DIFFERENT

Chapter 2: Tree Tops, Music, and a Talk

The small figurine on my desk was ordinary. She was ivory, and she was holding a flower in her hand. The colors next to her, which I had opened, were for making her skin and the clothes she wore into something else. I like painting, but I’m not very good at it.

My room at Grandpa Carlisle’s and Grandma Esme’s used to be my Daddy’s, but he gave it to me so I could be by myself. Mostly I like being with them, but lately all they talk about is moving away, and I don’t like hearing about it anymore. I’m happy here with my Jacob and with them, so why do we really have to move?

That funny feeling in my tummy reminded me that I was thinking too much about the sad. Leaving the ivory girl and my paints on my desk, I hopped down, and went over to my bed. I picked up my MP3 player that daddy gave me for Christmas and brought it back to the desk. The first song that started to play for me was my favorite, Claire De Lune. I think I like it because I know my daddy and momma do. Once the music began playing I got back to work.

“Hmm,” I told my new friend. “I think you need violet eyes.” I wanted her to have them, because that’s what color my Aunt Rose’s were before she was born as a vampire. I got the skinny brush and mixed the colors until I got what I needed, then I touched them to her eyes. “I wonder what it’s like to be normal,” I said to my friend. I know she can’t talk back to me, but sometimes I don’t care.

“If I was normal we wouldn’t have to go away.” Something made it hard to see, and then I knew. I put the brush down, and wiped the stupid tear away. No one but me cries. Jacob can, and Grandpa Charlie, but they know how not to do it. I don’t usually feel sad, but now that’s me all the time, sad little Renesmee.

I know better than to leave my paints uncapped, but right then I didn’t care. I ran to my bed and pulled the covers back. Once I was lying down I pulled them over me, shutting my eyes. My music was still playing, but I barely heard it because of all the sad things I was thinking.

My daddy and mommy are gone right now. They left this morning to go check on things at our new house. I’m sad for them to go, but I said they could.

Someone heavy sat on my bed because it started to sink and I rolled a little. “Do you want to talk? Alice said you were sad.”

That was Uncle Emmett. “I don’t want to be sad.”

“Well, we need to find the good things about going to a new place don’t we?”

I sniffed but stayed where I was. “I wish I was normal Uncle Emmett.” There, I finally said it.

The covers moved away as if by themselves, but I knew it was him. He lifted me up and cradled me in his arms. “I don’t wish that. I like you just the way you are,” he said. His eyes were golden, but I could tell by the way his face was, and by the look in them that he was really meaning it.

“You are supposed to say that,” I told him, still feeling sad as he plucked my ear plugs out of my ears.

Suddenly we were by the window, and a blink later I was on his back. He leaped, and we went really fast. He grabbed a tree and we went really far up.

All around us were the tops of the big trees. I could see past them, and saw the river. The sky was gray as it always is, but it wasn’t raining. Emmett helped me sit down on a branch, a big one, because if it were tiny it would break, because he’s heavy and we would fall and my daddy would get mad.

“See how pretty it is up here?”

I nodded, looking up at the gray clouds swirling slowly around.

“There is much more than this one small place that we live in. I know it’s not going to be easy for you when we move, but I bet if you tried you might find the new place to be just as good as it is here.”

For a second I wondered if he was right. “But my Jacob won’t be with me.” I looked down at my hands.

“Nessie, he won’t be as far away as you think, and you can call and talk to him as often as you want.” He put his big arm around me, and I leaned against him feeling safe.

“I miss Daddy and Momma.”

“I thought you might,” he said, as we felt a few drops of rain.

How come he knew so much? I know several things too. I’m special. All of my family says that, but I don’t know what Emmett does, and sometimes everyone else. “Will I learn at school like you and Momma and Daddy?”

When he didn’t say anything, I turned my head to the right looking up at him. “I can’t go can I” I didn’t even want him to answer me. “I want to go to my room now.”

~*~*~*~*~

My room was really dark when I opened my eyes and I almost felt happy. When I sat up though, I remembered the tree, and what Uncle Emmett didn’t tell me. I’m old enough to do most things on my own, so maybe I was old enough to stay here with Jacob while everyone else went away. Me and Jake could live in the cottage, and no one would have to know.

“Hey,” I heard him say from somewhere in my room.

“Jacob, I found a very good idea for me and for you,” I said sitting up.

My small Tiffany lamp on the table turned on before he sat next to me.

“What idea is that?”

“Well, I’m old enough to get dressed, and I can catch my own food. I can take a bath if there is stool by the tub. I know how to read, so I think I should stay here and live with you. We can stay in the cottage.” The more my idea came to me, the more I liked it.

“What would happen if there was a really bad thunder storm?”

Those scare me more than anything else, and only my daddy knows how to make me feel better. I didn’t want to think about things like that. “Well maybe we will watch the weather, and if there is one coming Daddy could come back and stay until it goes away.”

He hugged me close, and I felt him kiss the top of my head. “Don’t you think you might get sad if they were all gone?”

“I want to play chess,” I said, not willing to let my sadness back inside me.

“Aww Ness, you know how bad I am at it.”

“Okay, checkers.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Not much later we were playing, and I got the first king. “Jacob, can the pack move with us?”

Since he was trying to think of a move, I didn’t mind waiting for him to answer me. I smiled when he got a king. “Well, I’m not sure about that. We have always stayed in this area.”

It was my turn to make a move and I didn’t see anything that would help much. I finally made one even though I knew he could jump me. That was when I heard it for the first time. The sound was a distant rumble, but I knew what it meant.

Just one blink and Jacob was holding me. We both sat very still listening, and maybe a minute later we heard it again. “It’s not going to hurt us,” I said for me more than him.

“Nope, thunder storms are just a part of nature,” he said, sounding very sure.

Of course I knew that, but sometimes it sounded like the thunder was going to crash my house down, and the lightening would shoot right through me.

“Nessie are you okay?” asked Aunt Rosalie, a moment before she came in my room. I knew she wasn’t very happy when Jake was around, but she was nice right now.

“I want to call daddy,” I said.

Another rumble and I pushed back into Jacob’s arms. Why did it have to thunder when he was a trillion miles away?

While Jacob hugged me closer, Aunt Rose brought the phone. She was talking, but she gave it to me. “Daddy a storm is coming to get me.”

“Shh, you are safe inside. Is Jacob with you?”

I nodded before I thought about it. “Yes, but I need you here.” I really meant that.

“Do you have your MP3 player close by?”

“On my bed.” Jacob walked us there, and put it in my hands but he didn’t let me go and I was really glad.

It was getting louder, and I shut my eyes feeling my heart beating faster. “I don’t want it to get me.”

“Jacob will keep you safe for me,” Daddy said. I put one ear piece in my other ear, and put his lullaby on.

“It’s getting louder.” My voice sounded louder too, and I was glad when Jacob put a blanket over me.

“Do you remember what thunder is?” Daddy asked.

“It is made by lightening. Oh that’s loud. Daddy?” He didn’t answer and I looked at the phone just when everything got really dark. That was when I felt Jacob moving us again and my MP3 drop somewhere on my bed, but I was too afraid to ask him why, or even where we were going.

Even though he was strong and very brave, it wasn’t the same as having my daddy there with us. “Don’t let the thunder get me.” I sniffed, as more of it rumbled. It sounded like it was going to knock at the door and ask if it could have me for lunch or dinner.

“No one will let anything happen to you,” Jacob said. He pulled the blanket away and we were in the family room. The windows were covered now, but I still felt worried.

A big clap of thunder made me jump, and that’s when I also started crying. Jacob let Grandpa hold me. “I need daddy here,” I said as I clung to him. Grandpa was very smart, he would not let the thunder and lightening have me.

“I know you are frightened, and he will be home tomorrow,” Grandpa said, as he carried me over to the sofa. He sat down and I hugged him and my Grandma Esme. More Thunder banged around outside and I felt a little better but not much. “I guess I’ll never be able to watch you play baseball,” I said still sniffing as grandma blotted my eyes with a tissue.

“You will when you are ready,” she answered.

“Do they have storms in Hanover?”

Grandpa hugged me close right before another big boom of thunder rumbled outside of the house. I shut my eyes, and felt my breath going away. Something pressed to my ear then.

“Renesmee?”

“Daddy, why did you hang up on me? The thunder is still mad and I need you now,” I sobbed.

“Shhh, I’m sorry.”

Was this going to always be me? “I just want to be happy.”

“I know you do. Momma and I are coming back to get you tomorrow. We won’t stay here long but we both think it might be better for you to stay with us.”

That made me feel just a little better. “Is it warm there?”

“About like it was when we left this morning. Do you realize that tomorrow will be your first time on a plane?”

I hadn’t thought about that. “No, is that scary?”

“I don’t think that it is. You can see so much when you are flying.”

“Is our house in the woods?” Daddy started talking, and I listened to him. At some point the lights came back on and Grandpa put me on the sofa while Jacob sat with me. I yawned a few times as daddy told me about my new room. “I’m glad the closet is normal size,” I whispered, making sure Aunt Alice wasn’t close by. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, but the last time they talked, she said I needed a very big one, but I don’t need it.

“Is the storm still going on?”

I looked around. The TV was on and Uncle Emmett was sitting with Aunt Rose on his lap. He had laughed when I said the thing about my closet. “I think it’s gone away.”

“It’s pretty late there right now. Why don’t you read to Jacob for a while?”

“But I miss you,” I whispered.

Jacob hugged me closer, seeming to know I needed him just now.

“I miss you too. Why don’t you talk to Momma for a second?”

“Okay, but I still need you.”

“Renesmee?” Momma sounded worried.

They were going to make me go to bed soon. “Hi, Momma.” I held Jacob’s hand turning it over while I traced my finger on his palm.

“Is everything okay now?”

“Yes, but I’m sad because we had a bad storm, and Daddy was gone.” Most of the time I didn’t get grumpy, but now I felt that way, along with being sad and lonely.

“We didn’t know it was going to be such a bad one. Are you excited about flying on the plane?”

I guess I was because I started to think all about what Daddy told me, and I started talking really fast too. “Yes. Daddy said that I can have the window seat. He said that they have movies they play since we are going to be on the plane for a long time and he said that I can have Doritos, but do you know what I’m most happy for?” I didn’t give her a chance to guess. “I’m most happy because I get to be with you and Daddy and he said we were not going to stay a long time so I can come back and I can tell Jacob everything about the new house. Momma I think I should live here in the cottage with Jacob.” I had mostly forgotten about that part of my day.

Momma was silent for a moment. “Well, why don’t we talk about that some tomorrow? Right now you need to get some rest. You have a big day waiting for you.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After we were done on the phone, I gave everyone hugs and kisses and let Jacob carry me back to my room. It was quite again, but I was too excited to try and sleep or even read to him.

I listened to my MP3 music again, and started to feel tired after listening to my lullaby. Jacob had turned into a wolf and was resting on the floor by my bed, and that was almost as good as having daddy there.

“Nessie, I thought you might want something before you went to bed,” Grandma said. My music was soft so I could hear her. I sat up as she stepped around my Jacob and took my purple cup from her. Sometimes when Momma and Daddy are gone, I get to have human blood. It isn’t very often anymore, but I felt a little better once I started to drink.

“Grandma, are you and Grandpa coming with us to Hanover?”

Instead of answering me she bent down, I think to take off her shoes, but I didn’t see. She sat down on my bed and I let her hold me close as I took another sip from my cup.

“I think when the time comes, you and your parents will go ahead with out us. Grandpa and I want to visit with our friends in Denali for a while.”

That was sort of sad, but I was already feeling sleepy and my hand kind of shook. She helped me hold my cup. “Did you have a baby one time?” Daddy said she did, but he said to not tell her I knew because it makes her sad. I wanted to know, I hope she doesn’t tell him.

“One time I had a baby boy. He was very sick when he was born.”

I snuggled closer letting her put my cup away. “Daddy said I can’t talk about him cause you get sad.”

“I do get sad sometimes, but I don’t mind talking about him.”

Sometimes I wondered if her baby didn’t die, if she would be with us or not. “I bet if he was with you, we wouldn’t be with you either.” It was sort of confusing, just like the rest of my life.

“I sometimes believe everything happens for a reason. They may not be what you want at the time, but there is always a reason. Now, my little lady bug, I know your daddy expected you to be in bed at least an hour ago,” she said, and I pouted.

“But I will be sad if I go to sleep.”

Grandma was really good about making me do things. She hugged me close. “Close your eyes.”

I did what she asked, glad she was here even with my Jacob close by. When I had my eyes closed she hummed momma’s lullaby. I felt safe here with them and I wasn’t afraid to go to sleep now. Tomorrow would be fun, but I would be sad not having Jacob going too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Authors Note: I am going to continue the rest of the story in first person. I might add Bella's and Edward's thoughts in the next chapter. I would love to hear what you think about the story thus far so please hit the little button and post a review. Thanks.

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