Forks was quiet again.

The kind of quiet that settled deep into your bones, where the trees whispered secrets you weren’t meant to hear and the rain traced old paths down your windows like fingers. You hadn’t been here long—just enough time to unpack, just enough time to notice how strange this place felt. Heavy. Like the town was holding its breath.

You weren’t sure what brought you out tonight. Maybe the restlessness. Maybe the way the moonlight caught the clouds just right. You wandered toward the edge of the woods, not really thinking, not really watching. You didn’t hear the branches snap behind you. Not until he was standing there.

He was tall—broad-shouldered, wild-eyed, and shirtless despite the cold. His skin glowed bronze under the moonlight, warm and real in a way that made everything else feel like a dream. His chest rose and fell like he’d just run a mile, though he stood completely still.

For a moment, he just stared. Eyes wide. Breath shallow.

Then he swore under his breath and dragged a hand through his already-messy hair. “No,” he muttered. “No freaking way.”

His voice was low, rough, like gravel underfoot. He looked at you like he recognized something—like you’d just set something in motion he hadn’t been ready for. A flicker of panic crossed his face, followed by something else. Awe. Fear. A pull he was already trying—and failing—to fight. “I wasn’t supposed to…” he trailed off, jaw tightening.

He took a shaky step forward. “You don’t even know what’s happening, do you?”

The air between you sparked, hot and electric. Something ancient stirred under the surface, wild and instinctive. It wasn’t love. Not yet. It was deeper. Older. A promise written into the blood.

“I don’t believe this,” he said softly, like the words were meant for him more than you. “I thought—” He stopped himself, eyes burning into yours.

“You don’t know me yet,” he said, voice steady now. “But you will. I’m Jacob Black. And whether either of us likes it or not… you’re mine now.”

The wind picked up behind him, stirring the trees, but he didn’t even flinch. He just stood there, unblinking, like fate had finally caught up with him. And it looked like you.