He Chose Her, So I Refused to Become His Luna Chapter 08

I stay in Philadelphia for three months.

My parents temporarily put their Pack duties aside and rent a house here. It isn’t big, but one entire wall is made of floor–to–ceiling windows facing south.

Oreo spends his days curled up on the windowsill, soaking in the sunlight.

When we first arrive, he hides under the bed whenever he hears a man’s voice outside the door. It takes a

long time before he slowly starts to feel safe again.

My body is much the same.

During the first month, I wake up in the middle of the night more often than I can count.

In my dreams, that out–of–control car keeps coming at me again and again. I desperately try to call the four of them, but every time, all I hear is the automated message telling me that no one is available to take my

call.

Whenever I wake up, my mother brings me a glass of warm milk.

My father stands outside the door with Oreo in his arms.

They never tell me to forgive anyone. They never ask when I’m finally going to pull myself together. They simply eat with me every day, go on walks with me, and accompany me to every follow–up appointment at the Pack hospital.

I used to think I didn’t need anyone to take care of me.

Only now do I understand.

Real care isn’t about surrounding someone when they don’t need you.

It’s about making sure they never have to wait alone when they finally ask for help.

Once my body fully recovers, I accept the arrangement for me to inherit my father’s Alpha position.

My father is getting older, and he has already begun preparing the next Alpha to take over. This position has been offered to me twice before, but I turned it down both times.

This time, I don’t hesitate.

My father’s Pack has just taken on a new territory development project in Philadelphia, and the Alpha needs to oversee the entire operation.

This time, I decide to take it on myself.

I turned down those opportunities before because Nathan didn’t like the idea of us living apart.

He told me that once our Bonding Ceremony was over, his life would remain centered in Everwood Pack, and

it would be better if I didn’t move too far away from him.

So I gave up both opportunities.

Looking back now, I realize the things I kept giving up for that relationship were never as impossible to let go

of as I once believed.

What I truly couldn’t let go of was never those opportunities.

It was the version of me who believed that if I kept compromising, I could make someone stay by my side

forever.

On my first day handling Alpha duties, one of the Pack elders helps me complete my official paperwork.

When I reach the emergency contact section, I write down my mother’s name.

When I get to the section asking for our relationship, I pause for two seconds before finally writing: [Mother.]

Every now and then, I still receive messages from unfamiliar numbers.

Nathan asks how I’m feeling.

William says he had all of Oreo’s old toys washed and cleaned.

Marcus has someone make an identical replacement for the cloud lamp.

Henry sends only one message:

[I promised I’d come pick you up that day. I broke that promise.]

I never reply.

Everything they send me gets returned unopened.

In the fourth month, Jasmine’s case goes to trial.

An elder from Everwood Pack contacts me and asks whether I’m willing to testify.

I refuse.

The evidence is already complete. I don’t need to stand in front of her and repeat, over and over, how I lost my baby.

On the day of the trial, Benjamin calls me,

He tells me Jasmine has pleaded guilty and apologized.

I lean against the window, watching Oreo chase a patch of sunlight across the floor.

“Benjamin, this isn’t your fault.”

There is a long silence on the other end.

“What about the forgiveness agreement…?”

“I’m not withdrawing it.”

My voice stays calm.

“Not because I’ve forgiven her. I made a promise, and I’m going to keep it.”

“As for what sentence the Pack court gives her, that’s something she has to face herself.”

Benjamin chokes up as he thanks me.

After we hang up, I receive a message from Nathan.

[I saw Jasmine today. She asked me why I’m not protecting her anymore.]

[That’s when I realized she dared to hit you because we made her believe that no matter what she did, she would never have to pay the price.]

There is a much longer message underneath.

He says he was wrong.

He says he dreams every night of seeing me lying in a hospital bed at the Pack hospital, only to watch himself turn around and walk away.

He says he has restored the house to the way it used to be, even rebuilding the nursery exactly as it was.

When I reach that part, I turn off my phone.

My baby is already gone. He could rebuild that room a hundred times, and it still wouldn’t bring my child.

back.

Just like the trust I once gave them can’t simply grow back because they said they were sorry.

That evening, my parents come home with a cake.

Today marks the successful signing of the first project I oversee after taking over my new position.

My father lights the candles, and my mother tells me to make a wish.

I look at the flickering candlelight and suddenly realize that it has been a long time since I last thought about that Alpha House.

So I close my eyes.

This time, I make no wish that has anything to do with them.