Forever True

The doctor’s voice was clear in my ear first. “Leona, can you hear me?”

I forced a light groan.

“Is she okay?”

Jake?

“Yeah, Le, it’s me,” he said. I didn’t know I’d asked out loud.

I could hear Esme lecturing Alice about not springing things on people like that, and her explaining that she had just been excited and hadn’t known I would react the way I did.

“Leona, can you see?”

I got a head rush as I opened my eyes, and realized I was leaning on something soft. “What happened?” I asked quietly, trying to regain my vision, which had gone to static.

“You fainted,” Carlisle reported.

I pieced it together slowly: Alice, the hallway, Jacob.

Jacob had imprinted on me?

I heard a chuckle. “Yeah, Le, I did.”

I really needed to stop thinking out loud. Then I realized the caliber of what he had said and had to steady myself. Jake’s arms were around me in an instant, cradling me. I could see his shape, and many others around me.

“Give her air, everyone. Jacob, you stay,” Carlisle said.

“Yes, you stay,” I told him, and everyone laughed. My vision was coming back very slowly, and my head wasn’t hurting as much. I felt a cool cloth on my cheek, then the other, then my forehead.

“Do you mind if I…?” Jacob’s voice.

“Of course,” Rosalie said. She’d been helping?

The cloth moved, and I realized Jake was now pressing it to my forehead.

“Here,” Alice said, and I felt her delicate fingers hold my hair up so that he could put the cloth on the back of my neck. I could finally see through the little circles that had been clouding my vision and were still making it hazy.

“Hey Le?” Jake’s voice, soft and close to my ear.

“Yeah?”

“I love you too.”

I was surprised I didn’t faint again.

“Hey Jake?”

“Yeah?”

I could see him well enough to give him a kiss on the cheek. He laughed and kissed my forehead. I looked around the room. Everyone had left. Of course, this gave me a head rush, and Jacob moved so that I was leaning against his chest and he could look down at me.

“Wait… how’d I get in here?”

“Alice carried you to Carlisle at first, but I was in here hollering so much that Carlisle brought you to me. I threatened to get up and walk,” he said proudly.

“Alice carried me?”

“She’s a buff little thing. Surprised me too, since she’s about half your height.”

“No kidding.”

It was silent for a few minutes, and I just sat there, listening to Jacob’s steady heartbeat, feeling the intense warmth of his arms around me, and found myself breathing in rhythm with him. Jacob had imprinted on me. It was the greatest day of my life, the greatest thing I ever could have imagined happening to me. Jacob was going to love me forever. Our souls were entwined. We would always be together. We could… we could get married. We could have an actual family. Jacob and I could have kids! Whoa...

He was going to be with me forever. I didn’t have to worry about anyone coming between us, Jacob loving Bella, Jacob imprinting on anyone else… it was perfect. Flawless. My life had stability, and it was Jacob. He would always be with me.

I was so happy I could have cried again. I just nuzzled into his chest that was covered by only a thin gray cotton t-shirt, taking in his earthy scent.

“Jake… you have no idea… you have no idea how happy I am. How happy I’ll be forever and ever and ever,” I said.

“You have no idea how much I know what you’re talking about. It was you all along, Le. I mean, gees, why did it take me so long to figure that out? It’s always been you. It always will be you. Holy crap… this is crazy, Le. It’s just… it’s crazy.” I felt better that he was just as surprised as I was. “Oh, uh, Le? Can you see me yet?”

I opened my eyes and looked up at him, not moving away from his chest. He’d never looked so beautiful.

“I see you perfectly,” I said. I was happy, now I could actually speak my mind. Tell him all the stupid mushy things that went on in my head. I couldn’t scare him off.

“I figure I should do this officially, so uh, Leona, will you be my girlfriend?”

Jacob Black was asking me to be his girlfriend. When did life get so perfect? When did the stars align for me? It was just unbelievable.

“Of course I’ll be your girlfriend, Jake.”

Jacob Black was my boyfriend. I could kiss him. I could go on dates with him. I could go to QTS dances without looking like an awkward, single idiot. I could have a companion whenever I needed one. I could love him fully and completely and not worry about him running off or breaking up with me. I could have someone to lay on the couch with and watch movies and hold hands with at the store and celebrate Valentine’s Day with… my life was just complete. It was perfect. And I was dating a werewolf. I had just made friends with a bunch of vampires.

My parents would have a heart attack. That is, If I told them. As far as they knew for sure, Jake was still normal. And the Cullens were supposed ‘cold ones.’ Nothing was totally justified.

“Hey, did you hurt yourself?” he noticed the bandages on my arm, or he just decided to mention them.

“I was staring at Carlisle’s Mercedes and fell on the stairs.”

Jake started laughing, just as I knew he would. It was so… him.

“Oh man, that’s great. You’ve really outdone yourself, Le,” he said.

“Well you could be nice and kiss it better,” I hinted, and Jake pulled my arm up and kissed the top of the bandages gently.

“Hey Le?” Jake said after a few moments.

“Hmm?”

“I’m hungry.”

How anticlimactic.

“Esme made food… I’ll get you some,” I said, getting up and dancing down the hallway to the living room. I nearly crashed into a wall thanks to the dizziness, but Emmett put an arm out so I could hold onto it. “Thanks.”

“I guess Jacob has a thing for clumsy girls, huh?” Emmett teased, and I had the urge to stick my tongue out at him.

“Are you alright?” Carlisle asked, taking a step toward me. His wife looked concerned.

“Fine, Dr-- I mean Carlisle,” I said. “But Jake is hungry.”

Esme grinned, glided into the kitchen and came back with a full plate and a fork. “There you go.”

“Thanks Esme,” I said, and headed back down the hallway. Jacob was still sitting up, but his head was tilted back and his mouth was open and he was snoring. I stifled a laugh and headed back out. Esme looked sad. “He fell asleep again,” I said, and Esme cheered up.

“That poor thing. Well, I’ll just put this back in the fridge,” she said, and put it back.

“Thanks, Esme, really. Actually, thank you everyone. Seriously. You guys are just awesome. And just so you know, I’m not always this clumsy.”

“Sure,” Emmett scoffed playfully. Rosalie smiled, and Alice giggled.

“It’s a tough day for you, Sweetheart,” Esme said.

“Well, it started out as the worst day of my life, but now it’s the greatest,” I said, and yawned. “Oh, I’m sorry…”

“You should get some rest,” Carlisle advised, eyeing Jasper for some reason.

“If Jacob’s snoring doesn’t keep you awake,” Rosalie said, and I smiled sleepily.

“Sleep well!” Alice chirped, and everyone else told me the same thing.

“Thanks,” I said, and as soon as I hit Jacob’s bed I was out.