I thought my life's biggest moments would be end capped like they are in the movies. First day of school, and then fade to black. My first memorable Christmas, and then fade to black. Meeting my best friends, and then fade to black. First kiss, and then fade to black. Graduation, and then fade to black. But life never has those end cap moments. Instead of the cool, familiar black in the movies, everything stayed in screaming color and things never had that great background music either. Life is messy and there's no relief in the fade to black anyway. There's just maintenance and hoping for the best.
When Maya woke up the next morning, she was greeted with the empty box of Plan B that she had tore into last night after Paul returned equipped with condoms and the back up birth control. After that little realization, they had been much more careful and spent the night exploring one another in detail.
She was naked, like she normally found herself in Paul's bed in the most recent instances, and she tilted the clock toward her and groaned. Just before 9 a.m. She had to meet her mom for summer revival planning at 10. Graduation was just three days away and her mother always planned a summer revival gathering on the beach for the new graduates and the community to celebrate the summer. This year it was Maya's turn and Rish was adamant that Maya be a part of the planning. Somehow she had roped Keye and Becks in to help as well.
Maya turned over under the warm arm that had been draped across her back and looked upon the sleeping form of Paul. Her heart caught in her chest and she admired him for a moment before reaching her hand out, hesitating just before she touched him, to caress his cheek. He made a small noise in his sleep and Maya's heart skipped.
When she made the decision to come over last night, she hadn't anticipated this. She had just thought that they'd talk, smooth things over and be able to go on their way. Maya was determined to keep their break in place so that she could leave for college without incident, but when her eyes had seen him again, so close, and he had said he loved her, everything in Maya swung in favor of the imprint. She wasn't exactly helpless to it—she had told herself she would give into the imprint this time and figure everything else out later. But this morning wasn't later, right?
She wished she could lay in this bed for longer and relish in this moment of peace with him. Their new found intimacy was addicting. It felt like the purest form of connection that they could have with one another and the relief and ecstasy they felt was no doubt a side effect of the imprint. To Maya, it felt like drinking a glass of cold water after being out in the hot sun too long, or that first rush of warmth as you stood in a hot shower after a particularly cold morning—salvation found in submersion.
Now, Maya slowly extricated herself out from under Paul's massive forearm and padded toward the bathroom. She closed the door and turned on the shower before going pee. Letting the water warm up, Maya looked at herself in the floor length mirror propped against the wall. Hun She felt different and yet entirely the same. Keye and Becks had already lost their virginity and in her friend group Maya had been affectionately referred to as the resident prude prior to Paul. She couldn't wait to tell them that her first time had been the definition of reckless: spent with her ex-boyfriend-turned-current-boyfriend, unprotected, that needed back up birth control. Who was this Maya?
She grinned at herself in the mirror, entirely too confident, and hopped in the shower. Maya wasn't in there long before she heard the bathroom door open and a naked Paul climbed in, his eyes still heavy with sleep. He leaned down to kiss her for a minute before saying in a low, gravelly voice.
"Good morning."
"Good morning," she echoed sweetly as she rinsed the shampoo from her hair. He took his time looking over her body, his fingertips lingering at the lightly bruised indentations on her hips from his hands last night.
"Mmm," he said as he looked at the marks critically, "Need to be more careful with you."
"Huh?" Maya said confused, massaging conditioner through her hair now as she looked down at where his hands rested. She turned her body slightly and looked over her shoulder to see the barely there bruises and made an exaggerated gasping sound, followed by:
"Paul Lahote! How dare you!" She smiled and he leaned down to kiss her again before stepping closer to wet his hair and body so he could wash.
"I'll make it up to you," he said casually. Maya raised an eyebrow in curiosity and thought she saw mischief glitter behind his dark eyes.
"It feels like whenever I tell you no, you just get your way anyway so, I'm not even going to say not to at this point," Maya said, soaping herself up now and starting to rub the loofah across Paul's chest.
"Me?! You're the one that always gets what you want," he argued, amused. Maya gave him a mock annoyed look.
"I distinctly remember telling you to wait last night before you came in me. That seems like the definition of getting what you want," Maya teased. Paul dropped his mouth open as if to reply and then started to laugh and then shrugged.
"Fair enough. Sorry about that, by the way. We need to get you on birth control. I'm pretty sure babies aren't in the college plan," He said, rinsing his face under the water and taking the loofah from Maya to wash the rest of himself.
"Definitely not," Maya agreed, "I'll look into it today after I'm done with summer revival stuff. Can you take me home after this? I have to be there by 10 or my mom is going to murder me."
"Sure," he said as he scrubbed shampoo through his hair and let the soap drip down onto his face causing him to close his eyes. Maya took this moment to admire his wet frame, the water running in messy webbed paths down his hard, muscled body. Her heart rate picked up when she realized that she got to call this man hers again. After her eyes had spanned the length of his body, lingering on his lower half, she looked back up to his face. Her eyes widened in surprise when they met his. He was grinning a big, lopsided smile at her.
"You finished?" he asked curtly. She nodded, her face flushing red and he reached around her to turn off the shower and open the glass door for her. She grabbed a towel and dried her hair and body before turning to see Paul watching her now. She dropped her towel and she felt the familiar rush of lust heat her body. He was over to her in two strides lifting her into his arms and pressing his lips to hers hotly before carrying her to bed. He sat himself down on the edge and straddled her across his lap.
Maya could feel him hard against her stomach and he broke away quickly to whisper, "Grab one," referring to the open package of condoms on the nightstand. She leaned over, his hands on her waist and picked one out of the box to hand to him. "Put it on me," he said, his voice warm and their bodies still slick from the humid shower. Maya looked down at him tentatively and then opened the condom wrapper gently. She grasped him and placed the rolled condom on his wide tip trying to remember what those seemingly useless health videos had explained in her sophomore year amongst a chorus of giggles. "Roll it down." He instructed her.
Deftly, she used her index finger and thumb to roll the condom down the length of him. He chuckled at her concentration and when she finished, she looked up at him sort of proud.
"Good, now climb on," he said. Maya looked at him skeptically. Last night, Paul had steered the ship so to speak, so being on top felt like a whole new world to Maya. He cupped his hands under her ass and lifted her slightly so she hovered over him. Holding onto him, she guided him in as he lowered her slowly. Her knees rested on either side of him on the bed and once he was pressed all the way into her, her mouth hanging open at the sharp shooting pain that pulsed through her before melting into unmistakable pleasure, she started to rock herself up and down on him slowly.
Paul groaned and lowered his head to nip at her shoulder, making Maya erupt into goosebumps. She circled her arms around his neck and picked up speed, pressing her chest to his, wanting to pull more of those sounds from him. Maya took intense pride in making Paul moan, call out her name, or grab her so tightly she thought she'd break. Her thighs burned with the effort but she didn't stop. Paul was panting against her, gripping her ass tightly and kissing along her neck and up to her mouth.
When they pulled back to look at one another, Maya bouncing quickly on top of him as she reached her edge, she saw that familiar look in his eyes that she saw all last night when he was inside her and about to climax. It was similar to the look that echoed the word Mine in the back of her head whenever he looked at her with the full force of the imprint, but this...this look was more aggressive, commanding, and necessary. This felt like he was claiming her. The look always pushed her over the edge. After a few more seconds of frantic bouncing, she shuddered on top of him to a close and the feeling of her tensing around him pulled him to his climax.
She collapsed, breathless onto his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her back catching his breath.
"It's 9:55," he said between pants.
"Oh fuck!" she yelled, dismounting him and running into the bathroom. Paul collapsed back onto the bed, his arms outspread with a laugh.
Maya leaned across the center console to kiss Paul, his fingers resting under her chin as he held her there for a moment longer. When they broke apart he said,
"Text or call me later and let me know where you're at."
She nodded, "I will."
He kissed her one more time and as she pushed open her door, he said, "And if you need a ride back to mine tonight, just let me know. I'd love to have you for dinner—over for dinner," he corrected. Maya laughed over her shoulder at him and said "Okay" before running up the path and porch steps to her house. It was 10:17 and she was already in for it.
After a quick dressing down from her mom, Maya gathered the boxes and boxes of supplies Rish had been gathering for months and loaded them into her car. Maya had changed into her black cut off shorts, a black cropped tank and her long mustard yellow cardigan that fell to her knees. She paired it with some black doc marten books and tied her hair half up. Maya would be lying if she said she wasn't exhausted from last night's events, but she pulled it together and drove with her mom to the community center that was just a hop-skip from Second beach. Becks was thankfully waiting with coffee and Keye was already setting up tables.
Maya took the coffee gratefully and sipped it before giving Becks a one-armed hug.
"You look….rosy," Becks said, curiosity piqued in her voice.
"Do I?" Maya said, a light teasing to her tone as she took another sip and they headed over toward Keye. When they were within earshot, Becks asked:
"How did the talk with Paul go last night?" Maya stalled and Keye looked at her expectantly. She had gone over with them what she was going to say and how she was going to say it. Maya had rehearsed it and even practiced leaving. Things had gone well though. Too well and she and Paul were back together. She wasn't sure if they would be happy about that or not.
Maya looked from Keye to Becks, her mouth open:
"Ahh. Really good actually, yeah," she said looking down at her shoes.
"Oh yeah?" Keye goaded. Maya looked at her now with a smirk on her face and Keye lit up, "You little HUSSY!"
"Shhh!" Maya hushed her frantically looking over her shoulder at her mom who was on the other side of the room sorting through the boxes she'd brought in.
"What?!" Becks said, still not caught up.
"We...we slept together," Maya said quietly. Becks gasped and Keye squealed.
"You did?! So does that mean…?" Becks lead on. Maya nodded her head quickly and then followed up with:
"He told me he loved me."
"Oh, they all say that," Keye joked, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes.
"Shut up," Becks laughed and elbowed Keye.
"It was...amazing, honestly. Except the first time we did it we kind of...didn't use protection and he had to run and get me Plan B and condoms," Maya admitted. She only tinged slightly red.
"I knew you were glowing with that fresh sexed glow!" Becks slapped her arm and Maya giggled.
"So, I guess that means you guys are back together, right?" Keye confirmed. Maya looked at her warily. Keye loved Maya and while she liked her and Paul together, she was on Maya's side all the way when it came to getting the hell out of La Push. She saw Paul as a possible roadblock to that and Maya had worked too hard not to get what she wanted now.
"Yeah. I think so. I mean we didn't officially talk about it but…"
"But I'm pretty sure that dick you had this morning solidified the relationship real quick," Keye laughed and Maya blushed more profusely now, "Welcome to dark side of the wolves."
"Oh my god, that reminds me," Maya looked over her shoulder where her mom was still distracted. If they didn't start setting up stuff soon, Rish was going to hound them. Maya took a step closer to them and they leaned in conspiratorially. "Where did you guys get your birth control?" She felt like she was participating in a weird drug deal.
"Oh!" Becks said, relieved.
"I bet Rish would take you to get some, your mom already thinks you two are fucking right?" Keye said. Maya shrugged and honestly wasn't sure.
"I just...I'd rather not involve her. She's been really great about Paul mostly because I think she likes what it does to her status with the council, but I'd rather not have the...talk with her."
"Fair. You're 18 so if you want, we can get it through your doctor. Or we can go to Planned Parenthood in Port Angeles. It's whatever you prefer." Keye said.
"Do you think if I went to my doctor that it would get back to my mom, though?" Maya questioned.
"I'm pretty sure they have rules against that," Keye said skeptical.
"Guys!" Becks interjected, "Kim works at Forks Hospital as a P.A. She could easily prescribe you some if you schedule an appointment."
"Oh shit," Maya said. "That's not a bad idea."
"GIRLS!" Rish said annoyed from the other side of the room, "Can we please get to work? We've got a ton to do and Maya already made us late."
"Dick appointments are important," Keye said a little too loud.
Late that afternoon around 3, as they wrapped up the preparations, Maya pulled out her phone to text Paul.
Maya: Hey, we just got done at the center. Becks and Keye wanted to drive to Port Angeles to look for graduation outfits. Is that okay?
"My, you coming?" Keye called to her from across the room.
"Yeah, I'll be out in a second!" she said back as she picked up a few things waiting for a text back from Paul. Her phone rang then and she looked down at it.
"Hey!" she said into the phone.
"Hey. Port Angeles is fine if you take Jeremy or Collin with you. I'd go but Michael just roped me into a client consult last minute."
"Okay. I'll text Jer and see if he's free."
"Okay. Port Angeles and nowhere else, please." Maya rolled her eyes.
"I mean we might get dinner while we're out there."
"You know what I mean, Maya. No clubs, no detours."
"Yeah, I hear you. Oh! Do you have Kim's number?"
"Jared's Kim? Yeah, why?"
"I was going to try and get an appointment with her to get birth control."
"Oh yeah, good idea. I'll shoot it over. Are you coming home tonight?"
"Yeah, I was gonna have Becks drop me off after we get back. Might be kind of late though. Want to give me a curfew?" she joked.
"Kind of." he sighed, an edge to his voice.
"I won't be out super late, I promise. And I'll send you pictures."
"Pictures?" Ah, there it was. He was too easy.
"Yeah, for the graduation outfits."
"My! Come ON!" Keye shouted now from across the room.
"Fuck. Okay, I gotta go. I'll text you later."
"See you tonight."
She hung up and rushed across the room to an annoyed Keye who looked kind of cute when she was mad. Maya shot a text to Jeremy to ask if he could come last minute and he said he'd meet them at the city limit into Forks.
The drive to Port Angeles was easy with the company she had. They sang along to their favorite songs too loudly and they buzzed with the freedom of recently finished high school seniors. The world opened up to them and Maya felt it all rush into her as they blasted music with the windows down.
When they arrived in Port Angeles, they hit Keye's favorite boutique first. Jeremy stayed close but eventually got bored and headed off to the arcade down the street. Maya picked out a few different short dresses to wear under her gown and she found herself wondering which one Paul would like to see her in. She tried the simple light blue babydoll dress on first that came just above her knees. She turned in the dress, running her hands down the soft fabric. Maya opened the camera on her phone and took a photo, typing a quick message to Paul.
Maya: What do you think of the blue?
She changed into a pink silk minidress with a cinched boned waist and sweetheart neck. She fluffed her hair and took another photo, tilting her head to the side and biting her lip. Maya almost laughed at herself as she sent the next one.
M: Pink?
Finally, she changed into a yellow halter dress that flared out around her waist.
M: I don't know. She said sending the yellow. None of them screamed graduation to her. Her phone finally lit up with a reply from Paul.
Paul: What's under the dress though?
Maya laughed as she undressed and took a photo, arm pushed against her chest to accentuate her cleavage, and took a full body picture of herself in just her light pink underwear, sticking her tongue out like a grumpy kid.
M: You want me to wear this to graduation?!
P: That's your graduation night outfit.
M: I'm not finding anything I like here so I honestly might just go like this for graduation.
"My?" Becks called from the other side. "What about this?" She opened the curtain and casually glanced at Maya's naked body before handing her a dark forest green dress that tied at the chest and had a keyhole diamond peek at the front where you could probably see the bottom curve of her breasts in.
"Ohh!" Maya said, taking it from her. Becks looked at the phone in Maya's hand.
"Are you taking nudes?" she said, bemused. Maya instantly turned bright red and stowed her phone behind her back.
"What?" Maya replied, pretending to act confused.
"Oh my god, you totally are. KEYE!" Becks shouted as Maya started to push her through the cloth curtain, "She's taking nudes to send to Paul in the dressing room!"
"Jesus Maya! You're going from zero to a hundred. Slow the fuck down or this dude is going to propose to you in a month!" Keye called out from the stall next to her. Maya quickly put on the green dress that fell midthigh and hugged her chest in the right way, officially deciding it was the one. She was too embarrassed now to take a picture to send Paul and just told herself it would be a surprise.
After they paid, the trio walked arm and arm across the street to a little restaurant bar. Becks texted Jeremy who said he'd be by in a bit. The girls settled easily into a hightop table next to the window that faced the street. Once Jeremy joined them, it wasn't long before they had drinks in their hands and were laughing together. Jeremy slung his arm around Becks and Maya glowed.
As they carried on talking, Maya was startled by a sharp knocking on the window next to her. All four of them looked over at the sound and saw a group of men in their early twenties, clearly drunk. The man who knocked on the window looked Maya up and down before saying, "Nice, baby!" He then proceeded to make an exaggerated kissy face at her that ended in him sticking his tongue out and gesturing between his two fingers. Maya grimaced and let out a disgusted sigh as the men laughed and headed on their way.
"Gross," Becks said, a deep frown on her face.
"Paul might be way too overprotective, but that's why he doesn't want you going anywhere alone." Jeremy said, sipping his beer and shaking his head. Under his breath he muttered, "Ah, he's gonna have a conniption fit when he sees this." Becks leaned into him and whispered something in his ear. Maya perked up and narrowed her eyes at them.
"What do you mean?" Maya started.
"Nothing," Becks diverted. "So are you and Paul going to Seattle soon?" After the topic was changed, Maya let herself relax into the conversation, the drink helping to ease her building nervousness at the impending graduation happening in just two days.
After they ate, Jeremy suggested they head back, not wanting to keep Maya out too late since Paul was still a little nervous from the incident. Maya agreed, feeling a little looser after the two cocktails she'd had. Jeremy drove them back and automatically dropped Maya off at Paul's without her asking him to. She was about to tease him about that fact, but the time on the clock read 10:32 p.m. urging Maya to hurry inside. The door was unlocked for her and she quickly discarded her shoes, dropping her shopping by the door and she made her way quietly into the low lit kitchen for some water. As she made her way up the stairs, water glass in hand, she discarded her clothes over the railing until she was just in her underwear. Maya smiled at her boldness, well bold to her anyway, as she opened the door to his bedroom with her foot.
Paul was in bed, sitting up against the headboard, with his laptop open. He'd heard her since she came in, but now he looked up at her nearly naked frame in the doorway and let a pleased smile plaster his face. Maya grinned wickedly and took a sip of her water, missing her mouth a little in her slightly tipsy state. The water dripped down across her chest and she let out a little laugh.
"I was going to tell you that when I said not too late, I meant you should be home well before 10:30, but this kind of makes up for it," He let his eyes rake down her body appreciatively and Maya shivered at the feeling it gave her.
Maya leaned her body against the doorframe and gave him a soft smile.
"Well, come here," he motioned her forward with a nod of his head and Maya skipped quickly over to him, placing her water on the nightstand. He closed his laptop and set it aside as Maya straddled him, leaning forward to plant a kiss to his lips. "Did you have fun?" he asked, lazily running a hand down her back. Maya nodded.
"Yeah, it was really good. I found a dress too! I think you're going to love it," she shook her hair at her face, and he ran his other hand across her face, pushing some hair behind her ear in the process.
"Mmm, I can't wait to see it, but I like this look a little more," he lowered his lips down to her shoulder and kissed up onto her neck. Maya automatically pushed her hips forward in response and Paul placed his hands firmly on her waist to feel her body move under his hands. Maya tilted her head to one side, letting out a soft sigh at the feeling of his mouth on her neck. Kissing along her collarbone, Paul let go of Maya with one of his hands to open the nightstand drawer and pull out a condom. He quickly opened it with his teeth and handed it to Maya. She pulled him out of the top of his briefs and easily rolled the condom down. Paul pushed her panties to one side and Maya, following his lead, leaned up onto her knees so she could lower herself down onto him.
Maya wondered if she would always thrill in surprise at the feeling it gave her when he pushed inside of her. It was more than just the immense physical sensation of him, it was also the maddening bond that held them tightly together whenever they connected like this. She could feel the weight of the imprint constrict around her with every thrust and every fevered kiss. The taste of his mouth became something sweet that she craved. Her hands pressed to his chest, his neck, threaded through his hair, or gripped onto his muscled biceps buzzed warmth down her arms and through her body, intensifying the feeling between her legs that he sought to satiate.
Maya leaned back, setting her hands behind her on his thighs so she could grind quickly into him with her body on full display. Paul looked at her as if he couldn't believe what was happening. He licked the tip of his tongue and pressed it to the top of her ridge and stroked quickly, pulling hard and fast moans from Maya. She threw her head back and moaned out his name loudly, thankful for the fact that Paul's closest neighbor was over a mile away.
Maya was woken up the next morning to an empty bed space next to her, but felt soft kisses along her shoulder blade as a hand stroked through her hair. She turned her head and was met with Paul's face.
"Good morning," he said.
"Mmm, come back to bed." she groaned. He smiled that heart wrenching smile and shook his head.
"I need you to get up and get dressed. Emily and Sam are throwing you, Jeremy, and your friends a celebration lunch for graduating. Plus they want to welcome the new imprint," he pressed his warm lips to her cheek and Maya screwed up her face in confusion.
"They've already met me though."
"Not you. Seth finally imprinted," Paul said. "Come on, we're leaving in 30 minutes." He smacked her butt and left the room and Maya yawned.
"Seth Clearwater imprinted? Brutal," Maya mumbled as she laid her head back on her pillow for a second.
"I heard that," Paul called from downstairs, startling Maya. She was starting to realize that whatever heightened senses he had as a wolf, he probably had normally. She giggled and rolled out of bed to get ready, excited for them to step back out as a couple again to the pack.