【ｃｈａｐｔｅｒ　ｆｉｖｅ】

🀢 🀣 🀥 

"𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻                                            𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁"

🀢 🀣 🀥 

"Okay, Jackson, make sure you get The Notebook," the strawberry blonde and brunette slowly instructed in unison as Jackson pulled into the parking lot of the Blockbusters. 

Jackson groaned as he glared at the two girls, "Really? The Notebook?" he asked, upset. Ariel simply shrugged, if Lydia wanted to force her to bond with Jackson, then they would have to watch one of her favorite movies.

Although Ariel acted like she hated movie-bonding night, she secretly loved it. She would always get to wear stretch pants and one of Jackson's baggy sweatshirts, which the brunette thought was the most comfortable thing in the world. And after arguing with Jackson about the best movie, they would go back to his house and she would get to eat popcorn all night long while watching the movie she picked. The night always closes off with Jackson and Ariel crying together at the end of the movie, although both will deny it the next day, and then Lydia and her sister would head home and gossip the rest of the night.

Ariel had already gotten a baggy sweatshirt and stretch pants and knew the popcorn was waiting to be popped at Jackson's place. All she needed was the movie.

"Hoosiers is not only the best basketball movie ever," Jackson begins to persuade the young girl, "It is the best sports movie ever made," Jackson tells us as if that would convince us to watch it.

"No," Ariel pursed her lips.

"Ariel, I swear you're gonna like it," He sucked in his breath, trying to remain calm as he tried to persuade her to choose a different movie.

"No," The brunette smiled, showing her sassy self that she usually kept hidden in public, "I know you understand the notion of rejection," Ariel deadpanned.

"It's got Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper," He persuaded, looking at Lydia, instead of her sister. Jackson knew he only needed to convince one of the girls.

"No," She snapped, "When Ariel watches a movie with us, it is her pick."

"When we watch a movie alone, it's your pick," Jackson grumbled, glaring at Ariel from the rearview movie, although the opal-eyed girl was unfazed as she began to pick at her cuticles.

Lydia hummed, pulling out her phone so she could ignore Jackon's whining. Lydia laughed as she turned to face Ariel, showing her a text Danny sent her. Both of the girls giggled at his long story about how terrible his date was. 

Jackson sighs, 'Please. It is the best sports movie of all time."

Lydia and Ariel both look up from Lydia's phone with an annoyed expression since he had interrupted their text with Danny, "No," the girls say in unison.

"I am not watching the Notebook again," He yelled.

Lydia and Ariel gave each other a knowing look before smiling at Jackson.

A few moments later, Ariel hopped into the front seat, climbing over the console to take Jackson's seat as he walked into the video store to rent the notebook.

"We should honestly just buy it," Ariel mumbled, leaning back in the seat, "We watch it every other Sunday."

Lydia shrugged, "You always need to make sure a man is willing to pay for you," she advised me, fixing her lipstick with the rearview mirror.

Ariel scoffed at her sister's dramatics, deciding to look into the video store, noticing that the lights were flickering. Choosing to ignore it, she turned to her sister, who was taking her third selfie. Ariel sighed knowing they had already taken seven together before they arrived at the video store.

Unable to handle the boredom much longer, Ariel groaned, "What is taking so long?"

Lydia looked up from her phone, rolling her eyes at the brunette sitting next to her, "Get out and go get him if you are so impatient."

Following her sister's advice, Ariel got out of the car and walked into the store. The door jingled as she walked in, and turned to see Jackson at the back of the store looking at her with fearful eyes. Ignoring his reaction, Ariel began to look down the isles, "Jackson, what is taking you so long?"

Spotting the Notebook upfront, Ariel grabbed it, "It was right in the-"

Ariel gasped as Jackson roughly pulled her to him, covering her mouth with his hands. The Martin's eyes widen as she watched the boy next to her, "Wha-" Ariel tried to speak, but Jackson just pressed his hand in her mouth further, not trusting that they were alone.

"Shut it," The blonde boy hissed, looking around the store fervently. The lights begin to flicker as they both hear a noise from their right.

Jackson quickly pulled in the opposite direction; both of them ducking behind shelves as they try to avoid whatever was in the store.

Ariel tried to slow her frantic breathing, scared that whatever was with them could hear her heartbeat, which was thumping out of control. Jackson poked his head from behind one of the shelves to see if the coast was clear. Before he suddenly moved back and whispered, "Mountain lion?"

Before she could respond, a rumbling noise fills the room as Jackson pushed the petit girl out of the way. Ariel watched as the shelves began to fall down, trapping Jackson's lower half under the shelves.

"Oh my god, Jackson," the opal-eyed girl gasped, crawling over to him before Jackson worriedly looked up at the scared girl.

"Go, hide! Go!" Jackson ordered her before his eyes gravitated above the Martin. 

Ariel froze, hearing a growl just before she felt something moist fall down her spine. Trying to blink her tears away, Ariel moved her eyes up to look at the reflection from the poster, which revealed a large figure behind her. With a large gulp, Ariel sprinted over to the counter, jumping over the countertop just in time to see a huge hairy figure jump over her. The girl's eyes widened as she noticed it was about twice the size of a mountain lion and a hundred times scarier.

The last thing she would see before the window broke were glowing red eyes looking right at her before she did the only thing she could. Scream.

🀢 𝖆 🀥

I sat in the back of one of the ambulances that had parked in the lot after Lydia called the police. I wanted to go home, but the paramedics refused to let me. I couldn't even talk to Lydia right now because they said that she might trigger some newly formed PTSD from the incident.

It was the ridiculous notion ever, considering the fact that Lydia hasn't uttered a word since the incident. The only person who has been vocal throughout everything was Jackson. Ever since the first person arrived on the scene, he had been screaming at the top of his lungs. First, it was that nobody was helping us after the mountain lion attacked. Then it was that he wasn't answering questions. Now it was that they wouldn't let us leave.

I smiled at one of the paramedics who was cleaning the cuts that I had received from the window shattering. He said that overall I would be fine but may face some mental trauma.

"Thanks," I spoke to the paramedic once he was done. He nodded before giving me a once over one more time, "Tell me if you begin to feel pain in any other areas."

The paramedic left me alone. I began to look at the video store, feeling a wave of fear rush through me as the memory of the monstrous creature overtakes my vision. 'It was a mountain lion, Ariel.'

"Are you alright?" A middle-aged man asks me. He was wearing a sheriff's uniform and looked familiar. My mouth opens, but no words come out.

"My name's Sheriff Stilinksi," the man offered, holding out his hand for me to shake. I smile at him taking his hand in my own, "I was wondering if you could tell me what happened here tonight."

"You must be Stiles's dad," I nod, trying to avoid the topic long enough to formulate a story that I would like to tell others. One that won't traumatize me.

Mr. Stilinski gives me a strange look before looking back at his car, "You know my son," he winces as if he couldn't believe that I would know Stiles, "You are friends with Stiles Stilinski?"

I nod at the man in front of me with a small smile, "Yes, sir. He has been helping me study."

Mr. Stilinksi nods his head with a thoughtful expression before looking back to his notebook, "Right, so, can you tell me what happened?"

I nod, "I saw a shadow, it was dark but looked like a mountain lion. Jackson made us hide behind the shelves, and he pushed me out the way before they fell, and then I hid behind the counter. The last thing I saw was the mountain lion jumping over me and through the glass. Then I screamed, and before I knew it, the police had come. That is all I can remember."

Mr. Stilinski sighed, "Thank you," he nods at me, closing his book, "Are you feeling okay?"

I nod my head with a small smile that didn't reach my eyes, "I'm good."

"Oh, Woah, is that a dead body?" I heard Stile's voice. I look behind Mr. Stilinksi to see Stiles pointing to the dead body of the video store worker. Whatever had been here had killed him before we came.

"Stiles? What the hell are you doing here? I told you to stay in the car," His dad yells, before he looks at his son with an annoyed expression.

"Ariel?" Stiles said, noticing me.

"What did he do to you?" He said, rushing up to me, carefully examining the small cuts on my face.

Mr. Stilinski sighs, looking at his son before shaking his head and walking away. Stiles watches his dad leave before he turns back to me, "Wh-what the hell happened in there? Are you okay? Well, I mean, obviously not. You were cut by glass. I mean- mean like, do you feel okay?"

I look up at Stiles. He was so kind and thoughtful. Nobody had actually asked me how I was feeling through all of this other than him. Sure, people had asked if I was okay, but they meant my injuries, not my feelings.

The question may have seemed to be a simple yes or no question, but once I truly thought about it, I couldn't help the tears that began to stream down my face. I shook my head because I was the furthest thing from okay.

The tear began to cloud my vision, so I didn't see when Stiles had moved to sit next to me, pulling me into his arms, "Shh. It's okay, it's alright. I got you, you're with me now. You're safe."

I nod my head as I bury my face in his chest, trying to stop sniffling.

I sniffled, "It was - it was."

"Shh. Let's not worry about that right now," He mumbled into my hair. I begin blubbering as I try to explain to him what I had really seen. I had to tell him.

I wipe my eyes as I look up at him. I blush when I realize that I probably looked crazy with my mascara streaking down my face and my eyes red. Definitely not perfect.

'Thank goodness that Lydia can't see me.'

I frown, "Stiles?"

"Yeah?" He asked me softly, wiping a stray tear from my cheek.

"Do you think that I am pretty?" I whisper, avoiding his gaze as I look down at my nails, fiddling with my fingers. I was scared of his answer because I knew that I wasn't the most gorgeous girl at school, but I always wondered if I was pretty.

Lydia was pretty, and so was Allison. Maybe I just liked to torture myself by being with pretty people.

"What? No. You're more than pretty. You are extremely beautiful. I mean... yeah, I think - I-I think you're beautiful," Stiles told me, before awkwardly scratching the back of his head.

"I shake my head. I am definitely not beautiful," I sniff, "I have cloudy eyes and dull brown hair that makes me look boring. And I'm short," I grumble.

I feel Stiles silently laugh at my comment, making me feel worse, "What? Ariel, you are kidding! Your hair is this shade of chocolate brown that always looks so soft, and it's naturally wavy with light curls. Your eyes are a blue-green opal with gold flecks around the cornea, and I swear they look just like the ocean during sunset. Okay. So never think you aren't beautiful. You are the prettiest person that I know, and I can't think of any reason why you wouldn't think the same" He started explaining. I can't help but smile as I listen to him go on about all the reasons that I was pretty. There was no guy out there who could possibly be like Stiles. He was amazing.

"And your shortness is adorable, not to mention kinda hot, but-err. Anyway, even if you were ugly, which you most definitely are not, you are beautiful inside as well, Ariel," Stiles murmured as he looked into my eyes. I blush to realize how close we were, "You are the sweetest, most thoughtful person I know. You see the best in everyone, and you help them see that too. So don't ever doubt that you are beautiful, Ariel, because I am here to tell you that is the furthest thing from the truth."

"How do you know all of that?" I ask him, amusedly curious on how a guy I have only known for a month could know all this information about me. Stiles is amazing. I am so glad I have him as a friend.

"I-I, um..." He stammered, and I felt his heartbeat begin to increase at an unhealthy pace, causing me to place my hand over his chest.

"Wow," I smile before I notice that his breathing is also getting worse. I quickly move to face Stiles better, placing my hands on the side of his face, "Wait. Hey, Stiles, let's calm down. Shh," I begin to stroke his cheek, to calm him down, "Calm down."

Stiles nods at me as his heart rate begins to slow down a little bit. I send him a worried smile, "Don't scare me like that," I sigh, letting out a deep breath that I didn't know I was holding. 

🀢 𝖆 🀥 

The next day, I decided to go to school, knowing that the more days I missed, the harder it would be to convince people that I wasn't affected by the incident, which was a lie.

On a positive note, Lydia was staying at home, which meant that I got to wear my grey vans with my favorite grey top. Don't get me wrong, I love heels, but I have needed a break. I paired off the cute outfit with a piece of grey ribbon that I tied in my hair.

The first thing I did when I arrived at school was run over to my locker, where I knew Allison would be. The moment she saw me, she pulled me into a hug.

"I heard what happened," Allison said as she pulled away, "Are you okay?"

I nod my head, knowing that all my cuts had been covered with makeup, "I'm fine, and so is Lydia. she just chose to stay home today."

Allison nodded, "Yeah, she texted me. Are you sure that you are okay?"

"Let's not talk about that," I smile at Allison before jumping in excitement, "Happy Birthday, Allison."

"Shh," Allison shushed me, looking around before ducking down to make sure nobody noticed her, "I don't want anyone to know."

I furrow my eyebrows, "Why not? It isn't every day that someone turns sixteen."

Allison shushes me again before muttering, "That's the thing. I am not sixteen."

I give her an odd look, "Then how old are you?"

Allison bit her lip before sadly answering, "Seventeen."

I shrug my shoulders, before nodding, "And you don't want people to know that you were held back."

Allison nods, before quickly tolling me, "Only because I traveled so much. Not anything else.

I nod at her since that was what I figured. Shaking my head, I smile at her, "Well, then I have two gifts for you."

Allison smiles at me, shaking her head, "You didn't have to get me anything."

I scoff, "That is the most ridiculous thing that I think I have heard you say. You are my best friend, of course, I had to get you something."

I smile at her, "Now my first gift to you," I giggle as I wave my hands in front of her face, "is knowledge."

Allison gives me a confused look before laughing, "You are weird," I shrugged before saying, "Well, before you go and feel bad about being seventeen, I will tell you a secret. One that nobody knows. Not even Danny," I tell her, "And Danny knows my secrets before I know them," I grumble to myself.

Allison raises her eyebrow before I continue, "I am fifteen."

Allison gives me a strange look, "Yeah, so, you and Lydia will turn sixteen later this year."

I shake my head, biting my lip, "No, I mean that I just turned fifteen this summer."

Allison looks at me before her eyes widen, "You skipped a grade?"

I nodded before rushing, "But you can't tell anyone how old we are because then people would know that I skipped a grade, and that is just as scary for me as it is for you."

Allison pauses, "Wait what do you mean that just you are fifteen. That would mean that..."

I nod my head as I bit my lip, "Lydia and I aren't twins. We just say we are because I skipped a grade level so young and we have always been so close..."

Allison's eyes widen in shock before she scoffs, "I doubt people would treat you differently if they knew you were smart or younger."

I shake my head, not choosing to acknowledge the fact, "Anyway, here is your original gift," I giggle, handing her a small box.

Allison smiled at me as she opened the small box to reveal a simple silver locket with a diamond gemstone set at the top. Inside I had put a picture that we had taken together with Lydia.

I smile, "I know it is super cliche and kinda childish," I begin as I pull out my necklace, which was the same thing except my gemstone was pink, "But I just want you to know that how important you are to me. Plus I found these at an antique shop, one day, and the curator says there are only three of a kind. Lydia has a green stone."

Allison's eyes began to line with tears as I tried to blink back the small tears that were beginning to form in my own eyes, "Happy Birthday, Ali."

We both laugh before we pull each other into a tight hug. "This is the best gift ever," Alison said as she squeezed me tighter, "Thank you so much, Ariel."

I smile, noticing Scott walk up to us, "I gotta go. See you later," I say as I pull away, moving my grey purse closer to my body as I walk to my first class.

I walk into class. All eyes were on me, causing me to duck my head and take a seat beside Danny.

"Are you okay," Danny whispered, turning to look at me.

I smile at him, sending him a slight nod before looking back to my book. Mr. Harris walks up to me, "Hey, Ariel. If you need to leave early for any reason, let me know," I smiled, murmuring a small thank you before focusing on my material.

"You haven't said a word. Has to be an Ariel Martin record?" Danny joked, trying to make me feel better. I smile at him but can't manage to start a conversation.

Everything was okay until I walked into class. I don't know if I can pretend to be fine for six hours.

I sigh, dropping my pencil on the table, "I spoke to Allison this morning. That's it."

"Why didn't you stay at home?" Danny whispered, not bothering to look at Mr. Harris's class.

I shrug, "I don't know."

"Ariel," Danny pushed. Why does he have to know everything? I mean can't he just let me write my notes.

I sighed, "I don't want people to think I am delicate."

"First off, you are delicate. I swear you are like a fairy," Danny rolled his eyes, "And second, everyone would understand why you missed school."

I shake my head, "No way. If I miss class, that means that I can't handle what happened to me last night. I need to keep up my image."

"Everyone, start reading Chapter Nine," Mr. Harris ordered.

"Are you sure you don't want to leave?" Danny asked me again.

I glare at him, "Danny," I scold him causing him to shrug.

"I'm just saying that I would want to leave."

I shrug, "Well, I don't."

"You do."

"I don't," I say more firmly.

"Do to."

"Do not."

"Do to."

"Danny, just let it go," I frown, knowing that he would be able to convince me to go home eventually. He knew me too well.

"Mr. Stilinski, try putting the highlighter down between paragraphs. It's chemistry, not a coloring book," I look up and see Stiles holding the highlighter cap in his mouth looking at Mr. Harris with an innocent expression.

I unconsciously grin at the Stilinksi, who had spit out his cap before he caught it with his hand.

"Hey, Ariel, Can I ask you a question?" Stiles asked me.

"I would rather not," I muttered, not in the mood to talk about what happened last night.

"Um, did Lydia come?" He asked. I guess that was his kind way of telling me that he was going to ask me anyway.

I sigh, clenching my eyes shut, "No," I whispered.

"Can I ask you another question?" Stiles asked.

I sighed, "Fine."

"What happened yesterday?" Stiles asked.

"Um, I - I," My hands started shaking as my breath began to become uneven. The image of the black-haired beast filling my vision. Not here. Not now.

Danny took notice and turned to Stiles with a pissed off expression, "Dude, I think you should stop with the questions."

Stiles sighed before turning to look at Danny, "Well?"

"Jackson wouldn't tell me," Danny looked down.

"But he's your best friend," Danny looked back to glare at Stiles before turning back to his work, "One more question," Stiles looked at him.

"What?" Danny growled.

"Do you find me attractive?" Stiles asked, causing me to giggle. He is unbelievable.

Stiles leaned forward, trying to get a better look at Danny's expression causing him to fall down to the ground, attempting to grip on Danny's chair for support.

My eyes widened as I watched him nearly fall flat on his face. I turn back to look at Danny, "He is so weird."

"But you like him," Danny whispered. My eyes widened as I looked at the boy next to me.

"Pfft," I scoff, trying to remain calm, "As if," I laugh, before shaking my head, "I don't like him."

"You definitely like him, sprit," Danny said, looking down at Stiles, who was still on the floor.

I quickly shush him before checking to make sure Stiles couldn't hear. I lean toward Danny before biting my lip, "I'm not saying that I like him...But if I did, I would rather you keep it a secret," I mutter.

Danny smirks, "Your secret is safe with me, little one. I think you two would be cute, though."

I shake my head with a small smile on my face, opening my notebook to answer the textbook questions. I freeze the moment I see the page that I turned to. It was the exact same page that I had sketched that terrifying image.

'It looked familiar,' I thought to myself, tilting my head to get a better look at the image before I froze—the alpha.

I shake my head, trying to forget about the strange thoughts that were bombarding my brain too fast for me to understand any of it. The haunting image of the creature from last night flits in my head before it remains.

"I shouldn't have come here," I stumble out of my seats, barely grabbing all of my things before I ran to the door.

"Ms. Martin, are you feeling alright?" Mr. Harris asked me, but my breathing was too out of control for me to answer. The only thing that I could comprehend right now was the door and me walking through it.

The moment I reach the main hallway, I am hit with a wave of nausea. I begin stumbling into the lockers, dropping the books in my hand. I feel my hands begin to shake and look down as my vision starts to become hazy.

Blinking away the tears that were filling my eyes, I trip over my feet, falling onto the ground. Letting go of everything else that I was still holding onto as I leaned my back on the lockers.

I began to pull at my hair, trying to stop myself from freaking out.

I moved my head back as I gasped for air, my chest tightening. The only thing I could hear was the sound of my heart thumping out of my chest before someone broke through the chaos.

"Ariel?" I heard Stiles's voice, which sounded like an echo. I try to ignore the pounding in my head as his voice became clearer.

"Hey, shh. Look at me, Ariel, look at me," I felt him hold my face, trying to coax my eyes open by gently stroking my cheek.

I forced myself to open my eyes and look right into his soft caramel eyes.

I felt my breathing begin to calm down a bit as I focused on Stiles. Just Stiles.

"Ariel, slow breathing," He instructed, taking deep breaths in and out to help me.

I try to follow him, but it only makes my breathing worse as I clench my eyes shut, "I can't - I can't do it," I say, sounding more shrill than usual.

"Hey, no, look, Ariel, look at me," I started crying harder, as I tried to focus on Stiles. I brought my shaking hands to my chest, trying to calm down.

As I tried to calm my breathing, I felt Stiles's minty breath hit my nose before he took me by surprise as he pressed his lips to mine. I freeze, feeling his lips gently move against my own, making me hold my breath, as I relished in the soft feel of his lips on my own. I sigh into the kiss before kissing back or at least attempting to kiss back.

This was my first kiss.

In the middle of a high school hallway, during my panic attack, right after the start of Chemistry class. My face was puffy, my eyes were red, and I was sure my hair was a mess.

But none of that seemed to matter as Stiles gently stroked my cheek with his thumb, kissing me like I was the most important being in the world. It was perfect in every name of the word. I was kissing a nice boy who cared enough to leave class to check on me and stop me from having a panic attack.

We both pulled away to catch out-breath. I couldn't help but smile as I looked at the adorable boy in front of me, whose eyes were still closed.

I look at him in awe, realizing that I wasn't anxious anymore, "How did you - how did you do that?" I asked him.

Stiles's eyes fluttered open before he looked at me with a dumbfound expression, "I - I read somewhere that - that when you - that when you hold your breath it - it helps with a panic - panic attack and when I kissed you, you held your breath," He told me, blushing as he realized how close we still were.

I gulp realizing that the fluttering feeling in my stomach wasn't anxiety about last night but more anxiety about Stiles. I liked Stiles Stilinksi. 

"That's smart," I nod at him, nervously looking down at my fingers. I bite my lip, "Do you have to go?"

Stiles nodded at me before he looked down the hallway, "I should probably go," Stiles looked back at me, "Are you alright?"

"I guess yeah," I fiddled with my fingers, trying to control my blush.

"Bye, Ariel," Stiles said before he got up.

"Bye, Stilinski," I waved back as he walked away.

🀢 𝖘 🀥

I watched Ariel run out of the classroom. I noticed her that her hands were shaking, and knew that something was wrong.

"Ms. Martin, are you feeling alright?" Mr. Harris asked her, but she didn't respond and just walked out of the room. Fuck. She was having a damn panic attack.

I instantly raise my hand as Ariel walks out of the room, "Yes, Mr. Stilinski?" Harris called out.

"May I use the bathroom, please?" I questioned him before he sent me a glare.

"Hurry," I nod, standing up before quickly walking out the classroom.

I rush down the hall looking for the strawberry blonde girl. I paused when I heard the sound of sniffling coming from one of the main hallways.

"Ariel?" I questioned before I looked down to see a blur of red and grey. Ariel was leaning on the lockers of the main hallway having a major panic attack.

I ran up to her, falling on my knees and quickly grabbing her face, "Hey, shh. Look at me, Ariel, look at me," I begin stroking her cheek to distract her.

She opens her eyes, and I am welcomed with her gorgeous eyes. The blue-green shade that nearly faded into a cloudy mixture was shining back at me, the gold flecks causing her eyes to look almost heavenly. They radiated with so much innocence and kindness, although I knew that she was capable of so much more than one would believe.

"Ariel, slow breathing," I tried to help her by showing her what to do, but that seemed to only make things worse. Oh my god.

"I can't - I can't do it," Ariel cried, frowning at me.

"Hey, no, look, Ariel, look at me," I try to convince her, but she only cries harder. The sight of her looking so hurt almost broke my heart. The sweet girl in front of me should never have to get through anything like this. I know from experience that it is hell.

I try to think of something, anything that would calm her down. I remember reading once that if you hold your breath, it would stop your panic attack. I never tried it personally, but I was desperate to help out Ariel.

If I kissed her... she would have to hold her breath. I didn't hesitate to press my lips on hers as I kissed her. I can't believe this. I was kissing my crush, the girl I have liked for years.

I began to feel insecure when she didn't kiss me back. I had only kissed one girl before, and it was in the eighth grade when we played seven seconds in heaven. It was super awkward and didn't exactly prepare me to become the world's best kisser.

I was about to pull away when she began to kiss me back. Holy shit. Ariel fricking Martin is kissing me.

When we pulled away, I couldn't help but appreciate the sight in front of me. Ariel was beautiful, even after crying, she was just as pretty as when I first laid eyes on her at the beginning of the year.

Ariel bit her lips, which were slightly swollen from our kiss, "How did you - how did you do that?"

I blushed, licking my lips, "I - I read somewhere that - that when you - that when you hold your breath it - it helps with a panic - panic attack and when I kissed you, you held your breath."

Ariel looked at me before she nodded her head, "That's smart," she nodded before looking down at her fingers, "Do you have to go?"

I looked at her for a second not understanding what she was talking about before I realized that I was still in class, I nodded looking at the door to make sure Mr. Harris wasn't looking for me, "I should probably go," I turn back to check on her, "Are you alright?"

"I guess yeah," Ariel said, fiddling with her fingers.

"Bye, Ariel," I said before walking away.

🀢 🀣 🀥

After her panic attack,  Ariel went home, realizing that she would do better at home than at school. After towel drying her hair, she put on a pink pajama top and matching boyshorts, a gift from Lydia last Christmas. Usually, the brunette would wear something that was less revealing, but since nobody was home except for Lydia and her mom, she figured she was safe.

Noticing a few pills next to a glass of water on her dresser. Ariel decided to take them, aware of the effects, swallowing a big gulp of water. The only thing she wanted right now was to forget about the last night. She figured her mom must have left the pills for her when she was in the shower so she didn't think anything bad would happen from taking them.

Lying on her bed, she turned on the old television that she had in my room. Lydia made fun of her for keeping it, but she thought it went well with the design of the room and liked the feeling of having an old tv. 

The brunette was watching old reruns of Friends, which seemed funnier than usual when she heard a knock on my door.

turning over to look over at her mom, she smiled giddily at her, "Yes?"

"Someone is here to see you," My mother said in a formal tone, causing Ariel to sit up and respond in a drunken British accent, "Well then we must let him in," a Cheshire grin fell onto Ariel's lips as she fell back on her bed, rolling herself into the pillows. She didn't realize how the pills had affected her.

Natalie Martin gave her daughter a loving gaze, knowing that she would be a handful on her medication, "He says his name is Stiles."

The tanned girl laughed at the strange word, thinking 'Who would name their son Stiles?', "What the hell is a Stiles," Ariel asked boredly, looking back at her pink nails.

Ariel's mom just laughed lightly, brushing off her daughter's rudeness, "She took a little something to ease her nerves," Natalie decided to explain to the kind boy who came to visit her daughter, "You can go in." 

'So that is a Stiles,' Ariel noted, looking at the boy who had stolen her first kiss, 'Bigger than I imagined.'

"Hey, what're you doing here?" Ariel asked him, not to looking away from the television.

Stiles slowly walked in, committing the girl's room to memory in hopes of finding anything to impress her later on. His eyes froze noticing her outfit, which revealed more skin than he had mentally prepared himself for. Looking up at the ceiling, Stiles tried to focus on the main goal of his visit.

"I wanted to see you," Stiles said with a small smile, moving a brown teddy bear out of the way, "Are you okay?" He asked Ariel, genuinely concerned.

Ariel scoffed with a small smile, "I will be once you apologize to Brody for taking his spot."

Stiles looked at the adorable girl, confused before he followed her line of sight to the stuffed bear, "Oh. Brody," Stiles said before he smiled, grabbing the bear, "I didn't think you still had him," Stiles laugh.

Ariel furrowed her eyebrows as he continued, "From kindergarten, right? You won him in the talent show."

Squinting her eyes, Ariel watched him suspiciously, like a child who was learning about a new invention, "Yes...How do you know that."

Stiles gave her an odd look, "We have been going to the same school since pre-school."

"Oh," Ariel said, feeling guilty for not recognizing him until this year. She quickly snatched Brody away from Stiles, hugging him to her chest.

Stiles smiled as he looked around her room, noticing the girly vintage surfer vibe Ariel had, "Cool room."

Ariel nodded her head before bluntly saying, "Why are you here?"

Stiles looked at her, "I wanted to check on you."

Ariel giggled, "I'm perfect, silly. Haven't you heard," the brunette frowned before she giggles dying down, "I can never do anything wrong."

Stiles frowned noticing the small hint of sadness in her voice before he cleared his throat, "Um, okay. Can you tell me what happened?"

Ariel nodded her head, "Rachel was going on a date with Paolo, her boyfriend, which really upset Ross because he likes her," the brunette informed him pointing to the characters on the screen, "But they don't really seem like they would fit as a couple because she is like the princess and he is a nerd, but they do. Trust me," the opal-eyed girl sigh, falling back onto her pillows, "I think it is so romantic."

Stiles watched Ariel in amusement before he grabbed the pills bottle next to the remote, "Huh. I bet you can't say, uh, 'I saw Suzy sitting in a shoeshine shop' ten times fast," He said, grinning.

Ariel scoffed, wanting to prove him wrong, smirking at him, "I saw shuzy - I shaw - I saw," she tried again before she slumped on her mattress, thinking about what she had seen a few hours before, "I saw."

"Wait what? Ariel, what did you see?" Stiles asked her.

"Something," she dazedly said.

"Something like what, Ariel?" Stiles pressed on.

"Like a mountain lion?" Ariel asked Brody, who didn't respond. She frowned grumbling to her self about how he never responds.

Ariel nodded her head, choosing to believe what the police told her rather tan thinking about the monster she had really seen, "A mountain lion."

"Are you sure you saw a mountain lion, or are you saying that because that's what the police told you?" Stiles asked.

"A mountain lion," Ariel repeated, trying not to think about what else it could be.

Stiles grabs Brody before holding the bear in front of her, "What's this?"

Ariel glared at him before childishly responding, "You manhandling, Brody."

Stiles rolled his eyes, "But what is it?"

Ariel shrugged before replying, "A mountain lion?"

Right after answering, she burst into giggled watching Stiles's dejected expression. The action caused her to fall down on the bed, causing her head to land into Stiles's lap. 

The boy froze, feeling his crush giggle into his lap. Trying to calm himself, he let out a strain of curse words, gripping onto the bed.

Ariel passed out seconds after.

🀢 🀣 🀥

"Hello, Coach. I'm Natalie Martin, Ariel, and Lydia's mom. That's their father," Natalie Martin said, glaring at her ex-husband. Nobody was happy to be in the same room together at the moment. Ariel was mad because her mom allowed her to embarrass herself in front of Stiles, which seemed to upset the brunette. Natalie was upset because she was stuck with her cheating husband. Ariel's father was upset because he was reminded that he lost custody of his daughter. And Coach Finstock was upset because they ran out of his favorite beer at the gas station next to his house.

"Yes, Ariel, I don't know what to say," Coach stated, grabbing a manila file from the pile on his desk.

"What did she do?" Jeffery Martin eagerly asked. The father was desperate to have his daughter back as she was an asset to his advertisement job. His boss was always in need of models and he would gladly offer Ariel for the positions, not caring to ask for her opinion. And it would piss off his ex-wife which would be a plus.

Ariel sighed, staring at the linoleum flooring. She knew her parents were having a battle for the best ex award but, she wished they didn't have to be so obvious about it. After all the rules were simple: if Ariel were to let her grades drop or display poor student achievement. then her dad could yank her out and drag her back to Canada.

"What did she not do?" Coach scoffed, reading the brunette's file in shock. The coach had always liked the young girl but, did not realize how impressive she was.

"What do you mean?" Natalie asked giving Ariel a worried look. Ariel was the good child in the family, so the reaction from her faculty advisor made her scared.

"Your daughter...is my number one student. Ariel's AP classes push her grade above a 5.0; I can honestly say she is one of the most academically advanced students I have ever had. She displays wonderful social skills and doesn't seem to have a problem making friends. A true leader. She excels in all departments at school: theater, chorus, drawing, band, and creative writing. The only field I haven't seen her in is athletics, but she does volunteer to help me with lacrosse," Coach babbles.

"She did all of that?" Jeff scoffed, not bothering to notice the hurt expression on Ariel's face that she hid with a small scowl. Natalie ignored her husband, who had begun to laugh as she squeezed Ariel's shoulders reassuringly, "Great job, sweetie."

"Come on, Nat," Ariel's father said, calming down, "This man is pulling our leg," he said before turning back the Coach Finstock with a more serious expression on, "Okay but, what is it, really? Behavioral issues? Low grades?"

Natalie scoffed, not bothering to look at her poor excuse of an ex-husband, "I didn't force her to leave the country with some whore. As if that wouldn't warp a fifteen-year-old girl," my mom smiled at Coach, as if expecting him to agree with her.

Ariel had heard enough, knowing that her parents would begin to bicker. Mouthing sorry to Coach, she opal-eyed girl got out of her seat and walked out of the room. 

The minute Ariel got outside, she heard something inhuman growl. Ariel felt her body freeze up as she thought back to the event that had occurred the previous night. She immediately began running to the car, pulling out the keys in her hand that she had taken from her mom.

Ariel had already unlocked the car and was only a few feet away when she saw Sherriff Stilinksi trying to help people to safety. Her eyes darted to the car, as she tried to ignore the terrible feeling in her gut. 

A wave of guilt hit her as she ran towards Sherriff, forgetting about the keys in her hand as she ran towards him.

The blaring of the horns as Ariel pushed the Sherriff out of the way, caused the brunette to freeze she was flooded with a bright flash of light.