White as Snow | Paul Lahote

16. The Truth is Out

"Babe whats wrong?" Sarah asked.

"In the spirit of honesty, there's something I need to tell you" Paul looked to the floor again. "What is it?" Sarah asked, patiently as ever. "I uh... don't know how to tell you this, but uh... I guess I might as well try my best... just remember that I did this for you... I wanted to give us a real chance at this so that it didn't feel forced" Sarah chuckled. "Didn't want what to feel forced? Our relationship?" she giggled as she said the words. Paul nodded grimly.

Sarah's laughter died down.

"So uh, as you know or have probably heard. Once the werewolf gene is active, it takes over everything. Our minds, our hearts, our souls. One of the many side effects of the wolf genes is our ability to imprint. Imprinting is basically what happens when see a girl after we've phased for the first time. It's not always with the first girl we see, it depends on the wolf. For me it was kind of different. I never wanted to imprint. I wanted to ignore it. I wanted to choose for myself. But as luck would have it, I was unable to control when it happened, and yet somehow I didn't entirely mind" Paul shrugged.

"That's all well and good or whatever, but you never actually told me what imprinting really is. You just said, 'it's a wolf thing' and left it at that. What is it? And please be honest with me, I can't deal with anymore secrets" Sarah responded.

"Imprinting is when a wolf finds their... Soulmate" Paul answered sheepishly. Sarah could feel herself blushing again. "I tried so hard to fight it. I hated the thought of having my soulmate chosen for me. I thought maybe my wolf had given up when a couple months had passed and I still hadn't imprinted on someone. Until..." Paul became quiet again. "Until?" Sarah asked.

"Until this new family came to town" now it was Paul who was blushing. Sarah felt a smile form on her face.

"I didn't even realize what was happening. I was on patrol at the beach, the night you guys moved in. I was walking with Jared and Sam, talking about God knows what, when I felt this weird force... kind of like a magnet... but it was like a really weird feeling... as if, my heart was glowing or something. I tried shrugging it off, when I saw you from a mile away. My heart started beating faster, as if it was telling me to run to you in that moment, but I shrugged it off and headed to Emily's" Paul said.

"Sam didn't tell me what was happening, so I just ignored the feeling then headed home early since school was starting the next day... When I got to homeroom I just had this feeling in the back of my mind as if something good was going to happen, but I just dismissed it as best I could. Then you came in and sat behind me. I hadn't realized it at first but my heart was beating fast again. I could feel my wolf trying to come out, trying to fight my heart and my mind simultaneously. Then all I heard was the sound of you tapping on the desk, and I guess that set it off. I was too curious not to look, and when I did. It... happened..." Paul paused again.

"That's so weird, in homeroom I felt the same way. When our eyes met, I just felt like... I knew you already. I was instantly drawn in by this feeling of warmth, and I couldn't explain why... I guess it makes sense now" Sarah said as she came to the realization that that was what had happened. "So if I'm really your soulmate, why did you take so long to tell me? I mean, I've seen you all day everyday, for the last 3 months. Hell, I can't even remember a moment when I was not with you" Paul chuckled at Sarah's realization.

He took a moment before finally answering. "Well, I was respecting your wishes. Besides, the bond only gets stronger when both parties acknowledge it..." Paul trails off. "Anyways yeah... I guess the cat's outta the bag now, are you mad at me?" Paul asks. Sarah looks at him, studying each worry line on his face, each crease on his forehead and nose, the way he was squinting at her. She moves her fingers through his hair, then turns his face towards her once again. She leans in, and plants her lips on his.

"There, does that answer your question?" she smiles as she sees Paul's face turning red. "No, not really. Maybe if you did it again, it might clarify it for me" Sarah swatted at Paul jokingly, then he started the car and the two drove off to Emily's cabin

The air was different when the two got out of the car and stepped through the door. It wasn't as tense as it usually was. Everyone was a lot more relaxed, Sarah could see no more frowns on their faces or wrinkled noses. Instead, everyone was smiling.

For a second, Sarah felt confused. As if somehow the guys had understood what had happened just moments before, without having being told. Then she looked up to Paul's face and noticed the wide, goofy grin he was sporting. Once they were standing in the kitchen, Paul broke the news. "Well... I uh... finally told her" he couldn't stop smiling. "Really? You did? We couldn't tell" Embry chirped out. The pack all burst out laughing. Emily walked over to Sarah and squeezed her shoulder. "Welcome to the wolf-girl support group" she said with a smile. Sarah smiled back.