MIA'S POV
I had planned to rest for just half an hour so I could continue the next chapter of my story, but as I slept, I felt the weather change. Maybe I had forgotten to shut the windows again.
I exhaled deeply, ready to get up, when I realized whatever I was lying on felt harder than my bed. I opened my eyes, only to be shocked by the open sky above me—stars scattered in every direction, and the moon lighting up what seemed to be a forest.
A forest?
What was I doing in a forest? There was no forest anywhere near where I lived with my parents in Michigan. Where was I?
I scrambled up from the ground, noticing weird boots on my feet. My clothes… they were different too. They were like the pack soldiers' uniforms from the story I had written. It didn't make any sense. I pinched myself repeatedly, hoping I could snap out of whatever dream this was, but it didn't feel like a dream. It felt… real.
Suddenly, I heard footsteps approaching—many of them. It was as though all my senses came alive at once. I could smell everything: the trees, the earth, the decay. It was overwhelming. Disgusting, even.
I was about to call out when I heard a rustling sound, and the footsteps stopped. I turned, expecting some trick, but then he stepped forward, and my heart began to race.
It was him. Exactly as I had imagined him—the man I had named Alpha Kade in my Snatching The Alpha story.
"No way…" I whispered, my heart hammering. It couldn't be. I wasn't… I couldn't… Before I could process the wave of emotions crashing over me, everything went black, and I felt someone—him, no doubt—wrap his arms around me.
I had no idea how long I had been out, but when I woke up, I was lying on a mat in what looked like a healer's hut. The sunlight coming in through the open window hurt my eyes as I blinked them open, making it hard to see clearly at first.
When my vision adjusted, I tried to take in my surroundings, but something caught my eye—a girl in the mirror.
"N-no!" I muttered, rushing over and gripping the edges of the mirror, staring at the reflection in shock. The girl I was looking at… was me. But not me—it was the character I had written.
"Selena? What are you doing?" A voice suddenly called from behind me, making me jump and drop the mirror. It shattered on the floor, and I felt my chest tighten. I couldn't be her. Why was I here? Why wasn't I waking up from this nightmare?
The woman behind me, whom I recognized immediately as the pack's healer, Nadia, frowned at me. I knew who she was—of course I did. I was the author of this story. I'd written this scene. And I knew Nadia hated Selena for reasons I hadn't even revealed yet in the story.
I rushed over to her, grabbing her arm desperately. "Nadia, please! You have to help me! I'm begging you," I cried, shaking her. I didn't care that I knew her name or that there were vampires and witches and enemies of this pack lurking out there. All I knew was that if I stayed here, I would die—just like I had written for Selena.
Nadia stared at me, irritated, and shrugged me off. "You're fine. Now leave. Get out!" she snapped.
I never explained why Selena and Nadia didn't get along in the story, but here we were—Nadia hating me for no reason, and me living in Selena's skin, knowing exactly what fate awaited her in a few weeks.
As Nadia turned away, I grabbed one of the cloaks hanging outside and threw it over my head, trying to sneak out. But just as I was about to leave, I bumped into Jeffrey—one of the betas. Like Selena, but with less history. Selena had grown up with the Alpha, Kade, their fathers having been best friends. It explained why she was his right hand. And then there was that little detail… I had written somewhere that Selena was hopelessly in love with Kade.
"What's wrong with you?" Jeffrey asked, giving me a strange look. "Take that off. The Alpha wants to see you."
My breath ceased, and my mind began racing like a horse when I tried to calm myself. Selena had never been able to resist Kade's charms. How was I supposed to?
"Yeah… I want to see him too," I blurted out, though I hadn't planned to say that.
As we entered the palace gates, everything looked exactly as I had imagined it—the portraits on the walls, the flower vases, the royal soldiers standing at attention, waiting for any threat.
My heart pounded louder and louder as we neared the pack's court. When the gates opened, Kade stood, a look of relief on his face.
"Selena!" he said, his voice as intoxicating as I had written it. But hearing it now… oh God.
I stood there, speechless, until I felt his arms wrap around me. His embrace was warm, filled with concern and affection. The very things Selena longed for.
I didn't know how to respond—whether to hug him back or remain frozen. But the sensation of being in his arms, the concern he showed… It all contrasted so sharply with the way my real-life boyfriend, Mark, treated me. I felt a tear slip down my cheek, and before I could stop myself, I wrapped my arms around Kade tightly.
But he quickly pulled away, his hands brushing my face and chin, as if checking to see if I was hurt. All I could focus on were his lips, his perfect face, that strong jawline, the way his hair was neatly cropped, and the broad chest that I suddenly found myself wanting to kiss…
"No!" I blurted out, a bit too loudly. He was just a character. A figment of my imagination. "I'll wake up in a hospital soon, and everything will be fine." I muttered, still hoping that somehow this was all a dream.
"What are you talking about?" Kade asked, casting a glance at Jeffrey. "What did the healer say? Did she explain why you fainted in the forest?"
"I'm not Selena, Kade," I shouted, scratching my head in frustration. None of this made any sense.
Kade looked at me, as if he was about to say something, but before he could, I remembered what happened next in the story: the arrival of Princess Arianna—the very thing that would drive a wedge between Selena and Kade.
I wanted to tell him not to listen to the next person who spoke, but before I could, a beta came rushing toward us, and Kade turned his attention away from me. I didn't need to hear their conversation. I had written it.
"Alpha," the beta would say, "Princess Arianna of the Huffington Pack is on her way to visit."
"It's about time the moon goddess prepared me a Luna," Kade would reply. "I've been faithful for long enough."
I don't know what it was that irritated me, but instead of focusing on my confusion and this bizarre nightmare, I glared at Kade when he turned back to me, clearly pleased with the news.
Was it me who was jealous, or
was Selena trying to reclaim her body?