Darkness Begets Dusk

Prologue

(Aftermath of New Moon-Prologue Into Eclipse)

"Max", a whisper at the edge of Jacob's thoughts. Bella wasn't just Jacob's only dearest friend. After he walked away from Bella's rejection, his mind was at war with his heart. His body twisted with anger and malice. "Why him?" he kept thinking after he shifted into his wolf form. He remembers what he said explicitly, "The treaty is quite specific. If any of them bite a human, the truce is over. Bite, not kill". He knew deep down that Bella was her own person with her own feelings. Edward, the vampire who did leave her is now back. She almost laid down her life to save him, an immortal. She raced as far as she could to Italy. Why did he think that he could push Edward out of Bella's heart? Error, mistake, failure, and fool ran through the neurons in his brain. He just could not get the toxin out of his throat. He howled in sorrow as he resigned himself to the bitter end. He had to abandon the romantic "love" he felt and replace it with the full friendship that he had with her for so long.

"Damn it" he thought after he ripped a branch off a tree with his full wolf teeth. After a bit, he slowly transformed back into his original form. He kicked a small rock and took a deep breath. "Inhale...exhale" he told himself, using the technique he learned from therapy. Jacob wanted to remain strong, "strong" in front of his rival Edward without showing any weakness. But is it weakness to accept reality? Is it weakness to hear truth and not what you "want" to hear? "Bella...Bella deserves to be happy", he said gently to himself. He was not unreasonable, but it was hard to push down the vampire aspect of the situation. Maybe if Edward were human and not a vampire, would he have been less strict or cold? Probably not, considering that his eye was on Bella. In times like this, his father, Billy Black, couldn't be the right person for this situation.

"M", Jacob recalled like an echo deep in the hallways of his mind. Maxwell Robin Trenton, 5'6 and a half and tiny in stature. Beautiful warm brown skin, shaggy and curly black hair, and a face as tender as a babe. Piercing but bold dark brown eyes. Lover of Converses, he always had a flair of being cool and stylish he would say audaciously. Favorite snacks included Musketeers, Kit Kats, and potato chips. Lover of Paramore, Panic at The Disco, Madonna, David Bowie, Queen, Whitney Houston, and numerous other "rockers" he would say. He was always a lover of constellations, clouds, and the color gray. He loved thunderstorms and cloudy days. Hearing the sky roar made him feel alive. Jake told him once, "M, you are really a rollercoaster!" he said in a humorous tone.

Max retorted, "At least I have fun during the highs and lows" he said with a saucy smirk. Jake would tackle him and the two would play wrestle, and at times Max could actually win. A tender voice like a cup of ginger tea but can darken to a bellowing abyss when he's angry, or annoyed. He never wavered in his own perspective, but he could get shaky when it comes to difficult decisions. Max believed in progress but was always afraid of the unknown. His laugh was like as soaring as a paper airplane gliding through the wind. Qualities that Jacob had found very amazing in his friend.

He would spend time with him and play video games on the weekends. Max loved to bake, thanks to his late mother, Darlene, her skills she passed down to him. She died when he was about 10 years old. He never truly healed from it and his father never remarried. Her name was Darlene May Trenton, née Addison. She worked as a librarian. She was graceful and humble with each person she met and was the light of Ted and Maxwell's lives. After she passed, the world almost stopped in Max's heart. He would open about it with Jacob, but the tears would flood afterwards.

Jake would walk with Max at La Push, and he was welcomed among the Uley pack. Emily adores him and always enjoyed their moments drinking coffee and talking about life. Jared and Embry always chilled with him and had friendly commentary whenever he stopped by. Sam, who's the Alpha, unbeknownst to Max always nodded to him with clear respect and greeting.