Call out my name

.

"I'm going to marry her," Jake pouts as he sits at his father's side, his small arms crossing over his chest in a child's defiance. His knee is neatly bandaged with a small orange plaster having come off the rocks and scraping his knee while venturing with the other children, including Billie, his best friend.

This father chuckles down at him, a smirk on his mouth. "Oh yeah? You think Billie will say yes?"

Jake scrunches his nose in disgust and glances up with narrowed eyes. His father knows Billie is his best friend, and you didn't marry your friends. Plus, Billie had cooties for sure, even is she were one of the cooler kids on the Res.

"Not Billie, Dad. Ms Leah!"

His dad's eyebrows almost disappear into his hairline at the proclamation. The older man looks over at Ms Leah who is talking to Mr Lahote while the three year old Lahote twin-hellions run rings around their mom who is pregnant yet again. Jacob doesn't remember being three, but even he knows he would have been way more awesome than Chris and Colin Lahote.

"Um, okay. Wow. Son, listen. What you're feeling now is just... a crush. Someday you'll find a girl your own age, the prettiest girl you've ever seen, and you'll fall in love and marry her. Like Billie."

"No."

"Jake-"

He sniffles, his arms tightening over his chest. Why won't his dad understand? There is no one else prettier than Ms Leah except maybe his mommy. But she was already married to his dad, so he couldn't very well marry her.

"So stubborn, just like... Fine, kid." His dad sighs as he scrubs a huge hand over his hair. "Marry whoever you want. As long as it's you who tells your mother and not me, I'm good."

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

"I can't wait to be a wolf," Billie swoons as she adjusts her all too large backpack by the straps. "Maybe it will happen on my next birthday. My mom says I'll be Alpha one day. Just like her. Just like my dad."

The russet wolf with vivid green eyes huffs, nudging at her bag, amused at the seven year olds enthusiasm and bouncing pig tails.

Jacob trails on Billie's side in quiet contemplation. Billie is his best friend and he too really wants to be a wolf, as well as an Alpha. He finds it unfair that she will automatically become Alpha, just because her mom and dad were.

'Ms Leah is still Alpha,' he reminds himself, cautiously looking over at August-wolf.

He knows the wolves can read each other's thoughts, and he wonders if the wolf can magically read his too.

He blinks really fast to try and clear all the swirling rainbows of thought inside his head just in case, and walks a little faster and straighter. August-wolf would not appreciate the image of Jacob-wolf getting really awesome pats and fur scratches from Ms Leah.

Jacob is concentrating so hard he barely hears August-wolf change back to normal August and lets out a shriek when the older man, who is somehow Billie's brother, even though they don't really look alike, taps him on the shoulder.

"Easy, kid. I was just letting you know you dropped this back there." August jerks his thumb back towards the path as his other hand holds out a spit coated card.

It's red and shaped as a love heart, and it had taken Jacob all night to make. The glitter is missing and the edges are damp and torn. The lettering he had worked so hard on cutting out of his mom's girlie magazines are also chomped, thanks to the wolfs large teeth.

The fact that the card is ruined brings tears to his eyes.

"Sorry, Jake," August apologies as he leans down lower so he's eye level, "I didn't mean to - uh - kill it."

Jacob snatches the card and runs toward the tribal school as fast as he can.

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

Jacob sits on the swing as Billie tells him about what her pet hamster, Lizard, had done the night before. It's a white and brown ball of fluff, and it's kinda cute when it's not staring at him with its evil eyes. He still doesn't understand why she named it Lizard, when it was not a lizard, but he knows not to question Billie, unless he wants to sit through the really long explanation on how her and her uncle Seth had come up with the name.

Jacob's mom and dad have gone to Port Angeles and he's been left with Billie's family for the whole weekend. He likes Billie, she's his best friend, and he thinks her uncle Seth is kinda cool but super scary when he wants to be.

Seth is the Beta wolf and is the boss of his dad-wolf, even though his mom tells his dad otherwise. In Jacob's house, his mom is definitely the boss; which is kinda like Billie.

In the Clearwater-Black house, Ms Leah is the boss. Both as Leah-wolf and Leah-person.

"So then - uncle Seth has to run real fast, because Mommy is screaming at him for bringing Lizard into the kitchen, but see, I wanted Lizard to eat with us at the table. And then Mommy hits uncle Seth with the wooden spoon and calls him a dumbass-"

"What's a dumbass?" Jacob asks, knowing he's heard his own mother use the same word at his father once or twice.

Billie shrugs and looks to August who is cutting wood with some kind of sharp tool for clarification.

August looks over at them, shakes his shaggy head and smiles in a strange way but doesn't provide an explanation which disappoints both of them.

Jacob pushes his feet into the ground again, gaining more height as he swings. Before he can ask 'what happened next', Ms Leah opens the back screen and calls them in for dinner. Jacob stares at Ms Leah as his swing slows.

She has a smile on her face, and her hair is up in a messy bun, flour on her apron and her cheek. She's so pretty, just like his mommy, but in a different way that makes his tummy swirl. Even her voice puts him at ease and he loves sleeping over at Billie's, especially when her mom reads them bedtime stories, all about how awesome they will be once they're wolves.

As he and Billie race to the house with August in tow, Ms Leah stops them before they can barrage into the kitchen and tells them to wash their hands. They groan but comply, fighting for the soap in the wayward sink in the laundry room.

Dinner is Jacob's favourite, spaghetti, and he loves the way Billie's mom makes the sauce so red. He also knows Ms Leah has made Billie's favourite dessert, Apple pie and they both make sure to finish as much as they can because her pie is the best, maybe even more than Ms Emily's.

Billie is talking again, telling her mom about school and all the things that had happened in the playground that day. Steven Cameron, a boy who is a two younger than both of them, was showing them all his front flips that he'd learned from his uncle in San Francisco. Billie gushes about how awesome Steven is, but Jacob just rolls his eyes.

The action causes Ms Leah and August to chuckle.

"And how was your day, Jay?" Ms Leah asks.

He stops and uses the edge of his sleeve to wipe his mouth. "Fine."

Jacob doesn't know why she calls him Jay all the time and not Jacob but he doesn't mind that she has a special name to call him. He likes that she is the only one who calls him Jay. He bites his lip and looks up at her longingly. She smiles and nods, moving on to ask August about a girl that Jacob doesn't know, and the questions make the older boy flush.

Her name is Amy, and the way August talks about her makes his face light up. Jacob knows what an imprint is, even if he doesn't have one yet, but he's also learnt that imprinting was just one way to find the person you would love forever. His parents didn't have an imprint and they still loved each other and Amy wasn't an imprint but August seemed smitten.

He goes back to staring at Ms Leah, wondering if once he was Jacob-wolf, if he would imprint on her. That way he'd be able to live with his best friend and eat spaghetti every. single. night.

Weirder things have been known to happen after all.

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

When he starts running an impossibly high fever, his dad already knows what to do.

Jacob feels hot and irritated even as they trek through the freshly fallen snow. Perspiration sits on his top lip and he growls as he wipes it away roughly. His long hair has already been cut by his teary eyed mother who had snipped it gently and whispered words of encouragement and affection to him. He hates that his mom had cried, and hates the fact that it was him that had gone and made her cry.

"Not far now." His father calls back as he slips deeper into the forest.

Jacob feels the burn in his muscles, in his bones, as he follows. He knows this is just part of the process, and had known for months it would be close.

It wasn't every day you grew almost a whole foot and filled out so much you could no longer fit any of the clothes your mother had bought for you seventeenth birthday which had barely been a month ago.

When they come upon the clearing, Jacob stills, a growl forming in his throat. He doesn't know how it keeps slipping out, but it does. Every time he finds himself displeased or excited, his throat automatically constricts and pushes out the almost animalistic sound.

Billie and her mother stand in the snow, both wearing as much clothing as he and his father are graced in.

Billie waves discretely, even as her mother scowls, her arms crossed over her impressive chest.

For years Jacob has willed away the childish though of Leah Clearwater being anything but his best friend's mother, or chief of the Quileute people, but even now he knows it's futile to pretend their wasn't something there.

There was something about the woman, something that grinded on him. An attraction that had willed him to re-think every relationship he's ever had or tried to forge. He's never actively voiced his desire, not now that he was almost grown, and would never ever mentioned anything to Billie, afraid she'd be disgusted as lose her forever.

But it had been there, was there, always, drawing him back like a moth to a flame.

He knows his chances are non-existent. Not only had he been named after her dead husband who was also his father's best friend, but he had been compared to said husband his entire life, whether people meant to or not.

He'd seen a picture once, of the original pack down at first beach. It was clear there was some resemblance; however he could say that was true with every adult male within a ten mile radius. It kind of pissed him off that even being named Jacob gave him none of the glory or power.

What was the fucking point?

It was a damn curse.

"Embry. Jay." Leah nods in greeting, disapproval on her face at where Jacob's eyes are wandering.

It wasn't his fault she was wearing the type of running shorts Billie wasn't allowed to wear, and it definitely wasn't his fault she had the best pair of legs in the whole state of Washington. Just the thought of them puts the type of imagery in his head that most of the pack will kick his ass for once he phases.

He doesn't know if it's his temper, or that he's sick of her not using his full name, but he corrects the Alpha.

"My name is Jacob. Not Jay."

Leah glances at his father first, a firm grimace settling on her mouth before she angles back to him.

Her hazel eyes soften slightly, her chin dropping in reluctance. "You're right. Jay... cob."

He smirks smugly as he crosses his arms over his chest, his father grumbling under his breath, no doubt at his insolence.

"You both know why you're here." Leah starts, shaking off the need to discipline the human-almost-wolf in front of her. "You'll train with Embry until Seth gets back from Canada - both of you. There's a cabin just over the rise. It's been used now for years for new wolves. It will keep you safe and isolated until you phase and figure out how to control your wolf. You will train, eat, work, and learn from Seth. It's not up for discussion."

After Leah whispers a parting goodbye to Billie, cups her face and hugs her briefly, she nods at Embry in finality and walks back in the direction he and his father had come.

Jacob knows he shouldn't agitate an Alpha wolf but he can't quite help himself.

Before she can get too far past him, he reaches out and grasps her wrist. He'd be stupid if he thought she didn't anticipate it, but his curiosity rises when she doesn't shake it off or throw him ten feet in the opposite direction.

Her skin simmers under his fingertips and his orbs burn as she turns to make eye contact with him.

He's angry, at himself, at her, at the world in general, but the way he says her name takes them both by surprise.

"Leah-"

She shakes her head, her eyes once pensive now blazing on their own. She recognises the need in his voice, the downright want that burned in each hard breath he took as his nostrils flared with the recognition of her familiar scent.

"No," is all she whispers before shaking him off and running the three miles back to LaPush.

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

On the day he returns to LaPush, the sky is unnaturally blue and clear of the grey clouds that often plagued the peninsular. The suit he has borrowed from a friend is slightly tighter than he wishes it to be, especially on his shoulders and backside. Considering his inability to stop growing he took what he could get.

He feels like an impostor wearing the penguin suit, but he knows his ass would be tanned if he decided to show up in cargo's and a wife beater singlet to the most important event the Quileute Reservation has seen in years.

The house he remembers as a child still stands. Even at twenty-three the familiarity warms his chest.

The double story has a fresh lick of paint, the grounds and gardens freshly mown, cut and pruned. He's not sure if he's ever seen so much effort around the place, but figures special occasions like these called for a little extra elbow grease.

There are a few white tents set to the back of the property, while the side is being arranged with white chairs in front of a large arch.

He remains unseen, keeping the baseball cap down low on his head.

With his hands tucked into the pant pockets he makes his way up to rickety steps, sliding effortlessly into the house. He can hear Rachel Black in the kitchen, bossing around the help, and feels the presence of several other wolves in close proximity. Even in his human form he can feel the wolves, feel the soft thrum inside his chest, mimicking the vibrations of the earth as they ran circuits around the familiar lands.

He can't help but smirk as he nears an old pine door, a child's drawing still tacked to it. He picks up the corner inspecting the two figures on the paper, paper which has been hanging for years. The writing on the paper tugs at his heart strings, his large finger running over the print, remembering all the good times.

'Billie + Jake. BFF.'

He can hear the flutter of the heartbeat inside the room and slips inside quietly, leaving the door slightly ajar. She's not paying attention, most of her worry focusing on trying not to pass out and finishing her makeup.

This is her day, and even though Jacob didn't agree with her choice of 'forever', he was thankful for her happiness.

"Oh my God! Jacob? When did you get here? Aunt Charlotte didn't tell me you were back!"

She spins around quickly, dropping the lipstick and jumps into his arms, an action he can't help but laugh at. He hugs her close, laying his cheek on the top of her crown. Even after they phased to their wolves, she was still a midget compared to him. His fingers slide over the white satin of her gown on the small of her back and he really can't believe she's old enough to get married.

As kids it had always been them against the world. Unfortunately, they'd had to grow up and now it was no longer BillieandJake but Billie Black, soon to be Cameron. And Jacob Call.

"Hey squirt! I've missed you too."

She pulls back as she looks up at her best friend, brown eyes narrowed. His mother had always said Billie had been born with a scowl and he has always truly believed that, even though she used it sparingly. But when she did, he knew he was in trouble. "What gives?"

He shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, "No one knows I'm back yet."

"Why are you here? You said you weren't coming."

"I made a promise a long time ago. I'm here to honour that promise now. Plus, if any one's giving you away, it's me."

She eyes him to gauge the truthfulness of what he's saying, and when she's found her answer, she nods. "Uncle Seth is going to be pissed. He was going to do the honours. Does my mom know you're here?"

Jacob cringes slightly. He still hasn't told Billie why he chose a university so far from home. While his best friend had applied for UW, he had applied everywhere but, including Alaska. He just couldn't bring himself to watch the happiness of a woman whom he loved, find her happiness elsewhere. It was clear to him she would never give him a thought or a chance. She had loved a man once, one who bore his name, and she was not interested in loving again.

"She doesn't."

"Actually," a voice comes from the door, "she does."

Jacob turns, and finds her standing there.

Three years is a long time away from home, almost five years since his first phase out in the wilderness with his father, Beta and best friend, but there she is, looking almost the same age as Billie. His best friend has definitely grown into her beauty but it holds no flame to her, to the Alpha, to his Chief.

She's wearing a floral dress that dips in all the right places across her bust and her hips. It skims her knees and dances around her as if she's floating on magic. Her hair is pinned up, a small set of pearls pressed on her ears.

"Leah," Jake breathes, causing their Alpha to frown slightly before she blinks away her thoughts and smirks.

"Ha. Your father owes me $50."

"Why?" His brain isn't working and he can feel how dry his mouth has suddenly become.

"He said you wouldn't be back for this. But something about your name inspires impromptu appearances at weddings. I suppose you've come to walk my daughter down the aisle, huh? Come to break her uncles heart?"

He nods in understanding, having heard many a stories from his father about Jacob Black and his... escapades. He doesn't want to upset Seth or dismiss his wishes to walk his niece down the aisle, but something tells him that if push came to shove, Billie would choose her best friend over her uncle.

"I thought you might." She turns to walk away, hearing Rachel call her name from the kitchen.

"You look amazing, Billie. Oh and Jay...cob. Welcome home."

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

"What was that?" Billie asks as she stares up at him.

Her perfectly shaped brows rise, awaiting an acceptable answer. He's never actively lied to Billie; just - omitted some truths. It wasn't every day you had to tell your best friend that you thought about her mother... privately.

Sure he'd had girlfriends, he'd slept with them, loved them, but Leah was in a different stratosphere. Even his dreams gave him no reprieve from the thought of her.

He clears his throat, a pink tinge covering his normally russet cheeks.

"What was what?"

"Oh my god," Billie gasps, grasping his jaw so his eyes remain on her. "You like my mom. Like really LIKE her."

"I don't know what you're talking about." He scoffs, trying to shake free of her hold.

The tips of his ears burn in embarrassment, wishing the ground would open up and swallow him whole.

"Don't bullshit me, Jake. You've got that stupid look in your eyes. The same one Sam, Jared and uncle Paul have. That googly... holy fuck! Did you imprint on my mom?! Is that why you applied to all those out-of-state colleges, is that why you left-"

Billie's talking so fast and throwing around accusations it takes everything inside him not to slam his palm over her yapping mouth. They weren't the only wolves in and near the house, a fact which she has clearly forgotten in her astonishment.

"Keep your damn voice down, Jesus. Nothing is going on. Trust me."

Billie raises a perfect brow, but her eyes are soft. Softer than Jacob wishes them to be. Ever.

"But... you want... something to be going on... right?"

His silence gives her the answer she is seeking.

"Jake, dude. That's my mom! You can't like her, she's like... old. Fine, she doesn't look old but she is. She's... Jake - you were named after my dad."

He can't help but explode. "You don't think I know that?! Fuck Billie. I just, I tried okay. I tried going away, tried forgetting about her. She's just... I don't know. There's just something about her... I can't stop, alright? I'll never been able to control it. Shit."

Billie makes a gagging noise as she sticks a manicured finger down her throat.

Rubbing a tired hand over his face, he sighs. "Look, all that shit aside, I'm here for you."

"Sure you are."

"Seriously, Billie. I came back for you. I want to be by your side just in case you decide you don't want to marry that gigantic moron-"

"Don't start," Billie growls, reminding Jacob she capable of kicking his ass all on her own. "Steven happens to be extremely sweet. And just because you're named after my father, doesn't give you the right to act like him."

"You're right. I'm sorry. Can you ever forgive me?" He hums, using his best puppy dog eyes on the girl whose been by his side his entire life.

Fighting with Billie was just not worth it, and if she wanted to marry Steven-dumbass-Cameron, she could. Jacob would still be there to kick the guys ass if he ever made her unhappy, or worse, cry.

"Humph."

"Come on, Princess," Jacob coos gently, rubbing her bare shoulders, careful not to crinkle the satin pulled at her nape. "Finish getting ready so you we can get you down that isle before people start talking. I'll have you know that the ladies find me irresistible."

He winks at her in the mirror, making her smile.

"Yes, well... they haven't shared bathtubs nor milkshakes with you - so it's no great feat."

They both can't help but laugh.

"How do I look?" she asks nervously, looking up at him through the reflection of the mirror.

"Beautiful… just like your mother."

"Ewww, gross. Let's go before I really do choose uncle Seth over you."

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

Leaving the newly married couple on the dance floor, Jacob makes his way outside the tent and toward the forest.

With the ceremony over and the celebration in full swing, he feels like he can finally take a breather. It had been sweet, and the way that Steven looked at Billie made his stomach and heart clench. The kid really did love her. Jacob had always wanted that for Billie. Had always wanted her safety and her happiness to be paramount. Surprisingly, the look in the man's eyes told him that he did too.

"You've been following me."

The voice is soft, but he catches the disapproval of her tone. He closes his eyes and sighs. He can smell her, and maybe he has always been able to scent her out of a crowd. Maybe his subconscious has always ensured his steps took him to her, so she'd never be too far away from his watchful eye.

"No I haven't. Leah, I-"

He stops talking when she steps from the trees, her feet now bare of the heels she had worn earlier. Her lithe movements remind him of an animal, of what they both were. Even though she out ranks him by a million, his wolf wants to take up the challenge. He is big, much bigger than her, it would be easy to out power her, maybe even into submission.

"The resemblance is truly uncanny." She tells him, her footsteps silent in the soil as she circles him.

He doesn't think she's been drinking, but the voice she uses is placid, thoughtful, curious. She's never acted that way around him, and if she had, it wasn't for long. She is an Alpha for a reason. And even if she was a mean spirited bitch, it was a façade. One he'd always seen through.

"I thought you'd grow out of it, you know, lots of children look like each other. But, each year, you just kept surprising all of us."

"I can't help it." He growls, realising she's referring to Jacob Black. His hands pull into fists, his knuckles turning white with annoyance.

"I know." The way she says it eases his anger slightly. "It's just... unnerving. Especially when you look at me the way you do."

A beat of silence echoes around the forest before he replies.

"How do I look at you?"

"Ever since you were a kid you've looked at me as if you could see straight through me. As if you've known me a hundred life times over. I've never been able to explain it and I'd convinced myself it was just wishful thinking. It's not just the way you look... physically - it's the way you move and all the little things, like when you frown, or laugh. The way you are with Billie. You look at me like - like you know me. Like we've know each other before... all of this."

This is his chance to tell the truth. It's his chance to finally make her understand.

"Sometimes I feel like we have. Sometimes... I have these dreams... vivid dreams... about you. About us."

She shakes her head, doubt written over her face. "I helped raise you, kid. I'm best friends with your mother. I'm your father's Alpha. Your Alpha."

"Leah please, you have to listen to me. They're more than just dreams. They're - memories."

He steps closer, his palms up, showing her she has nothing to be afraid of. He would never hurt her, he just wants a chance.

"Jacob," she sighs, reaching out to stroke his cheek. "You're a wolf. Maybe you saw it in someone else's head. Seth, maybe Paul. Even your father. They can't be memories. You've barely been with the pack to know anything more than you did as a child."

"Please, wait." He says desperately, catching her wrists as she tries to pull away.

"Get your hands off me."

"No. Look at me, Leah. I'm not a child any longer."

Tentatively he raises her wrists and places her palms back on his face. She's shaking, not in anger, but in fear. He can hear the spike of her heart, the quickness of her breath. Her index finger brushes against the stubble of his face, ever so gently.

"Jacob."

She swallows and looks away, dangerously aware at his proximity.

"I know things no one knows, Leah. How do you explain that? I know you're ticklish right here," he presses his finger gently to the side of her neck. "I know you like to be kissed here," his thumb brushes under her jaw, causing her eyelashes to flutter. "I know the sound you make when," his hand lifts the edge of her dress, fingertips caressing the top of her thigh, "I touch you here."

She grasps his wrist before he can venture any further, a subtle whine bubbling inside her throat. "Don't."

She has the power to stop this but there's no command lacing her voice.

"I don't know how I know all these things. I don't know why I know them. All I know is that I'm incomplete without you. I tried to forget about you, I tried to live a life so far away, go to school, date, do the normal shit a guy does at my age. But - the thought of you always brings me back here. Back to you."

"You don't know what you're saying."

"I do know. I've known my whole life." He kisses her gently, his lips barely brushing her cheek. "I know you're scared, so am I... but I'm willing to wait. To prove to you that I can be what you need. Maybe not today, or any time soon. It may take a life time.

But - This is forever, Leah. In this life... and the next."

.

. ~ E ~ .

.

A/n - So... this is where I leave them.

No, there is no imprint. But there is a choice here. Not necessarily a great one, depending on your point of view, but it is a choice.

For those who are confused, this is what Sarah was talking about.

Because Jacob Black couldn't go back to his life, he had agreed for his soul to be transferred into Embry and Charlotte's child (which wasn't necessarily said by Sarah Black, but kind of implied). That way he could still be there for Billie, watch her grow up, walk her down the aisle, and love her. Even if it was as a best friend, and not a father.

Then there's Leah. I would like to think that if a soul went into another body, the soul would still recognise its perfect match/ soul mate, so to speak. Now, I also believe that in life, you can have more than one soul mate and they don't necessarily have to be sexual relationships. But, Sarah had promised Jacob Black that he would love her again, and all he needed was patience.

I'm not the best story teller, especially with mega long fic's like this one. My ability to stay in a one track mind alters so often I'm surprised anything makes sense. EVER. So I'm hoping that it did make sense and have tried to explain it here, especially if it didn't come across clearly in the fic.

My hope is that you have enjoyed (or at least stuck around) long enough to understand that life sucks, fiction or not. That it is what it is. And that even if we have infinite power, not everything will work out as we imagine it to.

If you've been team Edward this whole time, you'll want to check out 'Entwined' - which takes an alternate direction in the Entangled universe - where Edward and Leah fight against fate and destiny, which will be up soon.

Again - thank you to my day ones. Without you I'd be much more of a mess than I am. You've pushed me, gotten angry at me, told me I'm pretty and even cried along with me. I'll be forever grateful. Always.

.