Author's Note:

Hi everyone! Sorry about that cliff-hanger there, haha. I'm just shifting gears a little bit - the next few chapters will be narrated through Jules' eyes, in part paying homage to how Stephenie Meyer organized the original book and also just for myself because I really like Jacob and Jules haha. A little heads up, things are going to start deviating quite a bit from the original Breaking Dawn from here on out but I hope that it will still work out for you all and you'll be able to see the story through with me. I also wanted to mention that I also got a few comments/speculations/questions about a specific plot point - I won't put any spoilers here, but I just wanted to say that they will be answered and addressed within these next couple of chapters so stay tuned, I'm excited to hear what you all think!

As always, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy :)

Book 2: Jules

16. HOMECOMING

The rain was coming down in sheets but hey, what else was new? Everything in the world was gray. Maybe it'll always be that way for me too, who knows? I sat down opposite my mom's wheelchair in the small dining room, scooping some of the salmon I made onto her lunch plate and putting it in front of her before going back to my own seat. My elbow was pressed firmly against the table as I mashed up my own helping of the fish into the bed of rice it sat upon with my fork and I let out a sigh.

"Jules?" Mom's voice was hard; concerned.

"What is it?" I asked, not bothering to look up from the mess I was making.

"Jules."

"What?" I shot back, biting the inside of my cheek.

"Stop playing with your food. Eat." I didn't answer her and sighed again.

"What do you think they're going to say, Mom? That he fell off of a cliff? Got run over by a car? Flew out the window tripping on his way down the stairs again, only this time he wasn't so lucky? You know, maybe he got eaten by sharks. The possibilities are endless." I scoffed and shook my head. "The worst part is, whatever they come up with anyone who even remotely knows who Beau is will believe it. Hell, I would believe it too if I didn't know any better." I threw my fork down, kicking up some rice from my plate as the fork clattered against it and I threw my chair out behind me, pressing my palms to the table.

"Whatever happens to him is none of our concern anymore, Jules. Understand that." Bonnie tried with an exasperated but almost sympathetic sigh. I ignored her.

"I'm going out." I shook my head and, covering my plate with plastic wrap, I opened the fridge and pushed it towards the back. Just as I was about to duck out of the doorway of my small red house, Bonnie wheeled herself after me, stopping at the far end of the hall.

"Jules." I turned to her, leaning up against the doorframe. She was looking straight at me. "They came back early. Two weeks ago."

My eyes widened.

"What do you mean? What happened? Is Beau alright? Is he sick? Does Charlie know?" Bonnie shook her head at all of my questions.

"He's at the Cullens."

I clenched my jaw and turned from her, running out into the pouring rain. I threw off my shirt like I was going to go swimming and phased, breaking through the sheeting rain and kicking up splatters of mud behind me with every sprint, my feet coming in towards my torso and kicking back out again.

I knew where I needed to go.

…

When I finally reached that familiar stretch of road leading up to the Cullens' big white house, I phased back to my normal human form and sprinted towards the glass door that separated me from those bloodsuckers, knocking thrice on it. Carine came out in two seconds, letting me in.

"Hello, Julie." She greeted me with a polite smile but her eyebrows were furrowed. She stood in the doorway almost warily, but I pushed past her.

"What's wrong? Where's Beau?" I frantically asked, calling his name out twice.

"He's in the living room. Would you like to borrow one of Edythe's shirts?" Carine asked gently. It was only then I realized I was still in a swimsuit top and a pair of spandex PE shorts and I sighed. Having to borrow Edythe's clothes was the last thing I wanted to do, but they were probably the only ones that would fit me – we were the same height, me and her – and I didn't really want to freak out my best friend today, so I guess I kind of had no choice. I made a mental note to bring a spare with me next time.

"Thanks." I muttered, not sounding very grateful in the least. Carine was up and down and back again by my side in a fraction of a second.

"Here you go, honey." She said, handing me a white Henley top before heading upstairs again. I took it from her and slid it on, leaving the top two buttons undone. That was how Edythe wore it, I knew. Cutting across the wood tiling, I made my way to the living room with long, quick strides and found Beau curled up on the couch with a book – one of his favorites, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. I felt a smile flash across my face and my heart beat twice as fast in my chest which welled up with a sort of warmth when I saw him there like that: He was back, he was still human, and he was still alive.

"Hey." I said, trying to hide my excitement. I looked to the floor and back up at him again. He slammed the book shut.

"Jules." He said in a voice filled with relief like he really was happy to see me and quickly got to his feet, holding his arms out awkwardly to either side of him like he was debating whether he should give me a hug or not.

"Wow. You didn't die." I said very slowly, biting back a smile.

"Nice to see you again too, Jules." He laughed and came right up to me, still holding his arms out. Taking the bait, I fell into them and he gave me a big hug. I wrapped my arms tight around him, leaning my head on his chest a little. It was the best feeling in the world; the best place to be.

"I'm sorry." He whispered into my hair.

"I'm sorry, too." I said, not meeting his eyes. I touched his arm instinctively; tenderly this time.

"So, I heard you had to cut that honeymoon short. I would say I'm sorry, but that would be kind of a lie." I teased, shaking my head. His eyes fell a little and I sighed. "Sorry again. Well, what exactly happened?" I asked, more seriously this time.

"A call – actually, a few calls – from Archie."

"Archie?"

"Yeah. He, um, saw something. You know, about me." A sense of dread lanced up my back when he said that and it made me shiver.

"Bad?" I asked, but I already knew my answer.

"Yeah. So, I'm basically under house arrest right now." He shrugged helplessly, brows flicking up then down. He tried to laugh, but it didn't come out right.

"Where's Edythe?" I asked, not particularly wanting to bring her up but feeling like I probably should.

"She's out hunting with Archie. Technically, it's just us and Carine here – Earnest and the others are up at another hunting ground. When everyone else heard we were coming back though, they said they'd start heading back down here too so it won't be long now."

I nodded my head. "But you're feeling okay?" I asked him. He shrugged again.

"I mean, physically I feel totally fine, I'm just a little worried is all. About everything." He pressed his lips together, making a hard line with them. I wasn't very good at the whole "comforting others" thing, but I did make an honest effort. Raising my hand awkwardly, I pressed it to his back, patting it. "It's all gonna be okay, alright? I won't let anything happen to you." I said, showing him a small half-smile.

"Thanks, Jules." He wrapped his arms around me, giving me another big hug.

"Yeah, yeah." I chuckled and shook my head. He put his hands on my shoulders.

"Hey, that's Edythe's shirt." He laughed.

I shrugged. "Yeah, I guess it is. Not that I wanted to wear it, just so you know."

"Well, it looks nice on you." He said, smiling. I looped a lock of hair behind my ear and looked out the window to avoid his gaze, my cheeks feeling hot. He grabbed my hand.

Just then, the front door swung open with a clatter.