Bethany stretched her aching body on her bed, turning her face away from the unforgiving rays of sunlight that streamed through her huge ass window.
Yawning, she straightened her arms, her eyes still shut as she began to mentally prepare for the day ahead of her.
She sat up, taking in the sight of her very scattered room until her eyes hit the glass of water and a folded note on her nightstand.
Scrunching her eyebrows in confusion, she stretched to pick up the note, only for a single white tablet to fall on her duvet from the piece of paper.
Opening the note, she read what was written.
-- It's Xanax. Please take it. It will help with your pains. Theo. --
Staring at the note, she could feel all her memories of the night before weigh on her shoulder like molded bricks.
She sighed and then glanced at the note again before squeezing it and throwing it across her room, wishing she could throw her memories of the night before as well.
She used her right hand to massage her aching temple as her mind drifted to the meeting she was supposed to have with them later in the day.
"Urgh." She groaned out loud, leaning into the bed again, her eyes boring into the ceiling.
'Maria.' She called out in her mind.
'Yeah?' Her wolf replied quietly.
'Did you know there were three of them?' She asked, searching for some kind of clarity.
'No, I didn't. There was no way I could. All I could sense was that the bond was stronger than normal.'
'But what do you think about them?'She asked honestly, in desperate need to clear her confusion.
'I think they are good. A little hot in the head, but okay.' Maria said, playing with her paws.
'But they stalked me..'Beth started to complain, but Maria cut her off.
'You should cut them some slack, Beth. They couldn't help it. If they were actual creeps, you would have felt them lurking around. We would have. But we didn't. Which means, they didn't infringe on your personal space. They might have stalked us, but they respect us. That I know.'
'Hmm, okay.' Beth sighed, tuning her out, wanting to think on her own.
Maria was right, she had to admit. But putting that aside, what was she going to do when she got announced as their mate?
Hell, how would she tell her parents? What would she tell her parents? How would they react to the news?
Would they ever see her the same way after that? Isn't something like having three fated mates a taboo or something? It definitely didn't seem legal to her.
In the long run, she was worried.
Would everything really be okay?
She had so many questions in her head. So many questions that needed answers.
She wondered how Alpha Sampson and Luna Faye were going to take the news. She wondered if they knew already that their three sons were fated to an Omega. A nobody.
Would they send someone to come get rid of her before she caused trouble? Now, her thoughts were getting dangerous.
'You are overthinking again, Beth.' Maria said, breaking down the barrier Beth had put up, wanting some privacy.
'Why don't you go tell your parents downstairs? They are worried sick about you. Tell them what happened, and ask them your questions. I'm sure they will have answers.' She suggested, trotting back to the back of her mind and lying on her paws.
Not thinking about Maria's suggestion too much, she quickly gulped down the tablet and the water, changing into something more comfortable, and headed nervously to their tiny dining room, where she traced her parents' scent.
"Honey. You're awake." Ray said, turning to her as she came downstairs, only to see a hint of sadness in his eyes. His eyebrows furrowed. "Honey?"
Jen raised her head, wondering why her husband's tone had suddenly changed, only to see the emotional look in Beth's expression.
"My baby." Jen cooed, abandoning her coffee to get to the bottom of the stairs where Beth had stopped, pulling her in for a tight warm hug, comforting her. "What happened?"
Beth couldn't answer, but rather, she felt relaxed in Jen's arms. And that relaxation caused the tears welling up in her eyes to flow down. She tried to hold it back but couldn't, breaking down in her mother's arms.
"It's okay, baby. Let it all out." Jen said, rubbing her back while nursing tears of her own.
And she did. All the pain of her bottled-up emotions of the day before came barrelling down with so much force she forgot to breathe. Her disappointment, her shock, her confusion... All that troublesome feeling, she let them out with her tears.
Raymond couldn't hold back the lone tear that dropped from his left eye as he watched his mate console his daughter.
He could only imagine the pain she felt. Despite the façade she always had up, he could see the longing and anticipation she had been piling up and waiting for her coming of age ceremony.
And now it only brought her tears. He silently hoped Athena had better plans, because he wasn't sure how long he could watch his daughter try to be strong when all she needed was a shoulder to lean on.
"C'mon baby. You guys should come sit." He said, taking out a seat for Beth.
Jen pulled away slowly, guiding Beth to the seat Ray pulled out and helped her settle, putting her breakfast before her, she sat in her own seat.
"Baby." Ray cooed, taking her left palm and covering it with both his palms. "It's not the end of the world. No one's going to judge you. It's normal and it happens. Just have faith, bunny. Your own mate, tailored for you, would be yours before you know it." He said, his eyes were warm and glistening as he caressed her hand.
Of course, they would think that the reason for her sadness was that she didn't get her mate during the ceremony, but they were wrong. Not entirely, but wrong regardless.
Beth, pulling herself together, nodded, taking deep breaths to calm herself, knowing they might not remain this calm when she tells them what really happened last night.
She silently wondered what they'd say.
How they were going to feel about the whole matter.
Would they be freaked out? Probably yes.
Would they view her as an anomaly? Maybe...
She has heard so many stories of parents disowning their children because of who their fated mates are.
Would they do the same to her?
'You are overthinking again, Bethany.' Maria said, getting tired of Beth's frequent overthinking fits. 'They are doing their best right now... patiently waiting. But here you are having these horrible thoughts. Jeez.. they deserve better.' She said gruffly.
Sighing, Beth decided to rip off the band-aid.
What's the worst that could happen?
"Mom, Dad, I have to tell you something. It... It's about my mate."