"Take your seat, Ms. Hunt." Kourtney broke eye contact with Paul, quickly taking the seat in front of her. It was the seat nearest to the door and farthest away from Paul. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She felt anxious with the way Paul stared at her. She felt her cheeks get hot just thinking about how his brown eyes bore intensely into hers.
"Ms. Hunt?" Kourtney jumped.
"Please pass the papers back," Mr. Joseph told her as he dropped a stack of papers in front of her.
"Sorry," she mumbled as she took a paper for herself then turned to hand it to the person behind her. She made sure not to look Paul's way.
"Are you okay?" Mr. Joseph asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"You're turning red. I hope I didn't embarrass you," Mr. Joseph joked. Kourtney covered her face and cursed her teacher in her mind. She liked Mr. Joseph but just hated him at that moment.
"I'm fine!" cried Kourtney. The whole class laughed.
"Alright, alright. No more picking on Ms. Hunt."
Kourtney uncovered her face. She gathered all her hair to the left side, making a sort of curtain between her and Paul. Even though she wasn't looking, she could feel his eyes still on her. Kourtney spent the entire class this way, making sure not to look too much to her left. She eyed the clock and was already packed up before the dismissal bell even rang. The second it did, she was up and out of her seat, making her way into the hall way.
"Kourtney!" she heard Paul call after her. Now he wants to talk to me, she thought bitterly. This time she was the one ignoring him. She quickly navigated through the halls, making sure he couldn't catch up to her. As she turned the corner, she realized he was gaining on her. She ducked into the girls' locker room even though her next class was nowhere near there.
Kourtney waited until the warning bell rang before venturing out of the locker room. She made her way to her next class while praying that she didn't bump into Paul. Once she got to her class, her prayer changed to hoping Paul wasn't in the same class with her. Kourtney breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't see Paul. She took her seat.
"Mr. Lowry, have you seen Mr. Lahote? I heard he was back." Kourtney groaned.
"Paul had to leave," Kim said. Everyone turned to look at Kim.
"Mr. Lahote left?" Mrs. Hurst asked. Kim nodded.
"Do you know why?" Kim shook her head. Mrs. Hurst clucked her tongue and began to write in her little binder. Kourtney was relieved once again.
For the rest of the day, Paul was nowhere to be found. Kourtney was thankful that she didn't have to run around the school trying to avoid bumping into Paul. She was at her locker gathering her books when Christy approached her.
"Hey, girl," Christy said leaning up against the locker beside Kourtney's.
"Hey."
"I notice you've been avoiding Paul."
"He's not here," Kourtney told her.
"Have you even talked to him?" Kourtney shook her head.
"I tried talking to him this morning, but he ignored me. I saw him ignore the other football players too. So I don't know what the hell is wrong with him."
"Whoa, settle down!" Christy joked.
"Sorry, it's just…he's been gone for weeks. Everyone's been concerned and he doesn't even think to say hi to any of us. Instead, I see him all buddy-buddy with your cousin-"
"Kim?"
"Do you have another cousin attending this school?" Kourtney snapped. Christy bit her lip, looking amused. "What?"
"Your attitude. I think you're jealous."
"Of what?"
"Of the fact that Paul was being 'buddy-buddy' with Kim and not you."
"Hah! Whatever. I couldn't care less. I don't even know why I'm so concerned about him. I shouldn't be." Christy nodded.
"Kourtney." Kourtney froze at the sound of Paul's voice. She looked at Christy who only gave her a smile.
"I'll see you later Kourtney." Kourtney pleaded with her eyes for Christy not to leave her. "Nice to see you again, Lahote!"
With that Christy flashed Kourtney another smile. Kourtney returned with a glare.
"Kourt," Paul began, his voice soft. Kourtney sighed and decided to finally face the music. She turned around to face Paul. Her eyes locked with his and the same feeling from earlier came to her. She felt her pulse quicken and her stomach just started to twist and turn.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" she asked. Paul looked surprised with her outburst. "Why did you break up with Marianne?" Paul looked away guiltily. "She's heartbroken, Paul! You didn't even give a good enough reason!" Paul sighed.
"I told her why. I'm just dealing with some things."
"Like what? Were you really sick this whole time?" Paul slowly nodded his head. "Are you okay?" Kourtney asked, not looking at him. The way he looked at her just unnerved her.
"I'm fine now. Thanks for asking."
"Marianne was really worried about you," Kourtney told him, glancing at him.
"I know," Paul said.
"Talk to her, please? She's devastated, Paul. Whatever it is you're going through…just try and work it out with her." Paul shook his head.
"I can't. At least…not anymore." The way he said the last sentence made Kourtney look up at him. Her heart was still pounding fast and she felt her breathing increase. She was starting to feel drawn to him. She opened her mouth to reply.
"Hi, Kourt!" Devin greeted. Paul looked annoyed at the interruption. "Hi, Paul! Nice to see you!"
"Get lost, Devin," Paul said.
"Uh, actually, I need to talk to you," Kourtney told Devin. "Now!"
She grabbed his arm and led him away from Paul. Once they were a good distance Kourtney began to talk.
"Devin, I know you saw me with someone at the parking lot a few weeks ago."
"I did," Devin smiled. His eyes looked over to Paul who was watching them intently.
"You know it was Paul, don't you?" Kourtney asked, her face paling when he nodded.
"But don't worry, I won't tell anyone!"
"Devin, please don't!"
"I won't!"
"You already told people about it," she pointed. "Rumors are already flying around, Devin!"
"I know, but I won't tell who it was, I promise!" Devin insisted. "I only told Alex because you were complaining about him not leaving you alone," he explained. Kourtney's anger slowly melted away. Devin had good intentions. "Did it work?"
Kourtney nodded.
"It did. He hasn't called me since. Thank you," she added with a smile.
"It was no problem! You're always nice to me even when you don't have to be."
"You're a good friend, Devin," Kourtney told him. Devin smiled.
"Well, I should get going. Coach doesn't like anyone being late! Don't worry about rumors, Kourtney! Just ignore them! That's what I do!" Kourtney gave an appreciative smile and waved at Devin. She turned to head back to her locker where Paul still stood, waiting for her. She took her time walking towards him. By the time she got to him, Kim was also there.
"Hey, Paul," she greeted. "Are you ready to go?" Kourtney looked from Kim to Paul.
"Actually, I was just-"
Kourtney walked through the space between them, grabbed her bag, and slammed her locker shut. She left without another word or even a glance back at Paul.
.-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-.
Paul was running as fast as his four legs would let him.
'Don't blame Kim! She was doing what Sam asked,' Jared's voice said.
'I didn't know he could command her too.'
'He can't!' Jared growled.
'She didn't have to tell you about Kourtney either!' Paul said bitterly. Paul hated not having his thoughts to himself while he was wolf, he hated it even more that Kim was reporting everything that happened at school to Jared.
'You imprinted on her! We were bound to find out sooner or later!' Paul concentrated on silencing his thoughts. He didn't want to talk about it anymore. 'Sam's waiting for you.'
'I know! Leave me the fuck alone. I don't need a babysitter.'
'Considering the fact that you almost phased outside of school, I think otherwise.'
'Maybe if your girlfriend didn't piss me off-' Paul began.
'Maybe if you weren't a temperamental prick who can't control his-' Paul caught up with Jared and lunged at him, nipping him on his side. Jared let out a yelp. He growled and lunged back at Paul, using his paws to push him down. The two fought, growling and snarling at one another.
'ENOUGH!' Jared and Paul immediately cowered down in front of Sam. Paul tried to fight it, but he knew he couldn't go against the alpha's command. 'Jared, go ahead and phase back.' Jared stood up on all fours then walked away. Sam and Paul waited until they were certain that Jared was no longer in his wolf form. 'So…you imprinted. On Kourtney?' Paul remained silent. 'I guess now we know why you phased the way you did. Do you know what this means, Paul?'
'She's my soulmate. She's the one I'm meant to be with.'
'Eventually. As of now, you just need to tread carefully. Your friendship with her was already strained before you imprinted on her, so I'm not sure how it'll get better. Just take it slow, Paul. Don't try to push or rush her.'
'I know. She hates me right now,' Paul said sadly.
'Then wait. Wait for her. Wait until she's ready.'
.-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-.
The rest of the quick flew by. Kourtney continued to ignore Paul and Paul seemed to give her the space she wanted. Although there were times she would catch him looking at her. He would eventually look away once their eyes met. Each time their eyes would meet, even if it was for a split second, Kourtney could feel her heart start beating rapidly. She would feel flush after making eye contact with him. It came to a point where Kourtney avoided looking or even turning his way anymore.
More drama unfolded as more rumors started about Paul. The fact that he had been eating lunch with Kim or by himself added fuel to the rumor fire. Marianne continually called Kourtney. It seemed she heard from Marianne more than ever.
"Has Paul said anything?"
"Nope," Kourtney answered. She held her cell phone up to her ear with her shoulder while she cut up some apples. "He's been avoiding me Marianne. He's been avoiding everyone."
"Except Kim."
"Yes, except her," Kourtney repeated. That still irked her.
"I never knew they even talked!" Marianne cried.
"Apparently they do now. She said Paul talks to Jared, who happens to be her boyfriend."
"Jared Cameron? Paul hated him, didn't he?"
"Oh yeah," Kourtney remembered. Paul almost got into a fight with Jared a few times before. It seemed like their personalities just clashed.
"What is going on with him?" Marianne sighed. "Kourt, try talking to him, please? He hasn't answered any of my calls or texts."
Kourtney sighed. "Okay, I'll talk to him." She looked up as her older brother entered the room.
"What are you doing here?" Kourtney cried happily.
"What's going on?"
"Marianne, I gotta go. Cody's here!"
"Oh, okay! I'll talk to you later! Tell your hot brother that I said hi and am newly single," Marianne joked. Kourtney rolled her eyes.
"Bye!" She hung up her phone and ran to hug her brother.
"Surprise!" Cody said as he hugged back his little sister.
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm here for homecoming week!"
"Of course. Don't visit for the summer, but visit for homecoming week!" Kourtney said, trying to guilt him.
"I had a lot going on this past summer!" Cody cried.
"Were they Lisa, Samantha, and Melanie?" Cody laughed.
"More like, McKenzie, Michelle, and Monique. I'm going alphabetical. Still on the M's."
"You're such a pig. Freaking man whore!"
"I'm just kidding! I had a chance at an internship that I couldn't pass up!" He took the last apple wedge and shoved the whole thing in his mouth. "So, what are your plans this weekend?"
"Practice," Kourtney said. "Homework. Practice."
"Ditch the practice, fuck the homework! Let's go do some fun stuff!"
"Alright, but if my captain punishes me for ditching-"
"I'll gladly take part in the punishment with you!" Cody said, simply.
"And if my teachers scold me for not having my homework done-"
"I'll come to school with you on Monday and distract them. Everyone loves it when I'm home!"
Kourtney rolled her eyes again. He was right though. During his years in high school, Cody was like the golden boy. He had straight A's and participated in every sport he could. He was the quarterback and dated (on and off) the same girl throughout high school.
"Sounds like a plan or what?" Kourtney smiled and nodded. She loved having her brother home.
.-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-. .-~*~-.
Cody did as he told his sister. He eased the car into a parking space. Kourtney got out of the passenger's side. They weren't even three feet away from the school when someone called out Cody's name.
"Hunt!" Kourtney watched as the group of football players swarmed over to Cody.
"I'll see you inside!" Kourtney called. Nobody seemed to hear her. She entered the school and headed to her lockers. She saw that Kim was already at her own locker. Kourtney slowed down, not wanting to attract attention to her.
"Good morning, Kourtney!"
"Hi, Kim," Kourtney replied. She found it weird that Kim was greeting her more and more often.
"Did you have a good weekend?"
"Uh, I did. Cody flew in for homecoming week," Kourtney said, not looking at her.
"That's great!" Kourtney nodded. "Well, I guess I'll see you in class!"
Kourtney fell guilty for not engaging in conversation with Kim. However, she was a bit suspicious as to why Kim was suddenly very friendly with her. Her morning classes were very uneventful. Just as Cody predicted, her teachers didn't mind that she didn't have her homework done. After all, having her big brother back home must have been very exciting for her. Paul was actually in school that day, but they continued to steer clear of one another. That is until lunch time. Kourtney stopped by her locker and saw that Paul was at his.
The two were quiet, each not acknowledging one another. They both looked up when they heard whooping and hollering. Kourtney rolled her eyes when she saw a group of freshmen. Homecoming week was a big deal around La Push and it was an even bigger deal for the freshmen. It was usually the new group of high school students that used Homecoming as an excuse to be extra annoying.
"Hi, Kourtney!" one of the boys yelled. Kourtney only gave a small smile. She didn't know his name, but she knew he was one of the football players' little brother. A little further down the hallway, Paul narrowed his eyes as he watched the group of freshmen converge towards Kourtney. He dropped his backpack and slowly made his way towards them.
"You have something on your hair," he heard one of the boys exclaim.
"What?" Kourtney asked, running her fingers through her hair.
"Just this!" One of the boys produced a party popper and pulled the string causing Kourtney to scream. The other boys pulled out silly string and started covering Kourtney with it.
"Hey!" Paul cried out. The freshmen boys cowered back and ran away as Paul walked up to them.
"Stupid freshmen!" Kourtney yelled as she started pulling off the silly string. Paul was tempted to help, but kept his hands to himself. He didn't know where his friendship stood with Kourtney still. He watched in amusement as Kourtney struggled to pull off some more of the string and confetti. "You can help me out a little, you know."
Paul took that as permission to go near her. Paul started to help pick off the stuff from her hair. They both reached for the same string and their hands touched. Kourtney felt how warm his hands were. Paul quickly pulled away.
"Uh, thanks," Kourtney mumbled. "I got it." Paul nodded. The two stood awkwardly with Kourtney still trying to fix her hair.
Paul cleared his throat. "I, uh, I'll see you around, Kourt," he said. He turned to walk back to his locker. Kourtney watched him pick up his back pack then shut his locker. She saw he was on his way to the front doors of the school. He's ditching again!
"Paul!" she called, without a second thought. He stopped and looked at her. "Uh, can we talk?"
Paul seemed to think it over. He looked out through the front door then reversed his steps back to her.
"What's up?" he asked. Kourtney noticed how he spoke differently around her now. His voice was softer and didn't have the edge it usually had before.
"It's about Marianne," Kourtney began. Paul clenched his jaw. A hint of annoyance crossed his face. "How hard is it for you to just talk to her?"
"I gotta go. I don't have time for this," Paul told her.
"Where do you go?" Kourtney asked. Paul continued walking away which made Kourtney mad. She ran after him and stopped in front of him.
He seemed surprised. "Kourt-"
"Where the hell do you go when you ditch school? You're never here. What's so important that you don't even come to school?"
Paul didn't answer and he refused to look her in her eyes.
"I get you were sick, Paul. But what is going on with you?"
"It's nothing," Paul said.
"If it's nothing why not just tell me?"
"Because."
"Because what?"
"It's nothing!" Paul yelled. Kourtney was taken aback by Paul's outburst.
"Paul!" Kourtney and Paul looked to see Jared standing in front of the doors to the school. "I was waiting for you. We need to go."
"Where-"
Paul walked away from Kourtney. Jared gave Kourtney a small nod before walking out of the school with Paul.
"What the hell was that about?" Kourtney stormed over to her locker. She didn't notice that Nate was now at his locker.
"Nothing." She stuffed her bag in and slammed it shut. Then she made her way to the cafeteria, not caring that she still had bits of confetti and string in her hair. Nate followed close behind her.
"What happened to you?" Cody asked as his sister approached. He was eating up the attention he was getting from all the football players and cheerleaders.
"Nothing," Kourtney said just as Nate answered with, "Lahote."
"Paul Lahote?" Cody asked. "What'd he do?"
"Nothing," Kourtney repeated. "Just being a jerk."
"Fuck him, Kourtney," Brian said from across the table. "He thinks he's too good for us or something."
"What's going on with him?" Cody asked Brian.
"He turned into an arrogant prick."
"He's always been arrogant," Kyle said.
"Yeah, he just a straight up asshole now."
Despite being angry at him, Kourtney felt bad that his former friends were not talking bad about him.
"What happened?" Christy asked, leaning close to Kourtney.
"Nothing," Kourtney repeated. "I just tried talking to him. He yelled at me."
"What? Why?"
Kourtney shrugged. "Whatever. I don't care. I don't even know why I bothered. He and I have no reason to be friends anymore."
"Kourt, you don't mean that. He's been a good friend to you. I mean, aside from…what happened, I'm sure you guys can fix things."
Kayla picked at her food. She wasn't paying attention to anything but the conversation that was taking place in front of her. She was very observant when she was quiet. Kourtney seemed upset with Paul. Kayla also noticed how the two friends were avoiding each other in the hallways. Kayla's mind started going to work. First, Kourtney was seen kissing a mystery guy. Then Paul just so happens to break up with Marianne. Now there was some sort of tension between them. Kayla smiled to herself. She had a bit of digging to do. After all, the Homecoming dance was only a few days away. It would be a great setting to stir up some drama.
AN: A little long, but hopefully it'll tie you all over. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Stay safe!
