Okay guys, time for another chapter. I'm glad you all liked my last one so much. I guarantee that my story is going to leave you in absolute shock by the time I'm finished. I might make a sequel for all I know. We'll just have to see. Okay, this chapter is in Seth's POV. I promise, the next one will be for Erin. Anyway, check out my other two fanfictions, 'With Wings Wide Open' and 'In the Blink of an Eye'. I'm sure you'll love them almost as much as you love this story. Or, at least you will if you like Maximum Ride. Okay, on with this amazing, wonderful chapter of mine. I am 100% positive that you will absolutely love it. Enjoy!

The week that Erin was grounded was the single most agonizingly painful, longest, miserable, lonely time of my life. I never felt so… empty. And just when I had started going back to normal too.

School was probably the greatest time I had that week. That's not saying much. With the upcoming exams looming over my head, during school I didn't have the time to think about Erin. Yeah, she came into my thoughts, but I didn't have much time to dwell on her.

Lunch was hard though. I had to see Collin with Scout, not to mention the other countless couples surrounding me. It seemed as if almost everyone in the whole school had someone to hold onto. It was difficult. I had actually taken to eating my lunch in some abandoned classroom to avoid people.

After school was a whole other story though. Since exams were coming up, I had no homework to distract me. I had hours upon hours of sheer nothingness to think about Erin, her perfect face, her smile, her laugh. I thought it was going to rip me apart. I thought I was going to die. I assure you, I am not exaggerating any of this.

Eventually, I started following her home from school (as a wolf of course). I would run through the woods from La Push to Forks High, wait for her to leave, and then run through the woods to her house.

I spent quite a bit of time after school just sitting in the woods at the back of her house, looking up into her bedroom window. I assumed she had a window seat, because she would sit in her window and look out into the woods. I wondered if she knew I was there or if she was just hoping I was. Either way, whenever she was at the window she had a pad of paper and a pencil in her hand and ear buds in her ears. I could see her mouthing lyrics to songs, but it was too far away to tell what she was singing.

Jacob wasn't being too helpful through all of this. He tried though. During one of his many pep talks he told me that it could've been much worse. He said that her uncle could have forbidden her to see me again. Bella had shot daggers at him and Nessie whacked him upside the head. They knew that that thought was going to bother me in the middle of the night.

It had. I was plagued by dreams of her crying, telling me she was never allowed to speak to me again. Always after those dreams, I woke up to find that tears had fallen from my eyes. I could never let that horrible nightmare come true. I swore to the heavens above that she would never be late getting home again if it kept her from being grounded and from me not being able to talk to her.

Yes, that week was the absolute worst. It was horrendous, but it was soon over. I awoke on the day of Erin's ungrounding happier than I think I ever had. Earlier than I ever had too. The sun hadn't even risen. And it was Monday, the first day of summer. I should have still been asleep. Perhaps long ago I would have. But now, I had an imprint whom I hadn't spent time with for a whole week. I was keyed up. I was like a six year old on a sugar high from a huge bucket full of Halloween candy.

As soon as I woke up, I ran to the bathroom to take a shower. When I finished, I ran back to my room to get dressed.

I never used to care what I wore. I hated shopping, absolutely loathed it. When I became a werewolf, I cared even less about clothes. Having a constant body temperature of 107 I found that I never needed to wear a shirt. Also, with the spontaneous bursting into a wolf I usually just wore some old pants, expendable things that my mother wouldn't kill me over when they burst into shreds as I phased.

But all of that seemed to change when I imprinted on Erin. I wanted to look nice for her. She always looked so nice, even though she insisted that she had had those clothes for a very long time.

I must have tried on every outfit in my closet that morning. I actually don't have a lot of clothes to tell the truth. I finally settled on a pair of jeans and a dark green polo shirt that Alice had gotten me for Christmas. There. That was nice enough. I hoped.

I combed my hair and looked at the clock. It was only eight. Seriously? My mom wasn't going to let me go over to Erin's until at least ten. It was a 'more acceptable' time to be awake.

I sighed and laid down on my bed for an hour just staring at the ceiling. As I lay there, the minutes ticking by one by one, I began to worry. What if Erin decided that she didn't want to be friends with me? I mean, it seemed that since she started hanging out with me she was always in trouble for something.

Well, only one way to find out.

I walked into the kitchen were my mom was about to get started cooking breakfast. She was digging in the cabinets, looking for things to cook up. She must have heard me come in because she turned around and smiled warmly at me.

"Ah yes." she said, eyeing my outfit. "Today you can go see Erin. I was wondering why you got up so early this morning. I had forgotten."

I nodded. "Yeah, I don't know what we're gonna do though." I don't even know if she'll wanna speak to me.

Mom got a look on her face that told me she had an idea. "Why don't you bring her over here for breakfast?"

I shrugged. "I guess that'll be fine. Then maybe we'll go visit the Cullens or something."

My mom nodded. "Or you could go to the beach if it's nice out. See, there are plenty of things to do today."

I sighed, "Well I'm gonna go then." My mom nodded and turned back to the cabinets, so I walked into the hallway, laced up my black converses, and headed out the door.

The morning was cool and there was a light mist hanging in the air. Everything was so quiet and peaceful, just the way I liked it. The only signs of life were the adults headed to work and the little kids playing in their yards, excited that it was finally summer.

I walked along, kicking rocks and things that were in my path. I couldn't get that thought I had earlier out of my head. I kept thinking that I'd show up at Erin's house and have her, or her uncle, slam the door in my face. I must have been deep in thought about that, because I almost walked right past her house.

I noticed that her uncle's car wasn't in the driveway and I felt relieved. The garage door was wide open, so I could also see that the car wasn't parked in there. I walked up her driveway and rang the doorbell. I heard her thunder down the stairs and moments later the door swung open.

"Seth?" she asked, the complete shock showing on her face. I must have caught her at a bad time because she was wearing a pair of blue flannel pajama bottoms with monkey heads on them and a gray t-shirt. Her hair was up in a bun, but pieces were falling out.

"Hi." I said, sheepishly. "Did I wake you up?"

She shook her head. "Nah, I was already up. You just surprised me, that's all. I didn't expect to see you so soon."

I shrugged, "Well today's the day you're off grounding, so I thought I'd pop by." I paused and said, "Jacob wasn't exaggerating when he was talking about that whole 'imprinter can't stand to be away from the imprintee' thing. I missed you."

She smiled and said, "Well, I missed you too." She looked over her shoulder and said, "You wanna come in? We could watch some TV or something. I got some cereal we could eat."

I shook my head, declining the offer. "My mom actually wanted me to invite you over for breakfast. Then I figured we'd go visit with the Cullens or maybe go to the beach or something." I paused and said, "But we can do whatever you want. I'm cool with anything. It's just that Mom wants to see you too. She really likes you."

She smirked and rocked back on her heels, teasing me. "Well…" she said slowly, "I really wanted to watch TV today. But, I guess your plan is good too." She stopped rocking. "Lemme change."

I grabbed her arm as she turned towards the door. "We don't have a lotta time. The food might be gone before we get there. Word to the wise: Never get between Charlie and my mom's homemade pancakes." I smirked at her and said, "Besides, you look… beautiful. Just the way you are."

Her face tinged pink and she looked at the ground, mumbling, "I'm in pajamas."

I chuckled and said, "So? You'll always be beautiful to me." Where in the heck did that come from? This imprinting thing was really starting to freak me out. I sounded like… Edward. And Jacob. Oh boy.

Erin looked up at me, smiling softly. "Thanks Seth. Lemme get some shoes." She ducked into the house for a second and came out wear a pair of black flip-flops. "Okay. Let's get going."

We walked along in silence, my hand lingering near hers. We were walking pretty close to each other. I kept wanting to say something, but I'd look at her face and then I'd just forget what I wanted to say. Totally unlike me.

"You know," Erin began, breaking the ice, "you are really lucky."

"How so?" I asked, being careful not to look directly into her eyes. The last thing I needed was to start stuttering and tripping over words.

She folded her arms and said, "Brian…" she noted my confused face, "my uncle, just left, like, fifteen minutes before you showed up."

I frowned. "How does that make me lucky?"

She quickly turned her head to face the ground and muttered, "He's not a people person. Would've interrogated you."

I nodded and said, "Oh. Then I guess I am lucky." I fell silent again. Why was it so hard talking to her? I loved her so… Oh. That was the problem. I loved her and she just wanted to be friends so everything was awkward. Well, that sucked.

I noticed her looking at me from out of the corner of my eye. What was she thinking? I could always ask Edward, but he probably wouldn't tell me.

We got to my house to find my mother, slightly disheveled, waving two silver, rectangular things at me.

"Mom?" I asked, walking up to her, Erin not far behind me. "What happened?"

"The whole pack just blew through here." she said. "You'd think they'd all be sleeping, but no." She shoved the packages in her hand at me. I realized they were pop-tarts. "I almost lost these for you two. Paul kept eyeing them."

I patted her on the shoulder. "It's ok. Jake's not still here by any chance is he?"

She shook her head. "You just missed him. He left with them." She shook her head and said, "But if you need a ride to the Cullens, Charlie's about to head out for work. He'll drop you off."

I nodded. "Okay Mom. We'll wait." I sat down on the porch swing and Erin sat next to me.

Mom walked back in the house and I handed Erin her pop-tart, opening mine. Smores. My mom was amazing. She probably almost lost her arm over these. And Paul probably almost lost his head trying to get them. That would explain why no one stuck around.

Erin looked up at me and asked, "Why can't you drive? You're seventeen right?"

I sighed and nodded. "Yeah, but we can't afford another car. The Cullens tried to give me one for Christmas, but I wouldn't take it. Mom would've killed me if I had and I wouldn't have felt right about it even though, technically, they are family."

"Oh." she said, taking a bite of pop-tart. "I know how that is."

I looked at her face and laughed. "You have chocolate on your face."

She rubbed at her mouth, but none of the chocolate came off. "Did I get it?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No still there." I leaned close to her. "Lemme get it." I wiped around her mouth with my thumb, feeling her soft skin. I was so close that if I looked up, I could see every last eyelash. I managed to get the chocolate off, but I was transfixed. I couldn't move. I didn't want to move.

"Uh… Seth?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"Uh… Charlie's out here."

"Huh?" Charlie? "Oh." I said, pulling myself away. I looked at her and said, "Sorry. I got it."

She nodded and said, "It's okay."

"Hey!" Charlie shouted. "I gotta get to work. If you want me to give you a lift then come on." He walked off to his police car and Erin and I jumped up quickly.

We climbed in and Charlie drove. If you thought the walk to my house had been awkward then you should've been in that car. It was ten times worse. Why had I just sat there with my hand on her face like a dummy? And why did Charlie have to see? I kept my face to my window and didn't say a word until we were safely at the Cullens.

Soon, we reached the Cullens house and climbed out. "Thanks Charlie. See you later." I mumbled, shutting the door.

Erin and I walked to the door and opened it, being immediately tackled by Nessie.

"Alice couldn't see anything so I figured some member of the pack was coming. I hoped it was Jacob but I'm glad to see you guys too." Nessie said, letting us inside. "Seth and Erin are here!" she called up the stairs.

In a flash, Alice appeared with a look of disgust on her face. She was studying Erin's outfit. "Erin dear, usually your outfits are so cute. I assume Seth dragged you out of bed."

She shook her head. "No, but he wouldn't let me change."

Alice rolled her eyes at me. "Well, this'll never do." She grabbed Erin's arm, leading her up the stairs. "Ugh. You reek." she noted. "You smell like those wolves. How long have you been with Seth today?"

"Half an hour!" I shouted at her. They had reached the top of the stairs and I couldn't see them anymore.

But when I spoke, Alice peeked around the corner. "A half hour? You didn't run into another member of the pack?" I shook my head and she asked, "Did you hug her?" I shook my head again. "Odd." she said and then disappeared.

"I'm gonna make sure Erin's okay." Nessie said, startling me. I had forgotten she was there. "Daddy's in there." She told me, pointing to the dining room. She then ran up the stairs, leaving me alone.

I decided to go sit with Edward, so I made my way to the dining room. Edward was looking at the newspaper, doing the crossword. He didn't even look up when I walked in.

"Hullo Seth." he said pleasantly as I sat down across from him. "Have a nice breakfast?" he asked, smirking. He had obviously just been poking around in my brain.

"What do you think?" I asked, sarcastically.

"Well, I'm sure it was better than the car ride over here." he stated, folding up the paper. "Awkward was it?"

I sighed. "I just…" I didn't know what to say.

"You know, you don't have to try so hard, Seth. She likes you just the way you are."

"Not in the way I want though." I grumbled.

Edward said nothing, but stared at me. Eventually he said, "She's coming downstairs. Alice wanted to shove her in a dress, but Nessie convinced her to do something simple."

Sure enough, I heard three sets of footsteps on the stairs. I looked around the corner and saw that Nessie and Alice were standing in front of Erin. They were keeping me from seeing her.

"Well," Alice said, standing in the doorway. "I must say she's one of my best." She stepped out of the way and Erin walked into view.

My jaw dropped to the ground. The first thing I noticed was that Erin's glasses were gone. Alice had put a pair of small silver hoops in her ears and she had also put a little make up on her. She was wearing a teal long sleeve shirt with a dark grey undershirt poking out, a pair of dark denim skinny jeans, and a pair of black flats. She was gorgeous. Well, more gorgeous than usual.

"You're drooling Seth." Nessie giggled in a sing song voice.

I closed my mouth and whispered, "Wow."

Erin smiled shyly and said, "Thanks."

"Yes, well I couldn't completely get rid of the wolf smell for some reason. Other than that… she's perfect." Alice said, grinning.

I nodded slowly, stunned. Alice was right. She was perfect. Not that she wasn't before. It was just that she looked so much more… wow.

"Contacts?" I asked, unsure of what else to say.

She shook her head no. "I actually don't need the glasses. I just wear them 'cause I think they're cool."

I stared at her for a while before Edward said, "Well Alice, you certainly did a good job. Seth's having a harder time looking away from Erin than usual." I would've hit him, but it wouldn't have done any good. He was a vampire.

I could've stared at Erin all day, maybe for the rest of my life, but I was brought out of my trance by the front door swinging open and slamming shut.

Edward closed his eyes, groaning. "Jacob's here." he said, disgusted.

"Nessie!" I heard Jacob shout and then I saw him run at her. He scooped her up into his arms and she squealed in delight.

"Jacob, I'm so happy to see you." she said, smiling.

"I'm happy to see you too." Edward cleared his throat and Jacob noticed the rest of us. He sat Nessie down and said, "Oh, hey Seth. Erin." He did a double take. "Erin? Wow. What did Alice do to you?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "She showed up in pajamas. Seth dragged her out of bed." She shook her head and said, "What are you doing over here anyways? Aren't you usually asleep at this time?"

He nodded. "Usually, but today's the first day of summer. The pack's celebrating by taking our imprints bowling. I came to see if it was okay with Bells."

Edward frowned and said, "Bella isn't here. She went hunting with Rose and Emmett." It didn't look like he was going to let Nessie go.

I guess Nessie thought the same thing because she said, "Please Dad. Let me go. Seth and Erin'll be there. Please."

Edward sighed and turned to me and Erin, "Don't let her out of your sight."

Nessie tackled Edward. "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you." She turned to Jacob, "So when are we leaving?"

Jacob smiled and said, "Well, we're gonna get food and then some of the guys have to pick up their imprints and we're gonna be bowling for a while. I'd say we'd start bowling at around five maybe. We're leaving in an hour."

"Ooh goodie." Nessie said.

Great. Pack bowling. More awkwardness with Erin. Maybe I should try Edward's advice and just not try so hard. Just be myself. Well, I had nothing to lose. Well, nothing to lose except Erin. So, in other words, I had everything to lose.

Well, I'm gonna try to update soon. See you guys later.