As soon as my clock read 7:00AM, I sprung out of bed. I hadn't had much sleep, I was worrying about Jacob too much.
I know it was stupid, and probably pointless, but I had to be sure he was okay. So I hurried down to La Push to Check on him.
When I got there, Billy greeted me at the door.
"Hey, Bella!"
"Hi, Billy. Is Jacob up yet?"
"No, sorry. Turns out he has mono, I took him to a doctor last night. He needs all the rest he can get."
"Poor Jake! When do you think he'll wake up?"
"I don't know, bull I'll tell him you dropped by when he wakes up."
"Thank you, Billy."
He closed the door with a sullen look. It must be bad. I made a note that I'd bring him some soup for lunch. He probably felt awful, I wouldn't blame him if he didn't stop by. But I needed to see him, at least once more before the weekend was over.
I waited until Billy left to go fishing with Charlie, then I drove back over to La Push again to check on Jake. He was fast asleep on his bed, lightly snoring. His hair was cropped short and he was even bigger than the last time I'd seen him. Will he ever stop growing? I thought to myself.
"Jake," I whispered. "Jacob."
"Huh? What's, who...huh?" he mumbled, deliriously.
"It's me – Bella." I assured him. All of a sudden, his expression changed. He looked like he was having an epiphany. He just looked at me for a moment, lost in thought. Then he snapped out of it.
"What are you doing here?" He questioned.
"I brought you some soup, sleepyhead. Your Dad said you got mono, I thought it might make you feel better."
"Bella, you can't be here!" A look of concern washed across his face.
"Well, why not?"
"Because it's not safe, you're not safe!"
"Jake, please. What are you talking about?"
"It's not safe for you to be around me, Bella." He frowned, pulling his eyebrows together.
"I'm pretty sure I won't catch it." I tried to convince him. "What did you do to your hair? I loved your long hair! It was so beautiful..."
"That's besides the point, Bella!" He yelled at me.
"What is the point then, Jacob!"
"I...I can't tell you. Not now at least. Give me some time." I was so confused. He needed time?
"What do you mean 'give me some time'?" I asked, hoping for some sort of explanation.
"I need to talk to someone about my...problem, before I let you know..." He seemed like he was short on words. Like he didn't even know what was wrong with him.
"Okay...?" I thought about it for a minute. I didn't want to leave his side. But leaving him for a little while was better than losing him for a whole day.
"I'll give you two hours, Jake. If you haven't sorted it out by then, I won't care. I'll be stuck to you like glue, and you won't be able to get rid of me!" I smirked.
"Alright, then. I'll see you in two hours." He agreed and hugged me. Then he quickly left the room.
I waited about twenty minutes before he came back. It took less time than I expected him to need, but I still like the fact that I was able to see him even sooner.
"Hey, Bells."
"Got an explanation for me yet?"
"I think so, but it's going to have to take a lot of trust on your part."
"Well, go ahead. I think I can believe just about anything if I put my mind to it." He took a moment before he continued.
"Do you remember when we were at the La Push beach?"
"Yeah, why?" I really really confused now.
"Well, I want you to remember back to what I told you that day – about my tribe." My memory of that day started flooding back. It was when I foolishly attempted to flirt with him to get information.
"The legends...I remember you said something about tying canoes to the treetops. I also remember you said your tribe was descended from wolves. Then there was the story about the cold ones.." I wondered what on earth that would have to do with why he was sick, but I tried to follow his hints.
"Yes, Bella. You're on the right track." He paused. "But I think I should tell you something to help you along, okay?" I nodded, trying to understand.
"Well...I know about the Cullens...about what they are. After all, I was the one who told you about it in the first place..." Oh, no! He couldn't possibly know about the Cullens in that way. He told me it was just superstition. He can't know that, it could get him hurt. I thought to myself.
"I don't know what you're getting at, Jake."
"Don't worry, Bella. It's my job to know. My tribe knows about them, about the vampires." Oh, god! He does know. I screamed in my head.
"What? I thought it was all just silly superstition to you?" He smiled, it was one of the most beautiful and scary things I've ever seen. I had never seen him smile like that before. It was different to the smile he had before he was a werewolf.
"I didn't figure it out until last night. And that's what I want to talk to you about." I was worried about his safety. Because he knew about them, he could get killed.
"You know how that 'legend' was true? Well, the others are too. The one about wolves, for example. That's completely true..." I considered that. Vampires might not be the only monsters out there. "I want to show you something, if that's okay with you?"
"Yeah..." I said wearily. "What are you going to show me?"
"I'm just going to prove my last statement. Come outside with me." He grabbed a pair of black basketball shorts and a white T-shirt, and and grabbed my hand. He pulled me through the house and out the back door, into his yard. He found a spot that seemed to be very far from anyone's view and sat me down on a log.
"Don't be scared, okay? I'm going to phase. That means I'm going to turn into a wolf..." He tried to warn me. I rolled my eyes, thinking it was just a lame excuse for his behavior.
"Jake, quit joking around. Whatever it really is, you can just tell me. I won't freak out. I promise."
"Then don't freak out." He was serious now.
All of a sudden I heard a loud ripping noise, and it looked like Jake had exploded. A giant wolf was standing in his place. Just then I felt the blood drain from my head, and I began to loose consciousness.
I started to come to. All I could see was a fuzzy figure hovering over me. I wondered if what I had just seen was a dream. Jacob turning into a wolf was really unexpected, but wasn't too odd. I had seen and lived around vampires, so why would werewolves be hard to believe.
My vision went clear and I could see Jake with a concerned look on his face. He was holding me in his arms, right up against his bare chest.
"Jake, why aren't you wearing a shirt?" I asked. It was odd to see him shirtless. Not that he didn't look good, I had just never seen his bare chest before.
"Oh! I'll put one on if that would make you more comfortable." He offered.
"No, that's okay. Umm...Jake?"
"Yeah, Bells?"
"Was I just dreaming, or did you turn into a wolf a few moments ago?" I asked, shyly; I thought I would sound crazy for asking.
"No, you weren't dreaming." He said calmly.
"Wow!" I exclaimed. I was amazed that he had that ability.
"Jake! How come you never told me you could do that?" I was shocked that he had kept this a secret from me "...It would have saved me money on gas!" I added laughing. He laughed too.
"I just phased for the first time last night, Bells. I've only been a werewolf for one day." Well, that would explain it.
"Is that why you've changed so much?" I asked, wondering about the hair and muscles.
"Yeah. We toughen up a lot." He felt so warm, and so muscular.
"Why are you so hot, Jake? Are you sure you haven't got a fever, too?"
"No, we don't get sick. The heat is a wolf thing, too." I noticed he was still holding me in his arms like an infant, or like a husband would carry his wife across the threshold.
"Jake, why are you still holding me?"
"Because I want to." He grinned as he gently placed me down on his bed.