Chapter 2
Coming Home
As if being on the plane with Edward for so many hours wasn't hard enough, I swallowed the lump in my throat as I walked out of the terminal and saw the vague but distinctly familiar outline of the rest of the Cullens. Each and every one of them stood there like untouched statues of beauty, the same cold stillness reverberating off of them as I had remembered before. I took a deep breath and followed behind Edward, my hand hesitantly entwined in his.
It had nearly been half a year since I had seen them. For reasons unexplained, something felt out of place. Rather than feeling comforted or protected or calmed, I felt... awkward. It was the awkwardness of discomfort, the fact that they had suddenly become strangers to me. Never in my wildest dreams had I expected for this to happen. I felt edgy, uneasy and a little wary. As all of these emotions washed over me within the span of a few seconds, I stopped myself before it could get any worse. I took a deep breath and smiled as we approached them.
Alice immediately dashed over to Jasper and they embraced each other as if it were their last moment together. She had been quiet the whole way through on the plane, and had even offered to sit a few rows ahead of us, just so that we could have some time alone. I was happy to see her reunited with Jasper, seeing as to how worried she was over him earlier. I could feel the eyes of everyone else on me as I leveled myself beside Edward and gently pulled my hand away. When I looked up, I saw the butterscotch eyes of Carlisle. I smiled, not sure where to begin.
"I can't thank you enough, Bella," he said understandably as he stepped forward and pulled me into an embrace. "We couldn't have done this without you."
"It's true," Esme said softly from behind and within seconds, she appeared and wrapped her arms around me just as Carlisle pulled away. "Thank you, sweetheart," she said. And just as they let go, I could immediately pick out the sweet scent of aftershave and honeysuckle, a scent that was familiar and strange.
I didn't know what to say or how to respond. I didn't feel like I deserved the gratitude. In fact, I felt that I should've been blamed for this because if it weren't for my idiotic behavior earlier, Edward wouldn't have done what he did. All the same, here stood Carlisle and Esme in all of their kindness, thanking me rather than blaming me for their son's near-death experience.
"It-it was nothing," I muttered back, unable to conjure up anything else.
"We should get going," Emmett said, the deepness of his voice throwing me off guard. I looked up at him and he smiled wide, showing all of his perfectly white teeth, which managed to bring back the unsettling feeling I always had when I looked at that smile. I then looked over at Carlisle as he nodded in response.
"Bella, I'm sure we can give you a ride back and get you something to eat," he said. "You look terrible." His face still bright as I smiled idiotically and stood there, not sure of what I should do next. After a few seconds of awkwardness, I shook my head.
"Actually, I have to call Charlie so I'll probably get a ride back with him."
"Of course," Carlisle replied. "But we want to thank you properly so we'll be in touch again. Given the suddenness of coming back home this way, there are a few things we need to settle. But again, thank you for what you've done."
I could do nothing but smile apologetically at Dr. Cullen. Not only in response to what he said but to the reality of what was happening. From what I gathered, they were all back in town and would need to do a bit of explaining to everyone. Either way, there was one realization I could confirm with confidence: it had been the most awkward 15 minutes of my life. I had to get myself out of here to think and organize my head. Shit was everywhere. In what became a confusing shuffle of bags being picked up and limbs moving in every direction, all of the Cullens managed to glide to the door as they looked back with smiles. All except one. I wasn't really looking at the figure in front of me until I focused my view and saw Edward. With an unreadable mask, he stood there and looked right at me.
"I have to call Charlie," I said quickly, hoping I could make a run for it. I smiled, nodded absently and then began backing away. As I turned around and walked in the opposite direction, I looked back and saw him donning the same lack of expression as before. He nodded briefly and then turned for the doorway.
And that was the last I saw of Edward as I turned back and headed for a separate exit door.
"Dad, I know what you're thinking," I said exasperatedly.
"No you don't, Bells," Charlie replied, his face tangled up with so many different emotions that I couldn't pick them out if I wanted to. But after ruling out all of the logical possibilities, I would guess that he was nothing short of crabby. Without much thought, I began shoving a few choice items from the table into my tote.
"Where do you think you're going?" Charlie asked.
"I have to talk to Jacob," I said, my tone laced with urgency. I looked at Charlie with pleading eyes and knew he couldn't resist giving in when it came to Jacob. Besides, I needed to see my best friend.
"Be back by eleven," Charlie said a minute later. I smiled at him and headed for the door.
It had been a week since I came back from Volterra, Italy. I was obviously grounded for life but after explaining things as best as I could to Charlie, I knew he had understood somewhere along the way. The biggest thing to convince him otherwise was the fact that I was still tied to Jacob and couldn't live without him. He was my best friend and Charlie's favorite. The two had to coincide at some point and that's what got me here.
As I drove up the familiar dirt road that led to the homely little red house, so many thoughts were whirling through my head. What would I say to Jacob after practically ditching him that night as I fled the country to save a vampire? I'm sure he would be furious with me and wouldn't know where to begin. That's how a lot of things were between us. I was always the one to give him a headache and I can't help it. Maybe that's why we're still best friends, because we're the only two people in the world that can tolerate each other this way.
As if my Chevy's hyperventilating engine couldn't be enough of a door-knocker a mile away, I somehow sensed that he was standing nearby, ready to hand it to me. I wouldn't blame him for it either. As I pulled up to the front of his house, I saw him standing against the frame of the front door, arms crossed, his face blank. I got out of my truck slowly, my sight darting on everything around the perimeter except him.
"Nice of you to stop by," he said evenly, in that familiar boyish voice that I had grown to love so much. I looked up at him, half smiling and half frowning because I couldn't tell if he was angry or mellowed out.
"It's okay if you don't want to let me in, or if you don't want me within 15 feet of your house," I said. "I'll understand. I deserve it." I stood beside my orange truck, my hands tucked into my back pockets as I looked at him apologetically. I could see him peering at me, as if he were trying to read into my expression and just as he did that, I turned away and looked back down at my shoes. Just as my eyes roamed over the ground I was standing on, I heard the front door close and looked up as Jacob made his way toward me.
"So they're back, huh?" He asked, no hint of sarcasm or anger present. I looked at him and then peered into his face a moment later to see if there were any hidden messages. Just as I did that, he laughed. I pulled back and crinkled my eyebrows reactively. As I stared at him, a smile broke across my face and then I suddenly felt myself grinning wide. I instinctively dived in and wrapped my arms around Jacob's neck and I could feel him tense up and react a moment later. He followed suit and wrapped his arms around me as we stood there and bear-hugged each other, never wanting to let go.
"Thanks, Jake," I said as I closed my eyes and inhaled a breath of fresh air, squeezing him a little tighter so that he didn't have a chance to pull away just yet. The world suddenly seemed a lot brighter once I knew that Jacob and I were on good terms. And even better, that he wasn't angry with me taking off to save Edward. We pulled away a long moment later and I looked up at him. He smiled.
"So," he began, "is this the last time I'll ever get to see you?"
"What do you mean?" I said, confused.
"Didn't you come to say goodbye?" He looked at me and I noticed how soft his eyes were this time around. Like he had given up and lost his heat. He looked defeated and worn out and tired. So tired. Just as I began to piece things together, I blurted out the first response that came to mind.
"Where am I going?" I asked. He crinkled his brow reactively.
"You don't have to lie to me, Bella," he said, his tone laced with sadness. "It's okay."
Did Jacob think that I had run off to save Edward and was now back in love with him? For someone who was my best friend, he wasn't very perceptive. All the same, he looked so hurt as he stood in front of me, like he was in pain just standing there.
"It's not okay," I said, my voice heavy, "because this isn't the last time you'll see me." He was looking down at the ground in front of us, refusing to look me in the eyes. I cupped his lean face in my small hands and made him look at me. "I'm not going anywhere unless it's with you, Jake." I tried to smile under my frown as we looked at each other. I think he got my meaning because a moment later, he wrapped his arms around me and squeezed me so tight that I thought my lungs were going to burst. And then I felt myself lifted off the ground as he continued to hug all of the air out of me.
"Jake-you're-killing-me," I said between breaths, hoping he would loosen his grip before I lost consciousness. Surely enough, he immediately let go and pulled back, putting some space between us.
"Sorry," he said with a grin, all traces of sadness disappearing by the second. He was like his old self again, his warmth spreading into every molecule of air around us. He continued to stare at me and a moment later, wrapped his arms around me again, more gently this time, and we held each other for what seemed like a lifetime. "I'm glad you're back," he said a minute later as I smiled to myself.
"Me too," I said as we pulled away from each other a moment later.
"What's wrong?" Jacob asked as he noticed my thoughtful expression.
"They want me to visit them soon," I said, remembering that day at the airport all too clearly.
I knew that at some point, I would have to see them and let them know how I truly felt about their disappearance. It was just as hurtful and consequential as Edward's. And I might even have to throw in a warning about how the townspeople in Forks weren't taking too kindly to their return. It was something I dreaded doing but knew that I would eventually have to square away at some point. I would rather just get this over with already. I had nothing against the Cullens, but I was in no mood to see them after everything that's happened. I'm just wasn't ready for another round of awkwardness.
"Why?" He asked, his tone a little more stern this time.
"Because I need to settle a lot with the Cullens," I said, more to myself than to Jacob. "They need to know that I love them, but that things have changed." I saw Jacob's very slight flinch at the mention of their name out of the corner of my eye. "What do you think?" I looked over at him.
"You do what you have to do," Jacob said evenly, an encouraging smile spreading across his face. He looked at me in the same manner that he was doing earlier, except this time it was more of a softened loving expression rather than a sad one. "And if you want me to be there," he said, "you know I'm down."
Author's Note:
Aw, Jacob. I love Jacob.
I also changed the title of this story to "Crimson." Makes for a more epic story to come.
