19. Amaya

19

AMAYA

SIXTEEN YEARS OLD

A dmitting to the guys that I steal their clothes to sleep in was never supposed to happen. Then Oliver just had to see me stuffing Emmett's sweatshirt in my backpack. To my absolute horror, he snatched my bag, then found a pair of Sam's boxers and his white T-shirt.

Of course it was Oliver, my friend with the biggest personality and biggest freaking mouth. He told Sam and Emmett immediately , marking this day as the most humiliating moment of my teens. No, my life !

Burrowing deeper into Em's sweatshirt, I ignore the heat rising to my cheeks. God, I'm so embarrassed.

The awful night then proceeded to get more uncomfortable when Oliver and Samuel raced up the stairs to see who could grab me more of their things. Now here I am, blushing like an idiot. A happy idiot surrounded by their pajamas and a lucky pair of sweatpants Emmett had left at the Jenkins house.

The longer I'm huddled in the yummy fabric that smells faintly of my friends, the warmer I get. Sweat beads in my hairline, and I can't stop shifting every few seconds. I'm uncomfortable. Like when I wear cotton sweatpants on a humid summer night. Kind of suffocated and itchy.

Releasing a grunt of annoyance, I still when it comes out in a higher pitch than I had intended. I'm annoyed, not pouting, so why did it sound like I just whimpered?

Fresh cut grass, lime, and mint swirl in my nose, making my head a little woozy. Oliver, Sammy and Emmett smell like those things, but why is it so strong right now?

Worried and overwhelmed by the itchy fabric of Samuel's boxers now clinging to my thighs, I sit up so fast it feels like my brain just slammed into my skull. The new position and rising confusion have me freaking out when I realize I'm sitting in a puddle of sweat.

What's wrong with me?!

Scrambling away from the mess, a waft of lavender assaults my nose like I just stuck my nose in the flower itself.

"What—" I choke and gasp, tumbling out of bed feeling disgusted and really damn scared.

The movement makes the boys' clothes shift on my sensitive skin until all I know is them.

Oliver's summery scent sweeps me away into some of my most favorite memories of lying in the grass with him, giggling away all of our troubles.

Breezy lime tickles my nose and makes my mouth water, reminding me of the yummy fake margaritas Samuel used to make for us with his mom’s guidance.

Then comes the memories of picking mint leaves with Emmett in his dad's garden. He would hold my hand and point out all the different kinds of plants each time we did a little harvest. I should know them all by now, but I'm usually too focused on sniffing the little leaf that reminds me of him.

BAM!

"FREEZE! ON THE GROUND, OMEGA!"

I don't need to be ordered to the floor; I've already dropped with my arms covering my head in pure terror. Rotting flower scents surround me next, making me gag, then gasp on a scream and tears.

"You don't get her ‘til I get my money!" My mom’s shrill screech penetrates my automatic submissive state.

"Here," somebody grunts, but I'm too lost in my fear to dare look up.

Whimpers and whines slip from my quivering lips, trying to convince me what the man in all black just said. Omega. I just presented!

Cold circles my wrists just before metal crushes my bones. I cry out as I'm hauled to my feet. Before I can question the men in masks flooding my room and yanking me through the bedroom door, I'm drowning. Drowning in the scents of my friends. My guys. Mates , a voice whispers urgently.

‘MATES, MATES, MATES!’

The desperate pleas pounding on the walls of my mind's reality destroys my ability to think. To fight back. To do anything .

Lime, fresh grass, and mint. They aren't a balm to my soul; they become a fire of hope and desperation.

‘Mine . Theirs .’

If I truly am theirs, then they will come for me, right?

No matter where I'm being taken, it won’t lessen what we are to one another.

‘Mates will come’ , the voice whimpers and burrows deeper into their scents still wrapped around my clammy skin.

I follow the voice, tearing myself from my body. Something tells me it's the only way I'll survive; in the memories I share with my mates.