Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.

Note: I haven't finished reading Twilight yet, so this is based on what I've learned up through, but not including, chapter nine. It is also based on my own knowledge of vampire and werewolfe lore (slightly) as well as a few spoilers some of my friends have given me about certain things. Please keep this in mind while reading and don't jump on it if it isn't strict to the canon that I don't know yet. Thanks, enjoy!

Forbidden

The stone skipped perfectly across the water, leaving a trail of ripples behind it before it plummeted beneath the surface, disappearing to the sandy bottom. Jacob Black leaned back on his heels, carefully keeping his balance as he watched the stone make its majestic entrance to the world beneath the water.

He waited until the ripples had died away, leaving only the tide and the occasional bug to cause disturbances in the water, before he heaved a sigh and sat down heavily on the sandy beach. He stretched his legs out in front of him and ran a hand through his hair, staring out at the oddly bright sky where it met the blue-green sea.

"You're not supposed to be here," he said after spending a few moments listening to the breeze as it whistled through the nearby trees.

"I was never one for following the rules, Jacob," came the response. The voice was soft, something Jacob wasn't used to. He glanced over his shoulder at the other boy, catching sight of the lightness of his eyes, though he was doing all he could not to look at Jacob.

"Why'd you come?" Jacob queried, pulling his legs up to his chest and returning his gaze to the horizon. The sun was setting slowly, the reds and purples reflecting beautifully off of the water.

"I had to get away," he replied, sitting down beside Jacob. The younger boy turned towards him, taking in the faint lines in the otherwise perfect face. He nodded and laid back, lacing his fingers behind his head and gazing up at the darkening sky.

"Me, too," Jacob said, watching the back of the older boy's head. He swallowed and closed his eyes. "I think my dad's starting to suspect, Edward," he whispered. He kept his eyes shut, but he knew Edward's gaze was on him, probably fierce and dark.

He didn't want to see it, didn't want to face it just yet.

"What have you said?" Edward asked, his voice growing rough, the voice Jacob remembered.

"I haven't said anything," Jacob replied heatedly, sitting up and flinging his eyes open. His face was centimeters from Edward's, but neither boy moved. "He can smell it, Edward. He can smell you."

"I don't have a scent," Edward growled. A swift hand rose from its resting place in the sand and clutched at Jacob's shirt. "What have you said?" Edward demanded, his eyes growing dark.

"Nothing," Jacob growled, roughly pushing Edward away. "I promise you, I've said nothing!"

"Then how-"

"I don't know!"

Edward grew quiet. He leaned back, turning away from Jacob to stare across the beach at the swaying trees. The darkness had slowly overtaken them, the moon was left as their only light, and Jacob marveled at how bright Edward's pale skin looked in the darkness.

"We'll have to be more careful," Jacob finally said, growing tense at the lengthy silence. Edward shook his head and raised his face to the sky, closing his eyes just as a soft breeze blew over them.

"We'll have to stop," he said. Jacob shook his head, but Edward continued before the younger boy could speak. "We have to. If your dad knows…," Edward trailed off, turning back to Jacob.

"He doesn't know," Jacob whispered almost reverently, placing a hand lightly on Edward's shoulder and leaning towards the other boy. "He just suspects."

"That's enough, though," Edward replied with a heavy sigh.

"Why should we care?" Jacob asked, leaning closer and setting his chin on Edward's shoulder. Edward shook his head and tried to pull away from Jacob, but the boy held tight to his arm. With a sigh, he took Jacob's hand in his and turned towards him, his face dark.

"We should care because we can't hide forever," he said. "Certain people will begin to suspect. And I don't just mean your father and Carlisle."

"Bella," Jacob breathed, a statement rather than a question, though Edward nodded his assent.

"She's rather intuitive," he said with a cruel laugh. "Not that you're much help there." Jacob shrugged.

"All I did was tell her a story," he defended. "I didn't think she'd take it so literally."

"What did you expect her to do?" Edward asked. "She saw me dent to cars with my bare hands." Jacob shook his head and let his eyes drop from Edward's, though he still clutched at the other boy's hand.

"You didn't have to," he whispered. "You could have-"

"Let her die?" Edward finished forcefully. He pulled away from Jacob and stood, Jacob followed suit, brushing sand from his pants and gazing expectantly at Edward.

"That isn't what I meant," he said when it was obvious Edward wasn't going to speak. Edward shook his head and turned to face Jacob, his eyes getting darker by the second as he advanced on the younger boy.

"What did you mean, Jacob?" he asked. "You've known her since you were a kid and you'd rather I'd left her life up to fate?" He stopped before Jacob, clutching at the boy's shoulders.

"No," Jacob finally whispered. "No…I don't know what I meant. I'm sorry." Edward slowly relaxed, curiosity in his gaze.

"You aren't afraid," he whispered.

"Not anymore," Jacob replied, thinking back to their first nighttime rendezvous, the terror and excitement he'd felt at being alone with Edward Cullen. He smiled slightly at the memory as he looked up at Edward now.

"What can we do?" he asked after a few moments of silence.

"I don't know," Edward replied, wrapping an arm around Jacob's waist and staring out at the water. Jacob leaned against him, slipping his hands in his pockets and watching Edward's set jaw, waiting for a solution to spout from the other boy's lips.

Minutes passed as the stood in silence, until finally Edward stepped away from Jacob and slowly walked back the way he'd come.

"Will you come again?" Jacob asked, the question he always asked.

"We'll see," Edward replied, the reply he always gave.

Jacob waited until Edward had disappeared from sight before crouching down and searching for a stone. He found one, flat and ovular, and tossed it lightly out across the water, watching the ripples it made before it disappeared beneath the surface.

He grinned, shoved his hands into his pockets, and turned away from the water, letting the moon light his path away from the beach, reveling in the adrenaline that always came after these forbidden nights.