I stared out the window looking at the tree's and the green around me. I sighed a deep sigh and leaned my head against the cool window, slowly closing my eyes.

"You're really going to like Mrs. Costa," Miss Young told me in a patronizing voice.

"Yes," I said glumly, "I probably will."

Not for the first time I wondered what my mother was doing, shipping me off to some unknown woman to raise me. Of course at the time, she hadn't probably thought she would need to ship me off somewhere. The thought of my mother brought tears to my eyes; I blinked rapidly trying to rid myself of these signs of weakness.

"Mrs. Costa has already gotten you registered for school and she says that she made you up a room all nice and pretty," Miss Young's voice cut through my reverie.

"Probably," I told her, not looking at her face.

"Really," Miss Young said sounding almost stern, "Allie, you should at least try to sound happy, for Mrs. Costa's sake. She really is happy to take you in, you know, you did miss out on a lot of trouble."

"Probably."

We pulled up to a small white house with red shutters. Out in the back I could see fencing and some kind of barn. I stepped out into the drizzling rain and walked up to the front door. Miss Young stood by my side with my one small suitcase and rang the doorbell.

Mrs. Costa was a very tiny woman with copper skin and a few streaks of grey marring her ebony hair. Her face crinkled into a smile when she saw me.

"Come in, come in! Don't stand there in the rain all day!" she opened the front door wider and ushered us into a tiny foyer.

"Well now," Mrs. Costa said as we sat in her family room (my bag had already been taken up to my room and Miss Young had left), "you just remind me so much of your mother when she was young."

I stared at Mrs. Costa. My mother had been just as tiny as her, with the same copper skin and raven hair that came with her Native-American heritage. I on the other hand had only inherited her almond shaped eyes and straight nose. The rest of my looks came from my father. I was tall and willowy with brown hair and tawny skin. My eyes were as my mother used to say the color of a well made blueberry pie.

"Not really," I said and then remembering Miss Young's admonishment replied, "I mean, our features are the same I suppose, but not much else."

Mrs. Costa smiled knowingly, "I wasn't talking about your looks, I was talking about your spirit. I can feel your mother's spirit in you."

The next day came too soon. I woke early, determined that if I had to face a new school where I would be the only "pale-face" that I might as well look darn good. I dressed in what I considered my nice clothes. A pair of jeans, flats and a blouse. I donned my rain jacket (it always rained here) and headed out to walk the ½ mile to school where I would be forced to spend the rest of my miserable high-school existence.

About halfway to the school I heard the honk of a car horn and turned to see an red old fashioned car stopped next to me. There were three boys in the car, the one in the passenger seat leaned out the window.

"Hey! You going to the high-school?" His hair was cut short and I could see his bulging muscles.

"Yeah," I yelled over the sound of the rain.

"Well hop in! We're going there too!" the door swung open as he got out and then placed himself into the backseat with the other boy.

"Thanks," I said as I slid into the recently occupied passenger seat.

"You're the new girl right? Alison?" the driver said, then went on without a reply, "I'm Jacob and those two in the back are Embry and Quil."

I pushed my hood back off my face and fluffed out my hair, glad to be inside from the rain. I turned to look at Jacob.

"Yeah, I'm Allie."

The boy called Jacob looked at me and for the first time I go a look at him. He was tall, that much was obvious and he had the same Quileute characteristics as the others. But there was something different about him. Something. . . Attractive.

He looked at me and his eyes widened. I saw him inhale a deep breath and then it looked like he forced himself to look away. As the car pulled away towards the school I thought I heard him murmur something along the lines of "Allie" but I couldn't be sure. The rest of the ride to school was uneventful but nice. We talked about the weather (which was rainy) about the school (which was sucky) and about how much we all needed to get jobs (for money).

When we got to school I thanked Jacob for the ride and started in the direction of what I hoped was the main office.

"Need help?" said an amused voice in my ear.

"Nope. I was simply going in the wrong direction in the off chance that a giant meteor would come down from space and strike me in the head causing my untimely death," I said then grimaced. There I went with the attitude thing again.

Jacob laughed. "That would be unfortunate considering I've only just met you."

"I bet you say that to all the directionally challenged girls."

"Nope," he said steering me towards the real main office, "just the pretty ones."

"Flattery will get you anything," I told him at the door.

His smile widened. "Anything?"

I put on a serious expression. "Well, I suppose. . . Anything within reason."

"And what exactly would be within reason?"

I felt my face heat up, was he flirting with me? I stared at my feet thinking to myself that I didn't normally feel this self-conscious. Jacob had backed me up to the brick of the office. His left arm rested against the wall above my head maneuvering his body so that is was almost pressed up against mine. I swallowed and looked up to his eyes.

"JAKEY!!"

A feminine screech interrupted my train of thought. Jacob groaned and never took his eyes off my face.

"Jakey! What's going on?" the screecher had reached us. She was an exceptionally beautiful Quileute girl. She was my height with long straight black hair and deep chocolate eyes fringed with sooty lashes. Her brilliant smile faded as she saw me. "Jake. We're going to be late for class."

His eyes never left mine as he replied, "Talia. We are not, and will never be together."

Her eyes narrowed and I cringed into the wall. Great. My first day and I'd already made an enemy. For no reason.

"Jakey, stop kidding. Come on," she tugged on Jacob's arm, "you know we're together!"

"Actually we're not," Jacob replied coldly.

Talia sniffed. "Fine. Be late." she sashayed away from us.

I stepped out from Jacob's arm and opened the office door before turning to him and giving him a curious look.

"She wishes we were together."

"Wow. Someone's conceited."

This caused him to smile. "Well, my sparkling personality and rugged good looks have been mentioned before." The bell rang then. "Dang. See you soon."

"Yeah, thanks for the help and everything." I was still slightly miffed about the Talia thing.

"Stay beautiful!" he called as he walked away.

"Stop your silly flattery," I yelled jokingly.

He stopped and turned back to me. "I'm still expecting to receive something from that flattery." A mischievous grin spread across his face.

"You wish," I muttered under my breath as I finally went into the main office. But I was seriously giddy at the thought that he wanted something from me.

"This class, is Alison Dosch. She's new. Be nice," Mr. Gill said as I rolled my eyes. Curse high-school teachers and their uncanny ability to embarrass me in every way possible. I spotted a seat in the back, next to someone I knew. Jacob's smile brightened what had been a gloomy day.

"Hey," he whispered as I slipped into the desk beside him.

"Hey," I whispered back. Mr. Gill turned his back on the class and began to lecture us on something unimportant that had something to do with U.S. History. I took out my notebook like a good little girl and tried to concentrate on the lesson. It was hard to do aware as I was of Jacob by my side. Which was kind of pathetic considering I'd just met him.

You need a ride home?

The note was scrawled on a piece of paper and passed in front of me. My head snapped up and I looked at Jacob. He nodded to me.

Yes.

He smiled again. He seemed very happy about this. For some reason this bothered me. I wasn't sure what I felt about Jacob. Sure, he was very, very good looking. He was funny and charming and I realized with a jolt that even though I'd only known him for a few hours I really liked him.

Meet me in the parking lot after school. My ride is the first thing I want from my flattery. The second is to take you somewhere after school. Someplace special.

I read the words twice. Was he asking me out? I stared at the paper uncertain.

Someplace special? Like your secret cult temple?

I chewed on my lip as I waited for his reply. My sarcasm didn't exactly go over well with some people. In fact, I had gotten in trouble many times because of my wittiness. The notebook paper was slid back onto my desk.

Something like that.

How cryptic. I decided that since I did like him and since he was basically the only person I knew in La Push I might as well go with him. Besides, it wasn't like I had anything to do that afternoon. I mean, it wasn't like all I did was my homework.

Fine.

The smile on his face made my heart pound a little bit. God, I was beginning to feel like I was trapped in a lifetime movie. I was going out on an almost-date with an almost-stranger. I felt kind of like a slut and kind of excited at the same time. I tapped my pencil and continued to take my notes, feeling as though the end of the day couldn't come soon enough.

I slid into the red car next to Jacob. I could hardly believe I was going through with this.

"So."

He put the car into gear and didn't answer me until we were on the road.

"How was your first day?" he threw me an especially brilliant smile.

"Well, I lived. Sort of," I grimaced, "I guess it could have been worse. Hard to imagine it being any worse, but I suppose I could have been attacked by mutant lab test animals." I brought my hand to my mouth to chew my nails. A nervous habit of mine.

Jacob caught my hand in mid-air and took it in his.

"Yeah, that probably would have sucked. Especially if you had been infected by their mutant genes."

I blinked, still reeling from the fact that he held onto my hand. I felt shy at once.

"Yes the mutant genes that would have turned me into a creature of the night. A blood sucking, garlic hating, cross cowering, vampire!" I giggled.

The smile was wiped from his face. I felt the tension grow in the air. He turned his head so I couldn't see his expression.

"No. Not a vampire. Never a vampire," he said it vehemently, but so quietly I wasn't sure that I was supposed to have heard.

He turned back to look at me and I raised an eyebrow in question. The tension was so thick it made the atmosphere inside the car feel like I was sitting in flan. I noticed the car had stopped. We were in the middle of the forest and Jacob still held my hand.

"Lets go," was all he said, and he relinquished his grip on my hand.

We traveled through the forest in silence as I tried to process what had just happened. I wasn't sure how our conversation had turned so tense. Jacob didn't hold my hand.

We finally came to a small clearing. We were surrounded by woods, the overhead light green because of the leaves. There was a small bubbling brook and phenomenal waterfall. Like the girl I was I squealed in delight.

"Beautiful isn't it?" His voice seemed soft.

Although I was delighted by the gorgeous scenery, I wasn't going to let it distract me. I sat on a large boulder and tucked my knees under my chin and watched his face.

"Are you going to explain?"

His expression became guarded. But he stepped closer to me. "Explain what?"

"What happened. In the car, I mean. I said something that upset you."

His eyes became sad. I just looked at him, waiting patiently. I had a feeling he would explain soon.

"I wonder how to tell you," his voice came out in barely a whisper, as though he was talking only to himself. He moved so that he was sitting next to me, our thighs touching, our faces only inches apart. His gaze was intense and I felt that I couldn't look away.

His hand slowly came up to my face and traced the line of my lips. I felt my breathing stop. There was a twinkle in his eyes now. His hand trailed down my neck and cupped the back of my head and just like My eyes close and I experienced something I never thought I would. It was as though time stopped, as though the world stopped. He was my only thought, my only desire. He pulled me to him and the kiss deepened. And just like that it hit me.

I pulled away from him and stared into his dark eyes. My breathing ragged, my eyes widened in shock.

"Shit."

He still held me in his arms. Our faces still inches from one another. Jacob's eyes darkened and hardened, his expression worried.

"I just realized. . . " I trailed off.

Jacob smiled now. I tried again. "I-I . . . think . . ."

Jacob's smile become wolfish and I thought I heard a low chuckle. And then he kissed me again.

It sounds like a terrible cliché, but there were fireworks. Fireworks exploded in my mind as his lips touched mine, and I felt an ache deep in my heart. And just like before, I knew again. Only this time I was certain of it.

This time Jacob broke our kiss. He looked at me, his eyes watching mine.

"Did you feel it?" he whispered.

I didn't trust myself to speak. I nodded, and he smiled that sunny smile again.

"Then you know how I feel about you," he said.

"Yes. Yes I do. And I know. . . That when you and I-I felt . . ." I played with my hair trying to figure out a way to explain it. "I-I only just met you and yet. . . I think I'm in love with you." I dropped my gaze in embarrassment.

"I don't think I'm in love with you. I know I'm in love with you." he said it so simply and bluntly. It made my head spin.

How could this have happened. I just met this boy today and yet, I knew that I was in love with him. For some inexplicable reason he had captured my heart. All of it. In just a few hours. And I don't know how I knew that I was in love with him. I just knew.

"I think I can explain now," he said to me, "about earlier."

I kept my eyes on the rock we were sitting on, letting him tell me.

"Allie. What if I told you mythical creatures weren't myth. That vampires and werewolves do exist. That I am one of them," he held up a hand to ward off my questions, "this isn't make believe, whether you like it or not you're caught up in the middle of a type of dispute between vampires and werewolves." He sighed deeply at the look of confusion on my face.

"It's hard to explain but. . . I'm a werewolf." He stood up from the rock in front of me. I blinked at him.

"Like what? When the full moon comes you transform into some sort of man-wolf thing ala Underworld?"

He smirked at me. "Except for the whole full moon thing you're pretty spot on."

"Okay then. You're a werewolf. And there are vampires," I told him. Inexplicably I believed his story. I didn't doubt it for one second.

"Anyways, to continue," he said and started to pace, "we have a treaty with the 'vegetarian' vampires that live in Forks. They don't come on our land, we don't go on theirs. However, they break the treaty if they bite a human. Not kill, bite. And well, they did." His voice became very sad and he refused to look me in the eye. "Sh-she was a friend of mine. And although it was her choice. . ." I very suddenly recognized the look on his face.

"Is it possible to be in love with two people at the same time?" I asked him incredibly softly.

His head snapped up from the ground and his gaze bored into mine.

"Yes," he whispered, "yes I think it is."

"You still love her. This girl who became a vampire." it wasn't a question.

"I think so," he said slowly.

"But you love me too." again it was a statement of fact.

Quicker than my eye could see, Jacob picked me up off the boulder and placed me in front of him. He held both of my cold hands in his warm ones.

"Absolutely." There was a long pause and the sound of the waterfall in the background became almost like thunder.

I looked at his eyes, trying to discern whether he was telling the truth or not. "How?" my voice sounded strained and little to loud to my ears.

He turned away from me and looked into the waterfall.

"I loved Bella. I loved her as a human. Maybe part of me still loves her. But as a werewolf, there is a catch. Sometimes we find our soul-mates, our perfect half," he looked back at me, "it's called Imprinting. When you see this person, the world-- it moves. You know right then and there that you were meant to be together. It's a bit like falling in love at first sight, but it's so much deeper than that."

I blushed at the intensity of his gaze. "Me?"

His grin was back. "Yes, when I saw your face for the first time in that car, Allie, I knew. I knew that you and I-- we were made for each other. I loved Bella, but I always knew deep down in my heart that she wasn't my soul-mate. No matter how much I wished she was. I hadn't Imprinted on her, and if I had, she wouldn't have stayed with me. She was in love with him. And yes, I do still love her . . . Just not in the same life changing, earth moving, romance movie way that I'm in love with you."

He bent down and kissed me on the lips again. The delicious warmth spread through my body; I never wanted him to stop kissing me.

I pulled him closer to me and he wrapped his arms around my waist, deepening the kiss. My hands traced the contours of his chest and his broad shoulders. I was just really getting into our kiss when a noise killed the moment.

"Ahem. Ever heard of getting a room?"

I jumped guiltily. Jacob still held me in an embrace but I could sense him smiling.

"I thought you were enjoying the action, Quil," Jacob teased. I leaned around Jake's shoulder, to glare at Quil.

"Sorry but the meeting's about to start. Sam said to come get you, and apparently Allie is coming too."

Jacob kissed me brazenly and my head swam as I tried to recover.

"Yep."

"Seriously dude. Keep it under control," Quil complained.