BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! Was the sound that I woke up to the next morning. I rolled over onto my side and sawNyoki lying on the floor next to my bed. "Morning Oki." I said petting her head. I looked at my clock on my side table. It was just after ten thirty. I pulled the blanket off top of me and got out of bed. My feet hit the soft carpeted floor as I walked down the hall to the bathroom. After I did what I needed to I opened the door to see Alex walking down the hall toward me. "Morning." He moaned tiredly.
"Hey." I said. I walked into my room and started to get dressed for the day. I turned my radio on and my room was filled with music seconds later. I looked through my boxes and stuff that had my clothes in them and picked out my outfit.
While I was brushing my hair my mom yelled from the bottom of the stairs for me to come down there. I sat my brush down and walked down with Nyoki on my heels. "What's up mom?" I asked standing on the bottom step.
"I'm on my way into town then to Seattle to meet with my clients. I just wanted to see what your plans for today were." She said putting her earrings into her ears.
"Uh, I was gonna finish unpacking my room and doing whatever else needed to be done here." I said looking around the room.
"Ok, but don't spend your whole day unpacking. You should get out and see the town…maybe take Oki with you." She said rubbing Nyoki's head.
"Ok, sure thing." I replied. She looked down at her watched and gasped.
"Oh no…I'm late. See you later sweetheart." She said grabbing her suitcase.
"Bye mom." I said before she closed the door. I looked down at Nyoki who looked up at me with her tongue sticking out. "Let's finish unpacking." I said walking back up to my room. She ran into my room and jumped on my bed while I unpacked. Two hours later all my stuff was unpacked. My clothes were hung up, my décor was where I wanted it, my posters were up on the wall and etc. My room looked amazing. I grabbed all the empty boxes and carried them to the end of the driveway and put them in a pile for recycling. I headed back inside and grabbed the rest of the boxes that mom and dad had emptied last night. As I put them down on top of mine I felt like someone was behind me. As I stood up I felt warm hands grab my waist. At that moment four things happened; I squealed, jumped, my heart dropped and Nyoki came running out of the house.
"Hey Alison…didn't mean to scare ya." A familiar voice said. I turned around and sighed when I saw who it was.
"Geez Paul…you scared the crap out of me." I said putting my hand on my chest.
"Sorry. Saw you out here so I thought I would stop and say hi." He smiled.
"Hi." I said.
"So what are you doing today on this lovely cloudy day?" he asked.
"Gonna finish unpacking then probably walk around the town." I said looking around at the trees.
"Sounds like fun." He replied. Nyoki barked from next to me and he looked down. "Who's this?" he asked.
"This is my dog Nyoki." I said. He patted her head while she responded and licked his hand.
"Cute. Well I had better get going, maybe I will see you around town later." He said.
"Maybe. See you later." I said. We walked away waving. I headed back to the house with Nyoki next to me. Once inside I headed to the kitchen and grabbed a quick bite to eat before I finished. While I was eating my food dad came down and did what he usually did the first thing in the morning; got a beer.
"Morning sweetie." He said popping it open.
"Morning dad." I said taking a bite. He walked out and headed to the bathroom like every morning. I finished my cereal and continued. Three or four hours later I had finished the kitchen, living room and half of the dining room so I decided to stop. "NYOKI!" I yelled through the house. Her paws could be heard hitting the floor as she ran down the stairs. "Do you wanna go see the town with me?" I asked. She barked and spun in a circle quickly as if she were saying yes. I grabbed her leash and clipped it on her then headed out the door. She sniffed almost every rock, tree, leaf, blade of grass and person we passed on our way to the town. It took about ten minutes to get there and once there I was greeted by a lot of friendly people who said hi and asked questions. Little kids would pet Nyoki and give her treats or something. After a while we made it to the beach where I took her leash off and we ran down it a few times, she played in the water and rolled in the sand. Now I am sitting on the beach looking out at the water while Nyoki is fetching the stick that I threw in the opposite direction. She came back over to me and laid the stick down in front of me, I grabbed it and repeated the same step I have been doing for the last five minutes. She took off after it with sand flying up into the air and me brushing it off.
"ALISON!" Six loud voice yelled from somewhere on the beach. I looked around then saw Paul, Jake, Embry, Quil, Seth, Jared and two girls. I waved to them as they made there way over to me. I stood up and brushed the sand off of me just as they got to me.
"Hey guys. How's it going?" I asked.
"Good. Have you finished unpacking?" Embry asked.
"Some what. I finished my room, the kitchen and living room." I said. I turned to the girls and smiled. "Hi, I'm Alison." I said sticking my hand out for them to shake.
"So we've heard. Wow she really is pretty." One of them said.
"Uh, thanks." I laughed as a slight blush formed on my cheeks.
"I only state the truth and I'm Kim; Jared's girlfriend." She said.
"Nice to meet you." I said turning to the other girl.
"I'm Leah, Seth's older sister." The other said.
"Hi."
"So how old are you?" Kim asked.
"Just turned nineteen. I'll be twenty in April. What about you guys?" I asked.
"Jared, Quil, Jake, Embry, Paul and I are all nineteen too. Seth is seventeen and Leah is twenty-three." Kim said.
"Cool." I replied.
"So have you had a chance to check out the town?" Quil asked.
"Well I walked through it…I didn't stop in anywhere since I had Nyoki with me." I said looking down at my now sleeping dog.
"We could show you around if you want." Kim said.
"Ok, would you guys mind going to my house with me first so I can drop Nyoki off?" I asked.
"Not at all." Paul said smiling.
"Ok, let's go." I said. "Nyoki." I called her name waking her up. She jumped up and bounced over to me then I put her leash back on. We headed to my house and I let Nyoki inside so everyone could show me around. "Hey Alex. The gang is going to show me around the town, do you wanna go?" I asked once I walked in the door.
"No." he said walking into the kitchen.
"Well…that was rude." Kim said from behind me.
"I'm used to it. That was my brother by the way." I said as we walked out of the house.
"Nice kid." Jake teased.
"He is once you get to know him." I defended Alex. On the way back into town I talked to Kim about my life and the guys listened. They really didn't ask any questions until we sat down at a pizza parlor for dinner.
"So do you have a boyfriend?" Embry asked.
"Uh…not anymore." I said.
"What happened?" Kim asked.
"Um…a couple years ago when I was living in Miami, me and this guy I was dating went to a big party this girl had every year. Well we had been drinking for a while, having fun and stuff when he wanted to talk to me. So we went to the end of the girls dock and we started talking, we ended up kissing and he tried to pressure himself on me. When I refused him he got pissed and hit me." I answered looking around. Everyone had a shocked expression on their faces except Paul. He had sympathy, anger, and hurt.
"Geez...what happened afterwards." Seth asked.
"I left the party, went home, told my mom what happened and called the cops. I had a black eye for almost two weeks." I said taking a bite of pizza. Nobody said anything for a while after that. "So did you all graduate?" I asked taking a drink of my pop.
"Kim did but we didn't unfortunately." Paul said.
"Oh why not?" I asked.
"We just got really busy and school wasn't at the top of our lists." Jake said.
"Oh…have you guys ever thought about getting your GEDs?" I questioned.
"Not really." They all said simultaneously. I kinda giggled to myself at that.
"Did you finish school?" Kim asked.
"Yep. I graduated early and now I am taking online classes for college." I smiled.
"Oh cool…what are you going for? Where are you taking the classes?" Leah asked. She hadn't said anything to me the entire time so this kinda shocked me.
"Vetinarian. I wanna open up my own animal shelter for injured and sick wild and domestic animals." I said. "And I am going to Indiana University. That's where I am originally from."
"So you like animals?" Paul asked.
"If I didn't then I guess I am going to school for the wrong thing." I laughed. We sat in the parlor for a little while longer and talked about whatever came to mind. I got to know Kim and Leah a little bit better. I learned that Leah had been with this guy named Sam who left her for her cousin Emily. It was very heartbreaking to see the look on her face and in her eyes as she told me what happened. I also learned that Leah and Seth's dad passed away a couple years ago of a heart attack. Call me crazy but I think I might have actually seen a tear in her eye. I learned some stuff about the others as well; Jake lives with his dad Billy who is in a wheelchair, his best friend lives in Forks; she's married, has a daughter and her dad is best friends with Jake's dad Billy, also his mom passed away when he was really little. A few tears left his eye when he talked about her. I also learned that he absolutely loves cars, bikes and working on them. Embry, Jared, and Quil didn't say much about them, but they were still awesome. Paul…now he was a different story. I couldn't get him to stop talking. I know that his parents died in a car accident when he was sixteen, the guys mentioned that he was a player, and so much more. Even when we left the parlor and headed back to my house he still talked. The guys, Kim and Leah all ditched us because he wouldn't stop. We talked and laughed so much on the way to my house. Once we got there I invited him in and we headed to the kitchen. "You want anything to drink?" I asked.
"Uh…how about a coke?" he asked. I got in the fridge and got out two cokes. I walked over to the counter and handed his to him.
"OK, you've done a lot of talking…my turn to ask you some questions since I haven't got to know you know you." I smiled.
"Ok…ask away." He said.
"Girlfriend?" I asked.
"Not at this time."
"How many girlfriends have you had in the past two years?"
"Over twenty." He said.
"Wow…why so many?"
"Didn't feel the spark." He answered.
"Oh…that sucks. I'm not one to date a lot. I actually hate it but if I am friends with someone for a while and I decide that I might have a little something for him then I might just try for something." I said as we sat at the counter. He stared at me for a few minutes and I stared back. I don't know what it was but there was just something about him that was intriguing. I felt like something was pulling me in toward him and apparently he thought so too since we started to lean closer together. Just before our lips touched…
"Hey! I'm home!" My mom's voice echoed through the house. We pulled away and I took a drink of my drink.
"In here mom." I responded. I heard her heels clacking on the wood floor down the hall.
"Hey honey…Paul. What are you kids up to?" she asked.
"Just…hanging out." I said. "How was work?" I asked.
"Ugh…tiring. So much to do and this client of mine is so hard headed, she just don't wanna listen to anything I say. I mean she hired me to give her advice and help her out but I feel like I am wasting my time." She said opening the fridge. "Have you already eaten?" she asked.
"Uh yeah. Paul and his friends showed me around the town and we stopped at the pizza parlor in town." I said.
"Well that was sweet. I'm glad that you've actually made friends here." She said looking at Paul.
"Me too…everyone is really great." I said looking at Paul. He looked at me and smiled.
"Sorry to do this but I should be going…I have somewhere to be but maybe we can hang out again tomorrow. I could introduce you to Sam and Emily." He suggested.
"Sounds like fun. I'll walk you out." I said. He headed for the door and my mom whistled as I followed him. Once we got to the door he stood on the porch while I stood in the door way. "I had a really great time hanging out today. Thanks." I smiled.
"No problem, I had a lot of fun to." He said. We looked at each other again and I felt the same feeling again like I was being pulled or pushed toward him. He leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on my cheek. "See you tomorrow." He whispered and headed toward the road.
"See ya." I responded. A light blush was on my cheeks as I closed the door. I couldn't stop smiling as I walked back to the kitchen.
"Well someone looks happy." My mom said sitting at the day table.
"I just had a good day." I retaliated.
"Mhm…what are dad and Alex up too?" she asked as I sat across from her.
"Dad's probably drunk and Alex is up in his room…I think." I responded. Just as I said that we heard foot steps coming down the stairs and down the hall. A second later my dad was staggering in the doorway of the kitchen. He stumbled over to the fridge and got another beer…his eleventh one today. He closed the fridge and looked at us as he opened the can. He bounced off the wall, counter and everything he passed. I was so embarrassed to bring people over knowing I had a drunk for a dad. Once he was out of hearing distance I started talking. "He needs help." I said.
"I know honey but we really can't force him to go. You know that he won't go sober…he won't even go drunk." Mom said quietly.
"Do you know how embarrassing it is to have a drunk as a father? I can't bring friends over because I'm afraid they will see him and I don't want them too." I said.
"I know…I'm not proud of it either." She said.
"Then we need to get him some help. He's gonna end up hurting himself and I don't want anything to happen to him." I said as a tear welled up in my eyes.
"What's brought this on suddenly?" she asked.
"Today when I was talking to Paul and all his friends they told me about themselves and most of it was heartbreaking. Jake's mom died when he was little, Seth and Leah's dad died a few years ago of a heart attack and Paul's parent's died in a car accident because of a drunk driver. I don't wanna lose him just yet." I said trying to hold it in. She got up and sat in the chair next to me.
"Honey…I know that you are worried about him and so am I but he is his own person." She said.
"But mom…he needs help. If he won't get help them we have to force him. We are his family and we are supposed to help him." I said. She just looked at me and sighed. Just before she could answer my dad staggered in with his beer splashing all over the place.
"I DON'T NEED HELP! I'NT AINT GING!" he yelled wobbling over to us.
"Dad you need to get help, I don't want you to get hurt." I said standing up.
"You can't make me go…I am perfectly fine." He mumbled taking a drink of his beer. I had enough. I was tired of watching him throw away his life like this so I grabbed his beer and walked over to the sink. "GIVE THAT BACK!" he yelled following me.
"NO!" I yelled back dumping it down the sink.
"FOTHER MUCKER GIVE IT HERE YA BITCH!" he yelled pushing me into the counter.
"GET OFF ME!" I yelled pushing him back. He stumbled back and bumped into the wall. His face grew red and he stumbled toward me. He tried to grab the can so I reached it farther away. When he couldn't get it he swung back his hand then brought it forward connecting it with my face. I dropped the can and my face got hot instantly.
"DREW! STOP IT!" My mom yelled trying to pull him away. He turned around and his hand hit the same cheek again. I fell to the ground and screamed. As I sat on the floor i felt a warm sensation on my face by my nose. I reached my hand up and touched it then looked. My eyes grew wide as I realized it was blood.
"WHAT IS GOING ON!?" Alex yelled walking into the kitchen. Dad looked at him, Mom held him back and I got up then ran. I ran toward Alex and pushed him out of my way then ran out the front door. "ALISON! COME BACK!" Alex yelled from the house as I ran down the road. Tears rolled down my cheeks and caressed my burning one. I ran down the road and through the woods toward the beach. As I entered the woods I couldn't see anything since it was pitch black out. Tears blurred my vision, sobs echoed through the trees and I smacked into something hard. I didn't fall back onto the ground due to arms wrapping around me.
"Alison?" a familiar voice asked. I looked up and saw Paul standing in front of me in the moon light.
"P-Paul." I cried. I buried my head in his chest and he pulled me closer to him.
"What happened?" he asked.
"My-my dad hit me on the face twice." I cried.
"What? Why?" he questioned. "Ali...you're bleeding." He took off his shirt and started wiping the blood from my face. I had feared this for many years. None of the people at my other schools had known about him being an alcoholic. "Why did he hit you?" he asked again. I stepped back away from him and wiped my face.
"My dad…he's an alcoholic. He's been drunk everyday of my life for as long as I can remember, there isn't a day that I remember him sober. All I wanted was for him to get help, because…I don't want to lose him this way. He over heard me talking to my mom about rehab, A.A or something that would help him and he got mad. I tried to dump his beer down the sink but he got mad and got violent." I said as a tear rolled down my face again. It could have been that it was dark out or it was my eyes but it looked like he was shaking and breathing hard. "Ar-are you ok?" I asked.
"Yeah…just give me a minute." He said. I stayed quiet as I stood across from him while he calmed down. A minute later he stopped shaking and sighed.
"Better?" I asked.
"Yeah…so what are you going to do now?" he asked.
"I don't know. I'm terrified that he is going to hit me again so I don't wanna go back. I guess I could sleep out in my tent in the back yard." I said sniffling and looking around.
"I wouldn't do that…there are dangerous wild animals out at night." He said.
"Well if one of them tear me apart it would be better than living with an alcoholic father." I said looking him dead in the eye.
"Don't say that." He said.
"What other choice do I have?" I asked.
"You could stay with me…it's a one bedroom but I could sleep on the couch and you could have the bedroom. If you want that is." He said. I pondered on the thought for a few minutes.
"You don't mind…it won't be for long. A few days a week tops." I said.
"Not at all." He responded.
"Thank you Paul." I said stepping forward to give him a hug. As he wrapped his arms around me I felt warm, safe, loved, and wanted.
"No problem." He said letting me go. "Come on…I'll take you by your place so you can get your things." He said.
"Ok." We headed toward my house in complete silence. Once we got there my mom and Alex were sitting in the living room on the couch.
"Alison." My mom said getting off the couch and walking over to me. Once she got over to me she pulled me into a hug. "Oh Alison…are you ok?" she asked.
"I will be once I'm at Paul's." I said pulling away from her. She looked at me with confusion in her eyes.
"Wha-what?" she asked.
"I'm leaving. If this is how I am going to be treated for trying to help my dad then I don't wanna be here." I said. I stepped away from her and headed for the stairs.
"Ali…you can't leave." She said following me.
"Yes I can…I am nineteen years old. I am free to go where I please and do what I want." I said walking into my room. I grabbed my suit case and started packing some stuff. I wasn't for sure I would be coming back or if I would try to get my own place here but for now I had to make sure I had a week of clothes and toiletries.
"Come on sweetheart. You know he didn't mean it." She said.
"How do you know? He could have meant it." I said turning around to face her. I grabbed my laptop, bags and some other stuff then headed back downstairs. "I'll think about coming back when and if he gets help…until then I'm gone." I said. Paul grabbed my heavy bag and walked out to my car. "Nyoki!" I yelled for her. She came bolting through the hall from the kitchen and over to me. I clipped her leash on her collar and headed for the car. I put my stuff in the trunk and got in. "I'll see you later Alex." I said waving to him as he and my mom stood on the porch. We got in and I started the car then pulled out of the drive way. Paul gave me directions to his house and I followed them. A few tears escaping my eyes as I drove, Paul grabbed my hand and held it. It was nice to know that I had some one here with me. Once we got to his house I pulled into the driveway and turned the car off. We sat in the dark car and in silence for a minute. "Thank you so much Paul. If I hadn't run into you I don't know what I would have done." I said looking at the steering wheel.
"No problem. What are friends for?" he asked. I turned my head slightly and looked at him through the darkness. "Come on…I'll show you around the house." He said. I smiled and we got out of the car. I opened the back door and let Nyoki out who started sniffing everything in site again. I popped open the trunk and we grabbed my stuff. He led the way to the house and opened the door then stepped inside. I whistled for Nyoki who was wondering toward the road. He flipped on the light and I squinted my eyes so they could adjust to the light. I looked around once I could see and smiled.
"Wow." I said looking around.
"What?" he asked curiously.
"It's so…clean. I would have thought that it would have been a little dirty." I laughed looking at him.
"Then you should have been here a few hours ago. You could hardly see the floor." He said. We laughed together and couldn't stop for a minute. "I'll show you the bedroom." He said grabbing my bag he had sat on the ground. I followed him to the bedroom which was as big as my room but maybe just a little bit smaller. "This is it." He said sitting my bag down in a corner.
"Cute." I said looking around.
"It's not much but it's a room. The bathroom is across the hall." He said pointing at the door. I nodded my head and sighed. "Ok, I'll leave you to your thoughts." He said.
"Thank you." I said. He walked out and closed the door behind him. I felt bad that he was sleeping on the couch now. I felt like I was invading his space. I sat my stuff down on his bed and sat on it for a while. I had no clue what I was to do next, do I look for my own place? How long would Paul let me stay here? I had no clue about anything. I couldn't look for my own place right now since I don't have any money which means I'll have to get a job. I sighed in frustration and grabbed my bag that had the clothes in it. I searched for some pajamas, my shampoo, conditioner, body wash and etc. I went to the bathroom and took a shower. Once I finished I looked for a towel and dried myself off then got dressed.
I put my hair up in a ponytail and headed back over to the bedroom. I put my clothes in the bag and put it on the floor. I sat on the bed with the covers over my legs and got my laptop out. I searched for some jobs in the local area and places for rent. There wasn't a whole lot here but there was enough. I found a few places that were hiring so I saved the pages and checked my email. While I was doing that there was a knock at the door and it opened a little. "You descent?" Paul asked.
"Yea…come in." I said closing my laptop. He walked in and sat at the end of the bed.
"How you doing?" he asked.
"I've been better." I sighed. "I feel bad that you have to sleep on the couch." I said.
"It's no problem." He smiled. Every time he smiled I couldn't help but stare. His smiled was so intoxicating. "How's your face?" he asked reaching over to touch it gently. His slight touch hurt and I winced.
"Hurts…probably gonna have a black eye in the morning." I said.
"It's starting to turn yellow so theres a possibility." He said. I sighed and lend back against the head board.
"You know something?' I asked.
"What?"
"This might sound crazy because we just met but…I feel like there is some kind of force pulling me toward you when ever you are around." As I said it out loud I felt like a lunatic.
"I feel the same way." He responded. I suddenly didn't feel like I was crazy. He moved closer to me and touched the side of my face with his hand. It was so warm that I closed my eyes and sighed. I opened my eyes and looked into his, dark brown with a hint of green on the edges. Suddenly we started to lean closer and closer. I wanted to stop because we had only known each other for two days and I wasn't the type of girl who moved this fast but at the same time I wanted to kiss him so passionately. Then our lips touched, it was magical. His lips were warm, soft, and I wanted more. His hand slid to the back of my neck and pulled me closer to him. My hands suddenly had a mind of their own as they were on his shirt pulling him to me. Every part of me wanted to go to the next step but I didn't know what would happen if we did. We were just kissing and that was innocent. Every part of me became their own and my mouth opened just slightly and his followed. We started to make out but I stopped. It was starting to get hot and heavy which was what I didn't want. I pushed him away slightly and he looked at me.
"Sorry…it's just that we've only known each other for two days and I don't wanna ruin our friendship by making things awkward between us." I explained.
"It's ok, I totally understand but for the record…you're an amazing kisser." He said. By cheeks instantly burned of embarrassment.
"Thanks…you're pretty good yourself." I said. He laughed at my embarrassment and I joined him.
"Well I'm gonna go…your probably tired." He said. I nodded and half smiled. Before he could get up I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him. He wrapped his around my waist and hugged back.
"Thanks again for everything Paul…you're a great friend." I said hugging him.
"No problem." He said. I let go of him and he got up then kissed me on my lips again. Just a little peck sent tingles to my toes. "Night." He said.
"Night." I responded. He walked out and closed the door behind him. I lay down on the bed touching my lips and thinking about what had just happened in the last ten minutes. I turned out the light and fell asleep shortly after.