"I hate you!" Reneesme yelled before stomping to her room, and slamming the door so hard it almost blew off its hinges. Bella let out a deep sigh.
"I'm losing her, Edward." He gave a short laugh, and she glared at him.
"She loves you more than you think," he said softly in her ear.
"Yeah. I just wish she'd show it more often. She was such a sweetie when she hadn't hit puberty. Those were the days," she sighed. Edward chuckled.
"Yeah, literally days." Bella shook her head with a small smile on her face. "Oh, c'mon Bella. It wasn't that long ago that you were her age."
"I can't believe she's already fifteen."
"Time flies." She glared at him again. "Sorry. I think maybe you need to relax." Bella sighed and agreed. They entered their bedroom and shut the door tight.
Reneesme heard the soft tink-tinks at her bedroom window. She moved off her bed, and saw Jacob standing there. He grinned when he saw her.
"Jacob!" she exclaimed.
"Hey! Can you come out now?"
"Hell yeah. My parents are too…preoccupied at the moment to notice me gone."
"…ew."
"Yeah, I know." She unlatched the window, and jumped out. Linking fingers with Jacob, she pecked him on the cheek. "My hero," she said. They started making their way out of the forest and onto the road.
"Wanna catch a movie at Port Angeles or something?"
"Nah. Why don't we just go down to the beach?"
"Sure, sure."
They sat down on the sand together, watching the rolling waves. Reneesme hugged one of Jacob's arms, resting her head on his shoulder. It was peaceful there. It was a place where she could be herself and not get yelled at for doing so. It was her place, just as her father had one of his own that only he and Bella knew about.
"Jake?" she asked tentatively. "You loved my mom once right?"
"Ummm…where's this coming from?"
"I just want to know…why you loved her."
"To be honest, there was something like a fire burning inside her, something that just attracted people. She was sweet and kind, a little oblivious to things right in front of her though, very self conscious. Somehow whenever she was around peril was lurking behind the next corner. I don't know. I guess I just knew when I saw her.
"You know, the two of you aren't that different. That may or may not be the right thing to say, but it's true. And I think it also might be why Bella gets so frustrated. Because you're so alike and so different at the same time she doesn't know how to handle situations.
"You know, I didn't settle for you. I chose you. I knew you were the one. Believe me, if you hadn't come around I'd have died in a fight against Edward over Bella."
"Huh," she breathed. "But what if I want to stay mad at her?" Jacob chuckled.
"I don't think that's possible. You can't stay mad at her forever. She's your mother. I bet you love her right now more than you think."
"Hmph. I think that's impossible." Jacob twisted around, and kissed her softly on the lips. "Don't be too sure." He turned back, and continued to just watch the waves, with Reneesme sitting quietly beside him.