Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended

Suggested Listening: 'Empty Corridors', 'Only Love' and 'Keep Your Head Up' by Ben Howard, 'Letter To Emily' and 'Paul' by The Smoking Popes, 'Bright Lights' by The Narrative

A/N: This takes place during the last portion of Chapter 29, after Bella and Embry left Leah's.

Out-Take Two: I'll Be Yours To Keep

(A Wind In The Shadow, A Whale Song In The Deep)

She's got a little house in town

I sometimes go around there

To see her

And she lets me deep inside

I sing her love songs

But she'll turn them blind

Like she ain't the sentimental type

I keep my heart in my pocket and I hold

I hold it tight

- Empty Corridors by Ben Howard

She was doing that thing again where she was looking at me like I was insane and an asshole, but she liked it anyway. I could get used to that.

"Why not?"

"Just... not now. Not tonight, okay?" she said, dropping her tone on that word like it disgusted her.

"Especially tonight."

A sigh. "Paul..."

"Leah.." I cocked my head to the left, mirroring her. She couldn't keep up the brick wall whenever I called her out on the I'm-so-past-caring-about-this routine. Anyone who really gave a shit could see. Anyone who really cared could see.

She shook her head.

I wasn't used to hearing 'no'. I never really had, until her. I guess a lot of things changed when it came to this. Call it some kind of romantic, poetic bullshit. Call it having two brain cells to rub together - which I do, I'm not just a walking hard-on, despite the popular opinion - but she needed me tonight. And I actually gave a fuck enough to do something, to actually try to make it better and think of someone else for a change. How about that?

Sure, the smile was well-practiced and the venom didn't quite sting like it used to, but despite the facade, she wasn't made of stone. You try watching someone you thought you'd spend the rest of your life with giving the goo-goo eyes to someone who isn't you. It hadn't even been a year. Nobody gets over that easily.

I held out my hand. "Take a walk with me."

"I don't feel like it."

"It wasn't a request."

There it was. That spark of fire glowing behind her eyes for a second. Her jaw hardened. Why did that turn me on so much?

"I'm sorry, I missed the part where you get to order me around like it's the fucking nineteenth century."

"You also seem to have forgotten how to let people take care of you."

"I don't need to be taken care of, but thanks for the pity party. It's been sweet," she said, stepping back from the window. So it was midnight and I was standing in Sue Clearwater's rose bushes, she didn't get to look at me like this was crazy. Everything about what we'd been doing was crazy, so I don't know why she was suddenly realising things now.

I leaned in the window, resting my forearms on the ledge and watched as she perched on the end of the bed and unzipped her boots.

"You can't bullshit me."

She turned and glared. "Good to know. You can go home and jerk off now."

"It's a lot more fun if you watch," I replied.

Her eyebrow rose and she gave me a withering look, but my eyesight was good enough to see the smirk twitching her lips.

"Dick."

A contented growl rumbled in my chest, and I closed my eyes. "Mmm, I love your dirty mouth."

She snorted softly, staring at her hands on her lap. "Look, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but... I think I should be alone tonight."

"I don't. It's just another difference of opinion, I guess."

"We seem to have a lot of those."

"And you usually win."

Her expression broke into a full smile. "I can't help being right."

"So humour me. Maybe you can be a raving bitch all night and I'll agree with you. Won't know until we find out," I said, raising my eyebrows encouragingly.

She stood up with a sigh, crossing the short distance to the window again. I looked up at her, studying her face, feeling too close to her lips to not do something. She stared back, debating my offer.

"I'm not gonna start crying on your shoulder, you know. I already had Feelings Hour with my mom. She was waiting at the kitchen table when I came in with a cup of hot chocolate."

"Hope not. This is the only nice shirt I have left."

She dropped her eyes and laughed, before looking up at me again through her lashes. Fuck me, she was beautiful when she was unguarded like this. It still kind of floored me every time I saw it. After a chew on her lip, she let out a breath.

"Alright, but just because I'm not gonna be sleeping anyway."

I stepped back and held out my hand again, but she frowned at it.

"Perfectly capable of climbing out a window by myself, thanks."

"When you look like that, it kinda makes me want to treat you like a lady," I said, roving my eyes over her. I'd been dying to get my hands on that dress since she showed up at Sam's. She shook her head and smirked, but to my surprise, her hand slipped into mine. It was sort of nice that she didn't feel cold, like all the others. We matched.

Her step onto the ledge was delicate. Watching her, it baffled me that she could still agonise over feeling feminine and soft. Everything she did was graceful, like her body was trained for ballet or something. She moved like the world was built around her.

I grasped her waist and lifted, pulling her towards me and down my body slowly, savoring the silk over my clothes. Her eyes melded to mine the whole time, a strange curiosity in them. I just held her against me, her bare feet not meeting the ground, and stared up at her.

Her hands, rested on my shoulders and I said, "I could take you away somewhere, you know. For good if you want."

An agonised frown formed on her features, her eyes watching my mouth and her fingers flickered over the material of my shirt.

"I don't think I should have to be the one to leave." She met my eyes again. "Just take me somewhere right now."

That was all I needed. Reaching down, I weaved a hand under her knees and pulled up, until she was sideways against my body. She let out a small shriek and covered her mouth in surprise, looking up at me as I began to run.

"You don't need to carry me, you know!" She was trying to glare, some deep-seated feminist crap, but there was light in her eyes. It hadn't been there all day.

"Well, since it was your bright idea not to bother putting on some damn shoes, I get to pretend I'm a gentleman." I knew I didn't have to. It was hard to remember the last time any of us had worn a pair for a whole day, but holding her felt right. I guess I'd caught 'sentimentality'' off of Embry or something. That kid was lost.

She scoffed. "Oh please, that's a fucking stretch."

"Try not to offend the guy holding you off the ground," I said shortly.

"Aw, did I hurt your feelings?"

"Come on, you pranced around the party looking like someone's wet dream and I didn't so much as get a grope in. That's a goddamn gentleman."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh Jesus, give the guy a medal."

"I'd prefer a blow-job."

"There's the Paul we all know and loathe," she sighed, throwing up her free hand in my direction. She wiggled a little in my grasp. "Come on, you can put me down."

"We're almost there."

She turned her head, looking around the surrounding trees as I slowed to a walk. "Where the hell are you taking me?"

"I'm trying to be romantic and shit. Stop ruining the moment."

"Jesus, you are such a woman."

I smirked. "Well, you got enough balls for the two of us." I came to a stop as I reached the ridge, setting her down on the ground as the sound of waves breaking and the scent of the ocean surrounded us, washing away the familiarity of the Rez. "We're here."

She was silent as she turned forward, stepping towards the cliff-edge and looking up at the full moon and the thousands of stars that seemed to stretch on forever. She took a deep breath as the breeze blew her hair back, the tension falling away.

"I love it up here."

"I know." She turned to look at me, a recognition of the last time we were here passing between us.

The waves were loud, but I still heard the grunt she let out as she began to walk along the edge. "I'm supposed to be okay with it by now. That was the plan."

"You kinda have impossible standards for yourself. If it was me I'd probably still be breaking trees in half so I didn't snap necks." I toed off my shoes and unbuttoned the top my shirt more. Everything felt constricting now, like our bodies weren't made to be covered and shielded from the air.

Her jaw clenched and she shook her head. "It's not that he dumped me. I can deal with that."

"What is it then?"

"It's fucked up."

"You're talking to someone who knows fucked up."

"No, I mean...the situation's fucked up. Why did I get this-" she gestured to her body, to the perfect lines and athletic tone, "And not that?" Her hand zipped out in the direction of the Rez, towards Emily, living the life she'd lost. "Who the hell decided that I was better suited to being a soldier than a regular girl?"

Her jaw lifted and she looked to the sky, like a voice was going to come down and explain everything. "I'm not Susie Homemaker, I get that. That was never going to be me. But for him? Yeah, maybe I could have settled down."

"You'd rather be home playing the good-little-wifey than out kicking ass with the rest of us?" I said disbelievingly. I knew she couldn't mean it. The girl would probably bust a hole through a wall rather than sit at home wondering if her little brother was alright.

"...No. But at least if I did, my Dad would still be alive." She sounded so fucking broken that I took a step towards her. She held up her hands and stepped back. "No, I'm not playing the sympathy card, stop looking at me like that and just let me talk."

I held up my own hands in apology and stepped back again.

"You all just see me as this..." she sighed, starting again. "It's like... I know why this all happened - and I'm past blaming Swan for it all. At one point I really resented her... but she's the only one who gets what's happened. She's the only one who can actually listen to me bitch and not look at me like she pities my whole existence."

"You kinda make it hard for anyone to pity you," I smirked.

"I've been in the Pack mind too, remember? I know what they all think. Ever since Jacob imprinted it's like I get all his misplaced guilt. It's fucking ridiculous. "

I knew that much was true. The Baby Alpha had been treating her like she would break because it seemed to ease his conscience for fucking over the 'love of his life'. I wondered how that guilt would hold up when he found out Snow White was healing her broken heart with his best friend's dick.

She was still talking but she stood in place, her bare toes digging into the dirt as she watched the sea. This was messed up... it wasn't her. She was so much stronger than this and seeing her in these moments made me hate everything.

"God, sometimes I just feel like screaming. Or messing something up. Doing something completely and utterly stupid. Something other than this." She shrugged helplessly.

I narrowed my eyes, hardening my jaw against the clench of protective frustration in my gut. My girl shouldn't be going through this. I had no quick fixes, and I kind of sucked with words, but actions, I could do.

"We can do that," I said, taking a step back, planting my feet apart and lowering to a crouch. She turned to eye me curiously.

"What are-" her stare widened as I took a menacing step forward. "Paul..."

I started towards her, the panic in her eyes making a dark chuckle escape my lips, but she stood her ground. A defiant crease formed between her eyebrows and she held up a warning finger.

"Paul! Fuck off! No!"

I broke into a jog, knowing that I needed to propel myself or she'd match my strength. She was good at that.

"I swear to god, if you-"

She threw out her hands in a block, but her delayed reaction sealed the deal. Reaching the end of the cliff, I grabbed around her middle, pulling her along in my momentum and we both tumbled over the edge. She screamed and dug her hands into my shoulders as she buried her face in my chest. The free-fall seemed to last whole minutes before her voice was cut out by the icy depths.

We broke apart under the swell, both effortlessly reaching the surface, and she punched me, hard, in the shoulder.

"You asshole! I'm going to murder you!"

I smiled darkly at her and started to swim towards land without retorting, her anger at me making her give chase until we reached the rocks.

I shook the water from my hair and laughed, enjoying the sight of her hair plastered to her face and mascara pooling underneath her eyes. She slicked her hair back, looking like a fucking Bond girl and gave out a frustrated grunt.

"How do you feel?" I said, pulling myself up on one of the slick, flat stones..

"Fucking livid! You owe me a ninety-dollar dress!" she barked, wringing out the silk for a second before giving up and sinking to her knees in front of me.

I threw my head back and laughed again. "Good!"

She landed another punch on my arm. It was starting to go dead. "Not 'good', Asswipe. What the hell did you do that for?"

"I'd rather you mad at me than feeling sorry for yourself," I replied with confidence, looking her dead in the eye. "It's a little more you."

She looked back at me for a long moment, the only movement being the heaving in her chest as she powered through the blind rage behind her eyes, and then she lunged at me.

Her lips crashed onto my own with the force of a steam train, tongue pushing into my mouth and teasing mine so expertly that it made my abs stiffen and my hands grip her tiny waist. We both rolled off the rock, not caring about anything but the feel of each other.

She pulled back from her place on top of me and studied me again. "I guess I did say I wanted to do something stupid."

"I'm something stupid," I replied, and she shook her head, scoffing at me as she sat back on her heels.

"Jesus, you're like a frat-boy on crack," she laughed, rising to her feet and starting to walk off. I jumped up in a single movement and followed her. She balanced on the rocks along the shore, watching her feet as she went. Her steps were lighter, and I knew the objective had been achieved.

We said nothing for a while until I looked beyond, recognising we'd reached the entrance to a small cave in the face of the cliff. I dipped my head as we entered, eyes adjusting pretty quickly to the darkness. There was a blanket balled up in a space the water didn't reach, and I realised she'd been here before. There was faint traces of her scent and the remains of a small fire was piled beside it.

"Sleeping rough?" I asked, cutting into the silence. She was paddling in the shallow water, looking out the entrance at the moonlight. She turned, looking at me where I'd flopped down on the blanket.

"Spent some time here when being in the 'Dead Elder's House' became too much. It was crawling with people for a week, and I was phasing... and this place was empty. My dad showed it to me."

I looked around, noticing for the first time that her initials were scratched into the wall near me. I traced it with my hand - it felt like it had been there for years. I wondered what it was like to be so loved. My mom split before I could barely spell my own name, and there were no sweet memories of growing up with a drunk.

"Your 'place'?" I asked, realising I was probably the only person in the world she'd told about it.

She nodded, coming over to sit beside me on the blanket. Our clothes had pretty much dried with the wind and the heat of our skin, but she still leaned into my chest, like she needed the warmth. She couldn't see the pride in my face when I got to wrap my arms around her - I was needed.

There was just the lapping of the water and the sound of the wind and waves in the distance, and she sat silently, falling back into her thoughts.

"I'm not in that place anymore where it's about Him and Her. I'm just sick of feeling like I don't deserve to be fucking happy for once," she said aloud, breaking the silence.

"That's bullshit. Everyone deserves to be happy," I cut in, getting frustrated that she seemed to think that way. I'd spent plenty of time going over what it was I didn't seem to deserve - a real home, a proper family - but I'd come to the conclusion a long time ago that I can't blame myself for other people's fuck-ups. As long as I fought hard enough, or acted brave enough, I could make it happen for myself. No point in waiting round for life to hand you happiness on a silver fucking platter.

"Then why can't I?"

"I thought you were getting there," I accused. She made me happy, and I wasn't done fighting for this. I knew she was starting to feel something for me.

She turned and shook her head, narrowing her eyes at me like I'd broken a promise. "This isn't about us, and this-" she gestured between us, "isn't what that's about. I told you from the start that we're not going there."

I clenched my jaw, pushing down the argument and the flare of rage beginning in my gut because she was here, laying in my arms and telling me we were nothing.

"Sure."

She gave a frustrated sigh and pulled back to look at me. "Don't one-word-answer me. Did I or did I not lay it all out for you from day one?" I looked away from her and nodded curtly. She sighed. "Good. 'Cause you need to tell me, right now, if that's changed."

I met her gaze, looking into those dark eyes, and I lied. "It hasn't. We're just screwing around. For fun. That's it." Bile rose up my throat as I said it, like my own fucking body was protesting such a huge distortion of the facts. She gave a small nod and turned away once again..

"I'm sorry, I know I said I wasn't going to get all hormonal about this."

"Do you hear me complaining?"

She turned back. "No. I guess you're a bigger idiot than I am for listening to this crap." Her smile was sarcastic, but I wondered if there was something honest in there. Maybe I was an idiot. A dumb shit for actually thinking she'd ever admit what was really going on with us.

"I told you from day one, I got your back."

She leaned into me again, her head resting on my shoulder and a soft smile graced her lips as I wrapped a protective arm around her. "Yeah, you do."

Closing her eyes, she turned her head, and I swear I heard her breathe in my scent for a split second. When her lids opened again, she looked at me with this expression I couldn't quite figure out. She looked like she was sorry, like she'd betrayed herself, or that she'd realised something she was starting to regret.

"Do you mind if we just stay here for a while?" Her voice was kind of detached and stiff; It was resigned and final.

I shook my head. "Whatever you want."

"Cool."

We didn't say anything after that. At some point, maybe a half-hour later, I fell asleep. I wouldn't admit it to the guys even if I could, but the feeling of her small weight in my arms as the darkness came is one of the single best memories in my fuck-up of a life. Countless time's we'd collapsed bonelessly on top of each other in the exhaustion of sex, catching our breath before it was time to go our separate ways. Never had we fallen asleep together. Not once had I held her scent in my lungs as I drifted off, and everything in the world felt right.

It obviously wasn't the same for Leah, though.

When I woke up in the first light of the morning, she was gone.