54

-Third Person's POV-

With the last bit of service load they had from Meredith's phone, they were able to contact Maro's parents. They asked for them to stay put but they didn't listen as all they really wanted to do was leave.

While walking away, they took one last glance at the house that will forever scar them.

They were all in a huddle, they lit up a fire to keep themselves warm and wrapped themselves with the ragged blankets. They gathered as many self-defense items as they could find in case anything were to happen.

They didn't sleep for 3 days, with the littlest energy they had left they finally heard their salvation. The helicopter was hovering above them and Maro's parents were screaming above with a megaphone.

Theresa came running to hug them all with tears spilling on her face

"We finally found you all, thank God, thank you Lord." She repeated over and over.

When they were crying her name, thanking that they finally found them and how much they loved the both of them that's when the couple knew, they have finally had them wrapped around their fingers.

They were all suffering from severe PTSD, just hearing a clank of metal will cause them to panic.  It made them paranoid of women, anyone aside from Theresa would make them afraid, and even their own mothers couldn't come close to them. It took years to get them to grow out of their fears but still, some remained.

Then that day came,

Calixto just walked out of his company and was craving some food to eat, he was standing next to a nearby pole when a dog passed by, and the distracted girl who was chasing after the dog accidentally bumped into him, causing her to bump into the pole hard.

Though he was shaken as he still had a fear of women, the feeling of the mate's connection shocked him more.

"Dang it Eun, I swear to the doggy God's that I will not feed you any treats for a month! " She cursed while holding her forehead. She didn't notice the mate connection from the pain but Calixto did.

He turned around in shock and saw the sun birthmark on her nape. Her ID was not far from him and he managed to catch a glimpse of her name.

Without looking at him as she was in a hurry, she bowed her head at him and apologized,

"I'm so sorry!! I-I just need to catch up to my dog, I'm so sorry!!!" She yelled and waved as she bolted back running.

" I don't have good stamina, Eun~ " Her whinning could be heard and he couldn't help but let out a small laugh.

He then tensed up when he realized that he just had encountered his mate. The mate who so longed to meet years ago, the mate he swore to never meet, and yet, something compelled him to find her, to see what she looked like.

She just so happened to be his sister's student at her university. He managed to track her schedule and went to check as to what she was up to.

It was night, it was scheduled for her shooting as a ghost of a revengeful woman. She was sitting down on a bench with her phone and a can of coke on the side when he accidentally pressed the windows to go down, this caught Aera's attention, and the moment their eyes locked it changed to blue.

Out of panic, he drove off and immediately told the Wilson couple and his mates as the Wilson couple now acted more of their parents and whom they search the final decision to as that was how they were brought up since the incident that messed them up.

" Y-You met her? Wh-What's her name? " Soren asked.

" ..Aera Irene Whitfield from what I searched. "

" Wait..A-Ae-ri?? " Devereux panicked though he tried not to show it.

" No, Devereux it's Aera." Alicai patted his back.

" O-Oh, sorry...continue?"

He continued to describe what she looked like and how she acted. He explained that she was a cheerful, and carefree beautiful girl.

"Do you guys want to meet her?" Patrick, Maro's father asked but they stayed silent.

"Oh dear heavens No, you guys won't be able to do it. Not only are you all afraid of women, but you also can't even stand the slightest touch. How depressing would it be for her??" Theresa said as an excuse.

" Plus, she's not a Wilson. She can't possibly be your mate. There has to have been a mistake, trust us, Maro is your mate." Patrick coerced them.

Despite their will to want to meet Aera, the reality went crashing back to them and they were forced to choose what they thought was the most appropriate decision at the time.

"She can still...find love right?" Viktor asked.

"..I have patients who had their mates reject them, they are living a good life with their partners who don't have mates," Soren explained.

"She'll have a better life without us," Revere said as he stood up.

"Of course, she will, ..I hope she will, I mean who wants our extra baggage?" Calixto laughed sarcastically.

Just before they chanted together, Alicai blurted  out,

"Will she really be happy?"

"...She needs to." Revere smiled sadly.

'Please, God...we're begging you..'

And with that, that night, they rejected the woman they would regret ever rejecting.

More years passed by and just like how fate planned it, one by one they met her. After all, they were tied by the string of mates.

Devereux first met her at a 7 Eleven store arguing with her ex-boyfriend. He saw her at the previous day at a television show not knowing she was his soulmate. He already took a liking to her attitude and meeting her in person caught his interest.

He searched more about her and soon became invested. The more he searched, the more he spent time on his electronics just by watching her dramas, tv specials, tv appearances, and game shows. Soon enough, he was completely entranced by her and deemed himself her number one fan.

Calliope begged Calixto to teach at her university as she did not find anyone qualified enough to teach there. Though hesitant as he knew that his mate studied there, he agreed. He was taken aback when he could not feel any sort of connection whenever their eyes met.

It was as if, he was mistaken but when he made physical contact with her he felt it. Aera's facial expression remained the same so he always doubted himself if ever he was just imagining things. He always bothered her whenever he could to see if her mask would budge but throughout the process, he grew affection for her.

Viktor first met her as how Soren, Alicai and Revere did. It was at a party when she was introduced to them, it arose his curiosity as he never felt any of the soulmate connection. When they helped her with settling down as their new neighbors, it touched him that he was her inspiration. He was overjoyed when he found out that they had a chance to star in the same movie together.

His professional persona kept on breaking as he was always being swayed by his emotions, he wanted to know more about her so even if it was during breaks, he'd take an opportunity to talk to her. He helped her with her lines and supported her with her other projects.

Alicai, just like what happened to Calixto and Viktor also made him confused as to why he could not sense the soulmate connection. When they were shooting at one of his companies he would stand to watch her work. It somehow made him feel fluffy inside, just by seeing her. He cherished every small encounter they had with each other and would even talk to each other about the same interests.

Soren was exactly the same as the rest of them, he always had a small talk with her in the mornings, she had already asked him for help with University projects, and as the smartest among them, he always gladly helped her. He was terrified that her life was in his hands as he regretted even uttering the words of reject. He prayed to the Gods for them to give them a second chance and he took it to heart the moment he heard the pulse come back.

Revere was the secret admirer from afar, he loved everything about Aera, and he always looked forward to encountering her during the day. He took every opportunity to be her director and always looked out for her. He made sure that Aera was always guarded after her last stalker incident. Though he may not show it as much as the rest of them but he took the autographed poster Devereux had and stored it in his room at a hidden spot and cased it with glass.

To be Continued . . .