That same night I found myself sitting on a log bench on top of a borrowed sweater in order to prevent any stains on Lindsey's pretty white dress. I tightened my jean jacket around myself and adjusted the flowered headband on my now-straightened by Kayla hair as the wind buffeted my face. I had decided to sit upwind to experience my new sense of smell. It was amazing the things I could smell now, how every single thing decomposed itself in a million scent particles which in the end came together to form a single object and at times, a single person. Shifters smelled differently from Statics. I could tell from the moment that Brittany sat next to me. Brittany was a Static due to her Shifter-less father, but she was still one of us and a good friend of mine though she could be cold and harsh at times. Statics lacked a sweet, musky aroma that Shifters had; it sort of smelled like a wet forest night. I suddenly caught an aroma that raised the hair on the back of my neck; it wasn't disgusting, it just wasn't likeable, like the person who it belonged to. Hayley walked by me with her nose held high in the air. She was already a Shifter, and you could say, my mortal enemy. She had long straight dark brown hair and eyes, and walked around like she owned the place. From the moment we had met at 4 years old, we had immediately disliked each other and let the entire Wolford know it by having a biting-hair pulling- pinching-kicking-punching contest. No one won because the adults split us up before we could really harm each other, but the wanting of resuming that contest was still in me, and I'm sure it was still in her too, but of course we dared not touch each other out of pure manners, though I'm pretty sure she lacks them totally. We traded murderous glares between one another and her nose wrinkled, as though she wanted to bear her teeth, and suddenly building up inside of me, a pent up growl came out from the back of my throat. It surprised me and caught me unexpectedly. I clapped my hand over my mouth as a woman sitting next to me looked at me curiously and Hayley walked away, looking more murderous than ever. Feeling a bit thirsty and admittedly ashamed from my lack of control, I stood up and walked towards the beverage fridge, wanting a coke as badly as ever. Rummaging through the ice I found my desired drink and was standing up, dusting off my knees, when I felt it again… that electric charge through the air, that vibe I had felt that very same morning and I knew who caused it. My heart picked up its speed and I thought for a second it would fly out of my chest. Could it be? I took a cautious whiff at the air, and sure enough, present in it was a scent that made my hair stand on end, that sent a ripple of pleasure through my body and acted like a drug, stripping away my senses, leaving me foggy and clouded. Very slowly I turned around and… there he was. Seth. The same Seth I had talked with that very same morning, the same Seth I had felt ridiculous for, the same very attractive, sexy Seth that had to catch a plane. And guess who was talking to him, a genuine flirt in her eye? Hayley batted her eyelashes at him with one hand placed on her hip, the other holding a cocktail, while Seth smiled uneasily. I stood where I was, not daring to move for fear of ripping someone's throat out while tremors of rage, nerves, and confusion rolled through me. Seth wasn't even paying attention to her, he looked over her head discretely, searching the crowd, looking, watching, with that same uncomfortable smile on his face. He stopped his eyes on me, and the uneasy, forced smile, turned into a genuine one. My heart couldn't help but stutter and regain its fast unsteady beat as Seth excused himself with Hayley and walked towards me. The most pure happiness washed over me not only as I saw him gracefully making his way through the crowd to where I was standing, but as I saw the pure rage and anger on Hayley's face as she saw the reason that cute boy had stopped her in mid-sentence and left her standing there. He reached where I was standing and smiled at me "Do I know you?" He winked "That depends. Are you the cute boy I talked with today who could read my mind?" I answered with a questioning face, though I was sure my eyes were shining brighter than stars, "Read your mind? Is that possible? I just thought you had an I-want-a-double-marshmallow-meringue-cone look on your face," I raised an eyebrow at him "What's that face supposed to look like?" he smiled tenderly " I don't know, but right now you have a really I-need-an-explanation face" God, he was gorgeous "Do I get one?"
"What, a cone or an explanation?"
"We can leave the cone for later."
"Deal,"
And with that, he motioned for me to follow him to a fallen log right next to the fringe of the forest a bit away from the multitude of people around the bonfire
"This might sound a bit creepy, but I've known you longer that you think" He began once we had settled on the log. "I belonged to the California pack, but due to trouble back there, the pack was dissolved. Some of us were sent here, others to Canada. Since I was born in Canada, the elders wanted to send me there, but I wanted to come here instead. You may be wondering why. Like I told you, I've known you for longer than you think. About four years ago, when I was fifteen, my family came to visit Wolford. I have family here, and they invited us over. That was the first time I ever set eyes on you. You were thirteen and wearing your hair in a long braid. I can't describe what it felt like when I met your eyes, all I can say it was like I exploded silently. My heart just raced, and I started crying, just seeing you could bring me that much joy. I wanted to talk to you, get to know you. I knew you were my mate, you had to be. Who else could ever make me feel that way? But I was scared to talk to you, afraid you would reject me, terrified you wouldn't feel the same way, and so I snuck into the archives here and found out everything about you. Your name, your birthday, your family, where you lived, everything I could get my hands on, and so it was that after four long years thinking about you, I built up the courage to move right next to you and demand the elders the transfer to Wolford, where I knew you would be, and where I would have arrived anyways for your first shift. Ana… you are my mate." And he took his shirt off exposing the Celtic tattoo on his shoulder where I knew it said my name.
I knocked on my mother's bedroom door gently. It was ten o'clock, I knew she would have gone to bed by now, but I needed to tell her. "Who is it?" I heard her ask from inside the bedroom "Mom, it´s me" I whispered, knowing she would hear me. I heard footsteps and the doorknob turned, and she appeared in front of me wearing blue pajamas. "Are you okay baby?" She asked me, seeing the stunned expression on my face. I nodded and smiled "I need to talk to you mom, urgently." She ushered me in the room where my little brother was fast asleep. I tiptoed in and kissed him on the forehead before turning to see my mom, a worried expression on her face. "What is it?" she asked, concern showing in her voice. I beckoned her to the window and pointed at the boy standing next to the grill, his hands in his pockets and his face concerned. My stomach lurched just by seeing him. "I may have found my mate mom." She looked incredulously at me, her mouth forming a round little o, and I sat down and told her from the morning's events to fifteen minutes ago. "What did you do when he finished the story?" asked my mom. Ashamed I hid my face "I cried right there, and told him I was confused, that this was happening way too fast for me." My mom touched my shoulder gently. "Do you think he's your mate?" I shook my head "I don't think he's my mate, I know he's my mate, because I feel it." The tender smile on my mother's face had me hiccupping back to calmness, "What are you doing here sweetheart? Why aren't you there with him right now?" I looked at her, puzzlement written plainly across my face, "Baby, I think that you're just overwhelmed. Your first shift is just days away and that boy right there is the one you've been waiting for and the one you've been worried about for years. You found him, what are you doing wasting your time here, in a dark bedroom with your mom when you could be getting to know him better?" I wiped my remaining tears away with the sheets and looked out the window again. Hayley was chatting up to Seth again which sent a wave of heated anger washing over me. She had to go through her transformation with someone else, so of course was looking for a mate, and tonight her skirt was dangerously short. I stood and hugged my mother, and without a word walked out the door, taking makeup from my handbag to cover up the red blotches on my face made by my unnecessary tears. I walked out the door and saw Seth eagerly waiting, an exasperated and attention-seeking Hayley standing next to him. Taking a deep breath I walked towards him, letting my pride, instincts and above all; heart, take over the situation. A smile must have spread across my face when I made eye contact with Seth, because his stance relaxed and his face lit up in a manner that I had never seen before. I walked up to him and without hesitating, hugged him, placing a hand around the back of his neck and standing on the tips of my toes to whisper into his ear, "I think you can't be more right. It's impossible to feel this way for someone other than my true mate. I'm sorry for what happened earlier." I felt him chuckle and wrap his arms around my waist, who cared about Hayley? The shock I felt at being in such proximity with him was brutal. The electricity charging between us, the heat that radiated from our bodies and collided midway in an explosion of static, the smell of him, everything, it felt… right.
It could have been ten minutes, but at one in the morning Seth was walking me to my bedroom door. "It feels like a dream, doesn't it?" He asked bags heavy under his happily lit eyes. I nodded, a silly teen-ish smile spread wide across my face. "I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early" I said, and the prospect seemed to make him blush and burst with happiness. He took a cautious hand and brushed a strand of hair behind my ear, "Good night," he whispered in his sweet, sweet voice. I dared to tiptoe and plant a light kiss on his cheek, dangerously and temptingly close to his mouth before proceeding to enter my bedroom and closing the door behind me, my heart racing a hundred miles an hour.