Spring Thaw

By Lady of Spain

It didn't really snow that much in La Push, maybe a couple of inches or so in the winter months, rain—yeah, but not the white stuff. And now, the crocuses were shooting up through the cool, ground.

Whenever spring appeared, he thought about his mother. She had died during the springtime, and seeing the leaves sprouting and the ferns poking their noses here and there in the forest, left him feeling ambivalent. The world was renewing itself, just maybe, he'd be renewed this year too. Maybe he could be happy again.

Bella had married her leech, and he was left behind. She was now a cold one, and with the spring asserting itself, she had to hide from the sun. He couldn't imagine living like that. While not truly himself yet, he still liked feeling the sun on his face; he liked to believe it was his mom smiling down on him.

The road to the cemetery was rutted with tire tracks left from recent vehicles driving through the mud. He'd have to give his Rabbit a good bath when he made it back home. Following the tracks to the bottom of the hill, he stopped when he reached her headstone. Jacob brought some of the crocuses he picked to lay at the foot of it. As he stood, remembering the time he spent with her, he heard a woman crying. He looked toward the top of the hill, and recognized Leah standing there. Absentmindedly, he slipped the flowers into a pocket, and walked toward her.

Leah turned toward the sound of his footsteps. Wiping away the tears, she groaned, "Go away, Jake, please."

"No. I think you need someone to be with you, whether you believe it or not. You don't want anyone to see you falling apart. I get that, but you're not alone. No one should be alone."

"You don't know anything!" she shrieked. "I lost Sam, I lost my dad, and I lost my womanhood. All the men in my life leave me.

"And you know as well as I do that I'm just a big joke to the pack, a freak of nature."

"That's not true. Look at me; I didn't leave. Believe it when I say I do know what you're going through. Why do you think I'm here in the cemetery? I've lost people too, Lee … my mom, Bella. But you know what? Winter's gone, and look what I found."

Jacob pulled the flowers from his pocket, and handed them to her. "Here, I want you to have these. They're a reminder that we can start over, and be happy."

She stared at the crocuses, and the tears streamed down her cheeks. One hand covered her mouth, and she fell to her knees. He knelt with her, as she whimpered. "Why? Why? Life is unfair; it's so unfair."

Jacob took her by the shoulders, and held her tight, saying, "I know."

She trembled in his arms, sobbing, and Jacob felt his own tears falling. Leah drew away, gazing into his eyes. The emotions burst free and she crushed her lips to his. He couldn't help himself, and he willingly reacted. Something inside of him welcomed the intimacy.

Breaking the kiss, she shook her head in remorse. "Oh god, Jake. I'm so sorry."

He didn't want her apology. He wanted the truth. "Don't be sorry, unless you didn't mean it."

"And if I did?"

"Then there's a good chance that we could start our lives over. You and me. You're not Bella, and I'm not Sam, but Jacob and Leah could work. Whaddya say? Will you give us a shot? I'm willing to try, are you? I'm so tired of the winter in my heart."

"Jake?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm not sorry."

He closed his eyes at her words. "Me neither."

And they sealed it with a kiss … on a hill … in a cemetery at the beginning of spring.

The End