ANNA WAS FREEZING. The heating system in the house had broken down. Darlene blamed it on the years, since they had relocated to Seattle, the house had been devoid of any life or care.
"We just have to wait until tomorrow," she had told Anna, who had already opted to put on gloves. She hated feeling so cold and especially having to wear many layers of clothing. They made her feel trapped. "I'll call someone."
To add up, it was Sunday. Her personal hell.
"I think I'll go for a walk," she commented softly, looking out the living room window.
Despite the biting cold, the sun was shining brightly in the sky, which was rare but appreciated. She figured she would probably get more warmth outside than by staying locked in there.
"Don't go too far," Darlene warned her. "There are still reports of animal attacks. Why don't you call Bella or Jacob instead?"
Anna's expression changed drastically, though Darlene didn't notice. She had actually called Jacob that morning. And they had agreed to meet. In fact, Jacob was supposed to come to her house that afternoon. Something about continuing the math tutoring. Though Anna would be lying if she said she cared about the reason.
But it hadn't been long before Jacob had called her again, asking if they could reschedule for another day. Because Bella had called him. They wanted to test the motorcycles they had been working on those weeks.
And he hadn't invited her. Anna thought maybe it had escaped him, maybe he didn't need to make it explicit. But it was so clear that there was no place for her there. It showed in his voice, in the way he spoke of Isabella. The same voice Anna recognized in her when she talked about him.
"Are you sure you don't mind?" he had asked her.
Anna nibbled nervously on her lower lip."Of course not. We can meet, like, any other day."
"I'm really excited about motorcycles," he continued. Anna could imagine him smiling on the other side.
"I'm sure they'll be great."
"Of course they will, I worked on them," he chuckled. "Thanks Ann, you're the best friend."
She sighed. "I think they're busy," she replied to her mother.
Darlene said something, but Anna didn't hear her. She grabbed her backpack, her keys and put on her coat. Outside, as expected, it was freezing, but that didn't bother her as much since the sun felt good on her face. She started walking without thinking of a particular destination.
She made an effort to avoid overthinking, especially about the unpleasant feeling it gave her to realize that Jacob would be with Bella at that very moment. Because for all she knew, even though she wished with all her heart that it wasn't so, it was nothing more than jealousy.
Yes, she was painfully jealous. Her heart felt heavy with the weight of the emotions she couldn't control. She was jealous that Jacob spent time with Bella, even though she knew it was irrational.
She couldn't help feeling envious of the bond they shared. She was jealous of how his voice had sounded when he told her about his plans for that day, full of excitement and anticipation. She longed to hear that tone directed at her. She was jealous that Jacob wouldn't look at her the way he looked at Bella, with adoration and affection. She was jealous that he had cancelled on her, to spend time with her cousin, even when they had scheduled first.
And it wasn't the first time it had happened.
It felt horrible, consuming. Because even if she felt jealous, she knew Jacob was good for Bella.
He alone had succeeded in something that Charlie, and she too, had been trying for months. And that was for Bella to be her again. Or at least a little. A little of who she was before Edward Cullen.
And she didn't want to take that away. She wanted her cousin to be happy, for Charlie to be at peace. It felt so wrong to be jealous of something that was good for everyone.
Because maybe Bella could give Jacob a chance. She knew her cousin wasn't looking for dates, her heart still reserved for someone too stupid to hold it. But she could do it one day, with time. And of course, Jacob would be waiting. To accept whatever Bella decided to give him. Anna knew that.
So what was the point of confessing to Jacob how she felt? It would ruin everything. She would ruin everything.
And yet she couldn't help it.
She had come to the stupid conclusion that she was in love with Jacob Black.
It hadn't been an easy conclusion to come to. She had struggled in the process. But there was no other answer.
Jacob was like the radiant sun that now burned on her face, casting a warm glow over her entire being, addictive for cold days like that. When Anna was with him, she wished that time would stop, freeze in that perfect moment. And when she was without him, she longed for his company, counting the minutes until they could see each other again.
At times it felt overwhelming. And at times it felt terribly sad, knowing that Jacob probably didn't feel that way. That he wasn't thinking of her at that moment, as she was thinking of him.
It was painfully obvious that he was in love with Bella.
Or at least it was to her eyes. And Bella probably knew it too. She didn't know what was going on in her cousin's head, but from what she had observed, from what they had talked about, Anna knew it was only a matter of time for Bella to realize her feelings for Jacob.
And when that happened, she didn't want to be in the middle.
Bella deserved someone like Jacob.
Without even realizing it, she had reached the forest. And like the last time she had been there, she felt at peace, enjoying the way the light drew patterns on the ground and the soothing sounds of nature.
She found a good spot by a tree and decided to sit there for a moment. After all, there had to be a few hours of daylight left.
Setting the backpack down on her lap, Anna frowned as she noticed how heavy it was. Then she remembered.
The book.
She pulled it out delicately, careful not to damage any edges. The more she looked at it, the more she concluded that this book had probably been in the Black family for years and years.
At the top of the first page there was a title. The Spirit Warriors. Anna settled her back against the tree, straightening up. It looked promising.
Taha Aki had the idea that changed us all. He asked the great wolf to make room for him. The wolf complied, allowing Taha Aki to merge with its being, a gesture met with immense relief and profound gratitude. This newfound union proved to be a sanctuary far superior to the desolation of the spirit world.
Why couldn't they have stayed in Seattle? Why had their mother accepted that stupid job? It didn't even bring any thrill for a skilled Doctor like her. In a minuscule town like Forks, there were barely any challenges to be found.
Taha Aki had the strength of the wolf in his new body. They called him Taha Aki the Great Wolf, or Taha Aki the Spirit Man. He led the tribe for many years, blessed with eternal vitality. In times of peril, he effortlessly shifted into his wolf-self to fight and intimidate any threats and enemies.
However, pointing fingers at Darlene wasn't fair. If there was anyone to hold responsible, it was none other than herself. She always knew that emotions could cloud judgment and cause irrational behavior, so why hadn't she been able to control her own feelings? What was it about Forks that had changed her in such a brief span of time?
Taha Aki's lineage flourished, as he became the father of numerous sons, and among them, a few discovered that once they had matured into manhood, they possessed the extraordinary ability to transform into wolves as well.
Placing blame on Jacob for being ridiculously charismatic and beautiful wasn't an avenue to explore either. She alone had come up with the best idea of falling for him even when she had been able to see all of his interactions with Bella right there in front of her eyes.
And every day it became more obvious that the bond they shared was unbreakable.
Julia would probably advise her to forget about Jacob. Date more people. Fall in love with someone else.
He had married a third wife after the deaths of the first two, and found in her his true spirit wife. But while his affection for the previous wives had been sincere, this connection transcended mere love. In a moment of profound sacrifice, he resolved to give up his spirit wolf, ensuring that he would perish alongside his beloved when her time came.
But how could she forget about something that never happened? After all, her relationship with Jacob only existed as a wish, an emotion, something that would probably never come to be.
The creature presented itself as unyielding as stone, radiating an icy chill that pierced their very souls. They soon realized that only their teeth were the sole instruments capable of inflicting harm upon it. They began to rip small pieces of the creature apart while it fought them.
And yet, the idea of falling in love with someone else seemed so far away. To have let her guard down and have feelings for Jacob had been a mistake. To do it again with someone else? That would already be an attempt on herself.
They called it The Cold One, the Blood Drinker, and lived in fear that it was not alone.
Anna closed the book. It was no use. No matter how much time she had spent there trying to pay attention, her mind could only wander.
Glancing skyward, a sense of slight unease washed over her as she noticed the considerable dimming of the light. Hastily, she stowed the book away and retraced her previous path. How long could it have been? She wasn't even halfway through the pages.
As she walked she found only more trees and thick underbrush, making her frown. Where was the trailhead? She was sure she hadn't gone that far.
"This is stupid," she muttered, trying to keep her balance among so much slippery moss.
It had started to rain. Of course, she thought sarcastically. The drops hit her face like tiny needles, making her shiver. Anna pulled her coat tighter around her body, trying to protect herself from the chilling weather.
Her heart began to race as she realized that she had been wandering for a while, and the darkness was making it harder to see.
The hoot of an owl made her jolt. The day had finally turned into a starless night. She stopped in her tracks, looking around.
She had gotten nowhere.
Although her heart was pounding, either from agitation or nerves, she tried to remain calm and think about her options.
She couldn't stay there. It was freezing. How long would it take for her to get hypothermia? But again, she didn't know where she was or had any way to communicate.
She could scream. If she wasn't too far from the road maybe someone could hear her.
But what if she wasn't? What if her screams ended up attracting those animals that had been terrorizing the town?
That was definitely not an option.
The best choice seemed to be to keep walking, even if she couldn't see straight because of the darkness.
And that's what she planned to do, until she took a step and fell into the void, hitting the ground.
Her scream came out involuntarily.
She didn't know if it was a ditch or some kind of hole, but the fall had been quite rough. As she turned over onto her back, a wave of discomfort surged through her legs, particularly her right ankle. And after a few seconds of lying there, she began to feel a sticky liquid in the palm of her hand, and from the sharp pain, she knew she had suffered a cut.
As she lay there, trying to calm herself down and think logically, she realized that her situation was much worse than she had initially thought.
With a wince of pain emanating from her injured hand, Anna mustered the strength to sit up. Suddenly, the sound of rustling bushes reached her ears, causing her neck to whip around in every direction, straining to see through the cloak of darkness. It could either be her lifesavior or her death, in the form of one of those animals the whole town talked about.
With her luck, it was probably the latter.
"Hello?" she uttered, her voice tinged with uncertainty. "Can anyone hear me?" she added, projecting her voice a little louder. She couldn't miss this opportunity.
"We heard a scream, have you been hurt?" a voice from somewhere in the darkness answered. Anna almost yells with excitement - she wasn't going to die!
"No, I... I'm lost," she admitted, finally. It didn't felt good. It felt... Stupid.
"You're bleeding," the voice stated. Anna couldn't help but feel startled by its proximity, yet she strained her eyes in vain, unable to discern anything or anyone. How could this person observe her bleeding hand when she couldn't even see them?
"I fell... I don't think it's too bad," she reassured, summoning her strength to rise to her feet despite the difficulty.
"This isn't good," another voice interjected, causing Anna to nearly jump out of her skin. How many people were there? And why weren't they all focused on finding a way out?
"It's not," confirmed the initial voice, the one that had been engaging with her. "Go back. Tell Embry to come here. You and Paul keep on the trail."
Embry? Paul?
Embry?
Her stomach twisted. The conversations with Jacob and Quil on Saturday afternoon, replaying in her mind.
"The others, you know, Jared Cameron and Paul Lahote... They started out the same way. They skipped school, acted weird... And neither had anything to do with Sam until..."
Jacob's voice echoed hauntingly in her head, leaving her with a queasy sensation that threatened to induce nausea at any given moment.
"Don't worry, we'll get you home," the deep voice said. "I'm Sam Uley."
I know, she wanted to say. "I'm Anna Swan." Her whisper was so faint that she doubted Sam heard it.
"Swan?" he echoed, proving that he had indeed heard her. The clouds veiling the moon began to disperse, allowing a soft glow to bathe the area where they stood, finally bringing illumination to their surroundings.
Her gaze fixated on Sam, her observations swiftly drawn to his bare-chested form, clad only in shorts. That couldn't feel good at all - it was freezing! How could he remain seemingly indifferent to the biting cold that had her trembling like a fragile leaf?
His countenance exuded an air of sternness and he looked in... Alert? Anna struggled to decipher whether it was genuine alertness or a figment of her fatigued mind, conjured by the combination of her arduous run and the subsequent fall.
"I'm here," a new voice said. But that voice... She knew that voice.
Emerging from the depths of the surrounding woods, Embry materialized into view. Anna blinked, struggling to process the sight before her. It was undeniably Embry, and yet, it felt like it wasn't.
"Embry?" she asked, unable to help herself. He looked different.
The boy standing in front of her seemed like a completely different person compared to the familiar face she once knew. His appearance had subtly aged, accentuated by the cropped length of his hair, which contributed to the overall transformation. Gone was the relaxed and friendly expression she had grown accustomed to; instead, his features mirrored a seriousness and hardness, reminiscent of Sam's demeanor.
She searched for his eyes, looking for some sort of familiarity. Something that would tell her that this person was, indeed, Embry.
His brown eyes met hers under the moonlight.
And suddenly, the world stopped for a moment.
βΈ»
So... YES, it finally happened!
Hi reader! How are you? What do you think of this chapter? Personally, I enjoyed writing it. I liked the drama of the situation (? Do you think Anna will remember what she read in the book?
See you soon in the next chapter!
P.S: For those who are interested and love the Volturi as much as I do, I am writing another fic called "Heartbeat" which follows the story of my character Eleanor, that somehow ends up involved with them. And the love interest is Demetri ;) I invite you to read it!