Page 30 of One Last Chance

“Oh, there he is. Dear.” The woman, certainly a bit older than my parents, but as well groomed and presented as I would expect from Rowland’s upbringing, stops by me, eyes wide. “Thank you so much for calling us and getting my son here,” she blurts, clasping my hand.

I shake her hand with a smile before shifting my attention to the kids.

The girl stares at me, thick, straight brows lowered in the most hostile expression I have ever seen from a young kid, while the boy holds her hand and studies me intently.

“I remember you,” he says, big eyes wide with a spark of pure innocence.

“Yeah, I saw you in the car. Hello.” I try to make the best first expression to him at least, so I kneel and shake his little hand. “You must be Mac.”

He is freakingadorable.

“Yeah!” He grins, showing the gaps in his teeth, but his attention turns to the door his grandmother is eyeing next to us in a split second. “Is Daddy in there?”

“That’s what I’m going to figure out. He’s going to be okay, but let me talk to the doctors first, alright? He might be tired, so wait for me here before you barge in,” she says towards the boy, and then shoots a quick glance to the girl, Mina, as if to ask her to watch over him.

It’s starting to feel like I shouldn’t be here, so I nervously tighten my shoulders, putting my hands in my pockets. “I…should probably get going. Before you go, here are the keys to Rowland’s car.” I hand them to his mother, who turns to me with a surprised ‘oh’. “I drove it here behind the ambulance. It’s parked behind the hospital, by that big crooked tree.”

“Thank you so much, dearie.” With a warm smile, she squeezes my hand with both of hers before taking the keys. “You don’t have to leave. Stay if you can, but I know it is late. I’m sure Rowland will be happy to see you when he’s better. Let me find out what exactly is going on,” she says and opens the door. Before entering, she turns to me briefly. “Thank you again, and I’m glad to have met you properly, Dayton.”

The door closes and I’m left in the hall with the kids.

I turn to them, finding Mina with the same judgy expression as before.I feel like I’m in high school again. Jeez.

“There’s a…there’s a vending machine right there around the corner. I can give you some coins for a snack, if you want? It’s late, so you must be hungry.”

“Daddy says we shouldn’t eat sweets after the sun goes to sleep,” Mac mutters, but the spark in his eye tells me he is very much a fan of my suggestion.

I dig in my pockets to find enough coins to buy something at least, and kneel to him with a mischievous smile, presenting them. “What daddy doesn’t know won’t hurt him, hm?” I wink. “If he finds out, tell him it was my idea, and I’ll take responsibility.”

Without a second thought, Mac grabs the money and energetically drags Mina with him around the corner. She seems as annoyed as any teenager would be, sighing at her brother’s intensity, but follows him.

One part of me wants to leave, while another feels this might be the perfect time to try forging a bond with the girl. To at least let her know I didn’t hold what happened last time against her.

I stand a few feet behind them and lean against the wall while Mac scans the vending machine for what he wants. Mina meets my eyes in the reflection of the machine's plastic window before turning around.

“You’re not special, you know?” she says, in a voice so cold it makes me pause.

I blink sharply. “Wh-what?”

Mac turns around slowly, but Mina points at the machine, making him face it again. She then makes a step toward me, and I swear I have never been so scared of a little girl in my life. There is this…adult, raw hatred in her eyes as she looks at me.

“You’re just like the other omegas my dad screws around and does gross things with. Omega whores like you that had him leave mom. Just because she isn’t like you. Messed up and disgusting.”

In silence, I stare at her, at a loss for words. The humming hospital light somewhere in the hallway echoes in my head and changes into a high-pitched buzz at the back of my skull.

I can’t believe the resolution she just spoke with.

“I…I think I want this one,” Mac mutters, nearly whispers, kneeling by the vending machine, carefully looking at us over his shoulder.

Like the most vile, fucked up words didn’t just come out of her mouth, Mina turns around on her heal and helps Mac put the money in. As the coins fall into the mechanism, they follow the loud, echoey pounding of my heart. I finally manage to move, blinking sharply and stepping aside.

All I can make my body do is take another unsteady step, and another, until I am walking through the hallway and towards the staircase that leads outside of the hospital. I tighten and flex my fingers as I take each step down, still trying to digest her words.

I’m hurt and angry and shocked by what she said. Not hurt because of what she said, or that I believe it, but because it leads me to a realization that I can’t ignore.

No matter what I feel, or what Rowland feels, what matters is his family. That little girl isn’t ready for anyone like me to be around. If I chase only my happiness and what I want from Rowland, it will end in hurt. Not just for me, but for them. And that would make him hate me in the end. Which is the last thing I want.

No—It would be so much better if I just faded away. Without some big scene. Without break ups or drama. No matter the sharp pain radiating through my chest, I have to do the right thing and give up the best person I’ve ever met. Even if I wish it were, it isn’t the right time.

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