AN: Looking for ideas for future scenes. Am wondering if I should keep this story going or not. Let me know what you think. I am also looking for a beta. Thanks for reading.

Chapter 24

Jacob's POV

Three days into our vacation, I found myself out for an early morning run through the snow. Nothing made me feel alive like the feel of the wind through my fur. It kept me grounded, made me forget my worries. That is, until I came to a stop. My clothes were tucked away behind a tree where I could grab them before returning to the resort. I strolled, casually through the buffet, handpicking items to take up to our suite. I slipped through the door and down the hall past Emmalyn and Dillan who sat munching on their breakfast at the coffee table while watching an episode of Phineous and Ferb. Carlisle and Esme busied themselves reading sections of the paper while Bree and Renesmee painted each other's nails. Hope was nowhere in view. I found her still in bed, hair clumped to the side of her head, her breathing heavy. Without a sound, I lowered myself onto the bed beside her, my fingers moving to cautiously push the hair from her forehead.

I smiled, watching her sleep another minute before she began to stir. Her covers were kicked aside as she stretched out, her legs bare except for a small pair of shorts that left her quite exposed. I reached down to pull the blanket up before pausing a moment. Across the top of her thigh stretched a series of angry gashes that seemed to be anything but accidental. The perfection of each line, the distance of separation between each cut, and the conformity of the start and finish showed that care had been taken to make each one. My finger traced the top line before a hand snatched mine up.

"What are you doing?" she demanded, angrily, her nails biting into my flesh.

"The question is, what did you do?" I asked, squeezing her hand into my own.

"Nothing," she grunted, ripping her hand out of my grip before wiping the sleep from her eyes. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Fine. You hungry?" I asked, nodding to the box full of muffins, fresh fruit, and bacon.

"No! Get out! Just get out!" she shrieked, angrily.

"Hey," I used a gentle tone to try to bring her down, "Come on, I got you coffee," I dangled the coffee cup in front of her.

"I didn't ask you to," she snapped, wrapping the blanket around her. "Now, get out!" She shoved me back before tossing the box in my direction, sliced pineapple, blueberries and strawberries stained the carpet before the door opened to show a concerned-looking Carlisle standing in the doorway.

"What's going on?" his presence demanded an answer.

That's when Hope reached out to grab my hand, a look of desperation taking over as I clearly heard her unspoken request. It took me a moment to pull in my emotions, taking a deep breath, I took a seat on the bed across from hers before lifting my gaze to meet Carlisle's inquiry.

"Nothing..." I shook my head, "I just startled her when she woke."

The man didn't look convinced. "Is that true?" he turned to the girl who looked like a deer in the headlight.

"Jumpy this morning," she lied and I caressed her hand by rolling my thumb across the back of her hand. "Sorry..."

"Hmmm..." Carlisle's gaze moved to the fruit scattered across the carpet. "Clean this up. And this door, stays open..." With that, he turned and left us to it.

Hope's POV

I let out a breath of relief when Carlisle was gone. Turning to Jacob, I leaned over to press a kiss to his cheek. "Thank you," I whispered.

"Get dressed," he pulled a pair of sweats out of my suitcase and tossed a hoodie onto the bed before cleaning up the mess on the floor and closing the door behind him.

Jacob's idea of fun including snowshoeing down a woodland trail. We walked awhile in silence before reaching a bench set up along the banks of a frozen stream. In the distance, the sun rose between the peaks of the mountains. The view was truly beautiful.

A breakfast bar made its' way into my mittened hand along with a thermos cap full of hot chocolate which Jacob had produced from his backpack. "You never ate this morning," he shrugged as though the act of kindness was nothing.

"Sorry about that," I commented wryly. I was feeling guilty now for throwing his first attempt at breakfast.

"You had your reasons," he bit into an apple and took a seat beside me.

"I guess..." I sighed, deeply.

"Hope, you can't expect me to see what I saw and not expect answers. I even lied to Carlisle for you. Now, you owe me some answers," his tone was gentle yet firm. It clearly made the point that I was not getting of the hook. "How did you get those cuts?"

I couldn't look at him. Not now. "Why are you asking questions you already know the answer to?"

"Because I was trying to give you the benefit of the doubt," he admitted. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw how heavily this weighed upon him. "How long have you been cutting?"

"I only did it once," my response sounded more guarded than I'd planned.

"Is that true?" he was tracing a series of symbols in the snow with a stick he'd found beneath the bench. It seemed he was trying to distract himself. Emotion was strong in his tone.

I nodded, fighting back tears.

Jacob paused a moment before giving a response, "I know you're hurting. I can't imagine what you're going through, but Hope, you can't do this to yourself."

"It was a one time thing...I swear," I took a long sip of my cocoa fighting back tears. "I have no intensions of doing it again."

"I wish I could believe that," he removed his glove, taking my hand in his own. I was surprised at how the warmth of his skin penetrated my mitten. He was like a furnace. "My mom died in a car accident when I was nine."

The silence was weighted. I felt as though I couldn't breathe waiting for his next words.

"My sisters, Rachel and Rebecca, they were older and filled the mom role as best they could til they got older and moved away. I still miss her. Time has made it better, I guess, but she was, she is...my mom and nothing can replace that. I still remember the smell of her perfume, the sound of her humming as she made us breakfast and her smile...I guess I miss that most of all."

"I...I'm sorry, I didn't know," I felt my eyes overflowing with tears and next thing I knew, my lips were pressed up against his as I clung to his broad, strong shoulders. His lips were firm yet soft as they met the urgency of my own. I felt his hands run down my back, pulling me close before enclosing my face on both sides. He was first to end the kiss, drawing his lips away, and maintaining an intimate distance between us so he could gaze into my eyes. Then simply, he spoke three words.

"You're not alone."