Okay okay, first of all, I love Charlie and I so didn't want to do this to him. The next few chapters are a little sad I think so prepare yourselves. Secondly, I came up with another idea for a story that I haven't read yet; keeping it brief, I love Seth, too, and I was sad he never found his imprint, so I'll make one for him =) So looking forward to that so I'll start on that as soon as I can.

10) The Last Memory

"Hey, kiddo," Grandpa's voice was almost weaker than he looked. "How are you, darling? You look like you've been crying a fair bit."

I smiled at his concern for me, how silly it was. I took his hand feebly and kissed his cheek as lightly as I could manage. Jake had moved a chair beside the bed for me so I sat down in it beside Grandpa.

"I'm fine, Grandpa. Don't worry about me. Are you… feeling okay?" I asked stupidly; I'm sure there were more intelligent things for me to ask but I couldn't find them in my vocabulary.

"I'm doing alright."

At his comment my mother groaned and shifted her head to face her father's feet.

"You're not, Dad. You're not fine. You could be, though," she muttered.

"There, there, Bella. I'm as well as I could be," Grandpa said to her as he stroked her hair.

"Liar."

Grandpa rolled his eyes and I tried to stop myself from looking around for glue or sticky tape or something incase he fissured. "Why don't you ask Sue to bring me some of her curry; this hospital food really sucks."

Mom got up and stomped out of the room in an elegant vampire manner.

"Moms taking this really hard, isn't she?" I asked Grandpa.

"Yeah, it's not easy for her. Not when she could make everything better so easily," he answered softly.

I mimicked my mother and rested my head on Grandpas belly, looking into his face while I pondered.

"What are you thinking about, honey?" he asked me.

I smiled and replied "Every memory I have of you."

I couldn't hold a stray tear that escaped my lashes and Grandpa caught it with his finger tips, brushing it away with sensitivity.

"Hey now, none of that Nessie," he said with a halfhearted smile.

"Why not?" I retorted childishly. Jake rested a hand on my thigh and squeezed lightly.

"Why not? Because I don't want you to cry over me, honey. It's not worth it," he whispered to me while he twisted a few of my curls between his fingers.

I couldn't help but glare at him which I immediately quit doing when his body tensed uneasily.

"Sorry Grandpa," I sighed. "I just… you're worth everything Grandpa. Why don't you think so?" I asked gently.

"Because I'm not worth you're sadness Nessie, I'm just not worth the tears. Be happy for me; I'm going to be better off anyway," he breathed.

"No, you're not," I muttered back to him as I let my gaze fall to his brittle hand.

Grandpa let his breath exit in a sigh and settled further into his bed. Furious with myself for hurting him, I blinked back tears and laid my head face down on the side of his bed.

"I love you, sweetie. Forever and ever," he whispered to my hidden tears. His hand threaded through my hair and found my soaked cheek, sweeping away the tears and patting my face.

"I love you, too, Grandpa. Forever and ever," I turned my face into his hand and breathed in his scent while he continued stroking my cheek.

I lay there for a good twenty minutes before Mom came back through the door and rubbed my back lightly.

"Sweetheart, I think it's time you went home; you have school tomorrow and you need sufficient rest," she breathed in my ear.

I straightened up, wiping my eyes, and looked at her. My breath edged it's way out of my mouth and I swallowed before I nodded at her. My legs willed themselves to lift my body up silently and move to stand by Grandpa's head.

One of my unsteady hands glided through the air before resting against his cheek, and I shot him images of us doing fun things through my "childhood" and winded thoughts of love, adoration, comfort and peace to accompany my memories. After my memories had finished, I bent forward and pressed a warm kiss to his cool forehead, keeping in mind his brittleness.

"I love you Grandpa. Forever and ever and always. Nothing will change that," I exhaled into his wispy gray hair.

His breathing hitched a little as I laid my palm against his face again, no images, no voices, just presence.

Jacob's warm hands closed around my hips as he said his goodbye's to Grandpa.

"See ya, buddy. Rest peacefully," he murmured while he moved one of his hands to rub Grandpa's shoulder. "Come on, Nessie, honey. We have to go."

I sniffled faintly and kissed Grandpa's cheek before I gave his hand one last squeeze and turned to walk out. Mom and I embraced quickly and Jacob gave her arm a little rub as he passed her. I watched as Mom sat beside Grandpa Charlie again, laying her head on his stomach as soon as she was seated and taking his hand in hers again.

My eyes flashed to Grandpa's face again and I took another unexpected sharp inhale of air If it were possible, he looked more ailing than when I first entered. His skin had deteriorated to a duller translucent gray and his face looked more ghostly. I watched him for a second, perplexed to the fact that his chest wasn't set in a rhythm. My heart thudded faster and I felt my feet drag back towards the bed just before his chest rose subtly and fell again. I waited for another nine seconds before he respired again and felt a little at ease. My mother was there anyway, she would watch over her father.

I stepped towards the door again and met my Grandfather's eyes again. In his weak state I don't know how he managed to open them, but his depressing eyes splintered my heart and winded me. I scrunched my hands into fists behind my back and forced a kind smile for him. I blinked down and away from Grandpa's eyes as Jacob's hands enclosed around my fists and persuaded them to relax, then I brought a hand to my lips, kissed them and blew the kiss to Grandpa before I waved a tiny wave, turned and almost sprinted out of the door.

I was in a daze while we walked out of the hospital, got in the car and started on our way home. Jacob never said anything to me; he just held my hand again and kissed it casually.

It took me pulling up in Jake's driveway to realize he wasn't taking me home home, but his home; my second home and my haven.

I got out of the car and walked up the path, waited for him to open the door with his keys and then followed him inside. My feet carried me to the couch and my legs lowered me onto it, but I just sat there, elbows on my knees, chin in my hands, and stared. At nothing because there was nothing to stare at. My mind was absolutely blank.

Jacob sat on the couch next to me and leant back, rubbing a hand up and down my back and brushing my hair off of my face. He did this for a fair while. Rachel even had time to swing by with Paul and pick Billy up to go to the shops and bring him back, help him unpack and put everything away and leave again with Billy for a bonfire.

As I said, a fair while.

Jacob swore to himself and knelt in front of me, holding my wrists and positioning his face so my gaze was directed at him.

"Nessie, baby, say something! Please… Honey, you need to say something," he begged.

I lifted my head from my hands and stared at him. The words were there but I couldn't find my voice to carry them the rest of the way so I twisted my right hand out of his grasp and pressed my palm against his left cheek.

Confusion. Anxiety. Loss.

"Nessie… These feeling's are normal. It's… a big thing," he whispered.

"Where's he going Jacob? Is he going to come back? Why can't he stay? Jake, I don't know anything. I don't know what to feel, let alone what to do. Help me! Please Jake, help…"

"Cry," was the only word he breathed.

"I've done enough! I don't want to cry anymore, Jake. I don't…" I inhaled in deeply to refuse the tears that did want to spill.

"Honey, when your body is in this much stress and anxiety, you need to do something to release all the pent up energy. Cry, Nessie. Shed tears. I'm here, I've got you. I promise, I've got you," he whispered to me as he stood on his knees and leant forward to encase me in his arms and draw me to his chest.

My face fell in the crook of his neck and my hands pressed against his chest, and I obeyed him. My tears shed like a storm, and where my face pressed against, his shirt was soon soaked through with salted water.

I let my body slump in Jakes arms and burrowed my face as deep as I could into his neck while he massaged my back and neck and comfortingly kissed my hair and shoulder.

My tears slowly but surely faded away again, nevertheless I left my face snuggled in his shirt and closed my eyes to rest for a minute.

*** — *** — ***

It felt like I had slept in a sauna. I woke up and stared at my ceiling. It took me a moment to realize it wasn't my ceiling but Jacob's.

I rolled my head to the left and ran my eyes up his right arm that was acting as my pillow until I saw his calm face resting on the pillow inches from me. His other hot arm was draped over my stomach and the heat seeped through entirely to my skin. My back was lying flat on the mattress and my legs were straight, and I was pretty damn comfy.

I raised my right arm up and laid it across Jake's arm over my stomach, lightly tracing my fingers up and down his smooth skin before I held his arm carefully and lifted it a tad so I could nestle in closer to him. My head ended up on his strong bicep and my body was turned slightly towards him to touch him the entire length of my body. I had weaseled my feet out from underneath his and flung my right leg over his hip.

Well, I thought to myself, if I'm gonna sleep here, may as well get heaps comfy.

I let my left arm lay next to his body as I turn my head and pressed my mouth against his arm. At this point, Jake mumbled something brainless in his sleep and grabbed my hip, holding my closer to him than I dared to get. His hand subsequently splayed against my back and held me here, and I knew I had no chance of moving without waking him so I took deep breaths to slow my heart rate and then relaxed against him, willing myself to go back to sleep.

I closed my eyes again to welcome snooze, and saw my Grandfathers haunted eyes and hallowed face staring uncomprehendingly at me. I sighed and opened my eyes again, watching Jake's chest as it rose and fell with his rhythmic breaths.

It doesn't matter how many memories I have of Grandpa, it doesn't matter how much fun we've had over the years, that will always be my last memory. New tears stumbled their way free.