Loca, Spider Monkey

41. Sam Uley - Imprinting

"I'm fine. Get in the car." It probably hadn't meant to come out as an order, but it shook you down to your kneecaps. You grabbed your backpack from the passenger seat of your car and got into his without saying a word.

In fact, silent was the best way to describe the whole ride home with Sam. And tense, too. You didn't know what you'd done to piss him off. He looked like he was in physical pain; his knuckles were white from how hard he was gripping the steering wheel.

It hurt you to know that he was so uncomfortable around you. Maybe he realized you liked him and he was trying to politely — or not so politely — tell you he wasn't interested.

"Thanks for the ride," you said when he dropped you off at your house.

"You're welcome." Sam's tone was slightly odd, like he was straining against something invisible pressing on his chest. "I'll bring your car over tomorrow."

You watched him drive away until he completely disappeared in the darkness. Blinking back tears you didn't even know had formed, you hurried up to your room before they spilled out in front of your family.

In the distance, you heard a wolf howl.

--

Sure enough, Sam had kept his word. In the morning, your car was parked in the driveway, though there was no sign of your saviour anywhere. He'd looked oddly irritated around you, like being in the car with you was unbearably difficult, even though he'd been the one to offer to drive you home in the first place. You didn't understand what had happened; had he figured out that you were crushing on him and he'd decided to let you down in the gentlest way possible? Though, really, if that was the case, his way wasn't exactly very gentle.

You quickly slipped into a numb routine – going to school, coming home, doing homework, eating dinner, going to bed. But your heart and mind were painfully fixated on Sam Uley, and it became harder and harder for you to concentrate on anything else but him. You couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong, and that maybe you were the reason why he'd been so cold in the car. His car – it'd had a musky, earthy scent that yours now seemed to carry, though faintly. It only tortured you more that you were so close to him and yet so far.

After a particularly devastating day at school – your English teacher had surprised the class with a test on which you'd left the entire back page blank – you wanted nothing more than to crawl under your sheets and drown your thoughts out with music. It was, therefore, very unexpected to find Sam Uley sitting on the front steps of your porch, waiting for you.

"Sam? You okay?" you asked, getting out of your car. Sam looked exhausted, with hollow cheeks and irritated eyes. Your stomach twisted violently at the thought.

"(Y/N), I need to talk to you," he said. "Walk with me."

You obeyed, not giving it a thought. He walked slower than usual so that you could keep up. For a while, neither of you said anything, the tension around you being so tense it was almost palpable. You could kind of picture what he was going to say – I know you like me, (Y/N), but I'm with Leah and nothing could ever happen between you and me.

It surprised you when that was not what he said.

"I broke up with Leah," he told you.

It was like someone had taken a shovel and smacked you in the head with it. You stumbled over your own two feet in shock and then stopped walking altogether.

"What? Why?"

Sam shook his head, like he was scolding himself. "I had no choice." His voice was thick and measured – almost too controlled, like he was struggling to keep it steady.