CHAPTER 22

Embry POV:

"Come on, Mom! Listen to me. I know you want me to graduate, and I want that too. But a GED is a diploma, too. Why are you making me go back to high school when you know it's not what I want to do?"

She looked at me with her hands on her hips and said, "Embry. It is important for you to finish high school. You need a good education. I don't know why you keep arguing with me!"

"Look, Mom, now that you know about the whole werewolf thing, you know I can't leave the rez to go to college or anything like that."

She looked over at me and said, "Look, Embry, you only need 5 more credits. You promised me you would finish high school and graduate! What changed your mind?"

What changed my mind? "Mom, so much has happened to me this summer. I found out who I am and who I come from and that I have a brother! I found the girl that I love and want to spend the rest of my life with! Mom, I realized how much I love working on cars with Jake, and we want to open our own shop someday. I think we could really make a good living doing that. And I turned 18 and feel like it's time to start my life now, and not waste another year being a high school kid. High school was fun, but I'm not that guy anymore."

She sat down at the kitchen table and put her head in her hands. I sat down beside her and said, "Mom, look. I don't want you to be disappointed in me, OK?"

She looked up at me and smiled and said softly, "Oh honey. I could never be disappointed in you. You're a good man, Embry. I know that. There has to be a compromise here." She took a drink of her coffee that she had sitting in front of her. "What if you went back just to get your 5 credits and you finish mid-term in January. Could you do that?"

I closed my eyes in frustration. She just doesn't get it! I don't want to be a kid anymore! I opened my eyes and looked at her. Then it hit me. I thought about all she has sacrificed for me in the last 18 years. She walked away from her home and came to live here all be herself, not knowing anyone. She had me and kept me when she didn't have to. Then she had to leave me with babysitters while she worked at a factory job that she never really liked to provide a place for me to live and food to eat. She has given up everything and all she is asking is that I graduate high school. What an ass I am.

"OK, Mom. I will go and talk to the counselor today about what I have to take to graduate at mid-term. Will that make you happy?"

She gave me a big smile and said, "Yes, that will make me happy." She reached over and tousled my hair.

I rolled my eyes at her and smiled. I really did love my mom, and I wanted to see her happy. I guess it wasn't that big of a deal. I could stand 4 months of school. I hoped that Leah was up to helping me with homework. I was going to need help if I was going to get grades good enough to graduate!

Leah POV:

"So, you're going back to school, huh?" I said to Embry. We were sitting at my kitchen table eating lunch.

"Yea. What can I do, Leah? I mean, she has sacrificed everything for me! All she wants is for me to graduate high school. We finally compromised on me graduating at mid-term. So,I talked to the counselor and she set up my schedule. I have to get 5 fucking credits. I hope you're up to helping me with homework?"

I smiled and said, "I think I can handle that." I got up and went to the fridge to get the pitcher of iced tea. I came back to the table and poured us another glass. I set the pitcher down and Embry reached up and pulled me down into his lap. "Hey!" I squealed.

He laughed and kissed me. "I am so lucky to have such a hot tutor. Maybe this school thing won't be so bad!" He put his lips on my neck and started kissing and nipping with his teeth. It sent chills through my whole body.

"Geez, don't you two ever take a break?" Seth said as he walked into the kitchen. "I'm hungry. Is there anything left for me?"

I pulled myself away from Embry and stood up. "I made tacos for lunch. There is plenty left. Sit down and help yourself." I went to the cupboard and got Seth a plate and put it in front of him. Then I got him a glass with some ice for his tea. I sat back down at the table and watched Seth and Embry eat. Man, could they eat!

"So, little brother, are you ready to go back to school? Do we need to go into town and get school supplies?" I asked him.

"Yea, I need some stuff. I got a list somewhere. Mostly notebooks, folders and pencils, stuff like that," he said as he stuffed the rest of his taco into his mouth.

I looked over at Embry and said, "What about you?"

"Yea, the same," he said.

"OK, looks like we are going shopping today, boys!" I said as I stood up and put my plate and glass in the sink.

"Do we have to go? Can't you just get the stuff for us?" Seth whined.

"Yea. It's our last day of summer vacation. We don't want to go shopping," Embry joined in.

I turned around and looked at the two of them. Then I laughed. "You two are pathetic! You whiners! Fine, I'll go and get your school stuff. What are you going to do?"

Seth looked at Embry and asked, "Um, I want to go cliff diving one more time. From the high jump. Please?"

I looked at Embry with a worried look. He saw it, but said, "Sure. I think you're ready. Let's see if any of the other guys want to go, too." He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.

"YES! Thanks, Embry! This is awesome." Seth shoved the rest of his food in his mouth then jumped up to go change into his board shorts.

I looked at Embry and before I could say anything, he said, "Look, baby. I'll take care of him. I love the little runt. I wouldn't let anything happen to him, OK?" He came over and put his arms around me. "You trust me, don't you?"

"Yes, I trust you. It's just . . . I only have one little brother, you know, and I worry about him. And I worry about you!"

"Well, you don't have to. We'll be fine. Come out and join us when you're finished, OK? I know you want to," he said with a big smile.

He was right. I did want to. I loved that feeling of flying through the air! "OK. I'll go get your school stuff then I'll come out to the cliff." I leaned in and kissed him. "Be careful, huh?"

"Always am!" He let me go and I started clearing the table. "I'm going to call some of the guys. Be right back." He walked out the back door onto the deck.

I cleared the table and was putting dishes into the dishwasher when Seth came running back into the kitchen. "Where's Embry?"

"Outside, calling the guys to see if anyone wants to go with you." I turned to look at him. "You will be careful, right?"

He rolled his eyes at me and said, "Yes, big sister, I will be careful." Then he kissed me on the cheek and went over to the back door. "Hey, come on! I'm ready to go!" he yelled to Embry.

They walked back into the kitchen and Embry handed me his truck keys. "Jake is coming to pick us up, so you can have my truck to go into town." Then he turned to Seth and said, "Jake and Jared are coming with us."

"Alright!" Seth said. He's so cute when he gets excited. Embry was picking up dishes and putting them in the dishwasher. We heard Jake pull up and honk the horn.

I looked at Embry and said, "Go ahead. It's OK. I'll finish up." He grinned and kissed me and they took off. I shook my head and went back to loading the dishwasher. Boys.

I took Embry's truck into town and went to the store to buy school supplies. I actually needed some things, too. I was almost finished with my online courses, and I had signed up for three more. I really wished that I could go to school instead of taking classes online. There was a community college about 40 minutes away from LaPush, but I didn't have a car to get there. So, this was my only option right now.

I filled the cart with notebooks, folders, pencils and pens. I found Seth's list and saw that he also needed a compass and a protractor for math. I also bought a scientific calculator for Embry. I knew the trig class might be tough for him, but I would help him get through it.

Mom had told me to pick up a couple of pairs of jeans for Seth and some socks and underwear. I was used to that. I had bought Seth's clothes for him since he was a little kid. With Mom working so much, I just filled in and did the things she couldn't always do. She even gave me a debit card to do the shopping so she didn't always have to give me money. She really trusted me to help her, and I kind of liked that.

I loaded the bags into the truck then stopped by the house to drop things off and change into my bathing suit and board shorts. I opted for the black one piece today instead of the bikini! I didn't want to give Embry a heart attack in front of the rest of the guys!

I jumped into the truck and took off for the cliff. I wasn't exactly sure where to park because I had not been up to the higher cliff before. We only jumped from the "Baby Jump," which was fine with me. I wasn't sure I was ready to jump from up here. I could see the guys from where I was. I saw Jared do a perfect swan dive off of the cliff. I smiled. They all loved to show off.

I parked the truck, got out and ran down the path that should take me out to where they were. Just then, I heard everyone yelling. What's going on? I took off running to get to them to see what was happening. I came out of the woods and saw Embry and Jake. "What's going on?" I asked.

Embry turned and looked at me. Jake yelled, "Jared! Anything? Do you see him?"

I walked over to Embry and grabbed his arm. I looked down and could see Jared in the water. I looked again. No Seth. "Embry? Where's Seth?" He didn't answer. I grabbed his arms and yelled, "Embry! Where's Seth?" He took a hold of me and said slowly, "He's in the water. Jared is looking for him." Just then Jake dove off the cliff. We watched him enter the water and come up.

"We don't know if he got caught in a tide or what. He dove in and didn't come up," Embry told me. "It hasn't been a minute yet, Leah. Don't worry."

"What? Don't worry! Are you fucking kidding me? We have to find him, Embry! We have to!" I screamed at him. I went to the cliff and without thinking, I jumped. I couldn't believe how long it took me to hit the water, and when I did, I hit it hard, and for a moment it took my breath away. I struggled to get to the surface and when I did, I saw Jake off to my left. "Jake!" I yelled.

"Still looking," he said then he dove under water. Just then Embry hit the water and I watched to make sure he came up. He did and he swam over to me.

"God, Leah, I am so sorry. We will find him, OK? He'll be alright." I just nodded. I wasn't sure what to do, so I turned to follow Jake and Jared and start looking. We all spread out and dove under water looking for my little brother. We searched for what seemed like hours, but was only a minute or two, and then l heard Jake yell, "I got him!"

Jake had Seth and was pulling for the shore. My adrenaline had kicked in and I swam hard right behind him. By the time I got there, Jake had Seth laying on the sand. I threw myself down on the sand beside him. He looked blue. This is my baby brother! Oh God, he looks dead! I was so scared. It took every ounce of strength I had to try to stay calm and not panic. Jared leaned down and said, "Is he breathing? Does anyone know how to do mouth-to-mouth?" he asked. I nodded. My mom had made me take a safe sitter class when she started leaving me and Seth home alone while she worked. Come on, Leah. Seth needs you! I plugged his nose, put my mouth over his and blew air into his mouth. I did it again then I pulled back. Nothing. I plugged his nose again and blew into his mouth. This time he moved and coughed a little. Jake turned him over and pushed on his back to get the water out of him. He started coughing and puking up water.

"Oh thank God, thank God," I muttered. He opened his eyes and looked at me. I rolled him back over and I saw he had a gash on his head in his hair that was bleeding. "Seth! You must have hit your head on something. You're bleeding."

He didn't say anything. He just nodded. Then he closed his eyes. "Seth, wake up. You can't sleep, baby. You have to wake up," I said to him. He wouldn't respond. "We need to get him to the hospital."

Jake looked at me and said, "Leah, we can't. They won't understand his temp of 108."

"My mom would. She's at the hospital working. Where are your phones?" Jake and Embry looked at each other. "In the truck. I kept it from Bella today to pick up some parts later. I parked here at the beach. I'll be back," he said as he took off running as fast as he could down the beach.

"Seth, look at me. Open your eyes," I said to him as I slapped lightly at his cheek. Nothing. I looked over at Embry. He was just sitting there, quietly watching me. "Why did you let this happen?" I said. I could feel tears running down my face.

He looked at me and said, "I'm so sorry, Leah." I couldn't look at him. I looked back to Seth.

Jared was on the other side of Seth. "Hey, buddy, come on. Wake up, man," he said to Seth as he shook him. Nothing.

We waited for what seemed like an eternity for Jake. He finally came running and handed me a phone. I dialed the hospital and asked to speak to Sue Clearwater. "This is her daughter, Leah. It's an emergency. I need to talk to her now!"

"Hello? Leah? What's wrong, honey?" she answered.

I was trying so hard to keep it together, but when I heard Mom's voice, I lost it. I started crying and couldn't talk. Jake grabbed the phone and said, "Sue, its Jake. Seth has had an accident and we want to bring him to the hospital, but we don't know if we should because of the wolf thing."

"Seth? What happened?"

"We went cliff diving and he must have hit his head on something when he was in the water. He was under for a long time. We found him and Leah gave him mouth-to-mouth. He's breathing and he puked up the water, but he has a really nasty gash on his head and he won't wake up."

"Oh my God. Um, OK. Look, Dr. Cullen is here today. Bring him here as fast as you can and we will meet you in the ER."

"OK." He hung up and looked at me. "Let's get him in the truck. Sue and Carlisle are going to meet us in the ER." He and Jared picked Seth up and moved toward the truck. I jumped into the back and said, "Lay him here with his head on my lap." They laid him down and Embry jumped in and sat down. Jared and Jake got in the front and we took off.

I held onto Seth's head to try and keep it still and Embry held his body. We looked at each other over my little brother and I could see the pain in his eyes. I felt bile crawl up my throat, and I just wanted to spew all of the anger I was feeling at Embry. I looked away and tried to calm down. I needed to concentrate on my brother. I looked down at his sweet face. Please, please be OK, Seth!

We finally pulled up to the ER and Mom was there waiting with a gurney. The guys helped get Seth on the gurney and Mom and Jake wheeled him into an exam room then Jake went back out with the other guys. Dr. Cullen came up right away and started asking questions. I answered them the best I could as he looked Seth over. He held his eyelid open and flashed a little light onto his eye. "Did you see any other injuries, Leah?"

"Um, I don't know. I didn't really notice anything else," I answered.

Mom took a quick look at his arms and legs. She felt along to see if anything was broken. "His ankle looks swollen," she said.

Dr. Cullen looked at it and said, "That might be broken. Right now, I'm more worried about the head injury. Let's get a CT Scan and see what we're looking at, OK?" he said to Mom. She nodded and picked up the phone. "This is Sue Clearwater calling for Dr. Cullen. He has an ER patient that needs a CT of the head STAT. Room 1? OK. On our way." She hung up and moved to the head of the gurney to remove the brake.

Dr. Cullen looked at her and said, "Sue, this is your son. Let me get another nurse to take him down."

"No, I'm ready. Let's go. Now." She started pushing the bed out the door. He nodded and got out of the way. I went with my mom. I ran ahead and pushed the elevator button. We got the gurney in and the door closed. I looked over at her. She was all professional, doing her job. But I could see as she looked down at Seth and touched his face, how scared and worried she really was. "Mom, I'm so sorry. I should have stopped him . . ." She cut me off with, "Not now, Leah."

The doors opened and we pushed him to radiology. They were ready for us and they took him inside. Mom looked at me and said, "Stay here." She went inside with them and closed the door. I sunk down onto a chair in the waiting area and gave way to the tears that were waiting to fall.