HIIIIIIIIII! So, I was not abducted. I'm sorry. I got really overwhelmed with everything going on in my life and had to take a hiatus from this and all other social media and hobbies. I'm back. Hopefully you're not all too angry with me!
This chapter switches from Seth Jane Seth Jane. Hopefully that doesn't get too annoying- I actually quite like it!
Thirteen: Fight Night
Seth's POV
I told Jane that I wanted to take her to her test and then pick her up afterward because I wanted to show "support," and while that wasn't necessarily a lie, it wasn't entirely the truth either. While I really did want to support Jane, the reality was that I was not about to let this beautiful, very fragile girl out of my sight until I figured out what the hell a vampire was doing in her backyard.
Honestly, if it had been just in her backyard it would have been different, but he was standing on her porch, close enough for her to see his red eyes. Close enough to stare her down and terrify her. I felt awful; how could I have allowed that thing that close to my world?
I felt even guiltier because I could tell that she got terrible sleep last night, even with me sleeping with her. I really hope that it didn't affect her test score that much; Jane worked so hard. I wanted her to succeed just as badly as she wanted to.
Now, though, Jane was safely in a testing center in Seattle, and I was pacing the back corner of an empty part of campus talking to Jacob on the phone.
"I just don't see what he would have wanted with her though," I said for about the fifth time.
"There isn't much left of his scent," Jacob told me. "The Cullen's think that he was curious. You're always coming and going. She's the only one not on the reservation."
"That's not good enough, Jake," I said with full frustration. "How are we going to make sure that she stays safe?"
"By increasing routes by her house," Jacob answered easily. Ever since he became my alpha, he had a way of telling without demanding, and a calm demeanor that helped to make things less explosive, which had always been a problem before. "She's going to be fine, Sethy," Jacob spoke jokingly now. "See! Now you see the reason why you always thought we were all so crazy before."
"Ha, ha," I spoke lowly.
"She'll be- what? Wait a second!" He let out a long breath. "Hold on, Seth." A beat passed while I heard Jake's muffled voice in the background. "Scarlett and Lena are over here, and they want to know what we're doing to celebrate Jane's test tonight."
"Ugh," My internal panic suddenly began to overtake me. Renesmee and Scarlett and Lena could be... a lot, and Jane was so shy. I didn't want them to scare her off. "I was thinking maybe the two of us would hangout."
"Give me the phone!" I heard in the background. Suddenly, Nessie's high, singsong voice was ringing through the line. "Seth!" Her voice was pointed. "This is not fair! Put it on speaker!" I heard someone saying in the background.
"Yeah!" Suddenly two more voices chanted.
"We barely even met her!" Nessie pushed. "This is the longest ever that one of you idiots have kept us away from your girl."
"Are you embarrassed of us or something?" Scarlett's soft voice came along with a giggle.
"I think he is!" Nessie answered before I could even say anything. "And I know Kim's annoyed, too. Even Morgan was interested."
"Ugh!" I heard a long moan. "Puh-lease tell me that Morgan's not coming tonight."
"Shhh!" Someone shushed her.
"She is the worst person ever," Lena continued bravely, which was so Lena-like; honestly, I would have been surprised if she didn't.
"Oh hush," I hard Nessie reply. "She's out of town with her friend anyway."
"Thank God!"
"See!" I heard Embry's voice. "Nothing to be scared of! Just three bitches and three really whipped dudes!"
"Hey!" They all complained in unison.
"If I wasn't sure before I definitely am now," I stated. "No way."
"You know I'll just text her if you don't," Lena threatened.
"How do you even have her number?" I asked incredulously, rubbing my face. These girls never ceased to amaze me. I loved them all, don't get me wrong, but Jane was so different. She was kind and gentle and funny but still soft-spoken.
"I got it at the fair," Lena responded. "Before the murder that is."
An idea suddenly sparked in the back of my mind. "Do you think that had anything to do with the guy last night?"
Jake took a moment to think. "I thought about that too, but I don't think they connect. Granted the scent was gone by the time we started going around by the fair, but that really seemed like a passer-through. This seems more personal."
My stomach dropped. "Jake," I began slowly.
"See!" Nessie interrupted. "You need to be here to talk about this anyways! Bring her or we text her. Bye Sethy!"
The line went dead. Great.
I went to wait in the car for Jane, and a surprisingly shot time later, Jane came bouncing out to the car. She wore a casual smile and a shocking amount of pep to her step for having just took a test; I certainly never acted like that after one of mine.
"Hi," Jane opened the passenger door and popped in. "Please tell me you didn't wait in here the whole time."
"Of course not," I held out a bag for her. "I toured campus. Super nice and made me wish I had gone here, and then I bought you some things from the school store."
Jane's face softened. "You did?" Her voice was quiet now.
I smiled and nodded my head at her. "How did the test go?"
"Ugh," Jane peeked inside the bag. "Terrible. Oo! You got me candy? Eeee!"
I couldn't help but laugh at her as she attacked the bag of sour patch I bought her, ripping it open and digging her hand inside.
"What do you mean terrible?" I nudged her arm. "You're kidding, right?"
Jane shook her head, her eyes widening at me. "I think I bombed that, Seth."
My eyes widened. "Really?"
She nodded, eating another sour-patch.
"And you're... okay with that?" I asked this question very hesitantly.
"I have this thing that my parents used to call delayed reactions to things. For instance, it's over and I just can't find it in me to care. Give me a day, and tomorrow I'll be near suicide."
I burst out laughing. "Not funny, Jane," I told her. "But I'm glad you're not upset. Give yourself some credit. You had a rough night," I offered her my hand across the seat.
I noticed Jane's lips pull up at the corners. She placed her hand in mine slowly and then I couldn't help myself. I clasped my fingers around her small, soft ones and then brought it up to kiss the back of her hand.
Jane sighed. "You're so dangerous, Seth," A smile was playing on her lips. "I spent so much time with you I forgot to study and now I don't even care. It's like I forget about everything bad when I'm with you."
I squeezed her hand. "That's how it's supposed to be, Janesie."
She smiled. "Oo!" She sat up in her seat. "I know I failed, but are we still celebrating tonight?"
"You want to celebrate Jane?" I asked with a chuckle, pulling the shift into drive.
"Mhm," Jane smiled. "We can celebrate the last of my sanity before I panic and realize how screwed I am for this class."
"You're unreal," I laughed. "I'm sorry my studying technique didn't help you more."
"Oh it did, Seth," Jane covered my hand with her own. "Seriously, everything that we covered was on it. I got all of that right. I was taking a tally and was unsure about ten, but I didn't study that stuff." She let out a long breath of air, blowing some of her unruly hair out of her eyes. "I just didn't take enough time."
"Ten?" I asked. "Were there only twenty questions or something?"
"No?" Jane looked at me oddly and tilted her head. "100."
My mouth dropped. "Jane," I began slowly.
"What?" She squinted.
"You were unsure- not even wrong, just unsure about 10 questions out of 100, and you somehow think that you failed?"
Jane's eyes widened. "I've never left a test unsure about 10 questions Seth!"
"Oh God," I sighed. "Well, Janesie, I'll console you after your 90. How does that sound?"
Jane giggled. "Perfect."
"Maybe you're just playing off that you didn't do well because you want to cuddle."
Jane flushed. She peered down towards the bag and tried to discreetly peak to see if anything else was in it. Suddenly, she gasped. "A tee-shirt?" She pulled it out and held it up in front of her.
"Yep," I patted her knee. "Got a proud boyfriend one for myself, too."
Jane giggled. "Do they really have those?"
"No," I laughed. "But I did get a shirt."
Jane rested her head against the seat and tilted her face towards mine. The sun outside the window illuminated her delicate, beautiful features, and her eyes shined even brighter than they always did.
"Could we do something fun tonight?" Jane squeezed my hand tightly.
"Of course we can," I kissed her hand.
Jane giggled, leaned forward and then planted a quick kiss on my cheek. "I have a... thought."
A rush of steaming adrenaline and anticipation surged through my veins from head to toe. "Yeah?"
Jane nodded, blushed a little, and then leaned forward to whisper to me. "Do you watch MMA?"
I stared, stunned for a single moment, before I my lips slowly pulled up into a wide smile. "You're something else Jane Mcalaster."
"Something good?" Jane blushed.
"Not something," I mumbled to myself more than anything. "Everything good. Except for this MMA. That's badass, Janesie," I shake her knee.
Jane giggled, and then she bit her lip and looked out through the passenger side window, a far-off glare covering her eyes. After a moment I reached out and squeezed her hand.
"You okay?" I whispered to her.
Jane turned back towards me. She smiled just a little bit and then hugged my arm. "I'm fine," She whispered back, resting her cheek against my shoulder. "I used to always watch MMA with my dad. It was kind of our thing; my mom used to say that she was so disgusted with us because we represented the cliché part of dumb Americans."
I laughed lightly, realizing how monumental this admission was. Jane didn't open up much at all about her parents, so her telling me this was huge. "I like MMA sometimes," I told her honestly.
Jane bit the corner of her lip. "Yeah?" Her voice was quiet.
"Yeah," I replied gently. "Of course I know how ridiculous it is, but it can definitely be our thing, if you're looking for a second-best replacement."
Jane closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, her eyes were filled with emotion. "Thanks, Seth."
"You're welcome," I squeezed her hand again.
"Do you think everyone would want to watch?"
"I don't see why not," I told her.
"This will be so fun," Jane grinned. "I haven't been able to watch because it's like $100 every fight, but we can all split it."
"Nah I"ll cover it Janesie."
Her eyes narrowed. "Seth."
"What? Hm? You wanna fight me about it?"
Jane rolled her eyes, but there was no denying the smile she was fighting with everything that she had.
"You're weird," She mumbled.
"Crap. Are you into cool guys?" I feigned worried. "I pretended as long as I could."
Now, Jane wasn't able to keep from laughing. "Seth," She chuckled. "I play the piano and am a chemistry major. I am the farthest thing from cool."
"Well of course I knew that, but I wasn't sure what you thought about me."
"Hey!" She swatted at my arm.
I laughed and reached for her knee again.
"Should I call Lena and make sure she's up for it?" Jane twisted in her seat.
"If you want to," I patted her thigh. "When did you get her number?"
"At the fair," Jane smiled. "I've talked to her a little bit since then. She's really funny. I like her."
I couldn't help but laugh. "That is not usually how girls describe Lena Lahote." Internally, I was fucking falling in love with this girl next to me with every passing second. The truth was that most girls hated Lena because she was sexy as hell and knew it. It showed immense self-confidence in herself that Jane was able to so easily like her when so many other girls couldn't.
"She said that at the fair, too," Jane cocked her head at me. "That's so weird. Lena's the type of personality that is the only kinds of girls that I actually like."
"Yeah, Janesie?" I chuckled. "Tell me more."
"I can't handle girl drama. And I'm too shy for most girls to like me. They usually just think I'm aloof or weird."
"I find that hard to believe," I told her gently.
"Ugh, not hard to believe at all, actually, Seth!" Jane scolded me. "I was a loner in high school. I only got friends when I started dating my ex. He was super popular and no one understood why he liked me, but they didn't really have a choice anymore. And so that is the story as to how I got invited to high school parties and went with the popular group to prom."
I couldn't help but laugh. "I definitely think you're cool, Janesie."
"Don't even," She shook her head and then reached for her phone, leaning back in her seat to start a text to who I bet was Lena.
After I swear a few seconds, she sighed happily and shoved her phone in front of my face.
"See!" Jane exclaimed. "I told you she was awesome!"
It took me a moment for my eyes to adjust and to figure out how not to crash while reading, but eventually I got there.
Hell yeah! Was written in all caps, with about ten different fist emoji's after that.
"Looks like you've found your best friend," I chuckled.
Jane frowned and pouted her lower lip rather adorably. "I thought you were my best friend."
"Ugh Jane," I bounced my head against the headrest and let out a long breath. "You're going to kill me. You're so cute."
Jane grinned, having no idea how adorable she was in every sense of the word.
"Can we pick up coffee on the way?" Jane yawned. "I barely slept last night."
"Yeah I noticed," I chuckled. "Sure. You're probably going to have to get back in your seat, though."
"You say that as if I was the one who attacked you," Jane rolled her eyes. "You practically mauled me getting me over there."
"Ugh, no," Jane shifted back into the passenger seat. "But I can maul you later if you want me to."
Her cheeks heated up almost instantly. "Seth!"
I laughed and let her swallow her embarrassment and not go at her any more.
I stopped at my mom's diner before going over to Jake's. Jane stepped out of the car and smiled sheepishly up at me, hesitating before taking my hand.
"Is your mom here?" She whispered.
"Probably," I kissed the top of her head. Something like a mix between mangos and strawberries tickled at my nose. "Do you want to wait in the car?"
Jane's voice suddenly got small. "Do you not want me to meet your mom?"
"Of course I want you to meet her," My hand tightened around her own. "I just don't want to push you if you're not ready."
"Have you told her about me?" Jane bit the corner of her lip.
I sighed. "Not me, per-say, but in my family, you have to understand that nothing stays secret for long. And dating someone new is like top page news so especially that is going to pass around quickly."
Jane chuckled. "I wish I had a big family," She mused.
I kissed her temple, hoping that I could give her that.
We merely took one step inside when I stopped in my tracks. Shit, is the first thought that ran through my mind as I suddenly made eye contact with my ex girlfriend. Let me clarify, my ex girlfriend, and her entire family.
"Seth?" Lacy immediately noticed me, her eyes quickly scanning over Jane and landing on our entwined hands.
"Ugh, so, Jane," I began, but before I could explain, Lacy's family was all turning around to see me.
"Seth!" They spoke in unison, all immediately standing and rushing over to give me a hug. "Your mother said you weren't here tonight!" Her mom kissed me on the cheek right before her father shook my hand.
"Just stopping in," I quickly clarified.
"We've missed you!" Her aunt adds.
"We have," Lacy says, her voice lower than the rest, offering me a wide, fake smile. From being with her for so long, I could tell exactly what the hell she was doing. I narrowed my eyes at her, wanting to just call her out but knowing that since her family was here I couldn't.
"It's nice to see you guys," I nodded at them slowly. "This is my girlfriend, Jane," I pushed her forward a little bit as Jane shot me with a confused expression.
"Hi," She giggled, nervously running her fingers through her hair.
"Oh," Lacy's family appeared taken back. Though Lacy always acted like a little angel around them, I knew her true character, and it wasn't a good one. Because of this, though, they all couldn't understand how we broke up, and voiced to me openly how they hoped we would get back together.
"Jane, this is,"
"Lacy," She held out her hand with a confident smile. I took a deep, miserable breath as I watched the hope dwindle from her face as realization took its place. I had definitely told Jane Lacy's name at some point, and I can tell that she put two and two together.
"Oh," Jane's voice grew small. She held out her hand and shook it just a little bit, as Lacy's eyes snaked up and down her body in a vicious sort of way. Jane seemed to shrink underneath her gaze.
I pulled her to my side.
"How's school?" Her mother asks.
"It's going," I peered down at Jane, who was looking towards the floor. "Hey, we've got to get going; we've got plans tonight, but nice seeing you all."
"It was nice to see you, Seth," Lacy completely caught me off guard, and she hugged me.
I felt Jane tense next to me, but I was so shocked that all I could do was not touch her before she finally pulled away. I hugged her parents myself, they were always nice people, and then pulled Jane towards the kitchen.
Jane pulled back, tilting her face in the direction of Lacy's table to make sure they were out of earshot before leaning up to me.
"I don't really feel like meeting your mom right now," Jane stated. "Can I go wait in the car?"
My face dropped. "Jane."
"Please?" She whispered, her eyes glassy.
I stared at her for a moment, knowing that what just occurred needed an explanation, and that it probably brought up so many insecurities in her, but not here.
I nodded at her.
"Thank you," She whispered quietly, turning back on her heel and slowly walking out the door.
When I returned outside, Jane was standing against the passenger door. Her head was tilted down and her arms were crossed loosely against her chest. I slowly walked towards her, and then placed the coffee's on the top of the car as I noticed that she was twiddling with her feet.
I rubbed her shoulders, and noticed her take a deep breath.
"Jane," I asked her slowly. She didn't look up. "I need to explain that."
"Please don't," She lifted her eyes, and that's when I noticed. My eyes widened and my mouth dropped. Jane's beautiful, big brown eyes were filled with tears, black mascara falling down her cheeks.
"Jane?" I breathed. "Why are you crying?"
Jane's POV
I squinted my eyes at him. "Hm?" I lifted my hand to my eye and then moaned when I noticed black mascara coating my fingertip.
I moaned. Of course. I swore that some wires messed up in my head before I was born that somehow connected my emotions with my tear ducts. It was ridiculous.
"I'm not sad," I quickly swiped at my eyes. "Just jealous," I blurted before I could help myself.
Seth raised an eyebrow at me. He seemed so stumped. "Being jealous made you... cry?"
I moaned again. "You know that whenever I get upset I cry!"
"Yeah but," Seth appeared shocked and confused. "I had no idea that went for every time you're upset."
I sniffled, feeling very pathetic.
Seeing Seth's ex-girlfriend brought back so much shit that I had no idea was still so intense inside of me. Other girls used to look at my ex like they now look at Seth, and I had ignored it then, only, I shouldn't have. I knew that Seth was not the same guy, and that Seth would never cheat on me, but I couldn't help but feel like the same thing was happening that nearly broke me the last time.
I honestly had no idea that I was still dealing with that stuff as much as I just realized I was.
"Jane," Seth's voice was soft. Ugh, so, so soft. Seth was the most considerate, gentle man I could have ever imagined. "Please don't cry. You don't need to feel jealous at all. Lacy's a... well, I really don't like calling girls the B word, but seriously, that girl's not a nice person."
I giggled just a little bit and then sniffled. "I'm so sorry, Seth," I suddenly frowned. "I was supposed to meet your mom and I- I ruined it."
"You didn't ruin anything," He gently grasped his hands around my neck. "Neither of us could have known that they were there. You can't apologize for bad luck."
"I guess," I gnawed on the inside of my cheek. "It's so not fair of me to punish you for insecurities from the past that you didn't even cause. I didn't even know I was still dealing with them that much, honestly. I just saw her and I... yeah. A lot came back."
Seth nodded kindly. "I understand that."
"Why?" I moaned. "You're too understanding. It makes me feel even worse. Don't you want to yell at me or something?"
Seth appeared confused. "Why would I ever want to yell at you? You'd probably start crying again, and I hate when you cry. It's the saddest thing ever. You look like a little girl and I feel like a chump."
I couldn't help but giggle. "You're not a chump, Seth."
"I really do need to explain though," He sighed. "She took me off guard. She's not- she made that seem like we're cordial, or friends or something, but we're not. She saw you and I think she got threatened or something that you're a lot prettier than her."
My lips parted. "I am not prettier than her, Seth," I laughed embarrassingly, but I was telling the truth. Lacy was sexy. She had long, black hair and blue eyes and lips that looked like they had a ton of fillers. Her boobs were obviously her greatest selling point, and she had a serious case of resting bitch face that made her very intimidating.
I did not think that anyone would ever refer to me as "intimidating."
Seth's eyes widened. "You can't be serious, Jane."
I chewed on the inside of my cheek, suddenly feeling very insecure. "You don't have to lie to make me feel better, Seth," I whispered to him. "She's very pretty."
"So are you," Seth's hands moved up to my cheeks. "But you're not just pretty, he brushed his lips against my own. "You're beautiful, Janesie. On the inside, too."
I sighed. "You seemed really close with her family." I winced once the statement was out. I freaking knew inside of my head that I needed to let this go; I knew it! But I couldn't stop. The insecurity was eating away at me. It was overwhelming me, and it was making all of the decisions for me. Even though I realized that being so insecure was a turn off, I couldn't help myself.
"Her family are great. They're nice people, Jane. I like them a lot more than her; they were always really nice to me. That was why I wasn't just brushing her off. If I'm being honest, I enjoyed hanging out with her huge family even more than I did dating her."
I couldn't help my face from falling. My throat constricted immediately.
"Shit." Seth closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. "Jane," He began with his eyes still closed. "Babe," He opened his eyes just as my lips were quivering. He gently cupped my cheeks in his hands. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."
I closed my eyes, nodded my head, and then dropped my forehead to Seth's chest. I let out a soft cry before quickly sucking the rest back in. I knew that Seth did not mean to talk so highly of his ex's family like this to me. I knew that he didn't realize what he was doing, or what he was saying when he said it. He didn't mean it like that, but when you're a girl who lost both of her parents and had no extended family either, it was like a punch in the gut as he spoke so highly of his ex-girlfriend's family.
"Jane," Seth murmured into my hair. "Please don't take it like that," He pleaded. "I think you're perfect. I want you, whether you have a three-hundred-person giant Italian family or a one person family of yourself and a goldfish."
I let out a surprised laugh. Seth had a way of making me feel better even in my worst moments. "How about a one-person family with no goldfish?" I rested my chin on his chest.
"Perfect," He brushed the hair out of my face and then kissed me chastely on the forehead. "The less family you have the less competition I have for your attention. Jane time, all the time! My best life!"
I giggled wildly. "Seth 101. Jane time, all the time. I think you should get the patented."
"I'll look into it," Seth smiled widely at me.
I giggled and then kissed him, sweetly at first, but then more intensely. I bunched up the collar of his shirt in my hand and deepened the kiss, slipping my tongue into his mouth. I could tell that Seth was surprised, but after the shock factor he placed his hands on the sides of his car and leaned into me.
I wanted to show Seth how much I liked him and appreciated how kind he was with me, even if it was a little inappropriate for the middle of a parking lot.
I bravely sucked on the bottom of Seth's lip, and he let out a pretty telling moan out of the back of his throat.
I giggled and tilted my mouth away from his. Seth kissed my cheek and then my jawline as I laughed wildly.
"Ugh, keep laughing Janesie," Seth wrapped his arms around my neck as he kissed my cheek sloppily. "I'll do anything for you if it means you'll laugh like this instead of crying. I know I've said this about a hundred times, but I really don't think you understand how depressing it is seeing you cry. You could win a metal."
I sighed. "Sorry Sethy. I'm sorry about... everything. Please, let's just," I sighed and placed my palms on my face, shaking my head adamantly. "Let's just go watch grown men beat each other up."
Seth laughed and kissed me once more, much less intense this time, though. "You've got it Jaensie. Oh, and by the way." He reaches up and then suddenly he is thrusting a coffee in my face. "I got you a slice of chocolate cake, too, just because I thought you might need it."
My lips slowly pulled up. "You are absolutely unreal, Seth Clearwater."
Seth's POV
When we pulled up to Nessie and Jake's, the house that was hosting what Lena began referring to as "fight night" via text messaging with Jane, I immediately noticed that there were way more cars than I had expected, then, I realized that I actually should have expected that, and hence this shouldn't have been shocking at all. Of course they would invite the entire pack after promising to keep it small; who did I think these people were, after all?
"This is so fun," Jane clasped her hands as she hopped out of my Jeep. Thank God she was feeling better. I had felt like such a freaking idiot after what happened with Lacy. Any girl would have felt insecure after that, but with Jane's history I should have treaded with much more care. And the damn comment about the family; I wanted to punch myself in the face remembering how her face crumbled
"I feel so cool," She continued. "I literally suggested a fight party and everyone just conformed to my wishes. Is this what it's like to be popular?"
I laughed and hugged her to my side, kissing the side of her head firmly. "So, about this. My friends, they mean well, but they can be... a lot," I began to explain, my nervousness increasing with every second that I had to really let this sink in. Every ridiculous, loud event that ever occurred with all of us together suddenly swarmed through my mind and I began to immediately panic. Could I start making out with her and whisk her back to my place before she realized what was happening?
"Seth," Jane shot me a condescending expression. "Are you forgetting that I already met your friends at the fair? I liked them."
"Yeah but," I began uneasily. "So, it's like this," I stopped walking and held her shoulders so that I could warn her sufficiently. "Picture the fair. Now picture that on steroids. Plus some because of the fight."
Jane cocked her head. "So like three murders tonight instead of one?"
My eyes widened.
Jane giggled. Ever since the murder was ruled as an "animal attack" Jane has been a lot less nervous about it lately. The idea that what that actually was, which was a vampire attack, had some sort of connection with the man that scared her earlier made my skin crawl.
"Bad joke?" Jane bit the corner of her lip.
I pressed the hair down on the sides of her head and then kissed her softly. "Just... don't panic."
"Gee Seth," Jane sighed. "I know I don't have a big family, but you know I'm not weird around big ones. You don't have to worry or anything."
My stomach dropped. "Oh Jane," I deflated. "I didn't mean it like that at all. I'm not worried how you'll be. I'm worried about how they are. They're a lot for just about anyone. No doubt they're going to be grilling you."
"Well I'm fine being grilled," Jane leaned into my stomach. "Do you think I'll pass?" She shot me a beautiful, wide grin that lit up my world.
"Jane," My voice went lower, gentler, because when I looked at Jane with her freckles and giant, brown eyes I just couldn't talk to her any other way. I cupped her cheek in my palm and stroked my thumb across her incredible smooth skin.
Her voice held a slight shake to it. "Seth," She breathed, leaning closer to me. I could tell the way that her chest was rising and falling faster and faster, and how she leaned into my body closer and closer with every second.
We were magnetic; that is what happened after the very first time we got carried away with each other in the darkness with the piano in the background. It was like that second ignited us, and with every second that we spent together we got braver and braver and needier and needier.
I pressed my lips against hers softly, just a slight brush, wanting for her to show me how much she wanted me because if it was even a fraction of how much I wanted her I would completely die. Jane leaned her lips closer to mine, and kissed me softly once more before I pulled away.
"Seth!" Jane complained.
I laughed and grasped her face firmly in my hands, but not too firmly to hurt her, and pressed my mouth completely to hers. Jane gasped at first, but then immediately her hands wound their way behind my neck and then up into my hair.
Jane moaned before pulling away. "On second thought," She began uneasily. "Maybe we should just go be alone."
I raised an eyebrow at her though my head was still spinning. "That sounds kinda dirty, Janesie."
Jane blushed. "Can we makeout? Please?"
My eyes widened. Who the hell was I to say no to a makeout session with the most beautiful girl in the world who also happened to be the most talented kisser in the world. I reached for her hand and quickly began pulling her towards the woods.
"Seth!" Jane whisper-yelled to me, a high-pitched giggle slipping between her delicious lips that I was seconds away from devouring every inch of.
"Seth where are we going?" She laughed just like a little girl.
"Come on," I pulled on her arm.
I pulled a giggling Jane to a large tree far enough away from the house that we wouldn't be seen and then spun her so that he back pressed against the tree. Jane's eyes were bright with a sparkle that made her entire face shine brilliantly, and I suddenly had to have her.
I had spent so long trying to run from the stigma of being the youngest member of the pack that I forgot how amazing it felt to bask in it. I was irrationally young and in love, and I couldn't keep my hands off of her, regardless of the fact that the entire pack could look out the kitchen window and see us pressed up against this tree-trunk.
I didn't care.
Not at all.
All that I cared about was the taste of Jane's lips, the way that she ran her fingers through my hair, the incredibly skillful way that she sucked on my lower lip. I clasped my hands tightly around her waist and lifted her up.
Jane wrapped her legs around my torso and slowly ran her fingertips up and down my back. God. This girl was unreal.
I brushed the hair out of her eyes and stroked my fingers against her cheeks. I could feel Jane's lips pull into a smile as she kissed me, and so I slowed down now.
"Mmm," Jane sighed into my mouth and then dropped her cheek to my shoulder. Jane tightened her arms around my neck to hug me.
"Are you still rethinking this whole family fight thing?" I began uneasily. "Because I sure am."
Jane giggled against my chest. It was an incredible feeling. She flipped her hair back and then pecked me quickly. "We should probably get inside."
"Fine," I sighed begrudgingly.
"Promise you'll sleep over tonight?"
I smiled. "Sure, Janesie."
"Promise."
"I promise," I chuckled. "That is something that I swear you will never have to make me promise, babe. I would pay you to let me sleepover Jane."
"Fine but you're not getting laid tonight, Seth Clearwater." Jane's cheeks stained bright red. I pretended not to notice because I did not want to deter her from continuing to talk about getting "laid" so openly. It was like an out-of-body experience.
"Wasn't expecting to, Jane Mcalaster," I teased her. "I would be disappointed if you didn't make me work for it."
Jane raised his eyebrows. "Oh, so you think that one day you'll succeed?"
"Well, ugh, I didn't say that," I stumbled with my words.
"Oh no?" Jane laughed now. "What did you mean by that then, Seth?"
"Absolutely nothing," I tried to crawl out of the hole I had dug for myself. "I just meant that you're worth working for."
"Mhm," Jane narrowed her eyes and nodded slowly. "So you're not interested in sleeping with me at all?"
"I definitely wouldn't say that," My eyes widened. "I mean, I wouldn't mind the opportunity. Maybe. One day."
Jane burst out laughing and then hugged me tightly around my neck. "I'm just messing with you, Seth. I know you're not that kind of guy."
"I'm not," I agreed.
"Yeah," Jane's face suddenly began to waiver. She bit the inside of her cheek. "Can you promise that, too?"
"Jane."
"I'm sorry!" She covered her eyes with her hands. "I'm sorry," Her arms fell. "It's just almost impossible to believe that you're actually this nice of a guy."
I sighed. "I didn't know your dad, but from what you've said he sounded like he was a great father and a great husband."
Jane scrunched her forehead in confusion. "Yeah. He was the best. Why?"
"Well than it's possible, Janesie. See?"
Jane watched me for a while before finally smiling and kissing me slowly.
"Thanks for being so patient with me," Jane whispered against my lips.
"You're welcome, baby. You deserve it."
"Mm, you're completely wonderful Seth," She hugged me tightly.
"So are you, Janesie."
"Not as wonderful as you," Her voice was muffled as she spoke into my chest.
"Sure you want to go inside?"
Jane chuckled. "Yes. I'm excited to see Lena!"
I looked at her funny. Lena Lahote was not one to form many strong relationships with other pretty females, but I also had to remind myself that according to Jane, neither was she. Perhaps that was why a friendship seemed to be sparring between the two of them.
Jane took my hand and led the way up to the front porch.
"Should we knock?" She asked me nervously.
"Just go on in," I told her, already hearing the loud sounds of everyone talking over each other to get a word in throught the door.
Jane nodded, opened the door, and stepped inside.
Jane's POV
As soon as Seth and I stepped inside, the smell of a swirl of cinnamon and chocolate practically slapped me in the face. The entire house smelled of baked goods, like a French bakery but even better, and it immediately pulled me to the kitchen.
It was so loud and cramped inside of Nessie and Jacob's house, even though it wasn't small by any means. Their house was about the same size as mine: a moderately sized, spacious house built for a family. The way that Nessie decorated with warm neutrals and plenty of pictures and personal items, mixed with the incredible smell of baking, made it feel homey. It reminded me so much of my house when my parents were alive, it sucked the air out of my lungs for a moment.
At first, no one seemed to notice Seth and I, which I kind of preffered. As I previously told Seth, I hated being the center of attention; and plus, all of Seth's friend's girlfriends and wives were all practically supermodel status, and the guys weren't that bad looking either...
"Jane! Seth!" Nessie spotted us. She was balancing who I assumed to be her son on her hip as another little one pulled on the bottom hem of her dress. "Thanks for coming!"
"What do you mean, 'thanks for coming?'," Jacob winked at her and then kissed her on the top of the head, taking the squirming little one out of her arms. Nessie was about three heads shorter than Jake and very petite, which was why it was kind of funny to see the two of them together. "This whole thing was her idea."
"It was a great idea!" Nessie blew the hair out of her eyes and then picked up the other little boy, this one a little older. "Peter, this is Jane," She told him gently, coming up to me. "Say hi!" Peter had bright green eyes, just like Nessie, and they were wide and wonderous as he nervously peered at me with his cheek rested against Nessie's shoulder.
"Hi Jane," He just barely mumbled.
"Hi," I giggled, nervously placing a piece of hair behind my ear. "I like your name. Are you in any relation to the Peter Pan?"
At this, Peter shot up. His eyes widened practically into saucers. "Yeah!" He exclaimed. "My dad told me that he he's busy in Neverland, but that I can watch him on the TV. Have you ever seen Peter and Fends?"
"Hm? Peter and what?"
"Pe-ter and friends," He held out the word, this time correctly pronouncing the r.
"Oh," I pretended to be surprised. "You mean only the greatest show ever," I quickly caught on. "Of course I have! It's one of my favorites!"
"Really?" Peter practically jumped out of Nessie's arms. He reached for my hand. "Mom!" He said as he was already pulling me away. "I'm showing Jane my toy room!"
"Oh, honey," Nessie began, a laugh as well as an apologetic expression covering her face.
"It's fine," I laughed to her. "I'd love to see your toy room!" I told him honestly.
Peter began pulling me into the toy room, but I was quickly interceted.
"Hey!" Lena pulled on the back of my shirt.
"Hi!" I pulled Peter back.
"Ready for fight night?" She held up a foam finger.
I couldn't help but laugh. "Where'd you get that?"
"My mom has some for when we go to my dad's games. He's a college football coach."
"Ja-ANE!" Peter tugged on my arm. "My toy room is this way!"
I chuckled down at the sight of the adorable little boy with short, curly hair and a seriously annoyed expression on his face.
"Hey, pipe down over there pipsqueak," Lena shot him a joking glare. "You can't hog all of Jane's attention just cause you're cuter than me."
"Quiet Leya!"
"Peter," Lena laughed. "Ley-na! We've been working on this!" She then turned to me. "I think he prounounces my name wrong on purpose because the kid hates me," She whispered so that he couldn't hear.
"Come on!" He pulled on my arm once again.
"Okay, okay!" I laughed. "You wanna come?" I offered to her.
"Oh no," Lena's eyes widened. "I'll be right here. Kids are so not my thing."
"Got it," I laughed, though that was all I could say until Peter began actually yanking me down the hallway.
Once inside of his playroom, Peter wasted no time dumping all of his toys onto the ground and excitedly explaining all of his favorites to me. I had a knick for little kids; something about them was so pure. I felt that I understood them more than more people my age. They just wanted you to be interested in them, to love them, and to play with them, and I was willing to do all three. So, I listened to him patiently as he spoke, until his much littler brother who I now know to be named Henry came in to play, too, then I attempted to listen to both of them, but Henry was barely walking, let alone having full conversations.
After a little while of that, another one of Nessie and Jake's kids came in; another boy, slightly older than Peter, who was named Miles. He was just as interested as Peter was in explaining all of his toys to me, which I thought was rather adorable.
"Wow," I said once there was a brief pause in the conversation. "How many brothers and sisters do you have, Miles?" I asked as I connected two Lego pieces.
"Five," Miles stated easily. "Mommy says that she wants us to have a sister but daddy keeps telling her that it's not going to happy, you know, because he made sure to tell the bird that drops the babies off after mom's stomach gets too big that he didn't want any girls."
"Girls are gross!" Peter insisted.
I laughed wildly. "But I'm a girl!" I countered. "I'm not gross!"
"You're Jane!" Peter laughed, suddenly throwing himself into my laugh.
"Oh!" I chuckled and hugged him tightly.
"You're not a girl!" He continued. "You're just Jane."
I giggled. "I most certainly am a girl," I promised him. "You know what? I think that boys are yucky!"
"We're not yucky!" Miles wound his arms around my neck and climbed onto my back.
"Actually, what is, what is that?" I pretended to sniff him. "Oh my goodness! Cooties! All over you! Help!"
Miles and Peter seemed to find that hysterical, because quickly they began giggling hysterically as they attacked me from all sides, thankfully not able to do any real damage as I attempted to tickle them both mercilessly. Little Henry was a little too young for all this, but he bounced next to me as I poked his stomach playfully between tickles.
Suddenly, a voice caught me off guard. "Boys?" Jacob was suddenly in the doorway, his eyes wide with alarm. "Why are you attacking Jane?"
"Oh, we're just playing," I blushed. It was one thing playing with kids, but playing with kids while others watched was somehow very nervewracking.
"Did you know that Jane met Peter Pan?" Peter hugged me tightly around the neck, his soft cheek pressing into my own. "She told me that Tarzan is best friends with him! She said that they have dinner all the time."
"Is that so?" Jacob leaned against the doorway and crossed his arms, an amused expression filling his face.
"Hey," Miles complained, making his way ontop of my shoulders until he was sitting on them. I made sure to hold on tightly to his legs so that he wouldn't fall off. "It's no fair that I'm not related to Peter Pan."
"Of course you're related to him," I told him seriously. "You're related to your brother Peter, aren't you?"
"Yeah," Miles stated. "But he's just a regular old Peter."
I chuckled. "Well if you're related to regular, old Peter who is related to Peter Pan, than you have to be related to Peter Pan, too. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about. This is serious, science stuff."
"I want to be a scientist when I'm older," Peter cut in.
"Yeah?" My eyes lit up. "I'm a scientist!"
"Really?" Miles and Peter exclaimed at the same time.
"Yeah! I wear the lab coat and the big goggles and everything. Want to know what I experiment on?"
"Yeah!" They screamed.
"Mice!"
"Mice?" They yelled back.
"Yes!" I chuckled. "Cool, huh?"
"So cool!" Miles exclaimed. "You're the first cool girl I've ever met, Jane!"
"Jane," Henry suddenly cooed, climbing into my lap.
I heard a few audible gasps. I looked towards the doorway, expecting to see Jacob, when I do see him... as well as a whole bunch of other people. I guess we had attracted a crowd while I had been distracted talking with Nessie and Jacob's adorable children.
"Did he just say your name?" Jacob asked.
My eyes widened. Seth, Lena, Embry, Scarlett, Kim, and Nessie and Jake were all staring, their mouths open.
I suddenly felt extremely self-conscious. "No?" I replied slowly.
"Jane."
I cringed once Henry said it again, crawling up in my lap to meet me face to face. He had a silly, loose smile on his face. "Jane."
"Oh my God!" Nessie suddenly shrieked. "Get the video camera! Get the video camera!"
"What's going on?" I heard someone ask from the living room.
"Henry just said his first word! Henry just finally spoke!"
Woah.
Suddenly, the entire playroom was filled to the brink with people.
"Say it again, buddy," Jake came over to squat beside me. "Say Jane again."
Henry smiled. "Jane!"
Everyone cheered.
"Ugh," I looked nervously up, my eyes scanning until they stopped on Seth's gentle and caring gaze. He smiled easily as me, his eyes sparkling with love and admiration, and I swear the way he was looking at me right now were what novels were made up of.
"Wow, Jane!" Kim came up and then squeezed my shoulder. "Henry's on the autism spectrum. He's been nonverbal until now. They didn't know if he was ever going to be able to talk."
My eyes widened. I suddenly peered down at Henry, who was staring casually at me. "Wow," I told him. "Go Henry."
Henry grinned. "Jane."
"This is unreal," I heard a male voice, and then looked over to see Paul, that would be Scarlett's husband and Lena's dad, if I am not mistaken, shaking his head at me. "Well, we finally found the baby whisperer of the group. Go Seth!"
I blushed ruthlessly without a chance of hiding it. Someone referring to Seth and I hypothetically having kids was super, super embarrassing, and really quite awkward considering how we just began dating.
When Nessie returned with the video recorder, she had tears in her eyes. She got down on her knees next to me and began recording.
"Hey, ugh, Nessie?" I began nervously. Her eye peaked up at me from overtop of the camera. "I'm... really sorry. I didn't try to get him to talk or anything. I'm not even sure how-,"
"What?" Her eyes widened and she dropped the recorder. "Jane, don't even think about apologizing to me. This is the best day of my life! You're amazing! Thank you!"
She turned the camera on Henry, and he continued to say my name five more times. I looked up and made eye contact with Seth. Everyone was staring at Henry, but he was staring at me.
After the news of Henry had calmed down, it was getting closer to the time of the fight beginning, so I was forced out of the playroom by Nessie and squeezed in between her and Seth on the couch.
"Who wants chili?" Paul called from the kitchen.
"Oh, Jane," Lena grabbed my hand. "My dad makes the best chili in the world. You've got to try it."
"I don't know about that," Seth raised an eyebrow at her. "Jane made me chili once, and it was a close, close second."
"Am I the only one who doesn't know how to cook around here?" Scarlett huffed.
"Pretty much," Jared winked at her and then ruffled her hair.
She huffed angrily.
"I still burn water, Scar," Embry held out his hand. They high-fived, and I couldn't help but laugh at the interaction.
"Jane!" I heard a high-pitched little girl's voice and looked down to see a beautiful girl with wide, bright eyes blinking up at me. "I got this for you!"
This was one of Claire and Quil's little girls, though I could not tell which one of the triplets she actually was, considering they all looked identical, except for the exact same outfit in different colors; I could imagine that was how Claire and Quil could tell them apart.
"Awe, thanks honey," I took the bowl from her tiny, little hands.
"Don't I get any chili?" Seth asked her, pretending to be appauled.
"I want to sit with Jane!" She announced, beginning to crawl up my legs.
"Hey!" Peter suddenly popped up from where he was playing on the ground and ran over to me. "I want to sit with Jane!"
"Everyone calm down!" Seth suddenly covered me with his hands. "I'm already sitting with her! Get back you animals!"
"Hey Seth!" Peter fought. "I was going to sit with her!"
"Wow," Embry laughed from his spot next to Lena. "You sure have a knack for kids, Jane."
I blushed. "Not really. They just seem to like me."
"That's called a knack," He teased me.
I shrugged. "I guess," I sighed, handing Seth my chili and then pulling both of them onto either leg.
"She can't eat with both of you in her lap," Embry suddenly stood up, grabbing Peter roughly from my leg and then pretending to take a big bite out of his stomach as he held him high in the air, spinning him around. Peter giggled loudly and I watched with a comfortable smile.
Seth handed me my chili, and I continued to share it with the little girl whose name I hate to admit I forgot until the entire bowl was empty.
"For sure better than mine," I nodded seriously at Seth.
"As your boyfriend, should I argue with you?" Seth teased.
"No," I chuckled. "I would prefer if you told the truth. Always."
"Well in that case," He smiled crookedly. "I like the look of you with that baby on your hip, Janesie. Definitely something to look forward to."
My cheeks flooded with intense, powerful heat that turned my entire face as red as a tomato.
"Woah!" Jared pointed at me with a laugh. "Look! It's Scarlett 210."
Scarlett gasped and leaned forward, then almost immediately her face broke into a wide smile. "Yay!" She squealed, just as Paul pulled her into his lap and began kissing all over her face, his hands roaming her body easily. The action was quite risqué for a room filled with people, and I looked away with a blush. To my surprise, Lena merely stared at them and then shook her head, turning away to ignore them like this was some sort of normal occurrence. If my parents had ever acted like that in front of me, I probably would have vomited.
And now! The TV voice announcer rang through the speakers. It. Is. TIME!
Lena jumped up and squealed. "Everyone shut up!" She exclaimed.
I giggled and sat up in my seat, careful not to disrupt my little buddy, whose name I still couldn't remember, excitement raging inside of me.
"Fuck him up!" Embry chanted, which resulted in a pretty heavy stream of "shhh's!" right before Peter began to chant the "f" bomb over and over again. After that, Emily demanded that all of the kids left the room and went to go bring them upstairs. Besides, it was getting late anyways.
One hour later, Lena, Nessie, Embry, Jared, and I were all standing, screaming at the TV. The five of us seemed to take to the fighting much more intensely than the rest. While almost everyone else was into it, they weren't as passionate as us, including Seth. Scarlett and Paul seemed particularly uncomfortable with it, whispering to each other most of the time and cringing when it got really bloody, but that was the part we loved the most.
It was so ridiculous, kind of terrible in that "the world is obsessed with pain and violence" sort of way, but it was amazing. I honestly hadn't had that much fun watching anything since my dad died. It made me so happy inside I felt like my heart wanted to burst. I could just imagine him watching down on me laughing, and for the first time, thinking about him not being here didn't make me sad.
"This is unreal," I heard Seth laugh as Lena grabbed my hands and Embry practically yanked us up and down as he jumped, all of us screaming.
"Oh that was- that was illegal!" I suddenly screamed. "He's holding the fence! Do you see his hands? Do you see his hands?"
"Look at his fucking hands!" Embry screamed, his voice booming.
"He's cheating!" Jared and Nessie screamed at the same time.
"This is bullshit!" Lena demanded.
"He's getting back up!" I gasped, and suddenly, the entire room was on their feet, screaming and chanting and cheering as our pick began to rise to his feet, fighting back against the takedown and gaining in intensity. The tide was shifting towards his favor, and we all were electrified. He made a hard jab to the stomach, which moved his opponents hands down- bad mistake.
It was a win by knockout, and I think they probably heard us cheer from Forks Washington all the way to the ring in Las Vegas.
"Oh! Ohhh!" Embry picked up Lena and began sprinting around the house yelling.
"I can't believe that!" Scarlett was covering her mouth laughing. Whatever weirdness she had, had earlier had vanished as the fight went on.
"That was awesome!" Jared high fived me. "Kimmy, did you see that?"
"I saw it babe," Kim laughed.
"Morgan? Larissa? Come on! Give me some!" Their two daughters rolled their eyes but high-fived their dad nonetheless. I was obsessed with these people who liked spending every weekend together and who all hung out like friends regardless of how old they were or who was parents of who. I didn't think that I would have ever been able to find a family that had matched my own, but Seth's family was giving me a fun for my money.
"Okay, this is a tradition," Jacob clasped Nessie around the neck. "Just don't get any ideas," He joked, kissing her quickly.
"That was so much fun!" Claire giggled. "I don't even care that the kids probably woke up!"
"Hey, you," I felt someone poke my side and then turned to see Seth grinning at me. "You happy?"
I giggled. "Of course I am!" I laughed. "Our guy won!" I fell into him, and he wrapped his arms loosely around my back. "That was so fun," I whispered into his ear, the electricity of the room still abuzz, making it impossible for anyone else to hear. "Thank you so much, Seth. I haven't had this much fun since before my parents died."
Seth's arms tightened around me. "You don't have to thank me, Janesie. I had fun, too."
"But I do," I sighed and rested my cheek against his shoulder. "I'll thank you tonight," I whispered, my voice lower than usual, my hands dropping from his chest down his stomach and then swiping across his back.
Seth moaned into my ear. "Sweet Jane. If you'd let me, all I want to do is make you cum hard tonight."
My knees buckled.
Thankfully, everyone was too busy to notice.
I'm going to be updating weekly again like I was before. So sorry about going AWOL for a while. I have big plans for the story and haven't forgotten about you all, I just had some personal stuff going on and wasn't in the right mindset to write. I hope this extra long chapter and the promise of some fun in the next makes up for it.
Xo
