Struggling to be Honest

JacobxBella

Rated M

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or the franchise, as it belongs to Steph Meyers

Struggling to be Honest

Chapter 21

With the threat of the Volturi no longer hanging over them, everyone was able to relax. The Pack and Sleuth decided to go back to their designated Reservations, with the promise to hang out sometimes. Kai however wanted to stay with Leah but knew he had to run home to get some new clothes since he ripped his when he phased to protect Leah. Leah, after she had phased back to her human form away from prying eyes and put her clothes back on, told him to meet her at the Cullen house since that was where the Cullens, Bella, Jacob, Jane, and Seth were going.

Thirty minutes later at the Cullen house Esme was helping Jane to get situated and comfortable in their home. It was easy to tell that Jane was on edge and wasn't completely sure what to do. She hadn't been human for hundreds of years; she didn't know what to do, especially now in the modern world. Despite their past Bella offered to help her adjust to human life, to which Jane shyly nodded and agreed to.

The change in Jane baffled Bella. When she had first met her, the girl had been the most lethal vampire ever and wasn't afraid to demonstrate her power. Now as a human she was shy and reserved. And even though Jane was technically older than her by a lot, Bella was now the older of the two human girls and Jane was going to be turning to her for guidance. It felt weird to Bella, but she was used to weird by that point.

Once everyone was settled down Carlisle said, "Jane, welcome to our humble abode and your new home. Even though you are now human and you came from the Volturi, we willingly take you in as a part of our family. I will have papers drawn up to make it seem as if we have adopted you and your name will officially be Jane Cullen. I hope that you will soon find comfort here."

Jane nodded and softly said, "Yes, sir."

"Please, call me Carlisle. Anyway, do you by chance remember how old you were when Aro first turned you?"

"I'm not sure, maybe fourteen?"

"She looks like a fourteen year old," Emmett piped up, Jasper nodding in agreement.

Carlisle nodded and said, "Alright then, you will be considered fourteen years of age and today will be your birthday since you became human again today, if that is alright with you."

Jane nodded and said, "That's fine. But I do wonder about something."

Esme sat beside of Jane of the couch and asked, "What is it, dear?"

"This place called 'school'. I wouldn't have to be enrolled yet, would I?" Jane asked.

Rosalie shook her head and answered, "No, you wouldn't. You need to get caught up on everything human first. You probably won't start school until next fall to where we can teach you everything you need to know."

Bella nodded and said, "And if you ever need another human to talk to you can talk to me."

"Thank you, Bella," Jane said with a small smile.

Seth, who had come back from the restroom, immediately sat on the other side of Jane and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him. Jane's blue eyes widened considerably before a blush covered her face and her smile widened. Jacob chuckled at the scene before saying, "Earth to fifteen year old boy; she's not ready."

"I know that, Jake. I just feel the need to hold her right now," Seth replied, his face buried in Jane's neck.

Alice walked over and pulled Jane away from Seth, ignoring his growl as she said, "You two will get a chance to get to know each other later. I'm going to find something else for Jane to wear before I throw these robes out, and then Bella, Rosalie and I are going to take her shopping."

Bella let out a sigh before asking why she needed to go. Alice simply replied she needed to her to be there to help Jane figure out what her clothing style was. She figured that with the three of them showing her their preferred styles of clothing, Jane would figure out her own. Once she was done explaining she threw Jane over her shoulder and rushed upstairs, returning five minutes later with Jane wearing a teal short sleeve dress and black leather jacket, her black boots still on her feet and complimenting her outfit.

Once the four girls left Jasper asked, "So is Jane taking Edward's room or are we going to empty one and turn it into a girl's room?"

Emmett shrugged and said, "We don't know what she likes and neither does she. I suggest we let her have a room that isn't already used as a bedroom and just put up a bed and dresser and stuff. We'll leave the decorating to the girls."

Jasper nodded before he and Emmett headed upstairs to get started on Jane's room. Jacob looked at Seth and said, "Let's take a walk, buddy. I'm going to give you a lesson on Imprinting 101."

"Oh God," Leah said, rolling her eyes while ignoring her little brother stuck his tongue out at her. Jacob chuckled before letting her know that Kai was pulling up in his car. Leah ran out of the door and ran to Kai's car, jumping in the passenger seat before giving the bear Alpha a passionate kiss on the lips. That display of affection shocked not only Kai, but Seth and Jacob as well. Kai's surprised face turned into a happy one, his mouth stretching in a wide grin and his grey eyes sparkling. He pulled out of the driveway and drove off with Leah, Jacob and Seth walking out into the yard to talk.

Inside the home Esme told Carlisle that she was going to prepare some chicken broth for Jane when she got back. She figured that since the light brunette hadn't eaten any solid foods in years, she would start her off with broths and soups to see how her stomach could handle them. If she could keep those down, hopefully she could start eating solid foods. Esme was happy to be cooking for someone in the house again and since Jane was Imprinted on by Seth, Seth was going to be around a lot as well. So in the end, she would be happily cooking enough for four; one helping for Jane, three helpings for Seth, and whatever was left over she would put away or Seth would eat it.

The matron of the home looked at her mate, noticing the faraway look in his amber eyes. She knew that Carlisle was thinking about Edward and silently mourning his death. She wanted to tell her mate that it wasn't his fault and that there was nothing he could have done to prevent their son's fate, but she knew he wouldn't take it to heart. Edward was his first companion and son and would always hold a special place in his un-beating heart.

Walking over to him she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close, whispering, "It will be alright. We will get through this."

Carlisle nodded and held his mate close, letting her gentle words and embrace sooth him. He would never forget Edward, but he would move on with his immortal life and continue to protect his family.

Two hours later the girls returned with a carload of clothing bags, less than half of them designer brands. It turned out that Jane's style of clothing was a bit like Bella's, much to Alice's displeasure. After all of Jane's bags were inside the Cullen mansion Rosalie asked, "Is her room ready yet?"

Emmett nodded and said, "Yeah, we just didn't decorate it because we don't know what she likes or her interests."

Jane giggled softly and said, "I don't even know my own interests."

"I'll help you decorate your room and then you can personalize it as time goes on," Alice said with a smile. She turned to Jasper and asked him to help her carry Jane's clothes bags up to her room, Jasper nodding with a fond smile on his face.

Bella shook her head at the familiar display before looking around for her boyfriend. Not seeing him around she asked, "Where's Jacob?"

"In here, Bella!" Jacob called from the kitchen.

Bella rolled her eyes and motioned for Jane to come along with her. It was definitely the kitchen where the two girls found their mates sitting at the table eating a buffet of food. As soon as Jacob saw them walk in he said, "Hey, Bells. Come sit and eat with us."

Seth turned and smiled at them before asking, "Would you like to sit next to me, Jane?"

Jane nodded with a slight blush on her cheeks before sitting next to the young Shifter. Bella and Jacob smiled at the sight as Bella took a seat next to Jacob. Esme walked over to them with a bowl of chicken broth in her hand and set it down in front of Jane.

"Here you are, dear," Esme said, placing a spoon in the broth. "Now because you haven't eaten any solids in a while, I'm starting you off with broths and soups. We'll gradually move on to solid foods when you feel you are ready."

"Thank you, Mrs. Cullen," Jane said politely.

Esme smiled and said, "Call me Esme, dear.

As Esme went to make more food (for dinner later on), Jacob, Seth, Bella, and Jane all talked quietly, enjoying the food that the motherly vampire had prepared. During the talk Bella had laid her head over on Jacob's shoulder, breathing in his comforting scent.

She still couldn't believe that they were still here and still alive. The Volturi was no longer a threat to them and she could be left alone and be with Jacob with no interruption. It was almost too good to be true.

Before she realized it, tears had fallen from Bella's eyes and down her cheeks. Jacob heard her sniffle and looked down at her in concern. Seeing her tears he wiped them away and excused them for a while. Once they were outside away from everyone else Jacob said, "Bells, talk to me. Why are you crying, honey?"

"I'm just, I'm just so relieved. The threat of the Volturi has been over my head ever since I made that impulsive decision to save Edward. I thought that it would be over the moment I married Edward but I decided not to because I realized that I was in love with you. I had completely forgotten that there were Volturi ambassadors to tell Aro whether I went through with the marriage to Edward or not. And then when we're finally happy Alice sees that they are on their way to confront us about why I bailed on the wedding. I was so scared that we were all going to die. I mean, I wouldn't have cared if I had, but if they had killed you right in front of me I wouldn't have been able to handle it. I would have been so much worse than I had been when Edward left me," Bella said, her tears flowing freely as she talked. She wiped her face of her tears, even though more replaced them before she continued. "I've made so many mistakes in the two years that I've been living in Forks, many of them nearly getting me killed. But you're not a mistake, Jacob. Me loving you isn't a mistake. It's probably the one thing that I did right, but it took many mistakes to create a chain of events that I wish I could forget to make me realize it. I just, I just love you."

Jacob stared at his Imprint in slight shock as she finished her speech and continued to cry. Not being able to help himself he cupped her wet cheeks and kissed her fully on the lips, momentarily stopping Bella in her sobs. Pulling away he wrapped his strong arms around her and hugged her to his chest. As he held her he said, "Bella, don't dwell on the past anymore. And don't forget the chain of events that happened, because if they hadn't happened you would never have realized that you loved me. Even though we had to deal with what just happened today as aftermath of you ditching the wedding, we are still here together now and nothing can tear us apart. Okay? I love you, Bella and that will never change."

Bella nodded as Jacob kissed her lips once more and held her close, kissing her forehead as he allowed her to cry the rest of her tears. They were there together and alive. They were in love, and everything was going to be alright. As long as they had each other, nothing could bring them down.