I stared out the window of the plane as it slowly started to land in Sydney Australia. The land looked dry, like no rain had fallen for days, if not weeks – which was expected as it was summer here now. The city looked huge from the view of the plane. I knew this region of Australia pretty well thanks to coming here every summer to see my father, Charlie.

He had moved out here after my parents had split up when I was a kid. He said the town of Forks, located in Washington – where we originally came from – was too cold for him to stand anymore. He wanted to see some sun for once, and actually feel the heat when summer came around. I couldn't blame him. I also wasn't the biggest fan of the cold or endless rainy days, but I could never leave my mom at a drop of a hat. It was only the two of us and she needed me. She was one of those typical mums after divorce – going out with drop kicks thinking they'll be the next one. I was always the one kicking them to the curb when they either mistreated her or cheated. I was also the one who cleaned up the mess afterwards.

The one thing I didn't understand about Charlie moving here was the fact he didn't live in Sydney, – which was warm for most of the year – nor did he live just outside it, but lived in The Blue Mountains, where it was hardly warm at all. I had never been able to work it out, even after coming here year-in-year-out since I was nine. He had said he wanted to feel the heat in summer, and yet he lived somewhere where there was barely any at all when the rest of the regain was getting thirty-one to thirty-five degrees days.

As the plane slowed to a stop, I stood up and grabbed my one bag I had brought and slowly got off of the plane. There, waiting in the airport was Charlie, waiting. He had changed a lot over the past year. He seemed a little more frail and lighter in body tone. Though for a fifty something year old guy, he was in pretty good shape apart from a tiny beer belly he had developed since I had last seen him.

"Welcome back Bella," he smiled, taking my bag from my hand and giving an awkward hug. I smiled half-heartedly, murmuring a, "Thanks." Charlie and I hadn't ever really gotten along that well over the years. He did this thing and I did mine. It was how we were, and we were comfortable with it.

The drive back to Charlie's place was almost silent apart from a few questions around the subjects of how mum was and how school was, until I reminded him I had finished school six months ago. And then, to what I thought was an attempt out of desperation, Charlie actually asked if I had a boyfriend – he never asked questions like that. A simple shake of my head ended the talk for the rest of the way.

To be perfectly honest, I had never had a boyfriend, nor planned on having one, ever, – and yes, that is coming from a seventeen-year-old-teenage-girl-in-the-twenty-first-century. The full and honest truth was, mum had enough boy trouble to last us both a life time, and also, after seeing all the guys she had been with, I was starting to believe all men were the same, and there wasn't a single good one out there.

I looked out the window of Charlie's silver ute as he drive down a dirt road with bushland surrounding us on either side of the road. All I saw was the dust rising up from the road, trees, more trees and the setting sun in front of us. The sky was a brilliant bright orange and yellow with few clouds in the sky. It was dark by the time we got to the house, right in the middle of no-where.

The house was old and painted white outside with a simple wooden deck at the feet of the front door, with stairs leading up to it. I sighed, opening my door and closing it behind me. The air was a warmish-cool and the main thing I could hear were the cicadas chirping their way at it, along with a little Willy-Wag-Tail tweeting and calling as it caught insects to feed on.

Walking up to the stairs to the deck, Charlie unlocked the house and walked inside, turning on the lights as he went. The house hadn't changed much since last year. All the furniture was in the same place as it had been last time – TV against the wall, under a window, the light brown couch sitting in front of it with a wooden coffee table between them, and newspapers covering the coffee table, like always.

"Is there anything I can get you Bella?" Charlie asked in a soft tone, setting my bag down in the old kitchen made from mainly wood. The floor was wooden, the cabinets, table and chairs. . . There wasn't one bit of colour in the room apart from the silver fridge.

"No. Thanks. I think I'll just go to bed. I ate on the plane before it landed," I lied. Charlie wouldn't have known and difference because he didn't really know me that well, but mum, she would have seen it coming from a hundred-miles away. To be honest, I was really tired from not sleeping too well on the plane last night and not wanting to be with Charlie that much. I only came here because mum wanted us to have some kind of father, daughter relationship. Just because I agreed to it, didn't mean I had to like it though.

"Oh, okay. I'll see you in the morning then," Charlie replied, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly while staring down at the floor.

I smiled half-heartedly with a nod of my head and grabbed my bag, running upstairs to the room I usually stayed in. Like the rest of the house, the room was small with nothing other than a small bed in the middle of the room with a brown quilt covering its sheets, a cupboard in the corner and a bedside table. Beside the bed was a window looking out to the road.

Setting my suitcase on the bed, I went and had a quick shower before going to bed. It was still only early in the night, though it really didn't matter to me and how tired I was feeling. I set my alarm clock I had brought from home, for seven in the morning so I could maybe see something different tomorrow than be with Charlie around the place. He looked after cows and made a living on them. I hated cows. They stunk and so did all the work they came with. I thought maybe for once, I may find some people my own age to hang out with, though I was doubtful. With living in the middle of nowhere, you also had very few people living around you.

It was just past five-thirty in the morning when I awoke to the sun shining through my window, and I couldn't get back to sleep. Sighing, I flung my legs over the side of the bed and stood. Getting dressed, I went down to the kitchen to have an almost silent breakfast with Charlie before he went out to work.

Going outside, I felt the warm air hit my face as the sun shone down upon my skin. I went over to the garage and found Charlie's old white Ford ute he used to use around the place until he bought his latest. Grabbing the keys to the old ute, from the wall, I got in and turned on its engine. I really didn't know where I was going, but I wasn't going to be staying around here all day.

Slowly, I backed out the drive way and headed west. I hadn't ever really explored the area Charlie lived in before, but for some reason I had an urge to this time round. The bright sun shone down with great heat as I drove. I turned on the air conditioning to cool the ute and myself down. It seemed to be a hotter day than it usually was around here.

Hearing something like a loud scream, I pulled up on the road and cut the engine of the ute to listen to my surroundings. The heat from outside flowed into the ute like a tidal wave after I wound down my window. I couldn't hear anything other than birds and the cicadas again.

I was just about to turn the ute's engine back on when I heard another scream, though it wasn't a scream of fear, but more excitement, which followed by a loud crash of what sounded like something falling into water. My eyes narrowed, trying to work out where that sound was coming from. The scream I had heard sounded female.

I looked around where the ute was parked, trying to see where there was any possibility there could be water, but I found nothing. The sun abruptly disappeared behind a cloud in the sky, cooling things off for the moment it was gone. Then, the second it came back, something hidden within the bushes, up ahead on the side of the road shone brightly, catching my eye. Looking closer, I saw a silver, black and green motorbike parked just off the road.

I got out of my ute quietly and walked up the road in the blazing sun, keeping an eye out for anything coming along the road. For once, I felt like I couldn't breathe out here. I hadn't felt it so hot before.

Walking up to the bike, I heard another splash of water followed by guys laughing, not far from where I stood. I could actually hear the flow of running water now, as well as feel its sweet coolness. I slowly stepped deeper into the bushland and pulled back the long harsh, sharp, dark brown summer grass, relieving a waterfall just beyond the trees.

Large and dark rocks lined the large pool around the waterfall as its running water caused ripples to form and hit against the rocks around the sides gently. The waterfall was only small, but quick and loud at the same time. It was shaded and cool around most of the water thanks to the trees hovering over head. Only a few beams of sunlight broke through the trees and shone down into the water.

I heard another female scream of excitement and looked to my right to see a light tanned girl with short black hair, wearing a black bikini, run into the water with a huge splash as she went. I then heard a guy laughing, pointing where she was coming up for air. He had short hair and a light tan too. He was tall and muscular. He looked like one of the dicks my mother would date – a total womaniser.

"Very funny Paul!" the girl shouted. She looked as though she was about twenty years old.

"Leave her alone, Paul," another guy said in a light voice, appearing beside the other guy. He much like the other guy, only a little shorter and less muscular and shorter black hair. They wore nothing other than black board-shorts.

"Oh drop it Embry. I was only playing," the one called Paul glared at Embry before a smirk appeared over their faces. Paul suddenly pushed Embry into the water, causing a massive splash of water to be thrown into the air under his weight upon impact.

I wasn't taking much notice to the things I heard going on around where I stood while watching the three of them, until I heard a loud snap behind me. I turned around with a gasp, seeing a guy standing behind my back. My chest heaved with fear from not expecting someone to be there. For a moment, I even held my breath – now I really felt as though I couldn't breathe.

He was tall like the others and only wore a pair of dark green-grey board shorts. His body was carved like a Greek-god's – so muscular, so perfect. His shoulders were powerful. His eyes were a light russet chocolate, just like his beautiful skin. His hair was black, dripping and cropped short. His lips, full and a dark red. I felt my knees go weak just staring at him. I had never looked at a guy like him before and felt this way.

A crooked and cocky smile curved over his mouth. "Are you spying on us?" he asked huskily.

For the first time in my life, a guy actually had me speechless. I felt my already hot face turn red, and it wasn't because of the sun or heat this time. "Uh, um. . . I – I, heard someone scream and came to check it out."

His crooked smirk turned into a grin. "Sure you were," he said sarcastically, shaking his head. "It's Jacob, by the way."

"Bella," I replied, a little too quickly with a small smile.

Hey guys,

So this is a new story I'll be updating one to two times a week through the Australian summer. It's only going to be short, but I think you'll all really enjoy it. You'll all get to see what a summer in Australia is like in my parts.

Hope you all had a great New Year!

Let me know what you think by leaving reviews!

Love you all,

- Sky xoxo