I'm back! Thank you guys so much for your patience last week, I really needed that time to spend with my fiancé.

As a token of my appreciation, please enjoy this week's *dramatic* installment!

Chapter Nine: I Know What You Did Last Summer

The night air felt chillier somehow, now that I knew we weren't alone.

Jake and I started off at a jog towards the beach, but we soon slowed after realising we were making much more noise than we needed to. Besides, we weren't necessarily in a rush; we both knew Corey didn't run this way.

Which meant we weren't looking for Corey at all, not really. Embry and Seth were looking for Corey. Paul and Quil were looking for Corey. Jake and I…

I glanced up at the side of his face, stoic, eyes trained forward. We weren't looking for Corey, which left one of two possibilities, maybe a bit of both. We were either looking for a vampire, or looking for an opportunity to talk.

I didn't know which scared me more.

I'd hurt Jake. I didn't mean to, of course, I would never try to hurt him. But I had. For the first time in our friendship, Jake left himself vulnerable. He'd let down his walls in a way that he never had before, and I not only brushed him off, but I hadn't reciprocated. I let him pull away, I let him accept rejection, and I let myself hide my true feelings behind his hurt.

Jake wanted to kiss me.

More than that, he was going to kiss me, and I was going to let him. He was just waiting for a signal, one small sign to let him know that I wanted this too. I never gave it, even though the denial left a gaping hole in my chest and a tangible rift between us. I needed to clear the air, I needed to fix this, but I didn't know how. When your best friend tries to kiss you and you don't let him despite how much you really, really want to, how do you come back from that?

I had no idea, and neither did Jacob. To his credit though, he was trying. The coldness and pain that had clung to him after the truck had shattered when Corey attacked me, and for that at least, I was grateful. He held my hand tightly in his as we walked, keeping me close and leading the way along the cool sand.

As if determined to let me drown in my thoughts, the night was quiet around us, disturbed only occasionally by the sounds of the Pack working their way through the woods. Even they grew faint by the time we reached the charred bonfire pit, and then there was nothing but the ocean. I felt the silence like a ringing in my ears, pressure building inside my skull until a pounding headache erupted behind my eyes.

"Are you alright?"

I jumped, peeking nervously up at Jake. I wasn't alright, not by a longshot, but I had a feeling he wasn't asking in general. Whatever else was going on, I'd just been attacked by someone. He of all people wasn't just going to forget about that.

"I'm fine," I promised, pulling my mouth into a sideways smile that I hoped was reassuring. "Just rattled."

"Corey didn't hurt you, did he?" He frowned, the concern in his voice almost bringing tears to my eyes. "I meant to ask before but-"

"He didn't," I promised, squeezing his hand in mine. Jake fell silent again, his gaze dropping to our intertwined fingers. "I'm sorry. It's been a stressful day."

That was an understatement. From Charlie's news to Corey's attack and everything in between, I shouldn't still be standing. A normal person would've curled into a ball by now, hiding away from the rest of the world until things got better. I didn't have that luxury anymore. Nothing was going to get better until we made it better, and that meant no curling into a ball for me.

Waves crashing noisily against the rocks drew my attention for a moment, my eyes tracing the ragged lines of the horizon in the setting sun. It really was beautiful, even with the circumstances being what they were. I let myself imagine a different time, an alternate world where this trip went exactly as planned. Bonfires, volley ball, swimming, sunbathing, drinking, laughter, and fun. The absence of all that hit me so hard I nearly gasped.

"I'm picking the next vacation," Jake joked suddenly, as if reading my mind. He was, rather obviously, trying to keep me distracted. It mostly worked, but I wasn't ignorant to the way he kept his nose turned towards the coastline. He shook his head in disbelief, failing to hide his smile. "You're officially banned from selecting our future getaways."

"I never want to vacation again after this," I complained, considering how serious I actually was. Right now, it was pretty serious. "This is enough excitement for a lifetime."

"Nah," Jake scoffed, tugging me closer as we walked. I bumped into his shoulder, my hand still clasped in his. It was decidedly intimate, unintentionally or otherwise. I squirmed. "You'll want to go again. I'll make sure of it."

"Oh, you will, will you?"

There was a pause before he answered, presumably honing in on some small sound I'd missed. We were far from any tree cover here, so if anyone did try to approach us, Jake would hear them well before they ever reached us. He was more relaxed now, some of his ease slipping into the measure of his steps. Satisfied that the sound was nothing, he turned back to me.

"Absolutely," he grinned, "I can't stay in Forks my whole life, and I'm not touring the world alone."

"You want to travel?" I asked, surprised enough to make me forget for a moment that I was supposed to be moping. Jake wasn't exactly a homebody, but he'd never mentioned anything to me about wanderlust. He nodded, looking a little sheepish.

"I've always wanted to visit Chile," he admitted, swinging our joint hands back and forth. "Weird one, I know. But one of my favourite books as a kid was about a character from Chile, and I got kind of obsessed with it. Eventually that turned into an interest in other countries too, and before I knew it, I wanted to go as far and wide as possible."

I blinked, walking in silence as I let the revelation sink in. I'd never considered it before, but it was a fitting image. Jake was always moving, always doing things with his hands, always itching to try new things. I'd just assumed he'd put that energy into mechanics or something, but travel seemed… appropriate, somehow. After all these years, Jacob was still surprising me.

"But I couldn't go anywhere without you," Jake added, almost as an afterthought. "If I left you here alone, you'd accidentally walk into oncoming traffic or something."

"And you don't think I'd trip and go face first off Niagara Falls?"

"At least I'd be there to catch you."

I rolled my eyes, but it was mostly to hide my blush. The more Jake talked, the faster my heart was beating. I wasn't sure I was ready for him to realise that yet.

Putting aside the almost-kiss, Jake and I had never explicitly talked about the future before. It was uncertain at best, what with his Pack duties and all. The farthest we'd ever planned was college, and that was mostly a pipe dream until graduation hit and things were actually calm for once. Between vampire exes, tribal legends, and functionally immortal wolves, I made it a habit to take things one day at a time.

But, clearly, Jake was thinking about the future, at least in part. And he was thinking about me, being a part of it.

The realisation made me both ecstatic and terrified. On the one hand, I didn't want to think about my life without him in it, and the knowledge that he was planning on keeping me around made my heart flutter. On the other, I couldn't ignore the niggling voice in the back of my head reminding me that at any time, any moment, Jake could meet someone and all of that could go straight to hell.

Leah's stories echoed in my mind, but I pushed them aside. It was too confusing to think about right now, when my heart was already at war with my head. I couldn't let this line of conversation go on any longer, not with so many unsaid things hanging in the air between us.

"Listen, Jake-" I began, my grip on his hand suddenly very tight. "I think we need to talk about what happened before. In the truck."

He visibly flinched, which already wasn't a good sign.

"Yeah," he coughed out a strained laugh, rubbing his free hand over the back of his neck. I knew that move; that was his 'I don't want to talk about this so I'm going to deflect like crazy' move. I took a steadying breath. "Sorry about all that. I kinda got caught up in the moment."

"I wasn't asking for an apology," I insisted, and the spark of hope that lit his face in that instant nearly crushed me. I didn't want to squander that hope, but I knew I didn't have a choice. I forced myself to keep going. "I just don't want you to think that… well that we could…"

I trailed, letting the implication simmer, focussing unnecessarily hard on each step as the sand shifted beneath my feet. Jake's hope died with the flick of a switch, his expression drawing in on itself.

"Don't worry," he grunted, rolling his shoulders. "I know."

I should've left it at that. Jake wasn't happy, but he'd bounce back. He always did. Give him a few minutes and then he'd be himself again, accepting what we both always knew to be true. That was the smart thing to do, the right thing to do. Let him feel for a while, and then everything would blow over and things would go back to the way they were.

But I don't want things to go back to the way they were.

The thought slipped out before I could reign it in, stilling my heart. The truth of it washed over me like an icy downpour, seeping into my bones and making me shiver.

No, I didn't want things to go back to the way they were. I involuntarily started to replay the scenario in the truck, this time ignoring Angela's texts and putting all of my attention on Jake, on his hands at my back, on his lips, parted ever so slightly, waiting for me to give him the okay. In my head, I did, easing into his embrace with the relief of slipping into a hot bath after a long day.

But that was just in my head. In reality, I forced those thoughts to the back of my mind and slammed a lock on them, throwing the key as far away as I could.

"That's for the best," I said tightly, as much to convince myself as to convince him. "We both know this wouldn't work out."

"You think this wouldn't work," Jake argued. "I never once said I agreed."

I glared at him.

"You have to agree," I shot back, pain lancing through my chest. "It's your stupid werewolf DNA that's the problem in the first place."

I regretted the words the second they left my lips, but it was too late to take them back. Defiance flashed in his eyes as Jake opened his mouth to quip something, but he stopped himself. I watched as he took a deep breath, collecting his temper before answering me.

"Don't start," he sighed, letting his head fall back to stare at the dark sky. "I'm sick and fucking tired of people telling me what my life's going to be. I don't need to hear it from you too."

"It's kind of hard for me to ignore, Jacob." I whined, finding my irritation and clutching it for dear life. If I was angry, I wouldn't accidentally say something stupid. "People grow apart all the time, and most of them never know why. I'm in the unique position of knowing exactly why I could lose you at any given moment, and still being powerless to stop it. You think I can just forget about something like that?"

"Are you serious?" Jake whipped his head to look directly at me, utterly bewildered. "You honestly think that's possible? You have so little faith in me that you think I would just bail on you without a second thought?"

"My understanding is that it's not exactly your choice," I rebutted dryly. "What if your imprint doesn't like me, Jake? You're not going to side with me over your fucking soulmate."

"Can we just forget about my fucking imprint?" Jake huffed suddenly, his temper coming back in a flash. I knew he would never hurt me, so he didn't scare me when he was angry, but I could understand why it would bother people who didn't know him. Jake could be a little… explosive at times. "Jesus Christ. That's all anyone wants to talk about these days, and I don't even have one. It's not going to happen, okay? So just drop it."

"How do you know that?"

Jake glowered at me, carefully studying my face for any betrayal of my thoughts. I didn't give him one, schooling my features into as neutral a mask as I could manage.

Imprinting was the one thing Jake and I never talked about. Not that I couldn't ask him questions if I wanted to, I just didn't want to. The uncertainty of his future loomed over us like a dark cloud, and if I spent all my time worrying over when he was going to meet the one person he was destined to spend the rest of his life with, I would never sleep again. I wanted to enjoy my time with Jake, no matter how much of it I had left.

But now… now, things were different. For years we'd skated around our feelings for each other, always knowing but never admitting the mutual attraction hiding just below the surface of our friendship. We'd done this dance for so long, a wordless, necessary agreement in place to protect us both. The ice was finally beginning to shatter, exposing the cracks neither of us wanted to acknowledge, but always knew were there.

The time for secrets and half-truths was finally over.

"I just know," Jake insisted, kicking at the sand and spraying it in a wide arc. "It's not the easiest thing to explain, Bells."

"Try," I pleaded, suppressing the desperation in my tone as best as I could. We'd hit the point of no return; I couldn't turn back even if I wanted to. Jake hedged his cards onto the table back in the truck, but I couldn't look at them until I understood.

Jake chewed on his words for a minute, searching his brain for the right way to say what was on his mind.

"When I look at my life and what I want," he began, speaking slowly but picking up speed as his thoughts clicked into place, "I already have everything. I have my family, my friends, and I have you. I'm not missing anything. There's no room for an imprint."

"I bet Sam thought the same thing," I pointed out softly, not wanting him to think I was baiting him. I was. "You won't know until you meet them. And then you'll have your Emily, and there might not be any room for me."

Jake dropped my hand suddenly, looking like someone had struck him.

"What's gotten into you?" Jake had been walking towards the boathouse near the shore, the one that I'd seen the night of the bonfire, but he slowed now. "Look, I fucked up back there. I shouldn't have let things get as far as they did, and I'm sorry that I almost kissed you. This isn't something we should be talking about right now, but that's on me. I did this. I made things complicated. But where the hell is all this coming from, Bella?"

I didn't have an answer right away. Jake stared at me, waiting, and when I didn't speak, he continued.

"No one could ever replace you," he vowed. "Even if I did imprint, which I won't, I would never abandon you like that."

"How can you promise that-?"

"I just can!" Jake pinched the bridge of his nose, hard enough to turn the pads of his fingers white. "Why are we even talking about this? It's a moot point, alright? I know me better than anyone, and I know what I want. I don't want some imprint I've never met before; I don't want to imprint at all."

"But why?" I wasn't sure I wanted to hear the answer out loud, but the question left my lips in a hurried burst of anxiety. "Why don't you want to meet the person you're meant to be with?"

"Because I already have!"

He stared at me meaningfully. I bit my lip.

The barren beach lay dormant around us, any signs of life slithering just out of reach in the darkness, leaving a blank canvas for our frustration. I felt the cold in my very bones, snaking into my chest and constricting my lungs until my ribs ached.

Even if I believed Leah, even if her stories were true, how would I know if Jake really had successfully defied the universe and chosen me? I wouldn't, not until it was far, far too late.

My headache was now bordering on a migraine.

"Fine," I sighed, my shoulders drooping. There was no point in skimming the issue anymore. Time to cut right to the chase. "Fine, Jake. Let's say we do date. Let's say we get together and it works out, and then twenty years from now, we're walking down the street, and you see someone out of the corner of your eye. Your whole world shifts, and you just know this is the person the universe wants you to be with."

"And?"

"Would you still pick me then?"

"What kind of a question is that?" Jake bristled, furrowing his brows. "Bella, do you have any idea how important you are to me?"

"Leah was important to Sam, too!" I snapped back, my cheeks hot. Frustration bubbled in my stomach, spilling from my lips. "I don't think you understand what you're asking me to risk."

"I'm not asking you to risk anything!" Jake threw his hands in the air, coming to an abrupt stop next to the volleyball net. I whirled to face him, my arms immediately crossing over my chest. "You're not listening to me, Bells! I would never, ever, leave you. Not for anything. Friend, girlfriend, wife, whatever! I want you in my life, and nobody is going to change that!"

"How can you promise that?" I demanded, feeling my eyes well. "How can you say that when you've seen the damage imprinting can do? I can't lose you, Jake! I just can't."

"You won't," he swore, shoving his hand roughly through his hair. "I don't know how else I can explain this to you! I will never imprint on someone. I'm meant to be with you. I don't give a shit what the universe says. Bella, for God's sake-!" Jake cursed, indecision marring his features, until a steely resolve settled in his eyes. "I love you."

"You-" I froze, my heart dropping into my stomach. "You… you what?"

"I love you," Jake repeated, confidence growing every second. "I've been in love with you for years, and I want to be with you. Give me a chance to prove it."

My body froze, ice creeping up my veins. In all our years of friendship, Jake had never- I mean, I always thought, but-

Jake loved me.

"You say that now," I mumbled, shock muddling the spark of anger I still felt. "But Jake, you can't-"

"I love you," Jake said again, cutting me off. "Do you love me too?"

"Jacob-"

"Do you," Jake repeated, his breath coming shallow and fast, "love me too?"

I stared at him, hard, frustration and pain and longing pulsing wildly through my veins.

"Of course I do, but-"

"Then shut up."

Before my startled brain could catch up to what was happening, Jake crossed the distance between us in two long strides, slipped his hand roughly around the back of my neck, yanked me into his embrace, and kissed me.

"Mmf-!" I squeaked in surprise, pushing my palms firmly against Jake's chest. I wrapped my fingers tightly in his shirt, not sure if I was going to shove him away or tug him closer.

After a split second of uncertainty, I realised there was never a question.

Jake groaned as I arched my back, pressing the length of my body against his and igniting a fire beneath my skin. His hand abandoned my neck, dropping to my hips and holding me there, fitted snugly to him. I didn't want to think anymore- I was tired, too tired to fight- all I wanted was to lose myself in this moment, and drown in him.

Jake again seemed to read my mind; his kisses grew deeper, more urgent, quickly devolving into something raw and unfiltered. I gasped as his teeth tugged impatiently at my lower lip, swallowing the sound with his tongue. I clung to him, feeling my balance slowly abandoning me. My head was swirling deliciously, clouding any sense of danger or responsibility I had left. I didn't care why we were out here, didn't care that someone might find us, and I didn't get the impression that Jake did either.

Corey, vampires, the Pack, the beach, everything felt very, very far away.

My knees began to tremble, overwhelmed by the sheer passion in his touch. I could've sworn I felt Jake smirk against my lips, but I didn't mind. My hands were still on his chest, so I could feel how fast his heart was racing.

He was as much of a mess as I was.

His hands fell lower, gripping the backs of my thighs, and then I was in his arms. My legs wrapped tightly around his hips, my fingers finally loosening from his shirt and moving instead to tangle in his thick hair. Jake made a low sound in the back of his throat, one that sent shivers down my spine. He broke our kiss at last, moving his mouth to my neck, his breath hot against my flushed skin.

"I love you," I murmured, my voice barely audible above the breeze. The words burned as they left my tongue, but it was a good burn. A relieved burn. "Jake, I love you so much."

Jake's lips moved along the slope of my neck to my jaw, drawing quiet moans from my throat.

"Fuck," he whispered, gipping my thighs tighter. "Bella, I-"

"Well it's about damn time."

I shrieked, immediately losing my grip on Jake. He held fast, keeping me from falling backwards into the sand, as we both turned sharply towards the source of the very amused voice.

Embry and Seth were standing just a few meters away, leaning against the boathouse Jake and I were heading over to inspect.

"Jesus," Jake huffed, releasing his breath in one fell swoop. He adjusted his grip on my legs, helping me slide down his body until I was on my own two feet again. I couldn't look at Seth and Embry, not directly, as a deep red flush inched up my neck. "You guys scared the shit out of me. I thought you were circling around the driveway?"

"We did," Seth assured him, his smile just a bit awkward. "It was clean, so we doubled back to see if you two needed help."

"Good thing too," Embry grinned wickedly, crossing his arms over his chest. "I didn't realise this was all a big cover up so you two could bone. By the way, sand? Not the best surface choice. Gets everywhere."

My blush deepened until it even reached my ears, making Embry cackle like a deranged crow.

"Man," he snorted, tears collecting in the corners of his eyes, "I didn't think you two of all people would be playing the role of the horned-up teenagers on this trip."

"Shut it, Call," Jake rolled his eyes, clearly much less uncomfortable than I was. "Since you so graciously volunteered to join us, let's finish up so we can get back to the beach house."

"And rooms with doors that lock?" Embry guessed, waggling his eyebrows in my general direction. I tried to copy Jake, rolling my eyes and acting uninterested, but I didn't pull it off as well. Embry just continued to laugh, grabbing Seth's shoulder and spinning him around towards the front of the boathouse.

We were both quiet until Embry and Seth were out of sight, leaving us partially alone again. The reality of the situation was trying to sink in, but my happiness batted it restlessly away.

I kissed Jake. I kissed Jake!

"Sorry," Jake murmured, low enough that I had to strain to make it out. "I didn't hear him come up. I would've stopped sooner."

"It's okay," I promised, tucking my hair nervously behind my ears. My heart was finally starting to slow, bringing my rational thought back with it. "I'm not sure I would've wanted you to stop, even if you did hear him."

I blinked, startled at my own brazenness. I kept waiting for the awkward- the strange sort of charged tension that followed a first kiss, especially an unexpectedly heated one- but it never came. Warmth was flowing through me like a wild river, making me forget every factor rallying against us.

Jake seemed just as surprised as I was, but much more pleasantly so. He groaned, sliding his arm around my waist and pulling me against him.

"Do not talk like that when we're in public," he pleaded, dropping his head into the crook of my neck. I felt his lips ghost across my skin, making my stomach flip. "I'm not exactly known for my self control, Bells."

"You act like I don't already know that," I teased, letting my fingers slip just under the hem of his t-shirt. Jake drew in a sharp breath. "Come on, Embry and Seth are already way ahead of us."

"You're gonna pay for this, Swan," Jake growled, finally releasing me and pulling himself together. I smiled innocently, starting towards the boathouse.

"I'm counting on it."

"Guys?"

Embry's voice rattled through the air, bringing us to immediate attention. It was strained, where it hadn't been just moments ago. I'd rarely heard Embry without some sort of teasing in his voice.

This wasn't good.

"Embry?" Jake yelled back, already on the move. "What is it? Is it Corey?"

"It's not Corey."

Jake and I rounded the corner of the boathouse at the same time, coming to an abrupt stop as we nearly collided with the open door.

Embry and Seth were standing back, staring at it with sickly expression on their faces. Jake moved around the door before I did, but he wasn't quick enough to stop me from looking for myself.

Inside the boathouse, propped up against a rotting barrel, was the body of Sawyer's niece.

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