Iris's POV

Several moments later, after Zara left, I stood in that hallway, trying to gather together the remnants of my composure.

How did it come to this? How had I been so blind, so trusting? Probably because he had been my fated mate, so I had nothing to suspect him of.

I had sacrificed everything for Jake—my time, my trust, my love. And what had he given me in return? Lies, betrayal, and humiliation.

I walked out of the bathroom feeling miserable. I felt like I was living in a nightmare that refused to end.

As I stepped out, I immediately noticed that Jake's arm was wrapped around Zara. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion when I saw that he was consoling her, her eyes were red, like someone who had been crying.

The moment Jake lifted his head and saw me, his expression darkened. I was confused, but I ignored it as I went to tell him to tell him that I was going home.

“Jake, I—”

Before I could even react, his fist slammed into my face. Pain exploded through my cheek as I fell to the ground, clearly not expecting it.

Instinctively, one of my hands rushed to protect my stomach, while the other clutched my cheek as I stared up at Jake in shock. My ears rang as I tried to process what had just happened. Jake, my fated mate, had just hit me.

I could hear the gasps of the nearby pack members as they watched in shock.

“Jake!” I cried out as I gave him a look of disbelief.

However, his eyes were filled with rage as he stepped toward me. Zara stood behind him, and when I caught her eyes, she smirked mischievously before she quickly changed her facial expression to an expression of pure innocence.

“How could you?” Jake growled venomously. “How could you do this, Iris?!” He bellowed.

Tears had already welled up in my eyes from the pain of his fist.

“What did I do?” I cried softly.

“How dare you lay your hands on Zara?” He snapped in anger, his eyes blazing with anger.

“What?” I whispered, my voice trembling as I wondered what he was talking about.

I glanced between Jason and Zara in total confusion with tears streaming down my face. Jake had never hit me before, so I was shocked.

“She told me everything,” Jake cut me off with an accusing tone. “You cornered her in the hallway, said horrible things, and hit her! She’s been nothing but kind to you, Iris, and this is how you treat her?”

My heart shattered at his words. He believed her. Without question, without even asking for my side of the story, he believed Zara’s lies.

“I didn’t touch her,” I said softly, willing him to believe me. “I swear, Jake, I would never—”

“Enough!” he roared with spittle flying out of his mouth, “You’ve humiliated me enough, Iris. You shouldn’t have come here.” He spat disdainfully.

Even though I tried to stop it, I couldn’t help but sob out in pain. The betrayal, the humiliation—it was just too much.

Zara stepped forward, and placed a gentle hand on Jake’s arm as if she was trying to calm him, but her eyes shone with glee and delight. “Jake, please,” she said softly, her voice shaking. “I don’t want to cause trouble between the two of you, just let it go.”

Her voice was filled with concern, but clearly she was enjoying every second of this.

Jake shook his head with cold eyes, clenching his jaw tightly. “No. She’s crossed the line. There’s nothing to explain. Go home!”

I felt the eyes of the entire room on me, and I felt so humiliated. However, the humiliation didn’t hurt as much as the betrayal. I stared at Jake, my mate, the man I had trusted and loved for five years, who had just turned on me.

Iris’s POV

I stood up slowly, still clutching my face as the throbbing pain from where he had hit me increased. I avoided his eyes as I turned away and began walking home.

A fresh wave of tears flowed down my cheeks as I kept replaying what had just happened in the party. Jake had turned into a total stranger as he glared at me with those cold unfamiliar eyes.

Could I really bear all these? Obviously, Zara was going to be here for a very long time. Could I be able to live with the constant heartbreak, betrayal and humiliation?

No. I couldn’t live with it. However, I had no choice. I had nowhere else to go, and Jake knew that. I ran a hand through my hair in frustration. I was an orphan, and I had no friends, so I really had no family or friends to rely on.

A sharp sound pierced through my thoughts, snapping me back to reality. It was the horn of a car.

“Luna,” a pack member, Adam greeted, stepping out of the car with a small smile. “Please let me give you a ride back. I’m taking that same route.”

From the look of pity in his eyes, he knew what had happened to me at the party. Embarrassment washed through me at that thought, and I tried to decline his request. However, he insisted till I finally relented and got into the car. Fortunately, Adam understood that I wanted to be left to my thoughts, so he kept silent throughout the drive.

I still couldn’t wrap my head around everything that had happened since yesterday and until now. My world had been turned upside down in a few hours, and everything I knew turned out to be a lie.

I was so lost in thought that I barely paid attention to my environment.

The sound of tires screeching, pulled me out of thoughts, and before I could react the car swerved violently to the side.

My heart leapt into my throat as the vehicle skidded across the road, going totally out of control. Adam cursed under his breath, gripping the wheel of the car tightly as he tried to control it.

I barely had time to brace myself before the car flipped twice. My body was thrown violently from side to side, and pain shot through my body as the car finally slammed to the ground and skidded to a stop. I watched as the car that had hit us sped away with a huge dent on it.

My world went black for a few minutes. The last thought on my mind before I lost consciousness was that the car looked so familiar.

~

When I came back to consciousness, I was disoriented for a moment. My eyes kept ringing, my eyes were blurred, and my chest hurt. I glanced around to see that I was suspended upside down by the seat belt.

A sharp pain pierced through my stomach, and I cried out, holding my stomach protectively. Oh please, please, moon goddess. Let my baby be okay. I pleaded within myself.

I hesitantly glanced at my stomach and horror gripped me. My breath caught in my throat as I saw the dark crimson blood staining my clothes. My heart raced as I stared at the piece of metal that had impaled me. Dread surged through my veins as I realized that the metal had pierced through my abdomen, right where my baby was growing.

I couldn’t breathe, frozen in shock as the reality of what had happened sank in. My hand shook as I reached down, trying to pull the metal out. However, the shock wore off, and the pain shot through me intensely, making me cry out in agony.

Iris’s POV

My vision swam as I fought to stay awake. I needed help immediately. Right now. I glanced at Adam to see that he was unconscious, and I felt hopeless. However, I couldn’t give up, for the sake of the child growing in me. I gritted my teeth, panting heavily as I struggled to pick my purse that was lying on the floor. I took out my phone from the purse, groaning heavily as I struggled to stay awake.

My hands were slick with blood, and they shook as I dialled Jake’s number, panting heavily as I tried to fight the feeling of unconsciousness that I was creeping in, even with the intense pain that I felt. It rang several times, but he didn’t pick the calls. Despair settled in my heart as I kept calling, but he didn’t pick.

Finally, when I was about losing hope, he picked the call.

“What is it?!” Jake snapped in annoyance.

At this point, I didn’t care about his attitude towards me. I just needed his help urgently.

I gasped for air as I tried to speak. “J-J-Jake. P-Please h-h-help.” I stammered out, feeling unconsciousness creeping in.

He scoffed in disdain. “Is this your way of trying to get attention, Iris?”

In the background, I could hear Zara’s voice.

“Hey Jake, what do you want to eat?” I heard her ask. They were no longer at the party, they were at Zara's place.

My heart clenched in pain, but I ignored everything. “J-Jake–”

He interrupted before I could say anything, his voice impatient and annoyed. “Look Iris, whatever it is, we will talk about it tomorrow.” He said dismissively. “I won’t be back tonight.” He said.

I sobbed out in frustration as I tried to explain to him, but he growled in irritation.

“After the stunt you pulled at the party, you should be happy that I decided to pick this call. Stop being an attention-seeking bitch! Even if you die outside, it has nothing to do with me!”

Then he hung up. My heart fell in hopelessness as I realized that I was alone in all these. The phone slipped from the hand, and fell to the floor as darkness closed in on me.

Just before everything faded completely, I felt the warmth of strong arms wrapping around me, as they lifting me away from the car

Then I heard a voice. It was soft, soothing, and comforting.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine,” the man’s voice murmured in assurance, and I felt like everything was going to be okay.

I struggled to open my eyes, using all the strength I had left. The only thing I managed to see were his eyes. They were deep, piercing green eyes that shone with genuine concern. I felt so peaceful in his arms as I finally slipped fully into unconsciousness.

~

~

The moment I regained consciousness, the first thing I noticed were the white walls. My body felt heavy, my head kept ringing, and a dull ache throbbed in my abdomen.

My eyes squinted as they tried to get used to the bright environment around me. It took a moment to recognize where I was. My eyebrows furrowed as I realized that I was in a hospital. My mind raced as I began piecing together what I remembered – the car crash, the blood, the impalement, the pain.

Panic began to rise in my chest, and instinctively, my hand moved to my stomach. There was no way for me to know yet, but there was nagging thought in my head. That injury at my abdomen had looked so severe.

The door opened softly, and a healer stepped in, her face was calm but I could see the sorrow in her eyes. She approached the bed slowly. A chill ran down my spine at the look on her face. My voice shook as I asked her the scary question. “My baby... is my baby okay?”