Author's Note: This is my first fanfiction. I do not own any of the Twilight characters. Reviews are greatly appreciated. :)


JPOV

"Uncle Jake, can I ask you something?" Claire sat in the passenger seat of the truck, staring out of the window as we made our way to the Res.

"Sure," I replied, "fire away." Claire was now eighteen and starting her senior year of high school. Technically, she was Emily's niece and more distantly related to me, but I'd known her since she was just a baby, and she'd always called me Uncle Jake.

"You imprinted on Aunt Nessie when she was a baby, right?" I was struck with surprise by her question but managed not to show it.

I nodded. "Yes," I said, "why?" She shrugged and looked away.

"I just-" she paused. "Just curious." Claire looked deep in thought and fell silent.

"Are you sure?" I asked. "You know you can tell me anything." She nodded.

"It's nothing, Uncle Jake. Like I said: just curious." We both fell silent again, and I waited for her to crack. Finally, about a mile down the road, she did.

She sighed. "Fine. I was wondering if that's happened to anyone else in the pack." Something major was going on here. I pulled over and looked at her.

"Claire, where are you going with this? What's really going on here?" I looked at her with concern. "And don't say 'nothing'. We both know that isn't true." She looked down for a second, silent.

"Uncle Jake, you're the pack leader, so you would know if anyone imprinted, right? Well, last week when we had the bonfire, and we were listening to the legends, it got me thinking." She paused and drew in a deep breath. "Everyone always says how Quil used to be such a player, but I haven't ever seen him even so much as flirt with any woman. And then I thought how he's always been there for me, like you were always there for Aunt Nessie…and I was thinking- hoping - that maybe the case was the same for me." Claire looked away in embarrassment, staring out the window at nothing.

I sat there, nodding and processing all that she'd said. "You're right, Claire. I would know if he did, but I can't tell you."

She looked up, searching me for answers, and nodded. "I thought that'd be the case. Okay, Uncle Jake, I understand." I smiled at her, leaning over to rough her hair. I put the car back into drive and pulled back onto the road.

"It'll all work out, Claire-bear," I reassured her. "Just give him time. Sometimes we men are a little slow to catch on." At this, she laughed.

"I know it will," she answered. "I believe you. Thanks for listening, Uncle Jake."

"Always."


CPOV

After my chat with Uncle Jacob, I felt better, like a weight had been lifted off my chest. Someone knew. I desperately wanted to know whether Quil had imprinted on me when I was young or not, but I also felt that I owed him the respect to tell me himself. Still, the anxiety deafened me. What if I was wrong? What if there was someone else?

Over the past year, my feelings for Quil had started to change. At first, I began to notice him more. I began to appreciate the way his muscular body pulled at parts of his shirt, the way he talked with his deep, soothing voice, and the way he smiled with such an impish grin. As time went on, I started to feel more shy around him and more painfully aware of my own appearance. And yet, he remained the ever-loyal best friend I'd always had.

We arrived at Aunt Emily's house, and Joey ran out to greet us.

"Cwaaaaiiiiiirrrreeee!" The toddler jumped in my arms, hugging me.

"Hey, kiddo!" I laughed. Joe looked at me funnily.

"Siwwy Cwaire! I no kiddo! I Joe!" He pointed to himself defiantly, and I couldn't help but laugh. I looked at Uncle Jake as he passed us and saw that he was laughing too.

"So, what's up, Joey? How's my guy?" He smiled widely.

"I can count to five now!" he exclaimed. "See? One, two, free, four, five!" He held up this hand to demonstrate.

"Wow! You're so smart!" He beamed with pride as we walked toward the house.

"Unca Qwil says you smart too," Joey stated. I laughed.

"What else does Uncle Quil say?" I asked with slight amusement. Joey tapped a finger on his chin as he thought.

"He said you pretty!" Joey replied. I coughed in surprise.

"Really?" The toddler nodded.

"I think so too!" he said matter-of-factly. I smiled.

"Thanks, Joey." I gave him a kiss on the forehead as we entered the living room. The house was full of pack members, standing and sitting in circles talking. I spotted Quil and smiled. He broke away from the group and approached me, his hair slightly tousled (undoubtedly from running patrols earlier.)

Joey squirmed and I let him down. He ran off to find his mom, leaving Quil and I alone.

"Hey," he said, wrapping me in a tight hug. "How are you? How was your day?" My stomach fluttered at his touch, and I tried to keep from blushing.

"Good. Everyone was all excited at school today. You know, first day back, new lockers, seeing friends again." I shrugged. I didn't mention my talk with Uncle Jake. "How about you?"

"Oh, you know, just running patrols, protecting everyone for the greater good," he replied nonchalantly. I laughed and gave him a shove.

"Claire!" a voice behind me boomed, and I turned around to come face to face with a large chest. I looked up to find it belonged to Embry as he wrapped me in a bear hug.

"Hey, Em," I replied, coughing. "You're kinda squishing me." He loosened his grip, holding me at arm's length.

"Look at you, Miss Claire Young!" He wolf whistled. "When did you become such a beaut?" I snorted, smacking his arm.

"Quit it!" I laughed. "You saw me yesterday, goof!" He exchanged looks with Quil.

"Doesn't mean you're not pretty," he sang, slipping away. I shook my head. Embry. What were we going to do with him?

Embry was Quil and Uncle Jake's best friend, and since I spent so much time with Quil growing up, Embry became like my older brother. Annoying and terribly loud, I couldn't help but love the guy. Of course, there were times I just as easily wanted to kill him too. Like I said, siblings.

For a second, Quil had an unreadable expression on his face. When he saw that I was looking, he quickly smiled once again.

"C'mon," he said, "dinner is ready."