A/N: SUPER thank you's to brightglo, TempusSimia, scbear7 and Maximus05 for their wonderful, and much loved, reviews (:

Don't own Twilight, yada yada….Enjoy!

Chapter 7: The Tour - Part II

Lunch went off without a hitch. Rachel came home just as I was almost done and Paul had rushed to take the bags of food she was carrying. I'd gotten away with the biggest quiche I'd ever seen and a small mountain of chips. Rachel, Billy and I took ours first then watched as the rest of it disappeared rapidly.

"Wasn't that enough?" I asked disbelievingly as Jacob hunted through the bags of groceries and Paul was hanging half in and half out of the fridge.

"We're growing boys," Jacob defended, pulling out a tub of ice cream. "Not that it wasn't delicious, of course! I've never eaten a quiche so good before, you're a wonderful cook."

"Suck up," Paul snickered.

"Paul." Rachel warned, and he shot her an apologetic look.

I scoffed. "If you grow anymore they'll have to make all the doorways bigger." The sky was building again, the wind picking up and rippling through the trees. I sighed.

"What's wrong?" Jacob asked as he flopped down onto the lounge beside me, ice cream and two spoons in hand. Billy was between the two lounges and Rachel sat on the other, which Paul was quick to join her on. His own snack, half -no, seriously, half- the new cake, clutched in hand.

I took the spoon I was being offered and took a scoop of the yummy white stuff and sucked it off it. Well aware that Jacob's eyes never left my face. "It's gonna rain again, I can feel it."

Rachel chuckled. "It always rains here."

"I know," I took another scoop of ice cream. "But I do want to get out of here sometime in the next week. I have to be back at work and I've got a party to go to on the weekend."

"Are you sure you have to go?" Rachel asked, before any of the boys could open their mouths.

"Yea, I'm positive. The party is for my boss's sixtieth and we've all gotta be there. Plus I'm taking more time off then I asked for, so I'll have to do more to make up for it." Tamara, she was kind of like the sectary of our unit, would hang me if I wasn't there for a party she'd been organising for weeks. We were all pretty close in our division, we were like the spy version of everyone here. A family, a true family.

I turned back to the ice cream and found Jacob staring at me painfully, spoon frozen half way between his mouth and the tub and the ice cream on it was melting. I sighed again. "What? You know your gonna wear that if you don't eat it, right?"

"I don't want you to leave." He said bluntly.

"Neither does anyone else, it seems. But none of you seem to comprehend that I have a life and responsibilities that I have to attend to. You never know your luck; I might come back next holidays I get."

"When will that be?" He half asked, half demanded.

I shrugged. "Wouldn't have a clue, when I'm told I've got time off usually."

"Oh….Well can I come see you?"

"No."

"Why not?" He demanded unhappily.

"Because half the time I'm not even in the country, let alone at home."

"Oh…"

"Would you please stop looking like that?" I cried. "I've told you about that haven't I? He's looks like a kicked puppy, doesn't he, Billy?"

The old man nodded in agreement, his eyes falling pityingly on his son. Gah, I hated getting pity. I did not need pity, or concern, or worry, or ties to other people. It was dangerous and unwelcome.

"Sucks for you, man." Paul said, sincerely for once.

I frowned. "I'm not even going to ask, 'cause I don't want to know. Do I have to make a weirdness rule for you to, Paul?"

He grinned at me. "You'll find out, I don't envy Jake one bit though. Although you are rather nice on the eyes…"

"PAUL!" I don't know which of us were loudest. Either way the cocky git just grinned and kissed Rachel.

Jacob was quick to protest that to. "Dude! Not in my house! That's my lounge! And just, stop making out with my sister full stop."

"Never," Was his reply, mumbled against Rachel's smiling lips.

I made gagging noises and stood up. "Well, this is gross. Can we go? Assuming that I can't ditch you yet?" He stood up immediately, handing his father the ice cream and dropping the spoons on the coffee table. "Yeah, didn't think so. Bye, Billy." I kissed his cheek again and hugged him.

"See you later, honey. You comin' to the bonfire tomorrow night?"

There was a bonfire tomorrow night? "Uh, sure, if I'm still here I don't see why not. Bye, freak. Have fun with the cooties and what not, Rachel." I grabbed Jacob's hand and pulled him out of the house before either of them could come after me.

I don't know how far we ran, but it was all the way to the beach when I finally collapsed in the sand, laughing and panting slightly. It was a reasonable distance but I was fit. Jacob seemed even less puffed then I was as he stood over me.

"That was fun," I breathed, looking up at the sky. "I needed that."

"You're pretty fast…"

"If you say for a girl, I will push you off the cliffs."

"Good thing I wasn't going to say that then." He chuckled, sitting down beside me in a more graceful manner then I had. I had to snicker at the irony of it. "I like it here." He said after a moment of silence.

I rolled onto my side to face him and propped myself up on my elbow. "That's good, ya know, since you live here and all."

"So, the bonfire tomorrow night, you're going right?"

"Didn't I tell your Dad yes?"

"Well yeah, but…I was wondering, if…you'd like to, maybe go with me?"

I groaned. "I'll be going anyway, I came here to see people, not go on dates."

"It could be a two in one kinda thing, couldn't it?"

"No."

He sighed, defeated, his face filled with sadness and some unnamed, incomprehensible pain. My heart thumped painfully against my ribs. "Alright, I'm sorry. Can we continue our game?"

I rubbed my chest and took slow even breaths, and the pain faded. That was odd. "Yea sure, whatever," He was certainly persistent, but he's far to interested for anyone's good.

"Alright, what's your favourite flower?"

I arched an eyebrow. "Favourite flower…I don't know that either. Roses and orchids are pretty, but so are most flowers. What's yours?"

He grinned at me. "Are you just going to use all my questions or do you really want to know my favourite flower?"

I shrugged. "Hey it's your game. Why not use your questions?"

"Then I have to say I don't know." He laughed. "Never had to think about that before. When's your birthday?"

"The sixth of July. And yours?"

"Fourteenth of January, do you have a boyfriend?"

Oh dear, not liking that question. "No, favourite…um, place?"

He turned his intense gaze to me and our eyes locked. My heart sped up. "…Honestly?"

I shrugged again, quarrelling internally with my heart, why not honestly?

"My favourite place is anywhere where yo…"

'Bad! Very bad! Not liking where this is going at all!' "Don't say where I am, just don't." I cut him off sharply. A small gasp escaped my throat as I felt the pain again. I was too young for heart attacks, wasn't I? "That would be crossing the weirdness boundary…again, and going way too far."

"I wasn't…"

"Weren't you?" I scoffed a little. I swallowed the pain and didn't let it show. I was good at hiding pain. "You're a terrible liar." I couldn't allow those words to ever leave his mouth, he'd asked me out and that was too far. I should've been more switched on and stopped those words to.

He sighed. "Why is it so devastating that I might like you?"

"Because this is only the second day I've been here, after an absence of eleven years! It doesn't happen this fast! I know what keen guys are like, but you're something different, and I don't like it." Don't like it at all, actually.

"Tell me why," He begged me. My chest seemed to constrict, like there was a heavy weight placed on it. "Tell me what I'm doing wrong and I'll change! I'll do anything for you, Evie, anything!"

I closed my eyes and breathed slowly. How had it gotten so complicated so fast? What is this…thing I'm feeling? Why was I having second thoughts? "Look, Jacob, you're a nice guy. Once you get past all the weirdness and your creepy abnormal behaviour. But that doesn't change my decision, it never will. I don't date, not anyone, not ever. The best I can offer you is friendship, but if you're going to keep carrying on like this then even that's going to be hard for me."

"I want to know you, you've no idea how much I just want to be around you. You have to feel something to!"

I sat up, wrapping my arms around my legs. "It's pointless telling you your being strange again, isn't it? You can't know me, Jacob, no one knows me." I added in a low whisper.

"Not even Leah?" He challenged, he was getting worked up again, and the shaking was starting to return. It was still difficult to breath properly, but I refused to show a weakness in front of him.

"Not even Leah. My best friends can't even understand what goes on inside my head half the time. Cut the shaking out, before I take you to the closest hospital and demand you be put on medication! And you can stop asking me questions. I think you've asked enough."

"Give me a chance; tell me what your thinking, what you feel, let me try to know you!"

"No!" I leap to my feet. "I don't want anyone to know me! Just…just drop it, alright? I want to go back to Sam's. Now." 'Before I really start freaking out and run away, you…confusing idiot.'

He nodded mutely, his painful look in place, and stood with me, leading the way through the rapidly darkening forest all the way back to my cousin's in silence. My strange chest pain weakened, but didn't disappear. It was like a dull ache, not bad enough to hinder me but not weak enough to be unnoticed.

'This is so utterly ridicules.' I snapped mentally. 'What are you doing, letting this…this…this, urgh, THIS BOY, affect you? No one is supposed to affect you like this. No one. Don't you remember what happened the last time? Pain, lots and lots of pain with suicidal notions and more pain, that's what happened.'

Why would I risk it again? Why am I even thinking like this and connecting it in anyway to Jacob Black? I decided against relationships, in case that wasn't obvious, since doomsday-Eva-style. I was never confident in the idea to begin with. I'd seen the outcome of spy's with significant others and families that they went home to every night before.

It had taken Adam months to get me to agree to a date, I met him not long after I turned sixteen. Then I was still wary, but Maddy was so successful with Daniel, her husband, and baby Ben that I'd eventually given in to what I felt. I had loved him; there was no doubt about that. I had loved him with every fibre in my being, my soul, my mind, my body. But that just made the events all the more devastating for me.

I trudged up the steps to Sam's behind Jacob, wishing only for a shower and my bed and a peaceful night, but, of course, my sister had other ideas.

She swooped on the pair of us like a hawk does on an unsuspecting mouse. "Oh, there you two are! How was your day, did you enjoy it?" She asked hopefully, pulling my tired frame into a hug and then Jacob's, like he was long lost family.

The russet boy glanced at me quickly as I kicked my shoes off and wandered into the kitchen. "Erm, it was good."

"What about you, Evie?" She turned on me. "Evie?"

"Yes, I heard you." I muttered, smiling weakly at Emily as she prepared dinner. Perhaps I could fit a meal into my evening plan… "It was alright…I guess." Until wonder boy went all psycho, again, and I started getting…symptoms.

"That's good, what did you get up to? Is La Push like you remember?" She continued.

"Yep," I looked around. "Where's Sam?"

"Oh, he'll be back soon." Emily said, smiling. "He just had to run to work to clear up a problem." Oh, I'd heard in fleeting that Sam operated some kind of handyman turn out.

"What kind of problem?" Jacob asked. I could hear the frown in his voice.

"Nothing big, Vinnie, Jared and Quil had it pretty much under control but then another one popped up." Em replied. "He'll be back for dinner."

"Do you need some help?" I asked, eyeing the food. Yes, I could most definitely fit in a meal, this smelt amazing. I felt better already.

She laughed. "Thanks, but I think I've got it under control. Take a seat, watch TV, and just relax, Evie. You look tense."

I sighed, tense was a complete understatement. "I'm gonna go find my phone, if I don't return you know I've fallen asleep."

Jacob shuffled his feet as Emily smiled at me. "Go on, sweetie. I'll call you when it's ready."

I nodded and made my way back to my room, but of course, wasn't fast enough to avoid my sister. As she grabbed my forearm I prepared myself for another fight, but as I looked at her, I knew a fight was not what she was after. "Evie, are you alright?" She asked tentatively, reaching up and laying her hand on my forehead, her brown eyes concerned. "You look almost ill."

"Ill?" Jacob echoed, rushing over and pressing his scorching hand against my forehead and running it down over my cheek. Where ever he touch practically burned after his removed his hand, and not necessarily in a bad way.

I felt my eyes slipping closed as he cupped my cheek, but I quickly woke up to myself and swatted his hand away and ignored him. I tried to give Tash a real smile, but I think it came out tighter then what I was intending. "I'm fine, just…just buggered all of a sudden."

"Hey, not sleeping for three days I'm not surprised. You should take better care of yourself, Evie." She chastised gently.

"I made up for that. I survive, so therefore, I'm fine, Tashie." I lent and kissed her cheek and even went as far as hugging her. I rarely started these things. The look on her face when I pulled back said it all.

"Go on, then. If you fall asleep I'll wake you, you need to eat more, so don't attack me or anything." She teased, still grinning like an idiot and pushed me gently towards the stairs.

I rolled my eyes but obeyed. "I'm not as dangerous to wake as you."

My room was pleasantly quiet and cool. The window was partly open and filled it with the relaxing La Push air, and I was quick to collapse on the bed with a sigh. Lazily, I reached over and grabbed my phone, detaching it from the charger and checking my messages. Maddy had called me, and Jay and Tamara, and texts from Claudia, Tess and Yas, the only three of my school sisters that had joined my unit after they'd graduated.

"Hi hun, it's me." I listened to my best friend's voice flow over her message. "Hope your surviving and having a good time, but I won't hold my breath. Don't worry, everything's fine. Just give me a call when you get this, okay? Bye."

Jay's was similar. "Hey baby girl, I missed your voice so I thought I'd call. You must have let your damn phone go flat again. Find the charger! Call me soon, love you." Jay and I were like that, we flirted and loved each other but not really in the way of brother/sister or romantically. It never went anywhere and we were just happy to have each other.

Tammy's was amusing and pretty much as I expected. "Evie, hi, its Tammy. Hope your liking your time with the fam, just reminding you that the party is Saturday at six and you have to turn up, okay? Love you, sweetie, we all say hello and see you soon."

The texts held similar messages and I quickly replied to set the minds at ease then tried Maddy but got her answering machine. Jay's also went to his answering machine but that wasn't unusual. Whenever he had spare time he was out doing things that meant he left his phone at home. Like sky diving and racing and jet skiing and…gah, I hate him, I'm jealous now.

Tams picked up after the second ring, however. "Hello?" Her perky thirty year old voice sang through the device and instantly brought a smile to my face.

"Hi, Tams, its Evie, how's things?"

"Oh, Evie, it's so good to hear your voice. I thought you must have lost that phone! Everything's fine, sweetie, I was just checking up on you." I could hear her tapping away at her computer. "How are you? You sound a little beat, have you been sleeping right?"

Scratch my calculations from before. I have five mothers, still not including the one that gave birth to me. "I'm fine, really. I slept half of yesterday and I went to bed early last night, just been over thinking a little too much today, I think."

"Oh, sweetie pie, rest that little head of yours hmm? Everything is fine here, if that's what you're worried about. Nothing is going to explode in your absence and I promise to call you as soon as anything comes up."

"Okay," I smiled. "Thanks, Tams. You wouldn't happen to know where the rest of the crew are would you? I can't get hold of Maddy or Jay."

"Their fine, Maddy and Danny have taken Ben to a monster truck rally." I could practically hear her roll her eyes. "And Jay is bungee jumping off the Sydney Harbour Bridge, try him again in a few, he'll answer. Now, my precious, I must go and find the rest of my precious' so I shall leave you be. Get some more rest and come home in time for the weekend. Shamus has given the all clear for you to stay there for the rest of the week."

Shamus Moree was my boss. "Okay, thank you. Say hi to my girls and everyone for me."

"I will, love you sweetie pie. See you on Saturday, yes?"

"You have my word, cross my heart."

She laughed. "Good, bye sweetie."

"Bye, Tams." I hung up and fell back against my pillows. Tam's was the only person apart from Sue that really had the ability to make me feel like a kid, in a good way. I could act like a kid, but feeling like a kid was something else.

I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew there was a hot sensation spreading across my cheek. It was oddly calming and in my half conscious state I sighed, turning my head towards the heat. It came again, running from the top of my cheek to my jaw then back up slowly.

My foggy brain connected two and two and came up with the realisation that someone was stroking my cheek. My entire body tensed as all my senses awoke and went into overdrive. My eyes sprung open and I stared at the figure crouched next to my bed, their hand frozen.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I realised I was safe, and then the annoyance and defensive walls slipped in. "Do you ever give up?" I asked Jacob groggily, pulling away as far as I could before allowing myself to relax. "What the hell are you doing?"

He gave me a lopsided smile and shook his head. "You're adorable when you sleep." His voice was low and familiarly husky and warmed me.

"That does not answer my question, Black." I growled, rubbing my eyes and reluctantly pulled myself up, checking that my clothes were still concealing everything that needed to be concealed. "Weirdness, I should get a restraining order against you."

"No! Don't, please, Evie." He exclaimed quickly, backing up as if his short distance would change my mind. "I'm sorry, dinners ready so Emily sent me to get you."

"Why didn't Tasha do it?" He moved back further as I swung my legs over the side of the bed.

"She's…well she's…making desert." He didn't really look like he knew if that was the right thing to describe what my sister was doing.

I groaned and stood, stabilising myself then gestured for him to follow me. "Better stop her, and in future, stay out of my room."

"So, you're not mad at me anymore?" He asked brightly as he trotted along behind me as I headed for the stairs. He was like an overeager dog trying to please.

I sighed. "Is there any point? You don't listen to me no matter what emotion I direct at you. Waste of energy, and I don't have enough currently anyway." It was true; most people avoided me like the plague after I made it clear that I didn't like them. But not Jacob, he just came back every time, no matter what I said or did to him.

His deep chuckle vibrated through my body. "You've only directed anger at me so far."

"And your still here, that either makes you really dumb, or suicidal," I muttered to myself as I jumped off the bottom step and surveyed the kitchen and dinning room for any threats. I located Tasha as she stood over a mixing bowl and an open cook book. There was flour in her hair and some of it was smeared across her cheek. Emily was pulling a roast out of the oven and Sam was setting the table. All three looked up when we came down.

"Tasha Leann Hanson." I tisked, eyeing her imploringly, she knew she was banned from kitchen work. "What are you doing in the kitchen? Are you trying to kill us all?"

She sighed and allowed me to push her out of the way. "I'm just trying to help, but it all sounds so…wrong."

I laughed and looked at the recipe, chocolate pudding, just about the easiest thing in the world to make. Shaking my head I gave her a nudge in the boy's direction. "Go domesticate them, I'll help Emily."

"But I wanted to cook!" She whined, although moving out of the way none the less.

"Honey, face it, you have never, cannot, and will never be able to cook without causing damage. The truth hurts, I know, but suck it up, woman." I grinned teasingly as she scowled and went to help Sam and hopefully put Jacob's lazy arse to work.

Finally it was ready to eat, by this time my stomach was growling and I was even more tired then before. I got moody when I was tired when I wasn't working; it was just how I was. Tasha was like it to, so it was probably genetic and inherited from our mother. I cringed at the thought of having any of that woman's traits as we sat down to eat, the boys politely allowing us girls to get ours first.

I doubt it was really manners though, Emily had issued the order moments before and both Sam and Jacob, who apparently was staying for dinner, were very inclined to do as she said. It was pretty amusing.

So I found myself sitting between Sam and Jacob, something I don't think was just coincidental, if the smile on Tasha's face was anything to go by. Much to her disappointment though, not only did I not exchange one word with Black but I refused to look at him to. He'd done enough damage for today, I think.

Dishing out a healthy serving of lamb roast and veggies, I jumped a little when my cousin suddenly spoke. "How did you like your day, Evie?" He asked as I handed him the plate of sliced meat.

I sighed and shrugged. What was with this question? "It was okay." Short and simple, neither bad nor good.

"You and Jake had a good time together then?" Tasha said casually, sending a smile in my direction. 'HASN'T SHE ALREADY ASKED THAT QUESTION?' My mind screamed.

"I'm not doing it again tomorrow, if that's what you're hinting at." I replied monotonously. "I've had enough of his questions for one day, at least…probably more a year. Damn this is good, Em." Hoping to change the subject and ignore the expressions that crossed the other's faces, I grinned at the cook. "Sam better know how goddamned lucky he is, the way he eats."

She laughed and the couple exchanged at look, I thought about declaring that I was eating, but decided that would take to much effort. Besides, the focus had shifted from Black and I, and I didn't care what to.

A/N: And there you have it. Just when they looked like they were getting somewhere, they start arguing again. It'll happen, I assure you, but it's looking to be a long process 'cause I've got a few twists planned for you yet :P. Hope you liked this one! Now, I'm going to bed, haha.

REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! ….Please XD

~Meg xx