Falling for Autumn | Jacob Black

Chapter 49 [edited]

Cinnamon and pumpkin wafted through the air, filling every nook and cranny of the house with its heavenly scent. The source was a tin muffin pan centered perfectly in the middle of the oven, slowly baking pumpkin pie muffins as the timer counted down from its half-hour starting point. Taking one last glance through the little window on the oven door to make sure the muffins were baking properly, I grabbed the two pumpkin-shaped mugs filled with hot chocolate and coffee from the counter and placed them on the serving tray, next to a plate of Halloween sugar cookies.

Mom was already sitting on the couch when I entered the living room, her arm snugly placed in the sling; per doctor's orders, she had about two weeks left before they could take the cast off of her wrist. I knew she was counting down the days until she could go back to work; even with Margaret and me helping out in the bakery, Mom was going stir-crazy not being able to do things herself. Not that I could blame her.

"Muffins will be done in a half-hour," I told her as I placed the tray on the coffee table, beaming at the boxes of fall and Halloween decor waiting to be opened and set up in cute arrangements. "That gives us enough time to finish decorating the living room before we start our movie marathon."

Mom had claimed one end of the couch after breakfast to flip through home decorating magazines Margaret had brought from Michigan, pointing out different layouts as I began to decorate the house for Halloween. Splashes of orange, black, purple, green, and white slowly filled every room; from glass jars filled with candy to faux pumpkins and glittery black cats, every nook, cranny, and surface was covered. Even the front porch was decked out in spider webs, pumpkins, and spooky lights.

"Are the lights around the fireplace the last thing to do?" Mom asked, looking around the room.

"I just have to secure the wires along the sides." I nodded. "Should I use staples or tape?"

"Use the staple gun. It'll hold them in place better."

Mom pointed to the silver staple gun that was on the mantle, stacking the magazines into a pile while I finished decorating the fireplace.

"Done!" I exclaimed about a minute later. "The house is officially decorated for Halloween!"

"Good job, Leaf! Now for the ultimate question... What movie do you want to watch first?" Mom gestured to the DVDs lying on the table as I handed her the mug with coffee in it.

"Hm... Hocus Pocus?"

"Sounds good to me."

I popped the DVD into the VCR/DVD player and sank onto the couch, sliding the plate of cookies in between Mom and I. Mom pressed "play" on the remote and we settled against the cushions as our movie marathon began.

"Have you heard from Dad lately?" I turned to Mom curiously, munching on a ghost cookie.

"No," Mom admitted honestly. "Why?"

"Just wondering... I guess a small part of me keeps wishing that he'll change his mind and come back, be an actual dad for once." I sighed. "I wonder if he would've accepted everything like you have... the vampires and werewolves, the magic, the imprinting."

"I understand where you're coming from, baby." Mom reached over and squeezed my hand. "And I can't say for certain that he would have, or that he'll come to his senses and be the dad you deserve. What I can say for certain is that he's missing out on an incredibly smart, funny, kind young woman who I am so proud of in every possible way. It's not your responsibility to maintain a relationship with your parent, nor is it your fault he can't and won't show you the love a good father should."

"Sometimes I get a little jealous being around my friends who have their dads still around... Bella, Chloe, Edward, Jacob... is that normal?" I glanced at Mom guiltily from the corner of my eye.