A/N: Firstly, I AM SO SO SO SO SORRY!!! I haven't updated in so long because I have been unbelievably busy lately with stuff for school and to top everything off my computer literally stopped working for a long period of time. Not to mention the old WRITER'S BLOCK. Don't you just hate writer's block?

Ok. Enough excuses. Please don't hate me.

I love all of you who review.

You are champions.

Story time....

Leah

Sam paused for a moment. "We're going to have to take a vote."

A vote? Was he serious? Who in the world would vote for me anyway? After all the suffering I had caused Sam and Jacob's packs nobody was going to vote me as Alpha. They'd rather face Paul than have me bossing them around.

I suddenly felt weak and self-conscious as everyone murmured nervously amongst themselves. I was sure I heard a few profanities leak out from Paul's big mouth.

"Okay," Sam continued in a voice of authority. "We'll start with Jared."

Did I really want this? Did I really want to be tied down to the one aspect of my life that destroyed everything I cherished? I already knew the answer. Of course I didn't. I had endured enough pain and suffering without adding all the pressure of becoming alpha as well. I realised that although there were some experiences from this whole werewolf thing that I actually didn't mind, like the speed when I ran and the feeling of being included in an exclusive group. But there were so many reasons why I hated my body being in this weird half-human form, like how it killed my father, I lost my hair, my boyfriend, my close relationship with Emily, my child-bearing abilities and pretty much my life. I didn't want to embrace the one thing that ruined my entire existence. Being Beta was different because I really didn't have much power, but with alpha there was so much pressure, pressure I couldn't handle right now.

Just as I was about to object to the voting, Embry interrupted Sam. "Hold up a minute!"

Sam looked annoyed. "What is it, Embry?"

Embry's face remained serious. "Don't you think Leah should get a say in this? I mean, doesn't she have a choice? It's seems only fair."

Paul interjected moronically, "It seems Embry wants Leah all to himself, more like it."

"I thought I told you to shut it, Paul!" Embry retorted back at him.

"Ooh, someone's feisty, huh?" Embry's hands started quivering as he glared at Paul. "Maybe you do want her as alpha, that way you have to do anything she wants you to."

Embry's quivering turned into violent shakes. "That's it! Outside Paul! Now!"

"Fine! I can take you!" Paul also started shaking.

"Please," Emily politely interceded. "Be careful of the coffee table!"

"He's gone…" Seth mumbled blankly to himself.

Collin yelped, "Oh, cool! A fight!"

"EVERYONE QUIET!" Sam roared and everybody fell silent. Shocked faces filled the room and Sam closed his eyes as he took several deep breaths. Then calmly he ordered, "Embry, Paul breath slowly and calm down. There will be no fighting tonight. Now back to the point, Embry you were saying?" Then he glanced at Paul. "No interruptions this time."

Embry cooled down and replied. "I just think Leah should have a say in whether she is alpha or not, because she might not want to. And Jacob had the option before as well."

Sam thought for a moment and turned to me. "Well, do you want to be alpha? I mean I just assumed you did before without bothering to think of asking."

I weighed up all the pro's and con's and the negative list went for miles in my mind. "Honestly, no." I heard someone gasp, probably Emily. "I just don't think I'm a good person for the job. Mainly because I would really hate the pressure and I've been through so much lately, you have no idea." My voice cracked on the last word, revealing my weakness.

Sam and I were staring at each other so intently that I had forgotten about everyone else in the room.

Sam nodded and said, "Fair enough. You don't have to be alpha if you don't want to be." He then turned to everyone and spoke. "In that case because Jacob had no third-in-command, the remaining people from Jacob's pack are obliged to re-join my pack. This is the only option that appears obvious since we have found no legends in La Push that mention there being two separate packs."

Once Sam had gone over a few more points about patrol duties the meeting broke up and everyone left. After a while I realised I was still sitting on Emily's couch.

"Leah?" Emily's voice caught my attention. "You'd better be off home now, hon. It's quite late, unless you'd prefer to stay here of course?"

"No thanks, Em," I replied as I got up and made my way to the door.

"Okay, well, night Lee," she greeted me as we embraced.

I was just about to leave until I heard Sam call out. "Lee, wait up a second!"

I turned around to look at him, glad that my feelings for him had diminished finally.

"I just wanted to say, I'm glad you could come to us – me and Em," Sam said in a gentle voice, the one he used to use when I was his girlfriend, but luckily it now carried no meaning. "For help, because I still love you Leah, you know that."

I took a deep breath and then delivered the words that had been boiling up in my head for quite some time. "You hurt me Sam," I stated as a fact. "You hurt me so badly."

"I know," he comforted me as he grabbed my hands from my sides. "And I'm forever guilty for doing so. I'm so sorry, Leah." He shook my hands in his as he spoke, for emphasis.

I wrenched my hands out of his and continued, "I wasn't finished." His face turned serious now, but he also looked rejected. "But I think I am finally over it. I'm over you Sam. I don't love you anymore and I'm glad. I've finally accepted the fact that we can never be together anymore. However, I still want to be friends with you and I think that after tonight, I have proved that I can be just friends with you now."

I finished my speech and Sam was quiet for a moment. "You finished?"

"Yeah," I sighed. "So what do you think?"

Sam smiled. "I'm really happy for you, Leah." He embraced me quickly but gently.

Then he sighed. "I guess now it's my turn to be mature and finally let go too. If you could do it then I really should, since I was the one who… well, it doesn't matter. I'm just happy for you."

I started smiling too. "Thanks, Sam. It really means a lot." With that I opened the front door.

"Oh and one more thing," Sam added and I stopped in my tracks. "You might want to cut Embry some slack. I think he really cares about you, Lee."

I was surprised that Sam, who was usually so serious and manly, would read into something like that. I turned around to face his unfamiliar, soft, caring expression and promised him, "I will," before walking out the door.

Okay so for those of you who are like, "Is this a Jacob/Leah fic or an Embry/Leah fic?" My answer is: it's both, in a way.

But Embry is kind of "the other guy" who is usually ignored by the annoyingly naive Leah and he really deserves some attention. Not to mention how crazily in love with her he is. However the love he holds for Leah isn't magical imprinting love, it's more like adorance. He is just infatuated in her in a very realistic way and believes that he can never imprint because of it. In other words, he wants a normal relationship with her, but fears he can't. Where as Jacob is the incredibly amazing, alluring loverboy who helped Leah get over the ex (Sam). Jacob does love Leah too, but it's more like the way Bella loved Jacob in "Eclipse" - he loved her more than he should but nowhere near enough. Sounds confusing doesn't it? But don't worry everything will be sorted out soon in the crazy world of Leah Clearwater, so KEEP READING. And reviews are like new entries on the S. Meyer website - I love them!

So any thoughts?

(That was the longest author's note I have ever written.)