Epilogue- Time, again

Approximately nine months later

I lay on my side in bed, the only way I wasn't completely uncomfortable, looking at the giant protuberance that was my tummy. It was huge, even bigger than I imagined it could be. I remember the silly times in my childhood where I had "pretended" to be pregnant- I had used a small throw pillow to simulate what I would look like. Not even close. Maybe if I had tried a basketball, I would be on the right track.

Jacob was lying next to me- sort of. In the last few weeks, he had become accustomed to gently resting his head on or near my bump. He was utterly fascinated with feeling any kick or movement, and of course he was able to pick up on a few extra things with his wolf senses; especially the baby's quickened heartbeat. Truthfully, it was adorable, watching Jacob's keen interest in everything having to do with my pregnancy. I smiled. He was young, but he was going to make a great dad.

As of now, we still called it the baby- we weren't sure yet if it was going to be a boy or girl. Jacob had his ideas based on how the baby was moving, but refused to clue me in, and he said it wasn't foolproof. I had the regular checkups, everything seemed fine- but I didn't care to know the sex- it didn't matter. We had some preliminary baby names picked out- Sarah Renee for a girl, Charles Harold for a boy- it was a lot easier when you just borrowed other people's. I had suggested William in honor of Billy, but Jacob thought that it would be cool to have Harold for Harry Clearwater- after all; it was his funeral that almost brought us together, caused us to almost kiss, so long ago. Besides, Jacob assured me, teasingly punching my arm, we were going to have a couple more boys, at least, so all the names would get used. Even Jacob itself- I loved the name and wanted a Jake Jr. around.

Jacob told me that there wouldn't be anything telling about whether or not our offspring had inherited the wolf gene- at least not until puberty. That was a relief. Although, it was uncertain whether the gene would ever get triggered at all. There were no more vampires in Forks. The Cullens had moved away.

I thought back to the day when Jacob and I finally got together. It was wonderful, amazing, magical- but it hadn't been without its hardships. Like all things in life, I was learning to take the bad with the good. I remember the phone call that I made to Edward's cell. Trembling fingers as I dialed the number. Feeling so awful for everything I had done to him that I just wanted the floor to swallow me up. I remember calmly explaining to him that I had made my choice, and that this time I wasn't going to change my mind; while on the inside all I wanted to do was break down. Edward had been as gracious about it as anyone could possibly ask. Certainly more gracious than I deserved. After I hung up the phone, I cried in Jacob's arms for hours. Thankfully, he understood.

I also remember speaking with Charlie, telling him that I was going to stay and be with Jacob. I didn't tell him the news of my pregnancy just yet- I felt like I was shocking him enough by saying that I wasn't going away to college after all. While he was ecstatic that I was going to be around, and loved Jacob like a son already, he was a bit apprehensive that I was choosing to stay in Forks instead of going to a reputable school like Dartmouth to pursue my career and my dreams. I told him that my dreams were coming true right here; but career-wise, I placated him by enrolling for a couple of courses at the local community college. Charlie even offered to pay tuition as long as I kept my grades up, which I gladly accepted. It was one of the easiest decisions I had to make- I would have tried to go to school anyway.

A few days later, I had received a packet in the mail. No return address on the envelope- I wondered if that meant that they were no longer at their place. All of the annulment papers, expertly drawn up by an attorney. They were already signed by Edward- his perfect script completing each page. All I had to do was sign the pages, put the papers in the addressed stamped envelope, and send it off.

It should have been easy. And that day, it was- I quickly signed my name in the required places and sent the packet back to some lawyer's office. But it wasn't always easy. I still thought of Edward, once in a while- and it made me sad, the way things turned out, in light of how they could have been. Wouldn't it have been much simpler if he had never come back after he left me? Instead things had to be so hard, so complicated. So much hurt. And there were things I missed about Edward, too- his soft velvet voice, his golden topaz eyes, his coolness- at least when it was hot out. But I found that if my mind ever wandered toward Edward, it never took long before I got a reality check, a swift kick in the butt.

Actually, in my case it was a swift kick in the gut. In fact, I was feeling them now, as our baby apparently didn't like the position in which it was laying and felt the need to move around. Every time I felt those kicks, I was reminded of how lucky I was; that I made the right decision. I suppose you could say it was partly the mother-child bonding, but it was also just the knowing that things were taking their natural course; it was supposed to be this way. I shifted position slightly. Jacob roused momentarily, but was soon back asleep and snoring again.

I thought some more. The Cullens' leaving actually turned out to be a good thing for more than the reason of me being able to avoid the occasional uncomfortable run-in with Edward- within a few months, Jacob had stopped phasing. Which benefited us tremendously, because it freed up a lot time that he would have had to spend with the pack. Though Jacob had offered to drop out of school and get a full-time job, I wouldn't hear of it. Instead, I continued to work at Newton's Olympic Outfitters while going to school. Yeah, the pay kind of sucked, and I had to deal with Mike Newton- crazily enough, he still couldn't seem to take a hint, though I found it humorous that as my stomach got bigger his not-so-subtle come-ons became fewer and finally ceased. But on the upside, it was low-stress, knowing the owners gave me some added flexibility, and I could study when it was slow- which was frequently. I enjoyed my coursework, a lot- and even though I still wasn't comfortable with blood, I opted for the Biology route. Though I didn't see myself becoming a doctor, I really liked genetics, especially when I thought about what made up the werewolf gene. Too bad they didn't teach that in the text.

As for Jacob, I had convinced him, in light of the child that we would soon have to support, that maybe it would be a good time to give up some of that pro bono mechanical work that he was doing, and maybe try to make a little bit of extra money out of it. Amazingly, word of mouth spread rapidly, and Jacob was able to bring in a steady income- in fact, some weeks it was better than a full-time job. He worked hard in his garage, late into the night sometimes- and was perfectionistic about doing everything right. He probably still undercharged people a little, giving them a way better deal than any other local mechanic. But I didn't care, I was proud of him- and it only drew in additional business.

Jacob and I got married shortly thereafter; I wanted to make sure it was before it was too obvious that there was any ulterior motive. It was a day of mixed emotions. Standing up and saying my vows out loud, again, in front of people, made me feel like a fake- I had done it before, merely a couple of months ago, and here I was again. But Jacob was great- he insisted that we do the wedding my way- meaning, no fancy invitations, no couture gown, no overblown reception. Instead, I wore a simple dress- no lace, no flowers- and we had the wedding right in La Push, in Billy's tiny backyard. It was small- Charlie, Renee and Phil, Angela and Ben, Billy, Jacob's sisters and their significant others, and, of course, the pack and their dates. No stress, just fun. We partied hard afterward- except for me, of course, drinking sparkling apple cider.

We figured that on our wedding day, when we had Renee and Phil around, too- would be the best time to make the announcement that we were expecting. We figured on such a big day our parents would be the least likely to get mad at us. They took it well- but, I realized in retrospect, it was because I don't think they were surprised. Why else would we rush?

A few days later, we got a big surprise. A combined wedding and shower gift from all of our parents- a house! More specifically, Billy's house- he decided to move in with Charlie. It was fantastic- they could take care of each other, easing my guilt a bit for moving out. Not to mention, when we brought our baby over, he or she could see both of their granddads at the same time. Charlie was ecstatic to have a roommate- I think after me being around he decided he didn't want to live alone anymore. We had been to visit several times- they seemed happy, like they really enjoyed each other's company.

So that's where we were- Jacob and I and our unborn little one, in our small shack in La Push. Lying in Jacob's bed. I smiled. Our life wasn't always easy- in fact; sometimes it was pretty damn hard. But it was all worth it. I was happy.

Well, happy except for my extreme discomfort. Just then, I experienced what I thought was a pretty painful cramp. But then, whoosh- all of a sudden much of the bottom half of the bed was soaked with a clear fluid. Jacob woke instantly.

"Honey, are you all right?" he asked, his deep-set eyes concerned, stroking my hair.

"My water just broke, Jake. We need to get to a hospital." I replied, smiling. "It's time. Don't worry; everything's going to be great."

And it was.