A/N : So yeah. It took me ten thousand years to update. I know. But thankfully, I definitely know where this fanfic is headed now, so maybe it won't take as long between updates. AND this chapter is twice as long. :]. There is one part that I took direct inspiration from a picture of Taylor Lautner. You should guess what it is. :]. So, as before, LOVE LOVE LOVE for you to review. No but seriously. Review. Lol. Hope you enjoy.
Oh yeah, and btw...I'm not Stephenie Meyer. Love her, but not her. If I was...well, I'm sure you can imagine what relationship I would change. :]
As we drove towards mine and Charlie's house, Jake and I chatted about things that didn't matter and just enjoyed the summer air whipping through our hair.
"It's so incredibly nice today. Makes up for all of those awful rainy days," I said as I looked out the window of the Rabbit at the clear blue sky.
"Aw, don't say that. The rain isn't so bad," Jake replied, taking a hand off the wheel to twine his fingers with mine. "Being outside is always fun, but sometimes it's fun to just sit inside and watch a movie as the rain pours down."
I stared down at our fingers intertwined together. I was so happy that we were at a comfortable enough place in our friendship that this was acceptable. Sometimes just the touch of his hand could make everything better. We pulled into the driveway and I hopped out, hoping that Jake would stay in the car so we wouldn't have to be alone in the house. It was always harder, being in inclosed spaces with him. Just as I closed the door, I heard the driver's side door close as well. "Aw crap," I thought, "here we go." I walked to the door, quickly trying to unlock it because I could feel Jacob standing right behind me.
"Having a hard time there, Bells?" Jake asked, taking the key from my hand. "Apparently I'm the only one in their right mind today, so let me just help you with that." He slid the key in and twisted it, opening the door to my house.
"Thanks. I have no idea what I would do without you," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes at him.
"Absolutely no problem," he replied happily, all sarcasm completely ignored. "I wonder sometimes what you would do without me too. Now go grab your suit so we can swing by the house and then get going."
I hurriedly ran up the stairs to get my suit, trying to decide which would be best. Should I go with the blue one that covers me up more, or should I go with the skimpier black one that Renee had said looked awesome on me? Well, that's a no-brainer. After all that flirting back at the restaurant, I would have to live up to my words and try to impress him. Black one it is. I quickly stripped my clothes off and put it on and then redressed so I would only have to take my shirt and shorts off when we got to the beach. I quickly threw my hair into a messy ponytail, grabbed a beach towel and my SPF 50 sunscreen and stuffed them in a bag. There was really no point in getting burnt. Besides, it would be a perfect excuse for Jacob to touch me.
"JAKE!" I yelled down the stairs, "do you want me to go ahead and put on the sunscreen or do you think I should just wait til we're at the beach?"
"Uh. Beach. Definitely," he replied. I laughed to myself, knowing he had the exact same thought I had.
"All right, ready to go," I said, bouncing down the stairs. "You definitely can't complain about it taking me very long."
"Woah woah woah," he said, gesturing towards my clothes. "I definitely think I should get to see the swimsuit first. I need to make sure it's appropriate."
"Keep dreaming, wolf boy," I said with a grin. "You're going to have to wait just like everyone else."
He quickly grabbed my arm, looking at me with very wide eyes, almost in a panic. My heart started racing, thinking the worst. "What is it Jake?" I asked quickly, studying his face for any sign of what had happen.
"We'll need to move quickly then!" he said, beginning to head towards the door, switching his wide eyes for a trademark grin. I rolled my eyes and followed.
As soon as we got settled in the car and he began to drive away he grabbed my hand again, intertwining our fingers just as they had been on the ride earlier. He sighed contently, settling into the seat as he drove. I watched the trees whipping past us, occasionally glancing over at Jake. He looked so happy and content. I considered again if I should tell him my feelings had changed. My only thought was, what if it messes up the entire friendship? Not that I was scared or thought that would truly be an issue. I just knew it would really change everything. For the positive? Probably. But what if it wasn't positive. We hardly ever fought now and I've never seen a couple that doesn't fight. So if we take that next step, would I be opening us up to arguments? I couldn't even imagine arguing with him. Kind of like my relationship with Edward. We hardly ever argued, but when we did, it was almost like we couldn't move past them. I didn't want to be in that type of relationship again. I sighed, looking out the window. Maybe I wouldn't worry about it right now and I'd just worry about it later. We were having such a good time, there was no need for deep thinking right now.
Jacob looked at me questioningly, apparently noticing my sigh. I shook my head and smiled, assuring him it was nothing. He looked back at the road, seeming to accept that, but was still concerned. I knew he would be asking me about it later. We pulled up to his house and he jumped out as quickly as I had earlier.
"Just stay here," he said, already heading for the door. "I'll honestly only be a second," he continued, now talking over his shoulder as he walked in the house.
"I wonder what was up with that?" I thought, staring at the door he had just disappeared through. Maybe there was something he didn't want me to see. No telling with him. I would just have to question it later. Just as I had decided I would try really hard to remember, he walked back out of the house, still tying the drawstring on his black swim trunks.
"Told you it would only be a second," he said, climbing back into the car. "Ready to go to the beach?"
We took off towards First Beach. I had so many memories of that beach. Maybe there would be more made tonight. We got there quickly, parking next to a line of car's I recognized as other members of the pack.
"Looks like I was right. Knew they'd all be here," Jacob said, taking the keys from the ignition. We both climbed from the car and I walked around to the driver's side, standing next to him and beginning to take off my shirt. "What are you doing?!" he asked loudly, quickly looking around to see if anyone was there and then back down at me pulling my shirt off.
With a roll of my eyes, I stopped pulling on my shirt and said, "Really, Jake. Don't you remember, or did I distract you that much on the way here?" He looked questioningly down at me again, and then hit his forehead with the palm on his hand.
"Wow Bells. Sorry. Don't know where my mind went. Still need help with the sunscreen?" he asked with a smirk. I picked it out of my bag and handed it to him, turning around while taking my shirt off and pulling my shorts down.
"Thanks Jake. Just on my shoulders and back would be ni..." I said, stopping as he turned me around to face him, staring at my body from the bottom to the top. With anyone else, these intense stares would cause me to cringe and quickly cover up. With Jake, though, it made me feel sexy and wanted.
"Bells...where did you get this?" he asked quietly, trying to cover up the sound of lust and wanting in his voice while his eyes still traveled up and down my body. Quickly he pulled them to my face and smiled. "All right, turn around so I can put on the sunscreen." I considered picking on him about the staring, but decided after a few seconds that I had liked it too much to pull off even mock embarrassment. I turned around, giving him full access to my back. He quickly squeezed the sunscreen in his hand and sat the bottle on the car. He then put his warm hands on my back and began to move them up and down my spine, rubbing and massaging the sunscreen into my skin. It felt amazing. I was thinking so hard about how nice it felt that I didn't even hear him when he chuckled.
"I think you're enjoying this, huh Bells?" he said with another laugh.
"Sure sure," I mimicked him, "I guess it's all right." He laughed and turned me around, dropping the sunscreen in the open bag.
"And there you go. All done," he said with a clap of his hands. He lifted the edges of his white shirt, starting to pick it up from his body. Right as he was about to lift it over his stomach he said very seriously, "You sure you're ready Bella? Maybe you should hold on to the car. I don't want you to pass out." I playfully punched him in the stomach and bent down to retrieve my bag, acting as if him taking his shirt off was nothing special to me. Oh, but it was. He finally pulled it completely off and I couldn't help but stare. His stomach muscles were spectacular. He looked as if he had spent hours and hours in the gym everyday for this stomach, which I knew wasn't the case. So many people would die for his abs. Not to mention his arms. His biceps bulged even without him flexing and his arms looked so strong that you couldn't help but want them wrapped around you. I looked back at his face, hoping he hadn't caught me staring, but with the grin plastered on his face I knew he had.
"Good grief," I said, "let's just go to the beach."
"After you," he gestured. When I walked past he dipped his upper body through the window of the car, grabbing his football from the backseat. "Better get the ball. The guys will want to play."
We walked down the beach and soon saw Emily and Kim standing next to each other and they watched Sam, Embry, Paul, Quil, and Jared running around in what appeared to be a football game with soccer ball.
Jared quickly yelled out to Jacob, "Dude! I'm glad you're here! We need another member on our team! Oh. And you brought the ball. Sweet. Put on your shirt and come on," he gestured impatiently. Sam and Paul quickly high fived while Embry laughed, making it clear who was winning the game right now.
"Nice to see you guys too," I said sarcastically, waving at the pack. They all waved back with a chorus of, "Hey Bella!" Paul and Embry continued to stare a little longer, until Jake made his way over to them and slapped them in the back of the head. Chuckling, I continued to walk toward where Emily and Kim were standing, waving at them as Kim ran excitedly to hug me and Emily waved back, laughing at Kim's antics. Us three girls had really become close and enjoyed spending time together. I really liked them but sometimes felt alienated because of them both being imprints. They always went out of their way to make me feel like part of the group, though.
"Hey guys," I said, walking towards Emily, Kim's arm wrapped around my waist. "How's the game going?"
"Going good, and you look amazing!" Emily said, gesturing towards my body and then hugging me now that I had made my way to her. "Paul, Sam, and Embry are beating up on Jared and Quil, but now that Jacob's here it should be a fair fight."
We watched the game for awhile, not talking much. It was nice, being comfortable enough with someone to just sit and not feel necessary to have small talk. The boys were obviously having a blast. Jacob had helped Jared and Quil come back to give the other team a run for their money and it was fun to watch them be so playful with one another.
We were standing there, occasionally talking, when I felt the first raindrop fall on my shoulder. I looked at the sky, wondering if it was really about to rain, when I noticed Kim and Emily doing the same thing. "Well, looks like it's time to call it quits," Emily said, gesturing at the sky with a very annoyed look on her face. I began to put my clothes back on that I had stashed in my bag and yelled Jacob's name, trying to tell him it was time to go. Emily and Kim did the same with Sam and Jared, but they were having so much fun they didn't even hear us. As we stood there yelling, it started pouring. For a second it looked as if the boys were going to ignore that too, but they finally stopped playing and looked at us. We all three laughed at their faces, almost like little boys whose Mom told them they had to come inside. About that time Embry snatched the ball from Jake's hand and started running toward their makeshift end zone. He wasn't quick enough for Jake though, who tore after him and snatched the ball from his hands. He looked at me and laughed as the others started walking towards the cars. His soaked hair was plastered to his head and his drenched white shirt showed every muscle underneath. With his huge smile and football in hand, I wished I had a picture to capture that image. He was beautiful. I smiled back, starting to walk toward the dry car. He trotted after me, still grinning at the amazing day we had just had.
