Chapter 4: Claire- Days 1 Through 58!
After I turned into goo, Quil swam to shore, and when I got there he was packing up. He drove me back to Emily's house and when I hopped out of the car he didn't follow me inside. He promised he would be back soon but he didn't return till way after dinner and left early for patrol. The pack now thirteen strong ran twice daily patrols in groups of about six. The newer wolves Phil, Jordan, Solace, Michael, Krys and Anna liked to patrol together, and the older crew ran together like the "good old days".
I walked him to the door and tried to hug him goodnight, as per usual, but he turned it into some awkward pat on the back and zoomed past me. Emily looked uneasy and I excused myself, heading to the fold out couch in the living room where I slept whenever I stayed in La Push.
I had done it, I had made my interest in him obvious and now everyone knew. The most embarrassing thing I've had to endure since I blew chunks in Ms. Oleho's sixth grade natural science class.
How long was it going to be before we had the dreaded talk? Not "the talk", which I had had with him years earlier when Stephenie Stonebrook told me where babies came from, but the: You-know-I-love-you-kid-but-not-in-that-way talk! I started the countdown
Day 1: Quil came to Emily's for breakfast, and drove me back to my house with the music blaring. Since when did he like country music?
Day 2: No call, no show.
Day 3: Quil came over today while Adrian and I were chillin'. Normal, except he was nicer to Adrian than even I am!
Day 4, 5 & 6: I sneakily got the 411 from Rachel—Quil has been on duty in La Push for the last 3 days. The pack is on the trail of two unknown vampire scents.
Day 7: Quil called— the vampires, a male and female were caught and killed, Brady was injured but would be ok.
Day 8, 9: I called Quil— he claims to be busy watching over Brady. When did Quil become the pack nurse?
Day 10: Emily called my mom tonight, so of course I gangstered the phone and when I asked her about Brady, she said and I quote, "Brady's fine, he's hanging out with Seth, Phil and Collin at the beach". Filthy liar!
Day 11: Adrian came over today; his hands roamed too far south… with no Quil to stop him and a serious case of the lonelies I let him.
Day 12: Adrian, eager for a repeat of yesterday came over while no one was home. I broke up with him before he got too touchy feely and I felt relieved. Am I a sociopath?
Day 13: Saturday night and no word from Quil. Saturday is our day though...
Day 14: 4 days straight and still no contact from Quil, the ache in my stomach is becoming unbearable. I'm not upset about Adrian but I might be heartbroken for all he knows.
Day 15: I call Quil to inform him of my "heart break" and demand his comfort. He comes bearing gifts of sour patch kids, my favorite, and things are almost perfect, except he sat on the other side of the room avoiding any physical contact. When I try to get closer, try to fulfill this pull I feel to him he leaves for "patrol".
Day 16, 17, 18: Quil went to visit Leah in Seattle… should I be worried?
Day 19: Quil came to my art studio on the rez, watched me while I painted, but my paintings sucked because I was concentrating on his uneven breathing… and also how much I wanted to kiss him, how badly I wanted him hands to roam south, how desperately I needed him.
Day 20, 21, 22, 23: Mom dragged me along to visit Saint Martin's University, the only school to accept Lana, which would have been fun, except it's located in depressing Lacey, Washington. I miss him.
Day 24: Jacob and some of the Cullen crew return to Forks. Quil says he's too busy in La Push to come to me, so I insist my mom drives me there first thing tomorrow. My dad called before I went to bed, he's traveling with his company and won't be back for a few more months.
Day 25: I hang out at Emily's house, with Quil, Embry, Jacob and Renesme. They're getting married this October in the forest, and the entire pack is invited, oh and me… I'm happy for them, but also disgustingly jealous.
Day 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31: Quil came over every day this week, but he spent more time watching old episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and chatting with my mom than me. Is he finally giving in to my mom?
Day 32, 33: No sign of Quil.
Day 34: Movie night with Quil, who sits on the farthest corner of the couch as we watched a horror film. I wanted so desperately for him to hold me, I could have cried.
Day 35: Nothing! Not even a text message!
Day 36: Quil calls to make plans but he cuts it short.
Day 37: Quil takes me to Port Angeles to pick out an outfit for my birthday. Things seem normal- he sits and waits patiently for me to decide on an outfit. When I try on a backless shirt, he bolts across the room and picks up the only sweater in the shop. I decide on the backless shirt and a pair of tight dark purple jeans with a black design at the bottom of the right leg. He doesn't look at me the rest of the night, and barely says anything as he scarfs down a large pizza and four cokes, which would be disgusting to me if he didn't have that whole mountain man thing going for him….
Day 38, 39, 40, 41, 42: He doesn't come over and calls only once to say he's been doing double duties since Seth, Solace and Embry are visiting Leah in Seattle. Leah, again… now I'm worried.
Day 43: Leah returns to La Push with Seth, Solace and Embry. My mom drives me down so she can visit with them. Leah is more breathtaking than I remembered and I get tears in my eyes examining her flawless caramel skin. Quil eyes me suspiciously and I avoid her and Quil the rest of the night. Now I'm pretty sure he's porkin' her, or wolfing her, whatever. And why wouldn't he? She's gorgeous and sophisticated, and I am so not!
Day 44: Quil calls but I beg Lana to tell him I'm with friends, afraid I might cry.
Day 45, 46, 47: Quil doesn't call or come over and I'm grateful!
Day 48: The days without seeing him are too much and I prank call him just to hear his voice.
Day 49, 50, 51: I cry continuously, my mother gets worried, she thinks I'm still upset over Adrian. She calls Kim to come cheer me up. It doesn't work; it just reminds me that Kim's madly in love with a werewolf too… 'cept her werewolf feels the same.
Day 52: Lana convinces me to start a new diet and makeover plan with her to prepare her for college and attract a new man for me.
Day 53: Lana and I go grocery shopping for our 2-week lemonade diet, and buy clay masks to even out our complexion. Quil comes over after our facials were freshly applied—I freak out and wash it off twenty minutes early.
Day 54: Lana figures out who I'm crying over— I'm surprised that she doesn't freak and for the first time in her life was a good and supporting big sister. I think we bonded, but I'm keeping that info to myself.
Day 55: Lana and I started to pack her bags for school and I felt surprisingly depressed at the idea of her impending escape.
Day 56: Lana left in the morning for Freshman Orientation, with a much more tearful send off than I would have expected.
Day 57: My mom is moping around the house and I put on the clay mask we bought in honor of Lana, who texted me to tell me she shares with a girl who has a lifesize poster of Jesus next to her bed—and not the cool ones where he's wearing sunglasses, or surfing, the kinds where he's really Jesus, just dying on the cross or something.
Day 58: It's been four days since I've seen Quil, and all I do is sleep, which is probably also because I haven't eaten anything but lemonade in a week and I feel weak. If I don't see him right now I'm going to explode!