For once, I have nothing to say up here... o_O

My hands were shaking the entire time. I didn't want to be here. I could wear Embry's shirts for the rest of my life for all I cared. Somehow I had managed to not phase and even get some clothes in the process. I liked shopping, I really did, but I just was not in the mood for it. Embry was a sweetheart though, trying to help me pick out things or telling me the he liked something. I even let him pick out a new underwear set for me because he was being such a good wolf-boy, which he was very happy about.

"Can we go home now?" I asked quietly. I was so fidgety and I was on the verge of completely loosing it.

"Shh." He mumbled kissing my forehead and tightening the arm he had around me. "You're doing great, Honey, we'll head to the car after grabbing something to eat." I whined softly, just wanting to go home now, even if I was hungry. And people were looking at us, at our tallness, at our tan-ness, at Embry's hotness. I didn't like it. I didn't like it at all.

Embry made me eat. And it sucked. And I just wanted to go home and cry. I think he understood that I wasn't in the mood to talk because he sat across from me at the little restaurant we went to and held my hand in silence. He ate his food while I nibbled on mine, in silence. We walked back to the car, my hand still in his, in silence. He drove home, me sitting in the passenger seat, in silence. And, when we pulled into his driveway, we sat there, in silence.

"Hey. Ariana?" He called, breaking that silence. I glanced over at him. "I love you, ya know?" Oddly, that was exactly what I needed to hear at that moment and I couldn't help the breathy chuckle that came out of my mouth. I leaned across the seat and nuzzled his neck, breathing in his scent.

"Love you too, Emb." We climbed out of the car after a few minutes and headed back into his house. Listening quietly, I could hear his mother's gentle breathing, meaning she was still asleep up in her room. Embry flopped down the couch and flipped the television on. I quickly followed him, probably a little too fast for a human, and lifted his head up, sitting criss-cross on the couch and laying his head back in my lap. He turned on NCIS which always seemed to be playing on one channel or another, making me smile. I just ran my hands through his hair and watched the show calmly. It wasn't long before Embry had dozed off...it was probably good he was getting some sleep, I knew he had hardly slept last night, wanting to make sure I was okay. It was really sweet of him. It made me feel kind of bad he was with me when he could do so much better...but I didn't have the strength to tell him that for fear he would actually leave me.

"Oh! Hello, who are you?" I realized I had zoned out, staring at Embry and just massaging his scalp. I snapped out of my daze and stared wide eyed at the woman who had walked into the room. She had the same chocolatey-brown hair as Embry and looked to be in her mid-thirties.

"Oh, um…" I glanced down at Embry's sleeping form. It would be mean and selfish of me to wake him when he was so nice to me earlier. "...My name's Ariana. I'm...um...Embry's girlfriend." Her eyes flashed in understanding briefly.

"Why aren't you in school? Embry's sick you know."

"I had a free last so I got to leave early...I wanted to see him." I hoped that was an acceptable answer. She smiled softly and glanced over at Embry's sleeping form.

"How about I make us some tea?" The way she said it was more like a statement, not a question. I had no choice but to quietly maneuver myself away from Embry and follow Miss. Call into the kitchen. "Embry's mentioned you a few times but said I wasn't allowed to meet you." She said as she put a kettle on the stove for the water to boil.

"I think he thought I didn't want to meet you...I tend not to make very good impressions on people." I told her honestly. She blinked a few times before a small smile spread across her face.

"Well, you seem to have made a good impression on Embry." She observed. I shrugged.

"I'm still trying to figure that out." She smiled softly and nodded her head. She turned the stove off and brought the hot kettle over, pouring water in two mugs and putting a tea bag in each one. I didn't like tea that much but this tea smelt...comforting.

"You know, I don't make very good first impressions either." She stated. "Most people already have a preexisting idea of who I am and just think I am some slut." I was a little surprised at her bluntness but didn't give her any sympathy because, in my experience, most of the time people didn't want sympathy or pity. They wanted reality.

"Well, they have grey hair and wrinkles, and you don't." I stated. A grin spread across her face and she took a sip of her tea. He nose scrunched up slightly but she gulped the tea down and placed the cup back on the counter.

"And the gang that Embry's in...you are a member as well?" She inquired.

"Yup!" I held back from adding that my membership was made official yesterday. Her eyes widened slightly at how forward I was. I took a sip of the tea and winced, it didn't taste as comforting as it smelt.

"So you admit it's a gang?"

"Of course...isn't it obvious? But it's not a bad gang. It's a good gang. They all really care about each other. It's more of a best friend gang, that's the best kind of gang you know. Because there is no doubt in my mind that any one of them, including myself, would jump in front of a vampire for Embry. Isn't that the type of people you want to surround you? Loyal ones that will always be there?" I stared at her for a moment and forced some more tea down my throat. She took a sip as well and made an incredibly disgusted face, before spitting the tea into the sink.

"I hate tea." She stated, pouring the rest of the cup down the drain. I sighed in relief and pushed mine towards her.

"Thank God, me too."

"I just thought it seemed like a good thing for a mother-meets-the-girlfriend talk." She defended. I smirked.

"How about you just tell me never to hurt him and I agree?" I suggested. She let out a loud laugh that woke Embry up. "Because I wont, I promise." I added quietly. I could feel Embry's confusion as to where I was before he shot up from the couch and came into the kitchen. Once his eyes locked on mine and he realized that I hadn't run away or wolfed out, he relaxed. He walked slowly into the kitchen, coming to stand behind me, one of his large hands resting on my waist.

"What's going on?" He asked suspiciously. He shot me a worried look but I just smiled up at him.

"Well, you were right about one thing, she does not make good first impressions." Miss. Call stated. I frowned slightly, I thought I had been doing well. "She confirmed you were in a gang, insulted my tea, then told me she would jump in front of a vampire for you. Good thing she's pretty." She shook her head slightly and Embry sent a concerned glance downwards at me. Ms. Call made me sound horrible when she put it that way but she continued to smile.

"Yeah, we're working on that." Embry deadpanned.

"Well, I have to get ready for a date. Will you be home when I get back?" She asked Embry. His eyes slid over to me.

"Uh, I was gonna go over to Jake's for dinner...I might end up just staying there." It was a shame he had to lie to her and from what I heard, she didn't take him not being home well.

"Okay, have fun then." Embry looked incredibly confused for a moment. She glanced over at me. "It was very nice meeting you Ariana. I expect you to keep your promise." I nodded my head.

"Of course, Miss. Call."

"Call me Tiffany, Miss. Call has grey hair and wrinkles." She winked before sauntering out of the kitchen and up the stairs.

"I think she likes me."

"I don't want to play, Embry." I whined, moving to lean forward for the third time. He chuckled and placed his hands on top of my knees, keeping me in place. I pouted and attempted to lean forward again so I could kiss him.

"Only if you win." He insisted. I growled in frustration, I didn't want to play a game, I wanted a kiss. We had snuck into my house a little while ago while my mom was in the television room. We hadn't really meant to snuck in, it just kind of worked out that way. It was probably better it had too, I wasn't in the mood for small talk. I didn't think I could handle more than one human per day right now, Tiffany Call had worn me out.

We were now sitting on my bed, facing each other, both of us sitting criss-cross, and our knees pressed up against the others. Embry liked to play games, he was fun in that sense. But sometimes, all I really wanted to do was kiss him. Like right now for example, I wasn't interested in having a staring contest...I wanted to maul him until he saw stars...or at least I saw stars, either way.

He was way more controlled and patient than me, I'd give him that. He seemed like he could sit there forever and just stare into my eyes. I made a whining noise and leaned forward again, only to be stopped again.

"Being impatient. It's so...human." His voice was just above a whisper and it made me stop in my conquest for kisses to think. It was human because I was human. I was still a human even if I went poof and turned into a wolf. I shut my eyes for five seconds before opening them again and staring into his, staying perfectly still. After two minutes of the staring contest, he slowly leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine.

I was impatient. I was human. But there was also a part of me that wasn't human. I was both. But that was okay. I could be both.

And get some kisses out of it.

"You are more than just my girlfriend." Embry started. I smiled, that meant I was important, right? I nodded my head and his expression softened even more, if that was possible. We had finished our make-out session and were sitting back in the position we had before, our knees touching. "You're my...imprint."

"Imprint." I repeated, mulling the word over. I wasn't really sure what that meant. To imprint is to mark...it sounded like an intense hickey to me. "Are you my imprint?" I asked.

"Yes." He answered immediately before his brow creased together. "Actually...I'm not sure, but I think so." I nodded my head in understanding before leaning forward, wanting to kiss him again. He stopped me.

"This is a supernatural thing, which means you must have patience." He chided. I pouted, but sat back and looked up at him. "Imprinting means I love you and that I am never, ever going to leave you. Ever." He explained. "Ever, ever, ever."

"Okay." I answered, smiling at him.

"It means that you are important to me and I that I will anything you need me to do and give you whatever you want."

"I want a kiss." I clarified. He chuckled and leaned forward, giving me a chaste kiss.

"Do you get it?" He asked after pulling back. I wanted to tell him yes since this seemed very important to him but that would be a half-lie so I just shrugged. "After we phase-"

"-poof." I corrected. He sighed.

"After we poof, we have the ability to imprint."

"You have the ability to find some you love and don't want to leave?" I asked, showing him that I was paying attention. He smiled and nodded his head.

"Yup." He said. "And it's finding someone who is perfect for you, who is your soulmate."

"You think I'm perfect?" I asked.

"Absolutely."

"I think your perfect too." I stated. He gave me a small smile.

"And Kim is Jared's imprint, and Emily is Sam's imprint. You get it?" He asked. I could tell this was very important to him so I did my best to pay attention to what he was saying and grasp it the best I could. I thought imprinting sounded...nice. It sounded like a relationship where you never got your heart broken and you never got hurt. It sounded like a pretty good relationship to me.

"And I'm your imprint and you're my imprint." I added. He nodded his head and took both my hands in his.

"You're okay with this, right?" He asked. I yawned and nodded my head, leaning forward and pushing him back on the bed. He let himself fall backwards and wrapped his arms around me, letting me cuddle into his side. I buried my face in his neck and breathed in his scent steadily.

Tomorrow would be a good day.

Later that week.

"I don't think I can."

"Of course you can."

"I don't think I want to."

"It's not so bad, promise."

I kept my eyes fixed on my bare feet. A normal person wouldn't be outside with hardly any clothes on in weather like this. But it had been established that I wasn't normal.

"Ariana." I glanced up into his chocolaty eyes.

"Yes?"

"Try? For me, please?" He asked. I couldn't say no to that… I sighed and nodded my head.

"I have to think of something bad, don't I?" I said glumly. "Something that makes me mad?" That wasn't really a problem, I had plenty of things and memories that made me mad, scared, and feel bad...some that even made me feel all three at once. I just didn't want to think of them.

"Yeah." He sounded so apologetic but I just nodded my head, shut my eyes, and stepped back from him. I pulled off the simple cotton dress I had thrown on, not even feeling the icy chill pass over me. I learned early on that nakedness was a part of the pack and that I would probably see a little more than I would want to of some of the other guys, not that I minded seeing Embry though. I didn't mind at all.

I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to think of to make me phase. I decided that staying in the present was probably the best idea, so I thought about biting Embry earlier that week. I thought about how how I had caused him harm and how the blood had flowed from his hand. I thought about just how fucked up I truly was. I could feel the vibrations coursing through me before I fell forward onto the ground. When I opened my eyes, I could see through new werewolf eyes. Embry pulled his sweatpants off and easily phased, landing a few feet away from me. I jumped back in surprise.

It wasn't that I wasn't expecting it to happen or something like that...it was just hard to picture my Embry turning into a wolf. But there he was. Grey with black spots that blended into his fur. He was beautiful.

Thank you.

I jumped again and I could hear Embry's distinct chuckled echoing throughout my mind. That was going to take some getting used to… A lot of getting used to.

Aw, it's not so bad, baby.

I snapped my teeth at him playfully before stumbling towards him awkwardly on four legs. I tripped, falling onto my stomach.

I'm done, I don't want to be a wolf anymore. He laughed again and walked over to me, nuzzling the top of my head. I had to admit, it felt good, and a slight purring sound might have come out of my throat.

It's not so bad, ya know, once you learn to walk. How's the view from down there, Ri's? He asked. I growled and sprung up from the ground before pouncing on him playfully. He let us roll backwards and easily pinned me to the ground with his paws. I let out a huff.

Not. Fair. I squirmed under him and he gave me a wolfish grin before letting me up. I staggered to my feet...paws...feet and stretched my aching limbs. As much as phasing for the first time had hurt, this time felt a little better. And I had to admit that it felt good to be wolf, it felt right. I turned on Embry before the thought had even registered in my mind and caught him off guard, tackling him to the ground again. This time I managed to pin him, but he might have let me… I liked to think that I had tackled him on my own though.

He squirmed underneath me and I jumped off him, licking my paws and grooming my fur that was probably a little to long. I couldn't bear to cut my hair though. I had already buried all of the scissors from my house in the backyard and I planned to start on Embry's house later today.

No one will make you cut your hair, Ari, promise. He comforted. I saw his viewpoint from what I looked like when Jake found me locked in the bathroom, hoarding all the scissors and crying hysterically. I made a whining sound and dipped my head. He blocked the thought from me. Don't worry, Honey. He trotted up to me and bumped his side against mine. I made another whining sound and rubbed my head up against his side. I realized in that moment just how big he was. I was big but he was much larger than me. I looked like a baby puppy next to him. He nuzzled the top of my head before jogging a little ways from me.

Where are you going? I asked quickly, jumping to keep up with him.

Come on, we need to see just how fast you are. He said, starting to move through the trees.

Fast? You think I'm fast? I asked, picking up speed to keep up with him.

All wolves are fast, but I bet you're very fast. I ran faster and faster, not taking my eyes off of Embry's form. I followed his swift movements and kept pace easily, until he started getting further and further away from me as I ran faster and faster. Ari. Ari! Stop, Ariana. He called with a slight undertone of panic. I dug my heals into the ground to stop myself and ended up flipping over and landing on my stomach.

Oof.

Are you okay? Embry asked, rushing over to me. I realized why he had told me to stop. I perked my head up and saw the road that laid a few yards from me. I recognized it as the route that led towards Seattle.

Oops.

Yeah, oops, it's okay though. You stopped. A shiny gray pissat zoomed by with a La Push High Spartan bumper sticker.

Sorry. I apologized.

It's okay, I should have been paying closer attention. He explained. It's just that, you're so calm when you are a wolf...it's very relaxing. I knew he didn't mean it in a bad way but I still felt the need to apologize. I was a mess and that was carrying over to Embry. No, no! I'm happy when you're happy...I like when you're happy. He insisted. I made a soft whining sound, I was sorry. I really, really was. Come on, let's go. It'll rain soon and I am not sleeping with a smelly wolf.

Embry! I jumped up and took off after him as he ran back towards our original spot in the woods.

The next chapter is the final chapter in this story! *SOB* It has been awesome writing this and I am very upset it is ending, since I haven't finished a story on here yet. If it weren't for 2 is Better, I would probably be a freaking mess right now. If you haven't already, please do check out Seth's story. The second chapter takes place during the last chapter of this story...and there might be a scene where Ariana loses it in the hallway on a Mr. Graham (no relation to cracker). It does continue on with Ari and Embry's story so if you are bummed about this coming to a close then I highly recommend it.(:

Anyway, you guys rock, the last chapter will be out in the next few weeks...I have midterms coming up so bear with me on updating all my stories!

XX. Cassy

(OH! And bonus points if you know whose shiny grey pissat that was and who was driving it!)