Chapter 25: 25: Oscillating Between Acceptance & Denial
"What do you think? The zipper got undone," I said bitterly, my fingers clutching at the bodice of my dress to hold it up.
I could feel the lustful gazes of other male pack members as they tried to pretend they weren’t outright ogling me, positioning their heads to get the best view of my bare back. I bet they were disappointed that Cedar returned before I could be stripped nude and humiliated for their pleasure.
Not even Cedar’s presence could dissuade them from leering at me. My brother sensed the lecherous stares directed at me, and his eyebrow twitched in anger.
"Your zipper got undone," Cedar repeated my words flatly, disbelief radiating off every syllable. "Did you suddenly forget how to dress yourself on this important day?"
"Of course not. Why would I unzip my own dress for no reason?" I protested. "Cassian did!"
Cedar’s face darkened further at my words. I gulped, knowing that I had made him furious.
"That’s Alpha Cassian to you, and he must have had a good reason for doing so," Cedar retorted, snarling at me with unconcealed disdain in his eyes. "Haven’t you embarrassed our family enough?"
Tears began to well in my eyes at his words, and I blinked them away, not wanting to cry in front of Cedar. He wouldn’t care less if I was upset. But part of me still wished he would at least try to understand things from my point of view. He was my only sibling now, but he treated me like I was an inconvenience at best, and an indelible sinner at worst.
"Can you help me zip it back up then?" I asked pleadingly, my voice coming out in a warbling whisper.
Surely his pride would win over, and he’d help me. I wasn’t asking for much, just a small helping hand. My arms still felt weak, and such a simple task that had been more than easy to complete felt like an impossible hurdle at the moment. I could barely even reach behind me in my current state.
But even that was too much for Cedar to offer. He snarled at me with unconcealed disdain in his eyes.
"Stop pretending to cry. This is all you know how to do― weep and wail to garner sympathy for yourself. You got yourself into this mess; you fix it. Or is this way of telling me that you’re auditioning to be the pack’s whore?"
At his words, the entire male population of our pack seemed to perk up. Cedar whipped his head around and glowered at them, causing them to reluctantly sink back to their seats and avert their eyes.
"You’re a disgrace." He turned back to me and scoffed. To my surprise, he pointed at one of the onlookers, startling him. "You there, come right here."
"Yes, Beta Cedar?" The man asked hesitantly.
"Tell me what happened here," my brother ordered.
"Well..." The man shot me a vaguely sympathetic look before speaking the words that damned me in my brother’s eyes. "I heard the Alphas argue with her. Apparently, she was the one who ruined Luna Violet’s wedding dress. Luna Violet mentioned something about Miss Willow designing the dress. They think she stole it."
At the mention of Willow’s name, my brother lost all control. He raised his hand and backhanded me without warning. I felt the blow ricochet through my head, and my mouth was filled with blood. One of my hands instinctively cradled my swelling cheek as tears rolled down my face. My dress slipped down again, revealing my skin to hordes of hungry eyes.
"To think Violet would still want you to be her bridesmaid," he spat out in hatred. "She is a lot kinder to you than you deserve."
Before I could even reply to such an untrue statement, Cedar grabbed me by the hand and dragged me to the front of the altar. He was the only best man, while I was the sole bridesmaid. I tugged on my falling dress, desperately trying to protect my modesty while keeping up with Cedar’s footsteps. But he moved too quickly without caring for my well-being; I tripped over the hem and fell right in front of the steps with a painful thud.
The crowd tittered in amusement, as if they were watching a clown perform. Cedar growled under his breath.
"Fucking useless. Can’t even walk right."
He then hauled me up roughly, nearly ripping the sleeve of the dress. He dragged me to my designated spot.
"Cedar, wait. My zip..." I weakly voiced out my one request, but he ignored me, standing at his own spot like a stone statue. I could only mimic him, with my swelling cheek and my unzipped dress, in full view of the pack.
It was turning a little too breezy for my liking. Gritting my teeth, I reached back and tried to tug at the zipper. The best I could do was to get it past the curve of my butt and towards my waist, but it wouldn’t go any higher, no matter how much I yanked at it.
Sighing, I could only give up when the music began to play.
I felt sick and tired all of a sudden. To think that just moments ago, I was delighted to receive such a beautiful gown from Soren, who I believed cared about me. I couldn’t help but oscillate between fury and heartbreak, denial and acceptance.
Now that gown was stained with my blood and dirt from my shoes. It looked like how I felt. Perhaps it was time I came to admit the fact that this dress was nothing more than a trap Soren had carefully planned for me.
Tears fell unbidden from my eyes. I had truly wanted to believe in him, but my hope had been so thoroughly crushed that I felt as though my heart had been thrown into a blender. The pain and disappointment were unbearable.
The triplets soon showed up and took their spots at the altar. Soren’s eyes widened as he caught sight of my condition, but I was past caring for his reaction. I was in this state because of him. I took in deep breaths to calm myself down.
I also couldn’t help but notice that Soren didn’t offer to zip my dress. He didn’t get anyone else to do it either.
The music began to swell, and Violet glided through the doors, an ethereal vision in white lace. There was an audible sigh of appreciation from pack members as she passed them, and I saw how all three brothers straightened their backs imperceptively as she approached.
Meanwhile, it felt like someone had reached into my ribcage and dug their fingernails into my heart, shredding it to bits. I had underestimated the amount of pain I could feel, as I watched the triplets embrace Violet as their beloved, holding her hands in their own so tenderly as though it was a priceless heirloom.
The priest began to speak about the vows. I barely heard a thing― it was taking all of my strength to keep standing upright, and to keep my hands on my dress to stop it from slipping past my shoulders and giving everyone a free show.
"It’s time to exchange the rings," the priest said. Rowan smiled and reached into his suit pocket, but then he paused, a faint expression of disquiet on his face. Seconds ticked on, and his hands continued to search his pockets.
"Alpha Rowan?" The priest prompted.
"Is something wrong?" Violet asked hesitantly. Similarly, Soren and Cassian were equally confused at the sudden pause.
"The wedding ring..." Rowan gravely said. He clenched his jaw, the smile quickly wiped clean from his face. "It’s missing."
