This chapter belongs to dazzled620. All credit goes to her.
Cue my scream. Every day since… it happened, I had woken up screaming.
"Bells, it's okay. It was just a dream. You're okay now. You will never go through that again. I promise," Jacob whispered softly.
"I'm sorry, Jake. I didn't mean to wake you up. What time is it?" I asked.
"Stop apologizing. I know you didn't mean to. It's about 6:45 AM."
I nodded. I was still tired, but there was no way I'd be able to fall back asleep.
"Are you going to school today?" I asked him.
"I don't think so. It's only a matter of time before Billy drags me away from you, though…"
"Jake, you know that I love having you here… But I don't want you to forget about your other friends! I feel like I'm kidnapping you."
"Eh, they don't mind. Unless you want to get rid of me-"
I interrupted him. "No. I don't. I love your company. Without you, I don't know where I'd be right now. Probably dead."
Jake cringed. "Don't say that Bella," he said very seriously.
I shook my head.
"I wasn't dreaming about last night, was I?"
"Sadly, no."
"What do I say to him, Jake?"
After a minute, Jake answered. "Just tell him the truth. He'll understand."
A Week Later…
JPOV
Bella wasn't getting any better. I had started going to school two days ago. Today Charlie said she had broken down. She wouldn't leave her room. He wanted me to talk to her.
"Bells, can I ask you something?" I asked.
"Sure, anything."
"Are you sure we're helping? I mean, don't take this the wrong way, but are you sure you don't need better help? Like a counselor?"
"WHAT? You want me to see a shrink? I'm not crazy, Jacob! I went through something horrible and if my best friend thinks I'm too big of a burden… Then you can just leave."
She practically shoved me out of her house.
This was the last thing I wanted to happen. I just wanted to suggest it. I had a feeling she'd take it like this, but I knew I had to say something. I had a feeling she wasn't going to let me back in, so I drove back to La Push.
I'd go see Embry and Quil. I hadn't seen them out of school in two weeks.
"Jake!" Embry and Quil yelled.
"Hey guys! What's up?"
They were at Embry's place working on his car.
"Nothing really. Replacing my battery. How's Bella?" Embry asked.
"Not good. It seems like she's just getting worse. She won't eat. She didn't even come out of her bedroom today. Except to kick me out of the house…" I trailed off.
"What did you do?" He asked, concerned.
"Suggested that she went to a counselor. Charlie can't help her if she won't let him close to her, and I have to go to school… Maybe her going back to school would help."
"Jacob, I know you aren't going to answer me, but can't you tell me what happened? It physically hurts to have to stay away from your imprint. I need to see her, Jake. Maybe I can help…" Embry said.
"I doubt it, Em. I wish. She just keeps pushing us all farther away. I don't know what to do anymore… Then the worst part is she talks about her death like its nothing. *cringe* I like to believe that she would never try anything, but I can't know. How stupid was I to leave her there alone? She shouldn't be alone. I need to go back. Thanks guys! I'll see you tomorrow!"
BPOV
I heard the front door open, and pulled the blanket tighter against my body.
"Bella?" I heard Jacob call.
He looked in to see me cowering under my blanket.
"I thought I told you to get lost!" I weakly yelled.
"You didn't mean it, Bells," he said and came to sit next to me. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
"The hell I did," I muttered to him.
"Don't go then Bella! I just wanted to suggest it! It didn't seem like I had been much help, actually it felt like I was having the opposite affect. I just want you to start getting better!" He said to me. I started to hug him back. I missed him, even if he had only been gone a few minutes.
Once I realized that I just forgave him, I leaned back and playfully slapped him.
"You know I can't stay mad at you, Jacob Ephraim Black. Don't you dare use it against me."
"I don't think of you as a burden, Bells. You're my best friend. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings." He whispered.
"No, Jake. I'm sorry. You just wanted to help me, and I got mad at you. You just wanted to help me. I'll got to the counselor if you want me to. I'll go, Jake. I just don't think it's going to help, but I'll try. I can promise you that. Thanks for not staying away…" I told him.
"It's going to take a lot more then that to get rid of me, Bella," he joked.
EPOV
It had been over two weeks since I had seen Bella. Everyone knew that it was only a matter of time before I broke down.
I didn't know how long I could go without seeing my imprint. I didn't think Jared, Sam, or Quil had gone more than a day without seeing their's.
Earlier, I had told Sam that I was going to miss school today. I was going over to Bella's house to see her. I needed to talk to her, just to make sure she was doing okay. No one other then Sam knew I was going over there today. I couldn't risk Jake knowing.
I drove to Bella's house as fast as I could. As far as I knew, Jake still thought I had a dentist appointment today.
Once I arrived, I hesitated for a minute before I got out of the car. The last time I had seen Bella, she had been terrified of me. What would happen this time? Jake wasn't here to help her. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to come down here.
"Embry?" I heard a whisper.
"Hey, Bella. I just wanted to see you, talk to you, if you'll let me," I suggested.
She opened the door, and motioned for me to come in.
I sat on the couch, and Bella sat on the chair as far away from me as she could.
"Jake said that he told you about the imprint… He said you weren't ready. I just want you to know that I'm okay with that. I wish I could help you. Can't you tell me what happened?" I asked her.
"I really wish I could tell you and its not that I don't trust you. You don't know how horrible it is, Em. I don't want to have to relive it," Bella said to me. I could see tears on her cheeks, and I had to stop myself from wiping them away.
BPOV
Just as I thought I was about to open up to him, someone knocked on the door. Embry got up, while I stayed on the couch, and went to see who it was.
"Sam?" I heard Embry ask.
I got up to make sure everything was okay. When I saw who was at the door, I did a double take. I knew it wasn't really him, but there was something about his face or his build that reminded me of the guy that did this to me.
I tried to keep myself together, but it didn't work. I started sobbing loudly.
"Bella, Bella. What's wrong?" Embry asked, worried.
I didn't answer him. I was sitting on the floor, not remembering when I got there. Tears were pouring out of my eyes, and my body was shaking heavily.
Embry started to walk towards me, but then I saw him hesitate.
"Sam, go get Jacob. I'll stay here. Hurry," Embry told him.
Sam left, which calmed me down an unnoticeable amount. To an outsider, I would still be sobbing my eyes out.
I knew Jacob didn't really like Sam, but now that he knew what he was, Jacob spoke kinder of him. It didn't change the fact that he looked exactly like him.
After over 5 minutes, I had become a bit quieter. I was still shaking uncontrollably, but my sobbing had died down to a quiet cry. Embry was standing on the opposite side of the hallway, trying to avoid staring at me. I felt bad that he imprinted on me. He deserved someone whole, not broken.
The front door opened, and I saw Sam and Jacob come in.
"Oh no, what did you guys do?" Jacob asked.
