Chapter 2: Meetings

My mind spun with excitement. Could a kiss be this sweet? This gentle? If this is death, I don't want it to ever end.
He pulled away just as I was opening my eyes. I didn't know what to expect. A black hole? Darkness? Tentacles? But we were standing in the same spot we were before. Nothing had changed.
Lukas looked skeptical. "I-I don't understand."
I looked at him with the biggest grin I could possibly have. "Well, bright side is, I'm not dead!" I clapped my hands like a giddy schoolgirl. I could kiss him! But when I looked over, he didn't look happy, he looked deep in thought. "You could say something, you know. Maybe the fact I'm alive is an accomplishment? I don't know, something along that line."
He looked at me with a face so serious, it scared me. What I didn't expect was his laughter, it bubbled right out of him. It was a laughter so sweet, the birds envied him. I looked at him with a questionable look.
"Did I say something funny? If so, please explain."
"Oh Sky! You don't think I'm ecstatic that you're alive? I am! This is a miracle! What I don't get is; why your immune to my kiss. Not that I'm not happy, I'm elated that your still rosy." He stroked my cheek lightly. "Your blush is beautiful."
I looked down instantly. 6 months together, and I still blush! I took a deep breath and looked at him.
"Don't worry love. We'll figure it out. Like we always do." He took my hand and led me out of the woods, near the road where it leads to close to my house.
"I don't want to go home." I tugged on his shirt the other direction, trying to get as far from that house that I can.
"I need to talk to my mother alone. I won't be gone long. I promise." He kissed my head.
I looked up at him, "You know you can kiss my lips now." I said hinting. Getting the hint, he bent down and pressed a kiss on my lips as soft as the first one.
"Mmmm." I said with a smile. His taste is invigorating.
"Go home now, I will text you when I get done talking with my mother." He said firmly.
"Ah fine. On one condition." I shifted my position.
"Alright, I'll kiss you again." He smiled.
"Okay then two conditions." I decided both were good. "First, the kiss," he kissed me once again without a complaint. "and second, I want to see you shift."
"No."
"No?"
"No." Lukas replied.
"Why not? I've seen you in form!" I will get my way.
"I said no. That's the end of it." He said it sternly. He kissed my head, & walked away.
I thought about going home, I really did, but my curiosity got the best of me, so I waited til he was out of sight, then ran towards the direction he went. When I reached where he was, I saw him, he was shirtless, his back towards me, like that Jacob guy from Twilight, but he was even more dazzling. You could see every muscle. His back was very well built.
He was walking through the woods again, near our home, but that's not where he was going. I know he could of heard me, as silent as I tried to be, to his ears, I might as well has been stomping. He must have been deep in thought if he hadn't heard me so far. He once told me that he could hear mice sneeze. I rolled my eyes at the time, but the way he always knew where I was in school, amazed me.
I hid 4 trees behind him, hoping he didn't hear me. Then it happened.
He shifted right before my eyes.  
I didn't expect it to be beautiful. One minute, he was there in full human form. The next, he was a dazzling lion. The mane was even more gold than the metal itself, his paws were giant, enough to kill a person in one swipe. I've only ever seen a lion on tv or even at the zoo, but to even be this close to him. My boyfriend is a lion. I laughed, which was only a whisper, but too loud for a lion. I heard a grumble from the pits of his stomach.
I held my breath. I stood there what seems like minutes, then turned my head to the right side of the tree. He was gone.
I sighed. Great, you lost him. I thought. I got to see him shift! The other part of my stubborn mind said.
I turned around to see a set of teeth. I screamed.
Or at least I tried. Nothing came out so it was more like a shocked look.
He stood there in front of me, looking at me.
"Hi." I stumbled.
He chuffed at me. Then turned he turned his head and started walking.
It hit me. "You knew! You knew I was following you!" My scent probably gave it away.
He gave me a lion grin. Then looked on his back, then at me.
"What? Do you have an itch?" I scratched there but he just growled. "Fine, fine. What do you want?"
He looked at his back, then me, then his back again.
"Do you want me to..." I trailed off.
He nodded.
"I'll be to heavy!" He made a sound that sounded very close to a laugh. He huffed at me. "Fine! I'll get on, but don't you dare complain when you have a sore back later!"
When I touched his fur, it was incredibly soft. He kneeled down to my level so I could hop onto his back. I saddled on his back and grabbed his mane. "Just growl if I'm hurting you." He snorted again.
He ran. Fast. Not as fast as a cheetah, but close enough. Faster than a human.
I decided, to keep the apple in my stomach, I would close my eyes. This seemed like a great idea until he jumped over a river. I pulled on his mane.
I swore I heard a chuckle.
When we arrived at a log cabin, far out in the middle of nowhere, I decided this is probably his mother's home Not far off, you could see a barn. I hopped off, and stretched. I was going to be sore in the morning.
A woman wearing a floral sundress came outside, and leaned against the railing. "Lukas! We agreed no lion form! A horse would of been just as fast and impressive!" She walked down the steps and opened her arms up to me. I accepted her hug. "And you must be the Skylare! Oh sweetpea! Lukas talks about you all the time!"
Lukas growled at her.
"Don't you dare get an attitude towards me! Now go to the barn at shift and Skylare and I will go inside." She ushered me into the log home. It looked tiny on the inside, but in all reality, it was beautiful. Sunflowers were the theme of the home, but it made all of the home glow. "You're home is beautiful ma'am."
"Oh sweetpea, ma'am is too fancy for me! Call me Susan."
"Oh well thank you."
"Tea? Coffee? Water?" She offered.
"Tea is fine, thank you."
"Mother, would you please calm down. Don't over crowd her."
He bent down to kiss me on the lips. "I hope you like honey in your t-" his mother started.
She dropped my cup. I watched it shatter into tiny pieces. Her mouth was open, her eyes filled with shock.
"What are you doing?!"
And here come the questions.
I sighed. It's going to be a long day.

Chapter 1: To Die For

It was Saturday morning when I woke up with the sunlight streaming into my eyes. Ugh. I glanced at the clock. The stupid thing told me it was 7:32 am. You're suppose to sleep in on a Saturday. I flipped over, avoiding the sunlight, but to lazy to get up & close the curtain.
My phone buzzed.
I flipped back over to the side with the sunlight, temporarily getting blinded. I grabbed the little Android.
I smiled. It was from Lukas.
MEET ME AT THE USUAL SPOT IN 10 MINS. -LUKE
I threw off the covers and stood in front of the mirror. Purple shorts and a gray tee with my gorgeous bedhead.
I grabbed my brush and ran in through my auburn curls a couple times. Then grabbed my favorite pair of skinny jeans, and my blue tank top. Simple, but not under-dressed. I put just a little bit of eyeliner and mascara then ran downstairs.
"And where do you think your going?" My mom asked at the bottom of the stairs. Dang it, she doesn't leave til 8!
Thankful that I didn't put on my shoes on, I just shyly said, "Well, I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd go for a walk."
"Have you eaten yet?" That was my mom, healthy, healthy, healthy. She was a nutritionist. So knowing her, she'll tell me how unhealthy it is to miss breakfast. As if on cue she goes, "You know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day! I mean, all of them are important, but breakfast gets your brain moving for the day!"
 I looked at my phone 7:45, dang it, I'm late! "Uhm, how 'bout an apple? It's got enough nutrients!" I swiped an apple out of the fruit bowl and put my shoes on. "I'll be back later!" I shouted leaving before she could even squeeze in another word.
Our spot is this hidden spring out by my house, somewhere out in the woods. It was a mess when Lukas and I first found it. Trees were over the unique stream, weeds were choking the flowers, spider webs everywhere. So for the next week, we spent all our free time there. By the time we were done, the stream flowed freely without any effort, the flowers we colorful again, the spiders were gone, and our area was green. Lukas was also building a small house there, for us in the winter, when it's too cold to sit our natural wooden tree bench.
When I finally got there, I took the last bite out of my apple that I had been nibbling on, on my way here, and threw it into the woods, knowing a deer would eat the core. I leaned down to the stream to rinse my hands from the stickiness, then wiped my hands on my jeans.
I glanced up to see Lukas in the shape of an eagle, collecting branches that had fallen. I knew it was him from his eyes.Those bright green eyes. They weren't hazel, that's were other people were mistaken. They were a bright green, like moss, or forest's grass. They were unique.
He looked at me and flew on top of our still-being-built home. I stumbled up the stream by our home. He had finished the second wall! It was all oak, the floors, the walls, the roof, the stairs. Everything. It was all so perfect.
"Oh Lukas! It's beautiful!" I squealed. He flew out of my sight a few moments later. I waited patiently. I heard solid footsteps a couple minutes later.
"You're late." He smiled the perfect smile and planted a kiss on my cheek.
"Mom was telling my the fascinating stories of breakfast." I said with a sideways glance as he sat on the bench.
"Oh really? What did you learn today?" He tapped the spot right next to him, beckoning me to sit by him.
"Something about breakfast getting your brain moving and stuff like that." I sat next to him as he wrapped his arm around my shoulder.
"Exciting. So? What do you think? What wall would you like a window or two?"
I glanced at our home. "Hmm, I defiantly want one to face the stream. So we can see the most perfect view. And another one facing the opposite window. So a breeze can go through in the summer." I said satisfied.
"And this is why your designing the inside of the home." He smiled. Oh gosh, it's a beautiful smile. His black hair brushing across his face. A breeze went past us, smelling like freshly cut grass and his ocean scent.
"I'll have to be creative though, tight budget." I only have about $30. The dollar store is going to be my best friend, that's for sure.
"Don't worry about expense. I'll handle that. You just tell me what you need and you will get it." Lukas said easily.
"That's what you think. I'm not spending what little money we have on decor! We'll need it for food and other needed items." I replied.
"Love, I will take care of it. I will take care of you." He kissed my head.
We were silent for a couple minutes, so I spoke up. "Lukas?" I bit my lip.
"Hmmm?" He said returning my gaze.
I looked down. "Well, uhm, I-I, never mind."
"Tell me, I want to know." He lifted my chin.
"When..." I sighed. Just say it! "When will you kiss me?" We still have yet to kiss each other's lips. I wanted to so badly to just plant one on him!
He looked at me, with the saddest eyes. "Skylare, it's not safe for me to kiss you the way you want. Its dangerous."
My heart heaved. He wouldn't fully explain the consequences of what would happen if we did kiss. Part of me wonders if I would care anyways.
I stood up, upset that he won't explain. "What is so bad if I kiss you?! I know your a shifter! I know this! I want to know what is so horrible if I kissed you now, at this very moment!" I puffed. Well, I got that off my chest.
He stood up, clearly upset by words.
I forget how tall he was. Four maybe five inches taller than me.
"If you do that, you could die! Die Skylare! Not faint, DIE! Do you think a kiss is worth death?! Some shifters have poison in their lips, and once the toxic spreads, it can't be stopped. Not that anyone knows of, anyways. I can't risk losing you."
Die. Die. Die. The word rang in my head, but so did another word.
"I could die? Could sounds like your not certain." I pointed out.
"That's what you got out of that? Of all things?" He sighed.
"Kiss me. If I die. I die happy." I said. We're talking about a future, but he can't even kiss me? "What do I have to lose?" I said quietly.
"Me." He whispered. "You have me to lose."
"I trust you." and with that, he bent down, and pressed his lips to mine.
It was to die for.

Something Dark Beginning

Something Dark

I looked down at my Converse. Then looked up into his eyes. I didn’t know that the color green could ever be that vibrant or that black hair could be so dark. I bit my lip.

“Skylare, don’t bite your lip, that’s a bad habit.” Lukas said. I honestly don’t mean to do it.

“I-uhm I’m sorry.” Really? Of all the things I could have said?

“Sky, please don’t look at me like that.”

“Well you shouldn’t just say things like that.” I replied stupidly.

“I told you what I am, and you just bite your lip and stare at your shoes. I think I’m more in shock than you.” He looked at me with those eyes.

“Well being a shifter can’t be that scary right? I mean you could be something worse.” I hope I was right.

Lukas rolled his eyes at me then came and held my hand. “Love, I am that something worse.”

Gulp.

Didn’t expect that one.