Hello :D
WATCH OUT: Football = soccer. I'll probably mix them up a lot. I apologise in advance.
There wasn't anything wrong with Arizona. Bella was used to it from her childhood. She had even missed it, to come degree. It brought back memories of camping with her mother in the desert, encountering tiny little snakes occasionally when their slithering bodies dared go near the camp. But things were different now- she had messed up.
She was a mess, but she didn't like saying it, even to herself. Jacob was driving her to school, chatting about how psyched he was to have got into the football team. One of the strikers, 'forwards', had moved to Ohio, and Jacob had been the couch's first pick. He was big, strong, fast and competant in the sack- not that the couch would care about that. Bella blushed. She couldn't shake the habit, even now, after everything. The only reason Jake hadn't gotten in before is that his grades had sucked. Majority. Before Bella had arrived, all he'd cared about was his motorcycles and being a spectator at football matches.
After she had arrived, he had started taking an interest. She hadn't been as celebrated as when she first came to Forks, but he almost made up for it all by himself. But Bella Swan wasn't going to date anyone with a failing grade.
That was pretty definite.
And so, instead of dates, they had "tutoring sessions." It had worked out for them both. Jake's life was pretty much complete, and Bella could pretend that this was her dream life. The boy she had nurtured into getting a spot on the prestigious football team, the right grades, the "cool mom". Through Jake, she suddenly had friends, she had a social life, her quirks were seen as endearments.
And she knew Jake was aware that without him, she would have just been the loner she was before. Jake knew too much. He knew about the hell she had caused in Forks, he knew about E-Edward, he knew her carnally... And he was so sweet. She felt paranoid, sometimes, wondering if she was a monster for feeling uneasy when Jake instructed her that he was coming over. He was good for her. Renée approved. Even her dad! Mostly because Jake could watch a whole series of football with him, and be cheery through out. Edward hadn't been interested in that. He was a baseball fan. It still amazed Bella how much of a difference the choice in sport of her boyfriends meant to her father.
But he hadn't liked Edward for other reasons.
"Hey, Bella!" Jake said, and she realised she hadn't been paying attention to what he was saying. He grinned, because she daydreamed enough that this wasn't too offensive.
She ducked her head. "Sorry. I'm really happy for you," she smiled. "I knew all the work would pay off!"
"Thanks to you." His eyes glowed. He found a spot in the school's parking lot and Bella got out of the car quickly.
He jogged over to her and kissed her, cupping her face. The warmth of his touch was stifling paired with Arizona heat. Bella thought of how Edward's touch had been and blushed. Dammit... His fingers had always been colder than hers. He had blamed it on poor circulation, but she had l-loved it. When she blushed, her body heated up, and his skin had been like water against an uncomfortable flame. Relief. Perfect.
She pulled away, suffocating, and smiled at Jake. "Um. So I'll see you at lunch?"
He grinned. "Yeah. I'll meet you outside bio." He kissed her again, and she felt her heart clench at the thought of all the people that could see. She pulled away again, and made her excuses, heading inside to her locker.
Jake marvelled as he watched her go, wondering how he bagged her. Before, he had only been interested in motorcycles and wishing for things. Then she had arrived. Curiously broken, tantalisingly lost, the perfect damsel in distress that he had always had a soft spot for. So he tried approaching her, and her rejection somehow stirred a longing inside. So he took up her tenuous offer of tutoring, seeing she needed a distraction from her past. And then they started to hang out, to the point where he was giving her some lessons -okay, a lot of lessons- on how to be a little more...social. Less clumsy. They had both benefited. Since meeting her, it had been like a dream. She was his good luck charm. She got him doing things, improving, more hungry for his goals. He had gotten into the football team! He had her as a girlfriend. He hadn't even cheated on her yet. As long as he was good to her, life seemed to smile at him. It made him feel confident. No matter what other crap he pulled, he had Bella as his ticket to Heaven.
Especially in the sack. Like, dang. Even if it didn't happen as often as he'd like, he sort of got the whole "quality over quantity" thing. At least for now.
Bella stumbled on her way inside, but managed to catch hold of the door and keep walking. Some people saw, but didn't comment. Bella took a breath, imagining that she was exhaling embarrassment. The world didn't revolve around her. Nobody cared if she tripped. She was just one in thousands, and this wasn't Forks.
She stopped in front of her locker, and then a voice interrupted her.
"So..." a girl said.
Bella looked to the side, startled, and saw it was Leah Clearwater drawling at her. Leah, Head Cheerleader, Native American beauty, runner up Miss Teen Arizona Queen, voted Best Smile and Best Fashion Sense. Bella hadn't talked to her before, but the description scared her. It was like "intimidating" personified.
Bella tried to remember Jake's lessons, and smiled. "You sound like you've got something to say."
Leah smirked. "So smart. I was actually wondering if you're going out with Jake. Because Helen said you were, but," she shrugged, "I'm so not into rumours." She tossed her head, and Bella felt two inches tall.
"We are," Bella consented, turning the smile to a grin. "He just told me he got onto the soccer team! I'm so excited for him." It felt weirdly like a script to say those words.
Leah's eyes narrowed, but her smile widened, and Bella wasn't sure what to make of that. "That's awesome...you're such a cute couple, you know? Almost as good as me and Sam. So I was wondering if you and him wanted to join us at lunch?" she grinned.
Bella had to slap the urge to correct Leah's grammar. 'Sam and I', not 'me and Sam'. She nodded. "That sounds super." Super?
Leah nodded. "Okay. See you 'round!" she left with an attractive laugh before Bella could reply.
Bella had a sinking realisation. Leah was going out with the soccer captain, Sam Uley. As the girlfriend of a jock, Bella...was dating a jock now. That felt so off. In her...previous life, she had hated jocks, been ignored by them, in totally different spheres.
She was a bookworm out of book.
She opened her locker, and got out the books she needed. History, Math, Biology... Edward... The immidiate association made her feel sick. Edward Edward Edward. She didn't let herself think his name around people, but now he was swarming through her head like a disease, covering her in guilt and shame. Hot under the collar.
She tried to think of something else.
Yes- how Leah had called her relationship with Sam 'cute'. It wasn't. They were so dysfunctional together it was occasionally hilarious. He was territorial, a manly man, and Leah got no end in pleasure out of taunting him and making him reek of jealousy. She practically lived off it, and that seemed to piss Sam off even more.
Bella didn't understand why they were together. She didn't understand much about relationships. She counted on Jake to guide the way.
She made her way to class.
