Aria--
"Thank you, Mrs. Clara. I will be leaving now," I said to her as we exchanged warm embraces.
" Okay dear, thanks for coming" she said to me
"you`re welcome, bye" she looked at me again and then closed the door behind me.
As I made my way back to the Apha`s house, I spotted Simon walking with Emily, one of Selene`s minions. I quickly hid myself behind a tree to avoid being spotted and bullied by them as usual.
When I was sure they were out of sight I came out from my hiding spot and hurried back to the house. I felt relieved immediately I entered my tiny space in the basement. My peace was short-lived as I heard a knock on my door. It was Sophia, an Omega who also worked in the kitchen. I welcomed her in with a false smile.
"Aria, you are needed in the kitchen," she informed me.
I followed her, I did not have a choice. All the kitchen staff were present already. I stood beside her as we waited for Beatrice because she had not yet arrived.
" Good evening girls. I know some of you have a day off tomorrow but unfortunately that won`t be happening again because we have a lot of work to do for the upcoming ball. This place needs to be spotless as Alpha Lucian will be staying over that night," Beatrice said to us.
"So make sure you do a thorough job and ensure this place is extremely clean. Your duty posts have been assigned to each of you and pasted on the notice board. You can check it before going to bed," she ordered us.
"Now leave!" her tone was harsh and unwelcoming.
I sighed at the realization that I wouldn`t be able to spend my day with Mrs. Clara as I had planned. I walked over to the notice board and saw that I was assigned to work on the third floor . I was relieved that I didn`t get Alpha`s room or Selene`s room this time. My heart skipped a beat when I found out that I would be working there with Beatrice herself.
I was prepared to start my assigned duties . I anted to finish early so I could go spend time with Mrs. Clara. My specific duty post was the guest rooms on the third floor, which would be used by visitors when they came to the pack house.
I went over to the supply room where all the household supplies were kept, grabbed what I needed and made my way to the third floor. I started by changing the sheets in the first room and then began the main cleaning. I moved on to the bathroom immediately I was done with the bedroom.
I scrubbed the bathroom thoroughly and in less than 30 minutes I was done. I had done this type of work for years so it was not a struggle for me.
"Thank God," I murmured as I approached the last room on the floor. I felt so exhausted, my head was spinning and I was a bit famished so I lay down on the bed for a moment, intending to rest for at least 30 minutes before finishing up. The bead was so silky and comfortable, I didn`t notice when I drifted into slumber.
I woke u to the sun`s rays on my face, realizing I had actually fallen asleep on the bed.
"Shit!" I exclaimed as I made a move to get u from the bed although my body was still enjoying itself but before I could get up, the door open and Selene walked in.
"What the fuck are you doing in here?" she screamed her lungs out. "This is Lucian`s bed, you moron," she added as her palm landed on my right cheek.
I stared at her in pure hate for some seconds then I hastily packed my work supplies and exited the room. My cheek throbbed with pain and this made my eyes water. "I didn`t intentionally want to sleep there, it just happened," I said to myself sorrowfully as I made my way down to the basement.
Upon reaching the bathroom, I gazed into the mirror and saw that my cheek was swollen. I was overcome by emotion and began to cry . I undressed and submerged myself in my bathtub filled with water, hoping to find comfort in the familiar routine.
I longed to see Mrs. Clara, the only person I felt could provide me with comfort. I got out of the bathtub, put on my dress and quickly left the room. As I made my way out, I noticed people staring at my cheek but I didn`t care. I left the house and started my journey to Mrs. Clara`s cottage.
When I arrived, I rang the doorbell but there was no answer. I was about leaving when the door was opened.
"What happened to your cheek," Mrs. Clara asked, embracing me tightly as I burst into tears.
I explained everything that happened to her and the tears rushed down even more.
"Someone needs to teach that girl a lesson," she said as she made an attempt to leave the house but I held her hand tightly because I didn't want her to get into any trouble.
"No, let it go. It was my fault, I shouldn`t have slept in the room meant for Alpha Lucian," I said to her.
"Shh, everything will be okay," she pampered me, stroking my hair.
"You see, Aria. I'm not the only one saying everything will be fine," Helana, my other half, chimed in.
"Come on, let me apply something on your cheek to soothe it," Mrs. Clara said, leading me into the kitchen as she went off to get the ointment.
She returned with some ice cubes wrapped in a towel and gently massage my cheek with them. The slap was actually harder than I thought because this hurt a lot.
"It'll be alright. It will stop aching soon," she said comfortingly.
The pain was intense, she handed me a pain killer to alleviate it.
"I think you should take a nap," she suggested to me.
"Go and rest in Carol's room," she instructed me.
"Thank you," I muttered gratefully and ascended the stairs to the room.
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"Aria, wake up," I heard someone call to me. I opened m eyes and saw Mrs. Clara standing beside the bed I laid on.
"Let's have dinner," she said to me.
"It's evening already," I replied and she nodded.
I sat at the table next to her and saw that she had prepared pasta. "Your cheeks have gone down," she remarked, looking at my face.
"I'll give you some ice cubes and the ointment I applied on your cheek so you can use them when you get to the house," she said to me.
"Thank you," I muttered.
I loved how I could taste the cheese in my food.
"See you tomorrow then. Aria, be here at exactly 12pm because the ball will start by 3pm," she said to me.
"You're welcome, dear," she said to me with a smile.
"See you tomorrow," she said, and I left the house.
I hurriedly walked to the house, hoping to avoid meeting anyone on the way. When I opened the door, the place was quiet. Everyone must have retired for the night after a long day of work. I climbed the stairs and I entered my room. As soon as I opened the door, I saw a rat scurry into the bathroom.
I remembered that Mrs. Clara had given me medicine to kill them, but I hadn't used it. I spread my bedsheets on the floor and lay down, ready to sleep but I couldn't. I slept already at the cottage. I looked out the window at the stars. I will be turning 18 in the next few days. I hoped I would see my family again so I could ask them why they ad abandoned me. I didn't want to believe the crap people said about them leaving the pack borders because I was a burden to them. This has hunted me for years and I wished it was not the truth.
My life had been filled with pain, and I wished it could change. I wanted to leave a normal life like other girls in the pack, make friends, celebrate my birthday, and do other things that normal people do.
"Aria, you're needed in the kitchen by Ms. Beatrice," I heard Roxanne say as she walked into my room and left as soon as she had delivered the message.
I got up and went to meet the kitchen.
"Selene is calling you from her room," she said as she continued knitting. She didn't even look at me.
Why did she have to call me when there were so many people around? She had her own personal maid, for God's sake. I had no idea why she hated me so much.
I nodded and left the kitchen. I began to climb to her room which was located on the 5th floor. The elevator was only used b those who held positions in the pack house or by pack members when they visited.
I had finally gotten to the 5th floor, I walked towards her room.
"Come in!" I heard her say when I knocked on her door.
"Dumb girl, check if this dress would be good for the ball. Which should I choose? The grey or the blue ?" she asked me as she admired her short dresses.
Why was she even asking me? I had no knowledge about such things as I had never been to a ball before.
"Speak up you little pig!" she screamed, startling me.
I pointed at the blue one because it looked less revealing.
"No, I don't like that one. I will go for the grey one so Lucian will fall head over heels in love with me and I know I'm his mate," she said excitedly.
"oh, I see your cheek is looking better now. That's good. We don't want to see you parading around in your dirty dress with a swollen cheek," she said, referring to my recent injury.
"Why do you hate her so much?" I heard my self say. Helana had taken over my body.
"No, Helana, stop! You will get me into trouble," I muttered behind my thoughts.
"No. let me ask her if you won't," was her reply.
"Oh, I see. Hello, wolf," Selene said, mockingly.
"My name is Helana," she retorted.
"Okay,Helana, you asked why I hate her right? You see, she is…well..too beautiful for her class. It hurts me to see guys I admire fall for her instead of me. It pisses me off," she spat.
"My suspicions were right all along," Helana sneered at her.
"I am warning you, Selene. Stop messing with her or else you would have to bear whatever the outcome will be." I looked at Selene and she didn't look as bratty as she usually did, she looked scared.
"Choose your own dress. I'm not your stylist," Helana said and walked out of the room, banging the door shut.
"Why did you do that, Helana?" I asked when she had given me control over my body.
"I was so angry when she slapped you and I couldn't do anything to protect you, Aria. I felt like I had failed you," her voice became low and I could tell she was disappointed in herself.
"Thank you, I really appreciate the fact that you always want to stand up for me. You give me hope," I muttered.
"You're welcome," Helana said.