"Rose!" Jared said angrily, and I turned my head to the other side tiredly, pulling my covers up around my face. Why was Jared in my house when I was sleeping? Why was he trying to wake me up? "Rose Mehta--"
It'd been a week and a half since I'd met with Sam to discuss our not-so-happy family, and I still hadn't made up with Embry, though we'd chatted a few times: I was still just trying to hash out the concept that I was spending the rest of my life in a tiny town I'd spent my entire life trying to get out of. But it was getting better: I intended on making up with Embry sooner rather than later.
"G'way." I ordered in a slurred voice, turning my face from his general direction. "Sleeping time." I heard Jared chuckle shortly, but then he grabbed my blankets and hauled them away from me, letting the cold air hit my body. My eyes snapped open into a glare as I sat bolt upright, suddenly ready to kill. "Jared David Gentry." I hissed in a perfectly clear voice. "What the hell are you--"
"We need your help." Jared said quickly, and I heard the undercurrent of panic in his voice and saw a twinge of pain cross his face, and I squinted, my glare dropping, as I ran a tired hand through my hair before pulling it up into a messy bun. I raised my eyebrows and nodded once for him to go on, and Jared ran a miserable hand down his face. "Embry got hurt running around out there, and someone needs to calm him down: we don't wanna freak out his mom, though, so you seem like the next best thing." Jared's voice was rushed, and I realized that he didn't sound angry--he sounded scared. He was freaking out.
"How the hell did he get hurt?" I demanded as I climbed out of bed.
"There's a vampire passing through." Jared said angrily. "The Cullens claim they don't know anything but even Jake doesn't believe it." My heart fluttered in my chest as I scowled vaguely at the idea that the Cullens were lying to us.
I flew down the stairs and froze at the entrance to my living room: on my couch, my already eighteen-year-old boyfriend was unconscious, his left leg gory and disgusting with blood, and his left arm was clearly broken. He had a large bump on his temple, and his cheek was swollen and red. Embry was moving a lot--confusedly, though, without direction, and his eyes were wide and glaze over. I would have bet that "Em," I murmured softly as I crossed the room, ignoring the boys and crouching beside Embry, putting a hand on the unhurt side of his face. "Embry, baby?" I asked softly, and his wildly darting eyes settled on my face, filled with panic. But the moment his gaze met mine, his panic and thrashing died down.
"Rose?" He asked hoarsely, and I smiled, pressing my lips to his momentarily before pulling back, smoothing down his hair.
"I need you to hold still so we can fix you up." I said softly, but Embry was already getting restless again, and I frowned. "You moving because it hurts?" I asked softly, and Embry shook his head minutely, but I saw, when his gaze met mine, the discomfort. "Hey, babe, I can help you but only if you tell me what's up." I told him seriously. "I want to help you."
"My leg." He murmured after a minute, and I glanced sharply at the boys. Edward Cullen, his expression stony and clear of emotion, pushed through the crowd and dropped his bag on the floor, rifling through it for something, and I just glared at him.
"You know what you're doing?" I asked suspiciously. "Isn't your dad the doctor?"
"I've been to medical school twice." Edward said in a monotone.
"And I'm going to take a random stab at something like four times for Carlisle, right?" I asked him quickly. Edward cocked an eyebrow. "Edward, I know I'm being a brat, but this--" His face softened, and he nodded once, glancing at Jacob.
"Jake, find him?" Edward requested quietly, and Jake raised his eyebrows in surprise, but I turned back to Embry as Edward injected something into Embry's thigh.
"What's that?" I asked Edward softly, not moving my eyes from my boyfriend's face.
"A pain killer." Edward said easily, and I sighed softly, closing my eyes as I pressed my forehead to Embry's shoulder, trying to shut out the pain and panic that were trying to strangle me: I could handle this. Mom had never been this bad but she'd had her crappy moments--I'd gotten through these and I could get through this. Embry needed me and I couldn't fall apart on him.
I lifted my head to press a kiss to his lips again, and Embry pulled away to groan in pain, grabbing his bad arm with his good one, and I smoothed down his hair. "Em, baby, concentrate on me and not on the pain. Edward gave you something, just hold on a little bit longer." Embry blinked up at me blearily, and Edward was suddenly beside me, easily bandaging Embry's arm.
"Rose." Embry breathed softly, reaching out with his good arm to cup my cheek, stroking my cheek bone, and I put my hand over his, turning my head to kiss his palm. "You look worried." He breathed, but I could tell from his face that he wasn't really all there--he hadn't connected my concern to his injured state, possibly because he hadn't quite realized he was injured.
I still chuckled haltingly, though, tears jumping to my eyes.
"Well my boyfriend's kind of lying on my couch bleeding all over the place." I explained to him softly, and he blinked before he grinned, and his head slid around the back of my head to the back of my neck, and he pulled my face down to his, kissing me. I pulled away with a shy smile, but I raised my eyebrows quizzically: I was always up for kissing Embry, don't get me wrong, but this one seemed like it had a reason behind it.
"You called me your boyfriend." He explained after a moment, and I stared at him. I blinked once, then another mistimed chuckle worked it's way up my throat while my brother clapped me on the back with a soft chuckle of his own.
"You idiot." Quil said, an exhausted grin unfurling on his face.
"You're a retard." Paul agreed behind me, but I could hear his delight that Embry was alert enough to notice subtleties like what I called him and the argument we'd had.
"But I'm Rosie's boyfriend." Embry disagreed in a sing-song voice, and I sat back on my ankles, grinning a little. "So I did something right."
"Embry, I'm going to give you a little piece of advice." Edward said in his customary monotone as he began to wrap gauze around the top of the gash in Embry's thigh. "Stop talking."
"Rosie, Rosie, Rosie." Embry sang softly. "Guess what?" I raised my eyebrows, smiling a little. "I love painkillers." He paused, looking thoughtful. Or, at least, you know--as thoughtful as a half-wolf boy can look when he's flying high. "And you. I love you." Embry blinked again. "When that crazy vampire started slicing up my leg I knew I loved you. And I was thinking about how sad I was when you said you just needed to think--what does that mean, anyway?" I closed my eyes, dropping my chin to my chest as I took a deep breath.
"That's enough, Embry." Derrick murmured quietly. "She gets the message."
"No, s'okay." I murmured, glancing back and up at the guys around me with a weak smile. "I hate to ask, but can I have a second with Em? I know it's pointless, but…" Derrick nodded instantly, grabbing Quil by the arm and forcibly dragged him from the room. Paul followed with Sam, both sulking as usual, and then Jake and Jared, the latter of which squeezed my shoulder supportively as he walked from the room. And then it was just Edward, Embry and me. And I wasn't gonna asked Edward to leave when he was obviously helping Embry.
"Everyone left." Embry said mournfully, looking back to the door. "Come back everyone!"
"They will in a sec," I told him soothingly, putting a hand on his bare chest and swallowing nervously. "Okay, Embry Call," I began. "I realize that you are so past flying high that you might not remember the speech I'm about to make, but this has to happen now." I smoothed down his hair, forcing him to keep focusing on me, and his gaze turned more serious. "I love you, babe. What happened, back at your house--that was just… look, I'm screwed up."
"No you're not…" He interjected softly, reaching to tuck a few stray stands of hair behind my ear, and I smiled a little at him.
"Gimme a sec, let me get this out." I reprimanded softly. "My dad's nonexistent, my mom's insane, and my uncle would rather supply us with most of his annual income than show up for Thanksgiving dinner. It's just me and Derrick and we're a little damaged from that, and I was looking at this wrong." I chewed on my lip. "I just… I felt trapped, but that wasn't right. I'm not trapped. You're here, and Derrick's here, and God do I hope my mom will show up at some point." I rambled, but I stopped myself and collected my thoughts. "Okay, my point is, I'm choosing you. Even though I could have spent my entire goddamned high school career talking to people instead of studying," Embry grinned, "I don't want to go away anymore. I just want you."
"Well good." Embry said in a pleased voice. "Because as it turns out, I want you too." I chuckled a little.
"You're so high." I said, amused. Embry blinked before he just beamed sunnily up at me, and I rose to my feet. "I'll go tell the guys to come back in--"
"Tell them to stand down." Embry interrupted, still looking vaguely pleased. "Because everybody was mad. That I didn't tell you about the Imprinting thingy, I mean." He paused, but I'd gotten a second idea of just how stoned he was as he called imprinting "the imprinting thingy". "And they were right to be mad. But now you're not made so they can't be either." He pouted, and I laughed softly, bending to brush my lips across his forehead, brushing a fringe of hair back from his face, before I left the room. I shut the doors to my living room carefully behind me, turning to face the boys with a tight smile. Derrick and Jared and Quil were leaning against the wall facing the room, and Paul and Jake and Sam were sitting in the arm chairs on each side of the foyer.
"You two kiss and make up yet?" Paul asked distractedly, typing something out on his phone, and I smirked, but nodded. Paul seemed pretty unbothered by the drama that had been rocking my world. Of course, had he shown concern, I would have been very, very worried.
"Indeedy." I said pleasantly, leaning back against the door as my smirk turned into a small, self-satisfied smile. "And once Edward's finished wrapping him up, I think we should all play with stoned Embry." My words were just a suggestion, but the boys around me grinned in anticipation. Jared crossed to me and hugged me against his side.
"I'm game." Jared agreed. "Guys?"
"Um, duh." Paul said in his best imitation of a teenage girl's voice, and I burst into laughter with the guys, suddenly relieved.
I wasn't alone in this. I had the guys and I had Derrick. And best off? I had Embry.
