Chapter 27

“Jacob!”, I screamed, my heart erratically pounding against my chest.

Immediately I felt his arms around me.

“What’s wrong?”, he asked startled.

I scanned the room with disoriented eyes. A half second later everything came better into focus, though a little blurry.

I lifted my fingers up to my eyes; they were wet.

Jake wrapped his arms around me, rocking me back and forth with him.

He started to hum my favorite Quileute lullaby, his lips right behind my ear.

“It was just a dream, Renesmee. Just a dream, honey”, he soothed.

Just a dream. But inching towards a possible reality so rapidly.

“Promise you won’t leave me. Please, just promise that whatever happens we’ll be together”, I cried blatantly.

“I’ll never leave you. Nayeli”, he whispered back.

I sighed.

“I’m sorry for waking you up. It was just a bad dream. A nightmare.”

He put my head under his chin, and wrapped us together.

“Am I at least in your good dreams?”

I smiled and placed a hand on his neck, showing him one of my most recent dreams, from before this whole commotion.

‘Ah”, he sighed, basking in the glory of my perfect fantasy.

It was such a simple dream, hardly creative, even for me. He was in his wolf form barking happily, laughing. I was on his warm, furry back and we were just sitting there, communicating with no words. Around us was the ocean of First Beach down in La Push. A cool mist hung in the air, along with a familiar salty smell. I grinned to Jake as we watched my dream avatar splash the water towards Jake, distinguishing each little blue crystal drop as they dissolved into his russet coat.

I slowly took my hand off of his neck, looking up at him to see what he thought. Jake laughed.

“That was a pretty cool dream, Ness”.

“I’m glad you like it”, I teasingly replied.

For a few minutes we just stared at each other. I found myself unable to look away from Jacob’s deep brown eyes.

“So…do you dream about me?”, I asked a little nervously. Sure, Jacob loved me while we were awake. But what were his subconscious thoughts saying?

He smiled.

“All the time, honey”, he chuckled.

A sudden wave of happiness crashed over me.

“I wish I could see your dreams”, I whispered.

He slowly lifted my face to his once more, pressing his lips against mine fiercely.

I pulled away resentfully for a breath of air.

“You just did”, he answered.

I suddenly looked at the small digital clock on the nightstand beside us.

“It’s five in the morning”, I said.

“Then we have approximately two more hours of sweet, blissful sleep until the vamps come to tell us our fate”, he joked.

I tried to smile, but my lips forced themselves into a frown. I felt my body shudder convulsively underneath me.

“Don’t worry. I won’t let anyone touch you”, he said, true promise in his voice.

“But what about you? What if something”-I shuddered-“happens?”

“Nothing will happen to me”, he vowed, assurance in his voice.

And with that, I was able to relax just a little. Though Jacob had no idea of what the future held, he was determined to create one outcome and one outcome only. Survival.

“Nayeli”, I heard him whisper once again as I drifted off to sleep.