Chapter 9 - The Date

Tara anxiously waited for the week to end, looking forward to her date with Seth. Agreeing to allow Alice to prepare her for the event, she sat in the makeshift beauty chair in the bathroom while Alice styled her hair. She skillfully twisted it around in the back and pinned it up, leaving just a few strands dangling elegantly in the front. She applied a little bit of makeup to her face as well. Tara had her limits though. She preferred to be plain and comfortable and kept warning Alice not go too overboard.
"I'm not trying to win any beauty contests tonight," she said.
"Don't fret. I'm going light on the application. I did promise to make you look stunning however."
Renesmee helped by handing Alice bobby pins for Tara's hair. "I think you're gonna make Seth's eyeballs drop out. Have you seen the dress Alice picked out for you?" she said.
Tara frowned. "Dress? I told you I don't do dresses Alice, not to mention I'm gonna be on a motorcycle."
"Nope, not tonight you're not."
"I'm not?" Tara's eyebrow rose on one side.
"Nope, Edward insisted that Seth take a car. He refuses to let you go on your very first date on the back of a motorcycle."
"But... I like motorcycles," she mumbled. " …and jeans," she added.
"Well not tonight. You get the..."
"Porsche!" She finished Alice's sentence with an excitedly hopeful tone.
"Uh no…that's my car. You get the Audi."
"Oh,” she pouted, feeling slightly disappointed. “Well still… I've never driven one of those before."
"Nice try, Edward gave Seth specific instruction to not let any under-aged, unlicensed drivers behind the wheel."
"Figures." Tara rolled her eyes. "Gee, what other not-fun things could you plan for my date?" she thought.
Alice fitted her in a black sleeveless cocktail dress and handed her a box with a brand new pair of black pumps inside. Tara was definitely not thrilled about those. When Alice finished, Tara stood up and stared at herself in the mirror, twirling around looking at herself from all angles. "It's a good thing I don't have to worry about feeling drafty," she thought.
As she made her way down stairs, she saw the whole family come into view. Seth stood amongst them already waiting. He couldn't take his eyes off her. He wore a dark blue button-up, long sleeve shirt with a tie. Alice noticed the denims right away. "Jeans…really?" she snorted at him.
"What?" Seth shrugged. "They're nice jeans."
Alice groaned.
"How come you get to be comfortable," Tara complained, teasing him but Seth never answered. He just silently stared at Tara in awe. Jacob stood next to him and gave Seth a shove from behind to snap him out of his trance.
"What? Oh…sorry. You look great," he grinned from ear to ear.
She felt awkward though. "I think I'm a bit over dressed actually, maybe I should change so we coordinate better."
"No don't… I like it. Please, don't change a thing."
Alice smiled, gloating at her work.
"Yeah, you clean up real well Elvira," Jacob added.
Renesmee shushed Jacob. "I think you look gorgeous Tara," she said.
"Thanks, Ness. And thanks to you too Alice. I guess I really did get to stun someone after all."
The three of them laughed.
"Plus I think it puts at least five more years on you," Renesmee added.
"Hey, I always wanted to date an older woman," Seth joked.
"Uh, I am an older woman," she reminded him.
"Only by a technicality," he reminded her back.
"Oh you look just lovely," Esme said as she came into the room with Carlisle.
She hugged Tara just before handing her two tickets to the Symphonic Orchestra. "You two have fun tonight," she smiled.
"Thanks Esme, we will," she smiled. Then she looked up at Seth and grinned.
"Thanks again for getting these. We really appreciate it," she said to both Esme and Carlisle.
Seth felt bad about Carlisle having to go through all the trouble of getting tickets for them, knowing they wouldn't be using them.
You're very welcome," Carlisle answered.
Edward chuckled as he ease dropped on their plot to ditch the Orchestra and go play mini-golf instead.
"Shall we?" Seth asked as he swung his arm out gesturing for them to go. Renesmee gave Tara a thumbs-up as she and Seth headed out the door.
Before Seth even got the passenger side door fully opened, Tara zipped around to the driver's side in a flash. Had he not heard the other door shut, he wouldn't have even known where she'd disappeared to. He stuck his head in the car seeing Tara's hands eagerly gripped the steering wheel. Her feet barely touched the pedals at the floor. She grinned at Seth.
He tried to ignore how adorable she looked for the moment so he could talk her out of the seat. "Umm, what are you doing?"
"What?" she shrugged very innocently.
"There's no way. Edward already promised he'd break every bone in my body if he found out I let you drive this car and he will know if you do." Seth tapped the side of his head with his finger.
She rolled her eyes and made a pouty huff. Then she stepped out and quickly zipped around to the other side, still letting Seth close the door for her.
As soon as he started the engine, the stereo came on instantly. The CD whirred up and began to play The Big Bad Wolf by Duck Sauce. Seth and Tara just looked at each other and laughed. "Edward." They both said simultaneously. Seth shook his head as he turned down the volume.
In the house, Edward laughed as well while he listened to their thoughts, satisfied with his little prank.
Once Tara felt they were far enough away, she looked in the back for something. "Now what are you up to?" he asked suspiciously.
She pulled out backpack that had been cleverly hidden behind her seat and unzipped it, pulling out a pair of jeans and one of her favorite shirts. "Oh my, look! How did these get in here?" she said musically, as she displayed a devilish grin. She knew very well that Renesmee had Jacob place the bag of clothes in there, so Alice would never see it.
"You brought extra clothes?"
"Yes, um…hope you don't mind."
"No of course not, I want you to be comfortable. You do look amazing in that dress though."
"Well I really could have just made myself look like this without all the work involved and being tortured by Alice and all."
"Mmm, I don't know if you could actually imagine yourself to be as beautiful as you are for real though." Seth had difficulty keeping his eyes on the road.
"You'd be surprised at what I could do, she said cunningly.
"Well I like the real you, no illusions."
"And you look extremely handsome tonight. Love the tie. Real or clip on?" she asked. Seth unclipped it and held it out to show her.
"Very nice," she chuckled. "So how far do we have to go?" she wondered as they drove several miles out.
"To Port Angeles. There's not much here in Forks unless you like hanging at the Mini-Mart for fun."
Tara heard a faint grumbling noise. "Seth, did you forget to eat again?" she asked.
"Um, no. Not really," he fibbed. She looked at him in disbelief. "I just wasn't really very hungry earlier, I was kinda nervous," he admitted.
"Nervous?"
"Yeah, I just want it to be a good experience for you. Don't worry, it's just normal to be nervous before a date. I take it you didn't have that problem?"
"Me? No. Anxious maybe. I'm very impatient, I counted the seconds," she gleamed.
"Uh, now you kinda make me wish we were doing something more exciting than mini-golf."
"Why's that?"
"Because, this is important. I mean…maybe we should use the tickets that Esme got us. Mini-golf isn't exactly an extravagant pastime."
"Seth, I'm not an extravagant kind of person. I packed comfort clothes so we could have fun. I've been to Orchestras and they can be very uplifting and beautiful but you just basically sit there and listen quietly. It doesn't involve a lot of one on one time with someone. I'd much rather just be able to enjoy you."
Seth smiled at her. "You know for someone who's never been on a date before, you seem to know a lot about them."
"When you don't get to date, you spend a lot of time thinking about it and what it might be like."
"You have a better memory from when you were human than you thought."
"Maybe. I think being around you seems to help."
Seth's stomach started making more noise. "Do you wanna get some food for yourself?" Tara asked, concerned.
"Um, no I'll be fine," he said politely even though he was really starting to get very hungry. She gave him another doubtful stare. His eyes glanced over at her. "What?" He shrugged.
"You know, I may not know much about dating but I seem to recall that most dates start with a dinner usually. Am I right?"
"Well yes, but you don't eat so I was gonna skip that part."
"Why? It's part of the ritual."
He laughed when she referred to their date as a ritual. "What are you gonna sit with me and watch me eat?"
"Why not? You should get used to it anyways.” She said. “So then…you'll eat and I'll talk while letting you stare at me in this dress for a while longer. Then when you're done, I'll change and we'll go play. Besides, I'm an extremely cheap date because you don't even have to pay for my half." She grinned. "Deal?"
He smiled and then nodded. "You had me at the part where I get to stare at you in that dress."
Tara laughed.
Seth found a small Italian place in Port Angeles. The waitress offered them a booth but Tara noticed they had an outdoor area with tables and requested to be seated out there away from the smells and the people. Even though it was summer, it was still too chilly out for any normal human to enjoy so they gladly had the entire area to themselves.
"Do me a favor will you?" Seth requested as he took off his jacket. "Put this on. I don't wanna look like I'm thoughtless for having you out here in that dress without a coat on."
Tara slipped Seth's enormous jacket on. The sleeves hung too long and the bottom nearly touched her knees. The inside felt like it had been left sitting by a fireplace for a while.
He grinned at her as she tried to shove the sleeves up her arms. "You look like a dwarf in that thing," he chuckled.
"That's only because you're so freakishly tall."
He chuckled.
The waitress brought them menus and Seth ordered two drinks for them, both the same since he'd be drinking them.
"Well only now you don't get to look at me in my dress," she frowned. Seth looked a little disappointed. He hadn't thought about that.
When the waitress returned with the drinks, Seth ordered the chicken with a side of pasta.
"And for you?" she asked Tara.
"Oh I think we will just share, hmm?" she winked.
"Yes, thank you," he said handing the waitress the menus.
After she brought his plate along with an extra fork and disappeared for a while, Tara slipped the coat off her shoulders and folded her arms on the table as they talked. Seth liked the dinner with a view. "So tell me about your parents," he prodded.
"My parents?"
"Yes, do you remember much about them?"
She nodded. "They were good people. My dad was a prominent business owner in our town, very…wealthy." She seemed reluctant to admit that part. "I was very close to my dad. He was very protective of me, sometimes too protective, but it was just because he loved me. He didn't like seeing me get hurt. It was a struggle for me being only half white you know. Interracial relationships weren't too popular back then and my dad insisted I go to a private Catholic school. Needless to say, I stood out."
"I'll bet. So how did your parents even meet?" Seth took small slow bites so he could listen as she talked, even though he was very hungry.
"My mom was a smart woman, very educated. She took advantage of all the incentives offered to our people. She was an art major but she learned to sell Real Estate to make a living. She met my father when he was looking for some land to build on. He told me he knew the first time he met her he was going to marry her. He said she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever laid his eyes on."
"Well considering she looks just like you, I can't blame him."
Tara would have blushed if she could.
He could tell from her coy smile he'd embarrassed her. "So how'd that go over with the family?" he continued.
"Not well. My grandmother wasn't happy about it. She didn't like my mother and she never really treated me like the other grandkids. My grandfather on the other hand, was very different, more accepting. He was just glad his son was happy. He was a pure Irishman. You should have heard his accent." Tara mimicked her grandfather's accent perfectly when she said the word Irishman.
Seth smiled.
"They were the happiest couple and they loved each other no matter what, even when the world was cruel and unapproved of their relationship."
"A forbidden love eh?" he observed.
"Yes. You could say that".
"I like that story."
"Do you?" Her eyebrows rose.
"Yes, they were two people, not only at opposite ends of the spectrum but from races that for the most part were enemies for ages, and against all odds, they found love. It's a very good story."
She nodded and then looked down. "It's too bad it didn't have a happier ending."
"Well something good came out of it". He touched her hand. He meant it to be a compliment for her but she didn't see it that way.
"Nothing good came out of it," she said with an irritated tone.
Seth moved his hand from hers and sat back in his chair. "Tara, I'm being very sincere. Can you stop with all this self loathing stuff because it's really bumming me out. I totally get you, and I know what happened to your family was horrible stuff, but what I'm trying to tell you is that I think you are a good thing. Can't you just try to accept my compliments?"
Tara pulled her hands back and set them in her lap. She looked down at the table as she spoke. "Yes, I'm sorry. It's just a sore subject for me. I don't mean to ruin the evening."
Seth leaned forward and lifted her chin with his fingers. "You haven't ruined anything. Just don't get all gloomy every time I compliment you. Despite what you think of yourself, I think the world of you and that's not gonna change. Okay?"
She looked in his warm eyes and nodded, then glanced at his plate that he'd hardly touched. "Your fowl is getting cold," she said in all seriousness.
Seth roared with laughter.
After dinner, Tara disappeared into the restaurant bathroom with her bag and changed her clothes. She let her hair down, brushing it neatly. Then she folded the little black dress and carefully placed it in the bag trying not to add wrinkles since she knew she'd have to put it back on before they went back to the house. She figured Alice wouldn't get too upset about the hair.
When she returned to the table, he still waited for the waitress to bring the check.
"Feel better?" he asked
"Yes, I feel more like me again. Are you disappointed?"
"No… never. I think you are always beautiful."
She smiled and then leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Thank you," she responded pleasantly.
No argument that time. He was glad.
Seth paid for the meal and they headed to the miniature golf course. It thrilled Tara to see the giant montage of obstacles on the lot. It didn't take long at all for her to pick up the game. She skillfully hit each ball with dynamic perfection sinking them into every hole. She even managed to win the bonus prize at the end of the game which required you to impossibly tap the ball through a small opening, send it up a steep mount and sink it into a volcano, accomplishing it with ease. Her accuracy and skill astounded him.
When they finished, he challenged her to several of the arcade games they had inside of the arena. He wasn't much of a match for her there either but she started feeling a little guilty for showing off and let him win a few rounds of Mortal Kombat.
When the place closed at ten, they headed back to Forks. The only thing left open at that hour for anyone under the age of twenty-one was the cinema and Tara said she'd rather save the activity for their next date out. Seth agreed with her.
"So did you have a good time tonight?" he asked her on the drive back.
"The best." she smiled.
"Honest?"
"Honest." She couldn't remember when she'd had that much fun, even in her human years.
"I wish there was more to do. Everything closes pretty early. They try to push a curfew on kids in the smaller towns. Keeps problems down to a minimum."
Tara looked out the window. A full moon lit in the sky. "What about the beach?" she suggested.
"What about it?"
"Could we go for a walk on the beach, or is it getting too late for you?"
"No, it's not too late. Anything you want," he said, liking the idea.
"Anything?" Her eye brows rose.
"Sure." He shrugged, keeping his eyes in the road ahead.
"Can we go to Disneyland?" There was a glint of excitement in her eyes.
He titled his head, giving her a funny look. "Um, are you being serious?"
She shook her head giggling. "No, I just wanted to see if you'd actually say yes."
Seth laughed. "You know I think you have more human traits than you give yourself credit for."
"Why do you say that?" She sounded disbelieving.
"Because… you're fun and you have a great personality. You display a lot of human qualities. You haven't lost them, they're all there."
"Maybe it's just the company that brings it out of me."
"Weren't you like this, you know…before?" he asked.
She understood he was referring to when she was a human. "Actually, I was a very shy kid."
"Really?"
"Yes, I told you I stood out and I didn't like it. I always tried to find ways to hide, blend in."
Seth began to make the connection to her gift now. "So I'll bet you were one of those bookworms that always got straight A's," he teased.
"Pretty much. If we had returned from Italy I would have graduated that year."
"At sixteen?"
"Is that bad?" She couldn't remember if that was normal or not.
"No that's great." He said, impressed. "I hope you don't think I'm prying too much tonight."
"Actually, it's stirring up a lot of memories for me. A lot of it's coming back now. You may keep asking. I like it."
Seth drove Tara to a closer beach with easier access. He parked the car and opened her door for her again. She took her shoes off so she could feel the sand on her feet as she walked. The night was unusually clear with a beaming moon, reflecting off the water and a sky full of stars. It was rare you could see so many stars at night in Forks.
After a long stroll she sat him down to show him some of the constellations that were visible particularly pointing out the constellation Lupus which in Latin means wolf. It impressed him that she could name so many.
She scooted closer to him putting her head on his shoulder and they talked for a long time more, watching the waves roll in and out. Seth ran his fingers through her hair caressing it the entire time. "You're hair is like silk. I've never felt anything so soft before."
She turned her face and look up at him. Unable to resist the temptation to kiss her lips, he cradled her face in his hand and pulled it to his. His fingers trailed down her cheek to her neck. She closed her eyes taking pleasure in the warmth of his skin. Then as he brushed her hair back, his mouth moved along her cheek and down to her neck. When his lips met the base of her neckline and she gasped, pulling back slightly. She paused and looked at him with surprise. Her eyes darkened. "I'm sorry. You don't like that?" he said.
She shook her head, staring into his eyes like she was in a trance. "No, actually… I like it a lot," she spoke softly. She timidly raised her hand towards her face and pushed her hair behind her ear then she turned her head slightly, offering her neck to him again. He leaned in against her ear with his lips. She felt his warm breath on her skin as he spoke. "Are you sure you're okay?" he whispered.
She closed her eyes and nodded. His lips brushed her neck softly. He parted his lips slightly and warmly greeted her neck with his tongue. She stiffened up at first sitting perfectly still trying to let certain urges pass. "Still ok?" he asked again.
"Mm-hmm," she mumbled, with her eyes still closed.
"Are you nervous?" he was still whispering softly in her ear while teasing her neck.
"You could say that."
He pulled back to see her eyes but they were still closed. "It seems like you're resisting a little."
She opened them after noticing he stopped. "You have no idea," she admitted.
"Come here," he said as he turned her and pulled her up on his lap. He cradled her in his arms tenderly.
"If anything gets to be too much, just say so. I just like being close to you this way. It feels really nice."
She wrapped her arms around him, feeling his pounding heart against her chest. His fingers gently stroked her hair and shoulders."I'm just a little nervous about touching you, she admitted."You'd tell me if anything I did hurt wouldn't you?"
"Ah, I'm pretty sure I'd let you know."
She turned her head to look at his tender smile. Then she reached up to his face and touched it, his cheek softly with her cool hands. "Am I too cold for you?" she worried.
"Nope. You're just nice and cool." He put his hand against hers on his cheek.
"Not in a creepy way?"
"No, not creepy," he chuckled.
She leaned in and pressed her lips to his very slowly. The feel of his blazing hot skin against hers aroused her. Within minutes she became more excited and less fearful. She adjusted her position sitting herself in his lap in a straddled position. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. She put her hands to his face and began to softly kiss his forehead and worked her way past his temples. Then she slid her hands lower so she could kiss his cheeks until she reached his ear. "Do you trust me?" she whispered.
He nodded.
She leaned into his neck brushing her nose and lips long the base, softy kissing it. He quivered and she grinned at the reaction. Her lips slowly trailed back up his neck to his ear. "How did I do?" she wondered.
"You gave me goose bumps," he confessed.
She kissed him again but this time more passionately. His hands gripped her tighter, pressing her body against his. He kept one hand at the small of her back and slid the other one to the base of her neck entwining his fingers in her hair, his mouth at her neck again. She exhaled as she felt his hand gently gliding up her back under her shirt. She felt the blaze of his palm against her bare skin of her back. Her desire for him intensified as their bodies moved against each other. She felt herself losing control, impassioned by the feel of his heated body pressed against hers tightly. Suddenly, she shoved him back onto the sand, thrusting her body against his. He groaned but not in a good way. "Easy there Hercules," he said when he landed on his back.
"Are you hurt?" she gasped.
"No," he breathed heavily. Then his mouth was on hers again without hesitation. He rolled her on her side so they lay side by side. His hand trailed down the side of her body being careful of his boundaries. Tara's hand slid up the front of Seth shirt and ripped it open. The buttons flew off, exposing his chest and then he pulled back. "Ah, this was a good shirt," he said.
"I'll get you a new one," she whispered in his ear and then her mouth was on his again. She slid her hands over his bare chest and then around the side of his body gripping him to hold him even tighter. It was the sound of a snap that made her freeze suddenly just before she gasped. Seth pulled back as he sucked in a breath of air, groaning and squeezing his eyes shut. "Okay…” he winced. “Now I hurt."
"Seth! Oh. I'm so sorry!"
He grabbed his side exhaling slowly. "Ah…uh, I think something might be broken," he gasped as a sharp pain stabbed the side of his body.
Tara felt horrified by what she'd done. The thought of hurting him sickened her. "Oh no! No..no!" She slid off his lap and scooted away from him.
He breathed slowly trying to speak, shaking his head, wanting to remove the burden of her guilt. "It'll be ok...I'll be fine."
"No, you should have Carlisle look at it. It could be worse than you think. I...I can't believe I hurt you like that. I just lost control..." Remorse filled her eyes.
"Tara stop...don't beat yourself up...it's not like I was pushing you away."
"Maybe you should have," she scowled.
"Cut that out. I wanted to be close to you. We'll just have to figure this out somehow."
"We have to get you looked at. I need to take you back." Tara helped Seth get to the car and argued with him over who was going to drive. She wasn't serious, but she convincingly threatened to break more than just his ribs if he didn't hand over the keys to the car so she could drive him. Seth figured it was gonna be either her or Edward so he gave in and handed her the keys.
Tara drove insanely fast up the small dark road. Her eyes saw perfectly in the dark. She handled the car very skillfully racing at an intense rate of speed. "Tara, slow down! This is not an emergency!"
She turned her eyes towards him quickly and then looked back at the road. He could see she was upset. "Tara, I mean it, slow down! You don't have a license and Charlie's working tonight. He will pull you over and I really, really don't want to face that. Okay?"
She let up on the pedal. "Does it hurt much?" she worried.
"Only when I breathe."
"Oh… great."
"Don't sweat it. It's not my first vampire-related injury. It'll heal fast."
"Not your first?"
"Ah no…actually Bella and Ness have caused a couple. And not to mention the battles we were in. Those were pretty scary. This is nothing. I'll take a few broken bones from you any day," he winked.
"Don't joke about this Seth. It's not funny that I hurt you."
He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Sorry. I'll save the humor for when you are in a better mood."
Tara gave him an irritated look. She purposefully jerked the car slightly to the right and then back on the road quickly. Seth's body jerked with the movement. "Ow! Hey, what are you doing?"
"I told you it wasn't funny." She snapped.
Seth smirked. "Okay, that's just mean."
She gave him another threatening look.
"Fine, I'll stop. Just quit driving all crazy-like." He sighed again. "I'm gonna close my eyes. Tell me when we get there."
"Good!" she huffed. He put his head back on the seat and closed his eyes, gripping his chest with his arms. She peeked over at him. It was quiet except for the hum of the engine. Finally she reached her hand over and rested it on his leg. The guilt overwhelmed her. Seth didn't open his eyes. He simply moved one hand and set it on top of hers. They drove the rest of the way without another word between them.

They arrived back at the house at nearly three in the morning.
"Don't move," she said just before getting of the car. She parked and zipped around to the other side to open the door.
Seth groaned as he stood up. "Not the front door. Can you sneak me in a back entrance? See if Ness left the window open or something." Seth hoped to avoid the majority of the family.
Tara took him around to the side of the house where Renesmee's bedroom was. The window was wide open. She eyed Renesmee's open window, planning her jump. She gently wrapped her arms around Seth's waist. "This might hurt a bit. You sure you don't wanna go in the front?"
"Positive." He gave her a stern look.
Tara held onto Seth and leaped up and through the window. "Ow." He spoke calmly even though it really hurt more than he wanted to lead on. He exhaled trying to take very small breaths to ease the pain.
"Sorry. I tried to be gentle."
"I know, thank you," he smiled. "Now, let's find Carlisle, quietly."
As they walked towards the door a voice spoke from the dark. "Hey guys. How was the date? Wait…what are you doing in my room?" Renesmee sat up, still a bit groggy.
"Shhh, go back to sleep Ness. We're just sneaking in quietly, I'll tell you everything later," Tara said.
Renesmee had excellent night vision as well. She took a good look at Seth. She could tell something was very wrong. His clothing looked ragged and he gripped his side as if he were in pain. "Are you okay ? What happened? You get mauled by a wild animal or something?"
"Ah not exactly, but you're guess is not far off," Seth winked at Tara. She didn't find it amusing at all.
He tugged Tara's hand hoping to slip past as quickly as possible before Renesmee caught on. She stared at him with a bewildered expression but finally read their faces clearly and within a few moments she burst into a fit of laughter.
"Shhh, Ness cut it out!" Seth whispered loudly through his teeth. Renesmee continued to laugh so hard that she fell off the bed with a loud thud.
Seth just put his hand to his face with embarrassment and sighed. "Oh geeze, come on," he said to Tara as he continued to walk towards the door but when he opened it he there were already six curious vampires standing in the hallway, waiting to see what the commotion was.
Carlisle took one look at Seth and knew something was not right. The he looked over at Renesmee who was wiping the tears from her eyes in hysterics. "Um, Everything okay Ness?" Carlisle asked.
"Oh I'm fine, but you might wanna give Seth some attention." She giggled.
"Seth?" Carlisle took a look at Seth who tried to avoid looking anyone in the eye.
He just let out a deep sigh. "Ah, I have an injury I need looked at," he admitted.
He saw Seth gripping his sides with both arms. "May I?" Carlisle asked before lifting Seth's shirt to examine him."
Seth nodded. Carlisle gently touched the injured area. Seth held his breath as Carlisle pushed in a little. "You're lucky I just got off work. Is that tender?" he asked as he looked at the bruised area.
"Yep," Seth exhaled.
"Maybe I should have a closer look then. I have an exam room down the hall, let me take you there," he said as he gripped Seth's arm helping him.
Emmett and Jasper both noticed the enormous look of guilt on Tara's face and they both had enormous grins on their faces. "Nice going Tara, break your new toy already?" Emmett said.
Tara growled at him in passing.
Emmett just snickered. Then he whispered in Jasper's ear. "You owe me fifty bucks," Emmett said to him as he nudged him.
Tara turned towards the both of them giving them a dirty look. "What the ... did you guys make bets on this?"
They both looked at each other with guilt on their faces. "Hey! I had fifty bucks that said you wouldn't kill him on the first date. I knew you'd come through." Emmett just smiled trying to defend his bet.
Tara's eyes turned to daggers as she scowled at him.
"Better run Emmett!" Bella laughed.
Edward grabbed Tara before she took off after him and turned her back in the direction Carlisle was headed with Seth. Both the boys were still snickering from behind.
Carlisle took him to a small office that had an examination bed like the kind you see in a doctor's office. There was a large cabinet which held medical supplies and a small desk with a chair and a lamp. Not much else could fit in the crowded room.
Tara stood back in the corner with a grimace on her face and arms folded into her chest as she watched. Edward and Bella stood at the door and the others peaked in from behind in the hall to see try and hear what was going on. Carlisle helped Seth lay on the table so he could get a better look at him.
Seth moved very slowly as he laid on his back trying to relax as best he could. Carlisle lifted his shirt and lightly pressed several areas checking for injuries. Seth tried as hard as he could not to make a peep even though it hurt each time. He couldn't stand seeing the guilt on Tara's face and he knew it would only make her feel worse.
"Hmm, I don't feel anything broken but it's very hard to tell without an X-ray.” The doctor said. “It might just be bruised in which case it could feel just as bad as a break. It's possible it started to heal on your way back here. Don't worry though. I won't have to reset anything."
"So is the treatment the same either way?" Seth asked.
"Yup, I'm just gonna wrap you and immobilize you for a while."
“Then do it, no need for X-rays. This will heal fast anyways."
Carlisle nodded. He reached into the supply cabinet to grab an elastic wrap. "So, would anyone care to tell me how this happened?" he asked as he pulled him into a sitting position and started to wrap the elastic around his rib cage.
"Um…. well, I kissed her…"
Carlisle chuckled. "Didn't I hear you got punched in the stomach last time you did that?"
"Yeah well, this time she didn't mind the kissing part so much."
"Mmm, I can see that from the extent of the injury you got this time." He winked.
"Right." Seth smiled, attempting to chuckle at Carlisle's sarcasm.
Edward had a disturbed look on his face. He saw the entire event in Tara's mind over and over as she replayed it in her head. He couldn't remain silent anymore. "Tara! How could you?" he said in an angered tone.
She looked at him with a stunned expression. "Hey! Get out of my head, those thoughts are private!" she shouted.
"Well you make it impossible when you think so loudly. He's human Tara. How could you be so careless? You could have killed him!" Edward looked at her very seriously. He wanted her to get the point.
Her mood changed to anger. "I didn't mean to and you know it!"
"Edward stop!" Bella cut in.
"No Bella, she has to know what could have happened." He turned back to Tara. "That was very foolish of you to think you two are even ready for..." Tara cut him off when she leaped across the room and stood directly in front of him growling. She balled her fists tightly and purposefully though of ways to physically hurt him.
"Don't even think about it young lady! I can see every move you are going to make." He scolded her like a child.
Tara didn't like having her thoughts invaded. Edward knew her personality and that she was just being over-emotional and overreacting out of anger.
"Just so you know, had you killed him… not only would you have taken the life of one of my closest friends, you would have broken our treaty with our allies. Do you even understand that?" Edward hissed.
Tara felt even worse now than before. She looked at Seth and realized the damage she could have done. She couldn't speak because she became too overwhelmed with anguish and guilt. She stormed out of the room.
"Tara wait!" Seth tried to move but Carlisle had his iron grip on him."What the hell was that for?" Seth growled as he turned to Edward. He didn't like the way Edward spoke with her at all. "She was already feeling horrible enough as it is, why did you have to gut her like that?"
"Because she's inexperienced and naïve. She needs to know how badly this could have ended for everyone."
"You're seriously not going to be this much of a hypocrite are you Edward? After all you went through with Bella? You're gonna lecture her?" Seth pointed out.
"I know. And I was lucky. I could have made the same mistake. That's exactly why I'm telling her this so she knows too. I just want her to know what she's dealing with here. I don't want either of you to get hurt. You have to be more careful that that. She could have broken more than a couple ribs, you're lucky she didn't crush your skull."
"Yeah, well she wasn't even touching my skull!" he said sarcastically.
Emmett and Jasper snickered as they listened from out in the hall. Emmett whispered to Jasper. "Yeah it definitely could have been worse than his skull I think." He and Jasper snickered.
Seth rolled his eyes, giving them an angry glare.
"You're too emotional about this Seth, you're not thinking with your head," Edward continued.
Emmett and Jasper snickered even more. "Oh I think he was," Jasper mumbled to Emmett and made him roar with laughter.
"All right, that's enough out of you two! Everyone out, I wanna talk to Seth alone." Carlisle demanded.
Everyone quickly obeyed and moved out of the room. He shut the door behind them so they could talk privately. Seth slowly slid off the table. "How do you feel about her?" Carlisle asked him.
"I love her."
"Have you told her that?"
"No. I only told her about the imprint and I was shocked at how well she took it. I just don't wanna mess things up. If she feels the same way, she'll tell me. I don't wanna push it."
"Okay, then. I suggest you wait till she can handle things with you then. This is all new territory. She has to get used to the fact that you're not indestructible."
"Can she?" he worried.
"Oh, I think so. Edward and Bella figured it out and Bella doesn't have the healing capabilities you do. Just give her some time. She doesn't know her own strength around you. Edward once told me it was easier than fighting off the desire for blood, and that's not something you have to worry about with her. I think with time she'll figure it out, but…be careful regardless. I don't want to have to be treating you for injuries on a daily basis."
Seth nodded. "Think she's pretty upset, I need to go talk to her. Thanks for everything Carlisle."
"You're welcome." He patted his shoulder.
Seth walked down the hallway. He hoped Tara hadn't left the house since he wasn't in any condition to chase her. He decided to check Renesmee's room. "Tara?" he spoke softly as he stepped through the doorway.
There was no reply.
Seth stepped into the room farther. He finally spotted her sitting behind the bed on the floor. Her legs were tucked in closed to her body and she wrapped her arms around them and them burying her face in her knees. "Hey," he said to her as he started walking closer.
She didn't move. He couldn't quite tell, but it appeared as though was crying from the way she looked. Then he heard the faint sobs. "Hey," he said again but in a more soothing tone. He went right to her side and knelt down next to her. It was a painful movement for him but he didn't even think twice about it. He put his hand on her shoulder.
"Tara, look at me." He said.
She lifted her head and grimaced. "What are you doing? You should be resting," she said.
Seth was clutching his ribs."I can't rest if I know you are upset." He looked at her face. "Are you…crying?" he asked her as he touched her chin with his fingers.
"I don't know if you can call it that."
"No tears," he wiped her cheek as if he were wiping away a tear from her face. It felt completely smooth and dry.
"No, we only feel the pain and there's no way to release it so it stays bottled up. It's agonizing for us."
"Well stop. Don't do that to yourself."
"I can't help it Seth, I'm so disgusted with myself. Edward was right."
"No, he shouldn't have said all that to you. I know you didn't mean to hurt me. Things just got carried away. I half expected this to happen."
"What? You expected it? You knew I'd hurt you?"
"Well you're a vampire Tara, I know your strength. You've displayed it quite thoroughly to me before, especially when you're mad. I'm actually kinda surprised this isn't something that happened sooner."
"That's because I have excellent control when I'm in a fight, even when I angry I control my actions better. But when you touch me or kiss me…I just turn to mush. I wasn't thinking about my actions. That's very dangerous for you."
"Mush?" Seth laughed. "Really? Is that what I do to you?"
She didn't like him laughing at the situation. "Yes…since you find that so amusing….It takes every ounce of strength in me not to pin you down and…." Tara stopped talking abruptly, realizing she'd said way too much.
"And… what?" Seth became ever so curious now.
Tara shook her head. She definitely said too much and she knew he wouldn't let her avoid it. She stuck her head between her knees again and covered her face, not looking him in the eyes. "Have my way with you," she mumbled.
Both Seth's eyebrows went up. "Oh..."
She sighed. Then she turned her head towards him again. "You understand very little about what vampires crave don't you." she said.
"I know they crave blood," he answered.
"Yes, that's not all though, we're very sensual and carnal creatures usually guided by our appetites, especially new vampires, it's much worse for them. As I think you know, most vampires are very, animalistic, they lack feelings, emotions, they have no conscience. That part of us sometimes gets lost when we lose our humanity. But I've worked very hard to try and hold onto mine, and when I was strong enough, I was able to remove myself from that world. But unfortunately that left me with nothing….unable to fit in anywhere, and being alone has been hard on me. But since I have been with you though,…you've wakened something in me I thought I had lost forever. I've never felt this way around anyone. I feel like I can't be close enough to you, even when you are standing right in front of me. And touching you...it's like nothing I've ever felt before. You're so unbelievably warm and soft. I've just never experienced a human before."
"Um….so…. what have you experienced?" Seth wondered. Tara's eyes opened wide. Then she looked away, embarrassed by his question. "Oh…uh...I'm sorry. That was inappropriate of me. I shouldn't have asked that."
Tara took Seth's hand in both of hers. She gently caressed his palm feeling the warmth of his skin on her fingertips. "You need rest. Let's find you a bed," she said.
"The couch will be just fine. I'd rather be sitting inclined."
Tara nodded, helping him. He took Tara's hand and walked with her to the living room and sat on the couch with a groan then let out a large exhale when he was put his head back and closed his eyes. She stood there unsure of what to do with herself. "I should probably leave you to rest," she said making a gesture to leave.
Seth's eyes popped open and he lifted his head again. "No, stay…please." He held his hand out to her.
She walked back to him and took his hand and sat next to him. They looked at each other quietly for a while. Then she looked down. His palm was in hers and she stroked the back of his hand feeling its warmth. Touching a human was always an exhilarating experience but she never imagined being intimate with one. Humans only feared her. She always made her feedings quick, never paying close attention to them, never getting too personal. But discovering the experience of feeling his heated blood pumping through his veins while his soft flesh pressed against hers was inebriating. She had a new found desire for her new human companion.
Tara curled up her body next to Seth's, watching him as he started to nod off. She had too much on her mind however and couldn't resist the urge to talk."Seth?" She caressed his arm as she spoke.
"Hmmm?" he mumbled back as he began to doze.
"May I ask you something personal?" She looked as his hand while she spoke running her fingertips over is palm and over each finger.
"Sure," he mumbled as he was drifting off.
"Have you ever…?" she trailed off without finishing.
"Ever what?" he wondered.
"Are you… a virgin?"
Seth eyes shot open. His state of relaxation was completely blown away by her question. "Uh, where did that come from?"
"I dunno. I was just thinking about...things. I mean it doesn't matter to me whether you are or not…I was just curious. I could've just assumed it based on your age but you really never know. From what I can remember boys didn't always wait till they were married, even in my day."
"Well, just for the record, I'm not a boy, I'm eighteen. I own a business, and I'm the oldest male of my household now. So in my world, that makes me a grown man. But to answer your question honestly…," he sighed and rolled his eyes. “….yes, I am still a virgin.”
She squeezed his hand has gently as she could. "That's very honorable. I think it's great that you have the choice and yet you waited this long. It's quite unheard of these days."
"Yeah, well, I guess I just want it to be with the right one, ya know?"
"It's very sweet," she smiled at him, still caressing his hand. Tara quietly watched him for a while as she thought. She wanted to answer his question from earlier, but feared his reaction to her answer. "I had a mate," she finally confessed.
Seth's head came off the couch. She had his full attention now.
"It's not what you think though. It's not something you could understand, but I will try to explain."
Seth listened intently as Tara opened up to him.
"I didn't choose it really. It just worked out that way. He was my maker…the one who bit me. His name was Derek. He hadn't been with the Volturi for very long at the time. He was a new born they took in only because of his rare gift, like they did with me."
"You fell in love with the one who turned you?" he said in almost a whisper.
"No, I didn't love him." She shook her head.
"Then why were you his mate?"
"I told you, it wasn't by choice." Her eyes met his. She could see Seth didn't like the sound of that.
"Have you ever heard of Stockholm Syndrome?" she asked.
Seth nodded. "I think so."
"It was something like that, but in my case it was more out of obedience and loyalty."
"Because he created you?" he asked.
"I suppose. I hated him at first. I hated all of them. But eventually it was the only life I knew. He was the only one I had to turn to. I had no choices." She paused for a moment then spoke again. "I told you, vampires have certain cravings. New borns crave blood but also…." She didn't finish the sentence, but Seth understood.
"Derek was always the one to feed me. I became dependant on him until I finally… desired it." She looked away shamefully. "I'm sorry I just wanted to be honest with you."
He squeezed her hand. "Thank you, but you don't have to be sorry." Seth tried to recall all the names of the Volturi that came to Forks. He wondered if he had actually seen him before. "Is he still there? I don't remember a Derek, but there were so many of them, it's hard to say."
"No, never came to Forks. He's dead."
"Dead?"
"Yes, I killed him. It was the only way I could escape. Needless to say Aro was not pleased and I'm not sure he has not forgotten, even to this day."
"Why did you decide to leave?" he asked. He could see she looked very reluctant to tell him.
"Because of my abilities, they used me to retrieve tourists for feedings. I always brought them to the same room I was turned in." She took another long pause before she continued. "One time while I was feeding, something caught my attention in the room. It was something shiny from under one of the pieces of furniture. It was my locket. As soon as I saw the pictures of my parents, I remembered. I remembered what I used to be and what they did to me. The next time Derek and I went out to hunt, I killed him and fled. I could have just ran and hid from him, but I wanted him to pay. I wanted to destroy him for what he'd done to me." Her eyes became darker as she spoke.
Seth sat completely silent. Tara looked at his face and could see it was a lot for him to absorb but he never once looked at her with disgust in his expression. His eyes always looked upon her with affection.
"I think I've said enough. I'll tell you more later, if still want me to. I think you should sleep now," she whispered to him.
Seth nodded. He slid down into the couch in the most comfortable position he could find and closed his eyes. Tara sat close to him and stroked his face until he fell asleep.

A few hours passed…. Tara never moved from her spot. Once Seth fell asleep she just stayed with him, watching him sleep. Occasionally she touched his face or his hand. She observed his breathing and listened to his calm heart beat. He was in a comfortable dream state. She let her hand wander down his neck feeling the beat of his pulse, then continued on down to his chest each of his pectoral muscles though his shirt. She let her fingertips glide down the side of his body until she found his rib cage being as gentle as she could. At one point he moaned and she pulled her hand back quickly thinking perhaps she was hurting him but it really wasn't the case at all. She tried it again, being even more careful, letting her hands wander up and down his arms. She turned her head slightly to see Edward standing in the room with an odd look on his face. She sighed, "Oh...were my thoughts too loud for you again?" she said in a sarcastic tone.
"Um…sorry, I didn't mean to intrude but yes, I could hear them a little too clearly."
Tara just sighed. "Well it's impossible not to think about him. You'll just have to start tuning me out."
"I understand…that part about it being impossible to stop thinking about him. I understand that more than you know."
Tara kept looking at Seth sleeping. "I'm sorry for getting angry with you."
"Apology accepted. Forgive me for being so hard on you. I only did it for your own good."
She nodded. "You were right."
"It's not impossible you know." Edward was listening again.
Tara looked him strait in the eyes. "I can only hope that's true. I can't imagine life without him."
"I can tell you, I was scared to death of hurting Bella, especially on our honeymoon. I feared I might not even bring her back alive."
"But you brought back two lives," she smiled.
Edward smiled too.
"Yes we did," Bella said as she had crept up from behind and wrapped her arms around Edward. "I just always knew Edward would never hurt me. I think the fear of it stood out in his mind so much he was always overly cautious with me." she explained.
"You were certainly lucky Bella. Edward was in perfect control of his actions obviously."
"It wasn't without great effort," he admitted.
"Seth could protect himself though. He's not so vulnerable when he phases."
"No he's not, but he won't hurt you. I've read his mind. He'd die first."
"I can't allow that." She looked at him sleeping peacefully.
"He's dreaming about you," Edward said.
"Then maybe you really shouldn't be listening." She told him.
Edward chuckled. "It's nothing like that, otherwise I'd definitely tune it out."
Tara became silent again. She turned her attention to Seth. Edward listened to her thoughts.
"Just be much more careful," he warned.

The next morning…
When Seth woke, he saw Tara sitting on the couch next to him, motionless like a statue. He lifted his head. "Hi."
"Hi," she replied.
He noticed she still wore the same clothes from the date. "Did you sit here all night with me?"
"Yes. How do you feel?" she asked.
He sat up looking at his chest and rubbing his hands over the area that was in pain the night before. "Good as new," he said. "How about you? Do you feel any better?"
"Actually I had a terrible night, I couldn't sleep at all," she winked keeping the mood light.
Seth chuckled at her humor. Then he became distracted by something. "Do I smell bacon?"
"Yup, Esme is making you breakfast. She asked me to bring you to the kitchen when you woke up. I told her you'd probably have no trouble finding it yourself, she smirked.
"You're right about that but I'll gladly accept the escort. Lead the way."
She took his hands pulling him up and he followed her towards the aroma. Alice, Rosalie and Esme were all in the kitchen, talking quietly. Rosalie continued to express her dislike for the situation. She still had concerns about Tara and Seth drawing too much attention to the family and now there was also the added issue of her harming him and damaging their truce with the Pack. Even though Rosalie had no love for the wolves she liked that they protected Renesmee so it was to her benefit to keep them around.
Esme scooped some eggs onto a plate for Seth when the couple walked in. She made plenty for Jacob and Renesmee as well, knowing they'd be coming too. "You know you'll never get rid of me if you keep putting food out Esme," Seth joked.
"See, I warned you not to feed the strays," Rosalie snorted.
Esme nudged her to be quiet. "Well, I know humans are hungry when they wake up so I thought I'd make you something." She smiled. "And we like keeping you around," she continued, giving Rosalie a darting look to make sure she kept her comments to herself.
"Thanks Esme. You're like my favorite mom-away-from-home," he complimented.
Rosalie groaned, rolling her eyes.
Tara tried to think of a comeback for her when she was distracted by something that caught her nose. "Um…what exactly did you cook?" Tara looked around the room as though she was searching for something.
Esme thought it was a strange thing to ask. "Just some eggs…bacon and toast, why?"
"Don't tell me you're thinking about eating human food now," Rosalie said sarcastically.
Tara wrinkled her nose. "Don't you smell that?" she asked the three of them.
They all three quickly came to attention like they were alerted by some sort of inner alarm that just went off. Then they heard the most blood curdling scream come from upstairs. They all quickly flew out of the kitchen and ran to Renesmee's room.
Seth followed as quickly as he could at his human speed. When he entered, he saw the four vampires fixing their eyes on Renesmee whose clothes were stained with blood.