It was awkward.
I mean, I expected it to be awkward but I hadn't really grasped just how awkward it would be.
We sat at the dining table.
I sat beside Tristan directly opposite Aunt Sarah and Uncle Victor.
Aunt Sarah kept fussing with the place mats on the table and kept rearranging and arranging the flowers in the vase before her.
Uncle Victor sat very still and was very quiet as he studied Tristan too intently.
Bridgette and May stood at attention behind us as if they were bodyguards.
I really wished that they would sit down because I could just imagine Bridgette staring daggers into the back of my head, silently blaming me for this. It made me more nervous than I already was.
"So..." I begun, deciding to break the ice.
I stopped, realising I actually didn't know what to say.
I looked at Tristan but he just stayed silent instead of helping me.
Sure I had told him I would do all the talking but since when did he actually get good at listening to me?
I looked back at Uncle Victor and he was still studying Tristan, probably imagining all the ways he could get away with murdering the alpha. Aunt Sarah looked about ready to start reorganising all the furniture.
How could this possibly be any more awkward?
Bridgette leaned forward and whispered something in Tristan's ear.
I looked at them wanting to be in on whatever they were talking about.
Anything other than being on the spot here.
I had a feeling that this little connection they had would get annoying quickly. But I wasn't going to say anything because I didn't want to come off as jealous.
This was simply a temporary arrangement and I wasn't planning on making things complicated.
Tristan cleared his throat and sat up straight, I didn't know whether to be more nervous or relieved.
I wanted Aunt Sarah and Uncle Victor to like him not just to accept him because he was their alpha.
But let's face it, Tristan didn't exactly come off as the most open person. He was likeable enough around the pack but that's mostly because people admired his strength and the fact that he had grown up among them.
He was social enough.
I know that because I had seen him at public social gatherings and I had seen him converse with people.
But I feel like that's only because he had to. No one really ever got to know him.
They knew alpha Tristan, their leader but they didn't know him as a person.
Now that I think about it, I didn't really know Tristan as a person either.
Our interactions had been kept at a minimum. Me calling him when I needed something and him showing up irritated.
Other than that, he respected my wishes and kept his distance.
To be honest, in the years I had known him, I had been watching from afar or hearing what other people had to say.
People knew him and seemed to like him. They just didn't seem to know him.
I was ashamed to admit it but I didn't know the man sitting next to me as well as I would have liked to either.
What was his favourite colour? What were his hobbies?
And I knew these are things that would definitely be important to Aunt Sarah and Uncle Victor.
"Mr and Mrs Benson." Tristan begun. "I'm sorry for barging in on you like this, I wish I could have planned a better meeting but my schedule is hectic and I thought I should get this done as quickly as possible." Tristan spoke.
His voice calmed me. He was so authoritative, so sure of his words.
"And what is this exactly?" Uncle Victor asked.
Oh no.
"This is," Tristan turned to look at me, "me coming to you to personally confirm something that I'm sure you've heard about already. Your niece and I... she's my mate, Mr and Mrs Benson."
For a minute I just stared back at Tristan, this felt more real than ever. In front of the whole school it didn't seem as real as it did in front of my Uncle and Aunt and of course my cousins whom I knew were eavesdropping. I could see Hazel's yellow hair ribbon by the corner of the door.
"And what exactly does that mean?" Uncle Victor pressed. "How did you just realise Crystal was your mate? She has been here for four years. And you're just now finding out?"
His tone implied that he didn't buy it one bit.
I sighed.
Moment of truth.
"The truth is... I've known that Tristan was my mate for quite some time now." I confessed.
Aunt Sarah gasped. "You - what? How? And you didn't tell us?"
Uncle Victor was quiet but you could see the disappointment in his eyes.
"I - it -"
"When did this happen exactly?" Aunt Sarah asked, looking about ready to pop a vein.
"I was away at college when Crystal moved to Woodfell." Tristan explained. "I only got back when she had been here at least three months. And we met - in the middle of the woods."
I was taken back to that day. Walking through the northern woods aimlessly and in tears.
I hadn't been expecting to run into anyone - or any Wolf.
"The minute I crossed the border, I sensed her." His eyes bore into mine, as intense as they had been that day. "I had to find her."
I remember looking into that wolf's flashing green orbs. I remember being mesmerised. Recognising what was happening that minute.
I remember him shifting and not even paying attention to his nudity at the moment, just his eyes. Because they are what captivated my inner wolf they introduced him to me. They claimed me.
'mine.'
He had declared.
I was brought out of my thoughts when he had spoke.
'Who are you?' I had asked. "I mean - what's your name?"
He had stepped forward.
'Tristan. Tristan Melrose. What's yours?'
I remember having played with the name on my tongue, Tristan Melrose.
My mate.
Considering I had just learnt about the concept two months ago, something in me stirred.
I had found my person.
Someone who was mine. He was a complete stranger, sure, but he was mine.
The fact that my parents had abandoned me didn't matter.
The cute Roman boy I had met who worked for my uncle didn't matter.
Nothing but him mattered at the moment.
Tristan Melrose.
Wait a minute.
I had heard that name before.
I remember taking a shaky step back from him. "Tristan Melrose, as in, the alpha?"
He had nodded and stepped forward as if that wasn't a big deal. His eyes were still stuck on me.
"And you rejected her?" Uncle Victor asked.
My head spun to look at him.
"Why do you just assume that I'm the one who got rejected here?" I demanded.
Uncle Victor looked a bit embarrassed.
"Well, didn't you?"
I narrowed my eyes at my uncle. "No! I rejected him!"
I regretted the words the minute they left my mouth.
Aunt Sarah looked shocked while Uncle Victor looked proud. Only he would be happy about me curving my literal soul mate. Did this man honestly expect me to be single forever.
I turned to give Tristan an apologetic look but he just looked away from me.
I wanted to get help from May so I turned around and was instead met with a deathly glare from Bridgette.
I cleared my throat as I turned back. "I mean - the timing wasn't right at the time." I quickly added to cover up but clearly that didn't do anything to help.
Remember the temporary empathy link I had talked about that got established between mates in the first two weeks.
Well, I could feel a bit of what Tristan was feeling right now and I knew that I had offended him.
"And the timing is right now?" Uncle Victor rose his brows at me.
A question was screaming on his face, 'why?'.
"Mr and Mrs Benson." Tristan spoke. "The attack yesterday cleared up my prospects. I never want to see Crystal get hurt."
"Then hire a bodyguard for her. Don't imprint on her against her will!" He yelled.
Oh snap.
I could tell that he had been boiling for some time and now his lid had finally blew.
"With all due respect, sir." I could hear Bridgette stepping forward. "You should be careful about how you address your alpha." She spoke in a threatening tone.
Tristan stood up and eyed her down.
"Bridge." He spoke in a warning tone.
Uncle Victor rose.
"Honey." Aunt Sarah spoke, frightened.
"I don't mean any disrespect." Uncle Victor spoke stiffly. "But Crystal is a minor and you can't just force her to be your mate after she rejected you. What about her rights?"
Something was about to hit the roof.
I stood up.
"He isn't forcing me. I want this too." I told uncle Victor.
I don't know why I didn't just tell them the truth, I guess I just didn't want to get into all that.
"If that was true, you wouldn't have rejected him in the first place." Uncle Victor rose his voice.
Aunt Sarah saw that things were getting out of control. She rose and placed her hand on Uncle Victor's chest.
"Okay, Victor, why don't we just calm down." She urged him nervously.
"Yes, Mr Benson, we wouldn't want any problems." Bridgette's voice was low and threatening.
I looked at Tristan. He needed to control his beta. As much as I was scared of her, I couldn't stand here and let her threaten my uncle.
"But we do have a problem here. The alpha of the Silvercrest pack abusing his power to claim my little girl!"
Tristan glared at uncle Victor.
I wanted to stop him before he said anything.
"Uncle Victor, that's not what's happening here. Let me explain." My head swam for excuses that I couldn't seem to grasp.
"Crystal, don't lie to your family." Tristan spoke eventually, his eyes not leaving Uncle Victor.
"The only reason I claimed Crystal is because the threat of rogues is in the air and I believe Roman is one of them."
I looked at Tristan in shock. I hadn't been expecting him to actually tell them the truth.
"That - Roman was behind the attack?" Aunt Sarah asked. Her face drained of colour.
"I suspect he was. I caught his scent just a few days ago. I have reason to believe that he is in the area."
My head turned to Tristan. I felt my heart stop for a second. He definitely didn't tell me that.
"You saw Roman?" Uncle Victor was breathless.
"No." Tristan spoke curtly. "But I know it was him."
It felt like my heart had stopped.
I had heard his voice that day.
The twins, their conversation about the security breach.
Joshua had said it just yesterday. I guess I hadn't wanted to believe it.
But with Tristan saying it.
Tristan who hated Roman most of all...
"I'm protecting her." He continued, not looking at me. Deliberately, no doubt.
I couldn't believe it.
He had actually almost had an altercation with Roman and hadn't told me.
You didn't tell him that you heard him call out to you, either. My mind reminded me.
Yeah but that's because, in my defence, I hadn't even been sure if I was hearing things or if it had been real.
"I think he'll try to drag Crystal into whatever he might be planning and after what happened last time -"
"You mean when the whole town persecuted her even though she was innocent and you just stood by and did nothing? You let them treat her like a criminal!" Uncle Victor yelled. "You let them drag your mate's name through the mud! You let your entire pack bully her."
"Uncle Victor. Stop." I had a feeling yelling at your alpha was against some law. Even if Tristan wasn't technically Uncle Victor's true alpha. And Bridgette looked really ready to do something about his insolence.
"I told Tristan not to get involved and that's what he did." I explained.
The trial last summer had me in tears, daily but blaming Tristan wasn't the way to go.
I had rejected Tristan.
Sure, that hadn't stopped him from trying to help me during the trial but I wouldn't use the 'my mate is the alpha' card to get out of it.
Roman had hurt and betrayed me but I wasn't going to go running to Tristan. That felt like manipulation.
And how would it have looked, honestly?
Turning the rejection around just because I needed help?
What would people have said about the alpha's mate not only turning out to be a halfling but also an accused accomplice of the pack's biggest traitor.
My words had clearly done nothing to ease Uncle Victor but at least he was silent now.
"Now, we could spend the whole morning yelling about this or you can accept it. Because this has happened and there's nothing you can do about it and I'm sorry that you're not happy but you can't choose or reject my mate for me."
Uncle Victor looked like he wanted to argue again but aunt Sarah put her hand on his arm. "Listen to her." She told him calmly. "This is definitely a... complicated situation but you can't oppose the laws of nature."
Uncle Victor looked at me. He stared at me like a father who was losing his daughter and it broke my heart. What could I tell him to make him believe that this was for the best?
"Tristan is just trying to protect me." I spoke up, looking into my uncle's eyes.
I tried to see it through his eyes. Tristan had claimed me without my consent. That's what I had been the most mad about too.
I had just gone through this chaos with Roman and I still hadn't fully recovered. He was just concerned about my wellbeing.
"I wasn't able to protect her from Roman the first time. So I'm going to do it now, I'm just asking you to trust me with your niece, Mr and Mrs Benson." Tristan spoke with a fiery determination.
Uncle Victor looked at his wife before letting out a sigh. "Fine. If what you say is true, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I've seen you take over leadership from your mother in spite everything. You're a good man, a good alpha too. I expect you to be an even better one to Crystal."
I felt myself relax a little. He had finally given in.
"I promise." Tristan spoke.
"But Crystal is still a minor so of course she'll be treated accordingly." Uncle Victor continued. "I'm her guarduan. That means she still lives under my roof, she still focuses on her studies, curfew still stands and lets not forget what the law states about messing around with minors."
I blushed. "Uncle Victor!"
"I would never take advantage of her." Tristan stated, looking Uncle Victor in the eyes.
I could tell he was slightly impressed but of course he would never say it.
"Yeah, well, I've heard promises like that before." He muttered.
Can someone say petty?
"But of course lady luna will have some responsibilities that will require her to bend some of your rules." Bridgette spoke. "And we're not in the habit of sending out permission slips."
Okay. Can I get another person in the audience to scream petty.
Uncle Victor was about to shoot something back to the snarky comment but Aunt Sarah held him back. "We understand." She said giving him a stern look.
"We really must get going, alpha." Bridgette spoke.
I could tell she was satisfied with the chaos she had caused.
Tristaan put his hand on his chest. "Mr and Mrs Benson. I'm glad we could talk. Enjoy the rest of your days."
"I'll walk you out." I quickly offered. Mostly because I wasn't ready to be alone with uncle Victor.
"You need to get ready for training." May reminded me. "So get dressed so that we can go."
Oh right. There was still that.
"Of course." I spoke. "But um, can I have a word with Tristan."
Bridgette looked murderous.
I know I had already wasted a lot of time for her.
"It will only take a sec." I promised.
She rolled her eyes before turning to leave.
Tristan and I stopped in the kitchen while May followed Bridgette outside.
Tristan rose his brows at me. "What's up?
"Roman was here? Like on Silvercrest territory?" I asked.
Tristan was quiet for a second. His eyes studying me carefully before he responded. "I believe he was."
That statement did nothing to ease my nerves.
I mean, how was I supposed to react to Roman being back, really?
"Like where exactly?" I pressed.
"That information is private." He responded somewhat coldly.
I sighed. "Tristan."
"What would you do with that information anyway?" He demanded.
I opened my mouth and closed it again.
Nothing. That's what I was supposed to say, right?
But I wasn't too sure, honestly.
The wise thing would be to stayaway and let them catch him. Roman was nothing to me now.
"Exactly." Tristan spoke. He began to turn around.
"What happens when you catch him?" I blurted out the question that had beenon my mind for a while.
Tristan froze. He spun around and looked way too composed.
"What do you really want to ask me, Crystal?" He asked slowly.
I sucked in a deep breath.
"I'm asking if you plan on killing Roman." I spoke in what I hoped was a level voice.
It was the only conclusion to this. Roman had betrayed the pack and Tristan himself. They would want blood.
"Let me guess." Tristan let out a humourless laugh. "You don't want me to."
I silently shook my head.
Roman had done something terrible but he didn't deserve to die.
"You can't kill him, Tristan." Even as I spoke the words, I felt him grow angrier.
He clenched his fist.
"Of course you're still defending him."
"Tristan, this has nothing to do with -"
"Roman is a criminal and an enemy of the pack. And if he indeed had something to do with my brother's attack, I can assure you he'll get what he deserves." With that, he spun around and stormed out of the house.
I was left frozen to my spot in fear
Fear for Roman.
"Well you've definitely gotten yourself in quite the predicament, cousin."
I turned around and saw Kat staring at me with her hands folded across her chest.
"So that's how you got the candidacy, huh? Sleeping with the alpha." She spoke.
My eyes widened. "I am not sleeping with Tristan."
She shrugged. "I know. You would never do anything that fun."
There was a glint in her eyes and I immediately saw my old Kat.
She cracked a smile. "Oh cousin, your life just became my new favourite TV show."
"The Tragic life of Crystal Swan?"
She shrugged. "Well I was going to call it the Dysfunctional life of Crystal Swan but that works too."
I groaned. "What am I going to do, Kat?"
She frowned.
She held her hand out. "You can start by explaining everything from the beginning."