Amelia;
I opened my eyes and noticed the empty spot beside me. Panic flooded through me for a moment as I sleepily reached out to Arlo's side of the bed. My eyes darted around the room until they landed on his hunched over silhouette. Something was wrong. I could feel it. Don't ask me how, I just could, had someone else been killed again!? I sat up and crawled to the end of the bed.
'Hey, is everything ok?' I asked softly. The sound of my voice causing him to flinch. He turned his sorrow filled golden eyes to me and hung his head a little lower. My stomach dropped. 'W-What? What is it? What's wrong?' My heart raced as dread took over all my senses. He cleared his throat and shifted his eyes to me.
'I-I…' He stammered and dropped his stare down to the ground once more.
'Ok, you are seriously starting to freak me out right now. Please, just tell me. What is happening?' I asked, my voice trembling as I spoke. He sighed loudly and closed his eyes.
'Lia… I am so sorry…' He paused once more, and I thought my throat was about to close up. A familiar feeling of dread washed over me. He's breaking up with me! I knew it! But… why? I closed my eyes and mentally prepared myself for the blow that was about to come. 'I don't know how to tell you this… but… I think… I think I am imprinting on someone.' He paused and looked to me hopefully.
'W-Why are you looking at me like that?' I stammered. He sighed once more and dropped his head low, causing his hair to fall in front of his face.
'That is all the answer that I needed.' He whispered. My heart felt as though it was about to break. 'I was hoping that it was to you, but, but I wouldn't need to ask.'
'Because I would have felt it too.' I answered. He nodded, but we both knew that it wasn't a question. 'So, what does that mean for us?'
'I don't know how to answer that. I am so confused. Imprinting on someone is supposed to be the happiest day of a werewolf's life! But… this is heart breaking. Why couldn't it be you?' He whispered, unshed tears shimmering in his eyes. There was something about the broken look of him that shattered my heart far worse than any words he could have said to me. I climbed from the bed and hurried over to him, pulling him into my arms and holding him there as he silently sobbed.
'Hey, it's ok. I…' I paused for a moment and held my breath, hoping that I could get through this sentence without breaking. 'I am actually really happy for you!' I whispered, tightening my arms around him. He glanced up at me with a broken stare and glared at me.
'Lia… Stop that! Stop being so nice about it. You have every right to hate me!' He snapped, balling his hands into fists and turning his face to stare out the window. I sighed once more and moved closer to him.
'I'm not being "nice" I love you.' I gasped, shocked that the words came out of my mouth. I blinked and shook my head. 'I do love you Arlo. And that is why I am not angry or hate you. I may not have been a part of this pack for very long, and I may not have grown up learning about the way of our kind like everyone else, but I do understand what it means to imprint on someone.' Arlo spun around to face me once more, this time a blank expression on his face.
'Lia I… I really appreciate you saying that.' He smiled weakly and turned his face back to stare at the horses running around the field. I forced myself to smile and slowly rose from the window seat.
'I am going to go and get myself ready for breakfast. A-Are you going to be ok?' I asked, turning back to glance at him over my shoulder one last time. He sat there motionless for a moment before nodding once. I smiled once more and hurried towards the door. I just needed some time to myself. I needed some time to breathe! But before I could leave, he called out to me once more.
'Lia… I think that… I think that you should go and be with Ethan. You never know, he could be the one that you are destined to be with.' I shook my head, feeling as though his words had physically slapped me in the face.
'Arlo… what the hell are you talking about?' I mumbled, trying my hardest to keep my emotions in check. Now was not the time for me to break down. I couldn't let him see how devastated I truly was. He dropped his stare to the ground and shrugged. Before he had a chance to say another word I fled from the room, closing the door quietly behind me.
Arlo;
I waited for a moment in silence, holding my breath, too scared to move. She loved me! The sound of my bedroom door closing was the final straw. I broke. I felt all the tension in my body escape, and I crumpled to the floor. Is this why it was called heart break? How could I have been so fucking stupid! She told me she loved me, and I "appreciated" it and then I told her to be with Ethan. I shook my head angrily and stormed into my bathroom. I was about to turn the shower on when I heard something that was like a knife to my heart. I could hear her sobbing through the wall. I clenched my teeth and froze. Every muscle in my body locked and I just stood there listening to her cry. I had done this. This was all my fault. I had to make it up to her! I broke through my locked muscles and turned on the shower. Anything to drown out the sound of her heartbreak; which was somehow making me feel worse. I just wish that I could have told her that I loved her too.
I climbed out the shower and stood there for a moment, allowing the water to drip from me. I allowed the cold air to wrap itself around me hoping that the chill would take everything off of my mind. It didn't work. It was almost time for breakfast, and I knew that I would have to face her. How were things going to be now? Would she still be sitting with me? Would she act normal in front of the rest of the pack? Would she even be there at all?
I dried myself off and threw on my clothes. I thought that imprinting on someone would make me want to dress to impress them, but I literally just threw on the first things that I pulled from my wardrobe. I closed my bedroom door as quietly as I could, I didn't want to disturb her if she was still in there. After all that crying, she may be trying to hide it. Even that thought killed me! I jogged down the stairs, practicing my "happy smile" for when I was in front of the rest of the pack. As I approached the dining room my mother and father were stood together; looking as happy as they always did, but those smiles were forced; how could we be happy when one of our Elites had been murdered? My mum turned to face me first and her face fell.
'W-What? What is it?' I asked, clearing my throat trying my hardest to act normal. My mother's eyes ran up and down my boy and it was only then that I realised how mismatched I actually looked. A tracksuit! I never wore this in front of the pack unless it was during training! I turned to look at my reflection in the mirror and noticed that my hair was still shaggy from the simple towel drying. How the fuck did I forget to brush it?
'Sweetheart, is… is everything ok?' My mother asked, taking a hesitant step towards me. I hung my head for a moment before pulling it back up with a beaming smile.
'Of course! Why wouldn't it be?' I asked, pulling a face of confusion before striding over to the doors. I heard her take a few more steps towards me, and before she had a chance to say anything else, I threw the doors open.
The room fell into an instant silence as all eyes turned toward me; and all smiles dropped when they took in my appearance. I was the alpha, and there was no way that I was going to let them know how shitty I was feeling. I smiled, and nodded at Matt, acting as though everything was fine when suddenly I felt as though I had been hit in the chest with a sledgehammer. She was there. In her seat… beside mine… and she was… smiling. Her green eyes turned to meet mine and she smiled sweetly. What the fuck was going on here? I blinked rapidly a few times and returned her smile; walking over to her acting as natural as I could. As soon as I was stood beside her and everyone else had sat down and continued their own conversations, I leaned in close to her.
'Are you ok?' I whispered. She turned to look at me with a slightly confused look and nodded.
'Of course I am?' She replied. Did this morning actually happen? I was so confused.
We made our way over to the breakfast trollies and loaded our plates. Although for the first time in my life I actually wasn't hungry. I glanced around the room and tried to take in all the faces looking over to us. Did it mean that one of these people were my soulmate? No one looked as though they were desperate to come over and speak to me. I blinked a few times and turned back to the goddess of a woman in front of me. She was piling her plate with the plain croissants. Her favourite. I closed my eyes and inhaled the scent before me. Her sweet, flowery scent filled my senses and drove my insides wild. I thought that once someone had imprinted that they no longer cared for anyone other than the one they were destined to be with. So, how did she still have this effect on me?
Amelia;
Breakfast was finally over, and I was out in the cold. The cold air was refreshing, and it always calmed me but I think that that was a werewolf thing. Matt had promised me that we could get some more combat training in. I think after the morning that I had, had this was a perfect idea. I slowly walked out towards the training area and saw that Matt was already there waiting for me. He was topless; as usual. Damn, why was he gay? That man was fiiine. I allowed my eyes to travel over his rippling muscles and smiled to myself. One day he was going to make some man extremely happy. I couldn't help but wonder how well packaged he was.
'Lia! You were here quickly!' He said, bringing my eyes from his bulge back up to his face. My cheeks burned as a flush crossed my face. Oh, my god! Please Selene, say that he never caught on to where my eyes had travelled. I forced myself to smile and pulled my hair up into a bun.
'You know me. Always eager to learn.' I chimed with a grin. Matt cocked an eyebrow and shook his head laughing.
'Yea. I know you. Always in the mood to try and kick my arse. And I am sorry to tell you; today is not the day.' He laughed. I narrowed my eyes and pulled my baggy jumper over my head and threw it to the side.
'Oh, you're on twinkle toes!' I said taunting him. His smile faded and a serious expression crossed his face.
'I love it when you try to fight dirty.' He said grinning. He raised his already wrapped fists up to his eye level and motioned for me to step forward. I took up his challenge and hurried over to the fighting arena. I wrapped my knuckles; the way he had taught me and stood before him. I watched as he bounced on his feet, preparing himself for our fight. I locked eyes with him and focused on my breathing. Matt flung his fist forward; no longer holding back, and I stepped to the side his punch narrowly missing my face. He threw me a crooked smile and nodded.
'Nice. I see you have been practicing.' I opened my mouth to respond when he threw two more punches at me and a low, sweeping kick. I bobbed and weaved under his punches and hopped over his leg. His eyes widened and a massive grin broke out over his face. 'Ok. Now I am impressed.' He added, nodding. But I didn't hesitate. I threw a punch directly at his jaw, taking him by surprise. He tried to duck but was too slow. My fist connected with his chin causing him to stagger.
'How do you like that?' I smiled, bobbing and weaving the same way that he had. His eyes flared with excitement and he got back into the fighting stance.
'I see how we are playing this today.' He leapt towards me, kicking me square in my stomach causing me to fall backwards. I turned my stumble into a backwards cartwheel and landed back on my feet. There was no way I was going to let him beat me. Not today! I tensed my stomach and worked through the pain and rolled my neck on my shoulders. I dove towards him, dropping down into a roll as he swung his fist. I jumped back up to my feet and kicked him in the back of his knee, causing him to drop to the ground. I didn't waste a second. I was on him once again. Matt rolled backwards, narrowly missing my foot and swung his leg around knocking me off balance. He rushed forward, slamming his fist down at me, but I managed to evade it; causing him to punch the ground. I swung my leg around once more, which he blocked. But I had another move in mind. I swung my elbow around, hitting him in the back causing him to lose focus and drop to the ground once more. This time I was on him too quickly. I pinned him to the ground and placed my hands on his head ready to break his neck.
I froze and stared down at him helplessly in my grasp and leapt to my feet. Matt rolled over and flipped back up to his feet and just stared at me in amazement.
'Y-You actually did it! You beat me? But… how?' He asked, looking more than a little bemused. I shrugged as he hurried over and pulled me in to a hug.
'I guess that you are just a brilliant teacher!" I squealed, still bouncing up and down. He shook his head and rolled his eyes.
'I still can't believe it. Lia, we have only been training for a few weeks. Every fighter in my squad has never been able to take me down. But you… you did. How the fuck did you do it?' He asked, still sounding dumbfounded. I leant in and kissed his cheek gently.
'Thank you… Matthew.' I whispered. He pulled back and glared at me.
'You may have beaten me this time… but you ever call me Matthew again, and I will kill you.' He said all humour leaving his voice. I smirked at him and laughed shaking my head.
'You wouldn't do that. You would miss me too much!' I laughed. He rolled his eyes laughing and gestured for me to go back to my room. I couldn't believe that we had been out here for four hours already! I slowly started to walk away and glanced back over to Matt once more. 'Oh, and one more thing…' I called out, causing him to look at me. 'I love you… Matthew.' His eyes widen and he dashed forward, lunging towards me and laughing; it was so nice to see him smiling especially after yesterday's awful events. I took off and ran back to the mansion laughing as I went.
'Lia. Hey…' Ethan called out to me, jogging over to me from the direction of the stables. I turned and smiled over to him, opening my arms and pulled him in for a hug.
'Hey, how have you been?' I asked, tucking my hair behind my ear and smiling up to my friend. He offered a slight shrug in reply and ran his hand through his hair. His blue eyes sparkled in the evening light, and drew me in.
'Things have been alright with me. You know, still buy in the infirmary, but I guess the busier that we are, then the healthier the pack is right?' He asked with a chuckle. I glanced over his shoulder and noticed the girl that was stood waiting for him, staring at him with love-struck eyes.
'How are things going with you and…'
'Hannah. Yea, things are ok. I guess.' He hesitated for a moment and cleared his throat taking a step closer to me. 'I miss you.' He whispered, dropping his stare to the ground at our feet, while shoving his hands in his jean pockets. I turned my eyes back to the girl watching us and shifted uncomfortably.
'I seriously need to get back to my room. But… can we arrange a night to hang out? Maybe watch a movie? I am in a serious need for a horror marathon!' I asked with a smile. I paused and glanced back over to Hannah. Me and the girl locked eyes for a moment and I smiled and waved over to her. Her eyes widened and she waved back, a little shocked by my gesture.
'That would be great! I would really like that.'
'Bring Hannah too? We can make a proper night of it. Junk food. Popcorn. Horror films… what more could you want?' I added with a laugh. I perched myself up onto tip toes and kissed Ethan on the cheek and waved to Hannah once more.
'That sounds great. Catch you later Lia!' He called after me. I was glad that he had found someone that could make him happy. He deserved that.
Arlo;
I stood out in the shadows under the tree. The light had already began to fade. They had been at it for hours! It was nice to see her smile. I was glad that she was happy; even though it killed me inside. I stood in silence feeling anger bubble within me. He wasn't even bothering to hold back. When I saw him kick him in the stomach I wanted to fly over their and kill him. But it wasn't right for me to act like that anymore. I belonged to someone else. Someone that wasn't her. Was I really angry that he wasn't holding back? Or was I angry that it was him that was making her smile like that. I knew that he was gay, but he was still doing something that I couldn't do for her. Not anymore. I continued to watch in silence, making sure that neither of them knew that I was there. I was actually really impressed that she was holding her own. I never knew that she had such potential. I was proud of her. At least I knew that she was going to be safe once I was finally with my intended.
I was about to turn away when I saw something that I had never seen before. She pinned Matt to the ground and had him in a deadly headlock. She won! My best fighters in this pack couldn't even do that. She was something special! It took everything in me to not run over there and pull her into my arms.
I was so lost in thought that I never even saw her run straight towards me. Luckily my training allowed me to sidestep just in time, so she ran past and never even knew I was there. The sound of her laughter filled my ears and pain radiated through my chest. I watched as Ethan jogged over to Amelia and the pair were chatting. At first, I thought that she was going to take my advice and get with him, and then I heard the conversation between them. I broke her heart and all she is worried about is how he is getting on in his own relationship? I watched as she waved to the young Mutt girl and kissed Ethan on the cheek before continuing on with towards the mansion.
I held my breath and waited for her to jog up the main stairs towards the entrance of the mansion, and just stared after her.
'Ok, seriously mate, what the fuck is going on?' I spun around, coming face to face with Matt. A concerned look on his face. I opened my mouth to answer but no words came out. How had he managed to catch me off guard? He stepped closer and placed a hand on my shoulder. 'Arlo. You're scaring me.' I couldn't contain it any longer. The tears erupted from me, taking me by surprise. Matt pulled me into his arms and held me as I cried silently in the shadows.
'I-I've imprinted.' I whispered, trying my hardest to get my sobbing under control. This was not me. I didn't cry. No one had seen this side of me other than Amelia.
'Aww man, that's brilliant. I am made up for you and Lia. No wonder she was so perky today!' he said smiling. I turned my tear streaked face towards him and watched as everything slowly fell into place for him. His smile dropped and he took a step back and swallowed. 'Mate I…' I held my hand up cutting him off; shaking my head. He lunged forward and pulled me into a hug. 'I am so sorry.' He whispered, sounding just as heartbroken as me. Selene… fuck you. Why couldn't you have let it be her!
Amelia;
I walked back to my room after a long day of training with Matt. He had said how impressed he was with me. Apparently, my skills had trebled since I had first started and that was only within a few weeks. I had smiled, laughed and joked with my friends. Hung out with Piper. Glared at Lori and acted natural. None of them knew that inside my heart had turned to ice. I had always known that I was good at hiding my true emotions, but I didn't know that I was that good. I strolled into my bathroom and turned on my shower; this would be my second one of the days, but there was just something about the way a shower always lifted my spirits. Something about the way that water could wash my "sins" away. I pulled off my sweaty clothes and tossed them in the laundry hamper by the sink before jumping under the water. It was freezing; but I liked it. It was refreshing and uplifting. I washed my hair before climbing from the shower and throwing on my pyjamas. I had hoped that, that would have been enough to change my mind; to change the way that I was feeling. But it wasn't. Another pack member was dead; bringing the head count to four and the man I loved was Imprinting with someone that wasn't me. I slowly walked back into the bathroom and stood in front of my mirror and looked at myself. When was the last time that I stood here and just looked at me? Something was different. I finally felt at peace. This was definitely the right decision.
I placed my hand on the large knife that sat beside the sink and stared down at it for a moment; raising my wrist so that it was illuminated under the light. Finally, my nightmares would end. The annoying sirens call filled my mind once more; this time sounding desperate. I didn't know if it was trying to stop me or lure me. Either way, that call would be over forever. I placed the sharp edge of the blade against my skin and dragged it, feeling the burn as my skin tore open. Without a moment's hesitation, I gripped the knife in my other hand; it was a lot harder this time, clearly the cut was deep enough to do some nerve damage. And did the same to the other wrist. The blood welled to the surface and flowed onto the floor; pumping like a river. It was a deep red and I could literally feel it leaving my body. The edges of my vision started to darken, and I lowered myself to the floor and just watched. I felt my eyes growing heavy and I allowed the darkness to consume me. I wasn't scared. This was the first time in my life that I had ever felt certain about anything. I was about to die. And that thought made me extremely happy. I finally gave into the darkness and all went black.
Lori;
I knew that something wasn't right here. Something was definitely off with Arlo. And Amelia now that I come to think of it. They looked as smiley and irritating as always, but I could sense it. Something was… wrong! She had been in the woods when that Elite was killed; but for some reason I knew it wasn't her; she was too small and petite to take on a well-built Elite, but she was hiding something, and I wanted to know what. I slowly climbed the stairs, just trying to get close enough to their rooms so that I could try and hear something. Obviously not close enough so that they could sense me. Just enough to listen in. That was when it hit me. The strong metallic smell that I would recognise anywhere. Blood! I dashed forward and placed my hand on Arlo's door, but it wasn't coming from there. I hesitated a moment longer and glanced to the wooden door beside his that was slightly cracked open. Her room. The smell was coming from there. I placed my hand on the wood and pushed lightly; and I was not prepared for the sight that I saw. Everything was completely destroyed and thrown around the room. What the fuck was going on? I hesitantly stepped into her room; realising that I had never been in here before.
'H-Hello?' I called out quietly, taking another step into the room. The smell was so strong now that it almost made me heave. All this time that I thought that she was the murder… had she been killed by the same person? I know that I always went on about how much I hated her, but that didn't mean that I wanted her dead! My stomach twisted into knots as I slowly approached her bathroom. The door was closed but not locked. I reached out with a trembling hand and twisted the handle and pushed gently. The door swung open and that was when I saw the blood. It was everywhere, staining the white tile floor red. I covered my mouth, trying my hardest not to scream. Then I moved my eyes over to the corner by the sink and noticed her laying there… unconscious. She was pale. Paler than anything I had ever seen, she almost looked transparent. I hurried over to her, making sure that I avoided all the blood, and stared down at her wrists. There were two long gashes that were oozing blood. Had she done this to herself? I turned and ran from the room; I knew that I needed to get help; but what the fuck was I going to say? I was always the bitch that hated everyone. I was the one that was queen of mean. I burst through the main doors and found Matt and Piper sat together under a tree laughing. That was when I knew what I had to do. I plastered my famed scowl upon my face and folded my arms across my chest before storming over to them. They each looked up to me simultaneously and narrowed their eyes at me.
'What do you want Lori?' Matt snapped, glaring at me. I flipped my long blond hair over my shoulder and sneered at them.
'I just went up to speak to Arlo and noticed a strong smell of blood. I think your skank of a friend is seriously on the blob! You need to go and tell her to control that shit. I don't want to be smelling that sort of thing every time I go up to the alpha's room!' I snapped, turning and storming away from them as fast as I could. I held my breath and listened in to the pair of friends bitching about me. Seriously! How stupid were they? Everyone knows that our menstrual blood doesn't smell like normal blood! A white blur shot past me, causing me to flinch. I spun around to follow the direction that it went in when I realised that it was Amelia's horse. He galloped straight over to the friends and danced on the spot erratically. I watched as the two friends leapt to their feet and tried their hardest to calm the creature down. I was too far away to hear their words, but I was still able to pick up their heartbeats. Finally! They had got the message! I made my way around one of the buildings before peaking back around the corner; just in time to see Matt and Piper dash through the main doors, leaving the frantic beast pacing on the spot. At least know I knew she was getting help. But… why would she do something like that to herself?