Me

17: Me

Mate. He called her mate! "You're a werewolf..."

The corner of his lips quirked up. "Tri-breed. But you can consider me a werewolf since my allegiance lies with my father's pack."

Lara watched Noah in awe as he stepped away from her and went to pour himself a drink.

"A Tri-breed..." So, he's mixed blood just like herself. She thought she was the only freak in the world.

"Yes." Noah nodded in agreement with her. "My father's a hybrid- a successful mix between a vampire and a werewolf, while my mother's human."

"Wow." Now she really had to assess everything she ever knew.

Lara thought she was the only one who's torn apart between two worlds. And meeting a person who has three different bloodlines flowing in his veins, she wondered if he ever felt the same loneliness she felt, knowing that they're different from the rest of their kind.

However, Noah mentioned he belonged to his father's pack. Meaning he's an alpha's son. An heir. A successor to a werewolf pack. And they accept him there.

Obviously, even though he's mixed blood and his father was a hybrid, his pack thinks of him no different. And that triggered a twitch of envy and loneliness inside her; hitting her straight to the chest.

They both may have similarities regarding their bloodlines, but they're different regarding being accepted by their people. She was an outcast, and they accepted Noah for who he is, and it was too great of a difference to put them apart from each other.

"Since when have you known about me?" She cleared her throat and asked (forgetting about her internal feud).

"Not long..." he answered, taking a sip of his drink before continuing; "I had my suspicions at first, but my wolf recognized you straight away after getting a whiff of your scent."

"How is that possible?" She frowned in confusion. "The two of us as mates. I mean, I thought the moon goddess rejected all vampires from receiving the blessing?"

"Not all vampires," Noah interjected, taking a sip of his drink while silently watching her over the rim of his glass before he spoke again; "I think the goddess is giving the vampire race a chance."

She stared back at him, "You really think we're mates?"

His eyes bore into her, "You think we're not?"

"I-I," Lara stuttered. Honestly, she knows nothing; She knows nothing of werewolves and their world, and she knows nothing about how this 'mate'-thingy-relationship actually works.

Lara, however, is not ashamed of her shortcomings, "I may not know much about werewolf history and physiology, but I know mates are equals. The moon goddess pairs together them to be each other's destiny..."

"Your sources aren't wrong..." Noah commented, lightly playing the whisky glass inside his hands. "However, I sense a but in your words there somewhere," he said, stressing the word and urged Lara to elaborate her argument even further; "Go on..."

"Well, I still can't get my head around this... I mean," She pointed at the space between them. "You and I. We both belong to different worlds. You're too good for me; we're not even equal in any way, and I think the Goddess might have made a mistake..."

"Too good? Not equal? A mistake?" He repeated every word she said.

"Y-Yes, that's what I'm trying to say-" Lara gulped nervously, "I mean, you're you and I'm just-" She hesitated when his face went blank as she continued, "-me..."

Bang! She flinched when Noah slammed the glass on the table and it shattered in his hands.

"Do you think I care about that?" His voice whispered dangerously. He turned and stalked towards her with angry strides.

Oh, God...

Noah's jaw was tight, and his expression was grim. He reached for her wrist and he pulled her to his chest.

Lara gasped.

"Why?" He whispered, a twisted expression of pain on his face, "Why is it that you undermine yourself so?" He demanded, his voice rising slightly coz her lack of self-esteem and confidence frustrated him.

Lara, on the other hand, couldn't open her mouth to fight back.

"Is that how you lived your life in Velhellah?" Noah continued, "Being looked down upon by your people and demeaning your self-worth?"

Her eyes shook. Because his words hit her childhood wounds deep.

Internalizing his words inside her, Lara knew what he said was all true. And it was a sore spot she thought she can live by just enduring. But a sob broke out of her lips because she felt so little and utterly miserable with herself.

Noah, on the other hand, realized he took his anger too far the moment he saw a tear running down Lara's cheek. Dammit! Now he's regretting it again.

"I'm sorry..." He cupped her face and consoled her immediately. He couldn't take it anymore; seeing her cry. He sighed and ran his hands on the back of her head, stroking her gently. "I'm sorry I said that to you. I-" He sighed and buried her sobbing face inside his arms. "I'm sorry, baby..."

She sobbed even more.

Noah sighed and waited for her to calm down for a bit. After some time, her sobs lessened a little. He stroked her hair and whispered in her ear; "Hey, look at me..."

Lara looked up, tears staining her face beautifully.

"Listen well to what I'm going to say, okay?" Noah said in a voice soft with affection, "Because I'm only going to say this once, and I want you to remember my words, carefully." Lara nodded her head. "Every time... you doubt yourself, remember that without imperfections, neither you nor I would exist."

"Don't be afraid to face what life throws at you because you are strong, Lara Louis... You've been fighting your internal battles by yourself and surviving them is proof that you still didn't give up on yourself despite the hardships that you've suffered."

"Prove them all wrong, baby... 'cause struggling, doesn't mean your weak," Noah said, kissing her forehead down to her teary eyes, "... giving up is."

"You are not only your pain. You're not only your scars. Because despite that, you... are... better things, Lara. You are a possibility, a promise, even somebody's hope and source of strength- your father's strength."

"You are the embodiment of the people you love and love you back... And to me, you are my hope, my biggest change- things I know that'll be worth fighting for..."

"So trust me when I say that everything is going to be okay... If not, you have me…"