Chapter Fifteen - Part 1

The next morning came quickly. Jacob's eyes fluttered open and took in the sight of Leah's head on his chest, hair sprawled out around his torso, and sweat accumulating on her forehead thanks to his wolf-temp. A smile immediately adorned his lips, feeling entirely at peace with her in his arms. He didn't want to wake her, but he did have to go to the bathroom. Adjusting her gently, he managed to slip out of bed, throwing on his boxers. He quietly opened her door and was about to leave her room when he ran straight into Sue.

"Jacob!" She exclaimed, just as he was about to shut the door.

"Sue-"

Sue turned her eyes away from his indecent body quickly. "I didn't realize you were here," she said quickly.

"Uh, yeah," he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. He wasn't sure how much Sue knew, and he really didn't want to have the 'You're dating my daughter' conversation with her in the hallway, scantily clad. "Leah's still asleep-"

"I was," a new voice came from the ajar door, pushing it open. She passed Jacob his pants and had thrown his shirt over her head, along with some pajama bottoms.

"I didn't want to wake you," he said apologetically, jumping into his jeans before Sue turned around to face them both, confusion clear on her features.

"What are you doing here?"

"It is my house," Sue pointed out. "I didn't think you and Jacob were… doing this anymore?"

Leah sighed and ran a hand through her long, black hair. "We're, uh-"

"Together," Jacob supplied, wanting Sue to know that he wasn't just using her daughter for sex. Well, not anymore anyways.

Leah looked at him and couldn't help the smile that tugged on the corners of her lips, but Sue was the one who responded. "Okay, well I guess you have plenty of time to fill me later in this morning."

"What?"

"Shopping? Remember, I asked you to come to the grocery store with me to pick-up food for dinner tonight."

Ah, shit. "Oh, right. What time is it?"

"10AM."

Leah sighed, "Give me enough time to shower?"

Sue looked between her and Jacob and sighed, "Yeah, that may be the best idea. I'll go downstairs and see what else the pantry needs and clean up a little."

She turned, but Jacob sighed, "Sue?"

"Yes, Jacob?"

"I love your daughter," he said honestly. "I just… want you to know that. I know this looks… well, I know how it looks, but she's amazing." He looked to Leah who even in an over-sized t-shirt with messy hair and pink, polka dot pajama pants, turned him on beyond belief and made his heart feel whole.

Sue nodded, clearly worried about the safety of her daughter's heart, but trusting that Jacob's intentions were, in fact, honorable. "Thank you, Jacob. I'm always going to worry about her, though, I'm her mother, after all. Try to… make yourself decent around the house, okay?"

Sue did leave then, and Jacob felt the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding exhale from his lungs.

When Sue was out of sight and going back downstairs, Leah grinned and reached up to wrap her arms around his neck. "Amazing, huh?"

He chuckled, instinctively wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her as close as he could with the clothing between them. "You already know that."

"True." She leaned up and met Jacob's lips in a passionate, but loving kiss – morning breath and all. "You should probably get going so I can clean up and have another lovely, self-deprecating talk with my mother about my roller coaster of a love life."

"We've never been good at keeping it on the down-low, huh?" He chuckled nervously, letting her go. "So much for taking this slow."

"I don't do slow, remember?" she grinned.

"Slow is boring."

She rolled her eyes, "Bye, Jake."

She let him in the bathroom first and when he was done, she slipped in to shower, giving him back his shirt and he left. She barely had time to rationalize last night, or what it meant and she wasn't sure if that was a good thing to avoid over-analyzing his 'together' definition, or if it was to avoid going over the million ways that this entire thing was doomed to fail.

Unfortunately, as Leah stepped out of the shower, she noticed that she felt a little off. Her back was aching, and her stomach was a little nauseous, but she brushed it off to the emotional toll of the past week.

She dried her hair, threw on some clothes and went downstairs.

"There's mail for you on the counter," her mom said while loading the dishwasher.

"I was going to clean up today," Leah protested before she picked up the envelope absentmindedly with a piece of toast in her hand, hoping it would settle her stomach.

When she saw mail from the community college, she dropped the piece of toast on the counter and immediately ripped it open. It was an information packet, and Leah flipped through it.

"Excited?" Sue asked, leaning against the sink, watching her daughters face transform.

"Extremely."

It was only late March, but suddenly, September seemed like a welcome month. The fact that the community college was growing more enticing every day proved how badly she needed to exercise her mind again and get back into real life.

"Let's get going."

"Mom-"

"Forget about it," Sue said, grabbing her keys. "I just want you to protect your heart, okay? I know how you feel about each other. I'll call before coming over next time, and I'm getting the doctor at work to renew your birth control prescription."

Leah gave her a thankful smile, and then they left. It felt like old times – shopping together and laughing. Before Harry died and before Sam broke her heart.

When they got home later that day – with a bag of new clothes for her new school adventure in the fall, some new, well-needed make-up and personal hygiene products, and three armloads of groceries, Leah helped her mom prepare dinner.

Along with her ditching her inner animal, her appetite also fell back into a normal pattern, which was so much more manageable, but as she smelled the food, she had to admit that she still felt a little off. When she heard the door open and people come in, she pushed the thought away. Charlie had gotten there about fifteen minutes ago and was helping her mom, so she went to greet Sam and Emily.

"Hey!" Emily cried happily, ecstatic that Leah and she were finally attempting to mend their tattered relationship – especially now that there would be a baby for the girls to bond over. Jacob had brought them back together and she was thankful.

"How are you feeling?"

Sam sat on the couch with Seth and Emily and Leah took the love seat. "Alright," Emily said softly, placing a hand on her little bump. She was glowing. "The morning sickness is gone and I'm able to eat pretty much anything again, so that's nice."

"How are you doing?" Emily asked.

"I'm okay," she promised as the door opened. Rachel, Paul, Billy, Allison, and Jacob came in, and Leah bit her lower lip. He was dressed in a red button-down, with the sleeves rolled up to show his forearms, and a pair of dark wash jeans. All the passion from the night before came rolling back and it was a little overwhelming. Not quite as powerful as it was before the clearing, still, but palpable, nonetheless.

Jacob sat beside Sam on the arm of the couch after kissing her quickly, Paul on the other side of Seth, and Rachel came over to join the girls as Billy and Allison went into the kitchen to check and see if Sue and Charlie needed any help.

"How's wedding planning?" Emily greeted Rachel.

"Good," Rachel said happily. "I... I think Paul and I will be settling down here after the wedding, too."

"Really? You always wanted to get out of here."

Rachel shrugged. "I want to give Jake a hand with dad. He's done so much already, and its time that I stepped up. Plus, with Rebecca in Hawaii, I don't really have anywhere I necessarily want to go. Mom wouldn't want me to keep running away, and Paul's mom is here, too. I don't want to be the reason that he leaves his family."

"I think that's a great idea," Leah admitted. "I mean... I hate this place so much sometimes, but it is home and it always will be."

Rachel nodded, "Exactly. Plus, I know I'll be happy as long as I'm with Paul, wherever that may be."

"You're going to make me sick," Leah teased as Rachel rolled her eyes and all three girls laughed. The boys made mindless chit-chat and laughed and joked, but Leah was idly aware of Jacob's eyes on her occasionally.

"How's the nursery coming along?" Rachel asked.

"Alright, it's coming together," Emily responded. "I'm so excited."

Leah smiled, Emily's excitement radiating into her. Despite her romantic and fertility future so uncertain, it was nice to see her childhood best friend succeeding – even if it was with someone that Leah had taken years to come to terms with.

"We actually had something we wanted to tell you guys," Emily said uneasily. "We were going to wait until dinner, but…"

Sue had just come back out with Charlie and everyone turned to Emily, who shared a glance with Sam, both beaming. "We found out what we're having earlier today."

"And!?" Rachel asked excitedly.

"A little girl," Sam said, his face alight with joy.

"Oh my God, Em!" Rachel cried, pulling her into a hug.

Leah couldn't hide the big smile on her face, either, as she hugged Emily. "Congratulations."

Rachel giggled, "So now can we go shopping?"

Emily laughed, "Of course."

The guys all congratulated Sam and Sue hugged them both, showing her excitement.

"Do you have a name?" Leah asked.

Emily shook her head, "No, some ideas, but nothing concrete yet."

"There's lots of time," Rachel added.

"Do you think you and Paul will have kids someday?" Emily asked her, wanting to get the attention off herself.

Rachel hesitated and shared a quick look with Paul, but smiled, "I've got to get through this wedding first. It's so much."

The girls exchanged some idle chit-chat – some more conversation about what classes Leah would take, Rachel's wedding planning, and Emily's pregnancy. It seemed despite all being in different places in life, things were starting to come around.

Just then, there was a knock on the door and Seth jumped up to get it.

Abigail walked in with her parents, presumably, and Sue came out of the kitchen again to meet them. "It's so nice to meet you," Sue said warmly.

"You as well, Mrs. Clearwater," Abigail said sweetly.

"You have a pretty great son," her mom said honestly.

Seth flushed and then him and Abigail joined the others as Sue and her parents exchanged some pleasantries before she introduced them to everyone and then finished getting dinner ready. It was ready not long after.

Everyone got up and went into the dining room where Sue had practically cooked a four-course meal. They pulled some extra chairs in and managed to squat around the table, but just as Leah was about to sit down, the smell of the food - which looked delicious, hit Leah immediately and she suddenly felt very ill. Maybe she wasn't hungry, she thought idly. "Excuse me," she said quickly making her way upstairs to the bathroom. She felt a strange warmth overcoming her and splashed cold water on her face before her stomach tightened, and she grasped the toilet bowl, paying homage to it.

"Leah?" Jacob knocked on the door. "Are you okay?" She had excused herself politely enough, but he had been watching her and saw an uncanny look creep onto her features.

Leah took a few deep breaths in, head resting against the wall near the toilet. She felt a little better, but still clammy. "Fine," she called.

"Can I come in?"

"You probably don't want to-"

Jacob pushed the unlocked door open, closing it behind him, and he sat on the edge of the tub. "You're sick?"

Leah shrugged. "I haven't felt myself the past few days," she admitted. "I've been really nauseous and just... off. I thought it was just my body getting used to not phasing, but it's getting worse, not better. Then I thought it was just stress, but now I'm not sure." It was the only thing that made sense. The other guys talked about some aches and pains, too, as their bodies got used to not avoiding exploding into a large wolf daily so that had to be it. She was the only one to be officially phased out, though.

"Maybe," he said idly. "I don't think phasing should have anything to do with being sick, though."

"Who knows, I'm not exactly a normal shapeshifter," she said only half-jokingly.

"Keep an eye on it and let me know how you are. If it has anything to do with phasing, I want to know."

"It's probably just a bug."

Jacob got a cold cloth and gave it to Leah, seeing sweat accumulating on her forehead. "Run this on your head and see if you feel any better."

"You should go get something to eat – and tell my mom I'm not feeling well. I think I'll just lay down for a bit."

Leah put the cool, damp cloth on her forehead, leaning back against the wall for a few, long moments before she got up and splashed some more cold water on her face. Jacob made sure she was okay in bed before going back downstairs – after all, he was starving, and Leah actually felt sleep overcome her until an hour later when Rachel pushed her door open after knocking.

"How are you feeling? Jake said you're sick?" Rachel asked.

"I'm fine, what's up?"

"I have a favor. My dad, Jacob, Emily, and I are going dress shopping just to try on some bridal gowns next week…"

"I'll be there," she promised.

Rachel hovered in the doorway, not wanting to catch whatever it was Leah had. She gave her an appreciative smile, "You're the best. I'll go and let you rest."

Unluckily for Jacob, he was forced into dinner conversation while Leah slept. They all grew familiar with Abigail and her parents, Rachel and Paul's upcoming nuptials, Billy and Allison's official 'dating' status, Sam and Emily's daughter, and Sue and Charlie's new living arrangements and Jacob felt like he would barf too, if he had to sit there any longer and listen.

Thankfully, once dinner was over, he ended up with the guys in the living room while the ladies insisted on cleaning up. He was just about to go check on Leah after Rachel came down when he heard his dad ask to speak with Sue in private and he raised a brow. Billy and Sue went out back on the small patio. It was finally warming up slightly, but Jacob was curious and decided to open a window in the living room to 'let some air flow through' the crowded house. With his wolf-hearing, he zoned in on his dad and Sue's voices and was able to follow the conversation.

"-Our kids."

"I know," Sue's voice rang out. "Things between them have definitely been rocky."

"That's an understatement. Jacob won't even tell me what's going on. I had to ask Paul what was going on this morning."

"What did he say?"

"Just that they're all kind of surprised that he could even attempt to fight the imprint, but from what Paul tells me, he can, and is, and wants to be with Leah. After last night, Paul said they seemed to have agreed on trying to figure things out."

Sue sighed. "Yeah, I figured that out this morning."

"What happened?" Billy asked, knowing Jacob hadn't come home.

Sue relayed the mornings events, then said, "They both love each other, that's obvious. I wish there was something we could do to make things easier for them. They've been through so much."

"They seemed happy together, before Renesmee, anyways. Allison and I came home a while back and they were laid on the couch with Rachel and Paul watching a movie. It was just nice to see all my kids happy. With Renesmee gone, now, I guess it should be easier for them. They seem infatuated with one another. I was skeptical, I admit, with the imprint, but they do seem like a good fit. I'll speak to Jacob about what happened this morning."

"I love Jacob like a son-"

"And I love Leah like a daughter. We're family."

"I don't know what to do, Billy… I've talked to Charlie because I know he has experience with… well, a teenage daughter, especially when Edward left Bella, but he just keeps telling me to have faith and that she'll be okay. I know she's tough, but she has such a big heart and she's still so fragile since Harry and Sam… I mean, she's come a long way and she's doing well, but I'd be lying if this whole thing didn't worry me with the imprint still. I trust Jacob's intentions, I do, and he makes her so happy and I see how much he cares about her when they're together, but she can't handle any more heartbreak."

"I'll talk to Jacob, okay?"

The conversation stopped and a minute later, Jacob heard the door in the back open and close again and he sighed. He got up off the couch, ignoring the guys, and went upstairs to check on Leah. When he pushed the door open, though, she was sound asleep, and he didn't want to wake her. He quietly walked over, feeling her forehead. Her wolf-heat had disappeared, and she didn't feel warm to him as though she had a fever. He climbed into bed with her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He jostled her, and she groaned, but turned to face him and cuddled into his chest, half-asleep.

A little while later, after Jacob had dozed off himself, Sue came up to check on Leah.

"Jacob?" Sue whispered.

"I came to check on her," he said, his eyes fluttering open. He gently untangled himself from her and got up. "I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"It's fine," Sue sighed, going over to place a bottle of water and ginger-ale on Leah's nightstand.

"Sue?" Jacob said. "I won't hurt her again – I promise."

Sue gave him a motherly smile and went over, taking his hands in hers. "I know."

"I should get going-"

"You can stay, if you'd like. Not promising you won't have to deal with a sick Leah, though. She's ten times moodier when she's sick," Sue only half-joked.

He chuckled, "I don't mind, but I should go. I'll check on her tomorrow."

Luckily, the next morning she felt a little better. Still slightly nauseous, but not nearly as bad. She managed to get a shower, dressed, and scarf some breakfast down and was watching The Da Vinci Code on cable in the living room when she saw a familiar car pull into the driveway. She sighed, feeling her now placated stomach tighten with nervousness as a knock came on the door.

Getting up off the couch, thankful she was dressed and had blow-dried her hair, she opened the door to see Jeremy and smiled awkwardly. "Hey."

"Hey," he shifted nervously on his feet. "I, uh, was hoping we could talk?"

Leah nodded, stepping aside to let him in before she went back into the living room, Jeremy following. She sat on the couch and he sat beside her, though kept a comfortable distance. She could tell he was nervous, and she would have been lying if she didn't say that she was, too. She hadn't seen or heard from him since their blow-up. It was only weeks prior, but it felt like so much more time had passed considering things with Jacob.

"You look tired, are you okay?" Jeremy asked.

She nodded, knowing that the bags under her eyes seemingly wouldn't allow themselves to be covered by concealer. "I just haven't been feeling the best lately. A lot's been going on."

He nodded, realizing that he probably contributed to that, too, and he fell silent again.

"I'm sorry," she said, breaking the silence. "For everything."

"No, I'm sorry," he sighed. "I was mad, and I shouldn't have come over until I cooled off. At the very least, I should have spoken to you in private, so I apologize. What I did was wrong, no matter the cause."

Leah sighed, but gave him a small smile. "I think we're both at fault, so seriously, it's fine."

Jeremy averted his gaze away from her and sighed. "I guess you're not interested in getting involved with someone who has anger management issues, huh?" His tone was teasing, but Leah heard the more serious underlying message.

"Jeremy… I still can't tell you why I lied to you. It wasn't to be malicious or deceitful, but it just wasn't my secret to tell. We're all very close on the reservation and we watch each other's backs carefully. Sometimes we… do things that aren't exactly the right thing to do in efforts to protect the ones we love."

"I don't know what any of that means," he sighed. "But, I'm willing to put my trust in you. Rachel kind of vouched for you, too."

"She did?"

He nodded, "I guess her boyfriend, Paul, told her what happened, so she came to class early to catch me the day after."

Leah sighed, hating that so many people had gotten involved with her mess thus far. Granted, it had been weeks ago, and things were much different now. "She didn't have to do that."

"No, she didn't, but I'm glad she did."

"You are?"

"I want to try this again," he said, his cool, blue eyes looking into hers.

Leah gulped back a growing lump in her throat and took a deep breath in. "Jeremy, I-"

"I know, I was a jerk, but I want to move past this, and be truthful going forward – no more lies. If you can't tell me something, fine, but don't lie about it."

Leah contemplated how easy it would be with Jeremy. Uncomplicated. But she didn't want uncomplicated – she wanted passion, and there was only one guy she could think of that stirred up those emotions – and that was certainly complicated. "I can't," she whispered, breaking his gaze and looking down to her hands. "You're right, as long as there can't be one hundred percent honesty, it won't work, and-"

"Is this about Jacob?"

Leah looked back up, brow furrowed.

"I saw the look in his eyes when he defended you," he commented. "If you say there wasn't anything going on between you two when we were together, then I believe you, but I could tell that night that there was something there. I don't know what it was, or well, is, but I know he cares about you and I can see it on your face, now, too, just by me mentioning him."

Leah frowned, looking away to the movie playing on the tv. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize. I guess we love who we love."

She turned back to him and sighed, "There wasn't anything going on when we were together, I swear. But after we broke-up, it kind of just happened…"

Jeremy nodded, realizing there was no further romantic future for them, but still caring about her. "Well, I'm happy for you both."

"Thanks. It's still… complicated, but we're trying to figure it out," she clarified.

Jeremy chuckled, "It seems everything about you is complicated."

"Kind of," she admitted. "I'm sorry for involving you in my mess."

"Don't be. At the very least, crappy break-up lines aside, I really would like to be friends."

Leah smiled, "I'd like that."

"And," he said firmly. "You really should come back to dance. You're great. I could still get you in the recital."

"I'll think about it," she promised.

"I should go, I've got class soon." He stood up. "Thanks for talking to me."

Leah got up and felt her head spin. She immediately reached out to grab the arm of the couch to steady her.

"Are you okay?" He reached out and grasped her arm to steady her, seeing a familiar look come over her features.

"Fine, just a little off. I wasn't feeling well last night, so it's probably just got to do with being dehydrated or something."

Jeremy nodded, not wanting to come off too strongly, but having a sneaky suspicion. "Have you seen a doctor?"

She shook her head, "It's nothing, really."

He dropped his hand from her arm and nodded. "Mikayla's mom was really tired, dizzy, and-"

"Jeremy," Leah said softly, giving him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "Seriously. I'm fine. Don't be late for class."

He hesitated but nodded. "Fine but keep an eye on it."

"Will do, Dr."

He smirked and left, hoping he was wrong. Leah retired herself to the couch for the rest of the day to avoid too much movement or anything that may upset her stomach.

She met Emily and Rachel early a few days later for brunch in Seattle. Her mother let her take her SUV since she was on holidays with Charlie all week, and she pulled into the small diner just past 10AM, seeing Emily's car already there. Leah got out and went inside, meeting both girls who sat in a booth, Rachel nursing a mimosa and Emily sticking with tea.

"Hey," Leah said welcomingly as she slid into the booth next to Rachel.

The 'side effects', as she called them, from phasing were still there and she wasn't really feeling brunch, but she said she would go and she was really trying to patch her relationship with Emily as best as she could manage. It was time to try to move forward.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Emily asked, clearly concerned after their last visit at her house.

"I should be asking you that," Leah returned easily, gesturing to her belly.

Emily smiled automatically, her hand going to her bump. "It's going."

"Do you have the pink paint picked out for the nursery yet?" Leah teased.

"I think we're going with neutral."

"Paul is surprised it's a girl – he bet against me, so I got twenty-bucks," Rachel smirked. "Said Sam's Alpha-genes would make a boy to carry out the Uley gene, or something as equally absurd."

Leah laughed, "Well I'm excited for a little Emily."

"If there's any truth to the alpha gene, then you better watch out, Leah," Emily teased.

"Okay, woah, we're getting way too far ahead of things right now."

The girls laughed and a minute later, the waiter came over and took their order. She settled for two eggs and some toast, along with a mimosa, hoping she would be able to keep it down. Her nausea was ever-present, and she hoped that the sugar from the orange juice in the mimosa would help.

"You're not yourself," Rachel said softly as the waiter left the three girls alone "You used to scarf down eight eggs as an appetizer. Are you still not feeling well?"

"It's probably just my body getting used to the new way of life," she said, knowing there were other people surrounding them in the diner.

"None of the other guys are sick," Rachel said softly. "Maybe it's time to call Carlisle to… I don't know, check you out? I know you're scared it's… lifestyle related, so maybe Carlisle is the best one to diagnose you?" Being in public sometimes sucked - they had to be so careful about the word choice on their supernatural life.

Leah shook her head, "It's really not a huge deal, honestly."

Emily, who had a feeling Leah was down-playing it, bit her lower lip. She didn't want to start an argument when they were doing so well, but she was worried. "Alright, fine."

"Jeremy stopped by the other day," Leah said finally, changing the subject.

"He did?"

"He wanted to apologize and kind of asked if we could try things again. Obviously, I said no, but we're going to be friends." She looked to Rachel. "He said you talked to him after we broke-up?"

"I just wanted to have your back," she said easily. "Things have kind of changed since, though, considering you're back to sleeping with my brother."

Leah laughed and rolled her eyes, "Can we pretend like you don't know about that?"

"We're going to have to," Rachel mused. "Because as much as I do support you now, the thought's still nauseating."

It didn't take long for the waiter to bring by their food, and Leah's mimosa. The smell didn't immediately turn her stomach - something she was extremely grateful for. She sipped her mimosa and ate her two eggs quickly, hoping the nausea would stay away until the food settled and even started to nibble on some toast.

When the waiter came back to check-in, Rachel ordered a black coffee and Emily got a refill on her tea. Leah was slowly nursing her mimosa, hoping the sugar would raise her blood sugar to an acceptable level. As soon as the waiter returned with the coffee, though, the smell immediately hit Leah's nose, causing her to urge. She put her hand over her mouth and took a deep breath in.

"You need to see a doctor, I'm serious, Leah, this-"

Emily was cut off, however, as Leah quickly got up from the table and rushed into the bathroom. So much for breakfast.

When she finally felt that her stomach was empty and the sweat on her forehead dried, she took some deep breaths in, splashed some cold water over her face and swished around some water in her mouth. Well, this went well, she thought idly, before returning to the table.

Both girls had finished their breakfast. Rachel was up paying for the bill and Emily was shrugging on her jacket as Leah approached.

Emily frowned as Leah approached. "You look terrible."

"I feel terrible," she admitted. "I should just get home." A queasy stomach wasn't a sign of death, but well, it was kind of getting annoying.

/ I hope you enjoyed reading! Reviews may make Chapter 15 - Part 2 make it's appearance sooner rather than later! ;)

- Becca