Delicate (Jasper Whitlock Hale)

Chapter 26

That night the ride was silent. Jasper and I made plans to tell our families, but decided to do it alone. We knew his family would be accepting and excited, the only negative things they would most likely say would be the risks we were taking, just as they had been worried about Bella.

The original plan was to tell them the next morning, only to have that changed upon Jake phasing in front of Charlie, and once again, causing a bit of distrust between the packs. We waited until everything calmed back down and Bella was more comfortable hanging around Charlie, and he was more comfortable being around us as he now knew which of us were wolves.

A couple weeks passed, Halloween was coming up soon, and had it not been for all of us being distracted with Renesmee's growth, and Jasper, Carlisle, and I trying to figure out some pattern to how my pregnancy was accelerating, we probably would have been much more excited. Emmett still somewhat managed to get us in the mood when he brought home 20 pounds of candy. Esme might have had a comment to say about that much candy being fed to the pack if it wasn't for Emmett's defense of,

"But, mom! I donated the other 40 pounds to the orphanage in Seattle."

I was starting to put on a few pounds, but thanks to societal rules, no one commented on it. Every sonogram got the smallest bit clearer. We still couldn't tell what their gender was, even though Carlisle said they were beginning to grow just slightly quicker than humans. He said that even with the months of not phasing, he believed that if my pregnancy was going to mimic Bella's, it would have started already. It looked like I was in the clear, and the only explanation we had for it was that my wolf genes fought off everything that made Bella's pregnancy hell. Delivery was the only thing we were unsure of. We knew I would have a c-section, just like any set of twins, but we had hopes that it would go better than Bella's since I wasn't nearly as weak in the regnancy. None of us wanted to focus on that until it came time, and right now we had plenty.

The pack was going to be the only problem I focused on. My main worry was going to be the elders reaction upon finding out, but our children were still part wolf, and they would have to realize that. Jake and Seth were the first I told, while Leah was out on a run with Quil and Embry. There wasn't much of a need for it anymore, but it gave all of us something to do and kept us out of trouble.

She was one I wanted to tell face-to-face and alone. I knew how much she had worried about not being able to have kids – we both had. Leah deserved to know she would be able to have a family the way she always wanted.

The two boys were shocked, but accepted it. I would've expected nothing less from Seth, and I'm pretty sure the only reason Jake was as easy going as he was, was because of Nessie. I explained everything to the two of them, from Carlisle's theory to how it happened, to why it took so long to figure it out. The only thing they questioned was if my pregnancy was going to be as brutal as Bella's. I didn't have an answer.

Leah returned a couple moments after the conversation ended, giving us a look that said she knew we were hiding something.

"So is anyone going to tell me? Are we fighting another war that isn't ours?" She questioned. I shook my head, a smile on my face.

"Take a walk with me, I think you'll be... relieved to hear this." I said, offering my hand out, which she took warily. I motioned to Jacob and Seth that they could tell Quil and Embry.

We trekked through the familiar woods as I broke the news to her. It took her a second to realize what this meant for her. She looked at me in shock, with a slight amount of jealousy in her eyes before it clicked.

There were tears from both of us. Stupid hormones.

Once again, I went through the speech that I had to give Seth and Jacob, able to give a little more detail to Leah than I felt comfortable giving to the boys. They could hear every thought I had once I phased, but it didn't mean I enjoyed saying the same thing face-to-face.