Wherewoves My name is Jacob and this is my story. I was born in La Push, Washington, a little Indian Reservation close to Forks. My fathers name is Billy Black, I never really knew my mother, she died before I was 5. My father and sisters rarely speak of her, and if they do it isn't relevant. All I know is that she was a wonderful woman full of love and luaghter, and gave everything to her husband and children. With her last breath she told my dad to take care of us and to never let us be harmed. My father has done all that and more, he worked all day and cared for us at the same time. My father was handi-capped in a construction accident in Port Angeles. My oldest sister Carrie went to work and Mishelle my older sister went off to The University of Washington for college the next fall. I thought my life was hard, and I knew that I would have to be strong. My fathers friend Charlie would visit over the weekends, and bring his little girl Bella along. It was duriong these visits that I would pour my heart out to her. Bella was such a good listener, strong minded and she held me close. She would wipe away my tears and tell me that she would always be there for me. Every once and a while she would miss a visit, for the rest of the week I would be furious, I isolated myself from everyone, my father worried and everytime I would tell him that I was fine.

Charlie called one day, it was a rare day when Charlie called, Bella had missed last weekends visit and I had a gut feeling that this time something was wrong. My father got off the phone and turned to me, tears brimmed his eyes and his voice was shaky as he told me Bella had left for Arizona with her mother when Renaee and Charlie had gotten a divorce. I stumbled backwards turned and ran to my room. My eyes were blurred with the tears that fell silently down my cheeks. My lip quivered and my shoulders shock with the silent cries that racked my body, I locked my door and I slammed my window. I laid in bed for hours, my tears soaking the pillow. My muscles were sore and they cramped often, my bed was getting uncomfortable and the knocks that barraged my door every so often pounded in my brain. The emptiness in my heart just reminded me that she was gone, she was gone forever or so it seemed in my mind. Billy called everyone he knew asking for help, they all told him the same simple thing "Give him time, he will come around he can't mope for long." And they were right, after a few days I came out of my room, lonely, hungry, and in dire need of a shower. My eyes were bloodshot and my face was ashen, the emotional damage was terrible. Billy fixed me dinner and I ate ravenously, like a starving man. Plate after plate of food was devoured and when Billy finally cleared the table I had eaten more than my fair share. Billy shooed me off to go take a shower, and he was right I reeked of sweat and tears, salty tears that had stained my face for so many days. the shower left me feelign clean and warm. I got dressed and headed for the woods, I needed some alone time to think, to think of Bella.

That day I was 7, Bella was 9.