Without Leah, Sam was lost. He went through the motions at the direction of the imprint, and to Emily, he even looked happy. But it was a farce. He was a shell of his former self. The only thing that felt real to him was his love for his LeeLee, but she would not speak to him, and he was worried for her well-being after learning about her fears about her own future.
With time, Emily's fear of attack gradually lessened, and he realized he was able to leave her side for longer stretches of time. During those moments of freedom, he realized how lonely he was. He wasn't going to school, had no job, and had isolated himself from friends and family. And now he didn't even have a pack to call his own.
He wasn't proud of himself, but he spied on Leah whenever he got the chance. He was certain she knew he was there some of the time, but she kept her head down and didn't make eye contact, and if he tried to talk to her, she just walked away. He caught glimpses of her going in and out of the community center, grocery shopping, sitting in her room, spending time with Bella Swan, and hanging out with pack members. The latter made him insanely jealous. He had always been possessive, but until now there was no one to be jealous of. Now, though, unattached single guys surrounded her, and they all felt very strongly for her, were objectively attractive, and had reason to be in constant contact with her. It drove him mad. Every time his mark stung, he was overcome with terrible fantasies of her being seduced by someone else.
He wasn't sure who was worse, Jacob or Paul. Jacob hadn't shown overt interest in or attraction to Leah, but he felt like a bigger threat. He had already usurped Sam's place as Alpha and had taken over the entire pack, leaving Sam to fend for himself. If it had not been for Jacob's separation, Sam would have had the opportunity to communicate with Leah directly, but without their nonverbal method of mental communication, he quite literally could not speak the truth. He believed, as Paul had said, that Jacob had broken away from him with the express purpose of getting Leah away from him. To make matters worse, he knew they spent significant amounts of time together; Seth was constantly inviting his hero to their house, and Jacob frequently checked on Leah. If it weren't for Jacob's obvious infatuation with Bella Swan, he would be convinced that Jacob was making a move on Leah. After all, the Alpha male in a normal wolf pack normally mated with the Alpha female, and Leah was nothing if not an Alpha female. For now, Bella seemed to stand between them, but Sam couldn't be comfortable with that either, since Bella and Leah were friends, often bringing Jacob into further contact with her. It drove him crazy.
Paul, on the other hand, was a slimy, manipulative, disrespectful letch who had an obvious crush on Leah that he didn't try to hide. Thankfully, he also knew from Leah's mind that she had never returned them, but that didn't stop him from being infuriated when he was eavesdropping on them one evening when they were making dinner together in the cabin. Emily had gone to visit her mother and didn't want to try to explain his role in her life, so he was as free as he could remember feeling in weeks. The second he felt his mark grow warm, he went to find her. He crept toward the cabin, where he spotted Leah and Paul through the window. Paul told her something that made Sam's blood boil. "A girl as gorgeous as you should never be alone. It's criminal."
She answered, "Better to be alone than lonely in someone's company." He knew she was referring to all the times his attention had shifted from her to Emily against his will.
Sam looked in the window. Paul was edging close to Leah where she stood by the stove. "You were lonely too long. I know you were, and I know you're hurting, and you didn't deserve it. But you're not alone now."
"You're sweet, Paul." Sam knew that Paul was everything but. But Leah was oblivious. "Thanks for being here. I know it's supposed to be rough when you break up, but I never thought it would happen like this. I was naïve I guess. I really didn't think it would happen to us at all. I was such an idiot."
Sam couldn't breathe. He had foolishly hoped that she was just angry. He refused to accept that they had broken up despite the fact that she had returned her ring. He thought that he could find a way to give it back to her. Even bound to Emily, he couldn't imagine a future without Leah. It was unthinkable.
"He never deserved you," Paul answered, putting his hand on her shoulder. Sam wanted to rip Paul's arm right out of its socket, and his mark began to throb.
She didn't seem to notice how close Paul was. She shook her head. "I just can't believe they've already moved in together. I can't believe she's letting him stay there." Letting him? If anything, she forced him. He wouldn't be in this mess if he had any choice in the matter. "I thought she was my friend. And it's not just me who thinks it's too soon. His mom thinks he's lost his mind, and he hasn't seen his grandma in weeks. The poor thing is so worried about him. She thinks he's on drugs. I don't know what to tell her." He dropped to his knees. He couldn't remember the last time he spared a thought for his family.
"You keep in touch with them?"
She nodded. "His mom knows about us, so at least I can talk to her. But the council never cleared his grandma. She's totally in the dark. I brought her some cookies a few days ago, and she's basically heartbroken. She loves him so much, and that was before she went back to the hospital." Sam had no idea what she was taking about, but she didn't explain further. "I don't think he even knows."
"He doesn't deserve them. He doesn't deserve you."
She shook her head. "You don't know him. Not the real him. It's like someone ripped him right out of his own body and replaced his mind with someone else's. His heart. He's like a stranger wearing the face of the man I love."
At that, Sam's heart started pounding. She loved him. She still loved him. Not this thing he was becoming, this unrecognizable, cruel, thoughtless puppet, but him. The real him. The one she had promised not to forget. He still had a chance.
Paul slipped his hand down and rubbed circles into the small of her back. "Forget him. The Sam you knew is gone. And the new Sam can't do anything but hurt you. It's not your fault, and you didn't deserve any of this. You're an amazing girl, and if he's too blind to see it, that's his loss, not yours. But you don't need him."
Paul was right, of course, which made Sam angrier than ever. He wanted to tear Paul bodily off Leah and throw him out of the cabin. Then he wanted to claim what had always been his. But Paul was right. Since he had phased, it seemed that all he did was hurt Leah. If he really wanted what was best for her, he'd stay out of her way.
Leah shrugged and let out a little sigh. "I know. I'm just not used to it yet. I keep waking up in the middle of the night and reaching out for a warm body that's not there. He's slept in my bed since we were kids, Paul, and sleeping alone…" Sam could see in Paul's eyes that he wanted to offer to stay in her bed, but before he could figure out how to say it without sounding like a pervert, she continued, "Or silly little things happen, and I think, 'Oh, Sammy's going to think this is hilarious,' then I realize he's not there to talk to. And then I remember that I can't tell my dad about them either, and I just..." She couldn't finish her sentence. She was trying hard not to cry.
Paul spun her around in his arms and wrapped himself around her. The mark on Sam's clavicle shifted from a throb to a sharp sting. She buried her face in his shirt. "Hey, hey, hey. You're gonna be okay. You're not alone, alright? I've got you. I've got you."
She nodded and pulled back slightly, wiping away the tears that had fallen. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak out like that."
He did not let go. He shook his head. "Don't apologize. What you've been through lately, it's too much. It would have broken any normal person, but you're too strong. Too good. You're not alone though, okay? Sam's not the only guy in the world, and Emily wasn't your only friend."
"I know." She smiled up at him tentatively. "You've been so nice to me."
"Nothing but good things should happen to you, Leah. No one should ever make you feel like you're second best, because no girl on earth compares to you."
She snorted. "You mean I'm unique, right? I'm such a freak. A freak among freaks."
He tipped her chin up with his finger. "You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen, the sweetest, the smartest, the nicest, and also the bravest and the strongest, too." He tightened his grip around her waist. Leah's eyes widened. She finally realized that Paul wasn't just a shoulder to cry on. His voice dropped to a low rumble. "I know you're hurting, Leah. Let me make you feel better." He traced a line along her jaw and buried his hand in her hair, and he lowered his lips until they nearly touched hers. "Let me make you feel good."
Sam couldn't take it anymore. He burst through the door as Paul whipped around, pushing Leah behind him protectively. "Get your filthy paws off her!" he roared and grabbed Paul by the arms, attempting to haul him outside.
"Fuck you!"
Paul yanked his arms free before Sam managed to maneuver him to the door. "Let go of me, asshole!"
Sam jabbed his finger at Paul's chest. "Stay away from her. She is not one of your little whores."
Leah was staring at him in shock, and she hadn't yet found her voice. Paul retorted, "I'm not the one shacking up with some slut, Uley. You're such a fucking hypocrite. You want to talk about whores?"
"Hell, you are one yourself. You don't deserve to touch the ground she's stepped on." Sam pointed at Leah as he spoke.
Paul actually laughed. "Me? I'm the one who isn't worthy of her? You're the idiot that let her go. Not even that, you pushed her away. You had her, and you blew it. You can bitch and whine about it all you want, but if you think someone as special as her is going to be single for long, you're deluding yourself."
Sam didn't have an argument for that, and it hit home. It might not be Paul, but eventually it would be someone here with Leah. He didn't think he could take it. Seeing her with another man, anyone else, would kill what little of him was left.
She moved behind him, and he turned to reach for her. She sidestepped him, avoiding his touch, and opened the front door. Her surprise had faded, and in its place was an angry mask. "You can leave now, Sam."
His heart broke. Paul made him seethe with jealousy, but her rejection cut deeply. He could only imagine how bad it was for her. "LeeLee, please. You have to listen to me."
Her voice was calm and cool. "No I don't," she said softly. "Your words don't mean anything. Half the time, you can't even say what you mean, and the other half, you don't mean what you say. So I'm done listening."
He saw Paul's smug expression aimed at him. He didn't want to beg in front of him, but he would prostrate himself at Leah's feet if it would make her listen. He had already lost almost everything that made him who he was, and he couldn't bear to lose her too, even if he was the one who drove her away. He would fight anyone and anything to keep her. He would fight Leah herself. Now he fought the imprint to tell her the truth. "Please don't do this. I know I hurt you, and I'm so sorry. If I could undo these past few months, I would. You have to know that. What happened, it isn't what I want. It isn't me. You know that. You know me."
She stared at a point above his left shoulder. "I used to know you. I really did. But not anymore."
"But you've looked in here." He pointed at his heart. "You know what's really there. You know what's true and what's false. You know how I really feel about you."
"I do." She finally looked directly into his eyes, and the pain he saw in hers was immense. "And for a long time, I thought that was what really mattered. You said that it was. But you showed me that it doesn't. It doesn't matter what you feel for me, just like it doesn't matter what I feel for you. It doesn't matter what I do, or what I say. None of it matters."
He whispered, "Don't say that. Please don't say that."
She straightened her shoulders. "You're right. There's no point in talking. It doesn't matter what either of us say. So you can go." Paul took her words as a cue and opened the door, gesturing at him to leave.
No. This couldn't be happening. Not to them, not after everything they had been through. She couldn't be kicking him out, not when he loved her like no other, and she him. Not when he still wanted forever with her. To make matters worse, Paul was here to witness his humiliation. "And what," he argued. He didn't want to go, and he certainly didn't want to leave Leah here with Paul. "He gets to stay? This womanizer? This little pervert? The same punk that violated your trust, violated your privacy?"
Paul guffawed. "Me? I'm the one who violated her trust? You have got to be kidding me. I think she asked you to leave. If you can't do it the easy way, I'll make you, you fucking stalker." This time, it was Paul who laid hands on him, grabbing his shoulders.
Sam dislodged himself from Paul's grip and shoved him squarely in the chest. "Get off me!"
Paul came back at him with his fist cocked back, ready to strike. Sam grabbed it midair and punched Paul in his unprotected gut. Paul phased then and there, his bulk shoving Leah aside and knocking over the table by the door. Sam didn't hesitate. His wolf burst out of his skin only a second later. The chair behind him toppled over, and he and Paul came together, snarling. Paul knocked him back, crushing the chair. He kicked Paul away, sending him crashing into the open door and snapping it off its hinges.
Leah screamed, "God damn it, Sam, get out! You're going to destroy this whole place! Get out!" Paul barely made it outside before Sam was on him, raking at his back with his claws. Paul howled in pain and twisted around, swiping at him and managing to strike a blow to his muzzle. They backed away from each other, growling, as blood dripped from both of them onto the ground.
Sam was furious, though he knew his anger was misplaced. He shouldn't blame Paul for his problems: he had brought them on himself. But his jealousy ate at him, far more painful than the wound Paul had inflicted to his face. He leapt forward, snapping at the smaller wolf with his jaws. Paul turned enough to get his head out of the way, allowing Sam to sink his teeth into his shoulder. Paul dug his claws into the flesh of Sam's chest until he let go, and they fell apart, panting. This time, Paul didn't wait for Sam to strike. He charged, head-butting Sam in the chin, and Sam saw stars. Paul took advantage of his momentary disorientation and knocked him back, then landed on him and tried to sink his teeth into his neck. Sam rolled just far enough that Paul only grazed his shoulder, and Sam pushed him off. This time Sam regained his footing first. He jumped onto Paul, clawing along his side and mauling his shoulder. Paul bucked him off. When he fell, Paul swiped at his belly, drawing blood. He batted Paul's arm away.
Behind him, he heard yelling. Leah was screaming at them to stop. He knew he was in the wrong, but was far too angry to retreat, and Paul showed no signs of backing off either. Paul slammed into his flank and sent them tumbling.
As the brawl wore on, Paul or Sam alternately gained the upper hand. But neither could achieve true dominance. Paul was smaller but more vicious, and Sam wasn't thinking clearly enough to mount a well-planned offense. But he didn't stop attacking until Leah finally phased and jumped between them. Sam had knocked Paul to the ground and saw that his throat was unprotected, and he charged. By the time he saw Leah coming at him out of the corner of his eye, it was too late. His momentum was too strong, and he barreled into her. He saw her wince, but she did not fight him. She just snarled. As soon as he stumbled off her, she gathered her clothes in her mouth and hid herself behind a large tree to change. She phased back into her human form, because she could not speak to him in their minds any longer.
"Leave. Now," she ordered when she emerged. "You aren't welcome here."
His anger immediately drained out of him at the sight of her, vulnerable, hurt, and angry. He despised himself, and he wanted to erase the past several months. "I'm so sorry. Please, I know I shouldn't have done that, any of it, but I need you. We can't... This can't be it. This can't be the end. We shouldn't be apart, and he shouldn't be standing between us."
"He's not the one standing between us," she pointed out. "I already told you that I'm not going to be the other woman, and I won't stand for cheating. I know I'm worth more than that. And if you don't think that's true, you really aren't the Sam I fell in love with."
"Of course. That's completely true. You deserve the world, the best. Not what I've been doing to you."
She crossed her arms over herself protectively, and she seemed to shrink into herself. "Then you'll understand when I tell you that it's me or her. No compromises, no going back and forth. I thought we could work something out, but that's just breaking my heart. It's going to break me. And I love you," she admitted, as hope rose within his chest. "I love what we had. I wanted a life with you more than I wanted anything. But this isn't that life, and you're not the person I fell in love with. I want my Sammy back, I do..." she whispered, trying not to cry.
"LeeLee," he begged. "I'm right here. It's me. It's you and me, LeeLee. Always." He tried to step forward to take her into his arms, but she moved back, bumping into Paul. She shook her head vehemently.
"No. You're here, but you're not my Sammy. You're someone else. The person I know is disappearing. I've tried to stop it, I've tried to pull you back, just like you asked me. But there's nothing I can do. I see that now."
He would have dropped to his knees if he thought it would do any good. "Please, baby, please don't give up on me. I'm right here, I swear!"
She shook her head again. "Being in love with this version of you, it doesn't just hurt. It's not just destroying me. Lately all it really seems to mean is that it's going to get me killed."
"I'm so sorry. You have no idea how much."
"So?" she asked. "So what? You regret it? You feel bad? You still want me? So what? If I let you stay here, let you spend the night, if I let you fuck me, maybe you'll still be here in the morning, and maybe you won't. You're still going back to her. I see that now. It's just a matter of time."
He knew it was true as long as the imprint was intact, and he had no argument for it. But he protested anyway. "I'm not sleeping with her. I've never even kissed her. She wants me to, but I refuse. I'm fighting it. You have to believe me."
Something flashed through her eyes momentarily, and he wanted it to be hope. But she just looked down. "Whether or not that's true, I can't trust you. I can't even count on you to watch my back, let alone stop hurting me."
"But there has to be something I can do to fix this. What can I do? What can I do to show you? There has to be something."
"It's not your fault," she sighed. Paul snorted in disagreement, but he said nothing. "But as long as the imprint has its hold on you, you can't be my Sammy."
"Yes! That's it! It's the imprint, it's not..." He wanted to say that it wasn't him, but he couldn't.
But she still knew what he meant. "I know you've been fighting it, I do, and believe me when I say that I know how hard that is. I know you still... care about me." He was crushed when she didn't say that he loved her. He wasn't able to say it, but he was desperate that she know. "Whether it's the real you or not doesn't even matter. The imprint is there, and it's not just hurting me. It's dangerous."
Brokenly, he asked, "LeeLee, what can I do?"
She straightened her spine and focused her glittering eyes on his. Suddenly the vulnerable girl was gone, and a proud warrior stood in her place. She stared at him long and hard, and finally she said, "You choose, Sammy. You break that imprint, and we'll talk."
He wanted to swear his faithfulness, to promise to do anything she asked, to swear his eternal love. But the only thing he could force past his throat was, "Anything. Anything."
Paul butted in again. He said to Leah, "You can't be serious. You couldn't possibly consider taking him back, not after what he's done."
"I didn't promise him anything, and I never said I was taking him back. He wanted to know what he can do, well, that's it. That's the only thing I can think of." She turned back to him. "I'm not telling you that I'm going to wait for you, Sam. I'll just make myself crazy waiting and hoping for something that will never happen. As far as I can tell, it's impossible. I think you would have done it already if you could have."
She began to walk back to the house. The fight with Paul had brought them farther into the woods than he realized. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to go with her, but he knew he wasn't welcome. He was adrift. He watched her offer to dress Paul's wounds, and the pain of his own distracted him slightly from his despair. It felt like fitting punishment for what he had done to her. He followed at a distance until Paul turned and said, "Asshole, she told you to leave."
Leah's answer was the last thing he expected. "He can come get the casserole."
"Wait, that's not for us?"
"Not the one made with egg whites. That one's for his grandma. I was going to take it over there, but he should do it. I'll bet he doesn't even know."
He jogged to catch up with them. He had already forgotten about her reference to his grandmother; the imprint pushed that kind of important information to the back of his brain. "Know what?"
Her voice was cool, calm, and professional. Her face was a blank mask. "She had a mini-stroke two days ago. Got out of the hospital today. She's staying with your mom, who's busy enough as it is, so you can take them dinner after you clean up."
Sam didn't know it was possible to feel worse than he already did. "Is she okay?"
"Yeah. A bit weak, really exhausted, but that's about all. She's worried about you."
He couldn't remember the last time he had spoken with his family. "Where do they think I am?"
"They've heard the rumors. They know you're living with Emily. They don't know how to get a hold of her, and I think they were afraid to ask me, but they want to see you. So go home, Sam. Your actual home," she emphasized.
Paul protested when Leah let him in the cabin, but she pointed out that he was naked and bleeding and couldn't show up on his mother's doorstep in that state. She grabbed the first aid kid out of the bathroom and then sent him into it with a change of his clothes from their bedroom. Even through the spray of the shower, he heard her soft voice through the walls as she cleaned and dressed Paul's wounds. He knew when her skin was in direct contact with the other shifter; heat shot through her mark on his collarbone each time. He ran his fingers over it and was thankful it had never disappeared, unlike his injuries from Paul, which were already beginning to fade.
When he emerged, she was gone.
"Where is she?"
Paul was eating directly out of one of the casserole dishes. "None of your damn business." He shoved the other one in Sam's direction. Sarcastically, he said, "See if you can keep your dick out of your slut long enough to drop this off."
"For the last time," Sam growled, "I'm not fucking her."
Paul snorted. "Sure. Right. Like Leah believes that."
As he walked to his mother's house, he realized that Leah already had proof of his fidelity even if she didn't know it. If her mark felt the same way that his did whenever another man touched her, she would know that he hadn't touched Emily long enough to have sex with her. He would have to limit his casual physical contact as much as possible. He wasn't certain it was in his power to resist her, but he would do his best to try. He had managed to do so thus far, at least in some ways, not telling her he loved her or kissing her the way she really wanted. He was worried that he would not have control over his own body if she asked directly for something, but he was learning to resist in whatever ways he could.
Now all he needed to do was to figure out how to break the bond completely.
His mother was shocked and thrilled to see him. By the time he arrived, his grandmother had already gone to sleep, but Allison was still up. She took the food from him and peered behind him hopefully, saying, "Where is she?" She obviously expected Leah to come herself.
"At home," he said uncomfortably.
His mother's eyes sparkled. "The cabin? Does that mean you've gone home too?"
"I think she's at her mom's place."
Allison's face fell. She tried to hide her disappointment as she turned to the kitchen. "Oh. I just saw this and hoped… But this means you're talking, right? So things must be looking up?"
He shook his head. "No, I'm sorry."
His mother frowned, but said, "Is it really me you should be apologizing to?"
He sighed, "I think I owe a lot of apologies to a lot of people. I'm sorry I haven't been around more."
"I'd say I thought you were just busy, but the fact is that I've got no idea. Leah isn't telling me much, and your old friends don't seem to know anything either, so all I've got is rumors to go off of." She cut a piece of the casserole for him and pushed it toward him. "Care to let me in on whatever the new secret is? I worry about you, you know. And knowing bits and pieces about what you're up to isn't helping any. The little that I do get is pretty damn frightening."
"What did Leah tell you?"
"She stops by to check on us, bring us food, stuff like that. But she hasn't exactly been chatty lately. But she did say that you two broke up. I found it kind of hard to believe, despite what I've been hearing about you and that other girl, because I've watched the two of you for your entire lives."
Softly, he answered, "I know."
When he didn't explain further, she added, "Did she do something?"
A lump formed in his throat. "No. She's as amazing as she's always been. More so, actually."
"Then did something happen? Did you have a big fight? Because the last I knew, I was looking forward to a wedding. You said she was the one. Always has been, and as far as I could see, always would be. You're my son, and I love you, but I don't understand. I can see it in her eyes. She loves you, and I think she'd do just about anything for you, and she still would."
He hoped she was right, but he wasn't convinced, not after tonight. "You think so?"
"I do. So what's going on? Did you really meet someone else? Someone you actually like more?"
"Something like that," he answered. "But it's not what you think. It's not like everybody's been saying."
"So you didn't dump Leah for her cousin? You haven't moved in with the Young girl already?" He dropped his eyes to his plate and pushed around his food. It was still warm. Her eyes widened. "I didn't believe it. It was just so hard to imagine, especially since she phased after you. Who could understand you better than Leah?"
"Nobody. But it's really complicated."
She sat down across from him. "I've got time. Explain."
So he told her. He described his imprint as best he could, leaving out everything about his ties with her and his grandmother being severed. It would only hurt her.
She stared at him, stunned. "So that's it? It's all over with just one look?"
"I've been doing everything I can to keep her, because I still feel... I still want..."
"You still love her," Allison finished. "I can see it. I can tell."
"But it's not enough. She's sick of the way we've been jerking her around, and she's right. I almost got her killed, Mom. I left her behind in a fight. I don't know what to do. I hate this." And then it all spilled out. He told her about his ostracism from the pack, about Jacob taking over, and about Emily's strange power over him.
She was horrified by what had happened, worried about his isolation, and frightened that his safety was compromised without his pack. "They can't just kick you out like that. It wasn't your fault."
"But what I did, it didn't just put Leah at risk. Kim was there, and I didn't help her either. I don't deserve to be in the pack."
"I don't understand. Back up a bit. Tell me exactly what happened."
He tried to make it as coherent as possible while leaving out the extent of the threat. "Okay, so Kim and Emily were in Kim's car, on their way to the rez. A vampire went after the car. He got a hold of Kim, and Leah went chasing after them. I got Emily out of there."
"How is that a bad thing?"
"It isn't. But the vamp had run off in the opposite direction. Leah and Kim needed me, and I…"
Understanding dawned on his mother. "But instead of helping them…"
"Leah was begging me to come. I just couldn't."
"Couldn't? You mean you wouldn't."
He shook his head. "I wanted to help them, believe me. I physically couldn't."
She was bewildered. "Why?"
"The imprint, it held me at Emily's side. She was scared, and her safety trumped everything else."
"Including Leah? Including the pack?"
"Yeah."
Allison was silent for a long time. She carefully examined her hands. "How is she? How's Leah?"
Sam crumpled. "Hurt. She's basically healed, physically, but…"
"But you ran away while she was being attacked."
"I didn't want to run away," he whispered.
She sighed heavily. "It still doesn't sound like it was your fault, honey."
He rolled his eyes. "Then whose fault was it?"
Her eyes snapped up. "Sounds like it was Emily's, even if she doesn't understand that. I mean, that's why you're staying at her place, right? Because she's scared and doesn't want you to leave?" She sniffed, "She needs to find her own boyfriend. Because you're already taken."
His mouth fell open. "Mom?"
"What? It's true. Are you honestly trying to tell me you fell out of love with LeeLee Clearwater? That you don't want to get married? Are you trying to say you've fallen for the Young girl?" The imprint wouldn't let him answer her properly, so she barreled on, "She seems like nothing but trouble. Since you imprinted on her, your fiancée has left you, you were demoted and kicked out of your pack, and you're acting like you're homeless. And when was the last time you went to work? Marty's been calling, and I've got no idea what to tell him."
"Me neither," he answered miserably.
"Well, when you were with Leah, you got good grades, earned a scholarship, made good money, checked on your grandmother, and spoke to your mother once in a while. Since I heard all these rumors about you and that girl…" Her face betrayed her irritation. "And Leah lined up a bunch of information about online classes, too, after all this insanity happened. Are you at least going to follow through on that?"
It was the last thing on his mind, and he said so. "I haven't thought about it."
She looked positively disgusted. "Somebody should have a talk with that girl."
"She's not trying to hurt Leah on purpose," he explained. "She doesn't even know what's going on, not really."
"All the more reason to talk to her! Have you tried?"
"I can't. I literally can't, just like I couldn't make my legs turn me around and take me back to Leah during the fight. I open my mouth, and what comes out is whatever she wants to hear."
"I don't understand. The legends made it sound like imprinting is wonderful, two perfectly suited people being brought together by the spirits."
"That's how Jared and Kim feel," he agreed. "And I think if I didn't already have Leah, if I wasn't trying to hold on to her, maybe I'd feel that way too."
Sternly, she admonished, "Don't you dare let go of Leah, you hear?"
"But she doesn't want me, not like this."
"So stop being like this!"
He whined, "It's not that simple! Don't you think I'd do it all differently if I could?"
Allison sat back in her chair and stared at him. "If it's not up to you, maybe it's up to someone else."
He asked her what she meant, but the truth was that she didn't know. She suggested he talk to the elders, and he agreed that it would be a good idea. She offered to let him sleep on the couch since his grandmother was using his room, but he declined. He knew where he wanted to go.
Her room was dark when he arrived, but she was awake and staring at the full moon. He stood on the ground beneath her tree house and looked at her. Their eyes met, and he thought for a second that she had changed her mind. Instead she closed her drapes, and though he stood there for a long time, she did not reopen them.
That night, he slept in the empty cabin in the bed they had shared. The pillow still smelled like her, and he held it against his chest as he slept, wishing it was her.
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A/N: Thanks again to Babs81410.