SM owns all. This is the way that I wanted things to go. Thanks to Goldengirl62, for your help, I do appreciate you, and thanks to my beta Ladyofspain.

Jacob's Twilight

Chapter 2

(Jacob's POV)

I was aware of her as soon as I stepped into the cafeteria, feeling the pull to go to her, but I fought it. When I sat and tried to concentrate on what my friends were saying, I couldn't, because my eyes kept straying to her without my permission. The tugging of my heart towards her was becoming stronger and it was making me angry. She was sitting as if she did not come here and turn my world upside down, enticing my heart to stray from what it truly wanted, where it truly belonged. How dare her!

The last straw came when she turned and caught me watching her. I had to get away from here—from her. Getting up suddenly, I grabbed my things and got out of there. I knew my friends watched, wondering what was going on, but I didn't care, didn't look their way as I ran out of there as if the hounds of hell were chasing me. I didn't take my car, didn't even phase, just ran, in my human form, all the way home.

When I got home I didn't stop, I ran right in the house and to my bedroom, not even saying anything to my dad, who was sitting there watching something on the television. In my room, I threw my belongings on the bed and sat down, putting my head in my hands with a groan.

A few minutes later my dad rolled in. I knew he would, but right now, I just didn't feel like talking.

"Everything okay, Son?", he asked concern in his voice.

I removed my face from my hands and looked at him. "Yeah fine, Dad; just have a lot on my mind."

"Anything I can help you with?", he asked then. "Something happened at school? You're home a little early; I know it couldn't have let out yet."

"Yeah, something like that." I stood up, agitated. "No disrespect, Dad, but I need some time alone to think. I'm gonna go run for a bit."

He just looked at me for a minute. "Okay, Son, just know I'm here if you need to talk." I didn't reply, just nodded.

As soon as he left, I changed into some cut off sweat pants, walked quickly outside to the edge of the woods and phased. I was so agitated, I forgot to undress first, but right then, that was the least of my worries.

I was grateful that none of my other brothers had phased; I really didn't want them to know I had imprinted on the new girl. I knew they would probably think it was a blessing because it was rare for a wolf to find the one truly made just for him, but I didn't see it that way. My heart belonged to another, had been since I was five years old.

Tired of fighting it, I lay down with my head on my paws and let my mind drift to the day's events, to one thing in particular, the arrival of a new student, the girl with the beautiful chocolate brown eyes. Those eyes reminded me of another girl—a girl who was everything to me—the love of my life. When she ran into me coming out of the office, knocking her to the ground, I was flabbergasted. When I tried to help her up and our eyes met and locked, I felt disconnected from everything and everyone around us. The cords that held me to this earth were cut, and I floated—but not for long— they re-attached to this girl and became cables. She held me to earth now. The fates had decided that this girl was my soul mate. Oh no!

When I realized what had happened I got angry. I did not want to be tied to this girl. I was already in love with a girl I was best friends with since I was young, and have been in love with her just as long. I have not seen her in a few years, but I promised myself that one day I would find her, because I knew she loved me too. Her being away so long was not her choice. That was decided by her mother. I refused to betray the love we had for each other by getting involved with another girl. No matter what the fates decided. I would fight this.

I was rude to her; I admit that, but I had to be. When I helped her to her feet and our eyes met again, I realized I actually loved this girl with the same intensity that I loved my childhood friend. How could this be? I could never love another in the same way as I loved her, but what I was feeling was saying differently. I had to fight not to grab her up and hold her to me, never letting go. I really became angry then. I had the blood of an Alpha running through my veins; I should have been able to fight this. Why did I feel, that imprint or not, I would love the girl standing before me regardless?.

Why did my hand on her arm seem so familiar, like I had touched her before? Everything about her seemed familiar, but it couldn't be, I had never met this girl before. I felt a tingle run through my arm and down my spine. Looking down again, I realized I was still holding her hand. I roughly jerked away from her, telling her to stay away from me. Yeah, I saw the hurt and confusion in her eyes. I knew she was blameless, and had no idea what was going on, or the confusion her presence had stirred up in me. I didn't care. I quickly walked away.

Throughout the day, I found I could not concentrate on anything, my mind kept straying to her repeatedly. If anyone asked, I wouldn't be able to tell them what my teachers discussed in any of my classes today. Even my friends noticed something was wrong. I couldn't tell you how many times they had to repeat themselves while trying to talk to me, or how many times they asked what was wrong or if I was okay. I would just brush off their concern, telling them there was nothing wrong. I knew they didn't believe me, but they left me alone. I decided I would just stay away from her; maybe a few days away from school. But knowing my friends, they were going to want answers when they got home from school and wouldn't give up until I confided in them. Maybe the best thing was to get away from this place totally for a few days. My mom left me a house by the beach when she passed, maybe I would go there for a while just to think. The more I thought about it, the better that idea sounded.

Yeah, that was exactly what I'd do. I'd have to talk to my dad about it first. He would worry if I just took off without talking to him. With that decision made, I started back towards home. When I reached the woods outside my house, I ran to the garage as quickly as I could, hoping no one saw me. Once there, I phased back and collected one of the pairs of shorts I left there for these kinds of emergencies. Once done, I went in the house in search of my dad.

I found him in the same place he was when I first came home from school. "Can I talk to you for a few minutes?" I went over to sit on the couch by his wheel chair.

"Sure, Son, you know you don't have to ask," he replied turning towards me.

I thought about how I would phrase what I wanted to say, but decided simplicity was best. "Dad, I need to get away for a few days," I looked directly at him so he could see the desperation, the confusion in my eyes. "Something happened at school that I really can't talk about right now. I just need a few days by myself to get my thoughts around it all."

"Where were you thinking or going?" He tried to sound calm, but I could still hear the worry in his voice.

"I want to go up to the house mom left me. I promise to tell you everything when I return." I stared at him, hoping he'd understand and let me go. I just needed to get out of here.

After a minute he said, "Okay, Son, but first we need to tell Sam about this plan since you will have to miss patrols and a few days of school."

I felt such relief. "Thanks, Dad," I said, releasing the breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"No problem, let's go talk to Sam now."

"I'll go and change, then we can leave." I retreated to my room and changed as quickly as I could. When done, I helped my dad out the house and into the car. We didn't talk on the way. I guess we both had a lot on our minds. After talking to Sam, I took my dad back home, pack a few things and left.

The next few days at that house by the beach, didn't make things clearer. The pain in my heart from not being around the girl I imprinted on became worse. I needed contact with her, and the funny thing was, it wasn't all from the imprint. It seemed to be so much more. I knew if it was just a simple imprinting, I could fight it. This felt as if the love was always there for her, but how could it? I had only ever loved one girl my whole life, and this new girl wasn't her … so why did it feel like it was?

I couldn't take it any more. Everyday I woke up, I felt the urge to just go back to school to confront and accept what the fates had chosen for me, but I ignored it. Instead I fought the cord that was pulling me back to Forks high. I didn't know why I thought getting away would make things easier. It was not helping one bit; it was just getting worse. I needed to talk to my dad again and tell him everything; maybe he could help me find the solution to my problem. With that decision made, I collected my things and was on my way back to La Push.

It was dusk when I reached home. My dad was in the kitchen and was very surprised, but relieved to see me. Walking over to the kitchen table I sat and my dad rolled over to me.

"You ready to tell me what's going on now, Son?" he asked gently.

I nodded and just came out with it. "I imprinted."

"So that's what happened," he said with understanding, sounding relieved it was nothing worse. "Why does that make you so miserable?"

"You know I have been in love with Isabella, since I was child, Dad. I always hoped she would be the one. Even when I changed, the love I had for her never did. I hoped she would be back and I would imprint on her, but now I have imprinted on this new girl at school and I feel as though I am betraying my childhood love," I looked at him in desperation.

"Please, tell me how to fix this, how to break this spell, because the more I am away from that girl, the more it hurts," I felt a tear leave my eyes, so I put face in my hands, trying to hide my anguish from him. "Just tell me this can be fixed."

(Billy's POV)

I looked at my son, feeling his anguish as if it was my own. I didn't know what to tell him, I did know there was no way for him to break the imprinting, especially one that seemed so strong—stronger even than Sam and Leah. We had to approach this rationally. Then I remembered something. A name he mentioned brought it back to me.

"What is the name of this new girl?" I asked calmly.

He looked up at me. "I am not sure of her full name, but I hear everyone refer to her as Bella."

When he said that, I smiled widely and he looked at me like I had lost my mind. "Why are you smiling like that, Dad? Can you help me or not?" He sounded very irritated.

"Son, Bella is your Isabella."

He looked shocked. "What?"

"You see, sometimes her dad would call her by that name, but for some reason you never did. You would call her Isabella or Bells, your Bells," I smiled at the changing expressions on his face. "Charlie had told me a week before she got here, that she would be coming and attending that school. I meant to tell you about it, but for some reason it slipped my mind." I shook my head at my own absentmindedness.

A look of pure joy came over his face. "No wonder she felt so familiar and felt as though I have always loved her—because I did. Now I understand why my feelings felt so strong." Then his face fell.

"What's wrong now? Why do you look so miserable again?", I was confused, he should be happy that his imprint was his childhood love.

"I really messed up."

"How so?", I asked, sure I wouldn't like what I heard.

"I was really mean to her; even told her to stay away from me. I really didn't mean to, but when it happened I felt so confused, as if I was betraying my childhood love. I just wanted her gone. I know she wasn't aware of what was going on, but it made no difference to me. She wasn't my Isabella, so I wanted nothing to do with her. Now, I'm pretty sure she hates me."

"I can't say I'm proud of the way you acted, but in a way I can understand. Now you will have to find a way to make amends. It's not going to be easy, but it is something you have to do. Remember this is not only an imprint, this is the girl you have loved your whole life, so whatever you have to do will be worth it."

"Yeah, you're right, Dad," he replied sadly. "It's just going to be hard trying to make amends when she doesn't want anything to do with me."

"Come on, I suggest we let Sam know what's really going on."

Without saying a word, he helped me out the house and into the car. This seemed like a déjà vu, but this time he was not looking to run. He needed to find solutions on winning the love of his life, finding a way for her to forgive his inconsiderate, callous attitude towards her.

(Jacob's POV)

When we got to Sam's we were seated in his den, with his imprint, Leah, sitting beside him. I told him everything I told my dad. He listened quietly until I was done, but the first thing that came out of his mouth was not what I expected.

"First thing is, you will need to take the place of Alpha soon," he stated.

"What?" I asked in shock.

"Jacob, you were always meant to be Alpha, it runs through your veins," he explained calmly. "We were just waiting for two things. One, for your wolf to become stronger and it has—stronger even than mine. Second, you needed to find your mate. You see, from when we first phase, our wolf actively begins to look for its mate. After that it is able to settle down and concentrate on other things; in your case, the running of the pack. You have shown great leadership. So it's time to pass over leadership to its rightful owner."

"Do you mean right now?", I asked. I wasn't sure if I was ready for the responsibility, but my wolf seemed to have other ideas.

"Not right now, but soon. Now, let's talk about this other issue: your mate."

"I wish I knew what has been going on since my absence and a way to fix the mess I made of things," I mumbled miserably.

"We could probably be of some help there," Leah spoke up.

"How so?", I asked, feeling a little hope.

"Kim and I have introduced ourselves and have become a little friendly with her, but the Cullens are also taking an interest in her, especially Alice and Edward."

"What—can't we stop that? We need to prevent her from becoming too friendly with the Cullens, considering what they are and she being my mate."

"I'm sorry; there is nothing we can do there. It is not against the treaty for them to befriend a human, but there is something we can do to stop it from going too far. Seriously, they have shown more interest in her than she does in them. She is polite to them but nothing more."

"What's your suggestion, Sam?", I asked loosing patience.

"As Leah just explained, she has introduced herself to Bella and from what I can tell, she seems like a very nice person. With the girls being friends with her, they can help keep an eye on the Cullens' actions around her. Don't get me wrong, the hard work of winning her heart is yours, and yours alone. But with the help of the girls and your brothers, you will have a better chance—at least a better chance of finding herself in your company more than not."

Though I smiled at what he said, my heart still felt heavy, knowing I was in for an uphill battle.