chapter ix.
❝ Imprints? ❞
la push, washington
(black household)
june 10, 2007
UPON ARRIVING back at Sam and Emily's house, Josiah went straight to the kitchen where he helped Emily finish setting up the food for the bonfire while Leah went to help the guys set up everything in Jacob's house. Emily and Josiah spent the next hour silently finishing up the food and putting it in containers to be able to take them to the Black household.
"Phew," Emily let out a sigh while wiping the small sweat that was forming at the bridge of her brows, "That was the last batch of food."
Josiah chuckled, closing the lid of the last container, "Is it always like this when you have bonfires?"
Emily snorted, organizing the containers in bags to be easier to carry, "You bet."
"Alright well we should head out," Emily grunted as she grabbed two bags filled with food, "Sue and I are supposed to set everything up."
The eldest Lahote quickly took the bags from Emily's hands and grabbed the rest of the bags that were laying on the table. Emily tried to protest in helping but he wouldn't let her, causing her to let out a defeated huff. Josiah placed the bags in the back of Emily's car before getting in the front seat and Emily started the car, driving straight to Billy's house.
Jacob's house was a small, red cottage that reminded Josiah of his mother's house; except theirs was dark brown with a smaller porch and no platform ― which Josiah assumed was for helping Billy who was in a wheelchair.
Josiah helped Emily carry the bags to the back of the house where a table was set out and some of the boys were fetching wood for the fire. Immediately, Josiah spotted Leah who was helping Seth set up chairs around where the fire would be. A small smile made its way on his lips subconsciously.
"You can set the bags here Josiah," Emily spoke, breaking the young soldier's gaze from the Clearwater girl.
Setting down the bags Josiah asked if she needed any other help, which she denied, and made his way over to the black haired girl.
"Do you need any help?" Josiah couldn't help but smile as she glanced up at him. Her dark brown eyes staring back at him, making him think back to the first time he saw them.
"Ummm... sure," Leah struggled with her words, "I'm just finishing setting up these chairs."
"Okay." Josiah grabbed the chairs she was holding and began placing them around the pile of wood in the middle.
"So," Josiah cleared his throat, "What usually goes down at these bonfires?"
Paul had already, kind of, explained it to him but he wanted an excuse to start a conversation with the Clearwater girl.
"Well Billy usually tells legends regarding our tribe," Leah shrugged not making eye contact with the Lahote boy, "It gives time for the elders to check in on the tribe and everyone to have a good time." Josiah nodded not being able to take off his eyes from the women in front of him.
Josiah opened his mouth to ask her another question but the sound of his phone ringing stopped him. He let out a frustrated groan before answering, "Hello?"
"What? Did you forget about me?"
At the sound of Liam's voice over the line made Josiah smile, "Of course not you punk! You landed already?"
"Sure did."
"Alright I'm on my way."
Hanging up the phone Josiah gave Leah an apologetic look, "Sorry I have to go. I'll be right back."
Leah simply smiled, "I'll save you a seat."
Her words made Josiah smile sheepishly before walking over to Paul who was standing next to Jared, both of them eating what looked like chicken.
"Hey Jay!" Jared greeted him with a mouthful of chicken — he was right about the chicken.
Josiah looked at him in disgust before looking over at his brother, "Is it okay if Liam comes over to the bonfire?"
"Of course!" Jared exclaimed before Paul could answer, pieces of chicken flying out of his mouth, "The more the merrier!"
Paul shoved Jared harshly, making him stumble on his feet, "Of course you can bring Pim."
"Alright well I'm going to go get him."
"Okay." Paul grabbed his keys and threw them to his brother who caught them mid air.
The eldest Lahote jogged over to his brother's truck and hopped in. He slowly pulled out of the driveway and headed straight for the airport. On the way to the airport his mind couldn't help but wander. Everytime Josiah found himself alone with his own thoughts, his mind drifted to things he didn't want to think about. But now all that he could think about was the dark brown eyes of a certain Clearwater sibling.
His thoughts, however, were rudely interrupted by something running across the road making him press on the brakes and turn the wheel to the left, making the truck skid across the road, before coming to a complete stop.
"What the hell!" Josiah's eyes were wide as he looked out from the passenger window, trying to see what ran across the road so suddenly.
'It was probably a dear?' He thought.
'But it was too fast..' Shrugging at the thought, Josiah took his foot off the brake pedal and drove away. The rest of the ride to the airport was spent with Josiah quietly drumming his thumbs against the steering wheel to whatever song came up on the radio.
Finally, the small Forks airport made its way into Josiah's view. Pulling into the parking lot Josiah scanned the area to see if he spotted his best friend, which he did. Liam was standing with a small duffel bag and looking down playing with his phone. Josiah drove around to park the truck besides him and honked the horn, starling him.
Josiah laughed, "Come on! I don't have all day."
Liam glared at Josiah through the passenger window before opening the door and getting in ― throwing his duffel bag to the back seat.
"Good to see you too jerk."
Making their way back to La Push was spent with light conversation between the two. The talks were mostly about when their next deployment will be after their break, which was reaching its end.
"I got a call from Sam the other day." Josiah briefly glanced over at Liam at the sudden change of his tone.
"Yeah," Josiah hummed, returning his gaze back to the road, "What did he say?"
Liam let out a sigh watching the trees fly by. Liam Henderson always enjoyed his time outdoors — he loved nature in general. For that reason he was kind of glad when his dad moved them to Colorado, near the mountains. Looking out the window gave Liam a sense of comfort.
"Chris and Izzie are dead."
There he said it. Liam never wanted to break the news to his best friend that two of their closest friends were gone. Chris and Izzie were part of the unit that both Liam and Josiah were part of. Within that unit a close bond was made between Chris, Izzie, Liam, Sam, Sarah, Josiah, and Nathan. They all had each other's backs on the battlefield; took care and protected each other like siblings.
Josiah's breath hitched in his throat. He felt a lump form at the back of his throat, making it hard to breath.
"When?" Josiah's voice broke.
"A couple days ago," Liam whispered after clearing his throat, "Sam received a call from Chris' mom."
Josiah nodded trying to swallow down the lump in his throat, "Does Sarah know?"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure Sam called her after he called me."
Josiah felt his hands tighten on the steering wheel, turning his knuckles white. Tears welled up at the corner of his eyes, but he blinked them away and let out a loud sigh. Liam looked over at his friend with worry in his eyes. The last time Liam and Josiah were put in this position was when Nathan passed away, which is the reason he was so hesitant in telling Josiah the news. Let's just say that the last time they lost a friend, Josiah did not take it well. It mostly had to do with the fact that Josiah was there when Nathan died.
The rest of the ride back to La Push was spent in absolute silence. The air was so tense it could be cut with a knife ― Liam did not like it one bit.
From the corner of his eye he could see Josiah holding back tears and his hands trembling after he released the death grip he had in the wheel. Liam was now regretting telling Josiah about their friends while he was driving.
"Pull over," Liam ordered, "Let's switch."
Knowing he was in no condition to drive, Josiah pulled the truck to the side of the road and put it in park. Liam opened his side of the door and stepped out, Josiah following after. After switching sides, Liam continued their drive to La Push. Silence fell between the two soldiers once again. Couple more minutes passed before they finally reached La Push.
"Take this road and take a left," Josiah pointed down a road that led to the forest in the direction to Jacob's house.
Thinking they were heading straight to Mary's house, Liam didn't question and followed Josiah's directions. Liam's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as they neared a small red house with a small fire that could be seen behind the house.
"Hope you like bonfires," Josiah chuckles humorlessly opening his side of the door.
"Josiah, wait," Liam sighed looking at his friend with pinched eyebrows in concern, "Are you okay?"
"I got over it with Nathan," Josiah answered, annoyed, "I'll do it again."
"Josiah—"
"I'll be fine."
And with that Josiah stepped out of the truck and waited for Liam to do the same before they made their way to the rest of the pack.
"Pim!"
Paul was the first person to notice them and immediately ran up and tackled Liam into a hug.
Liam let out a groan and a throaty laugh, "How you doing Paul?"
"Oh you know," Paul chuckled, releasing Liam.
"Yeah? You got taller," Liam looked Paul up and down, "And muscular."
Last time Liam Henderson saw Paul Lahote was the day that the Lahote-Allen family moved from Tacoma, Washington down to La Push. At the time Paul barely reached Liam's chest and was pretty scrawny.
"Well puberty happened." Liam laughed at Paul's words, playfully pushing his shoulder.
"Come on," Paul began to pull the soldier in the direction of the pack, "I want to introduce you to some of my friends."
Josiah smiled softly as he watched his little brother pull his best friend towards Sam and some of the other boys. But that smile quickly faded as his mind began to drift back to the news that Liam broke to him on the ride back to La Push. The soldier shook his head in an attempt to get rid of the horrible thoughts that threaten to consume him. His eyes scanned the area and fell on the beautiful dark brown eyed girl that was sitting by the fire. Not wanting to stand alone with his own thoughts, Josiah Lahote made his way over to Leah Clearwater.
"Is this seat taken?"
At the sound of his voice, Leah glanced up, her face lightin up at the sight of him, "No," Leah moved to the side to make more room for him, "Just in time, Billy was about to start."
Seating next to Leah gave Josiah a sense of comfort and safety. He still felt confused about the idea of getting too attached to the girl sitting next to him. He also didn't know why it didn't bother him as much as it should. Josiah Lahote wasn't a person that got attached to people he barely met easily so having this girl that he literally met a day ago was alarming.
Noticing the distant look on his face Leah asked him if he was okay which Josiah responded with a forced smile and a nod in her direction.
Leah could tell that something was off about Josiah. Although they were not fully imprinted, she could see a glint of sadness in his eyes ― she decided not to question him about it. Billy and the rest of the elders of the tribe approached the fire and the legends began.
The legends were fascinating to say the least. Both Josiah and Liam found themselves immersed in Billy's telling of the legends. They couldn't take their eyes off of Billy as he told the legends the same way he had for years. Hearing the legends of wolf descendants and the cold ones became very familiar to the eldest Lahote. At the mention of the wolves, Josiah couldn't help but let his eyes wander to each individual in the pack. On doing so he was finally able to notice the presence of three unknown girls. One girl was seated next to Jacob with Jacob's arm wrapped around her. The other two girls were in a similar position with Embry and Jared. He could only assume that they were their girlfriends. Seth was also with his girlfriend Aubrey and Paul with Rachel.
By the end of the last legend, everyone was starving. Josiah and Leah made their way to the table where the food was set up and began grabbing their own plate, piling it with food.
"Jesus," Liam came up behind Josiah and slapped him on the back, "With this much food you would think they were feeding a pack of wolves."
Josiah couldn't help but laugh at the irony, "You have no idea." Josiah gave Leah a brief look which she returned with a smirk.
"Oh," Josiah stepped to the side, so he could introduce Liam and Leah, "Leah this is my idiotic best friend Liam Henderson," Liam snorted and shoved Josiah, "Liam this is Leah Clearwater."
"Pleasure to meet you Leah." Leah sent Liam an acknowledgement nod while she ate some chicken made by Emily.
"Nice to meet you Liam."
Liam was then called over by Paul and Jared which left Josiah and Leah alone again. They made their way back to their seats by the fire and began eating their food with light conversation held between them.
"How long have you known Liam?"
Josiah let out a puff of air, "My father and his father knew each other from college and we sort of grew up together."
"After my parents divorced, my mother moved us down to the reservation from Tacoma and I didn't get to see him very often; especially since his father moved them to Colorado. That was until we were both enrolled in the same military school where we reunited. After we finished military school we enrolled in the army together and the rest is history."
"Looks like you guys are pretty close then," Leah pointed out.
"Yeah," Josiah smiled fondly as he recalled memories with both Liam and Paul.
"By the way," Josiah sat up straight as he focused on the four girls huddled together across from where Leah and Josiah sat, "Who are they?"
Leah looked in the direction Josiah was looking at to see Renesme, Nora, Aubrey, and Paisley all sitting together and talking.
"Oh, that's Jacob, Jared, Seth, and Embry's imprints," Leah answered while pointing at each girl as she talked.
"Imprints?" Leah visibly froze as she processed what just came out of her mouth.
"What's that?" Josiah asked clearly oblivious to the pale, panicked state the Clearwater girl was in.
God she had screwed up bad. She didn't want to tell him like this. She wanted to be alone with him, so she could explain it to him carefully, so he understood what it meant.
"I-It's uh... it's..." Leah let out a sigh trying to relax her nerves but the intense look that Josiah was giving her made her a stuttering mess, "I-I-Imprinting i-is―"
Just like last time, before Leah could finally tell Josiah about imprinting, their conversation was cut short with the sound of Josiah's phone ringing in his pocket. Leah let out a defeated sigh while Josiah gave her an apologetic look. The soldier took out his phone and looked down at it annoyed. But that look quickly faded away as he saw the name on the caller ID.
"Sorry I gotta take this," Josiah quickly stood up, making Leah frown at the sad look in his eyes.
From across the bonfire Liam stopped his conversation with Paul and Jared, frowning, as he saw his best friend get up from his seat and make his way to the front of the house, alone, while looking down at his phone with a deep frown.
"I'll be right back guys."
Meanwhile, Josiah continued to glare down at his phone with tears welling up in his eyes that he quickly blinked away before answering, "Hey Sarah."
"Jay," Josiah almost broke down in tears at the heart breaking sound of Sarah crying over the phone, "Did-Did you h-hear?"
The soldier nodded with his head down as he desperately tried to hold back the tears that were fighting to fall from his eyes, "Yeah, I-I did."
He could hear Sarah choking down a sobb, "T-They're gone."
And just like that, all composure that Josiah had fell and he let out a sobb of his own ― tears streaming down his face. Liam stood back and watched as his best friend broke down in tears, making him release a few tears of his own.
"I-Is Liam w-w-with you??" Sarah asked, her voice breaking in between.
"Y-Yeah," Josiah felt a presence behind him and turned around to see Liam watching him with a sad smile, "He came to Washington to give me the news."
Josiah could hear some background noise coming from Sarah's side of the phone, "Sorry I have to go. I-I just wanted to c-check up on you. I'll g-give you a call later Jay."
"Okay, it's no problem," Josiah wiped his eyes, "Take care Sarah."
"You too." And with that the call ended, leaving Josiah with a heavy heart.
Josiah's head hung low as he let out a shaky breath, trying to get his emotions back under control.
"Let's get you home pal," Liam placed a hand on his shoulder, "Get in the truck, I'll let your brother know." Josiah could only nod.
He was too emotionally tired to protest and made his way towards Paul truck, getting in the passenger seat. Liam returned shortly after with the keys and got in the driver's seat. Without another word he pulled the truck out of the driveway and drove away from the Black household.