Alvin and I first met at a pack meeting where his father and mine were invited to. Being the only daughter and heir of the ravenmoon pack, my father always takes me to all of his meetings, wanting me to be familiar with the way pack stuff works.

His father and mine were good friends and wanting the best for their pack, his father decided to propose an arranged marriage for us.

For me, it was love at first sight. Even if we weren’t mates, I would still have loved him and wanted to be with him. Since we are already in an arranged marriage. In order not to cause problems for us in the future, we decided to stay off dating or any other relationship with the opposite gender. So we won’t have any misunderstanding. I guess that didn’t actually work out

Mary was an accident. I would say I was at fault too because I had also encouraged Alvin into caring for her. When I first saw her, she was so pitiful to look at. She was very skinny and thin compared to people of her age.

She was very friendly and had a sweet mouth that made the people around her laugh, which made me like her. Because of that I had agreed to let her stay within Alvin pack and let him take care of her.

At first, Alvin didn’t agree, he had agreed to help her but not let her stay. But then I got into a car accident. After my severe car accident, Alvin sought help from everyone.

Despite being an atheist, he visited various places of worship to pray for my recovery. He also supported Mary, a poverty-stricken individual, believing that good deeds would bring me blessings.

Alvin never believed in mate bond or the moon goddess but he had prayed to her for two days on his knee to wake me up. For the three days I lay on the sick bed, unconscious. U heard Alvin had helped lots of people, after he was told, kindness brings mercy.

And Mary was among them, he had brought her back to the packs and surprisingly, I woke up two hours after he took her in. Alvin teased me, calling Mary my 'guardian angel.' With a smile, he asked me to be kind to her. I took his words to heart, embracing Mary as a sister and sharing whatever I had with her.

I never imagined that the sister I had taken under my wing would become the one to inflict the deadliest blow. I had brought my own enemy into my relationship, when I understood why others never liked anyone interfering in their relationship or even helping someone. My own kindness had turned against me.

The memory left a bitter taste in my mouth, and I lost my appetite. I set my spoon down after just a few bites. Alvin noticed and asked, 'Don't you like the food?”. Staring at me, I glanced at the table and saw that most dishes were loaded with chili peppers, which I couldn't tolerate. I have always hated spicy food, Alvin knows that.

Alvin's apologetic words trailed off as he realized his mistake. "Sorry, I forgot you can't eat spicy food. What do you want? I will order something else for you." He added, getting ready to call for the waitress.

How can he forget I hate spicy food? We have gone on dates many times and each time I will remind him, I can’t tolerate spicy food.

“Cynthia, I know. This is the hundredth time you will be telling me”. He would say while laughing. But now…

I took a deep breath, poised to confront him about our failing relationship. Just as I opened my mouth, a sugary sweet voice interrupted, "Alvin."

Mary stood in the doorway, radiant in a pristine white dress. Her smile faltered for an instant when she saw me, but she swiftly recovered. "Oh, Cynthia's here too," she said,

“I’m sorry, I didn’t see you”. Her voice dripped with fake sweetness.

Mary's smile faltered when she turned to me, lacking the warmth she showed Alvin. Her expression seemed forced, so I remained silent. Alvin, misinterpreting the tension, scolded, "Can't you knock before entering? You can’t just barge in". He didn’t sound angry or mad but more like he was helpless

I almost scoffed at his words, what’s the use of knocking? And how did she know we were here if he hadn’t told her? At first I had expected him to ask her how she knew we were here but the way he asked if she couldn't knock told me everything I needed to know.

“I’m sorry, I will pay attention next time”. She smiled brightly at him as she moved forward.

Next time? I almost laughed, well technically now, whenever Alvin and I are having lunch or dinner or probably on a date which is for two people. Mary would show up unannounced, faking innocence and saying she was just passing by and saw us.

“Cynthia, can I have lunch with you two? I just finished my class and I am really hungry right? You don’t mind right?”. She asked, facing me with a smile. That was her common excuse, always hungry. Mary is still in college, which I’m pretty sure Alvin is the one financing her and yet she still collects allowance from me.

Without awaiting my response or even giving me time to respond, Alvin gestured to the spread. "Help yourself, order more if you'd like." Mary settled beside him, her smile radiant.

"You've already ordered all my favorites, thank you. You’re the best!”. She responded, picking up the spoon excitedly.

Alvin's face momentarily froze, his eyes darting involuntarily to mine. The brief flicker of unease betrayed his otherwise composed demeanor. He cleaned his throat as he shifted uneasily in his seat. Mary seems to have got it as she bit her lips and looked at Alvin before both of them glanced back at me, wanting for a reaction.

My emotions remained unchanged and my expression was calm. Not giving him the reaction he expected, I gestured towards Mary.

“Order more if you want, I’m sure Alvin can afford it”. I said.

Alvin's face relaxed, his eyes filled with gentle concern. "Cynthia, what would you like? If you want something, just order it”.

Alvin handed me the menu, but I waved it off, my smile strained. "I stumbled upon something nauseating earlier. Food's the last thing on my mind." Alvin's expression turned concerned. "What happened?".

"I've got a friend going through a tough time," I said, feigning nonchalance. "Her boyfriend cheated on her, eating her cooking every day while seeing someone else. At first she didn’t mind them, thinking they were just colleagues and nothing else.

“Until things went out of hand, the boyfriend and his mistress even went as far as trying to poison her”. I shook my head.

“Today, she had surgery for stomach erosion. She sent me a graphic photo... It was gruesome." My smile masked my anger. "People like that deserve to rot, and burn in hell for eternity, don't you think, Alvin?"