A/N: Hey guys. i'm so enjoying the reviews you guys are sending. This ch should have been up last night but writer's block quickly set in and i rewrote the end like 20 times. I wanted to get it right so that everyone would be happy with it and i wouldn't have any haters. I know it's still going to be hated by some but it had to happen the way it did for the story line to continue like i wanted. Please don't hate me for it. I love you guys and have a ch 12 preview waiting for those who review. BTW thanks for the support Bubbles!! couldn't do it without you!
disclaimer: it's not mine. i'm still very sad about this. but i'll be ok
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Chapter 10: Threats and Promises
BPOV
As it turned out, graduation was more eventful than I anticipated. I'm so happy for Leah, I'm practically bouncing around like Alice when she got a new pair of designer shoes. And Mike. Who would have thought the day would come when Mike would know our secrets. I'm a little nervous though. I'm not sure how he will react.
We decided, by we I mean Sam and Billy, that we would tell Mike in the morning before the bonfire so he would have time to digest it before he heard the whole legends. So the girls decided to have a slumber party at Leah's house so she could get ready for the upcoming conversation.
"Okay Belly and Ang, you guys know him. Spill!!" Leah was pumping for information. Ang and I exchanged looks wondering if we should tell her everything.
"Well…you already know his name and age. He's attending the University of Seattle on a basketball scholarship. He's going to study science. He wants to teach high school in the future. His parents own a sporting goods store in Forks." I gave her the basics hoping she didn't want more. She seemed content but Kim and Emily wanted the good stuff.
"Enough with the easy stuff!" Kim was bouncing with an evil grin.
"Is he a dog? You know a ladies man, skirt chaser, man whore. Any girlfriends we need to beat up?" My mouth went slack. Who would have thought our Emily would be the one to ask those questions. We all started giggling.
"He used to be a ladies man. That was before Belly here knocked some sense into him. Now he's pretty tame. He says he's tired of bouncing from relationship to relationship. E's ready to be happy like us." I smiled at Angela. She was starting to talk more around the girls. Then again, when you're with Jake you have to be out spoken and loud.
"What sense sis you have to knock into him?" Leah had a cautious look on her face. I hope she doesn't hate me for this.
"When I first came here, he followed me around like a lost puppy. I figured once I got together with Edward he would leave me alone. No such luck. When he found out about our breakup, he was worse than ever. He actually gave up for a little while but started back up when he realized I wasn't the walking dead anymore. When I got with Paul I thought he would leave me alone. Nope. So I told him what was what and he told me he just wanted me to be happy. Now we're just really good friends."
To my surprise, Leah started laughing. Not sure why but at least she wasn't angry or crying.
"LeLe?" I asked attentively.
"Poor guy. He just never gave up. At least I know he's committed." With that, we all broke into laughter.
"You never answered the girlfriend question." Thanks for pointing that out Kim. Leah stopped laughing and looked at me pleadingly. I knew she didn't want to hurt someone like she had been hurt.
"No girlfriend. Just a psycho stalker. You can handle her." She sighed in relief.
The rest of the night went by with us swapping stories about our men. They do some crazy stuff, but we love them just the same. We ended up passing out about three in the morning.
I'm not even sure what time it was, all I knew is that I was suddenly warm and something was tickling my neck. I turned to see Paul blowing air onto my bare skin. Normally I would welcome this but I was too tired.
"Go away!" The rest of the boys must be trying to wake their girls because we all yelled at the same time. I tried pulling the pillow over my head but Paul wouldn't let me.
"Rough night ladies?" I threw a shoe in the direction I heard Embry. He chuckled which only meant that I missed completely.
"Nice try Bells. Ow!" Someone hit him. I looked up to see a smiling Leah standing next to him with her arms crossed over her chest.
"How did ya'll even get in? I thought we man proofed all the entrances." Leah was tapping her bare foot and looking at Seth, who was hanging his head.
"Seth? I thought you loved me. But no…you helped the buffoons get in. We've had like 5 hours of sleep." I pouted towards him. He was supposed to be on my side.
"I do love you Bells but they are bigger than me. I had no choice. I'm too young to die." his eyes were wide like he was fearful of his life.
"Awe come here." I sat up and gave him a hug. "It's okay. They'll get what's coming to them." I eyed all the boys as they hung their heads. How dare they threaten my baby.
"Now if you guys don't mind, we're going to go change. Mike will be here in about an hour." I pulled myself away from Seth and Paul and headed towards the stairs. Someone caught my wrist and pulled my hard against their chest.
"But I really like this look on you Bella. It's really sexy." I was wearing my pajamas which consisted of boy shorts and a tank top. Paul had his arms around my waist and was inches from my lips.
"Threaten Seth again and it's all you will ever get to see. ." I left him standing there dumbfounded. I smiled to myself and ran up the stairs to catch the rest of the girls.
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Mike just sat there starring at the wall. We had explained everything to him as nest we could without going into all the major details. That was what tonight was for. Leah was starting to fidget due to the prolonged silence.
"Mike?" I asked timidly. "You okay?" he looked a little pale. I was so afraid for Leah. I was hoping he didn't reject her. It would kill her. He finally snapped out of it and spoke. Thank goodness.
"Wolves? All of you? And vampires are real and the Cullen's were 'veggie vamps'?" Leah sighed in relief that he was talking.
"And we're supposed to be soul mates. The pull I felt at graduation was this imprinting thing?" Leah just nodded her head not really sure what to say right now.
"Bella you knew about Cullen and still dated him? Wow." I winced. Paul just pulled me closer to him and kissed my forehead.
"Mike. I know it's a lot to take in, but once you except it you'll never be happier." I tried coming his fears. I knew he wasn't sure about anything at this point, other than the fact that he just fell into the twilight zone.
"I just need some time. I need to think about all this. Is that okay?" He looked over at Leah. I saw the tears starting to fall from her eyes. I hopped off Paul and ran to pull Leah upstairs. The other girls followed. I turned and looked Mike right in the eyes.
"You can have time but remember it hurts you both to be apart. Trust me. If you decide to except it, come tonight. We'll be there." With that I turned to walk up the stairs.
When I made it to Leah's room, she had her head in Emily's lap with the other two girls on the floor in front of her. I was glad her and Emily could work everything out. I sat down at her head and started wiping the tears away as they fell. There was a light knock on the door and Kim got up to answer it.
"Everything okay in here?" Sam pokes his head in and frowned when he looked down at Leah.
"We'll be okay Sam. Thank you. Just give us a few minutes." Emily gave him a small smile and he left.
"LeLe…look up babe." She looked up at me with blood shot eyes. "He'll be there. I promise. I know we said he used to be a jerk but he's not anymore. It's just a lot to take in at once. Trust me on this one."
"It just hurts. I don't think I can handle heartache again. I wouldn't know what to do." Emily winced. I gave her a reassuring smile. Then jumped off the bed.
"Alright ladies. I know what we're not going to do, and that is sit her and mope. Now, get your hot asses up and dressed. We've got some serious grocery shopping to do. We know we can't trust the men." They all laughed at the collective yells from downstairs.
We all got up and got dressed. I gave Leah a hug and words of promise. We all grabbed each others hands and headed down the stairs. We headed towards the door after saying bye to our men. They were still in trouble for waking us up too early so only Embry, Quil, and Seth got loving. The rest of the boys just growled.
The trip to the store was amusing. We each had two baskets filled to the top. On looker must've thought we were preparing for the great flood. In all actuality, this would last a couple days. Maybe. We made our way back to Leah's house to get the guys and the other cars before heading to Sam and Emily's. we had the guys unload the bags and bring them into the kitchen.
I knew Leah was still feeling down, so I turned on the radio and cranked up the volume. We chased the boys out to go get things for the bonfire set up at the beach. We were all singing and dancing along with the songs that came on and laughing like mad women. Even Leah got lost in the fun. We were in the middle of rocking out to "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", singing into kitchen utensils when we heard laughing coming from behind us. We stopped dancing and just looked at our new audience.
"What?" We all asked at the same time, causing us to burst into giggles, only to get serious again when we saw the boys still standing there.
"I wish we had a video camera. You girls look like you were having way too much fun." Embry chocked out between laughter.
"I got it all. Don't worry guys." Our eyes shot to Jared who was holding his cell phone up recording everything.
While the guys were still laughing, Kim and I exchanged a look just before we tackled an unsuspecting Jared to the ground. Surprisingly, we actually managed to knock him over. Kim took his phone while we sat on him and erased the video.
"You were saying?" Kim gave him a smirk and climbed off.
As the grumbles died down, the song on the radio changed. the song that came on next sent everyone in the room into a whole new fit of giggles. "Who Let the Dogs Out" by the Baha Men came blaring through the speakers.
Once I came up for air from my first set of laughter, I looked at the guys and started laughing all over again. They, well except for Sam, were jumping up and down barking like mad men. The things they were doing, well I couldn't be sure they were considered actual dance moves. It looked like they had ants in their pants or something. Sam was just shaking his head trying to hide his amusement.
"It's official." We looked at Leah like she was crazy. "This is the packs theme song." That sent the guys into a whole other fit of laughter.
Once the song ended and we all calmed down, we started carrying stuff down to the beach. As we carried the last few bits of the food out, Sam was giving they guys patrolling orders for tonight.
"We're going to go out in two's. Jared and Seth will take first shift. Then Jake and Paul. Quil and Embry will take the next. Leah won't have to because this bonfire is for her imprint. I'm staying here to keep an eye on everyone. Leah and I will take first patrol tonight." Everyone nodded and dispersed to different spots. I noticed Leah take a seat by herself. I walked up to her and put an arm around her.
"Just breath. We've still got time. I will warn you though, if you don't smile I'm going to stick you with Quil and Embry all night." They both groaned when they heard me so I shot them both a pointed look. I got a small chuckle out of Leah. I turned back around to give her a hug when I looked over her head and smiled.
"I told you not to worry. He just needed time." I smiled at her and pointed over her shoulder with a grin.
Walking down the beach was Mike, looking excited, happy and nervous all at the same time. He caught eyes with Leah and just smiled. She squealed and ran to meet him. He grabbed her into a huge hug. I couldn't be happier at that point. I always knew he would come around.
I wasn't a wolf or vampire so I had no idea what was being said, but their smiles said it all. He grabbed her hand and they started to head in our direction. All the girls in our group squealed and jumped up and down causing the guys to roll their eyes and cover their ears. As they got closer, Angela and I ran and jumped him. Successfully knocking him flat on his butt laughing hysterically.
"You idiot, don't do that again or we let the wolves loose on your ass!" Angela and I both smacked him on the shoulder.
"Paul, Jacob…a little help here please." Mike was laughing at our 'stern' looks while the boys pulled us off of him. Mike walked over to where Leah was sitting on a log. He put his arm around her waist and pulled her close. The look they both had in their eyes was one of pure love and devotion. It's the same look between and Paul.
"Alright everyone. Let's get this party started! If you don't sprout fur, you get to get in line for food first. Then we release the hounds." Sam chuckled at his own joke while we just kind of rolled our eyes.
As we were finishing our food, Embry and Quil walked over to stand in front of Mike. This should be good, I thought to myself.
"So Mikey…you and our Leah huh?" I'm not sure where Quil was going with this but I could only imagine.
"Yeah. It's great. So when did you two start dating?" OMG!! That was perfect. They had it coming.
"What?! No!? That's just, whatever dude. Just remember that if you hurt Leah, you have seven wolves to worry about." With that, they ran off leaving everyone laughing so hard that tears were starting to fall.
"Oh Mike is perfect for Leah. He'll have no problem fitting in. Welcome to the family brother." Jacob was literally rolling on the ground laughing. I shook my head and sat on Paul's lap and gave him a big kiss.
"Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"
"I love you. Thank you for imprinting on me. I know it wasn't your choice and you really didn't like me before, but if you hadn't imprinted then I'm not sure where I would be. You saved me. You gave me a family and my best friend back." I looked around at everyone, with a smile on my face and tears in my eyes. Just then Seth and Jared came back from patrol. Seth came and sat down in front of me and Jared pulled Kim into his lap.
"Sweetheart, you saved me too. I love you more than life itself. There's so much more I want to give you, but seeing you happy is enough." He sealed it with a kiss.
"Ahem. Not that this little love fest isn't sweet as cake, but Paul and I have to patrol now. Let's go lover boy." Jake could always ruin a moment.
"Be safe boys. Don't do anything stupid out of boredom." There's been no sign of Victoria recently so they were getting ancy. "We won't!" They hollered in unison. They headed for the tree line and blew us kisses before going to phase.
Mike came over and sat beside me. "Hey Bella, so I guess when I said that Cullen looked at you like something to eat, I was pretty close to the truth." I had totally forgotten that conversation. Angela was looking at me with concern until I busted out laughing.
"Yeah I guess so. I almost forgot all about that." It felt good to laugh about Edward. "So why did he really leave you. I always thought there was more to it than just a breakup?" This was one subject though that I would probably never like to talk about. "I'll tell you another time Mike." He seemed to catch on and went back to sit with Leah.
After that one awkward moment, the conversation and light atmosphere returned.
We were enjoying the company of our extended family, friends, and loved ones. Jake and Paul still had twenty minutes on their patrol and I was counting. I had a really bad feeling. I was sitting between Leah and Angela with Seth at my feet talking across the fire to Embry, while I mindlessly played with his hair. This usually kept me calm and the guys didn't really mind it either.
I was laughing at the story Angela was telling me about Jacob's reaction to her getting angry with him for the first time. He laughed at her so it only made her even angrier. He ended up backing away scared for his life. At that moment, we heard a wolf howl in the distance causing all the wolves to stiffen and shoot their eyes to the tree line.
Before anyone could blink, a set of cold hands had me by the throat with my back to the owners chest. I was dragged to the center of the group as two wolves burst through the tree line trailing two other vampires. I looked at the faces of my loved ones and prepared for death.
"Hello Bella." That voice. Oh no. Not here. Not with my family here.
"Victoria." She whipped me around to face the wolves that just came through chasing the other two vampires. I looked at Paul and he looked torn between being pissed and being terrified.
"Hello boys. How did you like the diversion I sent your way? I was able to slip right behind little Bella here. Why don't you be good puppies and change back for me." They looked to Sam who just nodded his head once. By now there was a wolf in front of every human present. Thankfully Billy was the only elder present, odd as that sounds. Jared had Kim, Leah had a fuming Mike, Quil and Embry had Billy, and Seth was in front of Angela.
The boys made their way back in human form. Jacob ran straight for Angela while thanking Seth, who went to stand beside Paul who was fuming. Victoria just laughed at him. Why I was still standing here alive I wasn't sure. She wanted something.
"What do you want from me Victoria. My family has nothing to do with this." If I could keep them safe, I would do anything. Even if that meant risking my life.
"Revenge dear Bella. Your Edward killed my James and I'm not too happy about it. Though I was surprised to see that he's not here and you seem to be with someone else. Wouldn't Eddie boy be a little upset to see you getting all cozy with the mutt?" Paul was growling and shaking. I tried giving him a reassuring smile but it didn't matter. I looked at Seth who placed a hand on Paul's arm.
"Edward left. So killing me would only piss off the wrong set of people for your little revenge to work." Her grip on my throat tightened and every wolf took a step forward, all shaking to the point of blurring.
"Shut up human. I could drain you in a matter of seconds and no one would be able to stop me. Your wolves killed Laurent so I have every right to hate them too. You'll be smart and keep your mouth shut or lover boy here will have to see you suffer." I looked at Paul who was inching closer. I now had tears in my eyes. I didn't want Paul to suffer because of me.
I had an idea. It may or may not work but I had to do something. I just hoped that Sam caught on. I knew Paul was too far gone in his emotions. If I could get her to send the other two idiots away, the guys may have a chance of getting her off me. It was worth a shot. I grabbed Sam eye and winked at him. Hopping that would work. He just looked at me funny.
"Listen Victoria, we can continue this but at least let the other humans go for now. And call off your body guards. It's not like I can do you any harm and the guys wont phase this close to me. It's too dangerous. They wouldn't risk it." I was still looking right at Sam. I saw something click.
"Fine, but you have to send a few of your mutts too. We still have things to discuss before I can really have fun with you." That was easier than expected. I guess she really wants to draw this out but also sees the odds aren't exactly in her favor.
"Leah, Embry and Quil take the others back to the house. Get inside and lock the doors." Sam was giving orders. I know Jake wasn't too happy leaving Angela but Sam knew what he was doing.
"Riley and Dakota, go wait for me at the waters edge. This shouldn't take too long. If I give the signal bring the others." Wait others? Well this could be a problem. As that thought crossed my mind things seem to happen in slow motion.
While Victoria's attention was on her posse, Sam gave a nod. Next thing I knew I was being thrown into something hard and hot and I heard a screeching sound. Then I saw a flash of red running towards the water with four wolves hot on her tail.
"This isn't over Bella. I'll be back and won't be alone. Revenge will be had." With that, she took off into the water. I guess she was bluffing about the backup. Stupid leech.
I then heard a sound like someone was dieing and felt shaking. It took me a minute to realize that the sound and vibration were coming from me. I was sobbing uncontrollably into the chest of whoever had their arms around me. I looked up and saw Seth looking down on me with pain in his eyes. A couple seconds later, I was pulled from Seth into another set of warm arms. I knew instantly who they belonged to.
"Shh. Baby it's okay. I've got you. She's gone. You're safe now." Paul was placing kissed all over my face and rocking me back and forth. But I wasn't safe. No one was. She will come back and finish it next time. I couldn't let that happen. I jumped out of his arms and started to take off down the beach.
"Bella!" I heard someone scream. I knew I wouldn't get far but I had to try. I set of arms locked around my waist and tried pulling me back. I fought against them.
"Let me go. I have to leave. It's not safe with me around. She'll kill you and it'll be all my fault." I managed to break free and start running again, only to trip and fall to the sand. I was once again engulfed in a set of warm arms.
"No! Bella stop." I was still trying to break free. Another set of arms grabbed me from the front officially locking me in place. I started to sob even harder. "I can't…"
I know knew that the person in front of me was Jacob and the one behind me was my Paul. They were both in tears, trying to calm me down. I'm not sure how long we sat there on the beach. I finally stopped crying and managed to get out of the death grip my guys had on me. I gave Jake a kiss on the cheek and turned to look at Paul.
"You can't leave Bella. No one will get hurt. I can't lose you. Please just let us keep you safe. I need you and so does the rest of the pack." He gave me a kiss and pulled me close, not wanting to let me go.
We were pulled out of our embrace when someone tapped me on the shoulder. I pulled away from Paul and saw my little Seth with tears in his eyes. He dropped to the ground and wrapped his arms around my middle. I just rocked him and ran my fingers through his hair.
"I was so scared. Please don't leave us. I need my other mom." At that I just started crying again. I shook my head. "I can't keep putting everyone I love in danger. People can't keep dieing because of me. It has to stop." I was pulled out of Seth's arms only to get slapped across the face.
After the shock wore off I looked to see that Leah was standing in front of me with steam coming out of her ears. I then looked around and noticed that everyone was back down on the beach now. Leah must have warned them what she was going to do because Paul was being held back by Quil and Embry. I looked back at Leah.
"Isabella Marie Swan! You are NOT to mention leaving ever again. Do I make myself clear?" All I could do was nod. How was she not shaking. "You mean more to this pack than I think you even know. You are Jake's best friend. You saved Paul from himself pretty much. Seth looks to you like a mother when ours can't be around.
You're the lovable sister that Quil, Embry, and Jared love to torture in anyway possible. You helped Sam find his fun side again. And look at me…" She was having problems talking now through her tears. "You helped me see that I can survive. You showed me another way to find happiness. You brought Sam back into my life and helped me see good in people again. We need you to stay strong so we can stay strong."
I looked around at everyone. They all had visible tears. If the situation were different, I would have to laugh at all the big men crying. Then I looked to where the humans were told to stand back but could still hear everything. Emily was at Billy's side while Kim and Angela held onto mike for dear life. This was my family and they needed me. They all did. I would be there for them.
"Thank you LeLe. Guys you can let Paul go. He won't kill her. I promise you all. I'm not going anywhere." With that I was pulled into the largest group hug ever.
"Stay with me tonight?" Paul whispered in my ear. I turned into his embrace and nodded.
Soon, everyone had mad their way back to the house and we all went our separate ways. I called Charlie and told him I was staying with Leah again. He told me to have fun. I said goodnight to everyone and grabbed Paul's hand and jumped in my truck.
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PPOV(Real quick)
This night had been a rollercoaster. I was glad to be at my house with my love just enjoying the fact she was here. Alive. I was never letting her go again. In the short couple weeks we've been together, I realized that I never wanted to be with out her. We were sitting in our favorite spot on the porch swing, looking at the moon.
"I thought I was going to lose you today." I said while drawing circles on her stomach. "Please don't ever leave me." I couldn't help but get chocked up. After much deliberation with myself I came to a conclusion and I had what I needed thanks to my grandmother.
"I'm not going anywhere Paul. I'm yours forever. I'm sorry I scared you." She turned her head and placed a kiss on my chest and snuggled closer.
"Tonight made me realize something." I reached in my pocket and pulled out what I needed.
"I never want to live a moment without you. You make me be a better person. Your love and ability to see good in everyone astounds me. Your compassion for others and need for everyone to be happy keeps my hopes up that one day everything will be as it should." I took a deep breath. Why was I suddenly nervous?
"I know it's too early for the real thing, but would you promise to wait for me and be my wife when we are both ready?" I held my grandmothers ring in front of her. She gasped. "I'm not asking for you to marry me tomorrow. It's just a promise ring. A symbol that one day we will take that step but for now you'll just be mine." She turned around and kissed me passionately with tears running down her eyes.
"Of course I'll wear your ring. I'm yours until the end of time." I kissed her deeply as a slid the ring on her finger.
"I love you Bella Swan."
"I love you Paul Long."
With her here, I am home.
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A/N: Okay so who hates me or it? i couldn't just kill her there then the Cullen's would never come back. Next chapter will be Cullens. if too many people hate on this ch i'll rewrite just don't give up on me!! luvs and hugs!!