“You cannot protect yourself from sadness without protecting yourself from happiness.”
― Jonathan Safran Foer
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Chapter Three // Jenna's POV
"You don't have to go if you don't want to." My dad pleaded trying to get me to stay home again but I shook my head at him.
"You've got to face the music sometime. Besides I have already missed enough school as it is." Getting out from my closet I'm dressed in light wash distressed jeans, a white camisole, grey long sleeved cardigan, and dark brown riding boots.
He sighed running a hand down his face. "Jenna I---."
I interrupted. "Dad, I'm fine okay."
"Okay," He let out a breath. "If you think you are ready. We'll try it out today but if the slightest thing goes wrong---."
"If something goes wrong I'll send up my bat signals right away."
His eyes looked me over for a few seconds with a slight smile on his face. Approaching me his arms wrapped around my body. "I'm so happy you're okay princess. I love you so much."
His voice almost cracked making me hug him even tighter.
"I love you too dad." He squeezed me once more before letting go.
"Alright, let's get out of here before I change my mind and chain you up in the basement."
"What?" I inquire giving him a skeptical look.
He chuckled looping his arm through mine and pulling me towards the door. "Oh nothing sweetheart."
"Sometimes I wonder what's going through your head but then I think about it, and I really don't."
"No, you really don't." He cackled opening the squad car door letting me sit up front with him.
--
The ride to school was pretty silent until I tried to touch the radio and my dad threatened to make me sit in the back like all the other criminals to which I replied:
So it is now a crime to touch your radio?
His riposte was: Yes, in all fifty states including Canada, the United Kingdom, and parts of Uruguay.
What a weirdo.
Anyway after a five minute safety lecture I was finally let out of the car where I was greeted by Allison and Lydia.
"You really don't remember anything?" She questioned us trotting up the stairs.
"Nope, not a thing." I retorted.
"They call it a fugue state, which is basically a way of saying we have no idea why you can't remember running naked in the woods for two days." She stepped at the door way. "But personally, I don't care. I lose nine pounds."
I snorted while they chuckled. She might have lost nine pounds, but I probably gained some. Thanks metabolism, great work.
She put a hand on both of our arms. "Are you two ready for this?"
I shrugged pulling out of his grip. Human contact made me kind of itchy right now.
"Please." Lydia scoffed. "It's not like my aunt's a serial killer."
I rolled my eyes at her using insults to hide how scared she really was. That was harsh, Allison was just trying to help.
I nudged Ally. "Don't take it personally, she just scared and doesn't want to admit it."
She nodded, "I know, she just has a way with words."
"Don't we all." I replied looking at the door not opening it.
"Are you really sure about this?"
A shaky breathe escaped from my lips. "As I'll ever be." I whispered pulling opening the door and stepping inside.
It was like a Matrix moving. As soon as Lydia and I stepped into the school everyone stopped what they were doing and gaped at us.
I rolled my eyes as Lydia stood frozen. Threading my arm through hers I acknowledged the gawkers. "Is everyone done staring now? I mean I know we look amazing but staring is a little much."
That seemed the break their trans but I could feel those little glances that they took out of the corner of their eyes at us.
"I bet it was the nine pounds." I whispered to Lydia. She smirked flipping a piece of hair over her shoulder and walked away with me in tow.
>>Third Person
"I'm serious. It not like the last full moon. I don't feel the same." Scott argued.
"Oh does that include the urge to maim and kill people, like me?" Stiles countered.
Scott rolled his eyes. "I swear I don't have the urge to maim and kill you."
"You know, you say that now but then the full moon goes up and out come the fangs and the claws and there's a lot of howling and screaming and running everywhere okay? And it's very stressful on me, and so yes, I'm still locking you up."
"Okay, fine." Scott agreed. "But I do think I'm in more control now. Especially since things are good with Allison."
Stiles made a long face. "Okay, I'm aware of how good things are with Allison."
"They're really good." Scott gloated.
"I-- Thank you, I know."
They approached Stiles's gym lacrosse locker. "Speaking of full moons, what do you think is going to happen tonight to Lydia and Jenna?"
Scott sighed running a hand down his face. "I have absolutely no clue. Let's just hope that they don't have the urge to maim and kill people."
Stiles's head popped around searching for the brunette to see if she was in the locker room yet for practice but he came up empty handed. "She told me to come and find her today."
Scott smiled. "That's good then right? Maybe we are getting somewhere."
Stiles shook his head. "No, not really. She just wants to know what happened, besides, I think she already likes someone else."
Scott's eyebrows crunched together in confusion. "Who?"
"Isaac Lahey." Stiles spit out. "They were together last night in her room, canoodling."
Scott raised an eyebrow. "And how do you know that?"
Stiles shrugged. "I saw them through the window."
"You do know that's borderline stalker right?"
"It is not! Her window is right across from mine and I just so happened to glance over and see them. Besides I closed the curtains after I saw them together."
"Yeah, okay."
"I'm not a stalker." Stiles deadpanned.
"Never said you were." Scott countered.
Stiles widely moved his hands around. "But you just, uhh, never mind. I'm so not in the mood for this."
"Whatever, so did you get something better than handcuffs this time?" Scott asked.
"Yeah, much better." Stiles replied setting down his book bag and opening the locker.
The noise that came after that was almost as humiliating as what was falling. Long chains of knotted steel fell to the ground spilling out of the locker.
"Part of me wants to ask. The other part says knowing will be more disturbing than anything I could ever imagine. So... I'm gonna walk away." Coach's voice was laced with uncertainty as he backed away from the two teenage boys not even wanting to guess what the hell they were up to.
"That's a good idea Coach." Stiles called out.
They bend down to pick up the chains but Scott freezes looking up.
"Those better not be for me." An airy voice chuckled.
Stiles tensed up too bringing his eyes up to focus on the beautiful blue eyed girl leaning her hip up against his locker dressed in work out clothes.
"Jenna." Stiles whispered getting up, still staring at her.
She gave him a small smile before looking back down at the chains and raising an eyebrow. "I was serious you know, those better not be for me, I'm claustrophobic."
The two boys glanced at each other before staring back at her. "Do you think you are, you know, changing tonight?"
Jenna's grin dropped off her face as she got closer to the boys. "I don't know but suddenly I'm hearing like a freaking hawk, I didn't need to put my contacts in this morning, and I can smell every disgusting scent in this room. l can feel that something is about to change, but I don't know if it's going to be good or bad." She played with the hem of her Nike running shirt before peeking at the two.
Stiles mouth was set in a grim line as Scott was gaping like a fish.
Jenna sucked in a big gust of air but immediately smelled something weird. Her facial expression raised an alarm in the boys.
"What is it?" Stiles questioned.
Jenna looked around. "Scott did you lend your cologne out to anyone or something? Because it smells like there are two of you in here."
Scott quickly inhaled but found only two scents quiet odd, well three but Greenburg didn't make the cut on the supernatural list.
"There's another one in here." But what caught the other two off guard was how he suddenly leaned into Jenna taking a strong breath.
Stiles's arms shot out pushing him back out of her personal bubble. "What the hell dude?"
"There's another one in here, and Jenna smells nothing like either of us. But she doesn't smell human either."
The two boys glanced at each other before shifting their attention back to the girl that had gone pale.
"Then what the hell am I?" She squeaked.
"I don't know." He whispered.
Running a hand down her face Jenna sighed. "Alright we'll worry about this later. Scott, you go find out who the new beta is, Stiles is coming with me." She informed them.
They looked at her confused. She rolled her eyes. "You can smell them. I need to know what the hell has been going on. Now you go." She pointed at Stiles. "You come with me."
Scott headed out to the field while Jenna and Stiles walked to the benches. An awkward tension filled the air. Stiles scratched the back of his head. "So, uh, what do you remember?"
A sigh left Jenna's lips. "Everything up until you walked off with Peter. After that nothing."
Stiles nodded, his lips pressed into a firm line. "So you remember the, um, the kiss."
Now it was Jenna's turn to nod. "Yepp." Then she shook her head. "That's not what I'm here to talk about though. What happened when Peter took you?"
Stiles stared at her with his eyes squinted for a few seconds before shaking his head and turning away. "He took me to his car...."
Stiles told her everything up until they found her and Lydia yesterday in the woods. Jenna's brain was shocked at how much could have occurred in just a short amount of time. Psychotic aunts, burnt to death alphas, and the switching of titles. Who would have thought all of that would go down?
"Wow." She breathed.
"Yepp." Stiles confirmed. He glanced back at Jenna, attempting to grab her hand.
"Look Jenna we need to talk about what---." He didn't get to finish as Scott cut him off.
"I need a plan." Stiles let out a long breath and with a roll of his eyes looked at Scott. The warm feeling of his palm on hers raised her heartbeat. The sensation of his lips on Jenna's flushing into her head, the tingling of their lips burning into her skin.
"I'm going to go find coach." Jenna pulled her hand away leaving Stiles hurt and more than just a little annoyed with Scott. She didn't even look back at him as she made her way to the man that was yelling like a maniac.
Stiles's heart hurt before he glared back at Scott. "Dude, what the hell? I was about to talk to her about our kiss."
Scott's guilty eyes showed. "I'm sorry but this is really important. I need to find out who the other beta is."
Stiles sighed. "Alright, alright. I've got a plan. Be right back." He rushed off to talk to coach. He expected to see Jenna there since that's where she said she was going but as he got closer to Finstock he say her talking and smiling with Lahey.
His face turned to disgust.
"What's with the uglier than usual face Stilinski?" He faced coach wiping the look off his face. Trying to erase the image of her getting together with Isaac out of his mind.
"Nothing coach, just wanted to tell you that Scott was switching with Danny for the day."
Coach shrugged. "Alright."
Stiles walked over to the two chatters giving a huge fake smile. "Hey, Isaac." He grinned. "You mind if I steal Jenna away for a few seconds? We have some things that we need to talk about."
Jenna rolled her eyes subtly as Isaac glanced between her and Stilinski. "Uh, um, sure." He turned to Jenna giving her a smile that she returned in full force. Stiles grimaced. "I'll text you later okay?"
Jenna nodded. "Okay."
He walked away and Stiles took his spot peering down at the beautiful girl in front of him that was messing with the hem of her shirt.
She only does that when she's nervous. He thought.
A breath escaped her pink lips. "Look Stiles,--."
He cut her off. "If you are going to tell me there is nothing to talk about, then you are very wrong. So wrong in fact I bet that if you looked up wrong in the dictionary you're picture would be there with a little speech bubble telling me there is nothing to talk---."
"Stiles for Gods sake shut up." She sternly hissed at him looking around at everyone that was now staring at him. Stiles glanced around noticing it too, he blew air out his nose.
She brought her attention back to Stiles with a blank look on her face. "There's nothing to talk about okay? Everything that needed to be said was said that night." He didn't answer her, too confused about how unemotional she was talking about all of this. "Now that that's settled you have practice and I have things to do."
She walked away from the freckled teen to stand next to coach. His arms was crossed and he tried to be discrete about it but it wasn't working. "So what was that about?" He inclined he head back at Stilinski raising his eyebrows.
Jenna glanced back at Stiles who was already staring at her with longing eyes and a pout on his ridiculously cute face. She turned away.
"Nothing, nothing at all."