Chapter 3 Frail - Part ll

• "But I, too, want to have a lot of fun with my friends!" I encouragingly smile again as he said with a mournful voice.
• "Demir, do you want to be the next Beta? Do you wish to take over father's title?"
• "Yes, of course, I do!"
• "To attain our objective and get what we desire, we must work hard and forego some of life's joys, such as not going out with our friends. But things improve, and brighter days await you, where you may have a lot more fun than this."
• "Are you certain?"
• "Yes, I am! I'm confident that when you're older, you'll be a fantastic Beta and have a lot of fun. You will get your wolf, find your female and have a lot of children!" I exclaim; his cheeks flush slightly. I could not help but laugh as he looks down.
• "Is that a blush on your cheek?" Demir shook his head as I poke his slightly chubby cheek from the side.
• "No! I'm not blushing at all!" I giggle as Demir exclaim.
• "You're so adorable!" I coo,
• "I am kind of adorable." Demir wonders and laughter booms through my chest. He was extremely adorable indeed.
• "Would you like me to bake you a cake?" I suggest and his eyes lit up instantly to my words.
• "Chocolate cake?" I nod my head with a smile as he exclaims.
• "Yes! Please! I would love to have some chocolate cake!" I giggle as he hollered. From childhood, Demir was extremely fond of chocolate cake.
• "Okay, okay," I respond as I rise to my feet, "I'll bake your favourite double cocoa chocolate cake."
• "Yes please!" He hollers once again and we both turn our eyes towards the entrance when our father's voice booms.
• "What's all the fuss about?" Father glances at both of us and walks toward us with questioning eyes.
• "I was just telling-" Demir cuts me off as he starts to speak,
• "Nesta is making my favourite cake for me!" Father chuckles and ruffles his hair in response to his enthusiasm.
• "Why did Alpha Lain summon you, father?" Demir asks excitedly and I take that as my turn to leave. I let them engage in their conversation and walk towards the kitchen while father and Demir talk about the pack related issues. Before I can enter the kitchen, my father calls my name from behind.
• "Nesta!"
• "Yes, father?" I respond as I turn around. Mother peers out from the kitchen as well, and father smiles.
• "Ciro will be returning next week. We must prepare for his arrival." My eyes dilate slightly as a rush of excitement sweep over me. My brain couldn't grasp father's words for a split second. Did I just hear correctly? Did father just mention his name! I could feel heat rush over my body and creep up to the tip of my ears. The excitement and anticipation I were feeling were very evident
• and father chuckles as my cheeks redden.
• "Alright, uh, o-okay." I stutter and dash to the kitchen. I could hear my mother bombarding my father with endless questions. I stand against the kitchen counter for a moment and a bright smile slowly blooms on my face. The happiness and excitement that I was feeling were inexpressible. Only I know how long I have been waiting to hear this. I could not help but through my hands in the air and bounce around the kitchen. Ciro is finally returning! He is finally coming back home!
• Ciro is the firstborn of Alpha Lain, he is the future Alpha of their pack. Ciro and I are the same age and have been friends since we were children. We had a strong relationship and did practically everything together. Even though I couldn't attend school, I was never alone thanks to him. Ciro would run back to me every day after his classes and we would play around for the rest of the day. He was the only friend I had other than Delila.
• And as we grew up, we somewhat slowly grew closer. Seeing us together and so close, everyone anticipated us to be fated mates. Even our parents wished for it, and- and so did we. Ciro had expressed his feelings and desire to have me as his female, and I had wished for that too. I wish to be his female, to have him as my male.
• He was sent for training in the Royal Academy and for the past two years, and I hardly ever heard from him. He was now twenty-one years old and so will be I in a few months, and he had his wolf, which meant that when he returned, we would find out if we were fated or not. I hope we are. I spent endless days praying to the Goddess to have him as mine. That night, I could not retire to bed with all the excitement bottling up inside me. But I succumbed to tiredness and fell asleep.
• When the next day arrives, the pack begins to prepare for his arrival. All of the shrubs had been groomed, the packhouse had been freshly painted, and the great hall had been decked with various coloured lights. Our Luna along with her females' prepared food for the celebration and I was busy decorating his room for him.
• Everything in that chamber had slept for a long under the silky dust, and I wished for everything to wake up and prepare for his arrival.
• And for that, I didn't leave a single speck of dust in his room. I completely rearranged all of the furniture with a little help from Demir. And after four days of endless work, I stand at the door of Ciro's room, as my gaze sweeps the entire space. A large bed was in the centre of the room, soft beige drapes covered the traditional wide windows, a wooden study table was in the far-right corner to keep his important paperwork, and the off-white walls made the space appear larger.
• I smile to myself as I step into the room, I clutch the blanket I am carrying and walk to the bed. I lay the folded blanket on the bed. My finger brushes over the smooth fabric of the hand-embroidered blanket, which had traditional red, brown, black, and off-white designs. I had been embroidering it for the past year. And I am glad that it was finally done just before his arrival. I stand up straight and take a deep breath in the freshly painted room which will soon be filled with his scent.
• "You have absolutely altered this room!" I glance around as a melodious female voice cries with awe. I smile and bow my head to my Luna. Whose enlarged eyes sweep over the room with astonishment.
• "Thank you so much, Luna Croía. I hope he would like it as well." I respond meekly, with my eyes downcast, and Croía takes a step closer to me. Her lean fingers gently grasp my chin and she presses her forehead against mine. It was an act of showing love and respect and mostly the females shared with the ones they are close to. Croía pulled back and smile,
• "I'm sure he would love it. You did and splendid job." I couldn’t help but smile gratefully up at her and Luna's eyes roam around the room.
• "But don't you believe there is something missing?" She asked, and I scowl as my eyes roam around the room. What did I miss? I ponder and my eyes widen as I finally realise what was missing.
• "I'll return as soon as possible! Please excuse me, Luna!" Luna Croía smile as I bow my head and dash out of the room.
• I dash forward, my feet caressing the soft soil. The lush green grass tramples beneath my bare feet as I dash forwards. I rush to my tiny garden and pluck the flowers I had been lovingly growing. I pick up some cobra saffrons, daffodils, damask roses, and daturas. They effortlessly form a colourful arrangement to decorate any room. I rise up and smile at the colourful blooms. I complete the bouquet with a few wildflowers from the garden and a few green leaves. I walk to the packhouse, holding the flower arrangements as delicately as I can in my hands. I look up as the wolves rush up to the packhouse. A frown forms on my face as they holler with excitement.
• I move cautiously through the crowd with the delicate flowers, and the instant I get out of the masses and glance up, my breath gets caught up in my throat.