The Moon Never Chose Me Chapter 04

The Moon Never Chose Me Chapter 04

I lunged forward, barely holding on to my sanity.

Under everyone’s shocked stares, I reached out toward Maeve.

“Give it back.”

A flicker of guilt crossed Maeve’s eyes. She ducked behind my mother.

My father shot me a dirty look.

“What the hell is wrong with you now?”

I didn’t look at him.

I kept my eyes locked on Maeve, my vision starting to blur.

“I said. Give. It. Back.”

That set her off.

She clutched the necklace behind her back and fired back, loud and defensive.

“Why does Declan get you a gift and not me? We’re sisters. If he gave it to you, he should’ve given me one too. That’s only fair!”

My voice shook with rage.

“Sisters? Did you ever treat me like a sister—or just the maid who washed your clothes and cleaned your room?”

“All my life, Mom and Dad’s favorite thing to brag about was their double-moon twins. Relatives brought gifts—always two. Always for you and Caelan.”

“In twenty years, this is the only thing that’s ever been mine! And you took it!”

Maeve’s face went red. Tears welled up fast.

Caelan stormed over.

He ripped the necklace off Maeve’s neck and slammed it onto the floor.

The emerald hit the marble and shattered into pieces.

The silver chain snapped into fragments.

I stood there, frozen, staring at the wreckage. I forgot how to breathe.

Caelan looked at me with pure disgust.

“There. It’s broken. Now neither of you has it. Fair enough, right?”

Then my mother’s hand cracked across my face.

“Enough!”

I stumbled back, ears ringing, cheek burning.

I pressed my hand to my stinging face and stared at her in disbelief.

No regret in her eyes. No concern. Just disappointment. Just coldness.

“This is Caelan and Maeve’s celebration. You had to ruin everyone’s night over some worthless trinket?”

“Stop!”

Declan rushed over.

“That necklace was for Layla—”

“Declan!”

Maeve’s scream cut through the air.

The next second, Declan jerked like he’d been hit by something invisible.

He staggered and dropped to his knees, one hand clutching his chest.

Maeve froze too.

A strange, powerful presence flooded the banquet hall.

It was the pull—the first awakening between fated mates.

Declan looked up at her, dazed.

“Mate…”

Maeve stared back, just as stunned.

“You’re my fated mate.”

I stood there in the crowd, the color draining from my face.

Declan was Maeve’s mate.

The only one who’d ever been kind to me. The only one who ever remembered my birthday. And he belonged to her too.

My wolf let out a soft, broken whimper somewhere deep inside me. Then she curled up and refused to lift her head.

I didn’t understand how the Moon Goddess could be this cruel. Even my last sliver of hope—she got that too.

Maeve’s voice softened, suddenly sweet.

“I’m sorry. Caelan broke the necklace you gave her.”

Declan still seemed dazed from the pull.

He stared at her without blinking. Finally, he murmured, “It’s fine. I’ll get a server to clean up the pieces.”

Tears slid down my cheek—the one still burning from my mother’s slap.

I bent down and picked up a few shards of emerald. Grabbed my coat. I just wanted out.

My father was already muttering to my mother about seating arrangements. With Declan here, they were short a chair.

My mother waved him off, loud and annoyed.

“If we don’t have enough seats, Layla can leave. She’s the one who turned this whole celebration into a disaster. Does she even have the guts to stay?”

Every relative’s stare drilled into me like needles.

But this time, I didn’t cry.

I just walked out of the banquet hall. Numb.

Back at Moonhart Estate, I packed as fast as I could.

There wasn’t much.

Some old clothes. A few textbooks. The competition materials Ellis had saved for me.

I looked at the little wooden wolf carving on the table. I left it behind. It sat there alone.

I borrowed some travel money from Ellis and booked the earliest flight to Frostmoon City.

Her voice was worried over the phone.

“Layla, did something happen at home? Should I call your parents?”

I dragged my luggage through the airport and let out a bitter laugh.

“Don’t bother.”

“I don’t have a home anymore.”

The boarding announcement blared overhead.

I switched off my phone, walked toward security, and never looked back.