"God," I hissed irritably. "Just look at him." My eyes narrowed at the sight of Paul literally surrounded by a horde of giggling, flirting, teenage girls. To Hell with their shiny hair. To Hell with their perfect skin, and megawatt smiles, and skinny, toned bodies. I hated them. I hated him.
"You're not jealous, are you Haley?" Kim smirked, taking a sip of her drink. I rolled my eyes and downed another beer. Jealous? Of who? Of those girls? Why in God's name would I be jealous of them? I felt sorry for them. They were all over Paul, completely unaware of how stupid he was, of how big of an ass he is. How dumb could you get? Jealousy was the last thing on my mind.
"Why the Hell am I supposed to like him again?" I shot, crossing my arms. "Stereo Love" was blaring in the background, and even as Kim leaned into me I could barely hear her slurred words over the the sound of music and chatter that filled Sam and Emily's house.
"Because he saved your life!" She cried, waving her arms in the air and spilling some of her liquor.
"He tried to-"
"KIMBERLY CONWELLER," shot a voice through the crowd. Kim winced as her Mom walked over and snatched the cup from her hand. "What in the Hell is this?!"
"Mom! I'm 19!" Kim cried, taking her cup back as her Mom rolled her eyes. "I have my own house, I pay my own bills, let me drink!" Mrs. Conweller simply shook her head and shot Jared a dangerous glare as he walked towards us.
"So help me God Jared, if something happens to my daughter you will be the FIRST one I hunt down."
Jared's eyes nearly bugged out of his head as he nodded and slid an arm around Kim's waist, her mother walking away, clearly irritated.
"She should've been yelling at you," Jared quipped as I took a long, heavy sip from Kim's cup. She frowned at me as Jared laughed. "How old are you again?"
"Sixteen. Seventeen in two weeks. So boo on you." I wavered, holding the door for support before my eyes unwillingly flickered towards Paul and his fans once more. I made a disgusted face.
"He doesn't care about them, you know." Embry laughed, throwing an arm around me. I'd learned that Embry and Jared, along with the rest of their friends, were obnoxiously huge and muscular. For the sake of not wanting to look stupid, I hadn't asked any questions, seeing as it didn't seem to bother anyone else around here that all of our high schoolers looked huge.
"What a coincidence," I smiled sweetly. "Because I don't care about him." Kim rolled her eyes.
"Yeah yeah," she grinned. "Let's just dance alright?"
"Who's dancing?" an irritating voice boomed. I turned my head lazily, Paul settling next to Jared.
"Not you." I shot. Paul looked genuinely hurt, sending a quick pang through my heart. I hadn't meant to hurt him. Or had I?
"Why not? Can't keep up, Princess?" he chided, a quick mask of calm taking over his expression. Princess. The name echoed in the back of my mind like I'd heard it before. I rolled my eyes at him.
"I could dance circles around you, that is if I was willing to let you come within five feet of me."
"Do you have to be so mean?" he asked sarcastically.
"Do you have to be so annoying?"
"Can we all just play nice, please?" Sam called over the staircase banister, five year old Sam Jr. sitting sleepily on his shoulders. I stared at the adorable little boy for a moment, wondering if I'd ever have one of my own. When I looked back to our little circle of friends, Paul's eyes were flickering between Sam Jr. and I. I shot him a glare.
"Sorry Sam, I'm not exactly fond of Sociopaths." I smiled again, wriggling past Jared and Paul. Sam rolled his eyes and continued up the stairs, taking his son to bed.
"Sociopath?!" Paul cried, grabbing my wrist as I waded through the sea of people. I whirled to face him, snatching my hand away.
"Do NOT touch me. How many times do I have to say it?"
"No, Haley, how many times do I have to say it? I didn't try to hurt you, I'd NEVER try to hurt yo-"
"And I'm just supposed to believe you?" I argued. Paul looked hurt, and once again I felt guilty. I stepped away from him, praying the distance between us would free me from his affect on me.
"You have to. God, you have to know I'd never do anything to hurt you."
"I don't know you." I insisted, turning back to the mob. I melted into the pool of bodies, allowing hundreds of people to run their hands over my skin as I moved with them. I rolled my entire body, stealing sips from others' cups, earning kisses on the cheek, smiling at boys I had no interest in speaking to after tonight. I swayed my hips with the beat, breathing heavily. Kim was somewhere dancing on a table. Embry had his arms around a blonde, whispering something into her ear. Collin was getting a lap dance in the corner. I didn't want to know where Paul was. Probably off with his fanclub. The thought of him ignited the hate for him I had growing in the pit of my stomach, along with the heat from too much liquor pooling through my body. I was thankful for this moment. Thankful that for a few minutes, I didn't have the weight of lost memories bearing down on my shoulders. The scent of Honey wafted in front of me and I closed my eyes, inhaling and clinging to the shirt in front of me.
Paul turned around, his eyebrows furrowed as his dark eyes locked on mine. My entire body froze.
"I was looking for you-" he started. I didn't give him time to finish. I ducked underneath his arm, squirming in between bodies, looking for fresh air one again.
I wasn't sure where I was going, but I knew I wanted to be away from him. The way I'd felt when he'd touched me, little jolts of electricity shooting up through my veins, it was disturbing. I didn't want to go near him. I didn't want to touch him.
Because I knew if I did touch him, if my fingers touched any part of his skin...
I wouldn't want t stop. I hated Paul Lahote. I hated him.
*Paul POV *
The heavy rain was pouring in thick sheets outside against the pavement, the smell of the Earth mixing with gasoline as sweat dripped down my forehead. I paused in my movement, small, light footsteps coming closer towards me by the second.
"You've got to be kidding me."
I could smell Haley before I saw her, and I could only picture her expression as I slid out from underneath the red SUV above me, wrench in hand. She eyed me with nothing less than complete irritation, her eyes flickering to Adam as if to ask if he was serious.
"No joke, Little One. You might have forgotten this part, but he works here too." he grinned. I watched her face as she tried to wipe the thought of me away. She reached up behind her, tangling her dark curls into a knot at the back of her head as her eyes roamed around the garage.
"It's amazing in here," she said quietly. Adam nodded.
"That's what you said the first time."
"I've been in here before?" She asked seriously, watching him. He nodded again. I felt sorry for her in a way that I never have before. The entire time I'd only been thinking of myself, wondering how I was supposed to go on living without her remembering me. I'd seemed to forgotten that it was Haley who was experiencing life in La Push all over again. I couldn't help but remember how much she'd hated it here the first time she'd realized she was staying.
"You also," Adam coughed awkwardly, causing me to tear my eyes away from her for a moment. "Said that you loved this little junker right here." He pulled the cover off of the silver Mustang in the corner, dust filling the room. Haley's eyes lit up for a moment before dying down again.
"But..." she said quietly, disappointment filling her voice. "I don't...I don't remember how to fix it."
Pity overcame Adam's expression as he looked back down at the car, and the words shot out of my mouth before I could stop them.
"I could teach you." I blurted out, my face growing hot. Haley's eyes narrowed at me with suspicion.
"You could teach me?" She asked skeptically, crossing her arms. Even when she was being a brat, she was adorable.
"Or you could just let the poor thing die in the corner, Princess. It's up to you." I shrugged, praying she wouldn't take me seriously. Haley blinked for a few moments,her expression softening as she looked back at the car. She unfolded her arms and looked at her hands for a moment, and for the millionth time since I'd met her I wondered what she was thinking.
"Fine," she dropped her hands. Heat spread throughout my body. "But if you touch me, I'll kill you."
"Deal." I smirked, a grin spreading across my entire face. I couldn't help it. She'd agreed to let me come close to her. Not touch her, but talk to her. I had an excuse to stay in her life and I didn't want to give it up.
"I'm serious." she said gravely. Although her words weren't exactly welcoming, I could've sworn I saw a smile playing at the side of her lips as she turned and followed Adam back through the garage.