Before going to bed Anna texted Kathe to remind her that training began Monday evening. She turned her phone off before going back to sleep. Interruptions were not allowed. 

The following day Anna found a yellow rose at her doorstep with a note that said: "yellow is the color of happiness. I cannot wait to see your smile today." The note smelt like him. She put the yellow rose along with the lavender rose in a tall glass with water and the note in her bedside drawer. Anna sighed as she walked out of her apartment. 

She would rather have it easy and either love him or forget him completely. Anna still did not believe Caleb's words, but she could not bring herself to do anything but keep her mate's gifts. People only change for themselves, never for other people, she thought as she got in her car. But maybe after everything is  said and done, there will be some good memories among the pain.

Caleb was waiting for her when she arrived to school. He smiled brightly and waved when he saw her. 

"Hello, Mr. King. No lady friend today?" Anna snickered as she walked by him. 

He caught up to her and matched her pace. "You hurt my feelings, Anna." He gripped his shirt above his chest dramatically. 

"Yeah, right." She giggled as she walked through the doors. 

"See you soon," said Caleb as he went to his locker. 

In class, Caleb kept staring at her as usual, nevertheless she had other things to worry about. She was introducing limits. The topic is not difficult to understand once you get a grip of it but can be challenging at first. There was no class activity for that day.

 When the bell signaled that the class was finally over, all the students rushed to the door. Anna sat on her chair and sighed. Caleb stayed behind and put a bottle of water on her desk, startling her. Anna glanced at her own bottle of water, which was empty now. 

"How do I know you did not poison it?" she asked signaling the bottle. 

"It is still sealed. When you said that there would not be class activity, I guessed you would need the extra water." He shrugged his shoulders. 

"Well, thank you then." She refused to meet his demanding eyes. 

"Good luck the rest of the day," he said and left the classroom. 

She sighed for a different reason now and opened the bottle of water and took a sip. 

By the time the day was over she was drained. She went to her car to find Caleb waiting for her, again. He walked up to her. 

"Anna, I wondered if you wanted to..." She put her extended hand in front of his face. "Not, now, Caleb. I am too tired and dealing with you is exhausting." 

He chuckled. "So I have been told." 

She lowered her hand and scowled. "Very nice. You sure know what a girl wants to hear." 

He took a step forward. "I am sorry, I did not mean to..." 

She got into her car without sparing him a second glance and left. He punched the air and kicked the floor as she sped off. Matt and Samuel got out of Matt's car and clapped at him. He frowned and got into the car.

When Anna arrived home she took off her uncomfortable clothes and slumped against her bed pulling her covers on her. "So relaxing," she said as she pulled out her phone from her purse. She realized that it was still off. As soon as she turned it on text messages came in. 

Xander:

6:30 AM 'Have a good day beautiful.'

7:30 AM 'I still feel something is bothering you. Talk to me?'

9:02 AM 'Are you mad at me? I do not recall doing anything to bother you. Text me or call me when you see this.'

10:56 AM 'Earth to Anna!'

12:33 PM 'Love! Talk to me... Please?'

3:37 PM 'I tried calling you and your cellphone is off. Are you OK?'

Non-saved number:

3:30 PM 'Hey, sorry for what I said earlier. I am an idiot; I know it. By the way this is Caleb. Call me if you ever need anything.'

Emily Elena:

12:57 PM 'Anna. Why have you been ignoring me? I miss my best friend. Talk to me!'

Anna's eyes actually hurt from rolling them so much. She did smile for a second when she read Xander's texts and that was what annoyed her the most. 

She needed someone to talk to. Anna considered calling Kathe but she concluded that Kathe already had her own problems to deal with. She dialed the person who she thought was the only one she could count on now. 

Calling Big Bro, her phone screen showed. The call connected and to much of her displeasure a female voice talked on the other side of the line. 

'Anna? Why are you ignoring me and calling Alex instead? You are my best friend!' Elena said. 

'I am sorry sis! She had my cellphone when you called!' Anna's brother yelled. 

Elena growled at him.

'Hello, Elena. Could I talk to my brother, please?'

'Are you really doing this? I have not idea why you ignore me,' Elena said. 'You are not talking to Alex until you tell me what is happening.'

Anna rolled her eyes once again. 'Well, it turns out that my destined mate is an immature little kid who is not even of age, and I have caught him with other girls more times than I want to remember. I got furious and told him that he is my mate and almost rejected him and now he is saying he is sorry and leaving roses and sappy love notes in front of my doors.' Anna scoffed. 'Like I am going to fall that easy.'

'Wait! Did my little sister finally find her mate?' Anna's brother asked. 

'That is what she just told me!' Elena said. 

'And he already cheated on her? I need the name for reasons,' Alex calmly said. 

That is worrisome, Anna thought. 

'Yes, Anna sweetie. Do share his name...' Elena said in a eerie low tone. 

No way I am telling those two.  'That is not the point. I decided to let him be. I will not accept him until he proves he is good, but I will not let him ruffle my gorgeous feathers in the meantime anymore. The problem is with another guy...' 

'Another guy?' they both asked at the unison. They truly are mates.

'Yes, his name is Xander. I mean Alexander,' Anna said. 'He told me that he had rejected his mate and she left with some other guy. He has been nothing but sweet and supportive to me. Yesterday, I texted him and someone else answered his phone saying that I should stay away from him. He is a total flirt and so gorgeous. I am pretty sure he is the Alpha of a nearby pack. I was cold to him because of the text when he called me yesterday but he did not seem to know what had happened. Now, he is texting me asking if I am angry. I feel like I have no right to complain, nonetheless.'

'Oh shit...' Anna heard both of them say at the same time. 

This is getting ridiculous. 

'What?' Anna asked. 

'You tell her,' Elena gave the phone to her mate. 

'There is only one other Alpha called Alexander, and you should now that,' Alex said. 'He did reject his mate and she left.' 

'And he is extremely hot!' Elena yelled. Alex glared at her. 'Not as much as my mate though,' she added. 

'So he does not have a mate...' Anna put her hand on her chest and sighed. 

'About that...' Alex said. 'He does not officially have a Luna because the first time he tried to bring a Luna to his pack the girl ran away with another werewolf; The other one ended up killing herself...'

'What!?' Anna asked standing up to pace across the room. 'Are you telling me he seduced the girls and then treated one so bad that she ran away and drove the other one to suicide?'

'Not quite,' Alex said. 'He is the Alpha of the Blood River Pack.'

Anna gasped and Alex continued speaking. 

'The position of Luna of the Blood River pack is very sought-after, so girls practically throw themselves at him. The two times he accepted the girls he did not change his behavior. He kept cheating on them and paid no attention to them.' 

'Wait, I think I know who you are talking about,' Anna said. 'Alexander Hunter, Alpha of the Blood River Pack, a cold-hearted womanizer, who after his mate's rejection sees girls as lower beings than objects. The kind of guy fathers warn their girls about. I know that Alpha's reputation. He did sleep with some girls from our pack a couple of years back and then ditched them, didn't he? He cannot be Xander. The Alexander I know is sweet to a fault. He might be with some other girl but there is no way he is the monster you guys are talking about.'

'That is the one, and I agree...' Elena said. 'I have met that Alpha in person, he does not even spares a glance to any woman unless he is taking her to bed. He would never text a girl constantly, let alone call her.'

'I hope you are correct. I would never give my only sister to that guy. His pack is as strong as ours as it is. He cannot have my beta and army chief.'

'Wow, now I know why I am important to you.'

'Just kidding, sis. You know I love you. I do not want you to get hurt anymore. Now, I will let you girls to solve your issues.' Alex left the the room. 

'In my opinion you should forget about those two and come back,' Elena said. 'Your fiance would never hurt you like that.' 

'I thought we had talked about this already. There is no Oliver and I. It took me three years but I got over him. It does affect me hearing about him but it is not the same feeling anymore.' 

Elena cleared her throat. 'You are the one who made a mistake and he came back to you and you are pinning about a guy who is probably fucking some other bitch. I thought you were smarter than this.'

Anna growled. 'And you ask why I ignore you? Have you ever considered that I am fed up with your judgmental bullshit? I made a mistake and owned it. It does not mean that I owe him eternal love or something. As my friend, you should care about what I want, not what you think that I should do!'

'It is just that I had never seen you as happy as how you were when you were with him. After he left, I thought that I would lose you.' Elena's voice cracked. 'And I almost did, three times. I am afraid that if some other guy breaks your heart you will go back to your bad habits, and I am not talking about the drinking and partying. Oliver promised that he would stick with you through thick and thin, and I believe him. But you are right. I have only criticized you lately. I am sorry.'

Anna sat on her bed and sighed. 'I am fine... It has been over two years. I have my charm bracelet and I keep updating it each month. Even if I do get my heart broken, I am stronger than before.'

'I will trust you more. Anyway, you said that the mysterious Alexander is your friend and seems to care about you. I suggest that you just keep him as your that. Even if he does have someone else, as long as you clearly draw the line, should he stay around you will just gain a true friend. That is always a good thing.'

'Should I ask him about the texts?' asked Anna. 

'You say he avoids talking about himself through the phone. Wait until he is right in front of you and he cannot run away.' 

Anna smiled. 'That is what I was planning.' 

Anna's doorbell rang. 

'Are you expecting someone?' asked Elena. 

Anna glanced at her clock. 'I am. I will call you soon. Love you.' She hung up and ran to open the door.