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An Explanation

(Tess POV)

"I know that the whole 'niece adoption' thing is bullshit, okay?" Charlie said, plunking down on his bed.

"Woah. Abrupt. Okay; uh... what adoption thing?" I asked, sitting down next to him on the blue quilt.

"See?! I knew it! So tell me: was Bella lying when she told me she'd never – "

"Okay, dad. Let me stop you right there. No, I don't think she was lying... At least she wasn't pregnant at that point."

"Then how does she have a kid already?!"

I took a deep breath. "There's something you should know, dad... But, I can't go into full detail because then we'd risk a lot. Are you absolutely sure that you want to know what's going on?"

"Yes. Go on."

"Alright. First off, Jacob and the Quileutes aren't the only 'supernatural' beings in this world. Edward and the Cullen's are too. I can't tell you what they are or what they're imagined to do, okay? Just know, the Cullens are good.

"Remember when Bella broke her leg last year? One of the people like the Cullens attacked her – threw her through a window! And all those murders and disappearances? More of 'them'. And this year, Bella didn't want to be 'another year older' than Edward – people like him are frozen, stuck in the body the were turned in – hence the marriage.

"And just a few weeks ago, Bella got pregnant – but since it's Edward's, it grew abnormally fast... and it was killing her. But she stuck with it until the end... She died during childbirth, but Edward changed her just in time. So now all of them – except possibly Renesmee – are immortal."

We both took a deep breath.

I can't believe we just... told him.

Fuck. Now he's gonna ask about Jake...

So.. it would seem...

"And what's the deal with you and Jacob? Yeah, I put it together; he first – phased, is it? Phased six months ago, and you guys have been dating for almost six months. Care to elaborate?"

I sighed and laid back on the bed. "Okay. Six months ago, Jacob phased for the first time. I was there, and... It probably wasn't supposed to happen that fast but... He imprinted on me."

"He did what? What is that? What did he do to – "

"Dad, calm down. It's nothing like that. When a werewolf imprints, it shows them someone... there are a lot of theories, really, but... it shows them the person they're meant for. It connects them with a special bond. We can feel eachother's emotions, pain, and now – apparently – I can heal him – over time – if I... just touch him."

"Well... can't he have... stopped or something?"

"No. They can't control it. Sam was about to marry Leah when he imprinted on Emily... They both felt horrible."

"Really? How many people have this... ability and who – that I know of – have it?"

"Uhm... Sam... Quil... Embry... Paul... Jared, Leah, Seth, and... Jacob. There were more, years ago. These are just this generation's."

"Would they also be the 'animal' attacks, happening earlier this year?"

"No, but they were involved in it. It was one of the bad... one of the people like the Cullens. A bad one."

"Jeez-us. All right under my nose... Why couldn't this town be normal?"

"Dad, it's not just this town. The main bad guys live in Italy, and others live all over the world."

"Damn... Next time there's a series of murders I'll check with you and – what do you call them?"

"The pack?"

"Yeah, them – before trying to take on whatever could be out there... Damn, that's a lot to take in. 'Mind if I stay up here for a bit?"

"Sure. I'll leave you alone."

I got up and left the room, shutting the door quietly so as not to disturb his thoughts.

Jacob was standing at the base of the steps, a hand resting on the railing.

"Hey." I said, beginning my descent.

"Hey..." He replied, "You did well."

"You were listening?"

He tapped his ear, "Couldn't help it. But you explained it better than any of us could."

I smiled at him. "It's probably because I've experienced most of it firsthand."

His smile faded. "I'm sorry you've had to go through all of that."

I had reached him by now, and at this, I hugged him. "But I've had you through all of it, so I think I'll be fine."

He picked me up and carried me over to the couch, sitting down and nuzzling me sweetly.

"I'm sorry this day didn't work out the way you planned..."

"It's okay... I got to spend most of it with you..."

"Yeah, and the parts where we weren't together, I was unconscious and you were getting beaten to a pulp!" I smiled, "I think we're best if we stick together."

I kissed him softly and snuggled up to him.

. . .

We had eaten a simple dinner and Jacob 'left'. Charlie and I watched football for a while – Notre Dame versus UC – and then we headed off to bed – where, of course, Jacob was waiting for me.

So here we were. Two am. His arms were wrapped around my waist, our breath was synced.

And then; I heard something. My eyes flicked open and I felt Jacob twitch behind me.

He sat up. "Shh..." He whispered, padding across the floor. He opened the door and looked around. Seeing no one, he tiptoed over to the stairway leading up to Charlie's room.

I heard a thud, several crashes, and then the sound of glass breaking. My eyes widened as small stabbing pains shot through my shoulders. I seemed to burst as I sprinted from my stance in my room to Charlie's. He was just standing there, shocked. One of his windows was shattered.

"You okay?" I panted.

"Yeah... Yeah." He replied, snapping back to reality.

I ran over to the shattered window; most of the glass had flown outside.

Jacob and another person were rolling around on the ground, wrestling.

But Jake was phased.

The person tossed him to the side and into a tree; to which Jacob yelped, breaking my heart. It was a vampire.

The force from being thrown into a tree threw me forward, tumbling out of the window.

The vamp was standing right under the window, so – luckily – I landed on him, crushing him into the ground. As he started to rise, I wrapped my legs around his neck, forcing his head back down as Jacob rose and stamped over to us.

He took hold of the vampire's head between his teeth and pulled. I heard a soft thud from the open window as the vamp's head and body were separated.

I gracefully let go of the crumpling body and landed lightly on the grass.

Looking the beautiful, russet wolf – I had become so used to seeing – in the eyes, I said, "I'll go take care of Charlie, and get some matches. Take him over there – " I nodded to the spot where we had bonfires, " – and... phase back and change. I rubbed his furry head and kissed his cheek.

I ended up propping Charlie up on his pillows and turning on a movie he'd gotten me when I turned thirteen, making it seem like a dream. I didn't want him to know what had happened, even if he already knew about phasing and the Cullens.

I went downstairs and got a box of matches from the fireplace and headed outside, where Jacob was standing over the body. "He could've killed Charlie..." He muttered.

"But you saved him... I can't imagine what would've happened if you weren't here..." We went silent for a moment before I lit the match and set the body alight.

Jake turned and shielded me from the blazing flames, resting his lips on my forehead. I wanted to just... forget about all of this, but then I realized, he still had glass in his arms. "C'mon, let's get that glass out..." I ushered him inside and sat down on the couch with sterilizer and bandages.

After I finished picking out the glass, cleaning it, and bandaging it, we decided to clean up Charlie's room, and even though I insisted he rest, he still helped me.

We were completely exhausted by the time we finished. We plonked onto my bead heavily, snuggled up to eachother, and fell asleep.

. . .

I was walking down the shore, with Jacob by my side. We were just... walking, looking towards the sunset as it's heat spread onto us. I looked back to Jacob, but he wasn't there. Just... vanished. I was alone.

Completely.

I spun around, searching for him. I fell into the cold water, and I was suddenly in a meadow. The sun was, again, beaming down on me. And then, a cloud covered the sun, and it started to rain. Then it started snowing. I was freezing.

I was at a train station now. Jacob was standing in front of me.

"I'll see you in six months..." He said, wiping my cheek with his thumb. He was a little scruffy now... and he was wearing a military uniform.

"I don't want you to go..." I cried.

"I know... but it's incredibly well paid for military job."

"But... you'll be gone for four years!"

"I can see you every six months..."

"Yeah, eight times in four years! I'm..." My voice broke, "I'm going to miss you so much."

"I know, I know, Tess." He embraced me. I was crying now. He pulled away and wiped my tears from my cheeks. I shook my head as the train sounded it's horn.

He tilted my head up again and kissed me. It was a long, bitter, and sorrowful kiss. He pulled away, turned, and ran to the train, jumping on just in time as it started. He waved to me, and I waved back, tears in my eyes...

I had one hand against my lips, the other wrapped around my stomach.

A blur of images flashed across my eyes and then, they flew open. I was crying – for real, this time. That dream had scared me.

Is Jacob gonna leave for the military?

I don't know... He hasn't said anything about it...

I started shaking. Jacob's eyes fluttered as he woke up and tightened his grip around me.

"What's wrong?" He whispered, a concerned expression settling on his face.

I sniffed, "Just a... just a bad dream..."

"Oh, babe... I'm sorry... Do you want to talk about it?"

I shook my head, "No... I'm okay... Just a little... shaken..."

"You sure?"

"Yeah... Yeah, I'm... I'm fine." I moved closer to him, soaking up his warmth.

After a few minutes, I fell back asleep.

Jacob wouldn't leave me.

Would he?

A/N: Happy 20th Chapter, everyone! This one week schedule is really nice for me, I hope you guys can handle it! Now I can get a lot more done, so, thanks!

Is this last clip something from a future chapter or not? OH the suspense! What will the next chapter be?! Who knows? Oh, yeah. Me. Well, it's a secret! Mainly because I haven't decided yet...

That almost-vampire attack was cool, huh? Yeah... It's kind of weird how I made Tess – a mere human – stronger than a vampire... I'm just realizing this now... Hm. She's killed two now! :)

I'm really excited! I'm getting a lot done in these chapters now! We might've even broken 30,000 words!

Love you guys – Don't forget to leave a review!