Claimed by My Bully Alpha Chapter 156

Aurora’s P.O.V

I opened my eyes, gasping for air, but all I could feel was the pressure in my chest, the burning sensation in my lungs as the water surrounded me. I tried to flail my arms, desperate to push myself up, but it was like the water was pulling me deeper. Panic surged through me. I can't breathe, I can't breathe, my mind screamed, the darkness creeping in at the edges of my vision. I didn't know where I was, or if anyone could hear me, or if anyone would find me in time.

I could barely make sense of anything, but just as I thought I was about to slip under for good, I felt something—a hand, warm and firm, grabbing mine. Who...? Before I could make sense of it, I was being yanked up, and the water rushed off of my face as my head broke the surface. My body was pulled upward, and with a sharp inhale, I was suddenly hoisted onto the side of the pool. I coughed, sputtering, my body shaking as I tried to steady myself, gasping for air like it was the first time I’d ever had it.

"Hey, hey, it's alright," a voice murmured, and I blinked, struggling to focus. Caleb. It was Caleb, kneeling beside me, his hands steady on my shoulders as he helped me sit up. His eyes were wide, filled with panic and fear that he was trying to keep at bay; but his voice was calm, reassuring.

"You’re okay. I’ve got you."

I swallowed hard, trying to catch my breath, my head spinning. "I—I thought I was going to drown," I whispered, still shaking, feeling the cold of the pool water seeping into my skin.

Caleb let out a soft breath, as if he had been holding it too. "You almost did. But you're not going anywhere." His hand was still on my back, guiding me, grounding me.

"You're safe now."

I looked up at him, still trying to process what just happened. "I don't even know how I ended up there..." My voice trailed off, not sure if I wanted to know. “I—I was in my room…sleeping…I—”

"Doesn't matter," Caleb said, his voice gentle but firm. "You’re out now, and that’s what counts. Breathe, just try and relax. The rest will come to you."

I nodded, the fear starting to fade as I let him help me get my bearings, realizing just how close I had come to losing everything. I wasn’t sure if I could ever be okay after that, but right then, in that moment, Caleb was the only thing keeping me from falling apart.

I sat up, trying to clear the fog from my mind, my gaze landing on Caleb. He’s watching me with concern, but the confusion in his eyes matches my own. I open my mouth, trying to speak, but nothing comes out at first. Finally, I ask.

“Caleb… What happened? How did I end up by the pool?”

He tilted his head, looking equally perplexed. “I was about to ask you the same thing.” He shook his head as if trying to shake off his own confusion.

I blinked, slowly taking in my surroundings. The pool area was quiet, too quiet, and the air felt strange. I tried to stand but felt the weight of everything hitting me at once. My legs were unsteady, and I grip the edge of the pool for support. That’s when it hit me. I froze.

"I... I was sleepwalking again," I murmured, more to myself than to him.

Caleb’s expression shifts, concern turning to something deeper. “Another dream?” he asks, his voice soft but urgent.

I nodded, slowly. "Yes... but this time, it was different. I saw... my parents' old room. All of my mother’s things were there. Everything was just... left behind. It was like she never left at all." I felt a shiver run down my spine as I recalled the dream, the way everything had seemed so vivid, so real.

Caleb’s body went rigid, his eyes locking on mine as if searching for something in my words. He took a step forward, his voice tight.

“What happened in the dream, Aurora? Tell me everything.”

I hesitate, my throat tight, but I force myself to speak. “I don’t know... It felt like I was somehow back there, in that room, like I could touch everything, even smell the air. It was my parent’s room, Caleb. But something about it just felt wrong. I’ve never seen it like that before, as if all traces of my father had been removed. Only my mother’s belongings remained.”

He stared at me, eyes wide. Then, almost as if he’d lost his breath, he asked, “What else? What else did you see?”

I shook my head slowly, not understanding what any of it meant. “Nothing else… nothing that I can remember clearly.” The air felt colder now, and I gave an involuntary shiver as the weight of everything settled in.

“Caleb, what does this mean?” I asked, my voice shaking.

Caleb didn’t answer right away. Instead, he took a deep breath and looked away, lost in thought. When he met my gaze again, and I could see the worry in his eyes. "I don't know, Aurora. But whatever it is, it’s not good. Something about this dream is off."

“You feel it too, don’t you?” I urged. “Why Caleb? You told me that my parent’s house burned down, right? Then…why did I dream of it? Especially my parent’s room?”

“Aurora,” Caleb said suddenly, a kind of hesitance in his voice that told me he had been hiding something from me. “When I went to your house that day, before the fire... There was one room that was completely empty. I’m not talking about the mess, the broken stuff—no, this room... it was completely empty. Like…everything in it was just... gone.”

I stared at him, unable to breathe for a moment. “What do you mean gone?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. “Gone like it was cleared out? Or...?”

He sighed deeply, rubbing his hand across his face, clearly struggling with the weight of what he was saying.

“I think it was your parent’s room. The bed was still there, but everything else, all their personal stuff, was just... gone. Like someone had taken it all.”

My heart dropped. “But was there a burglary? Did someone break in?”

Caleb shook his head, his expression darkening. “No signs of forced entry. Nothing. It was like whoever did it had a key... or just knew exactly what they were doing. But before I could check the rest of the house...” He paused, his eyes shifting away from mine. “The fire started.”

I felt a cold shiver crawl up my spine. Everything I thought I knew—the fire, my father’s death, my parents, my old life—was slipping through my fingers like sand. A thought gnawed at me, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud. I just knew something wasn’t right.

I couldn’t stop the tears that started to fall. It felt like the weight of it all, the loss, the confusion, and the fear, was too much to bear. I stood up quickly and, without thinking, wrapped my arms around Caleb. The tears didn’t stop as I buried my face into Caleb’s soaked shirt as I clung to him, desperate for some kind of reassurance that things would make sense, that everything would be okay. But I knew it wouldn’t. Not like this.

“I can’t take this anymore, Caleb,” I whispered, my voice breaking as I squeezed my eyes shut. “I just... I want this to stop. I don’t want to keep going through this anymore. I can’t...”

He held me tight, his arms strong around me, but I could feel the tremor in his hands. I didn’t know if he had answers, if anyone had answers, but I couldn’t keep pretending that I was okay when everything around me was falling apart.