Moonlight in Forks

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.

Things Are Changing

Bella tried to keep it together as she watched Jacob from the corner of the room. He moved around stealthily, making not the slightest sound, he often paused, nostrils dilating, as he sniffed the air carefully.

"Well?" Bella said after a while. She was freaking out, unable to maintain her silence any longer.

"Your room reeks. It's not a scent I recognize." Jacob finally said, coming right back to her. He pulled her into a comforting hug, wrapping his arms right around her when she trembled. "You're safe with me, honey. I am not going to let anything happen to you or Charlie."

"But Charlie was here." Bella cried. "Anything could have happened."

"But it didn't." Jacob gently rubbed her back. "Whoever was here came for a specific reason."

"Has the pack come across anything new?" Bella asked when she finally managed to compose herself enough to talk again. Jacob always managed to stop her freak out before it escalated onto a full-on panic attack-a skill that Edward had never managed to master.

"No." Jacob frowned, his mind working overtime as he tried to work out what this latest development entailed as far as Bella's safety was concerned. "As much as I hate to say it." He grimaced as he spoke. "You'd better inform the leech about what has happened here."

Bella knew how difficult it was for him to say those words. The last thing he would want to do was collaborate with Edward over anything. She reached up and cupped his cheek gently, tracing one thumb over his full lips. "Thank you." She murmured. "I'll go call him now."

Jacob watched her with his heart in his eyes as she left the room and headed for the phone to call Edward Cullen.

Bella knew that Edward would overreact as soon as she told him about the unknown visitor in her room. She heard him castigating Alice in the background, demanding to know why she hadn't foreseen this, and then Alice's sharp reply in response. A short argument ensued between the siblings, until Bella called a halt to it by reminding Edward that he had piled enough responsibility on Alice's shoulders as it was.

"She can only do so much, Edward."

Edward calmed down, much chastened, quickly apologizing to his sister for his unwarranted outburst. "I'm sorry, Alice. Forgive me."

Bella heard Alice murmur something in reply, before Edward asked Bella if he could speak to Jacob. She was surprised, and not a little concerned. She wasn't sure that was a good idea. But she called up the stairs anyway. "Jake, Edward wants to speak to you."

Jacob appeared at the top of the stairs, clearly bemused, and none too pleased at the prospect. He refrained from commenting however, understanding the seriousness of the situation, he speedily made his way down the stairs to take the phone from Bella.

"Well, Cullen?" Jacob's tone was barely polite.

There was a long silence. Bella bit her lip, wondering what Edward was saying. She saw Jacob frown, his eyes narrowing, and lips pursing slightly. "Look, Cullen." He finally said. "I won't be letting Bella out of my sight. You follow the trail."

There was another long pause as Edward argued against it. Jacob argued right back. "The safest place for her to be is on the reservation. And Charlie, too, when he's not working."

There was another pause. Bella was on tenterhooks.

"Stuff being objective, Cullen. You know that I'm right." Jacob retorted. "Her safety comes first. And being on the res means she'll be out of harms way. And we should talk about rearranging some boundaries while we're at it, so its easier to catch anyone who gets too near Forks."

Another lull as Edward barked his reply.

"Sam will go for it once I've updated him about the situation." Jacob answered. "And in the meantime, I will be keeping an extra eye on things myself."

Bella gazed at Jacob in wonder. He sounded so different. So self-assured and confident in what he was saying. Listening him talk so calmly to Edward-who had a tendency to go over the top when he was in the midst of his overprotective mode-it was almost like he was the Alpha wolf and not Sam. Slowly he was swaying Edward toward his point of view, making it sound reasonable that she should spend more time on the reservation. She had to admit the idea had a certain appeal. Jacob's house was like her own personal sanctuary. No worries touched her there. She felt safe there in a way she had never felt safe in the Cullens palatial mansion.

Eventually the conversation came to an end and Jacob passed the phone back to Bella. She took it, placing the receiver close to her ear. "Edward?"

"Bella, I think there may be some merit in Jacob's idea." Edward conceded reluctantly. "I am going to discuss the prospect with Carlisle and Alice to get their take on it. Meanwhile, as much as it pains me to say it, you should stay in the house with Jacob. I'm going to come up and get the scent of the visitor so we can track him if he comes back. Don't worry, my love. I'll see you very soon."

"Okay. Be careful, Edward." Bella said automatically.

"Of course. I love you."

Bella knew he was expecting the same response back from her, but she felt awkward returning the sentiment when Jacob was standing right there. At least that was the excuse she gave to herself. "Bye, Edward." She replied, then hastily hung up.

For something to do, Bella went to the kitchen, and began to wash up the few dishes in the sink. Jacob followed her. He stood close by her side, his soothing body heat warming her, and calming her nerves. He picked up a tea towel and took the dripping dishes off her to dry them.

Bella glanced at him often. As usual, Jacob was bare chested, wearing nothing but a pair of old cut off jeans. Secretly, she was glad that he didn't cover up his remarkable muscles. She had to admit, they were impressive.

"You okay there, Bells?" Jacob asked. He tried to hide his amusement. He knew very well that she had been ogling him, but he didn't call her out on it. He kind of liked the fact that she was so admiring. He saw the beginnings of a pink blush stain her cheeks and bit down on his bottom lip to stop himself smiling.

They washed and dried the dishes in companionable silence for another few minutes until Jacob spoke again.

"Can I ask you something?"

Bella handed him another plate, curious as to why he sounded so hesitant. "What do you want to know?"

Jacob paused for a few seconds. "You and Cullen-is it the same as it used to be between you-before he left?"

Trust Jacob to ask the difficult questions.

Bella decided to be as honest as she could be. He deserved that from her. "At first, I wanted to believe it was the same. After yearning for him to come back for so long, I needed for it to be the same. To make all those stupid risks I took seem worthwhile. I was forgetting that we had been separated for months-that during that time, despite myself, I had changed-I wasn't the same girl he left behind. I was different. And I've learned it can't go back to how it was, no matter how much either of us long for it."

Jacob pondered silently over her words as he reached for the bowl in Bella's hands. She peeked up at his face-he looked thoughtful.

"Is there anything else you want to ask?"

Jacob gazed down at her, a troubled light shining in his expressive dark eyes. "You and me-do you think it's the same as it used to be-before Cullen came back?"

The question caught Bella off guard. "I hadn't really thought about it." She saw him frown. "What I mean is…. not really, not in the same way as with Edward. You and me-we still fight, still make up, still comfort each other and make each other laugh-just like we always do."

Jacob grinned widely, his teeth bright against his russet skin. "Thanks, Bella. I thought that…but I just needed to hear you say it." He grabbed her hand and wrenched her into one of his bone crushing hugs.

Later on, that evening, when Jacob had eventually left to meet up with his pack, Edward appeared carrying a big envelope, he tossed it on the counter. "I got your mail."

"Anything good?" Bella asked.

"I think so."

Bella suddenly felt uneasy. If Edward thought it was good. She probably wouldn't. He'd folded the legal-sized envelope in half. She smoothed it open, surprised at the weight of the expensive paper, and read the return address.

"Dartmouth? Is this a joke?"

"I'm sure its an acceptance. It looks exactly like mine."

"I don't believe this. Edward-what did you do?"

"I sent in your application, that's all."

"That's all?" Bella was incredulous. He really had no idea how condescending he sounded. She was furious with him for going behind her back, yet again. "You didn't even ask me! And I may not be Dartmouth material, but I'm not stupid enough to believe that!"

Edward seemed completely bemused. "I don't understand why you are so upset, Bella?"

"And that's the whole problem right there, Edward." Bella couldn't even find enough energy to explain.

Edward's arms wrapped around her, his velvet voice attempting to paint a perfect picture in her head of what it would be like to attend such a prestigious college. "Just think about it, Bella. Imagine how excited Charlie and Renee would be. They would be so proud of you- "

"Of course, they would…if it were genuine!" Bella retorted. She took a deep breath and counted slowly to ten. "How much did you pay as a bribe to get me in? Huh? The price of another sports car?"

"Bella?" Edward sounded totally offended. "Where is all this coming from?"

"After all this time you should know me well enough for me not to have to explain." Bella said flatly. "Jake would."

Edward's expression hardened as soon as Jacob's name left her mouth. "Of course, he would." He drawled sarcastically.

"Yes, he would!" Bella snapped, pushing Edward's arms away from her. "He knows not to lie to me, to actually ask me, discuss things with me, and not make presumptuous decisions behind my back."

Edward stared at her with hurt eyes. "And that's what you think I do?"

"It's not what I think, its what you actually do." Bella said hopelessly. It was like the same old circular argument over and over again.

"I just thought it would make life simpler for you. I was trying to ease the burden." Edward tried to cajole her again, taking her face in his ice-cold hands, he gazed deeply into her eyes. "If I've been too presumptuous, then I'm sorry. Please forgive me."

Bella sighed heavily, too tired and worn out to press the point any further, for now. "I forgive you." She murmured.

Edward smiled, pleased that she had accepted his apology so swiftly. He failed to notice the resigned light in her eyes as he leaned down and pressed his cool lips on her forehead. Things were changing, just like she had hinted to Jacob, and he didn't even see the signs.

A/N-thanks for reading!