Quentin

I can't breathe.

I am inside the county hospital where Beck was taken yesterday with my brother, Viho, Talla and one of her sisters. We were supposed to find out the results of Beck's EEG exam, but things took a turn for the worse when a hospital team was dispatched to the I.C.U. in response to a 'Code Blue'.

Yesterday, Beck had woken up to find a blood stain on the sheet of his bed and started feeling bad while he was taking a shower. He passed out, so Jude tended to him so that he and Talla could bring Beck here.

It was the worst day of my life. I knew my mate was unwell because I woke up sweating with a horrible sensation yesterday, unable to feel my mate through our bond connection. It was only a matter of time until I got the urgent mind link from my brother telling me he was bringing our mate to the hospital because he had passed out.

After Beck was attended by doctors, we later discovered that he had lost one of the babies he was carrying and the doctor informed us that he fell into a coma, unlikely to ever wake up again. Even after delivering his child, assuming he'd be well enough to carry it to term.

Jude and I were left devastated by this news. I never cried so hard like I did yesterday.

I am only 18. I shouldn't be finding out that my mate will never wake up again. We should be planning for college or at the very least for our lives after graduation. Until yesterday, our mate was happy as he carried the super twins. Now things have taken a turn for the worst.

It was already difficult to accept that our mate was in a coma, pregnant with one child. But at least we had that. Now Beck seems to have coded inside the Intensive Care Unit. He was supposed to be kept alive artificially, for the duration of his pregnancy at least. Goddess knows what the Beckers would decide later.

But now we won't have even that. No mate, no child, nothing. I am truly devastated.

This will be the end of the Atwood dynasty in Ruckerford Falls. Neither me or my brother shall recover from this loss. It's too much pain as it was yesterday, but at least there was still hope. If Beck is gone, then that's it for us. All I know is that I can't do this without him.

I can't stand to be apart from my mate, but to not feel his presence through our mate bond is even worse. I have been gutted for the last 24 hours, but now the pain is overwhelming. I tried to be strong for my brother because he needed me and no other person could relate to me like him. We're in this together, for better or worse.

But I won't survive the loss of my mate. I can't live without him and my life would be over before it began. My adult life that is. I was so happy by his side, not even the fact that he was mated to my brother was bothering me any more. In fact, I was okay with that.

It's the thing with twins, though I never expected to share a mate with Jude, I have since learned it is not the end of the world. All we needed was to set boundaries for our relationship.

But right now all there is left is pain. Jude and I cried inconsolably while our mate was being treated by the doctors. Talla was crying out for her baby, desperately. Her sister and mate consoled her, but they too were devastated by this loss.

As we waited to hear from the hospital team, we flooded the lounge with never ending tears for the loss of our beloved Beck, a true angel who was a light in this wicked world. I'm hiccuping from the intense sobbing. I am not prepared to lose our mate, not that I'd ever be.

"Why is this happening to him? He doesn't deserve it!" - I cried out, revolted by this dire situation. I'm in shambles and the only reason I didn't unravel completely is because my brother is here with me.

Jude hugged me while he too was desperately crying about our mate's loss. It has hit us hard, but it would hit us even worse when we see his lifeless body. I can't believe this is my reality. I refuse to accept it. What have I done to be punished this way?

After a while, a doctor appeared in the hospital lounge to talk to us. I mean, to Beck's parents. He looked flabbergasted. Jude and I already expected the worst possible news. Not only we lost our mate, but we lost our child as well. Can this day get any worse?

"Mr. and Mrs. Becker, I don't know exactly how to tell you this." - He started in a dreadful tone.

Talla and Viho were wrecked, already fearing the worst. As did my brother and I.

"My son is dead, isn't he? Just tell us the truth, doctor!" - Viho demanded, voice wrought with sorrow. I was yet to see that man show emotion, much less cry, but he really was destroyed by this news, by his son's untimely demise.

"Kuckunniwi is not dead. On the contrary, he woke up from the coma and is now breathing without any help." - He informed us in a surprised tone and we gasped in shock.

"What?!" - The four of us baffled in disbelief.

"It was miraculous, really. We responded to a Code Blue because Kuckunniwi was trying to get out of the respirator, having woken up. Even though we had every reason to believe he'd never wake up again, it seems your son has beaten the odds." - He replied, sounding completely baffled by this turn of events.

"And how is the baby?" - Jude beat me to it, eagerly.

"All signs indicate that the fetus is fine, but additional exams should be performed later." - He told us, tentatively.

"Oh my Goddess!" - Talla cried out in absolute shock. It was difficult to believe his words after everything that Beck had suffered. It seemed like we were out of it, barely able to register this.

"Take me to my son, doctor." - Talla demanded, needing to see him to believe it.

Talla and Viho followed him to the Intensive Care Unit, even though only one visitor was allowed at a time. They took their time with their son, no doubt taking turns seeing him. Like them, I had a tough time with this shocking news. I do need to see my mate as soon as possible.

Beck was lying on a hospital bed inside the Intensive Care Unit, a machine monitored his heart but he looked surprisingly well all things considered. I mean, for a boy who should be dead or in a coma.

He looked at Jude and me as we came closer, but only one of us could go to him. I let Jude approach him first as I'm too emotional seeing my mate breathing on his own.

"How? Why? I can't believe you woke up from a coma!" - Jude was flabbergasted talking to our mate, who demanded he hugged him.

"You're talking to the super Alpha, my love. You shouldn't put anything past me." - He smirked, causing my brother to laugh nervously.

Seriously, you would not think that boy was unconscious since yesterday. He was talking like we were inside his bedroom and all was well in the world. The doctors were all impressed by him.

Finally, it was my time to talk to our mate and hug him to smell his sweet scent. I teared up seeing him alive, I couldn't believe my eyes. We had a nice time talking for the limited time that we had before he was taken away for more exams.

In the hours that followed, Beck was released to another bedroom in the hospital outside of the I.C.U. He was tested extensively with everything the doctors thought of to explain his miracle recovery.

Talla, Viho and the rest of their family came over to visit Beck, as shocked by his recovery as the rest of us. Further exams wouldn't accurately demonstrate how he recovered, but as far as they could tell the fetus was doing fine inside the womb.

My parents visited Beck and expressed to him their happiness to see him alive. With time, Kingsley and the Hudsons also visited him. Within a week of being monitored, he was discharged from the hospital.

Everyday we visited him after school and he always smiled at our presence. Beck was put in strict orders to not exert himself and we couldn't do anything of the sexual nature for one month. 4 weeks! That did not fly well with our mate, let me tell you that...

Jude and I were adamant to not risk our mate's life or his pregnancy. It is already a miracle Beck didn't lose both babies. By the end of March, he was ready for school again and to take classes with the rest of us instead of being homeschooled.

He received a hero's welcome from all the students and faculty members, who celebrated the fact that he still walked this Earth. It really was a modern day miracle for those who didn't know about him being an Enygma. Even for those who did.

"I can not tell you how happy I am to see you again, out and about." - Owen told Beck, smiling wide inside the classroom.

"Thank you, Owen. It was touch and go for a while. But ultimately, I couldn't leave my mates behind. They're too hot to be widowers." - He snickered.

"Yeah, I agree with my mate. I don't think I have ever seen Jude so broken up like the time you were in the hospital. I'm very glad you're alive. I don't think my friend could have handled it if you weren't." - Layla spoke, sounding very relieved for him.

Jude glanced at Beck, breathing out a relieved sigh. I shared the sentiment of feeling happy our mate is alive.

"Yeah, I definitely couldn't handle being without my Beck. My sweet mate." - He swooned at him.

"Our sweet mate." - I corrected him with a pretend glare.

"I'm sorry you lost one of your babies." - Kingsley told his cousin, feeling sad for him.

"Thanks. It's kind of a miracle I didn't lose both of them, but I'm glad I didn't. Now all we have to do is to care for them." - Beck spoke, looking down at his small, round belly.

"I'm sorry to ask, but whose child is–"

"DRAGOMIR!" - Beck cut him off in a loud voice, glaring daggers at him. - "Unless you had sex with me, the paternity of my baby is not your concern!" - He told him, raging at my best friend who was really uncomfortable at being called out like this.

A lot of us gulped awkwardly at the sensitive subject, but the truth is...

"We don't know whose child he's carrying. Unfortunately, it was the older fetus who passed on. Now, your guess is as good as ours." - I muttered under my breath since I'm sure everybody in class was curious, not just him.

"I'm really sorry for your loss, J. I understand the other baby was yours." - Layla told her best friend with a saddened tone. He does look sorrowful by the loss.

"Thank you, Lay. I'm just glad our mate survived. It was really touch and go..." - Jude downplayed his loss, feeling fortunate that Beck did survive this ordeal. On that, I agree with him. That would have been devastating to the both of us.

Beck is tearful at the recent traumatic memory, feeling the absence of the other fetus. I do feel horrible for him and Jude, but I'd feel even worse if the next in line would be his child alone. At least, now we can't know for sure. There's always hope.

Beck, Jude and I would slowly recover from this tremendous scare. In the weeks that followed, he grew into his pregnancy healthily and became more confident about his health. Though he gave his mates a hard time over the sex ban, we did what we had to do in order to protect him. Or better yet, we didn't.

Of course, there is more than just one way to skin a cat. And my mate knows how to get what he wants when he can't get what he actually wants. Let's just say he made great use of his oral skills.

In the days of April, students were excited to find out about their college admissions. Rachel was mated to a boy from the wrestling team and now all our friends were paired up. Sam and Casper completed the bond, receiving glorious accolades from their peers.

Beck has been following up with a doctor ever since his miscarriage. Talla has been on top of things regarding his health, food intake and everything she could think of to guarantee her son's health as well as the baby's.

Meanwhile, Mr. Lancaster - Owen's dad - talked to my mom about the listing of available properties to rent here in the pack. Then she talked it over with dad and Talla to figure out what would be best for their sons. Afterwards, they narrowed it down to three options for us to choose from. It seems so grown up to live on our own right after high school.

But with a baby on the way, there is no other choice to be had. Beck can't raise a child in the pack house as we already established is against its policy. It wasn't built to raise a family, just to give a leg up to those who are in the beginning of their adult lives.

"Would you like to know the gender?" - The doctor asked us as we accompanied our mate to his follow up consultation. We were inside the imaging room of the hospital, Beck is having an ultrasound to determine how the gestation is doing.

Talla glanced at her son, as did Jude and I. He looked at us for a response and we glanced at each other apprehensively.

"Sure, if that's okay with Beck." - I voiced my opinion, having an agreement from my brother. Our mate nodded along and the doctor slid the machine across his belly to get a proper image.

"It's a boy." - He announced it and we were emotional to hear it. Jude and I hugged our mate who was thrilled to hear the news.

"I already have a name for him. I want it to be Akecheta. It means 'fighter'." - Beck told us, emotionally. Talla was happy to hear this.

"Is that negotiable, mate?" - Jude asked him, tentatively. Goddess knows we can't risk pissing him off now.

The doctor was nervous to be in the room for this discussion. Beck smiled and looked at us with a poignant expression on his face.

"Of course, mates. We can discuss it later." - He spoke through gritted teeth, making us apprehensive. I glanced at my brother with a look on my face that said: 'it was NOT negotiable'.

Fortunately, we were able to delicately negotiate with him a middle name for our baby that we three agreed on. It was the best we could hope to achieve with such a strong minded mate.

Weeks turned into months and with June, came our graduation. Our parents watched as Owen, the valedictorian, gave a speech about his time in high school and hopes for the future with such a powerful senior class.

As our mate turned six months pregnant, he looked the happiest and fulfilled to be there. It was a glorious occasion in which we said goodbye to our classmates, got the accolades from our parents and prepared ourselves for an eventful summer.

Goddess knows what the future holds for us. You know, outside of the fight for Alpha.

In late July, the pack crowded a gymnasium to witness the combat that would shape their lives going forward. The fight for Alpha. Jude and I were forced to fight in wolf form. The end goal being to prove to everybody who was the strongest twin.

Backstage, we were preparing to enter the stage set up for our show down. Beck was keeping us company while Mr. Booker was giving us final advice for the confrontation.

"Be aware this is not a fight to the death. Once your opponent is down, the fight is won."

"And in case one of my mates doesn't survive this, I'll move back to my reservation and the survivor will need a lawyer to see his son." - Beck threatened us with a serious tone.

"Keep in mind you already are champions. But I do need both my mates." - He continued, staring us down with his seven months pregnant belly.

"No, my dear Beck, we are the champions." - I told him, giving my mate one last hug before we left for the arena.

https://youtu.be/04854XqcfCY

A|N: BOOM!

Thank you to every single one of you who read this novel. It truly means the world to me.

I'm sorry, did you really think I would kill Beck?

Come on, people! The first thing you learned about him is that he is a SURVIVOR (Chapter 1). Of course he couldn't die. He is a goddamn super Alpha! What's the fun in that?

Now, I do have to finish 'Topping the Enemy' and post the rest of 'The Twins' Fate'. I'll get right on that as soon as I can.

Don't tell this to anyone, but I want to write a story about someone who is seemingly left mateless by the Goddess. I want it to be a spinoff from "Topping the Alpha" but with adults instead of teens. It's gonna be a challenge for me. It'll also mark the first time ever that the Alpha will not be the protagonist of the novel. I'm so excited for that twist, though I won't be able to post anything before April.

PS: Next is the bonus chapter: "The Best of Both Worlds".

Love,

Léo.