Hey guys! Chapter 6 has arrived. And oh, man. A lot of you, surprisingly, sided with Nessie. And from your comments, I can see both sides of the table. But then I am the omniscient author :) This chapter and probably the next couple chapters are going to be difficult. I hate hurting Jacob. I love him to death. And Nessie...well, Nessie will be Nessie. Also, a lot of you might get mad about Edward's response to all of this. It actually shocked me when it came to me, but it's not in this chapter. So hold tight. It's gonna be a rough one.

*Disclaimer here*

Please Enjoy

SethPOV

Something was seriously wrong. I could feel Jacob's agony and anger as we ran. He knew I felt it, but he kept reciting random mechanical things. And Nessie hadn't looked much better. They both looked as if they were dead, their eyes emotionless as they stared off into nothing. But when one or other had glanced at the other, emotion welled up. Anger and sadness in both of them. More anger on Jacob's side and sadness on Nessie's.

Jake, I know you don't want to talk about it,-

Then let's not talk about it.

Jacob, what happened?

I thought we weren't talking about it?

Jacob!

What?!

I dug my claws into the ground and sped ahead of him and then turned on him, blocking his path. His choices were skidding to a halt or mowing me down. For a moment, I thought he might pick the second choice, but last second he dug his paws into the ground. Those massive shoulders hefted up and down as he caught his breath.

Whether you like it or not, Jacob, you need to talk to me about this. Your head's not in the game right now.

Why? There's nothing you can do to change anything.

Maybe not, but talking about it might help you figure out how to fix it since whatever's going on is between you and Nessie.

He flinched both physically and mentally at her name.

What happened, Jacob, I asked softly.

He whimpered and lowered himself to his belly and covered his eyes with his massive paws.

Not right now, Seth. Please. It's too fresh.

She didn't have her ring on. I saw that.

Fine, he growled out. She's not sure of me anymore, ok? She doesn't know if I love her beyond the imprint. That in fact the imprint pulls me to her when I don't really want to be there.

At first, all I did was stare at him. She what?

Yeah. He got to his feet and started pacing. Seth, from what she said, I can see her point. I opened my damn mouth and told her that I wasn't the same guy that I was before Edward came back for Bella eleven years or so ago. She thinks that I actually hate her and that's why I pull away from her when we get…close. She says I must come to my senses and realize what I'm doing because the imprint pulls me to her when I don't really want to be there.

That's bullshit, Jacob. You don't hate her.

No, but Seth, she's right. If I had left after Bella's heart stopped and never seen nor imprinted on Nessie and I came back, would I still hate her for being the reason Bella had to be changed?

Jacob, listen to me. Bella would have changed whether or not she was pregnant and was forced into the change. You and Nessie are soul mates. End of that argument.

But how am I going to prove that to her when it's true that I would have come back hating her for the death of her mother? A woman that I really didn't love in the first place? The only reason I was drawn to her was because she was supposed to give birth to Nessie. The universe was keeping me next to Bella so that I would be there to see Nessie.

Did you tell her that?

Well, no, but,-

No 'buts', Jake.

He shook his head and paced faster. But I can't just go after her right now and say all that. She'd think I was desperate. I need to actually take time to think about this. And then he stopped and just stared into the trees. But, damn, I'm so fucking pissed off. This imprint shit wasn't supposed to come back like this. We were supposed to be done with it.

Ok, so she has a valid point. But this anger isn't you, Jake. This is how you were with Bella and Edward, especially with Bella.

He stopped pacing and looked at me. What are you talking about?

I sighed. Your anger with Edward was one thing. But the way you were pissed off with Bella never made sense to me. You were bipolar with her. One second sweet as pie. The next you were all up in her face, angry with her. And now you're angry at Nessie for fighting something that she feels needs to not be accepted blindly. She has a point. You need to sit down with her and go over your life and explain to her what that comment meant.

She thinks I'm a stranger, Seth. Our whole nine, almost ten, years together? She's rethinking all of that. What do I do?

Jacob, in a way, you are a stranger. She changed you. You're so different than what you used to be, but times change people. You weren't going to stay the sixteen year old chipper kid that you were when Bella first sought you out after Edward left. You aren't him anymore. That's what she's trying to understand. She's only ever known you like this and I bet you that she's trying to imagine you a different way. So in a sense she feels like you've been lying to her.

Goddammit, Seth. Am I supposed to give her my whole life story?

Mentally, I shrugged. Maybe that's what it will take for her to understand.

Ugh! Look, can we just drop this and run? I need to move. I need to…to move.

Sure, big guy. Let's do some laps.

And laps we ran.

RPOV

Sometime late in the afternoon, there was a knock on my door. I'd been sitting on the floor in front of my wall that was covered in pictures for hours. Pictures of me and Jacob. God, had I really torn us apart like that? My eyes kept dragging and latching onto the picture that was and always had been my favorite. Jacob and I were standing outside in the winter. He was wrapped around me from behind. And while I smiled and looked at the camera, he smiled and stared at me over my shoulder, his arms around my waist.

"Nessie?" Shelby's voice was gentle as it came through the door. The house had been silent ever since I heard Emily come pick up Leila. Her voice kind of startled me.

I quickly and angrily swiped my tears away. "Yeah?"

She hesitantly opened the door and stepped inside. Her smile was sad yet hopeful. "Hey."

"Hey." Even to my ears my voice sounded dead, devoid of any emotion.

"Would you like something to eat? I was going to make some pasta."

I was about to open my mouth to say no, but my stomach rumbled, giving me away. Bastard.

Sighing, I lifted myself off the floor using the bed at my back. It was odd to be moving, feeling things. But after a moment of struggling to my feet, I frowned and ran my hand against the comforter. Nothing. I felt absolutely nothing. I couldn't tell if it was warm or cold, soft or unyielding. Bringing my hand up to my face, I rubbed my fingers together. Still, I felt nothing. Not even the ridges of my fingerprints.

"Nessie? What's wrong?"

Something about the not feeling tugged at my memory, but I didn't know what it was. And I couldn't recall what was lurking around.

So I dropped my hand and turned to Shelby. "Nothing. Let's eat. I'm starving."

Shelby POV

That girl had a bad habit of lying and keeping things from me. I scowled at the back of her head as I followed her down the stairs. But as soon as we got to the kitchen, I tried to smooth it out. Something was wrong between her and Jacob. And she was probably super upset about it. The dead look on her face when I'd opened the door had knocked the breath out of me…and scared me shitless. And her fake I'm-ok-it's-nothing routine was wearing on my nervous rather quickly.

While she sat at the table, I went over to the stove where I'd already started boiling the pasta. It was coming along nicely. And now for the sausage and sauce. Abruptly, I tossed the wooden spoon on the counter and twirled around on my heel.

"Nessie, please talk to me."

She just shook her head and hugged her shoulders, not meeting my eyes.

"Renesmee Carlie Cullen."

At the sound of her full name, she turned and looked at me with eyebrows raised.

"That's better. Now, I'm serious. I don't like seeing you like this. What happened up there?"

She blinked those dark chocolate eyes at me. But I could see that she was about to change the subject.

And sure enough… "Where is everybody?"

I ground my teeth, surprised they weren't a fine powder by now, and swiveled back around to the stove.

"They went on a hunting trip that'll last a few days."

"What? Why didn't they tell me they were leaving?"

I shrugged. "It was spur of the moment. And they probably figured you and Jacob would like some down time, but apparently he's running himself into the ground and you're in zombieland."

"I am not."

The snort that came out of me would have made a Valley Girl proud. "Yeah, whatever bakes your cake, hun."

She growled slightly. "I'm completely fine."

"Uh-huh. Then, I guess they changed the definition of 'fine' in the last few hours and forgot to tell me about it, because, sweetie, you are most certainly not fine."

There was nothing but silence behind me. And when I turned around, I felt like a bitch from hell. Tears were flowing freely down her cheeks as she rested her chin on her crossed arms.

"I'm sorry, Nessie," I said as I went to her.

Surprisingly, she let me wrap my arms around her. She didn't hug me back, but after a second or two, I felt the tremors in her body that let me know she was now on a full crying jag. And I just held her through it. I stroked her long bronze curls that were so much like Edward's and murmured into it, saying things like it's ok and we'll get through it. Seth was out with Jake, and no doubt my mate had gotten the Alpha to talk. He had a way with people. A way that I didn't possess. Nessie and I were both stubborn and went head to head all the time. We could never agree to disagree. It was one or the other with us. And right now, she was winning.

After a while, she lifted her hand to scrub away the tears. "Thank you, Shelby. It's just too soon to talk about. And let's just say that I may have put something in motion that Jake and I may not be able to fix."

Stroking her hair again, I went down on my haunches. "Oh, Nessie. If there's anything I say about this that you will listen to, make it this. You and Jake are supposed to be together. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. I don't know what's going on, but you can come to me. Or hell, anybody. Go to anybody. Just don't keep what's going on inside. Jacob has Seth, and I know those two are gossiping like old biddies. So please, don't keep it in. I don't want to see you rip yourself apart."

She gave me a sad almost-smile and put her hand over mine. "Thanks. It's too soon for me to talk about now. I need at least one more day to think about things."

"Promise me, Ness. Right now. Promise me that you will talk."

She just stared at me.

Sighing, I got to my feet and went back to making dinner. And then surprised myself at what came out of my mouth.

"I think I'm pregnant."

There was a gasp behind me. The scrape of a chair. And then a hand on my shoulder. The urge to cry surfaced. She knew my fears. And I had temporarily helped her forget her worries at the sacrifice of bringing mine to the surface.

She turned me to face her. Finally, there was emotion in her eyes. Happiness, sadness, love, worry, and understanding all there in her eyes.

"Shelby?"

I nodded and tried not to choke. Going back to the food, I cleared my throat and said, "Yeah, I've been eating weird stuff. And Seth says that he's noticed I've gained a little weight. Caden said that that shouldn't happen with my new high metabolism."

"Have you taken a test yet?"

I shook my head, my hair bouncing into my face. "No. Seth and I were waiting for you and Jake to come home. We wanted you guys here when we found out."

Her voice, when it came, was muffled as if she'd covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh, God, Shelby. I'm so sorry."

"It's ok. You didn't know. And of course, Seth and I are pretty sure we are. Caden thinks that might be why I haven't shifted even though I was turned in November." Taking a deep breath, I turned around and leaned on the counter. "I think I was pregnant then, too, and I just lost the baby when I was attacked. It's a logical explanation."

Without warning, Nessie pulled me into her arms. "I am so f'n sorry, Shelby. God, I'm so self-absorbed that I haven't noticed any of this."

I hugged her back, squeezing hard. "Ness, it's ok. You have to get your shit figured out. It will consume you until you do, and I understand that. Seth and I can wait for a while before the test until you can get things together with Jake. And you can't avoid him forever. I know that's what you want to do, but that confrontation has to happen. Do you hear me?"

After a couple heart beats, she nodded.

"Good. Now, let's eat. I'm starving. Afterward, I'll make some for the boys just in case they come back tonight. Seth will want to take care of Jacob."

"Because of me," Nessie whispered as she set her bowl on the table.

"Nessie-,"

"I questioned his love for me," she said in a whisper.

JPOV

Something was utterly wrong. Everything, actually. Everything was wrong in the world right now, now that Nessie and I were separated. God, my chest hurt. But it gave me hope that she'd wanted to keep the ring. I hadn't lost her yet, not completely.

Hey, Jake.

Seth's voice brought me out of my thoughts and plans. What's up?

I know you're stuck in your head, but do you smell that?

Frowning, I put my muzzle to the ground and sniffed. Nothing there. So I lifted into the breeze and smelled…blood. A lot of it. My senses told me that it wasn't human or wolf so that was a relief. But it was some kind of animal. A warm-blooded animal.

Jake, man, what do you wanna do?

Follow it. And then I searched my mind for any other voices. Christa, you wanna come with?

Instantly her voice was there in the front of my mind like Seth's was. Sure. Let me get up to you. I'm just in front of the Cullen house. When the name made me flinch, she grimaced. Sorry.

Not a problem. We'll wait on you.

Seth and I waited in silence as we heard Christa work her way up here. We could see as she kept her eyes open to her surroundings as she moved, her ears, eyes, and nose working fiercely. Her movements were lithe and silent, a ghost lurking through the trees.

Within five minutes, she was standing at attention in front of me, her eyes cool and collected.

Get a whiff of the scent and let's follow it.

We lifted our noses to the breeze. The scent of blood was tangy and metallic in my brain. That was a helluva lot of blood on the air. Whatever it was had to be dead. But there was also another scent mixed with it. One that I couldn't quite place. It was, at the same time, familiar and not.

As one, the three of us started into the trees, heading northeast. The closer we got, the stronger the smell became until it was a roaring scream in my head, and all I wanted to do was stand over an air freshener for days. Slowly, we came to an opening in the trees. It looked like the entranceway to a clearing.

Easy, guys. Could be a trap.

They tightened their ranks around me, our flanks touching as they positioned their muzzles out to circle the clearing as we moved out of the shelter of the trees. We scanned the surrounding trees with narrowed eyes, our noses trying to sludge through the heavy scent of blood for any other threatening scent. When none of us found anything, our eyes moved as one to the center of the clearing.

Shit.

Oh, my God…

What the hell happened?

We thought at the same time.

Blood was everywhere. And the past came back in a rush. This was exactly the same scene that Nessie and I had come across last year. Only a lot worse. The trees and grass…everything was covered in blood- and skin and meat. The only part of the deer that wasn't touched was the head. From the neck up, it was untouched.

Jesus, Jake. I'm glad Nessie's not here to see this one. It would for sure give her nightmares.

No shit. But what did it? Last time there was the smell of the other wolves, that disease. I don't smell it this time around.

Maybe a mountain lion came too close? Christa suggested.

Maybe. I still feel uneasy.

Are we gonna clean up?

Yeah. But Christa, you go back to the rez and tell Sam what we found. Be sure Em's not around. I don't wanna freak her out if this really was a lion.

Sure thing. See you guys later.

After I was sure that she was gone, Seth and I phased back and started cleaning up as best we could. What was left of the deer, we shoved into the brush. Hopefully a bear or something would come finish off the rest. We used dirt to scrub the blood off the trees and threw some on the weeds and surrounding shrubs.

When we were satisfied, we took off. It was time for this patrol shift to end anyway. And whether she was angry with me or not, I needed to be close to Nessie. Especially after this. It was like we were being haunted by past episodes and I needed to know that she was ok.

The house came into view in record time. We both paused at the edge of the trees to phase back and slip into our jeans. Stuffing a hand into my pocket, I breathed a sigh of relief as I felt my mother's ring. Seth slapped me on the shoulder and squeezed as we went through the kitchen door. The wonderful smell of sausage and pasta greeted us like old friends and our stomachs grumbled. Shelby was at the sink washing dishes. The food that she'd cooked was sitting in containers on the counter as if they were cooling off before she put them up, or waiting for us to come eat them.

Before Seth even thought about food, he went to Shelby and wrapped her up in his arms, hugging her close. She turned to face him and snuggled into his chest. I frowned. What I could see of her face was tear-stained, red and blotchy.

I was about to open my mouth when Seth beat me to it. "You ok?" he asked.

When she nodded, something in my chest loosened up. While they were busy, I put a bowl of pasta together for Seth, set it on the table, and went for my own. It was a couple minutes later that Seth joined me, pulling Shelby onto his lap. I noticed as his arm snaked around her hip and his hand rested on her lower belly protectively.

She's pregnant, I thought as her hands went to cover his.

When I swallowed, I waited to take my next bite and listened. When Emily had been pregnant, I'd been able to hear the flutter of the baby's heartbeat. But I didn't hear anything now. Shrugging I went back to my food, thinking that it may be too early in the pregnancy to hear anything. A moment later, however, Shelby stood up to go back to washing dishes…and I heard it. It was soft probably because it was early on and their hands had muffled the sound. But boy I heard it now.

"Jake? You ok, man?" Seth asked. He was looking at me like he was worried about my mental health. Probably because I'd paused with my fork halfway to my mouth to listen.

I cleared my throat and finished my bite. "Ah, yeah. I was just…listening."

"To what?"

After glancing at the two of them, I settled my stare on Seth. "A fluttering sound."

Seth's eyes were confused. But when I slid mine to Shelby, they widened in understanding.

But Shelby didn't get it and thought I was talking about something else. "Oh, Nessie's upstairs."

She thought I was talking about Nessie's heartbeat. Far from. I was talking about Seth's baby's heartbeat.

Despite the fact that my world was falling apart and there was a terrible ache in my chest, I smiled as I finished eating. Damn, it would be good to have the joy of another baby around. And a baby from Seth and Shelby would be a damn fine kid.

When Shelby came over a few minutes later to pick up our dirty dishes, she glanced between the two of us and demanded, "What are you two smiling about?"

Now that she was closer, the sound of fluttering grew louder. Yup, definitely pregnant.

"Nothing," Seth and I said at the same time.

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever." Then she turned to me. "Are you going to Nessie?"

My smile vanished and I knew a grimace had replaced it. "She doesn't want me with her."

A moment later, there was a slap on the back of my head. Before I could say anything she started in on me. "Now, you listen to me. I will tell you what I told her. You cannot avoid each other forever. A confrontation has to happen. The least you can do is go sit up there with her because that's what she's been doing all day: sitting on that floor in front of her wall of pictures." She backed up out of my face, her own expression softening as she crossed her arms. "And she'll be asleep soon anyway."

"How do you know that?"

She shifted uncomfortably on her feet. "I may have crushed up a couple sleeping pills and put it in her drink. Don't give me that look. She needs to sleep. And again, as I told her, she's in zombieland right now. It's not good for her. She needs rest or she'll get sick."

I shook my head, but she continued to glare at me. A growl rose up in my chest. "Fine. I'll go sit with her."

Five minutes later, I was still standing outside her door, breathing and shaking. Could I really do this? What if she told me to leave and not come back? That I couldn't handle. As I turned and headed for the stairs, Shelby's growl echoed up from the foot of them. Dammit.

Scrubbing a hand over my face, I went back to the door and opened it softly before I could talk myself into locking myself in the bathroom. No doubt Shelby would bust the door down anyway, lock or no lock.

My breath stopped in my chest when I saw Nessie. If it was possible, she was more beautiful than I remembered. It had been only a few hours since I'd seen her, but my chest ached with the need to fold her up in my arms. But I knew that she was still confused about me.

"Hey," I said softly.

Her eyes met mine briefly. "Hey. You don't have to come sit if you don't want, Jake."

Closing the door behind me, I went to stand in front of her. "But I do want."

For a moment her eyes shone with sad love, but then she caught herself and looked away. Her shrug was the only permission I was going to get, but I took it. I lowered myself next to her on the floor, my back against the bed, and smelled…agony. And her tears. And that's when I realized that she hadn't wanted to do or say what she had, but that she felt she needed to. It was a necessity for her self-preservation. With that revelation, I knew I needed to do everything I could to make her understand that I love her. She thought that I was only around her when the imprint pulled me to her, so therefore, I needed to do things for her and be around her so she'd know that I wanted to be where I belonged, which was right next to her.

Copying her, I stared at the wall that was entirely covered in pictures. And it wasn't just me and her. The entire family, even Morgan, was featured somewhere among them. But the one my eyes kept finding was the one Nessie had said was her favorite. Us in the snow. Me staring at her as she smiled at the camera with me wrapped possessively and protectively around her. We'd been happy then, before we'd had the imprint conversation and gotten together in that cabin. Now we were both a mess.

And oddly enough, the silence in the room wasn't that uncomfortable. Neither one of us was really angry. We were sad and caught up in our own thoughts.

After about ten minutes, her left hand slid over her thigh. Her fore and middle fingers wrapped around my ring and pinkie fingers and squeezed. Not wanting her to think any hesitation was me not wanting to touch her, I squeezed back even though I was stunned that she wanted to touch me.

My surprise flared again when she let out a defeated sigh, leaned over, and rested her head on my shoulder.

Unfortunately, I stiffened in surprise and that's what made her pull away. God, she must be so confused. Now that she'd confronted me, I could see where she was coming from. She must think that that was too much, that I didn't want her that close.

"Just go, Jake," she whispered. "You don't have to pretend."

"But I'm not. You just surprised me. I didn't think you'd want me after your revelation."

It was her turn to stiffen. "Just leave." Her tone was hard. Anger had crept back into her eyes. Whether it was at me or her, I didn't know.

God, I wanted to stroke her face and hair. My hand itched toward her, to have the feelings of her under my palm. But something told me that if I reached for her, she'd pull away. And I wouldn't be able to handle that.

So, cursing, I hefted my dumbass-self off the floor. There was no way I could look back at her and force myself out the door, so I just left, shutting the door behind me.

As soon as I made it down the stairs, I'd thought that I'd readied myself for Shelby's wrath, but apparently I wasn't ready for her fist to come flying at my face. My head snapped back and my ass planted itself on the stairs.

"What the hell is wrong with you? What did you do?"

Holding my hand over my busted nose and glaring up at her, my voice was muffled. "I told you she didn't want me up there. You didn't listen to me."

Her body shook in anger, her fists clenched up at her sides. As we glared at each other, a towel was shoved into my face. Seth's hand was attached to it.

"Put this to your nose."

Taking it from him, I realized that it was a bag of ice wrapped up in the towel.

"Thanks." My voice was thick with blood as it seeped down the back of my throat. It hurt, but it would heal in an hour or so. Hopefully it wouldn't heal crooked.

"Look, I don't know what the hell is going on with the two of you, but you need to get your heads out of your asses, grow a pair, and fucking talk to each other. This is utterly ridiculous." She pointed a finger at me as I opened my mouth. "I don't care who started it, who said what first, or anything like that. All I care about is someone manning up and getting their shit fixed. I don't like Nessie depressed, and I damn sure don't like punching you." She took a deep breath and calm washed over her. "I just want us to be a family, and we can't do that if you two can't or won't figure yourselves out. She's like my sister and you're like a brother to me. Don't make me chose. Now, get it together."

The whole time she was talking, it was loud enough to carry up to Nessie. And just before Shelby turned away to go back into the kitchen, I heard an upstairs door close softly. Nessie had been listening, too.

Seth helped me to my feet and ushered me into the downstairs bathroom. He left and came back with a pair of sweats and closed the door behind him without a word. Slowly and gently I washed my face. The nose was bruised and swollen, but it wasn't as bad as it could be say if Seth had hit me.

When I finally came out of the bathroom, the couch had a pillow, a sheet, and a blanket over it. They knew. Somehow they knew that Nessie and I couldn't sleep together right now, or at least fall asleep together.

Sighing in defeat, I went to the couch, laid down, and tried not to think about the aching hole in my chest or the lingering warmth from Nessie's fingers.
Sleep, when it came, was a black hole that sucked me mercilessly into its grip.

So, what do we think? Who's still siding with whom? Some of you couldn't pick sides, but please let me know how you felt. It's good to know. Get all your anger out. Still loving you guys! xoxoxoxoxoxo