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"I'm sure he painted me in a much different light," she laughed bitterly. "I had to leave school because of him."
My eyebrows rose but I didn't say anything. What did I even fucking say to that?
"You were bullied out of school." It wasn't a question and she knew it, simply nodding.
"It got too bad. There were plenty of moments of vulgar messages painted on my door, sure, but then it escalated into dumping garbage on my head, sabotaging every friend I had, hacking into the system and tanking my grades." Her eyes darkened then and I knew something else was left unsaid.
"What is it?" She swallowed hard.
"It was the alphas thinking I was easy afterward that was the hardest." My blood boiled when I realized what she was saying. Evrin hadn't just kicked her out and shut her out, he'd painted a target on her back. I had half a mind to call him myself.
"I'm so sorry."
She shrugged. "It's life. And it's why I haven't given mates a chance since. I'm not willing to have my heart ripped out again. No fucking thanks."
"We're not Evrin," I protested but stopped myself from saying more.
"I know, but that doesn't always help," she said quietly. "I'm careful now and I’m trying to give you guys a chance, but that was brutal and it's hard to put myself in that position again."
"He didn't give you even one chance to speak?" I asked carefully.
She shook her head and I took a calming breath.
"No. When I got home that day he already had my stuff thrown into the hall. Hell, half of it was picked through. He opened the door long enough to call me some colorful names, tell me what a whore I was, and throw some takeout on me."
My heart ached for my omega. I could practically see her on the floor in the dorm hall, picking up her things and being berated. Anger flooded me and I wanted, now more than ever, to kick his ass.
"Then his best friend caught up to me as I was packing up my car. She gave me this huge speech on how I was never good enough for him. She laughed at me," Serenity finished, swiping at her cheek where a lone tear tracked down. She took a breath and that badass mask was back in place.
"Malia." She winced at her name and I shook my head. "You know they showed us videos."
"What?" she asked, her head snapping up to stare at me. "Do you still have them?"
"It wouldn't be too hard to find," I said. "I'll need my laptop."
She grabbed a paper and pen from her purse and wrote something down on it.
"This is my address. Come see me when you have it? I think..." She trailed off and swallowed hard. "I need to see them."
"I'll be there with dinner tonight?" I offered. "It's not a date, I'm just worried about you."
She laughed humorlessly. "Everyone seems to be today."
"You're worth worrying about."
* * *
Serenity
Jackson's words were on repeat in my mind. It healed a broken part of me I hadn't realized could ever be fixed. They were already worming their way into my heart.
I hadn't realized how many different ways Evrin had fucked me up.
Sure, I had my family and friends who loved me, but when Evrin kicked me out, called me those things, treated me like trash… it made me realize he'd never really loved me. At least not enough to give me the benefit of the doubt, to care about my wellbeing.
Jackson cared.
Was that the difference between fated and chosen mates? Or was this simply the difference between a kind and compassionate person and an asshole?
