Alpha's Regret After Her Rebirth by Aurora Starling

Chapter 0142

Hannah

It was only a few moments after Viona showedthe tabloid that my phone began to ring on the coffee table.

Exchanging nervous glances with my friend, | carefully leaned forward and felt myself visibly cringe

at the non the caller ID.

“It’s Noah,” | murmured, my voice trembling despite my best efforts.

Viona gasped softly and gripped my knee. “Are you gonna answer it?”

My hand hovered over the phone for a few moments as | grappled with the decision that needed to be made; if |

answered it, then Noah would certainly chewout. There was no doubt in my mind that he had seen the

pictures, because he wouldn't be callingotherwise. On the other hand, if | didn’t answer it ...Well, he might

just be even more angry.

| really w

was caught between a rock and a hard place.

Ultimately, though, | couldn't pick it up. | felt too stunned to speak, let alone to handle Noah right now. Instead, |

pulled my hand away and let the phone continue to ring. | chewed my lip and shot Viona al terrified glance.

“I can’t,” | said softly.

Viona shuddered and nodded, sinking down onto the couch beside me. For several breathless moments, we

simply watched as the phone rang and rang. It felt like an eternity before it finally stopped, and it was only then

that | let out a gasp of air | didn’t realize | had been holding.

“It wasn't like that, you know,” | murmured, shaking my head. “Drake and | are friends. Nothing more.”

“I believe you.” Viona rubbed my back in a slow circle. “But the press likes to make up its own stories.”

“Trust me, | know.” | held my head in my hands, pressing my fists into my eyelids as though that would somehow

help. Viona and | stayed like that for a long tbefore the sudden sound of the front door opening and

slamming shut, followed by the sound of Noah's voice in the foyer, caused us both to jump. “Go,” | said softly to

Viona, nodding my head toward the direction of the back door. “I don’t want you to hear this.”

Viona nodded and scurried away. She hadn't even been gone for a few moments before Noah suddenly appeared

in the doorway, his phone clutched in his hand and his nostrils flaring with anger.

“What the hell, Hannah?” he asked, crossing the room in two quick strides and shoving his phone in my face to

showthe pictures | had just seen.

| swatted his hand away and turned my head toward the wall. “I don’t need a scolding.” | growled in response.

Noah glared atfor several long moments, huffing deeply through his nose, before he finally lowered his

phone and turned away. “I warned you against this sort of thing.” he said quietly. “I warned you, when you went

out with him the first time, that it would backfire. And that I wouldn't help you again.”

| clenched my jaw, “I know.”

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Chapter 0142

“But you did it anyway,” he growled. “You couldn’t have just chthis morning like you said you would;

you had to go gallivanting around with him. Eating food out of his hands, hugging him in public. And now look

what happened.”

| opened my mouth to retort and tell him that it wasn’t like that, that the picture had only been a moment

between two friends that had been misconstrued, but then I shut it again. No, | thought to myself. Let him think

that Drake and | have a thing with each other.

After all, it would serve him right for whatever the hell he was doing with Zoe.

Instead, | simply stood and crossed over to the window. | peered out into the dark front yard for a moment before

| snapped the curtains shut, feeling almost as though we were being watched right that second.

I'll handle it,” | said simply.

I heard Noah scoff behind me, but I didn’t turn to face him.

“Of course you will,” he growled angrily. “And you'd better do it quickly.”

“Quickly?” | finally turned to face him and shot him an incredulous look. “What, are you timingnow?”

Noah merely shrugged. “Forty-eight hours,” he replied coldly, his hands clenched into tight white fists at his

sides. “I'll give you two days to figure this out. And if you don’t...”

“What?” | scoffed. “You'll beat me? Lockup? Prevent our divorce?”

“No, Hannah! Goddess,” he said, throwing his hands up into the air in exasperation. “What do you think of me?

That I'm skind of tyrant?”

When | didn’t respond and merely stared at him with pursed lips, he turned on his heel with a huff and strode

over to the doorway. “If you don’t handle this, | will; but only because it affect both of us, not just you. And this

time, I'm going to charge you for my time, I'm tired of running around cleaning up your messes for free.”

“Oh, like your tis so precious,” | bit out through clenched teeth. “You seem to have plenty of tto spend

with-"

Before | could finish, Noah's icy eyes snapped tolike two daggers. | fell silent, my mouth working uselessly

for a few moments before | gave up and looked away.

“Fine,” was all | could manage to say.

With that, Noah stormed out. | stood frozen, still clutching the curtains, until | heard the sound of the front door

opening and closing again. Only then did | lean against the wall and slide to the floor, too exhausted to even

walk over to the couch.

Forty-eight hours. That was all the t| had to figure this out-to figure out a situation that wasn’t even really

my fault, all thanks to the tabloids having a field day with an intimate moment.

Yeah, well, | already had a plan,

The next morning. | woke up bright and early and immediately hopped out of bed. As I quickly showered,

dressed, and got ready for the day, | felt more motivated than | had in a long time.

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Today, | had a trick up my sleeve, something that had been brewing for stnow. | had to cut a few

corners to bring it to fruition sooner than | would have hoped, but it all seemed to be turning out okay so far

Now, Noah would be eating his words-because, unlike he apparently seemed to assof me, | was always

prepared as of late. | supposed that dying and being brought back to life gavethat trait.

It was a little while later that | stepped out of the car, thanking the driver and climbing the steps to the large

community center. From outside, | could see people bustling around within-hanging last-minute flyers, wheeling

the podium to the center of the room, arranging flower displays and information booths.

And there, in the center of it all, was a large banner hanging overhead.

“Eating Disorder Awareness