*** once again, this is another chapter redeux – essentially the same, but just wanted to let everyone know… ***

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. And the closest I can get to Jacob Black is in my dreams!

Tell me what you want to hear
Something that delight those ears
Sick of all the insincere
I'm gonna give all my secrets away
This time, don't need another perfect lie
Don't care if critics ever jump in line
I'm gonna give all my secrets away…

Secrets - One Republic

Jacob sat on the porch while everyone was gathered inside, watching the moon and thinking. He and Bella had almost kissed. She was remembering things. That was good. But she still didn't know how she felt about him. That was bad.

He sighed and leaned back, resting his weight on his palms. "Jaaaaake!" A voiced called.

Inwardly, Jacob groaned. "Yeah, Seth?"

Seth opened the screen door that led to the porch and happily trotted over to where Jacob was sitting. Then he noticed the glare that he was receiving. "Uh... hey man. Am I interrupting something?"

Jacob sighed. "When aren't you, Seth?"

Seth thought for a second before shrugging and replying, "Probably never. Can I join you anyway?" He choose a space next to Jacob and settled into it.

Jacob laughed at Seth's obliviousness. "Sure. Whatever. "

"So how your swim with Bella? You two sure looked cozy and all lovey dovey."

Jacob glared at him for the second time. "You sure know how to invade people's privacy."

Seth shrugged again. "Kinda like how I always know how to not shut up when I need to."

Jacob laughed. "Man, one of these days I'm just going to knock you out."

Seth inched his way out of arm's reach. "That's ok. It's all good that you're just jealous of how hot and wonderful I am."

"Oh god, Seth," Jacob smirked. "If there are two things you are not, it's hot and wonderful."

Seth pouted. "Whatever."

"I would use something more along the lines of dorky, clumsy, and uncoordinated." Jacob continued. "In human form, at least."

Seth brightened and puffed up his chest. "That's right. I'm a kickass wolf."

Their banter was interrupted by Emily opening the screen door. "Come back inside you two," She demanded. "Jacob has a guest!"

Jacob rolled his eyes at her, but he knew she was right. He needed to get himself under control. If not for Bella, or Sam, or Billy, or Charlie or the pack… then for himself.

Seth made kissy noises at him. "Oooo Beeellllllaaa."

Jacob glared at him again, but this time he added a deep growl, rumbling low in his chest. Seth stopped mid kissy-noise, his lips still puckered, eyes widening a little, afraid Jacob might actually hit him.

Jacob barked out a husky laugh at Seth's idiocy and headed in Emily's direction. He and Bella may have a long way to go in their relationship, but he had to be confident that things could only go up from here. Plus, she was here tonight, spending time with the pack… with him. And that was a good thing too.

He found everyone settled in the living room, claiming seats on the couches, floor and on pillows. He noticed that the only spot left was next to Bella. He groaned inwardly. How convenient. Jacob sat down next to her, trying to make himself comfortable, nestling down in the fluff of the couch arm, and took a long sideways look at her. She was wearing a pair of Emily's jeans and a graphic T, her hair down, wavy and messy, just the like casual girl that she always was. His eyes traced the slope of her neck, following the line of the t-shirt into the curve of her breasts, the gentle arch of her hip. His gaze lowered to the waistband of the jeans she was wearing and he fought against the reaction it caused in his pants. He inhaled deeply, and almost sighed – she smelled like vanilla and strawberries. He had no idea how that girl always smelled so good to him, but she managed. To some people, she may have only looked ordinary, but to him, she couldn't have looked more amazing.

Emily distracted him by standing and moving in front of the large TV. She clapped her hands together to get everyone's attention. "Alright guys, so tonight's movie has been chosen. It wasn't my pick, so don't blame me," She winked at Bella. "Bella has chosen…. An American Werewolf in Paris." All the guys groaned and handfuls of popcorn went flying in her direction. Her hands shot up in the air in defeat. "Hey, hey now!" she laughed loudly. "Give the girl a break! It's not like we have much of a selection." She looked pointedly at Sam. "Someone was supposed to take me to the movie place and somehow it slipped his mind." Boos filled the room and Sam shrugged innocently, and quickly reached up to snatch some popcorn out the air that Quil and Embry had thrown had him. Sam grinned at them and stuffed the small kernels into his mouth.

Bella laughed at their antics. She was doing her best to ignore the radiating heat she felt from the boy sitting beside her, but it was difficult. She looked out of the corner of her eye at him and found him looking at Quil, laughing about something. The muscles low in her stomach clenched and she looked away again, feeling the heat rising to her face.

Thankfully, Emily pressed play on the DVD player and dimmed the lights, leaving only the flickers from the screen to light the room. She was grateful for the darkness, if only for the fact that it hid her blush.

Jacob noticed the change in her body temperature and he shifted in his seat. He felt his own body responding, his groin tightening painfully. He pulled the small pillow he was leaning on over his lap, nervous that she would somehow notice how much she affected him, even in the dark. He shot a quick look in her direction, but her gaze was carefully fixed on the TV screen. He sighed and settled once again into his seat. This was gonna be a loooong night….

Boos and popcorn filled the air as the werewolf attacked someone on the screen. "Oh, come on, you bunch of neanderthals!" Bella protested loudly. "It was just getting to the good part!"

Seth scoffed. "This movie is a bunch of crap!"

She laughed at him. "Oh, yeah?" she asked him in a teasing voice. "What makes you the expert on werewolf behavior?"

"Everyone knows that werewolves don't act like that!" Seth argued, shaking his head to emphasize his point.

"Seth – " Sam interrupted, realizing where this conversation was headed. He reached towards the younger boy, but Seth moved out of his reach.

"The moon doesn't make us change!" Seth continued to protest.

"Damn it, Seth!" Sam said, loudly, reaching for him again, his fingers barely missing the collar on Seth's shirt before Seth jerked away again, completely oblivious to his Alpha's intentions.

"And we certainly wouldn't attack some random dude on the street!" he finished, satisfied with his answers. He smiled triumphantly, but then it fell quickly from his face as he realized what he had done.

Silence fell on the room. The movie still played, but no one was watching. All eyes turned to Bella, as a confused and shocked expression filled her face. "Us?" She whispered. She stood up and glared at Jacob. "What is going on?" Her voice got higher in pitch, and panic replaced the confusion in her eyes. She began to stumble over her words and waved her hands frantically around her face. "What are you talking about, Seth?"

"What? What did I say?" He struggled to keep his face blank, his eyes innocent, but the bright spots that appeared on his cheeks gave him away.

"You said us," she shrieked. "I heard you! You just called yourself a werewolf!"

Jacob stood up and grabbed for her hand, to attempt to calm her. Bella jerked herself out of his grasp, but not before the image of a dark wolf, alone in the quiet forest, watching her, danced through her head. She inhaled sharply, gagging as she realized that Seth was not confused. "Oh my God," she whispered, and then turned and ran out of the room. Jacob realized when he heard the door slam that she had run outside.

He raced after her, hearing Sam's growling behind him, knowing that it was directed at Seth.

Jacob found her on the porch, her knees against her chest, arms wrapped around them. She was rocking slowly back and forth. He sighed, his stomach tied in knots. He hadn't wanted her to find out this way, knowing how much of a shock it would be. He wanted to go and sit beside her, hold her, comfort her somehow, but he didn't figure she would be very receptive to it at the moment.

After several minutes of silence passed, he thought he would go crazy. He wanted desperately for her to say something. When he couldn't take the tension anymore, he finally whispered, "Bella?"

She reacted as if he slapped her, her body flinching viciously. "Don't touch me, Jacob," she whispered dangerously. "Don't touch me."

His insides ached to hear such fear in her voice. "He's just a kid, being stupid, Bells. You shouldn't listen to a thing he says."

"No, Jake," she replied frostily. "I don't think so. Everyone is hiding things from me, and I'm tired of it."

"Will you just take a walk with me?" he pleaded. "Maybe it will help you calm down."

"I don't want to go anywhere with you," came her cold response. She refused to look at him. She couldn't look at him. She was afraid of what would happen if she did.

"Please don't say that, Bells," he begged. "I would never hurt you."

"You already did," she shot back sharply. Her rocking had slowed, but she still hugged her arms tightly around herself, as if somehow it would protect her from the reality of the situation.

Jacob sighed, hanging his head. He pinched the bridge of his nose, silently cursing Seth for ruining what should have been a good evening for Bella. That kid was an idiot, but Jacob also knew he hadn't meant to say anything so stupid. But leave it to Seth to open his big trap and blurt out something about the pack.

So he did the only thing he could do – he just stood there, and waited for her to be ready to talk.

Inside, Seth cowered, lowering himself to the floor, his belly touching the hard wood, anything to appear as submissive as possible. "I'm sorry, Sam!" he mumbled. "I didn't mean to, I swear!"

"Do you know what you've just done?" Sam growled harshly. "She doesn't remember! That poor girl doesn't remember her own family, much less that supernatural creatures like werewolves and vampires even exist!" He shook his fist angrily in the younger boys' direction. "If you can't control yourself, Seth, I don't know how you're going to be a part of this pack."

Seth's eyes widened, panic and distress filling them. "Please don't kick me out, Sam!" he begged. "I'm sorry! I'll control myself, I swear!"

Sam shook his head. "It's too late now. I guess the wolf's out of the bag, so to speak…" He sighed, his gaze turning in the direction of the porch. "I can only hope that somehow Jake can salvage the situation and make things right with her." He looked at Emily, the only girl he would ever love. "I don't think he can survive losing her again…"

The waiting was killing him. He silently begged her to say something, do something, anything.

"Bella?" he tried again hopefully.

"What, Jake?" she said flatly, still not looking at him.

"Can we talk now?"

"Are you going to tell me the real reason why Seth referred to himself, and the rest of you, as werewolves?" Bella demanded.

"It's nothing, Bells, I swear," Jacob said quickly. "He was just being stupid."

"No, Jake," she shook her head adamantly. "No, he wasn't. I'm not blind, you know. You guys are crazy strong, you have all these muscles, you run around like you know where the ground is without even looking, so graceful and beautiful… and your body… is so… hot." His eyes widened, but she added, "Not like that, perv," her tone was nasty. "I meant your skin temperature. I touch you and you feel like you're on fire."

"It's just the way us Quileutes are," he said lightly, desperately hoping that she would believe him.

She snorted in disgust. "Right." She stood up then, and he was surprised at her sudden movement. "Forget it. I'm better off hanging out with Edward, then. If this is how it's going to be around here."

"What are you talking about, Bella?" he demanded. "I know how you feel about me! I can tell by the way you look at me, the way you touch me, the way your body reacts when I'm near. I'm not blind either – and I feel the same way!" He sighed, his fingers dragging roughly through his tangled hair. "Please don't leave me, Bells. Please. I don't think I could bare it."

"Why not," Bella sneered. "Can't stand a little competition?" She watched him stagger, as if she'd punched him, and she immediately felt horrid for throwing Edward in his face.

She was about to apologize when she saw the anger fill his eyes. "Is that way you want it, then?" He spit out, his hands clenching angrily into fists. "That…. That…. Ugh! I don't even know how to describe him!"

Her eyes narrowed, her blood boiling once more, and she decided that he didn't deserve the apology. "At least he's not hiding something from me!"

Jacob choked out bitter laugh. "You have no idea what he's hiding from you, Bells," his eyes became dark slits, his body shivering with barely contained rage. "You. Have. No. Idea." He managed to say through his clenched teeth.

He was startled when she laughed at him. "Goodbye, Jacob." He couldn't move as he watched her walk away. So he just watched.

Watched as the girl he loved walked out of his life.

Again.

From what you do, because of you
You know I can't be there
Each time that you call
I swore not to come, but I'm here after all
I know by the look that I see in your eye
I won't stand around and I won't watch you die
From what you do, because of you
What you do, what you do
What's become of you?
What you do, what you do
What's become of...?

Because of You - Nickelback

Jacob watched her until she disappeared into the darkness of the road, his body vibrating with anger, disgust, and regret. He shouldn't have let her leave like that, but what was he supposed to do? He couldn't tell her about the pack, not now, not yet. But instead, she wanted that leech? He almost gagged in revulsion. What was he even supposed to say to that?

He wanted to hate her. It would almost be easier that way – he could let her go, she could be with that bloodsucker. Then maybe it wouldn't hurt so much, knowing that she would turn to that thing for comfort. He would no longer imagine her reaching for those cold arms, kissing his cool lips, dreaming of the day he would bite her, ending her life. Jacob shuddered at the images, willing them out of his brain.

He growled, and plunged his shaking fist in the tree in the front yard. It groaned, splintering under his assault. He barely felt it.

He heard Sam open the door behind him. "Jake…" he said softly.

"Don't, Sam," he growled. "Just… don't."

"Did she leave?" Sam continued anyway.

"She called the bloodsucker," Jake spit out. "If that's the kind of thing she wants in her life, who am I to stop her?"

"Jake," Sam sighed. "You have to give her time. How did you expect her to act?"

Jacob shook his head violently. "I don't care! I have to… I just have to…"

"Go," Sam said. "It's ok. No one will bother you."

Without bothering to reply, Jacob sprinted towards the forest, relief flooding him, almost grateful at the feeling of his wolf bursting through his skin. He didn't even care that he'd shredded the clothes he was wearing.

He was free.

He raced through the darkness, his paws pounding the earth, and in each step, he poured his human rage, punishing the dirt with his heavy weight. He increased his speed and reveled in the strain he felt in his muscles as he pushed further into the shadows. His rage fueled him, building inside him, and it pushed his wolf faster, harder, than he had ever gone before.

He howled, releasing the anguish that was threatening to choke off the air to his lungs, and plunged deeper into the woods.

Running to forget.

To forgive.

Almost wishing he never had to go back.