First Dates

Tomorrow came slowly but it arrived. I sat with the pack again at lunch. I had told Skylar this morning about my phone call with Embry and she seemed more excited about it than me. She gave me this opportunity to be with him again but I promised us two girls would hang out tomorrow.

For some reason, the pack was off today. It was hard to explain but it wasn't so light-hearted. Everyone had a semi-serious face. Frankly, I was too scared to ask what was wrong. Jared seemed to be the only who was fine but I think it was because Kim was stroking his arm.

Embry didn't say much to me. He looked deep in thought. I gently placed my hand on his leg, catching his attention. I gave him a small, reassuring smile. He returned the favour and seemed to snap out of it.

It wasn't long before the bell rang and we went our separate ways. We planned to drive to my house so I could drop off my car and hop in his. Then we would spend some time together.

By the time school ended and I drove back to mine, I saw Embry pull out the front of my house. I quickly locked my car and threw my keys and bag inside my house. I ran to his car and climbed into the passenger seat. "You ready?" Embry asked.

I nodded my head as he began to drive away. "Where are we going?" I asked while I looked out the window.

"I have an idea." Embry smirked at me. I didn't mind where we went as long as it was just the two of us.

We drove for I little bit. I wasn't sure where we were but we ended up driving on a road which was near the edge of the cliff. I stared out the window, looking at the ocean that extended as far as the eye could see.

Embry suddenly drove off the road before parking. "We're here." He told me as he hopped out the car. I did the same and followed him to the edge of the cliff.

We were high up. I wasn't the best with heights so I stood a bit further back although I did try to look over the edge at the water below. "What is this place?"

"This is where we do cliff diving." Embry explained to me.

I was shocked. "You jump off the cliff here?" I looked back at the ledge.

"Yeah. It's scary but gives a real thrill." Embry stated as he sat on the ground near the ledge. "It also gives a nice view of the ocean." He patted the ground next to him.

I accepted the invitation as I sat on the ground next to him. We stared out at the water, just enjoying the company of each other. The sky was on the darker side with a cool breeze blowing. "Thanks for today. And for bringing me to this place."

Embry smiled at me. "Thanks for coming."

I stared into his eyes. His eyes were the first thing I remember noticing about Embry. We got lost in each other's eyes the first few times we met. We sat there for a moment as we just explored each other's eyes. It was now or never. "I talked with Kim and Emily yesterday."

Embry seemed surprised with my sudden announcement. He looked out at the sea with a playful smile. "What did you guys talk about?"

I paused before telling him. "Imprints." I saw his eyes narrow slightly and his smile faltered for a second.

He turned to face me. "What about them?" His face was fully of worry and he seemed unsure of what to say.

"Not to judge your explanation skills but I wanted to know what it meant." I answered truthfully while facing the ocean. "I wanted to know what we were supposed to be. And Emily said it can be whatever I want it to be."

I looked out the corner of my eye to see Embry giving a sad smile. He turned to me with a smile that could light up the whole universe. "She was right. It can be whatever you need it to be."

I searched his face. He wasn't lying. "I don't want it to be one sided. What do you want it to be?"

I seemed to throw him off guard but he recovered quickly. "Whatever you want it to be."

I grinned before I giggled. "We're going around in circles." I turned my whole body around to face him and sat on my knees. I stared directly into his eyes. "What are we now?"

He didn't reply. It's not that he refused to answer, he just didn't know how to answer. I could see him trying to work out what we were. "What do you think we are?"

"I don't know." We continued to just stare at each other. I felt my heart rate increase like crazy. "You can hear my heart rate, can't you? Seth told me."

He nodded slowly. "Sorry. I didn't want to embarrass you or something if I mentioned it." I think I was confusing him with where this was going.

I took a deep breath. Now or never. "I think I'm falling for you."

A moment of silence passed as he looked at me dumbfoundedly. I was unconsciously clenching my fists. I could feel my nails beginning to dig into my palms.

The silence began to cause me to panic. "I mean, I don't even know what love is but ever since I met you my heart beats like crazy, which you would already know since you can hear it. So at least this is what I think it is. Then the whole imprint thing. And all the other imprints are romantically involved, well except for Claire and Quil, but everyone thinks it's inevitable in the end." I stopped when I realised I was rumbling.

I looked to see Embry was just smiling at me with soft eyes. "You don't know how happy that makes me. Maddi, I love you. From the very moment I laid eyes on you, when I imprinted, I wanted to be with you."

I know for a fact I was blushing. But this time I didn't care that he could tell. "Well, sorry for making you wait this long." I glanced away as I scratched my cheek in shyness.

Suddenly, I was engulfed in warm arms. I looked to see Embry was hugging me. I lifted my arms to return the hug. His hug was strong and protective but also warm and comforting. After a few moments passed, he pulled away. "What does this make us?" he inquired playfully but also genuinely asking.

"Maybe, dating?" I questioned rather than stated.

He grinned. "Sounds good to me."

"But." I abruptly stated. "We take it slow."

He chuckled. "Whatever you want."

He slipped his hand into mine as we sat watching the scenery before us. "The other boys will find out about all of this, won't they?" I inquired with slight embarrassment.

"Yeah, sorry. I'll try not to think about it but…" Embry offered.

"Nah, that'll make you think of it more." I chuckled. "I don't mind. Guess you can't hide anything. Not even how you find my blushing and heart rate quickening endearing." I smirked at him.

He looked like a deer caught in headlights. "Seth?"

"Seth." I confirmed with a laugh. I saw Embry chuckle beside me. "Hey, can I ask, why did you and the pack look so down today? Did something happen?"

Embry stiffened. Something did happen. "What's wrong?" I said with worry.

"It's nothing that will affect you." Embry tried to reassure me.

I raised one eyebrow at him. "Come on. Don't hide things from me, please."

He stared at me for a second before caving in. "It happened at Bella's graduation party. We found out a red-haired vampire named Victoria is creating a newborn vampire army to attack Bella. We plan on helping protect her which means fighting."

I instinctively tightened my grasp on Embry's hand. "I have heard of her from Kim and Emily. You're going to fight them? They could kill you."

"I know." He rubbed the back of my hand with his thumb. "But this is what we do. We're not just protecting Bella. We protect everyone by destroying that army." He turned to face me. "It means I'm protecting you."

I didn't want him in danger for me. "You can protect me by staying by my side."

He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. "I want to. But we have to stop them." Nothing would change his mind so I dropped the subject.

I leaned against Embry as we just stared at the ocean. We sat there for a while, exchanging words to each other.

"Come on, it'll get dark soon. I'll take you home." Embry helped me stand up before he drove me home.

I stepped out of the car. "Well, I classify this as a date." Embry stated with a grin.

"I can live with that." I joked back. "I had fun and we settled things out." We shared smiles knowing that we were now a couple like the others.

"Will I see you tomorrow after school as well?" Embry asked hopefully.

I frowned. "I'm sorry. I promised to hang with Skylar tomorrow. Can we do the day after tomorrow?"

Now it was Embry's turn to frown. "That day we have training with Cullen's to prepare for the upcoming fight. We won't even be at school."

I forgot about that fight. It made me scared to think about it. "I'll go to Emily's that night. You'll be done by night, right?"

Embry smiled. "Yeah, that'll work. I'll see you then." I closed the door and waved Embry off as he drove away.

I wandered to my room, a smile plastered on my face. I closed my bedroom door and grabbed my phone. If I didn't tell Skylar now she would kill me when she found out.

I held the dialling phone to my ear until I heard her voice. "Hey, Maddi. What's up?"

"Oh, not much, you know just…" I bit my lip as I tried to stop myself grinning. "Embry and I are officially dating."

There was an awkward silence. My smile disappeared as I furrowed my brows. Did she not hear me or something? "Skylar? Did you hear-"

My question was cut short as an ear-piercing scream vibrated through the phone. I nearly threw my phone across the room from the shock and noise. Just how many hertz was her scream? Pretty sure I'm deaf in that ear now.

"Yes! I can't believe it! I'm so happy for you!" Skylar practically yelled into the phone. I didn't even have it up to my ear anymore. It was sitting in my lap and I could still hear her voice clearly. "You have to give me all the details! Where did you go? What did he say? What did you say?"

"Okay, okay." I told with a chuckle. I have the feeling this would be a long phone call. "Where do I begin?"

Like I predicted, Skylar and I talked for a long time. I told her all the details, only excluding the whole imprinting and supernatural creatures part.

When we finally ended the call, I was exhausted. I completely crashed on my bed. The last thing I remember before falling asleep was having a huge smile on my face as I thought of Embry.