Chapter 9

Pressure

Renesmee's POV

As we arrived back home in Forks, before we even entered the house; Jacob came rushing towards me, nearly bowling me over as he picked me up in an over-baring hug. Jacob still hadn't figure his own strength yet; and compared with Ambrogio's body temperature, I had almost forgotten just how warm Jacob really was.

"Oh Nessie; thank god, you're safe." Jake continued burning me for at least five minutes, until he finally looked at me. "Do you have any I idea how worried I've been?" Jacob then forced me against his chest again.

After half an hour, we finally entered the house; I was expecting an over-emotional hug from Aunt Rosalie but instead she glared at me, arms crossed, and her foot tapping on the ground.

"Renesmee Carlie Cullen, you are in serious trouble young lady..." her tone began. The rest of the conversation was all about her being so worried about me and then she told me directly that I was grounded – as if she was my mother.

I loved Aunt Rosalie a lot, she was a second mother to me, but constantly she tried so desperately to be my mother; Mom was a little relieved that she didn't have to punish me herself, she hated punishing me. After an embrace from Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, and Grandma; like a human child I was sent back to the stone cottage, as Jacob and I entered my room, I flopped onto the bed – as I adjusted, Jacob lay down next to me and placed his arm over me.

But as before, for the next year and a half, I spent my spare time with Uncle Jasper and looking at the photos of Ambrogio and I when we were younger; cradling the diamond necklace to my chest, with Aro's magical voice ringing in my ears as I remembered the lullaby he sang as I drifted off to sleep.

My parents and imprinter kept an annoyingly close watch on me, I wasn't even allowed to see Grandpa Swan by myself; it was so patronising. I might've only been twelve but I was going to be thirteen in less than a week, and not to mention the fact that I was half vampire and physically seventeen. And with a mental state that was beyond any of it, surly I was more than capable of looking after myself. But I understood the verdict for my sentence, it was wrong of me and a little reckless to go gallivanting off all the way to Italy alone, so maybe I got what I deserved; but I also gave my Mom a valuable lesson – Grandpa Swan told me about the time Mom did the exact same thing.

When my Daddy thought Mom was dead and he went off to kill himself in Italy, thankfully, Aro could not find it in his heart to destroy my father. Luckily Mom saved him but had put Grandpa Swan through hell, at least now Mom knew exactly what it felt like; and they actually started spending more time together because of what I'd done.

The week passed swiftly but bitterly and then came my thirteenth birthday; to my surprise the family decided to put aside their judgmental mood just for my birthday – six years to the day that I had stopped growing. Jacob held me in his arms as I unwrapped my presents; Aunt Alice and Grandma coordinated together this year, Grandma gave me a pair of cream coloured shoes that went with Aunt Alice's present – as usual – it was clothing of some sorts, this time it was a wispy three-quarter champagne coloured dress. It was beautiful; the skirt was sleek, and framed my body according to its natural curves.

I looked up at my dad and he handed me a small box, wrapped in a red ribbon; my eyebrows flinched upwards when I spotted the emblem of the Volturi crest – immediately I ripped open the box, and inside there was a small note:

Perdonami. Il mio Cantante

Underneath was a beautiful bracelet; a bracelet of Italian gold with opals pressed into the gold with diamond fragments in between them.

"Oh it's beautiful." I sighed, clicking it onto my right wrist. "Thank you, Ambrogio." I whispered.

Jacob then forcefully handed me his gift; it was a little carved wolf and he attached it to the bracelet he gave to me for my first Christmas.

"Wow, Jacob I love it." I complimented, tying it around my band, but in the sunlight it was just outshined by Gino's gift.

Later on in the day Jacob and I were out hunting and playing in the forest. I concentrated in catching a young stag, Jacob helped me, not allowing it to get away; Jacob killed it but I drained it. As we walked around in the woods, Jake tightly held my hand, bringing it up to kiss my knuckles – I didn't share my thoughts with him though it seemed that he wanted to be in my head.

"So do you like your present?" he asked for the hundredth time.

Happily replying, I said. "Yes, Jake. It's beautiful, I love it."

"Nessie?" he asked. "Do you know the meaning behind the bracelet that I gave you all those years ago?" his voice was warm just like his skin.

I nodded. "It's the Quileute's equivalent of a promise ring."

He smiled triumphantly, nodding with a white grin on his face. "It's a symbol that I care for you, Nessie."

I looked at him sharply. "What a minute. Jake, I can see where this is going…" Then all of a sudden Jake's face came down and his burning lips plastered themselves onto mine.

I tried to pull away but Jacob was too strong, he wrapped his warm arms around my waist and pulled me further into the kiss; it frightened me a little because I knew I wasn't resisting as well as I could have. How the kiss felt, it was a smooth warm sensation; my fingers were feeling around his bare chest, but then I managed to let go, and was able to breathe again.

We both were panting quite deeply, as Jacob began. "You see, Renesmee; you have to understand that as my imprintee I can't turn to anyone else. I love you... I have always loved you."

"I know, Jake, and I love you too." Jacob then smiled as though he had won something, "But I do love someone else, Jake; I'm not saying 'no', as my imprinter I can never say 'no'." I looked away for a second to adjust my gaze. "My situations just a little complicated, that's all."

Jake's grip around my waist loosened at little, and then he shook his head as we began walking again. "What is it with you girls? You always somehow managed to put yourselves into difficult situations; at first it was your Mom, and now you."

"Yes, but I'm not some human waiting for my vampire crush to turn me; my situation is a little more stalemate then my Mom's."

"You're just facing the same choice – werewolf or vampire." He replied. "Just consider the fact that I might be better for you then he is. You wouldn't have to move away or say goodbye to anyone. At least I'm man enough to admit that I love you, Nessie."

I looked at Jake, his dark eyes were true to his word; in all my life of knowing Jacob he has never been false.

I pulled him to a stop. "Let's not forget, even though you're physically sixteen, you're technically twenty-nine; Ambrogio's only twelve and a half, and just because he hasn't admitted that he loves me – doesn't make him any less of a man than you, Jake. But you'll always be my Jacob."

Then I smiled as I cupped his face; then reaching up on my toes, I lightly kissed his burning lips.

Edward's POV

I watched from the window as I saw Nessie and Jacob returning from their hunt, though it was hard not to miss them when I could hear Jacob's thoughts from a mile away – his mind was wrapped in enthusiasm over the fact that he and my daughter had shared their first kiss. As a father I was starting to feel a little more protective over my daughter; now that they had kissed, Jacob's mind would be ecstatic with excitement for days. His feelings had permanently become romantic but I could see by Nessie's mind that she wasn't returning his feelings in the same way – I knew this day would come. I just didn't count on it coming sooner rather than later.

I strolled into the living room, smiling as contently as ever just to even see my darling wife; I rolled my beautiful Bella into my arms, we kissed so playfully, it was just heaven. The memory of Jacob's thoughts made me feel so relieved that he had finally gotten over my wife, but it wasn't so relieving by the fact that he had now moved onto my daughter.

"Love, something's happened." I began.

Bella's eyes went defensive. "What happened? Is Renesmee in trouble again?"

"No, no, no…" slightly amused by her assumption. "No but… um… well, Jacob kissed her." Her face went between shock, surprise, and oddly happy. "I can honestly say that his thoughts aren't going to be any different anytime soon."

Nessie and Jacob then came in through the door; though I looked at him quite seriously.

"Jake, can I talk to you for a minute." He and I stepped out the door, and I cringed slightly as I walked passed him. "And can you, please, at least try to control your thoughts?" I hissed.

We stepped outside a few dozen feet from the house.

"So I see you two had an eventful hunt." I began.

Jacob only replied in his mind. "Yes but I swear she came back on to me."

I folded my arms. "Jake I think you understand why I'm talking to you?"

"Because I kissed her?"

"It's more than that Jacob, as a father I have to be careful about who my Renesmee is going to spend the rest of her life with."

"Wait, when the Voltari, or whoever the hell they are, came last time, you referred to me as your son; to me that kind of sounded like you were giving me your blessing."

"Only because I thought we were going to die, Jacob..." I sighed and tried to calm myself, "Look Jake, as Nessie's imprinter, I know I can trust you more than anyone else to keep her safe if anything were to happen to Bella or myself, or the rest of the family for that matter. But Renesmee's going through a rough time; so until she gets her head straight, my answer is 'no'."

I started walking back to the house.

"Ed…" Jake called.

I turned and faced him.

"I won't wait around forever to fall in love, I got over Bella, but I won't be able to get over Renesmee; especially now that my feelings have turned… you know, romantic."

I replied heavily, "I'm afraid I do, Jacob."