Chapter 12

The next few months passed quickly and before I knew it Nessie was graduating high school. It was her first graduation and we planned on celebrating by going to a party at her friend Ashley's house. Her parents were throwing her a big bash since she had been accepted to Drexel.

Ness looked amazing that night. Alice and Rosalie spent hours with her upstairs in the bathroom doing God knows what to her. Blondie called it a practice run for the wedding. The thought of Ness in a wedding dress walking down the aisle to meet me gave me butterflies as I sunk into the living room sofa to wait for her. We set the date for the wedding to be November 17th in Port Angeles. We couldn't risk all of us going back to Forks for the wedding and it made sense not to host our kind of guests in Mountain Home either. Alice found a great reception hall by the water in Port Angeles and everyone was happy with the location. Six months felt like a very long ways away. We wanted to wait until after Ness' next birthday which was September, and having it take place in November meant the wedding would be about a year after we supposedly started dating, as far as the town folk knew. Hiding our relationship from everyone in Idaho when we were dating was horrible. I refused to hide our marriage. I discussed several different ideas with Carlisle and Edward. The plan was to tell anyone who asked that Nessie and I eloped to Port Angeles and married on the one year anniversary of becoming a couple. It seemed plausible and romantic to me. Everyone agreed it was the best story.

I was flipping channels when Edward walked into the room. He offered me a glass of soda.

"Thanks" I said.

"I thought I might take this opportunity to talk with you, Jacob. The girls are bound to be a few more minutes up there" he said casually. Uh oh. His face was calm, expressionless as he stared at me.

There was only one subject Edward ever wanted to discuss with me privately. All the time that had passed since Ness and I started… expressing our love a bit more physically Edward had never said a word about it, at least to me. If he said anything to Nessie she acted like he hadn't. At this point I kind of figured he'd tried to bring it up but decided it was too awkward a conversation to have. The farthest we'd pushed the rules was on our trip to Forks and we were engaged by then so maybe he was giving me a break. He looked at me sternly. Ok, maybe not.

"Look Edward, I know I promised you a 'PG' relationship until I married her. And I really am sorry that I haven't kept that promise flawlessly. You know I love her, and respect her, and am not pushing her at all." I raised my hands defensively, drink still in hand.

"Jacob, we agreed on these terms for a specific purpose. I understand you both have grown up in a different world than me; you share the same world as Bella. I faced similar challenges with her that you are now facing in trying to keep your word. The difference between the two has always been the unknown factors in Nessie's development."

He was talking about her being such a unique creature. When Nahuel had saved our butts a few years back he stayed with the Cullen's for a while discussing with Carlisle and Edward everything he knew about his kind. We were extremely relieved to hear that Ness would stop aging after 6 or 7 years having the appearance of a young adult. And that since Nahuel was still kicking we could assume Nessie would have an extended life if not an eternal one as well. He did mention repeatedly how certain aspects of his growth differed from his sisters and he didn't know the cause. Edward was of course troubled by this uncertainty.

So, basically Edward and Bella were worried about how to gauge Nessie's emotional maturity. Would it maintain the same pace as her intellectual and physical growth? Nahuel couldn't say. Seeing how he eyed her up even as a toddler I was more than comfortable agreeing to Edwards terms back then. The longer Nahuel would have to wait before making a play for her love the better. Over the years, it was obvious Nessie's affection lay with me and Nahuel had backed off honorably.

"I realize her emotional maturity has always trailed her physical development, Edward, but you have to admit her features haven't changed in over a year. She's done growing and her mind is just as mature as her body" I defended myself, trying not to give him any examples of how I knew that was the case.

I couldn't help thinking about how Ness had been the one to initiate most of our trysts. If anyone was the hesitant, inexperienced one whose limits were being pushed it was me for crying out loud! Edward shook his head, not in disagreement, but like he was trying to will away disturbing images.

"I'm sorry. I'm trying not to think about the details. Listen, we're going to wait until the wedding to, you know, so can't we just agree to new terms based on what we now know about Nessie?"

I meant that she's fully grown emotionally, not that she's surprisingly eager to explore the "PG-13" territory.

"I'll concur with that request, Jacob. You promise me it won't go any further until the wedding and I won't bring it up again" he said cautiously. Then he sighed in defeat.

"I want you to know my concerns are also the same as any human father. We know Renesmee can bear children, and I… I remember my own reaction to Bella's pregnancy. It was quite a shock and for far too long I wasn't the man Bella needed me to be. I still have regrets about my actions during those times. I want you two to enjoy every moment of your lives together, truly" he concluded.

Edward had never been so honest with me before. I really appreciated his perspective for once. I remembered that time too. And I understood what he was saying.

"You have my word" I replied simply. He nodded and walked out of the room.

Finally, Nessie escaped Alice and Rose's clutches and we left for the party. We arrived at Ashley's house a little after 8 o'clock and many of Nessie's classmates were already there. We talked to all of Nessie's friends about what schools they were going to and what their summer plans were. Ashley ran up to us at some point and dragged Ness away by the arm. Girl talk, no doubt. I was on my own but at least I was near the food. Sadie, the girl that had a crush on me, wasted no time after seeing me standing alone to come over to chat. She seemed pleased to learn that I was studying at the local community college. She was going there too. Super. I commented how Ness and I were taking some courses together in the fall semester.

I was about to excuse myself when suddenly there were two Sadie's standing in front of me. I squinted with my eyes and tried to focus. I looked around the room and realized I was seeing two of everything. I closed my eyes and opened them again slowly and everything settled back into its proper place. That was weird, I thought. I felt a little dizzy and told Sadie I needed to sit down.

"Are you okay, Jake?" she asked concerned.

"Yeah, I think so. Can you do me a favor and find Nessie?" I asked her.

"Sure. Don't move. I'll be right back" she said as she walked off into the crowd of teenagers.

I leaned my head against the wall and closed my eyes. For a minute I thought maybe Edward had poisoned my drink back at the house. Ha Ha. No, I shook my head. We had a good talk and things were cool between us. Of course, I drank most of it before we started talking… but no, he wouldn't do that to Nessie. I just felt sick, like I had the flu or something. I couldn't remember the last time I'd caught a cold. My head was pounding and the party lights hurt my eyes. I heard Nessie calling me. She was still across the room but I could hear her. She made her way through the crowd and knelt by my side. Sadie was right behind her with a glass of water. She handed it to me and I thanked her. I took a sip. It didn't help my dizziness but did make me notice my throat was sore.

"My throat is sore" I complained. "And I can't see straight."

"Can you walk, Jacob? I'll drive you home so Carlisle can take a look at you" she replied.

"Okay. Yes, I can walk. I think I'm sick" I grumbled.

"Geez, Jake. You make it seem like you've never caught a cold before" Sadie chuckled.

Ness and I just stared at her. Then I stood up and the two of them helped me to the car. It was very embarrassing, having to lean my enormous body on Nessie's petite frame for support. I tried not to put my weight on Sadie. I felt a hand graze my ass and I hoped it had been Nessie's. I guessed that it wasn't but didn't have the energy to protest. When we got inside my apartment I crashed on the couch. My bed was just too far away. Ness immediately called Carlisle and he said he'd be right over along with Esme and Bella. Great, both the Mother Hens were coming.

Ness looked really worried while we waited for them to arrive. She sat perched on the edge of the couch and rubbed my hair. It felt nice so I closed my eyes. She wasn't used to people getting sick. I tried to reassure her but inside I was just as worried as she was. It came on so quickly and I could tell my temperature was higher than normal.

When the Doc arrived he checked me out and asked a lot of questions. Esme got a damp washcloth for my head and Bella held Nessie's hand. Those two never took their eyes off me. I must have looked bad. I was getting tired and just wanted to sleep but my stomach was tied up in knots and I was starting to sweat.

"What's wrong with him, Carlisle?" Esme asked with genuine concern in her sweet voice. It made me feel good.

"I'm not sure yet" Carlisle responded. "Jacob. When was the last time you were ill?"

"Had the chicken pox in 2nd grade, Doc." I don't know why I thought that was relevant. It was the last time I felt so helpless. I felt the room spinning again and thought I might throw up. Esme brought me a trashcan.

"What about when you had mono?" Bella whispered. I looked at her and understood what she was hinting. Before my first phase, when the fever set in, Billy had told people I was down with mono. Carlisle asked me if that had been after my change.

"I never actually had mono, that's just what we told people, it was the first time I phased. I got real sick and had a high fever when I became a werewolf. It happened to all the guys, lasts about a week." All this talking was exhausting me. I wished he'd just give me some Advil or Pepto and let me sleep. I closed my eyes.

I must have dozed off because when I opened my eyes again everyone was sitting at my kitchen table, except Nessie, who was stroking my arm with her fingertips. She faked a smile for my benefit. I felt noticeably cooler than before; I thought maybe the doc had finally given me something.

"So what's the verdict?" I asked turning my head towards Carlisle. He stood up and crossed the room to stand by my side.

"Jacob, we think you're experiencing another change. I've discussed your symptoms with Bella and from what she understands about werewolves it seems to be what you're suffering from" he said coolly, like that wasn't the worst news he could give me. My head started hurting as if I'd been hit by an anvil or something.

"Sure, sure. What am I becoming now, Doc? A zombie?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, Son. You're becoming human."

Hey guys! I'm sorry for turning Jacob into a human but there is a reason to my madness! Anyways I wanted to thank Once-Upon-A-Time101 for voting so this chapter is dedicated to you! Please like,comment and share!
-Love Nisha AKA Miss_Traveler

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