DISClaimer: I'm not Stephanie Meyer. I make no profit from this.

I am, however, very jealous of her, and quite in love with werewolves.

Hope you enjoy this. it's my first twilight fic.

-x-

Seth's POV

I looked up as she laughed. It was hollow and tired. But she laughed.

That was the first I'd ever heard of her. And it was laughter. I don't have another clue why I followed the sound, only that Leah and Jacob howled at me to come back, and maybe because it wasn't an order, I ignored them, bounded away, and phased just behind the line of trees by the highway.

It was cold. Definitely cold, and raining too, I realised as I pulled the jeans I'd attached to my backside on. And her hollow laughter continued, though it was mixed with as shudder this time. I felt quite bad for her...

She sounded pissed… upset, and angry. It was that kind of laughter, filled with frustration as she kicked something with a thunk and swore. Loudly.

"Hey!" I shouted, almost running onto the freeway. "You alright?"

And she looked up at me, locked eyes with me, and everything melted around her. Everything got hotter inside me, like the sun was rising in my stomach and I couldn't think for a second. shit.

Was this what Jake was talking about when he said he'd imprinted?

Shit.

"I think I've… the damn thing won't start." Her weary voice broke into my thoughts and I almost raced to her side. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. How could she be so warm in this weather? Why didn't I have a jacket I could offer her?

Without thinking, I sighed.

"What's up?" She asked, locking her blue eyes with mine again. They were clear, like the sea, liquid, crystal, lovely. Beautiful.

"Too far to walk into town, and I'm not much of a mechanic." I grinned, she raised her eyebrows.

"Me neither." She sounded far too eager to leave. But she was blushing. Embarrassment?

"On the plus side, I could keep you company, and I have got a cell phone."

"Thanks." She smiled, "But you don't have to." She had an accent I couldn't quite place. I narrowed it down fast enough, though.

"You Australian?" She raised an eyebrow sarcastically. "English then?"

"Yeah." She nodded and held out her hand, "Nice to meet you, I'm…" She hesitated as I gripped her hand, she seemed to like my warmth. "Lizzie." Lizzie. The word swam around my mouth and it sounded wrong, didn't fit her face, her… existence. I shuddered a breath and spoke.

"No you're not." She stared at me, I raised an eyebrow.

"I am."

"You're not. You're scared I'm going to stalk you if I know your name." I almost laughed.

"I am."

"Scared, or Lizzie?" She laughed at that.

"Fine. I'm neither." She still shot a look of darkness at me, "What is my name then?" I considered it. There was nothing I could think of. Apart from one.

"Max."

"Mackenzie, actually, but close enough." Reluctantly, she smiled. "Listen… can I use that mobile, please?"

"What?"

"Your…" She shuddered the word as she said it, as though she hated the American phrase, "Cell phone."

"Oh…" I put my hand into the back pocket of my jeans. It wasn't there… shit. "I… uh… might have dropped it." I hazarded the words, blurting them slowly and deliberately. She nodded simply.

"Wild child lost his civil toys." She said under her breath, a thin layer of malice masking her amusement. I had to pretend I couldn't hear, but a growl seeped from my chest before I could stop myself. My imprint was mad at me. I couldn't have that.

"Bitch." I tried to make her smile. She seemed to like hearing me talk… or at least… she might like arguing with me. It could warm her up a little.

"Dog." She retorted and I was stunned. Had she second guessed me?

"Sorry?"

"Nothing." She offered me a small smile. Then she shivered. Bigly… if that's the right word. It was really noticeable. I stepped forward and opened the door to her rental before I could think.

"Get in, put the heating on. I'll be back in a minute, see if I can find it around in the forest."

"The damn thing wont start." She said softly, kicking at the wheel again before she sat in the back seat, folding her arms, "I've tried the heating. It failed me miserably."

"Oh… well…" I stopped, fighting the desire to jump in beside her and hold her tight. I knew I would warm her up - I was literally too hot for my own good, but I didn't want to scare her. "I'll be back in half a minute."

Closing the door on her, hoping she wouldn't drive off, she hadn't been lying about being not much of a mechanic, that she wasn't going to leave, I jumped into the tree line and dived into my phased form.

"Jake… I've done it"

"What?" Leah was there before Jacob, her voice, her worry.

"I…"

"You alright Seth?" Jacob's voice.

"I need a mechanic… can you help?"

"What did you do, Seth?" Leah was mocking me, happy to do so, by the tone of her thoughts. For half a second, Max's face flashed into my mind, and there was a loud, pained… anguished howl in the trees, closer than I thought. "You imprinted!!!"

"Way to go, Seth," Jake's voice, elated. "No dogs left now…"

"But the bitch is still waiting, Jake." Leah reminded him bitterly.

"Oh, shut up, let him have his moment." Jake laughed, and I smiled to myself, "I'll come find you in a minute, OK?"

"Thanks man." I grinned, flashing a thought of her car to him, so he knew what to expect, and returned to my human form, retrieving the jeans I had so carefully removed before I had phased into my lupine self.

Slowly, I returned to the car, it was colder now, raining harder, and I could hear her breathing, slow and deep over the rain.

"He's coming back. The howling was nothing. He's alright." She was afraid of wolves? Oh, this was going to go well then.

I knocked gently on the window, she jolted back to the present and I pulled the door open, sliding in beside her.

"You're back." She said, her tone a mix of euphoria, fear, and sickness. She was still cold.

"You're cold."

"Touché." She smiled, "Did you see any wolves? I… I heard a howl."

"You scared?"

"Not of wolves." She smiled weakly, "I didn't want to be left alone long." Her smile grew as I casually put my arm across the back of the seat. She could feel the warmth there, and she arched her neck to feel the heat against her skin.

"You were worried about me." I teased kindly.

"I don't even know your name." She retorted. "How could I be worried?"

"Seth," I said softly, "My name's Seth Clearwater." She smiled at me, mouthing the words, putting the name to the face, letting them roll around her mouth happily as she repeated them.

"Max. Mackenzie Scott." Pleased to meet you, imprint.

"S'nice to meet you… officially." She nodded and smiled, then gave an involuntary shudder. "You cold still?" I fiddled for a second with the dials on the front panels, trying to get the non-existent heating to work.

"I told you. It stopped working." She looked at me like I was stupid.

"Yeah, well… I had to try." She offered me a smile, and I swallowed my words slightly. "Listen… you wouldn't be averse to sharing body heat, would you?"

"Sorry?" She stiffened slightly, looking straight at me, terrified. "Sharing body heat?"

"I only meant… hugging." I winked. "No nakedness involved."

And she did about the only thing I didn't expect.

She laughed. Hard.

"Nakedness…" She spluttered, giggling, "Oh, god, come here." and suddenly, she was holding out her arms to me.

"You're weird." I breathed into her ear as she shuddered against my body. Against the heat I was trying to project into her. Accepting it. Trying to hold onto it, because she thought I was going to let go.

"You're hot." She muttered back. Then she sighed, pulling away slightly. "I don't even know you." She said softly, "I shouldn't be doing this." She smiled tiredly, "Did you get the cell phone?" She said it without prejudice this time.

"It had no juice." I lied smoothly, "Saw a pay phone. Used that. Jake should be out here soon." She smiled at me.

"Thanks." She said softly. "You didn't have to, you know."

"What? Call a mechanic?"

"No," She rolled her eyes, "I meant, you didn't have to find me. I'm kind of glad you did, of course, but you didn't have to."

"Had to help the damsel in distress." She smiled at me again, "I was kind of… I dunno, drawn here."

"By what?"

"Your laughter."

"what?" She raised an eyebrow, uncertain. "You heard me laughing?"

"I was only behind the trees," About thirteen miles away. "No hardship. You sounded pissed."

"I was…" She stopped. "I don't think I am… now."

"Really?" I smiled. "Wonder why?"

"I guess it's because I've been getting warmer… and drier… and friendlier…" There was a moment of silence where she shuddered again and I pulled her towards me. This time, even with our relative anonymity, she hadn't push me away, even after nearly five minutes. She didn't even tense up when I pulled her legs across me, tried to heat them up through her jeans.

"I guess." I smiled.

"How long did your friend say he'd be?"

"I dunno." She paused and stared at me. "Not long." She looked up at me for a second, before she nestled against my bare chest again, shuddering theatrically. I hugged her closer.

"Not long enough." She murmured.

-x-

A/N: Please review and let me know how I did... if you like it, i'll keep going with it... i've got a little plot for it... :P