Ch. 24：A hug was all that I needed

Chapter-20
ALEXIS’S POV
‘I just want them to tell me that they loved me for once. That beyond a lantern that brought shame to them, their family, and the pack, I was also their daughter that they loved. I just want them to hug me. Is it too much to ask? Can’t someone just love me for once? Am I this hateful? Don’t I deserve love?’ I asked, not realizing that I was wailing beside the tree now.
It was a good decision that I came into this secluded corner where no one comes, or I wouldn’t be able to explain my condition to anyone.
‘Sshhh… It’s okay. You have got me. I love you no matter if anyone else does or not. I will always stay by your side and will always protect you. I am sorry that I can’t show myself, but I am doing this for your own safety.’ Ariana said, and the more she was talking about this wolf thing, the more pathetic I was feeling.
I know I am sed to her jokes like that, but can’t see she that I am not in the mood of joking?
‘To hell with this wolf thing! Am I not a person? Don’t I deserve to be loved? What the hell in the world did I do to deserve this? All of this just because I didn’t change into the wolf on my 14th birthday. Am I not a person? Just because I don’t have a wolf everyone has the right to treat me like this? Why?
My parents abandoned me because I was a lantern. I suffered the hatred of the whole pack because I was a lantern. I didn’t get to meet the love of my life because I was a lantern. I had to leave the pack, hide, live alone in dangerous places all alone because I was a lantern, and now the strongest alpha of the world is investigating my case because I wanted a little peace in my life and decided to live safely among humans. All of this is because I am a lantern, ain’t it?’ I shouted at my conscience, not realizing that I shouted those words for real, and there was someone else in here with me who was silently watching me breakdown and mourn my lantern things.
“All of this is not happening with you because you are a lantern. It is happening to you because you didn’t meet the right kind of people. The people who had the guts to stand for you and care for you despite all your differences.’ I heard a voice from behind me, and I turned to look in the direction, my eyes widening when I realized who the person was.
“How long have you been standing here?” I asked, wiping my tears while standing up. My emotional drama can wait. I don’t need to show my weakness to anybody I barely know.
“Long enough to see through your strong facade.” He said, and I nodded my head at him. He had probably seen all of my mental breakdowns, and I didn’t want to embarrass myself more than I already have, and thus, I turned around to leave.
However, before I could pass through him, he gripped my hand, making my lips tremble a bit as I was stile recovering from my earlier breakdown
“Leave my hand,” I said, my voice coming out colder than I had intended.
“Friends don’t leave their friends alone when they are in need.” He said, repeating the same word that I had said to him in the class.
Smiling sadly, I was about to ask him to leave my hand again when he pulled me roughly towards himself, making my back bump into his chest, and before I could understand what was happening, he hugged me from behind, and I couldn’t help but wide my eyes at his gesture.
“Blake, what are you doing? Leave me.” I said, struggling to get out from his iron-like grip.
“Either I am hugging you from back, or I am hugging you from the front. The choice is yours. I am not leaving you until you calm down.” He said, and though I wanted to get out from his hold because this wasn’t appropriate, a part of me was glad for his hug. The part of my heart that was feeling strangely calm and protected in his arms.
A feeling that was undoubtedly unfamiliar to me. Was a hug really this powerful? Is this how people feel when someone hugs them when they are going through a tough time? Or was it just me? Is this the reason why I always craved for my parents’ hug whenever kids in the pack would bully me? Is this why they never hugged me? Because they didn’t want me to feel protected? Because they wanted me to suffer?
Looks like a hug was all I needed to calm myself down from this emotional trauma and breakdown.
“Why are you doing this?” I couldn’t help but ask him. He was the beta of the Alpha, who was probably thinking about the cruel ways to exile me and finding the reasons to get me out from his pack or better out from this world. And even after knowing that he will be in a big problem if his alpha came to know that he was befriending me and trying to help me, he was still here, putting his position and even his life at stake, and helping me through this tough time.
I waited for his answer patiently, anticipating what he will have to say. However, the answer that he gave me rendered me both speechless and fuming with anger for a few seconds.