Bottle It Up
Leah Clearwater ran through the forest, her long, almost-waist-length hair flying behind her. She ignored the pain as branches tore across her skin, leaving behind lines of blood, and leaves tangled in her hair and more branches tore out locks of hair. Her bare feet hit the ground as she pushed herself faster, to an incredible velocity, ignoring the burn in her long legs. She ignored the rocks and sticks cutting into her feet. None of the physical pain could even begin to compare to the inner anguish broiling inside of her. As the agony built, it choked her and she couldn't run anymore. Leah collapsed on the muddy forest floor and let it consume her. She barely noticed that she was sobbing until she choked on a sob, and gasped at the intensity of her pain. He left me. The words burned through her mind like wildfire, spreading to every corner of her head until it was flooded with pain. The heartbreak was too much. Unable to keep it inside of her, Leah let out a piercing wail of despair, heartbreak, torment. Every ounce of pain was poured into that cry of anguish. It choked off with another sob as the tears continued to stream down Leah's beautiful face. Her long, thick eyelashes were stuck together with tears and her hazel eyes continued to flood with them. She felt as if her heart had been ripped out of her chest and stamped into a million pieces, and scattered everywhere, impossible to find and piece back together. She was broken, wounded, so filled with agony she could barely breathe. Her heart had been stamped on by him. Sam. Leah let out another gasp of pain and curled up more tightly, fighting to keep the pain inside of her, she unleashed another howl of anguish. It was so potent with torment that the animals flinched away from it, scurrying away. The howl echoed around the forest.
Back on the La Push reservation, Sam Uley's head shot up as the cry of grief pierced his ears. Leah. Emily or Leah? But the decision had already been made, nature had taken its course—and it had chosen for him. It had chosen Emily. He had chosen Emily. He had to choose her. But Leah was his responsibility—he was guilty for the incredible pain he had inflicted on her. Emily or Leah? The future or the past? He chose the future.