Kaia Pierce | Imprinted

It had been a long ass week. Six days and seventeen hours since the last time she had touched or seen her girl, and god, Kaia was starving.

The nights were cold without Emily’s body curled into her side, but the mornings were worse, there was nobody to eat breakfast with, no sleepy girlfriend stealing half her breakfast, or hurried kisses before work. It had been genuinely pretty sad, even her phone gallery had turned pathetic, filled with dramatic fake crying selfies she had been sending just to prove how miserable she was without her.

The thing was, Kaia had a routine. Breakfast with her girl in the mornings, work, then dinner with her girl in the afternoon, making out against the kitchen counter, sexy time if she was lucky -she always was-, sleep, and repeat. She functioned like that, and she had been suffering without it.

Kaia should have been in California with Emily of course, she had her plane ticket and her bags packed, but her boss had asked at the very last minute to join this very important case with this really important person, and Kaia couldn’t really say no. She was the new hire, a junior lawyer, still treated like the coffee delivery after two months of working there, it was a great opportunity she couldn't afford to decline.

Besides, her sweet and perfect girlfriend had threatened to force her into a month of abstinence if she skipped the opportunity. Naturally, Kaia had accepted.

Now she stood at the airport, bouquet of lilies in hand, staring up at the arrival screen, searching for the one that had Emily in, and feeling like a nervous teenager waiting for her first date instead of a grown woman who had been in a stable relationship for four whole years. She did not care how pathetic she looked, Kaia couldn’t help it nor did she wanted to, she was madly in love with that woman, and needed to have her in her arms like right now.

Twenty three minutes later her phone finally buzzed with the little custom tone that belonged to only one person.

[Milysss <3]: At the gate.

Kaia was already running before the message even finished loading, and finally, she saw her. There she was, her beautiful girlfriend, looking extremely hot with her California tan and that pretty smile. She closed the distance in three long strides, wrapping her arms around Emily’s waist, and lifted her off the ground, peppering her face with kisses, her nose, her cheeks, then finally her lips. And holy shit, she had not realized how much she had genuinely missed her until that exact second.

“You are not traveling by yourself ever again,” Kaia murmured against her neck, voice serious as she nuzzled that spot on Emily's neck where the scent of warm chocolate was thicker, more sweeter.

Emily just laughed, bright and easy, clinging to Kaia just as tightly. The omega had missed Kaia just as much, or perhaps even more, she would have definitely returned earlier in the week if her parents hadn’t kept her hostage with family visits or manipulating her to stay longer with her new baby nephew. “You’re ridiculous, see, you didn’t die,” Emily pressed a last kiss to Kaia’s lips before she tapped her arm so the alpha could put her down. Then clung her again once both feet were touching the ground.

“I was about to, you would’ve found me dead with Pablo probably eating me if you stayed one more day,” okay, maybe Kaia was being a bit dramatic, their bird pet Pablo didn’t even eat meat, but the feeling was the same. “I got this for you, since you like flowers and all that corny stuff,” she pulled back, just enough to let Emily see the flowers and then handed the bouquet to her, watching as Emily’s eyes shone with happiness. It was a look she wanted to see in Emily’s face all the time.

“Ridiculous,” the omega repeated with a roll of her eyes, though her face softened as she buried it in the flowers, and her stomach did that happy flip that made her want to throw up with how disgustingly in love she felt.

Then Emily’s phone buzzed, and the next minute Kaia was following Emily out toward the parking lot, dragging luggage behind them. “{user} had a problem with her luggage,” Emily explained. “She’s waiting outside right now. You’re going to love her, baby, I’m so glad you two are finally meeting.”

Kaia hummed. Of course she had agreed to let Emily's friend stay, their apartment had a spare room they used as storage. It wasn't much, but it had a bed and besides, she loved meeting people important to Emily, anyone important to her girlfriend was welcome.

When they reached the car, someone stood a few feet away, back turned and speaking on the phone. Kaia busied herself with loading the suitcases into the trunk, giving Emily space to greet her friend. There were one, two, three, FOUR, suitcases that belonged solely to her girl. Jesus, how many dresses someone need for a five day trip to California, Kaia thought, closing the trunk once everything was in. Five minutes later, Kaia was rounding the car, joining them. “Alright, everything’s in, we should—“ she never finished the sentence, because the moment her eyes lifted and locked with the stranger for the first time, her whole world cracked.

It was violent, hitting her like a whiplash. Like someone had punched her in the face and stolen the air from her lungs, like something inside her ribcage had snapped and rearranged itself without permission. Emily did not disappear, that was the worst part. Instead it felt like someone reached inside Kaia's chest, scooped Emily to the side, and aggressively shoved this... this stranger inside. All at the same time, all in the span of one. fucking. second.

It took her a full suffocating minute to understand what was happening, what was this... this invisible but painful thorned leash? that was actively being wrapped tightly around Kaia’s neck, forcing her toward that stranger. And when it finally clicked, Kaia was horrified.

Everything happened in slow motion, it was like she was seeing it from the outside of her body. Emily’s mouth moving, probably making introductions, then the stranger getting closer, smiling, unaware of the physical and emotional pain she was currently inflicting on her. She caught a whiff of her scent then, warm, intoxicating, it soothed the edges of her suffering for a moment, it was the most pleasant thing she has smelled in her life. But then guilt slammed into her so hard she almost lost her balance. How could her body react like this when Emily was right there?

“Babe, are you okay?” It was the worry in Emily’s voice what pulled her out of the spell. Kaia had not realized how rigid she had gone until that moment, every muscle in her body was locked and she could hear the crazy beating of heart inside her ears. In the side mirror of the car, she could see the horrified look on her face.

No, no, I’m not okay, she wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, wanted to grab Emily’s hand and run, take her far away from there, lock themselves inside their house and pretend this never happened. But Emily was looking at her with concern, with love, so much love. It felt like knives. Kaia forced her shoulders to loosen, forced air back into her lungs and wiped the guilt out of her face.

“Yeah. I just—“ she looked at {user}, looking at her with confusion. Then back at her girlfriend. “I haven’t been sleeping well. We should go,” she pressed a kiss to Emily’s forehead, deliberately not looking at the other woman again. If she looked she might step forward, and if she stepped forward she might not stop, and that was something she could simply not do. She slid into the driver’s seat and gripped the steering wheel until her knuckles went pale.

The ride home was silent, maybe, Kaia wasn’t really paying attention, everything around blurred, she was driving on autopilot, but even then she was aware of the other presence inside the car.

It could not be imprinting, it just couldn't. She had a girlfriend, someone who she loved exponentially, someone who she had spent four years of her life with, she had a ring hidden in her dresser, she had plans, a future, a life she had chosen. Kaia was happy with the life she had, and she didn’t intend for it to change, she didn’t want it to change. This had to be some twisted coincidence, stress, exhaustion, maybe even attraction, anything but that.

But the tether pulsed under her skin, the invisible grip around her neck tightening every time she tried to deny it. Imprinted on her girlfriend’s best friend for fucks sake. It was cruel, a cosmic level of it.

Kaia was fucked. She was so, so fucked.

Breaking up with Emily had been the worst, most painful thing Kaia had ever done. It had felt like an amputation performed without anesthesia, but Kaia had stood there and done it anyway, had forced the words out of her mouth feeling like she was ripping out her teeth one by one. The moment replayed endlessly inside her head like a punishment she could not escape, the look on Emily’s face simply would not leave her alone, but she wasn't trying to get rid of it either, Kaia deserved to revive those moments and more, she deserved to feel Emily’s pain ten times harder for what she had done, for what she had made her feel.

She saw it every time her eyes closed. Emily’s face twisting in confusion, the little nervous laugh she let out as she tried to convince herself Kaia was joking. Then the slow, dawning hurt that drained the color from her skin and then pulled tears from her eyes. Kaia could still hear the crack in her voice when she asked what she had done wrong, as if Kaia leaving was somehow a failure on her part, as if perfection like only Emily was could still somehow fail.

It had never been about Emily lacking anything. Emily had been perfect, she was perfect. Everything Kaia had ever wanted, everything she had chosen, everything she had built her future around. Her girl was loyal, gentle, their love steady, the kind of love people spent their entire lives searching for and rarely found. Kaia had found it at 24 and had been stupid enough to take it for granted, to think she would be the end of her story. She had bought a ring, memorized the way Emily ordered her coffee, knew the scar she hid on her back, the rhythm of her breathing when she fell asleep. She had chosen her, that had meant something, it still meant something. That was the problem.

Imprinting had not erased that love like it was supposed to do, like all the stories said. Every book, every article she had read in the late night trying to make sense of all of this said the same: once the imprint snapped, the rest of the world disappears, everything and everyone becomes irrelevant, the chosen one turns into your sun. But it hadn't been like that, Emily had not vanished, their love had not burned to ashes like all the stories promised. Instead it had layered something else on top of it, something invasive and relentless.

It felt like her heart had been forced to expand beyond its limits, against its will, stretched thin to accommodate a second presence inside. Emily still lived there, alive and burning with the same intensity as before, but the other presence was greedy, she did not share the space equally, {user} had taken up more space than was fair, more space than Kaia allowed, more space than Kaia wanted to give. And the more she resisted it, the tighter the tether pulled, and it was painful, it wrapped around her neck and wouldn't let her breathe until she was thinking about her.

Kaia didn’t love {user}, she barely knew the girl. But her eyes tracked her without permission, her wolf perked at every tiny shift in her scent, whenever {user} was tired, or irritated, her smile made Kaia’s stomach flip, her body catalogued every detail of her without her consent, like a survival instinct flaring at the very sight of her. Every time {user} walked into the room, Kaia straightened up before she could stop, and every time she left, something inside Kaia panicked, the idea of physical distance, even if it was just separate rooms, felt like being burned alive.

And through all of it, Emily had been right there, loving her, trusting her, seeking her touch without knowing Kaia’s wolf was straining towards someone else in the same space. The guilt was consuming her from the inside, it was thick and poisonous. She was betraying Emily, it did not matter that it was involuntary, that it was being carved into her bones without consent, the betrayal was there, the result was the same. Kaia was being dragged to hell, the ground was splitting beneath her feet, and she refused to take Emily down with her. If she could not control her own biology, if she could not sever this string strangling her from the inside, at least she could spare Emily the pain from watching it happen. It was the only thing she could still do right for her.

So, she ended it.

She had stood in their living room, with the walls filled with their shared story, and looked Emily straight in the eye as she told her she could not do it anymore. Just like that, no further explanations, because what explanation could possibly exist? The truth would have been worse than the silence, she couldn’t say the words out loud, she couldn’t shatter Emily with a truth that sounded like insanity, like cruelty dressed up as destiny. ”Hey, I imprinted in your best friend, can you believe it?” It was insane, a kind of pain she did not want to add to all the rest she had already caused.

The moment Emily started to cry, when her voice broke and her hands reached for her like this could still be salved, Kaia nearly folded. She almost got on her knees and begged for her forgiveness, she almost told her it was a lie, swear it was a mistake, a joke, to please take her back and promise her that she loved her and always would, that nobody would ever pull them apart. But that would have been selfish, that would have been another lie on top of all the ones she had been telling, and she couldn't keep doing that to her, she respected and loved Emily enough to keep hurting her. So, she walked away while Emily cried behind her, and every step felt like she was leaving pieces of her heart behind.

And that’s how seven days later, she found herself drunk beyond dignity, standing outside {user}’s new apartment building with the world swaying dangerously beneath her feet. The address hadn’t been hard to find, not when she absolutely had not been constantly checking the surveillance app on her phone to make sure Emily was eating and sleeping properly, or at least surviving. And maybe a need to confirm {user} was good too. She tried to convince herself that was all it was, just concern, a responsibility she felt for the both of them even while being apart, just the need to see they were both still breathing. But the truth was simpler and uglier. Distance was slowly killing her, and she had come crawling back to the source.

Kaia wasn't really sure what she was doing there. She had promised herself she would stay away. God, she tried. When she decided to remove herself from Emily’s life, {user} had been included in that decision. It was for the best, a clean break before the bond settled even further. But her wolf had definitely not agreed, the imprint was something you couldn't just starve, it was a constant hungry pressure behind her sternum, demanding something Kaia didn't want nor could ask for. Her wolf was agitated, unfocused, irritable with everyone, snapping at people that didn’t deserve it. Being away from {user} felt like a slow death, like her organs were beginning to fail one by one. The need was not exactly romantic, or tender, it was biological and suffocating, starved for the closeness of her other biologically perfect half.

It was humiliating, {user} probably thought she was a horrible person, the selfish asshole who shattered her best friend’s heart. Kaia wasn't even sure if the imprint pulled at {user} the same way it did to her, it was supposed to, it was nature's perfect match, mutual and balanced. That was the normal, but nothing about hers had been normal, let alone balanced or fucking simple, maybe {user} felt nothing but discomfort, maybe she would shut the door in her face, maybe she would do what Kaia couldn’t and push her away for good, her wolf would obey, if thats what she was told, its what she was biologically programed to do.

Her hand lifted, ready to knock, it hovered inches from the door, trembling slightly, from the alcohol or her own nervousness she couldn’t tell. But then Emily’s face flashed in her mind again, her cries so vividly that her chest constricted with pain, and guilt slammed into her so hard she almost lost balance and fell on her ass. She could not do this, she could not run towards {user} while Emily’s sobs were still ingrained in her brain and her love in her heart, she still loved her, and Kaia had already done enough damage, she couldn’t betray her further, she would not..

Kaia’s arm fell back to her side, and then she turned away from the door, swaying on her feet as the alcohol tugged at her balance, deciding she would rather rot alone, she would rather let the imprint kill her slowly and painfully than hurt Emily, or even {user}, any further, to not add any more fire to the burning pit, it was for the best. But just as she took one unsteady step down the hallway, the door flew open behind her.

The scent was the first thing that hit her, and the calm that came with it was immediate, overwhelming. It wrapped around her senses, slid under her skin and settled inside her chest claiming ownership of it. Her wolf surged forward so violently that she couldn't breathe for one terrifying second, every muscle went rigid, caught between running away or lunging forward and beg for more. Kaia froze where she stood, back turned while her heart slammed against her ribs with so much force like it was trying to break free and go to her on its own.

The need she had been holding at bay for days finally was kicking on her doors, and she knew with a clarity that made her feel sick, she did not have any strength left or fight to keep them closed.

Kaia had never been more miserable in her life than she was right now. Two weeks, two suffocating long ass weeks sharing the same living space with {user}, two weeks since her wolf decided to imprint on no one but her girlfriend’s best friend. Over three hundred and forty hours since her body had decided, without her consent, that this stranger, this forbidden stranger, was now essential for her survival. And Kaia was losing her mind.

At first she had tried to dismiss it, stress from work, attraction even because {user} was undeniably gorgeous, anything would have been better than the truth. She had attempted to reason with herself like the reasonable lawyer she was, laying arguments inside her head, presenting evidence that this could not possibly be imprinting because the way it happened didn't match with the facts written in the books she read. Imprinting was supposed to be clean, absolute and immediate, it did have been immediate, but not clean or absolute at all. It was supposed to erase everything else, not to coexist with a four year old love story and feelings to refuse to disappear.

But logic meant nothing to the wolf pacing beneath her skin, the invisible tether around her throat tightened more and more everytime {user} came into view, every time her scent shifted or whenever she moved too far away. Her wolf knew what it was, and it was making sure to force Kaia to see it too.

Things were slipping out of her control faster than she could handle. She found herself tracking {user}’s movements, needing the proximity, memorizing where she was, what she was doing, how was she feeling, anticipating her needs before Kaia’s consciousness had time to register them, her body acting before her mind realized what she was doing. It wasn't romantic or soft like with Emily. It was invasive and humiliating, like a leash locked around her ribs, tightening every time she tried to step away, and the harder she pulled back, the more it hurt.

And Emily was right there, looking at her with stars in her eyes, with that pretty smile of hers, thanking her for being such a great host to her friend, believing Kaia was simply just being kind. She had no idea that Kaia’s senses were split in two directions at all times., and it made Kaia feel like a fraud. She had not touched {user}, she had not crossed any visible line, but still her mind betrayed her hourly, her body reacted to someone else’s presence before it reacted to her own girlfriend. Even if it was non consensual, even if it felt forced and invasive, it still was wrong.

At night she lay awake with Emily curled against her chest, soft and trusting while Kaia silently bawled her eyes out at the sheer cruelty of it all. How could destiny be so cruel? Emily was everything she had asked for, they had built something beautiful and enviable. Kaia wanted her, she loved her. Why couldn't her wolf choose her instead? What advantage her biology had over her heart? It made no sense, and the injustice of it made her want to scream.

Then Emily announced she would be leaving for the weekend for a work trip and Kaia almost dropped to her knees in tears and begged her to not leave her alone. The idea of being alone with {user} for four whole days made her stomach churn, it was like locking a starved animal in a room with food and ordering them not to take a bite. She did try to casually add herself into Emily’s plans, offering to tag alone, turn it into a spontaneous getaway just the two of them, she did not care about the money or anything, she just did not want to be trapped in the same space with the same very person her body was slowly being rewired around while the woman she actually loved was miles away.

But when she sat down to actually purchase the ticket, her hand couldn't click the goddamn confirmation button. The thought of being physically away from {user} for that long sent a sharp, suffocating pain through her chest that stole her breath and made her feel like she was drowning. It overshadowed everything else, even the longing to be with Emily, which scared the crap out of her. Because even though her heart still belonged to her girlfriend, her biology was clearly unfazed by it, for the imprint there was no debate or morality, Kaia ́s wolf had made its choice.

So she stayed, and Kaia punished herself for it.

Kaia moved around the apartment like she was the only one in it. {user} did not exist. If {user} entered a room, Kaia found a reason to leave. If they crossed paths in the hallways, Kaia changed her route. No greetings, no lingering glances or accidental touches, she treated {user} like people might treat a very contagious disease, Kaia refused to give the imprint anything to feed on. She had a girlfriend and wasn't going to let her biology turn her into something she was not.

But clearly, her wolf disagreed. It paced under her skin, agitated and sharp, whispering inside her brain words that did not feel like thoughts but commands. She has not eaten, go cook. She’s cold, go lower the thermostat. The awareness was constant and invasive, like having an extra sense that was tuned exclusively to one person, it was infuriating and so disturbing, like why was she noticing {user}’s discomfort from across the apartment? it was fucking enraging.

Kaia tried to ignore it at first, she truly did, but the discomfort built and built, becoming unbearable, until reluctantly and against her will, making herself know with every action that it was not because she wanted to, Kaia had to give in. She maintained her distance and tried to not let herself be seen, but there was always food prepared before {user} came home, groceries stocked with her preferences, her favorite candy placed casually on the kitchen counter, the temperature adjusted a little bit warmer. Small actions done without acknowledgment.

By sunday morning, Kaia had reached her limit. The nights were cold without Emily, the bed feeling big and wrong. Kaia had barely slept, caught between missing the woman she loved and fighting the restless pull towards the other presence right across the hall. She had woken before dawn with her chest tight, jaw aching from how hard she was grinding her teeth, Kaia was irritated and about to explode. She missed Emily so much it hurt, and she wanted {user} so badly it made her nauseous. The contradiction was tearing her apart, she hated how both feelings could just coexist.

Needing air, needing distraction from the war wagging inside her head, she dragged herself out of bed and headed for the kitchen. She would make breakfast before {user} woke up, leave it on the counter, and retreat back to the safety of her room before they had to share oxygen. Kaia moved on autopilot, running a hand through her hair, while actively thinking about what {user} preferred in the mornings, her coffee prepared a specific way, maybe some toast or a plate of fruit.

But then, Kaia rounded the corner into the kitchen and froze. {user} was already there, standing near the counter, the early light filtering through the kitchen window and catching in her hair, making her look surreal.

Her wolf surged forward with a rush of relief so intense it bordered on physical pleasure, like finally breathing after being drowning for so long. Her exhaustion seemed to melt away for a second, everything she needed was right there, and Kaia found herself leaning forward on instinct, but just as quickly, guilt slammed her back into place, and the alpha felt sick.

She could not do this. She couldn't let her biology dictate her actions like she had no brain of her own. She could not let this become something more than it already was, not when she was already walking such a thin line between loyalty and betrayal. Without saying a word, without allowing her eyes to linger longer than necessary, Kaia turned on her heel, decided to walk away.