~Sorry, this took long to update. Read the previous chapter if you need a refresher.

Chapter 21

Bella

Jacob scooted closer until his legs merged with Bella's. For a second, she forgot Old Quil was still there. It felt like they were the only two people in the world. He held both her hands in his large hand and used the other one to wipe off the tears from her eyes. He was catching her tears again. Bella wasn't sure if the realization had sunk in because he was too calm.

"Honey, I think you're confused and who can blame you after this damn moonshine. Even I was tossed a few minutes."

She showed him her cup, "No, it's not that. I barely drank any of the tea. I remembered. as soon as Mr. Quil convinced me I could, I did. We were there."

"Mom had a wreck. I think she had a blowout and lost control. I remember Dad coming over here because I spent the night with Quil and he told me. You lived with Renee then and I don't ever remember you visiting during that time frame. I remember you a couple times, but we were much younger. Wait."

"Do you remember something else?"

"Yeah, it's just I'm not sure I truly remembered until I saw a picture of us on the beach. Dad got sad about it and said it was the last time you could visit. I think I was five."

So strange Billy deliberately altered the truth. Bella still didn't understand that part. She tried to help Jacob understand, "Not all my childhood is a blur. I've always known Mom was a flake, but tonight I specifically remember fights between her and my grandmother, long car trips, blow-ups with Dad, and weird guys in and out of her life. And you, Jake. I remember you way more than before."

Confusion replaced concern on Jacob's face. Old Quil spoke up, "She's right. I don't mean to speak ill of Renee, but she and Charlie were a mess. It went on for years after their divorce. Why do you think that man stayed single so long? He held out hope for years his family would get back together."

"I used to think my father was a strange man because of stuff my mother told me, but I it didn't add up after living with him. I guess Dad protected her. He didn't want me to blame Mom."

"That's only part of it, but one thing was for certain. Sarah didn't approve of all the back and forth, so she offered to watch you whenever you were here. She wanted to give you some stability and of course, she knew the two of you needed each other. Young Jacob went through a terrible stage after you left every time."

Sarah asked Old Quil if a pre-phase imprint was possible because it was the only thing that almost made sense. He had no reason to believe the new generation would even phase. It hadn't happened since his grandfather's time and nothing in the tribe's history described what occurred between Jacob and Bella.

Jacob questioned him, "Maybe that's it. All this time we worried about an imprint for no reason; Bells is already my imprint."

"If that's what you need to call it, but trust me, it's more."

Bella felt like he was leaving out information, "How do you know that for sure because we communicated as children telepathically?"

Jacob's face twisted, "I'm sorry, what did we do?"

"In a minute. I'll show you if I can."

"You can. The bond hasn't lessened; it's grown. You two are each other's life blood and I have proof you're more than an imprint." Old Quil asked them to keep what he was about to tell them private and they agreed. "Sam visited just after the new year. Emily had witnessed the healing on Bella's skin, and she was inspired." Did that mean Sam's blood could heal Emily's scars? Bella hadn't thought of that, but she was fascinated at the prospect.

"Oh, well, we just saw them, she looked the same. Did they decide to wait? I can see Emily being nervous. It's her face."

Old Quil's solemn explanation made it all too clear, "We tried. Sue and I experimented with the smallest scar at the bottom. We waited but there was no change. She and Sam took the outcome hard."

Jacob recalled a few weeks of Sam saying Emily was ill. The truth was Bella and Jacob saw them the week before but that was the first time since the holidays. "That's too bad, but maybe it's different because I have bites. That still doesn't prove Jacob and I are better."

"It proves you're different. We cannot only assume what has taken place so far is the healing properties found in a wolf's blood. Sam's blood did nothing to heal Emily, his imprint."

Bella wished only good things for all the other members of the pack, and that sucked from Sam and Emily, but euphoria settled over her. It was true. Everything Old Quil said; she believed it. They were more. She and Jacob had always been more. There was no other explanation for that instant connection she felt with Jacob despite being under Edward's spell. Bella trusted him with her secrets, he knew her heart, listened to her mind without her speaking a word. She fell apart when she left him after the newborn battle and couldn't forget him even as she married another. Jacob was hers and she'd come so close to losing him forever not because of some random woman, but because of her self-doubt and lack of faith.

"Jake, I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I should have trusted you. You said you only saw me, and I pushed you away. Please forgive me."

Jacob pressed his head against hers, "There's nothing to forgive. I didn't know either, Bells. I just knew I loved you so much, it hurt."

"Show him, Isabella."

Bella held Jacob's hands. "Close your eyes with me. Open your mind and I promise to let you in."

Warmth consumed her. Bella made it to that hovering state again. This time, she wasn't alone. A soft whisper tickled her neck, "Hey."

"Hey back. Do you see it?"

"I see you… all of you, and you're more beautiful than I realized. Old Quil isn't in here with us, is he?"

She giggled, "No, only if we lose our concentration then we'll be back with him."

"Good, this seems private. Show me, Bells, only the good stuff first, please. Show us when we were children."

Bella took him back to the Black's living room floor to observe the playing children, she moved forward so they could experience fun times at the beach, trips to the park and ice cream cones with Sarah. There were family dinners, sleeping bags on the floor, and Bella reading books to a young Jacob. Those were the good times when they were together, and they were happy.

She had to show the first of many bad scenes when Renee gave up on ever settling on Forks, Washington. Charlie begged her not to leave. Billy and Sarah sat down with the couple and offered solutions. If Renee truly had to get away for a while, Bella was welcome to stay with them. By that time, Sarah knew there was an intense connection between the two children. She and Old Quil observed them many times. Billy tried to downplay it since he'd never heard of such a thing, and Old Quil couldn't find proof it existed in any other generation.

"They're kids, Sarah, kids that get along and are so close, they're practically family." He tried to warn her the twins were jealous of Bella the way she favored her, but Rebecca and Rachel were more like their father. They were adventurous and loved to be surrounded by friends. It seemed to Bella like they were always off doing something. Maybe that's why Rachel never acted like she knew much about Bella or liked her early on. She and Jacob were like Sarah. They were homebodies, happy being in the garden together or on the beach away from the crowds. He was way friendlier than Bella but always followed her lead. Jacob could sense when she was overwhelmed or out of her element.

Bella showed how the young Jacob would hold her hand and tell her everything's okay whenever she was afraid. But things weren't always okay. Renee was insulted they thought she'd leave her only child behind. She left Charlie which meant Bella left Jacob. The kids were devastated. Sarah took Jacob to a doctor because he made himself sick, but then Renee came back. And then she left again only to arrive on Charlie's doorstep time and time again. Sometimes, she'd go to Sarah first and ask her to watch Bella for a day or two while she worked on things with Charlie. He always took her back. It wasn't healthy for anyone involved, but Sarah knew Jacob needed Bella, so she hoped each new return would be a permanent one.

There was eventually a long stretch of time Renee and Bella stayed gone when the kids were nine and eleven. Charlie faced the reality it was over for good. They'd been divorced for years, but he always had hope before. He resolved his family was no more until one day Renee appeared claiming she needed a break from her mother, from an ex that had done a number on her, and from being a single mom. Charlie accepted he and Renee were over, but he made up his mind he was done kissing Bells goodbye for months without a word. The grownups didn't know the kids were listening while a plan was being discussed. Charlie was serious this time. He was tired of letting Renee call all the shots, so he hired a lawyer.

A couple of kids huddled behind a chair as the discussion went on for hours. The little boy wiped a tear from the little girl's cheek. They spoke to one another but no words were said, "You're staying forever now, Bells. With me."

Jacob squeezed Bella's hands and asked her gently, "Can we stop for a second?" They opened their eyes to see Old Quil snoring softly in his chair. "I feel it. Something bad is about to happen, so bad you and I both buried the truth as if it never existed. It's late. The old man's asleep. Let's go home. I'll leave him a note and send Quil a text to come home and check on him."

Bella nodded. She grabbed his hand and followed him outside to the Rabbit. Neither spoke another word on the way back to the cabin. The next memory she'd share was the last day they'd spend together as children which began a six-year separation and changed the entire course of their lives. There was one other thing Bella would have to do before Jacob understood everything. She had to take him to back to that night on her honeymoon when Edward said something to her. She repressed the memory of the confession until the moment Old Quil made her believe in her abilities. Jacob asked to see the happy times first; she felt closer to him than ever. Bella never wanted him to see what happened to her. Now that they'd unlocked their full connection, he would experience everything with her. She couldn't hide from it and neither could Jacob. He'd know, see with his own eyes, witness her torture and feel her shame.

Old Quil said they were more, but were they enough to get past all those horrors?

~Thanks for reading

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