A/N: Please COMMENT and VOTE :D

[5] Heartbreak

The first time Mia felt heartbreak it was not due to her own heart breaking. Although it was second-hand it truly felt like her own, because it was her who saw her best friend break down in a heap of sadness. Her cries felt like claws attacking her innermost being. It was hard seeing someone you love suffer so painfully. 

Samantha's despair was not only carried by her. Samuel was present as well, wiping the tears the came down her cheeks with great care. His usually blank eyes were filled with concern.

They were both on either side of her, holding her hand. There was an uncanny partnership between them this moment that went above their usual bickering. This was not the time to settle differences, it was the time to push them away in order to attend to Sammie.

Samuel did his role as the dutiful brother. His gentleness with Samantha hit a soft spot in Mia. To see a harsh man like him respond like this made her have a strange feeling. 

He had an arm over his sister's shoulders. "Sammie, sometimes our were-nature signals inclinations to certain people, but this doesn't mean they are the only ones who will be the appropriate mate."

Another onset of tears fell. Her brother readily wiped them before they reached her chin. Samantha's voice wobbled as she responded, "This pull was a strong one. Michael is the first strong one I've ever felt."

It was true. Since the onset of their strong relationship Mia knew without a doubt that her best-friend was completely enamored to Michael Sparks. He was a playful wereman with handsome features and a stocky built. His charming smile was impossible to miss, it's the reason the female population in their school fell at his feet so easily. Saurus may have been the taller, more handsome option, but he was nowhere near as friendly and receptive. Therefore, girls easily flocked to Michael to receive attention.

"Just because strong ones are few does not mean they are one of a kind. We know of people who ended up mating their second strong one. Don't forget you still have a choice." He comforted.

Samantha nodded but her sadness remained. Mia frowned. She wished there was a way to lessen her pain. Werepeople attractions were different from that of humans because inclinations were difficult to mask. Not to mention, if a wereperson had an attraction to someone, it's because the other person was attracted to them too. The two were always attracted to each other in some way. Samantha was not the only one who felt an attraction to Michael, he felt a pull to her too. Michael just chose to never act on those instincts, instead he slept with a human he could never mate.

If it had been a kiss Samantha would not be so distraught, but that fact that they had sex was completely heartbreaking. In weremen culture sex was saved for mating. It was rare for a wereman to have sex before mating—and that to a regular human he couldn't mate. Michael was going through a wild period, he was going to parties and drinking alcohol at large amounts. Even so, they never thought he would go as far as this.

"I will talk to Michael." Saurus said suddenly, standing to his height. He towered over them with a determined expression.

Immediately Samantha panicked, latching to his wrist. "No! You can't! I don't want him to know I'm in this state just because of him." The werewoman was already emotionally pained. The least she needed was for her dignity to lose face in a wereman who didn't pick her. Mating was a choice. Michael never made any moves to suggest he considered her. Samantha just assumed he was waiting until they graduated to make a move. It seemed that was not the case.

Saurus sighed, patting her hand. "Don't worry. I'm only going to offer him sound advice. He is heading in a dark path. He is being considered for Beta in the future due to his strength, I don't need a reckless Beta on my side."

At his departure Mia scooted closer to her friend. "You will be better soon." Mia comforted, wrapping her arms around her torso.

Immediately Sammie responded and hugged her back. Tears no longer flowed from her eyes, but her frown stayed in place. Her shirt smelled of salt and sadness.

Sammie took a deep breath, resting her head above Mia's. Her eyes were red and bloodshot.

"Saurus is right." Samantha whispered. "An inclination is only a viable option. It doesn't mean it has to be the selection. I have hope my were will find another suitable person. It happens all the time."

Mia rubbed her arm in attempt to convey agreement.

"His advice was good." Mia replied. Sammie was beautiful and kind. Any wereman to ignore her was being foolish, no doubt destiny would guide her to someone else who deserved her.

"Saurus would know more than anyone else that there will always be other options."

Mia furrowed her brows. "I've never seen him be attracted to anyone."

Samantha pulled away. "That's because he resists it. Attractions can be mild and negliable. Those are easy to ignore. It's the strong ones that hurt. He's only ever been strongly attracted to one person. He knows it would never work out so he's patient for the next person."

"Which girl in the pack is it."

Samantha's eyes shifted to the closed door, cautious. With a low voice, she uttered "It's not a werewoman. The girl is you."

Mia felt her heart begin to hammer. Her? Viewing the panic in her eyes, Samantha placed a placating hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry Mia, he gave me his word he would never pursue you." She wiped her eyes. "You're the first female friend I've ever had that doesn't chose him over me. You always spend time with me without caring about Saurus' presence. Whether he's there or not it makes no difference to you. You have no idea how much that means to me. For the first time, I have someone who loves me for myself, not for who my brother is."

Mia nodded mutely, not knowing how else to respond. The news left her feeling distorted. How could this be? It made no sense he felt a pull towards her. Since he was a wereman and she was a human, she would never know he felt this way. The news came as a surprise to her.

"Don't worry, Saurus will patiently wait for the next strong one." Sammie repeated. She laid her head back over Mia's. "Like he said, mating is a choice. You two would never pick each other, so looks like I'll be joining him in the waiting game."

Mia's pulse moved in an irregular rhythm. This news shook her in ways she never imagined.

Present

"Okay, fifty more!" Samantha pressed, moving them into another set of squats.

Mia's eyes bulged from her sockets. "We just did 200! And I'm really exhausted from all that running." And the lunges, and the pushups, and the whatever other exercise her best-friend felt right to include.

Sammie shook her head disapprovingly. "That college time really made you lazy. You were huffing and puffing after the second mile."

"Exactly! It's a miracle I got to three with no breaks today." The previous times they had to stop midway so she could catch her breath. In high school Mia had been able to keep up in these things since they did them everyday. Her return from college definitely showed her lack of activity.

Just as Sammie was about to complain again a group of men were returning from a run, all shirtless and in their muscled glory. In the front was Michael, leading the group. Funnily enough Samuel was in the back. Knowing his capabilities Mia knew he did it by choice. Why did he always choose to be in the back?

Since high school Michael had done a whole turn-around. He withdrew from his wandering ways and became responsible. He took his Beta title seriously and was irreplaceable in Samuel's eyes. For Sammie, however, he was an annoying fly. The once besotted werewoman now repelled anything to do with him.

Mia didn't understand how you could hate someone you felt such strong feelings for. There really must be a thin line between love and hate. Whenever Michael was around, Sammie became more aloof and did everything to avoid him. Yet, life had a funny way of bringing things to a circle. The wereman who once ignored their pull was now fully on board with mating her. He would do things to get Sammie's attention and flirt with her endlessly. His eyes no longer wandered from the brown-haired werewoman—his attention was only for her now.

The group of men stopped in front of them. "Want to workout with us? We're doing legs today too." Michael offered.

Mia's eyes wandered to the other men. She noticed a familiar wereman by the name of John who was staring at her appreciatively. Mia blushed. She hoped it was easily hidden by the flush she already had on her face by working out.

It was not to be so, though. For immediately she noticed Saurus shaking his head with blatant disapproval at her. She fought an eye roll. Of course, how could she forget he never wanted her to mate with anyone of his pack. He would hate to have her under his wing permanently.

"No thank you. Mia and I just finished." Samantha coolly responded, gathering her things.

Mia hide her surprise and instead picked her water bottle. Woohoo! Michael definitely came here in perfect timing. Now she could rest.  

In the confines of Samuel's small library Mia's attention was not on her homework, but on her phone. This was bad. It was self-destructive to her heart yet her fingers did not cease to swipe from picture to picture, each causing a new jolt of longing within her.

Mia missed him. She sincerely missed Kevin, her ex-boyfriend. She had always wanted a boyfriend in high school but for some reason it never worked out. Samantha was single throughout their years too, so she never felt pressured to start something prematurely.

Maybe it was difficult to get over him because he was her first love. Maybe it also had to do with the fact that she kept stalking his social media and seeing what he was doing. Based on recent videos he was having the time of his life without her. If he wasn't with his boys in the club dancing, he was at a bar with a pretty girl. The faces varied from event to event. It let her know he was not attached to anyone in specific. Nonetheless, it still hurt.

Mia couldn't fight the frown that overtook her features, even if she tried.

"What are you looking at?"

The phone once in her hand was swiftly plucked. Black eyes searched the screen with blatant curiosity.

Mia's frown curved to a scowl. "Mind your own business! Give me my phone back Samuel I'm not in a good mood!"

Samuel's brows knit together in confusion. "Who is this man? He's making you more upset than I am and that's not right." He muttered, pressing some buttons.

Mia would have fought back for it but she felt sapped of energy. Instead, she hid her face in her arms.

"Kevin Jones." He drawled, testing the name out. Then, a light bulb switched. "Wait a minute... isn't this your supposed ex-boyfriend? I thought you were trying to get over him, human."

"I am!"

He snorted. "Right. Looking at all his pictures is so conductive to that cause. You're suppose to unfollow him."

Mia balked. "That's so extreme, it's not like I hate him or anything. He was a good guy. He only broke up with me to not lead me on."

Samuel blinked, not getting her point. "And?"

"And because of that I see no reason to unfollow him. He would then think I have something against him."

Samuel made a face. "Who cares what he thinks? Clearly you have no self-control when it comes to seeing what he's up to. You're better off unfollowing him. Why would you follow someone when you're not going in the same direction."

Mia was speechless. Since when was he so deep?

Then, he gave her a deprecating look. "Unless you're trying to get back with him. Which would be foolish. He doesn't want you."

Mia choked. Samuel was right, but that still hurt. "I'm not trying to get back with him!"

She really wasn't. In the midst of her sadness over their breakup, she wasn't aiming to get back together with him. She missed him. Kevin's companionship was very enjoyable. However, her romantic heart wanted someone who would love her deeper than he ever did. His affections for her never quite reached the depth she wanted it to.

Samuel slide the phone back in front of her. "Prove it." He challenged.

Mia groaned. The reminiscent part of her desired to keep ties to him, no matter how superficial they may be. Her heart was at war with her mind because Samuel made a good point. Since when was the annoying dinosaur good at giving relationship advice?

Oh, right. He was scorned.

"Fine." It was easier to say it than to do it. But once the green on Kevin's name turned a stale grey, she knew she had officially done it. She unfollowed him, and it felt really good.

A peace she hadn't felt in a long time settled over her. Taking control was liberating.

"Tch. About time."

Mia squared her shoulders. "Our break up is fresh. You wouldn't understand the difficulty as you've probably never given yourself into a relationship like I have."

"Yeah, you're so well-versed in all things concerning love." He deadpanned. His disbelief was apparent. "I can tell by looking at the dude that the relationship was mediocre at its best."

"You're so judgmental! Kevin and I had a good connection. I'll admit it wasn't the best, but he made me happy and he would say the same."

He laughed humorlessly. "Right. You made him so happy he decided to 'explore other options'. Content people don't do that. Just face the truth."

Mia rumbled with rage. There were two sides of the coin when it came to being Sammie's best-friend. While it did mean she knew everything of importance that happened to Samuel (meaning she could use it against him), it also meant he knew everything that happened to her. Sammie couldn't keep her mouth shut when it came to them both. They were her biggest confidants. Everything was transparent.

Seeing as he felt the need to downplay her relationship with Kevin, she no longer felt the need to censor what she really wanted to say. "I bet that's why Jasmine left you. You didn't make her happy, did you?" She sneered. "You were probably so cold and distant, barely showing any affection. I wasn't surprised when I found out she left you for a business tycoon. At least he'll show her true love."

Mia had an intake of breath as the black pools of his eyes suddenly glowed with three dots. Three spheres of gold shined brightly, making him look more feral. "You don't know anything." He spat.

"I certainly know this—Kevin and I trusted each other.  We were intimate in a level you would never understand." Mia noticed the tightening of his jaw, the tending of his shoulders. Seeing him distress pleased her. "You two probably never kissed, did you?" She taunted.

Samuel glared daggers at her. He stepped closer to her, making her nerves stand on end. "You exalt your past relationship as if it's something worth boasting about. Whatever you thought you built was clearly in vain."

"You're just jealous we were more intimate. It must suck to have a stony heart."

"You're so confident. Where is he now?"

Mia felt a sour taste in her tongue. Kevin was partying and frolicking from woman to woman.She huffed. "Whatever. We experienced things you would never know about." She said vaguely, alluding to an intimacy they never had. She couldn't outright lie, but bending the truth was harmless. It wasn't right, but she really wanted to usurp his past relationship with Jasmine.

His eyes shined, a smirk beginning to form. "Mia, Mia." He tutted, repeating her name disdainfully. "Have you sunk so low that you've succumbed to lying? You forget..."

A large hand clamped around her neck to hold her in place as he dug his nose into her neck, taking a large whiff of her scent. Knowing his intentions, she swatted him away. His nose was so invasive and annoying. "Stop smelling me! Mind your business!"

Her shove was futile against his strength. When he finished, he stepped back as if he had just read a news article about the latest weather. "Just as I thought, an inexperienced virgin. Looks like we're on the same boat Blackwood."

Mia clenched her fists. He was so nosey! "Just because penetration wasn't involved doesn't mean we didn't do other things."

Samuel rolled his eyes. "Sure, okay." He said, clearly disbelieving.

Mia relinquished her bravado, allowing her shoulders to slump. "Fine. We only kissed. His friends started making fun of me because of it, and eventually they targeted him too. I don't doubt it's the reason he left me."

Samuel pat her head as if she were a toddler. "There, there. Is your sob story over yet? Maybe a piece of candy will make you feel better. Here, I'll even let you shop one thing online."

Mia looked at her hands. She really wish she had a set of darts so she could aim it at his face. She frowned. No, two sets. One for his face and another for his jewels.

As she was considering this she felt a pair of arms wrap around her and crush her into a hug.

Mia gaped at him. "Since when did you grow a heart?"

"I still don't have one. I'm only looking out for myself because if Samantha sees you walk out of here with a frown she would start problems. This is a preventative measure only. Don't look into it you tart." He said sternly.

Mia made move to slap him but the way his arms wrapped around her made her feel as though a straight-jacket were placed on. Ever the perceptive one, he looked down at her with disapproval. "Ah, ah, ah. No hitting." He scoffed. "And you dare call me the animal."

Mia could only groan as the wereman laughed at her distress.

A/N: Fun fact, guess who Michael Sparks is?.... Noah's father from Wolf Chase!

Hope you enjoyed let me know your thoughts and don't forget to vote :)