Freya's POV

My hands were sore and hurting from the hard stone as I washed the floor. A knot formed in my throat as I tried to ignore the laughing that was resonating all around me. Their snickers and hushed comments were plenty to remind me of my position without them even having to speak. I was the Whiteclaw Pack's orphan and outcast, always underneath them and always there to clean up their trash.

"Hi, Freya! A place was missed! Lucas, a young wolf, pointed to a patch on the ground with a sly smile. He only wanted to make fun of me, regardless of whether I had already cleaned the entire hall.

I choked back a response as I washed the same area I had cleaned twice and said, "Yes, Lucas." Since I was already seldom permitted here, I couldn't afford to respond.

The few other pack members who did look at me were seldom nice, and the majority hardly looked at me at all. A shadow in the background of their proud and powerful pack, I was the unseen girl who cooked, cleaned and ran errands. The glimmering hope that I would one day be recognized as more than an orphan was my only source of solace. However, that hope dwindled every day.

After cleaning for a while, I stood up and stretched to try to get the ache out of my arms. My eyes strayed to the pack members huddled together in the hallway, laughing and chatting like a large family. A family that I did not belong to.

Then my gaze fell upon him.

Finnick Alpha Logan commanded the room from his position close to the centre. His piercing green eyes, sharp jawline, and dark hair made him unmissable even from across the hall. Everyone in his vicinity listened intently, holding on to his every word as he spoke in a calm yet authoritative tone. He was the type of leader who was unaware of my existence for whom people would stop at nothing.

I observed him, appreciating how he maintained everyone's respect. However, it simply served to highlight how insignificant and unworthy I was in contrast. I had never met Finnick Logan's family, but he had the respect and the power. Additionally, I was merely the floor-scrubbing gal.

I was unable to turn my head away, though.

One of the pack elders came up to me later that day while I was wrapping up my chores, her face unreadable. Uncertain if I was in danger, my heart skipped a beat.

Her eyes narrowed as though she were examining me, and she spoke in a clipped voice, "Freya." Tonight, there's a get-together. Alpha Finnick wants everyone, including you, to be present.

"Me?" Unable to conceal my surprise, I mumbled. I was never invited to events by them. Usually, I was ignored completely or sent out to perform another task.

"You, indeed." She grimaced as she looked down at my tattered attire. "Avoid making a fool of yourself."

I stood there, shocked and nervous, as she left. A party? With the entire pack? Uncertain of whether to feel fear or excitement, my stomach wrenched. This could be my opportunity to prove to them that I was more than just the orphan girl and to finally fit in.

Perhaps, just possibly, they might notice me at last.

With my heart pounding in my chest, I walked into the gathering hall into the crisp night air. I tried to stay out of the spotlight by staying toward the periphery of the group. The other wolves, some of whom didn't bother to conceal their sneers, raised their eyebrows at me or murmured to one another. Even though my cheeks were burning, I kept my head up. I was entitled to be here as well.

As I looked about, I noticed Alpha Finnick in the front of the room, where there was a lot of laughter and chatter. A born leader, he stood tall and proud. He welcomed everyone to the pack with a smooth, authoritative voice. Every time I saw him, my pulse raced because of something attractive about him.

Then it occurred.

Finnick looked over the gathering, glancing at each person before settling on me.

His penetrating emerald eyes met mine, and my breath caught. The sound of the crowd subsided, leaving only the pounding of my own heart. I experienced a powerful, almost painful, stirring sensation inside of me. Everything I had ever needed and desired seemed to be right there in his eyes.

My friend. I was filled with a peculiar mixture of excitement and anxiety as the word replayed in my head.

My mate was destined to be Finnick. My entire self was aware of it. I had been waiting for this opportunity. The connection, and the bond were genuine. I was destined for him, and he was for me.

However, his visage darkened before I could even begin to comprehend what that meant.

Finnick's lips twisted into a sneer as his gaze got icy. He moved forward while keeping his eyes fixed on mine.

"No," he answered in a low, contemptuous voice. "This... this isn't possible."

There were confused mutterings all around us, but Finnick paid no attention to them, concentrating only on me. His face was filled with contempt as he shook his head.

"A mate by fate?" His voice brimmed with disdain as he mocked. "With her?"

I felt my heart break apart as the words struck me like a slap. I wanted to ask him to think again, but I couldn't find the right words. As he went on, I just stood there, motionless.

"You believe that I would take a weakling or orphan as a mate?" His eyes swept scornfully over me. "Freya, you are nothing. This pack is nothing more than a burden.

Everyone in the vicinity grew silent, focusing on me while observing and evaluating me. I wanted to vanish, to bury myself in the ground and get away from the shame that was enveloping me.

Finnick's tone became icier. "You have my rejection as a mate, Finnick Logan."

I was devastated by the finality of what he said. Turned down. Instead of simply rejecting me, he publicly humiliated me so that everyone could see how worthless he believed me to be.

I thought I caught a glimpse of uncertainty in his eyes for a second, but it vanished as fast, replaced by the same cold determination.

I staggered back, tears that I could no longer contain obscuring my eyesight. The faces around me blended into a jumble of derision and sympathy as the room whirled. I was unsure about what to do and where to go. All I knew was that I needed to leave.

Even though my legs felt heavy, I made myself get up and run out of the hallway. Finnick's icy, merciless gaze was the last thing I saw as the doors shut behind me.

As I raced, tears mingling with the cold, the night air outside was piercing my flesh. The rejection was more painful than anything I had ever experienced, and every word kept coming back to me like an unavoidable nightmare.

I was nothing. A load. I was even less than that now. Rejected by the only person who was supposed to support and care for me.

My chest aching with silent sobbing, I paused at a solitary tree at the forest's edge, unable to breathe. The agony twisted through me like a knife and was intolerable.

"Why?" With my voice breaking, I whispered. "What made me insufficient?"

However, there was only the chilly, empty quiet surrounding my response.

And I had a terrifying conclusion as I stood there, broken and alone.

Now I was alone. No family, no mate, no pack. I was all alone, all alone.

A lone wolf howled in the distance, reverberating through the night with a sound that echoed the pain in my heart.