Three

It took a couple of hours to reach Sam's house. Following behind him at a pace so slow it was frustrating. I didn't like the thought of leaving something so vital in the hands of others. However, I also didn't have the stomach to deal with it all by myself, so I tried not to think on it too hard. By the time we reached the house, it was late, and I could tell by his stride that he was growing tired. I was too, but not for the same reason. A night shift, a whole day and half a night walking in the woods was enough to make my eyes feel heavy by the time we got indoors. A familiar surrounding greeted me having slept in this lounge previously. His wife, Emily was quick to send him up to bed before turning her attention onto me. She didn't hesitate to greet me warmly.

"It was good of you to help them," she told me, "And it's nice to see you again so soon."

I nodded, "Good to see you too."

"My you look completely exhausted," she commented, showing me to the sofa that she had made up for me again. I was surprised by her kindness, her readily helping me when she didn't know me. She brought me clean clothes, just a tee and pajama pants but I was grateful all the same. My clothes had more mud and debris on them than I wanted to comment on. I probably smelt awful. As if reading my mind, she placed a towel beside the clothes.

"Bathrooms upstairs," she told me, "and there are some sandwiches, chips, fruit, and yogurts in the kitchen if you're hungry. Just help yourself, all the boys do."

I smiled anxiously as my stomach grumbled unhappily. She was quick to depart then, leaving me with everything I needed and then some. It felt odd to help myself even if she had told me to. I took little but just enough. I made sure to shower quickly so as not to keep any of them awake with the noise. As I shut the water off, I heard Emily and Sam speaking in hushed voices. As always, I tried not to listen, but I heard the name I had given them clearly and my ears pricked to listen.

"…on Carlie."

"What do you mean he imprinted on Carlie?"

"I mean I can't be sure, but I know that look on his face. I know what that meant, and then as soon as she saw him, she went all soft too. She felt it too."

Emily laughed lightly, "I remember what that felt like."

They quickly fell quiet then and I wondered if the sound of the water stopping had only just reached their notice. I hurried through drying and dressing then, my mind confused by their conversation that I didn't understand.

It took a long time for me to settle that night, too many thoughts tainted by the day's events. I stared at my phone for a long time, alternating between a kindle book and puzzle game that was allegedly difficult. I must have fallen asleep whilst reading, I stirred, and my phone clattered to the floor which startled me awake again.

For a moment, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. A shape in the corner of the room, shrouded by darkness caught my attention. The shape moved and I fought the urge to scream until my mind reassured me not too.

The shape formed into a large wolf taking up a good proportion of the space the room had to offer, its fur was black and speckled with steel grey markings. It met my eyes for a brief second, made a motion with its head as if it were nodding before it rested its muzzle onto its front paws and began to snore lightly. For some reason, its presence didn't scare me. I watched it sleep for a few minutes before moving back under my covers and drifting off once more.

It was a voice that woke me next.

"Levi, what the hell are you doing?"

Emily's voice was stern as she spoke. My eyes opened with a start at the sound, I threw myself upright and saw what she was, or rather who, she was yelling at. The black wolf was still settled opposite me, now its eyes were focused solely on Emily. So, this wolf was Levi, the young man I had healed a few weeks ago. It was interesting to put names to them. The red brown wolf was called Jacob, and this one was Levi. How many more were there?

"Go and change now!" she commanded.

He looked at his mother and whined. He then turned his eyes back at me and kept them there, not making the slightest movement to do as his mother asked. Emily sighed as she followed his gaze. She rolled her eyes, and I watched her next move with curiosity so deep it burned. She moved to stand in front of her son, effectively blocking his view of me.

"Jacob, whatever you have said to Levi unsay it," she spoke with such authority, it only puzzled me further as she called him Jacob, or spoke to Jacob through Levi?

"He has school today; he can't watch her all day."

I felt guilt settle in my stomach as I realized what the wolf had been doing most of the night, keeping tabs on me.

"It's alright," I spoke then, "I'll just go. I don't want to cause any trouble."

Emily turned to me then, her expression modifying into something more neutral.

"You're not the problem here," she muttered, before giving me her full attention.

"I'm going to make some coffee, would you like some?"

Feeling tiredness still clinging to me, I nodded reluctantly. I wasn't much of a fan of caffeinated drinks; they usually didn't work the same way for me as they did for others. I'd take a hot drink today and be appreciative though. I followed her away from the teenage wolf into the little kitchen.

"You didn't eat much yesterday?" she commented as she noticed how much food remained.

I didn't know what to say to that. As I went to answer, a yawn escaped instead, and she looked amused for a moment before coming to her own conclusions.

"Suppose you were just tired," she spoke her thoughts aloud as she moved about the kitchen. Making coffee and then toast. I heard him move before I saw him.

"Nice of you to join us," Emily muttered to her husband as he entered the room. I moved to leave but he stopped me, silently gave his wife a kiss on the cheek, took a mug of coffee and vanished again.

"Or not," she spoke to herself, before busying herself again.

It was a few minutes later once the coffee was drunk that I found my voice. Thinking through all that had happened in the last 24 hours had kept me mute for longer than was probably polite. I had many questions, some more pressing than others.

"What does imprinting mean?" the words came tumbling out, startling Emily out of her busy movements around the kitchen. She froze where she stood beside the sink.

"How did you-?" the question was interrupted by the arrival of a young girl. The girl I had seen the night I had first met Sam and Emily.

"Morning," she yawned out the word.

Padding barefooted into the room, seeming not to notice me standing there. She was very like her mother, long dark hair, pretty features, and smooth dark skin. She had Sam's eyes though, they widened in surprise as she finally spotted me. The young pre-teenager was instantly on edge, I could hear the change in her heart rate as she panicked at the sight of me. They were really clued up on myths and legends in this town it would seem. She looked at me as if I would kill her in an instant. I smiled hoping to reassure her, it failed. She grabbed some toast, keeping her eyes fixed on me the whole time before bolting back out the door.

Emily sighed, glancing over at me then. Before I could say a word, she excused herself.

"I'll go talk to her, Sophie is new to all this and she's not taking it well," she told me, before leaving swiftly.

I was only alone in the kitchen long enough to eat a slice of toast. Sam came back as I finished off the slice, he signaled for me to come with him and I followed him without question. I knew there was still unfinished business from yesterday to be dealt with and even though I wasn't looking forward to this conversation, I knew it was necessary. Once it was all sorted and put behind me, I could go back to Olympia and carry on with my life.

I felt his presence before I saw him. Eyes staring at me in a way that should have made me uncomfortable. I waited for the feeling to arrive, but it never did. I'd been stared at this way before and it had always bothered me, so why didn't it bother me now? I forced myself to be brave and looked up to meet his gaze. It was a bad decision.

I felt the familiar feeling stirring into life inside me, he was just so distracting. I knew I'd been staring at him like a complete fool when a voice caught my attention and made me look away.

"Carlie? Are you ok?"

Sam sounded highly amused, and he looked it too.

My face heated up again. I felt it spreading and highlighting my embarrassment for all to see. I refused to look at him again after that.

"Yes, I'm fine, sorry," I mumbled, thankful my hair was untied this morning, the thick bronze curls hanging free about my shoulders, so that I could hide my face from him more easily. I made myself take a seat, angling my body away from where he stood.

"How did it go last night?" I asked the room in general, taking notice of the other men gathered there now. The black wolf had departed from the corner of the space to be replaced with three large men including Jacob. I tried not to look any of them directly in the eye. Too embarrassed just yet to face their smirks.

"As well as it could," he spoke.

I felt his voice in a way I would never have thought possible. It took a lot of effort not to look at him.

"Well, that's one positive at least," I replied.

The image of that woman, the things that had happened to her would forever haunt me I was sure of it but as long as no human ever found her then hopefully everything would work out. If a hybrid child had caused her death, then at least a part of her would always live. I comforted myself with that, still clinging to the notion that she had consented to be the mother of that child.

"You are certain that it's a one off?" he asked me then.

"As certain as it's possible to be," I replied, feeling completely confident on that, what reason would there be for it to happen again?

He fell silent then and I realized when he did so what the next stage of this conversation would entail and found a nervous lump forming in my throat.

"Time for the everything then?" I asked, my voice just above a whisper.

I felt their eyes on, expectantly waiting for an explanation that I just couldn't bring myself to speak aloud. I knew what I had to do then. It had been years since I'd used that part of me to communicate and since moving to Olympia, I had pushed it to one side, done everything possible to stop myself from using it. I decided then; it was the only way to fully explain everything.

Finding courage where there was none to be found, I approached him. I saw the other men stiffen as I passed and moved to stand directly before the man I'd just purposefully tried to avoid looking at.

He smelled like woodland, earthy and comforting; it was nothing short of intoxicating. Pushing those thoughts aside, I explained myself.

"It'll be easier if I show you," I told him.

His eyes met mine and a frown changed his face as he thought over my words.

"Show me?" he questioned; his voice tight with emotion. It seemed I wasn't the only one struggling with this proximity though it was likely a different reason that affected him. Did he really find me so repulsive?

"Two gifted parents equal a gifted child," I told him as if that would explain it. I didn't know how much he knew about those things, but I wasn't prepared to get into all the technical stuff right here and now.

I saw him almost flinch as I reached my hand out to press it lightly to his neck and tried not to think about how much that hurt to see. Forcing all other thoughts aside, I showed him it all. My earliest memory to the present day. I showed him the closeted childhood, lived securely behind shut doors. The only outside I had known was the forest that surrounded my family's home. I showed him how fast I'd grown, resembling a 4-year-old by 1 year old, and being fully grown at 7 years.

Lost in memories, I showed him my mother next, how she had looked on my first memory of her and how happy I'd been to see her again when she was changed. How she laughed so often with me and tried to teach me how to cook and bake unsuccessfully; I still burned everything I touched. The books she'd read to me and the stories we'd invented together hauled up under the dining table turned fort.

I showed him my father, his patience and humor, his easy going laugh as he taught me baseball. How he had taught me the piano before I was 1. How he had shared his passions with me, music, and medicine. His passion for medicine was just as enthusiastic as Carlisle's, which had rubbed off on me. How he'd encouraged me to pursue that career if it were what I really wanted.

My most recent memories with them followed and I tried to stop before I had to relive it all over again but once lost to it, it was hard to force back. It was supposed to be fun, my first proper baseball match with them all. The first time I told them not to go easy on me. I wanted to hold my own, to be an asset not a weak link and this had been my first chance to prove I could be…

… I felt the adrenaline coursing through my bloodstream as I ran, faster than mom but still slower than my dad. Charging through the woodland, I should have realized sooner. Just marginally too close, that was all it took. My uncle Emmett couldn't stop fast enough to avoid colliding with me, sending us both hurtling through the densely packed trees.

Beneath his weight, the scream tore out my battered chest as I tried to fight against the agony. I felt the wheeze in my chest as my ribs crushed into my lungs.

"Carlisle!" I remembered him yelling. Moving swiftly off me, the panic, wild in his eyes.

The pain had bloomed across my left side on impact. I had known enough to realize that most of that side was broken, crushed from the collision. I remembered how much it had hurt, the injuries and the healing that had followed. I had been out of action for a grand total of 10 hours but from my dad's point of view, it had been much longer. He had gone on and on about how he'd known it wasn't safe for me, in his opinion, I shouldn't have played.

I was honestly fine, at least physically. The feeling of failure, that I had let them down by spoiling the game and again proving I wasn't good enough to be with them in this life, had weighed on me longer.

It was this incident that had led me to leave. I had applied for the job in Olympia only a few months later…

I hadn't noticed the tears falling down my cheeks until I felt his fingertip reach up to stroke them away. I hadn't realized how much it had all affected me until I had seen it all again. How one moment had been enough to drive me away from those who ultimately only loved me too much.

I felt strong arms bring me close and I didn't fight away from the embrace. He held me while I cried. His touch surprised me, it made heat spread across my skin wherever he touched. Little touches down my arms, over the palms of my hand where it still rested against his neck, it was heaven. I realized then that I was still sharing my thoughts with him and I jumped out of his embrace so suddenly it startled us both.

I was on the other side of the room when I snapped out of it.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled as my face heated up once again. I noticed then that the room was suddenly empty except for the two of us.

I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out.

"It's ok, Ren. Don't be embarrassed, I feel it too."

A flick of surprise passed through me as he addressed me that way, until now I had been Carlie to these people. Being called Ren, the nickname my uncle had started years ago, to my mother's dismay and my delight, felt intimate. It felt good in a way to be my true self with him. I met his eyes then and something passed between us that I couldn't fully comprehend. He crossed the room and took me back into his arms without any complaint from me. For some unknown reason, I felt safe there. I didn't know him; I shouldn't feel safe with someone I didn't know.

"What's your name?" I asked, the words mumbling against his chest.

He laughed then, the motion vibrating through him.

"Jacob Black," he told me, "Most people call me Jake."

"Hi Jake," I whispered.

"Hi Ren."

I let him hold me for a long time. Let him take that pain away, pain I hadn't realized I had been suppressing for so long and hold me safe.

"The others will be back soon," he spoke softly, almost tenderly.

I sighed but made no motion to move. I was quite content here for now. I couldn't make sense of it though, how was it possible to feel so comfortable with someone you didn't know? Had my parents felt this? This deep attachment from the get-go? No, I thought, I don't think so. Had the others? Aunt Rosalie and Uncle Emmett? Probably not, at least not straight away. Carlisle and Esme? I wasn't sure. There was only one couple in my family that I thought may have experienced something like this. My Aunt Alice and Uncle Jasper. From the stories they had told me, I could very much believe that this intensity was on par with them.

I had many more questions than answers currently. I thought back to the overheard conversation then between Emily and Sam and found myself curious.

"What is imprinting?"

I felt him stiffen at the question. I drew back to study his expression. It was guarded as he looked down at me.

"Emily and Sam were talking last night, they mentioned that you had imprinted on me," I explained, before he could ask, "Is that what this is?"

He stared at me with such intensity I nearly forgot what I'd asked him. I could see the reply forming in his mind as he held me pinned with just a look. I never got the answer I craved.

"You don't waste much time, Jake," one of the other men stated in jest as they returned. Clearly, we'd had enough space now. Jake sighed in irritation and pressed his forehead to mine for a brief moment before moving away from me.

"So, what did you do to him? Talk through your hand or something," the man asked, throwing himself down onto the sofa I'd slept on the night before. Sam and the other man returned not long after.

"Crude way to put it," I replied, focusing on the conversation that still needed to be had.

"We'll phase later," Jake told the others, "I'll show you then. But for Sam's benefit, given that you don't have the privilege of joining us later," he moved his eyes from Sam's to mine, "did you want to tell them or would you rather I abbreviated?"

I smiled at him, thankful for his request. I needed some air.

"You go ahead," I replied, "I just need a minute."

The fresh morning air did wonders for me, sat on the porch steps, eyes closed and breathing in the scent of woodland, and strangely, the ocean. Were we close to the sea here? My mind wondered.

I assumed so as I absorbed the scents of the nature that surrounded me. It grounded me in a way that nothing else could, just deep breaths that calmed the soul. I sensed him there before I saw him.

Without a comment, he came to sit beside me.

I drew in a deep breath, the scents of nature around me mingling with the smell of him. So much for a clear head, I thought as I opened my eyes to face the conversation that I knew we needed to have.

"You told them then?" I asked, starting with the easy part.

"Yeah," he replied, "not complicated when you really think about it, just surprising."

"Yeah, they didn't expect me either," I mumbled, looking down at the ground beneath my feet.

Staring at the grain of the wooden step beneath me was easier than looking at him.

"I take it from earlier, that I don't repulse you? That I don't scare you?"

He made a sound that seemed like he was amused by what I said. He reached for my hand and held it gently. The warmth from his touch spread through me like a wildfire.

"No and no," he replied, rubbing the back of my hand with the pad of his finger, a motion that calmed me and comforted me.

"Why did you flinch before I touched you then?" I whispered the question, afraid if I spoke any louder, I wouldn't be able to force the words out. His reaction had bothered me far more than it should have done.

"I'm not used to feeling like this," he spoke quietly, "you asked earlier what imprinting is? Well, you were right, it is this. This feeling of needing to be near you, needing to be around you."

He looked up at me then, as if trying to gauge my reaction to his words. I was confused but tried my best to follow his explanation. My confusion must have been obvious as he backtracked then.

"It hasn't happened in years," he explained, "The last person in the pack to imprint was Paul with my sister, but he's not part of the pack anymore. Sam, Paul and Jared were part of the pack that Bella knew."

"There's a pack? How many are there of you? I know Levi is like you."

I frowned as I spoke, talking through the things I did know helped me to sort through the information. I was trying to get my head around too many things all at once. It was giving me a headache. He continued to stroke the back of my hand in continuous motions, keeping me calm and almost focused.

He nodded, "I don't know how much they told you about us, I would hope they told you something before they sent you here. But when they were here, we had ten of us, now we have five. Sam stopped phasing not long after Sophie was born. Once he'd stopped, he helped others follow suit if they wanted too. Leah took him up on the help first, she was desperate to find an out. The others that had imprinted chose to leave too, to grow old with their wives. Colin and Brady chose to stop too, Colin went off to college and Brady met a girl and lives a long way from here now.

Just me, Embry and Quil – you met them just now – and Seth and Levi. Levi was a huge shock, no one expected that we'd get new boys changing, not without the Cullen's around. He scared the hell out of Sam and Sophie, he got mad and phased right in front of his sister. She's been terrified of everything that moves since."

He seemed to lose himself in his speech, I listened and let him continue talking. I didn't understand everything he said but I tried to make sense of what I did. The men in the lounge were wolves like Jake, Embry and Quil that was what he'd called them. I understood Sophie's odd behavior now, she probably thought I was going to change into an animal or lash out at her suddenly.

"Poor girl," I replied, "She looked petrified of me."

"She'll get used to it," he told me, "We all did. I mean even your granddad accepted it, if he can anyone can."

He laughed at his own thoughts then.

"My grandad?" I questioned, feeling the frown deepen. I was assuming he didn't mean Carlisle when he'd said that. Carlisle was very much accustomed to weird.

"Yeah, Charlie," he replied simply.

When I didn't instantly speak again, he glanced sidelong at me and frowned at the expression on my face.

"Please for the love god, tell me you know who Charlie is?"

I nodded once; I had been told a few things about my mom's family. Her memories had grown hazy over the years and she had mentioned him less and less.

"Mom talked about him a bit, but human memories fade," I explained, "She just brought him up less and less overtime. It's been a while since I've heard his name."

"Right," he looked irritated still, but he accepted my explanation and fell silent.

"Does he know?" I asked, concerned.

Jake shook his head, "Not about you lot, but us, yeah. Seth's an idiot."

He laughed again.

I was certain there was something I was missing from this, but I didn't want to get sidetracked. I wanted to understand why, why it felt so comforting to sit beside this stranger. Why it didn't bother me that he clearly liked touching me, and why I liked it so much. I just wanted to understand what had happened to change me so wholly in less than 24 hours.

"So, imprinting?" I brought it back to his attention again, "What does it mean? Everyone seems to skirt around it."

"How many people have you asked?" he asked, amusement sparkling in his dark's eyes.

I shrugged, "Just Emily."

"And?"

"She looked terrified to answer."

He laughed again and I found myself laughing along with him. His mood was infectious.

"Sam was the first one to imprint," Jake explained once our laughter had subsided, "With Emily."

"I suppose the easiest way to explain it, is that imprinting for us is like love at first sight, but its more than that, its more forceful. I'd seen how it had affected Sam and Emily through Sam's thoughts years ago, but nothing prepared me for this. It's like everything was dark and now its not. You are meaning, you give me meaning. I exist for you."

His voice had dropped to almost a whisper as he fought to get the words out.

"That's quite intense," I replied.

His eyes darted up to mine and he looked panicked for a moment.

"It doesn't have to be," he was quick to assure me, "I said it wrong, I'm not good at this."

I felt his hand slipping from mine and gripped his tight, holding him to me.

"Ow," he muttered, looking shocked by the force behind my movement.

"Sorry," I was quick to apologize, I hadn't meant to use that much force.

"I didn't mean that intense is a bad thing," I explained quickly, realizing that he had misinterpreted my response.

"All my life I've been the odd one out. Everyone around me has been married, mated even. Vampires mate for life, its life altering and intense when it happens, or so I'm told. My parents, my aunts, and uncles they are all bonded and happy. I wasn't, I thought I never could be just because of what I am.

The older I got the more I accepted it for what it was. I would be alone, and I would be content with that. Carlisle was alone for hundreds of years before he met Esme, and my dad was alone for over a century before he met mom. I knew it might happen, but I wasn't holding out hope of a miracle, so I threw myself into work, into being the best 'human' version of myself. The fact that I can feel anything like this is incredible to me, you have no idea how it feels."

His eyes were hooded with an emotion I didn't quite understand as I caught his gaze then. His voice was husky and made a strange warm feeling begin inside me as he spoke.

"Yes, I do,"

I felt my heartbeat race inside my chest and before I knew what I was doing, I was reacting to the strong desires raging inside me. I felt a pull towards him but didn't understand why. It was clear that he felt it too when he pulled me closer and held me as he had before. It was strange and yet wonderful to be held by someone who was actually warmer than me. The only people who had ever really hugged me were my family and they were freezing compared to the man who held me now. He caused fire to burn inside me, and it wasn't unpleasant. There was nothing overly intimate in the action, but it felt so regardless hence my embarrassment when a throat cleared behind us.

My face flushed red for the third time and I let my curls fall over my face as I stared down at my feet. Jake angled himself away from me then and despite it being entirely innocent, we both looked like teenagers caught in the act when Sam spoke then.

"When you guys are done, Emily wants to know if you are staying for lunch Carlie or whatever your name is?" he sounded amused, I could hear it in his tone.

"Ren," I corrected him, still not looking up just yet until a thought struck me, "unless you call me at the hospital, then definitely ask for Carlie."

Damn, I thought, the hospital. I was expected on shift tonight and I was a good couple of hours away from home. I'd need to leave soon. The idea of leaving was suddenly not as appealing as it had been previously. As if all previous purpose had been forgotten just like that. As if, as he'd put it, I existed for him now. I shook that thought aside. I still had a job to do, a job I loved, and I wouldn't give that up just like that.

"I won't be staying for lunch, I really have to get back, but thank you," I replied, I was surprised by the pain in my voice as I said it.

Sam nodded and left quickly then.

I turned to Jake then, "I'm sorry,"

"Don't be," he was quick to interrupt, "You have a job to do right. You're a midwife? That's what you showed me."

I smiled and nodded, "yeah, I have to work the next three nights, but I'm off for four days after that. I can come back then?"

His grin was just as infectious as his laugh and it made me feel lighter to witness it.

"Three nights is a long time," he grumbled, but the smile was still lingering, "I can't promise I'll be able to last that long without seeing you."

"Is that a promise?" I asked, feeling elated by the possibility of seeing him again before I had even left, and sooner would definitely be better. Was this who I was now? Did I truly exist for him now, as he claimed too for me?

I couldn't bring myself to fully believe that there was actually someone on this earth meant for me. It would take some getting used to, that was for certain.