Second Chapter

It's because she's not white, Leah decides, that all this misfortune happens to her. If she was white, like Bella was, she'd have loving parents, a family of her own, and a fairy-tale ending. This is not what Leah receives. She gets a dead father, a guy who doesn't love her knocking her up, and an ending that probably will depict her flipping burgers miserably to support a brat. But then, white people seem to die young.

"Mom," Leah says, coming in the doorway and shedding her coat. The female werewolf can hear Sue Clearwater puttering around in the kitchen, oblivious. She figures it's easier to say it quick and fast. "Mom, I'm pregnant. It's Jacob Black's kid." She proceeds into the kitchen, where she doesn't see her mother, like she thought.

Seth, Embry, and Quil are all staring at her with something akin to wonder. "Shit," Leah manages. "Well. Cat's out of the bag…" Why does she feel so embarrassed? "Stop staring," she snarls, to cover up her nervousness. They don't. Embry's fork, loaded with pasta, actually falls out of his hands like in the movies. Leah storms to the fridge and gets a carton of ice cream, snatches up Seth's serving spoon, and digs in. The silence would be harder than the ice cream to stick a spoon through at this point.

"Lee?" Seth finally manages, and he tries to take the tub of ice cream.

"No!" Leah gets aggressive; yanking it away from him, she smacks his hand with her spoon. "I'm pregnant and the dad doesn't even love me! I. Deserve. Ice. Cream." She shots him a glare that could shatter glass. There's a long pause, and then she asks in a small voice, "Are you mad at me?"

"Wha…no!" Seth sputters, fumbling for words. He expects a giant smile in return for his enthusiastic support.

Leah defies expectations by snapping, "Good. Because I'd hate to have to gouge your eyes out if you weren't."

"Neheh," whimpers Seth. He has no doubts that Leah will do this to him, too. "But…Lee…how long ago did…you know, and like, where?"

"How long ago did I have sex, Seth?" Leah asks, sounding bored. "Two weeks ago. On Jake's dresser. There were…several instances…in which this baby could have begun."

"Chriiiist," groans Quil, covering his ears. "Leah! I want chaste thoughts!"

"Too late for youuu!" sings Leah, and then, "I thought I was sterile. He did too. We didn't use anything, obviously." She pauses again, and then suddenly she's wiping at her eyes. "Damn baby," she hiccups. "It's…it's…screwing with me!"

Embry gets up and surprises everybody, maybe even himself, by wrapping her in a hug that only a werewolf can give – a bone-crushing, overheated, shirtless hug. "Leah," he says calmly. "Lee, we're not gonna abandon you. We're not Sam. And if Jake even thinks about backing out of this…"

"I'll whip his sorry ass," hisses Seth in interruption.

"Then we'll run him to Canada and back and make him help you," finishes Quil.

Leah's hiccups fade, but they can all see the tears trickling down Embry's shoulder were her face is pressed. And suddenly she wraps her arms around him. "Thanks," she says, in a voice that old Leah might have used. And she starts shuddering with tears.

And everybody in the kitchen understands that's Leah's too exhausted, too hurt and confused and anxious, to continue holding herself together. They all silently accept that now, they need to take bigger roles in piecing back together her heart.

*

Jacob is alone, on a beach, which is really cliché, but honestly. He knows that only half a mile away, part of him is growing inside of Leah. And although he knows this isn't going to be a good or smooth road, and he knows that somewhere Nessie will test his imprint and it will hurt worse than it did today, and that Leah will reject him because it's all she knows how to do now, he starts to smile. Jacob Black, alpha of a renegade pack, the man that broke every imprinting rule, the man that will now be a father, sits on the beach and watches the sunset and imagines not curly bronze hair, but black ink spilling over copper shoulders, highlighted by the fading light.