Cats and Dogs

[Jacob]

Jake didn’t know what was wrong with him, he was currently pacing back and forth in his backyard and had been doing so since he left his pack in order to return home but he was no closer to discovering why his emotions were all over the place.

One minute he was angry, then he was sad, then happy, then afraid, then jealous, then loving, they switched so frequently that Jacob was having a hard time remembering his own name. The fact he was able to continue his walking was a small miracle in itself.

“Jake!” he heard Sam’s voice only moments before his pack rounded the corner of his house. “What are you doing back here?” The shape shifter’s vision took on a red tint as he was filled with a hatred for the older boy that would have made Hitler sick if he had experienced it.

“Get the fuck off my property!” He screamed and the moment the last word left his mouth, Jake’s eyes began to water. “I’m so sorry, Sam. I didn’t mean that.” The wolf started sobbing and his pack traded worried glances before walking up to the boy who was now sitting on the ground with his head on his knees and crying uncontrollably.

“What’s the matter?” asked Jared. He was the only one brave enough to bend down next to his friend but when Jacob looked up at him, he started to rethink his decision. The emotionally unstable werewolf’s eyes were filled with anger and Jared immediately backed up, just barely managing to stay upright when he tripped over a rock.

“Don’t you dare ask me that!” Jake yelled and made a move to get up before slumping back down onto the hard packed earth. “Please stay away from me,” he whimpered when Paul tried to reach out to lay a hand on his shoulder.

“Uh… Jake, are you okay?” asked Sam and was reward with a glare that sent shivers down his spine and would more than likely give him nightmares for months.

“Of course I’m not alright! I feel like Jasper!” This time Jake’s emotions didn’t immediately shift and he managed to stand up and was just about to wrap his hands around the alpha’s throat when he was suddenly hit by a pang of regret.

“I shouldn’t take out my anger on you guys; it’s not your fault.” He said calmly and started to explain what was happening before another round of anger or hatred washed over him. “My emotions are everywhere right now,” he whispered.

“What happened to you?” asked Embry and Jacob looked up from the very fascinating dirt, making Embry flinch back in fear.

“Like you care!” Jake screamed. “You just want me out of the picture so you can have MY imprint!” He grabbed his friend by the shoulders, intent on shaking him until he felt better but instead pulled him into a hug.

“I’m sorry, Em.” The now frightening boy whispered, his words did nothing to calm Embry who still wanted to run as far away as he possibly could before hiding under a rock. (A big rock.) “You’re my best friend I shouldn’t treat you like that.”

“It’s okay Jake. Does this emotional crisis have anything to do with you suddenly reappearing?” Embry didn’t know if asking that was a good idea or not. He had just said whatever came to mind, so he was happy when Quil pulled him away from Jake just as his rage took over.

“No, it’s that bitch Alai!” Jacob ranted, causing his pack to back away a few feet. “I can’t even go visit a friend for a few weeks without her fucking up my head!” Sam was the only one in their group to have experienced the pull of the imprint but even he had never felt anything like what Jake apparently was.

“But she is really pretty, isn’t she?” The emotional nutcase sighed with a small smile playing at his lips. “I’ve never met a girl that use sarcasm as a weapon before her.” Paul had to bite his lip to keep from laughing at the faraway look on his friend’s face.

“How about we go see her,” offered Paul. If being away from the girl was causing him to become emotionally unstable then the only cure he could think of was for Jake to be around her.

“Good idea,” Jacob said dreamily and allowed his pack to pull him in the direction of Alaivera’s home. “Get your hands off me!” He screamed after a few moments. Jake fought desperately to get away from his friends but they all had a good grip on his arms and no matter how hard he tired, he couldn’t find a way out of their clutches.

“I love you guys,” whispered Jake after he was suddenly filled with a simply lovable feeling.

“We love you too, Jake.” Said Quil, “but seriously, don’t talk.” If he managed to keep his mouth shut then maybe the pack wouldn’t kill Jake before they reached their destination.

[Alaivera]

“You could be so pretty if you actually put some effort into your appearance.” I said as I started to dry my blonde hair with a white, fluffy towel. Leah was sitting on the platform I used as a bed and simply stared at me as if I had three heads after I had spoken.

“Alai, did you slip and hit your head in the shower?” She asked without a single hint that she was joking. “Out of all the words someone could use to describe me, ‘pretty’ is not one of them.” I stopped my slightly obsessive drying of my hair and gaped at the Native American girl a few feet above me.

“Get your sorry ass down here right now!” I ordered and pointed to a chair near the window before hurling my towel in the direction of the bathroom, not really caring if it made it there or not. I had other things to worry about, like the apparent low self esteem that my almost friend had.

“What are you going to do to me?” asked Leah as she jumped down and walked over to the chair I had pointed to. She looked like she wanted to run away at the speed of light and I truly didn’t feel that reaction was necessary.

“Nothing. Now sit there and keep your mouth closed.” I ordered as I retrieved a bowl of water from the bathroom, laughing softly to myself when I noticed the sad looking towel on the floor next to the sink. I could have picked it up but I lack the ability to multitask with liquids in my hands, so it remained in its current location.

“What are you doing?” Leah asked as I set the bowl on the desk and turned to look at her with the sweetest smile I could muster plastered on my face.

“Two things,” I told her and held up two fingers so there was no mistaking my statement. “Brush your hair and wash your face. That’s it, I promise.” The girl didn’t look happy about this but didn’t scream and jump out my window whenever I started working, I took that as a good sign.

[Jacob]

“I don’t care why you’re doing this, get your hands off of me!” Jake screamed when the pack arrived at Alai’s house and knocked on the bright red door.

“Calm down,” ordered Sam and the younger shape shifter went limp in their arms before starting to cry for the seventh time since they had dragged him away from his backyard.

“I’m just so confused,” he sobbed. “Nothing’s like it’s supposed to be.” Seth patted the boy’s back reassuringly just as Alaivera opened the door. Her usually blonde hair was several shades darker due to the water that was still dripping from its ends and for the first time since Jake met her, she was dressed more for comfort than anything else.

“What’s wrong with him?” she asked and was immediately pulled into a hug by an emotional Jacob.

“I missed you so much,” he sobbed into her shoulder. “I’m so sorry I was a jealous brat. I’m not even dating you, I had no right to overreact like that.” If Jake was in his normal state of mind, he would have laughed in the face of anyone that told him he would have been hugging the blonde psychopath.

“I hate having to repeat myself, so is anyone going to answer my earlier question?” Alai asked as she tried unsuccessfully to pry the werewolf’s arms from around her waist.

“His emotions are all over the place right now, he says it’s all your fault.” Answered Paul, and that statement earned him a blue-eyed glare and a hiss that sounded distinctively feline.

“Sorry, reflex,” Alai apologized and both she and Embry let out a sigh of relief when no one seemed too suspicious of the strange sound.

“Hey, who’s here?” asked Leah as she walked down the stairs. Jake was too preoccupied with sobbing into his imprint’s shirt to look up, but the other boys did and when he heard the sharp intake of breath from behind him, the shape shifter raised his head to see Leah –well he thought it was Leah.

Her hair was brushed, practically screaming to be touched and her face was clear of the constant smudges of dirt which made her skin practically glow. Yes, she looked good; yes, Jake thought any man would bow down at her feet in attempt to get her to notice them; and yes, he was the one man that wouldn’t. She was pretty, but the blonde his arms were currently wrapped around was so much more than that. Later he would blame what happened next on that last sentence.

“Who the hell do you think you are!” he yelled, pulling away from the girl and glaring down at her. “Is your need for everything to be perfect so strong that you can’t even keep yourself from interfering in the lives of other people?!” Jake didn’t mean a word of the rant that was flowing from his mouth like water from a tap, but he couldn’t find the will to silence himself.

“You just have to control everything don’t you!” he continued even though his friends were trying to shut him up. “It doesn’t matter if people want your help or not, you just have to fuck up their lives.” Jacob didn’t know what happened; one minute he was screaming things he really didn’t mean, and the next his cheek was on fire. It took him a few moments but he finally came to the conclusion that Alai had slapped him.

“Get. Inside.” She growled in a way that made Jake fear for his life, he swore he heard Paul whimper in fear but didn’t dare try to confirm his suspicions. “Now!” No one refused the blonde who looked to be seconds away from having every last one of the wolves neutered.

“I’m going to call one of my friends and ask if he knows what’s wrong with you.” She said darkly once the pack was standing in her foray. “Don’t touch anything.” The girl was marched off into the kitchen and for several seconds the pack just stood there, too afraid to speak, but still managing to get their unhappy thoughts across to Jake with dark looks.

“EMBRY!” She called and the wolf yelped before giving his friends an apologetic glance and walking off to find the girl.

‘I am going to die today.’ Thought Jake as he watched his friend exit the room, Embry's fear clearly showing in the way his shoulders hunched as if he were a kicked puppy. ‘Why the hell can’t I keep my mouth shut?’