Running From the Dark | Double Lives Series | Book 1

Chapter 9-First Kiss

Highschool played a very important role in my life, especially with my identity crisis. My wolf senses took a huge toll on me as soon as I started freshman year. The morning of the first day of school, I woke up feeling strange. Strange as in urges. The minute I lifted up my blanket, I saw why I felt strange. I groaned as I dragged my hands down my face. I made my way to the bathroom after I forced myself out of bed. I splashed my face with hot water and gazed into the mirror.

'I need to tell Lulu how I feel.'

When I arrived at school, I quickly ran to find Mike. I spotted him standing at a locker, blending in with every other student.

"Mike!" I called out to him.

His head perked up, noticing me coming towards him. He joyfully smiled. "What's up?"

"Ah got somethin' to tell you," I said, standing in front of him.

"What is it?"

I looked around for a few seconds and said, "Ah want to confess to Lulu."

"Is that a good idea?"

"Ah don't know, but ah want to tell her."

"Want?" He raised an eyebrow at me. He closed his locker.

I rolled my eyes. "Ah want and need to. Do you even wanna know what happened this mornin'?"

"What happened?" Mike asked, folding his arms.

"I um," I cleared my throat. "I woke up with a boner."

Mike chuckled and placed his hand on my shoulder. "So mah bro is finally having those dreams."

I gasped in disbelief and shoved his hand off of my shoulder. "Ew! No, I was not havin' any dreams."

"Then why did you wake up with a stic-"

"It just happened."

Mike sighed.

"Look. We just started freshman year. You have plenty of time."

Mike was right, but I didn't want to admit that. I didn't feel like waiting another year or two to tell Lulu my feelings.

"Yeah, but what if she finds another boy best friend and falls in love with him? Remember what happened last year with Cody?"

"Stop overreacting. She won't ditch you like that."

I sighed and changed the subject.

"Did you talk to Alice yet?" I asked with a smirk.

Mike's eyes widened. "No."

I laughed as I saw a blush creep onto his face. Mike had a huge crush on Alice. He loved gawking at her body and would often invite her to his pool at his house.

"Stop it, Jake. She's a senior now. Seniors are not supposed to date freshmans," Mike said, shaking his head.

"Date in secret. No one will know."

Mike stayed quiet for a moment. He was about to say something, but the bell rang for first period. We said our goodbyes and went to class.

Somehow I fell asleep during class. I didn't even realize until I was shaken awake.

"Yo! Jake, wake up!"

I immediately jumped awake and grabbed the person's wrist with a strong grip.

"Bro, chill out! It's just me."

It was Kevin.

I let go of his wrist and relaxed, taking a deep breath. I glanced around the room, realizing that the classroom was empty. I began grabbing my things as Kevin asked me if I was okay. In the process of leaving the classroom, I almost walked right into Lulu as she entered.

"Oh, hey," I said, smiling at her.

"Hey," she responded softly, smiling back as she looked at me.

I gazed into her sienna brown eyes. They were sparkling like stars.

"Ahem."

My eyes stopped lingering on Lulu and went to Kevin. He was tapping his foot on the floor impatiently.

"Let's go!" he demanded, grabbing my arm.

"See ya later, Lu."

After school, I invited Mike and Kevin to my house to organize a plan for me to tell Lulu how I feel. Kevin was laying down on my bed comfortably, reading through a magazine. Mike was just laying down next to him, watching me pace back and forth.

"Would you sit down, Jake?" said Mike.

I stopped. "Ah'm scared."

"Don't be," Kevin spoke, not looking up from the magazine.

"You know what, " Mike said, positioning himself to stand, his hair bouncing lightly. "Scratch the plan."

"Woah, what do you mean scratch the plan?" I said in an almost panicked tone.

"What's on your mind now, Mike?" Kevin threw the magazine on the bed and sat up.

Mike told me to call Lulu and just invite her over, but I told him that I wanted to stick to the plan. Unfortunately, Kevin agreed with Mike. So, I called her. Surprisingly, I spoke calmly to Lulu over the phone. I guess I was good at masking the nervousness in my voice.

About 20 minutes after the call, Lulu showed up. Mike and Kevin just hid themselves in my closet so they could be nosey. I told them to leave through my window, but of course they didn't want to listen.

"So, what did you wanna tell me?" Lulu asked curiously after I let her in the house.

"Oh, um ah prefer to tell you in mah room," I nervously spoke, putting a hand in my hair. I led her to my room and slowly sat down on the bed. I motioned for her to sit next to me and she did.

"Jake, what's dis about?" she asked nervously, biting her lip.

"Lu, ah need you to just listen to me. Ah don't know if what ah'm about to say will ruin our friendship," I told her. She stayed quiet. I took her hand in mine and took a deep breath before continuing. "I admire you Lulu. You make me smile and you're always there for me."

Lulu smiled and blushed. "Well ah love your personality and style. Not gonna lie, we've been inseparable since birth."

I chuckled, "Yeah."

We gazed into each other's eyes, getting lost in them. Everything around us was quiet. My heart was beating slowly, but with anticipation. I leaned in as my eyes went down to her lips. Her lips immediately crashed onto mine as she leaned forward. Her hands went to both sides of my face as she scooted closer. I snaked my hands around her waist firmly. My heart began jumping with joy like it was on cloud nine. A sense of warmth spreaded throughout my body.

After a minute, we parted. Our eyes met. I felt a strong connection, a bond. I wanted to just cherish the moment for as long as I can.

"Wow," Lulu whispered.

I smiled.

All of a sudden, we heard rumbling from the closet. Lulu glanced at the closet and back at me. I shrugged my shoulders, being oblivious. She got up, going towards the closet.

"Lu?" I said. She placed her hand on the doorknob, getting ready to open it. "Lu, please don't open the-"

Just as she opened it, Mike and Kevin fell out, possibly from leaning on the door. Lulu moved out of the way quickly.

"Hey," Mike greeted nervously, wincing.

"Boys," Lulu muttered, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms.