(Thomas POV)
The day before my graduation, I found myself turning onto the reservation road with the uncomfortable feeling that I had left something behind.
The sky was doing its Forks impression…low clouds, damp light, the world painted in wet greens and grays. My fingers tightened around the steering wheel when I passed the familiar sign and imagined the invisible line of the treaty.
Edythe had been very unhappy that she couldn't come, but the treaty simply made that impossible.
She'd kissed me at the door, eyes warm, and then she'd smoothed her hands down the front of my jacket like she was straightening me for a job interview.
"You better get good video so I can torture her with it later when we watch together," she'd told me, voice light.
"Do you think you wasted all the time you took showing me how this little camera works?" I'd asked.
Her smile had sharpened. "I better not have."
And then, softer, with her forehead against mine: "Tell her I'm proud of her. Make sure she knows I wanted to be there for her."
That part had landed in my chest and stayed there all the way to La Push.
Leah was graduating from the reservation school today. Seth had texted me three times this morning, each message more excited than the last, as if I might forget.
I parked where I was directed and followed the flow of people toward the school gym. The sound hit first, voices layered, laughter, the squeak of shoes on polished floor, the sharp pop of balloons.
The smell hit second.
People. Warm bodies. Unfamiliar detergent. Paper programs. A faint hint of sweat and rain and hair spray. Real life. My shoulders started to tighten, and my heart picked up pace before I paused. Taking a deep breath in through the nose and out the mouth, I calmed down and squared my shoulders once again. Pushing old habits to the back of my mind…after I looked for all the exits anyway.
Seth saw me before I found Leah.
He came barreling through a cluster of parents like a golden retriever in a vest, his hair falling out of the careful part I was sure his mother gave him, his grin too big for his face.
"Thomas!" he hissed, like this was supposed to be quiet, and then immediately failed at quiet by grabbing my arm and tugging me toward the bleachers. "You made it!"
"I said I would."
"Yeah, but lots of people say things," Seth said, eyes bright. "You actually following through is part of what makes you special to Leah, and me."
I snorted and ruffled his hair. "Good to see you too."
He leaned in, voice dropping like he was sharing sacred information. "Leah hasn't smiled yet."
I glanced past him, scanning. There…near the side wall, a line of students in caps and gowns, and Leah stood among them alone it seemed even in a group of people. Everyone kept their distance from her. Her cap sat straight. Her shoulders were squared. Her expression was controlled.
But her eyes kept flicking, searching.
Seth saw me looking and practically vibrated. "She's pretending she doesn't care, but she does."
"I know."
He grinned wider. "You showing up is going to wreck her whole day in a good way."
Before I could respond, Sue Clearwater stepped into our path.
She didn't rush. She didn't glare. She just arrived with that quiet authority some moms had, the kind that made people stop talking without knowing why.
Her eyes landed on me, and just like last time I felt my posture straighten automatically.
"Thomas," she said, pleasant enough that a stranger would've thought it was warm.
"Sue," I answered carefully, not sure how she would respond to my presence.
Her gaze flicked once, fast, like she was checking behind me for a second set of footsteps that wouldn't be coming. Then she looked back at my face.
"I'm glad you came," she said. And because she was Sue, she added the rest of the sentence without saying it: even if you had to come alone.
"Leah wanted me here," I replied. It was true, and it was the only thing that mattered. "And Edythe is torn that she couldn't come."
Sue's mouth tightened, just a fraction. "Leah wants a lot of things lately, not all of them good for her."
Seth made a noise beside me, that was half cough and half please don't start something right now.
I didn't rise to it. Not here. Not today.
"I'm not here to make trouble," I said quietly.
Sue studied me for a beat, then nodded once like she'd filed the answer away for later. "Good."
Then she surprised me by adding, softer, "She deserves people who show up for her. You will sit with me and Seth, I have a spot saved."
Seth's head snapped toward her like he'd never heard her say something that direct before.
Sue didn't let it become a moment. She adjusted Seth's collar with a brisk tug that made him squawk and then moved past us toward the rows of parents.
Seth exhaled. "That was… better than I expected."
"Same," I muttered. "I planned to stay to the side to get good video for Edythe but I don't think it would be wise to turn your mother down."
Seth smiled, "Leah said you were smarter than you looked."
I popped his collar as a joke to get him in trouble, but he was quick to flatten it. Then we followed Sue to our seats. As soon as I stopped moving, I had the video recorder focused on Leah.
The gym settled in waves. Students were herded back into line. The principal stepped up to the microphone. And introduced the valedictorian who gave a very forgetful speech about new beginnings. Leah's face still looked stony. Then the principal took the microphone again and the names began after a brief request that everyone hold their applause until the end.
Time did that strange ceremony thing where it moved too slow and too fast at once.
When Leah's name was called 'Leah Clearwater' she walked like she was made of steel, but I saw it: the tiny flicker in her eyes when she spotted Seth's wild waving, and then, half a second later, when she found me. If she had been any less graceful, I was sure she would have fallen at seeing me sitting between Seth and her mother. I gave her the biggest smile I could and then with my free hand, I pointed to the video recorder and mouthed 'Edythe'.
Her face didn't change.
But her eyes did.
They warmed, and then when she made out my word, she rolled her eyes and gave a small wave to the camera.
She took her diploma, shook hands, turned. And for a heartbeat, as she started toward her seat, her mouth tugged like it almost remembered how to smile.
Seth elbowed me hard enough to bruise. "She looked at you."
"I noticed."
"She waved for the camera."
"I noticed," I repeated, and Seth's grin almost split his face in half.
Sue looked at me and in a soft voice, "Could I get a copy of that video, please."
I gave her a nod, "I will make a disk for you to watch. If you have any pictures you want on the video just let me know… Maybe some of Harry."
Sue nodded and wiped a tear out of her eye before putting on a straight face just like Leah did. This must be where Leah learned it.
After the ceremony, the gym exploded into its post-event chaos. People surged toward the graduates, hugs and photos and flowers.
Seth disappeared into a dogpile of relatives and pack members.
Leah moved with purpose toward the exit like she was trying to outrun the attention. Specifically avoiding groups with pack members.
I caught up to her outside, where the air was cooler and the noise dulled. Video recorder still cupped in my hand and rolling. I could cut the useless stuff out later and didn't want to miss any good stuff because the camera was off.
"Hey," I said. "Trying to avoid someone?"
She turned. Still in cap and gown. Still composed. But her eyes were sharper up close, like she was holding something in. "The fake congratulations from people who turned their backs on me or kicked me when I was down. All the crap about letting school things go now that we were adults…it turned my stomach."
I pulled her into a hug, "Those people don't matter today. Your mom, your brother and the pack. They are all here for you."
"You are here for me, it means a lot."
"After spending all morning convincing Edythe that no layer of disguise would work, I am surprised I made it on time."
She chuckled, "She didn't?"
"Oh… You have no idea. She tried to cover her smell so many different ways she still smelled wrong when I left."
That got me an actual laugh, not one of her guarded ones either but a carefree laugh. Music to my ears.
She pulled back from my embrace and took a deep breath, "Lets get back in there before Seth finds us. I can't wait to hear him cry when I point out that he still has school after the summer and I'm done."
"I'll pay money to see that." Then I held up the video recorder. "If I capture it then it will never go away. We can even make it the start of his graduation video one day."
She grinned sinisterly, one I noted that looked remarkably like Edythe's. "Let's go find him then."
Before she moved too far away, I grabbed her up in a hug again, "Edythe and I are both very proud of you. With all that happened this year you could have walked away, and no one would have been able to blame you for it."
Her body stiffened up and then she relaxed. In a thick voice she said, "Thank you, Thomas. Having you here really matters to me."
We walked around to where everyone was gathering and moved to the group that had Seth and Sue in it. I expected Leah to hesitate a bit before going that way, because Sam and Emily were there also. They were giving their congratulations to Jared when we joined them.
I think everyone was a bit surprised to see her walk up, but no one made a big deal out of it. Jared, with his arm wrapped around Kim, was the first to speak to her directly.
"Well Leah, this part is over. You still thinking of going to school to become a veterinarian?"
Leah nodded, "I do, but I may take a year off first. Maybe travel a little." She took my hand, "We are still talking about it."
Sam spoke up, "The reservation could use more vets. Plenty of choices nearby for that too, so it won't interfere with your duties to the pack."
Emily placed her hand on Sam's shoulder, the scar on her arm standing out. "That's for later, Sam. Today is about graduating," She turned her gaze on Leah, "Congratulations, Leah. I am happy for you."
Her words felt ambiguous, was she talking about me and Edythe or being done with school?
Leah's mouth barely moved. "Thanks."
It wasn't warm, but it wasn't sharp either.
That was progress, in Leah language.
Sam cleared his throat, trying to work past the awkwardness he had brought about earlier. "You did good," he said, voice low. "You worked hard."
Leah's jaw tightened, and her hand tightened on mine.
"Yeah," she answered. "I did."
Seth, who'd been vibrating with excitement since the ceremony ended, barreled into the opening like it was his job. "She did amazing," he announced, and then threw an arm around Leah's shoulders with the casual confidence of someone who hadn't learned to fear her bite. "And she didn't trip, which is honestly impressive because she's like… eighty percent rage and long legs."
Leah elbowed him in the ribs.
Seth didn't even flinch. "Ow. Love you too."
A few people laughed. Even Paul's mouth twitched.
Sue stepped forward before Leah could retreat back into her shell. She held a bouquet of flowers, simple, local flowers, nothing fancy, but she offered it like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Leah stared at it like she didn't know what to do with something that gentle.
"Mom," she muttered.
Sue didn't let the moment drift away.
She lifted her chin, eyes on Leah's face, and her voice went soft in a way that made my chest tighten.
"Your dad would be proud of you," Sue said. "So proud."
It landed like a stone in still water.
Leah went very still.
For a second I thought she was going to snap…deny it, deflect it, turn it into a fight just so she wouldn't have to feel it.
Instead, her throat worked. Her eyes shimmered, fast and angry, like she hated her body for reacting.
"Yeah," Leah managed, and it came out rough. "Yeah… I know."
Sue's hand rose like she was going to touch Leah's cheek, then stopped, respecting the invisible boundary her daughter always carried.
So, she settled for squeezing Leah's shoulder once. Firm. Real.
Seth's grin faltered, just a little, and he shifted closer to Leah's other side like he was making sure she didn't have to stand alone inside that sentence.
Leah blinked hard and looked down at the flowers.
"Thanks," she said again, quieter this time, and somehow it meant more.
Sue nodded once and then, because she was Sue, she immediately moved the moment along before it could drown her daughter.
"Pictures," she announced, brisk as a nurse. "Before everyone disappears."
A ripple of agreement went through the group.
Phones came out. Seth made a big show of straightening Leah's cap even though it was already perfect, and Leah shoved him away with a hand that was gentler than her usual.
"Quit fussing," she muttered.
"You love it," Seth said, cheerful and lying.
Leah rolled her eyes, then her sinister smile was back, "I love that I don't have to come back next year while you still have two left, little bro."
Seth's face fell as he realized she was right, and I made sure to capture the moment for later use.
I moved back a little so the parents could get the pictures they wanted, until Sue once again surprised me.
"Okay Thomas, I need some of you and Leah together."
Leah looked more than a little shocked, and there was some ambiguous noise coming from the pack, not sure who all reacted or even if it was surprise like Leah or something more.
Deciding I didn't care what anyone else but Leah thought, I moved beside her and moved around like Sue asked me too. My arms comfortably around Leah.
After the pictures, the crowd loosened again into smaller knots. People started talking about food, about where they were going afterward, about who was driving who home.
Jared and Kim got pulled away by her family. Paul started arguing with Quil about who was faster now that school was "over" for some of them. Embry made a crack about graduation meaning "more time for abs," and got punched lightly in the arm for it.
Sam and Emily drifted back toward the pack without making it a thing.
Leah watched them go. Her face stayed composed.
But her fingers tightened around the bouquet like it was the only thing anchoring her.
Seth leaned in. "We're doing burgers at Billy's, right? Because I'm starving."
Sue gave him a look. "We're doing food wherever your sister wants."
Seth immediately snapped into perfect innocence. "Right. Of course. Whatever Leah wants. Leah?"
Leah stared at him for a long second, then exhaled.
"Billy's," she said. "And if you tell anyone I said that without snarling, I'll kill you."
Seth beamed. "She's healed."
Leah huffed, and it almost sounded like a laugh.
Sue looked at me, and it wasn't warm exactly, but it wasn't sharp either.
"You coming?" she asked.
It wasn't permission. Not quite. But it was… allowance.
I nodded. "If Leah wants me there."
Leah didn't look at me when she answered.
"Yeah," she said, like it was obvious. "He's coming, and after… He and I are going to spend the evening with Edythe. I have no interest in watching the boys see how much they can drink before passing out."
Sue nodded, though she looked like she wanted to say something. Happily, she held it in, after giving me a warning look and we all headed to Billy's house.
A.N. There will be no chapter release until Wednesday (March 11th) next week. Getting on a plane for an interview that will take most of this week. See you then.