Chapter 25

On our Mating Ceremony day, we didn't invite too many people. We only asked our closest friends and family.

The sea breeze was gentle, the sunlight bright. I walked across the soft sand in my snow-white ceremonial gown. Alpha King Kaelen stood ahead, his white shirt fluttering in the wind, holding a bouquet of pure white roses.

The way he looked at me - it was as if he had never stopped watching me.

Elder Orin said, "Do you promise to accept him as your fated mate and stay by his side for your whole life, through poverty or wealth, sickness or health, never to part?"

I looked at Alpha King Kaelen, my eyes welling up, but I smiled and nodded. "I do."

Then it was Kaelen's turn.

He looked at me, his voice softer than the sea breeze. "I've waited for you for many years, and thought about you for many years... Starting today, I don't have to wait anymore. No matter how hard the future gets, I will never let go of your hand."

We exchanged Mating Rings and embraced each other. In the distance, waves gently rolled, as if blessing us.

After the Mating Ceremony, we settled in the Cliffside Manor - the place we loved most as children. We renovated the house and planted morning glories and a peach tree in the yard.

Kaelen said that next spring, we would watch the peach blossoms bloom together.

One afternoon, I was organizing the bookshelf by the window when I suddenly discovered that Snowy had chewed up the corner of the sofa again.

"Snowy!" I frowned and rushed over, but that furry white pup nimbly jumped onto the windowsill, flicked its tail, as if taunting me.

Kaelen heard the commotion and came out of the study, holding Snowy and patting its head. "It's still young. Don't scold it."

I rolled my eyes at him. "That's what you said last time. It's already ruined three of my pants!"

Kaelen smiled and came over. "Then I'll buy you ten new ones."

"I don't want that. I want you to mend them by hand."

"Then I'll have to learn how to sew first."

"Kaelen!"

He hugged me and kissed my forehead with a smile. "You look cute even when you're angry."

I pouted, wanting to scold him, but when he smiled, I couldn't help but smile too.

We adopted that little white wolf pup. I found it by chance near the cliffs behind the healing sanctuary the year I was recovering.

It was so thin then, shivering alone in the cold. Kaelen insisted on keeping it, saying it was just like me - sensitive, fragile, fighting to survive.

Now it's lively and plump, a round white ball of fluff.

Kaelen said that because we gave it love, it could live with confidence.

Isn't that true for me too?

I was once like that pup, trapped in a corner by life, trembling and uneasy, until someone picked me up and said, "It's okay. You don't have to hide anymore. I'll always be here."

In the evening, we sat on the beach. He held me close under a thin blanket, watching the moon rise in the distance.

"Do you remember when we collected shells here as kids?" I asked him.

"Of course I remember," he said, kissing my ear softly. "You said you'd make a ring from the biggest shell to give to your future mate."

I laughed. "And then I ate it myself."

"You cried for ages, saying that without the ring, you couldn't get mated."

"Now that I'm mated, do you regret it?"

He looked at me, his eyes full of starlight. "I only regret it took so long."

I leaned gently against his shoulder and closed my eyes. The wind carried his scent of wood and soap, mixed with the salty sea air, but it made me feel at peace.

Life has too many twists and turns, too many losses. But thankfully, I still made it to your side in the end.

Thank you for not giving up. Thank you for always waiting.

The evening breeze stirred the shells on the beach. The fine sand was warm, and waves rolled onto shore in circles. Snowy rolled around behind us. Everything was so quiet and peaceful.

I think I deserve happiness.

(The End)