A/N: I would like to inform my readers that I am only fifteen years old and going to be a sophomore in high school and remind you that these stories are fictional. I do not know know everything or fully understand and probably never will. Please forgive inaccuracies or misinformation given in any story. This site is for aspiring writers. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please keep in mind I have much to learn about the world and can not fully relate things that I have yet to experience. Thank you for reading.
~Miss. E. Thompson
Chapter Two: Introductions
I woke up to something poking my arm. I rolled over, hoping it would stop, only to fall face first onto the hard floor. My landing resulted in giggles from the little body that was standing by my head. I had forgotten that I was sleeping on my couch instead in my bed. My cheek and nose hurt from the impact with the hard wood floor. Jackson stopped giggling and the poked my arm again.
"What do you need, Jack?" I crocked. I still sounded groggy from just waking up. I continued to lay face down on the floor, not moving.
"Can I have breakfast?" His little voice asked as he got down on his stomach next to me. He was trying to look at me as my eyes remained on the floor under my nose. I turned my head to look at him clearly. I looked up at the clock on the wall, seven. Really? I don't remember getting up this early when I was a kid.
"You thought that was funny, didn't you?" I asked, he smirked and nodded his head.
"I'll show you what's funny." I said and started to haul myself off the ground. Jackson giggled and hurried off the ground and started running toward the kitchen. I chuckled and followed behind him. When I walked into the kitchen I saw Jackson's foot slip under the table and decided to play along. I smirked and checked some of the cabinets under the counter and the oven. I heard Jackson giggle as he watched me pretend to search for him. I smiled and decided that I would make him give in. I pulled out two bowls, two spoons, the milk and a box of cereal.
"To bad Jackson isn't here to have breakfast with me. He woke me up to get him breakfast." I said as I poured the cereal and milk into the bowls.
"I guess I'll have to eat all by myself." I exaggerated and sat at the far end of the table away from Jackson on the other end.
"No! I right here! I right here!" Jackson called as he hurried to get out from under the table. He came round the table quickly, looking a little panicked that he wasn't going to get to eat.
"No eat by yourself, I right here!" Jackson said and scrambled up into the chair next to me. I smiled and put the smaller bowl of cereal in front of him. He smiled and started to happily munch away on the cereal. We ate in relative silence, I was going to have to patrol tomorrow and Monday I would have to go to work. I have to take Jackson to Sam's and talk to Emily about watching Jackson for me.
"Jackson, after we finish eating we need to go to a friend of mine. You might even make a new friend. Is that okay?" I asked. He brightened when I spoke of a new friend, nodded vigorously he hurried to finish his cereal. After I finished the dishes, I got Jackson dressed and in his jacket before walking out the door into the light drizzle of rain falling from the sky.
Normally, I would drive or run to Sam's, but with the lack of car seat and not wanting to scare the kid to death by coming out of the woods as a giant wolf… I would have to resort to walking to Sam's. Sam's house was only about five minutes from mine, so Jackson should be able to make the walk just fine. Jackson reached for my hand when we got to the front steps, needing a little help with his balance. It was amazing how little his hand was compared to in my much larger one.
"No ride?" Jackson asked looking at my truck as we walked past it toward the trees where the trail started that connected my house to Sam's.
"Nope. I don't have a car seat for you, it's unsafe for you." I said. Jackson nodded as he walked quickly to keep up with my large steps; I slowed down seeing that he was struggling. We walked through the forest, only a few drops made it through the dense canopy above. As Jackson walked along with me he tilted his head back and tried to catch the drops in his mouth. The sight caused me to laugh as he stumbled a couple times while he multi-tasked.
I could see Sam and Emily's son Levi splashing in a mud puddle with Claire as Quil watched laughing as they hit each other with mud pies. Jared, Jake, Embry, and Seth stood near the trees talking. Jackson and I walked out of the trees quietly, Jackson watching the two in the mud. Levi had just turned three last month, which made Jackson about the same age. Then I realized that I didn't look to see Jackson's birth date when I looked at his birth certificate, I would have to check it when we went back to the house later.
"Uncle Paul!" Levi called when he saw me across the lawn. He and Claire came running at me covered in mud. Quil seemed to realize this and almost fell over with the force of his laughter as I cringed. Jackson hid behind my leg as the two kids came closer.
"Whoa, Whoa, Whoa!" I said holding my hands out to prevent them from getting any closer to me with their mud covered bodies. They stop and smiled at each other and started to try and hug me, but froze when they saw the little person hiding behind me.
"Who are you?" Levi asked, looking at Jackson closer as he peeked out from behind me. Quil immediately sobered and the guys immediately stopped their conversation as they realized that there was someone here with me and look around the yard with a critical eye, looking confused. Jackson peeked out from behind my leg at Levi before looking up at me, I nodded encouragingly at him.
"I'm Jackson." He said shyly. Quil jogged over and stopped by my side, looking curiously at Jackson then up at me.
"Who's kid?" Quil asked.
"Mine." I said. Quil eyes bulged before darting between Jackson and me.
"What?!" The guys said from the tree line.
"Levi, where's your mom?" I asked before Quil could ask any more questions.
"Inside with daddy." Levi said. I nodded and led Jackson into the house. When I walked inside I was greeted with Emily pushed up against the wall by Sam heavily making out like teenagers. I could hear the rest of the pack in the living room as Collin and Brady played on the play station.
"Hey, hey! Break it up! Sam I need to talk to your wife. Beside there are little eyes in the room." I said and received a small growl from Sam as Emily pushed him off.
" What do you need Paul and what do you mean little eyes? Levi and Claire are outside with….." Emily dropped off as she saw Jackson by my side.
"Oh!" She said causing Sam to look too. Sam looked at Jackson then up to me and back to Jackson.
"Sam, Emily, this is Jackson. Jackson this is Sam and Emily." I said introducing them.
"Hi, Jackson." Emily said as she said as she kneeled down to his level.
"Hello Miss Emily." Jackson said quietly while trying to sneak back behind my leg. Emily smiled at him while Sam continued to study Jackson with scrunched eyebrows.
"Would you like a cookie?" Emily asked and Jackson smiled brightly at her while nodding his head. She extended her hand for him to take before leading him into the kitchen.
"He yours?" Sam asked once they were out of the room. I nodded, taking a deep breath before taking a seat at the table.
"Does Rachel know?" He asked as he took a seat.
"Yeah she met him last night." I said.
"How long have you know?" Sam asked giving me a hard look.
"Since last night." I said. Sam nodded and softened his gaze. He knew what it was like to have a father who didn't notice you existence.
"What happened?" He asked relaxing into his chair.
"I was getting ready to leave to pick up Rachel when his aunt knocked on the door. She dropped him off with three bags and a backpack. Told me that she couldn't take care of him, that my ex died three weeks ago and she was leaving him with me because I was his father. She left without as much as a goodbye to him." I sighed and put my head in my hands. Sam patted my shoulder.
"How old is he?" Sam asked as we saw Emily getting Jackson a glass of milk to go with his cookie.
"Three." I said and Sam nodded. Emily walked back in with Jackson and set the cookie and milk on the table as he scrambled into the chair next to me.
"You said you had something to ask me Paul?" Emily asked as she smiled watching Jackson happily munch away at the cookie.
"Yeah. I need somebody that can watch him when I'm on patrol and at work. I don't know anyone else that could keep him during the day." I said. Emily smiled and put her hand on my shoulder.
"I would be happy to Paul. Besides it gives Levi someone other than Claire to play with." Emily said and sat in Sam's lap. We watched as Jackson sat oblivious, happily eating his cookie. He looked up to see us all staring at him and smiled, showing the half chewed cookie in his mouth. Sam and I chuckle while Emily smiled at how cute he looked.
"Can I go play?" Jackson asked, looking at the three of us. I looked at Emily and she nodded. He hurried off the chair and ran outside to play with Levi and Claire. I cringe when he got mud up his leg causing Sam and Emily to laugh at me.
"He's a lot like you Paul." Emily said as we watched the kids play. I looked up at her confused.
"In and out. He looks and acts a little like you, but he's extremely polite, but the shyness is a front." She said with a chuckle.
"That was a shock. Someone tells you this is your kid and he's politely and shy." I said chuckling with her.
"Don't put yourself down like that. You can be polite when you have to be, just not often." Sam said, I nodded.
I set up times with Emily of when I would drop him off and when I would pick him up before he headed home. Jackson was covered head to toe in mud and chatted about playing with Levi and Claire all the way home. He was excited when I told him that he would be coming back to Emily's tomorrow and said that he was going to bring some of his own toys tomorrow so that he and Levi would have different toys to play with tomorrow. As we came out of the tree line Rachel's car was parked in the driveway and I could hear banging coming from my kitchen.
"Who dat?" Jackson asked pointing to Rachel's car.
"That's Rachel's car. You remember her from last night, right?" I asked and he nodded his head as we walked inside. I could smell the spaghetti that Rachel was making from the door and it made my stomach growl loudly causing Jackson to giggle.
"Your stomach make loud noises." He continued to giggle as he pointed to my stomach. I chuckled before helping him get out of his wet and mud caked clothes. I got him into a pair of dry pajamas before letting him watch TV while I went to help Rachel in the kitchen. I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist.
"That smells really, really good." I said kissing the side of her neck. My stomach seconded my words by letting out a loud rumbles. Rachel giggled and swatted me away before giving me a kiss.
"How did meeting the pack go?" She asked as she turned to leaned against the counter. I took a deep breath.
"Okay, I guess. Jackson only met Quil, Sam, Emily, Claire and Levi. Everyone else kept their distance and gave us curious looks. They'll get used to it. " I said with a sigh.
"Emily agreed to watch him while I have patrol and work. So that's makes things a little easier." She nodded along, peeking at the pot that the sauce was simmering in.
"Dinner's ready. Can you take this over to the table?" Rachel asked, handing me two pot holders. I nodded and carried the pot over and set it on the pot holders she had put on the table. Rachel grabbed up one of the plates and put a little serving on the spaghetti and Italian bread on the plate and cut up the meatballs so they would cool faster.
"Jackson! Come eat!" Rachel called and we heard the sound of little feet running across the hard wood floor.
That night as I lay on the couch staring at the ceiling I thought about everything. I decided that with all the help I was getting that it might not be so hard. It would definitely be an adjustment, but I would be able to do it. Then I also decided that tomorrow I would start cleaning out Jackson's bedroom, so he would have somewhere he could call his own while he lived here. Besides I don't think my back could take much more of sleeping on this damn rock hard couch!