The next morning,I wake up to incredible cramps in my abdomen.I had to call the doctor for myself.Tears well up in my eyes,ready to be shed.

"Hello...?Is any doctor available?I'm having a very bad stomach ache."I say to the nurse who is resting in her station.She looks at me as though I've stolen her husband.In a disdainful voice,she replies,"No.But you can lie down and I'll send someone to give you meds."

"Alright.Thank you."With a heavy heart,I walk myself back to the room.Right when I'm about to enter my room,someone calls my name loudly.

"Aria!Oh my god,there you are."It is Derek!And he...isn't alone.Tags with him the wench I don't like.She's tall,athletic and has a slender figure.I'm totally in contrast to her,body-wise and personality-wise.

"What are you doing here?"I ask,feeling uncomfortable watching them together.

"I came to check on you,Aria.Don't act like I don't care for you.Besides,Gwyneth left everything in Hawaii to tag along."Derek says and I raise my eyebrow,

"So you were in Hawaii."I point out.

"That doesn't matter.And I'm sorry for missing your birthday last night."Saying,Derek tries to approach me and maybe hug me.But Gwyneth quickly pulls him back and says.

"I am quite uncomfortable in here,Derek.I-I want to go back home."Gwyneth clutches herself around Derek.She pretends to throw up,claiming that the smell of medicines is awakening her phobia.

"Aria,I'm sorry.I have to drop her back at the packhouse."Derek suddenly says.

"Wait!But you just came!"I yell after them,but Gwyneth and Derek are already walking away while I stare at them,flabbergasted.

"I will come back in the evening to get you,Aria!"He says at the end of the corridor while Gwyneth makes gagging noises.I sigh in defeat.I'll be discharged in the evening.I hope he comes to get me then,at least.Without Gwyneth.

Evening comes by and there is still no response from Derek.I unblock his number and call him,even message him.I'm on the brink of wailing again because it hurts my heart so much.

Suddenly,there is a message that pops up.It's from Derek.

I stare at his text vividly.He's not serious,is he?Does he even understand the pain I'm going through and that I need him by my side?As if on cue,a werewolf driver from his pack arrives.The healer suddenly appears from the lobby and wordlessly helps me load my luggage into the car.We then continue the awkward silence until we reach the packhouse.

I walk into the packhouse,a place I'm more or less familiar with.Since the ceremony is yet to start,I decide to find Derek in hopes of talking to him.However,I reach a specific room on the first floor and hear a familiar voice.It was Derek's,and with him a giggling female voice.

"Don't do it,Derek!Stop that!We shouldn't do that here!~"She says in a squeaky,irritable voice.It is Gwyneth,no doubt.My eyes widen because of the words she uses.Curiosity gets the best of me as I walk closer to the door.I hope they don't sniff me out.

"It's alright.No one is here.Besides,it will be just between us both.Like always."Says Derek.I hold the gasp in as my hand slaps over my mouth.Please don't be what I think it is!

Her giggling reduces and silence takes over.I want to catch them in the act.But there are a couple of people walking upstairs,using this corridor.I see them coming towards me.Almost quickly,I twist the doorknob open and witness the unpredictable.

I open the door and witness the unpredictable...with Gwyneth sitting on Derek's lap and the other werewolves watching them, sitting in a big circle.

"What...is going on here?" I ask, confused about the situation.

"We are just messing around." A werewolf says and clears his throat. He looks at Derek and Gwyneth who are still in the same position.

"Gwyneth, um...sit down," Derek says softly, pushing Gwyneth off of his lap. But the dense woman replies with,

"No! This is more comfortable! Your lap is so comfortable for me. I might just fall asleep here, Derek. Hmm..." Gwyneth snuggles into his neck shamelessly. The others turn to me, finding the scene inappropriate. I look at Gwyneth and notice that she has a smirk. She must be trying to elicit a reaction out of me.

"What are you guys playing?" I ask, ignoring Derek and Gwyneth completely. The others, even though I'm not close friends with them, make space for me as I join the circle.

"We were just talking. We have to go for dinner later." One werewolf from the group responds. It feels as though my presence is boring to them. They are aware that their Luna has lost the heir in a car accident. Maybe some of them are even holding it against me. But I don't care.

I can blame it on Derek too. He wasn't there when I needed him to get those supplies. I had to drive myself to the medical store, while I was sick and bedridden and pregnant. But I'm not that kind of a person.

Well, dinner time comes by and the table is filled with important members of the pack. And of course, Derek sits at the head of the long table. Meanwhile I'm thrown to the corner of the table. Shouldn't a Luna sit beside her alpha? I can't seem to bother about this either.

"And, and by the way. It was our luna's birthday yesterday. So I, as her loving mate, bought her a gift." Derek says and my eyes widen. Is he finally coming back to his senses? Derek stands up and walks to me.

"Here you go." He fishes out a beautiful diamond pendant and puts it around my neck.

"That is so pretty." Gwyneth, irritatingly, is the first one to comment. The others melt at his sweet gesture, and to an extent, I do, too! This is the Derek that he was when we first started dating. Gwyneth stepped back into his life and changed everything I knew about Derek.

His preferences are more inclined towards Gwyneth now. It is as if she's done some black magic on him to steal him back. I'd give him up gladly. But why does she want to see me suffer?

"But wait. There is more." Saying, Derek leans close to whisper in my ear. "I'll give it to you after the ceremony. In private."

My eyes shine with anticipation and excitement. However, it is short-lived as a jealous wench swiftly walks to us.

"Hey, but that is after the ceremony. Until then, my friend will spend time with me!" Says Gwyneth. She holds Derek by his arm, purposefully grinding her chest against his arm. I couldn't feel more disgusted at her. I didn't have the energy to confront her either. I was discharged from the hospital just two hours ago!

After dinner, we all assemble around the packhouse to witness the beautiful lunar event. Every year, the moon turns a magnificent shade of blue and purple. It signifies rebirth and a new start to the year. I smile at the sky, about to make my wish. They are said to come true when wished during this ceremony.

However, I turn my gaze to my right and witness something I didn't think I would.

Derek holds Gwyneth in his arms lovingly, tenderly and adoringly. He stares down at her with his eyes shining like he's looking at his forever mate. That...should have been me.

All this time, I thought it was just Gwyneth's antics to get on my nerves as she attempts to steal Derek from me. But today, I realize that it always takes two to play this wicked game. Well, I hope they're ready to let one more player add in.

That's because I have changed my mind. I realize how toxic Derek has turned towards me. How his priorities have changed and things just aren't the same anymore. With the pain my body and my mind are going through, I decide to do something drastic. Something unthinkable, which most people here would think is impossible coming from me.

Just you wait, Gwyneth.

I'll punish you in my way, for I have now become the Redeemer.

It has been a few weeks since I've made a full recovery. Few weeks since I've made it clear that I don't want Derek near me ever again. I've shed a couple of pounds of meat around my belly. I'm starting to look normal again.

Getting past the painful phase of my life is surprisingly easier than I thought. But there is another factor that is maintaining my stress: My mate who is refusing to back down from trying to meet me.

<Aria. Stop this childishness and let me meet you.>

The intimidating text is sent by none other than Derek. He showed up at my workplace a couple of times, only to be kicked out by the security. The firm at which I work at gives me a good opportunity to rise to fame as I work as their fashion designer. They keep telling me they've yet to find a better employee, but I stay humble and modest. My workplace is aware of Derek. My boss is an alpha werewolf himself, an ally of Derek's pack.

But what Derek has been doing recently caught everyone off guard, including myself. Hasn't it made it extremely clear that Gwyneth is his top priority? Or have I failed to make it clear that we were done at the ceremony?

Once again, I ignore his message and am tempted to block his number. Yes, it could be childish of me to ignore his texts and refuse to meet him. But I have a heart that he is terribly failing at reading. It aches everyday. I hold the pictures of my little bean's USG everyday and cry myself to sleep.

<Don't make me do something we both will regret, Aria. Don't do this to me. Come talk to me, I'm going crazy here>

The desperacy in his words in the message might have moved me. Heck! It would've moved mountains if they were as naive. But I am way past this nonsense. For the first time in my life, I'm thriving with my selfishness.

“Hey, Aria. Someone's here for you.” Said my coworker as I shot her a look. Abandoning the project, I curiously look outside the window and not so surprisingly, find Derek waiting in the scorching heat against his black Audi R8. I scoff, rolling my eyes and getting back to work.

Leaving the company for the day, I take the public transport back home. After the car crash and the toll it took, I'm left with deep trauma and was advised to not drive myself anywhere anymore. When I reach my little house in the heart of the city, I find a familiar car on the driveway. Panicking, I turn right back on my heel and start jogging away. I wait in the cafe for at least an hour. The nightfall was beautiful, I wish I could stay for longer to view the Christmas snow but I'm exhausted beyond my limits.

Waiting patiently for half an hour more, pressing the third tab of my espresso down on the table, I leave after paying. I walk like a zombie back to my place, only to discover another futile attempt made by Derek to reconcile. These past few weeks, I've been receiving food deliveries and extravagant gifts from him without a break. I honestly thought I was affecting his budget, but it's his mistake for sending me all those gifts because all of them were fed to my versatile trash can.

“So that's what you do with all of my gifts.” The voice makes me jump out of my skin! I swiftly turn around only to be caught in his arms tightly, “How dare you disregard me like that, Aria?”

“And how dare you disregard my feelings for the past few months? You're a loser, oh yes you are. That's why you held Gwyneth under the moonlight like she is your mate and left ME on the sidelines as if I was your—” I wasn't able to finish my rant. His soft lips took control of mine. As soon as I gathered enough energy, I pushed him away with all my might!

“You're forcing yourself onto me!” I said, my emotions getting the best of me! All these recovery meds I've been taking are the reason for my emotional vulnerability. I break down, sitting on the steps as he switches the light on.

“Baby, Aria. It was a misunderstanding. It was nothing but our friendly reunion after such a long time. She and I celebrate that special event every year when she is my mate. But you, you make it seem so special—” I cut him off.

“I heard enough. Leave me, or I'll be forced to involve special law for your species.” I warn him harshly. His eyes widen, and I know it made him rethink. At once, Derek stands up and is attempting to leave hesitantly. However, he looks at me over his shoulder and says,

“We will talk whenever you're in the right mind.” He says, pain laced in his voice as he walks away. For sure, his Audi wasn't parked anywhere close. Wiping my tears, heaving heavy breaths to recover from the turmoil, I step into my house. I had to change the locks around my house because Derek could enter anytime and ruin my peace and privacy.

“Right mind, tch!” I scoff bitterly. Just then, my phone rings and I check the ID to be ‘Darla’. Darla is a friend of Gwyneth and Derek, but she's been my friend as well. I clear my throat and answer her.

“Hey, Aria my babe!” Surely, her enthusiasm has always been contagious. Crashing on my worn out couch, I answer tiredly, “Hey babe. How are you?”

“Oh Jeez, forget about me. You sound bad. But hey! I always have remedy on me! I took the effort to book tickets for an amusement park date! There will be other people as well, but it's going to be fun! You are coming with me and that's it.” I chuckle at how demanding yet adoringly childish she sounds.

“Fine. I could use some amusement time. I'll take the day off and meet you at the venue. Thanks, babe.” I say to the sweet woman. Little did I know who was about to be there and what was about to go down the hill for me.