Place in My Heart

Letting out a shaky breath, I slowly raise my hand and knock on the front door. I run a hand through my dark brown hair as I wait for someone to answer. After waiting for a couple minutes, the door finally opens and reveals an older gentleman standing there.

“Is Paul home?” I ask the man, Paul’s father, while playing with the hem of my shirt.

He shakes his head, a small frown on his face and answers, “Sorry, Calli. He’s out with Sam and Jacob right now.”

“Do you know when he’ll be home?” I ask causing him to simply shake his head. “Okay. I guess I’ll just sit out here and wait for him.”

Just as he’s about to protest, I quickly turn around and take a seat on the top step. I hear a soft sigh and I can practically see Paul’s father shake his head before hearing the door close behind me. This has become a routine that I would do every couple of days and Paul’s father knew it would be useless to try to get me to go home. So, I rest my chin in my hands and begin to think about how things got to where they are now.

Paul and I used to have an amazing relationship when we were together. He was always so affectionate and open with me but one day, it all changed. He slowly began to push me away, always disappearing and occasionally ignoring my calls. Then finally, he broke things off saying that it just wasn’t a good time for him to be in a relationship but the minute Rachel Black comes home from college, it’s a good time for him and I’m determined to find out why.

After waiting for what feels like hours, I finally see Paul walking towards his house with Jacob on the side of him. I take a deep breath as I slowly rise to my feet and walk towards the two boys.

“We need to talk,” I say to Paul once we reach each other.

Paul groans loudly before answering, “I’m exhausted, Calli. I don’t have time to talk ri-”

“But you have time to go see Rachel, right?” I cut Paul off, a guilty look now on his face. I shake my head in disappointment when he doesn’t say anything and add, “If you wanted to be with her instead of me then you should’ve just grew some balls and just said it-”

Jacob tugs on my arm, cutting me off by saying, “Calli, I think you should just stop talking now.”

“Don’t you dare get me started with you, Jacob Black,” I reply while quickly pulling my arm away and turning my attention back to Paul who is narrowing his eyes at me. “You didn’t need to make up some lame excuse like ‘it’s not a good time for me to be in a relationship’. If Rachel is the reason why you ended things then you should have just told me. I’m a big girl, I can handle the truth.”

At this point, Paul’s hands are forming tight fists, his jaw is clenched and he is breathing much more heavily. I hear Jacob groan from behind me before gripping my arms and pulling me back, getting me away from Paul. I attempt to wiggle free but his hold is too strong and I immediately stop when I see what’s happening before me.

Paul now has dark silver fur covering his entire body as he lands on four legs, completely transformed into a large wolf.

My breath gets stuck in my throat as my jaw drops slightly. “I’ve got to go,” I mumble before quickly walking away.



Sitting on the shore of the beach, I bring my knees to my chest wrap my arms around my legs as I think about what I just saw. Words couldn’t really begin to explain what I am feeling or even what I am thinking. All I know is that I’m in shock that something like this could really happen to a person.

“Are you okay?” I hear a voice ask from behind me, breaking me from my thoughts.

“I saw you turn into a wolf. How do you think I am?” I reply, looking back over my shoulder to see Paul standing there in just a pair of shorts, his hands inside the pockets.

He simply nods his head and I turn my attention back to the calm water in front of me. I soon hear his footsteps get closer to me then instantly feel his body heat next to me. He remains quiet as he tosses some pebbles in front of him before apologizing, “I’m sorry that I freaked you out back there.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I ask softly, turning my head slightly to look at Paul.

A soft sigh passes through his lips as he shakes his head. “I wanted to so you would understand what was happening but I couldn’t. We’re not allowed to tell people what we are. You were never supposed to find out.”

“And what about Rachel?”

“Ugh, why do you have to keep bringing her up?!” he exclaims causing me to raise my eyebrow in response as if I was asking him if he was being serious. Paul lets out a deep breath as he hangs his head before answering, “The reason why I ended things with you is because I had just transformed and I needed time to get used to this, to this new lifestyle. I just didn’t want to risk hurting you. So, I was going to try to work things out with you when I felt like I could control it and not turn whenever I got angry. But then Rachel came home from college and I imprinted on her.”

Imprinted. It felt as if the wind was knocked out of me when he spoke that word because I knew what it meant. Based on the stories that I heard from the elders, when a shapeshifter imprints on a person then they share this strong bond forever. The shapeshifter is willing to do anything and everything for that person whether they act as a great friend, protective older brother, or even a lover. But when Paul said he imprinted on Rachel, I knew that he meant it in the way that she’s his soulmate.

“Thanks for rubbing salt into the wound,” I mumble and look away from Paul, feeling my eyes burn with tears.

I hear Paul sigh once more and then feel his muscular arm wrap around my body, pulling me closer to his warm body. Resting my head on his shoulder, I close my eyes as he begins to speak softly, “I’m sorry, Calli. I’ve never meant to hurt and I know that doesn’t mean much now that all is said and done but just know this. You will always mean something to me. You were my first love and because of that, there’s always going to be a place in my heart for you. Always.”

My eyes flutter open and I look up at Paul, a small smile spread across my lips. I then wrap my arms around his torso, burying my face in the crook of his neck as I hug him. As if the moment couldn’t get any better, Paul places a soft kiss on the top of my head.

Removing my face from the crook of his neck, I rest my head on his shoulder once again with my arm still wrapped around his torso and his still around my shoulders. I let out a content sigh, feeling the happiest that I’ve been in a while because even though Paul may not have imprinted on me, we still share a bond that we’ll never share with anyone else. And I can honestly say, that is enough for me.