It was the same every morning. The sun would shine through the small bedroom window, showing her a dance of dust as it spiraled above them, twisting and turning in whatever breeze seemed to always catch it. The sun would not touch them until it was time for her to go to work, and she still had a few minutes.
Her midsection felt heavy, as it always did in the mornings, and she found that she was not alone, as it was when she usually went to sleep. Most nights were busy for him, and it was something Bella understood. He helped out when he could, and he kept her warm when he did get a chance to come home and rest.
A soft snore sounded, before a puff of his exhale moistened her neck. She nearly squirmed away from him at the ridiculous feeling, but his arm tightened around her as if he sensed her intentions. He usually did. The next snore was fake. She knew because it was over exaggerated, it was ridiculously loud and drawn out. And the puff of air was more like a frustrated sigh.
"Morning," she said quietly, and the hand that was above her head, her fingers laced into the pillow casing's extra length moved down so that it could run up the length of his arm, across her stomach and up to his shoulder. He grunted, and used his strength to move his arms and pull her close like she was a teddy bear - some prized and cherished item that he had won the affection of.
That he had put blood, sweat, and tears into over the course of his life, sewn back together when there needed mending, and put stuffing into when pieces of her went missing.
"Morning," he murmured. "Too early. Twenty three more minutes." He knew those things. It had something to do with the wolf, she figured. Some sort of instincts that were in their system. He always knew instinctively what phase of the moon it was, down to the day of the lunar cycle. She would bring it up casually in a random location or conversation, and without fail, he answered it correctly. He didn't even have to look at the sky.
"Twenty three minutes sounds good." She tugged at her pillow and pressed her face into it, burying it more so that she would not have to look at the offending alarm clock that would commit murder to his ears soon. Where her face pressed into the pillow, it did not smell like her, or her shampoo from her wet hair the night before, as she fell asleep. Instead it smelt like him. The sheets always did.
Of woods and rain and the salty touch of the sea. Of Jake.
Her wolf, her saviour, her protector. Her husband.
"Jake?" she murmured, knowing he could hear her.
"Yeah?" His words were spoken into her spine, and her hair, and he did not seem bothered by the fact that he was inhaling it with the very deep, puffy breaths he was taking. He was barely even awake.
"Stop that, you sound like a sick dog."
"Mmmm, funny." The arm that was not around her waist was under her head, and her pillow, supporting it on just the perfect angle. Giving her just the right head lift to not crick her neck in the mornings. She used the hand not clutching the pillow to trace her fingers down it, down the tattoos that outlined the skin. The story that he had written on himself.
It had not been something Jake had really considered, getting a sleeve of tribal markings, but it had happened out of the blue. One morning he was her russet wolf in disguise, and the next evening, he sent her a picture of his arm all pink and sore from a full day of ink. And that night when he came home, it was all healed and she had spent hours asking him what each symbol meant. He was still her russet wolf, only now with stripes.
She traced it, as she did every morning. And every time her fingers would trace it over and over again for as long as she woke up early for, Jake would insist that just for that, it was worth the money.
She enjoyed her mornings. They were routine, but they were comfortable. They were cozy. They were warm. And they were one step closer to seeing Eliza, and the other children.
He fell back into snoring - softer, and annoyingly. And she closed her eyes, feeling him around her. Today. Today was the day, they would decide.
Their home was already small. Something Jake had built just before their wedding, as a surprise. It was halfway between each of their parents. Well, it was right out the door of Billy's, and halfway wolf-way to Charlie's. At least, that was what he reasoned with her. Halfway between both of their lives. It was cozy, with a few spare rooms, but small rooms. And windows that would overlook the forest. It was quiet. It was secluded. It meant Jake could be no one else but Jake.
But they were both gone constantly. They were both always working or driving somewhere. She rarely was home. And Jake... Jake was home only a fraction more often than her. That would have to change, firstly.
And then they'd have to figure everything else out. Furniture, clothing. School. Bella already had money saved away for college.
The sun touched Jake's fingertips, which was her alarm clock. Well, her first alarm clock. Jake's fingers twitched, as they usually did, and she ran her hand down his arm to lace fingers with him. "The alarm's going to go off in a minute."
"Fucking turn it off, then." He said the same thing every morning. And she didn't. He wouldn't wake up without that alarm, that she was certain of. She had tried everything in the beginning, to get him up. She had even launched them into territory that until that point had not been explored. He wouldn't wake up if she was on fire - well, maybe if she was on fire, but if the house was? No.
"Can't figure it out," she murmured the lame excuse they both knew was a lie. She turned it off just fine on the weekends. But she sighed and pulled herself out of the warm bed, despite Jake trying to pull her back in. He wouldn't let go of her fingers, using all the strength he had in his hand to keep them interlocked.
"You have plenty of time-"
"There's supposed to be a snow storm on the way there. I've got to get ahead of it if I'm going to be on time." Jake grunted, and his eyes peaked open. She couldn't help but smile at his pout. "And then we are going to have dinner when I get home and talk."
He released her hand, giving an eye roll as he flopped onto the bed. "I don't know what we need to talk about. We've already decided." But Bella just wanted to be absolutely sure they could do this. She didn't want to have anything less than perfect. "I'll put snow chains on your tires while you're in the bathroom."
"Thank you."
"Whatever," he muttered, grabbing the pillow and burying his face in it. Bella smiled, turning away and ducking into the bathroom. It didn't take long for her to hear the blaring noise of the alarm clock. "Jesus Christ," Jake groaned. "Bella, why do you always turn it back to that noise?"
She paused with the toothbrush in her mouth, glancing out the door to see him trying to pull on some shorts. Her eyes darted to the window, where there was already the starts of snow beginning to fall. He was lucky he wouldn't freeze. "Because it works," she answered, though it was a tad garbled. She continued brushing as he ducked out of the room and the sound of the front door told her he was already working on her car.
He was a saint.
She threw on the clothes she had gotten out last night, to unwrinkle with time. She moved to the kitchen, making herself lunch and grabbing a banana for the drive. Just as she was about to grab her bag and keys, Jake appeared, snow covering his hair and the rest of his body wet from where the snow had already melted. "It's hell out there already."
Bella groaned. "Great."
"Sam called. I've got to head up to Port Angeles this afternoon," Jake said as he tossed his hair in his hands, and gave her a sheepish smile as she gave a sigh, the water falling onto the ground and a slipping hazard for her accident prone feet. "I'll clean it up." He'd better. "It's not going to ruin the concrete, I promise." That wasn't the point. "Want to meet up for lunch? We'll go to that place Eliza likes."
Bella glanced down to the sandwich that would be soggy and warm by lunchtime and the can of soup she'd warm up in the microwave. She set them down on the counter. "That sounds great, actually." She gestured to the sandwich and soup. "I made you breakfast."
Jake laughed, and stepped towards her. Oh, no. She tried to wiggle away when he pressed his wet body against her. Ugh, she could feel it through her shirt. "Jake! Gross!"
"Be careful," he said quietly, kissing her cheek lightly. She had done the drive plenty, and her car was reliable. He worried incessantly over pointless things. That was his job. "I love you."
"I love you, too." She stood on her toes, kissing him on the lips, before she gave a soft nudge to his chest, which he exaggerated to send him back a few steps. "Have fun with the guys, and don't pick any fights."
"Call me if you need anything." She rolled her eyes, grabbing her coat and the banana again, and moved towards the doors. "Is it fully charged?"
"All night, Jake. Yes," Bella promised. She opened the door, letting in more cold air and snow to tangle in her hair, but it would not melt like his would. "I'll see you for lunch. Text me when you get in."
He reached for the sandwich in the plastic baggie and pulled it out smoothly, before giving it a solid bite. "Will do, Bells. Nice sandwich. Turkey?"
"Leftover chicken from last night," Bella rolled her eyes. "Bye, wolf."
"Bye, Bells." She shut the front door and sighed as she stared at her car. A car. Not her beloved truck. The truck had died years ago. It had just made it to see her wedding before regrettably passing by the end of that month. It was more of a family car - and more than anything she had ever needed before.
It was running for her, already, the heat just starting to kick in and the seat warmers already on. Jake was a saint to her. Jake was a saint, period.
She had only made it two miles when her phone rang. It was Jake. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"You left your coffee."
Bella glanced to the cup holder, briefly and frowned. "Oh." She sighed. "Would you mind bringing me a cup of it when you come up? It's going to be a long day for some reason. I feel it in my soul, Jake."
"Wow, all the way to that dusty pit?" Jake gasped, as if scandalized. She did her best to glare at her phone, wondering if she did it hard enough, he'd be able to see it. "No wonder. But sure. Didn't know how far you got."
"Literally just onto the highway, so I don't feel like turning around. Too icy up here. Looks like they haven't salted yet."
"Alright," he sounded worried. But she was being honest - which was something he appreciated during bad weather. "Keep your cell on you."
"I will, Jake," Bella giggled. "Jeeze, it's not like I'm going to be climbing Everest."
"With you, I have no idea what you're doing half the time."
She rolled her eyes. "Goodbye, Jake."
"I love you."
She melted. Even though her cabin was not as warm as she'd like yet, she felt warmer. "I love you, too. Have fun with the guys."
"No fights, no biting. I know. I'll play nice with the other kids."
She rolled her eyes and hung up. Tossing the phone into the cup holder where her coffee usually occupied. And she reached for the radio. It was a long drive. She could at least listen to some music.
The Port Angeles Children's Group Home was well lit on the outside, and looked like it was flurrying with activity though the parking lot was empty and it was eight in the morning. But the children were up and that meant that they were likely eating breakfast. She stayed in the warmth of her car for only a second before she went as quickly as she could to the front door. Before she could even reach for her keys, it opened to the grinning face of a sixteen year old girl - Mary.
"Hey, Mary. Good morning," Bella said brightly. The outfit was nice - weirdly nice and uncharacteristic for the girl that would always be wearing some sports outfit. Typically, Mary didn't wear a skirt unless she was going to win a bet by doing so. "You look nice."
"Morning," she returned. She let Bella in and then locked the door behind her. "Michelle says we've got people coming by today. One of us is going to a foster home." It was extremely rare for teens to go to Foster Homes, Bella knew that, as did Mary. But still, it filled all the kids with hope. "Eliza's been asking for you."
"Has she?" Bella asked. Eliza had only arrived a few weeks ago, but already Bella and her had become close. The little girl was five, and dreamed of being a princess - and her favorite fairy tale was Little Red Riding Hood. Bella had nearly laughed. It was her favorite, too. "Is everything okay?"
"We know you are an approved foster home, Bella," Mary said quietly, and it wasn't because she was sad, but it was because she didn't want to others to overhear the conversation. Bella could hear them all talking loudly. "You could take her. Michelle would approve it immediately-"
"Maybe," Bella said, ruffling the girl's neatly combed hair.
"Hey!"
"It looks better all rumpled," Bella countered, sticking out her tongue. "If I did take anyone in, I wouldn't get to spend as much time with all of you. I'd rather rub my stink on everything before you guys get sick of me."
Mary jerked away from Bella, wrinkling her nose. "Gross."
Bella giggled. "Come on, what's for breakfast?"
"Pancakes."
"Yum," Bella grinned. "Come on, let's eat."
But Mary's words echoed in her mind. Eliza was the only child among the group - the only one not a teen. And that would mean... if whoever came wanted a child, then... Eliza would be out. Bella hated the thought of never seeing the girl again.
Michelle was the owner of the house, a bright and optimistic woman that never relied on anything more than food to keep people in line. If you misbehaved, you cleaned up the food. If you were good, you'd get special food - cookies or brownies or anything that had a particular sweetness to it. Michelle was lethal that way. Everything she made was like eating gold.
"Bella!" Eliza cried upon seeing her. Bella gave the young girl a smile.
When she had first arrived, right before Halloween, she had not talked much. She nodded her head or shook it, to answer simple questions, and she would not stop clutching a frayed, pink, and dirty blanket that she carried everywhere with her. Michelle had put Bella on her to get her to warm up. Because she needed all day handling and encouragement, something Bella was good at when people first arrived. She acted like she was apart of the home to give them a good feeling about the place.
Eliza had needed a week before she would not leave Bella's shadow. And though she still carried her blanket around with her everywhere, slept in the oldest's room to feel like she had a big sister with her at all times, and Bella had even stayed the first night to show her that she was going to be there, she spoke to Bella for the first time.
It had been purely an accident, Bella supposed. Bella had asked her what her favorite kind of pancakes were, not really expecting a response, because she had preparing to list off a few different kinds, when Eliza had answered chocolate chips. It was simple, and the two words were like opening the floodgates. Once Eliza realized she had spoken, she started to cry.
They had Chocolate Chip pancakes all day and then watched Cinderella. Eliza had never seen it before. She liked that one, too. The second week, Bella learned that she had been in the hospital near Seattle before being brought to the home. Eliza said it was loud and scary there, and really dark. She had been in a house fire, and had nearly died if a firefighter hadn't found her. Her parents weren't too lucky.
Eliza didn't cry about them, not since she had first spoken. And so the entire third week, they went through the last few pictures Eliza had of her previous family, and Eliza told her about them, what little she could remember. What they would do at night, or in the mornings. Things that she missed. It made her feel more comfortable once Michelle started to incorporate a few of them into her own routine.
But Eliza still didn't leave Bella's side. She would follow Bella to every single room, would be silent as a hawk behind Bella, her fingers around her blanket, and one hand on the back of Bella's knee, while she would talk to someone. Or she's snuggle as close to Bella's side, whenever she was sitting down.
Bella loved her more than she had ever loved any of the others, because Eliza trusted her completely. And when Bella needed to wash the blanket she carried around, because it was getting gross and smelled of apple juice stains, she had thrown it into the washer for Bella, and they both sat in front of it and watched as the washer spun for minutes on end, cleaning her beloved blanket.
She didn't carry it around much, after that. It was like the separation was all she needed before she realized that with free hands, she could do so much more.
Michelle encouraged Bella to take her out on the town and see things. Michelle had been the first one to bring up adopting the little girl.
"She could come back and visit the other girls, if she wanted," Michelle admitted. "And on days you can't get a sitter. Or you can always bring her here. She loves you, Bella. And not many in her situation can feel that way again about a mother figure." Bella swallowed. "Just talk it over with Jake, consider it. She's a sweet little girl, and I'd hate for her to go to another family that will just put her back here in a few months, or even weeks."
Jake had stopped by the next day, and while the other girls had been absolutely excited to see Jake again, Eliza had just studied him for a minute, staring at him like she was trying to figure out if he was a good guy or not.
"Are you a firefighter?" Eliza had finally asked, her eyes staring up at him, and her hands clutching the pink blanket nervously. It had become her nervous blanket. A blanket that she hid behind when she was scared.
Jake chuckled, crouching down a little to her height. He still towered in the room, though. "Nope, but close. I'm a guy that drives the ambulances to the hospital." Her eyes grew really wide at that. "Do I look like a fire fighter?"
"No, you look like you go boxing," Eliza said quietly. She bit her lip. "Did you drive me to the hospital?"
Jake's easy smile faltered a little bit. "Probably not, sweetheart. I live with Bella over on the ocean. But I know a few guys over in Port Townsend. They're really nice guys."
Eliza still seemed a little bit unsure. "You live with Bella?"
Jake's grin came back and he glanced to his wife, standing in the doorway, watching carefully. "Yup. We live by our parents houses. And her dad stops by in his police car every once in a while, to make sure I'm not doing anything bad." Eliza giggled. "Do you like fire fighters?"
"They saved me."
Jake grinned. "One of my best friends is a firefighter. Maybe one day you'll meet him?"
Eliza instantly liked Jake after that. And though Jake couldn't come up to Port Angeles too often, whenever he did, they'd go out to lunch with her. Her favorite restaurant was a burger joint with fries that had smiley faces on them. Her and Jake would square off in trying to make as many different faces with ketchup as possible.
They were two big kids together.
And the reason that Bella had printed out the adoption application. And her and Jake were considering it. Bella just needed to be absolutely sure they could manage it. That it would be a good idea.
But if someone came today, if someone could take her first.
Eliza's arms wrapped around Bella's legs, pulling her from her thoughts. "Is Jake coming today?"
She always knew when Jake was coming. "Yeah, he's got to pick up a few supplies for work from the hospital up here, and he'd said he'd stop by and say hi."
"And lunch?" Eliza insisted. "Please?"
Bella ruffled her hair. "We'll see, kiddo." Of course, it was always a yes. "How's the pancakes?"
"Great!" Eliza insisted.
"How was the drive?" Michelle asked. "I noticed it was snowing?"
"Not too bad," Bella admitted. "Coming out of La Push, it was a little slick, but once I was on the highway, it started to thin out." Michelle seemed relieved to hear that. "It looks like it's picking up, though. Going home might be more rough."
"Hopefully it'll clear up by then," Michelle offered. She nodded her head towards a girl, nearly at the age of phasing out of the Home. "Penny's got her driving test coming up."
"Hey, kid, this'll be good practice for winter's here," Bella grinned at the girl. Penny glanced to the windows a little uneasily. "Or not."
"How many would you like, Bella?"
"Oh, I had a banana-"
"Nonsense," Michelle insisted. "How many?"
"Two," Bella said immediately. Michelle laughed in response, but got to work. "Thank you, Michelle."
"Yeah, thanks, Michelle!" the others chorused. Michelle and Bella shared a smile of hidden laughter and as Michelle started to pour more batter and chocolate chips into the pan.
Breakfast consisted of giggling and playful jabs, and a young girl glued to Bella's side. As people dispersed, going about their daily routine - either setting up a study session or getting a board game ready, Michelle pulled Bella aside.
"I know you just got here," Michelle began. "But I'm swamped. I've got a meeting with the Social Services about some repairs that need to be done to the upstairs bathroom-"
"I can give a call down to the guys on the Reservation," Bella offered. "Sam and Jared would be more than happy to lend a hand."
Michelle hesitated. "Are you sure? I can't afford to pay more than-"
"Don't worry about the money," Bella insisted. "They don't care about that. They might not be able to make it up until the weekend, but-"
"Oh, it's not a big deal. I just have a leaking pipe." Bella had a feeling it was a bit more than that. It always was. Just because Michelle didn't try to make a big deal out of things, and would always wait until it was absolutely dire to call anyone in. The less expenses, the better when it came to running the home. It meant more money for other things.
"I need to get the flyer out for the Christmas fundraiser," Michelle winced. "And I have no time to finish it. But the mayor needs it emailed to her by two this afternoon."
"No problem," Bella insisted. "I'll take care of it."
Michelle practically deflated in relief. "Thank you so much, Bella. I don't know what I'd do without you." She hurried towards the desk in the far corner of her room and shuffled a few of the chaotic pages around before handing Bella a few pieces of paper. "Here's all the information. It just needs to be eye-catching and also clean."
"I've got it," Bella promised. "Don't worry about it. You relax, maybe take a nice bath, and then go to your meeting."
Michelle sighed. "You're the greatest."
"The best money can buy," Bella winked. "I'll get started on it right away." Michelle nodded and moved away to try to grab her purse and a few things. "Michelle? I'd slow down a bit, maybe? At your age, it can't be good for the heart."
The glare she shot Bella was teasing. "Really?"
Bella smiled innocently. "Just looking out for your health."
"Hardy-har-har."
Bella giggled, prancing out of the doorway. "See you later, Michelle! I'll be leaving in about an hour with Jake to go to lunch, but I'll be fine!"
"The family may be showing up before you leave, so just give them the good tour." Bella paused, glancing to Michelle. "They've got quite a bit of money, and they've already written a hefty check for Christmas Fundraiser." Bella showed her just how surprised she was. "They're from Port Townsend."
Eliza's home town. Bella felt a tad sick. "Yeah, the good tour. No leaky faucets or messy rooms. I'll have them right on it."
"They've already started to clean up, but you know how they get."
"Michelle," Bella said slowly. "Really. It'll be fine. Just breathe." Michelle did as instructed, and Bella smiled. "Now, have fun."
Bella decided to settle in the window seat, her laptop resting on her lap, and she could hear the girls getting the kitchen dishes cleaned up as Eliza snuggled into her side. When Bella opened it, Eliza giggled at the picture of Jake passed out on the floor, looking as extremely uncomfortable as possible. It had been after the bachelor party that Sam, Quil, and Embry had dragged him through, nearly eight years ago. And Jake had been so drunk, that he hadn't even made it past the front door when he got home.
Which made her wonder just how much alcohol he had, because of the wolf tolerance. It had to have been more than was humanly possible.
"What are you doing?" Eliza asked curiously.
"I need to make a flyer for Christmas. Do you want to help me?"
"Sure! It's going to be green right?"
Bella laughed quietly. "Sure. Green it is."
It continued, Eliza offering suggestions, Bella making the suggestions come true, and then Eliza deciding that she didn't like it. It drew out the process much longer than it probably would have taken alone, but Eliza was having a lot of fun and concentrating. So Bella let her roll with it. "There has to be a snowman," Eliza insisted.
"You're right. It's not Christmas without a snowman." She added one and Eliza pointed to exactly where it needed to go. Bella would need to wipe down her screen to get all the fingerprints off, that was for sure.
"What about snowflakes?"
"Hmmmm... we could do snowflakes around the edges," Bella countered.
"Yay!"
She giggled, and Bella got to work on catering to her design whim. She had not even finished half of the snowflakes when there was a ringing of the doorbell.
"Bella, who's that?"
"That's probably the family that's coming to see everyone," Bella admitted. She set the laptop down, and noticed that all of the girls that had been lounging around with their homework were practically frozen in place. "Alright, guys, time to shine."
There was a mad shuffle to move books and fix hair and make each other look as presentable as possible. While they knew the chances were slim, they all still hoped they'd go to a home. Everyone wanted to feel wanted sometimes.
Eliza kept Bella's seat for herself and Bella took a deep breath, before fixing a smile on her face to hide her nerves and jerked the door open just as she heard the doorbell ring again. "Good afternoon!" Bella greeted jovially. And her entire body froze at the couple on the doorstep.
They had not aged a day. And they were not even surprised to see her. They did not even blink. But Bella felt like her throat was closing up. Oh, no. Jake... Jake was going to flip.
"Welcome to the Port Angeles Girl's Home. You must be the foster family Michelle told me about. I'm Bella Swan, a caretaker." Would they act as though they had never seen her before? Bella wasn't sure. But she hurriedly stepped aside, clearing her throat. "Please, come in. Sorry, about the weather. Not a great day for traveling."
"No, not quite. But the drive wasn't too bad," Carlisle spoke first. "I'm Dr. Carlisle Cullen. This is my wife, Esme." Like they had never met. Bella didn't know if that made the tour easier or harder. It certainly made her feel angry. If she didn't know any better, she'd think they had forgotten her.
But she gave them a strained smile. "Lovely to meet you. Let me give you a quick tour of the place before you meet the girls."
But when Bella turned, she couldn't help the look of absolute panic on her face. Why were they here? Why now? Why after all this time?
And why to adopt a teenage girl? She might not even make it out of the entryway. She was sure to have a heart attack- panic attack - anxiety attack. Whichever came first.
Crap, crap, crap.