Three things I can do to raise my belief in myself are Margaret Skilling leaned back in her chair, chugged her third diet coke of the day, and really contemplated how much she needed this job. She’d wanted to be a teacher since middle school. Now she had a classroom of her own. She was also really questioning her career choice. The kids of La Push High School were ruthless. Today she accidentally used the formula for the circumference of a circle instead of the area of a circle in front of the class. She had a sinking feeling she wouldn’t hear the end of that any time soon. The students did not hesitate to point out her mistake. They never seemed to remember formulas on a test, but when their teacher made a mistake they could remember every detail they'd ever been taught.
But it's fine, she told herself. Was today a good day? No. Was it better than yesterday? Not really. But was it worse than yesterday? No. But that wasn't saying much. Yesterday she spilled water on the floor and her class decided that her water broke. And Margaret found that joke about as funny as you’d expect.
But, the week was finally over. All that was left to do was go to the fundraiser for the football team then get out. The hardest part would be not stopping at the liquor store on the way home. So Margaret picked herself up, packed her things, and made her way down to the cafeteria. When she got there, tables were set up with baked goods and homemade crafts for sale. At the far end of the room, people were already lining up for Billy Black's famous fried fish. Margaret wasn’t surprised, it smelled heavenly.
“Hey, Ms. Skilling,” Margaret heard someone shout behind her. She turned to see Ms. Hastings, the principal, smiling and walking towards her. “How was class today? Are the students getting any better?”
“No.” Margaret didn’t have the social skills to sugarcoat anything. “But, I think I found a way to make sure they memorize their formulas.”
“And how do you do that?”
“Give them the wrong formula during the lesson so they can correct you then never let that mistake go, ever.”
“Oh yes, that would be effective.”
“Yes. It has been very effective. But at what cost,” Margaret sighed as they jumped in line for Billy’s fish. “Also, I had another student hit a growth spurt. Daniel Collins was sick for two weeks then came back two feet taller.” Boys at the school kept getting sick for a few weeks and showing up again nearly twice their original size. None of the younger teachers knew what to do about it. Not that they could do anything about it. It was just difficult because the boys also came back with an attitude.
“You know how fast young boys grow,” Ms. Hastings laughed.
“Yes, I do know how fast young boys grow. What I don’t know is what y’all are putting in the water to make them grow even faster. And it’s like they’re forming some secret society. I always hear them whispering about running around in the woods, wolves, and some boy named Jacob Black. It sounds goofy when I say it out loud but something is going on with these kids.”
“I wouldn’t call Jacob Black a boy, he’s 26 and seven feet of pure man,” the principal began fanning herself.
“I’m concerned about the well-being of my students and you want to talk about how tall some random dude is?” Margaret rubbed her temples. She’d had a constant headache for the entire week. She kept reminding herself that it was Friday. It didn't make it better.
“Don’t worry about it,” Ms. Hastings said as they finally made it to the front of the line. “Just get some fish. And here, ask Billy. He’s Jacob’s dad,” she gestured to an old man sitting behind the table. “How’s Jacob? Is he still looking out for the young ones around the reservation?”
Billy gave Ms. Hastings a weird look. “Yeah, what’ve you heard about it?”
Margaret knew this conversation was supposed to make her less nervous, but it didn’t. Not in the slightest. So she just grabbed some fish and went to sit down. The teachers and parents around her talked and laughed. The older teachers tried to assure her that it gets easier as you get older. teaching is just difficult right now because she looks so young. Margaret refrained from saying that it was also difficult because her students keep randomly growing two feet and joining a gang that doesn't believe in wearing shoes. Instead of restarting that argument, she went in search of another diet coke. There weren’t any in the coolers, so she headed back to the teacher's lounge.
In the teacher’s lounge, there was only one person. A man Margaret had never met before. And he was standing at the fridge, picking up the last diet coke. Margaret snapped. Was the diet coke really that big of a deal? No. But had she just been laughed at by an entire class of fifteen-year-olds because she placed a two in the wrong spot of an equation? Yes. Was her principal a boy crazy ditz? Yes. And was she about to drive home to an apartment that smelled like weed because the morons above her didn’t know how to go sit in a car before they started smoking? Yes. So was Margaret about to let this random man take the last diet coke from her? Absolutely not.
“I will fight you for that diet coke,” Margaret said as she walked across the room. The man turned to look at her. At first, his face was confused. Then his eyes went wide. His shoulders sagged. His jaw dropped to the floor. He had the face of a child who had just seen the stack of presents for him under the Christmas tree. Margaret had no idea why he looked like he just won the lottery. She really did not care. When she was finally in arms reach of the diet coke she realized this man was tall. Easily the tallest person she had ever seen in her entire life. He had the shoulders of an ox and looked like he could pick up a school bus for fun. And Margaret was still completely prepared to knock him down for the can in his hands.
She reached for the can. At that moment the man’s brain finally caught up with what was happening. “Oh, here,” he said as he thrust the can forward. He ended up pushing it past Margaret's outstretched hand and taking the rest of his body with him. He looked like a baby giraffe learning to walk. He took an awkward stride forward and slammed into Margaret. She shouted and started to fall. The man dropped the can, which began spraying diet coke. He then tried to catch her, which he sort of did. There was a split second where he had successfully caught her. Then he slipped on the diet coke, began falling himself, and took Margaret with him. Margaret tried to grab something to slow her fall. Unfortunately, the only thing in reach was the man. So that’s exactly what she grabbed. She threw her arms around her shoulders in an attempt to not get knocked to the ground. Her attempt was in vain because he was now falling on top of her.
Finally, the man stuck an arm out just before they hit the ground. Margaret realized she was clinging to the chest of a complete stranger. This stranger also had one very muscular arm wrapped around her waist. He was so close their noses almost touched. Margaret noticed he had warm brown eyes that she could almost drown in. He had a chiseled jaw and long black hair. So she just stared. What else could you do in this situation?
Then Margaret wasn’t entirely sure what happened. Any exceptionally awkward person will tell you that sometimes when things get too embarrassing you just blackout. It’s like God decided "Oh no, this is too much for their fragile little brain to handle. Gotta put em' on autopilot" then switches your brain back on when the danger has passed. It's just another one of God's great mercies. That’s what happened to Margaret. One second she was tangled on the floor with a handsome stranger surrounded by spilled diet coke. The next, she was standing up straightening her shirt. He brushed his hair out of his face and smiled awkwardly at her. Her heart skipped a beat.
While Margaret wasn't entirely sure how she got up, she was sure that this man was still staring at her like she was the best thing since sliced bread. And she had no idea why. Or how to respond.
“You spilled my diet coke,” she said. Because what else could she say.
“Sorry,” he said. Still staring.
“I’m gonna go now,” Margaret began backing out of the room.
“Wait,” his brain finally seemed to catch up with his surroundings. “I’m sorry I knocked you over, are you okay?”
“Yeah, sorry I threatened you over a diet coke.”
“It’s fine. I probably shouldn’t have taken it. I’m not a teacher here.”
“I know.” Margaret grabbed some paper towels to clean up the mess.
“Let me help,” the man picked up the empty can and moved the chairs out of Margaret's way. “My name’s Jacob Black by the way.”
Margaret recognized his name and stopped cleaning for a second. She understood what Ms. Hastings had been talking about. “I’m Margaret Skilling. I’ve heard some of my students talking about you.” These were the same students who came in every day smelling like they’d been camping for a whole week and laughed when she tried to assign homework. Then they would whisper about who the great Jacob Black was going to put on patrol that night.
“Really? What class do you teach?”
“Geometry,” she said as she threw away a handful of paper towels.
“I’ve heard some kids talking about you.” He paused awkwardly. The diet coke was all cleaned up and he didn’t seem to know what to do with himself. “Why do you always assign a ton of homework on Wednesday night? They always have pages of math problems due the next day. Wouldn’t it be better to give them more time?”
Margaret was taken aback. How did he know what homework she had assigned? She also wanted to yell in frustration, but she kept her composure. “I give them a whole week to do it. I guess they just procrastinate.”
“Oh,” Jacob said. “They didn’t tell me that.”
Margaret wanted to ask how he knew her students in the first place, but he started speaking again before she could. “I’ll make sure they start their homework sooner,” and he turned and walked out the door.
Margaret was confused. Who was this man? Why was he staring at her like that? Where did he go? She sighed and started back to the cafeteria. She had so many questions, no answers, and there was not a diet coke in sight.
Chapter 2: Monday
Chapter Text
The next Monday Margaret braced herself. She’d always hated Mondays, even before she became a teacher. Now that she was a teacher, Mondays were a whole new monster for her. Spending the already terrible Monday teaching moody teenagers who also hated Mondays was a nightmare. Margaret was ready though. She’d spent the whole weekend mentally preparing herself for the horrors that awaited her in her classroom. But when she got to school something was off. When students began showing up for class it was quiet. Too quiet. Something was missing.
It took her a second to figure out what was missing. The howling. The group of abnormally large students she’d labeled “the pack” had come in howling and roughhousing since the first day of school. It had only gotten worse as more students joined their little gang. Today, however, the pack simply walked into class, meandered back to their seats, and sat down. One of them even said good morning.
It was a prank. Margaret knew it. She was going to start teaching, and the second she thought she was safe they were going to pounce. She didn’t know what they were going to do, but she knew they were going to do something. Why else would they be so quiet? All she could do now was wait for them to do something stupid and derail her lesson plans.
So she started the day's lesson by explaining how to find the radius of a circle when you’re only given the circumference. Some students complained as students do. Though not nearly as many complained as normal. Margaret began to feel calm. The lesson was going well. The few good students she had asked questions. No one threw anything at her. Maybe today was just going to be a normal day? No. The pack must have been tired or something , Margaret thought. That’s why they’re so calm. They wouldn't voluntarily behave themselves . But she soon realized she was wrong. When she turned to check on the pack in the back of the classroom she was horrified. They were taking notes. Since when did these students take notes? This was absolute anarchy.
The class continued without a hitch. When the bell rang the boys then did the unthinkable. They stood up, thanked Margaret, and left. No punching. No howling. All of them were wearing shoes. It was the weirdest thing she’d ever seen in her entire life.
Her day only got weirder when it was time to go home. She walked outside and was greeted by Jacob Black sitting on the hood of her car.
“Hi,” Margaret said. She didn’t think a diet coke thief who had the audacity to sit on her car deserved any more greeting than that.
“Hi,” Jacob said. He had that look on his face again. Like he was staring at the most important thing in the entire world. For a second Margaret found it endearing. It made her feel special. And Jacobs' long hair was perfectly framing his face. His muscles looked like they were about to rip through his shirt. Finally, Margaret got her thoughts together and was able to respond.
“Why are you sitting on my car?” she asked.
“I came to see how my boys did in class today,” Jacob said.
“I’m assuming you’re talking about the giants trying to pass off as freshmen in my class,” Margaret crossed her arms. “They took notes today. I didn’t hear a single one of them bark.” He didn’t really answer why he decided to sit on her car, but she was more concerned with ‘his boys’.
“Good, I wanted to make sure they stopped giving you a hard time. And let you know that they’ve all started their homework.”
“Did you come all the way out here just to see if those boys behaved in class?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Jacob said. Margaret was so confused. Who was this guy? He wasn’t their parent, obviously. He also wasn’t their legal guardian. So what authority did this man have to make these students do their homework? And why did he care enough about her to try and make her life easier? Also, what conditioner was he using because DANG. His hair was a work of art.
“Well, I appreciate it. It was nice being able to get through a lesson without a pregnancy joke” Margaret laughed, remembering how her students lost their minds when she spilled water. She really thought they were never going to stop announcing that her water broke. “Anyways, How’d you know this was my car?” Margaret was dangerously close to swatting him off her hood.
“Wait, did you say pregnancy jokes?” Jacob looked worried.
“Yes. Long story. I’m not pregnant. How’d you know this was my car?” she sighed. He was bad at answering questions.
“There was a diet coke bumper sticker,” Jacob was relieved to know Margaret wasn’t pregnant.
“Okay, detective diet coke,” she said as she walked towards the car. “Thank you for checking on my students. I appreciate you getting them to do their work.”
Jacob made that really cute face again. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something. Then he closed it. Then he opened it again and actually spoke this time. “Could I take you to dinner sometime? This Friday? So I can buy you another diet coke after I spilled yours last week.”
Margaret froze. Did this absolute hunk of a man just ask her on a date? “Yes, absolutely. I’d love that.” Margaret said before immediately kicking herself for her response. I’d love that , Margaret thought, Way to be way too forward. He's gonna hear the word 'love' and run for the hills. While Margaret stood there overthinking every decision she’d ever made, Jacob jumped up from the car. He was beaming.
“Great. Awesome.” He repeated the words ‘great’ and ‘awesome’ over and over for a few more seconds before remembering he needed to use complete sentences. “I can pick you up around 6:00?”
“Yes, absolutely. I’d love that,” Margaret said before immediately biting her tongue. She would spend the next week kicking herself for using the same sentence two times in a row. It wasn’t even a good sentence the first time she used it.
“Great, here’s my phone number,” Jacob handed her a crumpled piece of paper with his name and number on it. When Margaret took the paper from Jacob, her hand brushed his. Her heart rate skyrocketed. His hands were warm and calloused and she had the weird urge to reach out and hold them. She didn’t know how long she stood there thinking about his hands before Jacob started talking again. “Let me know when you get home safe. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” Margaret said. Then Jacob smiled at her and ran. Literally ran. The man didn’t hop in a car or walk away. He simply turned and ran. Margaret noticed three things when he did this. First of all, he was fast. Absurdly fast. Inhumanly fast. Second, he didn’t wear shoes. Apparently, the boys in this town just didn’t believe in wearing shoes unless she told them to. Third, his hair flowed beautifully in the wind.
And just as quickly as Jacob appeared, he was gone again. Margaret could hear Ms. Hastings in the back of her mind. “That man is seven feet of pure man.”
Chapter 3: Date Night
Chapter Text
Margaret was stressed, and for good reason. At that very moment, a seven foot tall, very attractive young man was driving to her apartment to take her to dinner. She’d been on dates before, so it wasn’t a huge deal. But she’d never been on a date with a man who could run as fast as a car. It didn’t help that she was still overthinking their interaction on Monday. He literally ran out of the parking lot. She’d dropped the word “love” twice. They were not off to a great start.
Margaret was finally pulled out of her own head by a knock on the door. In that one moment her fight or flight response activated. She ran back to her room, stopped, remembered how cute Jacob was, ran to her door, did a little dance, and threw the door open.
And there he was, wearing shoes this time. So that was nice.
Jacob stood there smiling nervously. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a white dress shirt he tucked in. His boots were covered in dirt. He’d pulled his hair back into a braid. Margaret thought he looked adorable.
Jacob thought Margaret looked like the most beautiful human to ever grace the face of the planet. “Hi,” he said.
“Hi,” Margaret said.
“You look nice.”
“Thanks,” Margaret started panicking. For a moment she forgot every word she knew except for ‘shoulders’. She hated awkward silence and she began to worry she would be hearing a lot of it tonight.
“Are you ready to go?” Jacob asked.
“Yeah, I’m starving.” Margaret stepped out of her apartment and shut the door behind her. “How are you?”
“Pretty good,” Jacob sighed. “But my dad’s been super stressed about the weird murder over in Forks. So that’s what I’ve been hearing about all week. Have you been to the burger shop down the street? They’re really good.”
“Um, no, I don’t mind burgers,” Margaret frowned. “Did you say murder in Forks?”
“Yeah. Have you not heard about it?” Jacob started walking down the street.
“No. What happened?”
“They found some guy with his blood drained out of him,” Jacob shook his head. “But I shouldn’t have brought it up. How was your week?”
“It was good,” she said. “But you said the guy has his blood drained out of him? How does that happen?”
“No one knows,” Jacob shrugged. “It was probably some freak accident. And now that I think about it, it's probably not a good thing to talk about right before we eat. How have the kids been behaving at school this week?”
“I’ve never seen the students this well behaved. My classes are so quiet now.” Margaret was relieved to change the topic. Someone getting their blood drained out of them sounded like something you’d only see in a movie.
Jacob laughed, “I’m glad. I told my boys to stop being hard on you.”
“You should tell them to do the same for all their teachers. The others think I’m a miracle worker for getting them to behave,” Margaret said.
“Hmmm, I’ll see what I can do.”
“So, how do you know these kids? And do they just do what you say?” Margaret still had no idea how Jacob got the most rambunctious teens she’d ever met turned into model students.
“I know people,” Jacob replied.
“You just know people?” Margaret prompted. She waited a moment for him to elaborate but she never did. Eventually she got sick of the awkward silence and started talking again. “Anyways, guess how many diet cokes I’ve had today,” Margaret asked.
“How many?”
“One,” Margaret proudly announced.
Jacob let out a gasp of mock surprise. “Only one? Aren’t you addicted to that stuff?”
“Apparently I don’t need to drink half a dozen every day when my students don’t make me want to pull my hair out,” Margaret laughed.
They were finally walking up to the burger joint. Jacob opened the door for her. As she walked through the door he put his hand on the small of her back. Her heart fluttered.
With his hand still on her back, he led her to a table. Once they’d sat down, a waitress came to take their order. Once they’d ordered, the waitress looked at Jacob. “I’d heard about your new girlfriend but they didn’t tell me how cute she was.” Then she walked away giggling.
“Are you like a celebrity around here?” Margaret asked. She couldn’t date another hometown celebrity guy who was still proud of being a star quarterback in high school. Never again.
“What can I say,” Jacob shrugged. “I know people.”
So he’s not a guy who peaked in high school. Margaret thought. But he really does make it sound like he’s a gang leader. She didn’t really believe that, but she did think that Jacob was hiding something. She started to speak again, but she noticed something weird.
The whole restaurant had gotten quiet. It was insanely loud when they walked in. But now it was quiet. Too quiet. Some people were even glancing over at them. “Okay,” Margaret reassured herself. “You know a lot of people.”
“Yeah, so are you a dog person or a cat person?” Jacob asked. Margaret noticed he was trying to change the subject, but she decided to let it slide. Around this point Margaret seriously began to wonder if there was a gang in Forks she needed to watch out for.
“Dog person. I’m allergic to cats.”
“Oh thank God,” Jacob sighed in relief. “It would’ve been a deal breaker if you didn’t like dogs.”
Margaret shook her head. “Don’t worry. I love dogs. I wanna get one but I live in a crappy apartment on a teacher’s salary. So it’s not really an option right now.”
“Aww, that sucks. What kind of dog do you want?” Jacob asked.
“Husky. I think they’re hilarious.” Margaret and Jacob spent the next hour talking about what type of dogs were the best, whether or not pineapple should go on pizza, and the safety ramifications of motorcycles.
“So you’re never gonna ride on my motorcycle? Even if I have a helmet?” Jacob asked.
“Never,” Margaret laughed. “Absolutely not. Motorcycles are a death trap.”
“Okay. Then we’re gonna have to walk to all of our dates,” Jacob said.
Margaret freaked out inside. He wants to go on more dates. Oh my gosh. He wants to go on more dates.
Margaret pulled herself together and started to make a joke about how motorcycle riders make great organ donors but she was interrupted by howling. The whole restaurant stopped talking to listen. It wasn’t howling like what the pack did at school. This was genuine wolf howling. It sounded like there were a lot of them.
Jacob got tense. “It’s getting late. I should probably take you back.”
“Oh, okay.” Margaret frowned. It wasn’t that late but Jacob looked worried. They stood up and headed back to her apartment. He put his arm around her waist. She noticed that Jacob was uncommonly warm. It was getting cold outside, so she appreciated it. It also made her feel safe. The howling was getting louder. But Margaret was still confused. Why was he so distressed by wolves? “Is everything alright?”
“Yeah, It’s fine,” Jacob said as he looked over his shoulder. “I just want to make sure you make it home safe. They don’t know what did the murder over in Forks. Until they figure it out you should stay home when it gets dark.”
“Ok, I can do that,” Margaret responded. They walked up the steps to Margaret's apartment. “I had a really good time.”
“I did too,” Jacob looked over his shoulder again and they heard more howling in the distance. “If you ever need anything let me know. I’ll text you later.”
“Can’t wait,” Margaret said. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.”
And he was gone again. Margaret shut and locked her door. Then she did what she always did when she was stressed: grab a diet coke and overthink everything. Margaret tried to unpack everything that happened but she kept getting distracted by the memory of his hand on her back. It made her blush. And she didn’t think she’d said or done anything wrong. Something about the wolves must have bothered him.
So for the rest of the night Margaret replayed the date in her head. Until something Jacob had said caught her attention. When they were talking about the murder in Forks, he didn’t say that they hadn’t found who killed that guy. He had said they hadn’t found what had killed that guy.
More wolves started howling in the distance. Margaret looked out the window into the night and thought who the hell are you, Jacob Black?
Chapter 4: He's Back
Chapter Text
The next few days at school were weird. First of all, everyone kept talking about the murder in Forks. The police hadn’t gotten anywhere and now a hiker had gone missing. Everyone suspected they’d find another body soon. And second of all, the pack was still well-behaved. That in itself was nothing short of a miracle. But they were even weirder than normal.
They all looked tense and stressed. They whispered quietly in the back of the classroom about a hunting trip. Then they were constantly looking out the windows. When the bell rang at the end of the day they almost ran out of the classroom.
Overall, it wasn’t a bad school week. But it was still concerning. Once Margaret finished some grading, she gladly packed up her stuff and headed out. But before she could get out of the building, something stopped her.
“Ms. Skilling,” Ms. Hastings shouted from down the hall.
Margaret cringed and pretended she didn’t hear. She walked faster, hoping that Ms. Hastings wouldn’t follow her.
“Ms. Skilling,” Ms. Hastings repeated. She was closer this time.
Margaret sighed and turned to face her. “Hi, Ms. Hastings. How are you?”
“I’m good,” Ms. Hastings giggled. “But, dare I say, not as good as you.”
“Why do you think that?” Margaret knew exactly why Ms. Hastings would think that, but she hoped if she played dumb, she could change the subject. It was no secret that the principal thought very highly of Jacob Black. She had no doubt heard about Margaret’s date and wanted all the details. And Margaret did not particularly want to share them.
“Don’t be coy, we all know you’ve snatched up the most eligible bachelor in the state,” Ms. Hastings started fanning herself. “I don’t know how you did it. I’ve had my eye on that man for quite some time.”
“Didn’t he used to be your student?” Margaret frowned at the principal. She really wondered how this woman got her job in the first place.
“That was a while ago,” Ms. Hastings snapped. then she gave Margaret a large very fake looking smile before asking “But what’s he like?”
“He’s very sweet,” Margaret shrugged and started walking faster down the hall. School was over and she just wanted to get back to her car. She’d made it through a whole day without a headache. She wasn’t about to let Ms. Hastings and her boy crazy ramblings mess that up.
“Oh, please,” Ms. Hastings scoffed. At this point she was having to jog to keep up with Margaret. “That’s not what I mean and you know it. What is he like. ”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean,” this time Margaret honestly wasn’t sure what Ms. Hastings was asking about. She did, however, have a feeling that she didn’t want to know.
“I’m certain you do know what I mean” Ms. Hastings sounded exasperated. “But nevermind. Are you going out with him again?”
“I think so,” Margaret replied as she walked out of the school into the parking lot. “But the date did end kinda weird. So I don’t know.” She felt her head beginning to hurt. She had been trying so hard to stop thinking about the end of the date. All it did was stress her out.
Ms. Hastings gasped and pointed to Margaret's car. “Well, I don’t think you’ll have to worry about it for very long. I’ll talk to you about it later,” and she ran back into the school while dissolving into a fit of giggles.
Margaret looked out and saw Jacob sitting on her car. Again. She really needed to tell him to stop doing that.
“Hi,” Jacob shouted and waved. He was holding a handful of flowers that he obviously picked himself. Some of them still had their roots attached. It was the most beautiful bouquet Margaret had ever seen.
“Hi,” she couldn’t help but smile. Yeah, she’d have preferred that he not sit on her car, but he was really cute.
Jacob stood up and gave Margaret a hug. He wrapped his big strong muscle arms around her. Margaret thought she was going to faint. He was warm and smelled like pine trees. She hugged him back and pressed her head against his chest.
He pulled back and smiled down at her. He had that look on his face that he always got. He looked at her like she was the only thing in the whole world.
“What’re you doing here?” Margaret asked once she remembered how to breathe.
“I came to apologize for the other night. I ran out of there kinda quickly.” Jacob held out the flowers, “These are for you.”
“Thank you,” Margaret took them. They were yellow, white, and blue. She decided those were her new favorite colors. “Can I ask what exactly happened last night?”
“It’s a long story. I just wanted to say sorry and that it won’t happen again.” Jacob said and stared at his feet. Margaret waited for him to keep talking, but he didn’t.
“I have time,” she waited another moment for a response. She finally realized she wasn’t going to get more details out of him. She remembered how he liked to avoid questions. “Anyways, you have to stop sitting on my car,” she added.
“Does it bother you?” Jacob asked.
“Yes.”
“Alright. No more sitting on your car,” he smiled. “On one condition.”
“What would that condition be?” Margaret asked.
“You come to eat dinner tonight with me and my friends.”
“I’d love that,” Margaret replied then instantly winced. She was going to overthink that sentence for a while. “I’d need to run home and change first though.”
“Ok, I’ll swing by and pick you up in about an hour.”
“Alright, can’t wait,” Margaret beamed. She felt like she could just float away she was so happy.
“Can’t wait,” Jacob echoed while he started to walk away. Margaret expected him to just turn and run again, but instead he hopped on a motorcycle and rode away. She’d always hated motorcycles. Though, the more she’d thought about it, she wouldn’t mind riding on one if Jacob was with her.
Chapter 5: A Night on the Beach
Chapter Text
Margaret was thrilled when she got home. She was about to go out with Jacob Black again. He was also about to introduce her to his friends. Like any reasonable girl in her twenties, Margaret severely over-thought her outfit. She knew it would be cold outside and she didn’t want to freeze. So she picked out a cute sweater and warm jacket. Then she ditched the jacket. She didn’t want to be too warm so Jacob could give her his jacket. But then she didn’t want to assume that Jacob would give her his jacket. So for the next fifteen minutes Margaret kept taking her jacket on and back off again while trying to decide which boots to wear.
Just as Margaret was putting her jacket on for the fifth time, she heard a knock at the door.
She ran to the door and opened it. Jacob stood there waiting. His hair was pulled back and he had a colorful flannel on.
“Hi,” Margaret smiled.
“Hi,” Jacob beamed.
“Your flannel looks like something my grandpa would wear,” Margaret said as she locked her apartment door behind her.
“Why does everyone keep insulting my flannel?” Jacob sighed. “It’s soft.”
“Aww, who else was insulting your flannel?”
“All of them,” Jacob pointed to a car with a few others sitting in it. “These are my friends. If they tell you any embarrassing stories I promise they’re lying.”
Margaret laughed as she hopped in the car. This was going to be fun.
Everyone in the car cheered as she jumped in. A guy with short black hair in the driver's seat turned to face her. “So here she is,” the guy said. “The infamous Margaret Skilling. I’m Sam Uley. Nice to meet you.”
“I’m Emily,” the girl sitting in the passenger seat said. Emily was beautiful. She had dark eyes and shiny hair. But she had a large scar across her face that was a little alarming at first. “So now please be honest,” she said as she gave Margaret a serious look.
“Alright,” Margaret said, panicking a little.
“Doesn’t Jacobs' flannel look like something a hipster would spend way too much money on?” Emily asked as her and Sam burst into laughter.
Jacob slid into the car and shouted “There’s nothing wrong with my flannel.”
Margaret quickly became comfortable with Jacob and his friends. They joked about Jacob’s flannel for a while before Emily asked about Margaret’s job. “I know some of your students. I hope they haven’t been giving you too many problems?”
“No, recently my kids have all gotten much more behaved. I don’t know what Jacob said to them to make that happen though,” Margaret shook her head. “But I’ve made it a whole week without giving someone detention.”
“Jacob has that effect on people,” Sam chimed in. “When he heard they were making pregnancy jokes about you he had those boys scared straight.”
Emily nodded in agreement. Jacob stared at his feet.
“How exactly do y’all know my students?” Margaret asked. She was still concerned about why all these adults had so much influence over the fifteen and sixteen year olds in her class.
Sam and Emily glanced back at Jacob. Margaret could see the wheels spinning in his head as he tried to think of a good answer. What is this guy’s deal? She wondered.
“This is a small town. We all look out for each other.” Jacob finally announced “I wanted to make sure they were learning. It’s important.”
Margaret was still convinced there was something else going on, but she didn’t press it. She knew how much Jacob loved to avoid answering questions. “Well I appreciate it. My job has gotten much easier.”
“Anything for you,” Jacob smiled at her and took her hand. He looked at her like she was the center of the universe. For a moment Margaret was worried her heart would explode. The only people in the whole world were her and Jacob.
Then the car stopped. “Come on lovebirds,” Sam shouted before slamming his car door shut. They were parked a short walk from the beach. Margaret could already hear Jacobs' other friends goofing off. They were very passionately arguing about the rules of ultimate frisbee. Most of the guys were determined that tackling was legal. Several of the girlfriends sitting on the sidelines were adamant that it wasn’t. There were a few others sitting around a fire cooking something.
And Jacob was still holding Margarets hand.
“Margaret, come here and meet the others,” Emily waved her over to the other girlfriends. Jacob started to walk over with her before Emily shooed him away. “No Jacob,” she said. “This is girl time. Go play with the boys. I’ll take care of her.”
“Don’t be too hard on her,” Jacob said to Emily. He squeezed Margarets hand before letting go. Then he ran to join the others, who were now circled around two boys fighting over the frisbee.
“So this is Jacobs new girl,” one of the girlfriends said.
“Hi Joy. This is Margaret, she’s the geometry teacher,” Emily sat down on a log and gestured to the spot next to her.
“Do all of my students just constantly complain about geometry?” Margaret asked as she sat next to Emily. “I swear I do not give them that much homework.”
The girls all laughed, “You know how kids are,” Joy chuckled.
For the next hour or so the girls sat there laughing about the group of men who were now all fighting over the frisbee. Someone made a joke about a dog pile and the girls laughed so hard they cried. Margaret noticed that they all made dog jokes quite often. Once a girl said something about her boyfriend that Margaret didn’t hear, but Emily quickly shushed her and changed the subject.
“You really did a number on Jacob,” Emily giggled. She was still wiping tears from her face after laughing at the dog pile joke. “He won’t let anyone complain about your class anymore. He’s told many of the younger boys here to shut up and do their homework. And Jacob always hated homework, so that was quite the plot twist.”
“Hmm,” Margaret sighed. “I have no idea how I pulled that off.”
The rest of the night went by too fast. Eventually the boys stopped fightighting. Someone finished making food. They all went to sit down around the fire and swap stories. While everyone was picking their seats, Margaret noticed just how many of her students were there. Almost the entire pack of trouble makers, plus a few extras from the previous school year. She started to ask the older ones how they were doing in algebra I before Jacob coughed to get her attention.
He looked up at her from a beach towel on the ground. He scooted over to make room for her. Which was sweet. But the problem was that Margaret didn’t know how close she was supposed to sit to him. Should she sit right up next to him? Or should she leave space? If she did leave space, how much space was too much? Would he assume she wasn’t interested if she didn’t sit close enough? Or would she look crazy if she sat too close? So Margaret just plopped down next to him and hoped for the best.
She didn’t end up very close to him. It was cold outside and she regretted leaving so much space, but she wasn’t brave enough to move closer.
Luckily, Jacob was. He looked at Margaret for a moment. Then he sighed, wrapped his arm around her waist, and pulled her closer. Margarets brain broke. Her leg was now pressed against his. She was leaning on his shoulder. His hand was resting on her hip. Her face flushed. She wasn’t sure if that was because she was flustered at being so close to Jacob or because Jacob was literally just that warm.
Margaret looked up at him. Jacob smiled down at her. “I hope that you had fun with the girls,” he said as he tucked Margaret's hair behind her ear. “I feel like I’ve barely seen you tonight.”
“They were very sweet. It was fun seeing you start a fight over a plastic disc,” Margaret laughed.
“Good.” They sat there in silence for a few moments just watching the fire. With his arm around her and her new friends chatting happily around her Margaret felt content. “Hey, Margaret,” Jacob whispered. When Margaret turned back to look at him Jacob smiled nervously. He reached out and put his hand on the side of her face. He stroked her cheek with his thumb. Margarets heart pounded. Without thinking she glanced at his mouth and leaned forward. Jacob turned his head to the side and slowly leaned in too.
Then the howling started.
Jacob jumped back and glared into the woods. Margaret instantly knew it wasn’t any of the guys howling. These were real wolves howling, and they were close. Everyone in the circle instantly got up and started packing. Sam tossed Jacob his car keys and shouted, “I’ll go help. You and Quill make sure all the girls get home safe.”
“On it,” Jacob shouted back. Before Margaret knew it she was sitting in a car with Emily, Joy, and Jacob. They rode in silence as Jacob drove Emily and Joy home. As soon as they were out of the car Margaret started asking questions.
“What the hell was that?” She ordered.
“What do you mean?” Jacob started driving towards Margaret's apartment. He kept looking out the window nervously.
“You know what I mean. What is happening here?” she was sick of feeling confused. There was so much that needed explaining and she was at her wits end. “Everyone freaked out. Some of those guys just ran into the woods after hearing actual wolves howling. Which feels like a safety hazard. And now you’re acting like there’s a murderer after us or something.”
“Margaret,” Jacob took her hand. “Listen, there is a lot going on right now. We just wanted to be safe because of what’s happening in Forks.”
“What does that have to do with the wolves?” Margaret almost forgot she was mad when Jacob took her hand. But she had to pull herself together. She. Needed. Answers.
“It’s too much to explain right now,” Jacob said. He looked heartbroken, like it physically hurt him to not tell her what was happening. “Please believe me, you have nothing to worry about. I’ll explain it all soon.”
Margaret didn’t say anything. She just glared. He was still avoiding questions. They were finally pulling up to Margaret's apartment.
“I promise,” Jacob whispered. “I’ll tell you everything. Just not now.” He leaned forward and reached for her other hand. Using every ounce of self control she had, Margaret pulled her hand away, stepped out of the car door, and looked back at him.
Margaret sighed. “I’m sorry, I can’t let this go on until I understand what’s happening,” she paused, hoping that Jacob would finally say something. But he didn’t. He sat there staring at her like a kicked puppy. “Alright then,” she said once she realized the conversation wasn’t going anywhere. “Goodnight,” and she shut the door. She immediately wanted to open the door up again and jump into Jacobs arms. She wanted to kiss him and tell him it was alright and she didn’t need to know anything. But that wasn’t true.
Margaret had begun to realize that she cared about Jacob. She cared about him quite a bit more than she cared to admit. She thought about him all day, then stayed on the phone with him all night. She got butterflies whenever he looked at her. He made her feel special.
Margaret had also begun to realize that Jacob was hiding something. Something dangerous. And she needed to know what it was.
Chapter 6: Answers
Notes:
Thank you so much to everyone who's read this!! It appreciate it so much!!
I tried adding a part in this chapter where Jacob and Margaret are texting, so let me know if the formatting made sense or if I should change anything.
xoxo, Muffaletta grace
Chapter Text
Margaret’s phone buzzed for the hundredth time that Saturday morning and it was only 9:00 AM. Margaret knew she should look at it, but she wasn’t awake enough for that yet. It didn’t help that she hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before. She lay awake for hours thinking about what happened the previous night at the beach. Jacob had tried to kiss her. He was so close. Just the memory of his arm around her and his face so close to hers made it hard to breathe.
But it all came crashing down when the wolves started howling. Guys just ran into the woods like it was nothing. Then Jacob kept looking around like someone was chasing them. Margaret wished she could get her head together long enough to figure out what had happened. But her mind kept taking her back to Jacob and how close he was.
Part of Margaret was kicking herself for not trying to kiss Jacob again later that night. Lord knows she wanted to. She could have tried outside her apartment. Then, another part of Margaret was kicking herself for wanting to kiss Jacob. Because at the end of the day, there was still so much she didn’t know about him. There was still so much she needed to know about him. She didn’t need to turn into a boy-crazy ditz because Jacob had batted his beautiful eyelashes at her.
After overthinking for a little while longer, Margaret finally got up at 10:00. She popped open a can of diet coke. About halfway through it, she knew she had to text Jacob back. He had texted her several times throughout the night. So, Margaret just looked at the most recent messages from him.
I’m sorry about last night
I think I owe you an explanation
Could I see you today? There’s some stuff we should talk about
Margaret sighed. She was relieved that he did want to talk about it. But she was still annoyed that he couldn’t have talked about it last night.
Yes. When do you want to meet up?
And where?
11:00 at the beach
We didn’t get to appreciate it much last night. So It’d be cool if we could go back there
Alright. I’ll see you then.
Can't wait
So an hour later, Margaret was standing there on the beach waiting for Jacob to show up. She got progressively more annoyed the longer she waited for him. It was windy and looked like it was about to start raining. She didn’t want to get caught in the rain waiting for this man to show up, she wanted to be watching a British TV show with a diet coke in the safety of her own apartment.
After what felt like hours Jacob finally showed up. He literally walked out of the woods. No car, no bike. Just a man on his own two feet. Walking out of the forest like a totally normal person who wasn’t up to anything suspicious. “Hi. It’s nice to see you,” he said as he moved to hug Margaret.
“It’s good to see you too,” Margaret replied as she hugged him back. For one perfect moment she was warm and safe in his arms. He shielded her from the wind and stroked her hair. But it couldn’t stay like that. Margaret had questions. She stepped back, looked up at him, and asked “Are you in a gang?”
Jacob blinked. “No, we’re not a gang. We’re like a family. We look out for each other.”
“That still sounds like a gang. Were your parents all friends? And that’s how y’all know each other? Or do you babysit all these kids? Are you in charge? What’s the deal with the wolves? Do you just wander around the woods until it’s time to put shoes back on and wander out?”
“No, that’s a lot of questions,” Jacob ran his hands through his hair. “We’re a pack.”
Margaret just stared. That still sounds like a gang, she thought. She also thought about telling him he sounded crazy, but she had a feeling that he already knew.
“Do you want to sit down for a minute?” Jacob asked. He pointed out some rocks and walked her over to them. Margaret sat down, but Jacob started pacing. “So here on the reservation, there’s a group of us that are different. We’re supposed to protect the tribe from things that want to hurt it. That’s what you saw the other night. My pack. All of us are here to protect. And there are some bad people who are trying to get on the reservation. They went after one of our own last night. That’s why we all freaked out.”
“Bad people?”
“Yes,” he said. “We think they have something to do with the murders in Forks.”
“Why not call the police?” Margaret asked. She noticed that Jacob had said ‘murders’, not ‘murder’. She hadn’t heard about them finding another dead body yet.
“They wouldn’t be able to do anything,” Jacob shook his head. “These people are dangerous.”
“How are you guys different? What makes you more qualified to take on a murderer than the literal police?” Margaret’s head was spinning.
“Have you ever heard of shapeshifters? Or any variation of them? People who can change shape?” Jacob looked at her hopefully, as if what he just asked would make everything make sense.
“Yes,” Margaret hesitated. “What does that have to do with you?”
“I’m gonna show you. But please don’t freak out,” Jacob said as he started taking his shirt off.
Margaret started shouting as Jacob unbuckled his belt, “What are you doing?”
“Just give me a minute. Don’t freak out,” Jacob shouted back.
“What do you mean don’t freak out? What did you think I was gonna do other than freak out?” Margaret began to wonder if she could outrun Jacob. Her car wasn’t that far away.
“Just hold on,” He had moved behind a rock that hid him from the waist down. But that didn’t stop Margaret from staring. Part of her felt like she should run, but she hadn’t realized just how muscular Jacob was. His shoulders were huge. His abs were something straight out of a magazine. His chest gave Margaret heart palpitations.
Then, Jacob threw his jeans across the rock and looked up at Margaret. She blushed when she looked back up to his face. She hadn’t meant to stare that much. Then, Jacob gave her a mischievous smirk, shrugged, and turned it into a giant wolf.
Margaret screamed. She climbed further up the rock, not that it made much of a difference. The wolf standing in front of her was gigantic. If she had been standing beside him he would have been at least a foot taller than her.
So, since there wasn’t much else she could do, Margaret just kept screaming. She probably would have kept screaming if she hadn’t run out of breath. She inhaled as much air as she could so she could start screaming again. But at that moment, she noticed that the wolf wasn’t moving to attack. He was barely moving at all. He was just staring at her with kind brown eyes that she could just drown in. Jacob’s eyes. Margaret finally started connecting the dots.
“Jacob?” she asked.
The wolf nodded and whined.
Then Margaret let out a stream of swear words. She really didn’t know how else to describe what she was feeling. She climbed off the rock and slowly walked towards Jacob. She reached out. Margaret almost expected to feel nothing when she reached her hand out. There was no way this was real. It had to be a hallucination.
But it wasn’t. Her hand was resting on the head of a very large, very real wolf. His tail even started wagging.
“Ok, ok,” Margaret stepped back and let out a few more expletives. “So, is it actually you? Can you understand me?”
The wolf nodded.
“Can you turn back? I have more questions,” Margaret rubbed her temples. She felt a migraine coming on.
He moved back over to the rock. The big bad wolf ducked down behind it, and a perfectly human Jacob stood back up. He got dressed again but neglected to put his shirt back on. Margaret didn’t complain.
Chapter 7: Werewolves and Vampires
Chapter Text
Once Jacob changed back into a human, he and Margaret sat down on a rock together.
“So, you can just turn into a wolf?” Margaret asked.
“Yes,” Jacob replied. He pulled Margaret closer to him so he could put his arm around her, much to Margaret's relief. The weather was getting worse and her jacket wasn’t warm enough.
“How long have you been able to do this?”
“Since I was sixteen,” Jacob said. “It was terrifying when it all started. I just got sick one night. I felt like I was overheating. After that went on for a few days I thought I would explode if I didn’t get outside. I ran into my back yard and just kinda,” He paused as he searched for the right words, “changed I guess. I felt like I turned inside out into some four legged beast. Eventually Sam found me running through the woods, scared out of my mind. It took ages for me to figure out how to turn back.”
“Is that what happened to the kids in my class? They keep disappearing for a few weeks then coming back twice their size.” Somehow everything was begging to make more sense and less sense at the same time. At least Margaret now understood what was happening. She just didn’t know how or why it was happening. “Are all my students gonna turn into wolves?”
“Just a few of them. That’s actually becoming a problem. When the pack is in danger, more members of the tribe begin turning into wolves. We don’t really want all of our kids to go through this, but they keep transforming.”
“How do you make it stop?”
“We have to kill what’s putting the tribe in danger,” Jacob shrugged as if that sentence made perfect sense. As if it wasn’t one of the most ominous things that had ever been said to Margaret.
“And what would that be?” Margaret pressed. She tried to think of something that would be more dangerous than a pack of werewolves.
“I don’t wanna scare you,” Jacob sighed.
“It’s a little late for that. Just tell me what’s going on,” Margaret groaned. “It can’t get any worse than what I’ve already seen.”
“Fine. You’ve heard of vampires?” Jacob said as thunder rumbled in the distance. Margaret realized she was wrong, it got worse. “There are some blood-suckers over in Forks, the Cullens, but they’ve never caused us any major problems. They stick to sucking the life out of animals instead of humans. However, there is at least one new one in the area. He’s not as human-friendly as the Cullens. We think this new one is responsible for the murders we’ve been hearing about. And he keeps getting closer to our territory.”
Margaret had started to swear some more but she trailed off. So many thoughts were spinning around her head. There were vampires in Forks. Apparently werewolves were real. And to make it worse, she was dating one of them.
Jacob took both her hands. “Listen, I know this is a lot. It’s scary. But I promise I will keep you safe. The whole pack will too. We look out for each other and the people we care about.” He started blushing. “And I do care about you.” Jacob made that face again. The one where he looked at Margaret like she was the only thing in the whole world. It made Margaret feel like she could just melt.
Margaret squeezed his hands and sighed. “I like you. A lot. But I need to know, if there is any other crazy wolf stuff you haven’t told me yet, now is the time to open up.”
“There is something else,” Jacob winced. “Shapeshifters do this thing called imprinting.” Then Jacob began describing the imprinting process. All Margaret could do was stare in disbelief.
Jacob described it as being like soulmates. Every pack member has that one person that they are meant to be with. They’re a perfect match. When one of them imprints on another they become everything that person needs. That person is everything they could ever want. It’s like gravity just pulls them to the person they imprinted on.
“When I first saw you,” Jacob continued. “I just knew it was you. I felt warm and -”
“Wait,” Margaret cut him off as she jumped down off the rock. “Are you about to tell me we’re soulmates?”
“It’s not exactly like soulmates. That is just the easiest way to describe it,” Jacob reached out to pull her back but Margaret moved a few more steps away from him. “I don’t want to tell you how to react, but you got more freaked out by imprinting than you did by the literall blood-drinking-superhuman murderer.”
“How did the other girls react when their boyfriends told them all this?” Margaret asked.
“Usually they freak out more over the literall blood-drinking-superhuman murderers. Or the wolf part,”
“Ok. Yes. Now that I think about it the vampires are significantly more terrifying,” Margaret turned to stare at the ocean. The wind blowing off it was freezing. She saw lightning in the distance and knew they should head home soon. That was not a storm she wanted to get caught in.
“Margaret?” Jacob said quietly from behind her. “You still there?”
“Yes,” she replied as she turned back to him. “I’m still here.”
Chapter 8: Die Hard is a Christmas Movie
Chapter Text
Margaret and Jacob stood there on the beach for a while, watching the storm roll in. Margaret asked more questions about how imprinting worked, how many members there were in Jacobs pack, and what they were gonna do about the vampire. Eventually Margaret tried to work back to normal conversation topics. She needed something normal.
“What’s your favorite Christmas movie?” Margaret asked. There was nothing more normal than discussing the emotional significance of different holiday themed movies.
“What?” Jacob sputtered. “Did you just ask what my favorite Christmas movie was? After I told you I’m in a pack of 17 other werewolves you’re just switching to Christmas movies?”
“Yes,” Margaret said. Adequate conversation transitions are for pansies. “And it’s beginning to sound like you have bad taste in Christmas movies and you don’t want me to know.”
“Okay, okay,” Jacob shook his head. “ Jingle All the Way , that’s my favorite.”
“Why?” Margaret responded.
Jacob frowned at her. “What’s wrong with Jingle All the Way ? It’s funny.”
“It’s stressful. Christmas movies shouldn’t be stressful. The guy should’ve planned ahead. Don’t wait ‘til the last minute to buy your kid a Christmas present.” Jingle All the Way was probably one of Margaret's least favorite Christmas movies. It was about a man trying to get a very specific toy for his kid. He didn’t go get it until just before Christmas and chaos ensued.
“That’s what makes it so good, seeing him freak out.” Jacob paused before adding, “Plus, it has the guy from Terminator in it. You can’t beat that.”
“Sure,” Margaret laughed. “Fair enough.”
“Trust me, I have amazing taste. What’s yours?”
“ Die Hard .”
“That’s not a Christmas movie,” Jacob frowned.
“It is a movie that takes place at Christmas time, therefore a Christmas movie.” Margaret had defended her favorite christmas movie many times before and she’d do it again. She was ready. “Plus, the fact that it is Christmas is relevant to the plot. The bad guys wouldn’t have tried to rob the building if it hadn’t been Christmas.”
“No, Die Hard is an action movie with Christmas lights thrown in for the drama. That is it.”
“I said what I said,” Margaret shrugged.
“Wow Margaret,” Jacob feigned horror and tried not to laugh. “I didn’t realize you had such bad opinions on movies.” Margaret punched him in the arm. She immediately regretted it. His arms did more damage to her fist than she did to him. “Hey,” Jacob shouted, pretending his arm was hurt. He stopped trying to hide his laughter “And now you’re getting violent. Tsk tsk.”
“Awww,” Margaret said, her voice thick with sarcasm. Her hand still hurt a little. Jacob had biceps made of steel apparently. “Did I leave a bruise?”
“Yeah, come look at it,” Jacob cradled his ‘injured’ arm.
“I think if I look really close I can almost see it,” Margaret placed her hand where she’d punched him. He wasn’t hurt in the slightest. Then she noticed just how close Jacob was standing. He was looking down at her with those deep brown eyes. Margaret’s heart sped up. “Remember last night, right before your friends started howling?” She brushed Jacob’s hair out of his face and glanced at his mouth.
“Yes,” Jacob smirked and leaned a little closer. “What about it?”
Margaret tried to say something snarky but the words got caught in her throat. Jacob was so close. All she had to do was stand up on her tippy toes and kiss him. Her heart was pounding. She didn’t know if she was shaking because of the adrenaline or the cold. But she did it. She stood up straight, pulled his gorgeous face to hers, and kissed him.
After a second Margaret pulled back, blushing. She looked back at Jacob.
“Hold on,” Jacob smiled and started laughing a little.
“What do you mean ‘hold on’?” Margaret panicked. Was she too forward? Did she misunderstand something?
“Hold on,” he said again, “get back here.” He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulled her against him, and slammed his mouth into hers. Margaret gasped, forgetting how to breathe. She threw her arms around his neck and pulled him as close as she could. His hands were tangled up in her hair. It was like the whole world disappeared. The only thing left was him and her.
Margaret didn’t know how long they stayed there, but when she managed to break away, it was beginning to rain. “I gotta get back,” she was so out of breath she barely got the words out. She smiled so hard her cheeks hurt.
“Yeah, of course,” Jacob grinned, and his face had turned bright red. “But one more thing,” he added as he stole another kiss. Margaret forgot how to breathe all over again. He took her hand and walked her back to the car. “Do you want to go see a movie or something? It’s not that late.”
“Next time,” she sighed. “I just learned that werewolves are real and Forks has a vampire problem. I need to lie down before I go into shock.”
“Alright, that’s fair.” Jacob leaned down and kissed her one more time. “Text me when you get home so I know you’re safe.”
“Only if you promise not to stay out in the woods for too long. That storm does not look nice,” Margaret shouted at him over another round of thunder.
“Yes Ma’am,” Jacob shouted back.
Margaret got into her car and waved bye to Jacob. He waved back, turned around, and bolted into the woods. Margaret couldn’t help but laugh.
When she got home she texted Jacob that she had made it. Then everything that happened finally hit her. She cried a little because of the vampires. She stared at a wall and repeated some choice swear words in her head because her boyfriend was apparently part wolf. That was going to be fun to explain if her parents ever found out. Then she remembered the kiss and started giggling like a little girl.
Although she hadn’t done much that day, she was exhausted. The day had been an emotional roller coaster. So when she laid down to rest her eyes for a moment, she immediately passed out.
She didn’t know how long she’d been sleeping, but it was dark outside when she woke up. It wasn’t raining but she could still hear thunder in the distance. Her phone buzzed with a message from Jacob. He’d proudly let her know that some of the younger wolves thought they could beat him in a race and they were very wrong. She smiled. There was a lot going on, but it was going to be okay.
A strange noise from outside pulled Margaret’s attention away from her phone. She got up to investigate through her window and noticed a man standing across the street. He was staring right at her. He was so pale he almost looked like a ghost. Goosebumps ran up her arms. Margaret yanked the curtains closed and shuddered. It began to rain again. She was certain it was her imagination, but she could’ve sworn his eyes were red.
Chapter 9: Motorcycles
Chapter Text
The past few weeks had been hectic to say the least. It all started when Jacob came by her apartment. He looked like he was about to murder someone. Benjamin, one of the boys from the pack, said they could smell the vampire around town. Jacob swore that the blood-sucker had been by Margaret’s apartment at least once. Because of this, when Jacob wasn’t guarding the perimeter of their territory he was at Margaret's keeping watch.
It was a little concerning that Jacob thought a vampire might show up at her place, but it meant she got to spend more time with Jacob. So she didn’t complain. They had a good system worked out. He would pick her up from work, they would pick up dinner, and watch the great British bake off. Except for on Fridays. On Friday Emily would make dinner for the pack at her house.
Margaret was thrilled when the school bell rang at the end of the week. Emily was making chili for dinner. Emily’
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