Terra's POV

I haven't spoken to Maggie since that day she tried to convince me to accept my mate. Speaking of mate, he called off the search the next day. I should be relieved, but I was a little. . . disappointed.

As for Maggie, I'm very worried about her. She usually comes to my house everyday. Where could she be? Could she really be that mad at me?

It's now Saturday. It's also the last week of summer before school starts and to say I'm nervous about it starting would be an understatement. I don't know why I'm so nervous. Sure, I've been home-schooled all my life and am now starting senior year in a regular, cliche high school. But what could be so scary about that, really?

my wolf said.

I sighed. ' I retorted.

I wasn't in the mood to fight with my wolf. . . not today.

You know sometimes I think I should just accept Collin so my wolf could be at ease and stop pestering me to go to him every second. My wolf howled in agreement.

She remained quiet. . . it's all she could do at this point.

I decided I would think more about this in the morning.

* * *

He stared at me, his eyes showed the love he had. . . for me!

"Terra, honey, wake up," a voice called.

I fluttered my eyes open. "Mom?" I rubbed my eyes to see clearly. "What's wrong?"

"I just wanted to tell you that I'm going to work, I left breakfast in the microwave. I'm working late with a client so don't wait up," she kissed my cheek, "Oh and Maggie is here," she said then left the room.

Finally! I got up, brushed my teeth, then went downstairs. Sure enough, Maggie was there. She was talking to my mom.

"Of course Maggie. I'll see you later. Goodbye Terra. You girls have fun tonight," she winked then left.

That was weird. . . "What was that all about?" I asked as I went into the kitchen.

"I don't know," Maggie replied, following me.

"Okay, so care to explain why you went all AWOL on me?" I took the plate out of the microwave, sat down and began eating. "I didn't think you were so angry at me. Look, I'm sorry that I got pissy at you. I just--"

"I found my mate." She squealed, as she sat down across from me, giddy with excitement.

The food entered the wrong tube and I began to cough like crazy. Did she just say what I think she just said?

"Oh my gosh, Terra!" She brought me a cup of orange juice and I took a long a sip, but cringed. The after taste of toothpaste really didn't work well with certain types of flavors. "Are you alright?" She lightly patted my back.

I coughed. "I'm fine," I said. She sat down again and looked at me with concern in her eyes.

"Seriously, I'm fine," I coughed again, "But did you really find your mate?" I sipped some more orange juice, even though my taste buds were a mess because of a certain minty tube.

She smiled and a light blush coated her cheeks. She nodded. "Yep! I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you in awhile but I just couldn't stay away from him."

"Aw, that's great Maggs," I said, "I'm happy for you." I smiled but it didn't reach my eyes. I really was happy for Maggie. I'm glad she's happy with her mate but I couldn't help but feel a little jealous.

Maggie sensed this because she gave me a sympathetic smile and said, "You know Terra, you can be happy too. Just accept him! You won't regret it."

"It isn't that easy Maggs," I stood up and paced the room. "I'm scared, okay. I know I shouldn't be but I can't help it. What if history repeats itself? What if--"

"You can't be serious Terra! Enough with the "what ifs"! I'm tired of hearing 'What if this' or 'What if that'. You don't know for sure that history will repeat itself. But you can't knock it till you try it, right? Come on, he ran after you, demanding to see you and not to mention he sent out a search party for--"

"Which he called off the next day!" I interrupted.

"Because he probably didn't want to scare you away."

"How do you know that for sure?" I asked.

She looked down. "I don't but there is no doubt in my mind that he is head over heels in love with you."

I sighed. "I don't know Maggie. I just. . . I don't know." I sat down and looked at my food that was probably cold by now. It didn't matter, I lost my appetite anyway.

I felt her hand on my shoulder. "Look Terra, I don't want to fight anymore. Why don't we go out tonight?"

"What do you have in mind?" I asked.

She almost looked hesitant but she said, "There's this party tonight. It's supposed to be an end to the summer bash. I was thinking maybe we should--"

"No," I stood up and put the plate back in the microwave.

"Oh come on Terra, please! Let's go! It could be fun! Plus, I want you to meet my mate, Evan."

"No Maggie! Remember the last time you took me to a party? I ended up meeting my mate. Who knows what will happen if I go to this party with you."

"Please Terra! Please just come with me, nothing will happen!"

"No Maggie!" I said. "That's my final answer and there's nothing you could do to change my mind!"

* * *

"Curse your stupid puppy dog eyes and my stupid friendship to you." I said to her, as she was driving to this dumb party.

"Oh you love me," she giggled. "And you said I couldn't change your mind."

I groaned. "Just shut up and drive."

We arrived at the party. The music was so loud I could feel the beat in my chest.

Maggie squealed and got out of the car. She ran up to this tall guy, hugging him and wrapping her legs around his waist, kissing him.

I got out of the car and decided to give them some privacy. I went inside the house and was met with people drinking and grinding on each other. I had to push myself in between the crowd just to get to the table that held all the drinks. I picked one up. With my heightened wolf senses, I could tell the punch was spiked. I put it down and decided to go out in the balcony. I sat on one of the lounge chairs and took in the scenery before me. It was well over 8 o'clock so the moon was shining above me. My moon-shaped amulet was shining under the moonlight, giving off this feeling of protection. My mom says she gave this to me when I was born. The only time I take it off is when I take a shower.

The balcony door slides open. Maggie comes in with the guy I assumed was her mate.

"Hey Terra, I was worried you ditched me. Why are you here by yourself?" Maggie asked.

"You know how I feel about parties," I said

"Right. Well, Terra, I would like to introduce my mate, Evan. Evan, this is my best friend, Terra."

He looked at me and extended his hand out. I shook it. "It's nice to finally meet you, Terra. I've heard so much about you." He kept his gaze on me but dropped his hand after he said this.

"Nice to meet you too. Maggie wouldn't stop talking about you on the car ride here." I said.

"Did she now?" He said, bringing Maggie close to him, kissing her neck, making her giggle.

"Evan, don't you have to do something?" Maggie said after her giggling fit.

"Right, I have to go to someone and tell them something about that thing." He winked then looked at me.

Maggie rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Just go, babe."

"Okay." He kissed her before going back to the party.

"All right, I know you don't want to be here but try to have fun," she said. She was about to leave but she turned around and said, "Meet me on the dance floor in one minute." Then she left.

Okay, that was very weird. It's like she was planning something. Knowing Maggie, she probably was. But I didn't worry too much. Maybe she was right. I should try to enjoy my night out. I took one last look at the moon before I left the balcony. I was about to walk towards the dance floor when a scent caught me off guard.

That smell. A mixture of a musky male scent combined with a sort of citrusy aura. . . oranges maybe? This intoxicating aroma is clouding my senses, willing me to follow it. So I do, I couldn't help it, and I find out to whom that smell belongs to.

My wolf was basically screaming at me. Oh no! Not again! Then I see him, talking to. . . Oh my goddess, Evan?

I also see how his muscles tense up at my scent. He can feel me. Sense me.

He begins to turn around, but before he can even get a glimpse of me, I run. Like I always do. Just as I'm about to make my escape, I feel hands grabbing my waist and slamming me to the wall, trapping me with their body. Bolts of electricity surged through our bodies, making both of our wolves restless. "Where do you think you're going, mate?" He ran his nose up my neck, kissing it, taking me in. "Do you know how many times I've dreamed of this day? To finally catch you and hold you in my arms?" He lingered his lips at the juncture where my neck meets my shoulder. The mating spot. I could tell he was getting a bit wolfie. And my wolf was feeling him too. He gently caressed my cheek. "Why have you been running from me, love, why?" He asked.

I was at a loss for words. I couldn't believe it. After a whole month of running from him he finally caught me. . .

"I. . . I. . ." I didn't know what to say.

"You what? Terra, answer me, please." He said.

He knows my name? "How do you know my name?" I'm surprised I said that above a whisper.

"That's not important. I need to know why you've been running from me," His face contorted into a sad frown. "Do you not want me? Are you planning on re-- rejecting me? God, please answer me, Terra. I need to know." His voice became more urgent. He was scared. Like me. . . he was scared.

But I remained silent. I didn't know what to say. It was all too sudden that I didn't know how to react. I couldn't pull away from him because his grip on my waist was too strong. Plus, I didn't feel like it. It felt too good to be true. I was tired of running.

"Terra." He said softly.

I sighed. "Alright fine. I admit it. Yes, I'm scared. I'm scared you'll come into my life and lie to me. I'm scared you'll say you love me but just play with my emotions. And I am most definitely scared you'll break the most fragile thing I was hoping to never give away: my heart." By the end of my confession, tears started brimming over my eyes. I looked down, ashamed. I didn't want him to see me cry.

He wiped away a stray tear and then another. He lifted my chin and it was then that I noticed his eyes looked a little glossy. Was he about to cry too?

"Terra, I could never do that to you. I'd die before hurting you. I can't even fathom that idea. It hurts too much to think about it. What hurt the most, though, was having you run away from me without an explanation. I was here thinking the worst. Thinking you'd reject me when in reality you were worried of being rejected all along. Well, I promise you that I would never do that. You have to believe me. Trust me." He pleaded.

"I don't know if I can trust you yet. You need to give me time. I'm. . . I'm sorry." He placed his forehead against mine, tears amongst tears. I didn't want to hurt him. I didn't realize until now what my actions have caused.

"I can't lose you, Terra. I haven't even gotten you yet. Please don't reject me." My heart broke at his words and at the sight before me.

"I'm not going to reject you. I just need time. That's all I'm asking." He nodded.

We stayed like this for a brief moment, just holding each other, breathing the other's scent. I didn't know this could feel like a state of nirvana. It was amazing. As his last tears surfaced, it was my turn to wipe them away, along with mine.

I heard him take a long breath, sighing blissfully. He pulled away from me a little and broke the silence by saying, "I know I said I would give you time to open up to me but you can't deny this feels amazing. I can't be the only one who thinks so."

I chuckled. "No, you're not. I actually agree with you."

His smile started taking its toll on me.

"Tell you what, Terra. Instead of being apart from each other, can we just start over as friends? Then work our way up?" His proposition touched me. He'd be willing to be friends? Really?

I decided to tease him a little bit, though. "It doesn't sound like you're giving me time to think." I crossed my arms.

He held a worried expression. "Oh no, um, I'm. . . I'm sorry. I don't want to-to pressure you into anything. Just-- forget I even asked, okay." He stammered.

I chuckled and grabbed his hand. "I was just teasing. . . ."

When his smile brightened and he hugged me, I knew I made the right decision. I know it's weird for me to just accept this friendship when I was so apprehensive about it earlier. But my heart says go with it. And I can't help it! It's that damn smile, the most beautiful smile I have ever seen, and that special bond we now share. Also, the fact that he's not pushing me into starting a relationship gives me this overwhelming sense of. . . .