So, second chapter for this little story, hope you like it=)
Charlie picked me up in Seattle airport with a big smile on his face, he looked almost twenty years younger and I could tell by how he acted that he had been missing me. I was only away for a short week, new years eve I wanted to spend with Charlie. He had taken the day off and had planned the whole evening up with loads of food, movies and gifts from Christmas day.
I got tears in my eyes of how much he had put in to make me feel better, and once again I struggled to let him see a better Bella.
The evening was real nice, and when he fell asleep and started to snore in the sofa I went to bed. As the clock ticked by and finally became twelve in the night I gave myself a new years eve promise. This year was going to be a good year. I had only a few short months left in school, then college with new friends, and no one would know me from before. The new, improved Bella would study, get good grades and start a new life, somewhere else, far from here and all the strong memories. I had myself, that was enough.
Charlie woke me up later that following morning. He wanted to visit his good friend Billy Black and his son Jacob. I vaguely remembered Billy and his wheelchair. Jacob I didn't know at all, all I knew about him was that he was little younger than me, and we used to play together when we were kids. I made myself ready, brushed my teeth, put on a pair of blue jeans and a grey shirt. My cloths seemed to reflect my mood these days, and grey was a perfect colour.
We got into Charlie's old cruiser and went down the road to La Push. The little town was unfamiliar, but it seemed quiet and almost a bit boring. Charlie turned away from the main road and stopped the cruiser by a small red house. It was L- shaped with a small garage about ten yards at the side of the house. Lights were on, both in the garage and the house.
As we got out of the cruiser the front door on the house opened and Billy rolled out and shouted a welcome to us. I wrapped my jacket around me, the feeling of loneliness grew bigger in this new town, I wanted to go home, tuck myself into bed and cry myself to sleep as I always did when I felt lonely. But Charlie took my hand and dragged me into the house. I said hallo to Billy and got into the house. The living room was combined with a small kitchen with a small table in the middle of the room. It didn't fit there, but was the only place it could stand without being in the way of Billy's wheelchair.
Before Billy wheeled himself in he shouted Jacob's name. I figured he was in the garage, working on whatever boys worked in the garage.
I sat down by the table, a big bowl with pasta was placed in the middle. I didn't ask if Billy needed some help, I was to tired after another nigh with bad dreams. I put my elbows on the table and leaned my head in my hands and slowly closed my eyes. I heard how Charlie and Billy whispered to each other, apparently Billy asked how I was doing but I didn't hear what Charlie replied.
The door opened and I looked up. With one glimpse a saw the resemblance between Billy and his son, Jacob. I said I quiet hallo and closed my eyes again. But the young man didn't leave me alone. He sat down by my side and touched my forearm with his index finger carefully.
"So this is the Isabella Swan?" I snatched my arm into my stomach and got furious of what he did.
"Bella, but what's that to you?" I stared him in his eyes, and if looks could kill…
"I'm sorry, but with dad talking about you all the time, well I'm kind of curious about you. I remember when we were small and played together on the beach here in La Push." He looked away, almost a bit nervous and put his hands together on the table.
So he and Billy gossiped about me behind my back. I should probably feel offended, but I was to tired to care, I sighed and hoped time would go fast so I could get home to my bed and forget about this dinner and Jacob.
"Did I say something wrong?" Jacob tried once again to make conversation.
"Well, yes, I don't like people gossip about me." I said with a sharp voice.
"I'm sorry, but we were just worried about you. Charlie called us the night you went missing, and since I've been thinking about you, wondering how you were doing." He tried to talk comfortably, but he almost stumbled on the words. "I thought about maybe calling you, but the time never seemed right, and dad made me wait…" He looked at his father with somehow a bit anger in his eyes.
I wondered why he bothered to think about me, I was a mess, inside and out. Thou I tried to look normal, the mirrors didn't lie. Despite my harsh words, I got a bit curious, why did he care?
"Yeah, well, I haven't actually talked to anybody yet…" I looked away and searched for Charlie's eyes. He smiled and continued to talk to Billy.
"Maybe you wanna hang out or something? Get away from Forks I mean." He still stuttered on his words, unsure. "My car is soon done, and I have a license, so I can pick you up, if you want."
Why would I wanna hang out with Jacob? I didn't even know him, and I didn't feel like having new friends, I didn't take care of the ones I had in school. Poor Angela, I need to talk to her in school, let her know I'm there, or something. But not to give up to much.
"I'm not sure, I don't have time for friends, I'm soon done with school, and we have a lot to study now." A little white lie could do the work, and I actually had much to do in school…Keeping my mind occupied with other things than…Study, study, that did the trick.
"Well, okay, if you change your mind, you now were to find me." Jacob still tried to talk me into hanging out with him, but he talked to closed ears.
Charlie and Billy talked about new fishing places they could visit during the spring, I was quiet, couldn't think about nothing else then getting home, to my bed. And when Charlie thanked for the food I quickly got up and got my coat.
"Okay Bella, I see that you hadn't have a pleasant time here, ha ha" Billy joked, but were spot on and I blushed.
"No, its not that Billy", I tried to not lie to much. "Its just that I have a lot of things to take care of at home…" Like go to bed and cry myself to sleep and hope that my nightmares would not visit me as usual.
"Maybe you could come here soon again, visit me and Jacob?" What was this, some kind of conspiracy?
Charlie keep quiet, like he knew another reason for our visit to La Push. Were they forcing me to met Jacob, to make new friends? No, that couldn't be it, or?
"Come on Bella, lets go home, you have a lot of things to take care of at home, like cleaning our spotless home and washing the our clean clothes." I saw how he winked at Billy and I knew, there were other plans to the visit than what Charlie said before.
I felt tricked and zipped up the fly, fast. I almost jumped in my boots and had my hand on the door handle before Charlie even had said bye to Billy and Jacob.
"Bella, can you heat up the car for me, I'm just gonna put my shoes on, I'll be right out." Charlie threw the large set of keys to me and I went out. I had to take a big chunk of cold air, to clean my head and to think rationally. So if Charlie had other plans for this meeting, well he didn't succeed. I went down to the car and unlocked it, put the key in the ignition and turned on the heat at max. I was cold, but of course, it didn't help. Since that day I'd been freezing, and nothing could make me warm again.
As I was to put those memories away, yet again Charlie walked out from the house. He walked slowly, during the evening it had gotten very cold out side, and the rain from earlier that day had frozen up and made the street icy. Fortunately we had winter tires and I didn't think much about how slippery it was outside.
Charlie backed the car and got on the road again.
"Wasn't that nice Bella? Good food and company, as it should be." he drove slow and concentrated on the road.
"Dad, what was the actually reason for us visiting Billy and Jacob?" I demanded a straight answer and he couldn't talk himself out of this.
"Er, well, I think its good if you meet new friends, Bella. You often sit alone in you room, not seeing either Angela or Jessica. And Jake is a good kid!"
"But dad, I have homework and other things to work on, besides Angela is dating Ben and Jessica is dating Mike." I think, I hadn't noticed if Jessica and Mikes relationship were on or off lately.
"Please, just give Jake one chance, I'm sure you and he can be good friends." He tried to plea with me and I was a sucker for that.
"Okay, I'll give him one chance, but nothing more!" As I said the words I regretted them, maybe I could talk me out of it later on…
Then I saw headlights meeting us, but they were on the wrong side of the road and before I had the chance to react I heard Charlie scream at loud and then I felt the collision and everything became black.
Please, please, review, I love reviews!=)=)