I considered getting them together in this chapter, but I felt that this route would be so much more fun. Don't worry, it won't last long, they'll be together soon! Kim's angry in this chapter!

Q&A

Tinkerbell-Lover-Ms-Write-It - I actually did consider adding a lemon in a later chapter, but since I've never written a lemon, I'm a bit hesitant to take a stab at it. There is a spot for one later on though, so I'll toy with the idea a bit and see if I come up with anything. It's definitely a possibility though, depending on how well I can actually write a sex scene haha

Alekzz - I'm so glad you're liking my story! Oddly enough, my Dad's birthday is also June 7th. I'll do my best to get a chapter up for you on that day!

Disclaimer: Same as before. I don't own Twilight or Jared and Kim.

This was ridiculous. Here I was, sitting on the beach, next to Jared. Jared, who happened to be a wolf man and a vampire slayer and the boy I'd had a crush on since I was a kid. It was almost too much to handle and so I kept running my fingers through my hair over and over again to try and soothe myself. Jesus, Ian was starting to look pretty damn good right now, even with his insecurities and his desire to control absolutely everything. It had only been minutes since I'd learned Jared's big secret, but already I missed the time when I hadn't known, when my biggest problem had been trying to keep them from killing each other. I was mad at Jared, for ruining my ignorance.

"So why are you telling me this?" I demanded, "It would have been so much easier if you'd kept the whole thing a secret, right?"

"I was sort of hoping you wouldn't ask me that today." he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, "But I can't lie to you, so if you want to know...I'll tell you the rest."

"There's more?" I asked weakly. What more could he have to tell me other than he's a wolf and he fights vampires all day? And what would shock me at this point? Nothing seemed impossible at the moment and that terrified me.

"I sort of...well, I have to tell you eventually." he admitted, looking guilty, "But I don't have to tell you today. It can wait if you don't want to hear it."

"I..." I faltered. I wasn't quite sure what I wanted or what would make this whole thing easier, "Just tell me. Fast, like ripping off a band aid."

He winced at my choice of words, like that wasn't exactly what he wanted this whole thing to be associated with. I didn't really know how to take his reaction.

"It doesn't have to be today Kim, this can wait, as long as you promise me that you'll speak to me after this." he was talking a bit faster now and I was taken aback. I had never seen Jared so frightened and nervous in all the time that I had known him. When he had gone to fight Ian he had looked determined and threatening. When he'd been teased by Marcus, he looked amused. Nothing had phased him until this moment. He looked at me with those fearful eyes and he pleaded with me, silently, not to leave. And even though every ounce of sense in me said get the hell away, I had to hear it. Even though I wanted nothing more than to forget, not knowing every twist would drive me insane in the end. I sighed.

"Tell me what it is Jared. It can't be worse than," I swallowed, "Vampires."

"Oh you would be surprised." he muttered, his hand on the back of his neck once more. He looked at me and could tell that I was not amused. He sighed. "So the wolf thing...there's more to it than just turning into a giant animal."

"Do you have fleas or something?" I teased, in an effort to lighten the tension that had fallen over us. Jared glared at me and I sobered a bit, "Right, sorry, go on."

"There are just, abilities that come with the whole thing." he struggled to get his words out.

"Abilities? Like what?" I snorted, obviously not taking this very seriously. If I had stopped to consider it, I might have realized that it was actually a very serious situation. After all, Jared had just let me in on a major tribe secret, one that I probably shouldn't have known in the first place. He would probably get in some kind of trouble for doing so later.

"I mean, we're not exactly normal wolves, obviously." He shrugged, "The pack is small right now, just me and Sam and Paul. But we've got this thing where we share minds when we've shifted a-"

"You can read minds?" I demanded, feeling slightly nervous. Was his sudden interest in me due to the fact that he had discovered my longstanding crush through mind reading. Even that sounded insane as I thought it, but I couldn't help myself. There were apparently no limits to the madness that was currently happening.

"Not like that." he said quickly, his eyes widening and I could tell he knew what I was thinking, "Only in the pack and only when we're changed. And it's not really mind reading, it's like having one communal brain."

"That's weird." I said flatly and Jared gave a nervous chuckle. "What about these vampires? Are they...are they coming here?"

His eyes seemed to darken a bit as I mentioned the vampires and his jaw tightened. Obviously, they were a tense subject for him and I instantly regretted mentioning them.

"No. Never." he said instantly, his voice a low growl, "Not while we're around anyway."

"Oh." I wasn't sure what else to say on the matter. I had obviously upset him by bringing it up in the first place. It was a morbid sort of curiosity that I had, like wanting to know how someone died or watching a horror movie.

"Apparently they're good vampires." he muttered, rubbing the top of his head, "They don't kill humans or something. It's still sick though. Unnatural."

"You're one to talk." I retorted and his head snapped up abruptly.

"I'm still human." he defended, "I still breathe and bleed and feel. I'm more natural than they are."

"I-" I wasn't exactly sure what to say. Obviously I had struck a nerve and he had a valid point. Technically he was still human, moreso than a vampire, but that still didn't make what he was right. It certainly didn't make it normal.

"Sorry." he mumbled, "I just don't want you to associate me with...them. Makes me feel sick."

I nodded. I supposed if someone compared me to my enemy, I wouldn't be happy about it either, though I could hardly relate to Jared's supernatural world.

"I don't understand this Jared." I said after a moment, "Why are you telling me these things?"

"I was getting to that." he sighed, "Abilities, remember?"

"Right, what does that have to do with me. You can't read my mind or something, can you?"

"I already told you I can't." he grinned, "Though I wish I could, you're fucking cryptic most of the time."

No boy had ever called me cryptic, but I was slightly proud of the fact that he hadn't been able to read me easily.

"There's this thing called imprinting." he said in a low voice, his tone wavering a bit as he spoke. His nerves were starting to rise to the surface again. I stared at him, waiting for him to explain the term. He sighed again, "Sam didn't think it was common, but then it happened again and, well, here we are."

"What are you talking about?" I asked him, throughly confused, "What's an imprint?"

"Yeah, I guess I'm doing a lousy job explaining this, huh?" he laughed nervously, "See imprinting is like...it's better than soul mates. It's like...gravity or something. I don't know, you'd have to feel it from my end, I guess."

I just stared at him. My brain had stopped working. He was giving me puzzle pieces, but I wasn't functioning at normal mental capacity.

"So you just see her, the imprint that is, and she's it." he was staring out into the ocean now, a dazed sort of look on his face, "She's everything."

It all clicked then, exactly what he was trying to tell me, his sudden interest in me and his desire to tell me the truth about what he really was.

"Bullshit." I muttered, unsure of my feelings. I was either terrified or angry, I couldn't really decide which at the moment. "You're not seriously telling me this imprinting stuff has something to do with me?"

He looked at me, slightly sheepish.

"Don't freak out." he said again. I stared, blinked and then did the only thing I could think of. I shoved him as hard as I possibly could. It had little to no effect, but it was satisfying, and I scrambled to my feet in the sand.

"This is fucking insane Jared." I snapped at him, finally deciding that I needed to leave before he could tell me anything else. He quickly got up and began to follow me as I made my way back to the road. I didn't wait for him to continue speaking. "You can't just stand here and stake some kind of claim on me!"

"I'm not trying to stake a claim on you!"

"Oh yes you are! You can't sit there and tell me I'm your God damn gravity and not sound possessive."

"I'm not trying to be possessive, it's just what happens. It's wolf thing." he sighed, his eyes pleading as he tried to search for the right way to appease me on the subject.

"What so you just go around peeing on everything like a dog and then it's just yours, right?" I demanded, as I reached the road, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Ok now you're just exaggerating." He muttered, shoving his hands into his pocket. I made a mental note that calling him a dog struck a chord.

"It doesn't matter." I said, throwing my hands up in defeat, "Because I'm not doing this. Does your wolf magic hear that? I am not doing this. Not today. So you can take your gravity and your soul mates and your vampires and you can leave me alone."

And with that, I spun on my heel and took off down the road. I still had my sneakers on from practice and even though the clothes I was wearing weren't exactly good for jogging, I knew I could make it the few miles to my house. And, if it came down to it, I still had my cell phone, so I could call Marcus if I had to. Jared still had my gym bag in his car, but I would figure out a way to get it back later. I heard a car engine start up behind me and the grumble of his tires on the beat up pavement. Seconds later, his care was edging along beside me, the window rolled down as he leaned out of it.

"Kim can we just-"

"Jared." I stopped short and he slammed on the breaks in response, "I'm your world, right?"

He nodded eagerly, his eyes shining hopefully.

"And you'd do anything I ask?" I pressed and he nodded again. This was obviously not going to go away anytime soon and, despite the fact that I wished it would, I knew I'd have to deal with it eventually. Jared was determined, I could tell. But if I could put off learning more about this whole mess for a while, maybe I would be alright. "Then listen to me when I tell you that I don't want to talk to you about this. Not now."

"Then when?"

"Just..." I trailed off, running my fingers through my hair, "Give me a few days? And we'll see."

"We'll see." he repeated, "Can I at least give you a ride?"

"No offense," I sighed, feeling tired, "But that is probably the last thing I need right now."

And with that, I turned away from his car and headed off in a jog down the road. Like I had asked, Jared stayed put.

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