation. Azarias popped another cookie into his mouth, his eyes trained to Mira's serious expression.

After the tallboy picked a book, he and his companion left, resuming the ongoing discussion.

A frown marred Mira's face. Azarias couldn't help but stuff a cookie into Mira's mouth, which she accepted readily.

"What are you thinking so serious about?" Azarias leaned forward, his right hand supported his head.

"Someone got attacked this morning?" Mira asked, munching on the cookie.

Azarias looked at her face more closely and frowned. "Why are your eyes so puffy?"

Mira hummed. "I am trying to ... no, I managed to fool someone again this time. But he was a fool even without me fooling him."

She grinned in satisfaction.

Azarias raised his eyebrow. Things probably weren't as simple as she'd make it out to be.

"Yes, there was a delta who got attacked this morning. He was alone on his way to the toilet." Azarias' expression turned into one of worry. "So, you should be careful from now on."

Mira blinked. She nodded and began to say in a softer voice. "Right, you should also be careful."

Azarias studied her expression. She looked quite pale somehow as if she was sick.

"Mira?" Azarias called her. She didn't immediately respond. It was as if she hadn't heard him at all. He was getting worried, so he called her again.

"Hmm, what? Sorry, I got lost in thought." She finally snapped out of it and smiled at him, yet it seemed more like she was wincing. Mira swallowed, trying to keep her expression neutral. She didn't want to tell Azarias about things that happened today yet.

At this moment, Mira couldn't help but curse that Jason to the generation of his eighteen ancestors. The excruciating pain hitting her chest was so sudden that she found it hard to breathe.

She had been trying to hold it in this entire time, yet it was getting unbearable. She didn't even like that guy. Why did she have to feel this kind of pain then? It's infuriating and unfair at the same time.

"Are you sick?" Azarias looked on worriedly.

Mira's pain was getting harder to bear. Even she was sweating now. The chest felt like it was being ripped out, and her heart stepped on and torn into pieces.

She had underestimated the sheer pain of such rejection without proper ritual. She had ever once guessed that how to hurt it would be if a werewolf were to be rejected by their mate. The book she read did no justice at all about the sheer pain.

Or perhaps, it was directed to fellow werewolves. For humans, this kind of pain would've killed them. 

"Ri-rias!" She gasped, one hand clutching on her chest while the other roughly tugged on Azarias' arm.  "Bring me home." 

That was when Mira couldn't hold in any longer. She lost consciousness.