-I'm so pleased with the little bit of feedback I've gotten from y'all! I was waiting to gauge the reception before continuing, and since it's been positive, I'll go ahead and carry forward! Thanks and keep letting me know what you think.-

I had no idea how many hours had passed since I'd laid my head on Jacob's good shoulder. I sat in silence as he slept, feeling his warmth radiate through my body and timing my steady breathing with his. It took him a long time to fall asleep, to believe that I wouldn't leave when his eyes closed. But I wouldn't leave, couldn't even if I wanted to (not that I did). The sun had gone down and I knew I needed to call Charlie, but I didn't want to return to the world. I wanted to stay in our world. I wasn't ready to face the consequences of my choice. Alice had no doubt seen my future disappear into darkness hours ago and Edward had no doubt seen it by now as well. I could imagine him waiting at the treaty line. His eyes dark, his features cold as the stone he was.

Interesting. I thought to myself. How quickly a switch can be flipped in the mind. I no longer saw him in my mind as my Adonis. The moment I chose the sun, he became the drug. I had a hard time imagining the pain that would be associated with our imminent discussion. Would there even be pain? I chucked softly to myself, how different this separation would be to when he initially left me behind. I was still hooked. I was in my drugged stupor, unable to function without my fix. Charlie saw it then. My friends saw it then. I'm sure everyone in town saw it then. How unhealthy, how deadly his love had made me. But I saw it now. As I sit with my Jacob, it's easy to see what he must've seen. The bags under my eyes, the sickeningly sallow skin, my hair thinning with the misery. Sure, there were plenty of times when Edward made me happy. But for me to instantly lose myself whenever he was gone, whether for a year or for a weekend 'hunting' trip... it was not healthy. It was not normal. it was not me. It would never be me again.

I was geared and ready to face Edward, rehearsing in my head exactly what I would say, when there was a soft knock at the door.

"C'mon in, Billy." I said quietly, hoping not to wake Jacob.

But it wasn't Billy. Ever so slowly, Carlisle Cullen opened the door to Jacob's tiny room and stepped in. I suddenly felt claustrophobic. This space was far too small for a fully grown werewolf, a centuries old vampire, and little old me.

I immediately looked down at my knees and mumbled something along the lines of, "Hey Carlisle, how are you?"

There was no way he didn't know. It felt like the whole planet knew. I wanted the whole planet to know. But in reality, it was only me and Jacob who really knew. Alice had a good idea and Edward was surely trying to imagine any situation where it didn't mean what it did, but surely one of them had spoken to Carlisle. And that's why he looked at me like I was no more than a passing stranger. No matter what reaction I anticipated from Edward, I never expected anything less than quiet friendliness from Carlisle. He was a good man. He would respect, if not fully understand, my decision.

I'd been so lost in my thoughts that it shocked me when he spoke to me.

"Bella, you should step out. This could be painful to watch." Carlisle said, his voice soft.

My mind immediately raced and my eyes narrowed in on his. What did that mean? What had Edward said? What was he going to do to my Jacob?

"I have to examine him and there may be more fractures out of place. You shouldn't be here when I correct them." He explained.

"Oh." I said quietly, standing up quickly. Too quickly. I'd been sitting so long, black spots immediately clouded over my eyes and I had to catch myself on the wall to keep from toppling over. "Ah!" I shouted before balancing myself. It woke Jacob.

His eyes shot open and he immediately sat up, cringing in pain, eyes wide and dancing between Carlisle and me. I'm sure he was no more excited by us being intruded on than I was.

"Where are you going, Bella?" He asked, his voice raspy with sleep.

"Nowhere, Jake. I'm not going anywhere." I replied, unable to hide the emotion in my voice from Carlisle. "I'm just going to sit with Billy for a few while Carlisle checks you out."

He relaxed slightly, easing back down onto his pillow, teeth gritted. "Okay. Don't leave."

I smiled softly at him and exited the room. How I wanted to lean down and kiss him, kiss him hard, and run my hands through his hair. But not with Carlisle there. I am not a cruel person.

As I shut the door behind myself, I leaned against it, staring at the ceiling. Holy hell. I heard the tv on down the hallway and knew Billy was sitting there, probably still clueless. I heard the soft, muffled voiced of Jacob and Carlisle Cullen from behind the door and slowly slid my back down the door until I was sitting on the hard wooden floor. I lifted my knees to my chest and focused on breathing evenly. It wasn't until I heard Jacob's first groan of pain that I lowered my head between my knees and let the tears fall, waiting for his pain to end.