Enchanted

I couldn’t help the slight tremble of fear that ran through me. He seemed to sense that I was afraid of him. “It’s okay,” he said gently in a deep, rough voice. “I’m not going to hurt you.” Emily then came out of the kitchen and looked between us. The guy didn’t seem like he dared to move.

“It really is okay, Alyssa,” said Emily gently, coming over to me. “Nobody here is going to hurt you. I promise.” She hugged me gently I buried my face into her shoulder. I didn’t want to be here right now. I didn’t want to deal with this and I didn’t want to know this.

Suddenly the door banged open again and a parade of people entered the house. There were now eight more people in the house. They were all had russet colored skin, black hair, and the same muscular structure as the man in front of me. They were laughing and joking with each other until they had caught sight of me. They’re all wolves! my mind screamed in panic. Each one seemed to just stare at me.

I felt myself shrink away from everybody. Tears welled in my eyes at the onslaught of emotions and thoughts in my head. The room blurred and my legs gave out. I weakly sat down in one of the chairs. I didn’t know how much more of this I could take. I buried my face in my hands. I didn’t want to look at anyone or let anyone see the tears running down my face.

“Alyssa, sweetie,” said Emily. She squatted down so her face was level with mine. “Alyssa, we just want to explain.”

“I don’t want to know,” I said. I ran my hands through my hair, pushing it back from my face. I looked up at all the faces, barely even looking at each of them. “I don’t want to be here.” I sniffled slightly as tears continued to run down my face.

“Alyssa, you know about us now,” spoke up the man. “We have to make sure you won’t talk.”

“If that’s what this is about, I won’t,” I said firmly. I stood up. “Please, I just want to get out of here.” The man debated for a second before nodding.

“Alright. You weren’t a prisoner anyway. We were just keeping you safe after you passed out.” He glanced over his shoulder at the group of guys. “Jacob, you drove here. Can you take her home?” With a grumble one of the guys growled and moved towards the door. I heard it open and close and figured he’d gone outside. The man nodded his head towards the door and after a second’s debate I quickly went towards the door.

As I passed through the crowd of people I made sure to avoid any eye contact, instead looking at my feet. I made sure not to get too close to any of them until I made it to the door. I opened the door quickly and felt the warm air of summer wrap around me.

It took me a moment to get used to the change in brightness. When I did I noticed one of the men standing near an old car. I closed the door behind me and looked at the contraption skeptically. “Are you coming or not?” Jacob asked roughly. There was nothing kind about his voice.

Quickly I moved to the passenger side of the car. “It’s open,” said Jacob and got in the driver’s side. Hesitantly I opened the door and got in. Sitting inside it smelled like the woods and I contributed that fact to the man sitting next to me. There wasn’t anything but woods around us.

Jacob started the car and it sprung to life effortlessly. I stayed quiet and made sure to sit as close to the door as I could. My body remained tense and as we drove down the road it was starting to hurt. I didn’t dare let down my guard though. I pretended to look out the window but out of the corner of my eye, I was watching him.

“Where do you live?” asked Jacob. His tone was anything but friendly. His grip on the steering wheel was tight and he seemed just as on edge as I was.

“I’m staying at a hotel,” I said quietly. I could barely find my voice. “It’s in Port Angeles.” He growled slightly. Actually growled. I could hear the slight rumble in his throat. My own throat closed up with fear and I squirmed even closer to the door. “I drove to the Cullen’s though. My ride should still be there.” That was closer than Port Angeles. Less time with him, the better.

He made a sharp right turn and I was thrown towards him. As the car continued down the road, I scrambled back over to the other side. It took about a minute for my pulse to return to normal. Then we were turning down a hidden driveway. I recognized it to be the Cullen’s. Some of the wedding decorations were still in place along the road.

By the time we actually pulled up to the house I was itching to get out of the car. As Jacob stopped and unlocked the doors I practically fell out of the car in my rush to get out. I was surprised when Jacob shut off the car and also climbed out.

“Just going to make sure you actually get in your car safely,” he said and leaned against the hood of his car. He could actually rest his arms on the top of the hood. My eyes traveled over him. I still felt frozen with fear. I think it would take a long time for me to actually get over this.

As I looked at him I noticed his nicely defined muscles. His hands were large and rough. His hair was black and cut short in an uneven pattern. His jaw was nicely defined and his eyes were a nice almond shape. They were a deep, rich chocolate brown. They were framed by thick, black lashes. At first his eyes had seemed sad and lonely. He looked defeated. But the longer I looked at them I could see those emotions being wiped away. It was like an internal happiness was beginning to radiate through.

A bird loudly cawed and I jumped about three feet in the air. My pulse which had to been beginning to calm, skyrocketed again. I was going to have a heart attack before I got out of here. I looked back at Jacob to see him still looking at me. His face seemed to be in awe.

With a wary look I began to move towards my car that was parked some feet away. The Cullen’s yard was abnormally large, a trait I found amazing yesterday but now horrible. As I was walking I looked back to see Jacob still just looking at me. The amazement seemed to be gone and in its place was a neutral expression.

I quickly moved to my car and fumbled for the keys that were in a pocket of my dress. Getting them out I placed them into the lock and turned them. Suddenly a burning warmth was placed on the bare skin of my arm. I screamed slightly and immediately pulled away. I spun around placing my back flat against my car. Definitely was going to have a heart attack. I could hear my heart beating in my ears.

“Jake, you’re going to scare the girl to death,” said a light voice coming from the direction of the house. I didn’t let my eyes stray from Jacob who was in front of me but he looked over in that direction. Then he looked back at me and slowly seemed to realize just how terrified I was. He stepped back so that I could no longer feel his radiating heat on my body.

“I’m sorry,” he said and he definitely looked it. His eyes were wide with remorse and fear. Almost as if he were afraid I’d run off at a moment’s notice. I definitely wanted to. I focused on getting my heart rate under control and took a few deep breaths. My throat was too constricted for me to say anything.

Jacob scratched the back of his neck in an awkward gesture but he wouldn’t move away and I was too worried to turn my back towards him. “Listen, I know you’re afraid of us,” he said. His voice was deep and rough. “But there’s no reason to be. We’re not the monsters.” He looked at me, waiting for a response. I nodded once. “If you’re going to be in town longer would you let me show you that?” His face was hopeful and it held the perfect puppy dog look.

The way his eyes pleaded with mine I wanted to say yes. I wanted to agree with it. But then there was still that tendril of fear coiled tightly around me. It kept me grounded and from giving in. He was good looking and he seemed to be genuine. But there was no way I’d feel safe. I began to shake my head no when Jacob said, “Please?”

With that one word I stopped in my movements. I could hear the desperation in his voice. I knew he had just put his heart on the line. My response to this was critical. I could either say no and completely crush and destroy him or I could say yes and just let him show me he wasn’t a monster. Let’s face it, I wasn’t a monster either.

“Sure,” I said. “I’m staying at the Olympic Lodge.” My voice was small and timid and I wondered how he heard me.

“Can I come pick you up tomorrow at noon?” he asked. I nodded and he slowly moved away. Once he was far enough away I jumped into my car and started the engine. I quickly drove down the driveway leaving Jacob behind me.