Double updates! Yay :) Now THIS is more like it! Oh, it's sooo good to be back!
Chapter 9: One Big Freakin' Happy Family
"Hey, Wolfman," Renesmee said, poking Jacob to wake him up. He had fallen asleep at the kitchen table.
"Hmm?" he groaned softly, lifting his head slightly to look at her.
"Could you try and stay awake, please? Just a for a little longer, I promise."
"You said that three hours ago," he sighed sitting up and stretching his arms out above his head.
"Two and a half," she corrected him with a small smile. "This time I mean it though. I'm sorry it's taking so long, Jake, but Auntie really wants us to get this invite list done so she can start sending out invitations."
"Why can't we just call everyone the day before?"
"Why can't we just run to Vegas and be done with it?"
"Now you're on the right track," Jacob chuckled, getting up and standing behind the chair where she sat. He began to caress her neck, when suddenly, he froze.
She turned to face him and saw his blank expression. "Are you ok?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"You're," he choked, "you're inviting Rebecca?"
"Well, yeah," she shrugged. Originally, it had seemed like a good idea, but now she was thinking not so much.
"Why?"
"Jacob, she's your sister. She should probably be at our wedding. We're inviting Rachel."
"That's different," he said with an edge of irritation in his voice.
"How?" she demanded, standing up from her chair so she wasn't at such a height disadvantage.
"Because Rachel knows about me! About us!" he exclaimed, growing more irritated. "Rebecca won't understand. Besides, weren't you the one that told me I would never be able to see her again? I'd have to explain to her why I still look the way I did eight years ago, and there's not really a way to do that unless I just show her, which you said would scare her to death."
"I know having her here won't be easy, Jake," she cried, getting frustrated now as well. "It's not going to be easy having Charlie or Renee here either, but we're inviting them! And honestly, I think you'll regret it one day if we don't at least invite her."
"I don't know why I'm even worried about this," he sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "It's not like she'd ever actually come anyways."
Before Renesmee could say anything, there was a knock at the front door of the cottage, and suddenly, Alice was standing before them. She looked between the two of them and asked, "Am I interrupting something?"
"No, Auntie," Renesmee sighed. "What's up? Are Mom and Dad staying at the mansion tonight?"
"Probably," Alice shrugged. "But Bella's going to come check on you later, so tonight would not be a good one for a sleepover."
"Thanks for the heads up, Shortie," Jacob chuckled.
"Oh, and I have good news," Alice smiled, clasping her hands together and jumping up and down. "The first thing, is that Emmett and I are each planning a wedding surprise for the two of you."
Renesmee groaned but Alice ignored her and continued with her news, "And Phil, Renee, Rebecca, Leah, Peter, Charlotte, and Nahuel are all coming to the wedding! I saw it."
"Auntie, you can see our wedding!" Renesmee grinned.
"Well, just bits and pieces," Alice said humbly, though obviously pleased with herself.
"Wait, wait, wait," Jacob said, a shocked look on his face. "You said Rebecca? She's actually taking time out of her fantastic life in Hawaii to grace us with her presence here?"
"Jake," Renesmee chided gently, wondering where all of this hostility was coming from.
Alice ignored his sarcasm. "Yeah," she said. "She and her husband and their two daughters are coming."
"Hang on," Renesmee said, turning to look at him. "You have nieces? Why didn't you ever tell me?"
"Why would I?" he said bitterly. "I've never met them. Heck, I didn't even know there were two of them!"
Renesmee felt her jaw drop. "You've never met them?"
"Nope," he said with a shrug. "Billy and I used to get a couple pictures every now and then, with a card that said 'Hope all is well. I really miss you, we're going to try and come up for' and then you'd just insert whichever holiday was closest. What a load of crap."
Renesmee shook her head. She couldn't imagine her life without ever knowing either one of her uncles. "Jake, I'm sorry," she whispered.
"Why?" he scoffed. "She's probably planning on making everything up to us by coming to the wedding. Then we'll all be one big freaking happy family."
Approaching him, Renesmee placed her hand against his cheek, showing him a memory of him and Rachel laughing and having fun together. Didn't he want the chance to have that with Rebecca too?
"No, I don't," he growled, taking her hand away, while his own shook uncontrollably. "I'm going for a run."
"Jake, wait," she called, following him to the front of the house. But she was too late. He was gone. From the front window she saw him disappear into the trees. "Damn," she muttered, slamming her hand against the door. "What've I done?"
"You didn't do anything," Alice assured her, placing her hand on Renesmee's shoulder. "Something's bothering him that has nothing to do with you. Just give him some time. I'm sure he'll talk to you about it when he's ready."
"I hope so," she sighed.
"Meanwhile," Alice grinned, grabbing her niece's hand and dragging her back into the kitchen, "this should make you feel better."
Renesmee gasped when she saw all the bridal magazines her aunt had spread out on the table.
"Wedding dresses!" Alice squealed. Then, remembering her niece was part human, and sometimes had human needs, she asked, "Unless you're too tired? We can always do this tomorrow if you want to go to bed."
Renesmee glanced at the clock. Holy cow, it was almost two in the morning! No wonder Jacob had been falling asleep at the table earlier. Poor Jacob. He had been so angry. How long would he be gone? Would he come back tonight? She still wasn't sure what she'd done, but she knew it had to be something bad to make him get so angry with her. "No," she sighed, sitting down and picking up a magazine. "I don't think I could go to sleep now even if I wanted to."
Suddenly they heard the door open and Renesmee's head snapped up, thinking, wishing for a moment, that it might be Jacob. But it was Bella's voice she heard. "Renesmee? Alice?" she called.
"In the kitchen, Bella," Alice answered for both of them.
"Mom, Dad," Renesmee said when her parents entered the room. "Is everything ok?"
"That's what we came to ask you," Bella said.
"I heard Jacob's rather angry thoughts a few moments ago," Edward explained. "What happened?"
"I don't know," Renesmee sighed shaking her head. "I'm sorry Auntie, but I just can't do this right now. I have to go after him."
"Be careful," Edward called as she made her way towards the door. He knew what Jacob was like when he was angry. "Jacob may not be in the mood to talk."
"Sure, sure," she called over her shoulder, letting the door slam behind her.
Once outside, Renesmee followed the pull that she knew would always lead her to Jacob, the same pull that had let her know when he had been bitten by the vampire, and the same one that had led her to him when he had been attacked by Alexander and his pack. She ran through the rain that was beginning to fall, up to the cliffs of La Push. Her big russet wolf stood on the ledge looking over the reservation. "Jake," she called out to him.
A low growl erupted from his chest as he swung his head around to look at her. She gasped. Never in her entire life had he growled at her. Never had she seen such anger in his dark eyes. Her hands clenched into fists by her side and she took a deep breath before she stepped cautiously towards him. "Jake, calm down. We need to talk."
Not now, Ness, he thought, turning back around to look over the water.
"Yes, now!" she demanded, moving to stand by his side as the rain came down harder. She leaned her head against his fur and sighed. How could she expect him to calm down when her own temper kept spiking? Jake, she thought softly, what's going on? Something's obviously bothering you. What's wrong? Tell me. Please, Jakey.
Jacob hung his head but remained silent.
Did I do something? Whatever it was, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you so upset.
You think you're the reason I'm so angry? he thought, looking down at her.
Well, I did. Up until you just said that, and now I'm thinking I'm not.
Of course you're not, he thought in a much gentler tone than before. I could never be mad at you, Nessie.
But you were so angry when you saw that I had invited Rebecca.
Well, yeah, but I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at her.
Why? She's your sister, and I know she hasn't been around all that much, but I thought that was why we should invite her. So you two could get to know each other again. Jacob... I don't understand, she thought desperately. Reaching up, she placed her small hands on either side of his huge wolf face and looked into his sad eyes. Make me understand.
You're soaked, Ness, he thought, lying his head against her shoulder in their own special form of an embrace. Come back to my house and dry off. I'll explain everything there.
"Ok," she sighed, climbing onto his back. She didn't care what her parents would think, or what they might do to her, when she didn't come home. It didn't matter. Her Jacob was in pain, and he needed her. Nothing would keep her from his side.
Tonight was beginning to look like the perfect night for a sleepover.
