The first part of the chapter takes place in the times of the last chapter. Y'know...With Seth disappearing and all that crap. So...The first part is in the morning when Leah's leaving for the hospital and stuff...And we'll see where it goes from there! I just wanted to tell you this so you're not confused! Hope you like this chapter...Oh, and it should be longer than the last one. I hope you weren't too disappointed with the length!
~SashaFierce12.0
Chapter 38
Leah's P.o.V.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Rebecca squealed from the computer screen. I adjusted the webcam on my computer and then grinned.
"Can you see me?" I asked. Rebecca nodded and waved again. "It's so good to see you, Becca!"
"You, too! Where's that gorgeous niece of mine?"
"Asleep."
"And Jacob?"
"Same. Syanne and Kyle are still asleep, too. I'm the freak that likes getting up at 10:15 on Sundays. They're the normal ones."
"Oh...But I can't wait to see Jayah in person! I'm still kind of ticked at how I left only a mere two hours before she was born."
"Actually, it was an hour and fifty-seven minutes," I retorted.
"Smart ass."
"When are you and Adam heading up here, anyway?" I asked, my mouth full of cereal. I chewed and then swallowed. Rebecca and her boyfriend Adam had decided to move up here to be closer to our family. Adam's parents had retired in Europe, so he was cool with it. Plus, he didn't have any siblings. Rebecca had worked it all out with Billy and, while they were searching for their house, they were going to be living with him. Jake and the boys had done some renovations to the house over the past couple of months, and had added a room and a new bathroom.
Yeah. It's still kind of a shock to me, too. I guess they were so proud of the work that they'd done for this house, and wanted to do another project.
"On Thursday. We're packing out as we speak," Rebecca answered.
As if on cue, Adam shouted from somewhere in the house, "Becks! What do you want me to do with these pictures?" Rebecca sighed.
"Put them in the box labeled 'pictures!' It's kind of self explanatory!" she yelled, turning around in her chair.
"Thanks!" Adam yelled back. I giggled and Rebecca rolled her eyes.
"Sometimes I wonder about him…" Rebecca shook her head.
"Aww…" I said, still giggling. "He seems sweet."
"Yeah…And that's what I love about him. Hey, do you think it's weird that I'm marrying him after only six months of dating?" she asked out of the blue. "...And that we're tying the knot in only, like, three months?"
"Yes and no. It would've been weird if you'd just met him six months ago. But you've known Adam for a few years now. You guys are great friends. So…That was kind of like dating, right? Take me and Jake. We've only been going together for not even a year, yet we already have a daughter together and we're gonna' get married in a few years. But it's not weird because we've known each other for…Well, forever." Rebecca nodded.
"True. But…" she turned and looked behind her before facing me again. "I feel like he's been different since we've been going out. Like…We're close…Yet we're not." I raised an eyebrow.
What'd that mean?
I was snapped out of my thoughts when Jayah started crying. Kyle started up shortly after that. This happened most mornings. Jayah's tears were quite contagious.
"Sorry, Becca. I'd love to stay and chat more, but duty calls!" I sighed, and Rebecca did, too.
"Well, it was nice talking to ya' anyway, girly!" she waved. "Send everyone my love, okay? We'll see you soon!" she waved to me and then the screen went blank. I shut my laptop and started going back upstairs.
But Rebecca's words were still ringing in my ears.
Was she actually having second thoughts?
0000000000000000000000000
"Claire, I think the brownies are ready!" Emily squealed, taking the little girl's hand. Everyone was here...As usual. Well, everyone except Quil, Brady, Jared, the twins, and Kim. Ever since Brandon's imprint, the two Thail girls were hanging out here more often. None of us were complaining, though. We loved the two!
Us ladies were preparing Sunday dinner while the guys talked and laughed and the little ones played happily on the floor. Sundays were my favorite. Everyone was here, and we'd always have a big dinner. We skipped lunch so we'd have room for the big array of food.
Yeah. That's how much food there was.
The door opened a couple seconds after Emily took the brownies out of the oven, and Jared and his little sisters walked in.
"Ooh, Jared looks nice," Rachael laughed.
"What? I don't want to look like a bum when I go to church," Jared smirked. The twins took spots at the breakfast nook and I handed them glasses of my newest creation. "Try it. I call it...Mango Passion." I flipped my hair dramatically. The girls took sips and grinned at each other.
"It tastes so good!" Ashley said.
"Yeah, totally!" Amanda added. Brandon took the last seat at the counter which was next to Ashley.
"Aww, c'mon. You two don't have to lie. Leah can take the truth," he smirked. I narrowed my eyes and poured him a glass.
"You wanna' try some, Brandon?"
"Uhh...Sure."
"Okay. Here you go." I poured the contents of the glass onto his head. Ashley clapped her hands to her mouth, trying not to laugh. Amanda spit out her drink, then collapsed on to the table with giggles. "How's it taste?" Brandon liked the side of his lip where the liquid had run down to.
"Actually it's really good. Thanks," he grinned.
"I'd hug you, but I don't want to ruin my dress," Ashley said. "It's new. Mom got it for me when she came down on Thursday." Mr. and Mrs. Thail had given the responsibility of watching the twins to Jared. They'd moved to Seattle to be closer to work, and came down once a week. They took care of the bills and food expenses and stuff, but they weren't actually living there. I didn't really agree with them that much on it; Ashley and Amanda were only eleven, and, no offence to Jared, I just couldn't picture him taking care of two pre-teen girls on his own. However, they didn't complain about it, so I guess it was fine. They were doing good so far, and everyone was being supportive and helping them out when they needed it. Some of us would drop the twins off at their dance classes, pick them up, babysit them...You know, stuff like that. "Do you like it?" Ashley continued. Brandon nodded and smiled at his imprint.
"You look cute," he replied as I handed him a couple of paper towels to wipe his face.
"I wasn't going for 'cute...'" Ashley retorted, crossing her arms.
"Ash is going through a 'phase,'" Amanda said, using quotation marks.
"I am not!" her twin snapped. "I just don't like being called 'cute!'"
"I do!" Amanda said.
"I bet you do. Especially by Jason!" Ashley waggled her eyebrows. Her sister turned a dark shade of red. "'Ooh, Jason has the most beautiful chocolate brown eyes! Oh, he's so gorgeous! Amanda Noelle Thail-Littlesea...It has such a beautiful ring to it...!'" Ashley imitated her sister.
"Oh, you shouldn't be talking Ashley Bianca Thail-Galvin," her sister retorted. "'Oh, Bran and I are gonna' get married, and have the most beautiful children, and name the-'" Ashley clapped a hand over her sister's mouth and shot her a death glare.
"Shut up!" Ashley hissed, shooting a look at Brandon. Amanda rolled her eyes into the back of her head and collapsed dramatically into her sister's arms. Ashley moved her hand, and Amanda kept on falling back. She finally fell to the floor, and Amanda leaned back. Ashley held her up with her hands.
"Gravity. Failing me. Ashley's. Hand. Sucked all breath. From my body," she said. I rolled my eyes.
"Stop! Mandy!" Amanda took a deep gulp of air.
"...And now I die." She collapsed onto her sister's raised hands.
"Amanda! Move! Your fat butt is crushing me!" Ashley tried with all her might to push her sister back up. Amanda sprang back to life suddenly.
"My butt's not that big." She collapsed again. Ashley gave up and her sister fell onto her. I laughed and then the phone rang. I walked to it and picked it up.
"Hello? Black residence, Leah speaking," I said sweetly.
"Leah! Is Seth with you?" Mom cried into the phone. "He stormed off to his room, and then he slammed it, and then he-"
"Mom, calm down!" I cut her off. "Explain everything from the beginning. Slower please."
"Seth came downstairs when I was...Cleaning," she said. I swallowed, knowing what she meant. We'd talked about it a couple of days earlier, both agreeing that it was the best thing to do. "And he saw the box and everything inside it...I tried to talk to him, but he flipped out and there was yelling...He ran upstairs and slammed his door. I stayed down here for a little bit, then went to go check on him. But he wasn't in his room! Is he with you, please tell me he's with you?"
"Sorry, Mom. He isn't," I mumbled.
"Then where else could he be? He was gone again last night, Leah."
"...Really?" I asked. According to Mom, that's been going on for the past few days.
"Yes. But now...I just want it to end. I want to know where my baby is."
"Okay. Go for a run and calm yourself down. I'll call Jazz's to see if he's there, okay?"
"Okay. I love you."
"Love you, too." I hung up, then dialed Jazmyn's house. Teasha picked up. "...She called me crying and sobbing, wondering where my brother is!"
"...Umm, hold on." I didn't bother to listen to her conversation with Jazmyn and tapped my foot impatiently. "He's here. He's okay now." I let out a sigh of relief.
"Okay. Thanks. Are you guys coming over?"
"Yeah. We're about to come now."
"Right. I'll see you soon then."
"Bye." I hung up the phone and turned to continue making dinner.
"You were on the phone for a while," Rosalie said, handing me a clove of garlic. I started pealing the skins off.
"Yeah, I know," I answered.
"...Is it your brother?" she asked, doing the same to another clove.
"Mhm...According to my mom, he's been disappearing for a while the past few days."
"Is he on patrol?" Rosalie asked.
"No. This happens before. Or after."
"Weird..." We continued pealing skins until Rosalie perked up. She turned towards the door and grinned. "Jazz and Teasha are coming up the walk." I frowned.
"No Seth?"
"I didn't catch his scent." I slapped my hand to my face and groaned. After I just found out where he was, he wasn't here? Teasha opened the door and ran to Collin. She kissed the burn mark on his face then his lips. Jazmyn came in alone.
"Hey, Leah," she said glumly.
"Where'd he go? My mom practically had a heart attack! ...And her heart isn't even beating!" I exclaimed dramatically.
"I...I got him all calm because he was about to phase, and then he told me how hard it was for him to 'let go' of his dad. I've never seen him cry, but he looked like he was about to." I looked at Rosalie, who shrugged.
"Let's just pray that he's safe," I finally murmured. I went back to taking the skins off of the garlic cloves. After I was done, I shooed everyone out of the entrance of the house so that I could mop. Edward looked kind of mad because I wouldn't let him go to his piano until I was done. "Don't worry," I said, dipping the mop inside the hot bucket of water. "This won't take long, and I'll dry it when I'm done. You guys tracked a lot of mud in here, and I want it up." I mopped, and then dried the floor.
"You're free to go, Eddie," I said, picking up the damp towel. "Jake, can you dump this water, please?"
"Sure," he got the water and walked outside to dump it out. Edward sat at his piano and started playing something. Evangeline sat next to him and watched his fingers intently. I put the towel away and joined them.
"I still don't get why you smuggled that thing in here, Edward," I muttered. Edward smiled, and changed the song.
"I needed another piano, and your house was the only open space to put one."
"You didn't need one."
"Yes, I did. The old piano's infested with Bella. It still smells like her cheap perfume."
"Aww...You mean the pretty white one?" Edward nodded. "But, still! Have you seen your place? You could fit A HUNDRED pianos in your house!"
"Yeah...But I like your place better." He changed the song again, to something sad and stormy.
"You play so beautifully," Evangeline said. Edward glanced at her with a smile.
"Y'know, I took piano lessons when I was younger," I flipped my hair.
"Oh, I remember that," Jacob said, coming out of nowhere. "How long did that go? Two weeks?"
"Shut up. At least it was longer than those flute lessons."
"You were so...Adventurous. You wanted to try everything. You remember football season?" he looked at Edward and Evangeline. "She was the only girl on our team. And she was really good. What'd we use to call you...?"
"Rebound."
"Rebound!"
"Why did you call her that?" Evangeline asked.
"When someone from the other team would knock her down, she'd come back with more force. She just kept on snapping back like a rubber band. Hence the name, Rebound," Jacob explained with a grin.
"Yeah...I was the star player," I said.
"No, I was," Jacob retorted.
"Okay...You were second."
"You got that ri-Wait," Jacob growled at me. Evangeline and I laughed. I looked outside and my face fell when I saw that it was pouring.
"Oh, no!" I exclaimed.
"What?"
"Seth could be out there! Do you see how hard it's raining?" I pointed towards the window.
"Leah-"
"He could catch a cold!"
"Leah-"
"Or worse; he could freeze to death!"
"LEAH!"
"Be quiet, Jacob. There's no need to yell," I crossed my arms at him.
"Look, I'll go look for him if you'll be quiet."
"Okay." Jacob kissed my cheek and went outside. I watched him run out into the forest, yelling Seth's name.
"He has been acting a little strange for the past few days," Evangeline looked at me and I nodded.
"I tried to read his mind. But he seems to have a sudden interest in R&B," Edward glanced up from the piano. "He's always repeating some song called No Air."
"That's his favorite song," Jazmyn said from across the room. "We sang it today to calm him down."
"Oh, well, he's taken quite an interest to it," Edward said. He finished the tune and looked at me. "Almost as if he's trying to hide something."
"What could he be hiding?" I asked, biting my lip nervously. "...I hope he's not cutting again. That'd be terrible." My head snapped towards the door when Jacob came back inside. He shook out his wet hair and gave me a sympathetic smile. My shoulders fell. "Didn't find him, huh?"
"Nope. I called his name, but he didn't answer. Then I tried to catch his scent, but the rain washed it away. Rain sucks."
"I like the rain. It leaves such a wonderful smell when it is through," Evangeline said, playing some scales on the piano. Jacob shrugged and made a beeline for Jayah. I went to Jazmyn to try and see if I could get anything out of her. (A/N: That's a lot of 'J' names...I think I've acquired an addiction of some sort...)
"So..." I said.
"So..." she copied me and giggled.
"Has he said anything?" I asked.
"No. Well, yes. If you count our captivating debates about if Country is really a genre of music, or just plain annoyance. I, for one, think that it's actually a genre because-"
"Jazz! Stay focused," I snapped my fingers in her face and she grinned sheepishly.
"He hasn't really said anything. It's not like I'm the psycho teenage girl that stalks her boyfriend like a flight of vultures watching a dying pack mule." I smiled grimly and hopped off the chair. "Need help with dinner?"
"Sure. Call your parents. It's not Sunday Dinner until they're here!" I winked at her. Jazmyn laughed and dug her phone out of her back pocket, doing as I had told her.
I started soaking macaroni noodles into a big pot to make my famous mac-n-cheese. I didn't just through some noodles and cheese into a pot and serve it. I mean, really! Where's the fun in that? I set the pot on top of the stove. As I waited for it to boil, I took out packages of shredded Sergento cheese. Provolone, Swiss, cheddar, mixed...! My noodles deserve the best!
"Ooh, Leah! Making macaroni?" Rachael asked. I chuckled and nodded.
"Not just any macaroni, either. Her famous mac-n-cheese," Emily waggled her eyebrows.
"For real?" Rachael squealed. "You haven't made that in forever!"
"I know. So I chose now," I said, then I took out handfuls of cheese and started putting it into a pot.
"Cheese!" Claire exclaimed, climbing onto the counter. I glanced at her and smirked. Emily had been right about Baby Claire's King obsession. It's actually kind of cute, though. Her little sunglasses were always on her resting on her head or over her eyes; she never took them off. And she'd taken a sudden interest to the color blue. Blue t-shirts, blue jeans, blue Converse...Blue everything. "I like cheese, Lee."
"You sure do, Claire," I shook my head with a smile. "Rose, you wanna' hand me a glass pan, please?"
"No. Actually, I don't," Rosalie answered back. My mouth dropped and I looked at her. "But since you said 'please', I will." She handed me the pan, and I rolled my eyes.
"Is there ever a moment when you're not sarcastic?" I muttered to myself.
"Yes," Rosalie answered anyway. I poured the contents of the pot into the pan and then shook it around to even it out. Then I shook pepper onto the top. After that, I placed it into the oven, which I had smartly preheated to four-hundred degrees for this exact purpose.
"What's gonna' happen now, Leah?" Claire asked. I lifted her off the counter and set her on to the ground.
"Now...We wait," I answered, tweaking the little girl's nose. She giggled, and I did, too. I watched her run off and start to play with the guys in the living room. Then my head shot up when the door opened. I smiled, relieved.
"Ugh, I just mopped in here! Thanks, Baby Bro," I joked, placing my hands on my hips. Seth shook out his hair and grinned at me.
"Anytime, Lee." Alice hopped in front of him.
"So...Where'd you go? When Jazmyn walked in here alone, I got kinda worried." Seth was quiet, and half the room stared at him. The noise level didn't drop, though. He shrugged and then headed towards his imprint. I leaned on the counter and watched them.
I couldn't help it. That's how cute they were.
Seth just grinned at her like he didn't have a care in the world. His mood was contagious, because Jazmyn grinned, too. So did I.
"Why are we grinning?" Jazmyn asked. Seth put his finger to his lips, then dragged her outside. I went and sat down on the window seat to watch them. I pulled my knees up to my chest and smiled at how absolutely adorable they looked.
When he pulled her out into the pouring rain, she yelped and ran back onto the porch. So Seth threw her over his shoulder and took her back out onto the front lawn. "No! Seth! No!" she giggled when he set her on the ground, and she twirled happily on her toes. Jazmyn leaned her head back and tried to catch rain drops on her tongue. "Standin' outside with my mouth open wide! Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah!" Seth just watched her, and then she took his hands and began singing a different song. "I'm singin' in the rain, just singin' in the rain! C'mon, Seth! Sing with me!"
"Just singin' in the rain!" they sang at the top of their lungs. I chuckled and didn't acknowledge Darren when he sat down next to me.
"What? You're just going to ignore me now?" he asked with mock hurt.
"Shut up. This is like watching an Oscar worthy romantic movie," I muttered, my eyes locked on my baby brother and his girlfriend. They were dancing now, and Seth swung her around. When he set her down, they stared at each other for a little bit. As they leaned forward, I sat up slowly. Then they started kissing. "Aww..." I cocked my head and sighed.
"Ugh..." Darren got up, and was replaced immediately with the twins, Emily, and Teasha.
"She's so lucky..." Ashley said dreamily.
"It's one of my life-long dreams to be kissed passionately in the rain," Amanda added the same way.
"I know, right?" I added. "And look at what happened: My baby brother beats me to it." The five of us watched as they pulled away slowly. Jazmyn bit her lip, fighting an excited smile, then whispered something into his ear. Seth laughed and kissed her forehead. He leaned his forehead onto hers for a while, and Jazmyn stood there with her eyes closed. She whispered something again, then pulled away. They started walking back up the front stairs, and then they opened the door. The five of us scattered, not wanting them to know that we were watching their whole moment. I ran to get towels.
"What's the point?" Jazmyn asked. "I'm soaked to the bone!"
"I have some clothes you can borrow," Syanne said, and dragged her friend upstairs.
"Jacob probably has some clothes in our room you can put on," I told Seth. He shook his head.
"I'm not that wet, anyway," he replied. I crossed my arms.
"Look at you! I can't believe you haven't caught a cold, yet."
"Lee, I'm a werewolf. We don't exactly get sick."
"Yeah. Tell that to me when you're stuck at home with a temperature of 105 degrees!"
"But it already is 105 degrees!"
"Don't get smart with me," I held up my hand.
"Dang. If I wanted to be chewed out, I could've just stayed home," Seth murmured, walking towards the couch. I took the two towels I had in my hand and threw them at him, then I walked to the kitchen to check on my macaroni.
"Something's different," Rachael tapped her fingers on the counter and looked around. "There's usually more people in here." I looked around. Billy...The Cullens...The Pack...Most of the Imprints...Jayah, Kyle, and Claire...Everyone seemed to be here.
"Jazz's parents aren't here. Oh, and Quil, Brady, Malachi Athena, and Kim aren't here," Embry answered, coming into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and grabbed two bottles of water.
"No...I know they're not here...It's just-" she stopped and turned to the door when it opened. Collin's family came in; Mr. and Mrs. Littlesea, Brandon, Jason, and Layla. Mr. and Mrs. Young followed in behind them.
"Party's here!" Brandon exclaimed.
"Times ten," added Jason. He crossed his arms and grinned. Ashley elbowed her sister and pointed to him.
"Ooh, Amanda," she whispered. Mrs. Littlesea came towards us, a container of something in her hands. Marie headed towards the kitchen and washed her hands, then started talking to Esme.
"Sorry we're late. I wanted to make some things before we came," she said. She set down the container and took the aluminum foil off. "I made shepherd's pie."
"It smells so good!" Emily said.
"The more food, the happier the Pack will be," I added with a laugh. I turned when someone tapped me on the shoulder.
"I'd love to stay, but Mom wants me to 'actually eat dinner at home for a change.'" Brandon smiled.
"Aww...I like pouring my drinks all over you," I pouted playfully, then ruffled his hair. "But it's okay. You'll, of course, be back tomorrow." He nodded and walked towards Ashley. He ruffled her hair.
"Hey!" she giggled. "You have to go?" she asked sadly. He nodded, and her shoulders slumped.
"You'll see me tomorrow, though," Brandon said, obviously trying to make her feel better. Ashley nodded eagerly.
"Okay! Yeah! See you tomorrow!" she hugged him, then pulled away quickly. "You're still a little sticky. And you smell like mangoes." Brandon laughed and shook his head. He cupped his hands around his mouth.
"BRANDON IS LEAVING!" he yelled. Everyone laughed and yelled their goodbyes.
"What? I'm not leaving! I'm staying here," Collin's little brother said.
"He's not talking about you, Smartness," Jason told him.
"Oh...He has my name, too!" the little Brandon said. The older one bumped fists with him.
"Cool. We're definitely going to have to get together sometime, Bro. See you later." Brandon, the little one, beamed. He seemed happy to have a much older kid than him talking to him.
"Yeah! I mean, cool," he said. The older Brandon left.
"We're gonna' have to come up with a nickname for those two," Jazmyn announced, coming downstairs.
"I got it! Let's call the older one Mango," I said. Everyone stared at me. "It's a long explanation about how I came up with it, but-"
"No," Sam shook his head with a smile.
"I liked it..." I muttered, crossing my arms.
"Let's just call him Bran," Ashley said. "He knows who we're talking about, anyway. And then the younger one over there we'll just call Brandon. It's easy that way." Everyone agreed with her.
"Sure. Listen to the sixth grader," I said sarcastically.
"Okay. We will," Jason said back, walking towards the breakfast nook. I shot him a look as he sat down. He chose to look at Amanda. She bit her lip. "Hey, Amanda."
"Hi, Jason." Ashley giggled and hopped down from her seat, going to join the others in the living room.
"You still dancing?" Jason asked.
"Y-yeah," Amanda answered in a high-pitched voice. I sighed, remembering what it was like when I was in her place. She cleared her throat and looked down, embarrassed. "Yeah."
"Cool. You want to show me what you've been doing? I haven't been to one of your recitals, and I don't think I'll be able to. Y'know, with football, and swimming..." he trailed off at the end.
"N-now?" Amanda asked. Jason shrugged.
"Why not? You're not nervous, are you? I mean, you dance in front of hundreds of people all the time. I probably would've had a nervous breakdown," laughed Jason. Amanda giggled.
"Umm...Sure. Ash and I need the practice, anyway." She hopped down for her seat and ran outside. Jason watched her with a wide grin on his face. I gasped dramatically.
"Does Jason Littlesea actually have a crush on Amanda Thail?" I asked.
"What? Me? Psh, no!" Jason crossed his arms and looked down. He glanced back up at my unbelieving face. "Please don't tell her." I placed my hand on my heart.
"You have my word." Amanda came back in with her and her sister's duffle bags.
"Hey, Ashley? Let's practice," she said. Her twin hopped off the couch and hurried to put on her dance shoes. "Let's do both, okay?"
"'Kay." Amanda whistled to get the whole room's attention.
"Who wants to watch us practice for Los Angeles?" she asked.
"I do!" Layla waved her hand in the air and took a seat on the ground. She placed her head in her hands, grinning widely.
"We're doing two duets," Ashley announced. "One of them is-"
"Single Ladies!" Amanda cut in. "I love this song!"
"And the dance's not that bad, either," Jared said. "They came up with it themselves."
"You sound proud about that," Jacob laughed. He kissed Jayah's head.
"'Cause I am!" He watched as his sisters prepared their music, and then struck poses. Ashley was poised like she was blowing a kiss, and her sister had her hip jutted out to the side with the palm of her hand on her forehead.
"Leah, can you turn on the music please?" Amanda asked, not leaving her stance. I nodded and started it. They stood still for the opening beats and then Ashley started to dance. She did something...Intricate and complicated, then struck another pose. That cued her sister to take her turn.
The smiles never left their faces, and I knew how much they loved what they did. Their facial expressions were so cute, too. I couldn't help but giggle. When the bridge came up in the song, they started getting really into it.
"Don't treat me to these things of the world! I'm not that kind of girl; your love is what I prefer what I deserve! Here's a man that makes me, and takes me to a destiny, to infinity and beyond. Pull me into your arms," they slid back, making seductive gestures for someone to walk towards them. Then Amanda skipped forward, pointing to herself and stopped. She danced some more. "If you don't, you'll be alone, and like a ghost, I'll be gone." She slid back towards her sister and then the song broke back to the chorus again. The girls started into a series of spins. "Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh..." They did the little Beyoncé dance that went this part and I laughed. At the end of the song, they went back to the poses they did at the beginning. Then they grinned at each other and hugged. The rest of us clapped.
"Dang, when I was eleven, I had two left feet," Mrs. Littlesea laughed.
"I still do," Alice rolled her eyes at herself.
"You guys are so good," I complimented.
"Thanks!" Ashley said.
"Yeah, you're real good," Jason added. Amanda placed her hands behind her back, and then tapped her sister.
"You should practice your death drop," she said. She walked forward and changed the song, then skipped to the end. She pressed 'play' then turned to her sister. Ashley started dancing, and then when the song ended, she slipped to the ground. Half of the room gasped. "It's okay, Guys. That's supposed to happen." Ashley jumped up.
"How'd it look?"
"Great! We are so ready for Los Angeles!"
"That. Was. Cool," Layla said, her eyes wide. She jumped up and ran to her mother, tugging on the hem of her shirt. "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy! I wanna' take dance lessons! I wanna' dance like them."
"Maybe after the holidays, Lay," Mrs. Littlesea answered. Layla jumped up and down, clearly excited. I took my macaroni out of the oven, grinning at how perfectly it'd turned out. I walked towards our dining room table and set it down. The table wasn't big enough for everyone; it could only seat six people. Jake, Syanne, Kyle, Jayah, and I used it on weeknights when everyone wasn't staying for dinner like on the weekends. So many jokes and stories were passed around this table, it was practically a part of us now. Esme came over and set down plates, and Alice put down a basket with forks and knives.
"Ladies! Time for food!" Esme called. After the girls all got their plates, the guys got there's. Everyone was starting to eat when I whistled.
"Ever heard of saying grace?" I asked sarcastically. Everyone set their plates down and folded their hands. "Go ahead, Seth."
"Wait. What? I'm not good at praying!"
"I'll do it!" Claire raised her hand in the air.
"Okay. Claire can pray. Thanks, Claire," I looked pointedly at Seth then closed my eyes.
"Dear God, please help our food be good to ev'ryone. Amen," Claire looked up and beamed.
"Thank-"
"Oh! I almost forgot!" she quickly folded her hands again and squeezed her eyes shut. "Please help Aunty Emmy to give me a new cousin. Send her a angel, a gift-y from God...And name her Claire Junior. Amen!" She grinned again, and Sam smacked his hand to his face. Emily looked down and blushed fiercely.
"Thanks, Claire," Quil ruffled the little girl's hair. "Let's eat!"
Dinner was filled with excited chatter about the day and other jokes.
"Rose, I swear, your hair is like a Pantene commercial," I pointed at it with my fork as she flipped her blonde mane over her shoulder. "Why can't my hair be like that?"
"It's perfect the way it is," Jacob said to me. The girls at the table 'awwwed' when we kissed. Jayah leaned up in my arms and touched her face to my cheek. Jake and I pulled away and I looked at her. She gave me a wide grin and I laughed. "Looks just like me when she does that," Jacob noted cockily. But I had to agree with him. She did.
"Jewel, you're gonna' be so gorgeous when you're older. I'm definitely going to have to keep an eye on you," I winked at her and touched her nose. She immediately scrunched it up and sneezed. I laughed again and hugged her.
Although dinner was fun, I kept having this weird feeling that I was being watched. Like, creepily watched. I kept taking glances out the windows, seeing if there was anyone out there. At about the forty-millionth time I did that, Edward turned from his place at the piano and stared at me.
"Quit being so paranoid, Leah. If it helps, I'll take a run around the border when I leave." My shoulders relaxed and I nodded, holding Jayah a little bit closer.
That didn't mean that I was wasn't still worried.
"What's he talking about?" Jacob asked. I shook my head, telling him to forget about it. After all, I didn't want him to worry.
When all the dishes were done, and everyone had said their goodbyes and left, I was still on alert. After I'd put Jayah to bed, and said 'goodnight' to Syanne and Kyle, I went to my room. Jacob kissed me, wearing a pair of cutoffs.
"P-Patrol?" I asked hesitantly.
"Yeah...You know I have patrol with your little brother today. You sound worried...I could ask one of the other guys to-"
"No, no. It's okay. You can't disobey your wolfy duties." I kissed him again. "Run a thousand miles, catch some vampires-"
"Tease Seth?" I giggled and kissed his cheek.
"All that jazz. Stay safe."
"You, too." Instead of jumping out the window, he walked out the door to say 'goodnight' to Syanne and Kyle. I heard him do this, then he walked into Jayah's room and said goodnight. Finally, I heard the door open and close.
I turned out the light and laid in bed. After a couple of minutes of staring at the ceiling, I closed my eyes trying to get to sleep. But then they shot open again when I smelled something strong. I looked down to see a cold, cold hand clamped over my mouth. I looked up.
And came face to face with the blood-thirsty eyes of a vampire.
Uh-oh! Cliff hanger! Do I tend to do a lot of those...? I hope not...But I hoped that you guys liked this chapter! I'll try to have the next one up soon.
~SashaFierce12.0