Three Alphas, Fated To One, Played By One, But Mated To One-Chapter 103: Control in a World Without It

"I stopped." I defended myself.

"Barely." Lizzie shot back.

Indeed, if not for that sudden pain in my head, I might not have been able to stop.

However, I still defended myself again.

"I still stopped."

"And next time?" Lizzie didn’t seem to want to just let it go.

I took a deep breath at the thought that the pain in my head that stopped me was caused by Lizzie.

Even though I had stopped, it was because she had helped.

And she was right, next time, I didn’t have the confidence that I could stop.

If Mike pushed harder and I allowed myself to feel....

"Stay away from him."

Lizzie’s voice cut through my thoughts.

"Lizzie..."

"I’m serious."

"I know you are," I replied. "But it’s not that simple."

"It is."

"No, it’s not!" I snapped, sitting up straighter. "He’s the Alpha. He’s my mate. I can’t just pretend he doesn’t exist."

"You can choose not to get close."

It was frustrating that I didn’t even know why I had to stay away from my own mate, but I trusted Lizzie more than myself.

So, even though I was arguing, I was just trying to distract myself. I would definitely listen.

However, I still wanted to talk to her more.

"And what if I don’t want to stay away?"

The question slipped out before I could stop it.

And the moment it did, everything went still.

Too still.

"You do want to get close," Lizzie said quietly.

It wasn’t a question, but a statement.

And I hated it because I didn’t want Lizzie to feel as if I didn’t appreciate her.

"I don’t," I said quickly.

"Liar."

I flinched slightly because she sounded so sure.

And deep down...

I knew why.

Because she felt what I felt.

Every flicker of emotion.

Every moment of weakness.

Every hesitation.

Every pull.

"I don’t trust him," I said instead to change the focus.

"That’s not the same thing."

Silence fell again.

I leaned back slowly, staring at the ceiling.

"This bond..." I murmured. "It’s messing with my head." I finally confessed.

"It’s more than that."

I swallowed hard.

"I don’t like feeling like this."

"Then don’t let it control you."

I let out a bitter laugh.

"Easier said than done."

"I didn’t say it would be easy."

Of course she didn’t. But that changed nothing.

Not the bond, my feelings, or my thoughts of him.

Not the way my heart reacted when he looked at me...

I cut that thought off immediately.

I couldn’t go on like this.

"Stay away from him," Lizzie repeated softly this time.

I closed my eyes.

Taking a slow deep breath.

Trying to steady myself.

"I’ll try," I said finally.

It wasn’t a promise.

But it was the most I could give for now.

Lizzie didn’t respond immediately, but I could tell that she was much more at ease than before.

"For your sake," she said quietly, "I hope you do."

Her voice faded after that.

Leaving me alone again with my thoughts and confusion.

With the lingering warmth in my chest that refused to disappear.

I turned my head slightly, my gaze drifting back to the window.

The sun had fully set now.

Darkness settling over everything.

I stood up and walked over to the bed, before lying down under the covers.

I exhaled slowly, pulling the blanket closer around myself.

My body ached.

But it wasn’t just from the injuries.

It was from everything else.

Everything I didn’t understand.

Everything I didn’t want to feel.

Everything I couldn’t control.

And as I closed my eyes again, one thought lingered.

Staying away from Mike might be the safest choice. But it was also the hardest.

By the third day, the pain had dulled.

The healer had removed the tighter wrappings from my arm that morning, replacing them with lighter bandages that allowed more movement. The wound had already begun to close, a thin, angry line against my skin.

"You heal fast for someone without a wolf, but rest for a couple more days." she had said, sounding impressed.

I didn’t tell her why.

Pain and recovery had always been a part of my life.

Back when I was nothing in this pack, injuries didn’t earn rest.

So, my life could now be called luxurious.

"I’m fine," I had told her.

After the bandaging, I was back in my room for work.

I couldn’t rest. Not when I had the plans to leave the pack.

The desk by the window was cluttered with papers, notes, and the device I had modified weeks ago.

A slim, unassuming laptop Karl had given me that held far more power than anyone in this pack would ever suspect.

To them, I was just starting to learn and catch up to others my age.

They had no idea what I was capable of. But that was good. Itade my work easier because no one would ever suspect me.

I flexed my fingers slightly, ignoring the pull of the healing wound, and tapped rapidly on keyboard.

Lines of code filled the display on the screen.

Unlike everything else in my life right now, these cores made sense to me. They were easy to control and followed clear rules.

If something didn’t work, there was always a reason. A fix and a solution.

I exhaled slowly, focusing on the section in front of me.

The secure payment protocol wasn’t just a simple system I was building.

What started as a basic idea had evolved into something more complex, something that could protect transactions, identities, and sensitive data even under attack.

Because I had come to understand that power wasn’t just physical.

Information was the biggest source of power and anyone who could control it held the power.

In the midst of typing, I paused and frowned a little.

"No..." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Something was off.

The system was secure but not efficient.

Too many layers would slow it down and make it vulnerable in a different way.