The Banshee -Paul Lahote-

Chapter 30

Mavis knew she was being unfair, but that didn't matter. She had spent a few days attempting to convince Paul to attend the wedding, but he wasn't budging. Mavis had a hard time accepting his reason. She understood, but for some reason, she couldn't accept his answer. Rather than talk about it, she started to avoid him. It wasn't intentional at first. Mavis put all her energy into helping Alice plan a last-minute wedding. Then it went into helping Rosalie contact different guests and caterers. By now, Mavis hadn't seen Paul in days.

Of course, she missed his overbearing presence more than anything, but this wedding was important to her. It was all she wanted to think about. Paul wasn't planning on changing his mind, and right now, she couldn't accept that. It also didn't help that she was having personal issues with her self-importance due to her long-standing abandonment issues. She internally doubted her self-worth and importance to others. That included Paul.

Mavis had eight days before Bella officially became a part of her family. A new addition was something she looked forward to having. The wedding was also how she found herself deep in the woods. Mavis had the idea of using pebbles as a centerpiece in the flower vases. Because of this, she volunteered to collect the rocks on her own. It gave her something to do in order to keep her mind off Paul.

It was late into the afternoon by now. Mavis had been searching for hours and hadn't realized where she was. The girl failed to notice when she crossed onto Quileute property. That had been over an hour ago. Early on, she started to feel a presence but assumed it was imaginary. After all, she was in the woods alone. It could be a scary place. Mavis had watched dozens of horror films. They all explained how horrible of a decision that was.

Mavis held a rock in her hand, her thumb skimming over the smooth surface. She hummed, dropping the item in her bag. Ten minutes ago, she figured out what she was feeling. The presence felt familiar. She knew it was Paul. He had been following her from a distance for over an hour. "You can come out, you know. This is your territory after all."

His weight breaks the fallen branches, and he emerges from the trees. Mavis refused to look at him. She knew her distance probably hurt him. It was selfish and childish, but Mavis struggled to accept his choice. "Why are you following me?" Asking was pointless. He wasn't himself. He was in wolf form. He whined, standing beside her. Mavis finally looked at him, and he dipped his head down. She sighed but ran her fingers through his thick fur. He kept his head down, and Mavis pulled away. He would want her to come with him, but she couldn't. "I'm busy, Paul. I have to go."

Paul moved in front of her, preventing her from going anywhere. He wanted to talk to her. Mavis shifted her weight between her legs, slightly uncomfortable in the situation. "Okay, fine. I'll wait for you to change." Reluctantly, she opened her backpack. Since dating a shapeshifter meant they could shift at any moment, she became prepared. Grabbing a single set of shorts, she tossed it into the trees. Paul stared at her. "Well, go. I'm not going anywhere."

Paul apprehensively walked into the woods, vanishing in the trees. Mavis looked away from the area he was in. There was a difference in seeing Paul shirtless, which he constantly was, and naked. She slung the bag back over her shoulder and skimmed the rocks by her feet. Mavis kicked the stones, feeling her heart race with the idea of talking to Paul. It shouldn't have been a scary thought, but it was. He would be angry with her, that much she was certain of. Mavis didn't want Paul to be angry. She knew how much he would hate himself afterward.

Footsteps approached her, but she was too much of a coward to turn around. Instead, Mavis waited for him. "Why are you avoiding me," this tone was laced with pain.

"I'm not." Mavis took a deep breath and turned around. The sight of him, sad and broken, made her heartache. It was entirely her fault he felt this way. "I've been busy with the wedding. We don't have that much time, and there's so much to be done."