Dominic's POV:

The more time that you spend away from someone, the easier it gets. You start to forget about them, they're voice, their laugh, their face, their smell... That's the way it's supposed to be, that's the way that anyone can survive being left behind. But you never forget your imprint.

Jacob wasn't avoiding me; he had forced me away. I was under strict orders: patrol the area around La Push with Seth (any area offering the rich "hunting grounds" of Seattle as well as the secretive retreat of wilderness was bound to attract vampires), spend as much time with Seth as possible (I guess he was the one teaching me how to be a wolf and phase without breaking anything), don't spend too much time with the other members of the pack and definitely don't let Sam's pack know that I'm around. I guess I was quite the problem, no one was supposed to talk about me. I was the pack's big secret; there's no way that Jacob Black would want anyone to get involved in his pack's business, especially for something as unheard of as this (and something as embarrassing as I was).

The longer I stayed away, the more that I thought about him. I wanted to be with him, and not just as a lover. He was my imprint; there was far more than just that attraction. I wanted to see his smile, feel his warmth, hear his voice again... It's not as though I could forget him, in fact I saw him nightly in my dreams, but I couldn't help but feel sad thinking about him without actually being able to be around him. It was torturous indeed.

Since I had to stay so secret from Sam's pack, I spent a lot of time in the Cullen mansion, out of sight and out of mind. There was plenty to do: TV, videogames, and lots of food (even though I guess vampires don't eat). Still, I got bored. Seth kept slipping away, free from my orders of secrecy, sneaking out to somewhere in the direction of La Push and always coming back practically glowing (and with an odd scent on him). I didn't wonder where he was going so much as envy the fact that he had somewhere to go. In the end, I mostly just moped around all day, practiced phasing back and forth in the usually empty house, and ate ice cream until my stomach would ache (which takes a lot for a wolf). The Cullens were always kind enough to keep my favorite peppermint flavor around.

One day (actually, more like late afternoon, I had developed quite an odd sleep schedule thanks to patrolling day and night) I woke up to the sound of pouring rain. I had fallen asleep with the TV on after feasting on some "depression ice cream", but still felt groggy and more tired than before. I sighed and picked up my empty bowl, heading to the kitchen for another pint or so. I was quite out of it, barely paying any attention to what I was doing, and didn't hear the muffled slamming of the back door (all the way on the other side of the house). Wrapped up in my thoughts, I groped clumsily for the peppermint ice cream, bending way over to reach into the cavernous freezer drawer. I decided to forgo the bowl and just started spooning the frosty dessert into my mouth without even straightening up again. Suddenly, I felt a warm tickle on my sensitive abdomen, jerking upright into the grasp of the man behind me.

I looked wildly up at the man holding onto me, still startled and limp in his thick arms. He was obviously Quileute and quite handsome, but totally foreign to me. I relaxed just a bit, knowing that he was probably not a threat, and felt the heat of his broad chest despite the cold raindrops still clinging to his tanned skin. "'Sup, Pup?" He asked, grinning, before reaching his face down to kiss me from behind.

I held totally still, in a state of shock, as he pulled back and licked his lips. "Hm? Seth, I thought you hated peppermint," he said before chuckling and continuing, "Well, it tastes great to me." He bent down to kiss me again, running his tongue over my lower lip, possibly mistaking my attempt to explain myself as some sort of reciprocation. Though I had no interest in kissing him (he wasn't Jacob after all), and was trying my hardest to break the lip-lock, I did note that he was a well-practiced kisser and far stronger than I. Finally we both broke apart at the sound of a loud "SAM!" from behind.

Sam (that was his name, I supposed) looked around, still holding me against himself, while I wobbled in place, my head spinning in confusion and surprise. Seth and Jacob stood in the doorway, their clothes plastered against their bodies from the rain (though Sam appeared to have come without one). Anyone could tell with just a look that Seth was furious and the tension in the air was palpable. I could feel the heat coming from Seth all the way across the room, and he was shaking furiously. Sam immediately let me go and I sort of slumped forward, leaving streaky handprints on the stainless steel refrigerator as I braced myself. I saw Seth take two very angry steps directly towards me, shaking harder than ever, before Sam intercepted him in just a few strides, scooping his petite body easily into his enormous arms and holding him against his wet chest.

Sam pressed his forehead, eyes closed, to Seth's, and it was as though all the air came back into the room. Seth wrapped his little arms around Sam's neck and let himself be carried away while mumbling profanities that were way outside of Seth's normal character. Sam cooed quietly to him and they left to the upstairs, probably as far away from me as they could get.

Jacob and I stood in silence for a moment, a bit shocked by what we had just seen. I turned to Jacob and asked, "Jake, what was tha-"
"Man, Sam really calmed him down quick." Jacob cut in, "I guess he knows better than most what can happen when you don't control yourself. I've never seen Seth angry like that before." I just stood there with my head cocked in confusion, still leaning on the refrigerator for support. Jacob turned and saw my questioning look, then looked just as quickly away and said, "Seth imprinted on Sam. A while ago. But it's complicated. You see, Sam is already imprinted to his wife, Emily, but I guess an imprint is pretty hard to ignore, especially since he's known Seth for so long."
"Wait, Sam is imprinted to someone else?" I asked, pushing off of the refrigerator and wobbling just a bit as I found my balance standing up again.
"Yeah." Jacob said, walking over and closing the freezer then leaning against one of the granite countertops. "But Seth loves him so much, I guess some of it rubbed off. I guess we all thought at first that he was just humoring Seth to keep him from being too clingy, but I've seen Seth's thoughts and even Sam's to an extent. There's something more than that."

I cocked my head again, trying to gather my thoughts. Though what Jacob had said was strange, it made sense. I felt a peculiar warmth in the pit of my stomach and felt hope ballooning me up. I looked at Jacob's face and took a step closer, hoping. I felt my heart sink when I saw Jacob stiffen and inch away, shaking his head. He had caught on to what I was thinking and rejected it. I was desperate, I wanted what I had seen between Seth and Sam, I wanted Jacob. I took another step, closing the distance between us and reaching up to kiss him desperately, gently holding myself to his neck with my fingertips, terrified and exhilarated at the same time.

It took less than a second for Jacob to react, pushing me backward and covering his lips with his hands, a look of anger on his face. I stumbled back, falling to the ground and staying there, afraid to stand up again. He glared at me, unmoving, and I felt myself begin to quiver, eyes welling up with tears. We stayed like that, him glaring at me while I tried desperately not to cry. Finally, he sighed and his eyes softened. He walked slowly to the door and opened it to the pouring rain. "Come on, Seth." He said gently, smiling a bit and even offering me his hand. Confused, yet eager, I jumped unsteadily to my feet and scampered over to him, following him out the door into the pouring rain and into the cover of the trees. I wasn't sure what was going on, but I was with Jacob and I was even still holding his hand...

Jacob's POV:

I led Dominic into the woods outside the Cullen house, wandering out of the really heavy rain. He followed me just like a puppy, holding firmly to my hand and walking fast to keep up with my longer strides. We kept going in silence for a while until we came upon a big, mossy clearing. I walked to the center and then let go of his hand. He looked at me in confusion, still grinning stupidly at me. I dropped the fake smile and took a deep breath in, letting the tension form in the air as I let loose my alpha aura. I saw Dominic stiffen at the tension, whimpering just like a pup.
"Don't love me." I commanded, my voice dripping with authority and the clearing buzzing with tension.
"What?" Dominic asked, eyes wide and fearful.
"Don't love me." I commanded again, "I am not your imprint." He dropped to his knees, a pained expression on his face, tears streaming silently down his pale cheeks. He looked up at me, making eye contact, eyes dripping big, wet tears. I wanted to look away, it was hurting me more than anything to do this for some reason, but I knew that an alpha couldn't be the one to break eye contact, thereby submitting. I stared him down and kept repeating, "I am not your imprint." He shook his head again and again, whipping it back and forth, sprinkling tears on the sodden moss of the clearing. I kept repeating it again and again, commanding him to stop loving me. I fell down on his hands and knees then, his whole body rocking like he was going to be sick. He looked up at me again, still shaking his head and sobbing, eyes red from capillaries broken by the desperation of his resistance. I just kept repeating, "I am not your imprint," growing number and number to the pain I was causing this poor pup.

He seemed stunned, paralyzed by the pain. He crawled closer to me, on his knees still, and grasped onto the hem of my shirt, trying to pull himself up to me, shaking his head slowly now, the tears slowing.
"Jacob, please..." He whispered, "This is wrong... We were meant to be together, we are supposed to be one..."

I shook my head again, telling him definitively and authoritatively that we were not. Dominic kept looking me in the eye, blood beginning to fall in delicate droplets from his nose. "You're wrong." He whispered before collapsing on the ground.

I sighed in relief, hoping that it had worked. I shook his shoulder gently to wake him, lifting him up into a sitting position.
"Ugh, Jake, what happened?" He asked, "I had the worst dream, I dreamed that somehow you were my impr-" He cut off, doubling over at an unnatural angle, vomiting onto the ground and himself.
"Dominic! Dominic! Are you okay?" I asked panicked as he continued to vomit, writhing as he voided his stomach of its contents.
"I'm fine," he said. "I think I must have just eaten too much ice cream, haha..." He tried to push himself back into a sitting position, jerking to a stop before sitting up, then vomiting again.
"Dominic! Okay, I'm gonna bring you to Carlisle, he'll fix you up, we just gotta get you to the doc..." I said, panicked for the pup as I scooped him up and started racing toward the Cullen house.

"Jake, you don't need to carry me like a girl..." Dominic said weakly, "Geez, you're treating me like I'm freakin' Renesmee-" He had to stop again, vomiting weakly, thin yellow bile the only thing left inside him. "Ugh, Jake you're too hoot..." He murmured, trying to pull away, but too weak to move. At last he slumped in my arms, blood dripping from his nose still. I clutched him tighter, sprinting as fast as I could, trying not to jostle his ice-cold body too much.

"Help! Help!" I shouted, the house coming into sight. "Carlisle, something's happened!" I glanced down at Dominic's delicate face as the vampires gathered to help, eyebrows scrunched up in pain, lips wet with vomit, nose dripping blood... I felt my stomach clench and my heart slow from pounding in panic to barely beating. Carlisle and Edward took him from my arms, rushing him into the house. Seth and Sam rushed out of the house, wearing just Sam's shirt and boxers (respectively).
"Jacob Black, what did you do?" Sam asked in a growl, but I didn't answer. I couldn't. I just turned and fled, phasing under the trees.

Oops... Did I promise fluff and romance? What I meant was depressing plot continuation... but look forward for a special aside for a chapter "4.1". After all, why aren't Seth and Sam dressed? (;