Take me down
I'm feeling now
And if I move on
I admit you're gone
And I ain't ready
But I'll hold steady
Yeah I'll hold you
In my arms, in my arms
In my arms

And you're locked inside my heart
And your melody's an art
And I won't let the terror in I'm stealing time
Through the eye of the needle

Eye of the Needle - Sia

Chapter 28: Stealing Time

Lexi

Brady's sweet, albeit vulnerable confession to me rang in my ears for what felt like hours.

The only good thing about me is you.

How could I react to that? In that moment, as touching as it was that he'd confided something like that in me, it was also a blow to my heart. How could he think so little of himself? Sure he was an asshole, but he was also a caring, passionate, loving asshole with so much to offer. Did he not even see himself for what he really was? I'd gotten a glimpse of what his home life was like the one time he'd taken me home to meet his mother and things didn't exactly look like they were going well. I had to wonder what had really transpired between the two of them for Brady to look at himself with such low self-worth in his mind.

I stood on the beach, my toes digging into the rocky sand as the waves rolled up to my ankles. Glancing up shore, I squinted in the moonlight and tried to spot Brady's wolf form as he 'went for a run', as he called it. Once the sun had completely set and the beach was abandoned, he'd phased for a quick run and a check in with the pack back home. I grinned and pulled the ends of my sweatshirt over my hands. This supernatural boyfriend stuff was almost second nature to me by now! Of all the girls in the world, how had fate deemed me shape shifter girlfriend material? I'd never know what made me special enough to belong with someone out of a storybook, but I would take it.

After a few more minutes, I heard the soft patter of large paws against the sand. Turning, I saw Brady in his huge, black wolf form trotting up to me. He was so massive. So dauntless. His wolf form was enough to make any creature on the planet tremble with fear that was for sure. And he'd made it clear that he would protect me from anything. I suddenly felt untouchable and more fearless than I'd ever been.

He bumped my side with his huge head, snorting softly as I playfully pushed his face away. He nodded to me, signaling he was going to phase back.

We both glanced around just in case, the gesture almost second nature to me now. The beach was dark and deserted, but I still secretly feared for Brady's secret being revealed. He phased back, his body shuddering a few time before the shift took place, and he was standing in front of me, stark naked. I handed him his jeans and shirt, silently amused that he usually chose to skip the hassle of underwear completely.

"Thanks," he replied sourly.

"What's wrong?" I frowned.

He ran a hand through his inky short hair, the gesture causing it to stick up in a million different directions.

"I spoke to Embry. My dad was at our house, looking for me," he said quietly, his voice laced with concern. "And Quil is pissed at Claire. Fucking drama never ends," he growled.

I watched as he hastily yanked on his jeans, followed by his shirt. I shivered to myself against the cool breeze, but didn't say anything. He was clearly irritated.

"What do you think your dad wanted?" I asked.

"Who fucking knows? Now he's just showing up at my house? Fuck him. Shit..." he huffed, stalking back towards the car. I followed behind, trailing like a lost puppy. I hated it when he got like this – angry, dark, and practically belligerent.

"What's wrong with Claire?"

"She's drunk," he said shortly. "She went to some party with Regan, got fucking shitfaced and started acting all crazy and... and he and Seth had to go in and bail their asses out. He phased on the street like an idiot and took off. Seth was taking them back to his place for the night I guess. Not like he can drop Claire's drunk ass back at home. It never ends."

We climbed into the car, and I started driving home, my mind whirling. Claire and Quil had been on the outs with each other since Leah's wedding - it was like being on pins and needles with them when they were in the same room. If I thought Brady was a moody spitfire, Claire could be ten times worse when she was at her worst. She was rather tightlipped when it came to their relationship – it was weird, really. I knew Quil was her imprint; that was easy enough to see after Brady had explained imprinting to me. A fool could recognize their draw to each other and understand that there was a deep bond between them. Claire had known Quil imprinted on her for some time now, and I didn't understand what the problem was.

I drove slowly, hoping to prolong our private time. I wasn't ready to be home just yet under the watchful eye of my father. He seemed to think I was going to try something stupid with him sleeping right outside Brady's door like a guard.

"I don't get it," I admitted finally, glancing over at him. "Why are they always fighting?"

Brady laughed bitterly, shaking his head. "Believe it or not… you and I had it easy."

"Easy?" There was nothing practically easy about our relationship. What the hell was he talking about?

"Easy in the sense that… I met you when you were more or less an appropriate age. Not by society's standards exactly, but… you were at least near that. A hundred years ago no one would have thought twice about a girl your age and a guy my age, even my real age, going together. It just wouldn't turn heads like it does sometimes now," he explained. "But Quil met Claire when she was a baby. He imprinted on her right there, just like I did with you on the beach that time. But their relationship was different, sorta. It was hard to see you as a… how do I put this?" he sighed. "I didn't see you in that way right away. It took some time. For Quil, that time was just about fifteen years. They were just friends, and he was like a brother. Now…"

"Now she's certainly not like his little sister. She's grown up."

"Exactly," he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "So she's grown up now and shit's changed between them. They've been friends for so long that it's a tough shift to make. He's not handling it well."

"I guess I don't see what the big deal is. Isn't that a good thing?"

"Yeah, it is," he admitted, shrugging. I pulled into my mother's driveway and killed the engine on the rent a car.

"So what's the drama?"

"Well… he just isn't sure how to make that change. How to shift the relationship without screwing it up. Claire's not just some random hookup for him. She's his life. If he fucks it up now, he thinks it will be a scar on their relationship for the rest of their lives."

I gave him a skeptical sideways look. "Uh, he's kinda messing it up now. He's acting like a straight up jackass."

"Right, well… I'm not justifying it Lex, jeez… I've just been inside his head, and I know how he rationalizes it. No secrets when you're in wolf form, that's for damn sure."

I shuddered internally. As much as I loved my friends, I certainly wouldn't want them to be able to hear every errant thought than ran through my mind at any given time. Part of me wanted to kick Quil's ass; part of me pitied him.

"I won't miss this shit," he groaned unbuckling his seat belt. He turned to face me in the passenger seat. "I won't miss this a bit when you finally catch up to me, and I can retire from all of this."

I frowned. "You're looking forward to that? Retiring?"

He shrugged, reaching up with one hand to rub his temple. "Yeah. If it means walking away from this for forever, then definitely. My life has been ten kinds of crazy, Lex. A fucked up childhood, teen years spent phasing, being manwhore, a shitty person, and making a living murdering monsters. Yeah, I guess you could say I'm looking forward to retiring and having a bit of normalcy," he sighed, laughing bitterly to himself.

I swallowed, watching him blow out a stressed breath of air. He gave me a sad, crooked smile. "I'm looking forward to my nice, normal life with you, Lex. I want to put all of this behind me and just… be with you. Two normal, happy humans who can pretend like none of this supernatural drama bullshit ever happened. A nice, normal forever."

I walked down the hall of Forks High two days later, my mind still in a blur as I tried to process the last few days alone. When our plane touched down in Seattle on Sunday morning, I'd turned my phone on to receive a very frantic voicemail from Regan. Apparently Quil and Claire had gotten into a knockdown, drag out fight in Seth's driveway after Claire's drunken bender the night before. They'd screamed at each other and fought until Quil had gotten so angry he'd phased, only to have Claire deck him, and Seth phased to protect Claire, all right in front of an otherwise oblivious Regan. She'd found out her best friend was a werewolf and well, that practically all of our friends from La Push were werewolves.

To make matters worse, the three of us had had a rather awkward run in with someone I'd never met before and would have been happy to never meet- Brady's father. We had just gotten our bags when Brady's entire body went stiff and his eyes got dark and guarded - he didn't even have to tell me something was wrong. My father had been obliviously checking his emails on his phone when a dark haired man practically stalked up to us at the baggage claim.

"Nice to see you… son," he stated coolly.

Brady's shoulders straightened, his chin jutting upwards in defiance. "Dad."

I gaped up at the statuesque man that was standing in front of us, a carryon in hand. "What are you doing here?"

The meeting had been brief and incredibly awkward, Brady not acknowledging that I was standing three feet away, and his dad pretended not to notice other than throwing a cool look my way before stalking off. Brady had been in a terrible mood for the rest of the day after that, sulking through a Sunday night movie marathon with me in the basement. He'd left for patrols still angry, muttering something about going to check on his mother. While I was annoyed he was still being an ass about the run-in, I'd pulled him back for a longer kiss that the peck I'd gotten.

"Kiss me like you mean it."

"Why's that? I just kissed you."

I frowned. "You fight vampires for a living. That's dangerous work. Just give me a real kiss if you're leaving for patrol, okay?"

"Don't be ridiculous," he'd scoffed. He'd left in an irritable huff after that, slipping out the back door of my house and quietly padding across the lawn. He'd given me one last look over his shoulder before the darkness of night had engulfed him completely.

I saw hurt in that look.

Brady would never tell me he was hurting – his way was to get angry instead. I didn't understand it, but I was trying. But Brady would have to give at some point – I couldn't always be the one breaking and bending, right?

I made it lunch, but just barely. I could feel my teachers growing annoyed with the way they would call on me in clipped tones, their underlying message clear- stop staring outside at the rain and pay attention.

I slid my lunch tray onto the cafeteria table, ignoring the way my soup threatened to slosh right out of the bowl. Flopping down onto the plastic chair, I stabbed my apple juice carton with my straw and took a long pull as I glanced out at the rain. Zeke grunted a welcome at me through a mouthful of sloppy Joe, pausing only to unwrap another one of the dripping, greasy looking atrocities from the tin foil they came packed in.

"Hey yourself," I answered, watching him devour the next victim in nearly two bites. I wondered if most dogs I knew would have been more delicate about it. I glanced at Claire, who was simply glaring at her food.

"It's already dead," I teased, elbowing her side. "You don't have to try and kill it with your death stare."

She rolled her eyes at me, but eased her scowling. Zeke gave her a bemused look before his eyes flashed to Regan. I watched her green orbs widen as she realized he was looking at her. She'd been acting all funny since finding out about the pack's no-so-little secret over the weekend. Did she seriously not trust them? I got that it was a shock –I'd been surprised too. But how was she not just amazed with it all? It was magic, and it was happening to us in Forks, of all places. What did she have to be so upset about? I took another long sip of my juice and watched as Zeke took another ravished looking bite from the greasy sandwich.

"I'm not going to burst into one here at the lunch table, if that's what you're wondering," he said through a mouth full of food. He nimbly cracked open one of his two sodas, downing half of it before smacking it down on the table. I raised an eyebrow. It wasn't like Zeke to be short with her.

Regan ignored him, turning instead to me and Claire. She had deep, purple rings under her eyes like she hadn't slept.

"You couldn't have told me?" she asked with a huff.

I glanced at Claire, hoping she would take this one. I'd known about this little secret for a fraction of the time she had.

"It's not our secret to tell, Regan," she finally answered.

I'd wanted to tell her several times, but Brady had made no qualms about emphasizing what a big deal it was that Regan hear about Seth from Seth – Claire was right. Brady had told me what happened in Seth's driveway Sunday morning and okay, it wasn't an ideal way to find things out, but… at least she knew now. Seth had kinda spilled the beans himself by getting all hot and huffy and bursting into a giant wolf in his driveway right in front of her anyhow, so now she was in on it.

At least that was one less person I had to keep a secret from.

My mind went to Patrick and my dad. If things did work out and I did stay with Brady forever, there was no way they could ever find out about him. They were still a little irked and bothered by the fact that he appeared so much older than I was, but to tell them that their daughter's boyfriend was also a magical shape shifter? No way. I knew they loved me and would do just about anything to keep me happy, but no way were they letting that one slip through. No, this was a secret I would have to always keep from them and that killed me. I told my dad and Patrick everything about my life so far. I'd always been a daddy's girl, but moving hundreds of miles away with them to Washington had only solidified that choice for me. I guess I should have been happy that I at least had Regan and Claire to share these things with now.

"Brady would have killed me," I admitted. "I'm sorry, Regan."

I gave her a sympathetic smile, but she didn't look like she was taking the news any better. Not that I blamed her – it was a big secret to be in on, and it wasn't easy to realize how heavy of a burden it was.

"It's alright," she finally said. "I just… got the shock of my life."

I nodded, remembering the day Brady had shifted in front of me like it was yesterday. I looked over at Claire, who was still pouting and staring out the long windows of the cafeteria.

"Did you talk to Quil?"

I knew they were fighting, but I didn't understand the why behind it. She knew what he was, she knew they were imprints – what more did Quil need from her in order to be happy? From what I could understand, she was more than ready to take the next step in their imprint relationship and finally move from 'friends' to 'more than friends'. Quil wasn't having any of it yet.

"Yeah. Nothing has really changed..."

My heart broke for her. Brady had pursued me the entire time – what if the tables had been turned?

"Give it time," I offered, because that was the only thing I could think to say. Clare scowled back at me before grumpily turning back to stare out the window. Regan pushed her food around her plate, not really looking like my advice sat well with her either.

"Sorry," I sighed. Zeke shot me an understanding look from across the table as he twisted his napkin in his hands. Nothing felt like the right thing to say right now.

I pulled up in front of Charlie Swan's house, glancing at Regan as she checked her cell phone again. She must not have seen what she was looking for, because she simply frowned and shoved it back into her bag.

"Have a good night… and try not to think too much, okay?"

She rolled her eyes at me as she unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door. Seth was a no-show after school that day, which was strange – he usually picked Regan up. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary to see his teal-green and white bronco sitting on the curb across from the school as soon as the last bell rang. But today, she'd tearfully asked me for a ride home when the spot he usually sat at was empty.

"I think that's impossible, Lex. How could I not?"

"Things will work out, I mean… they worked out for me, and who would have thought? Brady…" I snorted in the back of my throat and shook my head at myself. Just a short time ago I would have thought someone was crazy if they told me the jerk I'd met on the beach that day was to be my first real love. Hopefully only, I thought with a tiny smile.

"You're right," she sighed. "Alright… off to finish my lovely English Lit paper," she groaned, stepping out of the car.

I laughed. "Right – because at eighteen we know what the hell we want to do with our lives."

"I know, right? See ya," she sighed, slamming the door shut. I pulled away from the curb, carefully navigating the winding, slick roads back towards my house.

The days were growing shorter as fall progressed; I wasn't used to it getting dark this early in the day, but the gloomy weather of Washington certainly didn't help. I drove slowly over the slick pavement, squinting as the fog rose up, making it difficult to see. The days were still somewhat warm, which made the roads retain some heat – that is, until it got darker and the rain fell, which would make the steam rise up from the road. It created a thick fog that made it difficult to see and even more difficult to drive in. Turning down my radio, I drove as carefully as I could towards my house. My dad was working late tonight, and I didn't know what Brady was up to – I figured the last thing he wanted to do was tow me out of a ditch or fix another flat tire, so I paid careful attention to where I was driving.

My eyes were growing tired from staring at the road, but I held my focus the best I could as my mind thought back to Regan. At least Brady had prefaced what he was by dropping hints and even trying to gently explain the magical part of his blood to me before bursting into a wolf. I felt like I had some time to get used to the idea he wasn't normal before learning what he was. Poor Regan. Zeke had given me a play by play of what had happened after lunch in gym class, and I felt horrible that she had to learn his secret that way.

I was so focused on Regan's problem that I almost didn't see him. I screeched in surprise as my struggling headlights fell upon a man standing in the road.

"Oh my God!" I yelped, narrowly swerving to avoid him. I panicked, slamming on the brakes as I realized it was going to be too late. I felt the tires slide across the slick road, struggling to find their treated as I tensed and held my breath. The car jerked to a stop, the fog swirling in the headlights. Realizing I'd clenched my eyes shut, I opened them an inch and looked at the road.

Nothing.

I blinked a few times, un-prying my hands from the steering wheel. Nothing was there. Glancing out the side window, I held my breath and tried to play the image back in my head. There had been someone standing there, right? I'd seen it. For a moment I panicked and thought I hit him, but that couldn't be right – I would have felt my car hit something.

My hands shook as I placed them back on the wheel, my eyes still searching the foggy road in my headlights. Was I seeing things?

Not wanting to wait any longer, I eased up on the brake and didn't relax until I felt the engine churning to take off. I drove away a little too quickly, but I couldn't help it. That was strange. I know someone was standing it the road, by why hadn't I hit them?

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as I tried unsuccessfully to brush the incident off. It hadn't happened, I told myself. I gripped the wheel to keep my hands from shaking until I pulled in the driveway. They didn't stop until my headlights fell on Brady, who was sitting on the front steps of my darkened house, wringing his hands together. He looked beyond agitated.

I opened the door and he stood quickly, his eyes dark. He was at my side an instant later, his bare chest shining with sweat in the muggy night air. He was close enough that I could feel the heat rising off his skin as he stood in front of me, scanning me with a panicked look.

"Are you alright?'

"Brady… I'm fine. What… what happened?" I asked, scanning his tall form again. He was barefoot, slick with sweat, and had nothing on but a pair of ripped cargo shorts. He smelled like rain and the woods and wild. He'd clearly just phased back to human form.

"I was patrolling and caught his scent."

"His…?"

He shot me a dark look.

"That vamp. That fucking bloodsucker that saw us in the woods that day. He's back," he practically spat. He began to pace beside my car, his bare feet slapping against the driveway. I glanced around the yard, scanning the perimeter of our neatly cut lawn with a panicked gaze. The fog was rolling over the dewy grass as the garage light shone on it, giving it a horror movie appearance. I shuddered.

"Is he gone? What happened? Why does he want to bother you?"

Brady shot me a worried look.

"It's not me he's after. A few weeks ago we caught up to him and… we got into a scuffle. He said something in Italian… when we cornered him… I didn't get what it was, exactly, but…"

I felt my stomach drop.

"I… I think he found me."

Brady jerked. "What?"

"I… I… I think he found me. I was driving here and I saw someone… something in the road. It looks like a man, but I braked and… he was gone. I thought I'd imagined it until just now, until you said something…"

"Where?!"

"Back up by the turnoff, by the access road. The one the winds by the river. I was driving here, and I almost hit him and on my God, Brady… what does he want?"

He stared out at the dark lawn, his gaze hard and steely.

"Shit."

"Brady, what… what do I do? He was out there, he was right there, I just…"

"I have a bad feeling."

I gulped. "Do you think he's after me? He's gonna kill me, isn't he?"

"No," he said quickly. His eyes locked to mine. "He'll die for this. For teasing you, for coming back here. I'll rip him apart with my bare hands if I have to Lexi. I can promise you that."

I followed his gaze to the trees. "He's out there, isn't he?"

A cold feeling had settled over my bones, making me quake from the inside out. He could be watching me right now for all I knew. Everything I'd ever feared or thought I was afraid of suddenly paled in comparison to a vampire hunting me.

Brady shook his head, tossing a look into the trees. "The guys are still out there, looking. I have Zeke and Jake guarding the house, the rest are out looking for him. Lexi, I… I got into a fight with him. Shit, I…"

"Brady… what happened? What did you do?"

He shook his head. "Jake warned me that messing with him would only make it worse, but I… I didn't listen."

He looked up at me, his eyes changing from fierce to apologetic.

"I egged him on and made him even pissier, and I'm sorry. I just made this worse."

I reached over, pulling him closer to me. The heat was still radiating through him, making his body practically vibrate beneath my fingertips. I ran my hands up his slick forearms, grasping them tightly. He felt like raw power. He felt invincible.

I felt terrified.

Some maniac of a vampire was out for me, and I was only a human girl. Not even one that was in good shape or like, good at running either. A supernatural being had me on its hit list, and I suddenly felt powerless.

"What can I do?" I asked. "What can I do to help fix this?"

He furrowed his dark eyebrows, grabbing my elbow. "Nothing," he snapped, leading me into the house. Once inside, he scrubbed his face with his hands as I dropped my keys onto the counter.

"Am I safe… here?"

He nodded. "The guys are in the woods. I already went through your house while I waited for you… no scent of him here, not that he would come this close. He'd have to have a death wish to come inside. This place probably reeks like dog."

I frowned.

"What?" I sniffed the air, glancing around my father's pristine home. "It doesn't smell in here… right?"

He shrugged. "Cullens always say we stink like wet dog. It's the wolf thing. They hate it, and always say they can smell us a mile away."

He gave a little grin. "Nothing comes close to their stench though."

I flipped on the kitchen lights and glanced around with a leery gaze, still half expecting a vampire to come tearing out of the coat closet or from behind a door and suck me dry. This was all very new and unsettling. The things I'd been told weren't real and were just fairytales my entire life were now things I should rightfully fear.

Well, mission accomplished.

He leaned on the counter, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Vamps fuckin' reek."

"Like wet dogs?"

"No," he snorted. "Like… rubbing alcohol and bleach mixed with musky perfume and cotton candy, then lit on fire with gasoline. It's sick, it's just… sharp and pungent and makes your nose sting. It's sweet and harsh at the same time, I can't describe it."

"Wow," I breathed. "Bad, huh?"

He nodded. Looking up, his eyes met mine.

"I'm sorry, Lexi."

I shrugged, even though I wanted to curl up into a ball and hug my knees and rock back and forth.

"Don't' be," I sighed. "I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. We both were."

He shook his head. "I shouldn't have had you out in the woods. It's so dangerous around here, all this supernatural shit running around… I thought it was safe, ya know? I thought with the woods smelling like us wolves and… and patrolling and busting our asses to keep Forks clean of all that, we'd be fine."

"I'm scared," I admitted. "But you can protect me. You and the pack, right?"

"I'd fight to the death for you," he answered without thinking. He didn't even pause.

I gulped again.

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," I said slowly. "And he didn't even say anything about me. This could just all be a terrible… horrible, coincidence, right?"

Brady shrugged.

"Nothing we can do, right? Besides hunting him? I mean, you guys will catch him?"

He nodded, his eyes hard again. "I'm going to catch him and rip him to pieces… then I'm going to pile them up and burn him to a fuckin crisp."

"How do you know this is about me? What makes you think he just doesn't… like hate you, and that's why he's hanging around Forks?"

Brady paused, thinking for a moment.

"Because… I'm bad luck. Just when things are going great, it only figures that a blood thirsty leech would come around and try to take away the best thing that ever happened to me."

Thank you to Ninkybaby for Beta-ing!

Thank you readers for reading - sorry for the lack of updates! Between work and the beautiful summer we had here, I spent every minute I could outside in my garden. But the days are getting longer and it's getting colder (wah) so I'm back at the drawing board.

Thank you for reading and please review! *muah*