Disgusting. Everything about this man is wrong. The smell, the touch and the feeling of him kissing me felt so wrong. I was the disgusting one. I was so filthy and stupid to make my mate go through this intense pain. If only my action could be erased by showering and brushing my teeth. I would do anything to make Ryan forget about this.

I was a terrible mate. I could feel the pain my mate was feeling through our bond, but at this very moment, it was amplified. Since he wasn’t the only one that was hurting. I shared his pain. But I had to go through it. If I wanted my plan to succeed, I would have to swallow the voices and screams in my head.

I only hoped for one thing. Ryan’s forgiveness. I really hoped he would forgive me after all this.

Soon the Prince got carried away by the kiss, and I let him do whatever he wanted with my body. I closed my eyes while trying to imagine that it was Ryan who was kissing me. To make me acting more convincing, I roamed my hands on his chest and hair. The prince was so distracted that he didn’t even notice me slowly grabbing the small dagger fastened on his belt.

Before he pulled away, I had stabbed him on his chest with all my might. But before I could thrust the sharp object deep enough, I was pushed on the rough ground by the injured man. While grunting and moaning in pain, the Prince threw daggers at me with his glare.

For a moment, I felt joy since I succeeded to injure the man, but it didn’t last long. I was so glad that I succeeded, yet disappointed that I failed to kill him. I failed. I only had one chance to kill this monster. And I threw it away. If only I was stronger.

Before the Prince could order to his guards to arrest me, I quickly ran back toward Ryan. As soon as I laid my eyes on him, I couldn’t hold back my tears.

“I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I... am... s-sorry…” I sobbed uncontrollably as guilt was all I could feel at the moment.

To my surprise, he welcomed me into his arms as I continued to apologize hopingly that he won’t reject me after what I had done. Even if he accepted to forgive me, I couldn’t. I will never be able to. This bitter memory will always be burned into my memory.

“I-I didn’t know what to do. I’m sorry I betrayed you! Please, don’t leave me,” I continued while crying my heart out into my mate’s chest.

I could feel his arms tightening around my body. He was holding me so tightly that I thought he was going to break me in two. But when he started talking, my fear transformed into relief.

“Don’t blame yourself anymore. I forgive you. I’ll always forgive you no matter what you do,” he confessed lovingly as I couldn’t believe my ears.

How on earth did I get a mate like Ryan? He should feel betrayed by my previous action. How can he forgive me like that? I’m not worthy of him. I can’t stay the way I am. This was when I made a promise to myself. I’ll never again cause him to worry about me ever again. I’ll become a man worthy of him. One day, I’ll stand beside him, so I can also protect him.

"Curse you... When I get my hands on you, I’ll make sure to discipline you thoroughly. I'll break you. Count on me for this. I’ll transform you into the perfect little doll that you already are," the Prince panted as someone treated his wound.

How could he still say that? Didn’t I make it clear enough that I didn’t want to be with him? This Kingdom was never my home, to begin with. Ever since I was born, I had been criticized and looked down upon. The Prince’s selfishness was the drop that made everything unbearable. Every single one of them only thought about themselves. I didn’t know if my sperm donor was part of this plan or not, but I didn’t care anymore. It was too much for me to take. I wanted to leave this place forever.

My mate was the only one that I really needed. If my family didn’t want to follow me, then so be it. I refused to stay no matter the reason. For once, I’ll choose how I’ll live. This was for me, not for my dad or anyone else’s approval. After all, Ryan loves me as no one had ever before. He was the only one that matters.

“I’ll be taking Keith with me. If I ever see one of your men cross my border, be prepared for war,” Ryan warned the Prince before extending his powerful and impressive wings to intimidate the enemy.

In a matter of seconds, we were back in the sky. Even if he decided to walk, I would have refused to let go. With my head resting on his shoulder, I observed the Moon Dragons flying behind us. This was when I noticed that Helena was nowhere to be seen. Where did she go?

"Where is Helena?" I worriedly asked hoping she hadn’t been left behind.

"She went to get your friend and family," my mate answered causing me to gasp.

"Really?" I added excitedly.

“Of course.”

“Thank you, thank you!” I thanked my mate before grabbing his face and kissed him tenderly.

For a second, I thought he was surprised because we nearly crashed into a tree. But he rapidly gained back his composure. Happy and content, I closed my eyes and snuggled into his chest as I inhaled his smell. Even after all this, he still thought about my well-being. He always made me his priority. He even went as far as declaring war for me.

•••

When I woke up, I was in a room I didn't recognize and Ryan was nowhere to be seen. I was about to panic when the door opened and surprisingly my mom and sister came in. They were both talking to each other and didn't seem to notice that I was awake. But seeing them safe and sound was enough to calm my nerves down.

I really need to thank Ryan later for taking my family and friend into his Kingdom since he wasn't obligated to. I would be even ready to leave them behind if they refused to believe in me. He already did so much for me since the day we met and I didn't do anything in return. I had to do something for him later, to thank him for everything.

"Keith, you're awake!" exclaimed my sister as I tensed when she gave me a suffocating hug. This was new.

"I-I... can't... breathe..." I struggled to say as I tried to get out of her deadly grip.

"Sorry! I was just... Never mind," she apologized before finally letting me go as I coughed and took big gulps of air. It would either be the Prince or my sister that would bring me to my death.

"I'm sorry..." I started after I could breathe normally again. "I caused you guys a lot of trouble... First with dad and then with Ryan... I should have asked you if you wanted to leave the Kingdom first..." I apologized as guilt invaded my heart.

"Son, you don't need to apologize for that. Helena explained everything to us on our way here. To be honest, we weren't welcome there anymore. When you left, we had been stripped of our status. They only saw us as traitors, every single one of them except Sebastian parents," my mother explained as she gently hugged me.

I inhaled her sweet perfumed scent. God, did I miss her. I snuggled into her arms and closed my eyes. "So you're not mad?" I asked my voice muffled by her chest.

"No, we are not."

We stayed silent for a little while. "You should get out of bed if you’re feeling better. Your mate and Sebastian are worried about you since you slept for almost two days," my sister explained.

"Yes, it's a good idea," I got out of my mother’s hold. "But how about..." I started, but what cut off by mom.

"Don't worry. We know where to go. Let's say your mate is quite the gentleman," mom chuckled before looking away. "And quite handsome," I heard her whisper to my sister as I exited the room.

"Mom!" I exclaimed blushing since what she said was actually true. But the most embarrassing thing was the fact that my own mother had a crush on my mate.

"A woman can dream, can't I?" she almost giggled before shooed me away.

Geez, did that make my mom and sister my love rivals? Of course not! But it was quite nice to see mom smiling. Last time I saw her she was struggling not to cry because of dad. I was so glad to see that she was feeling better.