Chapter 8

Jake looked at the white house and feelings of dread crept over him. Underneath all the anxiety he knew he was doing the right thing, but in that moment, all Jake could think about was the last time they'd spoken; a chance encounter on the road. She was wearing her wedding ring, but otherwise, seemed unchanged.

Leah was at home waiting, she said it was best that he do this alone.

Just then the front door opened and she was walking briskly towards him. He took a deep breath, regretting it instantly as the sickly-sweet smell assailed his sense. He smiled tentatively, but couldn't make himself move.

"Jake!" She said brightly, coming to a stop.

"Hey Bells."

She moved as if she was going to hug him, but then stopped, and awkwardly stepped back a bit.

"What are you doing here?"

"Didn't the bloodsucker tell you that too? I thought she could see into the future." He supposed it wasn't the best place to start, but he couldn't help it. Thankfully she just rolled her eyes. "Actually I wanted to talk to you about some… things. Do you want to go for a drive or something?"

Her brown eyes searched his for a long moment, then finally she replied.

"Sure."

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Somehow they ended up at the beach. She was being cautious around him, he could tell. Who could blame her though, he guessed he'd sort've gave her the impression he didn't want to see her anymore. It was strange being so near to her now and not having those feelings anymore, Jake thought. She was still one of his closest friends, and he could never condone what she was doing to herself, but at the same time, doing crazy things over stupid feelings suddenly made sense to him.

"So what's up?"

Jake sighed, trying to decide how to say this. He took one of her pale hands in his.

"Bells, I care about you a lot."

"Look Jake-"

"Wait. I care about you a lot, and I don't want you to suffer anymore because of me."

She looked puzzled, furrowing her eyebrows.

"I know I've made things difficult for you, I'm sorry for that. Here's the thing… I'm in love with Leah." Her mouth instantly popped open in surprise. He waited a few long tense seconds as she processed that. He saw a million emotions cross her eyes, like there were really cogs turning inside her mind, but still she remained silent and agape. "You know you're gonna start catching flies." He told her ruefully. She snapped her mouth shut, smiling ever so slightly.

"I can't believe it…. When? How? I mean, I'm so happy for you, it's just…."

"Unexpected?"

"Well yeah!"

He chuckled,

"Trust me, I know."

"But I really mean that," she said, squeezing his hand briefly, "I am happy for you, more than you can imagine."

"I think I believe that."

She hit him lightly, he barely even felt it.

"Does this mean you'll come to my wedding?" she asked in a small voice. He ran his fingers through his hair. Was I ready for that? He wondered. She looked at him hesitantly,

"Sure I will."

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Just as he was expecting, Leah was waiting impatiently for him when he finally went to her house. She threw her arms around him before he could even open his mouth.

"Did everything go ok?" she asked, still holding him.

"Yeah, surprisingly."

"I'm really proud of you." He laughed lightly,

"Thanks."

She pulled back, taking his hand and leading him out of the house.

"Come on, Emily made a huge lunch for everyone." she said briskly. He noticed she wasn't making eye contact with him. He stopped suddenly, making her turn to look at him. Her dark eyes were moist.

"What is it?" he asked quietly, moving closer. She shook her head, shrugging,

"Nothing, nothing. I was just being a stupid girl."

"Leah-"

"Let's go, we're going to be-"

"Shut up." and she did, instantly, her eyes wide. "What is it?" he repeated firmly, but his eyes were soft. Leah sighed,

"I don't know… I guess some part of me was just afraid that, when you saw her again, you might… I mean it's not like we've imprinted on each other or anything…" He was shocked that she would think that. Jake suddenly grasped her face in his hands, speaking fervently to her,

"Who cares if we haven't?! I… love… you, do you hear me? Screw imprinting! This feels so much more right, because it's real! And that's not going to change, I promise." she winced at the last word, and he sighed. "I'm not him Leah." she blinked rapidly, squeezing his forearms so hard it hurt.

"I know… I'm sorry."

He quickly pulled her face to his in an urgent kiss. She matched him in passion, a few lone tears spilling down her cheeks. Her fingers were like a vice on his arms, and his hand gripped her hair tightly, holding her head in place. Their lips moved feverishly together, the potency of the kiss overwhelming them both.

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Time suddenly began to pass very easily and without much incident. Jake and Leah grew closer and closer, along with the rest of the pack. He stopped having the nightmares, and had never felt more content in his whole life.

The pair began making plans for college together. Jake would be graduating soon, and then they'd both decided to go to a local school to study. The borders of their territory were never crossed, though the patrols continued to run. Leah spent more and more time with Emily, and the girls soon grew almost as close as they had once been. Then, Sam and Emily discovered they were going to have a baby. Everyone was thrilled for them. It was a couple months after this announcement that things suddenly changed.

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Fog was surrounding him again. His human ears heard the cries from close by. Jacob ran through the mist calling out to her.

"Leah!"

There she was in front of him, running like her life depended on it. He yelled her name again, following her, but she didn't seem to hear or see him. In her arms she carried something that she kept close to her chest. Her eyes were wild as she ran, her breathing ragged.

Suddenly the mist closed in, just as he saw a snow-white creature chasing after her.

"No!" she screamed. Jake echoed her cry, but she was lost to him.

When he awoke it wasn't violently. His heart was pounding though, and he was a bit damp with sweat. It was the middle of the afternoon. He'd been up late last night on patrol and had dozed off in front of the T.V. Billy was milling around in the kitchen.

Just then the telephone rang.

"Hello?" came Billy's voice, "Oh Leah dear, how are you?…. Sure, he's right here." Billy nodded to Jacob, who stood to get the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey." She sounded a little apprehensive.

"How are you?"

"Umm.. I need to talk to you. I'm at Emily's."

Jake frowned,

"Sure, I'll be right there." And then she hung up.

"What was that about?" Billy asked.

"I'm not sure. I'm going to Sam's alright?"

"Ok."

Jake quickly ran to his room to throw a shirt on, then bolted out the front door in a run. Everything flew past him as he ran to the small house, his mind racing ahead of him. What could this possibly be about? She'd sounded so distracted on the phone. The errant thought that maybe she'd imprinted flew through his mind, but he pushed that aside, not liking the way it made his heart stop.

At last he made it to the house. Emily had the door open when he got there.

"She's out back." she said quietly. He might of imagined it, but he swore there was a tiny smile in her voice. Jacob marched through the house and out the back door. Leah was there sitting on a lawn chair, her legs curled up under her, staring into the forest.

She turned to look at him when he came through the door. She looked tired, and her hair was a bit messy. Jake forced a small smile on his face, coming to crouch next to her.

"Hey baby."

"Hey." she replied. Her voice not unhappy, but not exactly bright either.

"So… what's going on? Are you ok?"

She nodded slowly, absently toying with the hair curling around his neck.

"I think so. But…" his heart constricted,

"But what?"

She met his gaze,

"Well, I'm pregnant."

A/N: Hello everyone. I know this took awhile, as a matter of fact I was reading Breaking Dawn, which is excellent! Full of surprises. I'm not sure yet how much of breaking dawn will influence the plot of my story. We'll have to see. But yes! She's pregnant, but there's still more bombs to be dropped. Let me know what you think! Till next time.