my heartbeat slowed as the initial escape adrenaline wore off. i started to feel my head pound again. i was sweating profusely, but i wasnt sure if that was from the exercise or from my fever. hopefully the cool air would help. the road to jacobs house was long, but it helped that it gently sloped downward so i got to glide for most of it. Otherwise i may not have been able to make it there, i had no endurance.
I was maybe halfway there when i heard the rumble of a truck coming from behind me. I stayed to the side to let it pass, but instead jake's big black truck pulled over infront of me. i skidded the bike to an almost stop. jake jumped out and grabbed the handlebars with one hand and my arm with the other as i fell off the bike, i had never been good at stopping as a kid either.
"whoa there" he said as he stood me up straight. "where are you off to in a hurry?" he questioned. " i havent seen you in forever! i've missed you." he looked me in the eyes and i could feel the sincerity in his words.
" uh actually i came to see you" i said shyly. i knew i shouldnt feel this way about jake, but i still liked him. before i met edward i had met jake when my dad introduced us, my truck used to be his, and we had been childhood friends. he still liked me too, but then i met edward and all my time was spent focusing on edward and my feelings for jake sortof got pushed into a corner of my heart.
Then i saw jake on the beach once, and he accidentally turned into a wolf while i was there, i was talking about edward and the cullens and he got mad. Ever since then we have stayed in touch by talking on the phone, i tried to be just friends, but it was times like these where those feelings i had for really exploded, and it must have showed on my cheeks because he chuckled.
"really?" he seemed pleased, curious to know if i really cared enough to come see him, and wondering what else i might be up to.
"yes really."
"how did you shake off you stalkers, i mean the bloodsuckers, i mean the cullens. woops" he was trying not to insult me/them but i didnt mind, i was so happy to be there with him and not with them.
"I made up a stupid story, mostly i escaped because alice seemed a bit.. off.. today."
" wow it sounds like you are a villian kept prisoner, not the sweet, fun, innocent girl i used to know"
"Its lockdown twentyfour-seven for me, i just needed to come see you, you make me happy" his eyes lit up as i said that, and it wasnt a lie, jake did make me happy, and i was even more happy that the cullens hadnt come to find me yet.
" well maybe you should change that" he said, "you could stay here with me..," he saw the questioning look in my eyes as he continued on with his suggestion, "atleast for a few hours, maybe stay a night or two" i could tell he wanted me to stay as long as possible, and i didnt mind a bit.
he wanted me to think that he was helping me, which he wanted to do also, but really he just wanted me to stay with him, to find my feelings i had for him again. he didnt know that i had never lost them.
"ok, where were you headed?" i asked "can i tag along?"
" of course you can bella, just throw your bike in the back, im headed home."
I went to lift the bike but my arms felt weak and my head felt faint, i got dizzy again. I kept forgetting that underneath my feelings i still felt aweful. my head still hurt and i was still sweating even though i had been standing talking to jake for a few minutes now.
" Bella are you ok?" he was worried only about me as he let the bike fall over on the ground. I leaned against the truck for support. Jake put his arm around my back to help me stand. bella you are burning up! you must have a fever!
"yes.. i know" i panted. "this has been happening all day"
"this is not good,you should not be out here riding a bike, come on," he said as he lifted the bike with one tan muscular arm and tossed it into the back of the truck. He opened the door and lifted me into the passenger seat before running around to his side and grabbing the wheel. "you need to lay down and get some water" he sounded worried but my vision was getting a bit blurry and it was getting hard to stay sitting upright.
I started to slump to the side as he started the truck and hit the gas. I layed my head on his shoulder as he sped down the road, partially because i couldnt physically sit up anylonger i was to dizzy, and partially because i just wanted to.
"bella... Bella... Bella! " i heard someone calling myname, but i couldnt open my eyes or move. "bella!" i heard it again. this was getting annoying. i just wanted to sleep. BELLA! now there were lots of people yelling at me. i jumped up and spun around trying to see whoever was yelling at me. I heard smashing glass and turned again to see that i mirror had fallen from the wall and shattered.
disoriented i tried to find out where i was, but every time i turned something else would fall or break. finally i saw sunlight coming through a window and used it as a way out of that mess. the window was already broken so i just jumped off the couch bed through the window, it was one that went from ceiling to floor. All the while still hearing people screaming my name. "BELLA!" i finally stopped moving and screamed "WHAT?" but all i heard was a loud yelp. I said it again but only a bark came out of my mouth. I panicked.
'oh my god whats wrong with me, is this a dream, where am i, what is going on, where is jake, why am i alone, am i crazy, someone help me!, what do i do, im scared' i sat down and began to cry, my sobs sounding more like whining than anything else. once i got quiet enough i heard the voices in my head again, less loud, more gentle voices than before,
"bella, everything is ok" one voice said
'no its not,' i thought 'i am argueing with myself, nothing is ok'
"bella, you are fine, you are not crazy, i promise" a different voice said
"bella if you stay calm and listen to us you will be fine" said another
'who are they?' i wondered
"we are the pack, duh"
"dont say that stupid, how should she know who we are. its her first time"
"yeah seriously guys give bella a break, its not her fault, none of us thought this would ever happen"
"Bella you are fine i promise, i will be right there, ok?" i recognized jakes voice right away, but after listening to their garbled conversation about me and to me all i could do was sit quietly under the trees i was sitting by and wait to see if he really did come. atleast hearing his voice calmed me down a little.
"bella, dont get scared ok?" as i heard him i saw movement in the bushes far ahead of where i was, my eyesight must be really good today, maybe the air was clearer over here on the reservation. i could smell better to. the moist leaves, the salty air, and a strong dog scent... 'must be the wolfpack boys' i thought, 'i never noticed how they smelled before...' my mind started to work on over drive. putting the puzzle together.
i seemed sick, i woke up hearing voices in my head, heightened senses, ...oh my god... but i wouldnt let myself think what i wanted to think. i kept looking straight ahead, my eyes wouldnt move. i dared myself to look down at my body, to know for sure if i had a crazy brain or if it was true.
jacob came rushing through the underbrush, but he wasnt normal jacob, he was wolf jacob. all my thinking had distracted me. 'oh thank god bella, you are ok!' he said, but he didnt say it, he just thought it. 'why are you that color? thats odd, people usually have the same color fur as they have skin, or hair, but yours is white/blue. wow you are beautiful'
'so it was true. i am a wolfgirl? how? why? what happened? i thought there was no way? i dont understand anything. what do i do?' i worried. he nuzzled against me, sort of like a hug in dog language. 'you'll be fine now, i promise, once you unfaze i will explain more. lets get you to the rest of the pack for now. we have a den out in the middle of the woods that is safe, we will all stay there with you until you change back. i'll take care of you bella, i promise' he gave me a quick lick on the cheek and i stood up to follow him.
we walked at first, but then he picked up the pace and we began to run throught the forest, dodging between trees, jumping rocks and streams. we going faster than i had ever gone, and my eyes were able to focus on each individual leaf as we ran by. my senses were amazing, i could smell every animal, flower, and bug. I could feel each stick as it snapped beneath my paws. i could hear the rustling of the slightest breeze and even taste the salt in the air. i had never felt so amazing, and jake was here to help me. If this was how it felt to be a wolf, then i was happy that this wasnt a dream, because to wake up to being a normal person would ruin my life.
jake slowed and stopped bya huge old willow tree. the branches formed a curtain around the base of the tree. 'welcome to the den bella, you are now part of the pack.'
until then the other wolves had kept out of my thoughts, but now they were all talking again, i could catch only jumbled phrases and other peoples conversations.
" what? why is she that color, thats so different from the rest of us..."
" how is she a wolf sam? she isnt part of the tribe..."
" does anyone else know of a case like this?"
"maybe if she feels attached to a tribe member she could be attached to the tribe in her heart it could change the rules..."
"what do we do about this? she doesnt belong with us..."
"yea doesnt she hang out with those leeches? its dangerous to us..."
" we need to patrol to make sure they dont come to find her, she is their 'property' you know"
"its not like we took her. jake was the one who brought her here today. "
"its nobodys fault, bella isnt a problem..."
"how do you know, maybe its a plan to destroy us from the inside"
"well how would they make her become a wolf, not even we can"
"then lets make her not be a wolf"
"we cant dot that either paul"
"why cant we just let her decide if she wants to stay with us?"
"hes right, maybe bella should speak for herself"
"please guys settle down" she could pick out jakes voice even through all the other converstions
"be quiet everyone!" that must be sam, the pack leader, because everyone went silent.
"bella, do you have any idea what could have happened, i mean how are you a wolf?" sam asked me
"she doesnt have any idea or she wouldnt have freaked out earlier" jacob defended
"bella can speak for herself" sam glared at him, making me mad.
"i dont know, i felt sick, then i woke up and had four paws, a tail, and white/blue fur. What else can i tellyou?" i said, exhausted from everything.
"why is she so oddly colored? and whats up with her eyey? they are such a bright blue they almost glow!" "paul shut up" said jake, he didnt want me to feel like a misfit, he didnt want me to worry, but i could tell he was wondering the same thing.
"no that is a good question," sam said
" i bet its because she had blue eyes before, i mean that is the only trait she had that could have made her this color with such bright eyes."jacob butted in.
"that makes a little bit of sense i guess, but she wont blend in to hide very well" said paul, sounding satisfied he went to lay down. "im tired,night bella, and welcome to the pack."
"er... thanks" i stuttered, still a bit in shock.
" i think we are all tired" sam said. i looked up at the sky to see a sparkling array of stars, i had never seen that many. it was amazing.
"lets sleep a while and then we can see how bella feels in the morning, enought worrying for now, off to bed everyone" sams word was law so all the wolves headed to their nests, circular spots of squashed grass lined with leaves moss and whatever else they wanted.
"we didnt exactly know you were coming," jake said as i saw that all the beds were full " but you can share mine for tonight. i'll make sure you dont freak out in the morning he promised" I layed down beside him and he rested his head over my shoulder and against my cheek. i may have protested but he was so warm and soft and i felt safe. I was to tired to think anymore so i closed my eyes and hoped that i wouldnt wake up in jakes truck on the road to his house.