Ariana's P.O.V.
My eyes flutter open to a dim room. My instinct kick in. 'Zoe' I think, sitting up like lightning and feel the pain start throbbing in my left shoulder.
"Whoa, whoa there. Slow down, you'll hurt yourself"
I let out a groan as I clutch at my shoulder.
"What happened? Where's Zoe?"
"She's ok, she's just fine" a husky voice tells me, "Is your shoulder hurt?"
"Yeah... umm, no it doesn't anymore", I trail off, how did my shoulder just suddenly get better? My mind goes back to Zoe, "Where is she?" I ask, needing to know my sister is alright.
"She woke up a little bit before you, but she's fine" a different, softer, older voice tells me. I blink and my eyes focus in on the room. There was a ridiculously handsome man with pale skin and blonde hair watching me intently. Next to him was a boy who looked around Zo's age, maybe slightly older, but only by a year or two, with copper skin, brown eyes and hair like mine. There's another boy in the corner of the room, watching me intently.
"Okay, so who are you guys?" I ask suspiciously. I know they're strangers, but I feel safe, somehow... Must be concussed...
"I'm Carlisle. Dr Carlisle Cullen."
"That's how we know you're ok, the doc checked you out. I'm Jacob, by the way" He
"Wait... Jacob Black?" I ask in confusion.
"The one and the only... well probably not the only one, but the only one around here" he says grinning. He looks much more welcoming when he smiles.
"But how do I know you're not lying? For all I know, you could both just be psychopaths just waiting for the right moment to kill me"
"Well, if it's any consolation, we're not psychopaths just waiting to kill you"
"Where's my sister? Can I see her?"
"She's in the kitchen, getting some food into her system" Carlisle informs me.
"Of course she is. So where is this so-called kitchen?" I ask. Jacob points down the hall and I head in the direction he points, following the voices I can now hear. I hear Zoe giggling and then she starts full on laughing, you know the kind where you can barely breath and you sound like a dying whale? Yeah, that one. In between her giggles, she manages to get some words out.
"Hey! Wait, no! Stop!"
I cautiously open the door, not sure what I might walk in on, to see a group of really big, muscley guys and Zoe perched on the knee of one of them, a can of whipped cream in her hand
"Umm... hi" I say, standing awkwardly in the doorway. One of the guys looks at me, and just stares for awhile before getting up and walking outside as fast as he can. 'Weird' I think to myself, but then I find myself wanting to follow him outside, and just be with him, but I can't because that would be weird. Zoe gives me a sheepish grin before slowly climbing of the guys lap, she walks over to me. I look at her, annoyance filling my gaze, and she stops dead in her tracks
"Ari, what's up?"
"It'd be kinda nice if you had, gee, I dunno, come and checked on me or something, considering I was literally a room away. Unconscious. On the couch. Right there" I point to the adjoining room to emphasise my point.
"Sorry, I was waiting, for hours too, but Embry here," she points to the guy whose lap she was occupying, "convinced me to get a snack, then these big goofs came bounding in"
"Whatever" I say, brushing her off. My gaze goes to the door, willing the other boy to come back inside.
"His name's Seth," one of the guys says to me, "If you were wondering."
All the other guys around the table share a small grin, as if they know some big secret that I don't
"Oh, I wasn't-"
"Oh, just go say hi, Ariana! I saw that look," Zoe says, poking me in the ribs and wiggling her eyebrows at me suggestively.
"Shouldn't you maybe introduce me to all of your other friends here?"
"Oh, right"
She turns to face the guys and gives them an expectant look, "Are you guys going to introduce yourselves to my sister or what?"
As if on an order, they all turn to face me and tell me their names
"I'm Embry," says the guy who's lap Zoe was previously occupying.
"I'm Quil"
"I'm Leah" says a girl who I hadn't noticed before, she's pretty small in stature, so it's not hard to miss her among all these huge guys, "and Seth is my little brother"
"Kenzi! Just go say hi to the poor guy!" Everybody shoots Zoe a questioning look, pushing me to explain.
"Mackenzie is my middle name, so sometimes I get called Kenz or Kenzi."
Once that's all cleared up, I walk past Zo and pinch the cup out of her hand and fill it up with water, downing it in a few seconds. Everybody is looking at me expectantly, so I sigh, loudly, just to make a point, and head outside, following the boy who I feel strangely drawn to.
O
I'm greeted by the cool air against my skin, sighing in the relief it brings from the stuffy kitchen. I see Seth leaning against a tree with his eyes closed, looking as if he's trying to melt into the nature around him. I take a step in his direction and his eye immediately open, looking at me. I see the hint of a smile grace his face as he meets my eyes, which pulls a smile from me.
"Hi" I say nervously.
Zoe's P.O.V.
"Well, that's cute. She only just woke up and she has a friend," I say, watching Ari through the fogged up window.
"Yeah, well it's about time Seth made a, well, a friend, I guess," Jake says, smirking at the rest of the room. I look at the two boys, to Leah and then round to Embry.
"What? What am I not understanding?!" I ask.
"Nothing important," Embry says soothingly, "They're just a bit weird these kids. So, Ariana is also Mackenzie hey? Do you have any extra names I- I mean we- should know about?" Embry asks quizzically.
"Well, most people call me Zo, but I have been known to get Zoo," I say, smiling sheepishly at my last nickname.
"Zoo?" Embry asks. I nod slightly. "That's cute," he says, smiling a heart melting smile. You know, it's funny because, I've only just met Embry and all, but I feel this strange connection between us. Almost as if there's something linking us together, and it's strange, because I've had a few boyfriends before, even thought I'd loved one or two of them, but I've never felt this strongly towards someone. It's almost as if him and me were always meant to meet, like I've found somewhere I belong. What's even weirder is I've only just met this guy.
"Zoe? Sound good?" Jacob says. I look up to see everyone staring at me expectantly, including Dr. Cullen.
"Pardon? Oh, I'm sorry I zoned out," I admit.
"We said that we were going to go to the Cullen's place later. We towed the car there and your stuff is all there as well. Are you sure you're okay?" Embry asks, looking around my face and into me eyes
"Embry she's fine, calm down-" Jake says
"Yeah well what if she has a concussion and we haven't picked up on it!" Embry states, getting a little defensive. No guy has ever cared this much about my safety.
"Embry, it's fine, I feel okay," I assure him, patting his tense arm he has wrapped around my waist.
"Yes well just to be sure I should probably check over you and your sister again when you come over," Dr. Cullen tells me, then turns to Jacob, "I'll have Emmett set the garage up."
"Yeah, thanks Carlisle, hopefully we'll be able to save that tin can. Pity too, it was a real beauty," Jacob says sadly, shaking his head, "We'll see you later Carlisle, thanks for your help."
"Oh ah, yes thanks," I stutter, stumbling off of Embry, "Thank you Dr. Cullen, for helping my sister and I. I don't know how to repay you," I say, blushing.
"Oh don't worry about it Zoe. I'm happy to help someone as lovely as you or your sister," he says graciously. He holds out his right hand, "And call me Carlisle." I shake his hand and have to refrain from gasping. His hand was so cold! Like ice! I quickly compose myself and say, "Oh, Ari! Let me get her in her to thank you too. You saved our lives and all,"
"I wouldn't worry about that Zoe, your thanks is enough. And I think that your sister is a little, ah, preoccupied at the moment," I hear everyone laughing and he flashes me a dazzling smile, "I'll see you later."
I hear Carlisle walk to the door as I turn around to see what everyone was laughing at. I walk up to the window and see... no, I must be concussed! I wipe the foggy window with my shirt and see...
"ARI!"
Ariana's P.O.V.
Uh-oh, sprung! I pull away from Seth and smile. I see my grin reflected on Seth's face. What a kiss!
- Flashback-
"So, you love me...?"
"Guess so,"
"And you can't stop it...?"
"Apparently not,"
Shock. That's the only feeling I can describe out of the turmoil of all the ones rushing through my head. Nobody has ever loved me for me, they were always trying to get something. Now this boy, this one guy that I've just met has come along and torn my world from it's roots. He loves me and I'd be lying if I said that I didn't feel anything for him.
"And you're saying there's a chance that this might happen to me, that I'll love you without having much of a choice about it?"
"Well, for lack of a better way to describe it, yeah"
"What is it exactly?"
"Umm, well Billy is going to explain it all tonight at the camp fire"
"Well, what happens next?"
"I guess I actually get to know you now"
"Well what do you want to know?"
"Everything, I want to know everything there is to know about you"
"Well my name is Ariana Mackenzie White, but Zoe calls me Ari or Kenzi and sometimes Squirt. My dad gave me that nickname when I was little and it just kind of stuck"
"Really..." He says, walking a step closer.
"Um yeah. And, uh, I... I had a dog"
"Interesting" he's still coming closer and I'm getting curious as to what he's trying to do.
"I, uh, I can speak French"
"Really? That's pretty cool"
He takes another step closer, so there are only inches separating us.
"And, I, ah I- I-" I gulp.
"Oh, I'm sorry babe. Am I making you... uncomfortable?" He asks, wiggling his eyebrows at me. I relax a little
"Oh no, I'm sure you do this to every half-decent girl you come across," I tease, taking the smallest step towards him.
"Maybe. But I certainly don't do this..." He mumbles, leaning down and stopping just centimeters from my lips. He looks into my eyes, as if asking for permission, and to answer him, I close the remaining distance between us and feel this thing ignite inside me. A feeling that, to me, feels like it's trying to say that Seth and I are soul mates, that we belong together, and I love it. Seths hands travel to my waist and my hands wrap around his neck, pulling him closer to me. Perfect...
"ARI!"
Seth and I both spin to see the faces of shock and amusement staring out at us. Dammit Zo...