I stared at myself in the mirror.

Fearfully, I put my shaking hand to the glass and

pressed at where my reflection was staring back at me. I felt my lips suddenly curve into a
small smile and an amused chuckle tinkled behind me.
After that, I heard a gruff growl. “I preferred her like she was.”
“Oh don’t be stupid, she looks great.” Alice, my unrelated aunt, gripped my
shoulders with her ivory hands. She lowered her head beside mine, her pixie like features
undoubtedly beautiful especially when she smiled like that. “Do you like it?” She asked,
fingering my now short hair. It was only just above shoulder length but a drastic change
from its former impressive length.
I wrapped a couple of auburn strands around my finger and nodded.
Alice beamed triumphantly and straightened up. I stood up too, shaking the last
bits of excess hair from my chest and back. I then looked up into my favourite pair of dark
brown eyes.
“What do you think?” I asked.
Jacob looked at me for a couple of seconds, his forehead creasing gently, and
then shrugged.
“It’s all right,” he then smiled. I rolled my eyes at him.
Even though my room was pretty large and it was only me, Alice and my eternal
boyfriend Jacob in there, it felt pretty crowded. That was probably because Jacob was
huge. Not just in his height but his torso, his arms, his legs, everything about him was large
but in that jaw-dropping muscled way. Of course, Jacob didn’t get these exceptional
muscles from living at the gym and downing protein shakes; my boyfriend was a werewolf.
No, not a werewolf, a shape-shifter.
Jacob continued to smile at me as he softly stroked my short hair.
“Do you hate it?” I asked worriedly. I meant everything to Jacob Black, likewise,
and I didn’t want to upset him.
He frowned at me. “Of course I don’t hate it.” He took a few strands in between his
thumb and index finger and rubbed them together as he continued, “It’s different… but I like
it.”
I kept staring at him anxiously. “You sure?”
Jacob’s chocolate eyes met mine quickly and he laughed softly. “I’m sure.”
His tanned hand found its way around my face and cradled my chin as he gazed at
me with his beautiful smile. I felt my heart falter, as it always did when he pulled this one on
me, and he heard it, grinning. Alice cleared her throat quietly and Jacob’s hand
disappeared from underneath my chin.
“Well I’m glad you like it,” Alice said to me cheerfully, tucking her hairdresser
scissors in her pocket.
“I do, thank you Alice.”
Her golden eyes twinkled at me and she waved once. “I’ll see you later. You’re
coming round, right?”
I nodded. “Of course, see you there.” And my aunt disappeared through my door, a
flash of white as she darted with her amazing speed.
It was Rosalie and Emmett’s – my other aunt and uncle – anniversary today and
Alice, as expected, had planned a party at the house they all lived at. Carlisle and Esme,
my grandparents, were at home setting up with my parents Bella and Edward.
My family were a little different from everyone else’s.
First off they were vampires. As I half was. But not those scary stereotypical glug
your blood vampires, we Cullens name ourselves ‘vegetarian’ vampires because we only
survive on the blood of animals and restrain our thirst.
 “Should I put a shirt on or something?” Jacob’s lips were close to my cheek, setting
my heart rate racing. His hot breath made my skin tickle.
I took a step back away from him and inspected his perfectly carved bare torso
with an eyebrow raised.
“I think so,” I grinned at him. Jacob sighed dramatically and took my hand, pulling
me to his chest.
“I can’t be bothered to go home.” He whined down at me.
I laughed. “It’ll take you two seconds…if that.” He nodded in agreement but
continued to press me to his chest in an embrace. I rested my head on him, hearing his
usual fast heartbeat underneath his brown skin. We stood like that for a few more seconds
and then Jacob bent down to kiss me. His soft lips pressed to mine once, twice, three times
and he grinned.
“I’ll only be a second.” His body then blurred as he darted out of my house. Jacob
certainly enjoyed being so insanely quick as I heard him thunder through the forest. He
definitely wouldn’t be long; his little townhouse was only just out the other side of the forest
on a bare street.
When we had moved away from Forks, I had forced Jacob to face the difficult
decision of leaving me or his pack. He had chosen me and left his pack behind in La Push.
I had felt wretched; especially since the pack were still in mourning over Leah Clearwater.
She had died after jumping in front of Jacob to save him from being mauled by the
werewolf who had come looking for me. She had been severely scratched and bitten by the
werewolf, leaving us with no choice but to let her pass away.
Even though Jacob privately blamed himself, I held myself responsible for Leah’s
death. Without me there would be no werewolf. But I never voiced this opinion; Jacob
would throw a fit.
To allow the move away from Forks and La Push to be easy, Esme had bought
Jacob a townhouse and decorated it for him. It was perfect of course but Jacob had a lot of
incenses burning to get rid of Esme’s vampire scent.
Now, Jacob had landed himself a job at the local mechanic shop, being too large
and mature looking to enrol in high school with me. However, Alice and Jasper had enrolled
again so unlike Forks High, my first day had been oddly easy.
I jumped to see Jacob stood by my window with his usual grin. I never quite
realised how fast he was unless we were racing. I smiled back and lifted the window; Jacob
didn’t quite like using my front door because of the smell. He clambered through easily and
took hold of my hand.
“You look gorgeous,” he murmured, his brown eyes like dark liquid amber. I
blushed immediately causing him to chuckle and stroke my coloured cheeks.
“Uh,” I stuttered, “thank you.” I stood on my tiptoes and just about got my arms
around his neck to pull him down to kiss me. It felt so natural to kiss Jacob now but I
remember when we had first had problems understanding our feelings. Jacob, typically,
realised he loved me in that way before I had and we fell out a lot over it. I didn’t like the
fact I would be loosing my brother.
Now, I realised, I had the best of both worlds.
“You look even older now,” Jacob twirled a strand of hair around his large finger. I
rolled my eyes; I was still aging slowly since I hadn’t yet reached the bodily age of
seventeen. I was predicted to stop growing then.
“Not as old as you, you thirty year old giant,” I teased. Jacob laughed and with this
close contact, I could feel his chest vibrating with it.
He winked. “That was harsh.”
 “You’ve had worse.” I shrugged with a mischievous smile. I stood back on my
heels and unlocked my arms from around his neck. He shrugged too. I took his warm hand
and smiled hopefully up at him, knowing my next words would bring a scowl to his tanned
face. “Ready to go celebrate?”
As I had expected, Jacob’s expression lined and he gritted his teeth.
“I take that as a very enthusiastic yes,” I looked away with a roll of my brown eyes.
I tugged at his hand sharply and he groaned. Jacob’s footsteps were slow and heavy so I
ended up dragging him out of my house and down to the Cullen’s.
As soon as we reached the large wooden porch, Jacob inhaled with a moan.
“Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” I sighed and his expression hardened.
“I’m not making a deal out of this because I want to.” He replied bluntly and I felt a
stab of guilt. I knew that.
Alice swung open the door with a cheerful smile. Her golden eyes glittered under
the soft glow of fairy lights she had decorated the whole inside of the house with.
“Nice timing,” she grinned, letting us past. Jacob smiled faintly at her; he could
deal pretty well with Alice.
“Where are Bella and Edward?” I asked, hearing the hum of voices in the dining
room.
“In there,” Alice called, dancing past. Jacob squeezed my hand once as I led him
where all of the Cullens were congregating. Carlisle welcomed us with his genuine smile
and asked us if we wanted to try Esme’s homemade punch.
“I’d rather not,” Jacob replied slowly but he managed to curve his lips into a grin. I
took a cup of the dark purple liquid and sipped at it. Esme had combined the fruity flavours
perfectly and I guzzled the rest of it greedily.
“Renesmee, your hair looks amazing!” Bella, my strikingly beautiful mother, swung
her arms around me. Her own dark luscious locks were lying on her shoulders in perfect
curls. The dark colour made her skin look even whiter but didn’t affect how stunning she
was.
“Thank you.” I laughed as she began to play with the shorter strands.
Bella’s amber eyes flickered towards my father. “Edward doesn’t she look grown
up?”
“She does,” Edward noted with a smile. He then looked up at Jacob. “Thank you
both for coming. I’m sorry about my sister’s party zeal,” his eyes rolled at Alice. She pouted
at him.
“My party planning skills are undeniably amazing, Edward.” She folded her arms
and her brow furrowed. Her skin glowed an odd soft pink colour as the bright white light
reflected of her shiny red top. She wore white jeans that flared out just above her black
heels; incredibly sophisticated.
Alice began tugging at Jasper relentlessly, asking if the music was loud enough, if
the lights were too bright. Jasper looked down at her adoringly and answered politely to
every one of her worried questions.
“So where are the happy couple then?” I asked.
“They went out for dinner didn’t they?” Edward replied, his amber eyes glittering
teasingly. I felt Jacob’s muscles tense and I frowned disapprovingly at my father.
“They won’t be long,” Esme assured us. “But I’m sure Rosalie wants to be
fashionably late.” Her smile then lifted as she looked affectionately at Jacob. He met her
look evenly, if not with a bit of confusion at her kind eyes.
“Please help yourself to the snacks, Jacob. Someone’s got to eat them.” She
gestured to the table behind her that was dotted with coloured bowls full with crisps,
biscuits and nuts.
 Jacob nodded at her. “Thank you.” He sidled past me and went to take a handful of
food. Esme then winked at me and I smiled appreciatively at her. My eyes, carefully
watching Jacob, then flickered to Edward.
Edward. I called him in my head and he met my gaze. Keep an eye on him ok?
Get Jasper to help if he gets too anxious. Edward nodded.
There was a sound of tyres on the gravelled driveway.
“They took a car?” I asked sceptically. Even if they hunted out of Washington,
none of the Cullens took a car.
“Rosalie has to get changed doesn’t she?” Edward laughed. Alice squealed,
clapping her hands together.
“Come on guys,” she ordered in a giggling voice, “hide, hide!”
“But they know we’re here,” Bella frowned but Alice scowled at her.
Edward, crouching down on the floor, touched Bella’s arm. “It’s just a bit of fun.”
Alice quickly rushed out of the room, flicking the fairy lights off and returning to dip to the
floor by Jasper.
“Hey! I can’t see!” There was a sharp bang. “Ouch! Crap, help!” Jacob whispered
hurriedly from the table he had been stood at. I was able to crawl my way over to him and
tug at his trousers.
“Jacob,” I said in a hushed voice, “down here.” He crouched to my side obediently.
“What’s the point in hiding?” He muttered in my ear and I heard Alice sigh heavily. I
quickly jabbed Jacob in the ribs with my elbow and he was about to protest loudly when we
heard the soft creak of the front door.
“What the heck?” Emmett began demanding in an amused voice. I saw Alice’s
teeth flash in a quick grin.
Rosalie’s beautiful voice rang out. “Oh Em, look, fairy lights.”
“I’m guessing Alice is behind this.” Emmett laughed.
Alice waved her hand in the dark and made signals for us to jump up in three, two,
one.
“SURPRISE!” Alice yelled, her voice high but still perfect. We all jumped up just
after her and yelled too. Jacob’s shout was a little less enthusiastic; he and Rosalie still
didn’t get on.
Rosalie’s perfect pale face was illuminated with a breathtaking smile as the fairy
lights flickered on.
“Oh, Alice,” she rolled her golden eyes affectionately, “you shouldn’t have.” She
sauntered into the room – loving the fact that all of our eyes were on her – in a grey silky
dress that finished just above her knees. Alice beamed and clasped her dainty hands
together.
“Do you like it?”
“Of course,” Rosalie looked around appreciatively, “I do.” She then wrinkled her
nose in distaste and her eyes darted over to me. They then swooped up to Jacob’s height
and she didn’t stop herself from scowling. “Oh, you invited everyone.” She muttered.
“Jacob!” Emmett roared from the doorway. “You came!” I couldn’t help the
overwhelming smile that invaded my face. Jacob and Emmett had begun bonding, their
super macho sides matching pretty well, and since then, Emmett had taken quite a liking to
him.
Jacob’s clenched jaw softened as he looked at Emmett. He smiled a little back but
I could feel the gentle trembles rippling down his back. I pressed my hand at the bottom of
his spine and instantly he relaxed.
“Turn the music back on Jazz,” Alice ordered quickly, “come on. Try Esme’s
punch!” Suddenly, her dainty figure blurred as she rushed around with party instructions.
Edward chuckled at her with a shake of his head then pulled Bella into the middle of the
floor and began twirling her in time with the upbeat music. She laughed musically but
followed his improvised steps perfectly.
“Happy anniversary you two,” Esme murmured softly and Rosalie smiled back at
her.
“This punch is amazing,” Emmett glugged two cups at once and Rosalie swatted
him with a roll of her eyes. She then glanced over at me and smiled again.
I felt Jacob tense even more as she floated towards me with a hand extended.
“Dance with me?” She asked with a twinkle in her eye. I quickly shot a look at
Jacob, who began eating snacks again, and placed my hand in Rosalie’s. She pulled me to
where my parents were dancing and began wiggling her hips in a sultry way. I felt stupid to
copy her and just jigged.
“Look at you go,” Edward murmured with a laugh in my ear.
“Don’t start,” I said back to him, “I’m not a perfect mover like you.”
Edward pointed at Emmett. “At least you dance better than that!” I looked over and
saw my large uncle waving his arms about. Esme was eyeing him cautiously; aware that
his hands were brushing the paintings that hung precariously on the walls. I laughed out
loud and Emmett stuck his tongue out at me.
I felt a rush of warmth behind me and a pair of hot hands gripped my hips gently.
“Can I have the next dance?” Jacob whispered in my ear as the song dwindled into
a slower melody. I twirled around to face him.
“Of course.” I stood on my tiptoes to lock my arms around his neck. He smiled
down at me lovingly, sending tingles down my spine, and pulled me onto his feet. I could
rest my head comfortably against his chest. We moved slowly and less extravagantly than
the rest of my family, who were all moving like they were in Dirty Dancing.
I could hear Jacob’s heartbeat, quick and punchy, against my earlobe and smiled
contently. Jacob’s breathing was slow and warm on my head.
I stretched up to put my lips by his ear. “Thank you for coming with me.” Jacob’s
brown eyes hardened for one second before they looked down at me.
“No problem,” he said.
“One more song and we’ll leave. Nobody expects us to stay long.”
“No, no, it’s fine.” Jacob pulled me off his feet and twirled me slowly. I fixed my
eyes on him.
“No I want to leave soon.” I promised him and his eyes twinkled as he smiled. He
then pushed me close as Jasper twirled Alice past us. Her mouth was open as she laughed
girlishly. I smiled at them, watching Jasper carefully follow Alice’s wild movements with an
adoring look on his marble face.
“Jacob,” a pale hand tugged at Jacob’s muscular shoulder, “I want a dance.” My
mother’s sparkling amber eyes appeared behind him and he turned around slowly.
“Of course,” he grinned at her, “though it might work better if you lead.”
Bella laughed and pulled Jacob away from me. They moved like we had done,
slowly and carefully, but Bella eventually tried to show Jacob to move his feet a little more.
Suddenly, Edward filled Jacob’s place in front of me and slipped his hands in mine.
“Thank you for coming Renesmee,” he glanced over at Jacob. “He seems to be
doing ok.”
“Bella is a very good distraction.” I noted with an eyebrow raised. Edward laughed
heartily and spun me round.
“I can’t deny that, I’m afraid.”
“Are you two ever going to get along?” I asked him with a sigh. His amber eyes
hardened and I saw his head shake slightly.
 “I thought we were,” he began in an exasperated tone.
I frowned, looking away from his lined face. “I’m taking that as a no then.”
“It’s hard-”
“Bella can get along with him fine so don’t go on about that vampire versus
werewolf rubbish.” I interrupted hotly. Edward’s eyes flashed down to my face and I held
my breath; they were quite noticeably flickering with anger.
“Bella was best friends with Jacob before…” he swallowed, “nothing will erase that.
Like nothing will erase the fact that Jacob and I have an ongoing dislike for each other. But,
Renesmee, I am not putting up a fuss about your relationship. I don’t understand why you
still persist on our liking for each other bettering.”
“Never mind then,” I muttered.
“That’s not fair,” Edward continued in a sharp tone.
“No its not,” I agreed crossly, “but life isn’t fair is it?” I met his confused gaze for a
second, my eyes burning, before breaking away from him. I weaved silently through the
dancers and found Jacob and Bella, laughing together in a corner. Bella saw me and
smiled instinctively.
“I’m ready to go now,” I said quietly to Jacob. He put down his cup of punch and
took my hand with a worried expression.
“Is everything all right?” Bella leaned towards me and brushed my hair out of my
face. She then glanced quickly over to where Edward was stood in the opposite corner.
“You’ve fallen out again have you?” She sighed, rolling her eyes. “Isn’t it supposed to be us
having family fallouts?”
Jacob’s voice was rough as he interrupted her. “What did he say?”
“We just had a disagreement,” I stopped myself from scowling and tugged gently at
Jacob’s hand, “let’s go.”
“Make sure you say goodbye to Rosalie and Em,” Bella told me with a raised
eyebrow. “I suppose I’ll go deal with your father.” She disappeared from in front of me and I
saw her reappear beside Edward. She took his hand and pulled his head down so she
could talk in his ear. I shook my head, knowing Edward and I would make up sooner or
later, and guided Jacob slowly over the dance floor. I found Rosalie and Emmett laughing
together as they danced.
“We’re going now,” I called over the music even though they’d hear me equally
well if I had whispered.
“Already?” Emmett asked with a sad frown. I nodded but let him whirl me in the air
in a typical hug. “We’ll try not to make a lot of noise,” he yelled and I laughed.
“Bye Rosalie,” I murmured as she embraced me in a softer manner, “you look
beautiful.”
“As do you,” she smiled back angelically.
Jacob quickly tipped his head. “Bye guys.”
“Later, Jake.” Emmett grinned at him before taking Rosalie’s hand again. They
continued to dance together and I began pulling Jacob to the door. He walked faster than
me and opened the door for me to walk through.
In the cool air, he breathed a sigh of relief.
“I think I handled that pretty well,” he noted with a brief grin. He slung his arm
around my shoulders as we walked home. There was a slight chill in the air outside though
it was slightly hard to notice considering it had been a similar temperature in the Cullens’.
“You did.” I agreed lightly. His hot temperature radiated onto me, warming my skin
and preventing the shivers that threatened to erupt down my spine. Another breeze circled
me and Jacob pulled me closer into his side.
 “You didn’t fall out with your dad because of me did you?” He then murmured, so
quietly it took me a while to realise it was his voice and not the humming of the wind. I
glanced up at him and felt my cheeks grow hot.
“No,” I lied. He heaved a sigh and pulled me closer again.
“Nessie,” he began in a disapproving tone, “would you cut it out, please?” I forced
myself to look away from his burning eyes, my cheeks reddening drastically. “Edward and I
have differences and yes we’ll keep having differences for a long, long time. Don’t waste
your time trying to build us this fake friendship because it won’t work.”
Our pace had slowed and my eyes dwindled on the floor nervously.
Jacob sighed again. “Nothing’s coming in between us; he’s not anyway, so why
should it matter?”
“That’s exactly what he said,” I muttered with a scuff of my foot in the dirt. Jacob
eyed me curiously for a few seconds before walking slightly ahead. I followed him quietly,
hearing him inhale slowly as he tried to think of something intelligent to say.
“What to do, what to do.” He murmured carefully, dropping back to my side. His hot
hand found mine slowly. My eyes flickered up to his face, painted with a soft expression,
and I gripped his hand.
I sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m trying so hard because I want everything to be simple for
me,” I breathed out slowly, turning my head away from his, “and that’s pretty selfish.”
“A little,” Jacob agreed with a gentle chuckle. His fingers curved around my chin
and he slowly turned my head to face him. “Don’t feel bad,” he whispered, “I know you’re
only trying to ease things.” His hot breath tickled my face and sent my skin tingling.
“Yeah, for me,” I scowled at myself, “not for you two.” I gently pulled away from the
grasp of his fingers.
Jacob let out a short quiet laugh. “True.” His hand squeezed mine and my eyes
flickered to his reflexively. The swirling brown colour weakened my scowl slightly and, as if
he knew it, Jacob seemed to intensify his gaze.
“Stop that,” I looked away and hardened my scowl.
“What?” Jacob laughed, swinging our entwined hands. I shot him a quick glare
before jutting out my chin defiantly.
“Doing that puppy-dog eyes thing with me,” I told him crossly. His chuckle
continued softly. I rolled my eyes and looked at him. “And don’t go making wolf excuses.”
“If people heard our conversations…” Jacob shook his head with an amused
expression. I couldn’t help the smile that crept onto my face and he quickly met my gaze,
smiling identically. He pulled me into his side and kissed the top of my head. I let my eyes
close for a second; his warmth was undeniably irresistible, not to mention the feel of his
perfectly carved body.
Our pace quickened to our usual brisk walk and we reached my cottage quickly.
Jacob’s arm was protectively wrapped around my body and he left it there even when we
walked inside.
“It’s pretty early,” he noted as we walked into my bedroom. We never sat in the
living room; the smell of vampire from my parents and I was too strong for Jacob.
“Yeah, I’m such a party pooper.” I laughed gently, opening my wardrobe. Jacob sat
down heavily on my bed with a sigh. I took out a grey hoody and pulled it over my smart
shirt. I then stuck my legs in a pair of sweats, tugging them on under my black skirt before
rolling it off. When I turned back to Jacob, he turned his head quickly away from me,
embarrassed to be caught looking. I felt my cheeks redden but tried to act casual.
I bounced on the mattress beside him and almost immediately he pulled me into a
cuddle. Lately, Jacob had been keeping me a lot closer than usual. I didn’t complain, he
was extremely comfy, but I couldn’t keep my heart from racing at every contact we made
now. I had matured and Jacob knew it but we hadn’t gone far with our relationship yet…
besides the whole eternal binding of course.
Jacob let out a slow quiet moan of content and I closed my eyes.
“Your parents won’t mind us leaving early will they?” He asked eventually.
I shook my head. “Of course not.”
“Even with me?”
I peered up at him with a confused frown. “What are you talking about Jacob? Who
else am I going to be with?” Jacob didn’t look back down at me but his expression wasn’t
concerning.
“You are going to make up with Edward, right?” He asked without meeting my
gaze.
I continued to frown a little at him but answered slowly, “Yeah, for sure.”
“Good.” I scrambled out of his embrace to stare at his face.
“Jake?”
His brown eyes slowly wavered over my face and he smiled. “Yeah?” I didn’t
answer for a few seconds, studying his face closely but there was nothing out of the
ordinary. It must just be a paranoid sort of night.
“Oh…” I then shook my head at myself, “oh nothing.”
“You sure?” He poked my slight frown gently. “You look unhappy. You weren’t
looking like that a while ago. Do you want to go back to the party? I’ll walk you there if you
want.” Jacob went to get up but I pulled him back down with all of my strength. It worked.
“No, I’m fine,” I assured him. He looked at me with an eyebrow raised but shrugged
nevertheless.
“Okay, so what do you want to do?” Jacob glanced at the window opposite my
bed. “It’s a bit dark for racing.”
“I can’t be bothered to race,” I stretched out on my bed and rested my head on his
legs, “I want to just lie here.”
Jacob’s warm hands began stroking my hair. He then slowly pulled me with him as
he lay down on my bed, feet dangling off the end comically. I snuggled into his chest with a
sigh of comfort.
“Comfy?” He asked gently.
“Extre-e-emly,” I replied with a smile. His throaty chuckle made his chest vibrate
against my ear. His fingers continued to play with my hair softly, the warmth of his skin
brushing against my scalp every so often. It felt like not only his temperature was warming
me but his undeniable adoration; it felt silly and vain to think so but there was no way it
wasn’t true.
Jacob’s voice hummed through his chest. “What are you thinking about?”
“Just stuff,” I mumbled, embarrassed to tell him. His fingers slowed in my hair.
“Stuff?” He pressed quietly. I let out a small groan as I turned over away from him.
He laughed again and mirrored my actions. “Please?”
“Do I have to tell everyone my thoughts?” I tried to sound angry but my sharp tone
faltered into a giggle. Jacob’s arms curled around me and he pulled me onto my back. His
face lay close to mine and I let my eyes wander over the strong line of his jaw, the dark
brown circles of his eyes and the tousled strands of black hair on his forehead.
“Stop it,” he smiled, the whiteness of his teeth glinting at me mischievously.
I blinked. “Stop what?”
“Checking me out, it’s a little unnerving you know.”
“Oh,” I felt my cheeks flare up, “sorry.”
Jacob pulled me into a tight hug. “I know I’m incredibly irresistible.”
 “I know you know.” I rolled my eyes, squirming out of his tight hold on me. He let
me wiggle out of his arms to stand up. I wandered over to my window and glanced out. The
fairy lights were still twinkling through the large glass windows, dull against the regular
neon flashes of the disco lights.
“They still partying?” Jacob asked lightly behind me, his heat giving him away. I
turned my head over my shoulder to glance at him.
“Looks like it,” I replied. Jacob kissed my cheek and smiled, turning me around to
face him. He brushed my hair out of my face slowly with his easy smile and curled the
strands behind my ears. He began to lean into me, closing his eyes, but I kept mine open to
watch his face. His smile was still apparent on his lips, his expression content, and I let him
kiss me. It was one of those dithering on the boundaries kisses and I felt my heartbeat race
uncontrollably. My back was pressed against my window, the edges of the windowsill
digging into my spine, but I didn’t wriggle free. Jacob’s hot breath was in my mouth and I
was having trouble breathing. His large hands slid onto my waist making me tremble. He
pulled away to chuckle into my collarbone.
I felt my bones disappear inside my body and suddenly I felt limp in Jacob’s
muscled arms.
“Hey,” Jacob misread my totally lifeless body, “are you tired?” My head was
spinning too much for me to shake it. He swept me up in his arms easily and carried me to
my bed, pulling back the covers in one swift movement. He tucked me in with a smile and a
quick kiss and made his way back to the window.
“No,” I mumbled breathlessly. My heart was slowing now, my awareness sharper.
Jacob turned to me.
“Yes?”
I made my quivering lips scowl. “No, stay.” Jacob smiled at me amusingly and
hovered by the window. His coffee skin flashed with the vibrant colours of the party lights,
making his eyes look darker than usual.
“Renesmee, you’re tired.” He chuckled but I continued to pout at him. He hesitated,
glancing back out the window. A flash of white caught my eye outside the window and
Jacob’s muscles tensed. “I’ll be back in the morning.” He slid the window open and slipped
away into the wet darkness. As soon as the window slammed shut, my bedroom door was
pushed open.
“Ah, you’re in bed.” Bella smiled at me peacefully. She was practically glowing in
the doorway.
“Why yes, yes I am. How was the party?”
Bella rolled her eyes. “Alice wouldn’t let me get off the dance floor,” I smiled at her
unhappy tone, “and to be honest, nor would Edward.”
“Oh dear.”
“You were great,” Edward’s velvet voice came from behind her. His amused face
appeared and grinned at me. I smiled back.
Bella scowled. “I don’t like dancing.”
“But I do,” Edward curled his arms around her waist, “and you’re a very good
dance partner.”
“That doesn’t change my dislike for it,” she continued with another roll of her eyes.
Edward took her hand gently and twirled her, his eyes sparkling as he winked at me. I
couldn’t help but smile at my mother’s pout as Edward continued to slowly make her dance
in a circle.
“Stop it Edward,” she growled quietly but he ignored her, making her glide this way
and that. I laughed as he lifted her quickly and make her twirl in the air. “Edward!” Bella
pushed him away with a scowl. “I’ve done enough dancing!”
 “Okay, okay,” Edward smiled at her, pulling her slim body back into his arms. He
was terrible for getting his own way.
“Come on, we’re keeping Renesmee awake and she has to do her chores
tomorrow.” Bella began to usher him out of my room as I groaned at her reminder. Sunday
was now officially cleaning day. Somehow Bella’s messy antics were slowly disappearing,
as disheartening as that was, and her new regime of chores was now a frequent
occurrence.
Edward quickly stole an amused glance at me before Bella shut the door behind
them. “Oh yes,” he called loudly, “chores! What fun!”
I scowled at my bedroom door, shouting out complaints in my head so Edward
would hear and possibly convince Bella we really didn’t need to clean the house as it was
practically spotless already. There was no obvious reply from him so I tugged my duvet
over my head and sulked.
It was hard to fall asleep scowling. And I was nearly suffocating underneath my
duvet so I slowly eased my head out, hoping that Edward wouldn’t notice my sign of defeat.
My eyes reflexively checked my window; large and square without the curtains drawn. The
silhouette I was hoping for didn’t appear and I settled for sleeping on my own.

2.

“Up, up! Up I say!” The high-pitched voice was not that of my mother’s but…
There was a deep, disapproving growl. “Do you really have to do that…Alice?” I
slowly opened my eyes to find Alice prancing about my room, being watched by an
uncomfortable looking Jacob. He saw me looking and pulled a face.
“What? She’s had the biggest lie-in ever!” Alice rolled her eyes, yanking me out of
bed. I glanced quickly at my clock and let out a cry of shock.
“Alice! It’s five o’clock in the morning!” My eyes shot over to Jacob who suddenly
began to look sheepish.
She placed her hand over my mouth. “Keep your voice down!” She threw some
clothes at me and roughly turned Jacob around to face the wall. He flinched at her
temperature, his muscles flexing underneath his copper skin. My confusion and anger was
obviously clear on my face because Alice finally found the need to explain herself.
“I’m getting you out of cleaning day,” she told me as I sleepily pulled on the clothes
she had thrown at me, “so just be grateful.”
“Why are you getting me out of it? And why at five o’clock in the morning?” I
emphasised the time to make my sheer anger clear. She simply rolled her amber eyes at
me.
“Because I know you’ll be grumpy all day and I wanted to go shopping with you. If I
had let you sleep in any longer, the parents will have got to you first.” It was a good enough
reason but I didn’t allow her to be aware of this.
“And you?” I raised an eyebrow at Jacob who opened his mouth to speak until
Alice stood in front of him.
“Someone doesn’t know how to share,” she pouted, “so he’s being a typical
werewolf, rude and unfair that is, and forcing me to spend the day with him.”
“Don’t think I will enjoy your company.” Jacob retorted lowly. I stared at them
incredulously. They eventually both met my gaze.
“What?” They both asked.
“You guys are insane,” I shook my head but failed to stop the smile from spreading
over my face.
 “And you said she’d frown for at least an hour,” Alice told Jacob with a satisfied
smirk. He rolled his dark eyes at her and folded his muscular arms across his broad chest.
“Okay, so,” I looked at them both, completely shocked that out of everyone, these
two were going to spend a day together, “where to now?”
Jacob took a step towards me and went to hold my hand. “Why don’t we go in-“
“My Porsche.” Alice finished, darting between us.
I sighed at her. This was going to be a tiring day. “We won’t fit in the Porsche.”
“Yes, Alice,” Jacob emphasised her name with sarcasm,” we won’t fit in your car.”
“I am not trundling around in that shack of a car you own,” she scowled. Jacob
shuddered for less than a second before taking a deep breath.
“What else is there then?”
“Come on Alice, you own about a bazillion cars, surely there’s one big enough
and,” I rolled my eyes the tiniest bit, “pretty enough for us to drive in?”
Suddenly, my scowling aunt broke into a large smile. “You’re right,” she agreed
happily, “we’ll take another car. That way, my car won’t be ruined by the smell of wet dog.”
She danced out of the room, tactically ignoring Jacob’s shuddering chest. I quickly pulled
him into me to calm him down.
“I really don’t know how I’m going to survive today,” he moaned into my hair.
“Try,” I hugged him tightly, “try for me. Please?” He sighed before kissing the top of
my head.
“The things I do for you,” he shook his head slowly, “spending my day with a
vampire.” I pulled a face at him but he continued. “But not only a vampire, the most
annoying vampire I have ever come across. Not that I used to get acquainted with vampires
anyhow.”
I glared up at him, my jaw tightening at the thought of Jacob as a cruel, killing
creature. He seemed to notice and his expression, alight with humour, suddenly turned
apologetic.
“Sorry,” he scrunched up his nose sheepishly.
Uncomfortable with how the conversation was going, I took Jacob’s hand and
pulled him slowly out of my bedroom. “Come on, we’d better find Alice.”
He began to groan and so I pulled harder.
We found Alice leaning up against Emmett’s Jeep with a different outfit on than
she had before and Emmett’s keys jingling in her hand. Jacob let out a small whine, tugging
on my hand childishly.
“Stop it,” I warned him gently, “I’m getting out of cleaning day so I’m going to take
any opportunity I get. But if I’m going to have to spend the day sat in between you two so
you don’t eat each other, hovering is going to suddenly sound a lot more tempting.” Jacob
opened his mouth to answer back but decided on kissing me softly on the cheek.
“I’ll be on my best behaviour.” He promised.
“Do you want to walk any slower or should I just throw a ball to get him running?”
Alice called from the Jeep. I watched Jacob swallow an insulting response and squeezed
his hand.
Alice opened the door for me and whistled whilst gesturing to the back seats.
“In the back,” she then smiled sweetly at Jacob, “please.” Jacob’s forehead
wrinkled in effort, his jaw locking, and he swiftly jumped into the back. “Good boy.” Alice
couldn’t help but mutter. I swiped her hard with the back of my hand and she let out a cry.
“What the?”
“Cut it out, Alice,” I cautioned her, “otherwise it will not be an angry wolf eating you,
it will be me.”
 “All right, all right,” she rolled her eyes and hopped into the driver’s seat. I
slammed the door closed and looked back at Jacob. Even in the wide frame of the Jeep,
Jacob looked incredibly cramped, not to mention hot and bothered.
“Are you okay?” I asked quietly but Alice turned in the key in the ignition, letting the
engine roar to life.
“He’ll be fine.” She reversed quickly, throwing me forwards, and then sped down
our drive. “Let’s roll.”
“Alice, it’s five in the morning, what shops are really going to be open now?” I
asked with a laugh. She wound down her window and shrugged.
“Who knows? We might just have to drive around for a bit.” She looked back at
Jacob and smiled. He scowled back, glaring out of the window.
“Oh cheer up, pups, we’ll leave a window open for you.”
“Alice!” I snarled but she simply giggled.
“My bad.” She pushed the Jeep faster down the roads and I felt my eyes sliding
shut. Jacob’s warm breath was tickling my neck as he leant forward, his arm creeping
around the seat and fingers stroking my arm. Alice quickly flicked on the radio and began
humming along, tapping her hands on the wheel with the beat. I couldn’t help but notice her
nose wrinkling every time Jacob shifted in his seat.
“Where are we going then?” He growled after a long silence. I didn’t let my eyes
open wide to the sound of his voice, but just enough so I could see them both. Alice turned
her head slightly to Jacob before realising she couldn’t quite manage eye contact with him.
Her eyes wavered over his hard expression before returning to the road.
“I’m just doing a circuit of the town.”
He huffed. “I knew doing this early would be a bad idea.”
“We’ll take her back then and you can debate with Bella. I know you’re well
experienced in that area.” Alice’s voice came back sharp. I heard Jacob recoil slightly in his
seat and his breathing became louder.
“Don’t bring up Bella in this.”
Alice laughed musically. “I’m not, for once, arguing with you Jacob. I was simply
stating the reason why I got Renesmee so early.” There was an awkward pause as I stirred
in the front seat. I hoped Alice didn’t realise I was awake or if she did, she’d pretend she
didn’t notice.
“Fine.” Jacob finally answered.
“Oh stop being moody,” she rolled her amber eyes with a smirk, “you were the one
who wouldn’t share.”
“What else am I supposed to do? Go for a run?” Jacob retorted hotly.
“You could make friends,” her tone wavered into sarcasm, “unless that’s too
difficult for people like you.” Jacob took a deep breath as she continued. “A lone wolf,” she
said quietly with a giggle, “all alone.”
“Will you ever tire of making fun of me being a werewolf?” He sighed, shaking his
head patronizingly. “It’s sad really, that you can’t find something else to say.”
Alice snorted daintily and grinned sarcastically back at him. “Don’t tempt me.”