Hazel was awake for quite a while, but she couldn't bring herself to get out of bed. Memories of last night flooded her massively and she started to wonder if she had made a mistake for giving herself to Kieran so easily.
Hell! It isn't just wondering. She knew she made a huge irreversible mistake.
To think he was so mean to her and he ruined her reputation effortlessly and made her homeless five years ago, but all she had to do was give her body to him after coming back. She felt devastated and disappointed with herself for ever being so stupid and weak to give in to that spineless devil.
Did she just say spineless for the second time?
She made a vow to herself to make them see what she was worth, she came back mainly because of the voices in her head but here she was unintentionally dragging herself in the mud.
A sigh escaped her lips and a knock came on her door.
"Hazel, are you in there?" Zelda called from the entrance and Hazel immediately jumped out of bed to avoid any worries from her friend.
"Yeah... yes, I'm in" she murmured nervously, though she tried so hard to hide how nervous she was that it barely showed while she spoke.
Zelda pressed the doorknob open and walked into the room. The moment Zelda set her eyes on Hazel, she knew something wasn't right, so she decided to ask.
"Are you okay, Hazel?" She asked in concern.
"I'm good, Zee. You don't have to worry about me" Hazel responded rather awkwardly, making it even more obvious that she was hiding something from her.
"You look prettier, by the way" Hazel muttered after a moment of silence. She was trying so hard to change the topic of discussion but Zelda on the other was being persistent.
"You're not going to change the talk, Hazel. Tell me, did something happen during the night?" Zelda asked again but Hazel shook her head.
"No, nothing... really" Hazel denied again and Zelda felt she might have reasons to keep it from her so she relented.
"Fine, if you say so" Zelda mouthed as she dropped the tray in her hands.
"This is green tea. It'll help you relax" she added before sitting at the edge of Hazel's bed. Hazel took her seat right beside her with the cup of tea in her hand. She took a sip from it and sighed gently.
"What now?" Zelda said unexpectedly.
"What?"
"I mean... you're back here to Moon Gold pack, what's your plan? What do you want to do now?" Zelda inquired curiously.
"Nothing much, I guess. I plan on finding a suitable mate and settling down with him, at least for now?" Hazel explained, her eyes revealing how sincere and also how uncertain she was.
"Well... that's a great plan ahead" Zelda said, sipping from her own cup.
"But what about Kieran? Have you heard from him?", Zelda asked after a long silence.
"Do I need to hear from him? What for?" Hazel retorted in anger and Zelda bit her lips anxiously.
"Well... I just thought"
"I don't need to hear from him, Zelda. I have nothing to talk about with him and I'll appreciate if you don't mention him in front of me ever again", Hazel said as calmly as she could not to offend her friend even though she was worked up within herself.
"I want to forget all about him" she added silently.
Zelda pressed her lips into thin line as she slipped from her cup again.
"Right!"
"I shouldn't have mentioned him in the first place. I'm sorry" Zelda said, her voice barely a whisper.
"So, how has it being for you in the past five years? You quit being the party type, didn't you?" Hazel teased and Zelda flipped her hair seductively.
"People don't change easily, do they?" Zelda simple reply echoed in the room, making Hazel laugh.
"Jesus, Zelda! You should find your mate not going around partying all day" Hazel said amidst laughter.
"Oh please, I need to have fun. Besides, I couldn't find my mate no matter how hard I looked so I'll just make use of this opportunity until he comes to find me" Zelda replied nonchalantly.
"I hope he finds you very soon" Hazel sighed, sipping from her cup.
"Kill joy" Zelda said rolling her eyes and they both bursted to laugh.
"So tell me, which Pack did you ended up staying in the last five years?" Zelda asked.
"I didn't end up in a pack"
"Do you mean you ended up in an underground pavement or..."
"I stayed in the human world" Hazel replied almost immediately and Zelda's eyes widened in shock.
"Yeah, you mentioned Seattle"
"Wait! For real? The human world we're always making fun of here?" Zelda asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, for real" came Hazel's reply.
"Wow! So was it uncomfortable staying there? How long did it take to get used to the environment?" Zelda asked all at once as her curiosity got the best of her.
"It wasn't in any way uncomfortable but there were lots of strange stuffs our there compared to the pack", Hazel explained.
"Like what?"
"Like elevators, very tall buildings, celebrities and long cars. You can't even imagine all of them", Hazel said with a little smile on her face.
"Long cars are invented here already, Hazel but for the elevators and tall buildings, I really can't imagine a building bigger or taler than the palace" Zelda said with a laugh.
"I know right?" Hazel laughed and then there was a long silence as the two paused to grab their thoughts together.
"From what happened to you five years back, I vowed never to fall into any love traps" Zelda finally broke the silence. A sad smile curved on Hazel's lips as she immediately understood what Zelda meant by saying that.
"You know, during those times, I was convinced to find my mate and I sincerely hoped he'd be someone like Kieran who loved you unconditionally but he suddenly did that to you" Zelda said with sadness clogging her voice.
"I was totally awestruck and in complete disbelief throughout my time in that dungeon and even after I was out. I couldn't stop wondering how you'd feel if even I, your friend could feel so terrible" Zelda added in concern.
"I had it rough but I got over it with time" Hazel lied, even when deep down, she knew she couldn't ever get over it... at least not now that she had stupidly lost her innocence to him.
"Of course, you're Hazel! Who does he thinks he is to break you without remorse? He probably thinks you'll come back to him and beg him on your knees, but he's so damn wrong" Zelda said sternly, her eyes glinting with laughter.
Hazel mustered a forced laughter and made it sound as sincere as possible.
"I think I have somewhere perfect you can find a new mate"