2

Jacob zoomed down the dirt road, his hands gripped on the steering wheel tightly. His eyes were squinted tightly together, and I looked out the window. It had begun to rain, and a gloomy emotion had entered into my soul. I sighed, and Jacob cleared his throat. "Where are we going?"

He slowly stopped at the muddy red stop sign that was stuck in the ground. A puddle wrapped around the post, and rain pounded hard against the windshield. "We're going to see Sam."

I looked over at him, a puzzled look displayed on my face. "Sam?"

Jacob nodded. "Yes, Sam. He knows a lot about the Cullens and the Quileute Tribes. They tie together in some ways, I don't know much about it." He bit his lip, "Maybe he knows something you wanted to know."

I shook my head slightly, "Something I want to know?"

"Yes… I was there when you Googled Edward Cullen. " He grimaced, and sounded as he was in pain as he said the name. "I'm not stupid; I know you want to know. Besides, Sam can tell you lots of stuff about him in particular. If you really want to know..."

I pursed my lips, and wiped my hand across my brow. "I don't know if I really… want to know."

Jacob coughed, and made a sharp turn. "It's just like a horror story Bella, most people would never believe it, and if they did, they'd take it too seriously. But Bella…"

I looked over at him, waiting for him to continue the sentence he had started. "Yes?"

He parked the car, and put his hand on my arm. It was warm, and the head from his hand pushed through my jacket. "From what I remember, you aren't like most people."

My head started to swim, and I closed my eyes. Jacob never had talked to me this way, but the last time I had seen him we were young. I wasn't exactly flirtatious when I was 10. I opened up the door of the Ford truck, and walked to the front of the house. I knocked on the door, but no one opened it. I crossed my arms, and waited impatiently. By that time, Jacob was near me. I looked up at him, and the romantic and sweet smile on his face seemed to make a warm bubble around us. I smiled, but tried hard not to show it.

Jacob pulled out his phone, and called someone. "Dude… Quil. Open up the door."

After he hung up his phone, an unfamiliar person opened the door. His body was tan, and he had no shirt on. Even in the cold weather he wore shorts. His hair was long, and it was jet black. He gave me an uncanny look. When he saw Jacob walk up from behind me the man said, "What are you here for, man?"

"Sam there?" Jacob said, as he gently whacked the man's stomach.

"Nope. Just left." His eyes moved towards the forest, and I turned to look there. I saw nothing, and my eyes shifted back to Jacob and the guy he was talking to.

"Great…" Jacob said, and then continued. "Mind if we come in, and wait for him?"

"I don't know. Maybe. I don't see why not but… what do you think the woman would say?" He turned to look at where the clattering of pans came from.

"She'd say 'What the hell' and you know that. Now let us in. Besides, Bella's here. They can talk." Jacob demanded, and tried pushing his way into the house. Of course he was joking, or I was hoping he was.
"Wa-wa-w-wait buddy. Who's the chick?" He asked, and pointed at me vexingly.

"She's not the chick. She's Bella. Like I just said. She's just…"

He paused, and I knew what he wanted to say, but instead continued saying something that was appropriate for me. "My friend from way back… she moved back up here from Phoenix." He wrapped an arm around my waist tightly, and pulled me to him.

"Umm... Hi." I waved an arm at the guy who was staring at me. The more I looked at him, the more I saw a boy than anything else. He looked Jacob's age, and Jacob was a little younger than me. "Actually, I haven't lived here since I was four months old. Can I… erm, we come in? I'm freezing."

The boy's eyes widened. "Oh yeah. Of course, I didn't even notice."

I walked into the house and Jacob and the boy stayed at the door to talk. "Of course you didn't notice," Jacob said, "We don't feel the cold since we're-"

But the chatter of three boys who looked all like Jacob, no shirt on, and long black hair cut off his line. "Who are you?"

Then a woman walked in. She was beautiful, and handed me a cup of something warm. "Boys. Be quiet. Hello, darling."

I was silent, and my head was still spinning from the car ride. "Hi. I'm Bella, and you are?"

She smiled at me, and shook my head. "I'm Emily... You know Sam he's my fiancée. But anyway, it's nice to meet you."

She was beautiful, and had olive toned skin. Her hair was long, and a blackish brown. She had bangs that covered her whole forehead, and her face was flawless like silk She had a brown, Tootsie Roll shirt on and some boot-cut jeans. Emily's voice was sweet and rang like a bell. She took my jacket away, and put it in a closet, which was out in the hallway.

When Emily returned, she sat down. Three boys in the background ate huge pieces of pizza, and I said, "No. I don't really know Sam. Never met him, Jacob just kind of dragged me out of his dad's house and told me we were going to see Sam. I'd really love to know who that is."

"He's a great guy." She said, her eyes lighting up. "But, that's just what I think of him… because I love him so much."

Jacob and the boy would I had met at the door came into the room. He snorted, and Jacob sat down next to me. "That's Quil, that you met at the door. And the one who asked you who you were, he's Embry. And the other two, they're Jared and Paul.

I looked at all of them, my eyes sweeping across the room. It seemed like there were 50 million clones of Jake, or 50 million clones of Embry, Quil, Jared, and Paul. I clenched a fist, as Jacob and my arm touched. His skin was extremely compared to the coolness of mine. I wished I could hug him right there. He was my teddy bear, and I wished he were mine in every other way.

"So Bella… You're here to talk to Sam." Paul said, as he turned his chair around to look at me.

I nodded solemnly, and looked at my feet, tapping my boots together and little speckles of dirt fell onto the wooden floor. "Oh… Jacob probably wants to scare you. No big deal."

Jacob cut in, and sat on the edge of the coach. "No… she wants to learn about Edward Cullen."

Jared jumped out of his seat, and his nostrils flared. "Don't talk about that cold one in this house. I don't want to here anymore of it."

I looked at Jacob, to Jared, to Paul, and to Emily who was cowering in her seat. "Boys… sit down. And don't scare Bella… she's just here to learn a few things. Not to side with anyone."

Paul looked at Emily, and I could tell that he was ready to shower her in a piece of his well-educated mind. "If you want to start the lesson, I'll start it now. With all the information about the Cullen family, and the Quileute Tribes… you could be here all night."

Jacob cut in, and then sunk back down in his chair. "Which we won't be doing. Bella and I have school tomorrow." I saw him eye Quil and Embry who were sitting quietly, picking at their toenails. I grimaced, and then looked back at Paul who was quietly chuckling. I was glad to see that his maturity level was much higher than the one's of his fellow "friends."

"So it all began a very long time ago. Basically the Native American Quileute Legend suggests that the tribe members are descended from… wolves. According the legend, which has been questioned numerous times, there were beings known as Dokibatt, K'wa'iti, the Trickster, the Transformer, and the Changer. These three titled people were supposedly the ones who created the first Quileute from a wolf. Dokibatt, the Changer, looms heavily in the Pacific Northwest coastal…mythology. Of course, this is what people apparently believe. I think it's all bull… but it's what we are. All of us, Jacob, Embry, Quil… even Emily in some ways. Anyway… originally there were six native societies for the fisherman, the elk hunters, the whale hunters, the weather predictors, the medicine men, and the warrior. In the legend… apparently all Quileute 'brothers' as some people call us, are pledged to protect La Push… the reserve you know, from the Cold Ones."

"Cold Ones…" I whispered under my breath, as I looked straight into Paul's eyes. I was intrigued by this legend that I had never learned about in school. Jacob shared a glance with me, and then told Paul to continue until Sam returned.

"I don't know much about the Cold Ones… you would have to ask Jared or Sam about them… Sam probably would be easier to talk to about them. But as I was saying, many years ago the Cold Ones and the Quileute Tribe forged a pact together. The Cullens, are considered to be the Cold Ones, and all of us in this room, are considered to be the original 'brothers.' However… not us directly, rather my great great grandfather was the leader of the Quileute Tribe... or 'brothers' as we know it, at that particular time in history. But… the pact simply stated that the Cold Ones… or the Cullens are forbidden to trespass on our lands. This therefore granted the two groups to live in the same, well vicinity, in a relative place. However…. This treaty hinged upon the necessity that the Cullens never feed upon human blood. Because… well, that is what the Cold Ones apparently do."

"Cold Ones…" I whispered under my breath once more. The previous events during that day flashed through my mind again. The cold touch of Edward, and his mysterious actions that would hide any emotion he had. "Their skin…"

Embry interrupted me, but finished my statement correctly. "Is freezing cold, and rock hard. Colder than the deepest ocean, harder than the strongest marble…"

"And…" Emily said, as she smiled obviously finding something hilarious. "They're skin sparkles."

We all broke into laughter. I looked at all of them, as a hearty giggle broke out of my mouth. I was surprised… but extremely intrigued. Then, someone walked through the door. He was big, buff… and really hot. "Sam…" Emily whispered, as she got up and quickly walked to him. They shared a brief kiss, and then she brought him to the room where we all sat.

"Hello boys…" He said his voice was deep and dark. "Who is this girl?"

Jacob shared a look with me again, urging me to explain who I was. It seemed that I was fearful of Sam, yet I had never met him before. "I'm Bella…. Jacob's friend."

"Yeah." Paul said, "She's the first girl that seems utterly excited to learn about the Quileute Tribe and those nasty Cold Ones."

"Oh…" He started, as he sat down next to Emily, but soon pulling her into his lap. "A vampire girl."

I looked at Embry, Paul, and Jacob with an uncanny look on my face. "Vampire girl?" I asked, twitching, and picking at a hole in my jeans.

"Well… I'm afraid that isn't the point." Sam started, "You probably would like to hear the legend."

I blinked. "Paul told me… a little, but I'm afraid I don't understand the whole line of the Cullens and the Cold Ones. I just don't understand how they tie together."

"How they tie together?" Sam asked his voice was full of surprise. "My dear… the Cullens are the Cold Ones. They are the Pale Faces… They are vampires. And as long as you live here on the reserve…"

"She lives in Forks." Jacob growled.

"As long as you live in Forks, and go to school here on the reserve… I suggest that you stay away from those Cullens. Especially Edward… I know what he can do."

"What did he do?" I asked, shifting my position into something more comfortable. Jacob wrapped an arm around me, and I didn't object.

"He tried to break the treaty. And everything has just gone down hill from that day."

"What'd you think of that?" Jacob asked me, as he backed out of the driveway.

"It was pretty crazy… horrorish, as you said it would be." I answered him drearily, my eyes barely staying open.

Jacob laughed. "I told you."

I nodded, "Yeah you did." I began to notice how fast Jacob was driving and looked at him with a concerned look. "Jake… there isn't a need to rush."

"Bella… I'm not trying to rush. I-"

I clenched the seat, and tried to lean back into the leather. "Jake… slow down. We don't need to get home that badly… I- JAKE!" I screamed, as something hit the windshield.

A face, similar to one I had seen before stared at me straight in the eyes. The eyes of the predator were red, and blood ran down its face. I began to tremble. I blinked, and when I looked at the windshield again, it was gone.

"Jake… did you see that?" I asked, looking over at him trembling in fear. I was almost near tears, and I wanted Renee.

"N-no…" He said, his voice cracked and he obviously was shocked. "Bella… why don't you drive the rest of the way. I'll direct you."

"Okay… But first, Jake can we go see if we did hit someone. I saw the face of him… or her. The eyes were blood red… and it scared the hell out of me."

Jake looked at me, as he opened up his car door to come and switch spots with me. We were far enough away from Emily and Sam's house, that no one had noticed the accident. "Bella, I was looking straight at the windshield. There was no one there…"

"Come on Jake… just let's just… please, see if you hit something. If it was a deer, it'll be fine." I pleaded with him, shifting my whole body towards Jacob, and tugging at his arm. He shut the car door, and leaned all the way over to my side. He pressed his body against mine, and I felt my head hit the passenger side window. My stomach churned, and I couldn't think straight.

"What I would do… to try to make you happy, after just reuniting with you today, Bella." He said I could feel his cool breath blow across my face. It was as sweet as flowers, and as cool as the night-air. He suddenly pulled away, and before I knew it was out of the car checking for something.

I waited inside, and looked out the window. I tried to find a moving object, but saw nothing but Jacob's moving silhouette. I sighed, and I scooted over to the driver's side. He got into the car, and then I drove away.

When we got home it was nearly midnight, and I was extremely tired. I yawned, as I set the car keys down on the counter. My bare feet hit the wooden floor, making a creaking sound every so often. I shuddered from the cold, and looked over at Jacob who had immediately gone to the living room to watch TV on their 12-inch screen.

"G'night Jake… I'm going to bed." I began to walk through the hallways and found Jake's room. I looked around, and turned on the little lamplight he had. I looked at the plastic blow up mattress that was mine, and smiled. I sat down on Jake's bed and began to rethink the things that had happened to me during that day. Everything…

"BELLA!! SHHH!! It's okay!" Jake said, as he held my arms down to his warm comfortable bed. He was lying next to me, but suddenly was on top of me, controlling me from my nightmares and all the screaming I had done.

"Jake…" I whispered, thought it barely came out as anything but a croak. "The Cullens… they aren't really vampires… are they?"

His eyes darkened, and he rolled off of me and sat at the edge of his bed. He looked at the white wall. There was a hole in the plaster and I raised an eyebrow. "Wow…" I whispered, and then waited for Jake to answer my question.

We sat in silence for what it seemed like forever. "The Cullens… yes they are vampires, and also known as the Cold Ones."

I nodded. "What do they do again Jacob?"

He shook his head, and licked his lips. He turned a round to look at me, his smile was peculiar and the shimmer in his eyes almost seemed evil. "They drink human blood…"

My mouth seemed to drop open, and I tried to find the will to close it. I shook my head in awe, and everything began to piece together all in the time of a single day. Jake stood up and turned off the lamplight that I had accidentally left on when I had fallen asleep. He squeezed my hand in the dark, and when my head finally hit the soft fluffy pillow, a knock on the door interrupted the beautiful and perfect silence.