Jacob stares out at the cloudy night sky, his eyes searching for the stars that decorate the atmosphere. His heart felt heavy in his chest, weighted by the decision he'd made a few weeks back. No matter who he was with or what he was doing, he struggled to find joy in it. His heart was like a stone in his chest, weighing him down as the days passed by.

He'd cut off Bella for good this time. He was so tired of being the second option or not even an option at all, he wanted to be selfish for once and do something for him. He was starting to understand that all the trouble he went through for her would mean nothing. Edward was always on her mind and that wasn't going to change.

The cool summer breeze brushed up against his arms as he rested them on his knees, a sigh escaping him. He was coming to realise that while Bella may be his first love she wasn't meant to be his only love. He had an imprint out there waiting for him and he shouldn't be pining for a girl that was meant for another. He needed to move on. He knew that now.

The sound of the door sliding open met his ears though he didn't turn around, the chatter of the pack meeting his ears for a moment before the door shut, muffling it one more. Someone sat beside him, holding out a bowl of heavenly-scented food that forced his eyes to the source.

"It's some spezzatino and garlic bread I made earlier," Lucia told Jacob, Nudging the bowl to him once more. The boy looked at her and then at the food, taking it in his hands. Lucia watched him for a moment, taking note of the heaviness that lingered on his shoulders. "Not enjoying the get-together then?"

"No, not really," Jacob murmured, taking a bite of the garlic bread. He directed his gaze at the forest beyond Emily and Sam's home getting lost in the darkness that perpetually hung there.

Lucua props her arms on her jean-clad knees and rests her chin on them, letting her eyes settle on the clouded sky stretched out in front of her. "Is there a reason you're thinking so hard? You seem to be in a constant state of thought since the fight."

Jacob takes a spoonful of the fragrant spezzatino, chewing slowly as a debated telling to Lucia. He doesn't want to be a factor in the distance between Lucia and Bella, he doesn't want to worsen it by telling her. But she'd been a good confidante the last time they spoke and he needed someone to reassure him he'd made the right decision. He needed someone to tell him that it was okay for him to be selfish this time around.

He swallowed thickly, not knowing if it was because of his parched throat or the emotion welling up in his throat. It could be both. "I... I decided to let Bella go. I couldn't be her safety net anymore. I can't keep chasing after someone who doesn't want me."

"She was never going to be yours, Jacob. She was never going to make you her first choice," Lucia admitted to him, her tone soft but blunt all the same. "No matter how much you wanted her to, no matter how much you tried, it wasn't going to happen."

Jacob pushed around the food in the bowl, staring sadly down at the dish as the words echoed throughout the recesses of his mind. A tough pill to swallow but one that needed to be. If he continued down this path of chasing after Bella, he'd be miserable for the rest of his life. Sometimes loving someone meant letting them go.

"Lascia andare chi non ti ama, per far spazio a chi ti merita," Lucia spoke after the pause, her forest green irises landed on him. Those foreign words fell from her tongue so effortlessly, melodic as they met his ears. She smiled at him reassuringly. "Let go of those who do not love you, to make room for those who deserve you."

Lucia plays with the wool of her cream sweater, putting her words together carefully before she speaks. "There will be people in your life who don't deserve you, who will take everything you do for granted. It's better to let them go than waste your energy on those who couldn't care less about you."

"There may be a part of Bella that loves you but it is not enough for her to leave Edward, to ignore all that he had to offer." She blows out a breath at the thought of the leech, knowing damn well eternal beauty wasn't worth losing everyone for. "You have an imprint out there who will love you for who you are. Who won't make you as their second option."

Jacob's lips quirk into a small smile at the reminder of that, taking a bite of the spezzatino to hide his smile. His heart warmed considerably at the idea like a woolen blanket had been wrapped around his heart. He wanted that easy love that flowed so effortlessly it was like breathing.

He envied it if he was being honest. Seeing so many of his packmates embrace the bond and succumb to the tenderness of their pairing. It was beautiful like the first flower blooming after a brutal, cold winter. He'd seen how it was first hand and he craved it.

"What was it like?" Lucia looked straight at him curiously at the question, encouraging him to elaborate further. "When Paul imprinted on you, I mean."

Lucia let a bashful grin overtake her face, burying her cheeks in her sweater, and if that alone could hudd the flush that crept onto he'd cheeks. The thought of the day she met Paul would always elicit a giddiness in her that she wasn't ashamed of in the least. Knowing that their souls were entwined well before they met was something she still couldn't fully grasp, but she thanked all her lucky stars for it. She'd never have met her handsome boyfriend if not for it.

"It was like something in me clicked, really," Lucia mumbled, her voice slightly muffled. Her cheeks seemed to redden further, causing Jacob to smile, amused at her behaviour. No matter how much time passed, Lucia would always be flustered because of Paul. "It was like walking into a house and knowing that I was home."

"It's cheesy to say but it truly did feel like all the colours in the world grew brighter from that moment on. And underneath it all was this bone-deep knowing that he was destined to be mine, and I was destined to be his, for however long we had together even though I didn't know it consciously yet." Lucia fiddled with the sleeves, her heart thrumming at the thought of Paul. She lifted her head and turned back to peer through the glass door.

She caught sight of Paul tossing his head back in laughter at something one of the boys had said and he couldn't have been more handsome in that moment. It was hard for her to articulate the love she held for Paul and she wasn't sure she ever could. There wasn't a word for her to express how much she truly felt for him.

"I started to believe we'd become mindless because of the bond," Jacob confessed, causing Lucia to redirect her attention to him. He placed the empty bowl of food beside him. "I guess I wanted a reason to reject my imprint, as bad as that sounds. I wanted my reasons for loving Bella to be reasonable."

"I know, Jacob," Lucia assured him with a smile. "I know. Love makes us blind to reason."

"I'm glad I talked to you that day on the beach, Lucy," Jacob told Lucia with a somewhat watery smile. Lucia cooed at him and shuffled closer to him gathering the boy in her arms and holding him tight to her chest. "If it wasn't for that I think I'd still be waiting around for her."

She rested her head atop his, caressing his back as he cried softly for the first time since everything and completely shattered in her arms. After so long of this heartbreak, Jacob was finally ready to let it go and move on. He didn't deserve to be strung along, and he most definitely didn't deserve Bella being selfish and keeping him there in case Edward left again. This boy deserved the world.

"It's okay, Jay," Lucia assured him quietly, holding the boy she viewed as a brother in a warm, comforting hold. "Everything is going to be okay. I'm glad you're starting to move on from her. That you're starting to see that you deserve more than what she gave you."

He held on tighter to her, burying himself deeper into her sweater. Lucia dropped a kiss to his forehead before resting her chin atop his head once more with a sigh.

"You've got your whole life ahead of you, Jacob. Don't spend another second worrying over what could have been."