NAHUEL

When we got back to the house I could hear a strange voice inside. I looked at mom questioningly. She shook her head apparently not knowing who it was either. We entered silently and went to the living room. My mouth fell open in shock when I saw the young man sitting across the room. I knew his face well, I'd thought of him often over the past six years, Nahuel. He still looked exactly like the first time I'd seen him, running across the field with Alice, during our stand against the Volturi. I was small then but my perfect recall allowed me all of my memories since birth. His face lit up when he saw me and he automatically stood to greet me. I was immediately taken in by his long, dark brown body, his long dark hair and his beautiful, mysterious eyes. I could feel my cheeks blush as he reached for my hand.

"Hello Renesmee." he spoke in a smooth, deep voice.

"Hello Nahuel." I whispered. I could barely speak as he took my hand and lifted it to his lips placing a gentle kiss on the top. My face flushed again as his deep eyes probed mine. A smile played across his lips as he released my hand and noticed my blush.

"I'm surprised you remember me. You were so young when we met. You've become a very beautiful woman." his eyes seemed to penetrate every part of me while he spoke.

"Thank you." I stammered. My mind was racing a hundred miles per hour as I processed not only the beautiful man standing in front of me but the feeling of his touch, it was electrifying. This was a hundred times stronger then Jacobs touch, my whole body felt it.

My dad stepped in, maybe because he saw how flustered I was, and continued to explain why Nahuel was here. He came to see me! His trip to Forks, almost six years ago, was the first time he'd left his home. He had never realized how big the world was or how many vampires were in it. His aunt was content to stay close to home but he'd decided to see the world. He had been traveling around South America and the United States when he thought about us and decided to track us down. I kept my head low while my dad explained everything mom and I had missed. Suddenly he looked at me and spoke,

"Renesmee, Nahuel has asked if he could stay in the area for awhile and get to know you, compare stories you could say. I told him we had no objections but that would be your decision." I was flustered again, my mind running in too many directions. I was finally able to stutter out an acceptance at the same time I asked to be excused for a minute. I stumbled out of the room and straight upstairs to my bedroom. I closed the door and took several deep breaths. I quickly looked in the mirror on my closet door and realized I needed a shower. Before I could gather my things there was a knock on my door.

"Renesmee, can I come in dear?" my mom asked.

"Yes, please." I practically begged. She entered quickly and began to giggle as she looked at me.

"My, my honey why are you so flustered? You look like you want to run away. Are you ok?" I saw the humor and concern in her eyes. I reached out, touched her hand and 'showed' her what I felt when Nahuel kissed my hand. I fell onto my bed and shook my head.

"What is going on with me mom? Didn't we just decide, less than an hour ago, that I'm in love with Jacob? So what was that?" I tried to keep my voice low but I was going crazy. She laughed lightly again.

"Oh Nessie, did you think Jacob was the only male that would trigger your interest?" she smiled at me as she continued. "When I told you I had loved Jacob it wasn't just emotional, honey. It had been natural for us, like with the two of you, to be near each other and touch. When we held hands or hugged the feelings were different then the ones I felt when Edward touched me but there were feelings. The day Jacob kissed me, when I knew I loved him, in that moment I wanted nothing else but him. I felt such a desire for him, physically, that it hurt to let him go. Once I made my choice though, there has never been anyone else that I've wanted, physically or emotionally, other then Edward. All these feelings are new to you, sweetheart, enjoy them but remember there has to be more then physical attraction when it comes to true love." She leaned over and gently hugged me before getting up to leave the room.

"Mom." she stopped and looked at me. "I need a few minutes please. I'd like to take a shower and get some things straight in my head before I come back down. Could you please let Nahuel know I won't be long?" I paused, "Oh, do you happen to know where Jake is?" I asked.

"Yes, I will let Nahuel know you'll be down shortly and Jake went to town on some errands. He doesn't know Nahuel is here and I expect he'll be back soon. Your dad and I love you very much sweetheart." with that she turned and left my room.

I grabbed some clean clothes and headed to the shower. I needed to get my head straight. The hot water felt good as it ran down my head clearing away the foggy thoughts and confusion. I knew I loved Jacob and I wished he was here now. I wanted very much to fix things from the past week. I also knew that I was absolutely, physically attracted to Nahuel. If I didn't take time to get to know him now would I always wonder what might have been? My mom had no regrets when it came to her decision. She knew she loved Jacob but she also knew she loved my dad more. I want to be that sure of my decisions. I got out of the shower, dressed quickly, ran a brush through my long curls and ran down the stairs.

Nahuel was waiting by the front door when I came down the stairs.

"You look beautiful, Renesmee. I was hoping you would go for a walk with me." he smiled widely.

I felt my face blush again. I returned his smile and nodded. Nahuel opened the door and followed me out. We walked down toward the pond as I told him about the property and pointed out different flowers and trees. I led the way to the far side of the pond where Esme had cultivated a beautiful garden walk. As we strolled through the garden he talked about what he'd been doing since we first met. He told me stories about his travels through Europe and some of the interesting people he'd met. I asked questions now and then but mostly I was lost in the melody of his deep voice. We had circled the garden several times, completely lost in conversation, when he finally stopped and laughed aloud. It took me by surprise because I had been so engrossed in his stories I had not been paying attention to anything else. I looked up at him bewildered.

"Do you realize we have circled this garden at least a dozen times? I have also been doing all of the talking. I know I cannot be that interesting." he laughed again. My face blushed again as I fumbled with what to say.

"I find your stories very interesting and I had not realized we'd gone in so many circles." I smiled self-consciously. I was enjoying his company very much, all of the new stories and ideas. He was looking down at me his eyes full of curiosity. My blush was becoming a regular thing under his scrutiny. I couldn't read his eyes the way I could Jacobs so I wasn't sure what he was thinking now.

He reached for my hand as he spoke, "Shall we go sit by the water? I would like to hear you talk for awhile." He led the way to a spot near the waters edge. My mind raced with the feeling of his hand in mine, so warm and firm, and with what I would say. Could I even remember how to speak? I knew he could hear my heart racing but he said nothing about it. As we sat down on the ground he released my hand and I immediately pulled my knees up, wrapping my arms around them. He stretched his long body out to take in the warm of the sun that was now high in the sky and looked at me.

"So tell me about yourself, Renesmee. What kind of things do you like? What has happened in your life since we first met? Besides you becoming such a beautiful young woman. What occupies your time now?" he stared intently at me awaiting my answers.

"I'm not sure where to start. I've never been very good at verbal communication." I paused as I thought of what to say next and I noticed a confused look in his eye.

"I'm sorry Nahuel, I assumed my parents had explained my gift to you when we first met."

"No I wasn't aware you had any special talents. I know your father hears peoples thoughts and your mother has some kind of ability to protect the minds of those around her. I was also aware that some other members of your family had special gifts but not you." he said sounding very curious now.

"I can 'show' people my memories or what I'm thinking and feeling. Since I have perfect recall they see it exactly as I experienced it or felt it." I looked out of the corner of my eye trying to gauge his reaction. He smiled warmly.

"I would like to experience that sometime." he replied.

"In answer to your question about my life since we first met it would be easier for me to 'show' you. It shouldn't take long to cover the highlights." I said as I reached for his hand.

"I'd like to know more then just the highlights." he whispered as he stared deeply into my eyes. I blushed again as I picked up his hand and held it in mine.

As I let the first memory flow to him, the day of our meeting, he let out a small gasp and smiled. We sat across from each other for a long time, his eyes never leaving my face and my eyes staring at his hand in mine. He only interrupted when he had questions about something he didn't quite understand or when he wanted more details about a certain memory. I kept the most personal moments to myself, especially the recent ones. I showed him our families happy times, which were many, and the sad times like leaving our friends and family in Forks. By the time I had run through the past six years the sun was nearly setting.

"Amazing" he said as I let go of his hand. He stared at me in wonder.

"I'm glad you enjoyed that." I smiled embarrassedly. "Now you see why I'm not very good at verbal communication." I paused awkwardly, "I've never shared that with anyone outside of the family before."

"Thank you then for sharing it with me. I feel like I know you so well now and your even more amazing then I'd ever imagined." his voice was so sincere my heart began racing again as he grinned. I began to pull myself off the ground so we could head back toward the house. He rose with me and reached for my hand. I wasn't sure why but I knew I couldn't let him hold my hand, it felt like a betrayal. I pulled my hand away gently not wanting to upset him.

"I'm sorry Renesmee." he said quietly. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Nahuel." I said trying to sound encouraging.

"I noticed Jacob is the center of many of your memories," he paused trying to word his question right I guessed.

"I guess I was just wondering what exactly is your relationship with him?" he asked. I could hear the concern in his voice and I felt like he was looking at Jacob as competition. Did he think I was a prize to be won? Was he here out of friendly curiosity or was there some other reason behind this visit? I remembered overhearing my parents talk once about me being the only half vampire not related to Nahuel and speculating on what that might mean for me. It only took a half second for these thoughts to run through my mind and I quickly pushed them aside not ready to even think about them yet. Since I still wasn't sure of where Jake and I stood I tried to answer as honestly as I could.

"Jacob is my best friend, he always has been, and he's a part of my family." I replied. I watched him process this and smile. We were almost back to the house when he stopped.

"I'd like to come back and see you again, tomorrow afternoon maybe, if that's ok with you?" he asked hopefully. I thought for just a second before I answered.

"Of course Nahuel, I would enjoy that." I smiled up at him realizing that it was the truth. I had enjoyed my day with him very much and I had many questions I wanted to ask. Before I could get through my next thought I saw him leaning towards me. My body tensed and I knew instantly what his intentions were. I dropped my head quickly which stopped him immediately.

"I'm sorry…again Renesmee." he whispered. I felt his finger gently lift my chin forcing me to look into his eyes.

"I am truly sorry. I didn't mean to upset you or move too quickly. I just feel like I know you so well." his voice was so smooth and sweet as he spoke.

"It's ok." I murmured softly.

"May I still come over tomorrow?" he asked sincerely. I nodded my head and he removed his finger from my chin. He lifted my hand gently to his lips and kissed it. "Until tomorrow then. Have sweet dreams Renesmee." He dropped my hand and turned to leave without another word. I watched him get into his car and drive away without looking back. I stood staring after him for a long moment before I was able to compose myself enough to go inside.