OH MY GOD...I'm updating on time! You guys must be so proud :') And because I did...you have to review ten times more than usual ;) Anyways, this is an important chapter. I really hope you like it :)

ALSO: I am totally not ignoring questions asked in reviews - I just don't want to ruin the story for you. But keep the questions coming because often enough they give me some ideas for upcoming chapters! BUT, I can tell you that one person has guessed the correct imprint pairing. Not going to say who, but one of you is right, so good job:)

Please review. And Happy Halloween :)

"Brynn?" a high-pitched voice called from upstairs.

I placed my pen down on the coffee table in front of me. I tilted my head up towards the ceiling and yelled, "I'm in the living room, Stella!"

It was after school and I was trying to make sense of the stupid history homework I had to do. I always did my homework right away when I got home, only because I always had so much of it. If I didn't, I'd be up until midnight trying to get it all done. But, today, was different.

Emma had already called me three times since we had parted ways into our own homes after school. She wanted me to ask my parents right away about the party. But she knew that they weren't home yet, so her phone calls were just her way of driving me crazy. Dad and Uncle Jared co-owned a construction company that operated in La Push and some of Forks. If her Dad wasn't home, then why would mine be? And my mother didn't work, but she was out grocery shopping for dinner. Emma needed to relax already.

I didn't even want to go to this thing, but I figured if Emma did, I needed to be a good friend and make the effort for her. I had spent most of the time doing my homework thinking of a good way to ask for my parents' permission to go. I knew I needed to approach this carefully; my parents were strict, overprotective and cautious. They weren't going to agree to this easily. But what's a better way to butter up your super strict parents than having all your homework done before they even get home?

It's official, Brynn, you've officially gone off the deep end, I thought, shaking my head in dismay at myself.

My twelve-year-old sister bounded into the room, distracting me from my current dilemma. She had a juice-box in her hand and it was dangerously close to dripping on the cream coloured carpet. Her long, wavy hair was tied into a pair of low pigtails and they whipped around as jumped onto the couch. She had already changed out of the clothes she had worn the school—despite the fact that she had only just gotten home about five minutes ago—and was wearing a pair of black gym shorts and a purple tank top. She watched me with her wide eyes and a puzzled expression on her innocent face.

I absolutely loved my little sister to death. We got along better than most sisters did, mostly because we shared each other's interests and hobbies. I was very protective of her and hoped to keep her as innocent and naïve about things in life for as long as possible, considering I hadn't received the same opportunity thanks to my own mistakes. My sister looked up to me, valued my opinions and advice, and I hoped that I would never, ever disappoint her.

"What's up, Stell?" I asked, knowing she had something on her mind.

Stella played with the edge of her hair nervously, not meeting my eyes.

I picked up my glass of water and took a quick drink. I knew prying for an answer would only make her more uptight about whatever it was that was bothering her. She was like a wild deer; you had to be quiet and wait for her to come to you. That was always my approach and I swore by it because it worked almost every time.

"Have you ever been on a date?"

I coughed, spewing my mouthful of water everywhere from my seat on the floor next to the long coffee table. Stella wrinkled her nose in disgust, staring at me as I wiped my mouth, trying to clear my throat. I hadn't expected her to ask anything like that.

I was embarrassed by her question and desperately didn't want to answer, but knew I had to. There wasn't really any point in lying to her; she probably already knew the answer. "No," I told her honestly. "I've never been on a date."

She nodded thoughtfully, accepting the answer, before she looked down at the couch again.

I sat up, turning to face her. "Why?"

She didn't answer and a blush formed on her cheeks.

I jumped up and sat down next to her on the couch, pulling her close to my side. I tickled her ribs, grinning as she giggled loudly, squirming to get away from me.

I waited until she had caught her breath from her laughter before I asked again. "Stella, why did you want to know that?"

She sighed deeply, looking at me with eyes wide and serious. "You can't tell anyone, Brynn."

I held my pinky finger out towards her. "I won't."

Stella raised her eyebrows at me.

I sighed. "I pinky-promise."

She nodded. "There's this boy in my class at school," she said, playing with a loose thread on her shirt. "He's really cute and funny and smart. Everyone keeps saying that he likes me, but I'm not so sure. I—I wanted to ask him to go to the movies with me."

I tried to keep my facial expressions normal; despite the extreme surprise I was experiencing. My sister was not normally this bold about anything. She was like me a lot that way. I was actually glad to see her being so open about something for once.

"Is it Louis?" I asked, trying to figure out if I knew whom she was talking about.

Louis was Emma's younger brother and Stella's very close friend. I had always wondered if there would ever be something more between the two of them in the future. In a way, I hoped that it was Louis for her sake. If she wanted to go on a date with some boy, it would be a lot easier for her to do so if it was someone our parents already knew.

She laughed loudly—almost hysterically—catching me off guard. "No! I mean, Louis is my best friend, but that's it. I just—just no."

"Okay," I said, feeling confused. "Who is it then? Do I know him?"

Stella shook her head. "No, he's only lived here for a couple of months. But, oh my God, Brynnie, he's just so cute."

I laughed, but it was forced. I didn't want to crush my sister's sudden confidence, but I knew there wasn't a high chance that my parents would let her go out a boy who was on the outside of our tight knit group. Stella didn't know about the wolves yet. My parents were going to tell her on her thirteenth birthday. But, the more wolves that phased, the more likely she would become someone's imprint. If she got too close to someone who wasn't a part of the supernatural world and she got imprinted on, she would get her feelings hurt without a doubt. I was all for making your own destiny and taking a chance, but I wasn't sure if she should pursue her feelings for this boy.

I didn't want her to get hurt.

But, I wouldn't drag her down right now. She was still a little girl. She deserved to have fun before she became too chained to the werewolf world like the rest of us.

I kept my face perfectly neutral. "Have you guys ever talked about hanging out?"

"No," she mumbled, frowning. "I was kind of hoping that he would ask me out, but I don't know if that will happen. He's not cocky or anything like most guys are. But if he does like me, I don't want him to think that I'm not interested. So, I thought maybe asking him to something casual like the movies wouldn't be so bad."

I stared at her for a moment. Why was it that my twelve-year-old sister had the confidence to ask out the boy she liked; yet I could barely tell Callum how I felt about him? It wasn't fair.

"When did you get so smart?" I teased her.

She shoved my shoulder before she moaned, covering her face with her hands in embarrassment. "Brynn," she whined. "Tell me what to do!"

I watched her in amusement for a moment. It was funny seeing her so worked up over something like this, but the amusement was quickly taken over by my concern. I couldn't talk her out of this without giving away the pack secret. She wasn't ready to know and my parents would absolutely kill me. I supposed, she was still young and that maybe; kids going on "dates" in grade seven weren't serious enough that I should be worried. I needed to let her do this.

I pried her hands away from her face. "Stell," I murmured. "You're a smart girl. If you really like this guy and you think that he's as nice as you say he is—" I took a deep breath. "—then, I think you should go for it. You don't need me tell you that."

An ear-splitting grin broke out on my younger sister's face. She leaned forward and kissed my cheek quickly before she stood up. "You're the best, Brynn!" she cried happily before she hurried out of the room.

I collapsed back on the couch in frustration once she was out of sight. I hoped everything would work out okay. I hated lying to my sister, but I wasn't allowed to tell her about the wolves. I just hoped that this was an innocent little crush and it would disappear when the time was right. It was a cruel thing to wish for my little sister, but I didn't want her to get hurt.

"Hello!" a cheerful voice bellowed from the front door.

My eyes widened in realization. My mom was home. I took a deep breath and stood up, smoothing down my shirt nervously. This was it. All I had to do was ask. What was the worst thing that could happen?

She might say yes.

"Oh, Emma, you owe me big time," I muttered under my breath.

I closed my textbook and put the lid back on my pen, trying to stall as much time as I possibly could. I left my nearly completed homework on the table and walked towards the kitchen on shaky legs. I would have to finish my homework after I tried to convince my mother to let me go to a party that I didn't want to attend.

Mom was putting away the large pile of groceries she had just bought when I got into the kitchen. Her back was to me as she dug through the bags, obviously looking for something specific. I hesitated at the doorframe, wincing as the floorboards creaked underneath my feet.

She turned around in surprise at the noise, smiling as she caught sight of me. "Hi, baby," she greeted happily. "How was your day?"

My mother was easily one of the happiest people I had ever met. She was truly such an amazing person; so selfless and always thinking of everyone else all the time. I couldn't imagine a better person to be my mother. She was the one person I knew I could always talk to about anything.

I stepped into the kitchen. "It was alright," I said quietly. "Do you want some help?"

Her eyebrows rose in surprise. "Sure," she replied. She dug through a bag and handed me a large package of potatoes. "Can you peel those? They're for dinner."

I nodded and set the bag on the counter. I pulled out the garbage can from under the sink and set it close by. Then, I grabbed the peeler from a drawer and set to work.

It was silent for a long, long moment.

"Is Stella upstairs?" Mom asked.

I nearly choked on air. "Um—yeah, she is. She was doing homework, I think."

You're welcome, Stella.

"And Tate—"

"Has patrol until six-ish," I interrupted, looking away from the potato I was peeling.

Mom frowned. "I guess we'll be having a late dinner, then," she sighed, sounding frustrated. "I thought he had today off."

I could understand her frustration—the fact that the boys had random patrol times quite often was hard to work around. I placed my freshly peeled potato into the sink, setting it in a colander. "Ethan kind-of-maybe got detention at school today so Tate had to cover his patrol."

I shook my head at my cousin's antics. Just before lunch had ended today, he had decided it would be in everyone's best interest if he threw an open water bottle towards Emma and Max—who had been in mid-kiss. But unfortunately for Ethan, it had hit Emma and not Max. Water had flown everywhere. Needless to say, Max had pretty much almost phased in the middle of the cafeteria and had to be dragged out by Tate and Cody before he tried to kill Ethan. If Callum hadn't grabbed a hold of Emma, she would have finished off what Max had started on Ethan. Of course, sending even more luck Ethan's way, a teacher had seen pretty much the whole thing and had given him two days of detention for his actions.

"I don't want to know," Mom said with a short laugh. She knew what Ethan was like.

I smirked and began to peel another potato. "What time is Dad supposed to be home from work?"

She turned to look at the clock above the stove. "Not until 4:30."

I took a deep breath. I had about twenty-five minutes until he was supposed to be home. Did I want to ask Mom without Dad here? I watched my mother for a moment as she pulled out a large package of pork chops. I knew I would have a better chance of Mom acting reasonable and calm about the whole thing. Dad on the other hand—he didn't know how to be calm.

The problem was that she was going to know right away that something was up. I never asked for anything from my parents. The fact that I was helping with dinner without being asked probably already had me on her radar.

"So, Emma was talking about this—this thing at lunch today," I spat out, not meaning to say the words aloud.

I immediately began peeling another potato, trying to avoid eye contact.

Mom was watching me with curiousity. "What kind of thing?"

I sighed. "You know, just like a thing."

Her hands went to her hips. "Brynn, honey, just spit it out."

I bit back a smile at her tone. "Emma got invited to a bonfire this weekend at First Beach. She wants me to go with her. Everyone's going—Callum, Max, Lucas…"

She was silent for what felt like hours.

I looked at her nervously. "Could—can I go?"

"Do you want to go?" Mom asked instead of answering.

This threw me for a curveball. Of course I didn't want to go! That was the whole problem! Mom knew this; she knew that this was all Emma's idea. That was why she was going to be so hard to convince.

"Yeah, I do," I said, cringing at the sound of my voice.

Mom raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that? This has Emma written all over it."

Crap. "No, I think it'll be—fun. I've got to go to at least one of these things, right? See what I've been missing out on."

She sent me a disproving look. "That is one thing I won't agree with," she murmured, pursing her lips.

I held my breath, waiting for her to continue.

"Does Tate have patrol that night?"

I racked my brain, trying to remember if my brother was scheduled to patrol on Saturday. I didn't know how she expected me to keep track. I wasn't sure how the pack managed to keep track. Patrols were usually in the air, mostly decided last minute, but since more kids were phasing these days, they really had to buckle down and create an actual schedule.

As far as I knew, Cody was going to remain in the Alpha position for a little while yet. He was one of the oldest wolves. But now that Trey had phased, it wouldn't be long before he took over the position from Cody. Cody would then drop down to Beta. Since Sam—Trey's dad—had been Alpha during his generation, it only made sense that Trey would take over that roll too. From what Tate had told me, Cody would only remain as Alpha until he decided that Trey was ready to step up.

"I think he as an afternoon patrol," I told her. "I'm not positive though."

She nodded as she pulled out a head of lettuce and began washing it in the sink.

I leaned against the countertop and waited, potatoes momentarily forgotten. I knew that if I rushed her to make a decision that it probably wouldn't help me in the long run.

"I suppose that if wouldn't hurt for you to go out and have some fun," she mused. "But only if Tate will go with you and only if you truly want to go. I'll call Kim and discuss it with her, just to make sure we're on the same page. And if you promise to be as responsible as I know you are, yes, you can go."

I grinned and hurried over to hug her.

I finished peeling the rest of the potatoes, knowing that just because she had said yes didn't mean that I was allowed to skip out helping with the rest of dinner. I washed them before I set them in a big pot to boil.

In a sense, I was glad that my mother seemed to trust me to go to this party. I knew she was still a little upset over me sneaking out of the house the other night. Her saying yes had been a big shock.

But I almost had hoped that she would say no. I wanted to go—for Emma's sake—but I was also a little scared. I didn't know what a high school party would be like. Not to mention, I wasn't sure I wanted to know in the first place.

I helped Mom assemble the rest of dinner, hoping to distract myself from my worries. We had just placed the majority of it in the oven when the front door banged open loudly.

"I'm home," Dad called.

My eyes flashed up to Mom's. It was not going to be easy to convince Dad to let me go to this thing.

She shooed me with her oven mitt. "Go finish your homework while this cooks," she said. "I'll take care of it."

I beamed and kissed her cheek quickly. "Thanks, Momma."

I skipped out of the kitchen and disappeared back into the living room. I called out a greeting to Dad, in which he responded back in a tired tone. I sat on the floor and opened up my history textbook, smiling a little.

I was going to my first high school party.

I didn't know whether to jump for joy or go into hiding.

Thanks for reading :) Please, please, please review :)