Verena [Paul Lahote]

0.7

It did not take her long to find Paul's house. She walked right into his house, without knocking.

Paul stood right up as soon as he heard someone walk into his house and didn't recognise the scent. He was shocked to see his mate in his house. How did she know where he lived? How come his brothers didn't realise she was trespassing? That was the only question on his face.

"To answer your question, I followed your scent and masked mine; that's why they didn't know I was here. They only think I was a harmless human passing by." She answered like she could read his thoughts.

"What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? I wanted to see, of course. What else would I be here for?"

Paul walked around his sofa and stood in front of her. "You shouldn't be here, and i don't want to see you." He spoke sternly.

He lied. Ever since the fight, all he's wanted was to hold her and keep her safe. Seeing her on the battlefield made him realise how powerful his mate. He asked the elders about Verena being his mate and how it was possible for a hybrid like her to be with a spirit warrior like him. 

"Don't lie; I can hear your heartbeat quicken every time you lie." She took a seat on his sofa and made herself comfortable. He followed her and sat next to her, eyes still on his mate, trying to interpret her actions.

"Seriously, Verena. What do you want?" He inquired a second time.

"I wanted to see you. Is that a problem? Last time I checked, it's not a crime to see your mate."

"It is when it comes to you, bloodsucker."

Verena was hurt by what Paul had said, but she tried not to take it to heart since Paul was always a dickhead.

"Ok, ouch. Is your father not at home?"

He frowned. He never told her about his personal life. "How did you know about my dad?"

She shrugged. "I stalked you. It's not difficult to break your school record. Speaking of that, are you 17? I thought you were 20."

"Fucking hell, Verena. Why would you break into my school?" He rubbed his temple and didn't know what to do with his mate.

"Well, you wouldn't say anything to me, so I did what I had to do." 

He examined her face. She showed no remorse for her action invading his privacy; she even broke the law. He didn't know why he couldn't get mad at her when he was easily pissed off.

"Don't do it again. Just ask me and leave my father alone." He warned her. She nodded at him, saying she would not do it again.

Both of them sat in silence after that. Comforting silence, not awkward silence.

"I was worried, you know," she stated after being in a comfortable silence.

Paul glanced at her. "About what?"

She looked at him, scanning his features. "About you getting hurt,"

He was dumbfounded. He didn't expect that. He expected the bloodsucker to be heartless; at least, that's what she usually looked like: cold-hearted.

"It doesn't mean I look like I don't care; it means I don't care, and you're my mate. No matter how hard I try to hate you, the bond will always pull me in." She admitted it to him. The longer she stays away, the harder it is to forget him. She fiddled with her fingers—habits that she picked up whenever she was nervous.

He stayed silent for a while, trying to grasp what she said. He didn't expect her to be truthful with him; he'd never had anyone care for him.His dad was barely there for him; his mother left him to find her freedom. He had no one except his brothers and sister.

"Thank you, you know, for caring." He replied, noticing her nervous antics.

The corner of her lips curled up. This was not her; she never expressed her feelings. She didn't know how to do it, but talking to Paul made her want to tell him everything about her. She picked at her cuticles to calm her down.

He took her hands into his own. "Stop doing that, it annoys me."

"Sorry, it's a habit."

Their hands were still intertwined. Both of them can feel the sparks whenever they touch.

"I expect you to be cold, but you're not that cold." He noticed that her body temperature was not as cold as that of a typical vampire.

"Not a full vampire, remember?"

He tilted his head, wanting an explanation from her.

"I'm half witch. I was born a witch. I thought you guys knew my story."

"They only said you were an evil monster that ate people to stay younger." He rolled his eyes. Until this day, he hated that story.

She chuckled. "Ephraim knew how to make me look dumb,"

"Dumb? That story traumatised half the kids on the reservations; you were La Llorona of La Push," he chuckled.

She laughed. Paul witnesses her happiness for the first time. She always looked gloomy, but seeing her laugh was something else. Something he couldn't describe but wanted to always happen.

"I can't believe that Black did that to piss me off; he would be rolling in his grave if he knew that I'm not mad." She chuckled. 

Again, both of them fell into comfortable silence, hands still intertwined.

"We can try, you know, if you want." Paul said what he had been wanting to say ever since he imprinted on her.

She sarcastically smiled at him. "Yeah, no, I don't do relationships." She stood up and went for the front door. Her actions made him confused; first, she cared about him, and now she says she doesn't want a relationship. He became angry at her.

"What do you mean by that? You dropped the bomb where you said you care about me and stuff, and when I said I wanted to try to make this stupid shit work, you said you didn't want it." He stood up and glared at her, raising his voice. He can feel his spirit trying to come out.

"I fucked things up, Paul. You being with me will destroy you, and once you know my history, you'll regret being with me." She defended herself. She knew he couldn't accept who she was. He never will.

"Tell me then."

She gave him a sad smile.

"If I tell you right now, you'll wish you never imprinted on me."