Ashley Clarke sat beside Kaylee in her English class. She was a very small girl with long blonde hair that went to her butt. She wore cute little black framed glasses, and she was smart as hell. "Mornin!" She chirped as Kaylee sat down next to her, and she couldn't help but smile in return.
"Mornin' Ash." Kaylee said, pulling her books out of her bag. Ashley was the only friend that Kaylee had made since she started college, but she was honestly so great that she felt as if she didn't really need to make any more friends.
"I was wondering if you wanted to stay with me tonight?" She grinned, and Kaylee nodded eagerly.
"That sounds great! I actually have a bonfire to go to around five, if you wanted to go with me. You could meet Jacob and all of his friends." Kaylee suggested.
"Do they all look as good as him?" Ashley asked, wiggling her eyebrows at Kaylee, who just laughed in return. Kaylee had a few framed photos of Jacob and herself in her bedroom that Ashley had noticed one evening when she came over, and she thought he was just a hunk.
"They all look pretty damn good." She fist pumped at that answer, making Kaylee laugh even harder. Ashley could always make Kaylee laugh until her stomach muscles would hurt.
"Of course, I'll go to the bonfire with you!" The rest of the day seemed to drag by, but it was because the two friends were so excited to spend the evening together for the bonfire.
Kaylee's classes ended earlier than Ashley's because she was going full time while Kaylee was going part time, so she went home to pack her things. Her mom was obviously at work since that's where she spends all of her time, so Kaylee left her a note and hung it on the refrigerator, knowing that she would see it later tonight. She also decided to send her a text message, just so her mom wouldn't worry.
Ash's classes didn't end until two, so Kaylee had about an hour left to kill. She couldn't call Jacob, because he was still at school. After a moment of contemplation, she decided to drive to Emily's, considering that she didn't live very far away from Ashley.
Kaylee opened the door to Emily's house and walked into the kitchen, smiling at the beautifully scarred woman. "Hi Kaylee, sweetie!" She exclaimed, hugging the younger girl.
"Hey Em. You already cooking for tonight?" Kaylee asked, gesturing towards all the pans and containers sitting around the kitchen. Emily rolled her eyes and nodded. "Of course." But Kaylee knew better than to believe her annoyed act, because Emily loved cooking for her boys.
"Let me help you." Kaylee suggested, and she smiled at her. "Do you know how to make deviled eggs?" She asked, and Kaylee nodded, grabbing the eggs out of the fridge. She put a pot of water on the stove to boil, and Emily sat down at the table.
"I invited someone to come with me tonight, I hope that's no problem.." Kaylee said hesitantly. She wasn't sure about their policy with newbies. She was only allowed to come because of Embry and Jacob.
"That's fine, who is it?" Emily asked.
"Her name is Ashley Clarke. She sits beside me in English. She's the only real friend I've made since I started college." Emily's smile softened.
"They won't say anything to you. I promise, she can come whenever she wants." Kaylee was hoping that everyone would like her okay. Being the new person around a large group of people was terrifying, but she thought that Ashley could handle it. After hanging out at Emily's for close to an hour, she hugged her friend and left, leaving to go pick up Ashley.
She was waiting for Kaylee anxiously on the porch. "Thank gosh you're finally here!" She exclaimed, jumping up off the steps. "I need your help!"
"What's wrong? Is everything okay?" Kaylee asked, placing her hands on her shoulders to keep her from jumping around her in circles.
"I don't know what to wear!" She cried out, making Kaylee roll her eyes and laugh.
"You jerk, you scared me! I thought something was really wrong!" She lightly smacked her arm.
"This is serious! I need to look nice, there are going to be so many cute guys there!" She whined. Kaylee sighed as she led her into the house.
"Trust me, they don't care how you dress." Kaylee told Ashley, but she didn't care.
"I'm going to shower, and then will you help me with my hair?" Kaylee nodded, and she left her alone in her room. She saw a bottle of nail polish on her desk, so she picked it up and applied two coats to her nails while she waited on Ashley. When she finished, her nails were a very sparkly silver color.
Ashley came out with her body wrapped up in one towel and then another towel wrapped around her hair. "I have to blow dry my hair and then can you curl it?" She asked Kaylee, sitting on the edge of her bed and picking up her hair dryer.
Once her hair was dry, she put on a cute black shirt and Kaylee grabbed her curling wand and began curling it. "I hope your friends like me." She said quietly.
"Ash, of course they'll like you! You're funny, smart, and you're cute as hell." Kaylee said, nudging her and making her grin. When she finished with her hair, it was beautifully curled down to her waist. Kaylee sprayed a little bit of hair spray on it so it would stay in place, grinning at the completed hairdo.
"Ta da!" Kaylee exclaimed, pushing Ashley towards her mirror.
"I love it! I love having my hair curled." She said, bouncing the small curls in her hand. "Do you want me to do your hair?" She asked, but Kaylee shook her head. Her hair was starting to fall out more and more, and she was scared that chunks of it would come out in Ashley's hand. She knew about her illness, and Kaylee knew that she wouldn't judge her, but it would be embarrassing.
After Ashley finished getting all dolled up, the two left her house for the beach. "What do you normally do at the bonfires?"
"We mainly eat, and the guys will play football sometimes, and then the elders tell the legends. The legends are my favorite part." Kaylee grinned, remembering the stories about imprinting and the Third Wife. However, thinking about imprinting made her really start to miss Jacob, and she began to feel anxious.
She pulled into the parking lot and was ready to sprint down to the beach, but she didn't want to leave Ashley behind. She got out of the car looking very nervous. She could see everyone down on the sand, and Kaylee had to admit, that many shirtless guys would make anyone nervous.
"C'mon, I can't wait until you get to meet everyone. They're all so great!" Kaylee squealed, happy to have Ashley here with her other friends. "Jacob!" She squealed, seeing her man throwing the football around. He was wearing a pair of denim cut off shorts and no shoes, and of course, no shirt. His muscles rippled with every movement, and Kaylee was practically drooling when he spotted her and grinned widely.
He ran over to her and picked her up off the ground and swung her around like she weighed nothing. "Hey baby girl! I've missed you."
"I've missed you so much. Now, put me down. I want to introduce you to someone very special to me. Jacob, this is Ashley Clarke. Ash, this is Jacob Black." He gave her a big grin, and Kaylee could see the blush start to creep up her neck due to the attention being placed on her.
"It's nice to meet ya, Ash. Kay has told me all about you. I hope you have a good time tonight, if you need anything just let me know." Jacob said, and Ashley just kind of stared at him, looking lost.
"She'll be just fine, she just needs to get used to everyone." Kaylee patted her on the back gently, and she seemed to snap out of her daze.
"Why aren't they wearing shirts?" She whispered, eyeing their built bodies.
"They never do. But I don't complain." Kaylee said, poking Jacob's muscular stomach, making him chuckle in response. "Let's go introduce you to everyone else!" Kaylee cheered, skipping off to her friends. "Okay, this is Emily, her man Sam, Kim, her man Jared, Seth, Leah, Quil, Paul, and Embry." Kaylee said, pointing at each person.
Her eyes were locked on Embry's, and he was staring at her like a blind man seeing the sun for the first time. Her face was flushed, and Embry seemed to be breathing hard. The guys exchanged similar smirks, and Kaylee felt her jaw drop.
Her best friend, Embry Call, just imprinted on her other best friend, Ashley Clarke.
A/N: Once again, thank you for being so patient! I've been getting a ton of notifications about this story being added to reading lists and favorited, and I truly appreciate it! It means the world to me when I know that people are enjoying this story! Drop a comment or two and let me know what you think :)