Updated: November 27, 2014

Many people say they want to stand out, be different but no matter what everyone always wants to fit in. We all want to belong, we want to have people to go to and people to comfort us. We all want people like us, we crave familiar even if we don't realize it.

We all seek our pack. We all want to fit in.

We want to have people who are just like us. Sometimes it takes people their whole lives to find others like them but sometimes we realize they were right there all along.

"Stoichiometry Jare. It's like the easiest thing we've learned all year." I told him, sighing slightly. I had learned to become very patient with Jared. I surprised myself with the patience I had for him but I guess it came with the love. He sighed and leaned his head on top of mine. We were cuddled up on his couch after school on Monday. I had been attempting to teach him what we had learned on Friday and today in chemistry. He just wasn't getting it. He leaned down and kissed my temple.

"Jareddd!" I whined. I wanted nothing more then to have a full on make out session with him but he had to learn this. "We have a quiz tomorrow and if you fail I am breaking up with you." I almost laughed at his horrified and panicked expression. There was no way I was actually breaking up with him, even if he got a zero but he didn't necessarily know that. "Okay," I continued, "I am going to put this in terms that you will understand." He nodded his head, obviously still horrified with the idea of is breaking up. I wouldn't admit it, but I was a little horrified too. I flipped to a new page in my notebook.

"Okay. Two eggs plus ¼ cup of water plus ¾ cup of vegetable oil plus 1 bag of brownie mix equals…?" I trailed off and looked up at him expectantly.

"Uh...twenty brownies…" He didn't see where I was going with this.

"Exactly, so if you have two boxes of brownies then you have…?" He was looking at me like I was crazy.

"You have forty brownies?" He questioned. I nodded my head.

"Good job Jare. Now just replace the ingredients with elements." He laughed.

"I can't believe you have put up with me this long." He said, kissing my temple again.

"Hm. Me too, I must really like you." I said winking at him. His eyes lit up. The simplest and seemingly unimportant things made him so happy.

"So, a four would go there." He said pointing to one of the problems written in my notebook. I nodded my head.

"See, this isn't that hard." He chuckled again and I looked up to find his mom looking at us. She had just walked in the door and was smiling widely. "Hey Kathleen!" I called returning her smile.

"Hey Kim! You know, if I had known that all he needed was a girlfriend to make him get better grades, I would have insisted on him getting one a long time ago." She said, winking at me. I chuckled.

"I'm sure not everyone is as patient as me." I responded winking back at her. Jared shoved my playfully and I giggled quietly.

"You'll stay for dinner tonight?" She asked. I shook my head.

"Wish I could but I have to leave in a couple minutes for work." She nodded her head a little sadly then brightened up.

"Thursday?" She asked. I nodded my head.

"Sure, as long as I get to meet Matt because Jared has not introduced me to him yet." Jared huffed in annoyance.

"Because he is annoying and you will run away, never to come back after you meet him." I shoved him.

"Jeez Jare, dramatic much?" I asked. He shook his head no.

Matt is Jared's little brother. He is eleven years old and a fifth grader at the La Push Elementary School. Jared has literally refused to let me meet him. He keeps telling me he is a brat and that I don't want to meet him. I figured he wasn't a wolf boy because he didn't hang out with the pack or at Sam's. I wondered if he would become one though. Maybe it was the only the first born child in the family that turned into a wolf? No, that would mean that Leah was a wolf. I still wasn't sure if she was...Maybe it's the first born male? I was brought back to the present by Kathleen's voice.

"Yay! I'm so excited! And I can't believe Jared hasn't let you meet him, he's really not that bad." His mom defended. I smirked at Jared's face that showed his obvious disagreement. Kathleen went into the kitchen humming to herself. Jared took the pencil out of my hand and filled in the correct number in one of the problems and placed a kiss on my neck. His arms tightened around me as if he knew it was time for me to leave.

"I'll see you tomorrow Jared." I murmured, not wanting to leave.

"Don't go." He whined softly in my ear. OKAY! I wanted to scream. I'll stay in your arms forever! But, unfortunately, I had to go to work.

"Come on Jare, don't be like that. I'm going to be late for work." I told him, cupping his cheek and bringing his mouth down to mine. After the kiss, his arms loosened around me. I got up from our position on the couch. "I will see you tomorrow." I told him placing another chaste kiss on his lips. I gathered my stuff and put my shoes back on. "What do you want me to bring on Thursday, Kathleen?" I asked as I walked through the kitchen that let to the front hallway.

"Nothing." She told me. I opened my mouth to protest. "I'm serious Kim. Just bring your pretty self. If you show up with anything else, you will be in trouble." I rolled my eyes and sighed.

"Fine!" I said very dramatically. She laughed.

"See you on Thursday Kim." She told me smiling. I waved goodbye and headed to the front door. I had gotten lucky. Not only did I get Jared but his family was so nice to me and seemed to really like me. I was so excited to meet his brother. I didn't have any siblings and I thought maybe I could sorta become an older sister to him. I had always wanted a little brother or sister. Jared leaned in and kissed me again. I would never get used to that.

"Have fun at work." He mumbled against my lips.

"Mhm." I agreed against his lips before pulling back. "Bye." I told him, stepping away and opening the front door. I felt like I should say something after it like 'I love you' but I wasn't sure if that would be very appropriate. I couldn't tell him I love him until he loved me back and until he told me the truth. And when I did tell him I love him for the first time, I didn't want it to be when his mom can hear. I made my way to my car and waved once more before getting in and pulling away.

"I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I am so, so, SO excited!" I rolled my eyes.

"I know Emily, you've told me multiple times." She squealed again.

"How much longer!" My sarcastic mood couldn't even bring her down.

"Two minutes less since the last time you asked."

"So...eighteen minutes?" She asked in her still peppy mood. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes Emily. Eighteen minutes." She clapped her hands. It was Wednesday and we were on our way to Port Angeles to go dress shopping to see if we could find her a wedding dress. Emily and Sam were getting married in a little over two months and since Emily had finally decided on the type of dress she wanted, thanks to me, she couldn't wait to go shopping and actually find it. We pulled into the plaza where the dress store was. She was practically out of the car before I had even finished parking. I chased after her and she suddenly stopped causing me to slam into her.

"I forgot." She mumbled.

"Forgot what?" I asked, rubbing the arm that had smacked into her.

"Kim?" She asked, turning around. "Will you be my maid of honor? I really wanted to ask you earlier but I thought maybe you wouldn't want too since you haven't known me that long but you have become my best friend here in such a short amount of time and I would love for you to be apart of my wedding but if you don't want to I understand and-"

"Emily!" I interrupted. "I would love to be in your wedding as your maid of honor!" She squealed again and I hugged her. She dragged me into the store and immediately started looking at everything. I had learned that Emily was not one of those girls who looked with her eyes. She had to touch and squeal at everything. "She's very excited." I told the worker who was watching her. The lady smiled and nodded her head as if she was used to this.

"Let me know if you need any help." I went around holding the dresses Emily wanted to try on and sat down in the fitting room as she put each one on. I made sure to compliment her on all the dresses and tell her which ones I liked the most.

She had told me to pick out whatever style of dress I wanted and then we would worry about color. I had found a spaghetti strap dress that was a little low cut and had a thick band the went around my waist. She had decided on a beige dress for me with a brown band. Her sister was also going to be in the wedding, as well as her niece, she was also trying to convince Leah with no luck. I made a mental note to talk to Leah. I understood why she wouldn't want to but it would be worth a shot to talk to her.

"Do you want a veil?" I asked running my fingers along the silky fabric of some of the dresses.

"I think so...It will help cover up my scars." I groaned.

"Seriously Em, it's not a big deal. You're gorgeous and you shouldn't have to worry about what Sam will think because, seriously, have you seen the way he looks at you?" She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

"I know." She sighed again, "My scars don't bother me but I just want to feel like a princess. Just this one day. And princesses don't have scars, Kim." I frowned and shook my head back and forth.

"Everyone has scars, Emily. Some people just don't wear them on the outside."

"Jar-red!" I squealed. He tickled my sides a bit more while I tried to escape. He turned me around and cut off my protests with a kiss. "You guys really have to stop doing that." I said, resting my head on his chest. He chuckled into my hair.

"But you're too ticklish not too and you have such a cute laugh." He reasoned. I let out a humph.

"Says you!" He laughed again and left a trail of kisses from the top of my hairline all the way to my chin. I couldn't help but smile. We were hanging out around Paul's, mine, Jared's, and Jake's car after school on Thursday. Of course, Jared and I were in our own little world. I turned around in Jared's arms to face the group again.

"Jake? Can I drive your car again some time since that wolf so rudely stepped out in front of the car last time?" I asked, smiling innocently. Jared arms that were around me, stiffened. Jake nodded his head.

"Uh, sure." I smiled widely.

A little while later we were sitting on the couch in my house. "Will your mom seriously get mad if I show up with something?" I asked. A smile played on his lips.

"Absolutely." I huffed in annoyance. "But," He continued on, "I have something that will make you feel better." I raised my eyebrows in curiosity. He dug through his bag and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Ninety-one on my chem quiz." He said excitedly. "Guess you can't break up with me." I laughed and rolled my eyes.

"I am very proud of you and I was never going to break up with you, silly." He pulled me into his arms. "You could have told me that! I was freaking out through the whole quiz!" I laughed and kissed his neck. He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Ready to go?" He asked. I nodded my head.

"I can't wait to meet Matt!" I said excitedly as we made our way out to his truck. He groaned. "Oh, come on Jared! I don't have any siblings. Let me be excited about this!" He sighed.

"FINE, but you two better not become best friends or something because your mine." Protective much? I laughed.

"Afraid I am going to leave you for an eleven year old, Jare?" I joked. He stuck his tongue out at me and opened the door for the truck for me. A couple minutes later we pulled into Jared's driveway. He opened my door and took my hand pulling me out.

"I know your mom will be here tomorrow and Saturday but I was thinking...how about we go on a second date on Sunday?" I smiled.

"I thought our second date was you making me dinner?" I asked smiling. He rolled his eyes.

"Fine, if you really want to count that. Third?" He asked. I opened the door and headed inside.

"I'd love to." I told him smiling. He wrapped one of his arms around me and led me into the kitchen area. "Hey Kathleen." I said as we walked in. She put down the bowl she was holding and came to give me a hug.

"Kim! I'm so glad you could come tonight!" Thats the thing about Jared's mother. She was always happy to see everyone. She made you feel at home and always had a smile on her face. She was nothing like my mom. Jared was so lucky to have her. I pulled back and my eyes fell on a young boy standing off to the side in the kitchen.

"Hi." I said sticking my hand out at the boy. "My name's Kim." He grinned at me and shook my hand.

"I'm Matt and Jared has told me all about you. Jared's right, you are beautiful." Matt looked like a younger Jared. They had the same hair and similar features except Jared's were more mature and defined. I grinned at the boy. Jared told me many times I was beautiful but it was different when he told other people I was beautiful. In a way, it meant even more to me.

"Oh, really?" I asked, "Because he is so mean and wouldn't tell me anything about you."

"You see it too! He is a jerk, I bet he has no friends." Matt scoffed.

"Yeah, he is sucha jerk. He has no friends at all." I responded. The boy seemed elated that I was taking his side on things. Jared narrowed his eyes at me and I looked at him innocently. Matt was so adorable, I couldn't see how Jared didn't love him enough to want to spend every waking second with him.

"Do you want to see my Wii games?" He asked.

"Sure, can Jared come so he doesn't feel left out?" I said, smiling as he took my hand and led me into the living room. He sighed but agreed Jared could come. Matt dropped my hand and went over to a drawer under the television set. I assume it had the games in it. Jared wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I don't like him." He whispered in my ear. I chuckled.

"But he's adorable." I responded. He huffed.

"He's annoying." Matt was holding a stack of DVD like boxes and walked over to sit on the couch. I pulled on Jared's arms until he let go and I moved to join Matt on the couch. He went into a spiel about each game telling me where he got it, what you did, and what level he was on. I just smiled and nodded my head. I was very distracted because the teenage werewolf sitting to my right was running his fingers through my hair and rubbing circles into my left hip where his arm that was around me was resting. He was also placing kisses on my neck or jaw line every couple of seconds which wasn't helping much. It was like he didn't want me to enjoy talking to Matt which was probably the case. Jealous dog.

"Dinners ready!" I heard from the kitchen. I sprung up from the couch, eager to get away from him before I climbed on top of him and kissed him until the zombie apocalypse came. That wouldn't be appropriate in front of his brother or with his parents in the next room. Bummer.

During dinner I sat between Jared and Matt. We talked the whole time with his parents and it was actually really fun. I wondered if this is what regular families did. Did all families eat dinner together? Mine never had, even when I was younger. We usually were all eating different things at different times anyway. This was different but I found I liked it so much more than what I was used too. Jared didn't realize just how lucky he was to have them. They were so great. Everything was great, until his parents brought up graduation. They invited me to go out to dinner with them, Jared, Matt, and some of their family after the graduation ceremony. I put on my best fake smile, hoped Jared didn't notice, and agreed.

Since Jared was a year older than me, he would be graduating in a little over a month from now. I truthfully hadn't even thought of that. This was a big deal, it meant more to me than anyone else. What would happen to Jared and me? I didn't have the heart to ask if and where he would be going to college. I didn't want to burst into tears if he said he was going somewhere across the country. The truth was, it hurt to think of us breaking up or me being away from him. We hadn't even been going out that long and I was already so possessive and obsessive of him. He would break up with me on the spot if he knew just how much he meant to me.

I unbuckled my seatbelt and climbed across the little space in the truck to cuddle up into his side. He wrapped an arm around me instantly. "You should be wearing a seatbelt." He murmured. I raised my eyebrows and looked up at him. He was watching the road though.

"Are you planning on getting us in a car accident?" I asked and I watched as his famous half smile, half smirk appeared on his face. He shook his head causing me to grin. Gah, why did I have to love him? Why couldn't I love someone who was in my grade? I knew I would be heartbroken if he left but I also knew I wouldn't regret the time we had spent together. I had to ask, I couldn't wait until he brought it up, I had to know now.

"Are you okay?" He asked. He was always so perceptive of me. He sounded genuinely concerned. He didn't say something just because he was supposed to. He actually wanted to know. I nodded my head. Just ask him!

"Jared?" I said softly. He glanced down at me for a split second before putting his eyes back to the road. "What...never mind." I chickened out. He tightened his arm around me.

"No. Tell me, I want to know." I shook my head at him. "Come on Kim, you know you can tell me anything." He pleaded. I know I can. He was always there for me and never questioned or made fun of me. His fingers reached up and brushed over my bottom lip. I hadn't realized it but I had been chewing the life out of my poor lip. Great, now he knew I was nervous or upset about something. I released my lip from between my teeth. "Kim...What's wrong? Did I do something? Did you not have fun tonight? Oh God, You didn't want to come tonight and my mom forced you too. I am so sorry, I am so-"

"Jared!" I interrupted. "Stop! It's not that! Jeez, you always expect the worst." I took a deep breath. "What are doing after graduation?" I asked. There, I got it out. Now all I have to do is wait for him to answer.

"I-What?" He asked, clearly confused at where I was going with this. I let out the breath I had been holding. Is he seriously going to make me say it? Is he really going to make me sound like a clingy girlfriend? I mean, maybe this was just a fling. No. I couldn't even think that to myself with a straight face. There was no way this was just a fling. Flings didn't get introduced to parents and invited to family events. Flings didn't have sleepovers unless sex was involved.

"What are you doing next year, Jare? Where are you going to college?" I whispered. I could practically hear the resounding 'ohh' going off in his head right now and I looked away from his perfect face.

"Thats what this is about?" He asked, slightly amused. His caring, worried voice from moments before was gone. Great, now he is making fun of me. Nothing like admitting you're crazy. He had practically just informed me I was a clingy girlfriend. I tried to pull away from him but he tightened his arm that was around me. I was sure my cheeks were stained red. I wasn't one to usually blush but this was too much. He leaned down and kissed my forehead.

"I'm staying here." He told me and I couldn't hold back the big smile that appeared on my face, no matter how hard I tried. "I have a job lined up next year. Sam is going to be teaching a course on our tribes history at the high school and he asked Paul and me to help out. Maybe in a year or two I'll head to college but right now I have everything I need here." A year or two? Thats when I would be going to college…I sighed. "What, would you miss me?" He asked, with a slight teasing tone. Oh well, no use trying to deny it now.

"Yes." I said confidently. He pulled into my driveway and looked down at me.

"I'd miss you way more."