A.N: Thanks to JJ Twi1ight for helpful reminders and for correcting all that other nonsense :)
Invasions
-JPOV
I felt like crap.
When the black spots behind my eyelids started to fade and the taste in my mouth had turned sour, I knew I was about time for me to come around. And with awakening, also came itching. My whole body was itching, like ants crawling under my skin. I imagined lifting my arms to scratch. But when I did, a stabbing, blinding pain shot through me that made scratching impossible. Made moving impossible. I couldn't move, I could only feel the itching and the stabbing in my chest.
Stabbing in my chest? Had I been stabbed? It certainly felt like it. Not that I knew how that felt. Or maybe I did, if this was it. It had been worse though. It had been much worse, so if I compared it, this wasn't so bad. This was mostly itchy. Had I been stabbed? It was weird that it hadn't healed already. I wasn't used to being in physical pain over a long period of time, not anymore. And this felt like a long time.
I heard whispering. They weren't quiet. Actually, they were pretty loud. Their voices cut through my ears like a knife through warm butter. Heartbeats, too. Several of them.
"Is it a good thing when he does that?"
"Yes, Bella," someone said. It hurt my ears. "He's starting to come around. He'll be just fine. No permanent damage."
Just fine my ass. I didn't feel like just fine. I felt more like "almost dead" or "nearly stabbed to death" or "run over by gigantic truck." And there was something seriously wrong with my nose. It felt like someone had filled it with bleach.
"I think this is about all I can do right now. He's starting to come around. Give him these-" a rattling sound, and a clunk, "for the pain the first twenty four hours. They should be strong enough. He is healing at an incredible rate, so he should be up on his feet in a couple of days."
My ears hurt again. I didn't recognize the sound, the voice, but somehow it didn't fit with the familiar scents of dust and sheets and wooden walls and home. It was too smooth, to clear. Ugly. I wanted to open my eyes, but it hurt too much to move.
Wait a sec, I could move. My eyelids didn't hurt yet. Not much, anyway. I opened them, expecting to find the source of the voice, but was instead staring up into the empty ceiling of my room. I sniffed once, wanting to find the source of the awful smell.
When I looked to the left , the first thing I noticed was the vampire standing by the door. He had a suitcase in his hand, and on his face was the gentlest expression I'd ever seen on a vamp. I knew who he was, even though I'd never met him before. He smiled, gently. My instincts told me to defend, to attack, but my body said no. My head was just wondering what the hell he was doing in my bedroom. So I ended up just staring at him, no attacking in sight.
It smelled in here, though.
Someone moved, and I turned to look into the huge brown eyes of a very worried Bella. Beside her was my dad, and behind his wheelchair was Embry. Sam was there too, crammed into the room beside the door. They were all staring at me with anxious eyes, as if they were expecting me to give them my last will. My room felt pretty crowded.
"Can you please stop looking at me like I'm about to die?" I asked, my voice hoarse.
It was as if the whole room exhaled. Dad and Embry both tugged their lips upwards into half a smile. Sam exhaled deeply, and dad visibly relaxed. Bella didn't do any of this, but kept staring at me with huge eyes, obviously not finding the situation funny. Her face was pale and drawn.
My eyes flashed to Dr. Fang by the door. "'Cus I'm not, right?" I added. Just making sure.
He sent me another one of those gentle expressions. It actually made his pointy face less intimidating. Weird.
"No," he said, smiling slightly. "You're not dying. I had to re-break some of your ribs, but you were out cold for the process. They had started to set wrong because you were healing too quickly, as I'm sure you remember. A few days of rest and you should be fine."
If I remembered. Yeah, now I did. There were still some blank spots here and there, but I remembered glimpses, all right. Not so bad now though, but bad enough. I glanced down. My chest and one shoulder was wrapped tightly in a white bandage supporting it all together. Funny. I hadn't felt that thing there before now. My arms had some bruises and faint cuts with braces all over. The lower part of my body was covered in a quilt. It smelled vaguely of morphine in here.
I eyed the box on the nightstand beside the bed. "Painkillers?"
The vamp smiled again. "Just in case. You'll probably need more later tonight and maybe tomorrow, I don't know how fast your temperature will burn up what I've already given you. But you should be healed before you get to use it all. It's just as a precaution. Just to be on the safe side."
"Huh." I nodded, still in a daze. Was it supposed to be so hot in here, or was that just me? I closed my eyes for a second, my head against the pillow. The room was swirling.
"Feel free to call if there are any complications," the doc said quietly. "And you shouldn't phase in a few days. Make sure you don't mess up the way the bones are set."
I opened my eyes to see him send me another quick smile, and then he pressed the door handle down on his way out
Dad cleared his throat. "I'll...I'll follow you out," he said.
I looked at him, surprised. With a determined expression, dad turned and wheeled himself out after the doctor. Sam followed him out, briefly putting his hand on my shoulder as he passed me.
I was surprised dad had even let a vampire into this house at all. He had always had a strong aversion to the Cullens, even though I had to admit, this vampire was the most tolerable I'd ever met. And besides, he'd just... saved me? Eased the pain? I wasn't quite sure what he had done and how badly this might have ended if not for him. Hell, I wasn't yet sure what had happened. My room was swirling again and I felt dizzy. But he had helped me, even though he didn't have to. Why he bothered was more beyond me. After all, I was the one who had stolen his daughter-in-law and threatened to kill his son.
"Thank you," I hurried to say after him, just as the front door closed behind them. It didn't matter. I knew he'd heard.
I rested back into my pillow, and closed my eyes again. You'd think this would make the room stop spinning, but no. Did not. I heard Embry move beside the bed, and then I heard a clunk from the window. When I opened my eyes, he'd opened it wide. It was dark out. How long had I been here? I drew a deep breath of fresh, clean air, free of the vampire stench. It felt like heaven. The house really smelled like it had been invaded by them.
"Thanks," I mumbled earnestly. Embry just nodded and smiled knowingly, drawing a deep breath himself. I laid quiet as I listened to the quiet murmurs outside the house. There seemed to be several people outside, talking to the doctor. No one grumbled or yelled or threatened. Just talked politely. To the vampire. The world had gone crazy.
Speaking of vampires. "Victoria?" I managed to press out, my eyes shooting open to look at Embry.
I remembered her showing up and I remembered fighting her, but I didn't remember much else, other than blind spots of pain. For all I knew her limbs could have crawled away in different directions by now. It wouldn't surprise me. There was a reason why we burned those remains.
"Paul took care of the rest," Embry said, as he leaned loosely against the wall beside the door. "She's gone. Nice work. Man, I'm glad that's over. No more."
"Yeah," I agreed, closing my eyes again. Spinning walls really doesn't help concentrating.
I remembered now. I hadn't been stabbed. I'd fallen down. It didn't sound halfway as cool, even though I did take her down. It was almost as if it was too good to believe. What on earth would I be doing now? It was like if I was given a few tons of spare time dumped in my lap. Bella wasn't in danger any more. We could cut down on the heavy patrolling. I could do other things than tracing the border line day in and day out.
Maybe. One vamp down, seven to go.
I opened my eyes again. For some reason I felt guilty for thinking it. The doctor had just helped me out big time. I owed him, and I was truly thankful. No, I didn't want to harm him. He was the only vampire I'd met that didn't push the immediate urge to attack, which was completely new. When I thought about it, he must be the most unthreatening vampire I'd met, even if I had no doubts he could be lethal if he wanted to. But I had no grudge against him, I couldn't have.
"How did he get here, anyway?" I mumbled, turning to look at the two people beside me. Bella was still staring at me with wide eyes. "Last time I checked the pack wasn't allowing Cullen's on the rez. Not that I'm complaining," I added quickly.
My words were slurring together, but they seemed to understand. My head just wasn't working right, and I couldn't think straight. It was hard to focus. Embry lifted the side of his mouth into a crooked smile.
"Bella and Leah went to get him, believe it or not. No one could believe their eyes when they turned up here. I mean, with a Cullen! Your dad completely flipped and refused him to enter. Yelled a lot about treaties and other stuff. Leah told me what happened. Apparently Bella had got the idea to get the doctor, and called and asked for help." He snorted. "He had to drive out on the main road to meet them, because Leah completely refused to drive all up to the house. And then he followed them back here. Right Bella?"
Bella just nodded mutely.
"So, they all show up here, and your dad completely freaks out," Embry continues. "Says that vampires have no business here, ramble on about the treaty, and then yells at Leah for not knowing better. Sam and the others support him of course, because he was kind of right. But the doctor was just really calm and controlled, just stood with his palms up and wasn't intruding or aggressive at all. He said he just wanted to help, since you couldn't go to another doctor." Embry looked down at Bella, who was still sitting mutely beside me. "I swear the guys would be tearing him apart if Bella hadn't been around. The atmosphere was a little tense, to put it mildly. Bella tried to convince your dad that you needed help and that you were in pain and so on, and after a while it seemed to work. And as a bonus, you were sort of making a pretty painful background soundtrack at the moment, making it kind of hard for your dad to not help you. So he surrendered, and let mister Fang do the work." Embry's face turned a bit dark. "Your dad stayed in here the entire time, while everyone else waited outside. It was pretty bad to listen to, dude."
I closed my eyes a little, trying to make the walls settle where they should. "Don't remind me," I slurred. "It's not so bad now though."
Embry snorted. "No. You're doped now."
I opened my eyes to send him a hazy smile. "Yeah, that might have something to do with it."
I tried to sit up, but winced and changed my mind half way. Better to stay down. Movement still hurt like hell.
"Well hey," Embry said, and pushed himself up from the wall. He sent a sideway look towards Bella, who still hadn't said a word. "I should probably go outside, I'm sure Sam has a few things to share. But it's good to have you back, man." He nearly clasped his hand on my wrapped up shoulder, but then caught himself before he could do any more damage. He smiled and patted Bella on the shoulder instead as he walked outside and closed the door behind him.
I pinched my eyes shut for a moment, trying to clear my head a little. Still dizzy. And tired. And itchy. I could hear the murmurs of people talking outside, but other than that it was all quiet. It must be starting to get late. When I opened my eyes, Bella was still eyeing me. She looked down at me and her eyes filled with tears. Wow, I must look great.
"Christ Bells, don't look at me like that. I'm not dying," I said again. She let out a little sniffle. I could see her straining to hold the tears back.
"Bells, I'm fine. Don't worry," I insisted, my words slurring together. I tried to smile at her. Wasn't sure if it worked much.
She sniffled again. "Oh, Jacob I'm so sorry," she said, finally falling apart. Steady tears started to stream down her face, and she leaned forward to carefully, carefully wrap her arms around my neck. "I've been so mean to you."
"What?" I said, puzzled. I tried to pull back to look at her, but quickly stopped. Ouch. "No you haven't."
"Yes, I have" she mumbled against my neck. "I've been so selfish. It's just … I'm so sorry. Now you're like this and it's all my fault. It's all because of me."
"You're not making sense," I told her, still puzzled. But then she leaned back a little bit only to press her lips to mine, and I gave up trying to get her. Her lips were salty and wet from her tears.
About being dizzy. If you're dizzy, and doesn't want to be dizzy, kissing Bella isn't a good idea. But really, right now I couldn't care less. She was very careful though, making sure I didn't more. She kissed me lightly and carefully, but it was heaven nonetheless.
As long as I was laying quite still.
"Mmph."
I forgot myself and started to lift my head, and let out a little groan as pain shot down my spine. Unfortunately, Bella heard my moan, and it didn't pass as a passionate one.
"Oh my God I'm so sorry!" she blurted, and yanked her head back with a horrified expression on her face. I just smiled at her, feeling hazy again.
"S'nothing. Come here."
She eyed me speculatively for a few seconds, as if making sure I wasn't secretly shouting swearwords inside my head. Apparently my doped smile passed the honesty test, and she eased herself down on the bed beside me, careful not to jostle it. She sighed and rested her chin on my good shoulder while looking up at me.
"She really is gone, isn't she?" she said quietly. I knew she was referring to Victoria. Who else, really.
"Yeah," I sighed.
It felt weird. But also satisfying.
"I was so worried about you," Bella said quietly. "How are you feeling?"
I tried to smile at her, unable to do much else. "I'm good."
She studied my face. "You need to sleep," she finally concluded.
I tried to shrug, but immediately stopped. Bella lifted one hand to gently wipe it across my forehead. It came away damp. Yikes.
"So you've been bonding with Leah, huh?" I slumbered, barely able to make the words out. It was funny though, since Leah's mood swings weren't completely reliable. She could be like a verbal volcano sometimes. But it would be nice if the two of them could get along. They were different, but also similar in a way. To my surprise, Bella only chuckled.
"You know, there was a while there I actually thought she was going to bite my head off."
I smiled a little, but then realized she wasn't kidding.
"Nah," I calmed her. "She's harmless."
Bella raised one eyebrow to send me a doubtful look.
"Okay," I admitted. "But she's not that bad. She's kind of cool, if you get to know her."
What was happening to the world? Here I was, praising Leah like it was no big deal. Maybe my head got seriously messed up when I fell after all.
Someone knocked on the door, and the world started spinning again. Bella hurried to sit up beside me, just as the door opened and dad wheeled himself back inside. Man. He must be giving me special privileges at the moment; normally he just barged right in. Not that he would mind if Bella was laying down next to me or not; she was just weird that way.
"Dr. Cullen just left," he informed us both, as Sam followed through the open door. Dad looked deep in thought, as if he'd just found a puzzle that didn't fit. "It was really gracious of him to help you. I had never expected that from him. Or any of them." He looked both astonished and grateful and a little insulted at the same time, as if Mr. Fang had seriously messed up his ways to view life. Maybe he had, too.
The rest of the pack quietly dropped their heads inside the door to take a look at me and exchange a few murmured words, but I didn't really pay attention. I closed my eyes, letting them invade my room again while I tried to make the walls stop from spinning – it was making me nauseous. My head buzzed. I wished they could leave.
The only thing I was aware of was Bella sitting beside me, until I heard Quil say my name. I opened his eyes and realized most of the guys had actually left, only dad and Embry still here. Quil had popped his head in through the door. He lit up when he realized I was awake.
"Wow, you look like hell. How are you feeling?"
"Thanks. Fantastic."
"He's stoned," Embry whispered sideways to Quil, and Quil's grin widened. Both dad and Bella rolled their eyes. "Hey Bella, I'm headed home now. You need a ride?" Embry offered.
Bella looked for a moment surprised, and she glanced down at me, unsure. She seemed a little reluctant to leave.
Dad cleared his throat. "I'm sure Charlie wont mind if you want to stay here, Bella," he said. "You could always use Rachel's room, as long as you call Charlie and explain."
She turned to look at dad. "What should I tell him?"
Dad sighed and pursed his lips, and cast a sideways glance at me. "Maybe he should wait to come over til tomorrow. Why don't you ask him over for lunch or something?" Dad studied my face absentmindedly. "Besides, Jacob will probably feel a lot better tomorrow. It's getting late."
I really did look like shit didn't I.
"Okay." Bella sent me a worried look. "But what should I say happened?"
"Tell him I was in a motorcycle accident," I croaked, my words sloshing together. It certainly felt like I had. However that may feel, I wouldn't know.
"Charlie hates motorcycles," Bella mumbled to herself.
"And you probably shouldn't mention the word accident," dad added wisely. "Tell him it's okay and that he should wait to come here until tomorrow."
"Okay. I'll call him right away." Bella got up from her perch on my bedside. She turned to send me an unsure look. "You sure you're okay?"
I started to nod, but stopped quickly. "M'fine."
Bella hesitated for a second, before she leaned down and gave me a brief peck on the lips. Her hair brushed my neck.
"I'll see you later," she said as she straitened up. Her cheeks were a little red. Then she turned and walked out the door between Embry and Quil. They both nodded to me and offered dad their goodbyes before they followed Bella outside.
Dad sent me another worried look.
"Do you need anything?" he asked.
I shook my head slightly. "No thanks."
My eyelids dropped.
"I should go and talk to Sam before he leaves," I heard him say. Another pause. "You should get some sleep, son."
His wheelchair squeaked a little as he started to wheel himself out the door. I was too tired to answer, so I just let my brain shut down. Some sleep sounded just right. There was still some mumbling from outside, but other than that it was quiet. Funny. The world was still swirling even with my eyelids closed. How was that even possible? Maybe that was just the painkillers. It didn't itch so bad, though.
Like a countdown on new years eve, I waited for my brain to drop dead. Ten. I wondered if Bella would come back to see me tonight. Eight. I wondered how Charlie would react. Six. I wondered what Doucheface thought of all this. Four. I wondered if I could reach the itching on my left foot without bending over. Three. Two. One. Shutdown.
There was a knock on the door. It took me a second before I remembered how to open my eyes.
"Wow, Jacob. You do look like shit," Leah said as she entered. She walked in and closed it behind her, and then leaned back against it with arms crossed.
"Yeah, I've been told," I rasped, blinking furiously while trying to get my head to wake up. It hurt. "What are you doing here?"
"Just trying to find out what all the fuzz is about. It's still just you. I don't get it."
She shrugged nonchalantly, observing me with amused eyes. There was more to it, though. She was frowning sightly as she took me in, and I knew she wasn't as careless as she said she was. She really wanted to see how I was.
"Admit it," I grinned to her, my words sloshing again. "You just wanted to visit me."
Leah snorted.
"Jeez, I'm not gonna be nursing your bedside. You can fluff your own pillow."
"God no, people could actually think you cared," I smirked, barely able to separate my words. "What would they say?"
She snorted again, and returned her eyes to me. "You owe me a big, fat thanks, you know that right?"
"I do?"
"Who else did you think got the doctor Fang here?"
"You did?"
"Mhm. I can't hear you thanking me."
I frowned. "I thought Bella brought him here? It was her idea, wasn't it? That's what Embry said."
"She insisted," Leah admitted. "But I was the one driving her there." She eyed me for a second. "You're still not down on your knees."
I looked at her. She was smiling slightly. Messing with me.
"Excuse me for not licking the ground in front of your feet yet," I offered, trying to get it but not managing. "Care to explain?"
She sighed deeply, as if she had to explain something extremely logical to a nobrainer.
"Bella said to go get the leeches, and I said no. Bella convinced me getting the leeches was a good idea, and I said yes. I drove her over to friendly Fang-land, met doctor Fang, that Psycic leech and the Sourface. Doctor Fang brought his own car and followed me and Bella back here – no way I was driving with him in the backseat, even I have my limits. Then your dad, about every member of the pack and my mom refused doctor Fang to enter. Bella insisted, I tried to prevent her from getting slaughtered, and you moaned in pain. Finally your dad gave in and doctor Fang gave you painkillers and started to break up your insides. You know the rest. Can I get my thank you now?"
This all escaped her lips in surprising speed, and she looked at me expectantly, still with that little smirk on her face. She tapped her foot impatiently.
"Uhm."
"Come on, I just drove your girlfriend over to her smelly ex to save your life."
"Yeah, I'm still trying to get that." I narrowed my eyes at her. "That's just not you."
Leah rolled her eyes.
"Thanks for the great confidence. You sure know how to show you're grateful."
"No, seriously," I insisted, as I studied her face. This just didn't fit. "There's something else. What do you mean, Bella convinced you that seeing the leeches was a good idea? How did she do that?"
Leah didn't reply, but kept her face blank and expressionless. Aha. I was onto something, then. I knew this was it.
And then I realized. Of course.
"You were testing her, weren't you?"
Still no expression. Leah was just looking at me blankly. I knew I had her. I continued, testing my theory to see if I'd got it right.
"You were testing her to see how she would react when she saw him. Edward. That's why you agreed to drive her to the Cullen's. You were testing her reaction. Were you expecting her to run into his open arms?"
Leah blinked. Score.
"So you did. You wanted to see how she reacted. Well, she's still around. Did she pass your test then?"
Leah shrugged then, finally making a movement. She moved her eyes to stare up into the ceiling. When she spoke, her voice was quiet, barely above a whisper. "She did," Leah admitted. "She barely looked at the Douche at all. She was too busy obsessing over you. So it's cool. You don't have to worry about her wanting him. It's cool. She's cool. I'll back off now."
I started at her, feeling the perplexed look form upon my face. No matter how right I knew I was, I'd never expected her to admit doing that. And not only did she admit it, she just about gave us her blessing and accepted Bella into the family or something. Leah turned to send me a sideways look.
"You seriously need to thank me now."
I smiled, puzzled, still trying to get it. "Thanks, Leah."
"Your welcome. For saving your life and your relationship. You seriously owe me. I'm not kidding."
I had no doubt about that. According to her, I would probably owe her for life. She stretched, cracking her knuckles a few times, before she turned to the door.
"Anyway, I'm headed out. I better be out running, take advantage of the time you're strapped here. It's gonna be like having a few days off, not having to be inside your obsessive boy brain."
I grinned at her. "I know how you feel. This is almost like a vacation!"
"Idiot", she grinned back. "You take care."
And then she slipped outside and closed the door behind her.
A.N: Just a little sanity note: This is one way you *couchbellacough* could react when someone jumps between you and a vampire to save your life and then ends up badly hurt. Not go ahead and dump the guy. AHEM.
I love your reviews and it would be great to hear your opinion on this story so far. Tell me what's good and what's bad, so that I can try my best to make it as good as possible. I have your spoilers ready, if you want them :)