Chapter 9: The Wolf stalks his prey.

A/N:- Just a quick heads up saying that the story will never die out, I will finish it. I have so much fun writing it and enjoy interacting with you guys. I have another LiS fic in my head but am on the fence on whether or not to post it as I don't want it to distract from this one.

Aaron as an OC is someone who I enjoy writing and you guys seem to enjoy him as a character. I'll most likely include him in future LiS stories. What do you think, would that be something you guys would like to see? Lemme know and I can make it happen.

The subtle sub plot that the story summary hinted to kicks off here and will start small but will slowly become very prominent, I hope you guys get into it.

The mid day sun seeped into Aaron's room courtesy of how shitly he closed his curtains the night before. The light was irritating to say the least, causing Aaron's eyes to open prematurely than he had intended.

He sat up groggily, rubbing his eyes in an effort to wake himself up. Aaron groaned as he stood up and stretched his body out, loosening all of his stiff joints. Aaron wasn't hung over, he just hated waking up...a lot.

It took him a few seconds to realise where he was; he had woken up in his dorm room, despite not remembering falling asleep there. Aaron tried to recall what happened when he left Chloe's the previous night.

Some weird kids, some quiet kids, some sound kids and a lot of noise and booze, that about summed it up. No matter what happened, it was a pretty cool night and waking up on a Saturday was a great bonus. Do I actually do something today, or just bum about being the slob that I am? Aaron asked himself as he ruffled his hair with his right hand.

Deciding going outside and socialising would be the best option, Aaron headed to the bathroom to wash. Despite not having a hangover, drinking made him feel dirty and not all there. Hot soapy water was Aaron's gateway to sanity; it had been a staple of helping him get through tough, confusing times in the past only this time he's happy to be washing grease and sleep off of his face instead of blood.

Aaron was a man of many secrets, he had almost as many as Blackwell itself. Things he wished he could talk about, things he wanted to confide in someone. Even though he was surrounded by friends, he felt so alone, so distant-like he wasn't even there.

A tear ran down Aaron's cheek as he looked at himself in the mirror, Life isn't fair he thought as he brushed it away with his towel. Sometimes shit was too much for him and he needed to vent but he had no one to vent to.

Aaron strode back to his room with his head hug low, for the first time in a while. He remembered how piled up he was, drowning in shit a seventeen year old shouldn't be drowning in and yet here he was, this confident, fearless specimen of a human and all he wanted right now was a cuddle and someone to tell him everything was ok.

Sadly, that wasn't gonna happen, at least not now. Aaron decided to push the thoughts from his mind like he had done so many times before and go outside in the fresh air. Putting on his black skinny jeans and converse, Aaron struggled to find a belt to hold his jeans onto his skinny frame. Franticly he looked around his room, flipping his blanket and pillow up into the air then diving under his bed.

As Aaron clawed under his bed, there was a knock on his door.

"Yo Stripy, you alive" Chloe called from the other side.

"Yeah, sadly I'm still here" Aaron replied as he buckled up a belt he found. Taking Aaron's voice as a sign, Chloe walked in on him walking halfway to his wardrobe to find a shirt. The two just stared at each other, on the edge of laughing.

"Fuck. What bear did you fight with?" Chloe questioned as she gestured to the marks that were visible on Aaron's torso.

"You should see the bear" he replied with before offering a playful wink before walking passed Chloe and into his wardrobe.

"You're a skinny fucker mind, Aaron"

"Gee, haven't heard that one before" Aaron called from behind Chloe as he looked for a shirt to wear. Aaron settled on a black Parkway Drive one with the words Park, Way, Drive in a line of three in white, almost scruffy righting scrawled across the front.

Chloe sat down on Aaron's bed and threw her chewing gum into his bin and lying on her back with her feet in the air.

"By all means, get comfy, you want me to make you food as well, maybe some tea? (!)" Aaron joked, causing Chloe to let out a giggle. "What do I owe the pleasure?" He asked, sounding more serious.

"Me and Max are going out for ice cream, she's a bit...thing after last night so I was gonna treat her" Chloe said, neglecting to tell Aaron about the kiss the two shared the previous night.

Aaron sat at his desk before saying "Sounds fair, but why are you telling me?"

"It was an invite, doofus. Unless you're to cool for ice cream"

"Nobody is too cool for ice cream" Aaron replied as he shot Chloe a death glare. She knew he was joking and the two started laughing.

Aaron and Chloe seemed to get on well, almost as well as her and Max got on. Chloe saw Aaron as a kindred spirit of sorts. That and she thought he was pretty hot...she had a thing for jaw-lines. Aaron was just nice to everyone and if you were nice back, he considered you a friend.

"You feel hungover at all?" Chloe asked as she sat up and let her legs hang over the edge of Aaron's bed.

"Nah, I didn't have that much, I spoke to Kate for most of the night. I promised to look out for her cus parties aren't exactly her thing. It was a great night though, thanks for inviting me" Aaron replied as he looked at his phone.

"I'm gonna go meet Max, I'll drop you a text when were ready to leave" Chloe said as she got up from the bed and walked towards the door. "We gotta sort some shit out so I'm gonna go ahead and get it out of the way now"

Aaron was well aware of what shit Chloe was on about; opting to feign ignorance, he just kept looking at his phone and offered a bland "Ok" in response to Chloe.

Chloe made her way out of Aaron's room, leaving him inside. As soon as the door was shut, Aaron started smiling to himself, he knew Chloe had made some kind of move on Max. He was happy for her, Aaron knew that Chloe liked Max and was glad to see it going somewhere. He found it cute and wished they'd have hooked up sooner.

As the birds tweeted outside, Aaron realised that one of his curtains was still pulled across. Grunting as he sat up, Aaron walked over to his window and pulled his curtain back. Looking out at the grounds below, Aaron saw something out of the corner of his eye. It was the type of thing that you wish you didn't see, the type of thing that would keep you up at night, the type of thing that has you going 'what?' every time you think about it.

There was a man, not much older than Aaron, leaning against a wall. He had dark hair that was slicked back, a trimmed beard that ran from his sideburns around his chin and over his mouth. He had some sort of mark that Aaron guessed was a tattoo on the right side of his neck. He wore a red vested jacked, a pair of dark green cargo pants, some various things on his wrists and a pair of black boots.

As soon as Aaron appeared in the window, the figure had discarded the cigarette he was smoking and disappeared around the corner of the wall he was leaning on. Aaron barely had time to process him; the only thing he gathered was he was male, a vague idea of what he was wearing and the feeling he was being watched. This guy defiantly was not a student, Aaron would have recognised him. Aaron only wanted to know two things, who this guy was and what he wanted from him.

Aaron decided not to dwell on the strange event but he'd come back to it later. There were a few questions he wanted answers to. Probably one of Victoria's lackeys checking up on me. Aaron thought as he took his jacket from the hook on the back of the door and made his way out of his dorm room.

As Aaron left the building, he flicked his hair to the side and checked his watch; half past twelve. Not that late he thought as he walked onto the main concourse.

To add to the shit that had already happened today, Aaron saw Victoria sitting under a tree with her entourage and other recognisable members of the Vortex club. Aaron being the champion he was, walked upto them and interrupted their conversation.

"I need to talk to you" he said, cutting Hayden off from what he was talking about. If it was anyone else, there would be a public outcry. No one interrupts someone of their social standing...but Aaron wasn't just anyone.

Aaron moved to the side after saying his piece and waited for Victoria who promptly got up and made her way over to where he was standing.

"Missed me did you?" She said with a wink and a bite of her lip.

"Actually it's the opposite; we're done with whatever the shit it was we did" Aaron said in an unusually stressed tone. It was chilled out but a bit forceful.

"Uh, what do you mean 'we're done'? " Victoria asked as she looked at him in confusion.

"Done, finished, not happening. You may be used to people bowing to your every whim but what happened between us, that was a one-two off and I'm telling you, it's not happening again"

Victoria was hurt by what Aaron had said, they weren't anything at all, they just had sex twice. Victoria wasn't used to this, being told no and it was very confusing. She tried to play it down but knew she'd fail.

"You'll be the one who's sorry Aaron Heartfield, not me. Don't think I'll take you back when you come crawling back to me, no sir that is not happening"

Aaron honestly couldn't care less, he just wanted to pie Victoria off for good. He never wanted...whatever he got and couldn't be asked for all the hassle of her being a loose end. He'd happily be friends with her but that was it, he wouldn't succumb to her desires.

"Good thing I don't plan too, now tell your flunky to stop following me" Aaron said as he turned his back on her and started walking away but what he heard chilled him to the core.

"What the fuck are you on about, I don't have anyone following you" Victoria called, sounding genuinely confused, she had no idea what Aaron meant. She didn't send him.

Moving past everything, Aaron juts made his way to his favourite spot, the benches under the trees. He'd wait here to hear from Chloe and Max and find out what he was gonna do. Aaron thought about inviting Kate but wanted to leave room between them for now. He didn't wanna rush into anything she might not be ready for and something he defiantly wasn't ready for either.

Aaron liked Kate, he did but he wasn't ready to commit to something this early. He really wished he could but he saw things practically and he knew this wasn't a practical decision. Some people would call him cold for thinking like that but he was a smart kid, he knew what he was doing. Despite being seventeen, he was a master at the game of life. Sure he had a lot to learn and made mistakes but he had a better grasp of the situation than most people.

Aaron would play the waiting game, not just for Max and Chloe, but for life itself.


Chloe entered Max's room and found her friend sitting at her desk. Her head was in the computer and she had headphones on, making her oblivious to Chloe's entrance. Chloe decided to lie on Max's bed and throw her pillow at her.

Max was startled and turned around to find Chloe laughing hysterically on her bed. Max took her headphones off and stood up.

"What the fuck Chloe, you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Key word being nearly" Chloe replied, still laughing.

"Why are you here?" Max asked as she sat down at the foot of her bed. She sounded drained and pissed off.

"Gee, I expected a different reaction, it's not like your best friend walked in or anything"

"Chloe, I, we need to talk about last night" Max said as she placed her hand upto her forehead. Chloe was afraid of what would come next. "Me and you, we...you know what we did and I just can't stop thinking about it"

"Was I that good that you want some more" Chloe joked.

"No Chloe, this is fucking serious!" Chloe's smile disappeared as Max stood up. She clearly meant business. "You're my best friend, I've known you nearly all my life and now we've, what even...I can't...I physically can't find the words, none will leave my mouth"

Chloe just sat there and looked up at Max, she was speechless too. The tension was so thick, it could have been cut. Max was in a totally different mindset, one that Chloe had never seen before. Chloe was confused as much as Max, if not more. Something was going on but she had no idea what.

"Max, what's wrong?" Chloe asked, she was concerned as to what Max was getting at.

"Don't you get it Chloe, we need time apart. My brain is fried and I just have no idea what to think. I can barely function with my mind so focused on...whatever happened, us. I need some time so myself, time away from all of this...away from you"

Max's words cut deep, they hurt Chloe. The one thing she hated was being abandoned. First by her dad, then Max, then Rachel and now Max again for the second time. Chloe was on the verge of tears but found the strength to talk.

"Max you don't mean that, tell me you don't mean that?"

"You should leave Chloe, I'll be in touch, I don't know, soon"

Chloe knew that was her sign to leave; getting up, she walked past Max, nudging her as she past and headed out of the building.

Max didn't want to do this to Chloe, she felt heartbroken but there was just too much she needed to think about and she had to manage school along with it. Max wished she could keep Chloe as close as the clothes on her back but she had so many questions she had to answer, so many things she had to think about and knew Chloe would be a distraction.

Max was stuck between a rock and a hard place; she had to do what she thought was the best option for both her and Chloe. She hoped she knew what she was doing.


By the time Chloe had left the building, her sadness had turned to anger. She had been abandoned again, by Max again. As Chloe strode back to the parking lot, she heard Aaron call from the benches.

"Yo blue, what's the skinny?" Chloe just walked past him and gestured him to follow, which Aaron did. "You ok Chloe, where's Max?"

"Not coming" Chloe replied coldly, not looking at Aaron as she continued walking. She pitied anyone who'd get in her way. "Get in" She said when they reached her truck.

Chloe began to drive, her face like thunder had Aaron confused. He thought things would have been positive between the two, not at this level of aggression.

Chloe began to drive through Arcadia bay without saying a word. Aaron respected her decision and listened to music as they drove to wherever they were heading. Clearly something had happened in Max's room and Aaron knew Chloe would tell him when she was ready.

By the time Chloe stopped the truck, the two were down by the beach. They were at the end of a dirt road that had dividers in place to stop any vehicles from driving onto the sand. Chloe got out and Aaron followed her across the beach-front. The mid day sun shone on the pair as they walked across the sand. It was heating up.

Aaron removed his jacket and tied it around his waist as he walked across the warm ocean front. There was a wall of rocks to his left that inclined as they got taller and the blue sea on his right. It was a scene that made him feel tranquil and peaceful. It gave off a secluded vibe that made him feel much more relaxed. It seemed like a place that you'd only find if you knew about it.

The rounded a corner, following the boulders on the left as they walked in silence. The sand went straight as far as the eye could see. There seemed to be miles of nothing but sand, rock and ocean for miles.

Chloe walked barefoot on the sand with her boots in her right hand as she strode to no particular destination. Aaron followed silently behind, his shoes remained on his feet as he was too lazy to take them off.

After what seemed like days of walking, Chloe finally stopped and sat on the sand and leant against the rocks. Aaron stood beside her, leaning into the stony, not yet mossy mountain beside him.

"Everything's fucked Aaron" Chloe finally spoke "You ever get that feeling that the whole world's against you and no matter how good something gets, it'll eventually be taken away from you?"

"More than you know, trust me. The only advice I can give you is just never give up. Life is constantly gonna throw this wack shit at you so you gotta strive to be the best you can be. No one's gonna do anything for you so you should give them a reason to take notice of you for the right reasons. It's never gonna be easy but you just gotta always give a hundred and ten percent, you do that and life just becomes so much easier" Aaron said as he sat down next to Chloe.

"At least I can always count on you to cheer me up. Thanks for following me today, I mean you had no reason to but it's just nice to vent in your own way and I just needed to get away from that death-trap of a town"

Aaron hated seeing people upset, especially someone like Chloe who is always full of life and energy. He knew she needed to blow off some steam and he'd be there to help her get through it.

"Don't sweat it man, I've been waiting to say some philosophical shit lately so thanks for the chance" Aaron joked, getting a smile out of Chloe in the process. "I'm not gonna ask what happened, that's your business. Just know if you wanna talk about it, I'm here"

Chloe needed this, something to take her mind off of Max and Aaron was probably the best thing. He was so kind, so understanding and he had such an open mind that not many people had. He was truly a friend for life.

"I won't give you the satisfaction but it was to do with Max" Chloe said with a small smile creeping onto her face.

"You know I already knew that" Aaron replied as he nudged Chloe playfully. "I don't miss a thing, just like that cave over there"

Chloe's head turned to see where Aaron was pointing and sure enough, there was a small opening into the mountain just a few metres away from where they'd already been sitting. Chloe got up and decided to explore what Aaron had noticed.

It was just a small opening which lead to what looked like an open room, it wasn't very big, just where the water had eroded the rocks in a weird place, causing the mountain's shape to open like it had before the two teenagers.

Aaron sat down out of the suns hot rays; it was nice and cool behind the rocks and he didn't want to leave anytime soon. Chloe could tell Aaron was relaxed, he was hard to read but the obvious expressions spoke for themselves. Chloe thought about the situation she was in and then thought about Aaron. She took a few seconds before blurting out with something that only Chloe Price would say.

"Wanna have casual sex to help me take my mind off Max?"

Aaron was taken by extreme surprise but he wouldn't let it show. Instead he simply looked around at the rocks that shielded them from the sand and water before looking back at Chloe and saying "Let's do it" in the most nonchalant tone anyone could have had when responding to an offer of sex.

The two placed their jackets on the floor before Chloe placed her arm on Aaron's shoulder, pulling him in for a kiss. He kissed her passionately back as he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her in close.

The kissing lasted for a while but as soon as it was done, their clothes were off quicker than one of Chloe's quips. Aaron placed his left arm under Chloe's head as he lay alongside her and started using his right hand to do something else. Chloe let out soft moans as Aaron's fingers rubbed her slowly. She placed her arms around his neck and pulled her head into his shoulder in an effort to prepare for what his fingers would do next.

Without hesitation, Aaron's middle and index fingers found themselves inside Chloe whose body reacted accordingly. Aaron picked up the pace as Chloe's body contracted in response to what he was doing.

A few minutes later and Chloe came all over Aaron's fingers as she let go of his neck. Wanting to return the favour, she pushed Aaron down on his back and moved her head down. She swallowed his cock and started to suck and jerk on it as Aaron's eyes rolled back into his skull in ecstasy. Chloe did it for a few minutes before they both grew bored of foreplay and moved onto what they both wanted right now.

Chloe lay back as Aaron climbed on top of her and placed himself inside her, nice and slowly. Chloe moaned at how good it felt, clawing Aaron's back in response to the feeling.

They were both aware that it was a casual thing, there were no feelings between the two but Chloe wished they'd do this more often as she was in a state of bliss she hadn't felt in a long time.

Similarly, Aaron didn't make a grand spectacle out of it. he'd fuck her good enough to satisfy her but would put as little effort into it as he was lazy and it was just a casual fuck. The two were similar in the way they'd be able to carry on their friendship without it being awkward. Chloe's in a bad place as she has strong feelings for Max but Max is pushing her away. Aaron knows he's just a distraction and was only doing this as a friend. They'd both be able to move past this like it was nothing at all because that's exactly what it was.

After thirty minutes or so, Aaron could feel the end coming so he pulled out, stood up, told Chloe to get on her knees and sprayed a hot load all in her open mouth. Their time had come to and after the two cleaned up, they changed into their underwear and engaged in post-coital cuddles. As Aaron hugged Chloe from behind, he said:

"I'm not a bad person for doing this am I? I feel kinda, I don't know, wrong" Aaron was referencing his affection for Kate without realising.

"Nah you're good; this was just a casual thing I needed. We both know it doesn't mean anything" Chloe didn't think Aaron was out to sleep with her, she knew he wasn't like that but if she had to have casual sex with any dude, she'd probably have picked him anyway.

The day had not gone how Aaron thought it would, but that's what he loved, being surprised, not knowing what was to come. He knew that Max must be having a hard time with this just as much as Chloe and when he got back to Blackwell, she'd need someone to be there for her. He just didn't wanna get caught up between the two, they were both his friends and he wanted to help both of them. He really hoped they'd be able to sort this all out.


He watched Aaron follow Chloe to her truck, he could see Aaron but Aaron had no idea he was there. Marcus scratched his chin as his eyes tracked Aaron's every step. When he got into Chloe's truck, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small radio.

"Beta to The Pack, message, over" his voice was husky and deep.

"Roger Beta, send, over" A female voice called from the other end of the device, it was low and firm.

"Target is leaving school grounds now, break, shown signs of inquisition after spotting me earlier. Want me to pursue, over?"

"Negative Beta, brake track and return to The Den, acknowledge, over"

"Acknowledged" He said before laughing maliciously then grinning. "He has absolutely no idea what's about to happen"

A/N:- Ok, so yeah, shit's hit the fan. Sorry I pulled a surprise sex scene on you, I'm not doing this to troll you or anything.

The pieces are all on the board so consider the prelude or whatever to this story over and the first Act, if you will, is about to begin. This story is gonna get extremely crazy and I can only ask you see it through to its conclusion.

I hope the sex scene wasn't shit, as you know, I don't tend to write them and this is only the second proper time I've done one so please consider that.

If you have any feedback, please give it to me, I love hearing from you all in either a Review or a PM. If you like the story, please Follow and Favourite it. It means a great deal to me and reminds me I'm doing something right so please take like 10 seconds to tick those two boxes and I would appreciate it indefinitely.

I plan to upload a new LiS fic sometime next week that will most likely Include Aaron (For those of you that love him) and will take place after the tornado hits Arcadia bay. AU, no time powers, a lot of the LiS cast and a post apocalyptic setting. It'll be called 'The Chrysalis Experiment' for those of you who are interested. It'll be a massive change of pace from this one and I promise not to disappoint.

That's all for now guys, see ya soon!