CHAPTER 28

OLIVIA'S POV
While I was sitting in my room, reading the horror novel I had collected from the library, my mind wandered and I couldn't focus on the reading.
I remembered the people's murmurs from before and it crossed my mind over and over again which made me unable to focus. I kept rethinking the words I could've said and the perfect badass response I could've come up with but sadly, it was too late for that.
I heard a knock on the door which snapped me out of my thoughts. "Come in!" I said after I'd positioned myself properly on the bed.
The door opened revealing Vanessa. I immediately let out the breath I was holding and gestured to Vanessa to move closer to me.
She was holding a bowl containing strawberries. She smiled at me softly and walked toward my bed.
"I brought you some strawberries."
It looked incredibly fresh and sumptuous. Even though I remembered that I was called a freeloader for simply living in the mansion, I wanted to have a taste of the delicious fruit. It was calling out to me.
"Is it okay to bring the strawberries here?" I asked and she nodded, "Of course, you're a guest here. You deserve to be treated very well."
I sighed, "I don't know.."
I looked into Vanessa's trustworthy eyes and said, "Can you. Tell me about this pack?"
Vanessa sighed deeply, "You're just a guest, you won't spend a lot of time here anyways so. It's not necessary."
"Actually..." I looked into Vanessa's eyes and all of my hesitation and worries went away, "I am Julian's mate."
Vanessa's eyes widened and she placed the bowl of fruits on the table and went to her knees.
"Luna," She gasped while keeping her head on the floor.
This behavior caught me aback. I didn't expect her to treat me that highly.
Even at Blue blood pack, everyone just minded their business and treated me normally although with caution.
Seeing Vanessa on the floor with her head bowed made me uncomfortable. I was usually the one doing the bowing but now...
"Vanessa," I said before moving away from the comfort of my bed to stand and lift her. She hesitated when I lifted her and kept her bed bowed.
"It's okay." I smiled at her, "Don't tell anyone yet though," I said before grabbing the bowl containing strawberries.
I grabbed one and took a bite. As expected, it was sweet and juicy.
"S-since you're Luna t-then why don't you shut down the rumor going around?"
So Vanessa also knew that I was being called a free loader?
I had no idea what to say about that. Of course, she would know, the maids in the pack house closely worked together to avoid getting scolded by their superiors.
"Do you know what started the rumor?" I asked while having more strawberries.
"N-no." Vanessa shook her head.
Whenever the Alpha in my former pack had a guest over, the maids would treat the guest very well without knowing who he or she was so it was quite surprising that I was called a free loader without the maids knowing who I was.
Was it because they could not sense my wolf so they assumed I was some helpless creature Niamh saved and brought into the house to please Julian? They were so wrong and I was going to prove that to them.
"Vanessa," I said sternly and she looked at me quickly.
"Y-yes, Luna?"
"I need you to tell me everything you know about this pack. Everything."
Vanessa looked at me with baby blue eyes and stuttered with her head bowed, "Y-you don't need to feel embarrassed as you're the Luna. No one will mistreat you. One word from you to them is an order but I.."
I understood. If she told me everything that was happening in the pack, she would be mistreated for it, if they found out she was responsible for spilling those secrets.
"Vanessa," I placed a hand on both her shoulders and helped her sit on the spot next to me on my bed.
"I won't tell anyone about this. Don't you pity me? I don't know anything about my mate and his pack. If I'm to survive here, I need some tips- No,"
I was going to need a whole lot of information, not only tips.
"Look," I re-centered my focus on Vanessa who looked like she did not believe me. "I'll protect you if anything happens so spill."
Vanessa eyes widened upon the first half of my sentence and she began to nod vigorously, "I'll tell you everything, I'll tell you everything."
Even though I tried not to let it bother me, I was scared to find out the information my mate's pack held.
Granted, every pack were involved in dark things but...
I was biased. I didn't want my mate nor his pack to be involved in anything too extreme.
"To be honest, my mother worked here as a cook until she passed on due to an illness. Since then, I had no backbone in the pack so It was easy, getting bullied by my peers."
"Did you tell him, the Alpha?" I asked.
I knew how that felt, getting treated like a pest and I hoped Julian would do better as an Alpha.
"No, the Alpha is always busy. I couldn't even get a chance to speak with him if I wanted to."
Seeing the Alpha could be sometimes troublesome. I knew that fact too.
"What type of person is the Alpha?"
"He's thorough and this can be sometimes frustrating."
"What do you mean?"
"He likes his meal a certain way and the decorations a certain way as well but when it doesn't look like what he wants, he gets moody and sometimes, impatient."
After seeing the look of disappointment in my eyes, Vanessa cleared her throat, "But he does have some good traits."
I was hooked even though I didn't want to, "What are his good traits?"
"He's a great fighter, no one can beat him."
I swallowed, that was a good trait sure but it kind of made me uncomfortable.
Would Julian kill off anyone who got on his bad side?
"He's also a good leader. He oversees the warrior's activities sometimes and personally trains them. He's understanding too and gives people a chance to be themselves. Also, he's non-judgemental."
I exhaled but I wanted more information. The information Vanessa was telling me wasn't exactly what I was hoping for or was she restraining something from me because she was scared?
"Vanessa, seriously.. You can tell me everything about Julian, I won't sell you out."
Vanessa mind wandered about it for a while before she said, "Although he has an attitude when he's angry, he's actually pretty decent but.. the pack is made up of strong members. If you don't show your strength on the first meeting, they will bully you. Luna or not."
I exhaled.
I'd already had a taste of that in all honesty.
The girls at the library didn't fear her reporting her offense to Niamh because according to them, she didn't have 'The guts'
I should have said something back then to show Julian some face. I didn't want anyone to think that he had a weak partner.
I was his partner, his mate.
Their Luna.
Acting all weak because of my past wasn't helpful. I had to stand tall and show my neck.
Only that way would I be fit to stand next to Julian. Even though we were mates and he could tolerate my excesses-
I couldn't tolerate myself.
I had let it go on for far too long, the bullying and everything else from the previous pack. I was no Cinderella and Julian wasn't a prince, he was a King and I wanted to be the right queen for him.
And for that to happen, I had to be open to communication and being real with him regardless of my triggers.
I had to be open to being vulnerable.
The thought itself was uncomfortable but I had to try for Julian. For us.
I plowed down on my bed and sighed deeply.
It was going to be hard but I had gone through a lot and neither of those circumstances broke me. At least, not yet and I was going to use that to my advantage.
"Are you alright?" Vanessa muttered, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"Yes," I answered.
"I was calling you for a bit but you were completely zoned out."
I met Vanessa's gaze, "Really?"
I didn't think I could zone out that easily. Perhaps, I was thinking about fitting into a future with Julian.
"Yeah," Vanessa answered with a nod.
She was cute. And her cheeks were squishy which made me want to squeeze them so bad.
I had made up my mind, if things went out as planned then. I would make Vanessa my maid so she wouldn't get bullied by anyone.
This wasn't only because of her.
Protecting her would make me feel as though I was protecting the neglected and hurt sides of me.
Another sigh escaped my lips and I grabbed the bowl containing strawberries and pushed it towards Vanessa who looked really nervous just by sitting next to me.
"Want some strawberries?"
Vanessa said and shook her head, "No, thank you. Luna."
I sighed, "There go the formalities. Just call me Olivia."
"According to the rules, it's unforgivable. God forbid I say your name out loud."
I let out a deliberate sigh, this one longer than the previous ones.
"Fine, don't call me Olivia. Just eat some goddamn strawberries!"
Vanessa looked stunned at the tone in which I was speaking to her but when she saw my face, she relaxed and smiled at me before grabbing a strawberry.
She took a bite of it and her eyes lightened up, "This is sweet!"
Her smile made me smile too. She looked like the most excited girl in the world.
"You can have some more strawberries," I told her and watched as she ate the fruits like it was some birthday present. I too could relate to that.
I used to cook for people in my previous pack but when it got to my turn to eat, I would barely have an appetite to eat.
However, in my previous pack I was in the cooking department but...
"Vanessa," I said and she instantly looked up to face me with wide eyes. "Yes?" Came to her swift response.
"Which duties are assigned to you in the pack?"
"I do the laundry and cleaning."
That was was a lot...
There was usually a lot to do in the laundry section not to talk about cleaning.
I would find a way to help her so she wouldn't suffer too much.
With that thought, I watched as she ate the strawberries with a satisfied smile on her face.
This made me feel even more motivated to carry out my thoughts.
I wouldn't let Vanessa feel all the torture I had to go through living like a slave in my pack.
I remembered the words she had told me,
"To be honest, my mother worked here as a cook until she passed on due to an illness. Since then, I had no backbone in the pack so It was easy, getting bullied by my peers."
I was going to be her backbone, I wouldn't let anyone bully her.
In my pack, my parents were there and they had high positions but that couldn't save me. I was as useless and weak as the other maids there.
I had no saving grace at all.
Neither of my family cared.
Not my high-strung father.
Not my harsh mother.
Not my proud brother.
Even my friend who was also a maid had more grace than me.
Her leg that got amputated was replaced with another but no one gave a damn about my back.
All the Alpha and his little friend did was scream.
Even though I said it didn't hurt, the least they could've done was pretend to care and insist I got treatment.
It was too late tho.
Now I wasn't going to rely on another to save me. I was going to show all of the parts of myself I kept hidden.
I was going to show all of the strong parts of myself that I kept restrained due to my fear.
I was going to be a strong Luna.