The Boy in Forks

Chapter Five

It was cold. Even under all the layers of what felt like blankets, Liam was still shivering. Why was he cold? Why was he breathing? His skin still felt cold to the touch. Liam opened his eyes and looked around. He was in a house, one that looked like a cabin of sorts. Blankets were piled on top of him, probably to keep him from freezing. 

Voices were around him. Familiar voices but ones he couldn't place his finger on. He tried to sit up, only to realize how weak his arms felt. The voices around him stopped and Jacob's face appeared in front of him. 

"Liam? Are you up?" 

Liam couldn't speak. His throat hurt and felt dry. Jacob helped Liam sit up and sat down on the edge of the couch next to him. Around him, he was surrounded by the wolf pack. Some had glares on their faces while others looked at him with concern. Paul handed him a glass of water and sat down on the chair across from him. 

Liam took a sip, feeling the way it went down his sore throat. Jacob looked at him expectantly. "What happened, Liam?" He asked. Liam honestly didn't know. All he knew was that it was freezing and he was hungry.

"I-I don't know. Bella brought me to the cliff where you guys go cliff diving. She started a rumor that I pushed so-someone off the cliff before she jumped off the cliff herself. I-I didn't want to look like a murderer, so I jumped in after her," Liam explained. "When I got out of the water, it was freezing. I'm not supposed to feel cold. I had trouble breathing, too. I-I'm a vampire. I'm not supposed to breathe, either. I don't know what's happening."

Jacob rubbed his back soothingly. Liam could feel his warm hand through his shirt and he instinctively leaned into his body heat. Why was it so cold?

"We can't even call Dr. Carlisle since they left town." Paul said, a frown forming on his face.

Liam sat up. "Um, actually, we never left town.." He said, his voice quiet. Everyone looked at him in shock, excluding Jacob. 

"The Cullens are still in town?" Sam asked. "I knew I smelled them. Use our phone and call Carlisle. This is the only exception we'll make to letting you leeches onto our land." Sam jerked his head in the direction of their house phone, his arms crossed over his chest. 

Liam stood up and walked over to the phone hung up on the wall. His hand shakily reached for the phone, his body shivering from the cold. He dialed the number he knew by heart and waited. It rang for a few seconds before a familiar voice picked up the phone. 

"Hello?" Liam sighed in relief that Carlisle was the one to pick up the phone.

"Carlisle?"

"Liam, baby? Where are you? Do you know how worried we were?" Carlisle's voice came out in a rushed voice, the worry obvious in his tone. 

"I'm sorry," Liam whispered through the phone. "But, I need you to come to the pack house. The pack said you could come onto their land just this once but no one else."

Liam could hear Carlisle sigh through the phone. An unnecessary breath of air. 

"I'll be there in five minutes, okay?" Carlisle said. Liam nodded before realizing Carlisle couldn't see him. 

"Okay," Liam said. "I love you"

"I love you too, baby" Carlisle said and hung up the phone. Liam placed the phone back onto the receiver before looking at the pack. 

"He said he would be here in five minutes."

The pack nodded and sat in silence for a few minutes before a knock was heard at the door. Liam was wrapped in blankets once again, leaning into Jacob's body heat. Sam opened the door. Carlisle stood outside with a polite smile on his face. Sam moved out of the way, allowing him to see Liam. 

Carlisle rushed towards Liam and was by him in seconds. 

"Liam, baby, what's going on?" Carlisle noticed Jacob's arm around Liam and frowned. "Why are you touching my mate?"

Jacob glared at Carlisle. "Can't you see he's freezing? I'm keeping him warm."

Carlisle grabbed Liam's hand from the pile of blankets. "Baby, why are you shaking? You shouldn't be cold," Carlisle asked, his voice full of worry. Then he noticed something else. "Liam, why are you breathing?"

Liam dove into Carlisle's arms, clinging to him like a lifeline. He was scared. He had no idea why he was breathing or why he was so cold. Carlisle caught him and held him tightly. Carlisle looked at Jacob. "What the hell happened?" He asked.

Jacob sighed and told Carlisle everything that happened leading up to the point where Liam passed out on the beach. Carlisle's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He has never heard of that before. He pulled Liam away from him, looking at his face. It was pale, but not as pale as what it used to be. He placed his hand on top of Liam's chest, over his heart. 

"Liam, you have a heartbeat" Carlisle said, his voice full of shock. The pack was in shock at the news. "It's just barely there, though. A normal heart rate this low would be considered dangerous but you seem to be doing okay."

Liam looked up at Carlisle. Carlisle stared back at him before his eyes widened with realization. "The venom," He muttered. "Edward started to suck some of the venom out of you when James attacked you and Bella. We decided to just let you change but since Edward sucked some of the venom out, it must not have been enough to change you into a full fledged vampire. Your body still thinks it's alive."

"Is that bad?" Liam asked, still clinging to Carlisle.

"We have to finish the transformation, baby. A normal human body temperature should be at 98.6 F (37 C) but since you don't have any blood flow, your body is freezing."

Carlisle stood up, holding Liam in his arms. He turned to the wolf pack. "We have to go. Thank you for taking care of him." 

Sam nodded and opened the door for Carlisle. Liam clung to him, shivering from the December air and Carlisle took off running towards their little cabin in the woods. 

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year! I hope this year is fantastic for you <3