Meaningful Artifacts [Edward/Jacob]

fifteen.

Honestly, as spontaneous as it feels, Jacob should've seen it coming. He should've seen his resolve slowly waning and crumbling to dust before him. As much as he felt like he was standing his ground and making sound and logical decisions, with each one, he was growing more and more volatile. So, it shouldn't be surprising that a tender, cheesy moment at some overly expensive restaurant isn't what finally cracks him. It's not a verbal declaration of how much Edward can't survive on this Earth without him. It's something as simple as Edward helplessly looking up at Jacob from his own queen sized mattress. 

It was the sudden realization that Edward trusted him. Not trust scraped together in order to fight alongside him in a war. No, genuine trust where he tilts his head back, exposing his neck to keep eye contact. Trust where he sighs and swoons when Jacob wraps a hand around his neck. Trust where he blindly takes in Jacob's opinions instead of using them to fuel some unhinged argument. 

Not only that, but something about all of this seemed so comfortable, like they'd done it before. They fell into it so quickly that Jacob found it hard to fall back into "being responsible and logical". Honestly, the only thing that stops Jacob from sliding his shorts to the side and putting his dignity on hold for the night, is the sound of his family clanging around downstairs. 

The sound of what can only be all of them packing up everything they own, keeps Jacob from doing anything too irrational. Instead, he finds himself in a sloppy makeout session that makes him feel as if he's sixteen again and someone could come knocking at any moment. 

He should feel embarrassed. He should be contemplating his responses to the round of "I told you so's" he's going to get once Edward's a safe distance away, but he's too busy trying not to think too hard. He doesn't want to have to think about whatever conversation is going to come after Edward has time to realize what's happened. 

So, that's why Jacob holds his breath when Edward finally pulls away, an apology clear in his eyes before he can even open his mouth.

"I promised Jasper and Emmett I'd go hunting tonight." he mutters against Jacob's lips. 

He gives a little nod to show that he understood, but it takes Edward a solid ten minutes to finally climb off of Jacob. Edward's talking as he tries to make himself more "presentable" messing around with his hair as if there was any hope of him getting it back to its original state. Jacob's not hearing a word of what he's saying. He's too busy trying to analyze the way his mood immediately sours. 

He doesn't want to hear about whatever escapades Emmett and Jasper would get up to without Edward. He doesn't want to hear about how he'll be back as soon as they're back in town. He just quietly watches as Edward pats his pockets before turning to Jacob to lean in for a kiss goodbye. 

He hadn't witnessed this part. Even if he had, simply seeing it couldn't have prepared him for the way he feels. Edward's been gone for an hour when Quil comes knocking. 

"Jakie, food's ready!" His cousin calls, knocking again just in case Jacob hadn't heard.

He doesn't move from the spot he's chosen, curled up against the wall, trying not to feel insane. He can hear the door hesitantly creak open, he can see the stream of light, his cousin's shadow on the floor. 

"Jake...?"

There's a couple of seconds of silence, Quil waiting patiently for some kind of response, but nothing comes.  

"What's taking you two so long?" he hears Embry's voice drift down the hall. 

Quil doesn't immediately answer, head tilting as if he's convinced he must've just not heard Jacob's response. 

"He's not answering." he finally concedes. 

"Maybe he's sleeping, just leave him." Embry quietly suggests.

The door slowly closes and he can hear their footsteps as they descend the staircase. It's not until they hit the last step that he allows himself to feel dejected.

Edward's aware that he's not paying an ounce of attention. He can feel his brother's teasing comments on the tips of their tongues as he mindlessly snaps a tree limb under his boots, scaring the doe they'd been stalking for the past five minutes. 

"So, the meeting with your little boy toy went well?" Emmett asks, eyes following their lost prey as she darts through the trees.

"Yeah, yeah..." he mutters, ignoring Jasper's scoff.

"Uh huh..." he hums before chuckling, "that's why we're zero for three."

"It did..." Edward mumbles, almost feeling as if he was trying to convince himself, "It's just..."

It's just that Jacob had looked at Edward like he'd done something egregious. On his way out, after feeling as if something really important had just taken place, Jacob had looked up at him like Edward had made some kind of misstep already.

He hadn't seen that distant, disassociated stare since they were feuding over the supposed 'love of their life'. At the end, right before they'd gone their separate ways for almost a decade, Jacob had that same look in his eyes. It was like he was losing something and all he could do was stand there and watch. 

It was enough to give Edward pause because that look was never aimed his way. He was just the guy who'd managed to get the girl that was causing said despair. He hadn't previously had to worry about what was causing it either. What had he done this time?

He waves his hand in the air as if that would dispell his brother's curiosity. 

"Nope, the quicker we figure this out, the quicker we get out of here." Jasper insists, "Spill."

"I had to leave him to come here and he didn't like that very much." Edward huffs out the sparknotes version of what's plaguing him.

"So, he likes you." Emmett exasperatedly announces as if he's talking to a toddler.

"It was different." 

Edward doesn't even know why he's bothering to discuss this with them. They wouldn't understand it, he barely understood it. It's not like any of them had been with a shapeshifter before.

"Different?" Jasper asks, leaning up against a tree like they were going to be here for a while.

"It didn't seem...voluntary. Like..." He pauses mind searching for words only to find himself stumbling upon a seemingly random memory of Seth explaining something to him. 

 It seemed a bit arbitrary at the time. He was explaining why Embry and Quil wouldn't be joining a random meeting the group was having months before the Volturi were supposed to be marching into town. He hadn't thought anything of it in the moment, seeing as he had a lot more pressing issues, but now it seemed a bit more important. He'd mentioned that the two "weren't feeling well" and it was a "werewolf thing" just as he'd done with Jacob. 

After they'd returned, they were somehow more attached at the hip than they'd been before. One couldn't be seen without the other. If one left, the other watched them go. When they were back together, they'd disappear before everyone could even get into the room. 

He'd thought maybe whatever plagued them was rough enough that it'd brought them closer together. However, now he was thinking that it wasn't just some mysterious "werewolf illness". Instead, it was more like shifting, like it was expected of them. 

Imprinting. 

That's what Seth had referred to it as in his head despite what he'd told Edward. Edward hadn't dug any deeper than that. He'd assumed, from context clues, that he didn't need to know more. 

Other than that, the packs thoughts recently, when it came to Edward, all revolved around teasing Jacob. He'd stopped listening in on Jacob's thoughts because he wanted to give the man some privacy. So, he hadn't put two and two together. 

It suddenly dawns on him that maybe he just hadn't been paying enough attention. Maybe he'd somehow gotten farther than he'd realized.