*Disclaimer* I do not own anything by Stephenie Meyer, even though I wish I did!!!
1-13-10
"Renesmee?" Jacob called, walking through the door. He smiled when he saw me.
"Hi," I said, grinning. Suddenly my parents were behind me. My dad put his cold hand on my shoulder.
"Jacob," my mom said, walking towards him.
"Bella," He replied, winking at me. I wasn't paying attention; I was lost in my own memories, three winters ago, to be exact. When we had to go meet the Voultri. That was when I was small and my mom's eyes were still red. Aro had held his hand out to me. That papery skin… I shivered. Also, when I was held close to my dad, almost having to run away with Jacob.
My dad squeezed my shoulder. I looked at him. He was staring at me, his eyebrows pushed together.
I held my palm to his freezing cheek. Even though he could read my mind, I still like to be comforted by his cold skin. I showed him his face when he looked at my mom. The dead look in his eyes still made me shudder. He had looked as if he was going to cry. If vampires could cry.
He looked at me and rolled his eyes.
"Don't remind me." He said. I dropped my hand and turned to see my mom and Jacob staring at us. They were used to our silent exchanges.
"What did we miss?" My mom asked, walking over to hold my dad's hand. He took it and kissed her cheek. I looked away. Why did they have to do that in front of me? My dad laughed. Jacob and my mom looked at him. He just shook his head and my parents glided out of the room.
I looked at Jacob again. He looked back at me, with questions in his eyes.
"Voultri." I explained as he sat on the couch. I walked over and sat on his lap.
"Still have nightmares about touching Aro's skin?" He asked, playing with a lock of my hair. I bit him on the shoulder playfully. I was used to him listening in on my dreams. As I was with him without a shirt. My grandparents, Carlisle and Esme offered him some money to buy clothes, but he refused. It was "more convenient" Jacob had said.
"Hey, I thought you were out of that habit!" He exclaimed, pinching my lips so I couldn't bite him, I folded my arms over my chest.
"Maybe not," I mumbled between his fingers.
"What?" He asked, taking his fingers off my mouth.
As soon as he did that, I started shrieking, "Mom, dad, Jacob pinched me!" I ran out of the room, dashing out the door. I didn't check to see if Jacob was following as I raced to the cottage.
As I burst through the door, I slowed down and listened for Jacob. Sure enough, I could hear him on all fours. I jogged down to my parents' room and listened at the door. I heard nothing, so I walked in. Big mistake.
"AAAAAAH!!!" I screamed. I heard Jacob speed up. I couldn't take my eyes off my parents curled up under the sheets and the shredded fabric that used to be their clothes.
My parents looked up and stared at me in shock. That was about when Jacob showed up.
"Whoa. I'll be out here…" He said, jogging into the living room. I was still staring at my parents.
"Ummm… Renesmee… can you please grab some clothes for us?" My dad asked, sitting up. When I didn't move, he clenched his teeth.
"Renesmee. Please. Go. Now." He spoke through his teeth. I still couldn't move.
"Renesmee, if you don't go NOW, the consequence will NOT be – " my mom cut him off.
"Renesmee." She said, full authority. I skittered off into the closet. I grabbed a pair of jeans and a cotton t-shirt for my mom and some khaki's and a polo for my dad. I threw them out and shut the double doors.
"Call me when you're done," I muttered, sitting in the middle of the floor with my back to the doors. I started counting the floorboards to help pass the time.
I screamed when a cold hand touched my shoulder. Another hand clamped down on my mouth. Jacob was there immediately.
"What's wrong Edward?" Jacob asked. I exhaled in relief. It was only my dad.
"Nothing… at least I don't think so. Everything okay, Nessie?" My dad asked. I blushed. I had grown out of that nickname a long time ago.
"Fine dad. I didn't hear you come in. You just startled me."
* * * * * * *
"Since when do you like being called 'Nessie'?" Jacob asked, snickering.
"I don't." I replied, getting up and walking out. I followed Jacob back to Esme and Carlisle's house. Everyone was back from the hunting trip.
"Hi Renesmee." Alice said, dancing towards me. She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek."
"Hi Alice," I replied. "Where are mom and dad?"
"They went out hunting," Rosalie said. Emmett started laughing.
"Yeah for each other…" He said between laughter. I stared at him. Alice silenced him with a dark look.
"Hi Esme, hi Carlisle."
"Hello Renesmee." Esme said, squeezing me in a tight hug. It was a good thing I didn't need to breathe.
"Hey," Carlisle said casually. I smiled and looked at Jasper.
"Hi," I said, stepping towards him.
"Hello." He replied , moving towards Alice. I was used to that. My dad was too cautious.
"You know you don't have to listen to him." I said, walking up to him. I could tell he wasn't breathing. I turned towards Alice.
"A little help?"
"Sure," she said, jumping on Jasper's foot.
"OW!" He screeched, hopping up and down.
"Do I really smell like food?" I asked, grinning. He stopped jumping.
"Actually… No. Thank you Alice. Even though it hurt…" He replied. Rosalie didn't move. She wasn't happy about my friendship with Jacob.
I could hear my parents then. We walked outside to greet them.
"Hi!" I burst out as soon as I saw them. They smiled and ran towards us.
"My turn," I exclaimed. "Jacob! Time to go!" He bounded out and knelt down.
"On your mark, get set… GO!" Esme called out. I shot off. As soon as Jacob and I were out of sight, I heard Jacob phase. He started to pass me. I suddenly stopped. Blood was in the air. I let my senses take over.
I slid into a crouch. Jacob was nowhere to be seen. I closed my eyes and sniffed. It was an elk to the northeast. My eyes snapped open and I started running towards the smell.
When I reached a clearing, there was the elk. I crouched to spring, then I launched myself into the clearing. I hadn't seen Jacob until I smashed into him.
I sat up, dazed. I realized my eyes were closed and opened them. Jacob's human face was only inches away from mine.
"Oh!" I exclaimed.
"Are you okay?" Jacob asked, his warm breath fanning across my face. It smelled like the woods.
"Yeah." I breathed. He seemed to be deliberating something.
"Can I do something?" He asked finally.
"Sure." I replied. That was all he needed, His lips were suddenly pressed against mine. It only lasted for a few seconds, and when he pulled away, I fell into him. Luckily, he was wearing pants. He started laughing and sat me upright. I stared at him.
"Why are you laughing at me?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.
"Oh, nothing." He said, still chuckling.
"Then stop!" I snapped. Abruptly, he shut his mouth. "Can we hunt now?"
"Sure, sure." He replied, standing up and pulling me with him.
Eventually, Jacob found another elk and I brought down a mountain lion. When we came home, I tried not to think about the kiss. That would really set my dad off.
* * * * * * *
"Hi," my mom greeted us. She was practicing being human with Rosalie and Esme.
"Where's dad?" I asked.
"At the cottage," my mom replied, crossing her legs and blinking a couple of times. Rosalie flipped her hair behind her shoulder.
"Oh."
"Why?" My mom asked. She looked concerned. I just shrugged. I walked out of the room while Jacob went to find Emmett. Guy stuff I guessed.
As I ran to the cottage, I thought about taking a nap. As a half-vampire/human, I could stay awake as long as I wanted, but today I felt unusually tired. I usually stayed up with my parents, watching my dad play chess with Alice (it took all night).
"Dad?" I called as I walked through the door. He was standing with his back to me, watching the flames flicker in the fireplace. He turned around and smiled at me. His eyes were still a bit distant, as though I had pulled him from some train of thought.
"Do you need something?" He asked.
"Nah, I think I'm going to take a nap." I said, going to my room and lying down on my bed. As I stared at my ceiling, I wondered what my dad could possibly be thinking about. Were the Voultri coming back? Did Jacob's pack get separated? These both seemed unlikely; since someone would have told me.
As I thought, something struck me. What if he was worried about my relationship with Jake? I was 17, turning 18. Oh no. I hopped out of bed and raced past my dad, not knowing where I was headed. I could hear him following, so I ran faster, only to hear him speed up too.
Finally, I stopped and crashed to the ground when my dad ran in to me. The collision hurt my ears.
"What's wrong?" He asked, pulling me off the ground. I rolled my eyes. As if he didn't already know. I fiddled with the bracelet Jacob had given me for Christmas.
"What were you thinking about by the fire?" I asked, keeping my eyes down. I jumped when he started laughing. He saw the question in my eyes… and my mind.
"You remind me of your mother. She used to ask questions like that. She was so timid." He said, chuckling to himself.
"Your point is?" I asked, sitting down on a nearby tree stump. His face turned serious as he sank down next to me.
"It's about time you learned about your mother's history." He said, his eyes slightly unfocused.
"Well, it all began when we first met. We had Biology together. I used to think she was sent from hel – the devil.
"From the first time she walked through those doors, I hated her. She smelled… like you wouldn't believe. In that one hour we had class together, I thought of," his voice had dropped to a whisper. "So many ways to… kill her.
"But I resisted. As soon as class was over, I went straight to the receptionist. I tried to change my schedule. But when she walked in that warm little room, I knew I had to leave.
"I went to Carlisle and borrowed his Mercedes. I drove to Denali to visit Tanya and Kate. I had to stay there for a few days.
"When I came back, I was able to talk to Bella. I started to like her more than I should've. She didn't know what I was, but she knew I wasn't human.
"She eventually found out what I was and she met my family. We've had our share of bad experiences together and decided it was enough.
"We got married… and now she's a vampire." His eyes focused and he looked at me. I realized my mouth was hanging open and closed it.
"Wow dad." I walked over to sit by him. I leaned against his shoulder. He rubbed my back. It was quiet for a long time, I had forgotten about reality for a while.
"So, what did you need?" My dad asked.
"Well… the fireplace… what was that all about?" I wondered quietly. He heard, of course.
"I was thinking about… well, you and Jacob." He admitted in a whisper.
"Oh. Well, I wanted to tell you about that." I said lifting my head off his shoulder. My cheeks burned, I kept my eyes down. He waited, but the words wouldn't come. Finally, I lifted my palm to his cheek. His eyes were unfocused as I showed him Jacob kissing me. I let my hand drop. He glared at me with a furious expression.
"He… WHAT?" My dad growled. I shrank back as my dad stood up.
"Umm… dad?" I whispered. He looked at me, his expression black. He snarled and bared his teeth, then ran for the house.
"DAD!" I screamed. He didn't slow.
"Jake, RUN!" I screeched, sprinting towards the house. When I got there, my dad had Jacob cornered with a black eye.
"Mom," I said, not slowing as I ran to her side. She looked panicked.
"What did you do?" She asked.
I showed him Jacob kissing me – " I broke off when my dad hissed harshly. I watched in horror as my dad's fist slammed in to Jacob's nose. Blood gushed. That was when I threw myself in front of Jacob.
"Get out of the way Renesmee. Now." My dad said through bared teeth.
"Renesmee… please," my mom and Jacob pleaded. I growled at my dad. I felt bad, but I couldn't let him hurt Jacob. He hissed, I snarled and bared my teeth.
I lunged at my dad, forcing him to fall on his back, while I sat on top of him. For a moment, he growled from the pit of his stomach.
"Dad, please stop." I pleaded. His expression loosened a bit.
"Please," I said again quietly. He relaxed and fell limp under my body. "Thank you."
"Can I get up now?" He asked. I got up cautiously, eyeing him warily. He stood up, brushing himself off.
"I'm sorry Renesmee," he said. Then he glared at Jacob. "I guess I'm okay with you dating my daughter. But if I hear any bad news from her, you'll be in a wheel chair, dog." I exhaled loudly. My mom looked at me.
"I think we need to talk," She said, walking up the stairs. I followed her in to my dad's room, which was now Jacob's. Rosalie wasn't happy about Jake moving in. My mom sat on the bed.
"What do you need, mom?" I asked. She played with her wedding ring.
"Jacob kissed you," I nodded. She looked at me.
"Will you show me?" She whispered. I held my palm to her cheek, embarrassed.
"Oh," she said when I was done. We walked downstairs where my dad was explaining to everyone why Jake had a black eye and a bloody nose.
When I came downstairs, everyone stared at me except for Alice. I looked at Jacob. He had dried blood on his chest and his eye was purple. I went over to sit by him. His face showed no sign of a bloody nose. He leaned over and whispered in my ear. Luckily, everyone seemed to be involved in the story my dad was telling.
"Will you help me wash this blood off?" I nodded. Silently, we walked to the bathroom, He shut the door and grabbed a washcloth. When he turned around, he tripped over the toilet and fell in to the bathtub. The washcloth went flying and landed in my face, I couldn't see anything. Then I fell in to the bathtub on top of Jake.
I took the washcloth off my face and the first things I saw were Jake's eyes.
"Oh!" I exclaimed, but made no move to get off of him. He stared at me, and I smiled sheepishly.
"Umm…" I felt a little awkward. But when I tried to move, Jacob's arms made a cage around me.
"Jacob," I said.
"Yes?" He replied. I didn't answer him. I don't know what came over me. My lips were pressed against his. I could hear his jagged breathing in a rhythm with mine. I pressed myself closer to him, twisting my fingers in his hair. His mouth forced mine open, blowing his woodsy breath in to it. We were locked together.
I wasn't sure if I could stop. I liked it. I forgot about my dad reading my mind, I forgot about everything. It was just Jake and me. His warm chest felt strangely good under me.
The kiss ended all too soon. Jake pulled away only to pull my lips to his. Once. Twice. I opened my eyes and untangled my fingers from his hair. I traced his face as he held his palm to mine.
I suddenly remembered we were in a cold bathtub and sat up. I grabbed the washcloth and scrubbed Jake's chest clean. The purple was already fading from his eye as I pulled him out of the tub.
"That was unexpected." Jake said. I blushed crimson.
"I'm sorry. I don't know what happened." I replied, hanging my head. When he didn't say anything, I looked up. He smiled.
"The others will be suspicious if we don't go." He stated. I nodded and opened the door. We walked out and only my parents and Alice were there. O f course Alice knew what had happened, and my dad would've told my mom. I strode past tem and out the door.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jake shrug. I kept walking. I went to find Emmett and Jasper.
I found them in the garage, playing video games. I sighed and went to practice the piano. I was better than Rosalie and almost as good as my dad. I started playing Esme's favorite.
When I was done, I sighed again and looked at Jake. He was staring at the complicated composition on the music stand. I rubbed his arm.
* * * * * * *
We walked out the door, to the cottage. When we got there, I told Jake I was going to take a nap.
As I lay there, staring at Jake sleeping peacefully next to me, I thought about how deep our relationship had gone. I also thought about my parents. Married at 18, a kid at (almost) 19. Why did they care about Jake and me? At least, why did my dad care?
I finally fell asleep. I dreamed about the dark green forest we lived in. I dreamt Jacob's pack had been trotting along when the Voultri popped in to my dream.
I woke up, startled. I sat up, remembering I had my last day of high school. I had overslept, and I rushed to get to school. I took my dad's Volvo, going nearly 100 miles per hour.
When I got to school, a boy named Simon Blakes walked up to me.
"Hey Renesmee," he said, falling in to step with me. "Where've you been? You haven't been in school."
"I was out of town." I lied casually, sloshing through the rain. Luckily, my other friends, Jenna and Brad ran up to us.
"Hey Renesmee!" They coursed.
"Hi," I said, smiling. Jenna was staring at me.
"So, are you excited for graduation?" She asked.
I shrugged, "I guess." The bell rang and we rushed inside.
Over the P.A. system, the principal announced for us to go to the gym. As we walked, I wondered if my parents were here.
When my name was called, I shook our principal's hand and took my diploma. I smiled in to the audience and spotted my parents immediately. They were standing with Jake.
* * * * * * *
When I walked through the doors of my grandparents' house, there was a loud course of "congrats" from my aunts, uncles, and grandparents.
"Thanks!" I said, and I meant it.
"Guess how we're celebrating," Alice asked, skipping forward.
"How?" I questioned.
"A girls-only hunting trip!" She exclaimed. I grinned.
"No guys?" I clarified.
"None!" She said happily. Esme drifted forward.
"Where do you want to go?" She asked, putting a hand on Alice's bouncing shoulder.
"Umm… Can we go in to Canada?" I questioned.
"Sure," my mom replied. Rosalie went to stand by my mom. The men left the room.
"Do you want to leave now?" Rosalie asked. I nodded.
"Let's go!" Alice trilled, darting out the door. I was right behind her. I could feel Rosalie behind me, followed by my mom and Esme.
* * * * * * *
As soon as we were out of the U.S., I let my instincts take over. Sliding in to a crouch, I ran along not knowing where the others were.
I came to a clearing where an elk stood. A wave of déjà vu hit me as I lunged to take it down.
Eventually, I brought down a large buck, then I met up with the others outside of Forks.
"What'd you get?" I asked, slowing to a walk.
"Buck," Alice replied.
"Elk," my mom and Rosalie said together.
"Mountain lion," Esme replied, biting her lip. "What did you get?"
"One elk and a buck." I said, breaking in to a run again.
* * * * * * *
Once we reached home, I bounced through the door. My dad, uncles, and Carlisle were sitting on the couch, watching a game. I heard Jake in the kitchen, and something was burning.
"Jacob," I muttered under my breath and sprinted for the kitchen.
When I walked in, the smell that greeted me was worse. On the stove, there was a pot of boiling water. Jake was pouring raw spaghetti noodles in to the pot.
"Jacob," I moaned. "What did you do?"
He gestured to the mound of undercooked and burned spaghetti noodles in the sink. I rushed over and pushed him out of the way. I grabbed a wooden spoon and started stirring.
"Next time, leave the cooking to my dad." I grumbled, shaking my head. From the other room, my dad started laughing.
"Why did you let him do this?" I shouted over my dad's laugh.
"I didn't think spaghetti was that hard to cook," he replied, chuckling.
"Hmph," I said, straining the noodles. Jake put his hands on my shoulders. I relaxed under his loose grip. I looked up at him and rested my hand on his cheek. He took my hand and held it to his face. We both jumped when Emmett boomed,
"Go Cubs!"
I spooned the spaghetti on to a plate and gave it to Jacob. I grabbed a fork for him too. We walked out and sat on the couch.
Well, Jake sat on the couch and I sat on the floor in front of him, by my dad. I leaned my head against his shoulder.
"Who's winning?" Jake asked with his mouth full.
"Cubs," Emmett replied without turning to look at Jake. He was sitting two feet away from the TV screen. I laughed and Jasper and Carlisle joined in. I turned to look at them. Jasper smiled at me, while Carlisle chuckled at Emmett.
"Thank you," Jasper mouthed at me.
"You're welcome." I replied, grinning. Jake looked at me curiously. I shook my head, still smiling, and turned back to the TV.
After a while, the game started to get boring, so I got up, with Jake following me, and walked to the kitchen. He put his plate in the sink and washed it. I wondered randomly where my mom was.
"She's cleaning the cottage," my dad called from the living room. Gosh, why did he have to listen in on my thoughts?
"I don't," came the reply. I groaned.
"What?" Jake asked as we walked out of the house.
"Nothing. I want to take a hike." I said. He looked over my outfit. Denim capri's and a long, purple t-shirt. My shoes were pink converse.
"Hmm… Fine, let's go." He said, breaking in to a run. I followed him without difficulty. We came to a small meadow and I stopped. Jake looked behind himself to see why I wasn't moving. He wasn't watching where he was going. When he ran in to the tree, the impact sounded as if the whole forest had been struck by lightning. I was sure my dad could hear it.
I rushed over to him, he looked dazed. I helped him sit up.
"Are you okay, Jake?" I asked. He shook his head and smiled.
"Yeah, a little dizzy, but I'll manage." He sounded confident. I shook my head at him and grinned.
"You always act so tough," I said, punching him playfully. He stuck his tongue out at me. I giggled and fell back in to the grass, taking him with me.
As we were laying on our backs, there was a break in the clouds. The sun shone on Jake and me. Without any warning, he leaned over and kissed me softly on the lips.
"I never want this moment to end," I confided when he was done.
"It doesn't have to," he said quietly.
"Good," I replied, leaning over to press my face to his once more.