Chapter 7
Night Shift
Dominic being an aid had gotten him involved in this situation; maybe my being an aid can end his involvement for good. I filled out one of the passes from the principal's desk and scribbled on it to make it look like a teacher's signature. This was all a simple process. I had snuck Dominic out of class before and he's done the same for me. The teachers rarely suspected a thing, and for those small few who did, they were too amused to care. I walked into his fifth period class without knocking. I was a regular visitor to Mr. Shuler's class and he was used to me.
"I'm guessing you need Dominic?" he asked me the second that he saw me.
"How did you guess?" I threw on a fake smile for him. Mr. Shuler wasn't one of my teachers, but he was easily one of my favorites. He didn't question our actions and it wasn't like Dominic was the only person that I was ever sent for, that would be suspicious. Dominic looked up from his cluster of fellow guys and promiscuous-looking girls in the back corner of the room. And I know what you're thinking, and yes I trust him. He was the good boy of the group, but you wouldn't guess that by the way he was looking at me as he started walking in my direction. I kept my smile as I waited for him by the door and followed him out, pulling it up slowly.
"Let me see it," I said quietly as we walked down the hall. He wouldn't look me in the eyes.
"See what?"
A chill went down my spine. That was just how cold his voice was. I seemed to be getting that a lot lately.
"Your hand."
When he refused to stop, I stepped in front of him and pushed myself against him. I stared up at him and he finally let out a deep sigh of frustration. It had been a while, but the puppy dog eyes still worked. He stood still as I reached down and cradled his right hand in both of mine. His pulse was clearer to me now than it had ever been as it seeped through my fingertips effortlessly. I slid my tips across the surfaces of his hand searching for a break. His heart beat sped up. A small smile formed on my lips. There wasn't a complete break, but there were definitely a few cracks in the bone and the bruises on his knuckle were impossible to miss. I touched the middle of his palm, making him flinched.
"You need to get this looked at," I whispered. "It's fractured."
"I'm fine," he muttered pulling his hand out of my grip and walking around me.
"Please don't do this to me."
"Do what?"
"Ignore me; act like I'm not here. You know perfectly well what."
"Well, you made it pretty clear that you didn't want to talk, so what do you want from me?"
I stopped him again and crossed my arms. "Something happened…and I don't want you to get hurt because of it."
This just seemed to make him even angrier.
"What are you talking about? Is this about that guy? I mean, did I miss something? What is it that you're not telling me?"
"I'd tell you if I could. Either way, you wouldn't believe me."
"A year. We've been together for a year, and that's the best that you can come up with to break up with me?"
Great, now the tears were coming. GAH! STUPID EMOTIONS! Did I want to break up with him? It was the best thing, right? Maybe it would be good if he hated me. But that wouldn't keep Jared from using him against me later. I shuddered. His deaths were flashing in my mind again. The look on his face and the fear in his eyes, it was all too much. I started crying even harder.
"It's not that simple," I choked out. He grunted.
"If you want me gone, then tell me. Do you want this to be over?"
"I don't know. I just don't know how to make this all make sense to you."
"Try me."
"I can't."
"Why can't you?"
The irritation in his voice was mixing with his insecurities.
"It could get you killed," I whispered.
"That's really creative, Chanelle. Am I supposed to say that you're some saint now for saving my life? Look, I'll live if you want to break up. I just want to know why. Give me the honest reason."
I shook my head and wiped my eyes.
"Fine…just give me some time, alright? If you're done interrogating me then I guess you can go back to class. If any questions come up, then just say that the office got you mixed up with somebody else."
I crossed my arms and stood still as he walked past me slowly. This was going to be a long life.
"What happened? Are you okay?"
"Damon, relax. Nothing happened."
What was it with people questioning me today? That was all that Damon had done the second that I had gotten home. He had followed me into my house and upstairs to my room, and thus here we were: me slouched on my bean bag chair, and him sitting on my bed. I had an intense migraine working and I wanted to be left alone, but Damon was persistent. It was no surprise that he had sensed that there was something wrong with me, but Keith had filled him in on the details.
"Obviously something happened. Your boyfriend is involved now. He knows that there's something not right about the leech and the leech knows that he's close to you. There's no telling what he's going to do to him when he gets the chance and that could be any time."
"Do you seriously think that I haven't thought about that," I asked angrily. "I know what could happen to him. He's my boyfriend! It's not like it didn't cross my mind. They're all in danger. Jared might start going after random people in the school if he hasn't already started."
"Who's Jared?" Damon asked, cutting me off.
"He's the leech."
"You know his name?"
"That's not what's important right now. People are going to start coming up missing and we're going to know why. Innocent people might die. I at least have a chance, they don't. I really think that we should be more concerned with them than with me."
He sighed and rubbed his eyes.
"I don't go to your school so I wouldn't notice if they came up missing, but the pack comes first, and that counts even more for you because you're family and because he's the one who got you tatted. We need to talk to the guys about all of this." He stood up. "I'll drive."
The thought of seeing Keith again today made me nervous. His face and eyes and voice had been so cold and expressionless earlier. I didn't know if I could handle that again so soon. Sadly, Keith's backyard was where we met once again. It was still pretty early and the last bits of snow had melted, but not even the comfortable temperature and breeze could ease the queasiness that I felt the second that I saw Keith sitting on the picnic table. He had changed his clothes. Now he had on a thin, plain, white shirt and beige shorts that most likely would've been pants on a normal person. He was staring off into the trees a few yards away. It was really easy to forget that he was blind. He didn't let it show at all. If it weren't for his glazed eye color, I never would've guessed in the first place.
He looked in our direction, I refused to look away. He wasn't going to intimidate me, not today. I sat on the opposite side of the table and Damon sat beside me.
Keith turned back to the forest and asked, "I'm guessing that I already know what this is about?"
"Yeah, you do," Damon answered. I laid my head down on the table and listened to Damon as he called the rest of the guys over and filled them in on the situation.
I didn't fully listen again until I heard Josh's confused voice as he struggled to fully put the pieces together. It's not that he's not smart or anything, he just second guesses himself a lot.
"Okay so…we have to keep her, her boyfriend, and an entire school alive?"
"Pretty much," Damon replied simply.
"How exactly do you expect us to do that?"- Another chill went up my spine. Yep, you guessed it, Keith was speaking. –"We still have classes and Chanelle and I are the only ones who are there full time. It seems like all he wants to do is keep himself busy. There's no way that we can be everywhere at once without getting caught or getting someone hurt."
I propped my head onto my crossed arms and looked back and forth between the guys. Damon ran his fingers through his hair.
"I know. All that we can do for right now is be on the lookout and pay extra attention to her boyfriend, whatever his name is."
"Dominic. His name is Dominic. I'll watch him when I can."
"No offense C, but you're still new to this."
"Don't pull that crap. I'm new, but I'm the one with the most purpose. None of us know what I can do, so let me find out. Besides, I've dealt with this guy the most."
"That's true, but I don't want you pulling night shifts alone. Keith why don't you-"
"You know why that would be a bad idea Damon," Keith snarled, cutting Damon off.
"What ever do you mean, Keith?" I grunted. My cousin's mock confusion did basically everything but amuse me. The three of us were still the only ones who knew what was so awkward about all of this. I hid my face yet again, letting my eyes close.
"I'd really rather not talk about this now. You're just making this awkward for Chanelle," Keith muttered.
"You two need to work out your problems, why not at her boyfriend's house when no one's awake or aware of the fact that you're out there? It's perfect!"
"That's not funny, Damon."
"I'm not laughing…not anymore anyway."
The growl was loud, but it was the vibrations through the picnic table that really made me jolt. I stood up and started walking.
"Chanelle."
I stopped.
"I'm sorry, but we can't have this tension in the pack." – I turned around. –"You two have to work this out whether you want to or not. I don't care if you never speak to each other again, this is serious and I won't have you two jeopardizing anyone."
I sighed. Not only was he serious, but he was right. "When do we start?"
"How's tonight for you?"
Fantastic…simply fantastic, this was all working out fabulously! Now I get to sneak out of my house past midnight to go to my boyfriend's house (if you can even still call him that) while he's asleep and spend my night with the guy who currently hates my existence. Any other time, that would be just great, but these circumstances suck. I got there shortly before Keith did and hid out in the trees in Dominic's backyard. I already felt like a stalker, I didn't want his neighbors thinking that I was one too. I laid myself out on a high branch and let my arms and legs hang off. I played with a leaf close to me and let out a puff in the cold night air.
I stiffened at the sound of a twig snapping behind me and then sniffed the air. I sat up from my position and leaned my back against the tree. Looking below me, I saw nothing, but I knew that he was there. No matter how mad I was at him, I couldn't ignore his scent. It was just so seductive and alluring. His fur blended so well with the dark of the night that it was impossible to see him unless he moved. He sniffed the air cautiously and then looked in my direction. I rolled my eyes. Show off.
"You know, you didn't have to change before you got here," I whispered. He ignored me. I sighed. On a positive note, the whole imprinting thing had really specified itself a bit. He was still the only thing on my mind, but it was a lot less about lust. I was thinking a lot clearer now and it didn't hurt as much for me to stay away from him. He was already in love. He didn't need me as a lover, and he didn't really need me as a friend. To be honest, he didn't need me at all, but maybe there was more to him than he was willing to let me see.
I let my legs sway back and forth over the edge. We were stuck here until sunrise. We would both have to run back home and get ready for school without being late and without getting caught. He tested the air again and started walking to the edge of the trees. The breeze picked up and for the first time in a while, I felt relaxed. With all of the dreams and history and nightmares, my nights hadn't exactly been peaceful. And yet, since changing for the first time, I was starting to develop a new respect for the night. It seemed to be the only time of my day when drama wasn't exploding in my face, but of course, that can always change. I leaned forward and let my head rest on my arms.
"You know, I don't like this whole imprinting thing anymore than you do, but it's not going to help anything if you're going to be a baby about it."
He grumbled roughly and started pacing. I shrugged and watched him carefully.
"So are you going to talk to me or just play the role of the irritated yet fearless protector all night?"
He started to shake. I looked away and once I heard the pop, I looked back to see him pulling on a pair of shorts.
"What do you want from me?" he asked quietly, looking up at me from a few feet below.
"I don't want you to hate me for something that's not my fault."
"I don't hate you, but this isn't exactly easy for me."
"And you think that it is for me?"
"No, it's just…it's a lot to deal with."
I snorted. "Ha, who are you telling?"
"I'm sorry. But you don't fully get what you saw working in my head. All you saw was my girlfriend, and yes, you did remind me of her that particular moment. But do you realize how much it hurts to know that she's most likely going to die before I do? We age so much slower than humans do. She's two months younger than me, but when we get older, people are going to think that she's some kind of cougar. I don't want that for her. So it wasn't a strange thing that she just happened to pop into my head. She's a pretty big part of my life."
"To be honest, I hadn't thought about that fun feature of all of this, but with the way everything is going, I don't think that I'll have to worry about that for very long."
"Jared won't get to him."
"That really wasn't what I meant."
"What did you mean then?"
"Unlike you and your girlfriend, Dominic and I don't have the perfect relationship, at least not anymore. But I really don't think that this is the time or place to talk about it. Go on with what you were saying."
"You don't take this very seriously, do you?"
"I take it more seriously than you think."
"You don't act it."
"Maybe I don't like to."
I sat up straight on my branch. Our eyes were locked competitively.
"Well, if you stay focused on just that one thing, then people could die and you have to realize that."
"And what would that one thing be?"
"Me."
"Get over yourself. You've been in my head once and you think that you know how it all works up here." – I pointed at my head. –"I'm sorry babe, but it's not that simple."
"I think that I saw enough to get an idea."
By this point, our volumes were both at harsh whispers. "An idea isn't enough to understand. Who are you to tell me how my mind works?"
"And who are you to be in love with me when I barely know you?"
That was beyond a low blow. How could he possibly be that arrogant?
"You know what, when you imprint, then you can come talk to me, but until then, don't talk about what you couldn't possibly understand."
"I might need a rain check on that, because the whole imprinting thing won't exactly work out for me."
His voice was low and careful.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"I'm blind, remember? I don't think that I can imprint on someone if I can't technically see them."
Well, I was just discovering all kinds of things these days. I sighed deeply. This had sparked my curiosity though.
"How does that work? How do you see so well without actually being able to see?"
"I was blind before I was tatted and I'm sure that you know how it works when you lose one sense. The others kind of take its place and they strengthen. My senses were already abnormal, but when I changed for the first time, they were insane. It was like a whole new look on life. I can describe almost anything about you except for your exact facial features and color of clothes that you're wearing. It's almost like seeing the world in black and white."
Whoa.
"That's really interesting. What about when you change? You see what any of us are seeing, correct?"
"Yeah, I do. But that doesn't change the fact that it's freakishly easy to hear things that I don't want to hear, or smell things that I don't want to smell, and not fully be able to block it out."
"I'm sorry." What else could I say to something like that?
"I got enough pity when I lost my sight. I don't particularly need yours too."
Okay, so this was a touchy subject for him.
"So you weren't born that way?"
"No I wasn't."
"Then how did it happen?"
"If you don't mind, I'd rather not give my life story tonight."
I sighed and turned onto my back. "Do you want me to show you?"
"Show me what?" he asked in barely over a whisper.
"The real thing…imprinting. It's matured since you last saw it."
"No offense, but we all saw how that went the first time."
"It's not the same thing. If you can't experience it yourself, then you should at least get a better idea of it than what you have. You'd be surprised at how I physically see you in comparison to how the guys see you."
"I don't know."
"Just shut up and change," I said finally. His stubbornness was starting to irritate me.
I looked the other way when he started to pull his shorts down. I didn't need anymore images in my head of him. There was a low rustle followed by the pop. I jumped down from the branch in front of him and started pulling my shirt over my head. I wasn't ashamed, but it was clear that he had a problem with it. He backed up.
"Stop being such a wimp. Nothing's coming off but the shirt and jeans."
He huffed. I pulled off my jeans and then started to shake, Damon was right, it was second nature and the pain was easier to ignore. I shook my fur and lied down in front of Keith. He sat down. I closed my eyes and let it all come naturally. I didn't fight any of it and let every part of me relax. He started to move around. He was pacing again. I didn't have to look at him to know this. His breathing was sharp and harsh.
'I can change back if you want.'
My voice didn't stop his pacing. If anything, it made him start to move even faster. I stood up and stretched, letting my eyes glide open. I moved quietly through Dominic's backyard, making sure that the few surrounding houses' windows were black. I didn't want any random strangers screaming about wolf sightings. Dominic's house was a wide two-story so his deck was low to the ground, but his balcony to his room was similar to mine. I climbed the three small steps onto the deck and balanced myself on the railing before leaping the few feet over to Dominic's balcony. I sat down and turned my head to the side. His figure was easy to recognize as the lump on his bed steadily moved up and down. I smiled at the sound of his snoring. It made me think back to our third date when he had fallen asleep during the movie that we had gone to see.
If it weren't for his snoring, I never would have known that he was missing the movie. But what made it so memorable was the fact that I wasn't the only one who had noticed. I spent the rest of the night helping him pick popcorn and candy out of his hair. I never let him forget that day and just thinking about all of that made my heart hurt. Just the thought of Jared coming anywhere near Dominic made me twinge. And just hours ago, I had pictured myself ending Dominic's life. I would surely kill myself before letting myself do anything like that, right? I at least had a guess at where Jared would be during the day, but I couldn't risk having anyone around if I needed to change or when a fight would break out. They would easily get mixed up in it and that would be another life that I would be held responsible for.
I took the same route down from the balcony down to the ground. Why did Dominic and I have to fight so often though? If he just weren't so damn needy. I have a life! Why can't he live his without checking up on me all the time? I don't need a protector. I need a boyfriend who won't go and get himself hunted by my ancestor's ex. I went back into the trees, ignoring Keith, and laid down on my side beside a giant rock. Ever since I was tatted, it's been nothing but fight after fight with Dominic. I honestly don't know how much longer I can put up with it. Realistically, maybe this sudden agitation had more to do with Keith than it did with Dom. As my close friend and boyfriend, Dominic had always been concerned and protective. He wasn't the one changing, I was.
My ears twitched at every tiny noise, most of which, being caused by Keith and his uncomfortable fidgeting. I sat back and watched him for a second. He kept walking and then stopping. Sniffing and snorting, he just wouldn't stay still. He pitied me. He truly felt sorry for me.
Don't get me wrong, watching Keith was fascinating and all, but I just couldn't get Dominic out of my head. Maybe it's time to let him go. Surely there'll be a girl out there who's willing to put up with his overprotective qualities better than I could. I owe it to him.
'You have quite the dilemma on your hands, don't you?'
I looked over me to see Keith sitting on the rock staring off into the distance. I didn't appreciate the invasion of space, but I had already let him in my head so why did it matter?
'You have no idea. Oh wait, you do.'
My sarcasm was even clearer in my head than it was if I had said it out loud. That was a really interesting perk.
'Yeah, I do. And I'm sorry that I've made this so much worse for you.'
'It's not like it's your fault that I imprinted.'
'I know, but I could've handled it better. You seem to really care about this guy.'
'I do but he's been irritating the hell out of me lately.'
'Coming from a guy's point of view, it looks like he really cares. You don't see that very often these days.'
'Well, for now, it's not something that I want. It used to be cute, but now it's just annoying. And on top of all of this, I feel like I've cheated on him every time I'm with him because I'm constantly thinking about you. That's a horrible feeling to have. You can't imagine what that's like. I'm dating him but I would die for you. That's not exactly ideal girlfriend behavior. It's so confusing. I've been having fewer dreams lately and I feel even more lost about this whole process. It's strange knowing that I imprinted on you because you're supposed to be the most suitable mate, but I don't see how that's possible when you didn't imprint on me back.'
'I guess I never really thought about it that way.'
'Yeah, well, I wouldn't really expect you to. About how much longer do you think we have here?'
'I don't know. A few hours, maybe?'
'This sucks. If Jared were going to come, I really wish that he would go ahead and do it.'
'Don't wish that. The longer he takes the more chance that you have of being ready.'
'Who says that I'm not ready now?'
'You're still technically a pup. You're still breaking into your senses and you're still getting used to your strength and speed. And you haven't been around blood yet. We don't know how that's going to affect you.'
I sat up and stared at him. 'What? What about blood?'
'Bloodlust, it's not like a leech's. We don't need it, and we never crave it by just the thought or looking at a person, but when it's out in the open and the smell hits us…it can be a little overwhelming.'
'Well, I just can't wait 'til that comes back to bite me in the butt like everything else.'
He snorted. I think that there was a small chance that that was supposed to be a laugh. It's so hard to tell with him.
