Ache Chapter 17
Title: Ache, Chapter 16
Author: herestolife222
Fandom: Post-Breaking Dawn
character/pairing. Catherine. Canon pairings
chapter. Sixteen
rating. T for language
summary. The story takes place in Portland, following (some of) the events in Breaking Dawn. A human, Catherine, moves to Portland after a terrible accident in Texas. She meets Emmett Cullen at the university, and they become friends. But some things can't be buried no matter how much distance you put in between yourself and them.
disclaimer: SM owns it all
A/N: Read at the bottom for apologies.
Chapter 17
EmPOV
“Love you too, kid. Oh, and Catherine?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t let Jasper’s feelings keep you from coming back. He’ll warm up to you again. He just needs time.”
“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll talk to you soon. Bye.”
I hung up the phone the happiest I had been in days. Now that I knew Catherine was safe and okay, I could deal with more important things.
“Jasper!” I yelled at the bottom of the stairs.
Jasper appeared at the top of the stairs in mere moments. “You don’t have to shout.”
I ignored his statement and continued. “I need you to do whatever necessary in order to get Catherine to come back. I need you to go to Forks and apologize.” I crossed my arms and dared him to defy me. I was not happy with him.
“No.”
I launched myself towards the top of the stairs. Before I could reach Jasper, Edward stood in front of me and held me back.
“Just fucking apologize!” I screamed, trying to claw past Edward to get to Jasper. Jasper stood there calm and collected. You wouldn’t even think his life was in danger at the moment.
I was making a little headway on Edward and I was excited. There was nothing I wanted more than to rip Jasper’s head off. I was mere inches from Jasper’s neck before something startling occurred.
Rose placed herself next to Edward. She didn’t need to try to hold me back. She knew that I would stop whatever foolishness I was doing at the sight of her.
I stood there waiting, imploring with my eyes as to why she would deny me this great satisfaction. I didn’t have to wait long for her words.
“Violence already took Catherine from us. I don’t need it to take anymore.”
Her voice was strong and calm, but her eyes betrayed her. She was hurting badly. I knew she would take it hard when Catherine left, but now she was finally showing the depths of how it hurt her.
My heart wilted at the sight of her. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close to me. She melted into my chest. I hoped she was taking some measure of comfort in my embrace.
She pulled away from me with a sad smile on her face. She walked towards our bedroom and I heard the door shut softly. I would join her shortly, but I had a few choice words for my brother.
“Don’t come near me, Jasper. Not now and not for a while.”
Jasper nodded curtly then retreated to his room. Edward stayed and looked at me with pity.
“Do you think she’ll ever come back?” I asked, fearing the answer.
Edward took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “No, Emmett. I don’t think so.”
I turned away from his gaze. “I’ve ruined her life.”
“Don’t say that.” Edward placed his hand on my shoulder reassuringly. “We will see her again, Emmett. Have a little faith in that.”
CatPOV
I went upstairs to find a restroom to clean up in. Thanks to Alice, I had towels and new clothes to wear. When I finished and came down the stairs, I expected Jacob to be gone. Instead, he was sprawled out on the living room floor with Chance. Chance was standing over him, panting contently while Jacob was scratching the back of his ears.
“You’re still here?” I asked, unable to keep the shock out of my voice.
Jacob looked up at me. He frowned slightly. “You think I would leave?”
I let out a small snort and rolled my eyes. “Well, yes. Why would you stay?”
Jacob shrugged a little and went back to scratching Chance’s ears. “Figured you would need a little help in settling in. Plus, any time with this big guy is time well spent.” He smiled at Chance, who let out a small bark at Jacob.
Jacob and I spent the day unpacking boxes and looking at furniture online. Thanks to the expansive Cullen account, I was able to go wild when it came to decorating. I only bought things for the rooms that I would use, but I still racked up a large bill. I also spent a lot of money on Chance, buying him expensive food and a ton of toys. He was getting older now, and I wanted him to have everything in the world that a dog could possibly want.
Night came quickly, and I was feeling thirsty. I didn’t want to be rude to the only friend I had in Forks, but I figured honesty was the best policy.
“I’m pretty sure if you don’t go home soon I may have to make a meal of you,” I said, wiggling my eyebrows.
Jacob laughed, the wonderful sound filling up the still home. “Okay, I get the idea. I’ll be heading out now.”
Jacob turned towards the door and made his way towards it. He paused for a moment and turned back to me. “Stay clear of the Quileute boundary, Catherine.”
I smiled. “You don’t have to play the tough guy with me, Jacob. I get it.”
He shook his head. “No, it’s not that. It’s just… some of the others are upset that you’re here. And well, I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”
My throat momentarily constricted with emotion. “You’re looking out for me?” I asked, trying to hide the awe in my voice.
A little color filled his cheeks and he looked away from me. “Just be careful, okay.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
Chance barked at his Jacob’s retreating form.
“I’ll be back tomorrow, Big Guy,” he shouted, not turning back to look at us. He ran out the door and I heard the sound of him changing in the distance. I stood for a while in the room, listening to his footsteps and heartbeat as they faded away.
I had a goofy smile on my face when I looked at Chance. I could feel the corners of my mouth stretching to their limits.
“Wanna go outside?” I asked him. His tail was wagging hard, shaking his butt back and forth. He grunted his approval at the idea.
We went outside and ran together in the woods. Chance wasn’t used to me running as fast as him and he was panted hard in his attempts to keep up. I laughed at him and slowed down. He stopped and began sniffing around in his new area. He immediately began marking his territory.
“Don’t get into any trouble,” I said as I ran off in the direction of some deer. I took down a doe and a buck before I had my fill. When I finished, I found Chance playing in a small creek. I took a seat on a rock and began to talk to him.
“Do you like Jacob, boy?” I asked him. He didn’t look up at me, but I saw his tail wag at the mention of Jacob.
“Me, too.” I said.
The next day Jacob and Seth came over. They helped me unload some of the furniture that had arrived since I couldn’t approach the truck drivers. It was astounding how much money made a difference when it came to getting things done quickly.
After the furniture was unpacked and arranged to my liking, Seth said he had to go home and help his mother with some things. Jacob and I sat outside and watched Chance as he ran around the backyard. I bought him some things to play with and he was more than capable of entertaining himself.
“Emmett told me about what happened to you in Texas. He told me about your friend and how Chance is her dog,” Jacob said out of the blue.
I was a little taken aback. “Uh… okay.”
Jacob turned to look at me and his eyes were serious. “Just know that we all aren’t like that. I would never hurt you like that.”
I cocked my head to the side. “Why are you saying this?”
“You just need to know things like that.”
I was confused but I let it drop. He must have hit his head on a box or something.
“What are you thinking about?” Jacob asked after a few minutes of silence.
“I’m just confused as to why you said that,” I said, carefully studying his face.
Jacob opened his mouth as if to say something, but then shook his head. He stood up and walked inside the house. After a few brief moments, I heard the front door slam.
“What was that all about?” I asked Chance as he trotted towards me.
Chance looked at the front door longingly and let out a soft whimper. He walked towards me with his head down and plopped down next to me. I scratched his head and rubbed his belly in order to soothe him.
“I don’t mean to like him as much as I do,” I said, fully aware that I was spilling my guts to a dog. “There’s just something about him. Maybe he can tell and doesn’t want anything to do with me. I don’t blame him if he’s still in love with Bella. She is perfect in so many ways that I am not.”
I was about to continue on my little spill when I realized that Chance was snoring. His paws began to twitch and I figured he was dreaming about chasing something. I left him sprawled out on the wet grass and headed into the woods.
I wasn’t planning on hunting, but I decided to do so in case some more movers came tomorrow with the rest of the things I ordered. As I ran, I came across a scent I was not familiar with.
“Vampire,” I whispered.
I ran back towards my house as quickly as I could. When I reached it, I saw Jacob standing on my back porch, waiting for me.
“Jacob!” I yelled, running over to him to tell him about the scent that I came across. “I have to tell you something!”
As I approached him, I was stopped by the look of anguish that crossed his face.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, grasping his hand. He jerked it away, and I couldn’t stop the hurt from pouring out of my chest. I felt my body begin to start the process of warming up at its alarming rate. I tried to stifle it, but was only able to just stop the flames. I was still quite hot.
“This isn’t right. It shouldn’t be like this,” Jacob said, pacing in front of me. “I mean, you’re a bloodsucker for Christ’s sake!”
“What are you talking about?” I asked, ignoring the fact that he insulted me. All I could think about in that moment was that I wanted his pain to stop.
“THIS!” he yelled, gesturing at myself and him.
My face screwed up in confusion. “I’m still not following…”
Jacob grasped me by the wrists and pulled me closer to him. He face softened as he searched my eyes. “I can’t stop how I feel about you. Whenever I hear about your pain, I feel it as if it were my own. That’s not right, Catherine!”
I couldn’t look at him anymore. He was disgusted with me, and it hurt so badly.
“You see! Right now I’m hurting you, but I guarantee you that knowing it’s me causing your pain hurts me much more than it does you.”
Beating around the bush doesn’t work well for me and I was starting to get a little frustrated. “Just say it, Jacob! What are you trying to say?”
His face broke into one of the most beautiful smiles I had ever seen, and I could feel myself melt. “See, this is what I love about you.”
Before I could question him more, Jacob pulled my face to his and kissed me. The entire world stopped then began to spin. The longer the kiss, the faster my world spun. It was the most wonderful thing I had ever experienced. Every memory of Scott and all the fear that I had before completely disappeared as I lost myself in the kiss.
We pulled apart, and I watched as Jacob tried to catch his breathe.
“Whoa,” we uttered softly to each other.
We stood staring at each other, smiling.
“That was…” I began.
“Amazing,” Jacob finished.
I chuckled and felt my warmth fill my face.
“I love it when you’re warm like this,” he whispered softly, running his fingers across my cheek.
I smiled wider and leaned into his touch.
“What was it that you were going to tell me?” Jacob asked, breaking our small silence.
I looked into his eyes and became lost. “I don’t remember.”
A/N: I am so sorry about the long update. I really appreciate anyone who is still interested in the fic. After this chapter, I think I have 2-3 left. I don’t plan on having anymore EmPOV, but if you want it, let me know. Please review. I never set out to write a romance when I started, so I’m hoping it sounds okay. Constructive criticism is appreciated. I promise the rest won’t take me so long to write.