Hello, reader! I don't know how it happened, but instead of posting this document, one of my Jared/Kim documents was posted. A few of you liked that chapter and seeing as how it has 11 other chapters, I encourage you to read them too :) I was inspired to write a Paul/Mina/Rachel love triangle and... well, here it is! Remember, we're early in the universe, Rachel won't be around for a little while but, hence, the love triangle! Okay. Read!

The Art of Normalcy

Paul

Life for a seventeen-year-old boy is pretty simple, right? Get decent grades, play a little football, play a little lacrosse, party a little, and get as much sleep as possible, right? Well, yeah. Of course, that's if you don't morph into a giant wolf at will, have to raise your two younger sisters, and if you actually want to make something of yourself, thereby taking advance classes as a junior in high school.

Welcome to my life.

I shouldn't complain. The state gives us money. Everyone I know pitches in to help with Tessa and Laura when they can. We have our health, we have each other, and we have shelter and food. That doesn't make anything easier, however. There's only so much Emily and Mrs. Tala can babysit and there's only so many times we can skip out on the doctor. And sometimes we get on each other's nerves… and by sometimes, I mean all the time.

Like now. Tessa was thirteen years old and wearing a black leather skirt and a tube top out at ten o'clock on a Saturday night ready to go Lord even knows where… is that normal?

"Uhh, where are you going?"

"It's really none of your business, Paul," she said brattily as she started marching toward the door in three inch heels.

Stay calm. "Tessa, please. Can you not be difficult right now? I had a long day."

"You've had a long day? You. I see. So it doesn't matter that I've been up since four am and I've had to work all day until I came home to watch Laura? I've had a long day too, and I want to go out with my friends." It was hard, I knew that; we were all pulling tight schedules. That didn't make it right for her to be going out like that.

"Tess, I have no problem at all with you going out. Just not like that. And you have to be home by twelve." That wasn't unreasonable… was it? I had no idea. That's the problem. I have no idea how to raise a nine-year-old and thirteen-year-old. So I was constantly questioning myself. Was it normal to have left-overs more then twice a week? Was it normal for Laura to eat the same thing everyday for lunch… was it normal for Tessa to not eat lunch at all?

"What the hell do you mean I have to be home by twelve and what is wrong with my outfit?" I love my sister, I really do. But she has to be the most annoying person to ever grace the face of the planet.

"Tessa, we're not arguing over this. Either go get changed or you're not going out. And if you're not back by 12:05 the latest then you won't be going out anywhere for a month. Understand?"

"No, actually, I don't. Fuck you! I'm leaving," she screamed at me, familiar anger coloring every syllable.

"Tessa!"

"You're not my dad! You're just my stupid, narrow minded brother who doesn't know what he's doing." How could I argue with her when she was so right?

"You're right Tess, I'm not your dad, and I don't know what I'm doing. But as your brother, I'm asking you not to go out like that because no self-respecting girl goes out like that past midnight. I don't want you going out like that because I love you and I don't want you to get hurt. Guys get the wrong idea about girls that are dressed the way you are now. I do know that." Her hand was on the door, her high heels pointed towards the street, ready to run. It's not like she hasn't before... I really wasn't in the mood for playing catch tonight.

"I hate you," she whispered brokenly, putting a knot in my stomach.

"I know," I stated simply as I walked cautiously over to her, almost afraid of her reaction, and hugged her tiny little body. It wasn't her fault that her life was like this. All she wanted to do was go out with her friends and forget about the world for a couple of hours. I would let her, I would understand her, but within reason… I was being reasonable, right?

"If you don't want to go out, we could, ya know, have a family night. Sound of Music, chocolate ice cream, nice warm fire?" Please say yes.

"Fine. But only if I don't have to babysit tomorrow."

"Done. Now go get changed and I'll get Laura." Crisis avoided, mental fist pump of victory commence! I would sacrifice my Sunday to stay home with Laura any day if that meant Tessa was not going out on a Saturday. She sighed and walked through the small living room and towards the back of the house.

It hadn't always been like this. I mean yeah, there was always no dad. But there was a mom until last year when she didn't come back. Not that she was of any use anyway. But it was still nice to say I had a mom. No one knows where she is and I don't have time to find out. So we went on living like it was nothing new. Tessa got a job at the general store down off of Adler, Laura went straight to Emily's or Mrs. Tala's house after school, and I cut down minimally on patrol time. But it still sucked.

I had always been ambitious academically. Well, my best friend Jared was ambitious academically and I just wanted to be in the same classes as him so I followed suite, but I found my niche in the AP and honors classes too. I encouraged Tessa and Laura to do the same because I wanted them to be better than what they are predestined to be. I wanted them to go to college and become larger than life - larger than the Olympic Peninsula, more specifically. They were stuck here, tied down because of our ancestors and lack of finances. And I wanted them to have all their options open when the time came. I wanted to give them the world that wasn't given to me. And I would. But they needed to work hard too. So we were all tired and cranky most of the time. But we loved each other and that's what kept us from homicide.

I shook myself back into the present and made my way to Laura's room, knocking gently before getting permission to come in.

"Hey Cupcake, we're having family night. Want ice cream?"

"Yes! I love when you and Tessa are actually talking!"

"Yeah, me too." I smiled at her as she put away her art supplies neatly. "What are you working on?" Laura loved art and she spent a lot of her time painting or drawing. Her artwork was displayed all over the house in varying degrees of appropriateness. Handprints in the kitchen, stick figures in the bathroom, and most of her most recent work hung in the living room.

"It's a new piece. Mrs. Tala gave me the idea. Did you know that she paints too? Well, anyway, she showed me a multi-media thing she did with a person and a tiger and they were in this jungle and…" I listened to her rattle off some art terms and go on and on about 'multi-media and it's importance in the modern art world though it is sometimes not given the credit it's due'. That nine-year-old little girl amazed me sometimes. Her eyes sparkled as she zoomed around the small room, organizing her desk in the back half of the room. Her colored pencils were looking a little low in number. I'd have to pick some up soon.

"… and it was really nice and – Paul, are you listening to me?"

"'Course I am, Cupcake! Chocolate or vanilla ice cream?" Ice cream was always a good distraction. She stopped bustling for a minute to think. Her little eyes scrunched up and she crossed her arms in deep concentration. She looked like she was making a decision on the global economy. Well, when you're nine, ice cream is an important matter, I guess.

"Both, I think. One scoop of each, please and thank you."

"You got it Cupcake."

I passed Tessa in the living room as she loaded the old school VHS. The Sound of Music was both her and Laura's favorite movie. Guess it's a Julie Andrews thing but it always put us in a good mood.

So I fixed three bowels of ice cream, one chocolate and vanilla, one just chocolate, and one mint chocolate chip, and sat down in front of the fireplace with my sisters as the hills came alive with the sound of music. We weren't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it was days like these that I didn't mind our situation all that much.

Tessa, Laura, and I fell asleep in the living room and I was awoken to the sound of howls. Not bad howls, but the 'you need to get your ass to patrol' howls. I groaned a little and gently removed a snoozing Laura from my chest. She made a little noise of discontent as my extra wolf heat left her and I threw a blanket over her. I took one last glance; they were so peaceful when they slept, not a care in the world. I scribbled a note and rushed out of the door, already half undressed.

Paul, I understand your situation, but you can't be more than twenty minutes late for patrol.

Sorry, boss.

It's fine. Just uh, don't let it happen again.

You got it boss.

Jared will be here in an hour. You think you can handle yourself?

Yes, boss.

Well, all right then. Howl if you need anything.

Okay, boss.

Sam's thoughts faded as he phased. He usually was pretty laid back but it was early morning and he liked to make breakfast for Emily on Sunday mornings. It's an imprint thing, don't ask. Speaking of, I happen to be the only member of the pack that hasn't imprinted. Which may or may not be a good thing. I could imprint and then not have to worry about a relationship – it just comes naturally to imprinting couples. Or I could imprint and it could screw my whole mentality up.

Like Sam, all he ever thought about was Emily. And Jared only thought about Kim. Which sucked because we had been best friends until, like, a month ago when he decided to go all goo-goo eyes over Kim Morgan. I mean, she was hot, but not that hot. Anyhoo, that's two-to-one odds! A little unnerving, not going to lie. I have no time for it anyway.

My legs were starting to hurt. Not because of how fast I was going but because of how tired I was. The sun was just starting to rise as Jared's thoughts faded in.

I wonder if Kim would like me better if I grew my hair out. Does she like boys with long hair? I'm in so far in over my head.

Well, good morning to you too, Jay.

Sorry, Paul. You know how imprinting goes.

No, actually I don't. I didn't mean to be snippy.

Whatever. We ran in silence after that. It's not that I wanted to be nasty, it's just sometimes I forget the fantasy world that Jared lives in. My brain ran in circles about the upcoming week. Laura's babysitting was taken care of, she had an art show on Wednesday, and I had a quarterly parent teacher conference on Friday for Tessa. Plus school, homework, and patrol. Should be fun. I sighed and tried to shake the tired out of my bones. My head started to become light on my body as I focused solely on the worn path in front of me.

You okay man?

Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired.

Go home, shit's almost up.

Sam doesn't like when we skip out early, you know that.

I'll deal with Sam. The offer was too good to give up.

Thanks, Jay.

Anytime, bro.

I ran home quickly, afraid that Tessa might be awake and freak out that she couldn't go get breakfast with friends because I wasn't there to watch Laura. I made it into the house without a sound and they were both still passed out on the couch. Relief washed over me and I was tired again. So incredibly tired.

The clock read ten after ten, meaning that it was breakfast time. Was it worth it to go to sleep for twenty minutes? No. I sighed and grabbed the pancake mix from the pantry quietly. Being a werewolf meant that there was no need to actually try and be quiet, which was awesome for coming home and not waking anyone up.

Werewolf. I turn into a giant horse-sized ball of fur. I exist to protect people from vampires. Like I didn't have enough on my plate. I was raising two kids, I was trying to set a good example, I was trying to make good decisions. Add another full time job and you've got an extremely tense, angry, pissed at the world person… or mythical creature. I was lost in my thoughts as I flipped pancakes, making sure there were some with nuts and some with fruit and a lot with chocolate chips.

I loved my sisters. I'd give my life for both of them. But that didn't mean that I didn't have a shit load of pent up frustration. Why me? Why now? Why us? My dad was never in our lives. And I guess when he left, he took my mom's heart with him, because she left too. Gone, like they never even existed. I was so lost inside my head that I didn't even notice when Laura snuggled up to my side in her little pink flower pajamas.

"Paul?"

"Huh?"

"The pancakes are ready to be flipped."

"Gotcha." She lifted my arm so that it was fitted around her shoulder.

"Cold?"

"Nope… just… I don't know. Lonely?" My youngest sister and I were on a different page. Sometimes she said stuff that threw me so far off guard.

"Why are you lonely?"

"Because you're cooking pancakes just like Mom used to. You know? Like how she used to add nuts and bananas and chocolate chips?" I instinctively pulled her closer.

"Yeah, I remember." What else do you say to a nine-year-old that tells you she misses her mom who's not coming back? I sure as fuck didn't know. So I went with something that all girls seemed to like.

"I love you Lau, you know that right?"

"Yeah, I know. But sometimes I think that you shouldn't be doing all of this. I know you left for patrol really early and now you're even making the pancakes that taste really good and I-I'm sad that you can't be normal anymore." She was incredibly insightful for a nine-year-old.

My heart ripped in half as I felt a few tears drip down my torso on the side that her cheek was against. I lifted her easily into my arms and her legs dangled to my thighs. She was so small, compared to me.

"I'm so sorry, Cupcake. If I could fix it I would." I'd give anything to make this right.

"I don't feel bad for us, Paul, I'm sad for you."

"Don't be sad for me, Cupcake. Don't be sad for us. Be happy that I have you and you have me and we have Tess and we have health and shelter and food. Be happy, Cupcake. Please." I felt like crying. But I was the big brother and no matter what, big brothers do not cry. They did, however, get angry and angrier.

So, life is complicated. What else is new? Let's add a girlfriend. Or a girl, at least.

Jared and I were always the first people in AP US and Mina and Kim came later. Kim took her seat next to Jared, Mina took her seat next to me.

She was pretty: dark hair, light blue eyes, and soft colored skin. And everyone knew her. She was Mina Weller. She loved horses, she loved to throw parties on the beach, her favorite color was yellow and she hated mean or grouchy people. She had a normal, nice life. And I liked her because of that. She was like a breath of fresh air.

"Go ahead students!" Mr. Kelly's voice brought me back to planet earth.

"What happened?" I honestly had no idea… I was too busy staring at that little patch of skin that wasn't quite covered by Mina's yellow shirt and her jeans.

"Group project on the role of women in the late 19th century. Library now." I didn't need to be told twice. I grabbed her hand and we ran into the library, sneaking past Mrs. Iris, the librarian, and into a small empty conference room near the back.

"Elizabeth Cady Stanton and this other lady-" I cut her off by kissing her against the door. There was no need to pretend that we were just group partners anymore.

She was tiny to begin with but pinned between me and the door, her body pressed flush against mine, she was even smaller. She kissed back, arching into me as I massaged her backside. We only had 40 minutes, after all.

"We… have … to work … on this project… eventually." She said between hot, open-mouthed kisses.

"Sure, sure," I said as I started sucking on that really soft part of her neck.

"You-you're going to leave a mark."

"So?" She was breathing heavily as I started to move my hands higher. As a wolf, the primal part of you grew bigger than normal. And as a guy, it was pretty big to begin with. So even though she wasn't my imprint or in heat, I wanted her.

It was so easy to just concentrate on her body and mine for a few minutes. The only thing I thought about was the little sounds she made as my hands roamed over her torso and up toward her rib cage. I lifted her by the waist higher up on the door and she wrapped her legs around my torso. I removed her shirt with ease, not taking my time.

"We can't." Her voice was a couple octaves higher than usual as I kissed along her neck.

"Who said?" I would be respectful if she wanted to stop.

"We're in the library!" So she didn't want to stop. Excellent.

"The door's locked." She still didn't stop me and even leaned forward to make it easier for my hands to travel up her back and unclasp the pretty pink lace bra she was wearing.

Twenty minutes left. Her skin was lighter on her chest and her heart hammered as I set my mouth to work. I wanted to touch but my hands were holding her against the door by her ass, which was soft and warm in my hands.

I tasted the right one first, gently swirling her nipple with my tongue and she arched against me again. Next came teeth and I grazed mine over the now extremely hard peak. And then I sucked, harder and harder until her tiny hands were nearly ripping my hair out. Then I turned my attention to lovely number two. She cursed and messaged my shoulders as I worked my magic. Her legs became vices around my stomach and I could smell her desire. She wanted me too.

I glanced quickly at the clock, five minutes left. I finished with time to spare and slid her down a little on the door so that I could kiss her more easily. "We don't have anymore time," I whispered into her mouth. She groaned and leaned her forehead against mine.

"You're really warm." Her voice was a little shaky and my ego smiled.

"Too warm?"

"Nope… are you sick, though?"

"Nah, just hot blooded."

"I see." I didn't really want to talk anymore so I set her down on the floor gently. I slid her bra on, kissing her neck while I clasped the back. Her shirt was lying on a chair and I helped her put that on too, kissing her one last time as we grabbed a few books that were on a small table near the windows so it looked like we actually did something educational. I cleared my throat as we walked out of the conference room, trying to act as normal as possible for the fifth time in three weeks.

"So we still have to read up on Elizabeth Cady… uh…"

"Stanton. Elizabeth Cady Stanton."

"Got it. I'll text you tonight or something about the-uh, supplies that we'll need for the poster."

I tried to hide my smile as we walked past the librarian, who waved at Mina and smiled, pleased with our topic of discussion. If only she knew that we had nearly defiled one of her conference rooms. Gotta love high school.

We walked back into the class room where there were small groups of partners scattered about, talking about their topics and what not.

Jared and Kim sat near the back and were obviously not talking about women in the 19th century. I was in a good mood, and I smiled at Jared as he glanced up at me and gave me a quick thumbs up. The bell rang and we all filed out. Time to snap back to reality.

The thing about being normal is that no one is. Yeah, I morph into a giant wolf, I have no parents, I play Dad to two girls, I work harder at getting ass ninth period than history, and I have anger issues. But the art of normalcy is to make everyone else think that everything is fine. I go to work, I go to school, I try to set a good example for my sisters and I'm not worried about girls in the least. And I am the most patient, understanding guy ever. That's what everyone needed to believe.