Monday morning, I woke up to the sounds of birds chirping and the delicious aroma of bacon and pancakes wafting up from the kitchen. I scurried downstairs after hurriedly getting dressed. Rounding the corner, I saw to my dismay that Cameron was in my kitchen. He glanced up at me but quickly looked back down at the sheet of paper he had in his hand.
I walked over to the other side of the table and grabbed a plate my mom had prepared for me. "Thanks," I smiled. She kissed my forehead and walked upstairs to grab my brother. I ate my pancakes as fast as possible and scooted out the door to my car. Before I could get in, Cameron grabbed my arm and dragged me over to his truck. I reluctantly followed him, knowing I had no choice.
As we got in and drove off towards school, he said, "You have all the same classes as me so I can keep an eye on you. I don't want you getting hurt."
I didn't look over to acknowledge that I had heard him. He didn't ask me if I had. What was with him thinking I needed someone to watch over me? I wasn't some helpless kid, I could take care of myself. I snarled. Dammit, I'm a grown woman!
"Something wrong?" Cameron asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Nothing," I hissed, continuing to face the road. Asshole.
When we got to the school, I noticed some of the pack members standing by their vehicles. I grinned and waved when I saw Jordan. Sighing, I bent to open the door but Cameron grabbed my left arm, forcing me to stay still. I whipped my head towards him, glaring.
"Listen, you need to be careful. We don't know what's going to happen with this thing, and I don't want you getting hurt."
"I don't need your protection. I'm perfectly capable of handling myself," I growled, ripping my arm away from his hand and throwing open the door. I jumped out and looked over at Jordan who had a slight smile turning up the corners of his cheeks. His brown hair blew haphazardly in the wind, flicking across his eyes. I smiled and slammed the door shut, throwing one last scalding glance at Cameron before stalking over to Jordan.
"Hey," I mumbled as I neared him. Now I was worried about Jordan getting in trouble. I didn't want him caught up in Cameron and I's issues.
He laughed, "Fun ride to school?"
I snorted. "Why can't I take my own car?"
His lips formed a thin line, "We don't know what's out there. And Cameron doesn't want you getting hurt. You're his mate whether you like it or not. Cameron isn't always the easiest to get along with because he's cocky and arrogant, but you're the woman to put him in his place!"
"You're not helping, Jordan." I grumbled miserably, before following Cameron into the school as he beckoned towards me. I glanced over my shoulder at Jordan, who gave a what-are-you-going-to-do shrug and offering an encouraging smile.
I sighed heavily and stomped towards the building, following the blonde head of hair in front of me. If looks could kill, the bastard would be on the ground writhing in pain while the vultures flew overhead. I grinned at the thought and my mood instantly picked up. As we walked into the school, I caught several girls staring at Cameron longingly. Instantly, I felt a shock of jealousy and stepped closer to Cameron, holding back the urge to snarl at the teenagers. When they saw my look on my face, they quickly turned back to their lockers.
I smiled, then shook my head. What the hell was I doing? Was I jealous? Of these girls?
I snorted, causing Cameron to glance at me questioningly. I shook my head and slowed my pace so I wasn't so close to him.
As soon as this danger went away, the sooner I could go back to my normal life. Well, somewhat normal. I would have to deal with Cameron for the rest of my life - and Catherine, I thought sulkily. Now that I thought about it, I'd rather deal with Cameron than her any day. Speaking of the bitch, here she was. She smiled at Cameron as he approached her and pointedly ignored me. I thought back to the lie I had told of us having sex. An evil thought crossed my mind. I strode up to Cameron and laid my hand on his arm. Bringing my mouth close to his neck, I inhaled his scent while looking directly at Catherine. She drew in a breath and shot a death glare at me before turning away.
Cameron turned towards me and grinned devilishly, "No matter how much you fight it, that instinct to protect what's yours will always be there. So get used to it, darling."
I glared as Cameron sauntered away, knowing that he was relishing the fact that I had become jealous. I wanted to rip his head off but at the same time I wanted to hold him. I shook my head, disgusted at myself. How could I feel so... so lovable towards him? I studied my schedule and headed for my first class. I scowled as I remembered that I had every class with Cameron. He acted like I was a small child and couldn't defend myself, which was clearly untrue.
As I arrived to English, the first two people I noticed were Cameron and Omen. I waved and noticed that there was an empty seat next to her. I pointed at the seat in question and she nodded enthusiastically, sneaking a quick look at Cameron. I trotted over to the seat and sat down before Cameron had time to see me. He glanced at the door and then swept the room in question. As soon as he saw me, his gaze darkened. I smiled innocently at him and leaned towards Omen. She hugged me from behind and I could see she was grinning evilly at Cameron. He simply shook his head and turned around, ignoring us for the remainder of the class.
I was glad to see that Omen was also in all of my classes, and Markus was even a substitute. I had to remind Omen not to show any affection towards Markus multiple times. Eventually I had to explain that a teacher-student relationship was inappropriate. Markus had glared at her and tried to push her away, but when all the students had left the room and it was only us three, I had saw him sneak her a quick kiss.
At the end of the day, Markus caught me as I was leaving to get into Cameron's truck.
"Hey," he said, as he approached me. I noticed Omen not far behind him. The ring on her finger caught the sun's light and shimmered, causing me to once again wonder at the realization that there was a ring that could protect vampires from the light. Then again, there was a lot that had been happening to me that amazed me.
"Hi," I replied. "What's up?"
"Whatever this thing is that we're supposed to be fighting, it's growing stronger. There is a war coming."
I sensed Cameron coming up behind me and instinctively leaned backwards. I caught Omen's grin, and realizing what I was doing, stepped forward to put distance between us. I stood in silence, refusing to acknowledge Cameron's person. Markus nodded and I heard Cameron grunt in response. I rolled my eyes as the boys still refused to accept that they had to work together. I had also noticed that as I spent more time around Omen and Markus, my body reacted less severe each time.
The longer you spend around them, the less your body will recognize them as enemies. Be careful however. If you come upon a vampire that does intend you harm, your body will not automatically recognize it.
"What do we do?"
Markus looked at me before glancing back at Cameron, "Well, all of us are trained in battle. You, on the other hand, I'm not sure if you have any experience with combat."
I heard Cameron chuckle and agree quietly under his breath. I elbowed him behind me and smiled when he gasped from the impact.
"I can handle myself," I said confidently. Truthfully, I had no idea if I could fight but they didn't need to know that. "I'll prove it," I added when I saw Markus look me up and down with a frown on his features. "We can go back to the house and Cameron and I can fight."
Markus agreed with the idea and walked away towards his vehicle. Omen got into hers and I jumped into Cameron's truck with him.
"You didn't have to elbow me," Cameron gritted his teeth as they drove out of the school parking lot and turned towards their houses.
I rolled my eyes and snorted, "Don't be such a baby."
We pulled onto the main driveway that connected all the packs personal drives and drove towards my house. My parents were home so I called them ahead of time to let them know that we were going to see how well I could fight. I was relying on the wolf to help me through this as she seemed to know what she was doing with a lot of things that involved this werewolf thing. However, she hadn't been very active lately and I was worried if something was wrong. I sighed and focused my eyes back on my house as it came into view.
I got out of the car and walked towards where Markus and Omen were waiting. Markus was whispering in Omen's ear and I could see a slight blush flush her cheeks as she giggled at whatever he had said. When we were close enough, Markus stepped away from Omen and smiled at the both of us.
"So, what's the plan?" he asked.
"Can we just fight and see what happens?" I said as I glanced at the house where my parents were watching from the porch. My mom hadn't been pleased with the idea of us fighting but she knew that there was really no other choice.
Markus nodded and stepped aside to clear space for Cameron and me. I paced several steps away across the small area and faced Cameron. He watched me warily, instantly in a fighting stance. I could feel my wolf sensing the challenge and my adrenaline began to pump throughout my body.
Cameron smirked, his eyes darkening and his fingers curling into fists. I mimicked Cameron's stance as I prepared to pounce in either direction. I saw Cameron lean forward as thoughts raced through my mind. I didn't have much time to figure out what I was going to as Cameron lunged forward and brought his fist towards my face. I instinctively ducked back but it wasn't quick enough. His knuckles came into contact with my cheek causing me to stumble backwards. I gasped at the contact and immediately brought my hand up to where he had hit me. I worked my jaw to distribute the pain as I glanced up at Cameron.
He smiled devilishly which infuriated me. The strike hurt like a bitch but I was glad he was taking me serious. I knew that what we were going to eventually face wasn't going to care if I was a girl or not. They would kill me regardless. My inner wolf instantly became alert and I felt slight changes that let me know she was ready to fight - I felt my canines lengthen, my nails grow into claws, and my eyesight and hearing became sharper. I also noticed changes in Cameron's appearance. His eyes bore a brighter gold colour and his teeth were also sharper.
That bastard always liked the first punch. But I usually finished the fights.
I laughed at the comment which earned an odd look from the vampires and my parents. Cameron smiled as I was sure he was also enjoying some similar conversation content with his own wolf. I launched my body towards Cameron but he quickly ducked out of the way. As my feet touched the ground, I instantly lowered my body, balancing on the balls of my feet. Turning my body towards Cameron, I saw his fist once again pass my face but I lowered quick enough for it to rush past my face. I shot my leg out, striking Cameron in his left leg, causing him to collapse.
Cameron shoved me away as I pounced on top of him, forcing me onto my back. He immediately stood up and I launched myself up to face him. The wolf inside me energized my body and I could feel the excitement rushing through me. I grinned as I held Cameron's gaze, realizing that it was because of her that I had these powers. I internally thanked her.
Cameron and I both lunged at each other simultaneously and made contact mid-air. I felt him grab both my arms and bring myself towards his body. As we landed, Cameron made sure that I was on the bottom to cushion his fall. I felt the breath once again rush out of me and I struggled to breath. Cameron leaned down and latched onto my arm with his teeth. I knew he wasn't biting as hard as he could, and if he really had been trying to kill me, he certainly would have gone for my neck. However, I still felt a sharp pain as he teeth broke skin and I instantly became furious.
I snarled as the anger fuelled my struggle and I easily threw Cameron off of me. He used the momentum of my push and brought his hands behind him, easily catapulting his body away. I rushed him before he had a chance to gather himself and rammed into him, knocking him down. I threw myself on top of him, enraged. He tried to pull away and as he did, exposed his neck. I saw my chance and immediately went for the fragile skin.
Just before my teeth made contact, I felt hands wrap themselves around my arms and drag me off of Cameron. I snarled and fought against the strong grip. I turned on the attacker, my fingers reaching out to grip their neck.
I stopped struggling instantly when I saw it was Markus. He looked alarmed as he held me back. I felt my body relax as I realized I wasn't being attacked. But I felt like I was around an enemy which caused me to feel very agitated. Markus reached towards me and I growled as his hand neared me, the agitation becoming more severe.
Markus backed away and I turned to see Cameron leaning back on his hands, watching me.
"I - I don't know what happened," I whispered, hanging my head. I had almost hurt Cameron and had nearly attacked Markus. No doubt I'd be no match for the ancient vampire, but there was still the fact that I had tried to attack my friend.
"It's fine," Cameron replied. "It happened the first couple times before I became used to the wolf's power. It can get out of control rather fast."
I sighed and nodded, forcing myself to stand. I walked over to Cameron and offered my hand to help him up. Standing straight, Cameron towered over me. I looked up at him and saw that his eyes were becoming their more normal golden colour. I drew in a deep breath and was overcome by the scent of his close proximity.
"Well," I mumbled.
Cameron laughed, "At least we know you can hold your own." He turned towards my mother who I could see had a worried look on her features. My father was hugging my mother but was smiling proudly at me. "Now, I'm hungry! We can discuss what our next few plans over dinner, if that's alright?"
I heard my mother mumble a hasty "yes" before scurrying back into the house, followed by my father. Markus said they were going to find something to eat before disappearing into the woods. I shivered as I remembered what their dinner would consist of.
I glanced back at Cameron who had stepped back a bit in order to put some distance between our bodies. He smiled down at me and placed his hand on my cheek.
"I'm scared," I admitted. I had no idea what we were going to be fighting. I had no idea how I was going to be an alpha of this pack. Hell, last year I had just been a normal teenage girl. Now I had to worry not only about adjusting to this new lifestyle, but also fighting for my life and my packs.
"It'll be alright," Cameron whispered. He brought me closer and enveloped me in a hug. "See, we can be civil with each other." I chuckled and snuggled closer, not caring that half the time I couldn't stand this man. I felt safe like this. I still thought it was corny and the connection we had was stupid, but I knew I couldn't fight it forever. I might as well enjoy the moments like this before we were forced to fight whatever was coming; and who knew what might happen then.
I sighed and pushed back gently, "We should go in."
Cameron agreed and took my hand as we walked back into the house. I turned to shut the door and as I did, I glanced out. There, standing in the yard, I thought I could see a figure. I leaned forward but the shadow seemed to disappear instantly. I wondered for a second if I should say something to Cameron, but instead chalked it up to nerves. I shook my head. I just needed a warm meal and some sleep and I'll be fine.
I shut my eyes for a brief second. No matter how much I hated it, there was nothing I could do to change how things were. This was my life now and I had to accept it.