Embry quit coming into school and it made me curious, "What happened to Embry?" I asked Quil and Jacob during lunch.
Jake and Quil's laughter quickly subsided into an eerie silence and their faces looked unusually solemn.
"What?" I asked worried that I had offended them somehow.
"He's gone to the dark side." Quil said in a bad attempt at a Darth Vader voice.
Jacob punched him hard in the arm, "its not funny Quil." He turned to me his beautiful face dark, "He's run off with Sam Uley and his cult."
"Who?" I asked confused.
"Ask around. People will tell you about him, some think he is just a rebel but Billy," He chuckled darkly and shook his head slowly, "Billy thinks that he's the best thing that ever happened to this place."
Before I could open my mouth to ask what was wrong with him the bell from lunch rang. I knew I wouldn't have the chance to ask Jacob more questions about it until Saturday when he was going to change the tires on my truck.
Jake looked under the hood of my truck looking puzzled.
"What?" I asked.
"Your oil needs changed."
"Oh."
"I can do it after school and have my friend Bella run you up to your house." He offered.
I gave in, "Okay Jake."
I met Bella she seemed nice but at the same time she looked distant. She didn't seem to acknowledge that I was there. I figured I must have not been her favorite person.
One day Jake asked me and Quil if we wanted to go to the movies with him and Bella Swan. Jacob had introduced me to Bella once before and we hung out together in Jakes garage while he worked on their motorcycles. I grimaced, "Sorry Jake, but the vet is coming up to look at Styx's leg, and he's been lame. The vet's coming out from Portland."
Jake quit coming to school so I called Billy to see if he was okay, "Hey Billy, Is Jake okay? He hasn't been in school."
"Yeah," Billy's gruff voice, "Jacob has mono."
I gasped, I had gotten mono once in the eighth grade and it sucked, "Billy, if you need anything give me a call."
"Thanks Sarah." Then the line went dead.
"You're welcome Billy." I muttered disgusted into the phone.
Weeks passed with only Quil and me at our table during lunch. It was quiet while we usually ate in companionable silence, but one day I couldn't take the awkwardness of it anymore, "Quil, what are you doing later?" I asked.
He looked surprised but please, "Nothing why?"
"Do you want to come to my house and ride the horses and maybe kick back and watch a movie?"
His dark eyes sparkled with excitement, "Yeah sure when?"
"Well we could do it right after school." I offered.
"Yeah that's great!"
Quil greeted the horses like an old friend he brushed them and patted them with affection. I asked him which one he wanted to ride and he chose Gracie.
He got on and expertly steered her around me while I tightened my most experienced trail horse, Tex's cinch. "You're good at that." I commented impressed.
Quil grinned at my comment, "When I was little my mom used to make me go to horseback riding lessons in Hoquiam."
"Well, it looks like it's all coming back to you now." I said as I swung into the saddle. I took him on a trail I had discovered a few weeks ago and he was content on the back of the kind mare.
The trail came out in a field it was almost perfectly round and it made me want to kick Tex into a gallop and race across the field. Tex could feel the anticipation that must have been radiating off of my body. In return I could feel him anxiously waiting for the signal that would send the pair of us flying across the field. Instead I turned Tex around and headed back the way we came.
Instead of sitting on the couch we sat in front of the couch using its front as a back rest with a large blanket covering the both of us while we ate popcorn and watched The Ring intently. After that we watched all six of the Star Wars movies.
"It's late." He observed from the clock on the VCR. It said that it was two-fifty-five in the morning.
"Yeah." I thought slowly, "You can stay here if you want." I offered, "I don't have anymore beds but you can sleep on the couch."
He smiled "Yeah that'd be great." I left him the TV remote and the blanket and slowly and careful not to trip back to my bed.
In the morning I wandered into the kitchen to a horrible smell coming from the frying pan on the stove that Quil was trying to salvage, "What are you doing?" I asked him laughing.
"I'm trying to make eggs."
"Trying would be the key word." I said scraping the charred eggs into the trash.
"What? I was trying to be a good citizen!"
"Poor eggs." I said shaking my head.
I sighed and tried to put off going out in the thunderstorm to feed the horses. "What?" Quil asked coming up behind me.
"I have to go out there to take care of the horses."
"And you don't want to?"
"Not in this storm."
"Don't worry I've got your back." He assured me.