Her Shadows

1 - Another Guy

NATALIA

It’s quiet in here this morning as I’m shoveling bacon into my mouth. The atmosphere still feels heavy, missing something important. Which, I guess, it is. I sigh. At least all of us nine are here together still.

“So, are you going to go?” My best friend Samuel asks me suddenly. He raises a knowing eyebrow, and I glower at him. He said it just loud enough to gather everyone’s attention.

“I don’t know yet,” I hiss back. I really don’t want to get into anything this morning with my overprotective family. Both of his black eyebrows raise now. I roll my eyes to the ceiling, taking a breath before answering again. “I shouldn’t. I’ll probably just tell him why.”

“He won’t believe you,” Sam says, reminding me of my age. I run a hand down the front of my face.

“I know,” I sigh.

“What’s going on? Who are you talking about?” Alex demands after a moment. Sam looks at me grinning. I glare right back.

“Don’t you dare!” I threaten through link, but he just winks.

“Cody Jumpman asked Nat out,” he tells Alex casually. All eyes flash to me, and I groan. Sam knew what he was starting.

All the guys are protective of me, even Zander, Josh, and Conner who are all younger than me. They’re just not as volatile about it as Aaron and Alex, who threaten any guy who looks at me with more than a quick, respectful smile. Even Daniel is protective. Even Sam, who clearly loves to make my life miserable, would kill anyone who hurts me. And then there’s him. He’s as protective as they come, though it’s more subtle.

“Cody Jumpman,” Aaron muses, eyebrows furrowed.

“He’s a senior,” Zander supplies helpfully.

“All his friends just call him Jumpman,” Conner adds.

“It’s his last name,” I say through my teeth. The younger three all look at me.

“It’s also because of his reputation, Nat,” Zander reminds me.

“Reputation?” Alex asks.

“He jumps from bed to bed,” Sam says, though, at the silence that follows, they don’t all seem to catch onto his meaning. So, my best friend so helpfully clarifies, “He f***s a lot.”

Max chokes on his orange juice.

“Sam!” I yell at him.

“Maybe you should avoid him then,” Max coughs out. My brothers all chorus their agreement. I shift my glare to the blonde haired boy at the end of the table. He’s giving me a pointed look, one that says not to disobey.

But he is not in charge of me.

“You shouldn’t judge a guy by his reputation. I hear he’s nice,” I hedge.

“Natalia,” Max growls in warning. I shrug casually, hoping I look unaffected.

“I think I’ll accept. It is a full moon tonight, maybe we can have a late night picnic,” I murmur.

“No,” Max growls louder.

“I agree with Max, Nat. You shouldn’t be out with a guy like that,” Alex says. I roll my eyes and glare at them all.

“I am almost seventeen years old! Eventually you all will just have to stop being so overprotective and let me do what I want to do!” I yell at them, pissed that they are actually trying to keep me from going on a date. I stand up with a screech from my chair, and run from the room.

I get it, fleeing in an angry tantrum does not help my case, but they irritate the s**t out of me. They treat me like I am still twelve-years-old little girl. Though I have been learning to fight, and defend myself since I could walk so even at twelve I could have held my own. I slam the door to my room, making it shake in the frame.

I pace the floor, attempting to relax my hammering rage, but the pounding footsteps racing down the hall coming my way does little to calm me. He slams open the door, thundering into the room like a storm. I curse my stuttering heart and fluttering stomach at just the sight of him.

“I should have locked the door,” I mutter bitterly.

“What the f**k, Natalia?!” I simply cross my arms across my chest, and raise an eyebrow. I refuse to respond to that. “Why would you go out with someone e— someone like that?”

“Mhm, someone at all, more like,” my wolf, Ivy, mutters.

“Why can't I, Max? You know I won't let any man do something to me I don’t want. I have learned from the best how to defend myself.”

“You don’t know that! Why do you even want to? You don’t have a reason to go on this date; on any date!”

“Oh, I don’t? And why don’t I, Max?” I challenge him, willing him to just say the words. He pauses. I wait silently.

“You know why, Aly,” he growls in a whisper.

“I don’t know,” I lie.

Please just say it. I beg him in my head. Ivy huffs in agreement.

“Aly,” he starts in that voice; the voice that is meant to appease me, but always just ends up making me want to sucker punch him.

“Just say it, Max. Say it, and I will stay home. Say it, and I won't even consider going on another date.”

The same fight, over and over again. Me begging and him always responding the same way. The exact same response ending the conversation each time.

“Aly…” he trails off, his green eyes looking at me sadly. “Just don’t go.”

Just don’t go.

That’s all I ever get.

‘Just don’t.’

“Get out,” I sigh, no fight left in my system right now. He pauses for a moment, but then does as I ask, quietly pulling the door closed behind him. I listen to his footsteps quiet down the hallway, waiting until I can no longer hear them; can no longer smell his scent.

I can always feel him though. I can always feel the pull towards him, even from so far away.

And I crave his closeness.

Even now.