You guys REALLY need to start reviewing. I mean, for real! I need to hear your feedback!
But I do know how sad the last chapter was. I had some of my friends read it over, and some of them cried! Like real tears, bros!
Enjoy Chapter 33!
~SashaFierce12.0
Chapter 33
Leah's P.o.V.
Seth's been in the hospital for two days and nobody's allowed to see him, yet. Jazz, Mom, and I have been up here every day. Lounging around anxiously in the waiting room, hoping for news.
Right now, we were going on our third hour of waiting. That time was spent checking up on Jayah and helping Jazz with homework.
"...Okay, so, I take the sign to the left, right?" Jazmyn asked. I was helping her study for an upcoming algebra test.
"Yeah," I nodded.
"And the answer will be...52x?" she finished. I smiled and hugged her.
"Great! You are definitely going to ace this test!" I exclaimed. Our excitement was short lived when Carlisle walked in. The three of us sitting down instantly stood up. Jazmyn's pencils and papers slipped to the ground, forgotten.
"How is he, Carlisle?" Mom asked, wringing her hands together.
"Okay...First things first, I'm sorry that you have waited so long. A lot has happened to him these past few days.
"After we revived him that first night, one of my nurses caught a rupture in his appendix. And since the over dose didn't kill him...That surely would have. We had no choice but to operate." Jazmyn hugged me, and I looked down at her. She cried a little, but kept her face turned towards Carlisle. "The surgery was successful," he added with a smile. I grinned. "But...His werewolf instincts didn't kick in like I thought they would."
"Which means...?" I asked.
"It means that he didn't heal himself automatically. From the looks of it, he's going to heal at the normal pace of that of a human."
"H-how long will that take?" Mom asked.
"He's going to be in a lot of pain for about a week," Carlisle answered.
"Oh, no..." Jazmyn whispered, burying her face into my side.
"But in other news, and much better news at that, we took the breathing tube out of him about an hour ago. He's able to breathe on his own, now."
"Yes!" I cheered. "When can he go home?"
"If things keep going the way they are now, the beginning of next week."
"C-can we see him? I don't think we can wait any longer," Mom said.
"I don't see why not," Carlisle answered, and motioned for us to follow him. Keeping Jazmyn's hand in mine, we walked down the hall. Mom stayed in step with us.
We got to his room, and Carlisle knocked once before opening it. I took a deep breath and walked into the room behind him. Seth laid on the bed asleep. He breathed slowly, in and out, and the heart monitor beeped next to him. I squeezed my eyes shut, remembering the horrible sound of the flat line two days ago. Then I opened them again to look at him.
Needles and wires sprouted out of practically every place on his body. He looked so much different than the happy kid that I knew; even though he was sleeping, his face looked pained. And he looked much paler than usual.
Without thinking, I rushed towards the left side of his bed and took his hand into mine. I used my other hand to brush his hair back. Suddenly his face scrunched up and he opened his eyes just a little, tiny bit.
"Seth..." I breathed. He closed his eyes again and then opened them wider a second later. I noticed the dark circles under them, as if he hadn't slept in a while.
Jazmyn came to my side and started rubbing his cheek.
"Hi, Sethy-poo," she whispered. I laughed a little; her nickname for him was cute. Seth smiled a bit and then sighed.
"...Where's...Everyone else...?" he asked.
"At home," Mom answered. "We've been so worried about you, Seth."
"I'm sorry..." he whispered. His voice was raspy and soft. "...I didn't mean to make anyone worry..."
"I just want to hug you so much, right now!" Jazmyn exclaimed randomly. Seth smiled tiredly again. "But I'm scared I'll hurt you."
"My head's fine. You can hug my head," he answered. Carlisle, Mom, and I laughed as Jazmyn reached up and hugged Seth's head. She pulled away and kissed his cheek.
"It's been so boring at school," Jazmyn said. "Everyone misses you. It's not the same at the lunch table! Or in Mr. Wagner's class. He has no one to pick on anymore!" Seth gave a little laugh and then scrunched his face in pain. He growled a little, squeezing his eyes shut. "Oh, my gosh!" Jazmyn exclaimed, shooting upright. "I'm sorry, did I hurt you? I'm so sorry!" Seth shook his head.
"No," he whispered. "It just...Hurts sometimes. Talk to me some more; it takes my mind off the pain. When am I supposed to get out of this place?"
"Carlisle says the beginning of next week," Mom answered.
"What's today?"
"Thursday," I said. "But it'll be Friday in a few hours, so it's not that long left," I added, trying to make him feel better. Seth nodded a little and closed his eyes again. "What's wrong?" Seth sighed.
"Nothing...Jus' a little tired..." he answered, opening his eyes again.
"I think that's our cue to leave," Mom giggled, but I could hear the reluctance in her voice. She reached down and brushed Seth's hair back. "I'll be back every day until you're out of here. 'Kay?" Seth nodded, and I leaned in and kissed his cheek.
"Get better soon, Bro-Bro. Jayah's missing her favorite uncle." Seth gave a short laugh, and I didn't miss his grimace of pain. I bit my lip.
Jazmyn pecked his lips and then squeezed his hand. She didn't say anything, but smiled. Seth tiredly smiled back. Reluctantly, she let go of his hand.
After waving 'goodbye' one last time, the three of us left. Mom went to hunt, so that left Jazz and I driving back to my house.
When I came to a stop in front of my home, I noticed Jazmyn was sniffling and wiping away tears. I rubbed her shoulder.
"He's fine, Jazzy. You saw it for yourself," I cooed.
"No. He's not. Did you see all those wires and needles in his arms? And all those times he would scrunch his face up? Leah, I love him so much...It hurts me to see him like that."
"I know, sweetie. It hurts me, too." Jazmyn suddenly gave a short, humorless laugh.
"To think..." she sniffed. "...I was so STUPID...! I thought he was better. I was happy, he was happy. But now I know that it was some stupid medicine. And you know what? I hate medicine. Hate it. Medicine did that to my Seth. It almost killed him, Leah. He could've died! And it wouldn't be fair because I'd be alive and he wouldn't. I...I...I just hate the whole concept of it. I don't know what my life would be like without him...I don't even know how I'm surviving now. I've never been away from him this long...It's like someone's sitting on my chest and won't get off. It's so hard to breathe sometimes." I held Jazmyn close to me. It just seemed like the best thing to do, I guess. When her crying died down to a few sniffles and hiccups, I pulled away and looked at her.
"Jazz...You need to thank God for sending Carlisle and all those educated medical workers to his aid. And, if it wasn't for his overdose, they wouldn't have caught his appendix.
"And don't dwell on what would've...Or could've happened. He's alive...And almost well. He's in good hands, I'm sure of it.
"So wipe away those tears. Show me that gorgeous smile of yours." Jazmyn sniffed again and gave me a small smile. "There it is!" I hugged her again. "Now...You up for any pasta salad? I'm gonna' do everything in my power to make you feel better." Jazmyn laughed and pulled away to get out of the car. After watching her go inside, I looked up at the sky. Closing my eyes, I followed my own advice.
Thank you.
0000000000000000
"You happy to finally be going home?" I asked, glancing at Seth. He laughed softly.
"Yeah...Everyone at the hospital was nice and all...But I'm glad to get back to family," he whispered. His voice had never left anywhere above that these past few days. Sometimes, I actually had to strain my ears to hear him.
Coming to a stop in front of the house, I smiled at Seth.
"We're here, sleepyhead," I joked. The whole car ride, Seth had been drifting in and out of sleep. His head shot up. "You need help?" I asked. It kind of scared me to see him actually doing things on his own in his condition, like, really, really bad. But Seth shook his head and growled and grimaced as he made his way out of the car.
Yeah. Especially when he did that.
He slowly walked towards the house, wincing with every other step. He stopped a couple of times, practically doubling over in pain. I bit my lip every time.
When I opened the door, I let Seth stand behind me as if he was a surprise.
"Knock, knock," I said, walking in. Everyone was here, packed into our living room. And I mean everyone; the Pack and all the Imprints...Minus Jazmyn.
"Leah!" Kim exclaimed. Seth came in behind me and I latched myself onto his arm. "Seth!"
"...Hey," he whispered. "Where's Jazz...And the others?"
"School. It's only, like, 1:30," Rachael answered, rubbing her belly. It had gotten much bigger in the past month. A couple of weeks ago, they found out they were having triplets.
TRIPLETS!
Rach was happy, but I'm not so sure about Paul. He hasn't mentioned it since they found out.
"Correction: it's two," Alice said, walking in from the kitchen.
"Wow, already! Time sure flies when you're hangin' out at someone else's house," Emily laughed. Embry stood up and gestured towards his seat.
"You can sit here," he told Seth. I smiled at my brother, but he shook his head.
"You don't need to do that. Really. I can just sit right here," he walked over to his favorite chair. I could tell by the way he was squeezing his eyes shut as he sat down that it hurt him.
"Y-you want anything?" I asked, backing towards the kitchen. Seth shook his head, his eyes still closed. Then I remembered, and instantly felt stupid. Since his surgery, he hasn't been able to keep anything down. I hated it. He looked so sick.
"Other than that he's fine," Carlisle had said. "I know that he really wants to go home, so I'll oblige. I'll be over every day to check up on him, though."
Esme came out of the kitchen then, carrying Jayah.
"Look at you! You're lookin' cute," I exclaimed, taking my daughter.
"Thanks. Made it myself," Alice said, popping out of nowhere. Jayah had on a blue overall set. Her hair was long enough that it sat in a curly ponytail on the top of her head. It was secured with a little white bow.
I kissed her cheek and turned her around to face Seth.
"You're uncle's back, Jewel!" I cooed. Seth smiled tiredly as Jayah reached out her arms for him to pick her up.
"Sorry, Baby Jay," he said. "I can't hold you for a while." I set Jayah down on the floor and Esme gave her a spoon to play with. She happily babbled and banged her spoon on the floor. Seth watched her with a sad smile on his face.
A couple of minutes later, the rest of the Pack came in from school.
"Where's Claire?" Quil immediately asked.
"I'm going to pick her up right now. Want to come? I'm sure she'll be happy to see you," Emily explained, standing up. Quil happily agreed and they left.
"So...Why are we all meeting here suddenly? Leah, are you getting your house renovate-Whoa! Seth's back!" Brandon said, clearly surprised. He looked at me and opened his mouth to say something. I shook my head, and he clamped it shut. Then Collin came in, Teasha hooked onto his arm.
"My mom made macaroni and cheese. She hopes you get better soon, Seth," Teasha said, gesturing to the Tupperware in her hands. "She thinks anytime someone is sick, food will be the magic-mojo-medicine and make them better, or something," she added rolling her eyes. I laughed; Teasha had a great sense of humor. "Oh, and she also made cheesecake, too." Collin held up an aluminum foil wrapped container. Mom came in and smiled thankfully.
"God bless her little heart. Wasn't that nice of her? Seth...?" I turned to Seth, and laughed when I saw him already asleep on Jazmyn's shoulder. She moved his head carefully so it was lying on her hap.
"Poor Seth," Jazz whispered. "He's so tired." She started stroking his hair and humming softly. Brandon turned towards me.
"Can I speak, now?" he asked.
"If it's stupid and uneducated, no," I answered, taking a seat next to Embry.
"It's not..." Brandon muttered, his arms crossed. "And I'm kind of offended you'd think that...!" I stuck my tongue out at him.
"It's okay, Brandy," Jazmyn said, still stroking Seth's hair. "We still love you!" Brandon rolled his eyes and then looked at Seth.
"I was just gonna' say, he doesn't look as good as I expected."
"Well what'd you expect?" Teasha asked.
"I dunno...But..." he looked back at Seth. "I mean, he looks so sick. And like he hasn't slept in a while. And if he has, not too well," Brandon added, referring to the dark circles under his eyes.
"He's better than he was, though," I said. "But can we change the subject? Talking about my sick baby brother is bumming me out."
"Let's talk about how Paul and I just found out the genders of our babies! And we named them, too!" Rachael exclaimed, laying her head playfully on Paul's shoulder.
"Ooh, yes! Please!" Alice exclaimed.
"Two boys," Paul said.
"And a little girl! I'm so excited!" Rachael squealed.
"Names. I need. NAMES!" Kim demanded. I didn't blame her for being so demanding. I wanted to know as bad as she did. They were my niece and nephews, after all.
Rachael and Paul looked at each other.
"You wanna' do it?" Paul asked.
"Yeah. Okay. My first baby boy will be Aaron James. And my second will be Adam Jacob."
"Oh, Jake will be happy," I said, picking up Jayah.
"What about your girl?" Esme asked.
"Arielle Jennifer," Rachael answered dreamily.
"How pretty," Alice said the same way.
"Yeah, hope she's not born with red hair," Jared said. I picked up a pillow and threw it at him.
"You just killed the moment, Jare," Kim said. He shrugged.
"I'm entitled to my own opinion," he said stubbornly.
"Ooh, big words. Did you learn them today?" Jazz asked. The rest of us snickered. Jared opened his mouth to say something but then closed it when his cell phone started to ring. He answered it.
"Yeah? ...Yeah, I'm at Sue's house..." he cursed under his breath. "...I forgot...I think...Hey, Leah? Can Amanda and Ashley chill here for a while? I'm supposed to be watching them..." he rolled his eyes. "Mom and Dad have some kind of business dinner thing tonight and they don't trust the girls at home by themselves."
"Yeah. I don't mind. I love the twins!" I answered.
"She doesn't mind. Okay, love you, too...Mom..." he growled. I used my hearing to listen to his mom on the other side of the phone.
"Make sure they eat, and don't let them go to bed too late. I love you my little Jarey-Warey! Kiss, kiss!" Mrs. Thail said from the other side of the phone. I covered my mouth before I could laugh.
"Goodbye, Mom," Jared said in an irritated tone. He hung up. I stood to get a bottle for Jayah and an iced tea for me.
"Anybody want anything from the kitchen while I'm there?" I asked, moving Jayah to my hip. Everybody shook their heads 'no.' I smiled slyly. "What about you, Jarey-Warey?"
"Shut up, Leah," Jared growled when everyone started to laugh. I flipped my hair over my shoulder and continued to the kitchen.
"Need a bottle?" Mom asked, and handed me one.
"Thanks! Did you make any tea?"
"Lipton, right?" she handed me a glass of brownish liquid.
"You're better than Edward! Oh, and Jared's little sisters are coming over for the time being. He's got babysitting duty."
"Yeah, that's fine. I've got plenty of food to go around," Mom answered, sliding something into the oven. She stood up and looked at me with a sad smile on her face. "How is he?"
"Last I checked, still sleeping," I replied, taking a sip of my tea. Then I set it down and stuck the bottle into Jayah's mouth. She held onto it for dear life, drinking the milk greedily.
"I'm still worried about him," Mom whispered. "He hasn't eaten in a while. I can tell it's taking its toll on the poor guy."
"I know...But Carlisle's coming by to check on him later. He'll find a way to fix him up, I'm sure of it."
"I know he will, too. But that doesn't stop me from worrying," Mom said, a grim smile on her face. "But...He's a fighter. We all are. We'll find a way to pull through this." We were silent for a few minutes, and I downed the rest of my tea before putting it into the sink. "When you go back to the living room, tell Esme I could use her help in here, 'kay?" I nodded and went into the other room.
"Hey, Esme? Mom wants you. Something about helping with the cooking...?" Esme nodded and rushed into the kitchen. Just then, the door opened and Quil came in with Claire on his shoulders. Emily followed him, both her hands on Ashley and Amanda's shoulders. They were dressed in matching purple leotards. Their jeans were pulled on over them and their hair in buns. They both carried duffle bags with their names emblazoned across the front. Must've come from dance class, or something. "Hi, girls!" I waved to them.
"Hi, Leah!" they answered together.
"We got our costumes for our recital today!" Amanda squealed.
"Want to see them?" Ashley asked. Without waiting for my answer they both reached into their bags and pulled out red sparkly dresses. Jayah dropped her bottle and reached for them. She had a thing for bright, shiny and/or sparkly things.
"That's not for you, Jay," I scolded lightly, sitting her up. Amanda held the dress against her and twirled around excitedly.
"Aren't they to die for?"
"We are totally gonna' dominate Los Angeles!" Ashley said.
"Yeah. Sarasin's not gonna' know what hit them," Amanda said back. Then they did some kind of spin and high five thing. It looked kind of complicated.
"You see what I got to live with every day?" Jared moaned. "It's just happy twinkle-toed dancers now. But wait 'till they get to high school. I'm gonna' have to deal with overly peppy cheerleaders all the time. Sure, I'll be long gone by then. That doesn't mean that they won't leave me alone!" he leaned down and whispered into Kim's ear, "They're like freaking weeds!" She hit him.
"That's no way to talk about your sisters!" Ashley and Amanda turned to him.
"It's okay," Amanda said.
"We know he loves us!" Ashley finished. Amanda turned and brightened.
"Hi! You must be Brandon! You're way cuter than Jared describes you!" she hopped onto his lap and hugged him. "Just wait. When I turn sixteen, you'll be all mine!"
"Oh, no you don't," Jared said, pulling her off Brandon's lap. He set her onto the ground next to his feet.
"Call me!" Amanda squealed, still waving. Brandon shook his head and laughed.
"How did you describe me?" he asked, turning to Jared.
"Oh, you know. Ugly. Hairy all over..." she made eye contact with Brandon and put her hands behind her back, turning red. Brandon stared at her, his head cocked. "...And...Stuff..." she laughed nervously. Brandon kept staring at her, like...The way Jake stared at me that day...
"Not. Cool, man," Jared said, shaking. Kim put her hands on his shoulders.
"Jared, you know he can't control it. And you know he didn't do it on purpose," she soothed.
"Yeah, but that's my little sister! She's only eleven!" Jared snapped, shaking harder. Amanda stood up.
"Please don't phase, Jare. I don't want anyone to get hurt," she whispered. Then she hugged him. "It's not his fault." Jared kept shaking, and pushed Amanda off of him. He stalked out of the house. Embry and Quil stood up to follow him, but Kim shook her head.
"He just...Needs to blow off some steam. Let's just all get back to what we were doing. He'll be fine," she said. But I noticed she rubbed her chest, as if to make it feel better. Amanda sat down next to her and hugged Kim close.
"In the mean time...Teasha and Collin sure are looking cozy!" Jazmyn said, waggling her eyebrows. I looked over at the two and smiled. They were sitting close. Like, super close.
Seth reached up and rubbed his eye, then opened them. "What does that even mean?" he asked.
"Hello, Mr. Sleepyhead!" Emily said with a laugh. Seth looked around.
"What'd I miss? I could've sworn there was less people in here when I fell asleep." Amanda waved to him from beside Kim. Ashley was too caught up blushing to acknowledge his presence. Seth sat up, wincing as he did so.
"Well...Teasha's mom made food. Oh, and Paul and Rachael are having two boys and a girl! Adam, Aaron, and Arielle. And Brandon over there imprinted on Ashley. Other than that, you didn't miss a thing!" I said. "Oh...You did kind of miss a lot..." Everyone laughed.
"How're you feeling?" Rachael asked. Seth was silent for a few moments.
"I've been better," he finally answered.
"It's good to see you back, Seth," Amanda said happily. Seth smiled at her.
"Great to actually be back," he replied, rubbing his eyes again. Mom slid into the room.
Literally.
"Snacks, anyone? Dinner won't be ready for a while," she said, walking around the room with a tray of chocolate chip cookies. I took one and broke a little off to give to Jayah.
"Guys, this is Jewel's first cookie. Think she'll like it?" I winked. Kim laughed and 'awwwed' when I put it into her mouth. She held it in there for a few seconds before spitting it back out.
"Something's definitely wrong with her. Everyone loves cookies!" Brady said, taking a bite out of his for emphasis.
"I think she's just used to the taste of milk," Mom said, patting her head. "Want one, Seth?" she held out a cookie to him. Seth shook his head and leaned back in his seat. Mom turned to me and I just shrugged. "I'll leave these on the coffee table then." She walked out of the room.
"First Jay and now you?" Teasha asked. "What has the world become?" she finished dramatically. I took that time to look at her. Jazz was right; she'd changed a lot since I'd last seen her. Longer hair, slimmer body...And somehow, she was wearing all white and wasn't getting it dirty. Teasha noticed me staring and smiled. And, I swear, her eyes turned yellow.
Then again...It could've just been the lighting.
At that moment, a cell phone started to ring. Everyone looked around, and all eyes landed on Teasha. She smiled sheepishly before reaching down and rummaging through her bag. She pulled out the cell phone and answered it hesitantly.
"Y-yes...?" she asked. I could hear someone yelling on the other side and she stood up and walked outside. I tried not to hear her conversation, but it was kind of hard to since she was being so loud. "Daddy, I...! I know I lied, I just wanted to see them...I know, I know. But you don't understand...They're not like you think they are! And...I-I..." she was silent for a while. "Yes, sir. Yes, sir. I understand. See you then. Bye." She came back inside, her head down. She walked towards Collin and touched his shoulder. "I gotta' go." Collin stood up, handing Teasha her bag. She took it and stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "Bye. Bye, guys." She waved and left.
"That...Was weird," Brandon said.
"I told you, right?" Jazmyn exclaimed, looking at me.
"Yeah. Her eyes turned yellow this time," I replied.
"I'm confused. Are we still talking about Teasha?" Alice asked.
"Yellow? Do they change color according to her mood, or something?" Jazmyn asked, completely ignoring Alice's question.
"Collin...You've been awfully quiet throughout the duration of this conversation. Considering she's YOU'RE imprint," I said accusingly. All eyes turned towards said wolf. He instantly started to fidget.
"Uhh...I'm sorry...She told me to promise her that I wouldn't tell anyone," he said quietly.
"Tell us what?" Rachael asked slowly. Collin's eyes widened and he stood up.
"She needs to tell you guys herself. I gotta' go." And then he left.
"Awkward moment number two," Amanda said.
"We are having WAY too many of those," Kim said, patting the younger girl's leg. At that moment, Jared came in.
"And it just got weirder," Paul muttered.
"We got a new wolf," Jared explained. "A girl. Syanne. She's super freaked out."
"Looks like a job for Leah," Seth said. I smiled at him. I handed Jayah to Alice and followed Jared out the door.
"I can't believe we have another wolf. And a girl, too!" I said from behind the tree where I was taking off my clothes. After I was done, I took a deep breath. "Here I go." I closed my eyes and felt the familiar tremors of phasing. I let out a growl and the next thing I knew, I was a wolf. Silvery fur and all. Jared barked from beside me.
"Hell, yeah! She. Is. Back!" he mentally laughed. "Gorgeous, as always."
"Thanks, Jare."
"Who are you? Now I KNOW I'm going crazy! First there was one, now there's two!" another girl's panicked voice said.
"Syanne, shut up!" Jared snapped, clearly irritated.
"O-okay. I-I mean, yes sir," she whimpered.
"I'm Leah," I explained calmly, showing Jared how this was really done. He growled a little. "And you're not going crazy. You're a werewolf, Syanne. Our minds are linked, so we can hear each other's thoughts." At that moment, a pretty, chestnut brown wolf came into view. She had her tail (literally) between her legs and her ears were down against her head. She was really scared.
"Gee. I would have never guessed that," Jared thought sarcastically. I just rolled my eyes.
"I'm going to teach you how to phase back," I continued, walking up to her.
"W-w-what's that mean?" Syanne stuttered.
"Listen, kid. You wanna' be human again, or not?" Jared demanded, annoyed.
"Mhm," she nodded.
"Then shut up with the questions!" Jared paced around in a frustrated manner.
"Don't mind him. He's just pissed 'cause his little sister's growing up," I said, rolling my eyes again. Jared growled really loud and Syanne jumped away. I saw her thoughts of what she thought he was going to do to her. Why would she think that? "Don't worry. I'll keep him in check. Go back, Jared."
"My pleasure," he answered, and sprinted off. He was muttering something the whole way until he phased and I couldn't hear him anymore.
"You ready? 'Kay. Put all your thoughts on becoming a human again. All of it. Breathe. In and out. Soon, you'll feel your human side taking over, and-" I was looking down a young, teenaged Quileute girl. Her head was down and her long chestnut locks covered her face. She was on her knees. I phased back. "See? Nothin' to it. You're a natural!" Syanne nodded, and I could see a hint of red on her face. Poor girl, she must be embarrassed to have someone see her like this. One of her arms covered her chest, while the other tried to cover her lower area. She sniffed a little, and I saw a tear drop to the forest floor. "Oh, honey. don't cry. I have some clothes for you. Come on." I helped her stand up and we walked back towards my house.
When we walked in, I half expected the house to be filled with the Pack. But then I remembered they were all over at Mom's house. I told her to follow me upstairs into my room. There, I gave a her a pair of basketball shorts and a tank top. She slid them on quickly. I threw on one of Jake's t-shirts and my last pair of cutoffs.
"Wanna' meet the rest of the Pack? Don't worry; they won't bite," I asked. We were walking outside now.
"T-there's more?" Syanne stuttered. I chuckled and nodded. While we were walking, I told her about the Pack, and how we were the only two female werewolves in recorded history. I also told her about vampires, and how we protected everyone against them. But I quickly explained about our friendship with Mom, Evangeline, and the Cullens.
"...Jasper's pretty quiet. And he won't bother you much. But he's super nice. Oh, and Alice, his girlfriend, is the complete opposite. She'll probably be the first one to try and make friends with you. You'll love her, I promise." At this moment, I opened the door to Mom's house. The smell of lasagna instantly hit me, and everyone's playful banter made the house even more inviting. I squeezed Syanne's shoulder.
"...49, 50!" Amanda and Ashley counted their spins. "51! 52! 53! 54...!"
"I can't believe they haven't barfed yet!" Brady laughed. The twins stopped mid-spin when they saw Syanne and I at the door. Everyone looked at us.
"Quit staring. It's rude," I said, nudging the young wolf forward. Then I shut the door behind me. Syanne kept her head down, and no one could see her face because of her hair.
"Her hair's beautiful. And so long," Alice said.
"Too bad she's gonna' have to cut it," Paul muttered. Syanne's head shot up and her hands rushed to grip her long locks. She looked at me with tears in her eyes.
"You wouldn't...No!" she shook her head back and forth multiple times. "Please..." her voice squeaked. I gave her a grim smile and she sighed shakily. "Just do it. Get it over with."
"I can do it for you if you want," Alice suggested. Syanne found a seat at the dining room table and nodded. Alice ran around the house, trying to find scissors. I sat down next to Syanne. She was sniffling, and rubbing her nose. A small puddle of her tears rested on the table.
"It's going to be okay," I soothed. "If it makes you feel any better, I'll cut my hair, too." Syanne looked at me.
"B-but it's so long. And pretty and beautiful. Isn't that what the guys like about you? My hair is the only thing beautiful about me," she whispered.
"No, it's not," I said, brushing her hair back. "Syanne, you're a beautiful young lady. If boys can't see that about you, then screw them! Kick 'em to the curb." I meant it. Syanne should be envied. She had a smooth, blemish free heart shaped face. She had big dimples that showed when she talked. She also had big brown eyes and pretty long lashes. Her lips were full and pink and her nose fit her face just right.
The younger girl looked doubtful, but the expression soon changed to sadness when Alice came back; a pair of scissors in her hand. Syanne bit her lip and turned in her chair so Alice could cut it easily. Soon, the only sound in the room was the snipping of her scissors.
"Done!" Alice said brightly, brushing her hands through Syanne's hair. "I left your bangs. But I trimmed them a little." Syanne nodded stiffly and reached up to touch the top of her head. She started running her hand down it, and stopped when she came to the end. She shook a little.
"Calm down, Sweetie," I whispered. I rubbed her leg. "You don't want to phase right here." Syanne's shaking instantly stopped. I was kind of shocked that she had such great self control...She'd only just phased and then phased back today! "I'll cut mine now." I looked at Alice, and she proceeded to cut my hair.
The hair that had taken me months to grow back.
I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw Jayah staring at me, her head cocked to the side. I grinned and blew a kiss to her. She smiled back and kicked her legs around, babbling and banging her spoon on the floor.
Then the door opened and Jacob and Sam walked in.
"Hi!" Emily greeted, rushing towards Sam. He kissed her scars and then finally her lips. I smiled at them, and Jacob walked towards me.
"How was work?" I asked, trying not to move around so much. Alice was still cutting away.
"Great. It was real busy today, though," Jake answered. He looked at my hair falling to the ground. "Aww...I'm going to miss your long hair." I laughed and Alice announced that she was done. She brushed the extra hair off my shoulders and I stood up.
"Ooh, it feels so light!" I laughed, running my hands through it.
"It looks great," Emily said, giving me a thumbs up. Jacob frowned.
"Isn't that my shirt?" he asked. I nodded.
"Yeah. Why?"
"Out of all the shirts you have, you gotta' go and take mine? Really?"
"I wasn't gonna' ruin mine!" I answered. Jacob rolled his eyes.
"Yeah. But did it really have to be my lucky one?"
"Well I didn't know it was your lucky one! I'll wash it when we get home."
"That'll ruin the whole value! Hence the name lucky shirt..."
"Eww! You never washed this?" Jacob smirked. "Oh, you're just messing with me."
"Who ever said I was?"
"Jerk."
"This is better than Jersey Shore!" Jazmyn whispered loudly. I ignored her.
"Besides, you have plenty of shirts! Like, two whole drawers filled with them!" I continued.
"Yeah. But you have way more. You couldn't find just one old t-shirt in there, or something?"
"Admit it, Jakey. I look better than you in your shirt," I laughed cockily. Jacob smiled.
"Can't deny that."
"Let's start over," I said. "Hello, Jakey!" I jumped on him and kissed his face all over.
"Yea! Happy ending!" Kim laughed.
"But did it have to be in front of me?" Seth asked. "They're practically having sex! There are young children here! And me." I gave Jake a long kiss on his lips. "Now she's just messin' with me."
"Sweet revenge, Baby Bro!" I laughed, pulling away. I kissed Jacob again. "That's for that Chicken game on the Fourth of July...Oh, and this one's for hitting me with that snowball. I was freaking pregnant!" I kissed Jacob's lips again.
"No mercy," Seth laughed quietly. "But seriously, I'm injured here."
"True..." I kissed Jake again.
"What was that one for?" Seth asked, irritated.
"Just 'cause I like messing with you." Seth groaned and everyone else laughed. I remembered Syanne and turned to her with a smile on my face. "Jake, she's our newest Pack member."
"Your name is...?" Jacob asked. Syanne gave him a small, tentative smile and stood up.
"S-S-Syanne."
"Pretty."
"Everyone give Syanne a warm welcome!" I said, gesturing towards the girl. Everyone cheered and clapped. Syanne blushed again. "Introductions! Brady. Seth. Jazz. Ashley. Brandon. Amanda. Emily. Sam. Kim. You've already met Jared. Alice is just one of the many Cullens. Embry..." I trailed off at Embry's name because of the way he was staring at her. Syanne cocked her head, too.
"Wow. Two in one day," Paul said.
"Must be a full moon," Brady said back.
"Wow..." Syanne whispered, still staring at Embry. "You're cute...I mean...! Oh, crap. I just s-said that out l-l-loud, d-didn't I?" She clamped her hands to her mouth, blushing. "I'm s-sorry. I s-stutter a l-l-lot. But don't get me wrong, you're hot...Wait. Ugh..." Embry just looked at her, his smile growing wider. "I'm just gonna' stop t-talking now."
"No. Don't. It's fine," Embry said. Syanne looked at him again and blushed.
"Y-y-you can finish up, if you want," Syanne said, looking at me again.
"Oh, yeah. Rachael. Paul. Inside Rachael's belly there's Adam, Aaron, and Arielle...Oh, and Quil. The little girl he's holding is Claire. She's two...Going to be three next week. And the baby Rachael's holding is my daughter, Jayah."
"But we call Jewel. 'Cause she's pretty. Like a jewel," Emily said thoughtfully. Just then the rest of the Cullens walked in.
"There's the rest of the Cullens! Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper, and Carlisle. Oh, and that's Edward and Evangeline," I explained. Syanne waved tentatively.
"Hi, Syanne," Edward greeted. Syanne's face drained of color.
"H-how does h-he know my n-n-name? W-we didn't t-tell him."
"That's a conversation for later," Rosalie said. "Edward's a creeper. It's best if you avoid him at all costs." She winked. Syanne laughed nervously.
"You're making her nervous! Poor thing," Kim said. "Sit over here, Syanne." She patted the space next to her. "And tell us about yourself. What's it like in the life of Syanne?" She sat down and looked at everyone.
"T-the truth?" she asked. "Umm...M-my life isn't t-t-that happy."
"It's okay. You can trust us," I said, dragging Jacob over to a spot on the floor.
"Funny. I feel like I c-can," Syanne smiled a little. "O-okay. I-I don't know where I was born. Here, maybe. Somewhere e-else? L-likely. B-but I've grown up in foster homes a-all my life. I'm fourteen now. I've never been in one place too long, this is the longest I've stayed somewhere.
"My foster parents...I-I've lived with them for three y-years now. B-but...They don't like m-me very much. The only time they pay me any attention is to...They take turns. Lydia will hit me first...Then Roger will finish it off. They'll call me n-names. And they think I-I'm stupid just 'c-cause I s-s-stutter.
"B-but I'm used to it. All m-my p-past foster homes were like t-that. B-b-but I hadn't been hit since I first came here. Lydia doesn't do it much...But Roger...Like every other d-day. He has a t-terrible drinking problem...A-and if I'm at the wrong place in t-the wrong time...Which for s-some reason is often, he'll...He s-stole every b-bit of innocence f-from me w-when I was t-twelve." Syanne was quiet for a few moments, and then took a deep breath. "I-I've been pregnant four times by him, b-but they all resulted in m-miscarriages and...And I had one stillborn. E-except one.
"Kyle's t-the one that k-keeps me g-going. Even though he's Roger's son, he's nothing like him. He's s-sweet, and looks just like the picture that I h-have of my real father. And..." her head shot up. And she quickly stood. "I should be g-getting back to him. Roger'll be home, and...C-crap! I have to go!" She started shaking. "I-if he hurts him, there's no telling what I'll d-do..." She shook harder, and soon was a blur.
"Get her outside!" Sam commanded. I dragged her out just as she phased; the tank top and basketball shorts I'd given her earlier lay tattered on the ground. I glanced at Jacob.
"BTW, those were your shorts," I told him. He rolled his eyes. I walked towards Syanne and tried to calm her down. Instead of phasing, I stayed human; talking her through the process of changing back. "Calm down, Syanne. Deep breaths. Remember what I told you before." She started phasing back, but then panicked and went back to her wolf form. I ran my hand through my hair like I did when I got frustrated.
"Syanne," Embry said, coming up beside me. "He'll be fine. I know he will." Embry stared at her, and Syanne phased back. They stared at each other until Syanne realized she was naked and covered herself quickly. "Let's get you some clothes, and then we can go get Kyle. There is no way I'm letting you two stay there." Syanne nodded stiffly and I went to retrieve my old clothes from behind the tree to give to her.
"They might be a little bit big..." I said, referring to our heights. She was about two heads shorter than me, and much thinner. She had toned muscles, much like mine, but I was curvier.
Not that I'm trying to brag, or anything...
Syanne slid on the shirt and jeans. They were a little baggy, but stayed on.
"C-can we go get h-him now? I d-don't want to put this o-off any longer," she said quietly.
"I'll go with you. And we'll come back here when we're done," Embry said. Hesitantly, Syanne nodded, and they climbed into Embry's truck. I watched them go.
"She's only fourteen. No one should have to go through that," I told Jacob, on the verge of tears. "Abuse. And a child already. I mean, we could of waited...But still...Only fourteen..."
"Are you saying you regret having Jayah?" Jacob asked. My eyes widened and I shook my head.
"No! She's beautiful, and I wouldn't trade her for the world! Why would you even think that?"
"Sorry. It just kind of sounded like it..."
"Oh. I didn't mean to come across that way." We stood there for a few moments before I started walking back inside. "C'mon. We need to talk about things."
"What things?"
"I want Syanne to stay with us."
A little long...A little rambly...But good, right? A lot of surprises! Review and tell me what you think!
~SashaFierce12.0