The Lunar Curse: A Second Chance With Alpha Draven novel Chapter 303

Chapter 303: The Story About the Scar

Draven.

I reached for the tissue box on the table, pulling one free and holding it out to her. "Here."

She took it with a pout, blew her nose loudly, and shoved the crumpled tissue back into my hand. My brows arched, but before I could react, she waved at the box impatiently. "Another one."

Suppressing a sigh, I handed her a second. Then a third. She accepted them like commands fulfilled, her movements careless, her words tumbling freer now, unguarded.

"What happened?" My tone came low, controlled, but my chest was a storm as every part of me focused on her alone. "Why are you crying?"

Her head tipped against the sofa, eyes half-lidded, her voice a slur of frustration and pain.

"I just found out..." She hiccupped softly, then pressed the tissue to her cheek. "...why my siblings hate me so much." 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The words froze me. My body went still, my eyes narrowing as I studied her.

"Tell me," I urged quietly, my tone sharper now, though controlled.

Her gaze flicked to mine, glassy and unfocused, yet filled with raw hurt. "Mabel... she told me."

Meredith swallowed hard, clutching the tissue in her fist. "She said... they hated me because our parents only loved me. Because I was the favorite. The pride. The perfect one."

Her lips trembled, her voice dropping to a whisper as though the words cut her even now. "She said I was selfish, arrogant... that I didn’t even care about them."

Her words stumbled into silence.

I clenched my jaw, heat rushing to my chest at the thought of Mabel’s venom. My gaze softened only when it returned to Meredith, my wife.

She let out a broken laugh, half-sob, and half-bitter. "I didn’t even know, Draven. I was a child. How could I have known?" Another hiccup. "And still they... they hated me for it. All these years."

Her hand lifted clumsily to wipe her cheek, missing her tear entirely.

I caught it in mine before she could try again, steadying her trembling fingers with my own.

I didn’t try to press her further. I stayed still, my hand covering hers, anchoring her as she slumped against the sofa.

The tissues lay forgotten in her lap, damp and wrinkled.

A few moments later, she let out another shaky breath, her words tumbling out between hiccups.

"You know, all those years..." Her gaze flickered, unfocused, staring past me as though lost in another time. "They—Mabel, Monique, Gary—they used to pinch me, hide my things, push me when no one was looking. I thought..."

She gave a hollow laugh and continued. "...I thought it was just pranks. Siblings being strict because of the age gap. They were so much older than me. I told myself that’s why they didn’t play with me. Why they pushed me away."

I thought of the promise I had made last night at dinner. To protect that smile. To never let anyone steal her happiness again. Seeing her like this only carved that vow deeper into my soul.

But for now, I stayed silent, letting her vent, letting her pour out the years she had carried alone.

Meredith’s voice broke into the silence again, softer this time, but more piercing.

"Do you remember..." She sniffled, fumbling with the damp tissue. "...do you remember that scar I used to have on my cheek? The one you kept asking about?"

My breath caught, my memory flashing to the times I’d tried to coax the truth out of her, only for her to avoid it.

I nodded slowly. "Yes. I remember."

Her lips twisted into something like a bitter smile. "I never answered you. Well... here is the story."

My chest tightened instantly as nothing prepared me for the truth no matter how much I had tried to guess back then.

I watched my wife’s gaze grow distant and clouded with pain as she spoke. "One afternoon, back in school... a boy cornered me while I was in the restroom. He—" her voice wavered, "...he tried to force himself on me."

I froze. The air in my chest turned sharp, slicing me open from the inside.