Six months later...
I sat alone in the cottage putting the finishing touches on a watercolor still life of a vase of lilies. Not the most provocative subject matter, but it was raining so painting outdoors was impossible. I'd painted dozens of inconsequential masterpieces in the past few months, and filled ten notebooks with charcoal sketches. Esme didn't mind buying me more paint when I asked for I'd didn't read very often anymore, only occasionally to help Jacob. it. I'd just finished the petals of one of the blooms when Jacob walked through the front door with a scowl on his face and a backpack in hand.
"So, how was your day?" I asked genially.
"Awful," Jake grunted as he thrust his backpack on the ground. "Going back to high school after dropping out for years is not fun." He fell like a tree onto the couch, throwing his arm over his eyes dramatically.
"It's not high school. You're getting your GED," I offered. He wasn't even anywhere near his high school. He had to drive to Port Angeles to take special courses. The commute annoyed Jake. It was part the reason he always came home cranky.
"Same difference," he huffed.
I set my brush down and crossed the room to join him on the couch. "Well, imagine how I felt when my mom told me you never graduated?"
"What are you talking about?" he said incredulously. "You never graduated either!"
I had never earned a degree of any sort, though my father told me regularly it would be a simple task for me if I wanted to go to school. I just didn't see the point. I had no desire to fit into the mundane, human world, which was the exact reasoning Jake had used when he decided not to pursue anymore schooling at seventeen. So why was I making him go? Well, to be honest, neither Jake nor I had much direction in our lives. And I may have been delaying making decisions for myself by making plans for Jacob. It's not like he could get a good job without a high school diploma at least. We didn't want for money, but Jake would go stir crazy without a job and I'd go crazy having Jake hang around me all the time.
"And you didn't say your first sentence when you were a week old," I argued. I wasn't going to admit to living vicariously through his accomplishments. He'd throw the whole deal if I confessed to that. "If you had spent your time going to school instead of following me around all day while I was growing up you would have been done years ago. Besides, think of how proud Billy will be when you get your diploma."
"But that won't be for months," he moaned as he lifted his arm away from his face. That's when he turned on the puppy dog eyes. "Can't I just use one of Edward's diplomas? He's got ten of them at least."
I rolled my eyes. I wasn't going to allow Jake to ask my parents for a forged document when he could so easily finish the task himself. "It will all be worth it when you're done," I hedged. Jake just shrugged his shoulders. "In the meantime, keep hitting the books and maybe you can take the test early."
Jacob grunted in disagreement. I patted his leg twice as I got up to grab one of his practice test books from my bedroom. He left his books here most of the time. I was convinced he spent zero time studying when he was on his own with Billy or the pack. I was disappointed because Jacob was a determined individual. Some habits are impossible to pick up again once one gets out of practice, apparently. The second I stepped out of the living room I heard a loud thunk against the wall.
"Don't literally hit the books!" I yelled back to Jake.
"Sorry," he called back in a sing-song voice.
The book rested on my bedside table, precisely where Jacob left it when he decided geometry was "pointless". I picked up the thick text and tucked it under my arm. I braced myself for Jake's ten-minute whine fest I would inevitably endure when I noticed an unusual rustling flutter in with a gust of wind. There was a new window in place, similar to the one I'd smashed months ago. And there, on the windowsill, was a folded piece of paper held down by the weight of a rock that must have come from the banks of the river. I quickly dashed to the window. Searching for a face or a voice or a scent. There was nothing but my vast backyard, the gentle splash of raindrops, and the heavy scent of pine and earth. Everything was as it should be. Carefully, I set the book on the sill, moved the stone aside, and picked up the note. In beautiful handwritten script it read,
"Dear domnişoară Renesmee, I am sending this with a colleague of mine in hopes of giving you a warning. The world has changed here. It is not the gentle landscape you experienced almost a year ago. Creatures I was unaware of have crawled out from the darkness. I am not certain how much longer I will be alive. I beseech you to reconsider your place in our world and in this battle. Whatever you choose, decide quickly. There is not much time left.
Sincerely, Ántonia Stoichita"
I reread the note a few times, eventually taking a seat on the bed. I thought of Ántonia often, but only when I was alone, when I knew my father couldn't hear me. Perhaps that was a foolish thing to do given the dire situation it sounded like Ántonia was in. And yet, the note told me nothing. Creatures crawling from the darkness? Who was this colleague?
Jacob entered the room completely unaware of my distress. "Ness, I will do absolutely anything, anything if you could work on my chemistry homework for me. Now we both know this is something I'll never use in my real life, so give me a break?" he beckoned.
I said nothing. I watched the rain.
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Oh my goodness.....such an amazing book. I had so emotions running through me when I read this. I was jealous, angry, suspicious, sad, and shocked. I cried alot. No matter how many times I read this I still cry when I get to the part when Sasha dies. Well, there is another book. I haven't read it. But there is another book, you'll need to go to twilighted.com and look up this book. The author has her books on her page. Hope you all liked this and I hope you will vote, fan, and fav for me. Thanks! Love yall!
