Chapter 13

"Well that was an unpleasant thought," Edward muttered, a small scowl on his face.

Crap. I really tried not to think about Bella and Jacob, especially with Edward being able to dig into my brain. It was like when you know that you can't laugh and everything in the world becomes funny.

"Tell me about it," I agreed.

Baby Doll looked at me and rolled her eyes. "Were you thinking about Jacob and Bella?" she asked me. The look of shame on my face gave it away and she laughed.

"Well, I bet it's pretty awkward that Edward is here, huh?" she teased. Edward rolled his eyes and I hit her with one of the pillows that were on the couch. "It was already awkward before you asked if it was awkward." Baby Doll laughed and Edward gave a small smile.

"I already told you, you don't have to be worried about Bella and Jacob," Baby Doll said with a huge smile on her face. I didn't feel comfortable talking about my insecurities in front of Edward. I was pretty sure that he knew all of them already, but I still didn't want to discuss them in front of him. At least that way I could pretend that he didn't know that I thought that his wife was 10x prettier than me and Jacob only liked me because some wolf inside of him wants him to.

Without another word, Edward left, having of course, read my mind and knowing that I didn't want to talk about this in front of him.

"Does Jacob know about the way you feel?" Baby Doll asked me. I shrugged. We had talked about it before, but I knew that if Jacob still had any feelings towards her, he'd lie to spare my feelings. When Bella was in high school, she had more than one admirer following behind her. I remember thinking that she wasn't very pretty. I remember thinking that she was very plain looking. And then I found out that Jacob also had feelings for Bella and I felt inadequate and plain. Bella has never walked a runway or been on a magazine cover, but I have. Even with all of my modeling experience, she still made me feel like I was Quasimodo.

"You do realize that Bella is married, right? To Edward?" Baby Doll said, still trying to reason with me. I rolled my eyes. "Of course I know that. That doesn't mean that Jacob might not still have feelings for her."

Baby Doll threw her hands up in defeat and frustration. "I guess there's no getting through to you. I can't blame you though. You're a teenager. You're insecure. We've all been there." I rolled my eyes. She was a teenager a few years ago. Now all of a sudden she's the expert on teenage love affairs.

"You and Seth have always been together," I pointed out. She didn't have to fight anyone for Seth. Seth has always wanted her; even when I liked him. Ever since Seth laid eyes on Baby Doll he's been her biggest fan and now she's trying to make it seem like she understood what I was going through. She had no idea.

"Yeah," she said. "But, that doesn't mean that I wasn't the most insecure person on the planet," she said with a smile. "Christina and Seth were best friends remember? Christina had really deep feelings for him and even though he knew it, he still hung around her. She would hit on him and he'd turn her down, but he was still always with her. It was unsettling. Not to mention that I'm in a family where everyone is a freaking model except for me."

"Dad isn't a model," I said quickly. She rolled her eyes. "Dad doesn't count. Dad's hairy and old. He has an excuse." We both laughed and she continued.

"You have me. I'm this "badass" from New York who ruined her family's life with my radical lifestyle, I smoke cigarettes, covered in tattoos, and know my way around a pharmacy. And then you have Seth, who's this really good guy. I mean, he's never skipped school, smoked pot, or even Jay Walked. I didn't think that I was good enough for him."

I never knew any of this about Baby Doll. She always seemed so confident and strong. It was weird to see her so vulnerable.

"Jacob imprinted on you when he first saw you. You guys are bound for life. I was with Seth for a while before he even phased. There was nothing stopping Seth from meeting some other girl with a really bright future and dumping me like the loser that I was. When he imprinted on me, it was the best thing that could happen to me, because I didn't have to worry anymore. And here you are, worrying because he's imprinted on you." She laughed and I smiled with her.

"Do you know how great it is to not have to try to impress him because he's going to love you anyway? Seth has seen me in the morning and smelled my morning breath, but he can't leave! I've got him hook, line and sinker."

I laughed with her that time. She ruffled my hair and put a strand of hair behind my ear. "You have nothing to worry about. Take this from someone who worries constantly about everything."

"I guess you're right. I shouldn't worry. But still-,"

Baby Doll cut me off. "Do you know that they can't stand the smell of each other? The wolves and the vampires; they smell awful to one another. Did you know that the temperature difference in their skin is unbearable to the other? Like, touching dry ice and touching a fire? It is physically impossible."

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, how do you explain Leah and Onorato?" She smiled. "The imprint is a powerful thing."

I thought about that for a second. If the imprint can allow mortal enemies to be together, then why should I be afraid of Jacob having feelings for Bella? It was still a little bit unsettling, but Jacob was mine now. It didn't matter if he needed to have a little bit of help to realize that I was the one that he needed.

Besides, what if Jacob did have feelings for Bella? Would I be willing to let him go to be with her? I wasn't selfless enough for that. I needed him. And even if he did have feelings for Bella, were they as strong as the feelings that he had for me? Was I willing to compromise everything that we had together because he might have minor feelings for someone that used to be a big part of his life?

"I'm being ridiculous aren't I?" I asked Baby Doll. She nodded and patted me on the back. "It's okay. I think all of the imprints need to be ridiculous at least once. It's a big thing to take in all at once. You're still not used to this world. You've only just been exposed. It'll become easier, trust me."

It was true. A month ago, I had no idea what was going on. I still thought that Jacob only saw me as a little sister and I thought that Onorato was just some weird foreign kid. Now, my eyes were wide open to a completely new world. I was trying to take everything in stride, but it was difficult. I was very thankful that my sisters were a part of this too. It would've been more difficult if I didn't have them to talk to about this stuff.

"I feel better," I told her honestly. Baby Doll smiled at me. "I'm glad. You really don't have anything to worry about."

I laughed. "I feel so stupid. Why on Earth should I be insecure? I mean, I am the hottest piece of ass at Forks High!" Baby Doll rolled her eyes. "Well, now that you're back to your conceited self, do you think that you can handle being outside?"

I shook my head quickly. I was okay with the imprint/Jacob/Bella thing. I was definitely not going to be able to deal with Volturi thing. Not yet. I needed a lot more time before I was able to handle that conversation.

"I think I need a bit more time before I'm able to be outside with everyone else. I'm not sure that I'll be able to handle the conversation about the vampire royalty that is on its way to take my best friend and probably kill my boyfriend."

Baby Doll's face got very serious suddenly. "To be honest, I'm not either. These old dudes aren't the ones to fuck with. They're dangerous. And the guard is filled with people with powers. I mean, yeah, we have the wolves and Edward, Alice, Jasper, Bella, and Onorato, but this is an entire group of people with powers. Their sole purpose is to heed to Aro's beck and call. It's unsettling."

I suddenly felt very sick. I could tell that Baby Doll was being honest with me now. Before, she was trying to make the situation seem less than what it was. I didn't know if I were happy with her honesty though.

"They've fought them before, right?" I asked trying to find some kind of understanding of what we were facing. Baby Doll shook her head and then nodded.

"Not really, but kind of. The first time they saw the Volturi was during the newborn war. That was when they sent us away and we came back to Jacob in a cast. But that was because he jumped in the way to save Leah from a newborn vampire. That didn't have anything to do with the Volturi.

The second time they saw them was when Aro came to make sure that Bella was a vampire. That also didn't end in a fight. Once Aro was satisfied with Bella's transformation, he left."

My head was reeling. I had never known any of this. This was a lot of stuff to take in. I took a few deep breaths to try to calm myself. I wasn't going to have another attack. I was going to be fine. I was a big girl now. I could handle this.

"I know. It's a scary thought. But we have to have faith. We have to hope that it doesn't end in a fight and if it does we have to have faith that our boys can take care of it. Worrying about it isn't going to do any of us any good."

That was a lot easier said than done.

Seth and Jacob came back into the house. Seth sat down next to Baby Doll and kissed her on the cheek. Jacob sat down next to me, a worried expression on his face. "You okay?" he asked me. I nodded and smiled. "I'm gonna be fine. It's just a lot to take in. Someone should've told me about all of this years ago," I teased and nudged his side. "I know. I'm really sorry about that. I didn't think that this would be happening right now."

Seth stood up and walked towards the front door. He came back with several boxes of pizza. I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to eat. I knew that I needed to eat something because I hadn't eaten anything that day, but my stomach was turning so badly that I didn't think that I'd be able to keep it down.

Baby Doll gave me a slice of cheese pizza and I nibbled on the crust, not trusting myself to be able to swallow the greasy cheese and tomato sauce.

"How's everything going outside?" I asked Jacob. He shrugged. "I'd like to tell you that you shouldn't worry. That we can handle ourselves. But, I know that that won't really help you. Once Alice's visions become more concrete we'll know exactly what we're up against. Then, we can make a solid plan. We're going to win this, Melissa. I promise you."

I shook my head. "Don't promise me something like that, Jacob. Not yet, okay?" He shook his head. "Losing isn't an option. I'm going to promise you, baby." I laid my head down on his shoulder and shuddered. I couldn't imagine a life without Jacob. I knew that I had one before he came into it, but it was difficult to remember so far back. It was like once Jacob became a part of me, everything before that didn't matter. I wasn't going to let anyone take him away from me; not Bella or anyone else.

"When will the meeting be over?" Baby Doll asked. "Not long," Jacob said. "We can't really do much until we get more information. We've just been coming up with different scenarios."

"And every scenario ends with everyone being alive at the end, right?" I asked. Jacob nodded and smiled. "Every single scenario." "And believe us, there are a lot of scenarios. Carlisle doesn't like to leave any option unexplored."

I raised an eyebrow at Baby Doll. "Carlisle used to hang with the Volturi for a while," she explained through a mouth of cheese pizza. I nodded my head in understanding. "I can explain it to you if you'd like," I turned to see Carlisle standing in the doorway. I nearly jumped out of my skin. These vampires needed to wear a bell so I can hear them when they entered a room.

"I didn't mean to startle you," he said softly. I waved my hand in dismissal. "Don't worry about it. I'm fine. I'd really like to hear all about it."

Carlisle walked to the armchair that was sitting on the other side of the room and sat down.

"Are you thirsty, Melissa? You're looking a bit dehydrated," he commented, looking at me with a worried expression. "I'm fine," I told him, but Jacob was already on his way to the kitchen to get me a glass of water.

"I understand that today has been a trying day, but you can't forget to stay hydrated. Especially with you being under such stress."

I raised an eyebrow at Baby Doll and she laughed."Carlisle is a doctor and a father. He can't help it."

Carlisle looked ashamed. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to be too forward. I just didn't want you to faint again." "It's okay, Dr. Cullen. You're right. I should drink some water."

Jacob brought me a glass of water and Carlisle smiled after he saw me take a few sips.

"A few centuries ago, I lived with the Volturi. I never considered myself a part of them, so much as a guest in their home. They followed a different doctrine than I did. They were more likely to handle problems with brute force and violence whereas I was more likely to reach compromises and talk through disagreements. I suspected that Aro was fascinated with my lifestyle choices. We became friends. However, as time passed, they became more gruesome and angry with everyone. Aro would become paranoid at every whiff of a new vampire with powers. He believed that vampires would overthrow him. Our arguments were never ending and I couldn't take it any longer so I decided to be on my own."

I listened to every word that Carlisle spoke with complete interest. He talked about Aro's power of knowledge. He could obtain every thought that you've ever had by touching someone. Carlisle also talked about Aro's brothers, their wives, and the guard. I was especially freaked out about Jane and Alec. Apparently, Jane had the ability to make your brain think that it was in unbearable pain. Alec had the ability to emit a black cloud of smoke that took away all of your senses. I didn't know which one of them was worse.

"Aro is a lot of things, but I would never use unjust to describe him," Carlisle said. "He believes that he's the police of the vampire world and although policemen can sometimes be corrupted, Aro likes to be the model for which all vampires base themselves against. If he were to do something that would be unethical, especially to a group as large and as well known as ours, it could be the cause of an uprising. Aro will avoid that at all costs."

The Cullens had many vampire friends across the world. Apparently a lot of them came to see Bella turning into a vampire. They stood as witnesses to her transformation. They were also there for Aro's arrival so Aro got to see the number of supporters that the Cullens had on their side. I didn't know if that intimidated or angered Aro, but from what Carlisle told me about him, it didn't seem like it would sit well with Aro.

"So, Aro won't come and kill us then?" I asked, hopeful. Carlisle sighed. "I wish it were that simple. If he comes all this way and doesn't get what he wants, Onorato, then he will find some other law that we've broken and punish us for it."

I didn't know much about vampire law, but I did know that the Cullens were "good people". They didn't really cause that much trouble, or if they did, they always got out of it somehow. If Aro was looking for something to punish them for, he was going to have a lot of work cut out for him.

I smiled at Carlisle. "That should be really difficult. I mean, you guys seem to be law abiding citizens."

Jacob grabbed my hand tightly and I saw Seth look down at his feet. "What's wrong?" I asked them.

"One of the laws that we have to follow is that humans can't know about us," Carlisle said softly. I raised an eyebrow at him. I wasn't following him.

"We're humans," Baby Doll supplied. I nearly smacked myself in the forehead. How could I forget that I was a freaking human? Being a part of this world was captivating and intense. It was easy to forget that you were normal when everyone around you were the things that go bump in the night.

"Can't we just not tell them?" I asked Carlisle. As soon as I asked the question, I realized that Aro would know about us as soon as he touched someone.

"We've managed to not touch Aro in his past two visits. I don't think we'll be able to avoid it a third time."

I gulped and held Jacob's hand tighter.

"Is he going to kill us?" I asked Carlisle. Before Carlisle could answer, Jacob and Seth said "NO," simultaneously and firmly.

"We're going to try to avoid that at all costs. We're going to protect you. We're going to do our very best. We'll be staying in town until their visit. We'll practice new fighting styles, invite our friends to join our forces, and continue to think of different plans. Everything is going to be okay," Carlisle said in a calming voice.

I noticed that he didn't promise, but I was happy that he didn't. It made it seem more real in a way. He wasn't going to bullshit me. He was being very honest and I respected him for that. I trusted him even though I didn't have a real reason to.

"It's all very scary," I told him. He nodded. "It is very scary. But we won't be surprised. We have a plan for everything. You needn't worry yourself. There isn't anything that you can do to help at this point." I nodded. I knew that.

"Leave the fun part to the experts." I turned around to see Emmett walking in the room. Rosalie was right behind him, rolling her eyes. "What part of this is fun, again?" He smiled. "The part where I get to rip something apart," he said, cracking his knuckles with the scariest facial expression I've ever seen in my life.

"How about you try not to give Melissa another panic attack," Edward said following behind Rosalie. Emmett looked at me with an apologetic look on his face. "I'm sorry." "I-i-it's okay," I stammered. Rosalie shook her head and laughed. "Don't be afraid of Emmett, Melissa. He's not going to hurt you. Annoy you to the point of wanting to stick a wooden stake through his heart while dousing him in holy water, but he won't hurt you."

I looked at Jacob. "Does that actually work?" He laughed and shook his head. "I fucking wish it did. It would make things a hell of a lot easier. You have to rip vampires apart and light the body parts on fire." I nodded my head. "Yeah, that's definitely a lot more difficult than just throwing them in the sun, I guess."

Jacob was still holding my hand and my body was completely warmed by him. He smiled at me and I smiled back at him.

"Get a room," Edward grumbled. Jacob flipped him off and I blushed. I didn't think about anything inappropriate. At least I didn't think that I did.

"You're in the clear, Melissa. It's your boyfriend with his head in the gutter," Edward teased. My blush only darkened while everyone else laughed.

"Is this meeting over?" I asked. Carlisle nodded. "For today, it is. Tomorrow, while you're in school, we'll have another one." I sighed. "When will this be over?" I whispered to myself. "Very soon, hopefully," Emmett answered. I forgot that no matter how low I whispered, someone was going to be able to hear me. Hell, if I didn't say anything, Edward would still be able to hear me.

"Do you want me to take you home?" Jacob asked me. I nodded and stood up. "First, I want to say goodbye to Onorato." He nodded and followed me to the backdoor.

Onorato and Leah were in the backyard near the forest line talking. I walked up to them and Onorato hugged me. I released a breath that I didn't realize that I was holding. "Everything is going to be okay," he said, patting my hair. I nodded against his shirt and tried not to cry. I had grown very close to Onorato and I didn't want to lose him so quickly.

I broke my hug with Onorato and immediately hugged Leah. "Nothing is going to happen to you, Leah," I told her. She hugged me back and laughed. "You're going to protect me?" she asked. I gave her a determined look. "With a damn crossbow if I have to." Leah laughed and nodded her head. "I knew that I could count on you."

I waved goodbye to the new couple and walked towards Jacob and held his hand again. "I think holding your hand has been my favorite part of the whole day," I told him as we were walking around to the front of the house. "Yeah?" he asked. "Even better than the pizza?" I rolled my eyes and nodded. "Yes. Even better than the pizza that I didn't have very much of."

"If I told you that you handled this pretty well, would you hit me?" Jacob asked me once we were in his car. I nodded my head. "Yes. Yes I would. Very hard. Repeatedly. Did you see me today? I was awful. I handled this the exact opposite of well. I handled this very unwell."

Jacob looked at me and smiled. "I mean, you didn't break up with me." I rolled my eyes. "Did you really think that I would break up with you? That's not even an option, Jacob." He shook his head.

"It was still something that I worried about. I didn't know if you'd run for the hills. There's a part of me that kind of wants you to find a normal guy to be with where you don't have to worry about shit like this."

My heart nearly stopped. What was he saying? What the hell was he trying to say to me?

"But, I'm too selfish for that. I love you, too much and there's no way that I'd be able to survive knowing that you're happy with someone else." I nodded my head in agreement. "Same here. Now you know how I feel about you and Bella." Jacob rolled his eyes. "I told you, Melissa that's-," "I know," I cut him off. "That's never going to happen. But still, it was something that I worried about." I said, repeating him.

Jacob drove us to his house and I smiled. I was happy that I was going to have some alone time with him. I needed to be alone with him.

Of course, Billy was home, but he was in the living room and watching a sports game. He didn't even acknowledge our presence beyond a grunt. Jacob pulled me towards his room. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"What are you up to, Mr. Black?" I asked him. He laughed. "Nothing that isn't innocent. I just want to hold you. May I?" I looked thoughtful for a while and nodded. He pulled me to his bed and we laid down, him just holding me and occasionally kissing me on the neck. We didn't speak, we just laid there together. It felt good. I could feel my body de-stressing from the earlier events of the day. There was no one else in the world but us two.

Before I knew it, I was waking up from a nap that I hadn't realized that I had taken. I could hear Jacob snoring softly next to me and I smiled. I knew that with Jacob's weird sleeping patterns he didn't get much sleep. I was happy that he was finally getting some rest.

I got up from the bed and walked into the living room. Billy was still watching TV, but there were other teams playing because they were completely different jersey colors from the last game. I sat down in the armchair and he smiled at me. "You watch football?" he asked me. I didn't even know that he was watching football. I thought that it was soccer. Awkward.

I shook my head. "Not really. I don't know the first thing about football." Billy laughed and shook his head. "How are you my son's girlfriend and not know anything about football?" I laughed along with him and shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I should fire him." Billy kept laughing. "I sure as hell would. I can hear that man snoring from all the way in here."

I couldn't hear Jacob snoring, but I assumed that it was because I have headphones in my ear about 80% of the time.

"So, how was the meeting?" Billy asked me. I shrugged. "I guess it could've gone worse. It was my first official vampire-werewolf meeting, so I really don't have anything to compare it to. But I only nearly fainted once. So, that's an accomplishment." Billy laughed and nodded his head.

"That is an accomplishment. I believe your sister fainted twice at her first meeting. So, I think you did pretty well."

"Are you trying to steal my girl away from me, old man?" I turned around to see Jacob walking into the room with his hair a mess and completely sexy. How the hell did I land someone as perfect as him?

"It can't be helped if she wants someone who's not such an obnoxious snorer," Billy teased. Jacob rolled his eyes. "Look who's talking. You snore so loudly that I can't get to sleep at night." Billy rolled his eyes. "It's not my fault that you have super human hearing. You don't need super human hearing to hear you from five houses over."

Jacob looked at me. "Do I snore?" I shook my head. "Not very loudly." Billy laughed. "She's too kind. You make sure you keep her around. No one else is going to put up with you." Jacob and Billy laughed.

"Okay, I'm taking Ms. Perfect home now. It's getting late." I stood up and waved goodbye to Billy. "And make sure you teach her about football! What good are you?!" he yelled after we left the house. Jacob rolled his eyes. "Ignore my dad." I laughed. "I love your dad, Jake. He's funny." Jacob laughed too. "Don't encourage. He'll never stop. Next time you're over he'll tell you his puns. Don't say that I didn't warn you."

When I got home, Jacob walked me to my front door. "Sorry that today was so shitty." I shrugged. "It could've been worse, right?" He nodded. "That's true." I sighed and looked up at him. "Even though I'm afraid and new to all of this, I want to be a part of this. I want to know what's going on. Don't keep anything from me ever again Jacob Black." He nodded. "Ok."

I stood up on my tippy toes and kissed him and he kissed me back forcefully. It was the sweetest and most necessary kiss that we had ever shared. "I needed that," I whispered to him after we broke apart. He nodded. "Me too. I love you." I smiled up at him. "I love you too."

Amber made chicken fried rice for dinner and I was very happy about that. I inhaled so much food that I thought I might explode. I was hungrier than I realized.

When I got upstairs, Kaitlyn and Baby Doll were in my room talking.

"Who let you guys in?" Baby Doll rolled her eyes. "As if a locked doors are going to stop me from getting in. Where else were we going to talk about official pack business?" I nodded my head.

True. This stuff wasn't really kitchen table conversation.

I flopped down on my bed and tears rushed to my face. I felt Kaitlyn wrap me in her arms and Baby Doll rubbing my back soothingly. "Everything is going to be okay."

BOOM! Another chapter in the bag. I'm pretty proud of this chapter. Let me know what you think. Review please!

Also, I must ask you to read my other stories: Edward's Comfort, Seth's Baby Doll, Paul's Ballerina and Embry's Oak.

I just got a job, so I'll probably be posting on Sundays now. I'm going to try to make this a thing.

Special thanks to my beta RaphaelofTheDarkness who checks up on me and hassles me about updates.