37. Chapter 37
Cassie
My apartment was quieter than it had ever been.
I’d turned off every notification, unplugged my TV, and pulled every curtain closed.
I hadn’t left the couch in days. A ratty t-shirt I’d worn during one of the challenges was balled up next to me, my only solace since I’d been booted off the show.
It smelled like them, like the moss, the cedar, the plum, the leather.
It gave me both comfort, and an ache in my heart.
I’d never thought I’d miss them like this. My emotions were running high, and I could barely function.
As much as I thought I’d never rely on a pack, much less fall in love - I had.
And it had been fast, and unexpected. Now my body knew something was missing, and it wouldn’t let me be.
Every cell inside me ached to be near them, to receive their comfort, their protection, their gentle touch to calm me down.
And I wanted the kind, compassionate care that only another omega could give.
When would I ever be able to feel like that again?
I’d ruined the one thing I ever truly needed, and I didn’t even realize how much I wanted them until everything was yanked away.
Tears slipped down my face again. My eyes were puffy and swollen with the nearly non-stop crying and sniffling from the past few days.
My omega side was unraveling. It clawed for them, screamed to be near them.
The bond we’d started building, so new and real, now ached like a part of me was missing.
I kept replaying it all in my head - Ash’s soft touch, Leo’s teasing, Rys’s calm steadiness, and Jace’s unexpected fire.
Deep down, I knew who they were. They were my mates.
And now they were gone, just like that.
This felt way worse than going viral. I’d actually prefer to relive my viral moment one thousand times over than to be dealing with this pain. This wasn’t people mocking me online - this was me losing something I never even knew was possible.
"Okay, now you are just looking way too tragic," my sister said as she barged into the living room, throwing open the curtains with no sympathy left for my wallowing. “You look like one of those sad omegas from a documentary about rejected mates.” That’s because I was one, a desperate, pathetic sad omega.
"Go away," I mumbled, covering myself with a blanket.
"Nope," she said, plopping down beside me. “You’ve cried enough to last the next five years. And, sorry but you need a shower. A stench is starting to build up in here.” She yanked me up toward the bathroom.
I groaned, too tired to put up any resistance. "I messed it up. You saw the video. I can’t ever take those words back."
"You said what you had to say to me because you were scared,” she said, voice softening. “I get it. But hiding won’t fix it. You’ve been hiding since before that show! It’s time to face the world.”
I clenched my teeth. “I can’t imagine a world without them.” Julianne sighed as she ran warm water and body wash over a washcloth in the sink, then wrung it out and lifted my arm.
“At least wash your pits! And my God, we have to run a brush through your hair.” She began brushing my ratty mat of curls, trying in vain to get me looking like less of slug.
“I can’t live without them. I can’t even imagine a future without them.” I wailed, starting to tear up again. She sighed and got another washcloth, and soon was wiping my face with it, trying to get my puffy eyes looking better.
After a minute, she stepped back. “Alright. Put this on.” She threw a long maxi dress at me, and I caught it, holding it up with a questioning look.
“Really? I think I earned the right to at least wear sweats for the next month.” She rolled her eyes and started yanking on my shirt, trying to get me to switch to the dress.
“Come on. Let’s go out and get some fresh air. And stop fighting me!” After another minute, she had me in the dress, my hair in a messy bun, and my face slightly less puffy. I looked in the mirror.
“Uh, still a mess.” I said. She looked at me in the mirror, stepping beside me as she gave me a hug.
“Well, I guess if they really do want to see you as much as they claim, a little mess won’t be a dealbreaker.” She said, giving me a smile. I turned to her, my heart racing.
"No," I whispered. "You’re joking."
She looked straight into my eyes. “It’s no joke. Don’t keep them waiting. They look like they’re in as much pain as you are.” She said, giving me a nudge.
“Where?” I asked, my heart beating faster with every moment.
“In the lobby.”
She barely had the words out before I turned. I ran to the door, yanking it open, and looked down the stairs into the lobby several floors below. I couldn't see much, but I knew it was them. Leo, Rys, Jace, and Ash.
I couldn’t breathe for a moment. Then, I was running down the stairs two at a time, launching down the last few with no regard for dignity.
I almost tripped over the long maxi dress, but caught myself just in time.
Leo nearly dive bombed into the floor to try to catch me.
The moment I reached them, I threw myself into Leo’s arms, then Ash gripped me, and soon I was surrounded by all of them.
My pack.
After a long minute of me sobbing, half in disbelief and half in happiness, I pulled back to look at them. Ash looked like he’d been through hell. Rys gave me a quiet nod, and Leo gave me his confident, goofy grin. Jace looked like he’d been through a war and won.
“You’re here?” I managed to eke out, voice shaking. “Why? How?”
“We left,” Rys said simply, his hand squeezing my shoulder. “We walked off during filming. Told them we wouldn’t keep playing a game that didn’t include you.”
I was speechless. I looked between them, wondering how that all played out.
“We made a scene,” Jace added, looking down at me with such care that I nearly perfumed. “I wish you could have been there. The producers panicked. Turns out, without the number one team, they are a bit worried about future ratings and viewer responses. The network execs started getting involved.”
Leo leaned in, his golden mop of hair brushing my neck as he hugged me again, a huge, lifting motion that swept me off my feet like I weighed nothing. “They‘ve been calling my agent nonstop, begging for us to come back. They said we could name our price.”
My mouth fell open. “You… you left for me?”
“No, omega,” Ash whispered, pulling me close again. “We left for us .”
I melted. Ash, out of everyone, had the most to lose by leaving the show.
He had no backup plan. He didn’t have a corporate job, he wasn’t a former athlete, he came from nothing.
But he still walked away from the biggest opportunity of his life.
And I was going to make sure he never regretted that.
I reached up and cupped his face, his cheeky grin giving me another view of that gorgeous dimple of his.
His eyes sparkled, and he leaned down to kiss me so deeply that I’d probably never recover.
For the first time since I was voted off, the ache inside me eased. The hole that had torn through my chest began to stitch itself back together, piece by piece, with every look, every word, every touch.
“I thought I lost you forever.” I breathed.
“You didn’t.” Rys said, his large, stable presence giving me much needed comfort.
“And now, let’s take this somewhere private.
” He said with a hint of amusement. I looked around.
We were still in the lobby of my apartment, with various residents passing us by awkwardly, unwilling witnesses to our reunion.
I remembered I hadn’t showered in a few days and bit my lip.
At least my sister got me out of my ratty clothes before I ran down here.
“Yeah, uh, let’s get up to my place. It’s not at its cleanest right now.” I admitted, thinking about the depression pit I’d turned the living room into.
“That’s fine, Cassie. Your sister warned us.” Leo said with a chuckle. “We’re just glad to have you back.” I grabbed his hand and started to lead them up the stairs.
“I have to explain to you what you heard in the video, I know it was awful-” I started to explain, but Rys interjected.
“Your sister told us about it. We know there was more than what we saw.” He explained.
“Still, I know it was awful that I said those things. I didn’t want to admit to my family, or myself, that I was falling for you on tv.” I said, cringing as I took each step.
“I mean, it is a little embarrassing.” Ash said with a playful nudge. “Even I didn’t want to admit it. But now, I don’t care. I’ll shout it from the rooftops.” He said, and I had to agree.
“I kind of do want to shout it from the rooftop. Or at least my patio.” I joked, and we stepped into my apartment, which my sister had tried to hastily clean in the few minutes I was away.
“Well, this is it.” I said, waving my hand around. “And Julianne, who you’ve already met.” My sister smiled at them, extending her hand. Leo bounded over to her, wrapping her in a hug that nearly lifted her from the ground.
“So glad to see my future sister in law!” He said, and I bit back a grin. The rest of them walked over to greet her, each of them wrapping her in a hug.
“Uh, looks like you all seemed to work things out!” My sister replied. “I’ll just step outside and run some errands. See you all later!” She said with an awkward grin as she tried to give us some privacy. Once she stepped out, I walked toward the patio and threw the doors open.
“What are you doing?” Jace asked, his eyes curious.
“Shouting it from the rooftops.” I said, looking back at them before I stepped onto my patio and looked at the people walking about below on the street.I took a deep breath, delirious with happiness as I shouted down to everyone who could listen:
“I’m in love with my team!”