Twisted {Jacob Black}

Reassuring

It crushed my heart - which was still very much unbeating - to suddenly be told I would never see my parents again. I think Embry was afraid I would react badly, that my currently explosive temper would be triggered by such tragic news, but I wasn't angry.

What did suck, was that I couldn't cry. My ideal reaction would've been to curl up and just sob, to let my tears roll freely until I had nothing left to cry. But I couldn't. I couldn't cry.

I also wanted a hug, but I couldn't have that either. Embry explained to me that I wouldn't want to kill him for his blood, that my instinct was purely to destroy him because of what he was. That explained why I was almost to the point of gagging at just the pure scent of him. Apparently that feeling was mutual.

And yet even if I didn't thirst for his blood, my instincts could easily take over and I would kill him in a second, if either of us made a wrong move. And so, although I wanted so badly to just run to him and dry-sob into his shoulder, we kept our distance. We needed to work at it. Embry insisted that if we kept working at it, we would get better, and maybe someday I'd be able to hug him. That gave me a little bit of hope.

I settled myself down at the base of the tree once I'd gotten down from the branch, moving cautiously. Embry and I sat across from each other, with around five metres between us as we watched each other. Every move we made was so careful, deliberate, that it was uncomfortable. I had to constantly watch myself.

"Explain this to me. You.. You seem to understand what's happening to me more than I do. I want to know what's going on, Embry." I sighed, shaking my head as my eyes fell to the floor.

I looked back up at his tanned face when he spoke. "You want to know everything?" He asked in a quiet voice, and yet I heard it as if he'd said it right in my ear, replying with a mute nod. "Right. Okay. Well, I guess I should start with the fact that you'll never age."

My eyes widened a little, but I swallowed and nodded. "Never again?" I asked in a whisper, as if I didn't actually want the answer. "Right. Right."

"But that's okay," Embry reminded me, and I saw him tilt his head like a little puppy. "Because at the minute neither am I. Eternal Stud," he shrugged, and I was amazed that he was still his humorous self when we were both clearly so sad. It was refreshing.

"What else do I need to know?" I asked him, biting my lip and taking a deep - and surprisingly unnecessary - breath.

"Well.. There is one thing that I guess we should, uh.." He coughed nervously.

"What is it, Embry? Cmon." I asked impatiently.

"Your, uh... The blood." Wow, Em, what a cool way to say it. I could've laughed it wasn't so distracting.

It was like the word lit a fire in my throat, or at least it reminded me of it, because the burning had been there this whole time, I'd just forgotten apparently. And yet now it was unbareable, and I found myself grabbing at my own neck as if to make it stop. It didn't work. I swallowed hard, but no matter how hard I tried, I needed blood.

"Emma..." Embry started to slowly get to his feet, watching me struggling.

"I don't want to hurt people, Embry." I breathed, and was kind of annoyed at how weak I sounded. My voice was like a whimper, and a huge part of me hated it. "You have to help me. I don't want to do this." I told him, still trying not to breathe.

If Embry reacted to my current state, I didn't see him. I think my eyes were on the floor. "You're going to be okay." He told me, quietly, and then he repeated the same thing again before suddenly he was in front of me. "You'll be fine because you're Emma."

I knew I started to shuffle away from him in pure shock. What was he doing? I didn't want to hurt him, he shouldn't be so close.

"I'm not going anywhere, okay? I'm right here, so don't bother trying to make me leave." Embry told me, and there was so much determination in his voice it was alarming. And yet I found myself melting into him, and although there was still half a metre between us, it didn't really bother me. I didn't notice it. My eyes were fixated on his face, and I felt at home. For a split second, I was human, and I was safe. But Embry wasn't done talking just yet. "You don't have to hurt anyone, Em. Not at all. You don't have to destroy who you are just to stay alive, it's not fair."

"B-but I have to-"

"I know. I know. We'll work around it, Emma, I swear to you. You just have to hang in there, alright? I think I may know someone who can help you." He whispered, and I swear if what he'd said wasn't so shocking, I would've just sighed happily and never been anything less than calm ever again. But I was shocked.

"What? I don't get it, Embry. How?!" I sat up straight, and felt my own eyes widen.

He smiled, less sad than before. "Not yet, Em. I'll sort it out. Just... Keep fighting the burn, Emma."

----

To answer your question; no, I will NEVER stop writing about Emma and Embry, because their friendship is just so sweet. :)

I think we need to have a little talk about what Embry's going to do. He knows someone who can make sure Emma doesn't have to hurt humans... So who is it? ;)

- Author