A/N: This chapter is written a couple of months after Breaking Dawn finishes off, but the rest of the chapters are around 60 years later.
I just wanted to clear this up for those who have been confused!
Thanks,
Grace Falcon.
Prologue (Bella's P.O.V)
The dull ache in my throat was always easy to ignore, considering my strange mind and super-self-control. I stared into Edward's molten eyes and he smiled at me. We were at our cottage – there was nobody else except for Jacob, who was probably lying awake in his room and Renesmee, who had just fallen asleep. Edward and I were cuddled up on the lounge, my head resting against his chest. I could smell Jacob from here and I could also hear Renesmee's rapid heartbeat gradually become slower as her consciousness slipped away. Jacob had been staying with us every night, but I knew that it was only for Renesmee. I was glad that my sun could be happy, however I still did not like the fact that it had to be my daughter.
I could hear the whisper of the gentle wind cascading over the house gently and I admired the sheer beauty of the dark sky that cloaked the world. My eyesight could clearly depict each wondrous star that shone brilliantly from so far away . . . my eyes wandered across the sky and rested on the moon. I could see every crater and its luminous glow that radiated from the sun's light. Eventually my thoughts turned back to another topic that I had been pondering about for some time now, yet Edward's voice cut through the stillness.
"What are you thinking?" he asked. I looked up at him, yet said nothing. Instead, I shut my eyes and concentrated on removing my shield so that he could read my thoughts.
I recollected every memory of Jacob since I became a vampire. Jacob when I first saw him . . . Jacob hunting with Renesmee . . . Jacob when the Volturi arrived . . . and Jacob now. I focused on his face and how it had changed since my first memory of him . . .
Edward's eyes flashed to mine in realization and I let go of my hold on my shield. I knew he couldn't read my thoughts anymore.
"It will be too late for . . ." my voice trailed off and I knew that he understood.
"I know . . . but it's only 3 and a half years," he reminded me.
"4 years total," I replied. "She may appear to be 16, but wouldn't it take a real 16 years to grow to someone in such a way?"
"Not for her. You know she's different."
"Yes, of course I do, but by then he would be somewhere around 28 . . ."
It couldn't work out. It wouldn't – I was sure of it.
Jacob appeared to be 25 at the moment. I desperately searched through my human memories to that time when Jacob and I were on the beach. It was so dark that I could only occasionally see his face, and even then it was for brief periods. But his words, the words that arose my temper tantrum, still faintly rang through my head.
"When we get enough control to quit . . . we age again . . . it's not easy . . ."
By the time Renesmee became 16 years old and ceased to grow (which Carlisle predicted to be in 3 and a half years), Jacob would be too old for her to love him in the way Edward loved me. My memories of him 4 months ago compared to now showed that he had begun to grow older again – I could tell and so could Edward. Obviously, a human would not be able to tell, but I could see every single line on his skin no matter how faint. He had changed and I knew it.