Hey, thanks for sticking around to read the seventh chapter of my story. Wow, I thought it would only be, like, four or five!! There's a lot more to come, if you keep leaving me wonderful reviews like you already do! Thank you so much, I really appreciate it. Enjoy!
"Hello?"
I breathed a sigh of relief; Jacob was home, but I wasn't sure if he was busy or not. I would feel pretty rude if I was asking if I could come over and take up space in the Black's little home if he did have something going on.
"Jacob, it's me," I answered after a moment of thought.
There was a short pause, and then he spoke up in his familiar voice. "Hey, Bella," he said, sounding slightly surprised. "Um, what's up?"
I bit my lip, but decided to ask him anyways. "Uh, Jake… what are you doing right now?" I asked tentatively, looking at Jasper, who was sitting at the table behind me. He nodded, as if to encourage me to go on.
I turned my head back, waiting for his answer.
"Sam had us running patrol for awhile, I just got home. I'm getting a bite to eat right now," he said warily, not sure what I was getting at. "Why?"
Liberation swept through me- so he wasn't busy. Our plan might work then. I mentally crossed my fingers while I formed an answer.
"Listen, Jake," I started, "I took a couple tests earlier today and it turns out that I'm not pregnant." I didn't wait for him to speak up. "Edward's gone right now, but if he finds out that I'm not, he's going to be so devastated. He'll be in more pain than he is now and I… I can't stand it when he's like that." My voice shook slightly at the end, hopefully moving Jacob slightly, if he was against me coming over. I didn't want to sound conceited, but I doubted that that was the case. I felt a wave of tranquility wash over me, probably Jasper's doings.
"So can I… come over now?" I asked finally, switching the tiny silver phone to my other ear, my heartbeat increasing with anticipation.
There was a moment of silence, and then he spoke up, sounding surprisingly calm. "Yeah, of course. Lucky for you my dad's out right now." I heard him clear his throat before continuing. "Do you need me to come and get you?"
I looked over at Jasper, as if for permission. He nodded, once again.
"Yeah, if that's okay with you."
"'Kay, then. I'm going to finish up here and I'll be there in a bit." I could here a smile in his voice when he added "Which do you prefer, wolf or the car?"
I laughed in spite of myself. "I'll take the car, thanks. I bet it's a bit more comfortable than a dog's back."
He chuckled. "Well, I'll see you later then."
"Bye, Jake," I murmured, and then the line disconnected. Feeling immensely optimistic, I snapped the phone shut and dropped it into Jasper's outstretched hand. He tucked it into the pocket of his jeans, and stood up, looking somewhat apprehensive. I felt bad for Jasper, since he was going against his brother and my husband, but I… but we couldn't go back on this. Jasper would help me through this.
He looked down at me with doubt. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
I swallowed, and nodded. "I can't go back now. I won't see Edward in pain. I know that you won't, but… please, keep this a secret from Edward?" I looked up at him, beseeching. "At least, try not to think of it?"
He grimaced slightly, but nodded his head, sucking in a breath. "Of course. I'll try my best not to think of it." He smiled genially. "I won't back off on my part, and I'll help you in any way that I can." His eyes clouded over for a second, a flicker of a darker emotion crossed his face. "Being alone… it's not a pleasant thing. I wouldn't want that to happen to you, not when it's so important." He looked over my head for a minute, brooding, but then his eyes roamed back to mine.
I was touched. I didn't know that it would be possible to have such a good relationship with Jasper, but I was happy that we had this mutual understanding.
"Thank you so much Jasper. That, er, means a lot to me."
He smiled serenely. "Certainly. Now, I think you need to eat something, am I right? You're hungry." He reminded me gently. Of course he would know this, but it was strange when someone else knew that you were hungry and you hadn't even realized it yet. But once he mentioned it, my stomach growled, ironically enough. He laughed, and I joined in, a bit sheepishly.
"I'll get you something before you go," he assured me, placing his cold hand lightly on my shoulder. I was surprised that he was comfortable with this casual contact, but he was guiding me to the kitchen before I could react, pulling out a chair and pushing me down on it, gently of course.
"Hey," I breathed, sliding into the passenger side of the Rabbit, and shutting the door behind me. I waved to Jasper, who was standing out on the porch, seeing me off. He gave a short wave, a parting good-luck smile, and disappeared into the house.
I turned around to greet him, and I felt the new, overwhelming feelings for Jacob bubble up in my chest as I took in his face, his full lips and his shiny black hair.
Hoping that Jasper wasn't spying out of the curtains, I leaned over and kissed him gently, raising my hand and lightly touching his cheek. Jacob leaned closer to me, kissing me back with such tenderness that I felt my heart melt a tiny bit. Jacob was just so sweet. He looked scary to some on the outside, but he was just a gentle giant. Like the character, the BFG in Rohl Dahl's children's book.
That though made me laugh in spite of myself, and I smiled against Jacob's lips as the image popped up into my brain.
He pulled back, looking confused and slightly amused.
"Something funny?" he inquired, raising a black eyebrow at me. I laughed quietly, shaking the picture out of my head.
"Mm, I'll tell you later. It's not really important." I was now anxious to get out of the watchful eyes of Jasper, who was more likely than not watching us from the windows. I surveyed the house one last time, but he was not to be seen. "Let's get out of here."
Jacob grinned at me, his smile stretching across his face. "You don't have to tell me twice. It reeks over here, Bells." He wrinkled his nose a bit, and I laughed as we pulled out of the Cullen's driveway.
As we pulled onto the highway, Jacob broke the comfortable silence.
"So it's been awhile since I've heard from you personally," he commented, taking his eyes off of the road for a minute to shoot a sarcastic glance in my direction. "Anything new and exciting?"
I rolled my eyes. "Not really. It's been so tense over there. No ones particularly happy with me, though I can't blame them." I sighed. "Jasper and I are on pretty good terms, though. He's the one helping me sneak out right now." I swallowed guiltily.
Jacob pursed his lips. "So you're pretty much the slut of the house now, eh?" He playfully poked me in the rib, and I swatted his hand away good-naturedly. He chuckled quietly in response.
"Well, it's not really funny, but yes, pretty much." I inhaled through my nose. "I had to do this tonight because I don't want anyone to know that we're doing this again." I looked over at him apologetically, and he met my gaze. His black eyes were understanding enough, so he wasn't offended, at least. "It would get a lot worse, you know, because it's already tense enough."
He nodded thoughtfully. "You don't have to worry, I won't get offended. It must be kinda hard over there." Pulling the car into a sharp turn off of the exit, Jacob reached over for my hand. "You know, if it gets bad over there, you can always come and see me. With other people, of course, so they won't suspect anything." He smiled quickly at me, and I had to smile back.
"Thanks Jacob. I appreciate it."
We lapsed into thoughtful silence for a minute or so, and I contemplated a few things, now that the proper time had come. What would happen to our relationship? It had already passed the little, tentative edge of friends and lovers, and now we were lovers, in a strange sense. But I did know that Jacob's feelings for me were more intense than my feelings for him. And plus, I had already broken him, doing it again would be so… devastating.
The truth hit me lick a ton of brocks. I had known this before, but I had somehow managed to forget about it. So once again, I would have to choose; Edward, or Jacob?
The answer was less obvious then before, when I had to make the same choice. But I knew, in the end, who it would turn out to be. It was Edward, because I couldn't live without him. Right?
But Jacob had made a very big impact on me, emotionally and physically. I knew that he had to take some part in my life, and not just a small part, either. I didn't like to admit it that much, but Jacob and Edward were almost neck in neck, in the less rational side of my brain.
So now the choice wasn't all that obvious.
Before I had time to rearrange my thoughts, we were pulling into the Jacob's driveway, the Rabbit's engine revving slightly as we parked, and Jacob turned the key in the ignition, shutting it off.
Sliding the keys into his jean pocket, Jacob opened his door, and stepped out of the car, slamming the door shut. He looked down at me, waiting for me to get out. When I hesitated longer than necessary, he strode around to the passenger side, and opened the door for me, peering inside.
"You coming, Bella?" he asked, puzzled.
I swallowed a lump in my throat as I realized that if I made love with Jacob right now, I would be able to make my decision, and that was a decision I did not want to make right now. Or ever, more like it, but I definitely did not want to make it now. But if we didn't… then the decision would be made as well. But it would have the opposite outcome.
What was there to do?
"Bella?"
I looked up at him, my eyes beginning to prick with moisture. Jacob registered my expression slowly, but before he could say anything, I spoke up.
"Jacob, please don't get mad at me, but I don't think I can do this, after all." I bit my lip unhappily. "Can we talk inside?"
Hmmmmm... so now the drama will come on!! Thanks for reading, please review.
