I groggily awake from the couch, the light pouring in through the silky curtains. My eyes were adjusting to the brightness as I turn to see Jacob across from me. He's still sleeping like a baby, noise barely coming from him. He's sleeping on his side, an arm draped across his chest as his hand rest against the carpet.
I do my best not to disturb him as I whip the sheets off of me and sit up. The thought of disturbing this guy's sleep makes me extremely nervous. Wouldn't want to get in a scuffle with him.
The soft pattering of rain strikes the roof. There is no one else up yet. I think that maybe I should just get my things and start walking home. As I start to fold the sheets, I hear something stir. I turn and see that Jacob is waking up. He looks to me with sleepy eyes and makes a soft, audible comment, "Are you heading out?"
"Yeah, it's time to go, I guess."
"Wait for me?"
"OK," I say as I continue to pile the sheets on the couch. I then gather my empties in the kitchen placing them in my bag. I return and notice that Jacob's already waiting at the door. He's wearing the same track pants, and his now-dry, white t-shirt. Too bad it's gonna get wet again.
Something inside me says that I should probably wait for Bella and Edward to wake up so that I can thank them. As if Jacob was reading my thoughts I hear him say, "Don't worry, we can thank them later." And he turns around and heads out the door into the drizzling rain. I follow after him at a brisk pace until I catch up.
"Hey, slow down man!" I demand.
"Where are you headed?" he asks thoughtfully.
"Back to my place. 44 chestnut Avenue. You?"
"I'm heading back to my reserve."
"Oh, cool. So you're native then?"
"We prefer the term First Nations, or more specifically Quileute, but yeah. La Push is not very far; about 10 minute run from the main street."
"You must be a pretty fast runner."
"Yeah, I get by," he says with a wink. He looks like he wants to say something else, but instead he keeps quiet. I guess I'd better do the same. We walk silently until we hit the main road. We're just about to part when he turns to me. I glance over to him and I see him quickly walk up to me and gives me a gentle hug. "It was nice to meet you, Ben."
He pulls away after about ten seconds, and I return, quite taken aback. "It was nice to meet you too, Jacob." He gives a wave and then takes off at a run down the road. I merely shake my head and begin to walk downtown to my house.
I wake up Monday morning and begin getting ready for school. After fixing some breakfast, I gather my lunch and swing my bag over my shoulder. "Bye, Dad! I'm heading out!"
"Have a good day, Ben!" he replies from the kitchen table over the newspaper.
What a strange weekend. What was supposed to be an intimate encounter with Bella turned out to be one with Jacob. Why cruel fate? Bella looked so independent that night. Strong. She doesn't need Edward. Not when he's so controlling. She needs someone like me. Someone that can care for her without smothering her with demands. I hope she breaks it off with him soon.
As I approach the school, I see Bella and Edward on the front steps having what appears to be a heated conversation. I see Bella drop her arms and angrily walk away, coming down the stairs. She sees me and produces a forced smile. "Hey Ben!"
"Hey, Bella, what's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing. I just broke up with Edward. I'm just having some mixed feelings right now."
"Yeah? What about?"
"It's complicated. But basically I wanted out of that relationship because he's so clingy and controlling. It's like he can't live without me for some reason."
"Well you are quite pretty, I must say. And you have this sunny disposition that makes being around you so pleasant."
"That's nice, Ben," she returns, wiping some tears from her face, and smiling weakly. "You're a good guy yourself."
"Thanks."
I hear the bell ring and I begin to walk towards the school. I hear Bella's footsteps come up next to me. I don't say anything as we continue through the school to our homeroom. It's biology class, and we're learning about hormones and their roles in the human endocrine system. It should be a good class. Very applicable to all the drama occurring recently.
There was going to be a get together at Bella's place on Friday. She said it was just going to be low key; maybe we'll just play some board games or other things. I thought it sounded like a good idea. So here I am – arriving at Bella's place on Friday night. I knock on the door and Bella opens it. She seems a little distressed, but insists I come in to the kitchen. I remove my shoes on the mat and then follow her into her kitchen. Not nearly as impressive as Edward's abode, but still just as functional. I grab a seat, and gaze at the many board games that are placed on the table. Scrabble, Cranium, Pictionary … the usual. Bella asks me if I'd like a drink.
"Just some water would be nice," I reply. As she goes to get the water, I hear a knock at the door. "Don't worry, I got it," I say as I jump out of my seat and bound over to the front door. I open it cautiously and see a tall, tanned figure. Jacob greets me with a smile, showing off his perfectly white teeth.
"Ben!" he says enthusiastically as he wraps his arms around me once again, only he's got me in much tighter than before. "How's it goin', man?"
He releases me and I sigh a breath. "It's all right," I say backing up so he can come in. "We're just figuring out what games to play."
"Hopefully no more truth or dare, huh?" he replies. I am quite confused right now. I try not to worry about what Jacob might be conveying with his hugging, and suggestive comments. Surely someone like him can't be … he can't like me like that, right? He's probably just messing with me. I'm sure he's just here because of Bella. Bella is great: so bubbly and cheerful. Except right now. It must be the breakup with Edward. I'm sure I could cheer her up, if only Jacob doesn't interfere somehow …
"So what game shall we play?" I ask as we both take seats at the kitchen table. Bella joins us and places my glass of water on the table. She begins to ponder this question. She better not take so long to think of a response as she did last time. Although, we do have all night anyway. It's not like we need to pick the right game to start.
"Well," says Jacob. "Why don't we play Scrabble?"
Oh yeah. I'm sure Jacob would like to see what words I come up with. Actually, this may be a good idea. It's a sort of indirect way of getting to know each other. What words we do manage to fit into the crossword may say something about our personalities. It may not be completely accurate, but it could still be fun.
We each grab our seven letters from the Scrabble bag, and begin to rearrange them on the letter stand.
"I'll go first!" declares Bella. She begins placing her letters on the board, spelling out the the word "sexy." Interesting. I wonder who'll follow that …
"My turn!" Jacob says after Bella records her score on the paper. He begins to connect his letters to Bella's word spelling out "men." I knew it! He was hitting on me! There's no doubt about it. Not that I'm proud. I'm a little weirded out that another guy likes guys. But is it so weird? I mean, I'm attractive enough of a guy. Why wouldn't he think I'm hot? In fact I'd be insulted if he didn't have a crush on me! Wait. Shouldn't I want Bella to like me? I mean, that way something would actually happen. Hopefully, anyway.
"So, sexy men, huh?" I ask Jacob.
He eyes me curiously. "Yeah, I couldn't think of anything else."
"I bet you couldn't," I reply.
Jacob appears to be blushing, but I can't exactly tell. Bella cuts the awkward silence, urging me to go. I look to my letters, disappointed by the variety I am given. I have a 'w' and an 'o' … I might as well just change it …
"There! Now it's 'sexy women,'" I say proudly.
Jacob nods to me. "Nice one, man."
"Really? I didn't think you'd like that one … with your sexy men and all ..."
I immediately regretted saying those words. The look on Jacob's face struck guilt into my heart, seeing his eyes wide with embarrassment. He silently arises from the table and begins packing up his things.
"Jacob! Ben didn't mean that!" Bella states sincerely. "Ben, tell him you didn't mean that!"
"I-I'm sorry Jacob. I was just teasing."
Jacob remained silent. But not silent enough. A small sob escapes him as he rushes over to the front door, closing it with force. I had no idea a little joke could be so devastating. I should really try to be more sensitive.
"Well, that was a bummer," I say solemnly.
"Oh, well," Bella replies as she starts putting the letters away. "Jacob's just been acting a little strange recently. It must be his hormones."
"Yeah, really eh. How old is he, anyway?"
"He just turned 17 this year."
"Man. Kid's tall enough. What's he, 6'5''?"
"6'7''."
"Wow." I think about this. Seventeen-years-old, six-foot-seven, and way too muscular for his age. Seems a little suspicious to me. He must be on something. Maybe growth hormone and steroids. Perhaps that's why he's so emotional these past few days. "Someone should tell him not to do drugs," I say seriously. "They can mess you up."
"Jacob's the most straight-edged person out there, Ben. Never have I seen him even touch a drink."
"Well, maybe life on the reserve is slightly different, you know ..."
"Wow, ignorant much, Ben? Geez, I thought you were a better guy than that!"
Strike two. Why do I keep messing things up like this? It's 'cause Bella's hot. I always say the wrong things around the women I'm attracted to. Too much pressure, you know? Things are never the same when I'm around regular people. "I'm sorry," I finally say, legitimately sorry for having said that. "Should I go now?"
"No, stay Ben, please!" Bella begs. "I don't want to be lonely tonight!"
What a coincidence! Me neither!
"Well then," I say suggestively. "What can we do now?"
"I'll tell you!" Bella replies with a grin.