A/N: Thanks again for all the reviews everyone! Ok, so...I realize that the next part of my fic doesn't follow the perfect boy falls in love with girl and they end up happily ever after formula. In fact, just when things were getting relatively good I kind of make everything fall apart again. But I just want to ask you guys to trust me and bear with me because I'm following through with the plan I had for this fic in the beginning. The reason I fell in love with Leah when I read the Twilight series was her resilience so I'm simply giving her more reason to be the strong she wolf we all know she is :) It was never my intention to have Jacob save Leah. She is more than capable of saving herself and realistically after all that happened she's the only one who could really fix her situation.

That being said, don't worry because I'm not abandoning the Blackwater aspect of this fic. There is much more Jacob coming soon. TRUST ME.

Enjoy.

Chapter Ten

"You can stop babying me, Leah. I'll be fine in a couple hours," Jacob snapped as I pressed a cold compress to his face. He was lying in my bed, his lacerations transformed into scars and bruises as I tried to play Nurse Leah to an unwilling patient.

"I know…I'm just trying to make you comfortable," I spoke lamely, pulling away from him to look in his eyes.

"Why did you let him do this to you, Jake?" I questioned. He closed his eyes and sighed, shaking his head slightly. I didn't know what was wrong with him, or why he was acting like this. I knew he could have very well taken Sam on but he hadn't fought back like he should have. He wasn't fighting anymore.

His face was a little less black and blue and his black eye was nearly gone, but something else had changed. Something was different about the way he looked at me now. It wasn't what was in his eyes. It was what wasn't there.

I smiled weakly down at him and lightly placed a kiss on his forehead, my heart sinking when he winced at my touch.

We sat in silence for a few moments, me staring at him, him staring at the ceiling before I heard a knock on my door.

"Leah? I – I need to talk to you," I heard my mother speak from behind me. I got up from the bed and followed her into the hallway, closing my bedroom door behind me.

"What is it, mom?" I asked, my brow furrowing as I looked into her eyes. They were swollen and puffy as though she had been crying. She looked so old, haggard even.

"Leah…I, I don't know how to say this, but I, uh…" she sniffled, reaching her hand out to brush my cheek.

"Everything…it's all been so crazy. I can't say I don't understand it, but that doesn't mean I can deal with it. I – I'm not strong enough," she exhaled, a pained expression crossing her face.

"What are you trying to say?" I asked, my eyes frantically searching hers, but all I could see was fear.

"I – Charlie and I have decided to leave, we – we just can't…anymore. Everything's paid for during the rest of the month and I – I can send you money if you need it," she spoke quickly, her hands shaking.

"Mom, you can't – you can't do this to us. I – Seth needs you, we need you," I pleaded, reaching out to take her hands in mine.

But all she did was shake her head, pulling her hands from mine quickly.

"Leah…I love you two, but I just can't do this. This curse killed your father, and I'm not going to sit around and watch you and Seth die too," she sputtered, wiping her eyes as tears fell down her cheeks.

My blood began to boil as she spoke. I never thought she was this weak. Sure, it had been a rough couple of years with my dad dying and her two children becoming werewolves, but I expected her to stick with us when things took turns for the worse.

She owed it to us to stay. She was our mother.

I shook my head, tears forming in my own eyes. The past couple days had worn my resistance down, and the hammer that had been constantly bashing at the walls I built was finally working.

"Fine, leave," I shrugged. Fat tears rolled down my cheeks and my head began to throb in pain.

I turned around and flung my door open, closing it and locking it behind me. I began to hyperventilate, my chest closing up. I collapsed against the door and held my hands in my head, sobbing, forgetting that Jake was there watching me quietly from the bed as I broke down.

"We can't do this anymore, Leah," Jacob's taut voice drifted from above me. I sniffed and looked up to see him standing above me, his jaw clenched with anger.

"What are you saying?" I asked, pulling myself up from the ground, my knees trembling beneath me. This was the last thing I needed at the moment.

"This. Us. Damn it. Can't you see we're hurting everyone? Your family, the packs…Leah, we're killing ourselves for something that isn't supposed to happen," he spoke wearily, avoiding my eyes.

I closed my eyes and inhaled, trying to calm myself down to no avail. His words hit me like daggers, my eyes flooding with angry tears. Before I could stop myself my fist collided with his jaw, a loud crack filling the air.

He placed his hand to his jaw, his eyes finally meeting mine. They were fearsome, a mixture of pain and anger that I had never seen before. I let my anger get the best of me and pushed him against my bedroom wall. He grabbed my wrists and held them above my head, restraining me as I scowled angrily at him, silent sobs erupting from my chest.

"Why is it that you want to be everything to everyone but me?" I sputtered, my voice shaking.

He closed his eyes briefly and inhaled before looking down at me, his eyes moist with tears.

"Because I can never love you enough," he spoke quietly, releasing my arms. I closed my eyes as he moved me gently against the wall, opening them only when I was sure that he was gone.

He was a coward. He was a fucking ass. He was just like Sam, like my mother. I should have known that he wasn't any different. I thought he would stay with me because I had always stayed with him, but he didn't understand. He never could have cared. The quick flashes of emotion running through his eyes, the gentle way he touched me when I was in his arms, and the way his heart beat harder when it was pressed against mine. None of it ever existed. It must've all been in my head.