A/N: Thanks for all the LUV! I'll keep posting as long as you keep reviewing…seems like a fair deal to me! Though this particular chapter is probably the saddest so far, it's my favorite one yet, just because it shows the close-knit relationship between Embry and his mom. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Playlist for this chapter:

Are You Gonna Be My Girl? - Jet

Broken – Lifehouse (A little later in the chapter)

Chapter Four

The next day, I got a call at 8:00 in the morning. Who's even alive at 8 in the morning? Oh yeah…I can think of one person…

"Embry Call, you better not still be asleep and it's already 8:00! You're going to sleep your life away!" She shrieked in the phone, and I jumped about 10 feet in the air.

"Hello mother…what may I do for you this pleasant morning?" I tried to sound nice, but it still came across as annoyed.

"Get up Embry. You're taking me on my errands today."

I sighed. "I'll be there in 30."

"Make it in 20." She hung up on me, and I laughed. God, I love my mother. She's so funny.

I showed up in 15, and she got in the car. It's not that she didn't have her own car, it's just that she doesn't get too many off days because she works so much so this is how we spend time together.

"So where are we off to today mom?" I asked, pulling off.

"Geez Embry, you sound so excited." I laughed. She ran her hand through my hair and I ducked away playfully. "Mom…" I complained, and she laughed. "Think it's time for a hair cut?" She asked

I ran my hand through my hair. "Maybe…" I shrugged.

"I have to go grocery shopping, so we have to stop at the bank first." "To the bank it is."

I parked and waited in the car as she went in the bank. I got bored, so I turned on the radio. Are You Gonna Be My Girl by Jet was playing. Good song. After a while, mom still hadn't come out of the bank. So I decided to go investigate. When I got in, she was still talking to the teller at the counter. I shook my head smiling. My mom was always a friendly-bob. She had to hold a conversation with everyone she met.

She saw me and said goodbye to the girl, then walked over to me. When she moved, I saw who she was talking to. It was her.

By the time my mom walked over to me I was still frozen, and my mouth was hanging wide open.

"Embry, what's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost or something…" She looked to see what I was staring at.

"Oh you think she's cute?" She smiled. "She seems to be a real sweetheart."

"That's what I keep hearing…" I said in a dazed whisper. I pulled my mom close and whispered to her. "Mom, she's my imprint."

Her face lit up and her eyes danced, and she looked like she was ready to scream.

"Oh my G—" I covered her mouth before she could scream and draw attention to us.

When she finally composed herself, she was pushing me towards the counter.

"Well go on, talk to her already!"

I laughed and walked over to the counter. As soon as I was two feet away, the nervousness set in. I was freaking out on the inside, and everything was racing. But it was too late, she had looked up from her paperwork.

"Hi. Can I help—" She started with a smile as she was working on the paperwork, but when she looked up at my face, her face went blank.

"Hi." That was the only thing I could think of. Off all the times to get tongue-tied…

"A-are you here to make a withdrawal, or a deposit?" She asked, and her voice was shaky.

"Uh…a-actually I'd like to start an account!" Again, why did I have to be so stupid?

"Oh…okay…what's your name?" For some reason from the way she said it, I got the strange feeling she might already know it. But that couldn't be right…maybe mom had mentioned it.

"Embry Call. And Sharon is a pretty name." Okay, it was coming out like word vomit now.

"Thank you." She said in a nervous voice.

So she walked me through all the steps, and before I knew it I had opened up an account at Forks Federal Bank.

"Thanks for your help."

"No problem." She gave me a warm smile, but I could tell it didn't reach her eyes. She was still nervous about something.

"So I was wondering…would you like to go out with me some time?" I even added my world-famous smile for good measure.

She froze like she couldn't breathe. Her eyes darted to the side at something, then back to me.

"Um…I really don't think that's a good idea." She swallowed really hard because she was talking so fast. "I'm not interested in seeing anyone right now. Have a nice day though."

She walked away to the back before I could even speak leaving me awestruck. Wow. That was weird.

I was heartbroken. I was broken.

She hated me. That was it. She had to hate me. My imprint hated me.

Why else would she say no? Maybe I scared her. She should've been scared. I'm a monster.

Why would she not want to go out with me? She's my imprint! She had to feel something…a pull towards me…she had to feel that we were meant for each other.

But she turned me down. She doesn't want to even be seen in public with me. She said no, then walked away. I must freak her out.

The second she walked away, I mentally shut down. I didn't feel anything. Suddenly I was blind and my vision was blank, but I was still seeing. It's just that nothing was worth seeing. Watching her turn her back to me put me in a world of physical agony.

It felt like my heart was literally ripped out my chest, and my body was functioning purely on its own. I had no control.

My legs moved me out of the bank, past my mom in the car. She was about to ask what happened, but I guess she figured it out by the broken look on my face. It was a good thing, too. I don't think I could really breathe, much less speak.

I walked and walked, dead inside, seeing but not really seeing, until my legs carried me to the forest. The bank was in the middle of town, so it was a long way. It looked as if I were wandering around aimlessly, wearing a facial expression as if my entire world had came crashing down. It actually did. The forest must've been where I wanted to go, because as soon as I was out of sight I phased.

I traveled no more than 10 steps, then I collapsed on the damp forest floor crushed. I didn't want to breathe anymore. I didn't want to feel anymore. I wanted to die.

"Embry, what's wrong?" Jake was patrolling.

I almost didn't have the will to replay what happened in my mind, but I somehow managed and he saw it.

"Man, that's rough. Don't let it discourage you Embry. She might just be the type of girl that loves a chase."

"I don't think so Jake." My voice sounded dejected and dead.

"Seriously Em, don't let this get you down. It's not the end, you know it's not. You guys are meant for each other."

"No, it's over Jake. I'm going to be the one imprint that doesn't work out. Ever. In history."
"Don't say that, man. Don't give up. She likes you, I can tell. You just have to—"

"DON'T YOU GET IT JAKE?! IT'S OVER. MY IMPRINT FUCKING HATES ME. IT'S NOT LIKE BETWEEN YOU AND KENDLE. SHE LIKED YOU BEFORE. MY IMPRINT THINKS I'M A FUCKING FREAK!!"

I was crying, and I didn't even care. I couldn't control it.

"JUST—just leave me alone."

I let out a loud, pained howl that echoed the pain in my empty heart all the way to the mountains and to the cliffs.

The other guys phased, but I stayed silent feeling completely lifeless.

"What happened?" Paul asked.

"Aw man, that's the worst…" Seth said as he picked through my brain. They were making me relive the moment over and over…

"Sorry." They said in unison.

"I'm sorry Embry…" Leah was actually sympathetic.

"Embry don't freak out. She's probably just afraid of what she's feeling. Imprinting is a scary feeling. Especially if you don't know what's going on."

"Sam is right Em. You can try to resist it, but it's kind of pointless. There's no fighting it. This always happens in the beginning. Things will get better." Jared said.

"Just don't give up on her. Because now that it's happened, you guys are basically like one. So you'd be giving up on yourself." Jake reasoned.

"I could talk to her again if you want Em…" Quil suggested, but still…none of them got a response out of me.

"He just has to go back and ask again. He can't give up on her. Girls like persistence." Leah stated.

"I thought girls thought persistence was annoying." Paul challenged.

"Yeah, well, in this case it's not. She's his imprint."

"Do you think if I shot myself in the head I would die? Or would it heal too quickly…"'

They all gasped.

They were all shocked I'd spoke, but even more shocked at what I said.

"Embry! Don't think like that!" Jared yelled.

Seth froze with his eyes watering. He was always the most sensitive in the pack, and the thought of losing one of us scared him to death. He was a little brother to all of us. He quickly shot off in the opposite direction towards La Push.

"Embry don't scare Seth!" Sam screamed, but I didn't care. I couldn't even feel sorry.

Jake and Quil had run to where I was and they were now circling me whimpering, occasionally nudging me with their noses.

I still gave them no response. I just laid there motionless, taking shallow breaths.

By now Seth had reached La Push, and he phased.

"Embry." Jake's voice was sincere. "Come on. Don't do this."

I turned away from him, and he had his answer.

I saw Paul get upset at Sharon in his mind for putting me through this, and I fought back the urge to growl at him. I still felt protective of her, even after all of this.

"That's because you love her." Sam said softly.

I scoffed. Love.

If this was it, it so wasn't worth it.

"Embry?"

I saw my mom's face through Seth's eyes. I hadn't even noticed him phase back.

"Embry baby, it's okay."

I felt the tears rolling down my face in streams. I hadn't felt this much pain since…her.

"Mom?" I sniffed.

"I know it hurts Embry baby, but I promise, everything will be okay. No matter what, I'll always love you. And we'll always be a team. Remember. Me plus you equals—"

"The unbreakable two…" I finished with her, crying even harder.

"Come home, baby." And Seth took off running back to us.

I shakily stood up, my legs were almost too weak to stand.

When Seth made it, I went to him.

"Thanks Seth."

He gave me a big, wolfy grin. "No problem!"

One the way back home, the guys was showing me all the ways they got their imprints, thinking of it as good advice. They told me to go back to see her tomorrow.

When I got home, my mom pulled me into the biggest hug and I cried on her shoulder. No matter how old I was, I still needed my mother. It's always been just me and her all my life. She had me when she was 18, and she didn't know who my dad was. Although we knew since I was a wolf, the prime candidates were Joshua Uley, Harry Clearwater, and Billy Black. The pack never thinks about which one of their dads were unfaithful, and the fact that I could be their brother. Though we'd like to think it was Sam's dad, because he wasn't ever there. He left when Sam was just a kid, so he was never a good dad. But my mom and I have never had the heart to have that talk. And we didn't need to. I've made it this far without a dad, and I didn't need one now. Well technically, I had one in the elders. All we ever needed was us, and it was us against the world. 'Me plus you equals the unbeatable two.' Nothing would ever change that. So here I was, 24 years old, crying on my mom's shoulder.

I made the decision that night that I would not give up. I would go to the bank everyday and ask until she decided to go out with me. Eventually, she would say yes. Because it's like Jared said, she wouldn't be able to fight what she felt for long. But I would do things differently from everybody else. I realized that they all came so close to losing their imprints so many times, from making mistakes. So I wouldn't make mistakes. I wouldn't scare her off. I decided I would wait, and I do mean wait, a while before I tell her what I am. I'd build a relationship first, a foundation. It seemed like my best and only shot.

Aww....are you feeling the love like I am? Press that button! Embry and his mom are so close......kinda like Dean and Sharon......