The Renovation
Kieran’s POV
The sound of footsteps scurrying past my door roused me awake as my eyes flew open. The noise had been so loud, I had even heard it in my sleep. I could have sworn a stampede was going on somewhere around. Even while I slept, I knew the last thing I wanted was to get trampled upon, whether in a dream world or real life.
A small groan slid past my lips as I rubbed at my eyes. After my blurry eyes had cleared a bit, I raised my eyes to the clock high up on the wall. A small gasp slid past my lips when I realized what the time was.
“Half past noon?” I mumbled. How the hell did time fly by so quickly? “Exactly how long was I asleep for?”
Honestly, I had no idea. All I remember was crashing into bed and waking up now that I did. I didn’t expect to sleep for this long. Another groan slid past my lips as I got up to stretch. I wondered why Sabrina hadn’t come up to wake me. She usually did that anytime I overslept. Or maybe she did. I dashed into my bathroom and took a bath.
When I was dressed, I made my way outside my room and down the stairs. Even then, the hustle and bustle of the maids and guards didn’t cease. In fact, the more I descended the stairs, the more people that I saw, each one hauling one thing or the other. They were mostly decorations, so it meant one thing, they were decorating the house, for reasons best known to them.
“Kieran!” Sabrina squealed the moment I stepped into the living room. “There you are.”
My gaze darted from the joy on her face, to the living room. Shock couldn’t even completely describe the emotion I felt immediately. Just to be sure, I had to tap my jaw a couple of times to be sure that it was still intact.
Two more chandeliers hung in the living room, and they were bigger than the last one. The baby blue walls had been swapped for a darker shade of the maroon color. More potted plants than I’d ever seen in my life decorated the entire space. Like that wasn’t enough, a maid walked in, holding a huge vase with even more plants.
The furniture still looked to be intact, but I could swear they had swapped the living room table for an even bigger and better one. The fluffy fur rug that was once there had been swapped too, for an even bigger and better one with white patch-like design all over it. If I was being honest, the entire living room looked like it was undergoing a major makeover.
“Uhhh… Sabrina?” I called out slowly, still unable to tear my gaze from the new living room.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“I think that’s enough plants, for now.” Sabrina nodded to a maid, still oblivious to what I had just said.This belongs © NôvelDra/ma.Org.
“Tell the others to hold on for now. If I need some more, I’ll definitely let you know.” she said.
“Did you say something, dear?” She turned to me, seconds after the maid had walked out. “Kieran?”
“What’s going on?” I asked immediately. Even words couldn’t properly describe the question I wanted to ask. ” Are we moving?”
“Moving?” Sabrina chuckled heartily. “No, why would you think that?”
“What’s with all the decorations?” I fiddled with one of the potted plants. “This can’t even be classified as decorations. It looks like we’re renovating.”
“You could say that.” Sabrina giggled again. If there was anything I could pick out from this situation, it was the fact that Sabrina loved playing with doll houses and decorating them when she was little. Because why would someone want to do this to a beautiful mansion, and unprovoked too?
“But it’s for a good cause, I promise you.” she explained.
“Care to elaborate?” I shrugged. ” At least tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s no big deal.” She waved her hand, but if the twinkle in her eyes meant anything, then it was definitely a big deal.
“These are just small preparations.” she said.
“Small?” I chorused. “So what’s the main preparation going to look like?”
“When it’s time you’ll find out.” She grinned and I fought the urge to roll my eyes. “Oh come on, don’t tell me you don’t have the faintest idea why I’m redecorating.” she said and I blinked blankly as I tried to think about it.
“Nope.” I shook my head before settling into one of the couches. From my new position, I had a good look at the living room and if I was being honest, it actually looked nice.
“Tell me.” I urged.
“Guess.” Sabrina insisted. “Come on. Use that big brain of yours to think.”
“Heyyy.” I drawled, a playful smile on my lips. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I meant no harm.” Sabrina raised her hands in mock surrender. “I swear, I meant it as a compliment.”
“Of course, you did.” I smirked. “Now back to guessing. Is it some kind of party?”
“Yes, you’re close.” Sabrina nodded and I grinned. “Now you have to guess what the occasion is about.”
“I have no idea.” I shook my head. There was no use trying to guess because I was blank in that aspect. ” Just tell me already.”
“That’s not fun.” Sabrina pouted. “You have to guess.”
“But I have no idea.” I let out. ” I don’t even have a single clue…”
“I’ll tell you.” Someone’s voice cut through my voice, causing me to stop mid way. Before he appeared in the living room, I already knew who it was.
“She’s preparing for the annual ball.” he explained.
Xander strolled into the living room and I swear I heard Sabrina squeal a little bit.
“The annual ball?” I chorused the exact time Sabrina chimed. “Exactly.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.” Sabrina told me immediately. “Kieran, I told you.”
“It must have skipped my mind.” I nodded. ” What’s the ball about?”
“It’s a mating ceremony.” Xander let out slowly and I felt my heart drop to my feet. “Do you remember now?”
In fact, I did. Memories of Sabrina and Xander talking about it rang in my ears, but I didn’t focus on that. I knew what a mating ceremony was, but was that really it?
My gaze landed on Xander the moment the thought popped into my mind. His eyes were clear as he held my gaze. As I stared at him, I couldn’t help but wonder what was going to happen at the ball.
Since Xander and I were mates, was he going to announce it to everyone at the ball?
After the whole mate issue, things had been a little rocky between us. We still hadn’t figured out who had told Alice and I guess Xander was still kind of upset that I would think he would be so careless to break my trust just like that.
Honestly, I really didn’t see it in that light until after he had blurted it out in the garden the other day. I realized just how hurt he was that I actually thought of him that way. But at the same time, he was supposed to see things from my perspective too. After what I’d been through, the last thing I wanted was a repeat of it. Deep down, I was scared. Scared of history repeating itself all over again. If it did, I wasn’t sure I would be able to forgive myself, or anyone for that matter.
“Kieran.” Sabrina snapped her fingers in front of me and that was all it took to pull me back to the present.
“Are you even listening to me?” she asked and I sighed.
“Uhhh… yes, yes.” I blinked back a couple of times, willing my eyes to adjust to my surroundings again.
“I heard you.” I said.
“Of course.” She knew I was lying but she knew better than to push it.
“The mating ceremony will be so fun. What if you find your mate there, Kieran?” Sabrina said.
“Yeah.” I gulped. “That would be nice.”
I avoided Xander’s gaze as I spoke.
“I know right.” Sabrina was overly excited for all of this and I wanted to know why. “It would be so magical. What if he’s an alpha from another pack? Or a really handsome man? Or maybe…”
“Maybe she has even found her mate.” Xander added and I froze. What the hell is he doing?
“That’s also a possibility, don’t you think?” he said, playing it as cool as possible.
“If she had, she would have told me.” Sabrina waved him off with a laugh. “All I know is, whoever gets you as their mate will be the happiest werewolf alive.”
“What if…” I put a halt to the rest of my thoughts as the doorbell interrupted me.
“Oh, she’s here.” Sabrina squealed before rushing towards the door.
“Who’s here?” I asked, confusion washing over me.
“Don’t tell me…” Xander trailed off immediately, his gaze fixated on the door in front of me. “Please, goddess, no…”
“It’s me,” Another voice interrupted Xander. It wasn’t Sabrina for sure and if the string of groans Xander let out meant anything, our guest was definitely going to be an interesting person.
“Xander dear, won’t you welcome me?” she said.
Like that wasn’t enough, I heard Xander mutter underneath his breath.
Shit.