Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, but I do own my imagination of what if…
This is a Twilight redo …what if Bella had come to Forks after she graduated high school in Phoenix? Would she still end up meeting Edward and falling in love with him? Would they be star-crossed lovers after all?
Gross Error
Life in Forks, Washington. I'd contemplated the move for months, but now that it was actually occurring I couldn't help but regret my decision. I had graduated only two weeks ago at which time, I was so elated of finally being free from the torturous bonds of high school, that I had agreed to move in with Charlie over the summer, before I went off to college.
What the hell was I thinking? Damn high school freedom euphoria.
So here I was, riding with Charlie in his cruiser headed into Forks. Please let these next three months go by quickly.
"I wanted to take you out for dinner tonight Bells. You know, celebrate your first night in town." Charlie smiled as he kept his eyes on the road. Here we go.
"Umm…that sounds great Char…dad." I smiled nervously as I turned my head to stare out the passenger window. The term 'dad' felt so foreign. Charlie hadn't been a part of my life since my mother took me to live in Phoenix when I was younger. I couldn't fault him for this though; it was not his fault my mother chose to run away with me in a crazed frenzy to abandon Forks and Charlie. She was happily remarried now to Phil. They were so loving towards one another, to the point that it was almost sickening. Another plus for getting away from Phoenix.
The car started to slow as we made the turn onto a neighborhood street.
We must be getting close.
I watched Charlie turned the wheel as we pulled in the driveway of the two story house. The house looked vaguely familiar, almost as if it was something I recalled from a dream. The fact that I hadn't been here since I was a toddler helped me deal with the feeling of déjà vu.
"Well, here we are." Charlie said as he opened the door to exit the cruiser. Yes, here we are indeed.
I looked around the street as I exited the car. I half expected to see kids playing in the slick street. Then again, the wet weather probably kept everyone inside most of the time. I sighed, realizing there would be no sun in my life for at least three months. I walked around to the trunk of the car where Charlie had already grabbed most of my bags.
"Thanks, dad. I'll get the last two." I feigned a smile. I closed the trunk and proceeded to follow him into the house. He paused momentarily at the door before leaning down and removing a key from under the mat. He unlocked the door and walked inside holding the door for me. He watched me as I entered the house and stuck his hand out towards me.
"Here Bells. Welcome home." He dropped the key in my hand and turned to walk up the stairs.
"Umm, thanks." I said as I followed him up the stairs.
"I hope you like the improvements to your room. I didn't know what you liked so I just got the essentials. If you want something different, we can go out later and pick something out." He slowly opened the door to my room, dropping my bags by the wall of the entrance.
I entered slowly, afraid of what I might find. I looked around the room. It wasn't terrible, but it definitely wasn't up to my current standards. The room was painted lilac, with childhood drawings adorning the walls. In a corner to the left of the entrance was a desk with an old Compaq computer and a tube monitor. I'm sure Forks only had dial-up Internet service, which was good considering the computer was so old. I wouldn't want to accidently blow it up with high speed Internet.
Charlie had done his best to match the room's accents with the color of the walls. There was an eggplant colored comforter with various shades of throw pillows on the bed. The curtains were also a deep purple making me smile for a moment at the though of being able to sleep in without light, should the sun ever shine here. This would have to do for now.
"Thanks Charlie. It looks very comfortable." I said.
I didn't want to hurt his feelings and to be quite honest, the room didn't look that bad. I could live here. It was only for three months. Then it was off to Stanford University to begin life. I wasn't sure of what I would study, possibly something along the English Literary route, but I did hear they had a controversial Feminist Studies program. It might be nice to take a course or two.
Charlie looked around the room with his hands on his waist and then at me before turning and exiting the room. I didn't know what else to say. I didn't know what else to say, if anything. Us not having lived together made things very…uncomfortable. Not that I didn't love him. How could I not? He was my dad, but still a stranger that I talked to over the phone every now and then. Even with the talks, things were very short and awkward.
I brushed the thought from my mind and moved towards the chest of drawers to being unpacking.
After I had unpacked, I grabbed a change of clothes and some feminine items and headed towards the bathroom at the end of the hall. Traveling all day made me feel grimy. I stopped briefly outside the bathroom at what appeared to be the linen closet. Inside, there were blankets, towels, and miscellaneous items on the top shelf. I grabbed two towels and continued into the bathroom closing the door behind me. As I turned to lock the door, I noticed there was no lock.
How odd.
I guess with Charlie living here by himself all this time, there was no need for privacy. Besides, he wouldn't dare come in here seeing the door closed. I turned on the shower and quickly undressed. I grabbed by honey-lilac shampoo from where I had sat it on the counter and hopped in the shower. I loved the smell of my shampoo, sweet, fresh and relaxing. I quickly finished my shower and toweled off the excess water. As I was finishing getting dressed there was a knock on the door.
"Bells, there's been a slight change in our plans. Billy has invited us down to La Push to have dinner with everyone. So I hope you're almost ready, we'll have to leave in about twenty minutes." Charlie spoke through the door.
"No problem dad. I'm almost ready." I said as I hurried a brush through my wet hair. Billy…Billy…who was Billy? I vaguely remembered Charlie mentioning him every now and then. Maybe it would all come back to me at dinner. I opened the door to take my belongings to my room. Charlie was standing in the doorway to his room, scratching his head like he was confused and had forgotten something.
"Are you ok?" I asked him.
"Yeah, it's the funniest thing. I can't remember where I put my keys." He chuckled nervously.
"Oh, I saw you stick them in your pocket just before you grabbed the spare key." I said.
He reached down into his pocket, where there was a slight jingle and pulled out his keys. He laughed nervously again and shook his head as he proceeded to walk down the stairs. I entered my room and threw my things on my bed; they could be cleaned up later. I grabbed a jacket from one of the unpacked suitcases and ran towards the stairs to join Charlie. When I reached the landing, he was there waiting for me.
"You ready kid?" he asked.
"Not a kid anymore dad. And yes." I said as I walked out of the door.
I heard him sigh as he turned to lock the door. I walked around to the passenger side of the cruiser waiting for the door to be unlocked. I wondered if I would get a chance to drive it since it was the only vehicle Charlie had. What if I needed to go somewhere? I knew it was unlikely he would though. How would it look if the Chief of Police's daughter were riding around the city in the cruiser? It was government property after all.
Just then, Charlie unlocked the passenger door so that I could get in. I sighed as I closed the door, realizing that I might be confined to the house or permanently attached to Charlie if I wanted to go anywhere.
Stupid Bella. You could have just gone straight to Stanford, but noooo, you had to feel all sympathetic for Charlie and promise to spend the summer with him.
The drive to La Push seemed to take an eternity. I thought about how green the coastline was, even under the dismal weather conditions. It was obvious the vegetation around here didn't require a lot of light. I wondered what the coastline in California would be like. All the surfers in the water and girls lounging in their swimsuits on the beach. Although it wasn't my scene, it would be heaven compared to this place. I couldn't wait.
Ha ha, you act as if you had it so great when you were in Phoenix. Let's not forget how torturous high school was. It's quite likely, college will be the same.
I didn't have many friends. Well to be honest, my only friend was my mother. So I didn't have any friends in school. All the girls were tan, blonde and bubbly. The guys: athletic and handsome with nice cars. I was the pale, quiet, bookworm with slightly below average looks. I was never asked out on dates, invited to parties or even talked to on a regular basis. If it hadn't been for my constant clumsiness, I probably would have remained invisible.
I hadn't noticed we had arrived at our destination until I felt the car come to a stop. I looked up through the windshield at the dilapidated old house. It was slightly leaning to one side and the paint was chipped. A few people were standing on the porch; one was actually seated in a wheelchair.
"Well, we're here. It looks like everyone must be waiting on us." Charlie said as he opened his door to exit the car.
I followed his lead, remaining a few paces back. I wasn't sure what I was walking in to, but the people on the porch showed no sign of friendliness yet. As we neared the steps, the man in the wheelchair spoke.
"Hey Charlie. So glad you could join us. This must be Bella. Man, she's grown." He smiled at me.
"Yeah Billy, my little girl isn't so little any more." Charlie chuckled.
So this is Billy
"She's going off to Stanford University you know. In just three months."
"Yeah, yeah Charlie. We know, you've only told us a million times." Billy rolled his eyes and laughed at Charlie.
"Hi Bella, it's so good to see you again." He rolled his chair forward a bit then extended his hand to me.
"Yes, it's nice to meet you too." I said with a small smile as I looked down. I slowly raised my head to look at the rest of the faces on the porch. They all seemed to be watching me intently. One in particular seemed to have roaming eyes that kept traveling my body, up and down.
What the hell? This guy better keep his eyes to himself.
"Oh don't mind the boys Bella, they're just hungry and have forgotten their manners." Billy gave them a stern look. The one closest to me took a step forward and spoke.
"Hi, I'm Seth." He smiled and shook my hand. I nodded a friendly hello as I shook and released his hand. He took a step back into his previous held position.
When neither one of the others stepped forward, Seth continued the introductions. "This is Quil and the one on the end is Jacob."
So the ogling offender had a name. Jacob.
Had it not been for the wandering eyes, I probably would have found him attractive. He was tall with dark black hair. His skin was a deep russet color and his skin seemed to be baby bottom smooth. I smiled and gave a little wave to Quil and Jacob before taking a step back so that I was on the other side of Charlie.
"Well Sue is inside with Leah preparing dinner. Harry couldn't make it. He was feeling a bit under the weather. I told him a nice cold beer and good food would kill what ails him, but I guess he was unconvinced." Billy said as he wheeled himself towards the front door.
Charlie shook his head and laughed as he put his hand on my back and ushered me in behind Billy. The boys followed after Charlie. Immediately, upon stepping foot into the house, I knew tonight was going to be interesting. The house was very small and there were barely places to sit three people, let alone eight.
Thank goodness this Harry person decided not to come, I would have hated to have to sit on the floor to eat dinner.
Somehow, we all found places to sit and eat. As dinner progressed, I learned that Sue was Seth and Leah's mother and Harry was her husband. Billy, Harry and Charlie were all close friends and often liked to fish together on the weekends when Charlie wasn't on duty. Jacob, the ogler, was Billy's son. He was a couple of years younger than I was, but by the looks of it, he could have been the same age, if not older. They seem to grow them big at the Black house.
I ate my food in silence, while everyone talked amongst themselves. I was starting to feel tired, but didn't want to deprive Charlie of time with his friends. As I finished, my food I got up to take my plate into the kitchen.
"Oh no, Bella. Let me get that for you. You are a guest here." Jacob said reaching for my plate. His voice was deep, yet soft and filled with the innocence of adolescence. I froze, paralyzed from the kindness being displayed. Jacob hadn't said one word to me all night so I had assumed he was mute. Any guy that violated a girl with his eyes, as he did me earlier, would have most definitely said something a little sooner, right? I was confused by the sudden change in behavior.
"Bella, are you okay?" Charlie asked.
Oh shit. They can see me. Smile Bella.
I quickly changed my expression. I nodded at Charlie.
"Yes, I'm fine. I was just thinking giving mom a call to tell her I made it safely, when we get home." I turned to face Jacob who was tugging on the plate that was still in my hand. I hadn't noticed I had been gripping it with such force.
"I'm sorry Jacob. Here you go." I handed the plate to him. "Thank you." I sat back down in my chair, keeping my eyes on his face.
"You're welcome." He smiled at me and turned to walk into the kitchen.
Weird, but cute.
Jacob returned to the table with a goofy grin on his face.
"Hey guys, want to go out and see the car?" he said looking at Quil and Seth.
They both gave a resounding 'yes' and pushed back from the table. They walked outside, laughing and talking about something unintelligible. I looked at Leah to see if she was going to join them. She just rolled her eyes, as if this was a ritual for them whenever they had a "family" dinner.
"Bella," I heard Jacob call my name so I turned my attention back to him. "Do you want to come too?" he gave me a brilliant smile and I could see his teeth were unusually white.
I didn't realize the dentists in this area were up on whitening technology.
"Uh, sure." I replied nonchalantly. I pushed back from the table and proceeded to walk towards the front door. Leah, determined not to be left out, chimed in.
"Aren't you going to ask me, Jacob?"
Jacob rolled his eyes and turned to her. "I already did Leah, Quil and Seth acknowledged the invitation and are already outside waiting for us."
Leah scowled at him and pushed back from the table. She walked towards the front door and shoved passed me and Jacob to get outside. Jacob chuckled at her stubbornness and looked at me.
"Follow me." He said as he opened the front door. It was dark outside now with the lights from inside of the house casting a faint glow onto the porch. We walked around to the side of the house towards the wooded area. There was a shack that stood off in the distance and through the cracked door I could see a light. As we approached the door, I could hear voices filled with laughter. Jacob opened the door and stepped inside.
"So what do you think of my progress?" Jacob asked the voices, which I assumed belonged to Seth, Quil and Leah. I stepped inside the shack to join the conversation.
"It's looking good Jake. It's almost drivable." Seth said, eyeing the faded yellow car. Jacob turned to me with a wide smile.
"This is a pet project of mine. I've been rebuilding it for the last few years and I'm almost finished. I just need a few more parts."
I eyed the car, not quite sure of its make and model. To think that he was capable of putting a car together from scratch was pretty impressive. As I walked around to the back, I saw the word 'RABBIT' written across the back. So it was a VW, which was even more impressive that he could rebuild the engineering of a foreign car.
"It looks nice. You're so lucky you know how to build these things. If I had that kind of knowledge, I'd try and build one within the next couple of weeks so I could get around this god-forsaken town." I realized after I spoke that I might have offended them.
Great Bella, way to make an impression.
I looked up to look at Jacob and the rest of the group. They all seemed to be taking my comment lightly. Everyone, except for Leah that was. She was giving me the proverbial 'stink-eye'.
"Well, I'll just have to finish this up so I can give you a ride to where you need to go." Jacob said with a boastful smile on his face.
Oh great, now what are you going to do? He thinks he's going to woo you. Quick, grab that wrench and beat that silly look off his face.
"Oh, no Jacob. I planned to just spend my summer studying and reading some classic novels, while hanging out with Charlie. I'm not really looking to go anywhere. Thank you for the kind gesture though." I said looking at Jacob.
He pouted looking like a kid that had just lost his little red balloon to the atmosphere. I felt bad for hurting his feelings, but I didn't want to give him the wrong impression. I was not in Forks to make long lasting relationships. This was just a layover, if you will, to my next destination. I immediately felt uncomfortable, as the silence was defining. Finally, the call of my name broke the silence.
"Bella" I heard Charlie shouting.
"Yeah, dad. We're in here." I said.
"Come on. It's late and we've got to get home." He shouted.
I took a moment to look around the room, giving everyone a sheepish smile. I got to the door and turned around to face everyone.
"It was nice meeting you all. Maybe I'll see you again soon." I said as I exited the shack.
Damnit! You just gave them, or more so Jacob, an open invitation to see you again. You're such an idiot.
I speed walked towards the cruiser to get away from them, or him as fast as possible. Charlie was already situated in the car when I got in. He looked over at me and smiled and backed out of the driveway. As we pulled away, I saw Jacob step out of the shack. He waved as we backed out.
I was relieved to be going home or at least my temporary living quarters.
These next three months couldn't pass by quick enough.