Ivy's POV
"Here she is, the Stinky Omega Ivy." Once again, Demi and her minions blocked my way after school.
I kept my head down to avoid looking at their annoying smirks and tried to get around them to reach my locker. Picking a fight with them wouldn't make sense. Demi was not only the charming cheer-leading queen but also the daughter of the Beta. And me? I was just a nobody.
I was from a single-parent family. We had moved to the Twilight pack a few months ago due to my mom's job transfer. Besides, my mom was human, but my father was a wolf, so she believed living in such a pack community would help me when I got my wolf. As a human working here as the pack doctor, she faced many challenges. I felt very guilty that I had failed to transition during my coming-of-age and had become a wolfless Omega at the bottom of the wolf pack hierarchy. To avoid causing trouble for my mother, I would endure this. Demi was indeed annoying, but I would graduate and get out of this hellhole soon.
"Hey, you bitch! Can't you hear me talking to you?" I was shoved against the lockers, and tears burst out as my head hit the locker hard. Laughter erupted behind me.
Demi approached and grabbed my collar, "Learn to respect me, you wolfless Omega. Don't think you're special just because you're a straight-A student. This is a wolf pack, and your origins doom you to be the lowest being."
I grimaced as she increased the pressure on my neck. The contempt was clearly written in her eyes.
"I look forward to the graduation ball tomorrow. What kind of fun will you bring us, the first wolfless one without a dance partner? Wake up! No one in this school will welcome you!" Her eyes squeezed venomously, "But I guess you can ask your mom for help since her specialty is seducing men."
She released me, slamming my back against the lockers again. My back hit a sharp corner, and it started bleeding. I wouldn't mind being unpopular at school. Demi's words couldn't hurt me, but I knew my mother would care. Since my father died early, she had suffered a lot raising me alone. I couldn't let her worry anymore; I needed to find a suitable dance partner today.
Taking a deep breath, I took out my bag and closed my locker. My back still hurt – being wolfless, I couldn't heal quickly – but I didn't have time to dally. Mom had asked me to return home early today as she had some big news to announce.
Arriving home, I had just tossed my backpack on the couch when Mom emerged. "Ivy, darling, you won't believe it," she said, eyes alight with excitement.
"What is it, mom?" I frowned, whenever she started like this, I knew it wouldn't be trivial.
"Well, I met someone dashing at work, he's handsome, charming, and...we fell in love. I got married!" She twirled around, laughing like a giddy schoolgirl.
"Wait...married?!" I jumped up, stunned. Oh God, please don't let that man be Demi's father. I knew he was the one who had invited Mom to work here, and he had been trying to woo her – another reason why Demi hated me so much.
"Oh yes, I did it! Crazy, right? He's everything I've ever dreamed of, and guess what? He's an Alpha!" She gripped my hands, eyes sparkling with joy.
I froze, mouth agape. Though I should feel lucky it wasn't Demi's father, an Alpha? Seriously? I didn't mean to doubt my mom's charm. In my eyes, she's the most perfect woman who deserves all the best in the world. But an Alpha, would he accept me, the wolfless omega, as his stepdaughter? And I wasn't ready to live with any man. I didn't want to be a burden on Mom's happiness.
"What's wrong, darling? Is it too much for you?" Mom noticed my reaction and hugged me. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I know it's too sudden, but sometimes love just happens in the moment. You know you're always the first in my heart, and if you don't-"