Previously...
"It's going to be okay," Jake sighed, lying down on the dirt. I wanted to follow his lead but got too lazy and stayed put. "You'll forgive her and everything will be back to normal."
I glared even harder at those words, those inevitable words. That's exactly what had to happen because I imprinted on her and no matter what she did, I would love her. Then...why the hell wasn't I feeling the love then? How could I just up and forgive Riley for taking away my normal and replacing it with some jock that hid from me his entire life?
"Yeah? What's normal now? Tell me, Jake, cause I don't know," I mumbled with a hoarse voice, finally looking down on Jake with a pouting expression. He opened his mouth to speak but couldn't find an answer. Exactly.
Chapter 26: Revival
Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Get it in your head. SM owns it all, except my plot. :)
"It's Christmas!" the voice defended.
"I know, Ness, but…give him time," Jake replied with a heavy sigh. "I don't know what else to do."
"You shouldn't have to know. He's not your kid or brother," Nessie said with a sniff.
"Renesmee, a pack sticks together. He's more than a brother," Jake stomped off unhappily. In the back of my mind, I made a joke. They were already the old married couple. My door opened so I opened my eyes. It didn't change a thing. Now instead of darkness I was staring at the open window with so many colors of the trees and yet I wasn't as interested as I was by the intense colors so long ago. "Do you want something to eat?" Shaking my head said no. "You haven't seen her today. You have to see her sometime." I wanted to tell him that I could hold out, that I could fight against my genes to not be in her presence, but that was too much to say so I just shook my head.
"Nessie has a couple of gifts for you," Jake sat at the edge of the bed, creating a creaking sound. My head ached and I needed to pee, but my mind was too occupied trying to figure out how it was possible. Why she would do it. Could I trust her now? The scenes played over and over again.
Slipping away, hoping secretly that it was all a dream. He stood and paused at the door, back to me. "Fine," Jake sighed. "You have patrol in an hour. I expect you to be there."
"Is that an order?" I finally spoke. My face twisted into a 'kicked puppy' expression that I hated but somehow made Jake feel terrible about him. In conversations like those, it was a natural expression of mine, regretfully.
Jake turned around with an uncertain expression, which then settled into a grim frown. "No, it's not, but," Jake said in a deep, sincere voice. "If you want to show Riley you are a real man, a man who can put their feelings aside in a time of need, a man who can put priorities first, and a man who can take a hit, then you'll show up."
I blinked in shock as he stepped out of the room. For a moment, I was scared I overreacted. She did apologize…
But she didn't even try to tell me before she was forced to, and who wants to be with somebody who doesn't tell them everything? Riley needed to trust me and I needed to trust her.
A half hour later, I had finally got dressed for the day, but that was about it. Then I decided to get off my high horse and went into the living room. Christmas was kind of a sore subject for those of us who had family that died. So Renesmee and Alice both went deep into the decoration to distract us. Renesmee missed Charlie but it was easier for her because it wasn't her decision to live forever and leave him behind. Everyone else either had a choice or saw it was their fault for putting themselves in a position like that. Jasper and Alice were better. Jasper's past wasn't really focused on his family while Alice couldn't remember hers.
When Jake saw me up and out, he let me off the hook for patrol as expected. He most likely wanted the patrol to escape this place. Christmas drove him nuts. He got over his family better and faster than me but both of us were from one tribe, one tribe with a large family, blood related or not.
It surprised me to see double the vampires there. Well not exactly double, but there were five other cold ones in the living room celebrating. "Seth, how are you?" Carmen exclaimed, standing up with arms open wide. One glance from her to Eleazar explained that they were here not only for Christmas.
"Please tell me they aren't here to fight the Volturi," I groaned. There was no point in everyone knowing what happened between Riley and I if they weren't there to help keep her safe. Despite my anger with her, it did give me relief to find them grinning in agreement.
"We didn't want them to come," Rosalie entered with a warm cup of coffee, which I took gratefully despite it being almost noon.
"Because we may mix things up too much," Garrett bounded down from the overlooking section beside the stairs. I grinned. He was always an interesting one. Jake spent most of the time near these guys, but I did a little as well.
"Garrett, what are you doing with them?" my lips hinted at a smile. He answered me by gluing himself to Kate's side. I had forgotten they got together decades ago. "Well thank you."
"Anything to protect your darling imprint," Tanya squealed. "Speaking of her, may we meet her?" Edward cleared his throat but it was already said. "Oh, right, I'm so sorry, I forgot." Sitting next to Eleazar, I smiled dourly.
"Hey, it's Christmas, don't let me nurse my wounds more," I brushed them aside.
"Next time when you have somebody tracking her down, don't forget I'm always up for a challenge," Garrett grinned like a crazy man. I nodded with a smile. So maybe it was possible to forget for a little while in the presence of family.
"Tell us about Troy and Jess," Carmen warmly smiled. She reminded me of Esme but younger. It wasn't hard to warm up to them like the Cullens. So we launched into a long story that ultimately made me sad, as well as Emse. We hadn't heard from Troy or Jess. You'd think at least Troy who was in on the plan, but no. It pained me that he could help more than me, but in the end, she needed somebody who was there for her without contest and that wasn't me because I imprinted.
It seemed I was disappointing all the women in my life.
. . .
"Seth!"
"Rose!"
"For the thirtieth time, Riley won't be the focus. Our biggest problem is getting Jess and Troy back because, no matter what they say, Demetri won't be nice if he actually has to do his job," Rose's heals clattered on the tile floor. We were in the super market where Alice saw Riley going to today. Somehow she convinced Rose and me to try and 'bump' into Riley, only I wasn't expecting the sight that I saw. In our boredom, we talked about the battle.
"Will Jess even stay with us?" I asked. Rose shrugged and inspected a hair curler.
"Cheap," she muttered. I sighed. It was going on two hours and still there was no sign of her. I began pulling Rosalie out of the hair section and towards the exit when she appeared. Riley. Baggy sweat pants. T-shirt. Messy bun. Granny panties' underwear line. I couldn't believe my eyes.
Beside me, Rose gasped and clutched her chest, her eyes wide. Then I looked closer. Nailbeds bitten down until blood threatened. Rings under her eyes. Pale, pale white skin. Nearly blackened eyes that jumped around everywhere. Dear goodness, what happened?
"Seth Clearwater," Rose scolded. "Look what you did to that poor girl."
"Me?"
"You may get to ease your pain by staring at her through the window, but she can't," Rosalie hissed, tearing her eyes away from the horrific sight. People were staring, amazed that Riley could pull off that look. Sure she did to the human eye, she made it look sexy, but not to the trained eye. I gaped that Rose knew my secret. "We all have good hearing as well, Seth."
"Do you want me to just forgive her?" I was tempted to do so then and there, finally seeing her closer than 50 yards. Rosalie shook her head immediately.
"No, you'll just hurt her worse, not until you are fully prepared to forgive her," Rose cursed silently at herself for 'being so stupid.' So I stayed hidden as Rosalie 'bumped' into Riley.
She causally walked over to her and then, quicker than a jet, pulled her behind the mattresses in my full view. "Riley Pratt!" Rose grabbed her wrists. "What do you think you are doing?"
"Rosalie?" Riley gasped. It had been a week and four days since our fight. "Oh my gosh! Rose. Is – is Seth here?"
Rose shook her head sadly as Riley hugged on tight. "I'm sorry sweetie," she whispered, glaring at me. Pain shot through me instantly. I caused Riley to be that crazed with agonizing worry. Dammit I was supposed to mad at her, not myself!
"Is there some way you can get me to him? Every time I try, he runs," Riley pled. Rose shook her head and pulled away, a firm scolding expression forming.
"Is he the reason you are dressed like this? Or why you forgot that even you need beauty sleep?" Rose frowned, as did Riley, and she looked herself over.
"Oh." As if she were just noticing her appearance. "Do you think he won't like it? Shit. You sure he isn't here?" She sounded more hopeful that Rosalie was wrong.
"You can't do this to yourself over some guy," Rose responded without enthusiasm. I should have brought Alice along but Rose normally bonded better with Riley. Rose was slightly biased seeing as, because of five men, she was a murderer.
"I just – need to see Seth! Please!" Riley voice surprised me. It was choked with tears. I gulped, finally seeing how it would pan out. Now it was just how long I wanted to cause her and I both to be in pain. The longer I waited, the longer it would take for her parents to accept me for the third time. Wait I forgot. Robert was being held in jail until his hearing. Jail. Her dad was in jail and here I was adding onto the problem. That settled it. I'd do something progressive tomorrow.
. . .
"You should see her," Edward laughed whole-heartedly. "The way she concentrates is amazing. Her palms face downward and she envisions it as pushing air out of her hands and it bouncing off the ground to propel her. Fascinating."
Eleasar's chuckle was quite the same to the bonfire crackling as he said, "The young girl we came across was purely incredible. She was a blinder in a simpler form. One moment you were seeing luscious greens and yellows and then everything turned shades of pink. Or shades of blue. Any color."
"She could manipulate the color sensing section of our eyes," Jasper mused. Eleazar nodded. "What will the Volturi do with this information? They could create an arm-," I silenced him.
Voice crept slowly louder into my hearing range, miles and miles away. They were light but familiar. I pointed in the direction and Edward took off. We waited patiently except me. I had a good guess on who ran nearer and was excited. Esme gasped when they got into her hearing range.
They were back. So soon. Most of us expected them to arrive at the last moment. The pessimistic ones didn't expect them to come back at all. But here they were. Laughing behind Edward, Jess and Troy stumbled into the clearing clinging onto each other. I stared dumbfounded.
"Jess," Esme rushed her for a hug, which she gave easily. It seemed as if she didn't even have a grudge on us. I ran forward and squeezed her to pieces only to find she wasn't reciprocating.
"You're back," I sighed and met Troy's eyes. He was signaling for me to stop so I dropped her. Suddenly, the easy expression on her face turned to hatred. "Jess?"
"Troy," Jess turned and shakily found her way into his arms. "Get him away!" Her voice was barely above a whisper and I would have bet she was crying if she could have.
"Seth, we thought you weren't going to be here," Troy muttered, running a hand down Jess's hair. The sight puzzled me. I didn't exactly like seeing them so touchy. It bothered me and brought up memories, including one memory in particular that I held secret from Riley. That meant… "Jess, Esme's going to take you back to the house for new clothes. I'll settle this."
Nobody liked the sound of that. His eyes were on me so before I knew it Jess and Esme were off, along with Nessie who just wanted away from the boiling blood. Troy took a step closer as if I personally offended him. Carlisle came forward along with Eleazar and Jake.
"What's wrong? I – I only hugged her," I said, putting my hands up in defense. Troy sighed grimly.
"Jess blames you directly for not telling her. I told her you were the one who wanted to but…" he trailed off, so Jake finished for him.
"But she's Jess. Why him?"
"She had a huge crush on you, bigger than any of you knew, and trusted you the most to be honest with her," Troy's eyes stared coldly in mine. I felt terrible, but Esme made me. It wasn't my fault.
"She's young, Seth, you can't blame her emotions," Eleazar put a hand on my shoulder, which was a bold move considering we didn't know each other much.
"We may both be young, but she hates it when you treat her like a kid. You hid this from her because of her 'young' emotions," Troy grumbled. Jess wasn't the only one annoyed about that, apparently.
"Troy, turning into a vampire doesn't age your emotions or personality," Carlisle reminded him.
"No, but mating does," I sighed in distaste. I could see it in his eyes. They were slightly possessive of Jess, hating that we were talking behind her back even with her knowledge. The look on his face would haunt me forever. It was mature, so much more mature than I was used to seeing on his devious appearance. "Experiences make up a person. This new experience changed her a lot."
"Whom did she mate with?" Eleazar questioned. We didn't go into detail with why it was Troy who went with her. I still hated that it had to be him, but now I saw that it was the correct thing to do. If it had been me, she never would have stayed to even listen to the entire story.
"Me," Troy straightened his posture. There were multiple gasps, including Jake's, but Carlisle and I both could tell. They seemed to have a delayed effect, most likely because their personalities were so youthful and naïve. Once they got away and dealt with an adult problem, their feelings finally caught up. "That's not all," he said, "in order for her to stay, she's requested," demanded, "that Seth not stay at the house."
Anger flared through me, but it wasn't with Jess, it was for me. I was a terrible friend for hiding the information and causing her to do this. Immediately, there were numerous outbursts of defiance. It warmed my heart, but in the end, I knew what I had to do to fix everything, including the situation with Riley.
"-Jess is going, then so am I. I can't force her like that! I already made her come back," Troy said fiercely. A growl ripped from his throat. Rosalie, who he was arguing with, bent into a crouch. For some unknown reason, Rose took to me. Emmett then stepped beside her protectively. Just as it looked like an inevitable fight, Carlisle spoke.
"Stop this! Troy," Carlisle brought all attention to him. "I won't force Seth out. He has a right to stay and a place in this family."
"So does she," Garrett commented. Immediately, Kate was on opposite sides with him, creating an argument. Within a few seconds, voices were back to a roar. I tried to shut them out and stumbled to a tree, sinking to the ground and plugging my ears.
Leave? The battle was soon so I had to stay close, right? But Leah's offer nagged me. She wanted me to live with her, create a new family from our old one. I could go and come for the battle only, try to make amends with Jess, and when that failed, I'd go back with Leah. I could see it.
We'd live in the weirdest town out of the country. Her kids would love me. Leah could be absolutely happy, as happy as possible for her for the rest of her life. It would be cold but nobody would care. A new little pack would form when the gene was passed down.
Closing my eyes, I saw a picture of us all old and wrinkly on her front porch. My head turned to the side, gazing at my beautiful and old wife. To my horror, there was nobody there. Not even a chair for her.
My eyes popped wide open. Riley! Running my hands over my body, I made sure I was still young, still in range of Riley. Her soft voice inside her room could barely be made out over the sounds of the fighting Cullens.
No. Moving with Leah was definitely not an option. Not without Riley. No. A shudder ran through me. What would I do? There was no way I could let Jess just leave, taking Troy with her. They were the second focus to the battle. If the Volturi had a second subject to move onto, then it was more likely Riley would be let free. I gazed at the field.
I saw so many pale, white faces, every one of them minus Jake. They weren't me. They weren't my family, not totally. Riley's portrait flashed before me. She was my family. I belonged with her, no matter what. So it was finally time for me to move on. I hated it. I no longer belonged with the Cullen family, the family I loved, the family that loved me. It was time I set out on my own…in my own house. Growing up meant this. Nobody wanted to grow up and I knew why.
In a shaky blur, I stumbled into the middle of the fight. "Stop!" I tasted vomit in my mouth. My stomach was upside down. Nothing made sense. "Troy's right. I'm leaving tonight."
Everyone was instantly silenced. I remembered having the glowing yellow eyes all stare at me with mixed emotions, most being horror. I said that. It made it all so much more real, yet at the same time, so much more insane. My family of over a hundred years was finally coming to an end. Somebody, I couldn't remember, asked if I was sure. To that there was only one answer: of course I wasn't. But they didn't have to know. With a terrified expression, I nodded firmly.
. . .
I wasn't afraid of the dark. I wasn't afraid of dark forests. I wasn't afraid of vampires. I wasn't afraid of even Jake. I wasn't afraid of heights. So why was I terror shocked? Why couldn't I sleep that first night? It made no sense.
My new and small house was even more secluded than theirs. It made sense for a normal human to be scared. But that wasn't it. I got absolutely no sleep that first night.
I insisted that I build it myself, only accepting help from Jake when he wouldn't leave. Esme would come later and decorate it. That was her compromise, along with paying for every material, the electric bills, the water bills, every single tax or money or bill you could find, and the daily visits. If I didn't come over, one of them would. The first week wasn't terrible except for that night. After the visits became shorter, the nights got harder. After I requested the visits get more frequent, the nights stayed equally as hard.
It was a small, wood house, meant for a family of three. Actually there were three bedrooms because I felt like I might be staying here a while, hopefully with Riley if I ever could get the guts up to face her. So far, only one furnished and finished bath. A second full bath was being added.
After a long lecture, Esme figured that I wanted an old feel to my house, so once it was furnished, it looked like the classic, old style house with a tribe aura to it. Pride surged through me. It was a cozy, reliable house.
Rose was a frequent visitor, along with Garrett, Kate, Ness and Jake. She came over alone, which didn't shock me. I acted like I hadn't caught on. Esme nearly always sent one of the girls or Edward, who was a very good cook, here to make a homemade dinner for me. Nobody complained.
We sparked a conversation one evening. "Riley visited every day this week. It helps her, you know," she informed me. I tried to hide my disdain.
"Does she?" I muttered, fixing the leaky sink. There was always a problem to fix in this house. If the Cullens had built it, well I probably wouldn't of had a single thing to fix, which I would have hated because fixing things helped keep my mind of the broken relationships I had with various girls in my life.
"You need to talk to her," Rose slammed the plate on the table with new ferocity.
"No I don't."
"She needs you to," Rose hissed in my ear. "Don't you miss her?"
I pondered that for only a moment before a voice shot in my head: Yes. I didn't know where it came from. My nights were so restless here. I was missing something, I just couldn't pin it though. It was like when a word was on the tip of your tongue but you just couldn't remember. Now it was clear. I was simply missing Riley.
"Of course," I mumbled, plowing my face into my food. Rose looked dead at me the entire time staring me down. She had this impression as if she were a wise old woman with all the knowledge any one person needed to know therefore when she told you something you fucking did it.
"Then go to her," Rosalie stated. I decided I'd do it tomorrow. It was really two days later before I could figure out what to say, or, more importantly, what not to say.
. . .
Two weeks of barely seeing me had a bad effect on Riley. She got glimpses when I visited Oliver. It was awkward because I was angry with him as well. Soon, we were closing in on being pals. Consequently, it undoubtedly startled Riley when I sat at her usual turning point of her run, waiting for her.
She staggered to a stop, staring widely at me. Looking around, Riley made sure it was she I was here for. I nodded with a pained smile. Slowly, she climbed up the rock.
"Hey," I smirked at her outfit again. Even in the freezing cold of January, she was wearing spandex and a sports bra with a jacket. She tugged the jacket around her body uncomfortably.
"Hey," she breathed in relief, then frowned like she didn't want that. Riley visibly relaxed from the pain as we always did when around each other. Normally, it was as if I barely noticed pain was there until she arrived, but lately it was dreadful.
I had a strong urge to kiss her, to hold her close forever and ever. But that wouldn't work. Not with all that happened. She had to know. Then she could stop feeling guilty.
"So Oliver and you seem to be getting along well," she commented, unsure what I was doing there but afraid to ask, worrying that I'd leave.
"He's a damn good actor. Never would have picked him to be the one to beat me on Xbox," I muttered with a sly grin, sitting on the flatter part of the rock. It overlooked the ocean, a big cliff dropping just yards from us. She sat next to me, a good distance away, and laughed nervously.
I looked at Riley. She bit her lip debating between something I couldn't tell. "What do you want to do?" I asked perceptively. A small smile played on her lips. "Go ahead and do it." It was a light comment, but she acted like she had to do it. Maybe she just did.
Either way, she flung her arms around me, hugging as hard as she could. Chuckling, I wrapped an arm around her back and she snuggled closer with a deep, heavy sigh. Despite all the pain I put her through in the past week, she said, "Thank you."
"It's my pleasure," I gulped. More like, it was my debt at least. "How is your mom doing with your dad…in jail?"
Riley stiffened and pulled back, but only enough that she was still leaning heavily against me. "Not amazing. Not terrible. Money wise, we are doing bad. Mom is a therapist. Her friend offered her a job in Seattle as a partner at her office, but…"
It was my turn to go stiff. In Seattle? That's a good drive away. Would Riley go? Would Oliver? What about Cat and the baby? No, no, no. I had just begun to forgive her. It never would fully work if she moved to Seattle!
"What?" I gaped, shocked. An idea popped into my mind. I had fully planned on telling Riley about Julie and Troy, especially since Julie had a divorce hearing soon. Maybe if Julie knew I knew, then she wouldn't go in fear I'd tell Riley.
I almost gasped aloud at my horrid thoughts. That was called blackmailing. It was something I always thought was as bad as cheating, no matter what the cause was. I vowed never to do that. If it meant I had to move to Seattle too, then so be it.
"You can't go! Not until you hear this," I began to launch into the story, but Riley already shook her head.
"I'm not going," she blurted. "Mom may, but I won't. I love it here. We definitely have to sell the house-,"
"I can help you out. I have plenty of money," I interrupted. Riley smiled sadly and gazed up at me.
"We won't take your money, or the Cullen's. We have plenty of money for a month or so as it is, but with Cat's baby coming…Mom wants to get a steady income in. Mine won't be enough because I'm just starting out. Talia isn't being very helpful. She won't give a dime!"
"You're keeping the baby. What about Cat's family?" I asked. She shook her head. I suddenly remembered that Cat was broke. Somehow Oliver told me a little bit of that while playing soccer. "You just can't leave."
"I won't. Umm…you're the other reason I can't really go," she blushed, unsure if I was okay with that. To answer her, I took her hand and squeezed, not letting go. Her smile lit up.
"You can go. I'll go where ever you want," I whispered. She shivered and I noticed how dark it had gotten since she ran in the late afternoon. Without running, she must have got very cold. I wanted to wrap my arm around her again, but we were on some type of unspoken agreement to take it slow.
"But I don't want to leave. Neither does Oliver. It is our responsibility to pass down generations here, to let the Graceful continue. It would be bad to spread it any further from LaPush, the new girls wouldn't have a clue what was happening to them," she sighed. Inside, I was grinning in relief. It was still sad because she'd have to leave her mom.
"What will you do?"
"Well," she seemed hesitant. "I'm going to buy a house. If mom lets him, Oliver will stay with me. Cat won't stay with me, but their baby probably will." Her expression was so sad; I simply had to scoot her closer for comfort.
"You can stay with me," I grinned. Maybe we were closer to being back to normal than I thought.
"Seth, I couldn't-," Riley began but I stopped her.
"Yes. You can and you will. I moved out of the Cullen's house. My house is even further back in the woods, but it's cozy. At least come and see it."
"You moved?" Riley jumped apart in surprise. I nodded with my smile still there. "Why?"
"It's a long story. Want to see? I built it myself, with a little help from Jake." Riley's smile only grew wider as she nodded her head eagerly.
. . .
"So this is it. Still fixing things here and there," I opened my arms wide. Riley took her time looking at every room, laughing when she passed the full sink of dirty dishes. "What do you think?"
"I think it's amazing," Riley admitted. Peering at her, I had to agree.
"It is isn't it?" I laughed, happy she liked it.
"You really want me to live here? With you? Like moving in?" Riley turned to me. I turned to her. We were very close, only a couch seat away standing, facing each other. I smirked and stepped closer, looking down at her eyes, her mesmerizing eyes.
"Preferably. Some people consider it rude to move in and kick the owner out, but that's only some people," I shrugged jokingly. Riley shoved my shoulder and tried to hide her grin. I remembered something she needed to be told. My face turned serious. "Actually, before you decide, you should, um, know why exactly I forgave you."
"You forgave me?" Riley gaped. "I thought this was just you being polite."
"Riley," I scoffed. "Being a gentleman doesn't entitle you to invite just anybody to live in your home with you." Once again, she shoved my shoulder in a 'cut it out' way. "You weren't the only one keeping secrets."
"What do you mean?" Riley asked innocently. Did I really want to do this? Her father was just put in jail for a month until the hearing, which could get him up to a year. Julie filed a divorce. Then Oliver gets his girlfriend pregnant and her stupid boyfriend bails on her. To top it all off, Talia is still the hero in her eyes. Could she take it, really take it? Well, she deserved to try.
"A little after Troy first came, I overheard a conversation between your mom and Troy. Riley, he slept with her before," I stressed, taking her hand, which she yanked away. Unbelieving shock swept her features.
"You're lying," Riley mumbled, and then louder, "No, Seth don't lie to me!"
"I'd never lie to you. Before you decide to move in with me, you should probably know that you didn't deserve to be ignored for two weeks considering I did the same thing to you." Her eyes were frantic, searching everywhere.
She stumbled back and fell on the couch, clutching her throat. Taking deep, rapid breaths, she said, "She wouldn't. Mom wouldn't cheat on dad. It – it would change everything."
Riley was right. If word got around to Robert and his lawyers, there was a good chance he could get better rights of the kids.
"I'm sorry," I sat next to her and put a hand on her thigh. Riley finally looked back to me and I was stunned. The look on her face told me all. She wasn't hurt; she wasn't mad, or angry. Nothing aimed at me.
Sadness filled her to the bone, the type of sadness that never really leaves a person. Everyone has to go through that sadness or else they wouldn't be any different than their neighbor. Maybe that was what's wrong with society; rights of passage knocked a person down to the bone, revealing their true, horrible selves.
Later the next day, Oliver, Cat, Riley, and Julie came over. The moment I opened to door, Julie engulfed me in a hug. Now I was fully expecting a slap in the face or kick or any sign that she was angry with me because I told on her to Riley. Meeting Riley's eyes, from the dead, distracted look I could tell she didn't tell her mom how she knew.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Julie exhaled, squeezing me until I couldn't breathe. "I was afraid Riley would never pick up food again!"
"Mom," Riley hushed her. I eyed the thin girl with scrutiny.
"The only reason she's not painfully bony is because she's a Graceful, but don't take that for granted, before I forced her to drink, she was so pale it was unimaginable," Oliver grunted, stepping forward and pulling Julie away. Cat blushed when I hugged her. The shy at first then loud type of girl she was. I opened my arms to embrace Riley and she opened her arms the other way. We both switched and looked at each other awkwardly. Oliver luckily saved me. "Let's see the house then." Sparing a furtive glance her way, I moved towards the kitchen.
"So we have our kitchen that opens to the living room. Through a door, there's a dining table. This all wraps around the stairwell…" I zoned out for most of the time, stealing glances at Riley here and there. By the end of the tour, we settled into the living room, squeezing for space. Never said it was big.
"Seth!" Oliver shook my shoulder and I apologized, forcing my eyes off Riley's laughing face. She seemed so relaxed, finally not as forced as the first time we met after the fight. "Dude, just kiss her."
"Shut up," I elbowed Ollie back to his seat and cleared my throat.
"Seth, Riley says you offered to keep Oliver and the baby here?" Julie said, running a hand worriedly through her hair. Smiling seemed to help calm her. "That's a big offer, young man."
"I'm aware of that. It's the least I can do considering what I've put on your family," I said honestly.
"Don't do that, Seth. None of that was your fault," Riley said from the recliner. I met her glare with a grin.
"Let's agree to disagree, but it really is not a worry. Oliver and Cat seem responsible enough, though I wouldn't know for sure," I glare Oliver's way as he tries to laugh it off and fails. "If they aren't, then they sure will be learning how to mature and fast. Cat can stay here if she'd like, as long as her parents are okay with that. They'd only be taking up one room. By the time the baby gets old enough for a room of its own, they'll be out of school and probably living on their own, right?"
"Yes, but Seth, you don't have to do this," Oliver groaned. It was obvious he hated being so unable to meet the new needs for Cat and his baby. "You're only a few years older. Riley and you shouldn't have to take care of our mistakes."
"It's not a mistake," Cat rolled her eyes.
"You get what I mean," Ollie mumbled, squeezing her hand. Tension was tight before she nodded awkwardly.
"Oliver, I've been alive for over one hundred fifty years. If Riley is fine with it, I don't see how I'm not capable of helping out," I met his guilty gaze over the table. He just didn't want to accept help. "You have to get help from somewhere. Here you'll have a doctor who can appear within seconds. You can live near your hometown, Cat near her family. And you will have two almost always open baby sitters near by, not counting the multiple, baby needing family living only a minute's walk away."
"Seth Clearwater, did God send you or did you come on your own?" Julie gasped, clutching her heart with tears in her eyes. "Are you sure? It's perfectly understandable to say no."
"It will be a pleasure," I smiled.
"I can't believe you are all moving out so quick, but I can't stop you if you want to stay," Julie shuddered, squeezing Riley and Oliver's hands as tears spilled down here eyes.
That my friends, was how I came to acquire new housemates, well hopefully. "This is all as long as we do survive the Volturi," Riley stood, ending their emotional moment. I stood as well, meeting her eyes, finally seeing the fear there. I had searched and searched for weeks to see if she actually understood that we could all die soon. So I smiled in agreement, not happiness, agreement, agreeing that there was definitely something to be frightened of.
A/N: I can't hold out any longer! My new story is up! It had Seth and Riley's kid, Cat and Oliver's kid, and Jake and Renesmee's kids in it! Boy oh boy is this exciting. Go check it out. Search 'The Passage' or go to my page and look at it. The title is, as mentioned before, 'The Passage.' I'm not sure if I will continue unless I get a lot of reviews! It's under the Jake, Seth, Nessie, and OC section. Romance and Family, though purely romance. A quote as the summary. Summary on the inside. Just check it out.