november, 1993

…

"Bebita."

A woman with Arabian ethnicity called out softly to her three year old daughter sleeping soundlessly, peacefully in her pink and purple pastel themed room.

The woman had long black hair under a loosening Arabian cover up, she was fully dressed in her traditional garments and a tall height of 4'10. She is a beautiful woman at the ripe age of 22. This woman was ready to escape, escape from the two men outside in the yard cutting wood for winter. The woman sat down gingerly on the bed while gently pushing her daughter's long hair away from her face; the small girl looked just like her mother but with similar features to her Spanish father. The man that was turned into a Ghoul at the young age of fourteen and has become one of the most feared mythical creatures, betraying his way up to being the Ghoul Lord. He turned his younger brother into a Ghoul two years after his transition, both becoming a power duo of terror and murder. The men the woman was planning on escaping from with the excuse of needing to go into town an hour away from their homestead only to catch the flight to a land far enough away to give her daughter a full life. A flight far enough away to be able to teach her daughter how to master her female Ghoul powers. To master her powers to be the future female Ghoul Queen, a female Ghoul once activated will draw in all of the Ghouls around the world to reign under her.

She didn't want this life for her daughter, she had wished for years that her daughter wasn't the one that was prophesized. She didn't want her daughter's destiny to be eternally damned for her bloodline.

"Naomi. Bebita," The woman caressed her daughters cheek with the softness of a rose petal.

Her daughter, Naomi, started to wake slowly from her slumber from nightmares a couple hours before. Nightmares her mother wasn't able to comfort her from with the men refusing for her to see until dawn. Christina smiled down at her daughter who smiled softly but started to fall back to sleep.

"Lets go shopping bebita," Christina says more animated, she giggled softly when Naomi woke up quickly and listened to her mother as she got her ready to leave.

"Mami," Naomi smiled widely as her mother buckled her into her booster seat, "mami, can we cash rowns?"

"You want a hash brown?" Christina correctly sweetly.

She laughs lightly when her daughters face brightens with a beautiful smile, "Si! Pwease?"

"Si, bebita."

The drive to town was peaceful once Christina was able to relax herself to not worry her over-observant daughter talking to her in the backseat, asking a whole bunch questions of the forestry and her father and her uncle. Christina knows her daughter is innocently loving and she knows that'll be the worst trauma for her to know who her father and uncle truly are. Naomi didn't ask questions when Christina went through the drive thru for her McDonald's hash browns, and Naomi didn't ask questions when Christina parked in the parking lot of the airport. Naomi however did ask relentlessly about their plans when they boarded the plane. They landed safely, and they were safe for several months in the small town of South Texas.

Until one night.

Naomi screamed bloody murder when she watched her father and uncle transform into their true forms and slaughtered her mother before her eyes. Sexually violating her and tearing her limbs from her body and consuming her until there was nothing left but her blood staining the ground and their true forms.

She almost passed out from her hyperventilation that wasn't reaching her lungs, she knew then and there that was in danger. She didn't know for how long but she wished that she would be saved.

…

late may, 2007

…

My life seemed to start the moment I looked into Jacob Black's eyes from across the classroom he was to my right, I could only see him through the black cloud of my silent unstable mental state. That moment had lit a spark of hope in my chest. It was in that moment that I wish my life wasn't threatened to end being four of a boy because I really wanted to be next to him. It's… an overwhelming impulse, the expression in his eyes changed I could see the change from the opposite side of the room, but then his face twisted. A light irritating burning sensation in my chest as I looked away, my body wracking with an intense sense of rejection and anger from him at me. He left the classroom with a bathroom pass and never came back, I ducked my head in disappointment, I usually never care about fellow teenage opinions but him… he's different. That was in late April, I moved to La Push in the second week of April a few days before my 17th birthday.

School and time has gone by, my nights consist of locked in my bare bedroom of only single mattress and backpack of three outfits and a hoodie. Half of a toothbrush, and a comb, my school books I keep in my locker, I always finish my homework before the end of the day. If it's there which is always math would go to the bell, but then I have study classes before the end of the day. I walk to and from school and I'm timed and expected to be on time or consequences, I never forget the consequences. I'll never forget the consequences.

There's one full week of school left with four half days, then summer and I have nagging in my stomach and uncomfortable irritable burning sensation in my chest. The black cloud still follows me which… is the only friend I have, depression at an all time high and I was desperate for a way out. There was something about the moment I met him that everything started to change within me, it was… unexpected to feel inspired…

Weird.

I have accepted the fact that I would never get away from my father and uncle being that my death was quickly approaching. I have been overfed at dinner for the past two weeks, I know it's coming and I can't do anything about it. It was only a matter of weeks.

I miss Jacob in a strange and unrealistic way. I miss him like I've known him my whole life and his absence was a knife in my chest, burning, irritating, uncomfortable. My dreams make it worse and my thoughts don't help, and its so… weird, I don't know him; I just know he's tall, his voice is deep and husky, and he is the most beautiful boy I've ever seen in my life. I know my feelings for him are deep, and most would say desperate, I know that they won't go away anytime soon. Today in particular, I was… something is different, I'm more conscious, aware, the black cloud isn't as suffocating.

I see his friends around a lot, sometimes I don't even notice that Embry walks me to class, I don't even notice sometimes that I see them around a lot. Subconsciously.

But in this day particularly, walking through the threshold out of my third period class out to the hallway to go to my next class, it was then that Embry was there in seconds. Subconsciously remembering hearing the group of Quileute escorts murmur behind me in my newer days of Quil, Paul and Jared walking with us, I looked dead to them. Completely lifeless, everyone could see that I was utterly dead inside, and not in a dramatic teenage manner. Soulfully dead, like I had been through the pits of hells and came back but nothing truly returned but a shell of a 16 year old girl. I didn't hear pity, I heard empathy more than anything, with something else that I can't decipher now. They walked with me, most of the time it's Embry and Quil like bodyguards, no, well at first; they would try to talk to me but it was just the gaze in my eyes that always cut them off.

They were talking about Jacob this time, pain grew swelled in my chest when I heard the whisper of his name, but then registering the babble around me walking through the sea of students. Everyone is talking about Jacob.

This is the moment in particular I began to become aware of the soreness in certain parts of my body, tender skin tightening. My arms, my thighs, my ribcage, aching, irritated by heat, I became so aware of the pain that started to break through the black cloud I turned into the girls lavatory to check myself. I placed my books on the tile floor with a light thud that echoed around the lavatory, I started checking myself in the cover of the stalls. I almost threw up at the dark purple bruises on the sides of my ribcage, I looked at my stomach nothing but I can see bruising on my bones, I checked my legs. I almost threw up again at the large dark purple bruise on my right thigh covering my front thigh, my left thigh was less bruised, purple bruises from fists and fingers on the whole length of my arms. From my wrist to my shoulder.

I covered myself and left the stall with my books going back into my arms, aching pain but I have to deal with it, I wish I was in that black cloud so I wouldn't feel anything, think anything. It's day like this that I wish that I was a normal teenage girl, with a normal human family because I wish I could join on hangouts, trips to Port Angeles, sleepovers, parties. I wish I could have friends.

I walked out of the lavatory with my head down, looking at the space in front of my feet the whole time to my next class. I didn't look back when I walked into the classroom I looked for a seat, I was very surprised to see that more than half of the class wasn't present yet. I took a seat in the back of the classroom, catching movement from both opposite corners of my eyes I glance to my right and my left seeing students taking the empty seats. Looking up at the black board, hm. Substitute teacher for the day but he's not present yet, their really isn't an assignment just says take a seat and wait. That is different. It's only different if the teachers didn't have any work assigned for the day, I will take a quiet period to sleep or at least rest my eyes. We didn't have anything assigned so I put my head down, it was uncomfortable but… my head hurts, everything hurts.

The bell ringing startled me up out of my nap, looking around to students getting up I glanced to my right a student started chuckling quietly looking at me.

"You got some drool right here," he says quietly and tapping the right side of his chin.

"Thanks," I replied, my voice thick with sleep and wiping my chin with my hoodie sleeve.

"No problem."

I gathered my books into my arms with a silent cringe of pain from the weight and edges of my books, walking down the aisle with my head still heavy with sleep. I somehow made it out of the classroom, maybe some students leaving with me chuckling and giggling at me as I looked at them through exhausted squinted eyes.

"She's tired," I heard a girl murmur to her friend trying to keep pace and not lose her to the sea of teenagers.

Walking out of the classroom a certain person caught my eye to my left as I was turning right, I glanced to my left again and I wasn't the only person looking at the person approaching me. I can tell he was coming towards me because his dark eyes were solely one me, like I was the only girl, no, the only person in the world. My heart skipped a beat at the deep gaze, students stepped away as he took those long strides to me that were slow motion in my eyes. Or maybe I just had a hopeless crush and I was just imagining that he was… he stopped two feet away from me. I wasn't imagining, he looked like he was… going somewhere? I don't know, it's just the way he's dressed.

I went to say something but I closed my mouth, and I feel blood rushing to my face, reddening my honey complexion.

He smirks, his eyes brightening, "what class do you have right now?"

Okay, he really was talking to me, looking at me, "Almuerza," I replied, smiling nervously, I walked into the hallway and he followed.

"Would you like to take a ride with me?"

I stopped in my tracks and looked back up at him from looking down at my locker, perplexed why was he asking my that? Why me of all people was he asking to go for a drive? I wanted to, I wanted to know why. I really should say no but something told me to say yes, to say yes was like an itch.

"Sí."

I looked out the passenger window of his vehicular transportation, I don't know why but it felt really good sitting in this seat, felt really good being in his presence. I don't understand it at all, but I never want to leave his side, I didn't want the 45 minutes to end. I didn't want to have to go back home and survive through a beating because of the ' stench'. There was something about the Quileute's that set my Father and Uncle off to the max, probably a reason for the overfeeding, and the recent physical altercation. I don't know, I haven't been consciously aware until now. I in fact don't want to leave this car because the seat was a different kind of comfort, I didn't notice that we're on the highway until now, it's been I don't even know how long since we left but I just realized the signs for North.

Wait a second. Did I just agree to a boy I'm crushing on murdering me? Wait, why didn't I notice till now? How long have we been on the highway for exactly?

"Jacob." I glanced over at him, leaning into the door confused because there's no malicious coming from him just something else hiding underneath. But it's not threatening, he's not threatening.

He glanced at me quickly before keeping his attention on the road, "if you had the chance to runaway from them, would you?"

What? Runaway? Running away from my father and uncle is nearly impossible, I have planned it, multiple different plans tucked in my books. You couldn't get away from them even if you tried, I've tried, multiple times, I have years of scars to prove the outcome. Years of beatings, years of trauma. Years of just… giving up. But… here… right now… in the moment, the past I don't even know how long minutes… that spark of hope is ignited in my chest, he gives me… hope. And I don't know him but he said them. He knows? Was it true that they were losing their minds over possible shapeshifting wolves? They lose their minds over me smelling like ' them' when I come home from school, them.

That word, them. From both sides.

I was definitely turning the conversation in a completely different direction, "¿Eres tú, Embry, Quil, Paul y Jared lobos? ¿Te gustan los lobos que cambian de forma? ¿Es verdad?"

Jacob glances over at me again, longer this time, he's confused, "Yes."

I hummed, "Y si tuviera la oportunidad de escaparme, sí la aprovecharía. Pero me encontrarían, siempre lo hacen."

Jacob looks back forward gripping the steering wheel, he allowed a Jeep to drive in front of him, "they won't find you."

My heart stuttered, why did he say it like that? With such… security.

It didn't look like I wasn't going back to La Push anytime soon, I had a feeling if I didn't agree I would be going anyway.

His life.

His friends, the other wolves even if I did want to stay, their lives and mine would be gone. But I don't know… maybe running away with Jacob could end up… differently. I have never met shape shifters before, I don't know their strength, I don't know their power. Father and Uncle are also threatened by the presence of vampires, which I thought was… vampires? In the moment I was looking out the window again to reply, or find a response the statement my stomach growled with rage of hungry. I'm quite sleep deprived, and I'm just aware of anxiety as well, how long would it be until they came looking? Would they sense my absence in the towns or would they realize when I don't come home from school? Would they go to the school? What would they do there when they didn't find me there?

Could we even stop for food? How long would be it until we stopped? How long could we stop for? What if they did find me? But where has he been? Why is he here now? Why is he taking me away? Jacob reaches into the backseat and pulls out a lunchbox, it's got a strap, a lunchbox like a hand pick few of kids at school had.

Did they plan this? By the looks of that, that was a sign they did, and his clothes. Something told me that they did. I didn't know what to think but I feel blood rushing to my cheeks, I'm confused and I liked the fact he was prepared.

"You alright?" Jacob asks setting the lunchbox on my lap.

"¿Puedo saber algunas cosas?" didn't really know what to ask, my tone has a twinge of nervousness.

I really want to know what's in here, I am hungry, I opened up the lunchbox. Sandwiches, and looks like homemade chips.

"What do you want to know?" he switches on the wipers, a light rain has started to fall, I also haven't heard recent music from the radio what feels like ages.

"¿Quieres un sándwich?" I asked reaching in and grabbing two sandwiches.

"S'okay," he replied.

I put one sandwich back, and unwrapped the other, "Que es lo que va a pasar?" The rain is picking up and I see signs for Port Angeles.

"We are running away." He remarks, obviously we are. But him saying we was… different for me.

"We?" I repeated, I almost choked on my own saliva.

"We." He says, he's smirking.

"¿A dónde vamos?" I asked and then took a bite of the sandwich.

"I don't know… yet."

"¿Dónde has estado?" I glanced at him with my eyes.

He checks his mirrors, and cracks both windows two inches, "planning this."

"¿Eh?"

He chuckles at me, it's a light laugh, I can tell he was genuinely amused, "there's this thing with us wolves, something we do. Since I met you, well since you arrived we knew there was a threat on our land, we didn't know exactly what they were until we talked to some friends."

The friends seemed forced for him, I snorted a little just because of his tone and maybe out of sleep deprivation.

"They gave some helpful tips, but they don't know as much as we thought they would. Your father and uncle they seemed… stronger than what they first predicted which is a problem… I had Embry look through your things to give us an advantage, if you had anything. Sorry about that, I couldn't get you involved, you already are but we had to keep you at a distance. I'm sorry for what they did to you, I'm sorry for what they have done to you."

Stronger than originally predicted? I wonder how much time I had with Jacob until they found us. He made Embry go through my things? As offended as I should be, I wasn't offended by the invasion of privacy, it's the fact he said he made Embry do it, it's the part about him doing it for me. He apologized for them, he tone went to an emotion I couldn't decipher.

"No es tu culpa que sean engendros de Satanás." I replied, not wanting to look at him only because blood started rushing to my cheeks again, I can see the blush in the side mirror.

I didn't even know I could blush.

Jacob doesn't say anything after that, maybe I should've said something else, I should add to it. I don't know what to say, I'm getting more anxious and I don't know if I can finish eating now. Something was wrong. And I can feel it, it's an increasing tightening in my stomach, I was not going to finish that delicious sandwich I packed it back up and glanced over at Jacob. He lowered the windows again.

"Come here," He says gesturing to his lap, I… that might be a lot for me right now, "got some 'friends' coming in." The word friends is definitely hard for him to say.

That Jeep in front of us switches to the other lane to the right and slows down, Oh. I unbuckled and with what I could do without irritating the bruises like it would change anytime soon. Jacob helps me get into his lap, you could feel his body heat through his clothes, my clothes. Why is he so hot in body temperature? That has to be related with the shapeshifting. Sitting on his right thigh with my body angled towards the door, he wrapped his arm around me down my back and around to my waist, I… I could fall asleep right here. A cool breeze rushing against my back I looked over my shoulder at Jacobs tension and the silence after the rush of air and the window rolling up some.

Thick mahogany brown hair and chalky pale skin, whoa, a vampire. Her eyes are golden, and she's beautiful, she's at least 18. Vampires are here, there was something about her that I wanted to get away from, I tucked myself closer to Jacob still unable to get my eyes off her. She was looking back at me, she was malicious, just… creepy.

"You have beautiful eyes," she says, her voice is like melodic bells, she smiles softly, politely.

I relaxed a little bit, that's one of the few times I've been complimented, "Gracias."

"You're welcome," she replies, her smile a little wider.

I still didn't want to be in her presence, I tucked myself closer to her.

"I smell them." Jacob hisses lowly.

I pray that we get away, my head hurts, and I would like not to go into mental breakdown in my sleep deprived state. Consciously becoming aware of holding onto Jacob while looking out the window and in the side mirror, how long would it be until they appeared? What will happen if they did?

Jacob keeps me tucked into his side with his arm wrapped around me securing me against him, my bruises are driving me mad but I was falling asleep. His body heat, and his scent, earthly but humanly masculine it's enough to soothe me to sleep. Even if I didn't want to, I haven't had a full night's sleep since I've been forcing myself to stay awake and be alert. Ready for anything. I'm falling asleep now and I can't force myself to stay awake.

Jacob wakes me up with a gentle rub on my arm and the car going into park, I groaned in pain at the flare of pain in my noggin as he helped me steady my feet on pavement. My eyes barely open, I was barely awake, forcing my eyes open to see where I was at or where I was going. Grey clouds, light rain, wet pavement and… I looked up at the building in front of me as I took unsteady, tired steps forward.

The airport. We made it to the airport? I turned back to Jacob getting his tall self out of his car, in my tired state it amused me, once he was out he looked down at me. He reached out to me and I flinched away, my eyes instinctively blinking several times. Jacob slows his movements.

"I'm sorry, I was just going to fix your hood," and he does, his thumb gently brushing against my cheek, and it was the softest touch I've ever felt. It makes me smile softly, his eyes brightened, "have you ever to Texas?"

I shook my head, Texas? I've never been, won't that be too hot for him? I can see why he lives in the Olympic Peninsula, it's constant cloud cover and rain, cold. Texas is hot but if they do go there, they'll be weak, heat and water weakens them in extreme ways. The cold doesn't matter to them.

"You're going to love it," I jumped and looked over to my right at the same female vampire that was in the car with us, she gives me a polite smile, "I'm sorry I didn't mean to startle you." She holds up a backpack to me, "everything you need is in here, the phone is strictly for emergencies."

I just noticed the Jeep again, there's two other vampires in the car, the male has his eyes solely on the female in front of us, he has strange bronze hair. And there's a little girl around the age of 8 in the backseat, she's a beautiful little girl, she looks just like the leaner vampire but with doe brown eyes. I thought about Embry then, he had been my main companion and I'm going to miss him, I was going to miss his little comments and small talk that I was registering now. He's funny. I wondered if they're all going to be alright, they're doing this for me and none of us truly know each other. I really hope I see them again, all of them that are involved I pray everything goes as planned.

I nodded at her and reached out for the backpack, I put it onto my shoulders, trying force traumatic memories from fitting the faces I have seen since being here in those places of people who have unsuccessfully escaped with me. The gory images makes my stomach churn and I pray that this goes as planned. It's the last one, I know it is.

"Espero verte de nuevo. Todos ustedes." I said, she looks surprised I said that, the other female looked surprised too. The male looked like he was trying to compose his disturbance, I don't think he likes me by his face.

"I hope I see you again too, Naomi." Her voice are still like tiny melodic bells, she looks up at Jacob she had to crane her neck back just a bit. "Be safe, Jake."

"Sure sure."

"Everything will be handled here."

I fell asleep on the plane all the way to Texas, and when I woke up I saw the brightest sun I've ever seen, I can already feel the heat of it as the plane lands. I can also the ocean in the distance, water, heat and water in one; my anxiety is gone and now I wanted to know anything that Jacob could tell me when I had the time. I know for a fact that my injuries are going to be irritated and the heat is blistering, heavy and thick on top of my dark clothes. Jacob took my hand, that almost the same temperature as the atmosphere, the sun is soaking into my skin and it's nice on my face and he lead me through the airport. There was an energy rolling off Jacob that… I sensed was natural and it was probably the most intense protective energy I've ever encountered. And we're just going through a sea of people of many different ethnicities, height, weight and age, the airport is cool but still warm with the bodies and atmosphere.

The babble of people, the bright sun In the pretty blue sky, the security from Jacob and the flame in my chest, I relaxed more and more with each passing moment. I held onto Jacob's wrist tighter as my clothes and the pace was restricting my legs.

"I know, I know, bare with me," Jacob replies putting his other hand over mine. "We have to do somethings before we treat those bruises."

My smile came back when we were outside, the sky is so beautiful I relaxed more, I felt an emotion I haven't felt what felt like ages. Excitement. I'm excited about this, I have no anxiety, my intuition is silent, I'm safe, and that feeling is a solidified weight of security.

Maybe Jacob won't be just a hopeless crush.

Getting a car that was waiting for us, it's an expensive car. Very expensive, I seen the money in the backpack but I was not expecting a car like this waiting for us. It's a grey and silver car with black tinted windows. It's new too by the sharp clean scent emitting from the leather seats. We went clothing shopping first, I didn't know what to get being so use to having clothes picked out for me, I always imagined a style but I'm stuck right now.

I glanced up at Jacob from the aisles of clothing, picking at my nails nervously, "no sé."

He gives me a reassuring smile, "it's alright, we can figure it out." He holds out his hands to me, his smile widening and he is so beautiful, "I'm going to put you in the cart,"

I am kind of slowing us down with my babying of my thighs, I snorted a laugh, "bueno," I took his hands.

He got me into the cart easily, sitting down and bending my legs up, I smiled remembering when my mom use to put me in the cart when I was four, three. It still hurts to think about those days but I was relaxed with Jacob, very aware that I was safe in every aspect in a way I still don't understand. He pushed the cart down the aisles, picking out clothes, I picked out a lot of colorful shirts mostly blue shades, shades that matched the sky. Shorts were a must, I got a couple sports bras that were a size big just because of my bruises just enough until they were healed. I was expecting Jacob to be uncomfortable about feminine products like most teenage boys were, he wasn't, now he couldn't stop smiling at me when I didn't know what body wash to get. I was in love with every scent, I haven't had a scent body wash before, but I always remember when my mom would sit in the aisle with me smelling the different scents. I had a strange thing with scents, I had to smell the scents of different things that allured me. I giggled when a scent made Jacob sneeze.

I gasped after smelling a lavender and mint scent, Jacob smiles wider when I held it up to him with a smile on my face. He smelt that one again, he liked that one, I really liked it too. Being around Jacob was easy, natural, the haze in his eyes from that last time I seen him in April is gone, nowhere to be found. Talking with Jacob was easy, I saved everything about Washington until later, it was mostly questions about himself and what we could do. He was going find a place when we get to our destination, today had to be mostly focused on getting what we needed for now and my bruises. The heat is going to be a problem but we're going to be driving for a little while so it won't be too bad, we have time to stop and eat. There's a gaze in his eyes I can't decipher but I think this is probably the best day of my life, and it's centered around the gaze in his dark brown eyes that are almost black with a set of long, fluffy lashes.

He has pretty brown eyes, and he keeps looking at me like I was the only thing in the world that was important to him. An open book, I can read him like a book. It makes my heart flutter, and I lose train of thought until I feel the blood tinting my skin, a soft looking quilt caught my eye, my eye caught a maroon plush quilt. There's other colors but the rich color of the maroon is alluring, I'm back in the cart and I can't get out on my own without falling. I really want these bruises to be gone in all honest frustration. Jacob already had followed my gaze to the quilt.

"You want it?" he's still smiling.

"Por favor," I replied, smiling softly.

He gets the blanket and hands it to me, I was right about the softness, it's heavenly.

"Gracias, Jáke."

"You're welcome." His voice is so warm, still deep and husky but it's smooth.

I loved hearing his voice, and his voice, his scent and just him does something to me, it's a feeling that deep in my lower stomach and… I don't know what it is. I've never felt this way before and I never had friends that talk about things like this, I was branding him into my memory bank. Memorizing every little thing. I might have more than a little crush now. I mean… would you crush on a boy that flew away from his hometown to protect a girl like me?