Author's Note: First of all, I'd like to thank Kate for giving me criticism. However, next time I'd really appreciate if you told me what I did wrong, so that I can improve. Please keep in mind that this is rough - I've never taken any classes and this is my rough rough draft... and is this site not for fun?

Also, I'd like to give a much bigger thank you to all my reviewers who have been leaving me positive comments & encouragement, and also to my readers for not giving up on me when it takes me forever to update... speaking of which:

I'm sorry! My life has gotten crazier and I've had more and more and more to do. For example, right now I have to finish a mini magazine. Then I have to write a colligiate level argumentative paper, write a short paper, and write a long paper and essay analysis for my final exam, I have to read three chapters in a novel, do a pound of accounting homework, and work on catching up on my many calculus assignments. I also need to make up a calculus test and two accounting tests, practice for my many s/e pieces and pick out a forensics piece to start working on. I also have to keep up on AR and other homework, as well as do my semester exam for College English. Tonight I had a chorus and band concert. Tomorrow night I have a chorus lesson after school and then I'm taking senior pictures. The next night I work... and so goes my life right now; I'm sorry, I'm very stressed out and don't have time to be on here much; I included these excuses so you know that I'm not lying and just being like "Eh, I don't feel like writing on here..."

Anyway, thanks for bearing with me, and please keep reviewing! I really appreciate it!

He pulled into the empty student parking lot and parked in the spot nearest the doors.

He parked, but let the engine running.

"So..." he started, casually leaning back from the wheel.

"So."

"We are extremely early."

"Yes," I said, smiling, "We are."

"What did you want to do?"

I had no idea.

"Um. Well, I suppose we could go in, change for gym, and go from there. There's a lot more to do in a gym."

"Yeah," he said agreeably, pausing for a moment, "Let's go."

He promptly got out of the car and walked to the front of it, on which he leaned, waiting for me. I hastily unbuckled and joined him.

We walked towards the school together in silence, Matthew seemingly chewing on some thought. I figured he'd tell me what it was eventually, if it was something important.

"Paige," he said abruptly when we had almost reached the doors.

It seemed I was to be proven right.

"Hmm?"

"What are you doing this weekend?"

"Nothing," I answered quickly. If I had agreed to do something, I would cancel it.

He smiled.

"Great. How, then, would you like to spend the weekend with me? You could finally meet my parents."

I was unbelievably and instantly excited - and, though I didn't know why - suddenly nervous.

And wasn't it a little early in our relationship to meet family members?

Though, I knew, my relationship with Matthew was not normal. I could see where he was coming from; why wait?

"Er - alright," I began hesitantly, "But don't you live with your cousins? Where do your parents live?"

Not that I couldn't get away with leaving the state for an entire weekend.

He grinned.

"I haven't told you? I don't live with my cousins. The 'cousins' are my parents. They just - haven't aged in awhil.e They appear way to young to be parents of eighteen-year-old twins. They look about twenty-six."

I blinked in surprise.

"Oh."

"Yeah," he said, his smile transforming into his wider and familiar grin.

"Well how old are they really then?" Didn't he say his mother had only been seven when she'd had him?

"Well my mother has existed on this planet for twelve years. She had me when she was five, remember?"

"Oh." Five. Even weirder.

"Yeah. And my father is about twenty-nine, in terms of how long he's been here."

"Oh. Wow. Huge age difference."

"Yes - he full-scale imprinted on my mother the day she was born."

I gaped in surprise, "Ugh! Creepy!" I exclaimed without thinking, picturing a fully grown, overly-muscled and menacing-looking version of Matthew staring lustily at a new adorable little black-haired baby girl.

He laughed, "Yes, it probably sounds that way. But imprinting... it's not creepy. It wasn't as if he was attracted to a newborn baby. He just loved her, instantly. The second he looked into her eyes, he knew that the world didn't revolve around the sun anymore; the world revolved around Renesme. He was her brother, her best friend, and, eventually, her true love. It's just an extreme case of the-boy-next-door. They really are, in all ways, soul mates. "

I considered this poetic image, my own assumption fading. The situation still sounded weird... but Matthew's explanation had made sense and had a sweet edge to it. I would have to take time to ponder and get used to the idea later, on my own time. Now was time for Matthew.

"I see," I said carefully, "You seem to know a lot about this - he told you it all?"

"Not exactly." His grin disappeared.

"So... how do you know then?" Was it because - possibly - that that was the way he felt about me? My heart rate took off.

"Well, it's sort of another werewolf thing. We sort of... hear each other's thoughts when in wolf form."

"Oh," I said softly, hit with uncalled-for disappointment and justified surprise.

"You... hear each other's thoughts," I said slowly, the meaning of his words sinking in, "In wolf form." As always when he told me something new and strange about his unique abilities, my heart rate went into overdrive.

"Yes. I know it's weird."

"Mmmhmmm." It was another subject to store away for later examination.

"So," I said, changing the subject slightly, "Your parents. What are they like?"

I was suddenly anxious again; it had been an extremely long time since I'd had to worry about impressing someone, and even longer since I'd tried to win someone's affection. What if they hated me? What if they were exactly like Lorraine? She came from somewhere...

I took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly.

She did come from them, but so did Matthew. Anybody that Matthew came from, couldn't be bad.

"They're great," he said, smiling, "You'll love them."

I wasn't convinced.

"Why do you want to introduce me so soon? We only started dating today."

"Well, for one thing - I'm itching to proudly proclaim that I have won the affection of the most wonderful girl that ever existed to as many people as possible - and also, they've been dying to meet you."

I laughed, pleased.

We'd arrived at the door to the girls' locker room.

"I'll see you in a few minutes?" Matthew asked, his gaze not leaving my face.

"Um. Oh, yeah. See you."

I backed in through the first door, waiting for him to turn away before turning and darting through the second one. I sprinted to my locker and changed into my gym clothes faster than I'd ever done before. I threw my wintery apparel into my locker and snapped my lock shut before running back to the gym.

I paused to catch my breath before srutting through the door to the gym casually.

Matthew was already there, leaning against the nearest wall, completely dressed for gym, waiting for me.

I sighed, and smiled slightly, shaking my head in bemusement.

A second later he was standing next to me, watching me intently.

He raised his eyebrow in question, but didn't press me.

"I was just amazed - yet again - at the speed at which you can accomplish things," I volunteered.

"Ah," he said, his wonderful grin spreading across his face again.

Suddenly he was closer, so close that I could feel the heat radiating from his skin.

I breathed deeply, and was hit with his glorious scent.

He smelled like nothing I'd ever smelled before; it was woodsy, as if he'd been living in the wilderness, but it had a sweet enticing, and indescribable flavor underneath the woods smell. I instinctively leaned closer, observing the details of his richly-colored skin, inhaling the aroma that was him, dying to get closer still.

"So," he started softly, "So."

"So what?" I all-but whispered.

"So, you are going to be with me this weekend."

"Yes." My heart danced at the prospect.

"You can make the whole weekend?"

"Yes."

He grinned, his face only inches away from my own upturned one.

"You really have no plans?"

"None." I grinned back at him. I was pretty sure I didn't, which meant I wasn't lying... and did it matter if I had had plans? I wasn't going to choose them over him.

"I see."

Then a flash of black appeared, and hair hit my face.

I blinked.

"Will. You. Stop. That! Now!" A voice, low and menacing hissed at Matthew.

I took a step back.

Lorraine.

She had appeared out of nowhere - apparently having sped to Matthew too fast for me to see.

Matthew stared back at her, grinning.

"Nope," He said lightly, his grin not wavering as her glower worstened.

"I mean it!"

"As do I," his grin solidified and his jaw jutted out stubbornly.

"Matthew!" She shot a glance at me and then quickly changed back to her brother, "You know the risks!"

"Oh come on, Lorraine," he said, "You really think that this is comparable to the usual scenario?"

"Matthew. Stop it," She growled. Actually growled!

"Give it up Lorraine. I'm not stopping."

She growled again, but this time it was different; it rose to a higher pitch and was more gutteral, more feral, more ferocious. It was a snarl. She snarled.

I stepped back again, indimidated.

"Lorraine. Give it up. You know why. I'll talk to you later."

She shot him look blacker than death.

I shivered.

With an indignant flip of her long black hair, she was gone.

Matthew stared grimly after her.

"What - was that about?" I asked hestantly after a moment of silence.

He looked back at me, surprised, pulling out of a reverie.

"Oh," he said, "Well, it's complicated. Well, not really."

"What?" I pressed.

"You know Lorraine can read thoughts."

"Yes," I acknowledged.

"Well, she can. She can read everyone's current thoughts within a mile or two radius."

Impressive.

"Everyone's..." he continued before I could speak, "Except mine. Mine and Bella's."

"Bella?"

"My - er - grandmother. Unless we let her."

"Ah. So what, she wanted you to let her read your thoughts?"

"Well, not exactly; that's hard to do. But you see, I - like Bella - can also prevent Lorraine and Edward - my grandfather - from reading the thoughts of those around me."

I blinked again in surprise, excitement stirring.

"So Lorraine can't read my thoughts right now? That's what she wants you turn off?"

He smiled, "Yeah. Pretty much."

"So how does that work? Why can't she read your and Bella's thoughts?"

"We're sort of - shields. Um. How do I explain this without saying too much?"

I shrugged, and he sighed, "Well, we - that is to say, my mother's side - we sometimes have these special gifts. Some are easy to use for good, like physical and emotional shields. Others are pretty much evil, like causing extreme mental pain. Then there are neutral ones, like mind readers, people that always know if you are telling the truth, that sort of thing. Bella is a mental shield. A very powerful one. She can shield herself and others from any power that involves the mind, like the mental pain, the truth-telling, the mind readers - it's very powerful because so many of Bella's kind have mental gifts. And I inherited that from her, while Lorraine inherited Edward's mind-reading ability."

"I see."

How - overwhelming. More food for later thought.

"Of course, that's just another reason I'm extraordinarily powerful and therefore in extreme danger from the Volturi. If they knew I existed..." his voice lowered to an intense, anguished whisper as his suddenly intense gaze held mine, "If they knew about us..." His voice shook, and he looked away.

"What would they do?" I asked insensitively,

"They'd kill you right away," he said bluntly, his voice back to a normal tone, his eyes hollow and staring into mine again, "Most likely. And as for me... Who knows? I'm sure they wouldn't want to destroy me, not if they could force me to join them. They would be unstoppable with me on their side. But if they knew that there was no way... and there isn't, they'd probably just kill me."

"Just?" I asked in a tiny voice.

Horror gushed from my lungs, horror at the thought of Matthew, dead; of Matthew, dying. Of a world without Matthew in it. I was having a difficult time breathing.

"Unless," he said, his voice small, anguish present again.

"Unless what?" I whispered. My eyes filled with tears.

How weak of me. Still, at that moment, I didn't care.

A world without Matthew was a terrible world indeed.

"I'm just - " he started, his voice the same anguished whisper, "I'm just afraid that if they find out about me, they'll find about you, and then they'd - maybe - well, I would join them. I would if they took you. Not killed you, but kept you, maybe tortured you. And I wouldn't want to live with myself if that happened, but I'd have to because they'd kill you if I killed myself."

I shuddered.

"These are the things that haunt me at night, in my nightmares," he whispered.

"Let's talk about something else," I suggested, my throat dry. If those were the kind of beings he was dealing with, I wouldn't - and couldn't - blame him one bit for not telling me everything about him.

"Alright," he said, his haunted look dissolving into a more relaxed one.

"That was fast," I commented.

"What?"

"Getting over your - er - " Anguish.

"Paige," he said, smiling ever-so-slightly, "I've lived with these thoughts since I met you. I think them about that stuff all the time. I'm used to hiding it, storing it away for later."

Something I, too, was getting good at.

"Oh."

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely. He reached out his hand and grasped mine, pulling it between us.

"For what?"

My small white hand was utterly lost in his warm, large brown one.

"For telling you all that. You didn't need to know - I didn't want to freak you out."

He did the same for my other hand, and it too, was lost.

"I always want to know.

It felt amazing, as if I had submerged my hands in hot water; it was as soothing as if I were getting a hand massage. Probably more so.

He grinned at whatever my face showed him, and pulled me slightly closer. He raised our hands, slowly, slowly, towards his lips. He inhaled deeply and then his lips, slowly, caressed the back of each hand. His lips were scortchingly hot, leaving a pleasant and tingly trail of heat where they touched. His mouth lingered over them both.

I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly, in total ecstasy.

"People are staring," he murmered against my hand.

I opened my eyes a sliver and saw his grinning eyes staring back at mine over the tops of our hands. I grinned back lazily, still lost in the amazing way this felt.

I looked around a little and noticed that the gym had started to fill up.

It seemed like that happened often.

"Let them stare," I whispered.

"Okay," he said, his grin stretching.

But after a moment he stiffened and was suddenly glowering past me.

"What?" I asked, concerned.

He lowered our hands and shot a sideways glance at me before glaring at an unknown offender.

"Some people should whisper quieter, or just leave certain things unsaid."

I looked to see who he was staring at and was shocked to see Brianee, Nichole, and Heather - a girl I didn't particularly care for but Nichole was friends with - huddled together in the far corner of the gym. Nicole looked over at us at that moment and a momentary look of fear crossed her face as she noticed the look Matthew was giving her. She looked away quickly and their huddle grew tighter as they leaned in closer to each other.

"What are they saying?" I asked, my voice oddly calm considering the utter betrayal I felt.

"It doesn't matter," he answered, looking back at me.

"What are they saying?" I repeated tensely.

He sighed, "Paige, I'm all for telling you things, but I'm not willing to repeat their snide comments."

"But Matthew," I started, my anger starting to show, "You don't -"

"I know, Paige, but what does it matter what they think? Is it going to change anything? Your friendship has been tested and they have failed. They weren't good friends. Or maybe they don't all mean it. But regardless, let's get back to where we were, please?"

He started to raise our hands again and I gave in, my anger ebbing.

"But I'm not going to let this go; we are revisiting this later."

He rolled his eyes, "I was afraid of that."

And thus began my week.