Kinda mushy...but everyone's entitled to some mush sometimes, right?
After asking my mother twenty times if she needed me to stay, I had traveled back to Forks with Paul permanently attached to my hand.
I could tell there was a slightly uneasy air between us. It wasn't angry or awkward, but we both were still re-adjusting to what had happened and I knew it might take a little while to get back into our groove.
Right now, I was sitting at his kitchen table. For some reason, his mother had just suffocated me with a hug and choked back a sob before Paul asked her, impolitely, to leave. She left us in a rather clean and airy kitchen, with Paul rocking the wooden table with his bouncing knee.
"What's the matter?" I asked, noting his nervous habit.
His eyes met mine and his hand reached toward the one I had in my lap. I intertwined our fingers while he looked at me.
"Well, I didn't get a chance to explain. And I know you're probably full of questions," he said, searching my gaze for a sign of curiosity.
"Well...you can transform into a wolf," I said, the words that I'd been thinking for the past few days finally out in the open, where they were met with a nod.
Who'd have ever thought I'd be saying that sentence and not being immediately transported to a psychiatric ward?
"Yeah. When we get really angry, we can't control it. Which is what you saw the other day."
"So the moon has nothing to do with it?" I asked, frowning. "Harry Potter really failed me in that department."
Paul chuckled and rolled his eyes.
"You would make a Harry Potter reference in a serious conversation," he scoffed.
"Whatever wolf boy," I said, rolling my own eyes.
"So...all the boys too?" I asked. "Even Embry?"
"You know sometimes I think you like him better than me," Paul said, frowning heavily.
"Sometimes I think that too," I said with a smile while he growled. "Easy boy," I said, patting his hand.
"All the guys are in the pack, and Leah, Seth's sister. It's because of the vampires—"
"Woah there, back up!" I cried, a new wave of surprise overturning my stomach. "Vampires?"
"Don't worry, I'm built to kill them. I'd never let them hurt you."
"Do I know any?" I implored, leaning closer to him.
"I wouldn't let one within a thirty yards of you," he growled, shaking his head. "But you know Bella?"
"I've heard Jake talking about her," I said, thinking of the dazed look on Jacob's face when he mentioned some girl from Forks. I noticed Paul always tensed just the slightest when she was brought up.
"Well she's dating one of the Cullens, this family of bloodsuckers," Paul finished.
I shuddered, wondering if it was hypocritical. She was dating a vampire, but I guess I was dating a shapeshifter. At least mine wasn't a wolf all the time, just when he was super angry...so about half of the time.
"They stick to the treaty though, so we haven't had any major problems," Paul added, seeing the tumultuous look in my eyes.
He studied me for a moment, and I tried to seem contemplative instead of shock absorbing. I wasn't sure how great it was working because he was looking more concerned with each passing second.
"You're okay with it?" he asked finally, the words landing heavily in the air the moment they left his tongue. I let them dangle for a few seconds, gathering their weight and seeing how they felt in my own mind.
"Yeah," I responded, squeezing his hand. "Commit me now."
"There's one more thing," he cut in. "Well, there's actually a lot of things, I'm sure, but this one is kind of important."
More things? What more could there be—wasn't this enough to take in?
"What is it?" I asked.
Paul moved his chair closer, the bottoms screeching against the tiled floor. My hands were in his warm ones, and he cleared his throat a little before he spoke.
"You know how the first time I met you, I told you that you were going to fall in love with me?" Paul asked.
I thought of the memory fondly now, even though I was a bit taken aback at the time. I chuckled at Paul's confidence, nodding my head.
"Of course I remember. And look at you now, my little weirdo," I said affectionately, patting his cheek.
"Well, there was a reason I knew that," he said, not addressing at my joke.
I paused for a moment, frowning and racking my brain.
"Can you read my thoughts?" I whispered lowly.
Without warning, Paul broke out into a throaty chuckle, almost dropping my hands. I frowned as his laugher shot down my question without any sympathy or regard.
"Alright, it's not that far fetched," I grumbled. "What're you on about then?"
He sobered up now, his face freezing from a faded joy to a solemn gaze.
"It's...called imprinting."
"Oh-kay," I said, urging him forward.
"It's basically...well it's like...the best way to describe it is a big bitch slap from the universe saying 'Don't fuck this up, kid, because she's the one.' Get it?"
I almost smiled. Paul was just so eloquent and romantic sometimes...not.
"Like love at first sight?" I asked, trying to piece together his vulgar and not so clear explanation.
"Like soulmates," he confirmed, lacing our fingers together.
I let the word roll around in my mind for a little. I knew Paul and I were serious. I knew that I was going to fall apart at the end of the Summer when I was leaving. But now with this imprinting thing hanging between us, there was an added weight. Now the universe didn't want me to leave?
"What pressure," I joked, breaking the intense gaze Paul was sharing with me.
"Are you okay?" he asked again, seemingly very concerned.
I looked at his usually sure, playful eyes and patted his cheek again. What did I have against imprinting? Nothing. It brought to this moment, didn't it? I learned forward to press a quick kiss to his lips before sliding my hands around his neck.
"You know," I commented, "Someone should write this whole story down—I think they'd sell millions."
Paul chuckled, taking my answer to mean that I was fine. He shook his head and kissed me lightly again.
"Are you kidding? Who'd want to read about our bullshit?"
I was greeted graciously when I entered Sam and Emily's house, with a lot of smiles, yells, and of course, blush-worthy comments. Because we all couldn't fit in the living room, I spotted people milling around hopefully in the kitchen, and heard distant calls of people outside.
"Where should we go?" I asked Paul, who placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Kitchen," he said hungrily, giving me a light push forward.
I rolled my eyes and followed the smell, some sort of bread or pastry wafting through the air. It seemed like Seth and Jared had the same idea, because they were both pressed against the kitchen table watching Emily and Kim eagerly.
"Kris!"
I smiled at the boys who both gave Paul man-shakes, and me broad grins.
"Glad you're here," Emily said fondly, patting my shoulder, while Kim came to give me a small hug.
I smiled warmly at both of them, knowing that we suddenly had a lot more in common.
"When do we eat?" Paul asked, without even saying hello. I was going to have to beat some manners into him. Emily didn't look too fazed though, probably because she was used to this sort of thing.
"You're just in time," Emily commented, grabbing her mitts and opening the oven.
"See Kris? There was a plus out of you taking so long to get ready," Paul said, smiling sweetly.
"See Paul? This is my foot and it's going up your ass," I whispered back, only loud enough for him and the boys to hear with their wolf ears. I was met with respective chuckles, and a raised eyebrow from Kim.
Paul frowned, giving me a mixed pout and glare. Now that is something I was used to.
And like that, I knew we were back.
"Before we eat, which I know we all want to do as quickly as possible, I'd like to make a toast," Embry said, raising his glass of soda.
"Here here!" Quil cried, raising his own glass.
I rolled my eyes and listened interestedly, Paul eyeing his food greedily next to him. I nudged his shoulder and he grudgingly looked away and toward Embry.
"I'd like to dedicate this to Kris," Embry said.
My eyebrows raised in surprise, my ears suddenly very curious to what was going to follow.
"For a long time, Paul was an angry, angry wolf," Embry said, shaking his head.
"Nothing worked at all—therapy, Midol..." Quil added, shaking his head in mock seriousness.
I laughed as Paul growled and the guys all agreed in amusement.
"And then you came into the picture. And Paul was a new man—a more controlled, easy going man, who didn't threaten to kick our assses every second of the day," Embry said with a bright smile.
"I'm gonna kick your ass if you don't wrap this up," Paul said, tightly smiling.
"Hey, this is a positive speech," Jared said from next to Paul, clapping his back.
"We just want to thank you for everything you've done. And now that you know everything, you're part of the group. An honorary wolf, if you'd like," Embry said, shrugging slightly.
"To conclude," Quil said, standing and raising his glass. "Thank you for being Paul's Midol."
"Cheers!" Seth said, raising his glass.
"Cheers!" everyone agreed, clinking their drinks with their neighbors.
I laughed at Paul's sullen expression and kissed his cheek, pulling the side of his mouth up with my finger.
"Smile boyfriend," I whispered.
"Imprint," he corrected, his lips slightly upturning.
"Soulmate," I re-phrased, grabbing his hand under the table.
As everybody put their glasses down and started in on their food, Paul kept my right hand under the table, forcing me to eat with my left hand. I didn't complain, though, because Kim had informed me in the kitchen of what a bad time it was for Paul when I was gone. He didn't deserve that, so I'd be trying to make it up for a while.
As if he could hear or sense my thoughts (not a mind reader my ass) Paul squeezed my fingers and leaned closer to me.
"Don't leave again?" he asked quietly, warm breath hitting my ear lightly.
"I won't," I promised, squeezing his hand right back.