Authors note:
Cullens don't come back, slightly NewMoon-ish. Please review, I'll kill a vampire! I keed, I keed.
slight angst.
Disclaimer:
Do not own.
You try really hard not to cry when Jacob Black tells you that the pack is leaving—not for a long amount of time, and they assure you they'll be back; it's just a single vampire to take care of—but you stand with Emily, your hands linked as you stare out the window and try to find yourself again because as long as he's gone, he's not with you.
And you long for him more and more as time passes.
A little part of you wants to fall apart when they come back. Their faces have grown more sombre now, as if they had aged decently while you turned the other way. When you trace the scars on him later on that night, he'll tell you it didn't hurt, just so the pain leaves your eyes. But it doesn't, and you wake up screaming from a nightmare.
He holds you close as you cry his name, and rocks you like a child and you know you need him more than anything else in this universe.
And it hurts.
Your father is in hospital from a hostage situation near town, and he's been shot in the shoulder. You cry before you go in there, but make sure your eyes don't betray you. When you see the doctor checking his vital signs and he looks up and smiles part of you wants to tell him that he should retire.
But he's still got some fire in him, so you just hug him close and cry into his shirt. He tells you it didn't hurt and you don't believe him for a second, but leave when it's time to go.
You spend more time at home after that, but that means away from Jacob.
That hurts too.
The gaping hole in your chest is waning, but not entirely gone. You twist the napkin in your hands so tightly it hurts your fingernails. Your watching Romeo and Juliet with Renee and it kills you to realize once upon a time, you would have died; just like Juliet.
When you arrive back in Forks, you hold everyone a little longer than normal and try not to scream.
For your birthday, your dad gets you a puppy. You can't believe it—thinking he would get you a phone or something with technology, but he just shrugs and says "You need more friends." And the puppies face reminds you of someone.
Jacob hates him, at first, because he's a little jealous. You name him Wake because he gets you up earlier then usual, and he loves cuddling with you at night.
And you laugh for a long time, until your lungs hurt, and your eyes are watering, because Wake has just urinated on Jacobs shoe and he is not happy.
When you bring Wake over to the pack, you kiss the dogs head and tell him that this is your family, and it's his as well. The pack glare at him, except for the brats as they gush at how tiny he is. You tell them he's still a young Rottweiler and they all laugh when he humps Emily's leg.
Sam doesn't like Wake either.
You go back to work after summer vacation and have almost restored the graduation money. Almost. Jacob kisses your forehead, offers to sell the bike. You shake your head and that weekend you both for a ride.
You don't crash this time.
But Jacob takes his shirt off anyway.
Jacob kisses you. It's all taste and fell and you're pretty sure those are fireworks behind your eyelids when the pad of his finger traces your hip.
He knows you're not ready, and you're not sure if you'll ever be. But this thing between you is growing more steady and you've forgotten about the past.
Wake spoils the moment by jumping on your lap and licking your face. Jacob growls and Wake runs off with a whimper.
You slap Jake, but smile.
When you're leaving for collage, Jacob begs you to stay.
You call him every chance you get.
You make new friends, but when the pack comes over for the weekend, they're all a little afraid of the russet skinned giants. You realize this is how it's going to be for your life and you don't want to change a thing.
It scares you at first, but you wouldn't have it any other way.
Wake is ecstatic when you arrive home, and it's a surprise party which you hate, but Jacob kisses you roughly and you forget some of the peoples names. That night you give yourself to him, and you know even as a veterinarian, you're not going to feel as strongly about any other animal then the one inside this man.
Life goes on.
The gaping hole in your chest is gone.
But life goes on.