I own nothing. But I do thank Flamingo1325 for being my sweet heart.

"Izzie!" I cringed internally as a high pitched voice called a name I hated. I turned to see Morgan walking down the hall towards me. I yawned involuntary.

"Hey Morgan, what's up?" I sighed deeply. Something was always up with this girl.

"Some of us are going out tonight." They were always going out, and in San Francisco there are many places to go.

I cut her off before she could finish. "Sorry, I can't. I have a massive test on Monday, and I really need to study right now."

It wasn't a complete lie; I really did have a big test Monday, but being Friday night, I really didn't need to study all weekend long. Honestly, it was just that I wanted to sleep. Lately I have been so tired, and when even just my normal day of classes and work wears me out, how do you think a night out would work for me? Going out partying for the night left me dead the next day, usually for the entire day, and sometimes even into part of the day after. So I put off the avoidable and decided to just say no.

"Aw but Izzie, we are going out to Cat Club. Come on, you need to put away the books and party. It's almost summer and soon you'll go home to Spoons or Knives or where ever it is you live."

"It's Forks, Morgan. And really I need to study- I am already in danger of failing this class, so go have fun and dance and meet lots of hot guys for me. See you later." I started walking towards my dorm room, not wanting to keep the conversation going.

I was expecting a call soon from at least one of 3 people anyway. My dad, Jake or Embry. At least one of them called, every day, at the exact same time.

They hadn't been so keen to the idea of me going to school in California. Especially after the Cullen's had left, and said they too would be in California. But I knew the truth; they were no where near California, making this the first place I wanted to go. Although who ever said it was always sunny here, lied. Living in the Bay wasn't as bad as Forks, but it certainly had its moments. I yawned again and opened the door to my room. As if on cue my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID, a smile coming to my face as I saw that it was Embry this time.

"Hello"

"Hey Bella." He sounded a little off.

"Hi Embry. What's up? You sound kinda panicked," I said, that same smile still on my face as I realized that just from a 'hey' I could tell if something was wrong with him.

"Yea well, uh…um…Reilly just went into labor, and well Jake's freaking me out. He's like all over the place. It's just not right. And Sam and your dad are trying to calm him down. And really, I just had to get away from it all and hear your voice." I blushed. He was so cute, and I knew he was blushing too.

"That's great. How long ago did she go into labor? You could have called me sooner. I guess this means I'll be up next weekend. You will be around wont you?"

"Um I think she went into labor 3 or 6 hours ago, but I can't remember anymore. And yea I'll be around next weekend. I really can't wait to see you. You don't come home enough. We all miss you….I miss you."

"Yea, I miss you too." I heard a loud crash in the back ground and who I'm pretty sure was Jake yelling, seeming to grow even more irate.

"I have to go now Bella. Jake, just took out the waiting room door."

"Alright well have fun explaining that one."

"Yea, right- fun, sure. I'll talk to you later Bella. I can't wait to see you next weekend. Love you."

"Yea you too Embry." I hung up the phone. A while after the Cullens had left, I started hanging out with Jake. I met Embry and Quil, and then I found out about werewolves. I also found out about imprinting, when Jake had imprinted on a girl named Reilly. She was a year below me, and when Jake had come to pick me up one day at school he bumped into her, and well, the next thing I knew they were dating and planning a wedding and having a baby. It all happened within 2 years. Total foolishness if you ask me.

Quil had imprinted on a 2 year old, named Claire. It furthered my belief in how foolish it was, but I had to admit, the boy was kind of cute. He was just patiently waiting, biding his time, until she was older. Right now, he was a fantastic big brother and father figure for her.

Embry and I had gotten, close, to say the least. And that really was the least. Its not that I love him, per say; I don't know that I can ever love anyone again. It's just that he's so damn hot. And a good kisser, and incredibly tender and loving, and when he touches my body I get all hot and…lets just say it's a good thing I'm going home next weekend.

The next few days passed with out anything major happening. I passed my test, just barely, but I passed it. I was sleeping a lot more than it really seemed like I should, but I let it slide. I figured it was just because of all the stress from the semester catching up with me. I also found a few extra bruises, and while that was pretty much normal for me, it was the places I was finding them that I found odd. They were in numerous places I didn't even know I had hit; at least, not hard enough for the bruises to show this much.

"Bella are you going home this weekend?" Jeremy was asking as we walked to lunch. He was a guy from Sacramento that had moved here to go to school. A sweet guy for sure, but not my type. It's not like he was a mythical creature or anything.

"Yea, my best friend and his wife just had their baby. So I'm going to go see them." I smiled to myself thinking of the baby. I couldn't wait to hold him. They had named him Zachary after her great grandfather.

"That's cool; you want company for the drive up?"

I yawned.

"No not really, sorry, but when I get there I'll be so busy getting caught up with the pack I wont have time to even think."

I didn't enjoy his company enough to warrant that long of a drive together. Plus, if I brought a boy home with me, I would have to face Charlie. That was a prospect that did not sound appealing at all. I would also miss my bed time with Embry if I brought Jason home, which was something I wasn't entirely willing to sacrifice this trip. We walked over to the counter to order our food.

"The pack?" He ordered his food while I was trying to find something, anything that sounded good. Not much really did, so I ordered a chicken salad.

"I'm sorry what?" I looked over at him.

"You called them a pack, like wolves or something?"

I laughed to myself; something like that, I mused.

"Um, no sorry, it's a pack of guys. Like my brothers and their wives. I go home once a month to see them all. If not they worry, you know- me being in California and all."

It was true, they hated that I came here. It was more than just the distance and the assumed proximity to the Cullens; they weren't ready, even now, to accept that I was growing up and becoming more independent than I already had been.

We sat down at a table and I watched as Jason started to eat. I took a bite of the chicken, but it just didn't taste right, instantly turning me off from the entire meal. It seemed as if it was blander then even plain rice, which was something I noticed was happening with increasing frequency, much to my dismay.

"Oh, I see. Hey are you gunna eat that?" He pointed to my chicken.

"No, I'm not. It just doesn't look so good. I'll grab something else on my way home." I wasn't sure what, but hopefully it would be better than this; things really just didn't taste the same these days.

He reached over and grabbed the chicken off my salad and started to eat it. I shuddered a little- watching a pack of werewolves was nothing compared to this. Food was flying from his mouth and falling on the table as he talked with his mouth open. At least the pack was civil.

"Hey Jason, sorry but I have to go. I'm leaving early in the morning. I want to be there all weekend so I'm skipping my Thursday and Friday classes. I need to go home and pack and get some sleep." I yawned again and got up to leave.

"You sure do sleep a lot Bella. But yea, I'll see you later."

"Yeah, well, it's a long drive. Later."

I walked back to my dorm and decided to take a nap before I started to pack for my trip home. It was, after all, a very long drive. Besides that, I would likely forget to pack important things if I tried to do it right now; my body was becoming increasingly fatigued and exhausted.

I collapsed onto my bed, feeling the instant relief I knew was coming as I let my body relax. My right knee had been hurting the last few days, and it seemed to be stiffer than normal. Sometimes, it would just start hurting for no real reason, but I chalked it up to the weather. It didn't happen too often, however; maybe once a day, two at most. I ignored it, knowing it would go away. It didn't really even bother me, as it started to ache slightly as I fell asleep.

When I woke up again, it was just barely 2 in the morning. I decided now was as good a time as any to pack up and head out. Plus, I would get to Forks by a decent hour in the evening if I left soon. By 3 in the morning, I was on the road with coffee in hand. I decided to only stop when I needed gas, and that wasn't too often in my new Audi A6.

I had decided that my truck just didn't work in the city, and with the job I was now working, I could afford it. And honestly, when I saw it, I just couldn't resist, but really who could? Plus, the trip home was a lot easier with the cruise control, and with the ability to go over 55-60 mph. Police chief for a father or not, sometimes you just need to go over the speed limit.

By the time I got to Forks, it was already around 6 at night. Sleep was something I deeply wanted at this point, but I knew it wouldn't happen right away. I pulled up to Charlie's house to see his cruiser missing. I decided to drop my stuff off up in my room before calling Jake and Reilly.

On my way back down stairs I noticed a note on the inside of the door. I grabbed it off and read it.

Bells- I went over to Billy's, we are watching the game and having dinner over here. Jake and Reilly will be there to. You should come over. – Dad

Well that explained a lot. I grabbed my keys and walked out the door, locking it behind me. I got in my car and speed off to La Push. I couldn't help but wonder if Embry would be there, which made me drive a little faster. Not that it matters; it's not like we were dating or anything. It was easier this way, and it let me stay away for longer periods of times. Plus, really, at any time, he could imprint on some random girl, and where would that leave me? Besides that, I decided long ago that I would never love anyone again. It only led to my ruin. No matter how much I loved mythical men, it just didn't seem to work out so well in the end for me.

I pulled up to Billy's house and noticed more then just the cruiser. I sighed, knowing that the whole pack would be there. I wasn't entirely up for mass entertaining, but knew I didn't have much choice. I walked into the house to see the guys all in the living room, the girls in the kitchen, and the older kids in the back yard playing. I smiled. It felt so warm here- just walking into the room you could feel the love.

"Hey Bella, how was the drive? Charlie Bella is here." Emily yelled into the living room, a huge smile on her face.

"Hey Emily, Reilly, ladies, how is everyone tonight?" I walked into the kitchen with the girls.

"Good as always. It's the same as it was 4 weeks ago. Well with one new exception." Emily looked at the baby when she said this.

I walked over to Reilly and the baby and leaned down to kiss the baby's cheek. "He's so little."

"But he'll have a wolf's strength one day." Jake's voice came proudly from behind me. I turned to see him and Embry with his ever so goofy smile, which was, I'm sure, contagious and I couldn't help but smile at them. Jake gave me a quick hug and walked over to stand beside Reilly and the baby while Embry pulled me into a tight bear hug.

His arms around me were like fire, more so than normal, and it was then I realized how cold I had been. He kissed my cheek and put me down, but as he looked me over I saw his smile falter. Soon, it became a confused look, though it didn't last long and went back to a smile. I was sure he noticed my weight loss, but was relieved that he didn't press the matter.

I was trying to eat; really, I was. But things didn't taste right, and it would ruin any appetite I did have. I noticed my pants fitting looser about two weeks ago, and it has just gotten worse since then. Now, even my bras seemed to not fit quite the same, and I was sure my ribs didn't always show this noticeably.

"We can't pull your dad way from the game, so if you want to see him, you'll have to go in there." I looked towards the crowded little living room and smiled. As fun as it sounded, I would have to pass.

"It's ok, I'll see him later. How have you been?"

"Good, how about you? You look…thin and pale…paler than normal. Have you been eating right? Going out in the sun? Anything?" I yawned again and tried to smile.

"Yea, I'm fine. It's just been hard this past week with finials and all, you know? I had a killer test Monday that wiped me out. I'm just recovering is all."

"Ah I see. Well yea, I can see where that would take its toll on you. Well, are you hungry? I think the girls saved you some food before we got to it." He smiled that wonderful goofy smile again that in turn caused me to smile. I really did want to eat I just wasn't sure if food would want me to eat it even though my stomach had been growling a little towards the end of the drive.

"Sure why not? I have been driving for hours with only coffee and some fast food. Real food would be great." I sat down as he went to get the food the girls had put away from me.

When he set the food down in front of me, it just didn't look so good any more. I went to take a bite but it really didn't taste nearly as good as I had remembered. I tried not to let my sigh be noticed, but out of the corner of my eye I saw Embry watching me. I smiled at him and forced a few more bites down, not wanting to draw any attention. I hadn't even considered how easily he might take notice of the changes in me; he has seen me more than anyone else and likely would be able to easily tell any differences, however slight.

"Bella how long are you home for this time? School is getting close to being out, right?" Emily asked as I pushed the food around my plate.

"Only until Sunday. I have 1 week left for classes and then after that I have a week of work, but then I'll be home for at least a month and a half."

As we talked my dad came into the kitchen along with Sam, as some of the other people in the kitchen went out side to talk.

"Well that's good. I can't wait to have you home for the summer. But I'm sure I'm not the only one." She flashed a smile at Embry who looked away with a hint of blush in his cheeks.

"Me too, I love being able to come home. But I really love San Francisco. I wish you guys would come see me there some time. Hey Charlie." I smiled at my father.

"Hey Bells how you doing? Long drive I bet." Charlie walked up behind me and patted my shoulder.

"Yea it was. I'm pretty tired, actually. I think I may go home soon and sleep." I noticed him look at the clock- it was only 7. But, I had been up since 2 A.M.

"Bella, why don't I take you?" Embry offered with a smile and a slight blush from the other side of the room.

I accepted gladly, "Sure sounds good. I'll even let you drive." I joked with him as I stood up, now very anxious and excited to get home.

Suddenly, I felt my head go fuzzy and the room started spinning. The last thing I remember as the nausea overtook me was hearing a room full of people call my name, and then darkness.