Edward's POV I walked into the kitchen of the small cottage that had been given to me and my love,

Bella, by my family. They were kind enough to give us a space of our own. Well, we shared it with our daughter, Renesmee, too, but she was never a bother. She was already very grown up, more than i ever thought she would be. Renesmee (if she grew normally) she would be about 3 years old, but because she was concieved when Bella was still human, she's growing abnormally fast. She looks almost 9 now, and the family has adapted to her already. Thinking of Renesmee, I asked Bella, "Where's Renesmee?" "Don't worry, Edward," she replied. "She's with Rosalie and Esme." "I'm not worried," I grinned and began to stroke her pale cheek. Ever since Bella had become a vampire, I keep wishing I'd biten her sooner. Bella was able to understand now how I felt all those years during her human days. I must admit, sometimes I miss her tantalizing scent, but if I had the chance, I would never make her human again. "Jacob called last night," she mentioned. "What did he want?" I didn't mean to sound angry. "Something about Renesmee," she frowned. "And? What did he say?" "He wanted to introduce his father to Renesmee." "Absolutely not," I didn't hesitate at all. "This imprinting thing is getting out of control ... he's practically living at the house now. He can't stand to be away from her." "That's disgusting." I pushed the vile in my throat back down. "There's nothing we can do about it." I knew she was right. "I don't want Jacob around her, now that wolf wants to bring the family? No way." "I know this is hard for you, Edward. It's hard for me too. After the birth, all I wanted is for Jacob to leave." "But he won't," I hated the fact that I couldn't do anything to change my daughter's fate ... as of now. "Hey, he's still part of my family ... theoretically. Everything will be fine." She wrapped her arms around my neck, holding on tightly. I put my hands around her waist and kissed the top of her head. She pushed her head up and our lips met. Now that Bella was a vampire, I didn't have to resist. I wasn't that raging monster anymore ... well, I still was, but not with Bella. I could be as agressive as I wanted, and it would never matter. "Do you remember when we met, and you hated me?" she brought up randomly. "Of course. But I'm trying to forget the 'hated you' part." "Do you think life was more simple then? That everything was easier then?" "No, because I didn't have you. And if I hadn't been careless and if I had never saved you from that car accident, we'd never be like this."

She didn't respond for a long time after that. I didn't know if she was thinking or if she didn't want to speak at all. When she finally opened her mouth to speak, she just stood there for a second, before she spit the words out. "Do you think Mike and Jessica ever got married like we did?" My first impression was to laugh, if not to do anything else. That was one of the most random questions she'd ever asked me. "I don't know, Bella." I smiled down at her. "How is that?" she was almost laughing. "How is what?" "That even after I become a vampire, you still dazzle me." I chuckled quietly, looking deep into her eyes. She smiled up at me, but you could tell she was still waiting for an answer. "I don't know. But when you were human, you dazzled me. *A/N*: Hey, it's letmesign172 from the future Not really. I just added this author's note to this chapter almost two years after a wrote this. Currently, I am nearing the end of After Breaking Dawn2, and I have had so many amazing readers who have trekked through this with me. Luckily for me, said readers are extremely tolerant. If you decide to continue reading After Breaking Dawn (which will make me die and go to heaven, because if there's one thing I love more than Twilight itself, it's getting feedback for what I'm doing), then I am going to warn you now. You are going to see a ton of inconsistencies. When I first started writing this, I didn't really care about it. But since then I have grown as a writer and take everything 10x more seriously. If you are patient with me and do not end up throwing stuff at your computer out of pure anger due to how inconsistent I am, then you will get to After Breaking Dawn2. And I guarantee that I was a bit more cooperative in the sequel than I am here. (Believe me, sometimes, when I look back at this story, I frustrate myself). So here are some things I'm going to get across now (hopefully, I won't bore you to death): I don't agree with Jacob being alpha of his own pack. It's nothing against him, I just don't like the idea of two separate packs. No matter how hard I try, I'm oblivious to time and age. I think passing time is the best way to symbolize growth and such and I use it frequently to build up anticipation but, apparently, just as Bella is in New Moon, time is like a blank page to me. Don't murder me if I don't correspond the right years together. No matter what happens, there is still going to be a slight aversion between Edward and Jacob (And between the vampires and the wolves). I think the story was built on that aversion, so I subconsciously sneak it in here and there without meaning to. There mortal enemies anyway, I mean, c'mon, how friendly can they get? Currently, I am in the middle of working on a different story (not a fanfiction) so I am forever stuck in the human emotion mode. If I say something like "Bella's brown eyes" or "she cried" or some human reaction that I vampire cannot have, I apologize I hate Mike Newton as much as Edward did in Twilight. So, sorry, Mike, but I'm just going to break your little heart as much as possible. Alice's visions were basically just an open range at the beginning of this story. Over time, I take more in to account that she was far more limited I start to clean that up over time. I will admit it honestly: in After Breaking Dawn I was sloppy, prejudiced, inaccurate, and outspoken. But I'm trying to make up for that in ABD2 bear with me if I make stupid mistakes; I promise I'm trying harder ^_^ You can send all the hate mail you want to me; I promise not to cry *sniff*

Bella's POV I looked out the kitchen window onto the forest floor. My life had changed so much since I'd moved to Forks. First of all, I wasn't myself anymore ... I was a vampire. But of course I'd become one for a reason: to be with Edward Cullen forever. I still had to get used to the fact that I was Bella Cullen now. Interrupting my thoughts, I heard Edward's suttle footsteps coming down the hall. "Where's Renesmee?" his voice rang off the cottage walls. "Don't worry, Edward," saying his name still made me melt. "She's with Rosalie and Esme." "I'm not worried," he lifted his hand and stroked my cheek gently. His hand wasn't ice cold anymore like it used to be; it felt the same as my skin now. But to any other human, Edward's hand would feel like he'd just stuck it into a pile of snow. Jacob, in contrast, would feel like he just stepped off the sun. Speaking of Jacob ... "Jacob called last night." "What did he want?" Edward sounded almost furious. "Something about Renesmee." "And? What did he say?" "He wanted to introduce his father to Renesmee." "Absolutely not," he responded immediately. "This imprinting thing is getting out of control ... he's practically living at the house now. He can't stand to be away from her." "That's disgusting." Edward gulped. "There's nothing we can do about it." I frowned. It was true, after you imprint, it's an impenetrable need. "I don't want Jacob around her, now that wolf wants to bring the family? No way." "I know this is hard for you, Edward. It's hard for me too. After the birth, all I wanted is for Jacob to leave." Renesmee's birth was probably one of the most painful but glorious times of my life. Sadly, the only doctor in the house, Carlisle, wasn't there at the time of the birth. Only Edward, Jacob, Rosalie, and Alice were there. The vampires did everything in their power to make sure I came out alive. But as the birth progressed, all Jacob wanted to do was run away. His intrest in me decreased as the vampire baby slowly tortured me to death, and soon enough, he wanted nothing to do with me. "But he won't," Edward held my hand for support. "Hey, he's still part of my family ... theoretically. Everything will be fine." I wrapped my arms around his neck, and held him close. I needed the support right now. He moved his hands up to my waist and began kissing the top of my head. I need more than that. I pulled up my head so our lips would meet. I remember when he couldn't kiss me whenever he wanted, it would ruin his self-control. "Do you remember when we met, and you hated me?" "Of course. But I'm trying to forget the 'hated you' part." "Do you think life was more simple then? That everything was easier then?" "No, because I didn't have you. And if I hadn't been careless and if I had never saved you from that car accident, we'd never be like this."

I'd completetly forgotten about the car accident, but after he refreshed my memory, that was all I could think about at the moment. That was when Edward Cullen was still a beautiful mystery to me. Of course, my friends couldn't help me try to figure him out. Angela wanted what was best for me, Jessica's mind was hazed by Mike Newton, and Mike would do anything to keep me away from Edward. I wonder what would've happened if I'd decided to leave Edward alone like everyone wanted me to do. What would've happened if I chose Mike? I didn't even want to think about it. "Do you think Mike and Jessica ever got married like we did?" He looked like he wanted to laugh hysterically, but he just smiled that crooked smile, "I don't know, Bella." I looked up into his golden eyes. They looked happy, marvelous, the most beautiful pair of eyes you could ever see. I wanted to get lost in them, but I also wanted to keep talking, so I could hear his charming voice. "How is that?" I wondered, still trying to get lost in his eyes and keep talking at the same time. "How is what?" he chuckled. "That even after I become a vampire, you still dazzle me." His smile grew bigger as he looked into my eyes. He seemed almost frozen in time before he responded. "I don't know. But when you were human, you dazzled me." Jacob's POV I ran out as deep into the woods of the Reservation as I could get; I had to go see her, I had to be with her. I took of my shirt and tied my jean shorts to my ankle. I could feel my molecular structure changing, I could feel my DNA twisting. Next thing I knew, I was all furry and on all fours. I had to run, I had to get with her. Where are you going, Jake? Seth thought. Oh, great. I'd completely forgotten about the werewolf 'chatroom'. My thoughts would never be alone and neither would I. Get lost, Seth. I wanted him gone. I needed time to think ... by myself. Are you going to see Renesmee. I don't think that's such a good idea, man. Why not? I was getting annoyed with him. Edward and Bella are really stressed right now. How would you know that? Are you stalking them or something? No, Edward's become a really good friend, and I see what he's going through. Just leave him alone. I will leave him alone. Renesmee is all I need. Seriously, Jacob? This is getting a little weird. She's half vampire! I thought you supported me on this one, Seth. I do ... kind of. Don't interrogate him! Leah's voice rang through my head Now Leah too? This was the one thing I hated about being a werewolf: NO PRIVACY! I was about to tell Leah to beat it, until Embry joined in as well.

Listen Jake, Embry thought. Seth's right. You should leave them alone. NO! I responded. I need her ... more than you'll ever understand. Jacob, Leah thought. Just come back to the Rez. NOW! I'm out of here. I had finally reached the Cullen's place. Before they could try to stop me, I transformed back into my human state a couple yards from the house. I untied my pants from my ankle and put them back on. Renesmee was just a few steps through that door. I breathed deeply and knocked. I could hear Esme's voice call for someone to get the door. It took awhile, but when the door was finally pulled open, and I was revealed to the blond bloodsucker, Rosalie. "Ugh," she sighed. "Nice to see you too, bloodsucker." "Who is it, Rosalie?" Esme called from the kitchen. "No one important," Rosalie scanned me with her insuperable vision. "Just the dog." "Have you done something with your hair?" I let myself in. "It looks uglier." "Control yourself, Rose," the big one, Emmett, entered the room, holding the blond tightly. "Yeah, control yourself, blondie," I chuckled. Esme entered the room and smiled polietly at me. I didn't feel like returning the favor to a bloodsucker, so I decided to interrogate her. "Where's Renesmee?" I pushed. "Is she here?" "You just missed her," Esme's voice wafted to me. "Alice and Jasper just took her back to the cottage." "You're lying," I sniffed the air. "I can smell her." "That's her blanket, jackass." Rosalie glared at me. "Well, hello, Jacob," a male's voice said from the top of the stairs. "I didn't expect to see you here today." I looked up to see their leader, Carlisle, coming down the steps. His blond hair was gelled back and he looked like he was kind of tired. "Great," I sighed. "More vampires." "Edward," Carlisle spoke as if Edward were right next to him. "Jacob's here." I couldn't see Edward anywhere, but at light speed he and Bella were in the room before I could blink. It was probably the whole reading mind thing. "How exciting," Edward said sarcastically. A frown was plastered on his face as well as Bella's. "Where's Renesmee?" I asked them. "Not here," Edward answered obviously, smirking a little.

"Jacob," Bella stepped out of Edward's protective shadow. "We don't think you should see Renesmee anymore ... it wouldn't be good for her." "What do you mean it wouldn't be good for her?" I questioned. What was Bella getting to? "I know you've imprinted on her, and because of that, you have to be around her. But not constantly." "Yes constantly," I frowned. "I need to be with her all the time." "You can't be. It just wouldn't work, Jacob." Bella said. "Even when she does reach your age, a werewolf and a vampire just wouldn't match." Edward said. "She's a half-vampire." I corrected him. "Yes," Carlise was by Esme's side now. "But one day she will be entirely vampire." "We're sorry, Jacob. But we're the parents, and we think it's best." Bella looked at me longingly. "It doesn't matter," I walked toward the door. "Nothing does." Bella's POV Alice decided to take me shopping after the whole Jacob ordeal. I hated to see him leave like that; I knew we hurt him pretty bad. I couldn't stop thinking about it until we got to the mall. Alice couldn't wait to get started. We instantly hit a couple stores first, but I was fine shopping there mainly because they were all clothes for Renesmee. However, after leaving that store, I was bored almost immediately. "Alice," I pleaded. "Do we have to go shopping? I already have plenty of nice things ... from you." "I know. I just need to recooperate, and shopping is how I do just that." "Why didn't Rosalie tag along?" "Before Jacob showed up, Emmett had her pretty much occupied." Alice giggled a little bit. "Oh ..." I was about to say something else but Alice pulled me into an Abercrombie & Fitch store. She conquered the first table without trouble: serval blouses, a couple polos and some jeans (all for herself). Then we moved to the back of the store, so she could help me find something. "Look at those shirts, Bella. Edward would love those on you." "I don't know ... they're a little pricey, Alice." "Don't be ridiculous. If you want them and they're in your size, it won't be a problem." I watched as Alice would look at each shirt and the size without even minding the price. I tried to mimick her but whenever I shopped with my mother, Renee, it was always a force of habit for both of us to look at the price. In my opinion, every shirt in the entire store was overpriced. Alice threw a couple shirts at me; I was pretty impressed with my clumsy self that I caught three of them, but the fourth fell. I was bending over to pick it up, when someone beat me to it. "Thank you." I grinned. When I saw the person's face, I gasped. "Mike?" "Bella?" Mike grinned at me. "Long time no see, girl!" "I haven't seen you in forever."

"Aren't you supposed to be at Dartmouth?" "Aren't you supposed to be at Seattle University?" "I dropped out," he admitted. "College is too much for me." "Are you still in touch with Jessica?" I asked, thinking of Edward and my conversation earlier today. "Yeah, we're cyber-dating. But it's a little hard with her in Phoniex." "She goes to Phoniex now?" "She transferred. She was going to drop college to be with me, but she wouldn't be able to get a job without a degree ... well, a good job, that is." "Do you have a job?" I questioned. "No," he frowned. "But it doesn't really matter to me. I'll probably end up nowhere anyway." "That's the spirit," I said sarcastically. He laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "I missed you, Bella." "Yeah, me too." "Here," Alice walked up and handed me a polo. "Try this one on." "Ah, you're still in touch with the Cullens, I see." "I don't know if 'in touch' is the right word, but ok." "I never thought that you and Cullen would last ... you are still dating right?" "No, we aren't dating anymore." "Good," he sighed in relief. "But it must be hard for you." "What do you mean?" "Well, obviously you still hang out with the pixie one, so you must be around Cullen a lot." "Yeah, me and Edward are very close still, though." "Oh ..." After that, Mike continued to talk to me, but I kind of tuned him out. I haven't always been an eavesdropper but when Alice's cellphone rang, I had to listen ... just in case it was Edward. "Hey," Alice spoke into the phone. "The shopping's going well ... for me that is. Bella only bought for Renesmee." "You what? Emotions from Bella?" she must be talking to Jasper. "Oh, she's not annoyed with me. We ran into Mike Newton." "He what?"

"Came back? Why would Jacob do that?" "Did Edward hurt him?" "Well, that's good. Make sure that Edward remains in control." "Jacob should'nt have done that. Renesmee's not a display." "Make sure no one gets hurt." "I love you too. Bye." She hung up, and looked at me. I looked back at Mike, who was still going on and on about sports. I decided to cut him off when he took a breath in the middle of his babbling, "I really have to get going, Mike. But it was nice talking to you." "Yeah," he smiled. Alice handed me two of our bags. "See ya later. Hey, wait." "What?" I asked polietly. "Is that ... a bag of baby clothes?" he frowned. "Um," I looked down at the two bags in my hands. "Yes." "What are they for?" "A baby." "Who's?" he was getting impatient. I sighed. "Mine." "Oh my god, Bella. With Cullen? But you two aren't even married yet!" "Actually ..." "You married him! But you said you weren't dating him anymore." "We're not dating ... we're married." "Bella, I ..." "Bye, Mike." I ran out the door before he could scold me any longer. And I could've sworn that when I caught up with Alice, I could hear someone in the Abercrombie & Fitch store hypervenalating. Alice's POV After Jacob left, I could tell Bella was still in mental shock. I needed to get her mind off of him as soon as I could. I finally came up with the perfect solution: shopping. Bella needed some new things anyway. First, we stopped by a baby's clothing store to pick up some things for Renesmee. Bella seemed pretty into that, but afterwards her excitement subsided. "Alice," she asked longingly. "Do we have to go shopping? I already have plenty of nice things ... from you." "I know. I just need to recooperate, and shopping is how I do just that." "Why didn't Rosalie tag along?" she wondered.

"Before Jacob showed up, Emmett had her pretty much occupied." Emmett and Rose were so happy together, and every time I thought of their relationship it made my dead heart melt. "Oh ..." she was about to speak but I caught sight of an Ambercrombie & Fitch store. I pulled Bella inside the store by the hand, and looked at some of the selections that were set up on the table: a beautiful purple polo, some other white shirts and some slim cut jeans that I knew Rosalie would die for. I was so lost in the pile of clothes that I didn't even notice Bella's uninterested state. I pulled her to the back of the store where some clothes she might like better were. Some blue blouses caught my eye. "Look at those shirts, Bella. Edward would love those on you." "I don't know ... they're a little pricey, Alice." I knew she'd find a way to complain. "Don't be ridiculous. If you want them and they're in your size, it won't be a problem." I went through a couple more selections that I thought Rosalie or I might like. I noticed Bella was watching my methods of how to pick-and-choose. An amatuer shopper, yes, but she was definitely great company. I found a couple more shirts Bella might like and tossed them to her, not thinking of the consequences. She dropped one of them and bent down to pick it up, but a boy picked it up for her. "Thank you." she smiled sheepishly. When she looked closer at the boys face, she gasped. "Mike?" Mike Newton? Of all people, of all places. Mike Newton was the last person I'd thought we'd run into. "Bella?" he looked at her with a suprised look plastered on his face. "I haven't seen you in forever." Bella gushed. "Aren't you supposed to be at Dartmouth?" he smiled. Once they started talking schools, I kind of lost them. I saw a couple of camis over by the register, and I was practically drawn to them. I saw a couple that Rosalie would love, and I even found some for Renesmee. I thought of getting some for Esme, but I wasn't sure if this would be the right store to shop for her at. I noticed a blue one that Edward would love to see on Bella; she just had to try it on. "Here," I walked up and handed her the cami. "Try this on." "Ah, you're still in touch with the Cullens, I see." Mike looked at me accusingly. I didn't take it the wrong way though. "I don't know if 'in touch' is the right word, but ok." Bella smiled polietly. She looked like she wanted to run away from him. "I never thought that you and Cullen would last ... you are still dating right?" "No, we aren't dating anymore." I looked at Bella suspiciously. Mike probably didn't know about the wedding. "Good," he looked more than relieved. "But it must be hard for you." "What do you mean?" Bella asked him innocently. "Well, obviously you still hang out with the pixie one, so you must be around Cullen a lot." I found it amusing how he called me the 'pixie one'. "Yeah, me and Edward are very close still, though." Bella informed him. I smiled happily at her statement. He seemed distracted after she said that, but he quickly tried changing the subject to sports so he could get his mind off of my brother. I tried to listen, but just like Bella, we quickly fell out of tune with him. When my cellphone rang it kind of startled me. "Hey," I walked away from them, but I knew that Bella could still hear me.

"How's the shopping going?" My Jasper's voice flooded into my ears. "The shopping's going well ... for me that is. Bella only bought for Renesmee." I didn't mention the fact that I was the one buying all the clothes that were for Bella and for Bella only, but I had a feeling he already knew that. "I feel some emotions coming from Bella right now." "You what? Emotions from Bella?" "She feels kind of annoyed. What are you two doing?" "Oh, she's not annoyed with me. We ran into Mike Newton." "Mike Newton?" His voice faded; I could hear him telling Edward something in the background. Then he turned his attention back to our conversation. "Speaking of annoyances, Jacob came back." "Came back? Why would Jacob do that?" I could feel Bella listening into our conversation. "He wanted to see Renesmee, but that was not a surprise." "Did Edward hurt him?" I knew what Edward was capable of. "No," Jasper replied. "I made sure he stayed calm enough." "Well, that's good. Make sure that Edward remains in control." "It was hard though. This time, Jacob brought two of his werewolf friends, Jared and Sam. Those are two that haven't seen the baby yet ... or her ablities." "Jacob shouldn't have done that. Renesmee's not a display." "I know that, and so do you. But obviously, Jacob isn't in his right mind. But I'm taking care of everyone's emotions." "Make sure no one gets hurt." "I will. I love you, Alice. Be careful." "I love you too. Bye." I shut the phone. I looked at Bella, signalling her to wrap it up. "I really have to get going, Mike. But it was nice talking to you." Bella grinned politely. "Yeah," Mike didn't want to see her go. I handed her two of the bags, walking out quickly. "See ya later. Hey, wait." He called after Bella. "What?" for a moment, Bella had a tint of defiance in her words, like she wanted more than anything to stop talking to him. "Is that ... a bag of baby clothes?" he asked her. I looked at her, wating for her response. "Um," She looked at the bag of baby clothes that was hanging off her arm. "Yes." At least she was honest. "What are they for?" "A baby." I enjoyed her sense of humor. "Who's?" he took a steady step backwards, bracing for her responce. I wanted to laugh, but didn't.

Bella sighed deeply. "Mine." "Oh my god, Bella. With Cullen? But you two aren't even married yet!" he freaked. "Actually ..." "You married him! But you said you weren't dating him anymore." "We're not dating ... we're married." It was humorous how Mike didn't get the simplicity of all this. "Bella, I ..." "Bye, Mike." She walked out the door and started walking at the same stride behind me, a nervous smile covered her face. I was grinning ear to ear, and thought, Poor Mike! He would never know how good Bella and Edward had it. Edward's POV Just after Bella left with Alice to go shopping, I felt disconnected. To be away from her hurt too much. As soon as I kissed her goodbye, Emmett patted me on the back and smiled, "They're just going shopping, man. It'll only be a couple hours". But a couple hours without Bella felt like days. This feeling was new to me, though; I wasn't used to being all sentimental ... that was a girl's job. "Edward," Esme called from the kitchen. "Why don't you come help me with Renesmee's dinner." "Alright," I trudged slowly into the kitchen. Esme was preparing some spaghetti. Esme was an extremely talented cook in her human days, of course, that was a fact I was never able to test for myself. She was a true artist in the kitchen. "You can stir the meat sause," She put me to work. Carlisle was beside me, chopping up some more meat and then dumping it into the pasta. The sause looked a little less condensed than I would of thought regular pasta sause to be, but I hadn't tasted pasta in 100 years, so I decided to let Esme do the cooking. "Look who's back," Emmett called from the other room. I opened my mind up and only had to hear one of the beast's thoughts: Wait till you guys see her. "And it brought company," I put down the spoon and walked into the living area. Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie were all standing at the door. Renesmee was sitting innocently on the couch. Her face appeared to be aggrogant, but you could tell she knew exactly what was going on. Carlisle and Esme followed me. Relax, Edward, Jacob's thoughts dominated the rest that were buzzing in my head. Renesmee is not in any danger. Why so tense? "Because you keep showing up," I responded just as he opened the door. Jacob's eyes scanned the room. When they hit Rose and Emmett, he looked like he wanted to barf and he thought about it too. But he continued his search; finally when his eyes fell on Renesmee, he rushed to her. "Nessie!" He exclaimed, approaching her gently. "Jacob? What are you doing here?" Renesmee's charming voice rang throughout the house. "I wanted to see you," Jacob's smile disgusted me. He was looking like that at my daughter.

"I don't think daddy wants you here," she reached for me, and I obliged. "Just give her to me, Edward," Jacob threatened. "Why'd you bring an audience?" I asked, ignoring his 'threat'. Nessie is far too important for me to jepordize. he thought. "Then leave," I frowned. My friends don't know enough about her. She's an eccential aspect of my life, of me, Jacob thought. My pack should know more about her. "No," I looked at him angrily. "She's part of me more than she is of you ... get out." He ignored me completely. "Nessie, this is Sam and Jared." Fortunetly, Nessie turned away from the wolves, and buried her face in my shirt. I'm glad I have such a respectful daughter. "Get out," I repeated. My family stayed silent behind me, but I was sure they were all giving Jacob and his friends deadly stares because the mutt began to back away slowly. "Fine," Jacob looked at me angrily. You're a bastard. "Goodbye, Jacob," I smiled, trying to hide my anger from Renesmee. I could feel positive waves coming from Jasper. I did feel more relaxed after he did so, but I still wanted to tear the dog to shreads so badly. I put Renesmee back on the couch as Jacob and his friends transformed, and ran into the woods. Jacob's POV I must admitt, Jacob, Jared thought. She's not as threatening as I would've expected. Edward didn't even let me show you the real her, I thought. Her power is amazing ... like you wouldn't believe. Power? I didn't know she had a power, Sam's voice rang through my head. What is it? If she chooses to, she can send you pictures through her mind, almost like a video in your head. But she has to touch you. It's so cool, though. She can show you whatever she sees, or thinks, anything. I would expect a simple power like that from a little girl, Sam thought. She doesn't even act like a vampire! Jared thought. Well, she didn't today. But usually she's too much of a vampire. Even though she doesn't have to, she drinks blood all the time instead of food. I smelled spaghetti in there though, Jared was a couple yards away from me now. They try to make her eat anyway though, so she doesn't seem different to the public. I told them. There putting her out to the public? Sam asked. No, but they are trying to treat her normally for some vampire mafia ... the Volturi, I think it was. I thought. I'll tell you one thing, Jacob, Sam told me. That girl will never be normal. I let out a deep sigh. Thanks for reminding me.

Bella's POV My birthday came around faster than I would've expected. I walked into the living area of our cottage the morning of September 13th, and there was Edward and Renesmee waiting for me. Their smiles were exuberent and so were the gifts at their feet. "Happy Birthday, love." Edward beamed. "Happy Birthday, mommy!" Renesmee held up her arms so I could pick her up. "Oh, you two didn't have to do this." "We want to, and you deserve it," Edward kissed my cheek. "Open your gifts!" Renesmee smiled. I put her down beside Edward and reluctantly knelt down to open a small box; it was obvious that it contained jewelry. I hated this; I didn't want presents. And since I would never age ever again, my 20th birthday was not important. I didn't want to celebrate another birthday. "Come on, Bella." Edward noticed my hesitation. "I know we have enternity, but I don't have the patience." I slowly opened the blue, velvet box. I was right: it was a diamond charm for my bracelet that was currently around my wrist. I had been given the bracelet originally by Edward before Victoria's death. He had given me a crystal heart, probably the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. But as soon as Jacob noticed it on me, he made me a charm, carved out of wood, of a wolf. It still reminded me of my past too much. "It's a diamond apple," Edward explained plainly. "I can see what it is," I looked at him defiantly. "You're looking at it strangely, like ... you don't want it," Edward frowned. "No, Edward. It's beautiful, but I don't need it." "You don't need it, but I want to give it to you. You need to learn to except things better, Bella." "This is a gift, but I can still ... never mind. Thank you, Edward." "Open my gift now, mommy." Renesmee was smart. She knew to stop me before I made Edward angrier. I slowly unwrapped the package next to the sofa. It was much larger than the first, but still relatively small. Renesmee was just glowing; she couldn't wait to see my reaction. So, just to be nice, I knew I should look excited even if I didn't want it. I should've thought of that before opening Edward's gift. It was clothes ... Alice must've helped her pick it out. The first was a blue dress, very casual, but yet stunningly beautiful. The next was a pair of slim cut jeans that I remembered seeing at the Abercrombie & Fitch store from the other week. Lastly was a gift card to a designer clothing store, and because I never shop at high end stores like that, I didn't recognize the name. "Thank you, Renesmee. That is very sweet of you." "Alice said we could go shopping sometime, the three of us. The dress is for a birthday dinner with Edward." "I still haven't decided where we're going yet," Edward smirked, looking down at the floor. "Thank you ... both of you." I hugged Renesmee and kissed Edward gently. "You're welcome, love," Edward smiled. "Now let's get to the house. The others are probably waiting with expensive gifts for Bella." Getting to the house only took a minute, but I wished it had taken longer. Edward was right; the entire Cullen family was waiting for me, all with huge smiles on their faces and only one thing on their minds: Let's spoil Bella.

"Happy Birthday, Bella!" Alice immediately ran up and kissed my cheek as we entered the door. "Happy Birthday," Jasper nodded, grinning slyly. "Twenty years old! Our Bella's getting older everyday!" Emmett picked me up into one of his bone-crushing hugs, but now it didn't hurt so much, because I had the same amount (probably more) strength as he had. They all congratulated me with birthday wishes, even Rosalie seemed excited for me. All their gifts to me were extravagent, expensive, and probably the most beautiful things I'd ever been given. Alice had dumped a pile of clothes on me from the same designer clothing store that Renesmee had given me a gift card to, Jasper graced me with a universal gift card: $1000 to spend on whatever I wished, Emmett and Rosalie gave me three plane tickets (one for me, one for Edward, and one for Renesmee) to Jacksonville so we could visit Renee, and Carlisle and Esme gave Edward and I permission to go back to Isle Esme for a week (baby-sitting Renesmee was included). It was too much, I didn't need any of it, but for some reason I gladly took it all. I didn't like being selfish. "Thank you for my gifts." I thanked them afterwards. "It was our pleasure, Bella." Carlisle grinned parentally at me. The phone rang then, and Esme rushed to get it. "It truely isn't a problem." "Bella!" Esme called from the kitchen. "It's for you!" I walked in and took the phone from her. "Hello?" I spoke into the phone, still listening to Carlisle and Edward talking about our upcoming trip to Isle Esme. "Happy Birthday, Bells," a recognizable voice said. "Thanks Char-I mean, dad," I didn't think he'd know to call the Cullen's house instead of my cellphone. "Hey, I haven't seen you in awhile, so," he offered. "Why don't you come down to my place." "I don't know, dad," I remembered the last time I'd seen him. "You're not still wierded out from your last visit?" The last time I'd seen Charlie was the first time he'd ever been to the Cullen's, the first time he'd seen Renesmee, and the first time he'd seen me as a vampire ... he just didn't know I was. Jacob was feeling stupid that day and decided to reveal to Charlie that he was a wolf; he'd transformed right in front of him! Jacob had also told Charlie that the Cullens had a secret too, and that I'd had a baby. Luckly, Charlie was still unaware that vampires exsisted. He didn't want to know either; he'd said if it wasn't on a need-toknow basis, we didn't have to tell him. But the fact that I wasn't human anymore could be one of those things on the need-to-know list. "It's fine, Bella," Charlie sounded exhausted. "But I don't think I want Edward over." "Why not? He's my husband, Dad," I knew he didn't want to be reminded of that. But our marriage was never a secret to him, he'd been at the wedding. "I know he's your husband, Bells, but I'm still getting over all that pain he caused you when he left." I hated being reminded of the few months that followed my 18th birthday. It was one of the reasons I hated celebrating birthdays anymore. Edward had left me ... and he tried to kill himself because he thought I was dead. Why'd Charlie have to bring that up? "I understand ... but can I bring Alice?" "Sure, and bring my granddaughter too ... Renesmee. I'm expecting you today, Bella." "Ok, we'll be over in about an hour." "I love you, Bella. Happy Birthday." "Love you too. See you later."

I put the phone back in the dock. I hadn't seen or heard of Charlie in a long time, for awhile I thought he'd forgotten about me. Or he purposely tried to forget, after I went behind his back and had a child without letting him know. But now I knew he still thought about me, and just like he couldn't forget Renee, I knew he'd never let me go. Bella's POV Alice, Renesmee and I left for Charlie's after Esme served Renesmee my birthday cake (I didn't mind not being able to eat it). Edward definitely hated the fact that he couldn't come with me to Charlie's, not so much the fact that Charlie didn't like him. I knew he just wanted to be with me. Alice was excited to go, though. "Get in, Renesmee." Alice opened the back door of the Volvo for her to get in. Renesmee didn't need a car-seat like a normal three year old would; she was already too big for one. "I'll be back in two hours," I said goodbye to Edward. "Charlie's not much of an entertainer. He won't be able to keep us there that long." "Ok, I'll be waiting." he kissed me lightly, but I could tell he wanted to stay there, kissing me forever. "Bye, Edward." I just had to say his name, it was a mental need. "Don't forget these," he handed me some brown contacts. "Alice should already have her's in." "Thanks. I almost forgot." I pulled down my eyelid and slid the contact into place. Alice decided that she should drive. I wasn't as clumsy as I used to be when I was human, but clumsiness still remained one of my qualities. It didn't take long to get there mainly because a vampire was driving, but going back into my old neighborhood brought back so many memories. Not only from my recent teenage visits there, but from my childhood. Now I was bringing my child back to my childhood. Charlie was standing in the doorway, waiting for us. "Hey, Bells," he grinned as I stepped out of the car. Alice got Renesmee out of the backseat. "Hey, dad." "Nice to see you, Alice. Renesmee! Come give grandpa a hug!" Renesmee ran to him. Charlie wrapped her in a huge hug, the same he would give me when I was a child. After smuggling her in his arms for awhile, he pulled her back and put her down. Renesmee looked over at us with precaution in her eyes. Alice understood her warning, but I didn't. I approached Charlie to embrace him in a hug as well, but I stopped short. His scent was driving me crazy; I turned back to look at Alice and I could tell her senses were flaring too. We should've hunted before we came here. I felt ridiculously stupid for not thinking of that before. "Come on, Bella. Give me a hug." "Um, ok Char-dad." I approached him catuiously, wrapping my arms around him. He made my mind boggle, I couldn't see straight for a minute. Now I definitely knew how Edward had felt around me, and I had even pushed him to get too close. This was unbearable, and Charlie didn't even know how much it pained me to hug him. "Are you ok, Bella?" Charlie asked. "Yeah, I'm fine." "Then come on in." Come in? This was going to be torture! Two hours with him would make me even more bloodthirsty than that hug had made me, but his scent must be all over the house. I wondered if I should leave Renesmee here for a hour so Alice and I could hunt. Renesmee wouldn't be bothered as much because she was half-human herself. "Um, I got you a gift Bella." he simpered as we entered the house. I could tell by looking at Alice's eyes (I knew they looked somewhat like my own at the moment) both of our eyes were pitch black. We needed to hunt ... now.

"Thanks ... dad." I looked down at the floor. "I even got a gift for little Renesmee here." He walked into the other room and we followed. "How are you Alice?" I appreciated his attempt to be nice to any one of the Cullen family. "I'm fine, thank you, Chief Swan." "And how has my beautiful granddaughter been doing?" he picked Renesmee up. He must feel so lonely all the time. I felt guilty for leaving him so quickly after he'd just gotten me back. "I'm great, grandpa. Thank you for asking." "Bella could you come help me in the kitchen?" he asked. I had been so busy keeping under control that I almost didn't hear his question, "Yeah." The kitchen was a mess since I'd last seen it; take-out boxes were everywhere, as well as some tin foil which I assumed had once concealed Harry Clearwater's famous fish fry. Harry was dead, he'd died a couple months after my 18th birthday, but Charlie and Billy Black (Jacob's father) still tried to keep his memory alive. "The kitchen is a mess, dad." "I know. Without you around, cooking isn't something that goes on in this house anymore. You hungry?" "No, I'm not hungry at all." Mainly because I can't be hungry ... I was just thirsty. "I can tell you've raised Renesmee well. Her manners are impeccable." "Thanks for noticing. Edward and I try our best." "She speaks pretty fluently for a 3 year old." "She's a fast learner. Carlisle already has her hitting the books." "Dr. Cullen is a great man." Charlie grinned. I knew that he was always impressed by Carlisle. "How do you like living with them? Is everything going ok?" "Everything's perfect, dad." "Good. I miss not seeing you around the house, Bells." he wrapped me in a hug. My senses went crazy again. "Um, dad? I don't know if we'll be able to stay as long as we hoped." "Why not?" he pushed away so he could see my face. "Alice and I have to go out to eat." "Why don't you eat here? I asked if you were hungry." "It's fine, Char-dad. I don't want to impose." "It wouldn't be a problem. I really want you to stay." "I promise we'll come back later, dad. Don't worry about it." "Ok. But can Renesmee stay here?" "No offense, but I don't think the ballgame will be enough to occupy her." I knew she would understand the game, she watches ballgames with Emmett all the time.

"Alright, you can take her back home. Just promise to come back and visit later." "Sure, dad." I looked at the clock. We hadn't even been there for twenty minutes. "Bye, Bella. I'll miss you." I walked out of the kitchen after enduring one last hug from Charlie. Renesmee didn't seem eager to leave, but she was respectful and left anyway. Alice, being the friendly girl she was, wanted to stay despite her crave for blood at the moment. But I knew if we stayed any longer, either of us would finally crack and I bet I would be the first to bite. Jacob's POV I woke up feeling happier than I normally do for some reason. I could hear my dad wheeling around in the kitchen, I could see the overcast skies from my window, I could hear the hum of an occasional car go by: everything was positively normal. So why did I feel better than usual? "Jake? You up?" My dad's husky voice called from the other room. "Yeah, I'm up." I slowly put one foot out of bed and then the other. I slowly walked out of my bedroom and into the kitchen area. I was careful not to trip over my dad in his little wheelchair but this was all routine for me, I had no trouble. Grabbing a bowl of cereal, I sat down at the table and looked over at my dad, just waiting for him to start a conversation. "Do you know what today is?" he asked. "Um ... no." "It's September 13th." "September 13th? But that's ... Bella's birthday." Is that why I was happier today? I didn't know I'd feel so great for Bella's birthday. Maybe it's because I programed it in my head a long time ago to purposefully be happier on this day ... for Bella. She never did like celebrating birthdays much, though. "That's right. I'm thinking of visiting her old man, and you should consider seeing her, not Renesmee." "I don't know if I can do that. I think I'll just visit Charlie with you." "It's not Charlie's birthday. But I'm just not cool enough to hang out with you kids anymore." He chuckled. "I don't wanna go to the Cullen's if it's not for Renesmee. I'm proud of Bella, but ..." "I understand, son. But it's nothing worth complaining over." He wheeled out of the kitchen as I finished the last of my cereal. I should go to see Bella, she would like that. Even though we were seperate people now, she still tried her best to be my friend. She tried not to let our differences get between our friendship, the least I could do was acknowledge her. I had been so deep in thought that I didn't even hear the phone ring; dad was chattering away, most likely to Charlie because they were talking about fishing plans. But then the subject switched to Bella's birthday. "Yeah, so Charlie. Jake and I were wondering if we could stop by today in honor of Bella's twentith." Where had the days gone? Twenty already? "Oh, she is? Well, then maybe we could stop by around then." "Ah, in that case, I don't think Jake should tag along."

"He feels a certain ... attachment to little Renesmee." "Alright, alright. Calm down, Chief. We'll be over in an hour." "See ya then." "A certain attachment?" I looked at my farther accusingly. "Hey, Charlie doesn't know about imprinting and I don't think he needs to know." "Fine, we can go with 'certain attachment'." "Go get dressed, I told the Chief we'd be there in an hour. It'll take about 45 minutes to get there." "Not if I drive." I smirked. I did has he told me and went to my room, grabbing the first pair of shorts I saw. They were the same ones from the other day, when I'd gone to Renesmee without Sam and Jared. Then I grabbed a simple, striped button-up shirt. I could already hear the car starting outside, and I rushed to get there. I almost forgot my sandals on the way out the door. "You're getting faster, Jacob. But maybe it has to do with who's going to be there." Jared had helped dad out of the wheelchair and into the passenger side of the truck. I was going to say hi to him, but he ignored me completely and just walked away. "You don't get it, dad. No one does. I have this connection, not an attachment, with Renesmee. Well, I guess you could call it an attachment but it's just a need I have. I have to be around her." "I understand completely, Jake. But you don't have to talk about her all the time. I think you're friends are getting sick of it." "If they could just see her once in awhile, they'd understand too." "Well, while we're here, I want you to sacrafice just some of your attention for Bella. It is her birthday." "Sure, sure." I looked out the window sullenly. We'd just passed the border into Forks. "Not just sure, sure. I want I solid yes or no. Are you going to pay attention to Bella at all?" "Sure, sur-I mean, yes, dad." "Good. Would you look at that. The diners packed!" "Yeah, dad." I wasn't interested in the small talk he tried to make with me anymore. His statements were so old: 'Would you look at that. The diners packed!'. I looked at the wheel, I was driving well, but I wanted to drive faster ... wow, I was getting overobsessive. "Listen, Jake. We're almost there, so I want you to be on your best behavior." "It's just Charlie, dad." No, it was much more than that. It was Renesmee. "Yes, but with Bella coming back, it will rekindle some memories for him. Be considerate of that." "Ok." I responded simply, just as we were pulling down Charlie's street. I couldn't wait to see Renesmee. I knew she was there, because I could smell her scent. It was a lot closer than I expected; the Swan's place was still a couple of houses down, and she was inside it. It felt like she was a lot closer to me than that. I suddenly noticed a silver Volvo pulling out of the driveway. Looking down at the car from the truck window as it drove passed, I noticed Bella in the driver's seat. She looked at me apologetically and the sped away. Damn vampires, always taking something away from me. "Was that Bella?" my dad broke my train of thought.

"Yeah, should we just turn around and go back home?" "No, the Chief's still expecting us. And after Bella left an hour before she was supposed to, I think Charlie needs so company." We drove up the drive, Charlie was in the doorway, still gaping down the road at where the Volvo had been. He looked at us breifly as I put it in park, but then his stare returned to where the Volvo had been. "What'd you say, Chief?" my dad, opened his door, waiting for me to get his wheelchair from the bed. "Nothing. She left all by herself ... just like she usually does." "Bella's a strong person. She's always been able to stand on her own." "Come on in, guys." He extended the door open wider. "I prepared some fish fry before the Jakester woke up." "Great. I'm in the mood for some of Harry Clearwater's best." The word 'great' sounded sarcastic but the rest of sentence sounded completely sincere. As I walked into the living room, I could smell Bella and Alice's vampire scent everywhere. It reeked. But, more importantly, I could smell Renesmee ... everywhere. Since she was half-vampire, her scent was a little disgusting, but I was used to it. Nonchalantly, I sat on the couch, smelling Renesmee everywhere. "Relax, Jacob." my dad smirked and walked into the kitchen with Charlie. "I'm very relaxed." I sighed deeply. Then my cellphone rang. "Hello?" "Jacob? Hey, I saw you when we drove by. I'm sorry, I bet you would've wanted to see Renesmee." "How'd you guess, Bella? Why wasn't Edward with you?" "It was just me and Alice ... and Renesmee. My dad doesn't really like Edward." "Really?" I chuckled. "Why not?" "He's still mad about that time where Edward left and I was hanging out with you non-stop." "Ah," I lowered my voice a little. "The days when we were both human." "Yep," Bella sighed. "Those were the days." Edward's POV As the Volvo slowly drove away, Carlisle came out and put his hand on my shoulder parentally. I didn't feel as lonely as I had when Bella went shopping, because I knew where she was going and I knew who she'd be with. I felt more secure because she wasn't somewhere public like a mall. "Edward? Can I talk to you inside?" Carlisle asked me. "Sure," I turned and followed Carlisle back into the house. The TV was on, and Emmett and Jasper were on the edge of the couch, watching a baseball game anticipatedly. Rose was with them, but she couldn't look less interested. She was sitting on the floor between Emmett's massive, muscular legs, picking at her nails. Carlisle and I walked up the stairs and into his library. "The Volturi have decided to pay us another visit." He told me, as I shut the library door behind me.

"Why? They already know that both Bella and Renesmee are doing fine." "It's just a simple check up, Edward. They're actually just passing through. They were repremanding a South American coven and are on their way up to Alaska, to talk to Tanya's coven for some reason. They just want to save some time by visiting us on their way North." "Did they give us a time limit?" I wondered. "They'll be here in about a month. That's plenty of time to train Renesmee." "Renesmee won't be a problem, she very well mannered." "She is, but we don't want her to say the wrong thing. The Volturi are easily offended." "I've noticed." "It'll be fine. Just go downstairs and relax awhile until Bella gets back from Charlie's." "Ok," I stood and walked down the steps. My mind was still elsewhere when I got to the bottom of the staircase, but Emmett's thoughts were screaming over the rest: Come on, Edward. This game is intense; they've been tied since the first inning! I wasn't in the mood to watch a ballgame, but I walked over and sat next to Jasper, who was already making a bet. "$200." Jasper offered. "That's a big chunk of change to come out of your wallet, Jasper." Emmett chuckled. "I don't know about you, but I have a feeling that I'm going to be $200 richer after this game." The game seemed to last forever, but I had started to enjoy it after awhile. I hadn't even noticed I was off my seat, shouting at the screen along with Emmett and Jasper. Rosalie looked at us like were all crazy: I don't see what's so great about a ballgame, she thought. I was so distracted by the last home run, I almost didn't hear Alice's thoughts in my own head. We're coming home, Edward. The scent is too much for me or Bella. Alice thought. The one thing I hated about my mind reading ablility was that I couldn't respond to the thoughts that I heard. It was always just a one-way station. Luckily, Alice, being the brilliantly smart girl she was, knew that she had to explain more to me. The scent was the same as Bella's was when she was still human, but it was somewhat stronger because I haven't smelled it ever since Renesmee's birth. It was revitalizing. We should've thought to hunt before we came here. Go look in the mirror, Edward. Call my cellphone if your eyes are black too. Following Alice's instructions, I walked into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. Sure enough, my eyes were the darkest shade of black I'd ever let them get. As I walked out of the bathroom, I pulled my phone out and dialed Alice's cellphone; It only rang once before she picked up. "Are they black, Edward?" "Extremely. Why didn't I think of that?" "Because Bella's not human anymore so you don't usually worry about hunting at all." "Where are you?" "We're on our way back to the house. We should be home in about twenty minutes." "Ok, can you put Bella on the line please?"

"Sure." I heard Alice and Bella talking for a moment and then Bella finally answered. "Hello, Edward." She sounded guilty. "Are you alright?" "I'm fine." "You sound upset." I looked over at Jasper and he nodded. "Jasper feels it too." "I am upset ... we just left Charlie like that. I missed him so much, and we just had to leave so randomly." "I'm sorry, Bella. We could visit him another time." "I already promised we'd visit him." "Alright. By the way," I remembered the Volturi. "I have to talk to you privately later." "Why not now?" I knew she'd be impactient. "Because I know you'll ask too many questions." I knew how true that was. As soon as I'd tell her about the Volturi's visit, she'd dump a load of questions on me. Or she'd be completely unpredictable, as she often was, and not as any questions at all. "Ok," she agreed. "I love you, Edward. See you soon." "See you soon, love." And then she hung up. I walked into the living area to see Emmett and Jasper were completely off the couch and standing in front of the coffee table, yelling at the ref's mistakes. Rosalie had taken advantage of the new free space and was taking up half the couch, feet up, with a book in her hand. I sat on the chair that angled the couch, watching my brothers ridiculously make fools of themselves. At the sound of a whistle coming from the TV, Emmett slumped where he stood and looked at Jasper regretfully. Jasper was gleaming. "Alright, Emmett. We made a deal." "I don't think they technically won. It was only by one point." "But they still won. Hand it over, I am going to buy Alice something beautiful." "Edward, help me out here." Emmett looked over at me, Jasper followed suit. I put up my hands defensively. "Nope, it was your bet. I'm not getting involved." "Cough it up, Emmett." Jasper put out his hand. Hesitantly, Emmett pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and dug through it, pulling out two $100 bills. Jasper smiled, and took the money stuffing it into his pocket, slunk smugly onto the couch. Bella's POV We drove home as fast as we could, still trying to keep our senses under control. I could tell that Alice was suffering less than I was; I assumed it was because she a vampire longer ... and she'd also been able to walk through the Forks High School's cafeteria without causing a massacre. Renesmee was half-human, so she acted the way she always did: innocent and normal. When we got back to the Cullen's house, Edward, Carlisle, Jasper and Esme were waiting anxiously on the porch for us. At the sight of the car, all of them ran up to us. Edward dashed to my side first, before waiting to see Renesmee's condition.

"You alright, love?" he repeated from our conversation over the phone. "It's fine. We just have to hunt, that's all." "Did Renesmee keep under control?" His eyes turned toward the car, but he remained facing me. "She's perfectly fine, Edward." his name melted on my tounge. "You're still new at this, so I take the complete blame for not having you hunt first." "Edward, it's not that big a deal. I'm better at self-control than you think." One of the most shocking things about my transformation (to Edward) was that I had unbelievable self-control. On my first hunting trip, I smelled a human, and Edward tried to stop me before I hurt someone. But when he called my name, I was able to snap right out of it, and run back to him. Edward was amazed at the fact that a vampire, no, a newborn could run away from the scent of human blood. "We're going to go hunting, right now." Edward commanded. "Alright." "Let's get Renesmee inside." We walked around the car to get Renesmee, but Esme was already on the steps with Renesmee in her arms. As we walked in the door, I overheard Jasper telling Alice something: "Would you like to go on another shopping trip tomorrow?" She giggled excitedly in response. "I know Carlisle's a doctor," I whispered to Edward, and now that I was a vampire, my whisper was practically inaudiable. "But where do you guys get all this money?" "Oh," He glanced back at Jasper and back then at me. "There was a ballgame today. Emmett decided to give away $200." "That's a lot of money for a ballgame." "It's not to us. Like you said, Carlisle's a doctor; he's always been the top in every residency." Esme agreed to keep Renesmee occupied while the rest of us went hunting. I'd only hunted with Edward, never with his family, so hunting in a group of more than two would be knew to me. Edward grabbed my hand and slunk out the back door without the family noticing. "I know we usually hunt alone, but is it alright if we hunt with the family this one time?" "I thought you couldn't read my mind!" "I can't. You're just easy to read sometimes, and then other times, I don't understand you at all." "Hunting with your family is fine." "Now, Bella. They're your family too." He chuckled. I wanted to continue the conversation but Alice and Jasper walked up to us. "Hello," Alice's perkiness danced around her words. "I don't know, Alice. You and Jasper can choose." Edward answered one of her thoughts, I presumed. "Let's stay close to the house, for Renesmee's sake." Jasper decided, and we all agreed. Rosalie walked out the door then, with Emmett close at her heals. It still amazed me how Emmett, the size of a bear, could walk around without causing earthquakes, or any sound at all for that matter.

"Let's go." Rosalie stepped closer to Emmett's massive figure. "Isn't Carlisle coming?" I asked. "No, he decided to stay behind, so Esme doesn't have to hunt alone later." Rosalie explained. Before anyone else could say anything, Rosalie and Emmett darted off eastward into the woods. Jasper and Alice did the same, then Edward and I followed as well. I was used to the running now, I didn't have to squint when the wind blasted into my face. I actually enjoyed it, it was calming, if that was even possible. I was so lost in thought, that I almost missed Edward when he stopped. He was leaning against a tree, his mouth bent into that charming crooked smile. "What?" I asked, wondering why he'd stopped. "You still amaze me. Come on." He grabbed my hand and instead of running off he pulled me up the tree he had been leaning against. The view was amazing from up there. I could see all of Forks, I even caught a glimpse of First Beach in the distance. Lakes covered the floor below us, and mountains could be seen in the distance. Even though I was a vampire, it still bewildered me that any of this was possible. "This is unreal." I breathed. "You should've learned by now, Bella, that after awhile, reality drifts into fantasy." "But this is real." "Yes, it is entirely real ... so don't fall." he smirked. "I'll try not to." He looked down into the green pit beneath us, and I followed his gaze. Emmett had just knocked down a tree and was picking Rosalie up so she could sit on the massive trunk. "Will he ever stop throwing his wieght around?" Edward sighed. Next thing I knew, we were down the tree and surrounded by green moss and overgrowth again. I still missed the open spaces, they reminded me so much of Phoniex, and Phil, and Renee. I wonder what they were doing right now. Renee's POV "I was wondering if we could visit Bella and Edward sometime soon. I wanna see the baby." I begged Phil. "I'll try, sweetie." Phil wrapped his arms around me. "If they just pay me more, maybe then we could afford plane tickets to Forks, let alone tickets back to Jacksonville. I'm only minor league." "You may be minor league, but you're getting better. I bet you'll go into the majors any day now." "I'm glad you're the one with all the confidence." "Oh, Phil." I sighed. "I miss Bella so much. What do you think she's doing ... at this very moment?" "Probably lounging on the couch, reading a novel that her mom picked out for her." "You're probably right. I shouldn't worry; I trust Bella. She's doing something safe, we're there's no possible way to get hurt." I convinced myself. Bella's POV

"Smell anything yet?" Edward asked me. I sniffed the air and after a moment, responded, "I smell some elk running west." "Let them be." He scoffed. "Elk isn't as satisfying enough. Anything else?" "I smell Emmett ... he's got a grizzly." "Wow, he launched his favorite. We shouldn't interrupt, it's his kill." I inhaled again, "I smell a ... human." "I forgot, it's hunting season for them. Can you control yourself?" "Yeah, I'm fine. Where's the everybody else?" "I bet they've already smelled them by now. Jasper might have some trouble but Alice should be able to hold him down." He looked outward farther. "I smell another grizzly coming this way." "Good, it should be a simple attack with the both of us. Go around right side, I'll get the left." "Ok." Edward was away into the brush before I could blink. Instinctively, I dashed in the opposite direction. I could see the grizzly now, but I was so fast I don't think it heard or saw me. I put my back to a tree and looked around the corner. The bear was tearing apart a fish that he must've gotten from the nearby stream I heard trickling not to far from where I was. I couldn't see Edward anywhere; he was too good at this game. The grizzly looked up now, his ears almost pulled back. He could sense us, but he couldn't tell from which direction. I didn't know when the percise time to attack would be, but after Edward lunged I would only be milliseconds behind him. The bear could really sense danger now, so he slowly stepped back; but I knew he'd stepped back into a trap. Edward darted for the animal, and I did the same. With the both of us together, life faded from the bear's eyes instantly. It wasn't because we attacked him, but I think he had a heartattack or something. "Did you bite him?" I asked Edward, shocked at how easy that was. "No, I think he died because we scared him to death." Edward chuckled a little. Bella's POV I could barely see the sun fading behind the millions of trees in the horizon. Edward and I were still sucking up the last of the blood from the lifeless grizzley; I had gotten over the revolting truth to being a vampire. But it was still difficult for me, so I tried to copy Edward. In my unsuccessful efforts, my clothes became blood-stained, while Edward stayed perfectly clean. When I lifted my head, Edward looked up at me, but remained hunched over the animal. It still amazed me that while he was sucking blood, he still looked unnaturally gorgeous. "What?" his crooked smile sent my head whirling. "Nothing." I tried not to meet his tempting gaze. "Are you done? I thought newborns couldn't rest until every drop was gone." "I think we've sucked it dry, Edward." "You're right. It's getting dark anyway. We should go home to put Renesmee to bed."

"Right," I'd been so sidetracked, I'd almost forgotten the rest of the world exsisted. "Smell the others anywhere?" "Why do you keep asking me? Can't you smell them too?" "Of course I smell them, Bella. I'm just trying to test you. Do you smell them?" I took a whif of the surrouding air, "Jasper and Alice are already back at the house. Rosalie and Emmett are still trying to track down another meal." "Alright, they'll know when to turn in. Let's head back." He grasped my hand. We rushed off into the woods, trees whizzing by as we went. Ever since I'd learned of Edward's true self, I'd always dreamed of this moment. But just like any other fantasy, there had to be a complication. That's when I caught the scent; it travled up through my system. I could tell that Edward could smell it too, because he began to slow down too and eventually we both came to a stop. "Werewolf." I sighed deeply. "They're too far into our territory. Come on." We changed direction and ran south, catching up on the werewolf's reeking scent. As we got closer on their tails (literally), I could smell more than one. But the most definite smell was Jacob; I could tell it was him from miles away. We came upon them, and they were huddled together, most likely having a group discussion with their thoughts. Every wolf turned and looked at us (Jacob's eyes grew wide at the blood that covered my shirt, probably wondering what we'd been doing); I didn't dare step closer. "What are you doing here? You're too far out of bounds." Edward snarled. There was silence as Jacob, the big brownish-red wolf, responded with his thoughts. "It's not her fault; she couldn't contain herself." "If she hadn't left, she could've caused potential danger to Charlie." I immediately knew he was talking about me. Edward turned, paused for a moment, and then reluctantly stated Jacob's thoughts, "He says Happy Birthday." "Thank you, Jake." I smiled as politely as I could. He bowed his head in reply. "I'm afraid you can't come back to the house, Jacob." "We told you," Edward's face was threatening. "As the parents, we decided you stay away from Renesmee." "I'd like to see you prove it." "I'm not a patient man, Jacob. And I don't believe that'll you'll be there for Bella." "Fine, but come in your human form. And don't go looking for Renesmee, because she won't be there." Jacob growled breifly and then he, and the rest of the pack, darted into the darkness of the woods. I turned to Edward waiting for a explaination of the whole conversation I'd missed. "He wants to bring his pack and celebrate your birthday. But I swear Renesmee will be at the cottage the whole time. I don't want his addiction to our daughter to get in the way of your twentith." "Edward, you know I don't like to make a big deal about my birthdays. Especially now that I can't age anymore." "Humor me, Bella. Just for now. It'll be over and done with soon enough." Edward stepped closer and slid his hand up my arm. "Then we can go back to the cottage and relax. Agreed?" I was at a loss for words, and it didn't make matters any better when his crooked smile dominated my attention. With the little breath I had left in me, I sighed happily, "That sounds perfect."

Edward's POV I finshed with the last of the last of the bear's succulant blood. I glanced up at Bella without her noticing; she was doing well, but I couldn't help but laugh at how messy she was. Blood was all over her shirt she had just gotten with Alice, but I didn't mind entirely. She was looking off into the sunset, and when she looked down at me, our eyes met. I kept my teeth close to the the grizzly, just instinctively. She seemed dazed. "What?" I smiled, which, I assumed, made her sigh deeply. "Nothing." she avoided my eyes for some reason. "Are you done? I thought newborns couldn't rest until every drop was gone." "I think we've sucked it dry, Edward." We couldn't have yet, but I could tell she wanted to leave. "You're right. It's getting dark anyway. We should go home to put Renesmee to bed." "Right," she seemed to come back to reality. "Smell the others anywhere?" "Why do you keep asking me? Can't you smell them too?" "Of course I smell them, Bella. I'm just trying to test you. Do you smell them?" She inhaled, closing her eyes lightly. "Jasper and Alice are already back at the house. Rosalie and Emmett are still trying to track down another meal." "Alright, they'll know when to turn in. Let's head back." I gripped her wrist and sped into the forest with her at my side. We ran like bullets into the forest, heading westward back to the house, but a tempting scent caught my attention. I could tell that Bella smelt it too, because she had slowed to a stop. The smell dominated my head, making me hazy. My first reflex was to cover my nose; it smelled disgusting. "Werewolf." Bella exhaled deeply. "They're too far into our territory. Come on." We ran the other directing in the direction of the wolves. Jacob knew better than to intrude; We weren't allowed on his reservation, meaning he shouldn't be allowed into our private haven, even though he tresspassed regularly. When we reached the pack, they were all hudled together. They were yelling their thoughts; every one of them sounded aggravated. "What are you doing here? You're too far out of bounds." I grinded my teeth, exposing them to the wolf. I doubt Bella left Charlie's coincidently as soon as I got there, the mutt thought. "It's not her fault; she couldn't contain herself." No, stop trying to cover it up Edward. I bet she left just to keep me away from Renesmee. "If she hadn't left, she could've caused potential danger to Charlie." Oh, I hadn't thought about that. I just wanted to say something to Bella. Happy Birthday. I turned and looked at Bella. "He says Happy Birthday." "Thank you, Jake." she stared into Jacob's eyes. She hadn't said thank you for her birthday to me so politely. She sounded seldom when she said it to me.

How about a birthday party at your mansion, bloodsucker? Jacob looked at me. I could see him smirking even behind his muffled fur. "I'm afraid you can't come back to the house, Jacob." Why not? He sounded impatient. "We told you. As the parents, we decided you stay away from Renesmee." Do you not trust me? I can control myself. "I'd like to see you prove it." I looked away from Jacob's gaze with joking eyes. It'll be a party for Bella so I will be there for Bella. "I'm not a patient man, Jacob. And I don't believe that'll you'll be there for Bella." I can't win your trust unless you give me a chance, Edward. What if Jacob was telling the truth? He had been friends with Bella for quite a time, when ... I wasn't around. We could keep Renesmee in the cottage so she wouldn't be a temptation for Jacob. "Fine, but come in your human form. And don't go looking for Renesmee, because she won't be there." A low growl hummed in the bottom of the dog's throat, and then he was gone, and the rest of the pack with him. I turned to look at Bella, glad that the wolves were gone. Her face was confused, then I remembered that she still needed an update. "He wants to bring his pack and celebrate your birthday. But I swear Renesmee will be at the cottage the whole time. I don't want his addiction to our daughter to get in the way of your twentith." "Edward, you know I don't like to make a big deal about my birthdays. Especially now that I can't age anymore." "Humor me, Bella. Just for now. It'll be over and done with soon enough." Now I was reassured that she was as unexcited about her upcoming party with the wolves as I was. I just wanted to be alone with her. "Then we can go back to the cottage and relax. Agreed?" She was speechless after I said that, just as I had intended. She finally breathed out, "That sounds perfect." Edward's POV Bella was about to walk away, but I grabbed her arm. She didn't pull away or resist, she actually seemed to like it. I knew I had to tell her about the Volturi's visit as soon as possible or else she would hate me for keeping secrets from her. I took a deep breath, tried to mimick Carlisle's always-calm composure, and looked at her eyes. I decided to just spit it out, "The Volturi are stopping by soon." "How soon?" "About a month." Her eyebrows furrowed in an almost amusing way; I wanted to laugh but didn't. She looked like she was thinking unbelievably hard. She opened her mouth several times to speak, but no words ever came out. So it was going to be one of her unpredictable moments, was it? I longed to ask what she was thinking, but I thought it'd be rude, so I waited for her boatload of questions. "Are they going to bring a big army like they did last time?" Memories of the Volturi's last visit flooded into my head. That was the first time they'd seen Renesmee, and the first time I'd seen the Volturi with so many witnesses. Locked in the back of my head was Aro's final thought before he left: What a beautiful addition she would make to our numbers. I hated the way he'd looked at Renesmee ... as if she were a prize. "No, probably not. I've never seen the Volturi with so many under their command, and, most likely, I never will again."

"Why do they have to check up on us? They know we're doing fine." "Yes, but they're just passing through. Nothing too important." "Alright." She looked up at my face happily. I was still shocked at how much trust she had in me. "You know, I can never predict you. I admit, reading your thoughts would help, but it's just torture." "I'm sorry for being difficult." She couldn't help but laugh. "You're forgiven." I looked off into the setting sun, which was almost completely vanished now. Esme and Carlisle should be expecting us back now; Renesmee too. "So what should I expect?" she smiled, breaking my train of thought. "Of what?" "My werewolf slash vampire birthday party?" she scowled now. "I would expect the worst. But knowing how you dread birthdays, it'll be even worse for you." "Great." she frowned sarcastically. "Don't worry. Jacob is doing something good for you this time." It was a shock even when I said it outloud. "I am surprised he agreed to a little party even after I told him Renesmee wouldn't be there ..." "Do you remember my eighteenth birthday?" she wondered. "I don't want to be reminded." Bella's eighteenth birthday still haunted me, and would keep doing so for the rest of eternity. The birthday party itself was disastrous (including Jasper trying to attack Bella after she got a paper cut) but what pained me the most was the aftermath when I decided to ... leave Bella. Which was supposed to be helpful, and she would just move on without me, but the result was much more dangerous than that; her whole life had crashed and mine did too ... "Well," she looked at the leaves crushing under our feet as we walked. "What if this birthday ends up like that." "I wouldn't care." I answered honestly. "You wouldn't? Why not?" "Because you won't get hurt. You can't get hurt. You're not as delicate and fragile as you used to be. Besides, if any blood got spilt, it wouldn't be anyone's that I care about. That's one of the reason's I kept Renesmee out of harm's way in case something went wrong." "What could possibly go wrong?" she asked defiantly. "Think about it, Bella. The werewolves hate us, and we hate the werewolves. If either one of us slips out an insult or makes a wrong move, this could end terribly." "Well, that makes sense. My passed birthdays have done nothing except gone horrible ... except for my nineteenth ... that was the best birthday I ever had." "Refresh my memory, Bella." Of course, I remembered, but I wanted to see what she remembered it as.

"Well, we got the cottage which I adore, I got that closet full of clothes that I don't adore as much, but I also got the perfect night for just the both of us." "That was when I realized I didn't have to control myself." I chuckled at the thought. I looked down at Bella's face just to see her reaction. Her face somehow still blushed red as a rose, even though her pale skin should've covered it. More importantly, the depleted supply of blood in her body made it almost impossible to blush, but yet, there she was, blushing deeper than I'd ever seen. "What?" she noticed me looking at her closely. "Nothing." I smiled, which made her cheeks flush even redder. "I love you, Bella." Her eyes floated from the forest floor to meet mine. "I love you too." Alice's POV "When do you think they'll be back?" I looked up anxiously from the Merchant in Venice book in my hands. I'd read it many times, but the love aspect always captured my attention. At the moment, however, I was barely even looking at the words; I was too restless. "They'll probably be back any second, Alice." Emmett chuckled. "They both seem more than relaxed, so they're perfectly safe." Jasper wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me closer to his chest protectively. "Have you seen Renesmee?" Esme walked in from the kitchen, quickly scanning the room. Carlisle followed her in. "I think she's upstairs with Rosalie." I smiled over at her. "Thanks," she replied, already at the top of the steps. "Is that Merchant in Venice?" Carlisle strode over to sit on the arm of the couch. "I never really liked that one. The play never did it justice, especially when Shakespeare himself performed it." "He wrote it, so I think he should've portrayed it the best." I gave up on the book completely and threw it onto the coffee table. "I think so too." Carlisle agreed. Rosalie came down the stairs then, with Renesmee in her arms. "Renesmee is getting tired. I'm going to take her back to the cottage and put her to bed." "Try calling Edward, Alice. They're taking longer than usual." Carlisle stood, and walked over to Rosalie. I was just about to stand and get my cellphone, when a certain scent caught my attention. At first, I thought I was imagining it, but my senses barely ever made mistakes, so I was certain it had to be real. I could tell the rest of my family could smell it too because we were all on our feet facing the direction of the smell. "What do they think they're doing?" Rosalie put Renesmee down, but their hands remained intertwined. We could all hear the engine of a Chevy pick-up growing louder. And this time, Jacob wasn't alone; you could smell every wolf in their pack zooming closer to the house in their human form. But not only that, there was a human with them. No, two humans, both the scent of the wolves and the humans were overpowering. "Get Renesmee out of here." Carlisle commanded, and Rosalie was out of the house with Renesmee in a flash. As soon as Rosalie was gone, the Chevy came to a halt in front of the house.

Through the glass door, we could see Jacob getting out of the driver's seat. He was talking to everyone in the pick-up (about three other people in the front seat and about seven in the bed of the truck). Then he approached the front door alone. I had to admit, he was being brave. "Pleasure to see you, Jacob." Carlisle remained serene as Jacob opened the door. "The pleasure's all mine, Dr. Cullen." Jacob smirked. "I'm sorry but Renesmee's not here right now." Carlisle looked at the wolf sincerely. "Oh, we're not here for Renesmee. Edward didn't tell you?" "We haven't seen Edward or Bella since noon." "We ran into them in the woods and Edward agreed to a little birthday party for Bella." What? A birthday party for Bella? I know it was not my place to complain, and I didn't outloud, but I couldn't help but wonder why Bella would let them throw her a party and not let us. I'd bet it was against her free will; but I kept my mouth shut, not wanting to intervene. "Well, Bella and Edward aren't back yet, so ..." Carlisle was about to continue, but Jacob cut him off. "Then you won't mind if we wait here until they get back?" Carlisle pursed his lips in frustration, but not even for a second; I don't think Jacob even noticed. "Of course, Jacob. Bring your friends in to. I think it's about to rain." After Carlisle gave him permission, Jacob was out the door, rallying up his friends out of the truck. They all seemed more relaxed after Jacob told them to come in, but they weren't completely calm. But how tranquil could werewolves be when they were entering the territory of a family of vampires? Not very. Jacob walked through the door happily, his friends carefully entering behind him. The ones who had been here before, like Leah, Seth, Sam, and Jared, were much less tense than the others. The humans were the last to come into the house. One was a plump, handicapped old man, with wrinkles lining his forehead. His grayish-black hair fell down over his hunched shoulders. He had to be related to one of the werewolves, no doubt. I would've let my eyes linger on him longer if not for the sudden shock that draped my and my family's faces. The human pushing the wheelchair was so easy to recognize; even if we couldn't see his face, we could tell by the hereditary posture who he was. His brown hair was messy, some of it falling down over his forehead. His eyes said it all: brownish-green with some loitering youth in them. His scent was the most familiar, considering I'd only smelt it that same day. How dare they bring Charlie here without Bella's consent. Bella's POV For vampires, we were going painfully slow. We were going even slower than I did when I was human (that's pretty slow). But I didn't mind it much, because I'd never heard Edward spill out his feelings to me so much before; this was a first for the both of us. I never wanted this moment to end, but using the word never must've jinxed my chances, because this could never last. "Are you wearing some of your old clothes?" an inquiring look covered his relaxed expression. "No, these are new clothes that I bought with Alice." "Then why do I smell you?" "What do you mean?" "I smell ... you. I don't understand ..." It was a rare moment when Edward was at a loss of words.

In reaction to his confusion, I sniffed the air. I could smell something too; it was ... myself? But not like my scent now. It was my human scent, I could recognize the smell of my house so easily. Then another scent emerged around us. Werewolf. "Jacob?" "It's more than just Jacob." Edward snarled. He closed his eyes, most likely examining the thoughts of everyone buzzing around in his head. "We have to get back to the house." Grabbing my arm, we flew like bullets back toward the house. The scent grew stronger as we grew closer, not only the smell of werewolf, but the smell of burnt cigars and take-out. Only two humans fit into those catagories. The burnt cigar smell was none other than Jacob's dad, Billy Black. And the take-out smell, mixed with the lavander shampoo I'd demanded he use, was almost too recognizable. I remembered what Edward had said about one wrong insult or one wrong move could cause the most deadly concequences. When we finally got inside the house, I let out a sigh of relief. Renesmee wasn't there. "Bells!" Charlie exclaimed, lightening his anxious grip on Billy's wheelchair. "Hi, dad." I smiled. "What are you ..." I was about to continue but Edward grabbed my elbow and pulled me toward the bathroom, out of Charlie's sight. "What are you doing?" I pulled effortlessly out of his hold. "Put these in." He handed me two brown colored contacts. I'd been so used to walking freely around the house without worrying about who saw me, that I'd completely forgotten that my life was still a secret to Charlie. "Thanks." I pulled down my eyelid, and slipped the contact in. "Everything ok?" Charlie asked when we were back in his line of vision. "Everything's fine, Char-dad." Call him dad, not Charlie, you idiot, I thought to myself. I'm glad Edward couldn't hear my thoughts. "Well, Jacob here told me you were having a birthday party, and considering you had to run out so quickly this morning, I thought I'd stop by too." He turned to Carlisle. "I hope that's ok?" "It's perfectly alright, Charlie." Carlisle nodded politely. "We brought some gifts for you, Bella." Jacob interceded. Reluctantly, Edward pushed me closer to the rest of the group. "I know how much you don't like birthdays but we decided to keep it simple." he shrugged toward the piano. On top of it was everything except simple: there were about ten gifts wrapped in newspaper, several cards standing beside the gifts, and a homemade cake that read 'Happy Twentith, Bella!' in scribbly letters. This had disaster written all over it. "Oh, great." I mumbled sarcastically under my breath. Edward, arms securely around my waist, smiled; he was probably happy that I responded to the wolves' gifts the same way I'd reacted to his. "Open one," Leah edged. I looked up at Edward and he unhelpfully returned my questioning gaze. "Alright." I hesitantly walked out of Edward's protective grasp. Reaching for the first one that caught my eye, I grabbed a box that said it was from Leah and Seth Clearwater. Knowing Leah, it would probably be something sweet, but knowing Seth, it would probably be something that would make a fool of me. "C'mon, Bella! We don't have all night!" Seth smirked. I ripped off the newspaper and pulled the lid of the box to be revealed to a whole cookbook of every recipe I'd ever made since I'd gotten to Forks. Every one of the Cullens tried hiding their laughter. They knew as well as I that there was absolutely no purpose I would have for a cookbook. "Your dad helped me put it together." Leah had her hands locked together impatiently, wondering when I'd shout for joy and run up to hug her. "We even put our dad's fish fry in there." Seth smiled, even after talking about his deceased father.

"Thanks, guys." I couldn't have been a more horrible actress. "I bet Renesmee will love to try each one of these." I wasn't lying when I said that. "That one by the cake is from Renee and me." Charlie seemed as edgy as the rest of them. I picked up the gift he'd implied, and shook it carefully. It was extremely light, it almost felt empty, but I could hear something jingling inside. I took off the paper, and opened the box to find a pair of keys. "Dad. What's this?" I looked up at him angrily. "Car keys." he smiled. "Over my dead body." I frowned. The Cullens concealed their laughter again. "The police station is upgrading, so I got a brand new cruiser. I have no need for the old one anymore." "Well, what am I going to do with it?" "Drive it. C'mon, Bells. I know the Cullens have plenty of cars, but I think you should start with a car of your own, you know, since your '53 Chevy broke down." "The police cruiser?" I looked down at the keys that were now in my hand. "Really, Charlie. It's not a problem. Bella is part of the family now, so our cars are her's too." Edward smiled. Charlie looked at Edward in disgust, still regretting the fact that I crawled back to him after he'd left me. "It's fine, dad. I'll take what I can get." I smiled falsely. Then I whispered inaudiably to Edward, "We're taking it straight to the dump as soon as he leaves." He chuckled, then replied silently, "I think Emmett would have more fun with it than the dump would." "Thanks for being so understanding, Bella." You could taste the sarcasim in Charlie's voice. "Who wants cake?" Billy interrupted. "Help me over there, Sam." Sam, the leader of the wolf pack, had been barely noticable until Billy had called his name. "Sure, Mr. Black." As Sam pushed Billy by us, Jasper crinkled his nose, trying to contain himself at the scent of human blood. We all had trouble, even Carlisle. There was just too many different smells in one room: vampire, werewolf and human. It was easy to see that it was equally as difficult for Jacob and his pack; they were fidgeting constantly. First Jared would rub his nose, then Seth would scratch his arm, Jacob would sniffle, and Leah would shift her weight from her left side to her right (and repeat). "You want a piece, Bella?" Charlie asked me. "I just ate." "Now, I don't think that's fair. It's your cake, you should have the first piece." Billy smiled grimly, his eyes shifting suspiciously to each of the Cullens' faces. "Maybe just a bite." I grabbed the plate from Charlie and poked the cake with the fork a couple of times. (I can eat, I just don't have to) Finally I scooped up a small piece of cake and popped it into my mouth; It wasn't very filling, but I couldn't tell if that was just how the cake was made or me going without food since what seemed like forever ago. "Like it?" Jared smirked. "Yeah, it's ... really good." "Is it really that bad? I told Emily you'd like the chocolate better." Sam put his hand to his forehead. "Emily ...?" I remembered the name from somewhere.

"My girlfriend." Sam didn't seem to mind that I'd forgotten. "No, really, it's fine. I'm just not that hungry but tell her I liked it." I tried smiling reassuringly, but again my acting skills proved to be horrifying. "It's ok, Bella. Emily won't mind. Her cake was never that good anyway." Jacob grinned, the first time I'd seen him grin at me in months. "Speaking of Emily, she should be expecting us back by now. Happy Birthday, Bella." "Thanks for coming by." I smiled. The sound of 'Happy Birthday, Bella' and 'See ya later' filled the room as Jacob and his friends piled out. But, to my misfortune, Charlie stayed behind. "Happy Birthday, Bells." he kissed my forehead, eyeing Edward carefully. "I want you to stop by more often. I miss seeing you ... and I'm getting tired of take-out." "Don't worry, dad. I promise to visit." "I'm holding that against you." he smiled happily. "Bye, Bella." I inhaled deeply as he hugged me, but he misread it as a yawn. "I know it's been a long day for you. Try to get some sleep." Every Cullen let out a laugh inaudiable to Charlie's ears. "Love you." he smiled, walking out the door to the pick up. The engine was already revving, and the loud, relaxed werewolves could be heard talking and laughing. Charlie knew that Jacob was a werewolf, but he had no idea that there were more and that he was with them. As soon as the car pulled away, Edward turned to me and grinned his classic crooked smile. His lips rested on my jaw and then mJacob's POV I hopped into the driver's side of my dad's Chevy as all my friends got in the back (Sam had taken the responsibility of putting my dad in the front seat). I wondered if my friends were completely oblivious that we were still sitting in front of the Cullen's house; I had no doubt that the Cullens heard every offensive comment they made. "Bella seemed a little tense, don't ya think?" Jared laughed loudly. "Of course she was tense! Or was I the only one who realized how uncomfortable she must feel." Leah looked at Jared accusingly. Jared, Sam and Seth laughed loudly at the almost-agressive face Leah was trying to make. "Maybe Edward's not 'satisfying' her." Jared looked at Sam, and Sam's laugh echoed through the woods as I drove off the Cullen's property. Seth's light-hearted expression disappeared as soon as Jared said Edward's name, "Hey, don't blame Edward for anything. He's my friend, remember?" "I'm starting to question that, Seth." Sam became partially serious, but he bounced back quickly. "Yeah, how can you be friends with a ..." Jared began, but Charlie quickly turned around and waited angrily for him to continue. "A g-guy like that." he finished shakily after awhile. "What kind of response was that?" I heard Sam whisper to Jared. He sounded pissed. "His daughter's married to 'a guy like that'." Charlie looked out the window regretfully, looking like he rather be anywhere but here. I looked at my dad before turning to Charlie, "You ok, Mr. Swan?" "I just don't know if I should regret Bella's choices ... or my own." "Well, there's nothing you can do about Bella's choices, and it's too late to solve any of your own." I sure didn't know how to give a pep-talk. "Thanks for the positivity, Jacob." Charlie said sarcastically.

"Look, Chief. Bella's old enough to take care of herself now. Don't you trust her?" my dad tried to butt in. "Of course I trust her, but after tonight, she looked like she was hiding something." Dad was good at acting ignorant. "Like what?" "Ever since she met Edward, she's seemed to be keeping a big secret." "What makes you think that?" I asked. "Well, I don't know if she's noticed, but she was never that good an actress." "Oh my god, I said stop!" Leah squealed from the back. I glanced back to see Jared tickling Leah's ribs, while she was giggling and squirming at his touch. They'd tried to be a couple, even though they hadn't imprinted on each other; it wasn't working, but their efforts were somewhat admirable. Ignoring Leah's outburst, Charlie continued, "It's just that, sometimes I feel like the worst dad in the world." "Look how happy she is, Chief. You've done a great job." my dad shifted his weight as I took a wide turn into the Forks border line. "You can thank Renee for that; she's the trainer. Now I feel like Bella went straight from Renee, to Edward ... like I didn't get her at all." "You can't expect teenagers to stick around forever." dad glanced at me incriminatingly. "I guess your right." Charlie stated, and then he was silent for the rest of the ride. It was abnormally warm for a September night in the rainiest place in the continental US, so I rolled down both side windows. My long hair blew back out of my face as the wind rushed at me; I was thinking about cutting it, but I was afraid Renesmee wouldn't recognize me. Just out of complete boredom, I decided to listen to the conversation in the back. "How old do you think the blond is?" Jared asked. "Which one?" Sam questioned. "Their leader." Jared used a fake, authoritive voice. "He's about 400." Seth said. Immediately, I knew they were talking about Carlisle. "Damn!" Jared laughed. Leah hit him playfully for being rude, and in return he kissed her cheek lightly. "See, I don't get it. We get to be young, and they have to be so old. What's the point in that?" "They all look gorgeously young, if you ask me." Leah randomly started studying her hands nervously. "Was I asking you?" Jared still had a giant smile on his face. "No, but you shouldn't just label them like you do. Do you ever think about what they must be going through right now?" "Why would I care?" Jared laughed. "Poor Bella. This must be so hard for her." Leah looked over the side of the bed at the trees that were zooming past, pushing a piece of her hair behind her ear. "Yeah, it must be so difficult for her. She's got a huge house, she has a bunch a cars, she has a husband, she has a daughter, she has a family, she has money." "Money's not important."

"No, but it helps." After that, everygone grew quiet for some reason. The only noises were the car's stuttering engine, the water splashing every which way as the wheel's drove throught the puddles, and the steady breathing coming slowly out of my father's mouth. I cleared my throat, "We're at your house, Mr. Swan." Charlie had been dosing off. "Um, thank you, Jake. See you tomorrow, Billy?" Charlie opened his door. "You bet, Chief." dad nodded his head. "Goodnight, Chief Swan." I heard Sam call from the bed of the truck. Without turning around, Charlie put up his hand in a tired way as if he were waving to someone in front of him, and climbed up his porch steps. We all sat there in silence, watching the screen door creak shut, but even after it did, none of us moved. I didn't take my foot off the break until the porch light flicked off. oved up to my ear. Slowly, he whispered, "Finally." Edward's POV As I leaned against the kitchen counter, I couldn't help but listen to what Bella was doing. I could hear her fiddling with something in the bathroom by our 'Isle Esme' styled bedroom. She was humming something loudly, which I immediately recognized as the lullaby I'd written for her; I was shocked she even remembered the tune. When she dropped something into the sink, I heard it clink against the marble basin and out of force of habit she muttered, "Shoot". I couldn't help but laugh. "Edward?" she called. "Yes, love?" I was still chuckling. "I'm sorry," she walked into the kitchen area where I was. Even though her expression looked somewhat disheveled, Bella's individual beauty stunned me. "I broke this." In her hands was a small perfume bottle that she'd brought along with her from her human days. It smelled like lavander and freesia, it was extremely strong, and to some, it smelled revolting but to me, I couldn't think of a better scent to fit her personality: independent and beautifully charming. "Oh, well, I bet we could buy another." "I bought it in Phoniex. Doubt Forks will have it." she twiddled the broken glass in her delicate, slim fingers. "It's got to be somewhere." I could hear Renesmee's slow, easy breaths coming from her bedroom. She'd always been a heavy sleeper, which was a good thing, I suppose; she might as well savor what she won't have in the future. I followed Bella into our bedroom, not saying a word for a long time. She walked into the closet, and seconds later came out, with a flustered look on her face. I did nothing but smile, which made her blush just like she had earlier. After a while, she must've not been able to take the silence any longer, and she sighed, "I'm sorry." "The perfume doesn't matter, Bella. We can always get another." "Not that. I'm sorry for not excepting your gift as appreciatively as I should have." "Don't worry." I didn't look at her. "I'm used to getting that look on your birthday." "That's another thing I should apologize for. I've never been very cooperative on any of my birthdays." "Stop apologizing. You don't have to." I lifted my eyes and caught a brief, doubtful glance facing me, but then it robotically disappeared. I frowned, "Bella." "What's wrong?" "I was about to ask you that. You seem so depressed all the time."

"I'm just worried ... like every wife and daughter should be." "Don't forget mother." "Ugh." "Relax." I picked up her hand that was resting on the comforter and held it tightly. She was gripping me so hard, I wanted to yell at her to stop, but I didn't. Without so much as a warning, Bella wrapped me in a hug, which quickly transformed into a kiss. My hands became stiff and intangled in her chocolate brown hair. We fell backwards onto the bed, both of us were too restless to sit still. I had to admit, I was waiting for some kind of interruption, but for once, none came. We could lay here as long as we wanted. Bella didn't push away from me, ever; she never wanted to. And right then, I didn't want to push away either. I couldn't help myself, so I began to get even more aggressive. Bella's eyes opened for a moment, and just stared deeply into mine. They looked anxious, the creamy gold was tantilizing. It was dark under the covers. But we could see some light seeping through the protection of the comforter. Bella just lay there, staring at me intently, as if she were trying to memorize my features, though I'm positive she already had a long time ago. Her composed face, molded into a smile, was perfectly flawless; there was no crater in her pale skin. Her hair surrounded her face like a mahogany picture frame. "Mommy!" Renesmee called from the kitchen. We both sighed regretfully; we'd completely forgotten about reality. "Just a minute!" Bella called back, pulling herself out of bed. She quickly ran into the massive closet, trying to find some clothes. I just laid there, saying nothing, grinning smugly. "I enjoyed my birthday, Edward." she smiled, coming back out of the closet. "I did too." I chuckled, standing also. "Get some clothes on before Renesmee sees you." she laughed, walking out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Bella's POV "Everything ok, Renesmee?" I asked as I walked into the kitchen area. "Where's daddy?" Renesmee asked. "He'll be out in a minute." I laughed silently to myself. "Good morning, Nessie." Edward dashed into the kitchen, still putting on his belt, and kissed her forehead. "Good morning, dear." Then his lips moved to mine, kissing me longer and more passionately than necessary, but, of course, I didn't mind. "Sorry to interrupt." Alice let herself into the cottage. "Perfect timing, Alice." Edward sighed, sarcasm dripping off his tongue. "So, Bella." Alice ignored Edward's last comment. "How about a shopping trip today? Nessie can come too." "Shopping? Um, the last trip didn't go very well." I recalled. "It's fine. We don't have to go." Alice looked down. "How do you feel about our special dinner tonight, then?" Edward suggested. "You can wear that dress we got you!" Renesmee smiled innocently. "We could help you get ready." Alice enjoyed making me a life-size dress-up doll.

"I-I " I stuttered. "Great. It's settled then." Edward grinned. "I know just the place." And with that, Edward was out the door, running to the main house. "Does anyone remember that neither of us can eat?" I sighed. "Edward just wants to be with you." Alice grinned reassuringly. I understood that, but we lived in the middle of the deserted woods; we were more than alone. Of course, Renesmee and the rest of the Cullens were there, but they gave us privacy when they knew we needed it. I just wasn't comfortable with going out in public; who knows who we could run into. "This broke?" Alice's voice pulled me away from the seclusion of my thoughts. She was holding the perfume bottle that I had broken the night before. She twiddled the red glass remains through her fingers. "Yeah. It became a victim of my clumsiness." "That's too bad." Alice spoke mostly to herself. She was silent for a moment, and then her natural perkiness returned. "Let's go, Renesmee. I think you need some breakfast." Alice picked Renesmee up, and was out the door. I expected to be left alone as I normally was when I was acting involuntarily moody, but then Alice called, "Are you coming, Bella?" "Yeah." I took one last glance at the broken perfume bottle that Alice had placed on the counter and then ran out the door. We ran like bullets to the main Cullen household. When we got there, all the Cullens were scattered around the living area, holding separate conversations. "Renesmee." Esme smiled and stood. "Your breakfast is ready. Good morning, Bella." "'Morning, Esme." I grinned. "How was your birthday night, Bella?" Emmett chuckled, stabbing Edward in the arm with his elbow. Edward scowled under his breath. "Perfect." I smiled slyly. "Yours?" Emmett exchanged glances with Rosalie before responding dejectedly, "Mine was good too." "Your father called to invite you over." Esme's voice traveled from the kitchen. "Edward and Renesmee included." Edward too? Maybe Charlie was moving on for the better. Hopefully, he was willing to give Edward another chance and forget about the months following my 18th birthday. But being too optimistic wasn't helping anything. "I'll, um, have to call him back." "Bur for now, you can just relax." Edward stood and slowly grabbed my wrist. "Ok." I looked into his charming eyes. "Don't go too far, Alice." I instructed, actually begged, as Alice sat me down in a chair which was set directly in front of the mirror. Memories of my wedding preparations floated back to me; Alice had truly loved making-me-over to becoming the perfect bride. "Don't worry, Bella. I am going for a simple look for tonight." Alice picked up a strand of my hair. "I think Edward doesn't care how I look."

"Then I guess if Edward doesn't care, I can make you look however I want." "I'm not your Barbie doll, Alice." "Oh, c'mon, Bella. You'll be fine." "It's hard to say no to you." I looked up at Alice. "That's the point." Alice grinned, biting her lip, deciding what to transform me into. Bella's POV "Hello?" Charlie's voice came out of Edward's cellphone. We were in the Volvo, on our way to Edward and my special "dinner". Alice had just finished her experimenting with me only a few minutes ago; she'd pinned my hair back nicely, and showered me with too much make up, which she'd taken all off in the end. You look perfectly fine with no make up at all, Alice had quoted. "Esme told me you called. Sorry, I wasn't up yet." I looked out the windshield. "Oh, hey, Bells." "Thanks for inviting Edward." I said. Edward looked at me in response to his name. "Well, I thought you'd come over more if he were there to motivate you to stay." "Char-dad." I frowned. "I'm sorry I had to leave so suddenly last time. It had nothing to do with you or Edward." "I just feel like I'm losing you, Bella." "It's ok." I was about to push my hair behind my ear but I didn't to prevent from messing up Alice's masterpiece. "Hey, how does Friday sound? Edward, Renesmee and I could be there around eleven." "Great!" His mood completely changed. "That works out perfectly. I think the Blacks are coming over then too." "Wait. Jacob and Billy are coming? Then I don't think we should " "What's gotten into you, Bella?" He interrupted me. "You and Jake used to be best friends. What happened?" "Nothing." I sighed. "We just grew apart." "Does Edward have something to do with that?" Charlie sounded kind of mad. "I have to go, Dad. I'll talk to you later." "Bella, I " I hung up before he could respond. "Was that fight over me?" Edward asked, his expression undecipherable. "It wasn't a fight." I looked at him. "Did I pull you and Jacob apart?" It took me a moment to reply. To be honest, Edward was the reason Jacob and I grew apart. Then after I became a vampire, Jacob put the full blame on Edward's shoulder and ignored me from then on. "You don't have to answer that." Edward's voice was practically silent. He pulled up and parked alongside the curb. "We're here."

It took me a moment to recognize where we were. But when I did, confusion crossed my face, "What are we doing here?" We were at the Casa Bella, the restaurant where Edward had told me he could read every mind, apart from mine. My human memories were foggy now, but this memory, including every moment I'd ever spent with Edward, was crystal clear. "It was a spur-of-the-moment type of deal." Edward was already helping me out of the car. "I didn't know you were a spur-of-the-moment type of guy." "I'm not usually, so let's just pray that Jessica and Angela don't show up. I'm definitely not a fan of coincidences." Edward grabbed my waist and lifted me up one of the steps into the restaurant. The Casa Bella was exactly how I'd remembered it; it hadn't changed at all. The tables were still exotically covered with glittering tablecloths, and a globe like candles as centerpieces. The amount of patrons, and visitors, to the restaurant was limited, which was perfect; Edward and I didn't want to attract too much attention to ourselves. We sat ourselves down, as a sign had instructed, and waited for a waitress to and make it look like we were going to eat. "Wow." I breathed. "Dj vu." "I know." He looked nervously down at his hands. "I was wondering when you'd come back." a girl's voices said. I was the only one to look up; once again, Edward's eyes were on no one's but mine. It was the waitress that had flirted with Edward last time. How could she remember us? It must've been three years ago. "Are you hungry this time?" her flirtatious voice edged. "Surprisingly not." Edward smirked, his eyes stayed on me. She sighed impatiently, and then turned to me, "You want anything?" "Lost my appetite." I grinned. Edward chuckled silently. "Well, tell me if you make up your minds." she walked back to the kitchen. "She hasn't changed." I looked up at the ceiling nervously. "I hadn't noticed." his crooked smile crossed his face, making me exhale deeply. "Wow." I repeated. "You really look beautiful tonight. I'll have to send my condolences to Alice." "Um, thanks." I smiled. "Hmm." "What are you thinking?" "Can we talk about something other than me?" I asked. "Uh, sure." He stuttered. "So Jacob. He's coming, he's coming to Charlie's too?" "Yeah." I frowned. "Will that be good for Renesmee?" "Alice is the one that tells the future. I just read minds." Edward grinned sheepishly. "What is Jacob thinking? Right now?"

"Hmm." Edward shut his eyes momentarily. "He, um he wants Seth to leave him alone." I leaned forward, "Are you lying?" "What makes you think that?" he wondered. "Knowing Jacob." I sighed. "Well, Jake is far more profound than that." "Maybe you're giving him too much credit." He growled. I was about to respond, but the waitress came back, "Have you decided?" "We won't be eating tonight." Edward spat. "Oh." A dejected look crossed her face. "Ok." He continued after she left, "I agree, Jacob is a complex character " he lowered his voice so no one could overhear, not like anyone would take in what we were saying. "But he could be a threat. He was to you, and he could be to Renesmee." "What do you mean?" "I left. You confided in him. I understand that. But he doesn't want you anymore, Bella. He's after what you have. And I swear I swear to God, that if anything should happen to you or Renesmee, I will tear Jacob apart ." He exhaled deeply. We were silent for a long while. Whenever the waitress started walk back, Edward shot her a frightening glance, and she would back away. I just stared into his eyes, waiting for him to continue. "Nothing will happen." I was practically silent. "How do you know?" He shot at me. "I know." I frowned. "I just know." He sighed, "I trust you. I just don't trust Jacob." Jacob's POV "We're visiting the Chief today." My father tried to make a conversation with me as I was finishing my breakfast. I was in no mood to socialize. "That's great, Dad." "I think we'll be watching' the Mariner's game." He said. I put another spoonful of Frosted Flakes in my mouth. "Sound's exciting." Just how I wanted to spend my Friday off school: watching two old guys yell at the TV. "Either that, or the Chief will wanna catch up with Bella." He wheeled around to face the kitchen sink. I chocked on the spoonful I'd just put in my mouth, "Wait. Bella's gonna be there?" "Charlie just called. Said he invited her." My father's voice was hoarse. "Edward and Renesmee too." "Renesmee?" I breathed, standing up. "Edward too." He emphasized. "Jake." "I'll be fine, Dad." I lied putting my bowl in the sink. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"I'm not going to answer that." My father left me alone standing in the middle of the kitchen. What was the worst that could happen? Well, whatever the worst was, it would have to wait. Renesmee was the only person I wanted to see, imprint or no imprint, werewolf or no werewolf, vampire or no vampire. And that's all that mattered, right? Dad and I got in the Chevy after an awkward hour of me sitting, waiting for us to leave. There was no talking on the way, which shocked me; I'd expected to be reprimanded about my behavior around Renesmee. But there was nothing. My dad's only words were when we turned onto Charlie's street, "Don't do something stupid, Jacob." "Um, Ok." I faltered, confused about the random command. A huge, silver Jeep sat in Charlie's driveway. The Cullens sure knew how to stay inconspicuous. The cruiser was parked sideways in the yard, and its engine was still ticking indicating it'd been turned off only moments ago. "Billy Black." Charlie pushed open the front door and held it open for us, before we even got out of the car. "I got a fresh case of Vitamin R in the fridge." "Good work, Chief." My father grinned as I lifted him from the passenger seat to his wheelchair. "Hey, dad." I heard Bella call from inside. "Just a sec." Charlie walked over to help me carry the wheelchair up the stairs. "I " Bella emerged out the door, but stopped when se saw me, "Jacob! Good to see you!" When she said that, I let go of the wheelchair in bewilderment, letting it crush my foot. If Charlie hadn't been there, my dad would've rolled down the steps. "Jake!" My father shouted. I quickly grabbed the chair and helped him into the house. Bella whispered to me after dad got settled, "What was that?" "You actually sounded like you were happy to see me." I whispered back. "Who's paying you?" "No one's paying me." She frowned. "Bella." Edward walked up to us from the kitchen, Renesmee in his arms. Renesmee had shockingly grown, since I'd caught a glimpse of her on Bella's birthday. Her hair had become a little darker, more like Bella's and less like Charlie's, and she'd gotten a little bigger, but her stunning eyes had stayed the same. "Jacob." One of them scowled under their breath. It was so similar to a hiss, I couldn't tell which one of them had said it; it'd could've been Renesmee for all I knew. "Hey, Nessie!" I greeted, ignoring Edward completely. "Hi, Jacob." She was practically silent. "Can I talk to you?" Edward whispered to Bella discreetly. She nodded and then took Renesmee from him. "Go play with Grandpa." Renesmee complied obediently. Before Bella and Edward walked into the kitchen, they both shot me a frightening look, telling me to go away. I stepped away slowly, glaring at Edward from my peripheral vision. I knew I wouldn't have been able to eavesdrop; there voices were inaudible. Damn vampires, I thought. Edward let out a growl in return. "Hello, Renesmee!" Charlie picked up Renesmee and put her on his lap. She began to twiddle with the string of his jacket. Renesmee was smart; she knew how to play the part of 'innocent little toddler'.

"Hey, Jake." Charlie looked up at me. "How's life on the Reservation?" He kept a steady voice. "Well, ya know." I shrugged. "Same old routine." "I know!" He lifted his legs, letting Renesmee slide off of them. "Why don't you show Renesmee her mommy's old room?" "B-but I " I started, but Charlie interrupted. "I can only walk up those stairs a limited amount of times these days, Jake." Charlie sighed. "I would show her if I could, but do you think you could just do it for me this time?" "Sure thing, Chief Swan." I frowned. I had no intention of walking down memory lane. I grabbed Renesmee's tiny hand, which sent shivers down my spine. She had a firm grip, as all vampires probably did. "Why are we going to mommy's old room?" she asked. Her cute voice was charming. "Charlie thought it'd be nice." I replied slowly. "Do you think mommy would want us in here?" she wondered. "I don't know." "Have you ever been in here before?" her adorable little eyes stared up at me. "Um, " I stuttered. "Once or twice." When we walked into Bella's previous room, my eyes opened wide with shock. It hadn't changed at all. Charlie hadn't moved a thing, it was all in the exact place as Bella had left it when I was last here; it was like she'd been in there just a few minutes ago, and she was getting ready for bed. Bella was unnaturally clean for a teenage girl, with their mood swings and all, but there were even a couple clothes on the floor, right where she'd left them. Her bed was sitting across from her desk, still unmade. Her senior citizen she called a computer sat there, unused, with dust all over the monitor. There was her rocking chair that had sat there even in her baby days, I remembered. A corkboard was on the wall above the rocking chair: there were photos of Charlie and Renee and Renee's new husband. There were several photo's of her and I on First Beach, considering our youthful looks, it had to be about three years ago. But the pictures that seemed to overwhelm the whole board were the Cullens. They were everywhere! Edward the most, the little pixie-girl, Alice, was there too, there was the big muscular one, Emmett, I think his name was, the guy who looked like he was in pain, Jamie or something, or was it Jasper? The surgeon and his wife were also there. Even the pretty blonde one, Rosalyn, I think it was. "This is her room?" Renesmee asked. "Yep." I breathed out, still examining everything. "So, when she was human, she slept right here?" Renesmee laughed. I didn't find it funny; I thought it was one of the most random statements in the world that is, until I looked over at her. Renesmee was there, lying on the bed, sprawled out. Her hair going every which way on the same pillow in the same way that Bella's hair had. She suddenly seemed to have grown two feet, or maybe it was just the lighting, or the angle I was staring at her. Her pale skin, which seemed to have grown somewhat tanner just now, glowed in the florescent lamp light. She looked identical to Bella; she was beautiful. "Wow." I sighed, still staring. "What?" She sat up. "You look just like your mom." I frowned. "Is that a bad thing?" she wondered. I walked up to her, sitting on the bed beside her.

When I looked at her again, she didn't look like Bella anymore. She looked like Renesmee, which in my opinion, was even better. I didn't know what was driving me that night, I just had a certain impulse. "Renesmee ?" I closed my eyes. "What?" her curious voice was tantalizing. "C'mon." I opened my eyes. I grabbed her arm and before I knew it, we were out Bella's window (which I knew Edward had gone through many times before) and in the Chevy, pulling out of the driveway and away into the distance. Bella's POV Edward, Renesmee and I climbed into the car around 10:30. Being so deep in the forest on the outskirts of Forks, we'd need a little time to get to Charlie's, whether a speedy vampire was driving or not. We'd decided to take the Jeep, in case Edward wanted to take any detours that would require 4-wheel-drive. "Have fun." Esme smiled from the porch, as Carlisle wrapped his arm over her shoulder. "See you in a couple hours." I grinned back. After short goodbyes, Edward zoomed down the street, and onto some back roads. With one hand on the wheel, and the other intertwined with mine, he grinned. "This is nice." He sighed. "You're right." I looked over at him. His face was strained. "What are we gonna do at Grandpa's house?" Renesmee asked. "Just hang out with him." I told her. "Renesmee, Jacob's going to be there too, so be careful, all right?" "Why?" She wondered innocently. "It's complicated." Edward's eyes were glued to the windshield. Without asking anymore questions, Renesmee smiled, "Ok." I was proud of our daughter. She was smart and considerate of everyone around her. She was definitely opinionated sometimes though, but I guess that's my fault; both Edward and I agree she got that trait from Bella Cullen. We were in Charlie's driveway in no time, but, for some reason he wasn't home. The cruiser wasn't parked out front as it normally was. But, just in time, we heard police sirens growing closer. Charlie drove steadily onto the street and didn't even attempt to park in the driveway; he drove right into the yard. Before we got out of the car, Edward and I swiftly put gloves on and contacts in our eyes. Renesmee put gloves on herself, just to be safe. "Good morning, Chief Swan." Edward got out of the car and shook Charlie's hand. "Edward." Charlie nodded. After getting Renesmee out of the back seat, I went around to greet him too. "Hey, dad." "Bells! Good to see you all." he smiled. "Renesmee too." "Hi, grandpa!" Renesmee leaned out of my arms and into his. Now that my hands were free, Edward wrapped his arm around my waist, and kissed the top of my head gently. Happily, Charlie was too busy walking up the steps with Renesmee to notice.

"She's grown." Charlie smiled from ear to ear when Edward and I walked into the house, hand in hand. He put Renesmee down and she ran into the living area and jumped on the couch. "Quickly." Edward smiled as best he could. "I know." Charlie agreed. Edward walked over to Renesmee to give Charlie and me some privacy. "Listen, Bella, I'm really sorry about our conversation the other day. I'm just kind of upset that you aren't good friends with Jacob anymore." "Jacob still comes over. We still talk." Yeah, he comes over to see Renesmee. "But not like you used to." "Not like we used to, but we still get along." "Well, when Jacob and Billy get here, I want you to at least attempt a conversation with him." "Right, ok, dad." "Good." Charlie clapped his hand on my shoulder. "I'm proud of you, Bells. You gotta good life with him." He shrugged toward Edward. "Edward's great. We haven't had any problems." I smiled, looking over at Edward. He was sitting on the couch, putting his big hands into Renesmee's small ones. It was so cute, it made me want to cry. Just then, I heard the Blacks pull up the street, I could smell them from a mile away. Edward looked up too, and then looked at me. As soon as they pulled into the drive, I took a deep breath and walked over to Edward. "Billy Black." Charlie pushed open the screen door. "I got a fresh case of Vitamin R in the fridge." "Jacob isn't a good mood." Edward whispered to me. "He's a little anxious to see someone." "Then it'll be kind of hard to try and be nice to him." I sighed. "Just keep Renesmee at a safe distance, ok?" "It'll be fine, love." Edward put his hand on mine. "I'm thirsty, daddy." Renesmee wrapped her arms around Edward's neck and he picked her up. "Well, I doubt Charlie will have a bottle of blood in the fridge." Edward joked or was he not joking? "Hey, dad." I called loudly. "Just a sec." Charlie said back. "I " I walked out the door to see Jacob and Charlie helping Billy up the steps. "Jacob! Good to see you!" I smiled. Was it obvious I was lying? It must not have been obvious because Jacob dropped the wheelchair and stared at me in astonishment. I put my hand to my mouth to cover my gasp. Charlie had to catch the back of the chair to prevent Billy from plummeting to the bottom. "Jake!" Billy shouted. Jacob snapped out of his haze and grabbed the chair's handle. When they lifted him up into the house and he rolled uneasily into the living room, I went up to Jacob and asked, "What was that?" He raised his eyebrow, "You actually sounded like you were happy to see me. Who's paying you?" "No one's paying me." I looked up at his face. He must've grown a couple inches. "Bella." Edward walked out of the kitchen, Renesmee was in his arms, sucking on her finger.

"Jacob." Edward hissed. I think it was for Renesmee to hear, to warn her about what we'd said in the car. But Jacob must've heard it too because his eyes shifted over each one of us. "Hey, Nessie!" Jacob exclaimed. I still hated that nickname: Nessie. Her name was Renesmee, not Nessie, and Renesmee was what it was supposed to be. "Hi, Jacob." Renesmee's voice was hesitant. "Can I talk to you?" Edward's eyes stared into mine. I nodded as Edward handed me Renesmee. I put her down and nudged her towards the living room, "Go play with Grandpa." She ran into the other room instantly. Edward grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer to him, as if he were protecting me from Jacob. Before walking into the solitude of the kitchen, we turned and looked at Jacob, almost with deadly glares. He backed away immediately to give us some seclusion. "Maybe we shouldn't have come." Edward sighed, his voice low enough were no one but me could hear. "Why not?" I frowned. Edward let out a deep, loud snarl. "What?" "I'm going to " He began to walk toward Jacob, but I pulled him back. One of the best things about being a vampire, I had enough strength to hold back Edward. I wasn't the weak, fragile human anymore. "That's why." Edward growled. "Jacob doesn't seem to get it." "He's trying to make you mad." I looked at Edward honestly. "He never did like you." "I just don't want anyone to get hurt. Anyone I care about, that is." "We won't get hurt." I sighed. "Jacob can't do anything that will make us any weaker." "I don't want to take that chance." he looked out the window. "I was talking to Alice after we got home last night. I didn't want to tell you this with Renesmee around it might scare her." "What's the matter?" I stepped closer to him. "She said something is going to happen to Renesmee. But it's too foggy for her to see the details." "Foggy? What does that ?" "It means Jacob has something to do with it. It was too foggy because Alice can't see werewolves." "Well, shouldn't we ?" My voice trailed away. We heard the floor above us creak. Charlie must've gone upstairs or something. "I want to keep you and Renesmee safe." He wrapped me in his arms. "We will be safe." I sighed, my voice was unconvincing; I barely believed myself. "I can't understand any of this, Bella." he frowned. "I know what imprinting can do. It can drive a person mad. But if Jacob were to do something to Renesmee " he paused. "It just doesn't make sense." "It never makes sense." I whispered mostly to myself. "I was talking to Seth." Edward explained. "He said he's never seen imprinting drive someone as far as it has taken Jacob. But maybe it has something to do with the fact that Renesmee isn't human I don't know." "Well, I " I began but something stopped me. We heard the engine of the Chevy start up outside. "Did you see someone go outside?" I asked him.

"No." Edward's eyes widened as he bolted for the door. I quickly followed. When we got outside, the Chevy was gone and so were Jacob and Renesmee. Edward's POV "Unbelievable." I gulped as we zoomed back to the house. "I can't believe Jacob would do something like that." Bella inhaled. "Like that?" I looked at her. "What if this is only the beginning, Bella? Renesmee could be anywhere with Jacob." I spoke the name with disgust. I stared into Bella's eyes; if she could cry, she'd be bawling. How could Jacob just run off with her like that? As we pulled up the drive, Alice and Rose were out the door in a flash. "Edward." Alice breathed as we got out of the Jeep. The Volturi are here, she thought. Wow, that sure helps the situation. "Where's the baby?" Rose asked, her eyes scanning the back seat of the Jeep. "Not here." I frowned. It would be too painful to repeat myself inside, so I grabbed Bella before she could release the bad news, and headed for the door. "Don't be shocked when we walk in." I sighed. "The Volturi are here. "B-but they said a month!" She stuttered; her mind was still processing all of this. "The Volturi love surprises." I said, just before we walked into the main room. Aro, Caius, and Marcus were standing with Carlisle. Jane was there as well; she looked even more petite standing beside Emmett and Jasper. All four of them were dressed in Volturi's signature black cloaks. No one moved when Bella and I walked in, except for Aro, whose expression brightened when he saw us. "Edward. Bella. My, my, it feels like forever since we last saw you." "On the battlefield." I mumbled to Bella. She cringed. "Speaking of last visits," Aro's eyes avoided ours. "Where's the center of attention?" At his words, everyone looked up at us; their eyes searched us. They were probably expecting Renesmee to be hiding behind our legs or something. "Where's the baby?" Aro's eyebrow rose. "Not here." Bella had caught on to my ploy and repeated what I'd said outside. "Where is she, Edward?" Alice finally came in with Rosalie wat her heels. "Did you leave her at Charlie's?" Carlisle stepped forward. "She's gone." Bella breathed out in a rush. "What?" Rosalie stepped closer to us. "What do you mean by gone?" Aro's curious expression stayed plastered on his face. "Bella." I whispered, gripping her arm. I knew this was hard for her. "Jacob took her." Bella was almost silent, but everyone heard her.

"To where?" Esme asked. I hadn't even noticed her standing on the steps. Her expression was broken. "We don't know." I said, so Bella wouldn't have too. "What is he thinking, Edward? What is Renesmee thinking?" Carlisle asked me. I shut out everyone else's thoughts, which was difficult because most everyone's thoughts, particularly Bella's, were screaming in pain. Renesmee's thoughts were easy to pick out, considering she was so close to me, but I didn't want to listen to her thoughts because of the sudden pain they brought me: Where's mommy and daddy? I wanna go home, Jacob! Where are mommy and daddy? "Renesmee wants to come home." I frowned. "Jacob is smart." "What?" Bella turned to me. "He's doing a good job of keeping his thought to himself." "This boy must really want her " Aro thought out loud. I grinded my teeth together, and Carlisle, who noticed, warned, "Aro. Please." Aro didn't push much further, "How long has Renesmee known this boy?" "Not long." Bella responded stronger and more confident than I'd expected. "But I've known him longer." "How much older is this boy?" "He's about eighteen now." "Why'd he steal Renesmee, then?" Steal was an interesting word to use. "Because he loves her." We all turned and saw Seth Clearwater in the doorway. "Seth." I pressed. He shouldn't be involved. "Who's the stiff?" Seth shrugged toward Aro. "And who's the chic?" He looked at Jane. "Werewolf." Jane exhaled. "I know where I remember the name now. Jacob's a werewolf too." "Yeah." Seth thought it was obvious. "The baby's been captured by a werewolf?" Marcus spoke for the first time. "He imprinted on her." Seth frowned. "So? That gives him no right to take her away from us!" Bella practically screamed. "Um, Jasper." I frowned, gesturing toward Bella. When she hadn't stopped fuming, I threw a question glance at Jasper. He shook his head no in reply. "Where is she?" Bella yelled. "I don't know." Seth backed away a little. "He didn't say." "Can't you track him down?" Emmett growled. "Can't you?" Seth shot back. That was strange; Seth was never rude to us, no matter the situation. Too much time spent with Jacob, no doubt.

"This is our daughter, Seth." I snarled. "Do you not understand that? Does Jacob not understand that?" "I know! I know!" Seth burst. "I am not the one who kidnapped Renesmee! Jacob called me! He told me that he ran away with Renesmee! He didn't even give me time to ask questions!" We all went silent and just watched Seth as he breathed heavily. "We shouldn't be yelling at you, Seth." Carlisle broke the silence. "But this is an extremely serious situation. Do you have any idea where Jacob could've gone?" "He said something about Bella." "Me?" Bella looked at him. "Good luck." Seth frowned, walking out the door. We saw him morph into a wolf (the Volturi flinched) and run like a ghost into the woods. End of the last chapter: "We shouldn't be yelling at you, Seth." Carlisle broke the silence. "But this is an extremely serious situation. Do you have any idea where Jacob could've gone?" "He said something about Bella." "Me?" Bella looked at him. "Good luck." Seth frowned, walking out the door. Renesmee's POV Was I asleep right now? I had to be; in just a few minutes, daddy will walk into my room and whisper my name. Or mommy will come in and give me a good morning kiss on the cheek. Or Aunty Alice will tickle my face to wake me up. This had to be a dream, or a nightmare. I couldn't tell which at the moment. "Renesmee?" a voice murmured. So was Edward waking me up this morning? "Are you awake?" No, that wasn't daddy's silky, sweet voice. This voice was vacillating, hoarser. My eyes fluttered open slowly, but it was all still a blur. I groaned slowly, turning away from the voice. "Renesmee?" The voice repeated. I nudged farther away from the person, until something jabbed my side. I gasped, my eyes flashing open in an instant. But it was only the seat belt buckle wait, I was in a car? When I examined my surroundings more closely, I noticed it was pitch black outside. I could hear the roar of an engine, going extremely fast. It was too dark to see anything; just occasional light would zoom by. "Are you up now?" the voice asked. I looked at the driver, but I could only make out the silhouette at first. When my eyes came into focus, I saw long black hair flowing down the person's back and their rust colored skin looked eerie in the glowing green lights coming from the dashboard. "Hmm." I moaned. "Jacob?" "Good morning." His voice was soft. "Morning?" I sighed. "Why are we in your car this early?" "Um," he stuttered. "Where's mommy and daddy?" my voice raised into a sudden hysteria. "Where are they?"

"You're fine, Renesmee." his eyes stayed on the road. "What is going on?" I asked. "Where are you taking me?" "You make it sound like I'm a criminal." he sighed. "I want my mommy and daddy, Jacob." I frowned. "Everything will be ok, Nessie." "Don't call me Nessie." I looked out the window. "My mommy never liked that name." "I don't think I've ever heard you talk so much." He laughed. I didn't like his sense of humor. "Take me home Jacob." I insisted. Jacob's POV "Renesmee, you're fine." I assured her. Without saying another word, she put her small hand on my arm. At first I thought it was supposed to be something sentimental, but then I saw something: It was inside the Cullen's Jeep. Edward was driving, Bella was riding shotgun, and the scene was played through Renesmee's eyes in the backseat. They were zooming down some dirt road in the forest. Just then, Edward sighed, and put his hand on Bella's, "This is nice." "You're right." Bella looked over at Edward; her smile was pure, wholesome. "What are we going to do at Grandpa's house?" Renesmee's endearing voice chirped. "Just hang out with him." I could see Bella's eyes in the narrow rearview mirror. "Renesmee, Jacob's going to be there too, so be careful, alright?" I flinched at the mention of my name. "Why?" Renesmee wondered curiously. "It's complicated." Edward frowned and then the vision was sucked away. I looked over at Renesmee and then my eyes snapped back to the wheel. Luckily, she'd had her hand on the wheel so that while I was watching her memory, we wouldn't crash. "What was that for?" I wondered. "You're a danger to me, Jacob." she didn't look at me. "That's why I have to go home." I couldn't take it anymore. I caught sight of a gas station coming up; I turned into it, practically causing an accident in the process. I jammed it into park and faced Renesmee. "You know, you are just like your mom!" I shouted. "You finally get to know me and then you go crawling back to the Cullens! I will always be your second choice! Won't I? Won't I?" "Jacob, I " She cowered away from me. "I was Bella's second choice! I-I actually thought she might love me! The second time we kissed, I knew she liked it! I knew she did! But no, she was engaged to the perfect Edward Cullen!" "What ?" Renesmee was confused, but I gave her no time to ask questions.

"She loved me! Those couple months when those damn vampires were gone, I knew she cared about me! Whenever she was with me, she was happy!" I finally finished my rampage. "Jacob, I-I had no idea." she frowned. "Yeah, I bet you Bella told you nothing about me." "Barely. But we never actually talk." The next question was inevitable, "Do you talk about Edward?" "Well, yes. He's my daddy." "Do you think about me?" "Sometimes. Not all the time." "Well, I think about you." After I said it, I wished I hadn't; my cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "I know. Seth told me." "That loud-mouth." I mumbled. "I know you care about me, Jacob." she explained. "But what if I was yours and Edward took me away from you? How would you feel?" "I'd feel I'd wanna kill Edward, that's how I'd feel." "Well, that's how my parents feel right now." I took it all in. "Oh, dammit. What did I do?" I put my head on the steering wheel. "I want to know too. What were you thinking?" "I don't know. It's just " I looked back up at her. "When you were in Bella's room, it was like I'd seen it all before. It's like you were Bella." Suddenly, it all clicked. Maybe I imprinted on Renesmee because she was the Bella I wanted her to be. I remembered walking down the Cullen's stairs, I'd just rejected Bella mentally after her transformation, and when I saw Renesmee in Rosalie's arms, I knew that she was Bella, only the one that was still human. "Renesmee, I'm so sorry." I looked over at her. I felt so stupid. "Its ok." she breathed. "Do I really look that much like mommy?" "Incredibly." I laughed, and she laughed along. Seeing her laugh made me shudder, she was too much like Bella, which I think was my reasoning behind what I was about to do. Without even thinking about it, I grabbed Renesmee's face and pulled it towards mine. When our lips met, I recognized Bella's hesitation. Renesmee was trying to pull away, but even with her vampire strength, she couldn't budge. I tried to hold the kiss for as long as I could, until I realized this was too different. I pulled away swiftly, as Renesmee fell back on her seat. "W-what! I-I can't-t you are I-I!" she stammered. "God! I am so sorry, Renesmee!" I wanted to punch myself in the face. "I'm such a dumb ass." "Take me home. Now, Jacob!" She yelled. I immediately put the car and gear and sped back onto the highway. "I may be no expert, but I think if we're going back to Forks, don't you think we should be going the other direction?" "I think we should head to an airport." I muttered under my breath. "I don't feel like driving all the way back."

"Driving back from where? What are you ?" She wondered. "I was surprised; you slept through our whole drive down here." I frowned. "Where are we?" Renesmee asked. "Um," I simpered. "We're in Phoenix." Alice's POV "Alice." Bella called from the couch, her head in her hands. "What is it, Bella?" I sauntered into the living area where Bella was. She looked disheveled. "How about now?" Bella looked up at me. "Bella, I didn't see Renesmee when you asked me twenty seconds ago." I sighed, sitting beside her. "I don't think I'll be able to see her now." "I'm sorry. I'm just so drained right now." she looked out the window at the normal rainy day as I rubbed her back encouragingly. "I understand. You don't have to worry; Edward is listening for her, Jazz is tracking her emotions, and I'm keeping my eyes wide open. We're all on the alert." "Hmm." She frowned. "Ok." I longed to know what Bella was thinking; now I know how Edward felt all the time. Before I knew it, I was being sucked into a vision. Jasper must have noticed because he was at my side whispering, "What is it? What do you see?" I focused in on what I was seeing: I could see a car, a newer, greenish version of what Bella used to drive; it was hard to see who was inside. The vision was too murky. I could hear people talking, though. "Let go of the wheel." A boy's voice said. The passenger mustn't have listened because the boy repeated himself, "Let go of the wheel." An edge of annoyance was in his voice. "I'm not going to " A girl's voice said. Then there was a loud honk and the cars swerved, with others in their wake. I gasped as the vision was taken away. "What did you see, Alice?" Carlisle was by my side now too. "It was an accident." my eyes were distant. "What?" Edward was standing behind Jasper, Bella under his arm. "There was a car accident." I frowned. "No." Bella whispered. "Was Renesmee involved?" Esme wondered, putting her hand on my shoulder. "I'm not sure." I looked at the ground. "I think so. It sounded like Jacob's voice." "Maybe Jacob was the only one in the car." Emmett tried to be hopeful. "No, I heard Renesmee's voice too." I avoided anyone's eyes. "Oh my god." Bella buried her face in Edward's shirt. "I am going to murder that mutt." Edward growled.

"She may not be hurt." I looked at Edward. "It takes a lot to kill a vampire." "So, what?" Rose frowned. "We wait until Renesmee comes back? We can't help her if we don't know where she is." "That's all we can do." Carlisle rose. "Wait till she comes home." "I-I can't believe this." Bella gasped for breath. Edward grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the room, most likely towards the cottage. Jazz came up to me, rubbing my hand. He looked overwhelmed in thought, most likely trying to figure all of this out. "I can't believe Jacob would go to such lengths to keep Renesmee away from her family." He sighed. "He has to have more reasoning behind it." I said. "Does he not understand how serious this is?" Jasper looked at me. "He has to." I looked out the window. "Unless it doesn't matter to him." "What do you mean?" He wondered. "Apparently, Renesmee is the only thing important to him." I explained. "She's an obsession to him." "There has to be more than that in his life." Jasper assumed. "We've seen how fanatical he can get. Nothing else seems important to him anymore." Just then, Edward's cellphone vibrated across the kitchen counter. We all rushed toward it, and Carlisle picked it up. "Hello?" he said. "Where are you?" his eyes shifted between all of us. "What are you doing there?" "Calm down." he commanded. "Alright." he sighed. "We'll be there as soon as we can." "There's nothing to be sorry for." he frowned. "That's for Edward to decide." Carlisle said, and then hung up. "Is everything alright?" Rose asked, Emmett at her side. "We have to get to Phoenix." Carlisle told us. "Alice, go tell Edward and Bella." "Ok." I let go of Jasper's hand, and ran out into the woods. I didn't want to start thinking, because that would throw me off. The only thought that ran through my head was Why Phoenix? Maybe Edward had heard me and would be waiting. But hopefully, he wasn't listening. He probably would throw a ton of questions at me that I would have to leave unanswered. When I got to the cottage, I could hear Bella's voice, "You can't kill him, Edward." "You've seen what he's done." Edward growled. "He's still a part of me." Bella sighed.

Edward paused. "I just want to protect my family." "How will this affect everyone else? What about Jacob's pack? His friends? His dad? Killing him may help our family, but it won't help his." she protested. "I don't want to risk Renesmee becoming a part of him, though." Edward's voice was quiet. "If that happens, then it happens. There's nothing we can do about it." Bella said. "What if we can prevent it?" Edward countered. "Why would we?" Bella sounded frustrated. Edward hissed, "You can come in now, Alice." "You must've been distracted." I walked in the door. "You didn't hear what anyone was thinking?" "I didn't feel like listening." He snarled. "Well, Renesmee just called." I informed them. They both stood up straighter. "Where is she?" Bella pleaded. "Phoenix." I said. "That's why Seth had said it had something to do with Bella." Edward frowned, probably regretting he hadn't figured it out sooner. "And the car accident?" Bella asked, already heading back to the house. "None of us are sure." I admitted. "Let's just get to Phoenix before it can happen, alright?" Edward said before the three of us ran into the woods. Renesmee's POV We'd been driving in silence for almost an hour now. I had never been outside Washington as far as I could remember; I had never been out of Bella and Edward's sight as far as I could remember. I didn't like being away from them, or any of my family for that matter. They were my haven, my safe place. Without them, I felt completely lost. Abruptly, Jacob turned into a restaurant parking lot. "Hungry?" He asked. "I have a feeling they don't sell blood." I kept my eyes locked on the windshield. He winced. "Well, I'm gonna get something to eat. I'll be right back." Jacob told me, opening the car door. "Don't run away." I didn't respond, and my expression stayed unchanged. He sighed, shutting the door and walking into the restaurant. I crossed my arms, trying not to cry. I wanted to go home so badly. I looked outside the window; the sun was just peeking over the sandy hills. So this is where mommy used to live? I couldn't picture it; she belonged with daddy in the rain, not out here in the sun. Just then, a buzzing noise went off, making me jump. I looked down under Jacob's seat to see his cellphone blinking. He had his cellphone here the whole time? How did I not see that before? I reached for it, looking at the screen to see who it was: his dad. I flipped it open, and then closed again. I didn't want to talk to anyone other than my family. I quickly dialed daddy's number, which I had memorized. "Hello?" Carlisle's voice flooded into my ears. It was like a life-raft.

"Carlisle." I breathed in relief. "It's me. It's Renesmee." "Where are you?" It sounded like a burden was lifted off his shoulders. "Phoenix." I sighed. Saying it out loud still shocked me. "What are you doing there?" he asked me. "Jacob took me here. I don't know why, I just want to go home. I-I don't know what to do " I stammered. "Calm down." He instructed me. "Please, come get me." I begged. "Alright. We'll be there as soon as we can." he said. "I am so sorry." I felt so guilty for going with Jacob without telling anyone. "There's nothing to be sorry for." Carlisle sighed. I couldn't help but to disagree with him. "I know this is terrible of him, but don't don't hurt Jacob." I pleaded. "That's for Edward to decide." Carlisle told me. I wanted to keep talking to him, but I saw Jacob coming back. I quickly shut the phone and put it back where I'd found it. I felt like I was being held hostage or something. "I got you a granola bar just in case you get hungry." Jacob said as he got in the car. "I know that's nothing like the gourmet meals you eat at the Cullen's but it's all I could afford. That is if we want enough gas to get to the airport. I nodded in reply. "You ok?" he asked me. "Yes." I sighed. Suddenly, his phone rang again. "It's my dad." He told me. He grabbed for it. "Hello?" he answered. "I didn't hang up on you." he looked confused. "Dad, I swear I didn't." He said. "Well, I'm sorry. But I didn't " He was about to continue but I cut him off. "I did." I said. "You used my phone?" He looked at me. Then he sighed, "Did you call the Cullens?" "I want to go home, Jacob!" I frowned. "You didn't trust that I could take you home myself?" he practically yelled. "I'll call you back, Dad." he shut the phone. I went silent. "Fine, you wanna go home? Let's go home." he finally sighed. He put it in drive and jammed his foot on the gas pedal. We zoomed out of the lot and out onto the main highway again. "I'm sorry, Jacob." I added.

"It's just so aggravating that you don't trust me." he gulped. "I do trust you." I looked at him. "How much?" he stared at me. "Focus on the road, Jacob." I reminded him. "I know what I'm doing. How much do you trust me?" he begged. "I trust you, ok?" I said. "Now pay attention to the road." "Then why do you always consider the Cullens safer than me?" he wondered, still looking at me. "Because they're my family." I told him. "I can be safe too. Believe me on that." Jacob said. "I know Bella never talks about this, but one time, Edward wasn't there for her. He left her, didn't even say where he was going. He just said goodbye and never thought of coming back. "Bella was a wreck. She was moping around all the time; she didn't want to do anything. Then she started to hang out with me and she wasn't moping around anymore. She would come over everyday, hanging out in the garage talking to me. She helped me through my first stages as a werewolf. "Then your aunt, Alice, came back. She told her that Edward was going to kill himself because he thought Bella was dead, when she wasn't. It was all miscommunication. Yeah, well, Bella left to go save Edward but I don't think she ever really thought about what had happened to me. "She had made it completely unapparent that something was wrong, and one day, I went over her house to go hang out and she wasn't there. Next thing I know, I find out she's in Italy with Edward. Nobody told me. Nobody told me that she would just go crawling back to him after all the pain he'd caused her." "I didn't know that." I looked out the window. "That's 'because the Cullens don't talk about it. It was the darkest days of Edward and Bella's relationship or whatever." Jacob shrugged. "That's why I hate your 'daddy' so much. He had Bella and then let her go. Then he randomly decided he wanted her back." "I'm sure there's more to the story than that." I was positive that that couldn't be the whole story. "Of course you'd side with the Cullens." Jacob chuckled, probably expecting that I'd say that. "I just know daddy is more profound than that." I told him. "Oh, definitely." Jacob yawned. "If you can't pay attention maybe we should pull over." I suggested. "I'm fine." Jacob insisted. "C'mon." I put my hand on the wheel. "Let a three year old drive?" He chuckled. "Jacob." I didn't let go. "Let go of the wheel." He protested. "Let go of the wheel." "I'm not going to " I sighed. Then I heard the squeak of a tire. It all happened so quickly.

We hadn't even noticed we'd swerved into the other lane. A loud, low honk snapped us awake just in time to see a gigantic semi zooming toward us. Jacob slammed on the grass to escape the semi's path but instead we rammed into a ditch, the car flipping over. Before I knew it, everything was black. Bella's POV As Edward helped me into the Volvo, I wanted to cry so badly. I cared about Jacob, but knowing what Edward's strengths were, he was as good as dead. It's like taking a bear's cub, right under her nose; you're bound to be torn to pieces. Edward must've noticed my worried expression, because he pulled me close to him, and sighed, "Bella. It'll be fine. Renesmee will be fine." "How do you know?" I looked at him. "She's smart. She's knows what to do." Edward kissed my forehead as Alice got in the backseat beside me. "If anything should happen, I'll see it." Alice grabbed my available hand and rubbed it encouragingly. "Edward." Carlisle called. Edward hesitantly slipped out of the backseat and over to Carlisle who was at the wheel of the black Mercedes. Just then, Rosalie and Emmett came out of the house, with Esme and Jasper close behind. I just watched as Alice embraced Jasper and Esme leaned beside Carlisle. All of the Cullens were dependent of each other, and so was I. Without Edward, I'd be nothing; and without Renesmee, we'd be nothing. Edward climbed into the front seat against his will to sit behind me (Alice had already taken his seat). She held my hand comfortingly as Jasper zoomed off down the back roads. "Alice." I whispered. "What if something does happen?" "Nothing will happen." She tried to be optimistic. "If we keep thinking something went wrong, then maybe it will." "Have you seen anything?" I asked. "The future can always change." her deep, little eyes stared at me. "So you have seen something?" I looked up at the rearview mirror to see both Jasper and Edward staring at her. "No." She replied simply. I felt like she was hiding something from me, but knowing Alice, it would probably prevent me from worrying, which was a good thing. "Alice, are you ?" Edward turned back to look at her. "I haven't seen anything, Edward." She confirmed. Edward glanced at Jasper then faced forward again. I decided to keep my mind off everything for awhile. But what could I think about that wouldn't distract me? I could think of a peaceful morning at the cottage. No, that would remind me of what was going on too much. I could think of the Cullens. No. I could think about my past. Ok, that might work. The wedding. Go back farther, a voice in my head said. The battle between Victoria and us. Keep going, this wasn't the voice in my head, it was deeper. When I stopped Edward in Italy. Not good enough, the voice was more tantalizing than I'd expected. The first time I ever saw Edward Cullen. Farther. How much farther do you want me to go! How about memories of your human days? Can you remember that far back? Of course, I could. They were murky but I could sure remember them. I could remember the first time I felt the sun, the first time I felt the rain, my previous entirely-human-vampire-free birthdays, my first pet, my first torturous ballet lesson . (flashback)

"C'mon, honey." Renee called me. Her voice was cracking. "Mom? Why do I have to take ballet anyway?" I whined, pulling the uncomfortable tights up my little legs. "Because it's a good skill. And besides, you look so cute in that leotard." she grinned, giving me a hug. "But it's stupid. And everybody laughs at me." I told her. "No they don't." she smiled. I'll find a way out of this, I remembered thinking. "C'mon, Bella. Let's get in the car." Renee opened the car door for me. "I don't feel good, Mommy." I tried. "Now, don't play that card with me, little lady." she picked me up, while I tried to squirm out of her arms. "I don't want to go, though." I crossed my arms as she buckled me into the back seat. "Isabella Marie Swan. You are going to try your best, and in the end if you do suck, you can quit, all right?" She compromised. "I guess." I sighed. When Renee started the car and drove down to the studio which was only a couple blocks away, I still didn't want to go. Being a klutz, all the other girls were sure to laugh at me. After getting out of the car, I ran into the studio and almost missed Charlie sitting there in the lobby with a video camera. Probably here to record the moment, I sighed. I ran into the closet with all the costumes in it and shut the door. When Renee realized I was gone, I could hear her calling me, "Bella? Bella? Where are you?" Her voice was hysteric. I held my breath. "There you are. What are you doing in here?" She opened the door, relief in her voice. Charlie was behind her with the video camera. "Mom, I suck." I sighed. Suddenly the tantalizing voice in my head resurfaced, That's my favorite part. I gasped. "Bella?" Alice's voice saved me. "Are you alright?" "I'm fine. I'm fine." I sighed. "We're in Phoenix." Alice said, gripping my hand tighter. "Good." I looked over at her face. It was hard to see because it was so dark outside. The clock on the dashboard read: 1:00 AM. Jasper revved the engine, and the car continued to move forward on the practically barren roads. "Bella, is something the matter?" Edward asked me. "You seem anxious." Jasper told us. "Is there a reason why I shouldn't be anxious?" I didn't mean to sound vulgar. "Relax, Bella. Relax." Alice held my hand tighter.

"Thoughts, Edward?" I asked. I needed to know what was going on. I hated being disconnected. He paused for a moment, and then his eyes flashed open. His expression was frustrated, confused. When he didn't respond, I asked, "What do you hear?" "Nothing." he was almost quiet. "What does that mean?" "I can't tell you. Renesmee isn't thinking anything." he remained facing forward, his face was strained. "What about Jacob?" I wondered. "Nothing. It's blank." "It can't be blank. How can it be blank?" Alice asked. "Do you feel anything Jasper?" He didn't respond for a moment, then he finally said, "No." "Edward, what if the car accident has already happened? What if we're too late? We need to " Alice looked at Edward, trying to read his expression. "Stop it, Alice." Edward gulped. Then Alice's cellphone vibrated. She pulled it out of her pocket and it was at her ear in an instant, "Hello?" She put the phone down for a moment, "Its Rosalie." "Why?" "All right." She shut the phone. "Edward turn on the radio." He immediately knew what channel, due to Alice's thoughts. The station was blinded by static for a moment but then it became clear, the broadcaster's voice echoed through out the car, "All right, all roads seem clear except for a nasty accident on the beltway. It includes a teenage boy and a young girl who seems about three. The boy is alright however the girl's fate is still undergoing examinations." As soon as I exhaled morosely, Edward flipped off the station. Renesmee's POV The police and paramedics arrived in no time but I was afraid it was too later for Jacob. I knew I would escape the incident unscathed. I pushed my door, trying to find my balance. The car was on its side; my door was pressing against the crumbly dirt that covered the ditch we were stuck in. Jacob's body had fallen onto mine but I'd pressed myself into an upright position, Jacob in my arms. "Are you ok?" A voice called. I couldn't see anyone. "He's not waking up!" I cried. "How old are you?" The voice grew closer. "You sound like a little girl." "I am!" I couldn't prevent my screaming. "Someone get Carlisle!" "Carlisle?" the voice was unsure.

I'd been so used to the Cullens being the only people I knew, my only life-lines. "Someone get a doctor!" I corrected myself. "Renesmee." Jacob breathed out. Blood began to drip out of his mouth. I shuddered. Control yourself, I thought. Don't "Is anyone hurt?" Another person yelled. "Uh-huh." My voice was barely audible. "Are you able enough to reply?" The person must've not heard me. "Yes! Someone get a doctor! He's hurt!" I shouted. "I'll get help." The person responded. I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my leg. Under Jacob's weight, my leg was being pushed in the wrong direction. I lifted Jacob slightly, stretching my leg out. I was about to rub my nose until I realized it was soaked in blood. "Oh, god." I gasped. Jacob's entire backside was blood-stained; the tips of his hair were dripping in the pool that was collecting in his collar. Don't. I thought again. Don't even think about it. I wanted to bite so badly, I went rigid. "SOMEBODY HELP!" I screamed. No reply. "HELP!" "I'm coming." a voice said. I could see feet approaching through the shattered windshield. The person bent down and looked in. It was a police officer who was dressed like Grandpa Charlie, his dirty blonde hair was the same as Grandpa Carlisle's, and his eyes were weary like mommy's sometimes were. "You wanna get out of the car?" he asked me. "No. I can't leave him." My voice was pathetic and weak compared to his. I pulled Jacob closer to me. "Is he your brother?" the officer wondered. "No." I frowned. "He used to be a friend of my mommy's." 'Used to be' was the appropriate phrase. "Where is your mommy?" I paused. "I don't know." "How about your daddy?" "Probably with my mommy." I answered. "Renesmee!" a girl's voice called. The officer turned as I looked over his shoulder. I could barely recognize the voice because of all the piercing sirens. But I sure could recognize the face. "Aunty Rosalie!" I cried as she approached the truck. It felt so good to finally see a familiar face. The officer was about to shove Aunty Rose away, but then Uncle Emmett walked up and growled at him. The police officer backed away immediately.

"Are you alright?" Aunty Rose knelt down and reached for me. "Don't!" I shouted. "Why not?" her hands shot back to her sides. "The blood. It's everywhere." I whispered. She backed away only a few inches, then she yelled, "Carlisle!" "Is everything alright?" Uncle Emmett wrapped his arm around Aunty Rose's waist after she stood. "I'm fine, Uncle Emmett." I told him. "Don't worry, Nessie. We'll get you out of there." Uncle Emmett reassured me. For some reason, it was ok when he called me Nessie. "Tell me exactly what's happened, Renesmee." Grandpa Carlisle walked up and bent down next to the truck. "We swerved into this ditch, and now Jacob is bleeding a lot. The blood is everywhere, Grandpa I don't want to hurt him. What should I do?" I sputtered out all at once. "Just don't move." He responded. "We'll get you out of there. Is Jacob unconscious?" "He whispered my name a couple minutes ago." I told him. "Don't move." Grandpa stood and walked out of my view. "Where are mommy and daddy?" I inhaled. "They're coming, Renesmee. Don't worry." Aunty Rose kept her distance from the blood. The last thing we needed was a frenzy. "Bella, I'm so sorry." Jacob let out. I looked down at him, his eyes were almost closed. He was probably having some memories flash before his eyes or something. I ignored the fact that he said Bella and just told him, "You are going to live. Keep breathing." "I don't know if I can." he sighed. "Don't leave me, Jacob." I told him. "Why shouldn't I leave?" His face turned to the side. "I care about you." I pushed his hair out of his face. "You do?" He lifted his head a little. "I might even love you." I sighed. "Nessi-Renesmee, I-I " he stuttered. He tried to lift up his arm, but the pain forced him to put it back down. "W-when did you decide this?" "Just now, I guess." I sighed. "Renesmee." Aunty Rose warned. "Do you?" Jacob ignored her.

"I love you, Jacob." I spat out and I think I meant it. "Really?" I heard someone else breathe. I looked out the windshield to see two familiar faces standing there. Both of their eyes were distant, far away. One seemed disheveled but relieved, the other seemed furious and confused at the same time. They were hanging off each other; their body language screamed worried and not caring for anyone but the daughter. "You love him?" Daddy took a deep breath just for that one question. Everything seemed to stand still, the whole world just seemed to have stopped. The only thing that could be heard was Jacob's hoarse breathing, but even he could feel the tension of the situation. "Daddy, I-I " I tried to explain. "Don't." he stopped looking at me. Then he turned and looked up the hill, "Can we get a paramedic down here? This boy could die." Jacob's POV Hold up. Is this a dream? I sure hope not. Because I've been dreaming of Renesmee admitting her love to me for too long; so this better be real. It had to be real. I saw Edward's face, and so did she. That was pure gold to see the pain on Edward's face; I wanted to laugh so hard it would've hurt. Literally. I would've been like, 'THAT'S RIGHT, EDWARD! SOMETHING THAT USED TO BELONG TO YOU JUST SAID, "I LOVE YOU" TO ME! THAT'S RIGHT, BLOODSUCKER! TAKE IT ALL IN! YOUR DAUGHTER LOVES ME!' I must've started to smile, because the searing pain shot up my spine. My eyes fluttered open, still a little unfocused. I could see something bright, really bright. Wait, WAS I IN HEAVEN? DID I DIE? Holy crap! Dying would ruin everything! I can't die yet! Wait. This wasn't heaven. From what I've heard, heaven is painless. Life on the other hand sucks, so I'm probably still living because I can't feel my legs. Then my eyes centered on something. The work light on my desk that had been a hand-me-down from my sister. I was back in La Push already? Some adventure. "You're up." A voice said. I looked over in the corner of my room to see Bella? I am really, really confused. "W-What are you d-doing here?" I wondered. It hurt too much to talk. "I was the only one that would volunteer to watch you." She informed me, walking over to the bed. "Oh, r-really? Renesmee didn't volunteer?" My voice was a little too eager. "No. Renesmee's been asleep for the past day or so. Since you deprived her of sleep to drive around Phoenix all hours of the night." Bella explained, sounding exactly like a complaining mother. "S-so that really did happen?" I looked up at her. "You're going through denial already? Wow. Sooner than I'd expected." She smiled, sitting on the edge of the bed. We hadn't talked like this since forever. "S-so Renesmee did say she l-loved me?" My eyes widened. "Edward and I had a long talk about that." Her smile morphed into a frown. "Jacob, there is another reason why I was sent over here and not Renesmee." "You and Edward c-can just fuck off. T-this is my relationship, ok?" I didn't sound as threatening as I'd hoped; my voice was really weak.

She stood and put her hands on her hips. "Yeah. It's also Edward and my daughter's so-called 'relationship'!" "I-I've waiting so long for her to s-say that and n-now you're taking her away from m-me?" I tried to sit up but couldn't, so my defending position was lying helpless on my bed. "I never said that." She sat back down. "T-then what is gonna h-happen?" I wondered. She paused. "I ask myself that question everyday." Bella seemed to be thinking, or trying to avoid memories. Her eyes hazed over and she just sat there at the edge of my bed. Then her eyes moved up to mine and they just stayed there ominously. I don't know if it was the smell of my dried blood or the vampire in my bedroom, but something stank. Bella must've noticed it too because she put her hand up to her face to plug her nose. "S-so?" I asked. "Here's the deal." She said. Her voice was muffled because she was still covering her mouth. "Alice talked to Renesmee when she woke up the other day, and asked her how she was feeling. And right now, Renesmee believes that everything that just happened is a dream." "What!" I yelled, making my throat sting. "I'm sorry, Jacob." Bella breathed. "But Edward and I talked it over, and we think it should stay that way." "You mean ?" I frowned. "R-renesmee doesn't think any of that actually happened?" "No." She replied simply. "Then let her come over here! When she sees me like this, she'll know it actually happened!" I stared at Bella. "Jacob, I'm sorry." Bella looked down at the floor. I didn't want to move. This definitely wasn't heaven, this was hell. Nothing was the same, and sometimes I wish I could go back to the days when everything was simple. "Bella." I sighed. "What if n-none of this ever happened " "Yes." She interrupted me. "Because we are going to pretend none of it ever did." "Let m-me finish." I looked up at her and she went silent. "What if Renesmee was never born?" It pained me to say that. Bella looked at me with a confused face. "What are you talking about?" "What if w-what if Edward never came back and he never knew you jumped off that cliff so you two never got back together?" I said, as she shuddered. "What if we w-were able to go right back were we left off before you went to Italy? What if you were never a vampire? I-if you were still human?" "What are you getting to?" Her voice was small. "Let's say, I was working on a car in the garage and you were sitting in the cab. Then you do something stupid like hit the gear shift with your foot and the car rolls over me? Let's say, that's why I'm in bed like this. If Edward never came back and it was just me? If you were human right now what would you say to me?" I paused for her answer. "Uh." she let out a combination of a laugh and a sigh. "That sounds like something I would do."

"What else would you say?" I asked her. "I'd say that " She looked nervous, like I was the teacher and I'd criticize her answer. "I'd say that that Charlie is expecting me back home. And I should leave." She began to walk out the door. "Bella, wait " I called after her, longing to get up and follow. "You're right, Jacob." She turned back and looked at me uncomfortably. "Let's pretend that this never happened. Let's pretend that you kidnapping Renesmee never happened." And she was out the door before I could say anything else. Bella's POV Should I feel guilty for walking out on Jacob? I understand that he's confused right now, but why did he bring up all of that? I got in the Volvo, regretting that I didn't leave Seth to watch him or someone like that. As I started the engine, the Black's screen door screeched open to reveal Jacob standing there. He limped out the door and down the steps into the rain. "Get back in bed, Jacob!" I said, pulling out of the driveway. "No." He leaned on the hood, forcing me to put it in park. "Listen, Bella. I'm sorry if I offended you. Ok? I'm really sorry for everything." "I get that." I rolled down my window halfway. "But this is my life now. Edward is my husband and Renesmee is my daughter " My voice trailed away. "S-so you'd never wanna go back?" He continued. "It's not like we can." I put it back in drive as Jacob hesitantly backed away. I pulled out of the driveway and down the road, seeing Jacob's pained face in the rearview mirror. God, life was weird. I gotta hand to Satan, though; he sure was creative. He'd invented lust, without it Jacob never would've taken Renesmee to Phoenix. He created selfishness too, without it I'd probably never be married to Edward, just because I wanted him all to myself. I hadn't even noticed where I'd been driving; I wasn't heading back in the direction of the Cullens'. Strangely, I was heading towards Charlie's. When I turned onto his street, I was about to turn around but then I stopped. What if we could go back? Jacob's voice rang in my head. On impulse, I turned into the driveway. Charlie was probably at the station because the cruiser wasn't there. I reluctantly pulled the key out of the ignition and unbuckled my seatbelt, too uncomfortable to get out. I slowly opened my door and stepped out, the rain hitting my face instantly. I walked up the steps, noticing the porch light was on. For some reason, it was especially hard to open the door; it was like major dj vu. I grabbed the key that was hiding under the eave and unlocked the door at a snail's pace. "Hmm." I breathed when I walked in. "Wow." I couldn't explain how awkward this felt. I'd been in Charlie's house after I left, of course, but right now it felt particularly weird. It's kinda small, I heard Charlie say in my head. Nothing like your house in Phoenix but it might work. One bathroom? I heard my own voice. I followed the memory and walked up the stairs. I peeked into Charlie's room; it was dark and lived in, just as any grown, unmarried man's room would look. There were clothes on the floor, the bed was unmade, and pictures of me and Renee covered the walls.

And to my surprise, my room looked lived in too. There was an indent in my bed as if I just slept there. The few pieces of clothing I'd owned (I always had a minimal sense of fashion) were hung shabbily in the closet by my desk. My old, cranky excuse for a computer was probably officially dead by now. I sat on my bed, staring around the room, when more memories popped into my head. These were a little better, obviously, because Edward was involved. I like to watch you sleep, He even sounded alluring in a memory. Whoa. Was I going crazy? Or was it normal to have flashbacks when you revisit your past? I could swear this was not normal. Edward! I heard myself giggle. My eyes traveled to the rocking chair in the corner. Memories rushed into my head. I remembered that Edward had stayed over at my house on night, upon my command that he could never leave, and I had to sleep. So Edward patiently waited like a statue for me to wake up. I'd been too overexcited when I woke up and saw that he was still there; I had jumped into his lap like an enthusiastic little girl. You left? My voice said. I smiled remembering when I'd noticed Edward had changed his clothes. Yes. The Edward of my past replayed in my mind. Edward and I matched, we always had. Not our features or our species; but our insecure personalities. I need a human moment, I had said. Honk, honk The noise broke me from my reverie. Was this my memory too? I walked to the window and looked down at the driveway. And there was Edward leaning against the Volvo. This couldn't be a memory because he was wearing the same thing he had on this morning. If anyone else would've interrupted my daydream, I would've wanted to slam the door in their face. But Edward was a marvelous exception. I quickly came down the steps and ran out the door into his arms. He seemed a little shocked by my eagerness but I could never help it. "I love you, Edward. So much." I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him aggressively. He sucked into the kiss and then pulled away with a stunned expression on his face, "Alright. Um, I love you too. Why so excited, love?" "Don't ever leave me, ok?" I buried my face into his shirt. His scent was strong, tempting. "What?" He pulled my head back so he could see my face. "Bella." "I know we never like to bring that up," I told him. "But I just can't live without you. Not ever." "I think we've already established that we can't be without each other." His voice was delicate. "And you never have to worry, because I will never leave you for any reason." He kissed the top of my head. I held him tighter, not wanting to let go. Love was a complicated thing; true love is when you can't be without someone, if they aren't around, the void in your heart is forever unfilled, it's practically unexplainable. But love is simple at the same time. If you love someone, you just love them, never wanting to let go. And, in my mind, love was the equivalent to Edward. "Renesmee woke up." He made a move for the car. "That's nice." I didn't let go still. He paused. "Are we just going to stand here, Bella?" he chuckled.

"You don't like it?" I looked up at him. Edward's face came closer to mine, "I never said I didn't like it." "Then why leave?" I smiled. "Our daughter's at home waiting. Reality still exists, Bella Cullen." he kissed my forehead. "Hmm." I moaned, my head resting on his chest. "What?" he wondered. "I'm yours." I grinned, as he pulled my face up to kiss it. Jacob's POV We went to visit Dr. Cullen at the hospital today, and he said I should be healing nicely for the next few weeks or so. I didn't like the fact of feeling disabled; I could barely do anything useful. Considering I could walk with only a slight limp now, Sam had put me back on patrol tonight. Ugh, that sounds like so much fun. Around six o'clock, after I finished dinner, I went outside and transformed into my wolf form. The shaggy fur felt like a gigantic coat, like I never left my bed. I was about to run off into the woods until I froze. Damn it, I thought. The searing pain was unbearable. Great, so now I had to patrol the entire reservation walking? This would be the most painful night ever. I had probably made it ten miles around the perimeter when I was walking through the east woods. God, this sucked. I felt like I was walking on three legs, and the forth wasn't even there; it was too numb to even feel. I just made it around a huge pile of looming green brush, when I heard something. It sounded like crying? I peaked around the corner of a tree to see a girl sitting on a log in the middle of a clearing. She was bawling, but that's not what caught my attention. She was naked. This was insane. I was about to back away, until the pain shot through me and I lost my balance. I stepped on a branch, sending an echoing crack throughout the clearing. The girl shrieked and jumped up, turning to face me. "Jacob!" She shrieked. It was Leah? She quickly ran around the tree and reached for her clothes. I morphed back into my human form, grabbing my pants that were tied around my leg and put them on. "You can come out." I stuttered. "As um, as long as you have clothes on." She peeked around the corner, fully clothed, and looked at me like I were an alien or something. "You ok?" I asked. "Since when do you care?" She asked me defiantly. Her eyes were so red and tearstained it wasn't even funny. "You looked really upset." I limped forward, almost falling. She dashed in front of me to catch me before I fell. "Thanks." "No problem." She still sounded a little frustrated with me. We sat down on the log, just looking at each other for a long time. "So why were you crying?" I wondered.

"It's easier to cry in the human form." Leah sighed. "I wouldn't know." I looked down at my foot which was still a little bloodstained. "Is that supposed to explain to me why you weren't wearing any clothes?" "Jared broke up with me a couple minutes ago." She whimpered, trying to prevent tears from running down her cheeks any more. "He made you strip!" I looked at her. "No." She replied. "He made me transform into a wolf so I couldn't talk back when he broke up with me." "That's sick!" I looked over at her. "I know." She gulped. "So after he left, I transformed back and really didn't think anybody would come this far back to be able to see me. Speaking of which, what are you doing here?" "Patrol." I responded. "Sam assigned you to patrol after what you've been through? You can barely walk." she seemed shocked. "I know. But I can take it, I guess." I sighed. "Wow." She exhaled. "What is it?" I wondered honestly. "You're a lot stronger than me." she sighed, beginning to fiddle with her hands. "Maybe physically," I told her. She looked up at my face. "But definitely not emotionally." "No one is completely emotionally stable." She said, now trying to avoid looking at me. "Hey, look at me." I laughed. "I just got in a car accident, found out someone doesn't remember saying they love me, and kissed a three year old. I think I'm the one who's not emotionally stable." "You kissed a three year old?" She giggled. "I know. Stupid, right?" I grinned. "No. It's adorable." She put her hand over her mouth to cover her little laugh. It's just now that I noticed Leah had amazing eyes; they were brown like everyone else's on the reservation. But if you looked at them long enough and swam in them deep enough, you could see a tint of blue. "I feel ridiculous. No matter how adorable it my seem too you." I rubbed my bare arm. I'm always forgetting that I'm shirtless most of the time. Her face changed from happy to disappointed. "You're embarrassed, aren't you?" "Not really, no." I admitted. "Well, I'm proud of you for not being embarrassed." She smiled, pushing some of her jet black hair behind her ear. "Why?" I chuckled. "Because I normal guy around here laughs about love. Some guys barely think it exists. But to girls, love is practically everything." she explained. After I processed at all, I sat up straighter, making my back sting, "Hey! Are you calling me girly?"

"Not at all!" She laughed. "I'm just saying all the guys think they're brave for not admitting to their love. But I think I guy is brave when he proclaims it, you know?" "I've never really noticed, but you are really profound." I said. She blushed. "I like to watch old movies, so sometimes I talk like I'm not from this generation or whatever." She confessed. "I never knew that." I leaned back on my palms. The moss on the log was soft so it didn't hurt as much to put pressure on my arms. "Yeah, I've always thought that older movies have a deeper meaning. Movies these days are so cynical and so are the people who watch them." she explicated. "Hmm." I thought about all that she was saying. "So Renesmee said she loved you?" Leah brought up. "What?" I'd been to busy thinking. "Um, yeah. Boy, it was weird." "In what way?" She asked me, shifting her position closer to me. I pretended not to notice. "Well, um." I began. "It's kind of hard for me to remember, but I was lying in the bed of the truck, bleeding and all. And Nessie, sorry, Renesmee was kind of propping me up in her arms and I didn't think I was gonna make it. "So I told her I was sorry, and she told me not to leave her. When I asked why, she said she loved me. Then when I woke up the other day, Bella was there and she said Renesmee thought all of it was a dream." "Nessie?" Leah leaned back too, mimicking me, her blue hood falling off her head as she reclined. "Yeah, that's the little nickname Renesmee has." I laughed. "Bella hates it." "That's so cute." she grinned. We were silent for a couple minutes, probably because of lack of things to talk about. Leah's fingers were twiddling with some of the moss, while her hand kept edging closer to mine. You'd think I'd be able to take a hint, right? Wrong. "So, Jared broke up with you?" I looked at her. Her hand snapped away immediately, regretting that I'd brought that up again. "Sorry, it's just I felt a little self-centered just talking about me when we were talking about you. I get a little carried away sometimes." Her hand slowly lingered back towards mine. "Before we broke up," She said eventually. "Jared invited me to a little party at Emily and Sam's. You think I should go?" "Of course." I answered openly. "But I won't have anyone to go with." She sighed. "I was gonna go with Jared, but, you know." "Uh," She was probably manipulating me to get the answer she wanted. "I guess I could go with you." Her face brightened. "But only as a friend." I added. She nodded her head, grinning smugly and not saying another word. Edward's POV

I rolled over onto my side, having one of the first nights that actually felt like sleep. Actually, I was pretty much just thinking with my eyes closed. Last night was strange. Bella had dragged me into Charlie's house, literally. We'd gone up to her room and then I kinda stopped thinking about it after that point. I did know one thing: Bella was really strong. Charlie had gotten home around 8:00 PM, but he hadn't even heard us. Which was a really good thing. How awkward would that be if Charlie walked in on his married daughter and her husband who didn't even live there any more? I looked over at Bella, whose hair was brushing my face. She was snuggled up close to me, her beautiful eyes covered by her eyelids. "Bella?" I moaned. "Bella." "Hmm, Edward." She turned onto her other side and pressed closer to me. "Charlie's at work." I told her. "So we can leave now." She kissed me briefly. "Yeah, you have no idea how awkward it was for me to stay here last night." "It was weird for me too." I smiled, as my hand caressed her face. "I haven't been up here since you were human." "I love you, Edward." Bella sighed. "And I love you." I grinned at her. "Wanna get going?" "Yes." She sat up, edging off the bed. She walked over to her desk and opened the side drawer, pulling out a rubber band. "Funny how I remember exactly where to find these still." "Right." I mumbled. Bella put her hair in a low pony tail then walked over to the other side of the bed. "Do you see my pants anywhere?" she asked me. "No." I around the floor. When I saw my shirt over by the door, I rolled off the bed and walked over to it. "God, we were a little rough, weren't we?" "That's what's fun." She picked her pants up from under the bed and pulled them up her legs. I looked over at her, my eyebrows furrowing; when she saw my face she just laughed, I couldn't help but to laugh too. I grabbed her waist and hung her over my shoulder. "Edward, let me down!" She giggled. I walked out of the room, Bella in one hand, my shirt in the other. "Seriously, this isn't funny!" "Then why are you laughing?" I asked her, as we started down the stairs. "Besides, you think I'm actually going to drop you?" "No." She replied simply. "Let's go. I bet you Renesmee is wondering where we are." I said, putting her down. I pulled my shirt over my head as Bella grabbed her jacket and put it on. I opened the door in a flash, letting Bella go through it first, but I was still the first on to the Volvo. When were in the car, Bella sighed, "I feel kind of guilty for not calling Esme or anyone. They probably had no idea where we were last night." "Well," I started the engine. "I bet you Jasper could tell what we were doing." She gulped and looked over at me. "But not in that much detail." I added. "Alice, maybe?" She guessed. "Maybe." I pulled out of the driveway. "They'll know we're safe anyway, because usually when we get in a lot of trouble, the family is immediately involved." "True." She stared down at her fingers.

"Something the matter, love?" I asked her. "Do you think I left Jacob hanging?" She turned to face me. "What do you mean?" I wondered. "I just left him there." she told me. "Well, isn't that what you were supposed to do?" my eyes focused on her culpable expression. "He didn't take the news very well." Bella didn't want to look at me. "We knew that he wouldn't." I explained to her. "All of those wolves think we're the bad guys in trying to keep Jacob sanely away, but we can't risk Phoenix happening again. I've nearly lost you multiple times, Bella, and now there's Renesmee to worry about too?" "I know this is hard." Her voice questioned my sanity. "The thing is, Bella," I kept my eyes forward on the road. "Before I even met you, I was only responsible for myself, and that was all I was used to. I would occasionally look after Alice, but taking care of myself was pretty much it. Then when you came along, you were my main focus, and now Renesmee too; I can't even bare to think about you or her getting hurt." "You don't have to focus on us, Edward. You need to watch out for yourself sometimes." she smiled. "I want you and Renesmee to be safe." my grip tightened on the wheel. "Well, Renesmee knows how to talk and act better than me and she can't even walk yet, so I think she's already got 19 years added to her lifespan." she laughed. "Funny thing is, you have to watch out for your wife more than your daughter." "Well," I chuckled. "I guess your right." "Can we just go home, and talk about all this technical stuff later?" She asked. "Yes. But, Bella?" I put my hand down and Bella's hand slid into it's grasp. "Yes?" her voice was curious. "Believe me when I say that I will always take care of you and our daughter more than I will ever worry about myself." My tone wasn't joking. "You are far more important than I am." "I trust you." She turned and looked out the window as I stroked my hand against hers. Jacob's POV I had stood in front of the mirror just staring at myself for a long time. I'd changed shirts a couple times; the one I was wearing now was dark blue. I'd put on about five types of shorts and finally decided on a khaki pair. I can't even begin to elaborate on how many times I'd put my hair up in a pony tail and then down again. Right now, it was pulled back. "Going somewhere, Jake?" my dad rolled past the bathroom. "Yeah." I frowned. "Just a thing at Emily and Sam's." "Are you lying to me?" He stopped in front of the door. "No." I looked down at him. "Why do you say that?" "If you were going to Emily and Sam's, you would just throw something on." He explained himself. "You've been changing for a least an hour."

"I'm going with Leah." I mumbled, hoping he wouldn't hear. He did. "Leah!" he exclaimed. "Well, that's great! You know, I've always thought she was a nice girl. I'm glad you finally came around." "Dad." I turned and looked at him. "What? I'm just glad that you are finally dating a girl that is within a ten year radius of you." he chuckled. "Dad." I growled. "No need to snap." He laughed rolling towards the kitchen. "And we're not dating." I added. "Of course not." he muttered. Just then, the door bell rang. I took deep breaths. I hope Leah didn't think this was a date or that would make this way more awkward than it needed to be. I pulled my hand across the top of my head, smoothing out any bumps in my hair. I reached for the knob and slowly pulled it towards me. To my surprise, it was snatched out of my hand and slammed shut again. "What the ?" I turned and saw Seth standing there, his face was serious. "Listen, man." Seth sighed. "Don't mess this up with Leah ok?" "What?" I looked at him with a shocked face. "For the past day, all I've heard his Jacob this and Jacob that." he frowned. "Do you know how many times she said your name with that weird glimmer look in her eyes? About 32 times in the past 24 hours." "Hmm you counted?" I snickered. "Against my will." Seth looked at me dead in the eyes. "I made a bet with my uncle that she'd say your name over 25 times that way ." "What'd you win?" I looked at him. "Twenty bucks." His face was vibrant for a minute but then he went back to chiding me. "So you better not screw up, because my room is directly across from hers and all I'll hear will be, 'Waaa, Jacob. Why'd Jacob do that? Waaa'. Blah, blah, blah. And I do not want to hear that, you got it? "Oh my god. I'm being reprimanded by a kid that's three years younger than me." I looked behind him. "Whatever. Now, Paul's car is right outside; I'm going in his car so I won't be any trouble or anything. Leah's waiting outside for you to drive her to your date " he explained but I interrupted. "It's not a date!" I exhaled. "Sure." He laughed. Then he focused on what I was wearing. "Wow, you're definitely screwed." With that, Seth walked into the living room and jumped out the open window, heading to Paul's truck. I inhaled and exhaled seven times before opening the door. And, to be honest, I couldn't prevent from gaping. "Holy crap." I was too breathless to say anymore. Leah was gorgeous. She had her hair pulled up in a perky ponytail. Her amazing eyes were complimented by some makeup that was gladly not overused. Her dress was beautiful, coming down to her knees; it was a deep, tantalizing red color and it wasn't silky, it was more like velvety looking. "Did I overdress?" She asked me in a small voice.

"No, I think I underdressed." I grinned. "Oh." Her worried frown transformed into a nervous smile. "Ready to go?" I asked her after a couple uncomfortable silent seconds. "Yeah." She smiled. I opened the door wider and let her walk through it first. Had I always been this courteous? When we got to the Chevy, I had to admit, I was mimicking Edward Cullen himself. I opened the car door quickly so she could get in, and I shut it for her just like a chauffeur. She slid into the seat, carefully watching me as I went around the front of the car to the driver's side. "Sorry if it's a mess to you." I put the key in the ignition after shutting my door. "It's really not. My car looks way worse." She acknowledged. "Alright, then." I put it in drive and began to head deeper into the Reservation. "Thanks for doing this." she smiled. "Taking me to this thing probably isn't what you would've wanted to do tonight." "Oh, shit." I sighed. "Is something the matter?" She asked. "I should've I-I oh, never mind." I embarrassedly at the windshield. "What? You can tell me." She smiled. Her smile was like a haven. "I should've gotten you flowers or something like that." I couldn't explain how humiliated I felt. "What?" Her eyes glassed over, and she suddenly looked disconnected. "I said I should've gotten you flowers." my voice went quiet. Suddenly, her eyes bubbled over with tears which slowly began to trickle down her face. She put her hand to her face to try and wipe the tears away. Was it something I said? I thought to myself. "I know I'm not very good at this whole taking a girl somewhere thing. I think that's because the only girl I usually give something to, the present is either a baby doll or a bottle of blood I-I " "No, no." She gasped for breath. "I'm crying because I'm happy, not sad." "Oh what?" I looked at her with a confused expression. "Jared never did or even said anything like that. It's very sweet of you." Her smile rippled across her face. I never understood girls. "Um, you're welcome." I tried to smile without revealing how in the dark this was for me. "We're here." I got out of the car and went around to the hood to open her door. As soon as I helped her out, she didn't let go of my hand. Was this the signs of an official couple? I was too used to the girl's hand being way smaller, like a baby-sized hand. When we got to the front door, I could hear shouting and laughing inside. I could here Leah taking deep breaths; probably preparing herself for who was inside. I squeezed her hand supportively and her smiling face flickered up to me. I stepped inside, about to let Leah walk in behind me, but then a voice ran up to me. "Hey, Jake!" It was Jared. To protect her from feeling too uncomfortable, I pushed Leah back with the hand that she'd been holding and pressed the door as closed to shut as it could get, my hand still intertwined with hers. "Hey, man." I smiled.

"Dude, I'm so glad you made it. We've got a full keg in the back." Jared laughed, practically spilling whatever was in the plastic cup he was holding. "I'm not much of a drinker." I replied. "C'mon, it's not like you've got a huge ride home. You're house is, like, what? Two miles away?" he clapped his hand onto my shoulder roughly. "I guess one cup wouldn't hurt." I grinned falsely, just to get him to go away. "Sweet, I'll go get you one." he was already headed toward the back door. When he left, I pulled Leah into the house. Her face was defiant, "Are you really that embarrassed to have me with you?" "Not at all. I just thought you'd feel weird with Jared in your face as soon as you walk in." I explained myself. "Oh, that's so considerate of you." she smiled. I led her over to the couch by the hand, but before we could sit down, Sam and Emily came up to greet us. "Hey, Leah. Jacob." Sam shook my hand. "Hi, Leah." Emily wrapped Leah in a hug, and Leah excitedly hugged her back. "How are you, Jacob? Haven't seen you in awhile." Emily grinned after she'd pulled out of her embrace with Leah. "I've been between my house and the uh, the Cullens, you know?" I said guiltily. She nodded understandingly. "Are the Cullens good people?" She asked honestly. "I've never met them, and from what these wolves tell me, they're not the greatest people." "That's not true." I could believe the words coming out of my own mouth. "The Cullens are honest, good people. They're very family oriented people, which is why the block everyone else. Don't listen to what these asses say; they just say that 'cause they're vampires." Sam looked at me with a surprised expression, Leah the same. Emily nodded approvingly. Sam, quickly still thinking through my response, changed the topic of conversation, "What's this?" I followed his eyes down to Leah and my hands, which were still wrapped tightly together. "Nothing" and "Oh, this?" came out of our mouths at the same time. Leah swiftly brushed my hand off of hers, and then smiled at Sam, "It's nothing, really." She grinned. "Yet." She whispered. I was the only one who heard her little whisper. "Well, we'll leave you too alone." Emily shrugged, her own hand fluttering up Sam's arm. After Sam and Emily walked away, we sat on the couch, and Leah's hand instantly dove into mine again. "Yeah, Leah. What is that?" "Well " Leah stuttered for an answer. When she found one her eyes became insolent, "I don't see you letting go." "Touch." I looked at her, grinning. Her eyes flowed to the window that overlooked the small backyard which was feet away from the woods. I found what she was looking at: Jared was at the keg, balancing two plastic cups of beer in one hand. "Do you wanna ?" I mumbled, trying to figure out what she was thinking. "Let's just, uh, go somewhere else." she frowned. "You wanna be with him?" I was almost inaudible but obviously not to her.

She let out a small laugh. "Definitely not. I just don't want to have to look at him." "We can leave." I started to stand. "Or we can just be alone." She suggested. Before I could respond, she took my hand and led me to the back bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Jacob's POV When Leah and I walked into the back bedroom, my hands were shaking. I'd seen this all in movies before; the girl drags the guy (or vise versa) to the back bedroom during a party and dirty things happen. Leah must've noticed my tensed up expression, because her face brightened and she smiled, "Don't worry, Jacob. It's not like I'm going to shoot you or something." "I just don't feel right." I frowned. "What did you think we'd be doing?" She asked me. For some reason, back here in this room all alone, Leah didn't look so innocent anymore. "Leah, please." I backed away a little. "Jacob " She reached for me. "I'm not trying to seduce you." I thought over what Seth had said before Leah had come in. "Listen, Leah. I don't wanna hurt you or anything, but I don't think this'll work." "What do you mean?" she sat on the bed weakly. "I mean, c'mon, me and you? Seriously? We've hated each other for years, why now do you feel this way?" I told her. "I just decided that I liked you, I guess." she admitted. "Love is a fragile thing, Jacob." "I realize that. I've experienced that." I scratched the back of my head. "You just got out of a relationship, I was just kind of forced out a relationship by her parents, but either way, don't you think we're rushing things a bit?" "I suppose your right." She looked embarrassedly down at her toes which were painted the same color as her dress. "I just thought I don't know." "Don't blame yourself." I grinned. "I have to say, the spark was there for a couple milliseconds. I felt it too." "You did?" She smiled ingenuously. "I did." I sat down beside her. "But I also remember telling you we'd come her just as friends." "I guess I went a little overboard." she fiddled with the tassels at the hem of her dress. "A little? This is the sexiest I've ever seen you, Leah." I laughed. "And what surprises me the most is that you did it all to impress Jacob Black." "I am a little ridiculous, aren't I? And I can't believe I was into you!" She giggled. "Don't get too hot-headed." I chuckled, and she smiled cutely. "Well, we better get back to the party, don't you think?" I grinned, standing to hold the door open for her. "Yes." She stood too. "I don't mean to be rude, Jacob, but I don't know what I ever saw in you."

"I am proud to say the same." I smiled. We were about to turn for the door, until it seemed that time and space froze. We both just stood there staring at each other. "Uh, " She sighed. I scratched the back of my neck. "How about ?" I looked at her uncomfortably. "Yeah." She agreed. And immediately her arms wrapped around my neck. Her lips were hungry, aggressive. Her tongue swam around in my mouth, searching for mine. We fell back onto the bed, practically attacking each other. Leah pulled at my ponytail, ripping it out of its bond. My hair fell into my face and brushed against her cheeks. As soon as she began to pull at my shirt, my hands searched for the zipper on her dress. Was this really Leah? Or did she randomly switch places with some other girl just now? Because this did not feel like Leah; this couldn't be Leah. I'd never felt so strongly about her. Maybe, while I'm waiting for Renesmee to grow up, what if? Leah could be my temporary girlfriend? Leah pushed me to the side, and pinned me down so she was on top of me. But our lips stayed connected the whole time. I couldn't control the groaning, it just sort of happened. But then something felt uncomfortable, it wasn't Leah, it felt like someone was watching. Too bad I was right. "What the hell?" a boy's voice said. Leah's head snapped around to see whose voice it was. As soon as she found out who, she fell off of me onto the bed, searching for her zipper to pull it back up. "You slut!" The guy yelled. I couldn't see him, because Leah was in the way. "Who'd you do it with Paul?" He pushed Leah out of the way to see my face. When he saw it was me, his face fell. "Jacob?" He mumbled. It was Jared. "Listen, man, I-I " I tried to explain. "Don't even talk to me." Jared said, walking out of the room. I rushed after him. When I got into the main room, I saw he was already in the backyard. His face was ashen and stressed. When I got to him, he didn't look at me; he just spoke, "How could you, man?" "You broke up with her." I shrugged. "That's the best you've got?" Jared spun around. "I broke up with her 2 days ago. Not even 48 hours." "I'm sorry, ok?" I tried to tell him. "I didn't think it'd be that big a deal." "Are you kidding me?" Jared sighed. "I thought you were my best friend, man." "What does me being your friend have to do with this?" I asked. "When I break up with her, that doesn't mean you just go up and take your share." Jared stepped back a little. "She's still part of the pack, Jared. We can't just shun her for good." I explained. "Screw it." His voice was silent. "You know what?" I didn't respond. "I'm going to kick your fucking ass." Jared swung his arm back and took an aim at me, but before his hand collided with my face, something grabbed his arm.

It was Sam. His hand was griped my arm, right beneath my shoulder, sending pain shivering up to my neck. Sam's other hand was locked on Jared's, leaving him completely helpless. "Stop." Sam said in a firm voice. And that was all it took. "That bastard stabbed me in the back " Jared proteseted. Sam interrupted, "That's enough." "Sam, I-I " Leah began to talk but stopped when Sam shot her a formidable look. I hadn't even noticed she'd been standing there the whole time. "You both should leave." Sam commanded. I looked over at the back door to see Seth, Emily, Paul, Embry, Quil, and Leah staring at us with ashen eyes. I looked back at Sam to see apology in his eyes. I nodded and shrugged out of Sam's grasp; Jared did the same. I wanted to get away from everyone, but yet I wanted to talk to anyone for some sort of stability. Leah tried to reach for me but I began to walk in the opposite direction of the house. "Jacob." She sighed. I didn't respond, I just kept walking. No one seemed to get me here, and I definitely didn't want to talk to my dad. Who else was there to talk to? My best bet was away from the Reservation. I was about to run out into the woods, until Jared grabbed my arm and smirked, "You're gonna get it." Edward's POV I sat on the bench uncomfortably. My hands were barely touching the keys, making the nerves on my finger tips tingle. I looked up at the piece above me; I hadn't had the time to sit down and play as much as I'd liked, so the notes suddenly looked like Brail or a foreign language. I hit middle C quietly, making a placid note waft through the house. Then, I looked back up at the sheet music, staring at the name: Bella's Lullaby. You inspired this one, I remembered telling her. All the names of my pieces were revolved around what I was, and I don't think I did that self-consciously. I picked up Bella's Lullaby, looking at the piece that had been hiding behind it: Esme's Favorite. I placed my fingers back on the keys, and slowly drifted into the piece. The song sounded different from when I last played it, or maybe it was because I hadn't played it in so long. "There you are." Bella's voice came from behind me. My hands lifted off the keys. I turned around to see Bella standing there, just looking at me. "I haven't heard you play in awhile." "I just kind of stopped, I guess." I sighed. "Maybe because you've been occupying all of my attention." "Well, I'm sorry for keeping you from playing." She smiled, sitting down on the bench beside me. "You're forgiven." As soon as I smiled, Bella's smile grew bigger. "What?" "Nothing." She smiled, resting her head on my shoulder. "What are you playing?" "Esme's favorite." I told her. I looked down at her eyes. "Well, go ahead." She smiled. I put my hands back on the keys but before I could even play a single note, Carlisle walked in. "Sorry to interrupt. But someone's here who wants to talk to you, Edward." "Who?" I asked. Jacob, he thought. I assumed he didn't say out loud so not to worry Bella.

"Come, Bella." Carlisle held out his hand and Bella took it. They walked out of the room. I stood. Of course Jacob would ruin the moment; it was like he came on cue. I slowly headed toward the door. Looking through the glass door, I could see Jacob standing there, facing away from the door. His hands were in his pockets and he had on a black North Face jacket. I opened the door and immediately, Jacob turned around. "Renesmee is not available right now." I sighed, tired of having to repeat myself on this topic. "I'm not here to see Nessie." Jacob said. "I need some advice from you." "What?" I couldn't hide the shock in my voice. I walked out onto the porch and shut the door behind me. "None of my friends understand." he said, turning to face the woods and leaning against the banister. "I thought, since you've been around longer than I have, I just ." His voice trailed away. "What's going on, Jacob?" I asked. "Um." He turned to face me. "This might sound a little weird, but uh, wow I need some girl advice." "What?" I stared at him. "And you came to me?" "With Bella," He swallowed. "Was it an instant click or was it a bumpy start?" "Uh, more of a bumpy start." I admitted. "Everything's rarely instant. Why do you ask?" "There's this girl that I really like." He turned, most likely to avoid eye contact. I didn't really feel like looking at him anyway. "And I tried to show her, but it seems like fate feels like pissing me off." "Jacob, not like I don't appreciate you coming down here." I smirked. "But I don't feel extremely comfortable with you asking for girl advice concerning my daughter " I was about to continue but Jacob interrupted, "Why do you assume it's about Nessie?" I was confused. "Isn't it?" "No." His voice became silent. "Then who?" I wondered. I thought he'd imprinted on Renesmee; was it possible for imprinting to fade? "Um." he paused for a couple seconds. "Leah." "Leah?" I just couldn't picture that. From what I'd seen, Jacob and Leah never exactly showed what you'd call affection for each other. "I know, right?" Jacob sighed. "What happened?" I walked up to him, and leaned on the banister hesitantly. He glanced at me for a moment, and then spoke, "I'd originally said I'd go with Leah to this small party tonight as friends. But she immediately thought it was a date." Jacob paused to exhale deeply. I could see his breath in the crisp air. "I kind of started to fall for her, but she'd just broken up with Jared. So now he's all mad at me and said that I betrayed him." "Hmmm." I let out a sigh too. "Yeah, so now he says he's going to whip my ass." Jacob looked up at the sky. There was a small crack in the wall of clouds above us, sending a bright ray of moonlight down on the two of us.

"Well." I suddenly didn't know how to say anything. "With, uh, Bella and I, the connection was subtle. If anyone were to look at us, they probably wouldn't been able to see any electricity between us. Even if Bella and I didn't look close enough, we probably would've missed the bond too. But just, it was so insane. I thought it was crazy; just, out of the blue, I walk up, this horrible monster, and she suddenly decided to place her faith in me. "You can't just expect things to click, I guess is what I'm getting to. You have to just go with whatever happens." I finished. "That was some pretty deep advice." he sighed after a long while. "Girls aren't my expertise, though." I chuckled quietly. "Hey, you're the one Bella picked." He laughed. "Well, sometimes I don't even know what Bella is. She's not like other girls." I smiled. "True." He snickered, turning to face me. "Emmett's the one you should go to for girl advice next time." I said. "Right, right." Jacob smiled. "Heck, you guys barely ever let me past your doorstep." My faced turned sullen. "I'm sorry about everything Jacob. It's just I'm so protective of them Bella and Renesmee, I mean." "I understand, man. You don't have to explain it to me." Jacob sighed. "I would be probably exactly the same. Hey, and I'm real sorry about the Phoenix thing " "That I still don't see your reasoning behind it. There had to be a harder drive for you than just imprinting." I looked at Jacob questioningly. "I kinda figured something out when I was down in Phoenix. I think there's a reason why I imprinted on Renesmee." he frowned. "It's because Renesmee is Bella." "What?" "After she became a vampire, I felt like Bella abandoned me, you know? And then, I see Renesmee, and something just felt like she was the Bella I wanted. I didn't want Vampire Bella. I wanted HumanBella and that's pretty much what Renesmee was." I was silent, just standing there. Thinking. "I guess there is a resemblance." my voice was almost inaudible. "And I'm not just talking physically. I mean, isn't the way they think kind of the same too. The way the act." "Not really. Bella's still more of a klutz." I forced a smile. Since when could I talk so freely to Jacob? "I have to agree with you there." Jacob grinned. "Well, thanks, man." He began to walk down the steps. And I just blurted out randomly, "Jacob. If you ever need any backup when it comes to Jared whipping your ass, don't get cocky. As far as I know, we'll be here when you need us." I turned for the door. "Thanks." He nodded, grinning ear to ear. "And, Edward?" "Yes?" I had my hand on the door handle. "You're ok for a bloodsucker." And with that he morphed and was back in the woods. I wish I could've said the same.

Bella's POV I sat on the bench that was next to the island in the kitchen, Alice beside me. Esme, meanwhile, was busily making Renesmee's dinner. Jasper, Rose, and Emmett were playing with Renesmee on the couch making her giggle cutely. "So where's Edward?" Esme asked innocently. "Talking to someone outside." Carlisle said, walking into the kitchen area and kissing his wife on the cheek. I'd never really thought about Esme and Carlisle's back stories, having to do with their relationship, I mean. But I bet it was thoughtful and romantic just like they were. "With who?" Alice's voice was light. "Hmmm." Carlisle pondered whether to tell or not. "Jacob." Everyone's eyes shifted; only Renesmee stayed serene. She still hadn't remembered about Phoenix. Just the other day she'd told me she'd had an insane dream. Then she described the whole ordeal perfectly. I kind of felt bad for Jacob; he'd tried so hard to get Renesmee's attention, and just when he got it, he was forced back into the dark again. "About?" Rosalie asked with a hesitant voice. "I'm not sure." Carlisle responded. "Aunty Alice!" Renesmee exclaimed, interrupting the seriousness. "Can we go play dress up?" Renesmee had always loved going into Alice's closet; she vowed that one day, she'd have as many outfits as Alice had. Recently, Renesmee enjoyed going into try on some of her clothes, considering she'd already begun to grow into Alice's petite figure. "Alright." Alice went over to pick Renesmee up; everyone was still carefully looking around, trying to figure out what in the world Edward and Jacob could be talking about peacefully, that is. "C'mon, Rose. Bella." Rosalie stood and then walked towards Alice. I, on the other hand, reluctantly stood and walked towards the back door. "Are you coming, Bella?" Alice wondered idly. "I think I'm going to wait for Edward at the cottage." I responded, sliding open the glass door. "Ok." Alice grinned, as Rose began to walk up the tall staircase to Alice's room. "Bye, Mommy!" Renesmee waved over Alice's shoulder. I waved slowly, walking out the back door, post-motherhood still getting to me. But my mind was still preoccupied with the main subject at hand. I was racking for reasons on what Jacob and Edward would have to talk about. Usually, Jake would just barge in and grasp Renesmee's attention. Having a private conversation with Edward was way out of the ordinary. When I stepped outside, the leaves crunched beneath my feet. I didn't feel like running, I hadn't walked normally in a long time. I knew there was nothing to be sad about, but I couldn't help but look into the treetops with a longing expression on my face. Sometimes, I just wanted to get away from everything, even our loving daughter occasionally. But when you love someone, their love blinds you, literally. Edward's love hadn't only blinded me, it killed me. I couldn't stand to be without him. "Hey, you're the one Bella picked." I heard Jacob say, breaking my thoughts. I slowly inched around the house. I could see Edward and Jacob standing on the porch, unusually calm, barely any tension between them. Picking up speed, I dashed up a pine that was yards away from where Jacob and Edward were standing. "Emmett's the one you should go to for girl advice next time." Edward laughed.

Girl advice? I wondered to myself. Good thing Edward couldn't hear my thoughts or else it definitely would have given me away. "Heck, you guys barely ever let me past your doorstep." Jacob snickered, but then they both went silent. How could Jacob still not understand our reasoning behind our protectiveness around Renesmee? She was just too fragile. Nevertheless, Edward's face stayed surprisingly tranquil. In fact, the words that came out of his mouth were the complete opposite of fierce. "I'm sorry about everything Jacob. It's just I'm so protective of them Bella and Renesmee, I mean." I hazed out of their conversation after that. Were Edward and Jacob having a heart to heart? Finally! I had been waiting for this for who knows how long. And I had been trying to accumulate some forgiving feelings between them, but I had made little progress. Now, Jacob and Edward were able to make peace all on their own ? "And, Edward?" Jacob's voice snapped me back. He was halfway down the porch steps now. "Yes?" Edward reached for the door, looking back at Jacob's face. "You're ok for a bloodsucker." and then Jacob ran off. Edward sighed, and began to walk back into the house. But then he froze. He stepped back out, shutting the door behind him. He leaned against the banister, staring at where Jacob had run into the forest. He exhaled. "You can come out now." I didn't move, honestly not knowing if he had been referring to me. Was there someone else listening too? "I know you're there." He stood up straight and looked dead in my direction. "Bella." I shrugged in defeat, and jumped onto the porch easily. I walked up beside him and leaned on his shoulder. "You were eavesdropping." He wasn't asking. It sounded like he was saying it to himself. "Not at first " I told him. Then I added, "And not on purpose." "I'm not mad." He turned me around and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Just confused." "About?" I wondered. "Everything." Edward's voice grew quiet. "Why does he keep coming back here then?" I asked. "It had nothing to do with Renesmee shockingly." he said, closing his eyes gently as if he had to do so in order to process everything in his head. "It didn't? Then what was it about?" I kept the questions coming. "Leah." he sighed. I pulled away and turned to face Edward. "Is that why he needed the girl advice?" "If you heard that deep into the conversation, then why are you asking me all these questions?" He chuckled. "I came mid-conversation. I didn't hear the end. I was too busy studying you." I admitted. "Studying me?" He smirked, wrapping his arms around me again.

"I was shocked. Why did you not get mad?" I looked up at his eyes which were an interesting gold-black blend tonight. "Should I have been mad?" He tightened his grip around my body, which didn't hurt as much as it sounds. "No." I answered. "It's just not like you." This time he was the one that pulled away. "It's like me to be mad?" "I didn't mean to put it that way." I backed away a little, prompting him to come closer. "I clearly remember you saying you weren't afraid of me." He smiled. "What makes you think I've changed my mind?" I crossed my arms across my chest. "Are you afraid?" he made that gorgeous crooked smile. "Stop it." I couldn't help my giggle. "Stop what?" He grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer. "Your crooked smile." I looked up at his face, which was practically glowing. "It's killing me." "It's not mine." His eyes stayed focused on mine, his smile remained beautifully curved. "It's yours." "My crooked smile." I repeated the words just so they'd sink in. "So about Leah and Jacob " Edward went back on subject. "I think they'd be good together." I stated honestly. "And it'll keep him away from Renesmee." He whispered. "Not only that. But they would be an adorable couple." I said. "I guess." he sighed. "But I still don't understand why he came to me." "You ever thought he might trust you?" I suggested. And after that, he didn't say anything. He just held onto my hand and never let go. Edward's face was deep in thought, and I didn't dare pull him out. Jacob's POV When I got back home, I just wanted to collapse. I was tired of fighting, tired of limping, tired of people. I could here my dad's snoring coming from his bedroom as soon as I came through the door. I took a deep breath, walking towards my bedroom; I barged through my door so quickly I almost tripped over her legs. Leah's legs, to be exact. She was sitting on my bed, legs extended out onto the floor. Her hair was up in a messy ponytail and she'd changed out of the sexy red dress; she was now in sweatpants and a slimming tank top. She was twirling her car keys in her fingers when I first stepped in, but when she saw me, she stood and took a step closer. "Hey." She grinned. "Where have you been?" She acted as though she was already responsible for me. What? Did she think I was her boyfriend now? "Uh." For some reason, I felt totally self-conscience around her. "I went to the, um, the Cullen's place."

"The Cullens?" Her positive expression lilted and her eyebrows furrowed. "Yeah." I scratched the nape of my neck uncomfortably. "Is that is that a problem?" "Kind of." She snapped. What did I do now? "Why?" After I said it, she looked at me as if I were an idiot , which is kind of how I felt right now. "I understand that you imprinted on Renesmee and all, but I kind of find it disappointing that you wouldn't just talk to me considering the incident that just happened." She explained. "I mean, am I not good enough to talk to? You had to go talk to her instead?" "I didn't go to see Renesmee, Leah, I swear." I stepped back, shutting the door slowly so my dad wouldn't wake up. A confused look flashed across her face. "Then what were you doing there?" "I wanted to talk to a guy." I admitted. And as soon as I saw she was about to respond, I quickly added, "A non-shape shifter guy just a normal guy conversation, you know?" "Oh, yeah." She plopped back down onto her bed, letting her guard down a little. "And the Cullens are completely normal." "I don't have many human best friends." I hesitantly walked over and sat beside her. "So where did Jared go?" "Um, you remember that girl in his class he imprinted on? Kim?" Leah's voice was surprisingly calm. I nodded. "Well, Paul told me he went to her house ." "Oh." I frowned. "Listen, Leah. I'm real sorry about everything." "You don't have anything to be sorry for." She moved her hand towards mine, and when her fingertips gently drummed against the back of my hand, it felt like a spark went through my body every time she touched me. "Well, then, why do I feel so damn guilty?" "You want guilt, just look at me." She sighed. "According to Emily, I've got guilt painted on my eyes." "You shouldn't." I told her. "The least you should be is relieved." "Why?" She wondered. "Jared should be out of your life for now. He's still my best friend, but I know he can be kind of an ass sometimes." She didn't respond for a moment, then she said meekly, "I'm kind of scared of him." "Really?" I looked at her. Most of the time, Leah's attitude screamed independent and confident and ignorant to what everyone else said, but right now, the expression on her face, said she was weak. "You shouldn't be." "But I am." Leah sighed. "Listen to me." I took her face in my hands, wondering where all this emotion was coming from. "Forget Jared. I'm here, ok?" Her face flushed and the room was so still, the only noise that could be heard was our hearts beating simultaneously. "You are?" "Yes." My voice was strong. "Thank you." Her voice was so silent; I think she mouthed the words. Leah and I were pretty much inseparable that weekend. We spent most our time with Quil and Emily's two-year-old niece whom Quil had imprinted on, Claire. Sometimes Embry, Sam, Emily, Seth, Paul and some of the other wolves from the pack would join us, but Jared was nowhere to be seen. Some people thought he'd skipped the Reservation for good and was hiding out at his Kim's house. But it's not as if anyone missed him.

"Good morning, Mr. Black." Leah smiled politely as my dad rolled out of his bedroom early Sunday morning. Leah and I were sitting on the couch, my arm around her shoulders, watching TV; but we were barely paying attention to what was on the screen. We were talking constantly these days. "I think you set a new record, Leah." My dad opened the fridge. "Is this not the earliest you've ever been here?" "I think it is." Leah blushed lightly and then looked back at me. I kept smiling, my face smug. "Got plans for today?" Dad pushed. "Why?" I replied, rolling my eyes. "Thinking of tagging along?" "Naw. I was just gonna see the Chief today, and I was wondering if you two would like to come with me." He grinned. It would feel weird going to Charlie's. Every time I went there, it seemed that Bella would magically appear, Renesmee in her arms and Edward in her embrace. I'm not much a fan of that. "I think we'll skip out." I didn't realize how silent my voice was because apparently no one had heard me. "I haven't seen Chief Swan in awhile." Leah looked back at my dad who was rolling back into the living room. "Maybe it'd be fun to stop by. But I doubt Jake would wanna go." She leaned forward and grabbed a chip from the bowl that was sitting on the coffee table. They had been leftovers from a small movie night thing we'd done with Seth, Quil, and Claire last night; They were probably stale from being left out all night, but Leah didn't seem to mind. "I-I " "Great." Dad finalized. "See you there at 7?" "Of course." Leah smiled, leaning back again, snuggling into my hold. When the door shut, I turned to look at her. "You know that's the last thing I want to do right?" "Well, when's the last time you did something just for your dad?" she countered. "If my dad asked me to go, I would've gone even if I didn't want to." "That's because you're a kiss-ass." I chuckled. "I am not." She pouted, crossing her arms across her chest. "Alright. I'll play along." I laughed. "You're not a kiss-ass most of the time." She was quiet for a minute, a competitive happy smile on her face, her eyes on the television. I was simply transfixed, and couldn't stop staring at her, but when she turned to look up at me, I looked away and pretended I hadn't been watching her. She stared at me pensively and I didn't look at her completely, just out of my peripheral vision. "Are we a couple?" She asked. I shifted uncomfortably and then cleared my throat before looking at her deep chocolate brown eyes. "Only if you want to be." "What if I did want to be a couple?" She wondered. "Would you want to be a couple too?" "Hmmm a couple " I was seriously starting to think about this. I had to admit, I had come to actually love Leah over the past few days; and I can't begin to elaborate on happy I would be if she felt the same. But if I looked back at her and Jared, I saw how they'd tried to be a couple even though they hadn't imprinted on each other. Leah and I hadn't imprinted could that get in the way of all this? "Well?" I'd forgotten she was still waiting. "Don't get mad at my answer, ok?" I began.

"Is that a no?" She whimpered. "I never said it was a no. Just just hear me out, alright?" I stared at her, and when she didn't show any reply, I repeated, "Alright?" "Uh-huh." She nodded. "I-." I was about to begin when I loud knock hammered on the front door. "One sec." I stood, pulling my fingers through my hair, which was flowing down my shoulders today. Leah sighed, not exasperatedly but contentedly. When I put my hand on the doorknob, the knocking had stopped. I opened the door and almost didn't recognize who was there. I'd only seen her once before, and I could tell by just looking at her face that she rather be anywhere but here. "Hello, werewolf." She said. "Can I speak to you outside?" I slowly shut the door behind me after telling Leah that I'd only be a second. As soon as the door shut, the girl turned and faced away from me, looking up at the overcast skies. It was just now that I took in what she looked like. Her long blonde hair was framing her face, blowing in the slight breeze. She had on a childlike dark red shirt with an old-fashioned looking skirt, but covering all this was a long, floor length sinister black cloak. "I've seen you with the Cullens before." I blurted. "Yes" was her only response. "I know this is kind of an unfamiliar area to you, but you're not allowed on the Reservation." When did I start abiding to the rules? "The Cullens aren't allowed on the Quiluete land." She sighed, clearly impatient with me. "I am not a Cullen." "You're still a vampire." My voice was low. She turned and looked at me. "That's right." "So what are you doing here?" I frowned, wanting more than anything to go back inside and sit beside Leah, giggling and fake arguing. "A friend of mine sent me here." She said. "For what reason?" I was the one getting impatient now. "I was told you took a little vacation with the half-vampire." Her cloak covered her eyes, but I assumed they were throwing me a cynical glare. I didn't respond. "I've known Carlisle Cullen for a long time." She explained. "I've also known his family for a significant amount of time as well. Edward, as fatally gorgeous and extravagant as he may seem, is a pretty brutal and deadly predator. To take his daughter was a risky thing to do on your part " I interrupted, "I've talked it over with Edward. Everything's dealt with." "Really?" Her toying expression never changed. "You stole his daughter after all, and yet he has no hard feelings whatsoever?" "I guess." I glanced back at the house. I could see Leah sitting on the couch tapping her foot anxiously, waiting for me to come back. "I was actually at the Cullens a couple days back." She continued. "I got to see the half-vampire privately and she told me the whole story. Phoenix is a tad over obsessive, don't you think?"

"I had to think quickly, off the top of my head." I responded. "Phoenix just kind of came to me." "Well, she confessed her love to you, and you're not going to do anything about it?" "She just thought that was a dream." I planted my eyes on the ground, not wanting to look at the formidable petite girl in front of me. "Not from what she told me." She smiled deviously, making my eyes snap up and look at her. "What?" I stared at her. "Pretty smart for a what is it, three year old?" The girl's pastel face blended with whitish-gray sky behind her. "She saw as well as you did. She showed me Edward and Bella's heartbroken faces when she admitted she loved you. Of course, being the perfect little daughter and not wanting her parents to be sad, she came up with this whole dream scheme. "She told me that she really did love you, but so not to hurt her family, she told them she'd dreamed up the whole thing." She finished her story. "She must get her acting skills from her dear daddy; he'd always been good at hiding a secret." "So ." I contemplated all of this. "She really does love me?" "Yes." The girl responded. "But I haven't the slightest idea why." "I-I " I couldn't control my excitement. I had to go and see Renesmee. "Excuse me for eavesdropping," The girl grinned when I made a move for my truck. "But weren't you just about to confess your love to that girl in there." She lifted her finger and pointed in the window. Leah. "Uh " I stammered. "That's a tough one." She giggled. "Decisions. Decisions." I froze, not daring to move. "Take your pick. The adorable little toddler who's waiting for her eighteen year old lover or the cute wolf girl who would do practically anything for you? Which one, Jacob Black?" Was saying my whole name supposed to sound scary? "Who are you to judge me?" I frowned, getting pissed. "Your friend Jared told me you called us the 'Vampire Mafia'." She laughed quietly. "You're from the Volturi?" I whispered. "What would they need you for?" "Just a little pick-me-up." She giggled again. Before I knew it, a flash of pain whispered through my body. My knees buckled and my eyesight grew momentarily blurry. My hand pressed against the Chevy's driver door for support. I couldn't stand the torment. "What was that?" I heaved, once the pain died down. "It's all in your head, Jacob." She smiled. "Now can you understand how valuable I must be to the Volturi's numbers?" "Wait, how did you know I told Jared that you're the vampire mafia?" I recalled. I remembered telling him that right after I'd showed him Renesmee for the first time. "Jared's not at Kim's house just so you know." She smiled.

"Then where is he?" I asked. "Dealing with his own problems." She looked at me. For a moment, I thought she would torture me with her mind again, but she didn't. "I better get going, but it was nice talking to you. Remember, both the half-vampire and the werewolf are waiting to bad there isn't a human in the mix." "What's your deal?" I frowned. "Who the hell are you?" "Oh, and when you get to the Cullens, tell them Jane said hello." She smirked and then she darted into the forest. Jacob's POV After Jane left, I stood there idly, repeating the same phrase over and over in my head: Now what? Without even putting any detailed thought into it, I rushed back into the house, slamming the door behind me keenly. I grabbed my jacket, which was lying on the living room floor in a heap. I bent over to pick it up, but I froze when I felt someone staring. My eyes lifted to see Leah, still sitting on the couch patiently, staring at me. "Who was it?" She asked. I grew tense. Even if I did tell her, she still wouldn't know who I was talking about. "No one." I jumped over the back of the couch, my jacket still gripped in my fingers, and sat beside her trying to think of what I was going to say. I loved Leah, but needless to say, I loved Renesmee far more. Her eyes stayed grounded on mine, while I tried to avoid hers; I scanned the room, as if looking for a hint or an answer or any sign of getting out of this uncomfortable situation without Leah tearing me to bits. "Apparently it was someone." She said after a long while. "No one." I repeated. Then I added, "No one you would know." "Oh, so you're being the secretive boyfriend? Now I get it." She reached forward and nonchalantly grabbed another chip from the bowl that still sat before us. I gulped. "Boyfriend?" "That's what you were going to tell me, right?" She didn't look at me. "Um." I cleared my throat. "I was going to tell you that, yes." "Ok." She giggled, lunging forward. Before I could stop her, her lips were on mine. I tried to push her back but I didn't want to. I wrapped my hands around her and pulled her closer. I could feel her giggling into my mouth. I liked it so much, I wanted to stay here forever. "Take your pick. The adorable little toddler who's waiting for her eighteen year old lover or the cute wolf girl who would do practically anything for you? Which one, Jacob Black?" Jane's voice echoed through my brain. "Stop." I frowned, pushing Leah to the other end of the couch. I scooted as far to the opposite end as possible. "What?" I didn't look at her, mainly because if I did, I probably wouldn't have been able to look away. "Leah, I'm sorry." I stood. "I have to go." "Go where?" She looked at me with a broken expression. "I-I " I began, but then stopped. Why does she have to know where I'm going? "Just leave, ok?" "Jacob, if it has to do with whoever just visited, don't listen to them." She stood also. "This relationship is between you and me. Whoever that was is wrong, alright?"

"No, she's not wrong. She's absolutely right." I reached for my keys, but she grabbed my arm, squeezing it so tightly, it began to sting. Her eyes searched my face for some kind of emotion, but there was none. "She?" "Uh, yes she." "Care to explain to me what's going on?" She said, her voice rising into hysteria. "I can't." I grabbed the doorknob and swung it open, practically running to my car. Sometime between now and a couple minutes ago it had started to rain. I got into the Chevy, but before I could shut the door, Leah put her hand in the way. Her slim fingers ran up my arm; she looked on the verge of tears. "Where are you going?" She asked blankly. "You need to go home." I sighed. "No. I need to go with you." She sighed stepping up to get in the car. I don't know what she was thinking, but it looked like she was going to sit on my lap. Despite how badly I wanted her, I pushed her back down. "No." "Jacob " She began, but I drowned her out with the sound of the engine and drove away. When I looked back into the rearview mirror, Leah hadn't moved an inch. She just stood there absentmindedly, as if she were waiting for something. I continued to look back at her until the oncoming rain had made her image to blurry to make out. Some part of me wanted to turn around and jump out of the car; some part of me wanted to run up to Leah and pick her up in my arms; some part of me wanted to stand there in the middle of the street and have one of those theatrical moments were a couple kisses passionately in the pouring rain. Nevertheless, the logical part of me knew that Renesmee was waiting, and no matter how much I wanted to love Leah, I longed to love Nessie more. By the time I got to the Cullens', the rain had transformed into a fatal downpour. I jumped out of the car, the rain instantly soaking me wet. The Cullens must've smelt me coming, because I could see them all standing there staring at me through the glass door. The only people missing were Edward, Bella and Renesmee; the rest of them were staring, their eyes wide, as if I were on fire or something insane like that. I opened the door myself. All the vampires were too frozen to speak. "Where is she?" I said finally. None of them responded. The pixie had assumingly whispered something too discrete for me to hear, because before I knew it, Bella and Edward were in the room. Bella seemed a little more glowy then usual, a little brighter I guess. I could say the same for Edward, but as soon as they searched me up and down, they braced themselves for more stress. "Where is she?" I repeated. "Edward, don't." The pixie frowned. "You need to go back and " Edward interrupted her sternly, "Alice." "I need to speak with Ness-Renesmee now." I protested huskily. "WHERE. IS. SHE?" "We put her to bed." The blonde spurted out. After she said it, she looked up at the hefty bloodsucker who was embracing her. "I need to speak with her." I sighed. "Jacob, maybe it's b-best you leave." Bella's voice cracked in the middle of the sentence. I knew she was only trying to protect me and her daughter.

I didn't move a muscle. "Now." Edward emphasized. What's your deal, Edward? I asked him privately in my thoughts. I thought we'd gotten along. "I'm sorry, Jacob." He sighed. "But we just ." His voice trailed away. I backed away a little. Listen, man, I understand what you're going through. "No you don't." Edward's voice was quiet. Oh, yeah? I looked at him. Lemme guess. You feel like you can't take anymore misery. You just want all this crap to stop. I do too. It was kind of funny to watch the rest of the bloodsuckers examine Edward and my conversation; when Edward would talk, their heads would move to look at him, and then when they felt the silence in between Edward's responses, they would stare at me. Their eyes just bounced back and forth between the two of us. I would've laughed but I didn't think laughing was appropriate right now. Edward just stood there, not replying. I can't very well go back to the Rez though. I frowned. I think Leah hates me. I ditched her to come down here. I teasing smile crossed his face. "You sure know how to ruin something, don't you?" I guess so. I looked at him bluntly. Listen, I just want to talk to her for a couple minutes, nothing major. His smile disappeared. I I stopped in mid-thought. Edward looked at me with a confused face, most likely wondering why I'd finished so abruptly. Ok, so every time I come to the Cullens it smells horrible. But for some reason, today, it smelled extra horrible; which led me to believe they had an extra bloodsucker. "Are you having a party today or something?" I asked, sniffing the air. The smell was relatively far away. "No." Edward's eyes widened and his eyebrows furrowed. "Do you have someone over?" I tried. "Jacob," Dr. Cullen's voice was gentle but sharp. "There are only the nine of us, as usual." "Then why do I smell " I began but everyone stopped when the one who looked like he was in pain stood up straighter. "I smell a werewolf." The pixie, Alice (I finally remembered her name), sighed looking up at the pained bloodsucker. Before anyone could stop me, I shot off towards the back door and burst into the woods. I could smell the rest of them following me, Edward was the closest. Mid-run, I morphed into my wolf form, my jean pants ripping off in the process. I knew exactly where the cottage was; Renesmee's smell was so plainly written across the front door. When I got there, I strode into the cottage, my limited amount of clothing forcing me to remain in wolf form. Ugh. So this is where Bella lived now with him. I couldn't bare myself to look, but I didn't have to. I pawed straight to Renesmee's room, going up to the crib in the corner, not taking the time to observe the room like I'd wanted. I lifted my front paws and stood on my hind legs, and peeked into the crib. She wasn't there. Edward walked in then, anger on his face. "Get out." I turned to look at him. Standing on my hind legs, I was taller than him. Where is she? She's not here.

All color (even though there was barely any color there to begin with) drained from his face. "What do you mean she's not here?" She I began but I stopped and landed back down on all fours. Edward pushed by me, Bella walking in then. She grabbed my arm and they both broken heartedly stared into the crib. Bella broke into instant tears, wrapping her arms around Edward completely. Edward just stood there staring for a moment, still trying to comprehend everything that was going on. I lowered my head and stared at the carpeted floor. Before I knew it, Bella had backed away into a wall, and Edward picked up the crib and hurled it towards the window, sending glass shards everywhere. Luckily none hit me, I didn't even have to dodge them. When I looked up at the doorway, all of the Cullens were standing there, blank emotions on their faces. I looked out the window at the pouring rain that covered the black sky of approaching night, and howled at the top of my lungs. I have to hand it to them; fate sure hated Edward and Bella Cullen. Alice's POV I was lying on the small navy blue sofa in my bedroom, in Jasper's arms. His fingers brushed my face gently while looking out the window at the treetops. Rosalie and Emmett's voices could be heard from their bedroom, as Renesmee clunked around in my stiletto heels. I heard Emmett laugh as she sashayed around in the long dress that was far to big for her; coincidently, it was the very same dress Bella had worn to her junior prom. "Maybe someday I can walk just like you in a dress, Aunty Rosy." Renesmee giggled. "What do you mean?" Rose's smile could be detected in her voice. "With my head up high, and my hair all pretty, and my posture extremely confident just like you!" Renesmee said proudly. Emmett chuckled loudly. "So." Jasper said, making me look up at him. Every time I looked up at his charming face, I felt like a million butterflies had just been let loose in my stomach. "Seems like things are going back to normal." "Normal." I sighed, picking up his ring finger and twiddling with his wedding ring. "Edward told me about his conversation with Jacob." Jasper took my hand in his and rubbed my palm. His sleeve pushed up a little, revealing one of the many crescent shaped scars that covered his body. "He said the whole Renesmee bit is dealt with. And Jacob assumingly is dating a member of his pack now. Leah Clearwater." "Oh, he's dating Leah?" I looked up at his eyes which shot me an inscrutable look back. "Is something the matter?" "It's Leah. Right now, I mean." He frowned. "She feels tense, upset." "Well, then maybe they " I began but I stopped. "What is it, Alice?" Jasper shifted his weight as I sat up. "I told him." A familiar voice flooded into my brain as I felt an image coming to me. "We need to be quick, though. He seemed a little too eager." The clearer the voice became, the sooner I recognized it belonged to Jane. "And you're positive he'll choose the half-vampire?" Aro's face came into focus. "He's imprinted on the thing. Of course, he'll pick her." Jane's hood eerily covered the majority of her face. "Alice, what'd you see?" Jasper's face flooded back into my view. "We need to get Renesmee." I stood instantly, heading for the door, Jasper directly beside me. What could this all mean? I knew that Jacob was involved, considering they were talking about imprinting on Renesmee, but still barely any of the pieces I was being given would let me finish the puzzle.

We rushed into Rosalie and Emmett's room, to find them lying on the bed, talking privately. More importantly, though, Renesmee wasn't there. "Where'd she go?" Jasper asked strongly. "Edward came upstairs and took Renesmee back to the cottage to put her to bed." Rosalie sat up, confused by our sudden urgency. "Why?" "We have to be with her." I ran out of the room, the three of them on my heels. "We can't leave her alone. She needs to be protected. When we got downstairs, Carlisle and Esme were sitting on the couch. They stood as soon as we entered the room. "What's wrong?" Carlisle asked. "I-I " I began, but something stopped me in my tracks. The smell of werewolf pierced all of our senses, making us cringe. Rose sighed, "What does he want?" "No, he's part of it." I frowned. "The Volturi were talking about Jacob's choice." "You saw the Volturi." Carlisle wasn't asking, he just said it. We all grew quiet as Jacob's Chevrolet halted in front of the house. The rain pounded down on him as he ran onto the porch. He bolted through the door, pausing a moment to take a breath and looking at each one of us. We knew what he wanted, but we still didn't feel like giving it to him. Jasper wrapped his arms around me protectively, even though he knew I wasn't the one in danger; Renesmee was the one in jeopardy. Rose and Emmett inched closer to each other. I had to do a double take to realize that Emmett was holding Rose back. Carlisle and Esme's hands were intertwined, simply staring at the situation lightly but with care. "Where is she?" Jacob looked at us indifferently. "Edward." I whispered silently. Instantaneously, Edward and Bella were in the room. They both looked lighthearted, and everyone noticed. However, Edward must've scanned Jacob's thoughts, because almost immediately, the buoyancy flashed and then vanished. "Where is she?" Impatience dripped off the werewolf's tongue. I looked over at Edward, remembering that Renesmee was currently unguarded. "Edward, don't. You need to go back and " Edward's voice forcefully interrupted, "Alice." Seems like Jacob wasn't the only intolerant one today. "I need to speak with Ness-Renesmee now." Jacob started to shout without even noticing it. "WHERE. IS. SHE?" "We put her to bed." Rose stared angrily at Jacob then up at Emmett for some kind of encouragement. That makes three on the annoyed list; anyone else? "I need to speak with her." Jacob looked at all of our faces for some kind of response. "Jacob, maybe it's b-best you leave." Bella looked at him. She seemed frozen in Edward's arms. The wolf made no sign of leaving. "Now." Edward demanded. There was silence then, and when we looked over at Jacob's face, then back at Edward's we knew that they were having a completely mental conversation.

"I'm sorry, Jacob." Edward looked distressed. "But we just ." Edward's voice grew more inaudible. "No you don't." After Jacob thought whatever he thought, Edward didn't move. He just stood there, deep in thought. Whatever Jacob had thought up it must have been profound to leave Edward speechless or completely idiotic. "You sure know how to ruin something, don't you?" Edward said after awhile, chuckling slightly. After Jacob's next thought, Edward's smile vanished almost instantly. We all stood confusedly in the living room, no speaking or thinking was obviously taking place. Then breaking the silence, Jacob looked at each of us questioningly, "Are you having a party today or something?" How random was that? I thought. Edward glanced at me but then his gaze returned to the werewolf. "No." Edward was clearly trying to understand him. "Do you have someone over?" Jacob continued. "Jacob." Carlisle insisted. "There are only the nine of us, as usual." "Then why do I smell " Jacob began but stopped. I looked up at Jasper, who tightened up. I sniffed the air. My eyes snapped over to Carlisle's, then Bella's, then Edward's and finally Jacob's. "I smell a werewolf." Jacob immediately shot off towards the back door, with us in his stride. Edward dashed off after him instantly, but Carlisle pulled me back. "Alice, what did you see?" Carlisle asked me. "I saw Jane and Aro. They were talking about Renesmee and Jacob." I explained. "They mentioned something about Jacob choosing Renesmee." "What could that mean?" Esme gripped her husbands arm and stared at his pondering face. "Jane said she told 'him' something. I'm assuming 'him' is Jacob." I frowned. "Meaning Jane is here?" Jasper stared at me intently. "She can't be." Carlisle tried piecing the facts together. "The Volturi left a few hours after we found out Jacob had taken Renesmee to Phoenix." "Jane must've talked to him recently." Esme tried to help the questions along. "Otherwise Jacob would've come sooner." "What if he ?" Jasper began but then stopped. "What's wrong?" I asked. "Jacob." He frowned. Without saying another word he dashed into the woods, never letting go of my arm. We rushed like eerie ghosts to the cottage. I presumed what Jasper's rush was all about; he'd most likely felt Jacob's emotion. And judging Jasper's immediate urgency, that emotion wasn't a positive one. I hadn't noticed Esme and Carlisle had been following us until we reached the cottage door. Rosalie and Emmett were just heading back to Renesmee's room by the time we go there.

I couldn't have described a sadder scene of such pain when I looked into Renesmee's baby room. There was Bella crouched against a wall groaning unsettlingly while Jacob was whimpering helplessly on the floor in wolf form. The most disturbing image, though, was Edward; he was standing distraughtly in front of Nessie's crib, his fingers curled into fists. Before I knew it, he reached out, grabbed the crib and flung it at the overlooking window. Glass flew in every known direction. The shards missed Jacob entirely, and one bounced off the wall beside Bella's head. I couldn't believe Renesmee had slipped through our fingers once again; how could we be so careless? Everyone wanted to voice their pain, but only Jacob did. The wolf whaled nosily out the broken window, and half of me thought that Renesmee's cute little giggle would respond to his outcry but when there was silence as a response, I snuggled into Jasper's chest and didn't dare move an inch. Bella's POV "Bella, relax." Alice commanded me. "We found Renesmee and I doubt the Volturi brought that many down here." I stood but Alice grabbed me and pulled me back down onto the couch. "Alice, you don't understand." I sighed. "I need to help her. I can't just sit here and do nothing!" "I'm sorry, Bella." Alice said gently. "But if you go down there, there is the possibility of you and Renesmee not coming back ." She paused, as I began to evaluate all of what she was saying. If Renesmee and I never came back, what would happen to Edward? He's already had the pain of losing me once, and almost killing himself for it, but if that happened again and he lost his daughter in the mix, he would commit suicide for sure. I could never let that happen. "There's got to be some way I can help." I interceded. "I'm sorry, but the way you can help all of us help Edward, is to stay out of the line of fire." Alice stood and walked toward the kitchen. I peeked over my shoulder and saw the front door just standing there, completely unlocked and unguarded. They wouldn't be able to stop me if when I was running and by the time we'd get there, we'd all be enveloped in stopping Jane and much less me. I stood, heading for the door, when Carlisle nonchalantly walked over and locked it. I sat back down disappointed. "Everything will be fine, Bella." Carlisle reassured me. "This is my daughter, we're talking about! You expect me to stand helpless on the sidelines while she's risking death?" I shot back up again. Even though my outburst made me feel better, Carlisle stayed calm and serene, waiting for me to finish. "And as if that isn't enough, Edward is out there! He could die!" "Are you done?" He asked with a slight smile on his face. "I guess so." I frowned, sitting down again. Carlisle sat beside me. "And he wouldn't die. He's already dead in a technical sense." He told me, wiping his hand across his forehead. "What's wrong?" I asked. "Esme's in the cottage alone." "Why don't you go get her?" I wondered. "She told me to leave her there, just in case Renesmee got away and wandered back. I suppose that's the smart thing of her to do." He smiled partly, and then he exhaled deeply. I said nothing, not wanting to interrupt his obviously deep thoughts. "I said I would come to get her if anything went wrong." He continued. "But she said she could fend for herself if anything came by. She's very strong, mentally, emotionally and physically. Besides, she said I needed to stay here in case of emergency."

I looked up and over at the kitchen. Alice was gone. "Carlisle!" Rosalie's voice called. Both of our heads snapped up and looked to the source of the sound. It came from the back door; we could hear the crunching of leaves and silent whispering but the blackness of the night made us blind when it came to the people themselves. When they walked into the light of the table lamp, I gasped. Walking through the door was Rosalie, Alice and Seth (I had no clue that he gotten here) but it their arms was Leah's limp unmoving body. She was still in wolf form; her fur was all matted from lying on the moist forest floor. She was still breathing, luckily, but it was extremely light. "Set her down on the counter." Carlisle instructed immediately, walking over to them. He was used to working with so many cases, so he was up and ready to work in an instant. Unlike me, where the site of a poor innocent girl on the verge of death made me freeze up and grow paler than I already was. "Do you know what happened?" "She's been bitten " Alice told us. "Right there beneath the neck." "Oh, damn. Oh, damn. Oh, damn." Seth put his fist to his mouth nervously, and walked away, pacing in circles by me. "Please tell me you can fix this, Doc." "I'll try my best." Carlisle nodded. "Rosalie. Alice. Can you help me get her up to the library where most of my tools are?" The all lifted her up easily, which made me wonder why they needed three peop- excuse me, vampires, to carry her. When they got to the top of the stairs, I heard Rosalie say, "Carlisle, should we just lay her on the table?" Carlisle started to walk back down the steps, "That would be good." He walked over to the kitchen and opened a top cabinet, pulling out some equipment (just like a doctor to always have his tools ready). On his way back on the steps, Seth began to follow, but Carlisle turned and said, "I'm sorry, Seth. Maybe it's best you stay downstairs with Bella." Carlisle went back up as Seth trudged back down. He sat on the couch, but I stayed standing. With his head his hands, he muttered, "She can't die. She can't die. She can't die." "Seth, everything will be fine." I tried to encourage him. "Yeah, well, what if it doesn't end up fine?" He looked up at me. "What if she dies?" "You can't keep saying that, you'll jinx yourself." I said. "She can't die." He repeated. "My dad's gone. She can't be gone too." I didn't say anything. His head snapped up, "What about my mom? She probably can't take any more of this death stuff and how am I gonna tell her, 'Oh, hey, mom. By the way, Leah died of a vampire bite'." He paused. "A fucking VAMPIRE BITE!" "Calm down." I tried. "No! I'm losing people all over the place!" he sighed, as I sat down beside him. "I've already practically lost Jacob; who knows what he's thinking these days? And if Renesmee dies, he'll " Seth stopped. My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach. "Oh, Bella, I'm sorry. Dammit, I'm such an idiot." He pleaded. "I didn't mean to bring that up. I'm real sorry." I walked over to the windowed wall and looked out. I saw nothing but black. "What's happening?" I asked. "Do you know what's going on?" "You don't know anything?" He asked, when I didn't respond, he said, "Well, Jake and Jasper have Demetri, and Emmett and Edward are handling Jane."

"Where's Renesmee?" I asked. "I don't know. I wasn't looking." He sighed. My hopes fell but then Seth added, "But Rosalie and Alice were looking. They found my sister instead; she had crawled behind a tree to get out of the way, but the pain was too sharp. She wasn't able to move much farther." I couldn't just keep waiting here. "Seth, if anyone comes back down tell them not to worry about me." "Where are you going?" He asked. "Where else would I be going?" was my reply. I was out the back door before he could ask anymore questions. Edward's POV "Don't move." I whispered, looking this way and that, trying to uncover what mind-trick Jane was pulling on me this time. I pressed my palm against the trunk of a tree beside me, peeking around the corner to see where she could be. "I'm not." Emmett replied silently. He was beside me, crouching down, close to the forest floor. "Where'd Jasper go?" I wondered. "Probably still dealing with Demetri." His eyes searched our surroundings too. "They were running south, last I saw." "You think they'll hit the Reservation?" I asked. "I don't think they give a damn if they reach the Reservation or not " He started but I interrupted. "I'm just trying to keep track of everybody, ok?" I said sternly but quietly. "Where could Jane be hiding?" I'm right here, Edward. She thought, toying with my brain. She had to be close. You think with so much practice you would've killed me by now. Oh well. I lifted my fist and pounded it into the tree Emmett and I were hidden behind. Picking it up from its roots in the ground, I threw it into the distance, a loud bang echoing through the woods as it landed. Now, Edward. Jane teased me. Control your temper. "Edward." Emmett broke me out of my concentration. "What?" I turned and looked at him. "Listen." He told me. "Listen to what? I have to hear Jane's thoughts " I protested. "Listen." He demanded. I stopped and did as he told me to do. I caught the sound immediately once I slowed down enough to hear it; if I'd been paying attention I probably would've heard it a lot sooner. But as dominant as the sound was, it was very soft. It was lifesaving. It was the soft cries of my daughter. "Renesmee." I looked in the direction of the noise. It was close; I could almost feel her next to me. Emmett took a step towards the sound, trying to see her through all the green. I followed cautiously, knowing that Jane could pop out of any corner ready to attack. We picked up pace when the sound got louder and when we got closer. She was so small and insignificant in the vast forest that if she hadn't waved her pale hand at us, we might've missed her. And there she was.

Renesmee was sitting on a black cloak, most likely Jane's since I'd noticed she hadn't been wearing it earlier. Tears had been flowing down her smooth cheeks until she saw us, then she giggled and waved, getting up to come to us. However Emmett wasn't even given the chance to move an inch forward; Jane forced him to fall to the ground. Emmett grabbed his stomach and lurched down onto his knees, the pain shooting through him. I tried to help him back up but he couldn't move. I looked up to see Jane standing there, her eyes wide as if she had no clue what was happening to him. "I've always wondered what that actually feels like." She smiled at Emmett who was starting to sweat. "What's on the other end of what I can do? Considering all the fuss people make about it, I can only assume it feels pretty wretched." "Renesmee." I whispered. She looked over at me subtly. "Run." "I think not." Jane smiled, making the pain shoot through me now. "See, Aro wants Renesmee. And when you have a boss with that type of power, you just don't say no. Besides, I think Renesmee would make a lovely addition, don't you?" I looked over at Renesmee, who was cowering behind a tree. It was obvious she was scared to death. "Daddy." She whispered. "What's wrong with you?" I groaned as the sharp sting ran through me; I tried to reach for her, but every time I moved a muscle it felt like thousands of pins stabbed me. "Well, sweetie." Jane explained. "You're daddy's dying. Well, he's already dead, but I'm killing him even faster." "You don't have the strength to kill me." I heaved, staring up at Jane. "Think of it this way. The weaker you are, the easier it is to tear up the pieces. And the easier it is to tear up the pieces, the bigger the fire gets." She bent down beside me. I knew she was right; this could be the end for me. "Daddy!" Renesmee turned away. "She can't do this to him!" Him? I looked over and saw Emmett, almost paralyzed from all the ache. He was a gruesome sight: his eyes were rolled back in his head, and he was just twitching uncontrollably. It was horrifying; I'd never seen Emmett so weak and vulnerable. I couldn't bare to watch. "Stop!" I shouted as loud as my closing lungs would allow. "Why should I?" Jane replied, thinking nothing of what she was doing to him. "Don't kill him." I moaned staring over at him. "Fine." She responded dryly. His pain started to decrease and his eyes rolled back to facing forward. She didn't let go of him completely, but he wasn't being as tortured as he was before. "God." I heard Emmett heave, as looked up at the treetops. "I guess it's your turn." Jane stepped forward, my pain blasting through me. I couldn't contain it; I yelled as loud as I could. The torture was unbearable. Emmett tried to help me but he was still in shock. "Stop it!" Renesmee screamed. "Leave him alone!" Jane didn't respond, she just amplified my pain even more. "I said stop!" Renesmee fell to her knees, wanting to look at me but too scared to watch me like this. And I didn't want her to watch. I didn't want my daughter to see me so feeble. I'd spent so much time trying to prove to her how strong I was, how stable I was, how I'd keep our family standing; but here I was, twitching on the forest floor, as she watched me become so defenseless. I probably wasn't her big strong Daddy anymore, I was the weak worthless Daddy. I couldn't stand the feeling.

"Anything you want to say to the baby girl before time runs out, Edward?" Jane asked lightly. "I-I " I tried to turn to look at her, but to bitter heartbreak, she turned away. Maybe it's best I did die for her sake. To keep her and Bella safe. But after I died, after the final pieces were burned and the fire sizzled out, what would become of Bella and Renesmee then? Bella would be undefended, Renesmee would still be taken to Italy and there would be one less person to guard the both of them. I would never kiss Bella again. I would never feel her skin touch mine. I would never see her smiling face up close. I would never hear her laugh, or her soothing voice. I would never again be able to tell Bella how much she meant to me how much I loved her. But my death had been prolonged anyway. What should've been dead in 1918, would most likely end here. "I-I " I gripped the ground, pulling at the moss for support. Before anymore words could be said, there was a loud bark. We all looked, but Jane had little time to react. "Seth!" Renesmee rejoiced. He jumped onto Jane pushing her back against a tree. Letting out a deep guttural growl, he barked another time. Then he just jumped back off her again and ran to Emmett's side. That was kind of pointless; Seth stopped her for a second, but then he just hid behind us? What was the purpose of that? I looked up at Seth., who was panting over my crippled body. His response: No worries, Edward. I'm not that dumb. I couldn't be so sure. Jane just laughed and looked at us, ready to influence the pain once again, ready to end our lives. But before I could think more on the thought of eternity finally ending, the pain stopped. It just stopped. Jane looked at us with a confused face, wondering what was happening. Emmett was already getting to his feet, so I knew the pain had stopped for him to. Renesmee ran to him, and as much as I wanted to pick her up in my arms, I knew I had to finish this before it could continue. I shot forward, grabbing Jane by the neck and pushing her against the tree, strangling her. "Impossible." She breathed. "How could you have broken away?" That's what I wanted to know too. "Now you know." I heard someone say behind me. "No one will ever love you more than I do." I didn't even have to turn to look, I recognized the voice instantly. She rested her head on my shoulder gently, staring at Jane who had most likely never looked more baffled in her entire living and dead life. "Bella, I-I " I began but she stopped me. "Renesmee's fine." She interrupted. "Do you have the strength to finish Jane off by yourself?" "Where's everyone else?" I asked, ignoring Jane completely. "Demetri gave up." She informed me. "So Jasper and Jacob are back at the house." "And Seth? When'd he get here?" I wondered. "Only a couple minutes ago. Alice insisted that I not leave the house, but when I eventually did leave, Seth couldn't bare to miss out on anything." She said. "Edward, you know we go way back." Jane interceded. "I've known you for the longest time. So how about you let me go, and we can forget this ever happened." I turned and looked at Bella, my hand still around Jane's neck. "Take Renesmee back to the main house. Emmett and I've got from here." In a flash, Renesmee was happily snuggled in Bella's arms and Seth shot off with them towards the house.

"So, like I was saying " Jane began but I cut her off. "You manipulate Jacob, you abduct Renesmee, and you almost eradicate Emmett." I held her tighter. "And you want me to just let you go?" She didn't respond. I turned and looked at Emmett. "Start the fire." Bella's POV "Bells!" Charlie exclaimed. "Glad you could make it!" "Hi, dad." I smiled. "Sorry we're late. Something was going on back at the house." "It's fine. And how's my little granddaughter?" Charlie beamed. Renesmee leaned out of my arms and into his. "Hi, grandpa!" "Hello, Renesmee." He looked into her eyes briefly and then set her down onto the floor. Renesmee dashed into the living room and jumped onto the couch, sighing theatrically. Then looking up at the other person in the room, she smiled politely. "Hello, Mr. Black." "Well, how do you do, Miss Cullen?" Billy said in his husky voice. Then he laughed and sat back in the recliner. I turned to look back at the Volvo. Edward was sitting in the driver's seat pinching the bridge of his nose, still frustrated about whatever he was frustrated about. On the way here, I had asked him why he was still so tense even after everything was finished. He told me that he was frustrated; and that was it. From that conversation on, he'd been completely silent and uptight. "Is something wrong with Edward?" Charlie asked, following my gaze. "You two get in a fight?" "No." I frowned. "He's just a little uneasy but it's nothing." When I said that, Edward looked up at me, staring me straight in the face. "Alright then." Charlie responded. "Hey, do you know where Jake and Leah are? Billy said they promised to be here at seven." The memory of walking up to Carlisle's library and seeing Leah's limp wolf body lying across his desk was still crystal clear in the back of my mind. Her blood had stained the tips of her fur a deep crimson and her breathing was dangerously light. Turns out, she had been under too much of Jane's torture that she hadn't even felt Demetri come up behind her and take a bite. Carlisle was able to suck the venom clean from her bloodstream and she was able to phase back soon after but she was a sickly sight. Jacob had to carry her to the Chevy and take her home; she definitely wasn't up to coming over to Charlie's tonight, and apparently neither was Jacob. "Leah wasn't feeling all that well," I answered. "So she's back on the Reservation with Jacob." I glanced back at the Volvo; Edward wasn't looking at us anymore, but that nervous face was still painted across his expression. Charlie cleared his throat. "I'll be in here. Maybe it's best you sort things out with him." "I'm here to spend time with you, dad." I told him, turning to look up at Charlie's face. Charlie just shrugged and walked back into the house. Maybe I should talk to Edward, before this turned into something bigger than it had to be. I looked back at the Volvo to see Edward was no longer there; I knew he was stealthy, but I had to give him credit for that. I hadn't even heard the car door open or close, and I have as good hearing as he does. I slowly shut the front door. The noises around me were minimal: I could hear my dad's voice proudly booming inside, I could hear the trees whispering to each other as they swayed back and forth, I could hear the some birds flapping their wings to get back to their nests but the one thing I couldn't hear was Edward.

I slowly walked down the front steps, my eyes searching the giant oak in the front lawn. I looked up at the roof but saw nothing. I was about to look in the Volvo, but I knew Edward was far more creative than that. "Edward." I whispered. "See if you were fighting against me," Next thing I knew, my arms were strongly interlocked behind my back. "You would be sure to lose." "That's not funny. Let go." I sighed. "I'm not trying to be funny." Edward laughed anyway. He pulled my back closer to him, but all I wanted to do was turn and see his face. His body gracefully molded against mine as he held me close. "Edward." I could feel his cold breath on my cheek. He put his finger under my chin and turned me to face him. His pale skin was glowing, it seemed, due to the minimal light coming from Charlie's house. His black eyes stared back at me lovingly. I couldn't resist any longer; I pulled his mouth to mine. Once I did, it felt like magic. His hand became tangled in my hair as he groaned subtly into my mouth; I tried not to melt in his arms. Edward was the true depiction of perfection, and even though we were the same [species], I could never picture him the same as I pictured myself. I may be a vampire, but I was weak. I was gifted with this unnatural beauty, but I never felt it fit me exactly. I did well in school but I was never a genius. Edward, on the other hand, was strong, physically and mentally. He was beautiful and intelligent and profound; which made me wonder, what was it about me that was so intriguing to him? Against my wishes, he pulled away. Gladly, he still didn't let go. "Bella ." "Yes?" I wondered innocently. "Something's wrong isn't it?" he sighed. "What do you mean?" I stared up at his eyes, which were now searching mine. "I can tell." He became tense again. "What were you thinking about?" "You." I answered. "But that's obvious." "What about me?" He wondered, his stressed face lightening, but the change was only slight. "Why do you love me?" I blurted. "That's what you were thinking?" He frowned. I nodded. "You can't be serious." He said. "What kind of foolish question is that?" "But you're perfect, and I'm " I began, but he cut me off. "I'm not perfect, Bella." He said. "I'm a monster . But it's you, you're the one that is perfect." "Edward, I'm not perfect. I'm clumsy and reckless and " He interrupted. "You will always be perfect through my eyes." "Then you must be blind." I frowned. "Love is blind." He countered. He heaved a sigh, his edgy expression returning.

I looked up at his face and caressed his skin with my fingers. He looked down at me, grateful for the touch, but still apprehensive. I asked, "Are you alright?" "I'm fine." He answered. "Are you sure?" I pushed. "Renesmee, was she hurt at all?" He quickly changed subjects. "Nothing seems to be wrong with her. She's just a little emotionally staggered but that should subside soon enough." I told him. "I didn't want her to see me that way." He frowned. "What do you mean?" "When Jane was torturing me, Renesmee couldn't bare to look." He answered me. "I felt horrible not about the pain, though. I couldn't stand for Renesmee to see me weak and vulnerable." I said nothing. "She turned away from me, you know." His face seemed heartbroken. "The way she looked at me the way she didn't want to look at me . I felt horrible ." "I doubt that's why she turned away." I said. "She was probably scared for you " Edward interrupted, "You didn't see her face. She was scared of me." "Don't ever say that." I frowned. "She's been through too much, that's all. And what was happening to you was probably too much for her." He looked down at the ground then back up at me. "Bella, I I told you that I would do anything for you and Renesmee. If that includes dying, I would." "And what would dying do?" I frowned. "It would help you." He answered. "No." I paused. Then I picked up again, "It would kill me just like you tried to kill yourself in Italy. Dying won't solve any problems." "I deserve to die anyway." Edward looked into my eyes. "I deserve to rot in hell." "Then I guess I do too." I kissed him gently on the lips. I could've stayed there like that forever, in Edward's arms, kissing him sweetly. But something broke the silence: Edward's cellphone vibrated discretely in his pocket. He paused, but didn't reach for it; his lips remained on mine. "You can get it." I sighed, mumbling against his lips. "What if I don't want to?" he replied, kissing me a little more passionately this time. "Ok." I agreed. He was about to continue when his cellphone vibrated again. "Who is it?" I asked. "Probably Alice." He frowned.

"Answer it then." I looked up at him. Taking one last glance and stepping away from me slightly, Edward pulled his cellphone out of his pocket and whipped it up to his ear. "What is it Alice?" He straightened up. "Who told you that?" "Does it even really matter anyway?" "I'm sorry, alright? I just couldn't." "You do?" "Alright." He said finally. "But I can't leave now. We've run off on Chief Swan enough times already." "Don't worry. I'll tell Bella everything." And with that, he hung up. "Tell me what?" I frowned. "Bella." He walked over to me and looked at me honestly in the eyes. "You are so unpredictable sometimes, so I'm I'm not really sure how you'll react to this." He stopped. "React to what?" I wondered. "I did it on an impulse." He sighed. "I wasn't exactly thinking ahead, I guess." I didn't say anything. "I didn't kill Jane." He admitted. "But but Seth said he saw the fire. Emmett said he'd helped you start it." I protested. "We didn't burn her." He told me. "Why not? After everything she's done to us?" I stepped closer to him. "I'm sorry, Bella." He frowned. "I just didn't." "What were you thinking?" I didn't have an belligerent tone anymore; I was honestly wondering what was running through his mind. "I wanted to kill her, and I was going to." He explained. "But I couldn't relish the fact that I was killing another being, even a sadistic one like Jane." "But you killed James and Victoria. And Riley." I remembered. "And probably a lot more." "For some reason, those times were different." He looked down at the driveway. "I think, killing those times, I was letting out my anger from everything else. With James, I'd seen into his thoughts, I'd seen him map out his way to your bloodstream and that just made me so livid." "And Victoria?" "That fact that you might love Jacob was eating me alive if that's what I really am." He revealed. "But you acted as if you didn't mind." I told him.

"When I left after your 18th birthday, I knew you'd have to create new ties to something or someone. And after I came back, I knew you'd still have some connections with Jacob." He replied. "But I saw the passion in your eyes when you looked at him. You smiled differently around him than you did around me." I didn't want to dwell anymore on that subject. "And Riley?" "What?" He looked up at my face. "What was your driving force to kill Riley?" I rephrased the question. "You." He said. "It wasn't so much anger. It was fear that you might die, I suppose. I guess that has always been the backbone of my rage." "Jane had made you mad too, didn't she?" I protested. "She stole Renesmee. She tried to kill you and Emmett. Wasn't that angering enough?" "She'd made me furious." Edward reached for my hand. "But when you showed up and took Renesmee back and stopped Jane's torture, something occurred to me." "What?" I wondered. "I would've died without you." He revealed. This must've been hard for him to admit; it's not like Edward to have a weakness. "You've saved me from being the monster that I know I am . I wanted to kill her, but when I thought of your face when I thought of Renesmee's I knew that killing her would make me all the more of a monster." "You're not a monster." I told him. "So you've said." He smiled slightly. "But just one less life on my hands, lifts the burden I'm not sure if I can exactly explain it." "I understand." I wrapped my hands around his neck. "But do you think she'll come back?" "I sure hope that bitch doesn't come back." He grinned, kissing me softly. "But if she ever does, I will be sure to kill her next time, don't you worry." "You better." I kissed him in return. Before either of us could make another move, I felt a raindrop fall onto my cheek. I stopped and looked up, watching the dark rain clouds that were blanketing the sky. After that first raindrop, another fell soon after it, and then another, and then the drizzle turned harder, but not hard enough to be pouring. Not worried about the rain whatsoever, Edward pressed his lips to mine, the water dripping down his forehead and off his chin. I gladly returned the kiss, although the water started getting in the way. He pulled away briefly and chuckled, "Pretty clich to have a passionate kiss in the rain, don't you think?" "I like it." I smiled. "It's moments like these that make me think we can do anything." "That's even tackier than the kiss in the rain." He laughed. I shrugged. "Well, I guess its one of those cheesy melodramatic moments." He just held me closer, his classic crooked smile crossing his already dazzling expression. "I love you, Bella." "I know." I smiled. "And I love you, Edward." And then we continued blissfully into this small but perfect piece of our forever. -last line of Breaking Dawn

The End