Chapter 5
April 2022
Alice of course didn't care that she and Embry had met only 3 weeks before. Evenings were filled with werewolves in the Cullen mansion.
Jacob stayed away.
Except tonight. Tonight he had been specially invited by the flighty pixie.
"Do you think Jacob will stop staring at us?" Bella whispers to Edward.
"Let's try to not ruin the night. It means a lot to Alice."
"Why?" Bella asked.
Edward pauses. He couldn't very well say what he had seen in her thoughts. Not with werewolf hearing.
"Just because."
Bella looks away making eye contact with Jacob. She turns her body fully and walks to Alice.
"Hey." Jacob says, coming up to Edward.
"Hey. Thanks for making my girlfriend uncomfortable."
"I make her uncomfortable? What did I do?"
"Stare too much."
"It's not my fault you two look so impassioned all the time. It's captivating.”
Edward looks at Jacob, closer. Why is he watching them? Why does he care that they light each other up?
"Embry." Alice calls, walking up to him and ending all conversation.
"Alice." He smiles back.
"Would you do me the great honor of becoming my husband?" She drops to one knee.
"What! Babe of course." Embry hugs Alice.
Everyone claps. Edward feels a hand on theirs. A very hot hand.
"Looks like we're in laws." Jacob says.
"Cheers." Edward says sarcastically.
They walk away.
"I have to talk to you." Bella says.
They go to Edward's room.
"No bed?" Bella asks.
"Shit." Edward curses.
"It's okay. I know what you are."
"How?" Edward asks.
"You're not good at hiding it. You're fast. You're cold. You're pale as fuck. And now you don't have a bed in your room."
"Say it out loud."
Emmett and Paul laugh. Lame. They think at Edward.
"You're a vampire. Why aren't you all public knowledge like the werewolves?"
"Werewolves evolved to kill vampires. The Volturi is vampire royalty. If we follow their laws, wolves don't kill us. One of their laws is secrecy."
"Why have you mate then?"
"Billy Black has some hidden prophesy of us all uniting. He thinks it's time we mate."
"Are you sad not to help your family in bonding with wolves?"
"I'm sad that you are tied to a soulless monster."
"You're not a soulless monster, Edward."
"Then why didn't I have a soul mate? I will never regret pairing with you. But it proved my family has souls and I don't."
"I'm not fighting you on this. You have a soul. Let's go congratulate your sister."
Both Bella and Edward noticed at Jacob was no longer there but they didn't speak of it.
----- ----- -----
"I know something you don't know." Seth teased Embry the next day.
"Don't care." Embry says, from his position with his head in Alice's lap.
"It's about Jacob."
"What is it?"
"What are you going to give me?"
Jasper laughs at his mate's immaturity.
"Alice, what am I going to give him?"
"Best man at our wedding. Did I just see wolves? I just saw wolves."
"Yay." Leah and Rosalie say from the kitchen. Rose to bother her sister. And Leah because the psychic can help in strategy now.
"Cool." Seth grins. "Jacob thinks Edward and Bella have fine eyes in the face of beautiful people."
"Who the hell talks like that?" Jasper chuckles.
"Jacob's poetry is horrible." Embry laughs.
"Guys!" Leah calls. "Jacob has a crush. Well two crushes."
Chapter 6
Late May
Alice saw a thunderstorm in the forecast 2 weeks before the wedding.
“We’re all going to play. Supposedly vampires are allowed to do their most in a thunderstorm baseball game.” Seth says, sitting next to Jacob.
“That does sound fun. Can I come watch?” Billy asked.
It was nice to see them getting along better now that Seth had transformed.
“Of course dad. Now if we could get Jacob to go?”
“Jacob, you have to go.” Leah says, walking into the house with Rose on her arm.
“No, see I really don’t.”
“Edward will be there.” Seth says.
“Bella will be there too.” Rosalie teases.
“They are the least annoying couple out of you all but that doesn’t mean I want to play baseball with them.”
“It is a pack bonding activity. You will be there.” Leah commands.
----- ----- -----
And that is how Jacob finds himself umpiring with Bella.
She smells so good. His wolf thinks.
Shaking off that thought, he turns to see Edward running after the soaring ball. There’s no way he’s going to catch it.
Bella feels left out during this game. The vampires and wolves can see everything. Her human eyes can see nothing. Edward is denying her the change. But maybe if she gets in with a wolf.
“Out.” Jacob calls as Rosalie slides in.
She glares at him.
“If looks could kill, you would be 6 feet under.”
“I can take her.”
Bella looks him up and down. “Yes. You can. What’s your favorite thing about being a wolf?”
Jacob looks surprised. She has yet to follow up conversation with him.
“Um, I guess scents. There’s nothing like smelling someone you love.”
“Romantic or familial?” Bella asks.
“Um, familial. I don’t, I don’t have anyone like that.”
“I wonder what it would be like to smell Edward the way he smells me. God, that sounds creepy doesn’t it?”
“Nope. Wolf here. Just admitted it’s my favorite thing. I wouldn’t find it creepy.”
“Nomads.” Alice whispers.
Jacob moves in front of Bella.
Bella misses it as the wolves and vampires move about, muttering up a storm.
Edward zooms over.
“There’s human drinking vampires coming.” He tells her.
“Do I need to leave?”
“No time.”
Three figures come out of the forest line. Jacob squints because he can’t believe his eyes and then moves to the front.
“James, Victoria. Surprised to see you passing through again.”
Everyone is puzzled. The self-proclaimed vampire hater is talking to human-drinking vampires.
“Jacob Black. Not so little.”
“Yes. Time has passed. Are you staying for a time? The Cullens would be happy to offer their home.” He gestures behind him.
“Of course.” Carlisle provides.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your newest coven member?” Jacob asks.
“Laurent. It will take a while to be introduced to all your wolves and vampires.”
“Yes, well. Let’s do it at the house.”
The wind blows. Multiple things happen in quick succession.
The nomads crouch down. Jacob flinches and looks at Bella. Edward hisses. The rest of the family leans down ready to attack.
“Ok. Let’s talk about this. Bella is human.” Jacob says. “But she’s my friend.”
“Friend?” James asks.
“Yes. So we’re not drinking her blood.”
“Um, I’m thinking we are.” Victoria says.
“V.” Jacob says.
“Fine, we aren’t.”
“But we shall go. Thank you for the kind offer.” James says, politely.
“Bye.” Rose yells. “What?” She asks Leah after she squeezes her side.
“See you again.” Jacob says.
“No soon, love?” Victoria asks.
Jacob waves with fake enthusiasm. The three nomads turn with James at the front and run out of the clearing.
“So many questions.” Seth comments.
“Jacob. Why do you know them?” Billy asks.
“They used to visit me?” Jacob asks.
“What?!” Billy explodes.
“Yeah. I used to go to the meadow behind the house. They would come hang out.”
“When?!” Billy demands.
“Since I was 8.”
It’s so silent you could hear a pin drop.
“So, who is up so for some baseball?” Jacob asks.
“No. You’re going home.”
“Dad.”
“You’re benched son.”
Jacob sighs and leaves.
“James is a tracker. He wants to find you.” Edward says, to Bella.
“Why?”
“Something about being denied by Jacob for the last time.”
“What are we going to do?”
“We’re going to leave.” Edward says.
“He’ll track you everywhere.” Alice predicts. “Well, I can’t see much because of the wolves.”
Embry, Emmett, and Seth drop their heads.
“We can do this.” Carlisle says encouraging. “All females to our house. They’ll shower and change into Bella’s clothes. We will lead them away from here. But Bella will stay here.”
Chapter 7
Late May
The plan was that Bella would stay where her scent was most concentrated. In her room. Leah, Rose, Alice, Esme, Tanya went in different directions dressed in her clothes.
James noticed the extra scents immediately and fell off those trails.
A phone rings.
“Alice?” Edward asks.
“He’s coming.”
“Shit.”
“Ditto.” Alice says.
“He’s coming?” Bella asks.
“Yes.” Edward starts pacing. “We need to go somewhere. We need to lead him out.”
“Why? If you change me now, we don’t have to worry about any of this.”
“Bella, I’m not changing you.”
She pouts but leaves it alone.
“I used to do ballet in town.”
“That’s a big enough space.”
“For what?” Bella asks.
“We have to kill him.”
“But he’s Jacob’s friend,”
“I thought you hated Jacob. Why do you care if we kill his friend?”
“I don’t hate him. That’s too strong of an emotion to call my indifference.”
“Sure. Indifference.” Edward says. “Anyway, James is going to chase you until he kills you. So we have to beat him to it.”
“Ok. But you’re not allowed to do it.”
“Why?”
“You said in your Quiluete questionnaire that you didn’t want to kill anyone again. I want to help you keep that promise to yourself.”
Edward kisses her.
“Sorry. I should have asked consent.” They said
“You always have permission to kiss me.” Bella says, breathing heavy.
“Guys!” Emmett calls.
“We’re coming.” Edward says, pecking Bella on the lips.
They place Bella in the middle of the ballet studio and go outside to fake a departure.
James comes in no time.
“Where’s the boy who was near you, Bella?” He leers.
“Where’s V?” Bella snaps back.
“She likes to distract me from the hunt.” James responds. “Thinks it’s funny.”
“Hmmm.”
“Should I tell you why I hunted you?”
“Sure.”
Villain speeches never end well for the villain, Bella reasons.
“Jacob is mine.”
“Wait what?” Bella asks.
“Jacob Black belongs to me and Victoria. We’ve been visiting him since he was a child. We hoped we would be mates when we saw him again.”
“That’s creepy.”
“When did your vampire change?”
Bella doesn’t have a comeback for that.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. I am just going to kill you now. You’re not as interesting as Jacob made me believe.”
He zooms to her and lifts her arm, biting down.
The pain is almost making her dizzy. She distantly feels James’ mouth leave her arm.
She has no idea what else happens but the pain overwhelms her.
----- ----- -----
Jacob slams into James.
“You’d kill me, Jacob?” James asks.
Jacob’s eyes are red.
“You feel ownership of this pathetic girl?” James asks, indignantly. “She can’t give you what Victoria and I can.”
“Edward, she’s changing.” Jacob hears Carlisle say.
Jacob tears James apart without letting him speak again.
“I’ll suck the venom out.” Edward says.
Jacob drops his shield.
Stop. He commands. This is better. She can protect herself if we let her be.
“I can’t let her be a newborn. She can’t kill like me.”
Carlisle has never drunk from a human. Leah says that Rosalie hasn’t either. Bella may not as well. We just need to be there for her.
“Edward?”
“I’m her mate. I’ll make the decision.” Edward says, bending over her arm.
Jacob puts back up his shield and walks out the double doors.
Jasper and Seth light James’ body on fire.
Are you okay? Quil asks Jacob in the woods.
I just killed my first crush. No, I’m not okay. Jacob thinks.
Yeah, I’m good. Imma head home.
“Thank you, Jacob.” Edward calls.
Jacob shakes himself out and runs home.
Chapter 8
Early June
Bella had lots of bloodloss. She needed a blood transfusion. She wasn’t in the hospital long. Edward felt uncomfortable staying with her. They said it was because she smelled different but in actuality, it was because they felt judged by not being able to stop themselves while cleaning her blood.
Bella had asked Leah to send Jacob over. There’s a rock thrown at her window. She opens the window and Jacob climbs up.
“Yes?” He asks rudely.
“Why call me friend if you’re going to be rude?” Bella asks.
“You’re family to my family. I didn’t want to expose the bonds so I condensed our relationship.”
“So you don’t care about me at all?”
Comfort. His wolf howled.
“I do. You matter because you’re close to Alice. And I care about Embry’s mate’s happiness.”
“But you hate protecting me?”
“I killed a friend for you. Why do you think I hate you?”
“Because I’m human.”
Jacob inclines his head.
“I mean, you’re not wrong about that. This wouldn’t have happened if you were a vamp.”
“Or a wolf.”
“You would be a wolf?”
“I will be anything that lets me be immortal. I hate being human now.”
“Yeah, being around supers can do that.”
“You’ve felt that way?”
“Well, I was the youngest of this group to change but yeah with the last generation, while I was a kid, I felt so pathetic human.”
“Exactly.”
“So Edward won’t change you and you thought I would.”
“I knew you would.” She corrects.
“No. Not against their will.”
“Damn. What?” Bella asks.
“They seem the type to keep a grudge for centuries. I don’t want to be on their bad side.”
“I’ll convince you.”
“Sure.” Jacob laughs. “You keep believing that.”
----- ----- -----
Mid June
It was time for a wedding.
Alice of course planned such a beautiful wedding. It was at the fanciest restaurant in Seattle. Daffodils for new beginnings adored the hall.
Bella felt ridiculous in the heels Renee insisted on sending.
“I’m going to fall.”
“I’ll catch you.” Edward and Jacob say at the same time.
Edward glances at Jacob. They’re surprised by the comment.
Bella smiles. Jacob likes her.
“I can’t believe how many weddings we’re about to be overwhelmed by.” Jacob says.
“Well, Alice is the only one willing to be married as a junior.” Bella replies
“Yes. But Rosalie, Emmett, and Jasper are graduating this year.” Edward says.
“True. Leah is probably planning her proposal already.”
Jacob shrugs which tells them yes, but it’s a secret.
Alice walks down the aisle. The music starts. They turn to watch Embry walk to the music, his mom on one side and Leah on the other.
Since he was a werewolf, tradition was for the Alpha to give their pack away.
Emmett stands under the arch, ready to marry off his dear sister.
Alice and Embry hold hands. They repeat after Emmett and he soon announces them as Mr. and Mrs. Brandon Call.
----- ----- -----
September 2022
Summer passes uneventfully. Alice and Embry go to Sweden for the honeymoon. Rose and Leah work with the council. They are working on the unity between vampires and werewolves. Paul and Emmett are always wrestling or “wrestling”. It’s so bad Esme builds them a house. Jasper and Seth go on a road trip around northern America.
Bella is surprised to find herself liking Jacob as she gets closer to him. Jacob feels the tug of the wolf. Edward is jealous. They feel they can easily be replaced.
“I’ve seen the way you look at him.” Edward says.
“He’s hot. He knows it. Everyone knows it. But that doesn’t mean anything.”
“I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
“He does not look at me in any way different than he looks at you.”
“Considering Seth thinks Jacob has a crush on both of us, that’s not reassuring.”
“A crush on both of us? In spite of mating?”
“They’re wondering if Jacob doesn’t have a mate. I mean he met all wolves across the country and the entire high school and college kids in the area as well as the two covens that are local.”
“He could have someone in another part of the world.”
“Or he’s lying.”
“Lying about finding a mate?” Bella asks.
“Yes. He has had a shield up since I met him. There’s something he doesn’t want me to know.”
“How do you know it’s a shield?”
“He dropped it when he voted for you to become a vampire.”
“And that’s why you don’t like him.”
“I didn’t like him because he is xenophobic.”
“Werewolves are the peak of evolution.”
“Really, Bella? You’re going to accept that he looks down on you because you’re human.”
“He won’t look down on that for long.”
Edward sighs.
“My family isn’t allowed to bite a human. It was in the initial treaty with the tribe.”
“So I’ll get Jacob to bite me.”
“Is that why you befriended him?” Edward asks.
Bella looks down.
“So you don’t even like him. You’re using him.”
“No. I mean it started off that way. But he’s cool. And I owe him my life.”
“I owe him your life as well. But you should tell him the truth.”
“I will.”
“Right now works.”
There’s a knock on her front door.
Bella looks at Edward, wide eye.
“Hello, Jacob.” Charlie says.
“Jacob, Bella would like to tell you something.” Edward calls.
“What’s up, Bells?” He asks, giving her a hug.
“Well, you want me to be supernatural right?”
“Yes. It would be easier.”
“For who?”
“For everyone. Charlie doesn’t want to be supernatural but he owns a gun and knows self-defense. Not that, that’s going to help much in an immortal fight. But a supernatural would hopefully come before anything dangerous happens.” Jacob pauses. “Still your brilliant plan, Charlie?”
“Yup. I don’t need any bites.”
Jacob chuckles.
Edward and Bella are staring at him.
“What?” He asks.
“I think that is the longest I’ve heard you talk.” Edward says.
“And you have jokes with my dad.”
“Yeah. So?”
“So you’re not an asshole.” Bella says.
“Wait, you've been pretending to be friends with me, while thinking I was an asshole?”
“Well…” Bella trails off.
“It has to do with what she has to tell you.” Edward smiles. “Go ahead, Bella.”
“I was hoping that if we got close, you’d want to change me. So I wouldn’t die.”
“You’re still on that pipe dream? I said I wasn’t going to change you until Edward wanted it.”
“Of all the sexist bullshit. Can’t I make the decision for myself?”
Both open their mouths and close them. After a couple more times, she sighs.
“Rose won’t change me because of the baby issue. Carlisle doesn’t want to disagree with Edward. Esme doesn’t want to disagree with Carlisle. Jasper doesn’t think he’d be able to not feed. Alice is wedding watching as she sees more of you wolves.”
They nod along.
“Emmett will be my sire.” Bella claps. “Perfect.”
“So my opinion?” Edward asks.
“Doesn’t matter to me. I want this more than I want you. Deal, pretty one.”
Jacob laughs. Edward sulks.
