Bullied Mate Of The Lycan Kings
Chapter 28

Lily's

POV

For the first time since Cade, I was brave enough to admit to myself that I enjoyed the company of a boy truly and was not so on guard that I was worried about running every five minutes.

After Ren shared that part of himself with me, a part that he knew I could understand, it was easy for us to move to easier topics and Olga was all too happy to keep feeding us until we left because now she had sent over pancakes, ice cream and a small dish of fruits. At one point, I had been skeptical about the bill and when I said it, Ren raised his eyebrows at me and shook his head.

"You can treat me another time. I brought you here, so next time, when it's your turn, you can cover the bill." He had answered and I loved how he did not just dismiss my worry and throw the fact that he was richer than me by a lot and would never worry about petty things like money for the rest of his life.

Ren told me about his childhood and even though I realized that he did not speak so much about his parents, he spoke a lot about his sister Rhea. Separated by only a few months, many would actually think that they were twins at first sight and that was how close they were.

It was easy for me to tell him about myself too and even though I refrained from straying anywhere too close to my father, I told him about my mother, about most of my childhood and when I told him about how I was homeschooled for a period of time before coming to Shadow Cove, he raised his eyebrows at me, his arms folded in a way that made me eye his biceps covertly.

My hands were hidden under the table and I had to hold them together to stop myself from wanting to reach for his hand.

He was Mauve's boyfriend. Not mine. I needed to really remember that.

"Homeschooled? Why what happened?" He asked and I shrugged, already feeling the memories of my time at Gold crest begin to creep up on me.

No, I didn't want to tell him about such a horrible point in my life and have him pity me again. He was already privy to the train wreck that I was. He didn't need to know that I was also deceived, used and discarded like an object crossed off a bucket list. "I was hurt badly and home schooling was better for a time. My mother was averse to me stopping homeschooling though when I told her that I wanted to apply to Shadow cove."

My mother was furious and didn't speak to me for the entire day and even now, she watched and asked about the school with eagle eyes. I couldn't let her know that I was being bullied or she was going to force me to leave.

Seeing that I didn't want to talk about why I was homeschooled, he nodded and asked another question.

"Then why did you insist on coming to Shadow cove?" His tone was silent but I could see it in his eyes, the question about why I endured all of the horrors and still showed up everyday when I could be homeschooled and be free of the bullies.

"You already know this but the name Beauregard around here is not really treated with kindness. I don't want to remain in Shadow Cove all my life because it's clear that I'm not wanted here and there is also the fact that I believe that a whole world is just waiting outside of this community for me to explore. I want a ticket into an Ivy league and in the future, into a well paying job and the academy is the fastest and most legit way to get started. More than anything, I want to succeed and since Shadow cove is the answer, I'm not about to chicken out because of people that do not like me."

That was why no matter how I went back home, whenever it was time for school, even if I had to drag my a*s to the academy, I made sure that I was in the school because my future was counting on it. I had bet my entire life on this one chance and I was not going to allow anyone take that away from me.

"I think that's admirable. Very much so. It makes me feel like I should be thinking better and working harder. I can study with you if you want, anything you need to make sure that you're a step closer to achieving your goal." He said solemnly and if it was any other person, I might have been skeptical but I believed him.

I proceeded to tell him about Bia, Theo and the flower shop and as we both laughed over our different childhood experiences, I felt a sense of calm and peace with him that I didn't think I had ever felt in my life. It was like I had known him my entire life. We moved smoothly to the topic of song preferences and when I eagerly brought out my phone and started untangling my wired earphones, my eyes nearly fell from my sockets as he brought out his.

Of course, it was the latest model of phone in the market and had sleek airpods that were in the same color.

I swallowed nervously as he came to sit beside me, his scent of bergamot and cardamom washing over me, and when he looked at my phone and took one of the wired earphones, placing it in his ear, he grinned at me.

"Why am I not surprised that you're using a relic like the classic babe you are? Besides the last time I think I've seen anyone using wired headphones was in a commercial on television. You're prettier than the model they used by the way." He said and I grinned, puffing up my chest with pride.

"I bought it with the savings that I earned from working really hard. And of course I'm prettier than the model, there's a reason my middle name is Aphrodite, you know? Put some respect on my name." I said.

"That's your middle name?" He asked and I nodded. "Wow. I can see it. You must be blessed by the goddess herself," he said, his face serious before he broke out in a wide smile that made me weak at the knees.

We bantered about our favourite bands and popstars and it was clear that we had very drastic differences in taste because while I preferred mainstream pop artists and alternative r&b artists like Lana del ray, the Weeknd and Chase Atlantic, Ren preferred dreamy Indie pop and intimate folk music artists like Conan Gray, Taylor Swift and Angus and Julia Stone.

It didn't stop us from swapping songs and promising to give each other's faves an honest listen and review whenever we were done listening.

I left the diner feeling like a heavy weight had been lifted off my chest.

It felt like it had been a day ago that Ren had found me crying my eyes out trying to swipe my bus card and as we entered the car and I told him to take him to my bus stop since I insisted on that instead of driving me home-I was not sure I was ready to show him my home just yet- we exchanged numbers.

"Today was good right?" He asked, an intensity in his eyes like he was trying to hang on to every word I was going to say. Like he was going to tear it open and pick it apart to find the truth in it.

I had a sneaking suspicion that if he got the feeling that the day was less than good for me, he was going to go out of his way to make it even better. In that moment, he looked like he could give me the moon if I asked for it.

I smiled and nodded, "yes, Ren. Today was wonderful, thanks to you." I whispered, without any doubt in my heart.

The last few hours made up for any s**t I had been through today.

A relieved smile stretched his lips as he started the car.