Hunger

CHAPTER 2

"She's sleeping." Grandma Esme whispered outside the door.

My stomach gurgled unsettling again. The sharp pains were getting sharper. I forced my eyes open to tell someone. It was getting to almost the point of unbearable.

I sat up and swung my feet off the bed. "Grandma?"

She was in my room in less than a second. "You're awake!"

Grandpa poked his head in the room and smiled. "Hey Renesmee. I just came up to check on you."

"Well...I'm glad you did. I'm having a lot of stomach pains." I frowned.

Grandpa was at my side in a second. "Is it severe?"

I nodded dismally. "Almost. I didn't want to worry anyone before."

He listened intently to my stomach and touched it delicately. "I think it's your diet of blood mixed in with the human food. It's not settling well."

My pain dulled as he said it. "How do I get rid of the pain?"

"Take it easy and next time we'll wait until all the blood is out of your stomach before we try human food again." Carlisle said. "In the meantime-"

"Leah! Knock it off!" Jacob's voice boomed outside.

A growl of an animal, a wolf most likely, followed his command.

"What's going on?"

"I wish they wouldn't fight." Grandma frowned.

"The pack follows Jacob, and he can't stand it when he's more than a mile away from Emmy." Grandpa half-smiled. "I'll go see what's wrong. Please rest."

I swung my feet back up on the bed as Grandpa disappeared.

"Did you finish my room design?" I asked.

"Yep." She smiled. "Would you like to see the blueprints?"

"Of course." I grinned back.

She unrolled a long paper and laid it on my lap and crawled into her big bed beside me. "This..." she motioned towards the wall on the west. "Is where I'm going to put in a desk imported from Italy. It's very tasteful. It has enough room to do your homework and much more."

She pointed towards the wall on the east. "There'll be a little couch here so you can relax. It will match the desk theme, as will the whole room, and will be a tasteful old-style couch but modernized to this century."

She pointed to the south wall. "And this area is going to have a big music collection. Most from your father, but the rest from all of us. And this section will be a bed, matching the theme, so you can stay over whenever you want to."

"Wow Grandma!" I gasped. "It's incredible! I can't believe I'm actually going to use Dad's old room! I'm already excited aside from the desk and everything. It's like...I don't know...a way to connect to him more."

She smiled and kissed my forehead. "He'll be happy to hear that."

"Yes he will." Mom agreed with a smile as she appeared in the doorway.

"Well I better get started." Grandma laughed. "There's a lot to do if this is going to be done by the end of next week."

I barely got to utter the word 'okay' to her before she was gone. "I heard that you told Carlisle you were having pains?"

"Just in my stomach. They've passed now." I assured her. "He said to rest. It was probably because of the animal blood mixed with human food. He assumes it doesn't settle well."

She sat down on my bed next to me. I scooted over so she could lie down next to me.

"What's wrong Mom?" I whispered as she wrapped her arms around me.

She didn't answer.

I touched her cheek, feeling thoughts flow through my fingertips and into her.

"It's just problems with the pack." She murmured into my hair.

"What problems?"

She waited a minute before answering. "Four more werewolves changed in La Push over the weekend. Sam's pack is up to twelve and Jacob only has six. Leah doesn't see this idea fair, so she confronted Sam about it. Sam doesn't seem to think it's unfair at all, but Leah says that it would be easy for him to overpower Jacob's pack. The new werewolves and a couple others, realized the disorganization of both packs so they took the opportunity to rebel. Fighting broke out between packs this afternoon. No one was hurt, but some were close."

"So where's Jacob?" I pressed.

"It's getting resolved as we speak. Jacob and Sam came to an agreement to keep their packs away from each other so there is no more turmoil. They're hammering out the details."

I yawned sleepily and my mom stroked my hair. "Sleep baby. I'll be here when you wake up. I'm sure Jacob will too."

I smiled brilliantly at the thought.