I sat on the beach, unsure what to think. What was I supposed to think? I loved Jayme; really, I did, but her father? Me...a father? Her father? I stared at the waves, and tried to find some peace in the crashing tide, but there was nothing. My mind raced, my heart beat fast, there was a roaring in my ears, and I was shaking. It wasn't that I was going to phase, though that may have contributed to it. The deadly mix of emotions was bubbling over, and I was losing it. Tears streamed down my face, and sobs ripped through my chest. I'd never felt more vulnerable in my life. I got to my feet, still unsure of what I was supposed to do. I let my head fall backward, trying to make the tears fall back into my head. My hands clenched at my side, and a scream slipped through my teeth. It was the most agonizing, heart-felt, tear-jerking sound I had ever made. It was broken in so many places, sobs interrupting it.

I tore out of there, heading towards the woods, looking for the release that my body was begging for. I shot through the woods, slowing down slightly as I got to the cliffs, wondering if a short cliff-dive was the adrenaline rush I was looking for. I shook my head angrily, and set back towards the wood. Jumping off a cliff would never be enough-for anything I could attempt. Once I was deep enough into the woods, I let the monster within me take over. The familiar shudder that flowed down my spine, the waves of heat that traveled up and down my body, and the tingling sensation as I transformed into something else entirely. The second I was a wolf, I howl erupted from me, heart-wrenching, echoing off the trees, and what seemed like an hour long. I hoped all of La Push could hear it. I hoped the whole world could hear it. Most of all, I hoped Leah could hear it. I hoped Leah could hear what she had just done to me.

Leah's P.O.V.

I sat there on the couch for a long time after Jacob left. I felt an odd sense of relief. I'd told Jacob what he needed to know. It was all out in the open now, and after the wave a relief passed, I didn't feel any better. If anything, I felt even more vulnerable. My whole future depended on him now. What he wanted from me, from Jayme. It startled me when I heard a howl sound, echoing off the trees and the buildings, a sound not too far away. I knew exactly where, what, when, why, and who that howl came from. It hand the same husky tone layered to it. Another wolf joined in, and this time, it was right behind the house. I recognized the second howl too, a younger voice, a homey voice…seconds later, Seth came through the door, looking distraught.

"Jacob's her father," he said angrily, glaring at me. It wasn't a question.

"You didn't know?" I asked from the couch, scrunching my eyebrows together.

"Um, no! You never told me that!" he said, his voice getting louder. I didn't? I racked my brain, trying to remember telling Seth, but I couldn't come up with anything. I thought he knew...or at least figured it out.

"Sorry, I thought you did," I said quietly, shrugging. Seth walked forward, and it seemed like he had to stop himself from hurting me. That was odd, Seth usually didn't have a temper……...only when he was hiding something.

"What's bothering you? You only get temperamental when you keep a secret," I said, suspicious, standing up. I'd forgotten how tall he was now, and I had to look up to look into his eyes. He didn't answer me. "Seth!?"

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but shut it closed again with an audible snap. "It's nothing," he grumbled. He sprinted up the stairs, and slammed his bedroom door, shaking the entire house. I stood there in total shock. Seth never got worked up over anything. Unless he was holding something inside, something big that he was afraid to tell anyone, did he ever lose it. I brushed it off. He's a good kid. He'll come around. He'll tell me when he's ready.

Next to come through the door was my mom, Charlie on her arm; she was giggling a goofy laugh until she saw me. The dazed grin faded quickly. She looked around then, as if forgetting her boyfriend was here.

"Where's Jayme?" she asked, concerned.

"The hospital," I said coolly.

"WHAT!?" my mother shrieked.

"Yeah, I let Jacob babysit, and he gave her peanut butter. I told him she was allergic, but he didn't listen to me, him being the father and all……," I trailed off, noticing Charlie for the first time since this conversation started. His face was alarmed. I ignored him again "I told him tonight, though. He ran away like a scared puppy. No pun intended." I chuckled darkly to myself. My mom looked disapprovingly at me, and Charlie had his eyebrows scrunched together.

"Where's Seth?" she asked, exasperated now.

"In his room. He's all worked up about something." Mom raised an eyebrow, asking me what was wrong with him. I shrugged.

"It wasn't me," I said defensively. Charlie just stood there, once again, looking terribly lost. "He'll come around. He always does." My mother narrowed her eyes.

"Leah…"

"I'm going to turn in for the night. You two have a…fabulous evening. Night," I said, laughing humorlessly to myself as I climbed the stairs. I walked into my room, and closed the door. I got into my pajamas, and lay down on my bed. I heard Seth's obnoxious snoring from the next room, and smiled. Things would be alright by tomorrow. He was just overworked. Poor kid always seemed to be on patrol; he never seemed to get his fair share of sleep. I sighed, and turned off the light, wishing that my rest would be as peaceful, painless, and deep as my snoring brother.

Jacob's P.O.V.

When I finally got up the nerve to face my father at home, I was still debating whether or not to go home, or visit the Cullens. But going home seemed slightly…or not…more important. I opened the door to my sister and Paul making out on my couch.

"Ugh, don't you two have a house of your own?" I groaned. They quite literally tore themselves away from each other, laughing, and looked at me. Once they saw my face, Rachel, always the protective sister, looked concerned. Paul, always unbelievably unobservant, just said this.

"What's up your ass?" he asked blatantly amused. Rachel glared at him. I ignored her.

"You wanna know what's up my ass, Paul? The fact that I just found out that I have a daughter…" I said choking up again. Paul's joking expression faded instantly. He tried to find words, but he was too stupid to know what to say.

"She finally told you?" They said in unison. I could practically feel my eyes bugging out of my head. They knew? They knew and I didn't? Oh, Leah was going to get it the next time I saw her. I tried to fight off the shaking that was running down my spine, but I couldn't help it. I saw Paul's grip tighten on Rachel, but I ignored it. I wasn't going to phase. I didn't need anyone reading my mind right now. It was too crazy.

"Jake, if it makes you feel any better, she didn't tell us. We figured it out by ourselves. Leah made us swear not to tell you-not to tell anyone." This was the worst pep talk ever.

"Rachel, it doesn't make me feel any better," I growled, and Paul leaned even closer, protecting her. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, give it up, Paul. It's my sister, god dammit!" He growled at me, but didn't say anything, he just held her tighter. I turned back to Rachel. "Who else knows?" I demanded, walking closer to her and sitting on the chair next to the couch.

"Well, we know, and then Sue, I assume Seth and Charlie, Embry, Emily, Sam, Jared, Quil, the Cullens know too…" I lifted my hand, cutting her off. I raked my fingers through my hair in frustration. I finally registered the last part.

"WAIT A SECOND!! THE CULLENS KNEW I HAD A KID BEFORE I DID!! HOW THE FUCK IS THAT POSSIBLE?"

"Jake, they've got a fucking mindreader over there for god's sake…what's his name…Ed, Eddie, Edwin, Eduardo…whatever. When Leah went over there with you, Ed-somethingorother must of picked it outta her head."

First I have a daughter, now Paul starts making sense. What is happening to the world? More importantly, what is happening to me??

"Jake, are you happy?" Rachel asked. Her eyes shone with innocence. She seriously meant it. What a fucking retarded question.

"Rach, do I look happy?" She looked at the floor and smiled.

"Jake, underneath all the confusion, and the anger, and the disbelief…yeah, you do. I think you're happy that Jayme's your daughter." I just stared at her, mouth wide open. She left the reservation to go to college so she could earn a psych degree…and this is what she gets out of it?

"What the hell is this shit you're blabbering on about?"

"Jake, Jayme's beautiful. She's smart, and funny, and witty, and surprisingly wise for a kid who's only three."

"Two, I corrected." Rachel looked at me quizzically. "She'll be three in June," I mumbled.

"Exhibit A," she whispered under her breath.

"Rachel, I think it's time for you and Paul to go home now," I said through clenched teeth. She nodded, and untangled herself from Paul, standing up. She stood in front of me and kissed the top of my head.

"Sorry, Jake. I love you."

"Yeah," I muttered. Paul slapped me on the back.

"It'll be alright, man," he said, and he actually looked like he actually felt something. I glanced up at him and nodded slightly. He hurried out behind Rachel, realizing that was the entire acknowledgement he was going to get.

"Goodnight, Jake," they called from out the door. I didn't respond. I just lay down on the couch to stop the room from spinning. It didn't work very well. I had a pounding headache, and I had that feeling where it feels like your stomach is caught in your throat. I felt like a total piece of shit. I bet a looked like one too. I sat on the couch, never wanting to ever move again, to fall asleep and never wake up. But like always, sleep seemed to evade me. It only occurred to me that it was late when my father struggled to wheel himself in the door.

"Jake!" he called. "Are you h…" he cut off when he saw me sprawled out on the couch.

"Dad, could you not yell, I kind of have a really bad headache," I asked, closing my eyes.

"Yeah, you don't look so good. Jacob, what happened?" he asked, wheeling in so his chair was right next to my face on the couch.

"Everything. And nothing. All at once…" I mumbled.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on, or just lie there mumbling about nonsense?"

"It seems like every single god damn time that I seem to be getting better, that I seem to get the smallest bit of happiness, life just hits me again and Bam! Everything is ruined…"

"Jake, do I have to call a doctor, I'm a little worried…"

"No, dad. I'm fine. I'll be fine. Sooner or later. I think." I stood up from the sofa, and staggered towards the staircase. I climbed the stairs one by one, and slammed the door to my closet-of-a-bedroom. Rachel said I could have hers; I just never really got around to moving in there.

I flopped down on the bed, hoping the roaring in my ears would quiet down so I could get some sleep. I waited for what could have been years or seconds, but the insane, dizzying feeling didn't stop. Eventually, I drifted off, and was thankful for the easiness that sleep always seemed to hold. When you sleep, you don't have to think about what's going on in reality. It was a good pain reliever, and it's exactly what I needed. When I was halfway asleep I heard my father's voice coming from downstairs.

"Hello?...Oh, hello Leah…yes, he is home…Leah, I don't think it's the best time…he's getting some much-needed rest…yes, thanks for understanding…well, have a good night Leah…"

Billy's P.O.V.

I'd spent some quality time with Sam getting filled in about pack matters, and Emily being the sweetest woman ever to have lived, cooked me the most exquisite steak I'd ever tasted. I interacted with Nicole, and Derrick, and it reminded me of when my children were small. I pictured Rebecca's face in my head and I sighed. She didn't need me anymore. I hadn't even met her husband. Who knows if I had grandkids? Rebecca had never been much of a daddy's girl. Though her mother wasn't around, and we never really had the best relationship, I still loved her, and missed her deeply. Rachel's face came next, and when Paul's face popped up next to hers, I grimaced and a shudder ran up my old, brittle spine. If anyone, Paul was the last person on my list of possible grooms for my girl, but if he made her happy, then I guess that's that. Though Paul making her happy was making me concerned about her mental health, I had to admit, the boy was a catch, and could be very charming when he wanted to. Rachel was an adult now, and she didn't need me either.

Then came Jacob. Though his mother, Lisa, and I were thrilled to have a baby boy, we both knew what it meant. He was destined to be a werewolf. There was no doubts in our mind. I was hoping that she'd be around to help him through it; she always had a way of making him see what he least wanted to see. He needed me more than he would ever care to admit. It was hard seeing my only son change so completely (in more ways than one) in just a couple of hours. I recalled the night he changed. It was a dark memory.

It started out as a peaceful night.

Jacob came in the door, he didn't seem as cheerful as usual, though he was whistling a tune that was horribly off-key that I didn't recognize. I speculated my only son carefully, trying to figure out what was wrong. I scanned his body, his face…nothing seemed to out of place. But somewhere in the near future, something would be. The anticipation for his first change was driving me crazy. It wasn't anticipation as much as it was nervousness, caused by not knowing what his reaction would be. Would he be angry with me for not warning him? I shuddered at the very real possibility. I just wanted him to be happy. He was my only son, and lately I'd seen minor changes in him that made a major difference. He smiled all the time. Not that he wasn't a generally happy person before; it was just that a smile was spread across his face even more often than usual. And I knew why. Well, who.

Bella. Bella Swan. The moment he came home from the beach and tried to casually mention that he'd met her that evening, I knew that he was smitten. He'd fallen hard for her, after just one day. He was unnaturally cheerful after that night. It was as if somebody told him that he'd met the love of his life. But, I'd later find out, that he wasn't just crushing on her. He was in love. My fifteen year old son was in love. It was an unrequited love, sure, but it was love all the same. And he was a charming kid; he'd win her over eventually.

"Are you okay? You look kind of strange…" I pointed out to him but trailed off when I took in his expression. He gave me a glare. For a moment he looked as if he were about to be sick, but then his face changed entirely. He looked confused as a shudder rippled up his spine. I noticed his shining forehead- he was sweating, and a deep yelp erupted from his chest. All of a sudden my son exploded.

It seemed as if he had jumped out of his skin, and into another. It took only a split second, but there it was, not my son Jacob standing in front of me, but a gigantic, russet brown wolf in the middle of my living room. He took a step, and looked incredibly confused as the top of his head hit the ceiling. He reached out, and stared at his hand which was now a paw, his frustration obvious. He looked up at me, his eyes searing with exasperation, begging me to explain what was happening. I tried to calm him down, but his growls and snarls drowned out my voice.

Suddenly his head snapped up towards the door, seconds before Embry, Sam, Paul, and Jared darted through the door, shoving him outside. I could only watch as they took my son away to explain what was going on. He was going to hate me for this.

Paul was the last one to leave, and before he could walk out the door, he stopped, turned around, and looked at me for a long moment.

"Don't worry about a thing, Billy. We'll take good care of your boy. Jake's a good kid; he'll be okay…in a few days," Paul assured me, shooting me a genuine smile.

"I hope so, Paul, I hope so. Now go help your friends, I'm sure they'll need you."

"Goodnight Billy. Sleep easy. Everything's okay."

All I could do was acknowledge him with a nod. He shot me another reassuring smile, and headed out the door to follow his friends, and shut the door quietly behind him.

Seconds later, I heard howls that screamed pure agony tearing through empty nighttime stillness, stabbing a hole through my old heart. Jacob's husky voice was distinct behind the wolf's scream of despair. I let out a few sobs of my own, mourning for my son. The adolescent part of him had been extracted him tonight. Because of this, he was forced to grow up too fast, too soon.

And this had started out as a peaceful night.

I sighed. It was easy to see that things hadn't changed much since then. Watching my son stumble his way up to his bedroom, and slam the door behind him was something that had become routine in this house. That's all he ever did when he was home…if he was home. We hadn't had a real two-sided conversation in weeks. When Jacob came home it was usually just for a few minutes. I'd ask him questions and he'd give me brief, one word responses.

"Yeah, uh-huh, whatever, no, I dunno, good, nope, sure sure…" Then he'd usually head up to his room, fall asleep, wake up and head out before I'd even gotten out of bed. And that was if he was home, which normally wasn't the case. Even that strange conversation we'd had before was rare in length. I struggled to maneuver myself from the wheelchair and onto the couch, but when I was finally laying down, I sighed in contentment as I felt my worn out muscles relax. I was almost asleep, when the telephone rang, shrill and demanding. I sighed, and rolled to my side to reach the phone that was on the coffee table. I picked up, and sighed.

"Hello?"

"Billy? I'm sorry, this is Leah…Leah Clearwater."

"Oh, hello, Leah," I asked, my tone implying what could you possibly want?

"I'm sorry, Billy, I know it's late…it's just that…is Jacob home?"

"Yes, he is home."

"Can I talk to him?"

"Leah, I don't think it's the best time. He's getting some much needed rest."

"Oh, well, let him sleep…but can you tell him I called? And that he needs to call me back? It's important." I wondered for half a second what Leah would want from him.

"Yes, thanks for understanding."

"Yeah…"

"Well, have a good night, Leah."

"You too Billy, you too," she said, and then she hung up.

Okay, so you got some Billy background in this chapter. Sorry for the slow updates. When life calls you have to answer, and life has been hogging up my line lately…hey that's good maybe I'll use that later…haha. Anyway…review it!!