Six Weeks Later

"I'm just a kid, and life is a nightmare…"

Very funny, Bella thought as Seth's off-key singing filled the air. Feeling frequently stressed, moody, snappish, and uncomfortable, eagerness to get her cast removed was part of the problem. Her arm felt fine, but she still had a few days. She wanted the use of her dominant hand back, for many reasons.

After a second lengthy conversation about Sue's proposed living situation, Bella eventually agreed to ease into it by living between both homes and staying with Leah according to their schedules. There wasn't much time to adjust, however. After Bella began working for Joy in the afternoons, she rarely returned to Charlie's. Now that he and Sue were openly together, their days off meant the entire 'family' was together.

Except today.

Bella knew for a fact they were both off today and most likely canoodling in bed like horny teenagers. She shook away the thought. Bella was happy for Charlie but didn't want to picture it. For the first time since moving to Forks, Bella realized how much her presence had likely cramped her father's sex life, and she had to admit he'd never seemed happier. It made it easier to stay in La Push all the time. She supposed it was good she and Charlie hadn't repainted her room for nothing.

Seth still wasn't thrilled, despite the freedom Sue's frequent absence allowed him. At fourteen, he had little choice unless he wanted to stay at Charlie's with Sue, and Leah was certainly old enough to care for him in Sue's stead. What surprised Bella most was that Leah didn't seem to mind. She loved her brother, even if he was going through the hormonal teenage stage (amplified since he was a wolf with the body of a twenty-year-old).

Lately, Sue wasn't the only one sending older women running. Leah had even growled at a woman at the grocery store the week prior. Bella convinced her to wait in the car while she and Seth finished shopping. It had been worth all the trouble when Seth ran off a creep pestering Bella at the Deli counter by sliding his heavily muscled arm around her shoulders.

Despite instinctively feeling protective of his sister's mate, Seth still found little irritating ways to make his irritation over their 'familial' situation known. He was particularly irritating today as he sat with his dirty feet on the coffee table, playing video games at top volume with Quil, surrounded by their junk food mess.

As she moved to get ready for work, Bella warned, "Guys, you better clean up when you're done. I don't want to do it when I get home and Leah will be too tired after patrol."

"Yes, Mom. I'll ensure Embry carries out all the pizza boxes when we leave later." Quil grinned as he watched her pass them, heading toward her and Leah's room.

Bella gathered what she needed and went to the bathroom, intending to shower, but the bathroom was a disaster. She huffed and hurried back across the house toward Sue's room to shower in the master bath instead. She and Leah were seriously discussing the benefit of switching to the master bedroom, as it seemed inevitable anyway. Seth was content in his familiar space and refused to relinquish it, but sharing a bathroom with him was frustrating.

The other guys all used it, too. Putting it nicely, boys were just gross. Paul was the only one who got a master bathroom pass. Even Seth got banned.

Bella hoped the guys would let Leah rest when she got home. Now that Bella lived there too, it was like they never left. Leah rarely had the heart to make them go but sometimes had to order them to leave to sleep.

As if, my ass, Bella thought as she recalled her reaction to the vision she'd had in the woods two months before. Feeding a mass of hungry wolves, sometimes including Sam, had become a regular event in the Clearwater house. Bella had even been to Sam's, officially meeting Jared's mate, Kim, and Emily, who wasn't half bad. She seemed to miss Leah and wanted her to be happy.

Bella suspected she was privately grateful to have someone help her feed the monsters. She already knew they were secretly sick of muffins. Wolves needed meat, and Bella now had Harry's fish fry recipe down pat.

Becoming friends with Sam had never been a goal and Bella didn't consider him as such, but being in the same space was inevitable. They were Pack, and time together was more important to them than Bella would have ever considered before living among them.

Of course, this required Bella to share space with Jacob. Now that Bella knew about imprinting, Ellie's sudden placement in Jacob's life was forgiven. She finally met Ellie and apologized for how she'd treated her that day on the beach. Their conversation was awkward at best, but with Leah at her side, Bella found their presence wasn't intolerable. Jacob still looked at her longingly but things would never be the same.

Six weeks of this insanity had passed like a year. Between work, impromptu dinners, invasive refrigerator-raiding friends, and the constant noise in the house, Bella was exhausted… Bella only got quality sleep when she and Leah were both home. New nightmares had joined the others, frequently jerking Bella awake throughout the night when she was alone. Leah had sent Paul or Quil to nap with Bella on the worst nights. She could feel Bella's panic from miles away, finally understanding why Bella hated sleeping alone.

Luckily, when they got to have quality time together, their connection recharged them both. It also made dealing with the surrounding insanity easier to tolerate. They were a packaged deal, now. Bella had finally gained the large family and forever person she'd wanted terribly when she'd been with Edward, but it was so much improved in countless ways.

Thinking of Edward never hurt now. She'd been over longer than she'd ever realized. Still, she missed the other Cullens occasionally, especially Alice and Emmett. She still wondered who handled the money, too.

Bella was never more grateful for the initially unwanted money that steadily bled into her bank account than when Leah's poor Cavalier backfired for the very last time two weeks ago. Knowing her truck would eventually follow, despite her discomfort, Bella asked Jacob's advice about purchasing a new car. Now Bella had a car payment to build her credit, and they were driving a royal blue Rogue. Bella had reluctantly agreed to let Jacob work on her truck as well. He knew her poor beast better than anyone and seemed eager to prove himself worthy of her trust.

Leah had been incredible over the last six weeks. She was now unemployed since it wasn't safe for her to return to work until she had better control of her phasing. While she was already much better than some wolves, anxiety sometimes got the best of her. Like Bella, her worried mind was her worst enemy. Still, she had taken to being a wolf naturally, almost easily. Perhaps it was because of her natural rank among them, but no one was sure.

As the only female in the pack, carrying all four bloodlines belonging to the shifter gene, Leah was technically their alpha female. Quil and Embry had felt it when she phased that day near the lake. This was why they had immediately flanked her sides. She was born to lead and their alliance had gone to her on instinct.

Seth and Paul later admitted they had also felt the urge but ignored it, focusing on the vampire situation. It was easier for Quil and Embry to follow the instinct without vampires standing between them and Leah.

Sam felt frustrated with the divide in the pack because it created a slight communication break between them and the others. It was the main reason there was still some animosity between them. Now that she had Bella, the hurt she felt over Sam and Emily was gone. The problem was that Sam could only see what Leah wanted him to, and he was incredibly nosey. He longed to rebuild some semblance of friendship with his ex. Like Bella and Jacob, the two had known each other since childhood.

Leah on the other hand, was grateful the block worked both ways. She saw enough in Quil and Embry's heads to drive her mad sometimes, but she didn't have to watch Sam and Emily or risk giving her 'history' with Paul away. It was best for everyone.

It surprised Bella to learn that Jacob was the true Alpha of the pack, although he still delegated most of the responsibility to Sam, who was long used to running things. The only way to merge the pack mind would be for Leah to take Sam's place as Jacob's beta. She refused. Unlike Sam, Jacob accepted it. They could still communicate when it mattered, and the gap didn't affect their patrol schedules. Leah suspected Jacob didn't want to see Leah's thoughts of Bella, especially when Paul had plenty of them to torment him with.

Having an open link to Leah, Quil and Embry knew more about the threesome than Bella ever wanted them to. Leah ordered them never to repeat it. None of them knew how Paul had kept it from Sam for so long, but they weren't keen on him finding out, even if he hadn't been with either woman in months.

Despite their new hectic and drama-filled normal, Bella was happy for once. Truthfully, blissfully happy. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling of dread that hovered once again, as though something waited to crash through their new normal. The feeling had hovered for days. She hoped whatever it was wouldn't bring back the ache in her bones or the hollow feeling of grief in her chest. She wouldn't survive it again.

It was a slow night at Ateara's, and Bella spent most of the night restocking shelves. As usual, a few wolves had stopped by to say hello. Everyone swore that, now that Victoria was gone, the wolves weren't still guarding her as they once did. It was hard for Bella to believe them when one of them seemed to be everywhere she went, including her own home.

It was getting late, nearly closing time as Bella began restocking the shelves of beauty supplies and hygiene products. As she slid boxes of tampons into their appropriate place, a vital realization hit her like a freight train.

Bella was late. Very late, she decided, refusing to consider how long it had been. She and Paul used protection the last time they were together, and she was on the pill.

It's just stress… it has to be. Her heart raced as she considered the consequences of an unwanted pregnancy. Bella closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. It's just stress. It's just stress. Everything's fine.

She opened her eyes and glanced up - directly at the pregnancy tests, conveniently placed beside an array of condoms.

"Oh god," she groaned, snatching a test off its hook to examine it, hoping like hell it had some fucking advice. Bella vaguely wondered if Alice could see her at the moment and highly doubted that 'Teenage Pregnancy Scare' was among the list of human experiences Edward hoped she'd have.

"Bells, you okay?"

Startled, Bella screamed and lost her balance, falling from her squatting position to land on her ass, still holding the god-forsaken test. Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment as she looked up from the floor.

Jacob towered over her, frowning in concern as he squatted beside her. One eyebrow raised suspiciously as he glanced at the test in her hand then gently brushed a tear from her cheek with his thumb. She'd been so lost in her newfound panic, she hadn't even felt them falling.

She scrambled to her feet, nearly knocking him over. He caught himself easily and stood beside her as she put the test back where it belonged. "Can I help you with something, Jake?"

"You can talk to me about anything you know…" The corners of his mouth dipped into a familiar pout. But that face didn't sway her anymore.

"I just have a lot on my mind, is all. I got lost in thought down there."

"I could tell…" He hesitated, glancing toward the tests before asking, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Bella scowled as she turned her back to him and began straightening shelves further down the aisle. Stubbornly, he followed, stepping around her to hold her attention.

"Bells, if you need to take this damn thing, go do it…" He shoved a test in the pocket of her apron and huffed. "I'll watch the place, okay? You're closing in a few minutes, anyway. You'll feel better if you just do it."

"Oh my god, we are not having this conversation!" She turned back around and resumed restocking the tampons. "And don't you dare repeat anything about this, Jacob!"

"Bells, I would never…"

"Don't!" She glared at him, lowering her voice as a customer walked in. "Don't promise me anything, Jacob. Ever again. Just be a good person and keep this to your fucking self. If you truthfully want me to trust you again, you'll do that for me."

He held his hands up, nodding. "Okay, Bella. I'm sorry. I'm overstepping."

"You're damned right, you are!"

"I'm sorry. I won't repeat it. I'm honestly not even curious to know anything. I still hate to see you upset, and if it would make you feel better…" He shook his head as he stepped away. "That's all I was trying to do."

Bella glared at the row of tests as he walked away to resume his shopping. Just as she took another calming breath, a familiar chuckle sent shivers down her spine. Bella slowly turned toward the opposite end of the aisle as her already frustrating day morphed into a full-fledged nightmare.

Not right now… or ever. What the fuck, universe?! If stress explained she was so late, this certainly wouldn't help.

Her heart was back to racing as she looked across the aisles for Jacob, then picked up the box of tampons to return it to the storage room. Jacob caught sight of her as she hurried to the storage room and waited, observing her. At the moment, she was grateful for his presence, a stark difference from how she'd felt a few minutes ago. As she positioned herself behind the register and pretended to look busy, Bella pulled her cell phone out and began texting Leah with shaking hands.

She glanced up, finding Jacob still watching her. Between the two men in the store with her, she was going to have a heart attack.

An incoming call interrupted her texting, Charlie's picture filling the screen. Bella accepted the call, watching each man approach as she raised it to her ear.

"Dad?"

"Bells?" She flinched under the fury in his voice. "I got to tell you something, kid, and I don't want you to freak out."

Bella sat on the stool behind the register with a huff. Jacob noticed and quickened his step.

"T-tell me."

"Josh Uley got apprehended in Michigan a few days ago, then was transported into Clallam County this morning. None of those bastards bothered to call me until a few minutes ago. Supposedly they didn't want to bother me on my day off. He got released with an ankle monitor, but Bells…"

"He's on the reservation…" Bella said. "I already know."

Charlie asked, "How did you find out before me?"

"Because he's standing right in front of me."

A/N
I'm happy there were chapters pre-loaded and ready to go because I haven't been able to write all damn month. It's just... Empty space in here, y'all. I hope to bang out a chapter or two soon. Otherwise, next week's chapter will be the last one posted until I can get back in the groove.

Friday will be three weeks post-surgery. Where did the time go? They say it flies when you're having fun, but between the pain and the painkillers, I'm pretty sure I spent three weeks in Bella's mindless zone. It was just from a very different kind of chair... No rockers for me. Mine has wheels. *Beep Beep* If only the writing bug had as much motivation as this ND brain, Istfg...

Ps Thank you to everyone who has commented, messaged, or reviewed on both AO3 & FFN. I appreciate it so much.
An extra special thanks go to my partner, parents, sister, Stan, Shelly (And Fam!), Brandy, Marie, Eva, Brier, Bekie, Kara, and Garrett for keeping me sane throughout this incredibly painful experience. If I've forgotten to mention anyone, forgive me. I'm still coming out of the fog over here. Love you.