I am slightly bumping up Paul and Jared's age to be seniors. Not 100% sure, so if anyone knows please correct me(!!), but I think Jacob, Quil and Embry are sixteen when they shift making them sophomores, so I would guess that Paul and Jared would be juniors in the book? So I'm just aging them a year for my books sake.

"Skylar, I can feel you rolling your eyes," Jacob grunted, not even bothering to look over at the girl anymore. "Just come on, it's not that much farther from here."

She pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth, shaking her head. "'Let's go, Skylar, it'll be fun. Oh, but I didn't mention all of the mud and puddles from Washington's constant rain! You can get your brand new shoes dirty!' ... I'll tell you what Jacob, this is not a pleasant surprise at all."

"Skylar," he groaned, actually turning around to glare at her. "You've had those shoes for years! I know because we walked down a similar path when you first moved here and complained about 'getting your brand new shoes dirty' – they're the exact same shoes!"

It was her turn to glare at him, not backing down as he puffed his chest out. "And how do you know these were the shoes?"

"Just shut up, Sky. We're almost there."

She turned back around, biting her lip. "Fine."

"Fine."

Skylar clenched her jaw when saw the terrain changing gradually from the thick grass to the lightly colored grains of sand. "You dragged me out of Forks to come here, only to go to the beach? It is freezing out here."

"A few of the guys should be here. I know Quil and Jared are already here and Sam and Paul should be right behind them. I'm not sure who else is coming."

He just finished his sentence when Jared came running into view, beaming as he saw the shorter girl standing beside his friend. "Skylar!" He wasn't sure who looked more relieved; Skylar or Jacob.

"Take her!" Jacob nearly shouted, eyes widening as he motioned towards her. "She's all yours. Next time you want her to come down, you guys are getting her yourself!" He spun around and walked away, retracing their footsteps.

Skylar stuck out her tongue even though he couldn't see her. "It was a pleasure to be in your presence, Princess Jacob!" Chuckling when he looked around, face reddening even more when she flipped him off.

Jared was silently laughing, raising his eyebrows at the pair. "Well I can see you two get along just fine."

"Oh, he's just a little ball of sunshine today."

He looked over her shoulder, and following his gaze Skylar saw Paul striding towards them, pointing back. "What's his problem? He looked like a little kid who was told no."

"I don't know," Skylar feigned innocence, shrugging. "He brought me here and was like that the entire time."

Paul's face darkened at her words, nodding. "Interesting. I'll have to remember that."

Jared actually laughed at that. "Oh, Skylar." He bit back another laugh when she tilted her head towards him, winking. He moved his eyes back towards Paul. "Where's Sam?"

"Said he was coming later," Paul answered, words directed towards Jared but not looking away from Skylar. "I think he went to see Emily."

Jared grunted. "I better go check on Kim."

"You're right. I mean, it's been a couple hours since you've seen her, so I would hurry up," Paul retorted.

He glared, but smiled at Skylar. "See you later." Running out, he disappeared a few seconds after he headed to the trees.

She turned around and scanned the beach. "I don't see Quil or Embry anywhere. Are they coming soon?" Eyeing Paul and the sheepish look on his face, she smirked. "Nobody else is coming, are they?"

He shook his head.

"If you wanted to see me, you could have just asked."

Paul blinked. "Would you have said yes?"

"Probably not."

"Well," he dipped his head. "That'll do it."

Skylar bit her lip for a second, taking a step forward. "I'm messing with you. Seriously, just ask me next time. I'll give you my number."

He smirked down at her. "I knew it all along. Nobody can resist this."

"Annddd, there it is," she smiled.

Paul pointed toward the edge of the cliff, water splashing against the rocks every few seconds. It was secluded. If anybody was here, they would have to look for the specifically otherwise the two wouldn't be seen.

They walked in silence but like the time before, she felt comfortable near him. She wasn't sure what it was about Paul; he looked intimidating with his height and muscles, tall and buff. If she had seen him before all of this she was sure it would be like that. But it wasn't, and she was glad even after everything, that she'd met him.

Her thoughts drifted from him to Sam and Emily. The connection they shared was honestly unlike anything she had ever seen before. Charlie and her mom had split early, leaving both girls without any memories of the two ever together. She was happy for her mom and Phil now, and she could see the love between the two. The couples around Forks were happy, and she had good examples about healthy relationships, but Sam and Emily seemed to stand out. The way he looked at her, always glancing over even when he was with one of the boys. She peered over at Paul, who was staring at the cliffs, and began thinking about him again. About the instant connection they had shared those weeks ago, and how comfortable she was around him at all times. Maybe they would lead up to where the other two were.

Skylar could her face heating up and she was sure her cheeks were staining a light red at the moment. Where the hell did those thoughts come from? She hadn't known him for that long and she was already thinking about being together?

Never one for serious relationships, Skylar honestly didn't have a clue about how to go about it. She had crushes, yeah, and kissed one or two boys but never had the urge to do anything more with them. She wasn't afraid of love, she had had plenty of great examples of seeing it, but hadn't felt it yet. She didn't know how early was too early to have feelings for Paul.

"You look like you're thinking pretty hard over there," Paul finally spoke up, raising an eyebrow at the girl. Like her, he was happy to be near her but was a little concerned at the concentrated look she gave. What he would give to know her thoughts right now...

Raising a hand up to scratch the back of her neck, she chuckled awkwardly. "Yeah, I guess I just got lost in my own thoughts."

"Anything you want to talk about?" He asked, sincerely interested. "You can trust me."

Mustering up the courage to look at him, she stared him in the eye. "I know."

It was his turn to keep his breathing even, damn near almost inhaling deeply at her words. He knew what he felt. He saw firsthand what imprints were like, the connection instant. With her finding out about the wolves the way she did, he was willing to wait until she was ready to let her open up to him, no matter how long that took. He never expected for her to do it this soon.

"You feel this too?" He blurted out, cringing in his head but letting himself go on. "I don't want to pressure you into anything."

Slowly, she shook her head and looked away. "I know this probably sounds crazy but everything's been different since I saw you at Jacob's that one time. Like I can't get you out of my head, no matter how hard I try. It's a little scary to be truthful." Her voice had dropped to a whisper by the time she was finished, too scared to even glance at him.

They were a couple hundred feet from the cliffs when Paul stopped, grabbing onto her hand to halt her as well. "It's the same for me, okay? I don't ever want you to feel scared about telling me anything."

"How?" She whispered again, finally meeting his gaze. "Why do I feel this so early? I've never, never, felt this way about a guy, especially so quickly. I don't know what to think of it."

Paul tossed the idea around in his mind for a moment, wondering if it was the right time to explain things to her. He tilted his head towards the spot, tugging her along. "C'mere." The rocks were closely bunched together, the ones in the middle longer than the others and smooth enough to sit on contentedly for some time.

Even when they were seated, he didn't let go of her hand. He wasn't sure if he could. It was colder in his own, his body temperature being the main reason. Resting the back of his hand on her knee, he felt as ease at the contact.

"I have somethings to explain, and I want you to listen before you say anything okay? I don't know how to do this either, and it might be too early but I've never been good at holding things in," he confessed, seeing her face remain calm. "When we shift, the genes that were dormant become active. It allows us to change into our wolf forms but it also has other... benefits."

Skylar took in the bit of information, before nodding again.

"You've seen Sam and Emily? You see how they are around each other. That's because it's one of the things that go along with being able to shift. We could know the person before we shift and not have any feelings towards them but things change. Before Sam was with Emily, he was with Leah Clearwater. They were in love too, and we're planning to get married and start their life together when Sam shifted. He took one look at Emily and everything changed. He loved Leah still with all the years they were together, but he couldn't stay away from Emily. She tried to fight it too, she's related to Leah, but she gave in eventually."

"He just left?" Skylar asked, confused. "To be with Emily?"

Paul looked away, gathering his thoughts. "It's called imprinting. Rare as hell, but we've been lucky here. When Sam saw Emily, things changed. We still don't know why it happens, the elders all have different theories. There's a connections, so strong you can't stay away. A bond forms just by seeing them. Sam saw Emily and Jared's with Kim."

"You're telling me this because we... that's what is happening to us?" Skylar whispered.

His eyes widening and he shook his head rapidly. "It doesn't have to be romantic. If you don't want to be with me that way, I'll accept that without a problem. The last thing I want you to feel is pressured. I'll be there for you as a brother or your friend and be one hundred percent fine with that. I just want – I need – to see you, as whatever you want. But this connection means so much to me, and even if you don't realize it now it's going to like that for you. I'll do anything for you, okay? Please, please, don't feel pressured. I'll give you all the time in the world to think about this, to figure out what you need. Just let me be there for you, okay? That's all I want."

Skylar's mind was spinning at his speech, eyes unfocused as she replayed his words. Paul became more anxious the longer she sat there in silence, knee bouncing up and down.

Mouth opening and closing a few times, Skylar eventually nodded. "Okay."

"Okay?" Paul asked, confused.

A hint of a smile appeared on her face. "I mean, it's going to take some time to, like, really think about this. It's a lot at one time, you know? But, um, it explains a lot. Like a lot. It's kind of reassuring that this is normal with you all, and that there's knowledge behind it. But right now, I can't imagine trying to avoid you. It was scary at first, seeing all of you, but I don't want to stop seeing you."

Paul knew the relief showed on his face, and he laughed. "Oh, Skylar, you have no idea... No idea the weight that's off my shoulders. I didn't know when or how to tell you, didn't know how you'd take it. Thank you."

"You're thanking me?"

His free hand moved up to tuck back a piece of hair behind her ear, nodding. "Hearing about imprints earlier, I didn't want it. Being tied down to someone seemed unfair to both people but I don't even want to imagine being apart now. Even this early. Thank you for accepting all of this, dammit Skylar. I'm just so thankful for you. Even if you are a Swan."

"Wow," she muttered, backing up. "Wow. Low blow, dude."

"You're sister's middle name should be danger. It's bizarre what that girl can get herself into," he shrugged.

Skylar pursed her lips out. "Well, that girl is my twin so you better be careful with your words. Even if they are true."

Paul nodded back, but she could still see the smugness on his face. "So, Miss Swan, what do you want to do now?"

"Well, Mr. Lahote, the smart answer would be to start on my Calculus homework as it is due in two days, but I believe my stomach is going to argue so we can get some food."

He stood up, pulling her up as he still gripped her hand. "There's a diner on the edge of the line, but I have to warn you they don't like me."

"Why?" Skylar looked up, confused.

Walking towards the entrance, he bit his tongue. "Honestly, I don't know. They said I was 'rowdy and disruptive' to the other customers and mentioned that I had 'anger issues' but I think its bullshit. It's profiling, that's what it is."

"The thought of you being those dumbfounds me," she agreed. "You're like an angel."

"People these days are so dramatic."

Leaning against him, she nodded. "I know, it's ridiculous. Speaking of which, if we have to walk there I'm going to die of exhaustion. Please tell me you have a truck."

He couldn't help but make a face. "Jesus, Sky. Yes I have a truck."

"Here we go then. Oh, also I don't have any money so you're paying."