# Elaine's Pov
The wind whipped through the trees, sending a chill through my bones as I walked deeper into the forest. I could barely remember the last time I felt truly free, without the ever-looming shadow of Alpha Dennis hanging over me. But now, in the heart of Lucas's territory, it almost felt real. Almost.
I had spent the last few days trying to adjust to my new life here, and though the pack had accepted me—somewhat warily—I still couldn't shake the feeling of being an outsider. I wasn't just an Omega anymore; I was someone's responsibility. Lucas's responsibility. And that fact, strange and unnerving as it was, made my chest tighten in ways I couldn't and didn't want to understand.
The forest had always been my escape, but it felt different now. The trees, the scent of the earth almost like the smell of earth after rain, the rustling leaves— they were no longer just a refuge. To me,they had become my prison. I had run from my old life, from Alpha Dennis's cruelty, from the dark memories of what I had been forced to endure. But no matter how far I ran, it seemed the past always caught up with me.
"Elaine?"
The voice broke through the silence, and I froze. My heart skipped in my chest, and I turned to see Lucas coming out from the trees. His eyes locked onto mine so deep that it made my breath pause, and for a moment, the world seemed to stop around us.
"Lucas," I said softly, forcing myself to sound more composed than I felt. My hands instinctively tightened around the edges of my coat, as though it could shield me from whatever storm was growing inside me.
He was silent for a moment, studying me as though calculating something in his mind. The wind tugged at his auburn hair, and the fading light of the afternoon made his green eyes look deeper, darker than usual.
"I wanted to check on you," he said, his voice low and hesitant.
"I'm fine," I replied quickly, even though my pulse was racing. I wasn't fine. How could I be, when everything around me was so uncertain?
Lucas stepped closer, and his gaze softened, a rare tenderness in his features. "You don't have to pretend. I know this isn't easy for you."
I felt a rush of emotion, something that was half relief and half confusion. He had been kind to me since I arrived—kind in a way that felt foreign, yet comforting. But at the same time, it scared me. It was a kindness that carried weight and expectations. A kindness that came with strings attached, no matter how much I tried to deny it.
"I don't belong here, Lucas," I whispered, not sure where the words were coming from. It was as if the walls I had built around myself had finally begun to crumble, and I couldn't stop them. "I'm not a part of your world. I'm just... an Omega. A lowlife."
His face darkened at my words, and I saw the flicker of something fierce in his eyes. But his hand reached out, gentle but firm, brushing against my arm. It was a touch that steadied me, that made me want to trust him, but I just couldn't. Not yet.
"You're more than that," he said, his voice a quiet promise. "You're my mate."
The words hit me in the guts. My breath caught in my throat, and I stepped back instinctively, as though the word itself had burned me. Mate. The word felt foreign, alien, as if it didn't belong to me. I hadn't expected this. I hadn't even considered it—this bond, this connection between us. It was too much, too soon, too heavy.
"I didn't ask for this," I whispered, shaking my head. "I didn't ask for any of this."
Lucas didn't back away. Instead, he stepped closer, his gaze still firm. "Neither did I. But we can't ignore it, Elaine."
His words settled over me like a heavy blanket, suffocating and warm at the same time. There was no denying the truth in them. I could feel the pull between us, an undeniable force that tugged at the very core of my being. But there was something else, too—something that clawed at my chest, preventing me from fully embracing the bond. The fear. The fear of losing control, of being trapped in a life I wasn't sure I wanted. Not if it meant living under someone else's rules, someone else's expectations.
"I'm not ready for this," I murmured, more to myself than to him.
Lucas's eyes softened, a quiet understanding in his gaze. He nodded slowly, and for the first time since I had arrived, I saw a flicker of vulnerability in him. It was quite little,but it was there. He wasn't just the strong Alpha who led this pack with unfaltering resolve. In that moment, I saw the man behind the title, the man who was just as lost as I was.
"You don't have to be," he said quietly, his voice rough. "We'll take this one step at a time."
But I wasn't sure that was enough. I wasn't sure that the bond between us could ever be simple. Because there was more at stake now than just my own fear. There was Lucas's pack, his responsibility, and most of all, there was Selene. She wasn't just a complication—I could see it in the way Lucas's eyes would darken whenever her name was mentioned, the way his body would tense when she entered the room. She wasn't going to make this easy.
"I don't belong here," I repeated softly, more to myself than to him.
Lucas reached for me then, his hand brushing against my cheek, and for a moment, the world felt like it was narrowing down to just the two of us. It was a tenderness I hadn't expected, a gentleness that cut through the walls I had built around myself. But still, I hesitated. Because I knew deep down, nothing in this world was simple. Not with Dennis on the hunt for me, not with Selene scheming in the shadows. I was already a target, and Lucas's protection, though comforting, wouldn't be enough to shield me from what was coming.
"We'll figure it out," Lucas murmured, his voice low and reassuring. "You're safe here."
But I didn't feel safe. Not with the storm that was brewing in the distance, not with the secret that I carried—the truth of the child growing inside me, a child that could shatter everything.
I pulled away from Lucas's touch, my breath shaky. "I can't stay here forever, Lucas," I said, my voice cracking with the weight of everything I was too afraid to say. "I can't keep hiding."
His eyes narrowed, and the expression on his face shifted. "You're not hiding, Elaine. You're part of this pack. And you're not alone."
I swallowed hard, fighting the lump in my throat. But even as his words tried to comfort me, the reality of things enveloped me like a dark cloak. I wasn't ready for this life. And more than that, I wasn't sure I ever would be.
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