I woke up the next morning to the beeping of my alarm clock. It was my second day of school. I moaned, rolled over on my stomach, and looked at my blinking clock. It was five thirty.

I got out of bed and walked into the bathroom to take a shower. I turned on the water and waited until it was steaming hot. After I took my shower, I got dressed into a pair of flare jeans, a long-sleeved, flannel, blue shirt, and my brown work boots. I did put some eyeliner on, but that was my only make-up.

My dad had to drive me to school, because my car wasn't ready, plus my dad got a P.E. job as well as a coaching job. So he drove me to school.

When we got to school, I saw Quil and Embry hanging with a bunch of boys that looked like men. I looked at my dad.

"Bye, Dad." I hugged him. "See you after school."
I got out of the car, threw my backpack over my shoulder, and mad sure I walked right past Embry and Quil. They saw me.

"Ana!" Quil called, beckoning me over.

I let out a sigh of relief, turned around, and walked towards them.

"Hey guys," I greeted.

"Oh, Coach Hatcher's daughter. I'm Paul."

"Her name's Ana," another boy said, "Jacob."
"And I'm Seth."

"Brady."

"Jared."

"Collin."
I looked around at the boys, or, rather, men. It sort of scared me that they were so manly. I wasn't used to guys this big.

"So…" I mused. "You guys all on the football team?"

"Yeah," Jared answered. "And we want to test out your flag football skills."
"Oh really?" I chuckled.

"Yeah, really." Collin hit Brady's shoulder. "But if we tackle you, it's not our fault."
"I'll tackle all of y'all before you even touch me."

"Y'all?" Jacob laughed. "God, you're special."
"Thanks." I pouted. "That makes me feel good."
"Poor baby." Embry came over and hugged me. "Don't worry. He's a jackass."
I chuckled. Jacob pushed Embry as soon as he let o of me. Embry pushed him back, and they laughed as they tackled each other to the ground. I stepped back and bumped into Collin.

"The bell rang," he said. "Jacob, Embry, get up!"
They got off each other, pat each other on the back, and then grabbed their bags.

"Do we all have senior English together?" I asked as we walked.

"No," Embry replied. "Brady, Seth, and Collin are juniors."
I nodded. "Oh."

"Yeah, so you, Jared, Paul, Jacob, Quil, and I have almost every class together."

"That's fun," I teased.

"It should be." He wrapped his arm around me. "We're going to Sam's after practice. You wanna come?"

"I thought your mom didn't like you to go out on school nights."
"She only lets me go to Sam's."

"Oh." I walked into the classroom. "I'll be there, after football when I kick your ass!"
"Sure…" Embry chuckled. "Whatever you say."
I sat down in the first empty seat I found. Embry sat down next to me. Class started.

"Alright guys!" my dad yelled. "Practice is over!"
I jogged over in my workout shorts and a wife beater.

"Coach!" Jacob jogged over to my dad. "We've got some unfinished business with your daughter."
"What is that?" my dad chuckled.

Jacob tossed the football into the air. "A game of flag football."
"Play nice, Ana," my dad warned. "Don't beat them too badly."
"Beat us?" Paul laughed. "Team up."
It was me and four other guys versus Paul, Jared, Jacob, Embry, and Quil. Let's just say they were good losers.

"God," Embry laughed as I chugged water. "You're good."

"Thanks." I took a deep breath. "You're good too, for a boy."

He gave me a soft shove. "You're funny."
"I know." I shoved him back "So are we going to Sam's?"
"Yup."

"Dad!" I called. "I'm going to Sam Uley's!"
"Be back by midnight!" he called back.

"Kk!"
"Here, let me drive you."

I followed Embry to his car and climbed in. He drove us ten minutes away from the school. The house looked lie all the other houses, so I wasn't too impressed or scared. I simply followed Embry inside.

"Boys!" Emily greeted as she put muffins on the table, and then looked at me. "Who's this?"

She was beautiful, to say the least, but her face was scarred. I almost wanted to gasp in disbelief. It almost ruined her beauty.

"Ana Hatcher," Jacob announced, grabbing a muffin.

"Oh, Marcus's daughter." She hit Jacob. "Ladies first. Muffin?"
"Yes please."

Jacob tossed one to me; I caught it. Embry came up next to me and grabbed a muffin.

"Emily's the best cook in the world," Embry bragged.

"Yeah," I chuckled. "Better than my dad."
Sam came through the hallway and into the kitchen. He was shirtless, well built, and cute, but way too old for me.

"Ana." He held out his hand. "I'm Sam Uley."
I wiped the crumbs off my hand and took his. "Nice to meet you. My dad's told me about you."
"Yeah. My dad and your dad go way back."
"That's cool." I took a bite of my muffin. "Your wife's an excellent cook."

Sam smiled. "Thanks." He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. "I know."

"So, Jacob, when's Bella bringing Nessie over?" Emily asked.

"Nessie?" I questioned.

"My girlfriend," Jacob replied. "And Bella's coming tomorrow for the bonfire."

"Oh, I forgot to ask." Embry turned to me. "Wanna come?"

"Yeah. I'll ask my dad."

"So what's for dinner, Emms?" Jared asked, chewing on his muffin.

"You've got plenty here," Emily laughed. "Go home and eat…" She smacked Jared's hand. "… save some for your brothers."
Seth, Brady, and Collin walked in.

"Hey!" Seth called. "Ana!"
He tackled me with a hug. I laughed out loud. He picked me up and spun me around.

"Leave her alone!" Emily called. "Grab a muffin."
"Thanks Em." Collin grabbed one. "You're the best."

"I should be getting home," I said aloud. "I've got to take care of my dad."
"Alright." Emily smiled. "It was nice meeting you."

"It was nice meeting you too," I replied.

Embry hugged me first. "I'll drive you home."
He took my hand and led me outside. I climbed into his car; Embry climbed in next to me. I shivered.

"You cold?" Embry asked, opening his arm for me.

I nodded, scooted over, and cuddled to his chest. He wrapped his arm tightly around me. He was so warm, and it felt so right. This boy made me shiver.

"Why are you so cold?" he teased, wrapping his arms around me and rocking back and forth. He had already parked the car in front of my house.

"I just am." I giggled, but the giggling stopped after I looked him in the eye.

Embry brushed the hair out of my face and slowly traced that hand down my cheek. I pulled away quickly.

"I better get going," I whispered nervously.

"Yeah." Embry grabbed the steering wheel in frustration. "See you later."

I felt bad for leaving Embry there, when all he wanted was a little kiss, but kisses weren't my thing, and I didn't want to disappoint him.

I walked into the house and turned on the kitchen lights. My dad, of course, was sleeping o the couch with a bag of potato chips on his stomach and the TV on.

"Dad." I threw my stuff to the side. "Daddy!"

My dad sat up slowly and put the bag of chips on the table.

"Hey sweetheart," he yawned.

"Hey Dad." I kissed his forehead. "I'm going to bed. Night."
"Night, princess."
I walked upstairs, climbed into bed, and fell asleep.

"Dad!" I called, grabbing my bag. "We're going to be late!"
My dad rushed downstairs. I chuckled and rolled my eyes. He was always late for everything. It was somewhat annoying, but I loved him, and I was excited. The bonfire was that night.

I went to school, hung out with the boys, and then went to their football practice. Embry told me he would pick me up for the bonfire.

My dad told me to dress warm, so I wore a long-sleeved, tight shirt, a pair of jeans, my work boots, and my biggest, warmest jacket. I brought a blanket just in case.

Embry was supposed to pick me up at seven, but he came at six forty-five. He rang the doorbell, and my dad answered.

"Hello, coach." I heard Embry say. "Is Ana home?"
"Yes," my dad replied. "Listen, you take good care of her and…"
"Dad!" I interrupted. "Be nice!"
I ran down the stairs with my blanket clenched to my chest. Embry smiled when he saw me.

"Hey." I walked up to my dad.

"Hey Ana," Embry greeted. "How are you?"

"Good." I walked over to him. "Bye Dad."
"Don't do anything stupid!" my dad called after us.

I shook my head as Embry and I walked away.

We climbed into his car. Embry started the car, and we drove away.

"So, Ana, do you like the guys?"
It was obvious he was trying to make small talk. It was awkward since we almost kissed.

"They're cool," I replied, not looking at him.

"Yeah."

Thankfully, we got to the bonfire. There were at least thirty people there. I was nervous.

"You coming?" Embry asked, holding my door open.

"Yeah."

I climbed out of the car; Embry put his arm around me and led me to the crowd.

"Ana!" a man in a wheel chair came up to me. "I'm Billy Black. Your father and I were best friends."
"It's nice to meet you, sir."
"Ana!" Jacob walked over with a young, white girl attached to his hip. This was getting overwhelming. "This is Nessie."
"That's a nickname," Nessie laughed. "My real name's Renesme, but you can call me Nessie. That's all Jacob's calls me."

I smiled. "It's nice to meet you, too, Nessie."
"There are so many people you need to meet," Nessie told me, taking my hand. "I'll take care of her, Embry."

Embry nodded as Nessie dragged me away.

"Ana." We stopped in front of a bunch of girls. "This is Kim, Jared's girlfriend, Jennifer, Collin's girlfriend, Molly, Seth's girlfriend, Rachel, Paul's girlfriend, and Angel, Brady's girlfriend."
"Hi!" Kim got up and hugged me. "Any friend of Nessie's is a friend of ours. Sit! Sit!"
I sat down on their picnic blanket and then wrapped my own blanket around my body. It had to be less than forty degrees out. I was so freezing.

"Do you like an guys here?" Molly asked.

I shrugged. "Sort of."
"Sort of?" Jennifer laughed. "How do you not know?"
"I just don't know how much I like him," I explained.

"Oh." Rachel winked.

"Oh no!" Angel giggled. "Here come the boys!"
I looked behind me, and all eight boys were walking towards us.

"Hey girlies." Jacob sat down behind Nessie and pulled her onto his lap. "How are you guys?"

Embry sat down next to me.

I didn't know why, but it seemed like gravity pulled me to him. I was attracted to him; there was no doubt about that, but I was so nervous. I never really had a boyfriend; I was always "one of the guys", but I didn't want to be anymore. I wanted to be a girl, a real girl. I wanted a boyfriend, but I didn't know Embry that well, but I liked him. There was no harm in a crush.

I scooted closer to Embry; he put his arm around me, and I cuddled to his chest.

"So, what do we do at these bonfires?" I asked.

Embry had both arms around me.

"We talk," Kim said.

"And eat," Jacob laughed.

Nessie hit him.

"And the elders tell stories," Nessie added.

"That's cool," I mused. "Where's the food?"
Everyone laughed.

"Seriously," I continued.

"I'll take you." Embry pulled me up and never let go of my hand. "It's over here."

He led me to another group of teens.

"Hey guys," Embry greeted. "What do we have to eat?"
"Hot dogs and s'mores," a girl answered nervously.

"What do you want, Ana?"
"Hot dog," I whispered.

He got me one on a stick and took me over to the fire. We sat down by it, and I stuck my hot dog into the fire; Embry wrapped his arm around me.

"So, are you scared of me?" Embry asked.

I rested my head on his shoulder. "No, why?"
"Because you wouldn't kiss me."
"I'm not the most affectionate person." I whispered. "I've never kissed anyone before, except my parents."
"You haven't?"
"No." I sighed. "If you haven't noticed, I'm not the girliest girl in the world."
"Well, you're the prettiest."
I smiled. No boy had ever made me happy.

"Thanks."
"Don't thank me." He squeezed my shoulder. "I'm just telling the truth."
"Embry." I looked up at him. "Why are you so nice to me?"
"Because you're worth it." He looked down at me. "I've never met someone so amazing in my life."
Slowly, our faces came closer and closer together. I was so nervous, but I felt ready. I never wanted a kiss from anyone more in my life. I reached up a little more until our lips met. We kissed; it was short and sweet, but I loved it. It was amazing for my first kiss. It was great and amazing and everything I wanted.

When he pulled away, I opened my eyes. He smiled down at me. His eyes were amazing, and I wanted to kiss him again.

"Now you've been kissed," Embry chuckled.

"Yeah. I guess so."

"Woa!" Embry pulled my hot dog out of the fire. "Guess it got a little burnt."
I looked at it and burst into laughter. Embry laughed too. We burnt the hot dog to a crisp, and it was hilarious.

"Good job," I laughed.

"Thanks." He kissed the top of my head. "But it was your fault."
And I never wanted to be with a guy more.