Storming Sky

WOLF GIRL

WOLF GIRL

"Isn't imprinting the thing that happens with baby ducks?" I asked him, remembering a segment on imprinting from a Psychology course I took.

"Kind of, it works a little differently in my world, though," Jake began. "What you're talking about is the baby animal imprinting, where a baby animal recognizes another being as a parent, or another object of habitual trust. Well, because of what we are, we are technically animals, right?"

"I guess that makes sense..." I said, not really knowing where he was going.

"So because we're animals, we have this ability to imprint. It's not the same – well, kind of – but not really. Our imprinting isn't the bond between a baby and a parent. It's more like a bond between two lovers, or partners. Back in the day, they said that imprinting was supposed to be for ideal mating purposes, but I'm not sure how true that is..." he trailed off, then stopped walking. He turned to look at me.

"Our imprinting means that we have seen someone for the first time, and they are someone we can completely trust with all of our heart and soul. Our world no longer belongs to us, but to them. We become whatever they need us to be. Everything we do, our whole purpose of being, is for that person."

"So it's love at first sight?" I asked him.

"If love was a thousand times stronger, than yes," He said.

"So I don't understand what this has to do with me," I told him.

"Think about it, Danielle," he urged, grabbing my hand. I almost pulled away, but then it hit me.

Why he was so angry with me when he first met me.

Why he was so concerned when I was walking home alone.

Why he wanted to see me so badly.

Why he was so interested in me.

"You imprinted," I started, "on me."

"I didn't believe it at first. I couldn't believe it. How could the universe be so cruel to give me the one girl on this earth that I couldn't get close enough to? The one girl who had a stronger tie to my enemies than anyone else? Then, we didn't talk, and I saw you at the store, and I knew. I saw you with your friends and how you weren't afraid of me. Despite knowing at that point how dangerous I could be, despite the stories your family must have told you, you still didn't care. I didn't even realize that during the time we were apart I had forgotten how to breathe, then seeing you again was like a breath of fresh air," Jacob said.

"You're such a sap!" I laughed. Jacob loved me. Jacob more than loved me. He had one hundred percent trust in me. The vampire girl.

"You think this is funny," Jacob said, astonished. "You would think this is funny. I just poured my heart to you and you're laughing."

"Jacob, my family is going to destroy you when they find out," I told him. Holy crap. That's why Alice couldn't see me anymore. My future was intertwined with Jacob's. Alice would never see me again, except maybe on a rare occasion when Jacob wasn't around.

"They probably will," he said. "All I care about is what you're thinking right now."

I was laughing, but my hysteria was hiding the true fear I felt inside that Jacob loved me. The true fear I had inside for what Jacob was asking of me.

"I'm thinking that my last boyfriend was a dick and a half," I told him, honestly. "I'm thinking that the last person I loved threw it right back in my face and ran it over backwards because the way I loved him wasn't good enough. I'm thinking that my sister can't see me anymore because my future is intertwined with yours so tight that there are no loopholes, so someday, I'm going to love you as much as you love me, and that's terrifying. It's terrifying because there's no way our two families can work together, and you can never come over to my house for dinner and do all the normal stuff I'm used to doing. It's terrifying because I don't know if I want to be in a relationship right now after everything the past year has thrown at me."

"Danielle, relax," Jacob said, pulling me into a hug. I let him. His touch felt good to me. He started rubbing my back. It felt better than Jasper's calming backrubs ever did.

"Remember what I said?" Jacob asked me, finally pulling away. "I will be whatever you need me to be. For right now, I'm fine being in the friend zone. Someday, I hope we can be more than that, but only when you're ready. Whatever way you decide to love me, that's going to be the right way for us. This imprint thing may be supernatural and weird and yeah, we're not going to be able to do the things normal human couples get to do, but when has our lives been normal? You grew up with a family of vampires, and I turn into a werewolf every night," Jacob laughed. I laughed a little bit too.

"I guess we're just going to have to be okay with being Romeo and Juliet for a little while," I said softly into his chest. He nodded.

"We'll just have a happy ending," he promised.

"I could use one of those," I smiled.

I didn't know what Jacob and I were. I liked that he respected the fact that I couldn't be in a relationship with him right now. I needed time with my family. With Bella. With my friends. I had spent a majority of the past year in a depression, locked in my room, and I needed time to figure my life out again.

With that said, I was perfectly fine with my new and improved life involving Jacob Black.

I didn't realize it before, but he was perfect. He was by my side while we walked around the reservation, pointing things out to me and telling me all about the legends. I never felt uncomfortable, despite technically being in enemy territory. Finally, we came to a house and Jacob stopped.

"Who lives here?" I asked him. He looked around for a minute, and then smiled.

"Emily, you'll love her," he said, squeezing my hand.

"I'm meeting the pack?" I asked him, nervous as hell.

"You'll be fine," he said, running his hands through my hair.

"I feel like I'm going to throw up," I told him, looking around.

"You're incredible, just remember, they have to like you now," Jacob smirked.

"Because that's comforting," I rolled my eyes. Nothing like knowing people didn't have a choice but to like you.

"Come on," Jacob said, pulling me in.

As soon as we stepped in the door, I felt like I was being pulled into the battlefield. Everyone's eyes immediately turned towards us. I shied back, considering running away, but I was met with Jacob's body and his hands on my shoulders.

"Guys, this is Danielle," Jacob introduced me. All the boys cheered. I tried to smile, but I'm pretty sure my discomfort showed on my face anyways because a girl – Emily, maybe? – stepped forward and grabbed my hand.

"Welcome to the family," she said, smiling. "I'm Emily, I'm Sam's imprint. I can answer any questions you have, I know this is a bit disorientating at first."

"A bit?" I asked. Four weeks ago I didn't know werewolves existed, and now, I'm eternally bound to one of them. It was a lot of information.

"Are you hungry?" She asked, ignoring my sarcasm. "You might want to eat before the boys clean up shop. Don't think that there will be any leftovers, because there won't."

"I guess I'll eat a muffin," I said.

"Don't be shy," Another boy said. "I'm Sam, nice to meet you," he said, shaking my hand. Emily got me a plate and some water, and Jacob sat down next to me at the table. The boys crowded around and we just talked like I was a normal person.

I had to be honest, I wasn't expecting to be welcomed with such open arms. I expected hostility towards my family, towards me, even. I was the vampire girl.

"I know what you're thinking," Emily said, coming to sit next to me. "Your family doesn't define you. Your relationship with Jacob is more important. You are a human. You can be a human here. You haven't committed any crimes, Danielle. You are our family now, too. We don't want to make this harder on you," She explained.

"Thanks, that means a lot to me," I told her. She squeezed my hand.

"You're not just the vampire girl anymore. You're a wolf girl now too."