@BadBoyEmbryCall - door to find he stood there and not the sound of the Song he was listening was clear.

Was he stealing from my playlist again? It was the only reason her had so many of the tracks I liked.

“What’s the matter?” I asked, my eyes finding his.

@HotHeadSheWolf
I put one foot inside her door again and the moment I did, my heart raced.

"Nothing." I answered her then I was pushing the door behind me to conceal us from the deserted street. Only I would be crazy enough to come to Leah's door at this hour and not have an emergency.

But, in a way... this was something that couldn't wait. A moment of clarity, a moment to grab on to and live in completely. ... even if the craziest thing I had ever contemplated. >

@HotHeadSheWolf
<
I stepped in closer to her, my tongue darting over my lips. She was going to kill me. "Don't Kill me." I whispered and leaned down brought my lips so close to hers that I could feel the heat of her breath on my skin... And Spirit's... had she always smelled this good?

My stomach wouldn't settle... and I wasn't sure I wanted it to. I pressed my lips against her, a light, lingering kiss and everything lifted... the weight on my shoulders... >

@BadBoyEmbryCall

He moved to come in again, so without thinking about it my feet took me back into the house. My keen eyes saw everything, something was off about him. The tentative step over my threshold. The way he looked at me, the sound of his heart beat, the lick of his lips.

“What…?” I tilted my head trying to understand what had happened, what was happening. Why would I kill him?

And then he was right there, he’d close the space between us, and a fire was set alight within me. -

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

Nobody had dared to break that hard line I had drawn in the sand. And here he was again. Embry Call and his bloody hugs?

I was about to hold my hand up to stop him, but then his lips were just inches away from mine with our eyes locked together in an unbreakable way.

It all happened so fast, so slow all at the same time. A million questions and emotions raised their head, but for once my Wolf was shocked into silence. -

@BadBoyEmbryCall - She watched with wild eyes, but her words of wisdom had dried up.

“What… The… Fuck…” The reaction came without time, no time to think, no time to stop. My left hand fisted and the next thing I knew my right pushed him back and my left upper hook met his jaw. The pain of the hit darted up to my elbow and I stumbled back from him. Anger fuelled my action, or was it?

Something was off in that moment, I knew how I should feel, how I should react, how I should go in -

@BadBoyEmbryCall - for another punch to his nose this time. And I took the step forward to do it. But something stopped me. Something pulled my hand back from hitting him.

And in all this time, Hand In Hand by Walking On Cars was playing like a soundtrack.

@HotHeadSheWolf
Something hot flared to life in me. But in a split second, it was doused I knew it was coming when she planted her right hand on my chest. I didn't block or duck.

He fist struck my jaw and tasted blood as the inside of my cheek spilt against my teeth.

I saw stars and stepped back. reaching a hand out to lean on the wall behind me. I squeezed my eyes shut until the stars receeded. Which luckily didn't take that long, because when they opened she was stepping towards me.
>

@HotHeadSheWolf
<
"Leah." I held out a hand in surrender. "I might have deserved that one... but..." I saw her stop and disappear into her thoughts again before I asked her not to hit me again. Mostly because she'd hate herself for it later.

The song still played through the head the hanging over the collar on my jacket, freed from my ears with the blow. My eyes set on hers still... The trickle of blood in my mouth was already stopping and even with the coppery taste on my tongue, >

@BadBoyEmbryCall

My heart was pounding in my chest, and in my ears too. The scent of his blood was the only thing to bring me out of the mind trap I had fallen into. What the actual fuck had just happened? Why did he do that? What was he thinking?

“Fuck!” the word was low and a rumble in the depths of me. I didn’t do screaming and shouting, I just did getting even. I took another step back from him until I heard his voice, and it slowly fell into place.

-

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

“You aren’t sorry? The Fuck is wrong with you?” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. And my mind was calling on the moment as it played in my head on replay. He came back in, he moved into me, his lips lingered over mine and then…. “What were you thinking? What in the name of the Spirits were you thinking? I’m not one of your shorties Embry Call. I’m not warming your bed to make you forget tonight.”

-

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

But even as I said the words, they felt wrong. This wasn’t him. This wasn’t the Embry Call I had somehow found on my door step these past days. He wouldn’t kiss me …. I didn’t let that thought finish, because if I let myself believe that he had just come over tonight to conquer me… He wouldn’t be leaving this house alive.

@HotHeadSheWolf

"Fuck!" Mine was louder than hers... But of course, that was what she thought. My hand worked my jaw and then I dragged it through my hair.

"Spirit's Leah is that what..." I stopped myself because it's what I'd spent years making people think of me. I couldn't be annoyed at her for thinking what I had wanted people to.

"What was I thinking..." I repeated. I shook my head and clicked my jaw again... Fuck! That hurt. I'd hate to think what her right fist could do... but >

@HotHeadSheWolf
<That thought just flashed memories of her fist connect with another jaw and blood spraying onto her face.

"I was thinking that walking away from your door was the biggest fucking mistake of life! Which clearly makes me insane!" Leaned back against the wall and dragged my hand roughly through my hair, yelling at her really just made all of this even crazier. I lowered my voice."I don't know why.... or how... I just..." My eyes found hers again... searching. >

@BadBoyEmbryCall

He was yelling at me? Embry Fucking Call… was yelling at me?

‘Listen…’ oh she finally woke up from the nap of a life time now? And she replied herself. ‘Listen.’

Hadn’t I been doing that all this time? Listening, understanding, or at least trying to?

His question took me off my guard again. Once again he was saying something that I was thinking. I knew that wasn’t him, I knew he lived up to what the tribe and people expect of him, just as I did. And so I knew it was -

@BadBoyEmbryCall - wrong the moment those words left me lips. And yet he was still here. Why hadn’t he run?

“What are you even talking about? Insanity is thinking that I wouldn’t react, insanity is thinking you could do that? Fuck Call!”

I pulled at my hair that came apart and fell open, falling down past my shoulders. “What am I meant to do with this? I am your BETA! This…. Fuck… this….” My words never came out when I needed them. It’s why I didn’t use them much.

@HotHeadSheWolf
I laughed humourlessly and ushed off the wall, standing on my own two feet... or... well shuffling awkwardly from one to the other. Biting my lip until it sent a twinge along my jaw.

"Do you think you're the only one here that was blindsided by this?" I shook my head like she should be able to guess what was running around my hectic mind.

"Don't make this about the pack Leah... we both know where those priorities stand. I didn't kiss my Beta... I kissed Leah Clearwater." <

@HotHeadSheWolf
< And fuck!!!

All I could think about was that I wanted to do it again. But I couldn't cross that line... I touched her three times tonight and two of those... she thought all the worst things that everyone thought about me.

I was sorry for the second one... which was insane because it was a small touch to her. Her question rattled around the loudest in my head. "Tell me what you want me to do?" I shrugged in answer. >

@HotHeadSheWolf
< "Tell me... and I'll do it. Tell me to walk out that door and forget this ever happened and I'll do it... if that's what you want. Just say it." I wasn't sure I could forget it... but I knew I would try.

But one thing I knew I couldn't live with was being the one to choose to walk away.

@BadBoyEmbryCall

That laugh of his grated on me. It wasn’t truly his laughter…. And 𝙒𝙝𝙮 was i thinking about what his laugh said to me right now?

I rubbed my forehead, his words… the ones my wolf told me to listen to replaying.

𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘨𝘨𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦! 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘦!

Insane? Walking away from a door that had been closed?
-

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

My eyes were back n his feet now, seeing that awkward movement he did when he was trying to say something, and not knowing it was coming across correctly. And then my glance was on his face and that lip bite again. But this one was again full of uncertainty?

“Blindsided? You.. you were blindsided by an action you took?” Was he for real here? What was I missing in this picture set before me?

And before I could go on my words dried up.
-

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

𝘋𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘩... 𝘸𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥. 𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘢... 𝘐 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘩 𝘊𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳.

What did that even mean? “I am Leah Clearwater.. and I am…” and then I stopped.

𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘢... 𝘐 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘩 𝘊𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳.

He didn’t kiss his Beta… he kissed me…? My stomach twisted and turned. I placed my hand over it trying to steady myself. I ended up falling back into the wall behind me. Leaning over half way to breathe.
-

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

His kiss still replaying in my head. “Tell you? Tell you what to do? When I don’t even know what just happened. Why it happened… how…”

I peered up at him before straightening up. The sting in my hand was forgotten. And I was looking at him again.

Swallowing hard, trying to put the words together. “Walk away Embry, you were emotional, upset… you didn’t mean to do this. -

@HotHeadSheWolf
I didn't reach out for her when she leaned back against the wall. It went against every natural instinct in my being. And Not because she needed saving...because it was what you did for people you cared about when they were clearly in distress...

The punch had landed softer than those words. "Okay..." I sighed... I tried... but she seemed do determined to keep herself behind those walls and they had been flung back up between us. "Okay... I'll go, because I told I would do >

@HotHeadSheWolf < what you asked me to... But nothing else you said..." I forced myself into her eyeline. "𝕟𝕠𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕖𝕝𝕤𝕖" I pressed the words. "Is true. I'm thinking more clearly than I have in week Leah. And as for the kind of woman you are... do you even know the answer to that? Because every day since that night in my mother's kitchen I've seen parts of you I never existed... and probably a few that you don't even know about."

I opened the door and stepped out, >

@BadBoyEmbryCall

What did he mean? Seen what? In who? In me? I hadn’t shown him anything. I hadn’t said anything that was any different to who….

My thoughts stopped when the air began to dance on my skin. The early morning had been quite unusually silent like they were all holding their breaths. And now their whispering began to sing in my ears.

‘Alewisdodi nasgi asgaya.’ ( Stop him )

But I couldn’t. Why would I stop him… I was his Beta, his protector, -

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

I was meant to be there for him. And this…

𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘮𝘺 𝘉𝘦𝘵𝘢... 𝘐 𝘬𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘩 𝘊𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳.

They replayed his words back over and over again. And then the snap shots followed.

Embry walking into #HwH smelling of cheap perfume, and the night before.

Embry on the top of the cliffs, grabbing me and jumping.

Embry on the beach, climbing the cliffs and holding his hand out for me.

Embry stood in Ms C’s Kitchen.

Embry at my door in the rain.
-

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

Embry sat in shock at the boxing match.

Embry pushing his way into the locker room.

Embry cleaning up the blood from my hands and face.

And so many more, they didn’t stop the images. The pain my chest was back and this time I couldn’t hold in the gasp.

I didn’t move, I didn’t stop him. I had no right to. I had 𝘕𝘰 𝘙𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵!

@HotHeadSheWolf

Each step was heavier than the last. This was wrong. I letting her retreat behind those walls. This would be it… everything that had charged between was going to disappear.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

I could hear her heart beating from across the street, air suddenly stirred from eeriest still to a sailing rustle that carried Leah’s gasp to me.

There was nothing could do for her. “Leah.” I stood across the street from her door, waiting for her attention to turn to me. “Just >

@HotHeadSheWolf
< breathe.” I spoke just like I was standing next to her. “It’s okay.” I nodded and took an exaggerated breath. “Breathe… you’ve got this.”

I waited and watched… I couldn’t walk away when she was like this… if I wouldn’t do that to one of the guys I couldn’t do it to get.

“One breath at a time, don’t think about anything else. Just your next breath.”

@BadBoyEmbryCall

What was happening to us? Why were they doing this to us now? Why here? Why after what had taken place tonight?

So many questions and they gave me no answers. They were waiting on something, but what?

His voice sounded in my ear as if he was stood right beside me. I closed my eyes tight, why hadn’t he left? Why hadn’t he just kept walking?

-

@BadBoyEmbryCall - Swallowing back the next gasp I finally looked up and across the street as he stood glancing back at me. His guidance to get me to breathe Infuriated and calmed all at the same time.

And somehow I started to breathe once again. I saw him as the day started to break over his head. The boy who had once stood at my door full of fear, had become a man full of certainty and confidence. He wasn’t doing this for himself, just like he had in Seattle.. he was still stood there for -

@BadBoyEmbryCall -

Me.

Spirits… How? How had I missed this? What he had seen in me? How had I let those walls down?

Even more questions filled my mind.

@HotHeadSheWolf
My heart faltered again when the looked at me again. But I smiled when she started to take even breaths. It was real, but beneath I knew I don't belong here. I should cross the street and stay with her until this... Whatever it was... passed.

But that would be a betrayal of what is promised her. Though then again she had told me yo walk away... And I had... I didn't get far... But...

I shook my head at my own stupidity. Looking away as I stuffed my hands into my jacket >

@HotHeadSheWolf
< pocket. The music in the breeze was gone.

Even from here, I could see her spiralling down into too many thoughts. “Just your next breath. Let the rest fall away Leah. Everything’s going to be okay.”

I wasn't convinced of this... It was just us here... So it would be. It felt uneasy. And I was rooted the spot now, I couldn't go to her... I could leave. Not until the fear in hef was gone... It was my fault it was there at all.