Chapter Four: Let's not be Petty, Part One

Jacob sitting across from me was making all kinds of thoughts enter my mind… about how real this felt. It felt exciting, my heart was racing and my mind was all over the place trying to figure out a way that I could make this happen again.

I wanted to block out these thoughts because my life didn't exactly work out this easily. I never got what I wanted. I was always picked last and I had to remember that. He made me want to forget as we bantered back and forth in a way that some would describe as flirting.

He was in full-on Jake mode, the down-to-earth hilarious sweetheart that every girl secretly crushed on.

Our food came too soon and his attention was now split between me and food. "I'm glad you stopped PMSing." I stated, totally giving him a look. His eyes met mine and I kept his stare for a bit.

"You're getting bolder and bolder." Jacob was smiling now, his dark eyes piercing into mine with a hint of competition to see who would look away first.

"You know I never kiss ass." I smiled back and averting my gaze. He was making me think things … things that I couldn't hold back. Things that he could possibly hear. So I changed the subject, "Are you worried about the Werewolf Union? Do you not trust me? Is that why you came and won't leave?"

"No… you're the most successful out of everyone so I wanted to see what you were doing." My jaw almost dropped.

"Was that like a compliment?" Jacob grunted in response, but met my eyes with a smile. Damn him. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you're spooking my allies. They see your 6'5 flabby body and run for the hills."

"Flab?" Jacob stood up. "Does this look like flab?" He raised his shirt up slightly as I struggled to keep my heart in check. No irregular beats.

I caught a glance of his wound which was now officially a scar.

"Are you ok?" My hand touched his bare mid-section before he could let the shirt go. I didn't know how I got over there so fast, but I did.

"I mean shouldn't it be healed?"I continued, still touching him. There was so much warmth that I didn't want to let go.

"You don't have to use this little scratch as an excuse to admire this body. Sent from God."

Deflection. That meant it was serious.

I mean it Alpha. Why the hell is it not healed?

I'm not worried.

I'll get on it.

I promised.

The rest of the evening wrapped up too soon. I could feel others watching us, some because they knew who we were and others because we didn't fit in with the demographic. Everyone here was black, white or Creole.

We were clearly not from around here. And we'd been here twice as long as everyone else.

I barely noticed and it didn't even come to mind that maybe some of them were admiring me. And I should've been vigilant, all things considered.

I was so caught in this fantasy world where Jake and I worked. I wished he would give me a sign, at least let me kiss him before the night ended. When he took me to an alley, I thought it was headed into that direction… until he started talking instead.

"Nessie's coming here."

"W-What?"

"They're already en route.."

My head starting spinning. No, no, no… not that evil Bella spawn. Weak hybrid. Perpetual victim. I had plenty of reasons to hate her without including Jacob.

I made up some excuse to cut our meeting short so that I could concoct some plan to chase her away.

I hated feeling this way since I'm totally against girl on girl crime and hateage but she was weak. I could imagine them together and it made me want to vomit. It made me sick in the head, the kind that only the burning of alcohol down my throat could cure.

So I headed to the bar, another new acquired vice along with the sex thing. Funny how they seem to go together.

I'd had my first three drinks before I recognized that there were others there, namely Marcel's fiancé. I wanted to tell her that he was no good, a cheater in the waiting and that we'd kissed.

It seemed wrong to hurt her and make her think it was something more than it was but between the liquid courage and the Nessie nightmare, my tongue was loose.

The only thing I remembered saying was, "I want to fuck your man."

Or at least that's what they said I said when I woke up with her and Marcel hovering near me.

Marcel looked less… flirty but that could be because I was used to seeing him in the night hours.

His fiancé still looked gorgeous, like some north African princess from a long-forgotten country where they had high cheekbones, brown skin and perfect skin. She was delicate looking but I knew he would never have a weak woman by his side. She was powerful, but I wasn't sure how much I should fear her.

She caught my eyes as I got a small taste. Not to be messed with.

"Give us a sec babe." She demanded, without breaking our stare, yet still able to keep a soft voice, smooth like honey.

"What do you want to talk about?" I wondered, my eyes not wavering. It was embarrassing enough that I ended up here because I couldn't hold my liquor.

"You have a thing with Marcel?"

"It's more of an alliance than a thing-"

"A crumbling one I see… which means you need me." She broke the stare first. "See your… candor surprised me but I like it."

"I shouldn't have said that."

"I'm glad you did. Now I know not to leave him around you." She chuckled. "But it's no fault of your own. He's powerful and that is enticing for many. Since I like you, I'm willing to work with you."

"To?"

"Strengthen the alliance. But your Alpha doesn't belong here. He draws too much attention-"

"I know." I admitted softly. "But whatever we do to get him to leave, he has to be able to do so on his own feet. Nothing bad can happen."

"You talk like I'm some kind of monster. Of course not but we need to think of something-"

"I've already got an idea but… I'll need help to spook them. Get rid of them if needed."

"Them?"

"The Cullens."

Betrayal doesn't suit me, I know it. Jealousy doesn't either but I was calling upon both of them now. Reneesme had to be removed from the equation.

She and her family presented too many variables. Caused too much trouble.

I stayed there five more nights, mostly to escape my reality. I had more sex than I'd had in weeks since he'd been here and Marcel delivered on his promise to get me someone powerful … an original even, but it still left me with a void. A Jacob-sized void.

When I got back, everything was in disarray. That meant they were already there. I started to pack up my things to find a new place to go to when I was met with a tight hug… too tight.

"Where have you been?" Jacob whispered into my ear, his chest pressed against my back, my body longing to press into his to get even closer but it was overtaken by this overwhelming paranoia. Did he know? "Well?" He urged, me getting a whiff of his slightly minty breath, breath that made him even more appealing.

"Underground." I sighed. The sigh was mostly because I knew the hug would end once I responded. This moment was forever imprinted on me, the smell of his skin, his hair touching mine, his insanely strong biceps.

"But why didn't you let me know? I thought-"

"If I was dead, you would know it." Jacob finally let go and I tried to look down. He had to smell Klaus all over me,I knew he did. But he didn't say anything … not like last time.

"Don't say that." He sighed. "If we do this thing right, no one's gonna die."

"How's your…" my voice trailed off, leading him to a chair and lifting up his shirt. I'd gotten a stronger product from Sabine, who laced it with some of my essence to make it stronger. Silently, I dipped my fingers into the canister, rubbing it over the scar, which looked the same as last time. "I should've been here. I'm sorry, Alpha."

"Leah…"

"No, you should really take care of yourself. You are the most important one out of all of us and if something happens to you, we all fall apart. You are the glue." I nearly fussed, surprised to hear slow claps of someone else in agreement.

You would think that having extra sensitive hearing would mean that I was never caught off guard, but that's just a myth. Emotions were clouding my ability to be efficient. I was caring too much about Jacob. I had to get him out of here. I had to protect him and we could never be in the same space again, even if it went against everything that my heart was longing for.

"Nessie." Jake grinned as she gave me a slow wave and I nodded.

"I'll get out of your way but … please take him away from here. He worries too much about us. That's my job." I looked at Reneesme thinking that we could possibly, maybe agree on this one thing.

"But we just got here."

So much for that.

(A/N: Still writing this. Twilight was on tonight and I was inspired to add on more to this draft, which I've had lying around for a bit. -NL)