"Come on Wyatt we need to go and see it!" I pulled my twin's hand, we were out of view from everyone else. Mom and Dad were away only for the weekend for a meeting- one they couldn't take with us, but entrusted Aunt Meg to take care. And the whole pack to.

"But Mom and Dad always say we need to use the pool," Wyatt whined at me.

"The pool is boring. We need the lake," I pleaded. "It's more interesting. I've heard Uncle Bo talk about how cool it is."

Wyatt looked to be considering it.

"It'll be right there," I said again. "Let's venture out a little."

"Mom and Dad-"

"Mom and Dad won't ever figure out. We'll just go in and out."

Wyatt wasn't liking this, but I wanted to reach the lake. I needed to see it.

"We could ask Aunt Meg to take us," Wyatt tried to reason with me. He was always trying to reason with me whenever I did something stupid.

The guilt always stayed with me. It never left. And I wasn't the same. Even if I was 11 years old, it was my fault. I should've listened to Wyatt. I always should've listened to him. He knew before I did.

Before I almost got myself killed.

The thing is, I don't remember what exactly happened. Then or before that time. I don't know why, and no one tells me. Except I don't want to know. I'm too scared to figure out.

Coach gave us off for soccer in the morning, so I went to my math teacher to get my grade so I could know if I failed or passed.

Mom called me- at 7 AM- which I knew was too early for her so she probably couldn't sleep or was slacking on the morning training session.

"How's school going for you?" Mom asked.

"Ah, well, it's going," I said, looking at the 78 I made on my math test. Dang. I knew I could do better. I crumpled the paper and put in my locker, so it could be forgotten.

"How did you do on your math test?" I groaned. She would remember. "It can't be that bad."

"It's a C." Like always.

"Have you been looking over your notes every single day for fifteen minutes like I told you?" Mom is in complete Mom mode.

"Do you want the truth or the lie?"

"Truth."

"I haven't."

"Are you going to do basketball on top of soccer?"

"Yeah."

"On top of student council and being at the elementary school?"

I sighed, knowing where she was going with this. An ache was in the pit of my chest, and I knew it was because I just wanted my mom. Wanted my dad. Wanted to be with my family.

"West, you need to take care of yourself. You do too much and overwork yourself. You are such an overachiever."

"Obviously I don't get that from you," I joked. We both my Dad is the one who does too many things. Mom likes to take it easy, but it doesn't mean she's lazy. She knows how much she can handle.

"If only you got that from me," she said, and I could see her smile. I realized how much I missed them. I'll surprise my parents soon. "When are you coming home? I miss you."

"I miss you too," I said truthfully. "Even Dad, but right now I have too many things to do."

"You sound exactly like your Dad."

I heard a voice from the other side of the phone, probably Dad saying something. Mom laughed and told me she loved me and had to go.

During lunch, it was only Jax and I. Everyone else was going crazy for Homecoming. Maddox wasn't at school today which worried me for a second before he told me he wasn't feeling well.

Jax is on his phone trying to look up the funny meme he saw the other day, when Penelope plops right next to him. He gives me a weird look.

"Hi."

"Hello," Jax said slowly, weirded out.

"What's up?" I asked her.

"Wanted to know what's your plan for Homecoming."

Jax's eyes bugged out. Homecoming was something I told everyone I wasn't going to have a date. Jax didn't believe me. Theo did.

"Going with a group," I replied carefully, wondering where this was going.

"Wrong." Penelope smiled at me. There's a little sparkle in her eye. I know she knows there's one specific thing I would drop any plan for. "You're going with me."

"I am?" I asked, but it sounded more like an affirmative answer and not a question.

"You are?" Jax sounded highly offended.

"You are," Penelope nodded once.

"About that," Jax butted in, like I knew he would. "We've been going to Homecoming for years now. He's already made plans. Sorry about that. If he does then we need to talk about this."

"You really don't," Penelope shook her head. "It's not that hard."

Then she up and left.

Jax's jaw opened. "Who does she think she is? We're going as a group. There's no one you're ditching..." Jax frowned, "are you?"

"Maybe we can combine groups. Of course I wouldn't ditch you guys."

"They're your friends. Not ours."

What was is that Theo told me the other day? How a friend of mine is a friend of his.

I didn't say anything to Jax.

A moment of silence fell between us.

Then, "So I saw Wyatt the other day," he started. "What's been up with him?"

I shrugged, "Don't know. Don't care." As much as I didn't want it to hurt me. I tried to conceal it.

"So what's been going on with Wyatt and you I mean you guys never go on for speaking more than a day." Reminding me how inseparable I am- was- with my twin brother. "There's been some stuff-"

I stood up, "What's happening between my brother and I is no one's business."

"I've never seen you guys not talk for more than a day." Jax reminding me how Wyatt and I are- were- inseparable didn't help. "Everyone's noticed. Of course no one is going to say anything to your face-"

"Whoa whoa," I cut him off. "Someone's been talking behind my back?"

"We're just concerned-"

So my friends were talking behind my back? I stood up, pissed. "That's between me and my brother. Not anyone else."

I took my book bag. "West! Hey don't-"

But I didn't hear him as I walked inside the building, annoyed and pissed off at the world. Maybe I didn't talk about my own twin brother not on good terms because it's a crap situation that I don't understand myself. If they cared so much they would've told me. Instead, they talk about it?

I didn't even notice I bumped into someone.

"Oh. Sorry, West." Callie smiled smally at me. I accidentally glowered at her.

"Stop it you're scaring her," Edith chided me, eyebrows pulled together. "You okay?"

My jaw ticked and I looked away. No. "Yeah." And quickly turned around the other way, walking as fast as I could to class.

After school detention was nice when the elementary school didn't have a school day. I caught Edith at the gym after school, working out. For a moment, I was memorized of how focused she was, and decided I wouldn't get in the way.

Blaine was trying out today, and Coach didn't want anyone but freshman to be there, so I told Blaine to text me if he made it.

Since I had a little bit of free time, and I wasn't going to use that studying, I picked up my basketball and went to the dorm basketball that no one, thankfully, used but me.

Picking up the ball and throwing it, the basket making the whoosh sound made me feel at ease.

"I'm hurt that you think you can ignore my texts," Theo walked on the court, grabbing my basketball that landed a few feet next to the bench. Instead of giving it back to me, he sat down on the bench.

"Well you know I don't want to go to the party tonight."

"Come on," Theo said, "just come to the party."

"Don't want to."

"Why are you so boring?" Theo sighed. "I heard...ah, what's her name? Edith? And her friend Penelope? They're coming." I perked up a little, but cautiously watched Theo. He was definitely up to something. He raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms, "So that's what got you interested, huh?" His slow, wolfish smile had all the red flags waved.

"I really don't want to go," I said again, but it wasn't even a battle. If Edith was going to be there, I wanted to be there too.

Theo gave me a look that said he knew better to believe my crap. "Uh-huh," he nodded slowly. "Go take a shower you smell awful." He threw the basketball at me.

The whole lobby was packed with wolves. How they could do this without someone complaining about it was beyond me. The music was blaring out loud, wolves were dancing sluggishly. The smell of sweat and alcohol encased the air causing me to beeline for outside. Theo was already in the middle of the party- the life of it. He's usually the heartbeat of it.

Usually I'd be right front of center with him.

I crossed my arms, leaning on the outside railings that went towards the dorm at the bottom. Edith wasn't here yet, and the party scene wasn't what I thought her scene would be like, but I'm intrigued by her going.

I smiled thinking about how she was definitely forced to come.

"West," a voice behind me said. I turned around to see Abby wearing a white dress, smiling up at me.

"Long time no see," I said, giving her a side hug. She's the one who invited us all to the party. She's been so busy with running student council and Homecoming, so I didn't see much of her.

She sighed."Ughhh your hugs are so nice."

I laughed. "Thanks?"

"Why aren't you joined in at the crowd?" she nodded inside the lobby.

"Too smelly," I answered truthfully.

She laughed. "Come in with me." I shrugged and followed her before she fully turned to me them. And something about her made me stop right in my tracks. "You know as much as I thought just staying away from you would make you want to come to me, I was wrong."

Huh?

I slightly turned to Abby. What was she saying? Her green eyes held something significant I couldn't describe. "We've been best friends for so long."

"We have," I nodded, agreeing. Were we going to reminiscence about our childhoods? Her parents were Betas in Theo's pack. It was always her, Theo and I together. She usually didn't come to my pack whenever Theo came which was often. But if I went to Theo's, we'd hang out with her.

"And such great memories, you know?"

I glanced around, for some reason scared of what she was telling me. "Are you okay, Abby? Everything good with the parents? Yourself? Are you-"

Abby raised a hand, "I'm fine, West. It's just..you have to know. I can't pretend like it's nothing- not anymore."

"Know what?" now she was scaring me. She fully turned towards me, a moment passed between us. I could sense her hesitation. "You can tell me anything."

"I love you."

Then she jumped forward and kissed me.