Author’s note: Thank you SO much to everyone who has commented and voted; I really appreciate it :) And thank you to all the new people who are commenting and letting me know what they think! It’s great to hear from you :) Can you believe that this is the 3rd time I have updated this week? Nice work guys! I hope you enjoy this chapter!
‘Trust me’
Chapter 6- Help him
Bella’s POV
I was relieved when Alice told me that Edward found Jacob, but it was infuriating she could not tell me anything further! Edward told me he would come back once he found Jake, but he didn’t- he couldn’t. Had something happened to him? Or to Jacob? Not even Alice knew, or if she did, she lied smoothly about it. I was trying fruitlessly to fall asleep for the last 3 hours, but I kept waking up in a cold sweat wondering where Edward could be. After everything that happened in Italy, we were more tightly bound than I ever thought possible. Yet only 2 days had passed since we returned to Forks, and once again he was not lying with me as I drifted off to sleep. I felt empty without him, and worried for him and Jake. I knew he couldn’t stand being away from me unless he absolutely had to, so I knew something serious must have happened to keep him away.
It was 3:30 in the morning when I woke with a start, staring at the red highlights of my clock. I ran my fingers through my hair as I turned over to try to fall back to sleep- an image of Edward’s face had woken me up. One moment my room was dark and still and then the next, Edward was standing there, his pale face glowing in the light of the moon.
“Edward,” I breathed, relieved that he was with me now. I felt wide awake, even though I barely had any sleep.
Edward moved quickly over to me, gracefully lay on my bed and wrapped his strong arms around me, pulling me close to him.
“I missed you so much,” he whispered in my ear as he inhaled the smell of my hair.
“I missed you too,” I said dreamily, about to close my eyes; things were how they should be. But then, remembering the mystery surrounding his whereabouts for the last few hours, I sat up so I could see into Edward’s eyes, which were a beautiful honey colour again.
“You had the chance to feed,” I pointed out smiling; he had insisted, since getting back from Italy that he would not hunt because he wanted to spend every minute of his existence with me. I told him the idea was foolish- that making himself thirsty would not help either of us and does not make up for the suffering we both went through this past year. But he ignored me, shaking his head and smiling his crooked smile, saying that time was too precious.
“Yes,” Edward answered rather stiffly as if disappointed with himself, but not wanting to show it.
“It’s okay,” I reassured him. “You need to feed and I’m glad you did. Is that where you went after you found Jacob?” I asked, trying to catch his eye, but he wouldn’t look at me.
“Edward,” I said gently, moving my hand to touch his cold face- his eyes closed at my touch and his left hand rested on top of mine as he pressed it to his cheek. “What is it?”
Edward pulled my hand away and held it in both of his hands. We were both sitting up, facing one another on my bed, and I could see a sadness in his eyes that I couldn’t explain.
But before I could ask him if he was still beating himself up over leaving me tonight to feed, he spoke, his cool breath brushing across my face.
“I cannot stay with you tonight,” he told me, the pain of his words evident in his voice. “I know I promised I would be with you every moment available to me, but I-”
“What happened?” I asked urgently, but quietly so Charlie wouldn’t hear. “It must be very important or serious- not even Alice would tell me,” I said more strongly, demanding an answer.
Edward sighed, a small smile creeping on his lips.
“At the time, Alice could not tell you anything because she did not know exactly what I was doing,” Edward explained. It took me a moment to realise why the difference between ‘could’ and ‘would’ was an important distinction- Alice always knew what was happening and I doubted that anything would be able to prevent her from telling me the truth, which meant that she…
“She couldn’t see,” I stated, finally understanding the indirect way Edward was telling me what happened.
Edward didn’t affirm my response, but his face told me he was waiting for me to continue deducing the rest of the story.
“She couldn’t see because you were with a werewolf? With Jacob?” I questioned, my tone rising with fear and excitement because I knew something more must have happened than Edward simply relaying my message to Jake.
Edward smiled, but didn’t show his teeth.
“Edward, just tell me what happened! Stop hiding it from me, it’s driving me crazy!” I insisted pulling on his arm like a little kid nagging their mother for sweets.
“I’m not hiding,” he said seriously, pulling me towards his body as we leaned against my headboard together. I was resistant at first, but couldn’t help being overcome by the gentle pressure on my body as he encouraged me to rest my head on his chest.
He began drawing swirls on my back, which he knew relaxed me. Then he admitted: “I’m just afraid of worrying you.”
I knew it, I knew something was wrong, but of course, I couldn’t let Edward know I was feeling anxious, so I tried to stay calm as I whispered into his chest: “You can tell me, Edward.”
Edward rested his chin on the top of my head and I could feel his Adam’s apple move a couple of times before he spoke. Was he upset? I couldn’t tell. I wanted so badly to look into his face, but then I felt that maybe he was holding me like this to prevent me from doing just that.
“Jacob is currently sleeping- at my house,” Edward said in barely more than a whisper. I squeezed Edward to me as I asked the question I am sure I didn’t want the answer to.
“Why?”
Edward continued drawing on my back, as he kissed me on the top of my head, not answering.
“Edward,” I demanded as I felt my eyes prickle. No, no, I couldn’t get upset yet or he would never tell me… Damn, I knew he would smell my tears with his heightened vampire senses, but at least I could hide more from him than the average person. Edward didn’t say anything about my tears, but hugged me tighter as his way of saying ‘don’t be upset; I’m here and everything will be okay’.
“When I found Jacob, he was lying on the ground apparently waiting for his brothers,” Edward began hurriedly in an attempt to stop me from interrupting until he finished his story. “It took me fifteen minutes to realise,” he continued evidently annoyed at himself, “that he was bleeding.”
My heart skipped a beat. My mind immediately came up with several events that could have happened next and thousands of questions I wanted to ask, but upon hearing my shock through my racing pulse and tensed body, Edward continued, running his hand up and down my arm to soothe me.
“I was so distracted with him lying there, completely vulnerable and not moving, that the smell of his blood completely skipped my notice. I kept talking to him, and eventually saw in his mind that Victoria had bitten him.”
“Oh no,” I moaned as a sob escaped my lips. “Is he okay?” I pushed myself up onto my hands so I could see Edward’s face again. His expression was unreadable, probably because he didn’t fully know how to answer my question.
“He appears healthy and he was sleeping when I left home, so physically we think he will be okay,” Edward replied hesitantly. It didn’t surprise me in the slightest that Jake’s emotional health would be a completely different story; the Cullens’ would be the last place he would want to be.
“What happened when you found out?” I asked, wondering if Edward thought to suck the venom out, or more importantly, whether Jake would have let him.
“I looked at the bite, which was on the back of his neck, and asked him some questions. Apparently there is no information within the tribe about the side-effects experienced by werewolves who have been bitten by a vampire. Therefore, Jacob had no idea what would happen to him, but was convinced he would die. After much persuasion, he let me suck the venom out.”
I felt my eyes open wide in shock. While I knew it would be the best method to remove the venom from Jake’s system, I couldn’t believe Jake had allowed Edward to do it.
“I was surprised too,” Edward agreed, having read my face. “But mostly relieved; at that moment I knew removing as much of the venom as I could was the best strategy.”
I nodded, still looking into his eyes, eager to hear more.
“He had a migraine- he hit his head when he phased back into a human after Victoria attacked him. He wanted to go home; we were not far from La Push, but I insisted he let me take him to Carlisle. He tried to fight me, but the pain became too intense for him to resist me, so he agreed. As I was running with Jacob, Alice called for the second time since I found him, demanding that I tell her what was happening, because she couldn’t see. I told her again that I was fine, and to put Carlisle on the phone. Carlisle fixed up his office in preparation for Jacob’s arrival and told everyone except Esme and Jasper to leave. Carlisle examined Jacob closely, making sure there was no evidence of brain damage, swelling or any sign that the venom remained in his system. All seemed well, except for his migraine, which Carlisle resolved by connecting a drip to Jacob’s arm.”
“I bet he didn’t like that,” I commented; I could barely imagine Jake allowing Carlisle to touch him, let alone stick a needle in his arm.
“He didn’t, but when we finally convinced him it was the only way to reduce his pain, for tablets were useless due to his higher than average body temperature, he did well.”
“Good,” I breathed, relieved that his prejudices against vampires, which I had learned so much about this year, did not stop him from accepting the help he needed. “Does Billy know what happened?” I asked, realising only then that there were a bunch of werewolves who would object to vampires caring for their brother.
I felt Edward tense beside me. I let my arms, which were getting tired holding up my weight, lower me towards Edward as I lay next to him again.
“What’s wrong Edward?” I asked, concerned; I could tell he felt guilty about something. But instead of answering my question, Edward ignored it and answered my previous one, his eyes empty and detached.
“Billy knows what happened. Sam is coming to visit Jacob later today.”
“You don’t think it will go well?” I asked sympathetically. Judging by the tone in his voice I guessed he wasn’t hopeful.
Edward sighed, taking a deep breath as he did so. I had never noticed him breathe like that before; most of the time when he is upset or stressed, he freezes.
“I don’t know,” he replied, closing his eyes and placing his hand to his forehead to rub his temples.
I felt my eyebrows narrow as I pushed myself up onto my arms again and kissed Edward’s lips, which didn’t move against mine.
“Edward,” I said louder than I meant to. I was panicking because he evidently was, though he showed it very differently than was usual for vampires. “Talk to me- do you think your family will have a problem with Sam? Or- or are you afraid Jacob may get worse?” I asked, my voice getting higher pitched and quicker as I continued to talk.
Edward removed his hand from his face to stroke my cheek, his lips curved into a half smile as he stared into my eyes.
“I really needed this,” he whispered so quietly, I barely heard him.
“Needed what?” I asked feeling curious, because I knew he didn’t just mean he needed to see me.
“A place where people’s thoughts are not shouting at me. I can think more clearly here,” he clarified, giving me the first real smile since he entered my room.
My heart warmed in sympathy for him. I ran my hand through his hair as I asked: “Was Jake giving you a hard time? I hope he was grateful for your help,” I said more seriously. “I know I am.”
“Believe it or not, Jacob was not the problem.”
I searched Edward’s face for an explanation, but couldn’t find any.
“Who then?” I asked, feeling completely confused.
“Once Jacob had finished talking to his father, I went downstairs to find the rest of my family had returned home.
“Was it Rosalie?” I asked, knowing that of all of the Cullens, she would have the greatest problem with Jacob being around. “What did she say to you?” I demanded, ready to defend Edward at all costs- it was clear that Rosalie’s thoughts had deeply affected him. Edward turned away from me, refusing to meet my gaze.
“She reminded me of my mistakes- regarding Jacob, my family, with- with you,” and I was surprised to hear his voice break and immediately, I placed my hand under his chin to force him to look at me. He let me move his face. My chest tightened when I saw the look he gave me.
Guilt.
“Oh Edward,” I whispered, as I gently wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him to me. “Don’t let her get to you,” I soothed. “You are a wonderful person and you have nothing to feel guilty about; you left to try and protect me, you saved Jacob, and you love your family. I won’t let you feel this way.”
“You cannot change how I feel, Bella. I should have been able to smell Jacob’s blood sooner, I should have thought about the consequences of bringing Jacob home- a werewolf living with vampires,” he hissed, evidently upset with himself. “Did I really expect my family to be fine with my decision, knowing that we would be obliged to reveal where we live to the pack? I should have let Jacob call his father sooner, so Billy would not have been so worried and made Jacob upset, and if I never fell in love with you to begin with, you would not have suffered because of me, and Jacob would not have been so distracted with the prospect of you becoming a vampire,” Edward spat bitterly, still unable to meet my gaze.
“Is that why Victoria was able to attack Jacob? Because he was thinking about the fight we had?” I asked, feeling beyond terrible.
“This wasn’t your fault, Bella,” he said seriously; he saw where this conversation as going and he hated it when I blamed myself for anything, even if it was my fault.
“Well if it isn’t mine, it most certainly isn’t yours! You were trying to help him, Edward! You wanted to make sure he was okay-”
“Yes, but this was not how it was supposed to turn out-”
“Very little good could come from Jacob being bitten by Victoria- you did your best and I am sure he will see that eventually, if he hasn’t already,” I said seriously, now drawing circles on his chest. “Don’t let Rosalie make you feel guilty about anything. If Carlisle was in your situation, he would have done the same.”
Edward’s tortured face snapped up; he was glaring at me. My heart began to pound in panic at the sight f him. “Carlisle told me to stay- he knew how much you loved me- how could I have been so blind? Even Rosalie knew- Rosalie!” He shouted through his teeth, frustrated and upset.
“You were trying to protect me in the only way you knew how! And when you found Jacob you could have taken him to La Push, but instead you decided to bring him to Carlisle. It makes sense to take someone who is sick to a doctor! Who knows what may have happened if you took Jacob home. What if they hurt you when you walked into La Push? What if Jacob did have brain damage or he couldn’t control his pain through pain killers because of his temperature? What then Edward?” I implored. “You were taking a risk either way, just as you were with me,” I told Edward, my cheeks wet with tears. Edward turned to me, and wiped away a tear with his thumb.
For a moment he was speechless, but eventually he answered me.
“I love you,” he whispered. “Thank you.”
“Thank you for helping Jake and for going through all this with Rosalie. You’re doing the right thing,” I told him as I snuggled next to him again, my hand rubbing circles on his chest.
“I hope so.”
I closed my eyes as I felt Edward’s body relax beside me and I knew that he was beginning to forgive himself for today’s events and the memories Rosalie had brought up in him.
“Is Carlisle watching over Jacob while you’re here with me?” I asked Edward through a yawn- I was getting sleepy now that I knew what was happening.
“Yes, he and Jasper.”
“Jasper? I didn’t think he would be supportive…” I trailed off, not wanting Edward to think I felt Jasper incapable of compassion towards werewolves.
“Jasper does not have a history of being sympathetic towards such creatures, but his gift, like mine, force us to empathise. Although Jasper does not know Jacob’s every thought like I do, emotionally, he feels what Jacob feels and he can’t help but want to protect someone who is upset and afraid,” Edward explained and his words made sense to me. Jasper’s gift, like Edward’s was a blessing and a curse- he could influence others, feel what they feel and empathise with them, but that also makes it that much harder to walk away- to be detached. I was glad Jasper was supporting Edward and looking out for Jacob; I’ve always found it much easier to cope with Jasper around…
“Bella,” Edward said quietly, moving me a little. I opened my eyes enough to see that the sun was rising. “Bella, love, I’m terribly sorry to wake you, but I wanted to say goodbye before I left.”
With my eyes still closed, I asked without too much hope: “Can I come with you?”
“I’m sorry Bella; I cannot guarantee my house will be safe when Sam arrives. But I promise to return to you when I can.”
I slowly nodded my head. “Okay,” I whispered. “Look after Jake for me,” I asked, knowing he would anyway even if I didn’t ask. I felt Edward rub his thumb on the top of my hand.
“Of course, you know I will.”
“I do,” I whispered back, my eyelids too heavy to stay open.
“I love you,” Edward breathed, kissing my forehead.
“Love you too,” I said squeezing his hand. He kissed the top of my hand just before jumping out of my window.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Edward’s POV
It was near impossible to leave Bella; my chest was tugging me back to her. But I stayed strong; I needed to withstand the pressure, the pain, the longing to return to her- my true home. As I forced my feet to run forward, I focused my mind on two things: the hope that Rosalie had deserted us for the day, and that Jacob was recovering. I ran home, my mind feeling far more refreshed than when I left.
I was not twenty meters down the driveway, the white house standing before me, when I smelt the scent of wolf. I had been around Jacob enough to know it wasn’t his smell. Another wolf must be on my family’s property. Judging by the location of the sun, it was barely 8am, yet I had a feeling Sam was here. Early. I ran as fast as I could towards the house listening intently for the thoughts of my family, Jacob or Sam, wishing to hear a hint of what was to greet me when I walked through the doors. The first voice I heard was Alice’s; she said my name. I listened for her voice through the mumblings of my family, trying to pick her out- she was whispering to someone.
“Wait for him; he’s almost here.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“It’ll be okay, Jaz,” I heard Alice soothe her partner.
So she was talking to Jasper. Was he having problems with Jacob? With Sam? Why wait for me? What could I do that Jasper couldn’t (except hear thoughts of course)? Was that it? He wanted to know what Jacob was thinking before he acted?
I barged through the door, almost running into Jasper; he was standing just inside the entry.
“Jasper, what’s wrong?” I asked, panicking the moment I saw his strained face, his scars whiter than I had ever seen them.
“Listen,” he hissed at me, stress rendering him as still as a statue. The rest of my family felt the intensity coming from us, so they too became quiet and listened.
As I listened, I stared briefly around the room to see who remained. Rosalie was thankfully absent and naturally, so was Emmett. I had to wait two seconds before I saw, rather than heard, any hint of what was concerning Jasper.
Jacob was having a very vivid nightmare.
I saw tints of darkness and terror flood Jacob’s every thought as he dreamed. It was hard to distinguish his screams of fear from within his dream compared to those that could be heard by everyone else.
“If you do not wake him, I will,” Jasper said through his teeth, the intensity of Jacob’s emotions keeping him stressed and tense.
But instead of answering him directly, I turned to Alice, who had flitted to Jasper’s side and was rubbing her partner’s arms with her hands.
“Why did you want to wait for me to return before allowing Jasper to act?” I asked her, confused, for I had no problem with Jasper interceding.
“Sam arrived ten minutes ago. He misjudged how long it would take him to get here,” Alice clarified, answering my unasked question as to why Sam was so early. “We explained to him that Jacob was having a nightmare. He didn’t believe it was ‘just’ a nightmare, so Jasper and Carlisle took him to see Jacob for himself. Sam tried to wake Jacob up, but he couldn’t; his dream had completely taken over his conscious mind. We couldn’t be certain what he was dreaming about, only that he was terrified and upset,” Alice explained, looking sympathetically at Jasper who had resumed focus on Jacob’s pain, his face stock still as Jacob’s emotions overwhelmed him.
I rested my hand on Jasper’s shoulder in comfort.
“I tried to calm him, but my efforts were fruitless. Even in sleep he is highly resistant to my gift,” Jasper informed me seriously, concern evident in his eyes.
I concentrated harder, trying to separate Jacob’s dream from the thoughts of my family and Sam.
“The terror he is experiencing is too strong- even if you calmed him, the images are still there, they would reignite his fear as quickly as you tried to remove it,” I analysed. “How is Sam managing being here?” I asked Jasper.
“Fine. Since seeing Jacob, he has thought of nothing else.” And I could see by the look on Jasper’s face that that was the same for him too.
I wasn’t sure what to do. I knew waking people up from their dreams can be dangerous, so was it really my place to wake Jacob just because he was causing my brother discomfort? Finally, I made my decision.
“Thank you for waiting for me,” I said, looking most particularly at Alice. “I will wake him, provided that Sam does not object.” I didn’t know how the leader of the pack would react to my idea until I saw him face-to-face and asked for his permission. I moved up the stairs as fast as I could, my entire family following behind me.
I paused at the door and could hear Sam muttering under his breath, upset that Jacob was suffering and it would seem, blaming us for the nightmare he was having. This was not the attitude I was hoping for, but after only a second’s pause, I opened the door.
Sam stood up immediately from where he was sitting; Carlisle must’ve provided him with a chair. Upon seeing my face, Sam began to shake violently but his feet remained stationary next to Jacob’s bed. I held up my hands as a sign of peace, the last thing we needed was for Sam to phase. I could see in his thoughts that it was not fear for his own life that agitated him.
“Sam,” I said cautiously, moving in slow small steps towards the very tall man before me. “I don’t mean Jacob any harm. My brother, Jasper is concerned for Jacob, so I- we,” I said, gesturing towards my family, but never taking my eyes off Sam’s, “are here to see if we can help.” By this time, I was only a meter from Sam, who was still shaking, but not as much as he was when I first entered the room. I could hear his ragged breathing as he tried to calm himself down. He was not happy that every vampire in the house was in the same room as him.
“My family will not hurt you or Jacob,” I told him calmly.
He looked at me shocked; even though Billy told him that I could hear people’s thoughts, he hadn’t believed it until now.
Now that I was closer to Jacob, I could more easily distinguish his thoughts from Sam’s and my family’s.
I was trying to concentrate. My family was helping, as they usually did when they knew I was trying to hear one person’s thoughts, by doing their best to keep their minds blank, but Sam, who was still trying to accept the fact that I could hear people’s thoughts, had a constant stream of questions in his mind that I couldn’t block out.
“Sam,” I said gently, pulling my face away from Jacob’s to stare at his brother’s. “Is there something you wanted to ask me?” I prompted, not sure which of the several queries I heard was most pressing to him.
The Quileutte stared at me in disbelief and confusion; he didn’t think I needed to ask- he thought his questions would have already been answered. I decided to explain myself.
“I am trying to hear what Jacob is dreaming about, but dreams are quieter than thoughts, and more disorganised, so they are harder to hear. I could hear your thoughts, but I was trying to ignore them, so I could hear Jacob’s. Is there something you wanted to ask?”
Sam’s eyes were popping at my words, but the situation was too serious to find amusement in this. Eventually he shook his head, not because he didn’t have anything to ask me, but because he knew it was more important I hear Jacob’s thoughts than his own at that moment.
“I know it is difficult, but if you could try to keep your mind blank so I can hear, that would be much appreciated,” I asked sincerely.
Sam looked like he was about to argue, but then shut his mouth and nodded, averting his eyes back to Jacob, who had begun to groan.
It took much of my focus to hear Jacob’s thoughts- while it was clear that he was dreaming, what it was about, I could only guess. Not that it helped, but I found myself leaning over Jacob as if my ear being closer to his brain would help me hear him.
Jacob shouted “no!” in his sleep, and suddenly I saw a very vivid image in his mind: Jacob leaning over what looked like a grey wolf, red blood dripping from his white teeth, a vibrant glow in his red eyes.
I stiffened as the image stayed with me.
“Edward,” Jasper said, walking towards me having sensed my distress which was no doubt in line with Jacob’s- he must’ve deduced I had finally gained insight into Jacob’s nightmare. “What is it?”
But I couldn’t answer him. From that moment on, every aspect of Jacob’s gruesome nightmare was flashing in my mind as if that original image became a reality for Jacob and thus, I was seeing his dream as if they were his thoughts.
I knew that trying to block him out was fruitless, but I moved away from the bed, my hands on either side of my head, trying to stop the oozing blood and warped images of a vampiric Jacob from polluting my ability to think and see straight.
“What do you see, Edward?” Esme questioned me, her voice calm and soothing, her small hand resting on my shoulder.
I couldn’t answer her as my focus turned to Sam, who had deduced correctly, having seen my reaction, that Jacob’s dream was a traumatising one. I couldn’t bring myself to utter what I had seen because although I knew it was not true- that Jacob’s dream was not reality- it could have been and I felt that that realisation would consume Jacob when he woke up. I closed my eyes against Sam’s stricken face, only to be confronted with Jacob relishing the wolf’s blood which was followed by his scream.
“Edward, speak to me,” Jasper demanded through his teeth, standing in front of me so I could no longer see Sam or Jacob.
“His dream became so vivid all of a sudden,” I choked in barely more than a whisper. “We must wake him, but I fear the consequences…” I trailed off.
“Alice, can you see?” Jasper asked doubtfully of his partner.
“You know I can’t Jaz,” she replied, highly distressed.
“Try Alice- look past Jacob, do you see anything happening to us or to him?” I insisted, hoping that she could- I didn’t want to cause Jacob any further distress by waking him.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alice close her eyes, but a second later she replied: “All I can see is black, Edward!” she shrieked, feeling as hopeless as I felt.
“What are you trying to see?” Sam asked in his deep voice, panic and confusion colouring his tone.
“I am trying to see what will happen if Edward chooses to wake up Jacob, but I cannot see wolves,” she added in frustration.
She can see the future, Sam said to himself as if finally understanding, and yet, I could tell this fact scared him as much, if not more, than my ability to hear thoughts.
But I didn’t have time to reinforce his realisation or try to calm him down when Jacob was a far more pressing matter. Still uncertain what to do, I turned to Jasper for his guidance.
“He will wake either way, Edward- best to do it now when we are all here,” Jasper asserted.
“What is he dreaming about?” Sam demanded, anxious to hear the answer because of the way I appeared to him: tense and sickened.
I exhaled sharply as Jacob writhed, shaking the bed he lay on, when his dream self realised he had killed a fellow brother.
I had to turn away from Sam’s face for a moment; god why did this have to be so difficult? If I wasn’t here, Carlisle or even Sam would have woken Jacob already; I was holding everyone up because of my gift. I felt Jasper’s hand rest at the centre of my back and soon I felt some relief; while the images were still there, he was able to calm me and, unlike Jacob, I was able to see reason and remember that it was ‘just a dream’.
“Thank you,” I said to Jasper, relief in my tone as I turned back to Sam.
“Jacob is having a highly vivid dream, one where he is a vampire- he just had his first… feed-” I looked at Sam and couldn’t say anything further. Even I found Jacob’s dream highly disturbing, so I could only imagine how Sam would feel; he was already disgusted as it was, and it alarmed me a little that he began to shake again, even though he was fully aware that Jacob was only a vampire in his dreams.
“What do we do?” he asked urgently, his heart pounding heavily against his chest, suddenly frustrated that I had not made a move to stop something so horrific from continuing.
“It can be dangerous to wake people up when they are dreaming so deeply,” Carlisle contributed.
“I believe that that would be less damaging than letting this dream continue!” Sam argued.
“If you wish to wake him, Sam, we will not stop you,” I told him, though given the nature of the dream, I wasn’t sure which would be worse: Jacob seeing my face when he woke, or Sam’s.
“Jesus,” I hissed under my breath as I cringed away from Jacob’s final haunt- his teeth bared, approaching a very human Bella.
The question of who would wake Jacob was no longer relevant as Jacob’s panicked, terrified screams filled the house. Heart racing, disgust and fear coating his every thought, Jacob fought with the cotton sheet as he tried to get out of bed in an attempt to run away from what he felt he had become. Jacob’s eyes were closed; his mind was still in a dream state, but his body was awake. I saw tears begin to cascade down Jacob’s cheeks as he continued to fight with the sheets. We all stood there, unable to move and barely breathing as we watched him struggle.
Sam’s thoughts were disarrayed; he wanted to speak to Jacob, but was terrified because evidently, Jacob was still under the delusion that he was a vampire. Jasper was trying to calm Jacob down but his efforts were having minimal effect. Carlisle was watching the drip in Jacob’s arm, trying to determine when it would be safe enough to remove it, knowing that he would need to shortly, lest Jacob accidently rip it from his skin.
Suddenly Jacob reached out in front of him, no longer wrestling with the sheets. I felt a gasp escape my lips as I saw what he could: Bella… dead.
To make it all too real, even for me, Jacob cried out: “No, Bella, no!” he sobbed.
My family and Sam all turned to look at me, all of them feeling sympathy for Jacob and for me. Whatever it was that I saw in Jacob’s mind, they knew it would have been hard to witness, knowing that it had something to do with Bella, the girl Jacob and I both love.
Jacob tried to escape the sheet-made jail he had created for himself, his breathing quickening after each failed attempt. Sam stood over his brother trying to help him get free, but Jacob was moving so much that he tangled himself even further, rather than finding a way out.
“No,” Jacob panted, his breaths becoming quick and sharp as he sat up, his body struggling to breathe. “No… no- no…” he groaned through his ragged sobs.
Sam left Jacob’s side to approach me- he could see that Jacob’s pain was hurting me too, and as much as he hated to say it, Jacob needed my help.
“Help him,” Sam begged of me. “Please.”
Whatever was holding me back suddenly disappeared; it was as if I needed permission to do what I thought I must. Now that I had it, I could not refuse.
Author’s note: So what did you think of the chapter? The next chapter will continue straight after this moment, and we’ll find out more about Jake’s dream. With regard to updates, i have decided to just update on Saturdays and Tuesdays from now on- otherwise you guys will get through the whole story the way you guys are going with all your comments/votes that i won't finish the last couple of chapters on time! So i'll post up chapter 7 on Saturday (Australia time). In the mean time, i look forward to reading all your comments!