AN: YAY! I'm finally back. Missed me? Pl z do read the chapter.. Sorry to be so long gone! I missed u everyone but all of you left me alone! So, I just couldn't update.

CAN MY LIFE BE A BIT NORMAL?

(CASSIE'S POV)

"Seriously, my hands do work, Brady." I complained as Brady was forcibly feeding me that gooey stuff that Sue had brought in. It was gross! Was there no one on this planet who could understand me? Not even my own boyfriend?

"Yeah, I so know that and which is also the reason why I am doing this." He retorted. You know if he wasn't that cute and wasn't trying to grow a bit of facial hair for me, I would've hated him for this.

"Sometimes, I really wish I was normal." I wished.

"No one's life is normal, Cass." He told me.

"Well, just for a few days, maybe. I've even forgotten how it was to live an hour without the tension of exploding." I answered. He looked away and laughed. "I mean c'mon, is it much to ask for some normal time?"

"No, it isn't but you know, it's not actually possible." He told me.

"See? Even you think that." I muttered, swallowing in that goo. Do tell me what can be worse?

"I was just being honest about this."

"What's up with Louie?" I asked him.

"Quite better. He's at home right now. Resting."

"He should be doing that." I said when Paul came in with his cell phone in his hand in the way we use it for video calling.

"Yeah, mom. Cassie's quite better. Here you go." He said and turned it to me.

I should've known this.

"Hey, my little baby." Mom said in that motherly voice that she uses when she is either too proud of me or when I'm sick or something.

"Hey mom!" I said. She was crying. "Hey, don't cry, sweetheart. I'm so okay."

"Liar!" mom retorted.

"No, I am perfect." I said.

"Then, why are you in this hospital and why can't I meet you?"

"You already know that and stop sulking like a kid, mum."

"I don't know anything."

"God, mom, you're so impossible! I promise whenever I'm totally perfect i.e. lave blown out, I will come myself to meet you guys, okay?"

"You remind me of your nana at times."

"Gee, I'm not that old yet."

"You know what I mean."

"I gotta sleep now, mom. You talk to Paul and Brady." I cut off with my part. Mom truly has been sulking like a kid ever since that day when they got back. Dad says it's sometimes hard for him to make her understand. Yeah, ask me dad. I lived with this woman almost my whole life. But even though she is sometimes a bit stubborn, she's the sweetest mom anyone's ever had. It was about nine right now, so, yeah, it was a good time to sleep. Brady switched off the lights and I was off.

I woke up screaming from a nightmare. I didn't remember what it was because as soon as I came to my senses I forgot about it. My neck felt itchy and hot even though it wasn't that hot. The rest of my body was way too cold, so much that I was shivering.

"Cass, you okay?" Brady shot up from the couch, he was half sleeping on.

"Um…yeah. Yeah, I guess." I answered scratching my neck.

"Hey, wait." He told me. "I'll call Wayne."
I stretched back. My neck was itching and in these few seconds, the itching had spread over my whole body.

"I guess it's some kind of allergy." I muttered.

"No, I don't think so. Your eyes…" he said and walked out of the room. In a few minutes, he returned with Wayne.

"As expected." Wayne muttered.

"What 'expected'?" I asked.

"You're maturing." Brady replied.

"Urgh!" I started scratching again.

You know what? My life sucks! It truly does! Wayne advised three days more here as a stay back or till my maturation doesn't stop. Well, my eyes had started turning reddish purple and that was the reason why Brady freaked out at first thinking I might blow up and I needed to be taken out but duh, Wayne told him that I had started the process.

Okay, the next day was horrible. I was so sick, itchy, weak, irritated and no one (human) could meet me. It wasn't totally weird because the last thing I wanted now was Rachel, Hayley and the others blowing on me which they always do when I'm sick. They don't mean it bad because they keep explaining me that I should think a bit less and all but it sucks. Anyway, I didn't even need the food because I was hardly awake more than 45 minutes per two hours and Paul and Brady were struggling to make me eat. I told them that I didn't need it but then Wayne started that if I don't eat, he would attach an IV which was the last thing I wanted now. All I ate were a few pieces of apple and that gooey stuff again. You know, it didn't taste as bad. Sue is getting better at making it. Dave, Ken, Mark and Kyle came to cheer me up. Brady, the four and I played some old school board games and that was the only time I was awake for an hour or maybe more. The pimples had increased by the night and I was literally having fits of shiver even though it was a warm night.

I had thought that yesterday was the most horrible day but today was even terrible. It was as if the flames inside me were banging up in my head or mostly, my whole body….

DAY FIVE: Ah, relief! I am so happy! Although, it's still not sure when I might blow up but I got a nice discharge from the hospital. Louie told me that no one dared to tell him what was the deal with me but he came to know the second day and he even came to see me but his bad, I was sleeping. I wouldn't say his bad, because I was out of conscious the whole day so, duh, how would've I known. I was a bit better on the third day and totally okay (well, according to me) on the fifth day. Carlisle wasn't really sure if they should let me out but Wayne said that I needed some fresh air. Ha, late enough but he gets me at last. Rachel was practically so happy and squeezed my gut out of me while she hugged me. Her belly was now even larger and it felt like there would be a baby Paul wolf in no more than two weeks and you know, I was so happy that something was normal for a while I guess.

SOME DAYS LATER…

We were as usual, doing nothing, sitting at Uley's. Emily and Rachel were having a fun time discussing this whole pregnancy thing and Kim was so enthusiastic as if she was the next in line. As if. Or maybe she even was. Whatever, like that mattered to me right now.

"Dude, you won't believe what happened today!" Kyle wobbled in through the door with Mark in tow.

"Shut up!" Mark shut him up.

"Well, go on. You can't be hiding it that long from me, Mark." I replied. You know, since I'm back and all, Mark and I have started off with a better bonding and now that he's in our school, we guys get a lot of time to hang out together. He told me once that the second he saw me, he stopped doubting his brother's choice (his way of saying that he knew I was nice enough). So anyway, I was saying Mark can't keep secrets from me (in his human form) and from the pack (in his wolf form). I could guess from the way he was acting that this was something different and Mark Fuller doesn't face this every day.

"What's wrong with you?" I asked him.

"I….uh…nothing." he answered.

"Oh yeah right! What's written on my face? That I'm a fool?" I retorted.

"A tad of anger might result in a huge explosion." Brady acted as if he was reading a line from the book in his hand whereas he was saying this to remind me that I shouldn't be angry.

"Whatever." I shunned him off.

"He imprinted." Kyle replied.

"What?" I reacted.

"WHAT?!" Brady replied.

The difference between Brady's and my replies were that mine was with some happiness and his was with total shock and as if nothing could be worse than this.

"What's so what in this?" Mark replied coldly. Oops, I get something.

"Who's the poor Miss Doomed?" Brady muttered. I smacked his arm. I know about Mark but c'mon, he's not that bad.

"It's some girl named Veronica Sparks." Ken replied for Mark.

"So, what's she like? Your kind?" Brady asked him.

"Would you shut up for a second, Fuller?" I glared at him.

"No. She's the most amazing girl I've ever seen in my whole life." He said. "She's like a Reese Witherspoon in Cruel Intentions. I mean her character in that movie."

"I'm not catching up even a word, Mark." I complained. "What's the problem? Ask her out! It's easy for you!"

"No, Cass. Believe me, it's not. I'm truly in love with her and now, it gets hard to utter a word in front of her." he replied.

"What do you mean now?" I asked.

"Well, that girl was with me since, well, KG. And you know what; we both are total opposites of each other. And she hates me." He told me. Brady had begun laughing now. "That's nothing to laugh about!"

"So, you mean, in short, you can't ask her out 'cause?" Quil asked him in a girly squeal.

"Seriously, Quil?" I muttered. "Anyway, you continue."

"Okay, so, Veronica is a book worm like you."

"Hey!" I shouted in my defense.

"You want to know about her, or not?" he asked me.

"Okay, retreat." I replied.

"Okay, so. Basically, she hates because she says I'm out with different girls every couple of days. She says I'm a man-whore." He said. We all had started laughing. As if there was any new thing to be said.

"Why're you all laughing?" he asked us.

"Nothing." Brady replied. "The girl knows how to differentiate people. Nice choice, Taha Aki."

"So, anyway, I don't know how to get along with her." he told me. "And she's got that dickhead boyfriend of hers who never lets anyone near her. Although, sometimes, I feel they are more brother-sister-ey than you know, I never saw them kissing each other."

For a minute, I couldn't help but laugh. It was weird though because Mark Fuller wasn't getting a girl. Now, that was pathetic.

"Okay, so you gotta learn a lot, Marky." I ruffled his hair.

"I love you, babe." He replied.

"First of all, quit this language." I smacked the back of his head. "And second, stop flirting with girls."

"You know…it's natural. It comes out automatically when I'm in front of a pretty girl." He answered me. I rolled my eyes and Brady was laughing so hard that he fell of the stair he was sitting on. Even after falling, he wasn't stopping laughing.

"As if!" he said.

"Is that a challenge?" I punched the table with my fist.

"Whoa, Blue eyes, you need not get excited that much." He replied, seeing the determination in my eyes.

"Oh, yeah? It's a deal, now. You can back out if you're still scared enough."

"Deal." We shook our hands.

"Guys, seriously?" Dave muttered in between.

"Yeah, I'm serious." We both said in unison.

"You're gonna regret it. You might as well draw back." Brady said.

"You know what, Brownie? You're gonna regret it." I stabbed my right index finger in his chest.

NEXT DAY…

Finally, I was at school after another break. I seriously need to lessen my holiday else I'm losing this once again. Anyway, that witch coven was hanging out with Shane was what I noticed first of all. I mean not that I notice Shane but still, you know, I kind of did. It wasn't weird but still it seemed weird. Not weird because I thought they belonged together and weird because the last time I was at school, Shane wasn't there.

"So, are you showing me who Veronica is?" I elbowed Mark in his stomach.

"Okay, one: that hurt, two: you're talking as if you would die if you didn't see here and three… there she comes with her boyfriend." He muttered and you know he was shaking really badly. I bet if Brady hadn't been there, he would've exploded. Veronica wasn't a native to the Rez. She had pale skin and grey eyes. Her hair was between dark blonde and brown. She looked about 5'3". Pretty enough, after all. The boyfriend was like okay and jockish from the conclusion I drew. He looked as if he was…wait, that's Leonard Samuels, the junior basketball captain for the year. "You know, I sometimes so wish I could kill one single person in my life and get forgiveness for that."

"I understand." Brady replied pressing his lips, trying to suppress his smile. I swear he could kill me someday if he continues suppressing his smile like that.

"You know, both of you look a lot alike when you do that." I folded my arms over my chest.

"We are nothing alike." Both of them spat at the same time.

"Oh, stop copying Me." again at the same time.

"You do!"

"No, you do." Everything was coming out at the same time.

"Okay, both of you shut up!" I smacked both of their back of the heads. Sometimes, they can both be jerks.

"Oh, by the way, I forgot. We're having a party at TMFC next weekend." Brady said in no nonsense way when we were walking down to our class.

"What for?" I asked him.

"Well, you're back, safe and sound and fortunately, I'm not going through depression! Bing! Is that less reason to celebrate?" he replied.

We were in the class since like fifteen minutes and okay, I was being paranoid considering the fact that I hadn't attended many classes and every time something sounds and seems normal, it ends up being even more dangerous than the last time. Occasionally, my mind tried to be aware and instinctively, my eyes searched for Brady and Louie, both.

Everything went smoothly, to my luck and then I came up with something! I jumped in my seat, well almost. Brady gave me a pay-attention glare. It was something I couldn't control till long and I needed to tell Mark right then. Fortunately, the bell went off in a few seconds, I shot up in my seat and we left.

"We got a situation, Cass." Brady caught hold of my hand.

"What?" I asked him.

"My jackass brother." He replied. "Ken texted me and he says he's holding Mark hostage in the boy's washroom."

"So, one thing, what am I supposed to do with it?" I asked.

"Ken says it's got something to do with Veronica. He says they're bit much of friends but something terrible's happened."

I so should've known. Seriously, I mean. I waited in the corridor as he went in and got Mark out.

"I'm so going to kill that bastard. I say that!" Mark shouted.

"Calm down. What happened?" I asked him.

"That guy- Leonard, he was…shouting on her! How could he just…he CANNOT shout on my imprint!"

"Every couple has some fights." Ken tried to calm him.

"But… I don't want them to….be a couple." Mark's voice had broken.

"Mark, I know, you don't but… you have to wait till it's the right time." I put my hand on his shoulder and said.

"But when will the right time come, Cassie? I know she won't accept me as it is but at least as her friend?" he asked me. Mark looked exactly the same as Brady looked when he told me that he loved me and he thought that I took him just as a friend.

"Okay, you need to calm down, Mark. It's not about having her as a friend; it's about making her feel safer." Brady said. The look on his face had got me, really. His cuteness was sometimes so…cute. I mean I couldn't really resist him at times.

AN: A couple of reviews till the next update, pwease? pwease?