Taming Beasts » Twilight

U N L O C K E D

     I heard the whispers before I saw them.  They were telling me to stay calm and breathe, but I couldn't. I tried moving my lips, I tried as hard as I could, but I couldn't make a sound. The whispers were fast and hard to hear correctly. They were mostly blocked by the sound of the wind. It was like I had stuck my head out of a car window on the highway. Slowly, I started to feel my body. I felt my lower half being dragged through water, while my upper body was damp. I felt my sticky, wet hair plastered all over my face. It felt like I was being pulled backwards. I tried to solve the mystery of what was happening to me, but I still couldn't open my eyes. Suddenly I was tired again and I allowed my body to go in and out of consciousness for quite a while.
     "She's supposed to be healing faster than this!" An angry voice spoke.
     "We give her time. That's all we can do." A deep voice stated. I easily recognized it as Sam. That's good, I was with the pack...somewhere. I could identify heavy footsteps walking in my direction as I felt salt water try to climb up my throat. Someone turned me over so I could spit it all out.
     I started to feel my body again. I slowly opened my eyelids and saw I was lying on a wooden floor. I looked up with sore eyes and found the pack hovering over me, well, everyone but Jacob. Jared was wearing a wide smile while everyone else seemed concerned. I looked at each one of their charming faces before someone said something.
     "Taylor." Jared said with a sigh of relief. He then grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me up, immediately welcoming me into a hug. I rested my tired head on his shoulder.
"What happened?" I asked in a croaky voice.
"A bloodsucker got to you." Jared said, disgusted. My eyebrows pulled together in miscommunication.
"A bloodsucker?" I asked, pulling my head up to look Jared in the eyes, still wrapped in his arms.
"We didn't fill you in on practically the reason we exist?" I just looked at him dumbfounded. "Vampires." He said almost proudly. "We shift to protect our people from them. That's why we shift for the first time, we must be near one." I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand in protest.
"Vampires? Vampires. Vampires are not real." It was more of a statement than a question.
"Werewolfs are real." Jared laughed.
"Then that's who attacked me..." I trailed off in realization. If what makes you shift is being around a vampire, that meant the boy who attacked me was one. I stood there, eyes unfocused, making the connection. My concentration broke when Jared shook my shoulders, trying to bring me back to the real world.
"Someone attacked you?" Jared asked worriedly.
"Yeah, the night I shifted. He dragged me into the woods and...tried to drink my blood I guess...if that's what they do?" Jared's eyebrows pulled together.
"He wasn't trying to drink your blood..." Jared pushed me to the side and looked at Sam with a confused expression. Sam showed the same emotion.
"Uh well, offensive. I'm pretty sure I'd have nice tasting blood and any vam-"
"Shhhh." Jared quieted me. "I'm thinking."
"Why would he attack her, Sam? He'd stay away, her scent would warn him to stay away." Embry asked.
"I don't know..." Sam looked up, making eye contact with me. He then turned to Embry.
"Unless they're specifically trying to kill her..." Sam realized. I felt my eyes widen with surprise. I grabbed Jared's hand and gripped it tightly. Someone was trying to kill me? My mind went haywire. Jared grabbed my hand in both of his.
     "Hey, you're gonna be alright. You can protect yourself, and so can we." Jared spoke softly. I knew my emotions were obvious on my face, and I knew the pack wouldn't really know how to comfort me, so I tried to hide my fear.
     "Why would they want to....uh, kill me?" I tried to question Sam as calmly as possible.
     "I'm not sure, but we need to have two of us on the look out all night." He said while making eye contact. "If one of us is in danger, we all are. We protect each other. That's why we're here. We'll take shifts. Tonight Embry, Quil and I will guard. Tomorrow Jacob, Jared and myself."
     "If this is necessary, can I help? I mean they're coming after me, this is my problem. And you need your sleep, Sam."
     "This is our problem, Taylor. Not just yours." I nodded gratefully. "I think it's best if we have you in a house, safe. We'll guard the perimeter. No one will get by us." Sam promised. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
       "Thanks."
Thanks for protecting me from murderers.
     Since Quil and Embry were gone with Sam and Jacob was with Bella, I walked with Jared to his house that night since it was 'necessary' to be with a wolf at all times. I didn't mind, though. There was something about being intentionally hunted that made you crave the comfort only human protection could provide. He held my hand as we walked, but I was too nervous to think of it romantically. It was still hard for me to wrap my mind around what was happening, let alone question gestures.
     "Is there anything I can get you?" Jared asked as he helped me set up my bed on the couch.
     "No thanks, I'll be fine." I smiled as I sat down. "Thanks for letting me stay."
     "Of course. Uh, goodnight." He farewelled awkwardly. I was glad Jared let the flirting slip for tonight, I wasn't in the mood to joke around. I turned the lamp off next to me and let my body sink into the soft sofa.
      My body jerked up in fright. I looked around the unfamiliar room panting. It took me a few seconds before I remembered I was in Jared's living room. I calmed myself and slowed my breathing, telling myself everything was alright. I laid back down and closed my eyes, counting down from one hundred in attempt to make my anxious body tired. 100, 99, 98, 97....that's about as far as I could go. The guilt of having my friends up all night was taking over. I turned the lamp on and located the front door. I turned the lamp back off and pushed the thin sheet off of my legs and onto the floor. As I carefully tip-toed to the door I could make out slow footsteps walking down the hall. Jared must have had to use the bathroom, and he would surely see me once he walked back to his room. I became flustered and unsure if I should bolt or pretend to be asleep. My hand was already on the door knob when he nearly walked into me through the darkness.
     "Taylor?" He said in a groggy voice.
     "No." Was all I managed to say.
     "What are you doing?" He asked still half asleep.
     "I was making sure the door was locked."
     "Are you sure?" Jared challenged as he gained consciousness. He put his hand over mine and felt the knob.
     "Because I was sure I double checked to lock this last night, and it seems to be unlocked now." Jared knew what I was doing and there was no point in trying to convince him otherwise.
     "You win."
     "Taylor, what are you doing?" He sounded mad now. "You can't just leave. It's not fair they're up all night protecting you and you're just gonna go put yourself in danger." He whispered harshly.
     "That's a good point..." I realized. Jared sighed and wrapped me in his big arms. "Hey, don't feel bad. There's never action around here. I bet they're actually enjoying themselves."
     "Sure, sure." I accidentally quoted Jacob. Jared held me tighter. I leaned into him a little more than necessary, craving his comfort. I tried holding back my tears but they silently rolled down my cheeks and on to his arms.
     "Hey I-"
     "I'm sorry." I interrupted. "I'm tough, I know I am but I can't help it. And this is embarrassing and I want you to treat me like any other guy but I'm not any other guy. And I think it's okay to let myself cry because I'm scared and-" I sniffled back more tears. "I'm trying to be strong, I am, really. But no one told me I was going to randomly turn into a mythical creature then have vampires try to kill me and-" I sniffled again. "I feel like one of these days I'm just going to combust and I'm so so scared for that day. I have all these things going on in my head and I know you probably don't care but I just need to....cry." My body shook up and down with tears.
     "Don't you dare be sorry. I understand. Don't feel self conscious, you can be whoever you need to be around us, around me. We got your back, Taylor, more than you think. It's okay to feel scared, but know it's unnecessary." He thought for a moment, "C'mon, you're coming to my bed. I mean, if you want." I wiped my tears away, letting him lead me through the darkness. He brought me to his bed and laid down next to me.
     "It's okay. You're safe." He whispered. He kissed the top of my head gently. "Goodnight." He said then turned onto his side, facing the opposite direction. I felt calmer, choosing to focus on the now steady thrum of my heart instead of my racing thoughts. I placed my hand over the spot Jared kissed me, smiling.
     "Jared?" I whispered. He rolled over to face me again. "Yeah?" I grabbed his hand.
     "Thank you." I saw Jared's white teeth glimmer in the darkness. "No problem." I pulled my body closer to his, resting my head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and pressed every inch of his body against mine. I smiled into is bare chest, letting myself fall asleep, feeling safe.

I'd like to thank @-everythintrash and @BeaconHills117 for being my actual only two consistent voters and readers:') You make my day every chapter:) xxx