my fave 'quote' from this chapter
I reached the clearing just after Leah, panting like a steam train. I threw my self to the ground as we past the finishing line.
Still think you’re getting faster Embry? Leah thought tauntingly. I bared my teeth then turned to Seth, Leah’s younger brother.
“Impressive.” He grinned looking at the time on the stop watch. “Leah wins by a nose. 3 minutes 25 seconds for Leah and 3 minutes 30 for Embry!”
We were out in the forest messing around as we’d done every night for the last few months. There was no more trouble with vampires, so we were out of a job. Jake and Quil were always with Reneesme and Claire now, so it was just me, Seth and Leah.
Seth ran off into some nearby trees, and then reappeared as the gangly, sandy coloured wolf. He had the stop watch in his teeth and he threw it in my direction.
My turn. He thought seriously If you see a sandy coloured flash go by you, don’t worry Leah. It’s just me. He added playfully.
Leah rolled her eyes. I bounded off to the trees, and phased back into my human form. I pulled on the pair of cut off jeans that was mandatory for us to wear, and jogged back to the clearing. Even though I was used to it I still felt a little self concious being half naked. Leah and Seth were waiting expectantly, for me. I sat down on a rock in the middle of the clearing and fumbled with the stop watch. I finally found the reset button with some help from Seth and then began the count down, feeling a bit of a prat “Err…3…2…1…Go!” My voice cracked as I said ‘go’. No doubt Leah would give me hell for that later, saying my voice was finally breaking. I watched as Leah easily and with no effort over took Seth and created a big distance between them before they’d even got out the clearing. I chuckled as I heard the inevitable crash as Seth tripped on a root or something and went flying into some trees. He hadnt quite got the grace the rest of us had, yet.
Then I was alone. I’d been alone a lot recently, Jake and Quil; my best friends were always too busy with their imprintees, and when I’d hung out with Quil and Claire, it was just odd even a bit sickening to watch. Jake would be even worse to hang out with, as his imprintee lived with the Cullen’s. I sighed, watching the sun set behind the hills. The clouds behind it were stained blood red. I’d been the one to suggest to Seth that we, the remainders of the pack who hadn’t imprinted hung out. Not that I minded hanging out with Seth, it was just Leah. She was always so catty and if she wasn’t diluted by Seth’s easy going, care free attitude, she was just plain annoying. But I couldn’t help thinking that one day it would just be me and Leah hanging out. I knew Seth would imprint one day, he just never got out much to look at girls because he was hanging out with us losers. Leah thought she wouldn’t imprint because of her ‘girly stuff’, that I didn’t want to think about. And I defiantly wouldn’t. Jake had said once that his dad Billy had said he thought we imprinted to make stronger wolves. So that defiantly counted me out. I looked down at my self. I was tall and thin, my muscles were hardly noticable on my arms. I just looked lightly toned. I was average at everything wolfy, before Leah I had been the fastest but now I was just the average one. I combed my hand angrily threw my hair. I was growing it back out, but it took a long time. I heard Leah’s return, and within a few seconds she burst threw the undergrowth. I swiftly pressed the button on the stop watch. After what seemed like hours, Seth appeared, going flat out. He promptly tripped over his own paws and fell flat on his face. I stifled a laugh and looked at the stop watch.
“Err Leah you got 3 minutes 20 seconds and Seth 4 minutes 50 seconds.” I saw Seth himself laugh in the odd way that wolves did, and Leah howled happily. Both Leah and Seth disappeared to different places to phase back. Seth reappeared first, only having to pull on a pair of jeans. He smiled when he saw me. He too was growing his hair out again.
“I was so close to over taking Leah!” He joked before sitting on the ground next to me. “Hey Embry look!” He showed me his arm. The muscles on it looked slightly more pronounced. “Cool eh? I reckon I’m gonna give Jake a run for his money one day!” He said happily. I really liked Seth. He was always so confident and happy.
“You’re the lucky one!” I said bitterly. “I’m still a bean pole.”
“At least you look your age.” He smiled. “Did you know its nearly my birthday?” I smiled only half listening “Great huh? I get to have my birthday in the summer holiday.” He chatted excitedly. Then said proudly “I’ll be 16!”
“Oh cool.” I said flatly. Seth was silent for awhile.
Then he said hesitantly “Do you want to hang out on my birthday? I don’t really have any friends my age… not anymore. You, Quil, Jake and the Cullen’s are my only real friends.”
“Yeah sure!” I smiled suddenly “Hey you ever ridden a dirt bike?” Seth’s eyes lit up and he shook his head. “Well I’ve got one, and I’m sure Jake’ll lend me Bella’s old bike. There’s a great place to ride them behind my house.” Seth hung on my every word.
“That would be awe-some!” He gasped, nodding his head in approval. Just then Leah reappeared.
“Leah guess what Embry said!” Seth said excitedly “He said he’d take me out on his dirt bike.”
Leah snorted then mumbled something that sounded like “Y chromosome”. I blushed and Leah rolled her eyes.
“Seriously Embry you are so self conscious!” she rolled her eyes. That made me blush more. “Oh yeah did your voice actually beak this time?” she raised her eyebrow then turned her back to me. “C’mon Seth. Mom said she wanted us back early to day.” She yelled as she walked away.
Seth shrugged apologetically at me, before getting up and running after Leah. “See you Embry!” he waved.
“Yeah, bye Seth!” I yelled back. I heard Leah laugh. My voice always went an octave higher when I shouted. I blushed again; Leah was always so catty to me nowadays. Before I went below her radar but now she just picked on me. I sat for a few minutes not wanting to go back home. My mom was super strict, but also slightly out of control. Secretly I preferred being on my own. I’d always been the reserved, shy one never really fitting in perfectly. I was thick as a plank as my mom put it, shy around everyone apart from Jake, Quil and maybe Seth and I was the scandalous kid. The one whose dad was Quil senior, Billy Black or Joshua Uley, who were all married at the time before and after I was born. I was the one how might tear La push apart, if I ever found out who my Dad was. I watched the sun for awhile, and then got up to head back home. I realised that one small tear was trickling down my cheek. I wiped it away quickly, and mentally locked everything about my family back up in the corner of my brain I never used.
Hope you liked it :)
