We lay on our backs, staring up at the sky. I turn my head and stare at him.
"What?" he asks.
"I don't want to leave," I say, frowning.
"Then don't."
"It's not that easy," I say. "I need to talk to him."
"And what if he doesn't tell you the truth?" he asks.
"I don't know," I sigh. "Hadn't thought about that."
"You know, Anna, if it doesn't go well, you can always come back here," he says. "Whenever you want."
"Really?"
"Yes, but you'll have to meet the pack."
"Uh oh, should I be scared?" I giggle.
"Maybe a little," he laughs. "There not all that intimidating."
"Well, if they're anything like you..." I trail off.
"If they're anything like me what?" he asks.
I look at him. "Then I'm sure they're great."
He smiles, looks away and I see the hint of a blush on his cheeks. "Thanks."
I study the area and realize how dark it's gotten since we first layed down. "John... What time is it?"
"Around 9, I think. Why?"
"Damn it," I get up off the ground and offer him my hand. "I should go home now. My dad and sister are probably worried sick." He grabs my hand and I help him up. We stand in front of each other for a few minutes. He reaches down and his hand hovers over my face. I look up at him and our eyes meet. He starts to bend down and his face gets closer to mine. I move out of his way, grab his hand and start to walk in the direction of his house. "I should really get home."
He pulls me in the opposite direction. "The car's this way." I remember that he carried me through the forest and his car must be parked somewhere else. I follow behind him and try to keep close. Twigs and leaves crunch and crumble beneath our feet. It's the only sound we hear in the deathly silent forest until I fill the silence with questions.
"Why do you park the car so far from your house?" I ask. "And how do you have your own house?"
He looks and me. "To keep people like you guessing." He grins. "I share the house with the entire pack so we need a lot of space."
"Oh," I say. "How many of you live there?"
"Ten including me." We get to the car and he opens my door for me. "It's going to take a while."
"That's alright," I smile. "Maybe I'll just sleep again."
He laughs. "You do that."
I lean my head against the window and close my eyes, hoping to fall asleep but I keep reliving that moment in the woods. What would've happened if I hadn't pulled away? Would he have kissed me? Would I have stayed instead of deciding to go home? Doubt it.
I must've dozed off beacause when my eyes open I'm sitting in the car, looking at my house through the windsheild and I can hear John saying my name in an attempt to wake me up. I rub my eyes and look at him. For a few seconds, he's blurry but my vision clears and I can see him perfectly. "We're here?"
"Yeah, you passed out as soon as we started driving," he says. "Do you want me to walk you to the door?"
"Um, no," I say. "I'll be fine."
"Are you sure?" he asks.
"Yeah."
"Okay, well, I'll see you at school tomorrow."
Just when I'm about to open the car door, I look over at John. The memory of what happened in the woods hits me again so I lean over and kiss his cheek. I say, "Bye, John," get out of the car and walk to my front door. I turn the knob, step in and close the door behind me. I can hear John's car backing out of the driveway and zooming down the road.
"Anna!" I hear my father yell as he rushes to where I am. "Is that you?"
"Yeah, dad. It's me," I say. I was hoping he wouldn't be here.
"Oh, thank God. Where the hell have you been? It's ten o'clock."
"I know," I say. "I'm sorry. I was out with a friend."
"A boy?" I hear his voice shake.
"Dad, I'm 17 and even if I was with a boy, it's not like I'd do anything, okay?" I say. "He's just a friend."
"I don't care, Anna. You should've called or something. You should've found a way to tell me."
"Sorry."
"It's okay," he says and hugs me. "Just don't do it again."
"Alright," I say. "Look, I'm really tired, I just want to go to sleep."
"Okay," he lets go of me. "Goodnight, honey."
"Goodnight," I say and run up the stairs. I open my bedroom door, walk in and shut it behind me. I undress and change into my pyjamas then lay in bed and try to fall asleep. I think about everything that happened today and everything John told me. I have to talk to my dad in the morning. I reach up and turn my lamp off, then almost immediately fall asleep.
