Chapter 14 – unedited (Written 3/7/2013)
*Saturday 6th July* ~Ten Weeks Pregnant~
Ara checked into the cheap motel where she left her bags, collected keys and left the building to visit her new apartment. It was the most popular apartment blocks that the people who attend NYU live in.
It was probably in one of the best places possible, it was close to the university and was close to small cafe's and restaurants. Just looking at the area, Ara nearly squealed in delight. This would be the perfect place to raise her baby at the start then she'd probably move into a bigger complex when she makes enough money.
She thanked the taxi driver and paid him the required amount before getting out. Everyone was walking around with their coats on or any sort of cover up.
Ara stayed in her oversized hoodie but changed into acceptable skinny jeans before. She was excited, getting her life started.
Walking in, she finds the reception quickly. A lady sat behind her desk, working and organising folders. Ara walked up to her, taking in the place. There was – luckily – an elevator and waiting room. The place looked so cosy and felt so warm, Ara couldn't stop the smile on her face from getting any bigger.
"Hello Darling, what's your name?" The lady behind the desk asks Ara, pulling her out of her thoughts.
"Oh, I'm Arabella Pierce. I'm the new erm...tenant and I'm here to pick up my keys." She says confidently, stumbling a little. The lady smiles kindly at her.
"You've got apartment 7B. Lucky girl, you got quite a pretty view from up there. Enjoy!" The lady says, handing Ara a set of keys. Ara smiled back at her.
"Thank you. I'll see you later." Ara tells her with a nod then turns around to leave. Ara slides the keys into her hoodie pocket; also putting her hands in there then walks out the building. Well, she's got her apartment down; with her new job she'll be able to keep it going with out a roommate.
Ara was walking, her head down without realising it. She was getting a job model. She had a job as a model, a freaking model. That was the problem. She was pregnant, she would eventually get bigger and bigger each week and her aunt would easily notice.
She'll somehow have to convince her not to tell her parents, because they'd probably die if they knew this.
All of a sudden, Ara hit the pavement with a small thump and an audible gasp.
"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry! Are you all right? I'm sorry I should have watched where I was going!" The dirty blonde haired girl exclaims, holding her hand out and helping Ara up.
Ara gives her a small smile. "Sorry, it was my fault. I'm Ara." Ara introduces herself, holding out a hand while using the other to calm down her messy hair. The girl smiles, a small glow in her grey eyes.
"Ara, short for Arabella I'm guessing? I'm Faith. And before you get ask why I was called that, my Mom is like some spiritual gypsy thing. She's really laid back, thus the name Faith. I've got a sister named Hope. Oh, sorry I'm rambling!" Faith rambles, apologising after. Ara laughs with a smile; never once had she had much communication with a girl and actually laughed along.
"That's nice. Well, I'll see you around, I've got to buy some furniture for my new house." Ara answers honestly.
"Sure. You live in the Gray Building's right? Most people do. 'Cause if you do, you must be attending NYU, right?" Faith guesses. Ara laughs and nods.
"Yup. 7B actually. But I won't be attending NYU 'til the fall." Ara tells her. Faith grins at her, pulling out a small notebook from her pocket and a pen from her handbag.
"Here. Put your number in, we should hang out sometime Ara. Oh, by the way I'm in 7C. See you around neighbour!" Faith says, handing Ara her mini sparkly pink address book and ripping out a blank piece to put her number on.
After exchanging numbers they both go their separate ways. Ara smiles, she made her first friend here in New York – even better that she's her neighbour.
Pulling to the curb, Ara holds her hand out, waving it for a taxi while putting her other hand in her mouth and making an ear-piercing whistle. Daddy trained her well.
Immediately, a taxi pulls over by her and she hops in.
"Take me to one of the most popular malls here please." The taxi driver nods and drives off.
After a short 15-minute journey, she's greeted by a large mirror-covered building. She smiles at it, it seems so new and exciting.
"Thanks!" Ara says, giving a twenty to the driver than hopping out. Mostly at malls, she'd go shopping for new clothes but she's got enough clothes at the moment. Eventually when she gets bigger she's going to have to wear large clothes, and so far she's got a small bump.
She walks in, heading straight to the directory's map. Before she gets anything, she needs to get her furniture. With the amount of money her parents gave her and the savings account she's had since she was ten, she might be able to get the main things for herself, like a bed, a couch, a table with chairs and probably a TV.
Looking on the directory, she found a few popular furniture stores on the second floor and before she knew it she was on the escalator up to the second store.
"Okay. Find bed. Find a bed." She mutters to herself, reaching the second floor. She was aiming to get a king sized bed, as she tends to move around a lot.
She arrives a bed store, where they sell a lot of beds. She was browsing through, getting to the 'master' bedroom part. Her eye was kept on a king sized metro brown upholstered bed.
"Hello miss, are you interested in this bed?" The salesman asks her. Ara smiles at him with a nod. She cautiously runs her hands down her arms, looking to and fro the bed and the young salesman.
"Yup, I am. How long would it take to order? I'm in need of a bed." Ara tells him hastily wanting to get this done and over with, already checking the price. It was a cheap $650 bed that came with great quality. She'd have to get some tempur pillows with it, which she could take home today.
"Well, the transportation is free but to build we'd need an extra thirty dollars. We can get this in say – three days for now." He says, flashing a smile. He quickened the true amount of time, just for the pretty woman standing before him.
Ara beams at him. "That would be perfect! So, uhm, what am I supposed to sign?" She asks. The man leaves for a while until he comes back with a clipboard and contract in hand.
"We'll need your address and time we could come. Also, phone number and contact details." Ara takes the clipboard and puts in her details. The man was young, around 23 or 24 and was quite interested in the young girl, but she had yet to turn 18. He didn't know that.
"Thanks for your care. Uhm, so this will arrive on Tuesday around noon, right?" Ara asks, making sure she's got the details. The man nods.
"Yup. We'll contact you for any delay. See you on Tuesday." He says and Ara nods in return, leaving the guy and taking out her phone. On the notes section she lists down the time when her bed's going to come.
She's got her bed down, now she'll have to get her sofa. The pillows and linen can wait until later on when everything is ordered so she doesn't have to walk around carrying them everywhere she goes.
Two stores down, there was a simple furniture store selling things for 60% off, and that made Ara's eyes twinkle in happiness. Moving through people, she finally landed in the furniture store.
There were tables, chairs, sofas, recliners, the full package. Ara felt like the fat kid in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when he arrived at Willy Wonka's Factory. I'm guessing this is how most moms feel like. She thinks to herself with a small laugh.
~~~~~~~~~~
Andrea sat in her bedroom groaning. She lost her; she had no clue where Ara is. No clue when she went or how – it was like she disappeared off the face of earth.
After over hearing the pack that she had left to somewhere unknown, her plan was ruined but in a way it helped her. Now she could have Xander all to herself – but Xander didn't look to keen on that.
With Ara out of the way, she thinks she has a better chance at making him hers. Andrea wanted to feel the power of being a Luna – a very powerful Luna.
She'd not only have control over the pack, but every werewolf over the entire world would bow to her feet. She wanted that, and Xander was her ticket. Not to mention he wasn't bad to the eye.
But even with Ara gone, she's still the talk of the house. They are all worried as to what happened to her. What's going to happen to her child? They even considered hanging up posters, but her parents might be quite creeped out.
Andrea was upset with this act, they were all protective over a pesky human and she hated that. First she gets my man and now she's getting my pack? Oh hell no!
Andrea is far too up herself to realize the 'common sense' in situations like these. She thinks that the world revolves around her and her only. If one thing's out of place, she'll just throw a temper tantrum like the spoilt brat she is.
Andrea didn't think about the wonderful mate she might have, or the wonderful new family she might have in the future, because instead she goes after a guy with power who is apparently going to be fathering another's child.
She didn't think about any consequences that might happen to her, because once she sets her mind on one thing she won't look at the bad things about it but focus on the good things and try to make them go.
And right now what she wanted was Xander. She didn't care if Xander has a mate and will be fathering a child, she didn't care that she had her own mate who would be willing to give her the love that she needed to be filled in, someone who would care instead of not even looking twice her way.
She didn't care if she had to take any lives, take a family member away from innocent people, or take away any loved ones in the process of getting what she wants. To her, it was more about the ending result rather than the journey.
As for Xander, he takes out his stress on working out, since being unfaithful to his mate feels exactly like throwing himself into a pile of dog poop. It's been over a month since he's last scented his mate and never again has he ever scented that wonderful, intoxicating smell ever again.
The fact he's never ever seen her makes it worse. He's literally about to cry himself to bed each night, but he's vowed to himself to never give up. As long as he has a mate out there and knows that she's alive, he will search for her and he won't stop until he gets her.
He won't let her go once he finds her, because he's very determined on finding this mystery girl – but it can be hard to find someone who wants to be hidden, and all for the wrong reasons.
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A/N; Haha! That makes my ending sound so dramatic! Well, I might skip a few time periods 'cause this seems literally as boring af. So I might skip to parts where Ara gets her job and all that while Xander has to do Alpha business while Andrea is pulling her hair out for trying to find ways to make Xander hers.
Please Vote, Comment, Follow or what ever they ask you to do in this Author Note thingy's! Oh, and I do tend to repeat a lot because I think I have short-term memory loss or something.
© 2013, rinnyhere
**2020: tbh shoulda done faith, hope, and charity.