CHAPTER [14] - Holding back.

Damsel was stupefied, almost dropping the boy flat on the ground.

He was too concentrated on the footsteps that seemed to be coming nearer and nearer, his spit was stuck in his throat and his full attention was towards the sounds outside the door, the weight in his arms suddenly increased, and when he looked down, he saw an unconscious Samuel!

He was too frightened to respond properly, and in that moment of surprise, he had shoved him aside, causing the child to smack his head against the wall behind him.

"Fuck!" He shouted in hushed tones, there was no chance the boy would wake up now.

Pitter, Patter,

The footsteps got increasingly louder, and then a knock was heard on the door. Damsel held his breath, the knocks now seemed to be coming through megaphones, the room was dead still, and the knocks just became louder; what was he meant to do? He was terrified,

he was biting on the insides of his cheeks, his grip on the boy tightening, and in the corner of his eye,

he found his escape.

There was a window.

It seemed like Luna had really heard his prayers!

"Samuel."

Carter's stern tone was muffled behind the door, but the tone was very different from what Damsel had seen Carter talk in, and he understood; this was how Carter spoke to his children when no one else was available to watch, at the notion, the boy in his arms seemed even more pitiful. he couldn't imagine the timid Samuel being able to stand properly infront of that horrid figure of a father.

Carter heard no response from the inside, and anger boiled up and his veins were apparent, after the meeting he had witnessed his usually docile son disagreeing with him and going against him, no words could truly describe how Angry carter was; he was a stubborn man, a stubborn and terrifying man who put control over everything, who let his wolf take over more often than not; and because of that, he was irritable, out of control, and ruthless.

This was a mental condition that many alphas suffered from when their desire for control went above and beyond the normal quantity, to the point that without control, they would massacre. They demanded complete control of every situation; this devastated not only the Alpha's life, but everyone around them suffered even more.

Carter had to have control over everything that existed under his roof, starting with small habits like wanting items to be in the same position as he left them, to his food tasting a certain way, these habits quickly turned from objects to the real people around him; nobody in the house was allowed to speak to one another if he wasn't present, and they weren't allowed to make a single sound,

But his preoccupation shifted to his child's existence.

He desired the ideal toy.

Now that Darren had made everything apparent to him, he was angry, boiling even, and his eyes were a horrifying pool of dark; he wanted to vent his rage on someone,

to lose the perfect son he had cultivated over the years brought more rage than ever before.

If he faced Samuel in this state, there was no wondering what he would do.

"Sir." A nervous butler sounded out, "Second young master Samuel stated that he was going to a friend's house today."

From the sound of his voice and the lies coming out of his mouth, Damsel could only let out a sigh of relief, it turns out some of the workers knew what state Carter was in, and they were driving away from meeting with Samuel, atleast until Carter had learned to calm down a bit.

"Open his door for me, I need to know if he's been hiding anything these days."

The butler appeared to have seen a ghost, but he couldn't let it show, so he took out a keychain with the keys to the house's bedrooms numbered one by one."Sir, yes."

Damsel's breathing became more rapid.

C L I C K! C L I C K! C L I C K!

The lock had been turned.

S C R E A C H,

the door was flung open.

Carter stepped in,

The room was spotless.

The room was clean, and the walls were left intact with no posters or decorations; there was a comfortable bed as well as a desk and wardrobe; it was vacant, unsuitable for a teenager's room, but it satisfied Carter.

These were the rules he had set.

"Search the wardrobe."

-

After what seemed like an hour, Darren flinched when he heard Damsel's aggressive opening of the back seat door; when he looked back, he saw Damsel's in a hurry to leave figure trying to squeeze Samuel inside the door; Samuel was unconscious at the time, so his limbs were like gelatin, just hanging there, so it was a struggle before he was finally jammed inside. Damsel rushed to the driver's seat, and with a loud roar of the engine starting, he pressed his foot on the gas pedal, and the car sped forward.

"He fainted," He coughed.

"Are you hungry?" Damsel asked, turning the steering wheel at a corner as he briefly turned to observe Darren,

he was looking outside the window, probably lost in thought since he didn't reply to Damsel, but after everything that had just transpired, he needed the space.

Damsel went to a drive-thru, buying 3 people's meals with his card,

Right now, he hadn't thought of a plan. He wouldn't let the two brothers back into the Knight residence, he didn't trust Carter enough to let them stay under the same roof, especially not Samuel who couldn't defend himself.

And he wouldn't be able to take them back to the Prince residence either,

Damsel loathed his pack at this point, he wouldn't be able to look his mother in the eye, and his father? He wanted to smack his face in. Without even trying to refuse, his parents had completely thrown him under the bus, and to the point where his father had tricked him into the meeting, tricking him out of his mate.

He hadn't had the time to think back on everything that had happened since he was met with Darren's household affairs, but right now, he never wanted to step foot in that packhouse ever again.

He was abandoned,

his parents had completely pushed him to his own demise, risking not only his mate but his happiness at the same time. No matter how much a child messes up, it shouldn't be reflected with the child's parents giving up on him, and in this case, they were planning on making him lose his mate at the same time.

When his dad didn't speak up in the meeting at all, Damsel knew that he had lied to him, he said he would fix the problem, he said that as long as he attended today's meeting, they would talk everything out.

But Nick hadn't raised his voice even once, not at all.

It was Damsel who had to fight for his own chance, and even during the time Damsel had brought his mate up, Nick stayed dead silent, not joining in to ask for those extra months, it seemed like he was dissatisfied with Damsel dragging things out instead.

This is what truly hurt Damsel.

"I have to pick up some clothes from home,"

That was all he said to Darren, he didn't specify why he needed clothes, and he didn't tell him where he was going to be taking them instead, but that didn't bother Darren right now,

To him, anywhere was better than staying with his dad.

Anywhere.

Damsel was a good driver, and the drive was 10 minutes, The two sat in silence the entire time, but it was strangely pleasant; there was no music between the stillness, just the sound of their breathing filling the eerie automobile. Darren was nodding off, and Damsel had too many thoughts racing through his mind.

Finally, Damsel had reached the Prince residence.

It was not spooky or eery like the Knight manor, rather it had a comforting modern touch to it, people who drove past would only be jealous of the residents, but as a rich kid, Damsel had long gotten used to luxurious buildings.

"I'll be back in a bit." He told Darren, he didn't know if the boy could hear him, but he reported anyways.

He took a mask and a cap from the trunk, he didn't want anyone inside the house recognizing him, after all, he wouldn't be returning back here anytime soon, and he most certainly didn't want to be caught.

He rushed inside the house, and strangely enough, many teens of the pack were here today, crowding the halls, like some party was going on; But Damsel didn't think much of it, the packhouse was always this crowded and he only concentrated on getting the third floor to pack some clothes and essentials.

He packed his icecream hoodie as well as his other favorite clothes, his laptop and charger, as well as his other gadgets, and soon, he had a fat duffel bag around his shoulder.

He left his bedroom, right now only wanting to escape successfully, but when he passed that crowded hallway again,

he heard booming music,

there was a party.

A party on the day he was being sold off.

It's not like the teenagers in the back didn't know of the news, Damsel being forced, everyone knew, so to hear the sound of music and partying on the day that was supposed to be a dark time for the pack? It didn't sit right with Damsel.

He was losing his mate,

He was getting traded off,

And they were partying?

He had that urge of curiosity, and he couldn't stop himself, his feet were already going in the direction of the lounge, where most parties of the pack took place, and he was right, people were partying.

The music was so loud that it made his skin tingle and his lungs feel like mush, Damsel had always been a party animal, but right now, the music felt like pins that poked his heart. The bass thumped in time with his heartbeat as though they were one, filling him from head to toe with music.

He hated the sensation.

It made him feel sick.

Over the roar of music, a distant, hazy chatter could be heard. Damsel couldn't make out any words, but laughter rang in his ears and wouldn't seem to stop.

How could they be laughing,

on a day like this?

He was met with people smooching eachothers' faces off,

Mostly everyone is drunk/tipsy, with a few people in clusters sitting around outside either making out, dancing somewhere, drinking or just talking. The occasional drunk person may be stumbling around. Talk about how the place looks as well. Occasionally having that many drunken people can destroy a house or building.

Then the sound of a mic filled everyone's ears, it screeched and the music stopped, everyone else, even the drunks, stopped to listen to the interruption.

"Everyone,"

It was blake, one of Damsel's friends, and next to him were the other two boys Damsel didn't recognize since he only paid attention to people who actually brought the attention to themselves.

"One cheer for Matthew!"

He yelled at the top of his lunges.

With the following cheers that came after his pumped excitement, came fists in the air and eyes flung wide. Everyone around him seemed like they were soaring to new heights of emotion.

"MATTHEW!"

"LET'S GET A CHEER FOR MATTHEWWW!" Blake yelled again, this time pointing at the boy who was sitting at the far back, he was wearing the same suit from the meeting, but the guy had a whole different vibe, where before he just looked like a lackey, Matthew seemed in control in this room, like he had power over everyone else.

And everyone around Damsel gave their every ounce of power in their lungs to let it be known how supportive they were.

"MATTHEW! MATTHEW! MATTHEW! MATTHEW! MATTHEW!" The crowd chanted.

And Damsel just stood.

Everybody sees the world only from their own perspective as a kid, he got that, it's just natural brain development. But it was like Damsel just got stuck in that mode. He was the most fun person to be around, an idea firework, you never knew what would happen next. Every time Matt and he met, Damsel was swept along. They'd part, laughing, joking, with a hug.

Time had stopped for him.

Everyone around him was jumping in slow-motion, as though time had decided to slow down, yet he remained in the right speed.

He saw Ashley, next to her was Nate, he was doing a stupid move with his grinnish smile, oh, and Kellie was just a few meters away. There was Cassie, Bennet, James, Thomas, and more faces he recognized in the crowd.

He just blinked.

These teenagers were his childhood friends.

They were the people he confided in.

Had he failed to live up to their explanations? Had he done something wrong to them? Something that they held a grudge against?

He was an asshole, but not to his friends.

Turning around to see those smiling faces, cheering, jumping,

Celebrating.

That was how it is.

Damsel almost laughed.

They were happy that he was leaving.

He knew what they were celebrating,

with Damsel gone, there was an open seat in the Pack's management office, it now belonged to Matthew.

He rapidly moved around to the cause, and there he met the eyes of Matthew who was already looking into his own.

His best friend.

Before he could only see purpose and love in those eyes, now, they seemed dull, bitter, and resentful.

The only thing that showed resemblance to his best friend, was the shell that bitter soul inhabited.

Matthew was not the boy he once knew.

When had everything changed?

He refused to look away, even as his lips trembled and his shoulders heaved with emotion, unwilling to back down. His dark lashes brimmed heavy with tears; his hands clenched into shaking fists, in a desperate battle against the grief.

But even as his shoulders shook, he didn't let Ereloc come through, he knew his wolf was itching to come out, he could feel it.

Before he mistook his wolf clawing at his insides for anger, letting it take control to solve all his problems, but he knew the wrath he felt didn't come from him now, he knew not to trust it like he had done all his life.

So, for the first time,

Damsel did not rage.

For the first time, he had not let his emotions get the best of him.

He left.

He shoved through the crowd, and zigzagged through the sweaty bodies that were cheering like they had won the lottery, Damsel knew that if he spent one more second in the room, he would lose his shit, just their sounds of celebration made him weak to the core because he knew that they weren't just happy, they were celebrating his doom, they were happy about his misery.

Damsel slammed the door shut, completely cutting off the partying sounds coming from the lounge.

His nails dug into his skin, itching to distract him from the rage and fury that was slowly building up. He needed to go,

He couldn't spend another night in this place.

Just as he slammed the front door of the packhouse open, he was met with the wrinkly face of his father,

"Damsel- What the fuck were you thinking in that meeting?!" His father yelled, his brows arched and his eyes red, but Damsel couldn't stop to concentrate on his features, he was too busy fighting his own anger to care about another persons'.

"Please, get out of the way, Dad." Damsel let out.

"No! I am not letting you get away with your selfish temper-tantrums anymore, you are not a kid!"

"Dad."

"Don't you realize that our packs could've been united by now? Why did you have to-"

"Get out of my way."

His voice lowered to a threatening pitch as his eyes turned pitch black for a second, he flinched as he heard himself, quickly pushing Ereloc back down.

He didn't want to give Ereloc another chance.

Another chance to control his life.

He stared at his father, who had subconsciously taken a step back.

"I bought me and my mate some time," Damsel smiled, "Isn't that all that matters?"

"Damsel, this is not some lovesick game-"

"What are you exactly mad about, Dad?" That smile of Damsel's seemed to crack, it took every piece of him to not scream, yell, and lose himself.

Damsel's temper was short, he had always been a raging child, It's been there a while now, this anger, escaping when he's met with the mildest inconveniences. He gets angry at store clerks and car drivers, heck, He's even angry if his sandwich isn't quite right.

And Damsel was such a person that reacted strongly to his anger, he was always unhappy, complaining, raging, and flipping out. To a point that the word 'Anger' was the only thing that could define him. When someone tried to define his character, 'Angry' was the first word they thought of.

Damsel was like an overflowing bottle of water, except the water came out at full force and there was no way to gather up the spilled water. He couldn't control, he couldn't hold back, and it became his life, feeding on the anger he felt.

Now, in front of his father, Damsel was placing a lid on that overflowing bottle,

water was hitting against the lid, and he didn't know how much longer it could hold out for,

but it was a miracle that he found that lid for the first time.

Holding back was not something Damsel had been familiar with, ever in his life.

Damsel wanted to come to terms with his emotions, Ereloc was not normal, and one second of anger could result in the same situations as in the past.

For the first time, Damsel wanted to hold back.

He wanted to talk.

If it were the old Damsel, he would've been screaming, yelling, throwing everything near him around, and letting out his fury through any chance. But Damsel did not want to return to what he was,

that angry person.

"You told me you were going to convince them not to go through with the marriage, but you stayed silent, you didn't say anything, I wasn't going to say anything."

"Damsel of course I told you that! Or else you wouldn't have even taken a step-"

"You lied."

It was meant to come out as a question, but Damsel's wavering voice had said it as a fact, rush of emotions overtook him,

"Vincent was right, you were going to trick me and leave me there, weren't you?"

"Damsel-."

"Why?"

That was all he could say.

That was all he could get out.

Because the overflowing water from before had exploded.

Except anger wasn't the response he had,

for the first time, his anger was washed out by his utter sadness.

Carter stayed quiet.

"Even if you find your mate, You'll still have to go through with the marriage, it's not your choice."

That's what really broke damsel.

"For your pack, Damsel! For your pack's peace, you have to sacrifice yourself just this time!"

Carter's words fall out of his mouth like vapor but land in Damsel's guts as shrapnel. He felt his insides tear, and the blood drain from his face. Damsel would laugh but he's deadly serious.

Damsel's voice broke. "You want me to kill myself and my mate for this pack?"

"Then go through that door." He laughed, it wasn't joy, it wasn't from happiness, that laugh seemed to have come from the deepest parts of himself coated with resentment, "then look at the pack I'm going to be sacrificing myself for."

Damsel broke down,

"Go through that door and tell me to kill myself for them." He paused to gulp down that seed of anger,

"Not a single one is crying, Not a single one is praising me."

"They're cursing me."

"They're laughing,"

The arguing had a dull exhaustion to it, like they'd been over the same bitterness too many times before.

"Damsel-"

"I'm not coming back here."

"I'm never stepping into this house again, I'll be a legal adult when I find my mate, I'm never coming back."

Damsel unlocked his car's door, stepping inside only to slam the door closed.

He rolled down his windows and stared his father straight in the eye.

"Like father like son, am I right?" He smiled, though the smile didn't reach his eyes,

"Look's like we're both abandoning something." Damsel laughed, "Though this is your second time,"

Damsel fixed his foot,

"I wasn't the first thing you abandoned."

He met his father's gaze, pulling the window up, and just before the window closed, he voiced out the words that froze Nick in his place, dead in his tracks.

"It was your real mate, wasn't it?"

"You killed him, dad."

[A/N: more plot and no fluff in this chapter, sorry! i got home from school and my fingers wouldnt stop typing! enjoy the update!]