Chapter 52: Chapter 52

She misses Dominic...

But he doesn't...

He doesn't even seem to care about her existence anymore. He doesn't look at her the way he used to whenever he spots her.

He just doesn't seem interested anymore. Maybe she should just go back to New York and spend the rest of her life there...

As if she could...

"What about baby pink?" Miley was holding up a light pink silk fabric. She attached it to her body and twirled. "C'mon, I think this is it," she said persuasively, checking herself out in the mirror.

"I'll wear that," Lily says with a shrug.

They've been in the shopping mall, buying stuff for Jim and Shannon's wedding. It's just three weeks left and they were just picking out the colors they were going to wear at the wedding.

"Pink is beautiful," Alice said, waving it off. She'd not been herself all day. She loves shopping but whenever she makes an attempt to do the slightest thing, Dominic's face jerks up in her head and she gets a reverie of the phone call he answered when he picked them up at the airport.

Lily hasn't said anything about Dominic having a new mate. Or perhaps she was hiding it from her. It has to be that—she doesn't want to hurt her feelings because they’re friends.

"Alice, what color of shoes do you want? Silver, golden or same pink? You know what? I'll get us matching shoes." Miley shrugs off and head towards the shoe aisle.

Lily was observing her. She'd been looking at Alice's every move and how she'd been obviously worked up.

"Are you okay?" She asked. Alice briskly looks up but she couldn't hide the fact that she wasn't. "Is it my brother?"

There was a hitch in her breath and she could swear she had forgotten how to breathe. She doesn't want to talk about Dominic at the same time wants to tell Lily everything that was bothering her concerning him.

When Alice lowered her head, she knew it has to do with her brother. She got up from her seat and joined Alice on the long chair.

"Have you seen him since you came back?"

Alice tried to act casual and breezy. "Yeah, when he picked me and Max up at the airport." She also wanted to tell Lily they stopped by a shopping mall to get snacks and Dominic received a call from someone and it was obviously a girl.

His mate.

"You haven't seen him since that day?" Lily asked her.

"I haven't gone out since I returned. So, I don't know if he's been with my father or not." She was lying, she had heard his voice so many times in their living room. She had seen him through her window while he was leaving.

"Well, I don't really know what you two want but for all I know is that he's still in love with you." Lily got up just as Miley returned with three pairs of silver heels.

Alice doesn't know whether to react to what Lily just said and left her on suspense or to the ugly pairs of heels Miley was holding.

Lily smiled and slumped her shoulder. Alice pursed her lips and turned her gaze to Miley. They were obviously not done talking yet.

"Miley, you know I don't wear heels."

Miley rolled her eyes. "But you always wore them for Dominic," she said walking back to the shoe aisle.

Lily tried to suppress her laughter but failed.

"I have to. He’s way taller than me! That girl just opens her mouth to say the weirdest shit ever," Alice mumbled in disbelief, shaking her head.

Half an hour, they were done shopping and Max picked them up.

They head home straight because there was an event in the evening. It's Jim and Shannon's engagement party and they had to head home to get ready.

They arrived at the gate just as Fredrick and Dominic together with Jim walked out through the gate. Alice groans lowly but Lily heard her.

It feels as though Dominic lives with them. As if her home's problems were the only thing he had at hand. Was he always here when she wasn't around?

Alice badly wanted to know that but she knows best not to ask anyone in this car. The only person that'd know was Miley and she knew even if she asked, Miley might not tell her after declining every shoe she chose for them.

They drop off from the car and head into Alice's house to get ready. Linda was in the kitchen with Shannon doing God knows what. Maybe getting the guests food ready.

They head straight to Alice's room to start getting ready for the event.

**

Dominic is at the party but he hasn't even looked at her ever since he came. He was speaking with her father—as usual. He looks like he's having a great time while she’s suffering from his ignorance.

It burns her heart to see him smiling and she wasn't the reason behind that beautiful smile.

He just laughed now and she found herself smiling because his laughter echoed in her ears, causing a ball of desire in her stomach. She swallowed hard and averted her gaze just as Max joined her.

She looks up at Max, smiling at him. He smiled back, offering her a glass of cranberry juice and she thanked him.

"Enjoying yourself?" She asked and took a sip of her drink.

He shrugs his shoulders. "It's still going to happen whether I'm happy or not."

He has a point—his mother is clearly happy with Jim and there's no possible way she'd end it. "You just have to learn to live with it and face reality."

"Speaking of reality," he says, turning his full attention toward her. She took a glimpse of him but doesn't turn entirely to face him like he did. She doesn't want to hear what he's about to bombard her with but her whole body is aching to hear what he has to say because it's obviously going to be about what she wants to hear.

"Have you talked things out with him?" He points towards Dominic with his head. She looks at Dominic—he still hasn't turned to look at her. Or maybe he did when she wasn't paying attention. It has to be that.

"I would be in his arms if we did, don't you think?" She scrunched her nose and gave him a tight lip smile.

He chuckled softly, looking down on his champagne. He's thinking about something. It's something that's eating him up but he's forcing that thing to go away before he loses himself.

He raised his head to look at her again. He flashed her a smile and she could swear her eyes were lying to her when she noticed the agony in his eyes.

"You should go talk to him, I'll stalk your dad and Jim from him."

She stares back at Max for few hopeful seconds but shook her head. She doesn't have that courage to walk up to him especially when everyone knows she's no longer with him. She doesn't even know what to say to him.

What if he stands her out or ignore her?

In public!

That would've been a disaster.

Max placed his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it lightly. "He just went into your house," he told her and she knew it was her cue to follow him.

"But..."

"You'll be fine. Just go before he comes out."

She was still hesitant because it felt so obdurate for her to be the first to make a move. This has to be the craziest thing she has ever done between her and Dominic. She'd already chased a guy before and he wasn't even worth her time.

Maybe Dominic was because with time, she had come to realize how she threw a diamond for a stone.

Aaron isn't worth it. Dominic is.

She hands the glass of her juice to him and head into the house through the back door.

Daniel and Miley were by the drinks, laughing about something she doesn't care to find out. She waves them off and head towards the living room. He wasn't there also. Did he go out the front door?

She walked towards the door when she heard his voice in the hallway. He was answering a call. The moment his eyes met hers, his shoulder stiffened as his jaws tensed.

He doesn't end the call for her. She waited till he was done. His face was down, typing away on his phone. It doesn't exactly look like he was really busy typing something on his phone. It looked more like he was avoiding her.

Maybe this was a bad idea.

Maybe not, because she just shoved his phone in his pocket and walked towards her. He isn't even smiling, his face was straight and his chest was gently heaving up and down. She focuses on his chest for a second till she could smell his cologne.

She closed her eyes and inhaled it. How have she missed the scent of him so much. How have she missed his warm breath fanning her face.

She opened her eyes to find his eyes staring back at her. He doesn't say anything and it seems like he wasn't planning to. He shoves his hands in his pockets to make himself more comfortable for their staring contest that she was sure she was going to fail. His gaze was too intense for her to cope with.

The feeling in her body makes her nausea because she realized in this moment that things aren't the same between them. Something huge changed, and she couldn't tell if it's good or bad. He was just staring at her with no emotion whatsoever. Dominic has been always hard to be read. He never gives emotions unless he wants to. Right now, he chooses not to give her any.

"How have you been?" She finally spoke and she could swear she noticed the flinch off his body.

He sucks in a huge breath and slowly released it. "Good." He wanted to tell her after she had shunned him off, he had to go through distress and dejection for a month straight. He wanted to tell her he was no longer the strongest werewolf he thought he was ever since she left him. But he doesn't say any of that. He just stared back at her without even knowing why he was standing in front of her.

Her lips moved but nothing came out. She wants to speak but something was holding her back. She wants to apologize but she doesn't even know how to start or where to begin with. It's already hard enough for her to stand in front of him. It's ten times harder to bring that subject up. She always winces at the thought of what she did to him.

"How was New York?"

His question makes her to ease up and build her confidence. She gave him a quick sly smile and nodded. "Good."

Good? She could do better. She could reply better. Not with how he replied her. It sounded breezy and casual in her mind but when she blurted it out, it didn't sound as casual as he said it.

He nods his head, pressing his lips together while he looked at the kitchen door.

Her lips part because she knew he was thinking of leaving. "Uh... I have something to tell you..."

He looks at her with his full attention. He's interested in what she's about to tell him. He's focused and his face is relaxed but filled with anticipation. This was the first reaction he was letting her get from him. But sadly, she doesn't even have anything to say to him.

"We have a new fountain." Yet again, it sounded cooler in her head.

The corner of his lips twitched and she could affirm he was trying to smile. His head falls and he stared at the space between them for a moment before he returned his eyes back to her. "It's beautiful," he told her and she was proud of what she had said.

"Do you... wanna check it out?" She asked, hoping he'd say yes but the look on his face was telling her otherwise.

"What are you trying to do, Alice? Are we just going to act like nothing happened? Or are we going to ignore the fact that you left me?" His question hits her right in her stomach and she wished he just walked away rather than saying that to her.

His face wasn't even as serious as his words and tone that it made her wonder if he even said those words.

"I'm sorry..."

He waves it off and shifted back. He's pacing back and forth now in the living room. The palm of his hand was on the back of his neck while his other hand was on his waist.

"If you don't wanna go to the fountain, you could just say no..."

He lets out a dry laugh and shook his head. The audacity she has to just act like she's the victim.

He halts midway and faced her. His hand wasn't on the back of his neck anymore. His finger was pointing at her and it felt like a sword to her chest. "You fucked me up... you fucked me up bigtime, Alice."

She darts her head down as her heart burns with agony. She wasn't going to cry because it would make her look vulnerable. It would make her look as if she's trying to get away with the bad things she had done.

She stared at his shoes for a moment before they begin walking back and forth again. Her eyes were still on them when he finally paused again.

"I didn't mean the things I said to you. I was confused..."

"Fuck right you were," he cuts in with a scoff. He ran his palm down his face as he sighed. She finally looks up at him and his eyes were the most hurting things she had ever seen. He's hurt. He's hurting. It's all because of her.

He straightens his shoulders and sucks in a deep breath. "I can't do this right now, Alice. I don't know if I can ever do this." He backs out until he was by the door.

He turns around and left her in her pool of misery.

She finally let the damp escape. She tried to breathe but fail. She tried to scream it all out—nothing came out. Everything was clogged up in her chest, weighing her down but she somehow managed to move her legs into her room.

The door to her room immediately opens as she closes it. She swiftly turns around with full hope that he was the one that came after her.

"Oh no..." Lily approached her with extended arms. "I saw him heading out and Miley told me you were together." She rubbed her back gently and it kind of made her to feel less foolish of herself.

"I'm such an idiot for thinking he still wants me," Alice mumbled through her tears.

"Oh, honey..." Lily said, sympathetically. "He'll come around, he's just upset right now. But he'll come around, I know he will."

Alice wanted to believe her assurance but it was hard to because that's what everyone keeps telling her—he still wants her. Whereas his actions toward her were the opposite of what everyone keeps telling her.

"I don't think he wants me anymore..."

Lily grabs her shoulders, making her to look at her. Alice's face was drenched with tears but she couldn't help but laugh at how she'd soaked Lily's shoulder with tears.

Lily shakes her head, holding her straight face. "Be serious, Alice. Dominic is your fated mate, I know that. I'm not giving you a maybe, I am telling you this! You guys are meant to be. Believe me, he's a jerk when he gets upset but he's still crazy about you. He is in love with you, Alice. So, buckle up because you're about to drown in his ocean of love."