Life's Little Storms

The Volturi

Life's Little Storms

~Jacob~

That night Melody stood in the center of my kitchen mixing lettuce and dressing in a large bowl while humming to herself. Her long hair was draped over her back. It had gotten so long over the year that it was hard to believe how long it had been. Mostly, I was amazed by how she was able to stand strong through the storm I call my life.

For a brief second, the kitchen morphed into a new one, and Melody was facing me. Instead of a bowl in her hands, she would smooth her hands over a swollen belly with my mother's wedding ring perfectly perched on her left ring finger. The same soft smile on her face as she continued to rub her pregnant belly.

The image quickly dissipated when soft fingers brushed down my cheek. I looked up at her beautiful face as worry clouded her features, "Where'd you go?"

"Just lost in thought, angel." I took her hands into mine, so overwhelmed with the amount of love for her that I felt breathless. I never felt that with Bella. What I felt for her was very dull compared to what I felt for Melody.

The peace in our little bubble gave us was abruptly cut short when her cell phone began to jingle and vibrate. She groaned softly before looking down at the caller ID.

"Hey, Edward." I scowled which caused her to smile at me, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. Her eyebrows closed together before she locked eyes with me. I could catch small pieces of their conversation and started gathering my car keys and Melody's jacket. "We're on her way."

The ride to the Cullen's was long and quiet. Melody sat in the passenger seat with her thumb nail tightly clasped between her teeth. Her eyes were focused on the trees flying by us. I reached over and grabbed her hand in mine then let it rest on my thigh.

"Everything will be okay, Melody. I promise."

Her only reply was a sigh and nod. Melody was out of the car before I even had the chance to put it in park. She flew up the stairs into the house. By the time I got inside, she was staring at the child who seemed to replace baby Renesmee. Even though we knew she was growing fast, it seemed as though years had passed since we had last seen them.

Everyone was already in the room, except it seemed emptier than usual. Esme sat in the corner of the living room. Her perfect face seemed to be broken by deep sadness and confusion. Many of the others held the same facial expression, but it wasn't as devastating to look at.

Edward slowly began to explain how their cousin Irena had witnessed Bella, Seth, and Nessie had been out in the snow. Except she witness Nessie jumping high up in the air to catch the ones that were freshly falling. Irena, as Edward explained it, didn't know what else to do except go forward the Volturi to tell them what she had seen. Once everything was decided, Alice saw that the Volturi was coming here.

Melody wrapped her arms around herself, "But she grows everyday? How can they say she is something when she isn't?"

"We are going to try and gather people to help us, but we aren't sure who will commit."

Renesmee sensed Melody's growing worry and stepped forward to wrap her arms around Melody's waist. She rested her head on Melody's stomach, in return Melody combed through Nessie's hair with her fingers. A single tear dropped from Melody's chin onto the top of Nessie's head. Nessie pulled back and reached for her face. Melody kneeled down in front of her and allowed Nessie to rest a soft hand on her face. It was quiet as Nessie showed whatever it was to Lody.

Melody's eyes screwed shut as she gripped Nessie close to her, "I love you, too, Ness."

Edward wrapped an arm around Bella, and Seth looked down at his feet. I didn't know how it was for him. When Melody was hurt, I knew she was going to live. But with Nessie... all of the Cullens, our days together are numbered. We all stood there until I sensed a presence outside. All heads turned to see Sam approaching the front of the house. Without looking at the others, I walked out to meet him.