Enchanted

“You’re lucky, man,” said Embry to me quietly. I nodded in agreement and gazed down at my imprint who had somehow managed to curl into my lap, her head resting on the armrest of the loveseat. She looked beautiful and completely at ease. “I have to get going,” he said and stood up.

“I should go too,” said Quil and got up to follow him out the door. That left just Alyssa and I in the living room. The TV made a low humming noise along with the low volume of the show. I didn’t even pay attention to it though. All my senses were trained on Alyssa.

I tried to memorize every line of her face, every freckle, everything that made her who she was. I found myself listening to her heartbeat and the shallow breaths she took. I watched the movements she made in her sleep. The slight twitch of her nose or mouth or the way she would shift just slightly. “Jake, you’re still here?” asked Emily as she walked into the room. “I thought the boys had just left the TV on.”

“She fell asleep,” I said lamely.

“Why don’t you take her home?” suggested Emily. She glanced over at the clock on the wall. I was surprised to find that it was midnight. “On second thought, why don’t you just take her home with you? After that fall it’d probably be best somebody watches her tonight anyway.” A sliver of excitement ran through me at the thought of her spending a night at my house. I was excited to have her see where I lived, where I slept, who my dad was, meet my sister.

“Thanks, Emily,” I said. Gently I lifted her into my arms and began to carry her outside.

“Jake,” said Emily before I could get too far, “here is her bag.” She let it slide onto one of my fingers. I tried not to shift too much and disturb Alyssa from her sleep. “When she’s awake tomorrow, let her know that I washed her bathing suit for her.” I nodded and then exited the house.

The night air felt fine to me but I worried that Alyssa would get cold. Hurriedly, I put her into the passenger seat of my car. I ran over to the other side and quickly got in and started the car. As the engine came to life I glanced over at Alyssa. She moved slightly but didn’t seem to wake up and I breathed a sigh of relief.

Putting the car into reverse, I backed out of the driveway and onto the road. I slowly started moving towards my house, wanting to make the ride for her as smooth as possible. Every time we would hit a bump, I would clench my jaw and glance over at Alyssa to see if I had disturbed her. Every time she would remain in the same position, fast asleep.

As we pulled up to the house I made a slow and gradual stop. Shutting off the engine I quickly ran around to the other side of the car. I slowly lifted Alyssa out of the car and held her in my arms. I found myself gazing down at her as I walked into the house. I slowly crept to my room. My father and sister were sleeping and didn’t wake up. I’m sure they were used to it.

As I came into my room I saw the clothes laying all over the floor and the mess my room actually was. Usually I only spent time in here when I was sleeping so I never noticed, never cared. But I didn’t want Alyssa to see my room like this. I gently laid her in my bed, placing her head on a pillow. I lifted a sheet over her body to make sure she was warm.

After watching her for a few moments I carefully and silently began to clean up my room a bit. Mostly I just threw the clothes into my closet and made sure there wasn’t anything disgusting laying around. After I was sure it’d be okay for now I turned to watch Alyssa again. She was in the same position as before. Her light breathing was the only sound I heard. A few tendrils of hair had fallen across her face making her look like a young girl.

I took off my shirt and after finding a pair of comfortable shorts, I slowly and gently crept into bed beside Alyssa. I made sure to lie on top of the sheets. If I was under them I was sure to overheat and sweat ridiculously. And I didn’t want that to happen next to Alyssa.

My bed was quite small for someone my size. My feet hung over the edge and there were only a few inches between Alyssa and I. I didn’t mind but I feared she would. I worried that once she woke up, she would freak out and reject me. I could see her running out of the house. And she wouldn’t know how to get back to Port Angeles. That was a long walk to begin with. I pushed the hair away from her face and gazed at her worriedly.

My hand grazed her cheek lightly as I did so and she stirred slightly. Her fingers gripped the sheets roughly and her eyebrows knitted together in a frown. “Jacob,” she murmured lightly.

“I’m right here, sweetheart,” I said softly. I didn’t think she’d actually here me but it was nice to just talk to her. One of her hands moved slowly to my chest. Her fingers lightly brushed my skin and I could feel a chill spread through me. Slowly she relaxed herself and her hands unclenched. She looked peaceful.

It was her face that I fell asleep to. I wished every night I could fall asleep to her. She was the best thing this world held.



The next morning I woke up slowly. I felt too content, too happy to want to wake up. I was very warm and comfortable. My brain slowly began to process things as I became more awake. At first it was the foreign feel of the sheets. Then it was the weight draped across my waist.

I opened my eyes quickly to see what was going on. I was met with a small room. There wasn’t much too it but it looked like a typical boy’s room. A dresser or two, a nightstand, the bed I was on, and the disarray of items. Slowly I shifted in my sleep so that the arm was no longer around me. Once I was free I sat up and gazed at who it had been.

I was completely shocked to find that it was Jacob. I felt a jolt of fear run through me and my heartbeat accelerated. But as I looked at him, he didn’t look like a monster. He looked like a typical young teenage boy. His face was very calm in his sleep and I didn’t see the frustration he held during the day. Looking at him, I calmed down. I was here in his room. I had felt so safe and happy when I woke up. How could I be afraid of him? Because he’s a wolf, my mind whispered. A wolf but not a monster.