By Monday morning, my injuries were even worse looking than they had been when the Cullens and the pack rescued me. Charlie had eyed my face strangely before suggesting I stay home for a few more days of recovery. Jacob had patrolled and then laid beside me Sunday night, whispering quietly and begging me to stay home. I woke, showered, and dressed while he dozed on my bed. I brought toasted bagels to him roughly thirty minutes before I had to leave. When he caught sight of the bruises once more, he flinched. I sighed, "Jake. Please. I'm alright."

"Sure, sure." He sighed sadly. "Don't leave yet. When Charlie takes off, I'll meet you in the driveway."

Ten minutes later, I waved goodbye to Charlie as his cruiser pulled out the drive. Jacob was out of the house and jumping in the passenger seat fairly quickly. He was still wearing the same wrinkled shorts from the night before. The T-shirt he was wearing was an old thread-bare one that I had stolen from his bedroom months before. As I drove, I said, "You should really keep more clothes at my house. I can make room in my dresser."

He offered a grin and said, "Next time you come to La Push, I'll throw a bag in your truck. How's that?"

"Perfect." I agreed as I parked. There were many students mingling around cars. I could see Mike and Tyler chasing each other around quite energetically. Jessica, Ben, and Angela were laughing at them. Eric was trying to be sneaky as he stole an object out of Mike's dropped backpack.

"Your buddy, Mike, going to freak out when you quit Newton's?" Jacob asked.

I shrugged, "I don't think so. We're about to graduate. For all he knows, I could be moving away for college. I know Jessica is."

Jacob swallowed heavily and hummed under his breath. I frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Besides vampires?" He offered flatly, "Just wondering about the future."

I bit my bottom lip and slowly asked, "What about it?"

Jacob met my gaze intently. He offered a small smile. "Where are you going to go to college at, Bells? Have you applied for any schools yet?"

"A few." I sighed and rubbed my temples. My face hurt, so I winced and dropped my hands. I looked up at the roof of the cab and said, "Honestly, I'm not really concerned about any of it. There's a chance I won't even-"

"Don't say that." Jacob retorted hotly, "I won't let that happen. The redhead leech will be dead soon. I'm working with the Cullens. We've pushed patrols as far as we can now. Pixie's visions sorta helps. If something changes, she lets us know. We act accordingly."

I stared across the parking lot. The shrill bell pierced the air, but it was muffled from within the truck. My group of friends walked into the building along with many others. I said, "I'm going to call Mrs. Newton on break. I'd like to give her a two-week notice, but I understand why I can't."

"What are you going to tell her?" Jacob wondered.

I replied, "That Charlie wants me resting because of my injury. That I've applied for the community college in Port Angeles and would probably have left at the end of summer, anyway."

Jacob cleared his throat and muttered, "Okay. Yeah. Sounds good."

"I've got to head in or I'll be late for first period." I explained as I reached across the cab. His arms and warmth engulfed me. His full mouth brushed against the shell of my ear and made me shiver. He whispered, "I'll keep watch. See you later, Bells."

I nodded wordlessly and hurried into the building to escape the bite of cold in the air. As I had anticipated, everyone was horrified by the state of my face. One half was mottled with purple and blue. The swelling of my eye had gone down over the weekend, but I knew how rough I looked. I endured the sympathetic glances, kind words, and questions. I repeated the words 'I slipped in the parking lot at work. Face first on the pavement. Got a concussion' at least ten times.

Because our year was coming to an end, there was little to do besides turn in last-minute assignments and study for upcoming exams. Next week would be a stressful week. End-of-year exams would be the difference between passing or failing high school. I wasn't very confident that I would ace all my tests, but I was fairly sure I wouldn't out-right fail at any one subject. Trig made me nervous, though, because it was advanced beyond my mathematical capabilities.

At lunchtime, despite the decent weather, I told my friends I had a headache and didn't want to sit outside at the picnic tables. Angela stayed inside the cafeteria with me. We talked quietly about our future because that seemed to be the one thing on every single person's mind. It was a subject I wished to avoid altogether, but Angela was by far my favorite school friend. I didn't want to seem rude, so I listened as she explained her plans. Four-year degree at Washington State.

It had taken some convincing due to her parents' nervous nature, but Angela wanted to become a teacher. When her family found out Ben and Jessica were also attending Washington State, they had eased up. Jessica and Angela were already signing papers and booking a tour of the campus. They were applying for room and board scholarships. Ben had an uncle who was willing to rent out his studio apartment to his nephew. I was genuinely happy for the three of them. That happiness soured somewhat as I thought of my own non-existent plans. Angela politely asked, "What are your plans, Bella?"

"Nothing concrete." I murmured while sipping from a bottle of water. My eyes continuously scanned the large windows around the cafeteria. I was aware that Alice and Edward could hear every word I spoke from across the room. If they could hear me, then Jacob probably could as well. He was in wolf form somewhere at the edge of the tree line just outside the school building. Protecting me.

"It's such a scary thing to think about, isn't it?" Angela said as she took a bite of her turkey sandwich. I nodded absent-mindedly, "Yeah. It is."

"If you need help applying or want to discuss ideas with anyone," She responded, "you can talk to me. I'm happy to help."

I smiled and replied, "Yeah. I know, Ang. Thank you."

Shortly after that, I excused myself and walked outside. I followed the walkway to the nearest bathroom. I used my cellphone to call Mrs. Newton and tried to maintain an even tone. She was rather speechless, but expressed her regret at my abrupt end to employment. With a regretful sigh, I pushed my cellphone into my backpack and made my way to my next class. By the end of the day, I was exhausted. Too many sleepless nights paired with a beating from a vampire had left me feeling so tired.

Jacob was in the driver's seat of my truck by the time I stumbled across the parking lot. A grey mist swirled about. Icy rain was drizzling down and soaking my hair. I climbed into the passenger seat and slammed the door. He had one hand on the steering wheel and the other stretched across the length of the cab. He whispered, "You look beat, honey."

"I feel it." I muttered and pushed closer to his side. He said, "I'm going to take you to La Push, okay? Pixie had a vision about an hour ago."

"Of what?" I asked anxiously as I sat up. Jacob reached out with one hand and softly pressed my head down to rest against his shoulder once more. "Jacob?"

He sighed heavily, "They're coming. She saw them traveling from the outskirts of Seattle."

My aching body suddenly felt numb. As he drove, Jacob glanced at me. His face contorted as he whispered, "Don't do this to yourself. It's going to be fine, Bella. I'll take care of this."

"You don't know how many she has on her side, Jacob." I croaked, "Alice doesn't even know. Her visions aren't perfect. Does she know how long until they're in Forks?"

Jacob gripped the steering wheel tighter and pushed the truck just a tad faster. He said, "No. That's why the Cullens are all patrolling. As soon as we cross into La Push territory, Pixie and Asshat are going to join the rest of their coven. Sam and I worked out a grid pattern just a little while ago. As soon as they come anywhere near Forks, we will know it."

I said nothing. Only stared out the window. My breath was coming in short pants. Jacob firmly said, "Breathe slower, Bella. It's okay."

"No," I muttered as we turned off of the main road, "it isn't."

"You're going to stay with Billy at our house." Jacob replied, "You aren't leaving until this is sorted out. I stopped by earlier and packed some of your things. I left the bag on my bed. When you get there, call Charlie. I hate lying to him, and I know you do too, but we have to keep him in La Push. For his safety."

I nodded vigorously, "Yes."

"Billy is going to pretend to be sick. You can tell Charlie that you're helping me take care of him. Sue has already been told and she's going to pretend to be very busy. The flu is going around the Rez. She's going to tell Charlie she could use his, and your, help. Billy is going to ham it up. Vomiting. Shaking. Fever. The works. You're going to come down with it as well by tomorrow."

I felt hot tears building in my eyes. I wiped at my face and kept myself firmly turned away from him as Jacob slowed the truck down the muddy lanes of La Push. He muttered, "I hate lying, too. I'm reminding myself that it's to protect, Charlie."

"He's safest here." I croaked.

"Yeah," Jacob replied as he cut the engine, "He is much safer here."

"Okay. I can do it." I roughly mumbled as I climbed from the truck. Jacob followed me into the house. I was immediately surprised at what I saw. There were over-the-counter medicine bottles sitting on the kitchen table. A pile of crumpled tissues was on the coffee right next to Billy's chair. His nose and eyes were red. He looked dull and was wearing an extra sweater. There was a blanket across his lap. He held a mug in his hand.

"Hello, Bella." He spoke deeply and gravely.

My voice shook as I said, "Hi, Billy."

"There's coffee on, if you'd like." He replied and turned back to the grainy screen of his television.

Jacob took my hand and brought me to his bedroom. He had my backpack swung over his shoulder, which he dropped at the end of his bed. He pointed to the black bag sitting atop his mattress and said, "I hope I grabbed everything you need."

I wanted to be mad at him for digging through my belongings, but couldn't find the energy to care. I sighed and crossed my arms over my chest. "What now?"

"Now," He said, "I meet up with the pack. The Cullens are all running point around the outskirts of Forks. This leaves us to really close ranks and fortify La Push."

"Aren't you all spread out too thin?" I asked quickly, "How will the pack and the Cullens fight together when Victoria shows up?"

"Miles are easy to travel." Jacob replied, "The Cullens are pretty fast, but so are we. I'd say Leah and I are the fastest. We could span across the entire town of Forks in less than four minutes. If they send out the signal, we will be there."

"People can be killed in seconds." I croaked and dropped to the edge of his bed. My hands went to my face. I tried to hold back the sobs, but they strangled me and forced themselves out of my mouth. The bed dipped beside me. I felt Jacob's warmth and smelled his crisp scent. His warm palms rubbed gently along my shoulders as he whispered, "I've got to go, honey. I'll be back as soon as I can. Try not to make yourself sick. You aren't giving us enough credit. We have to end this. I'm going to keep you safe, do you hear me, Bells?"

I shook my head and threw myself into his chest. Jacob hugged me tightly as I thumped him on the shoulder and demanded, "You come back. Please, Jacob, you come back tonight."

There was a pause. He sighed, "I'll do my best, Bells. You know that I wouldn't ever willingly leave you, don't you?"

I thought about my answer for a long time before croaking, "Yes. I know."

He pressed a kiss to the side of my head before touching his fingertip to my chin. I tilted upward, eyes closed, as a full mouth met mine. I melted almost instantly. Fire ignited and spread at an alarming rate. Hands fisted and scrapped as if they could somehow force him to stay with me. Lips and tongues clashed. Harsh breaths were devoured urgently. Jacob moaned lowly and yanked his mouth away from mine.

He ducked down and pressed quick kisses to my neck as he whispered, "I love you. I've had a crush on you since I was a little kid. I always thought you were so pretty. My sisters used to tease me about you. When I heard you were moving back, I was surprised by how excited I was. I was so damn nervous when we came to give you the truck. When you asked me to show you how to drive, I thought I would pass out."

I let out a watery laugh and clung tightly to him. His big chest moved and vibrated as he spoke. "Bella, I've been in love with you since the moment you showed up in my yard with broken motorcycles. You looked so damn sad and lost. All I wanted to do was help you. To make you smile or laugh. I love you."

I pulled back, cupping his broad jaw in my hands. I had to blink tears away before his blurry face came into focus. I took in mocha eyes, dark brows, and full lips. I whispered, "I love you, too."