Tristan

The sound of the piano grated on my ears. Everything about this felt suffocating.

The hall, now transformed for the ceremony, felt even worse.

After weeks of denial, days of resignation and acceptance. It was finally here. My mating ceremony.

I hated every second of it.

Being here brought me back to my first mating ceremony which was ironic when it was nothing like this. There wasn't any fanfare. It was rushed and full of nerves, only a few days after her 18th birthday.

We ...