2. I Want My Best Friend Back

Half a year had passed since the incident with Paul. Six months can create a long time for a lot of things to happen. Everything with me, though, had pretty much stayed the same.

The guys, especially Jake, were another story.

The guys had been getting taller, and gaining more muscle, I noticed. Jake felt like he grew feet. Not an inch, not a foot, but feet. He and Embry were, also, a lot easier to piss off and to make angry. Quil, though he had grown a few inches, stayed pretty much the same. Jake was…well, he seemed almost bipolar. It was starting to scare me.

It didn't help that he was suddenly obsessed with the Swan girl. I honestly didn't know why. From what I'd heard, she was just a regular pale-face. It was annoying.

I had lost a lot of people in my life. My Father had been shot and killed in war; my Grandfather had died two years previous to lung cancer, and my Grandmother was living in Florida, with my aunt. I did not want to lose Jacob.

Apparently, though, losing a best friend made two teenage boys think that you're in love with said best friend. This was not the case.

Embry, Quil and I were sitting in Quil's backyard. The guys were sparring, and I was sitting on a log, watching.

"I think," Quil panted, ducking from a fist via Embry. "That you're in love with Jakey."

"I agree." Embry growled, moving back and holding his hands up. He glanced over at me. "I mean, he has a crush on Bella. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal," I rolled my eyes when Quil took his legs out from under him. "Is that Jake's gonna get his heart broken. This girl, from what he's told me, does not have any interest in him! The only reason that she paid him any attention in the first place was because she wanted to know about the legends."

"So!" Quil grinned over at me as Embry tapped out of a headlock. They both stood. "Jake, for once, got his flirt on." He walked over, slinging a sweaty arm around my shoulders, making my lip twist up in disgust. "Listen, Cass, you know as well as I do that Jake hasn't even had a crush before. Well 'cept for Leah Clearwater, but we know how well that turned out."

Jake had been in love with Leah. He had gone over to their house for play dates with Seth, despite his objections, and Leah had been their babysitter. He was obsessed with her, until she snapped at him. From thereon after, Leah Clearwater was the antichrist.

"It pisses me off that he blows us off for her." I said, sighing roughly. The guys didn't understand. I suppose that that's what I get for hanging out with guys.

The next night was…well, it was pretty much a disaster. We were all at Jacob's house. It was nine o'clock, and way too late for hanging out with Bella. Jacob was lounging in his moon chair, I was sitting comfy on his bed, and Quil and Embry were on the floor, watching their characters play in Call of Duety.

"Jake," I kicked Embry and Quil's backs lightly, making their characters die. They grumbled cusses at me, which made me roll my eyes. I looked over at Jacob, whose eyebrow was raised in a curious expression. "We need to talk to you."

"About what?" Jacob asked, slowly, taking a sip of his Monster Energy drink. I had told him a billion times that they were no good for him, but he simply replied with telling me that my Pepsi consumption wasn't much better.

"Look, we think-"

"Cassie thinks." Quil interrupted, holding a finger up.

"I think that you've been neglecting us, a little." Jacob's brows furrowed. "You're spending all of your time with that Swan chick, and we barely see you any more-"

"What?" Jacob asked, sitting up straighter. "You have got to be kidding me."

"I'm being serious, Jake."

"That's complete bullshit." He quipped, growling. "Bella was really hurt by her ex boyfriend, and she just needs someone to talk to-"

"She's using you!" I said, throwing my hands up. "You can't even see it, but she's using you as a fuckin' distraction!"

"You're just fucking jealous because you can't even get a guy to talk to you!"

Jaws dropped. Hurt filled my eyes at the sentence, and I swallowed thickly. He went to apologize, but I held a hand up, effectively cutting him off.

"Fuck you, Jacob." My voice broke halfway through his name. I stood and straightened my shirt out, standing slowly. I made my way out the door, quickly. I, not looking back, jumped into my Mom's car, and took off in a cloud of dust.

Let It Rain by Jason Michael Carroll was playing, which just added to my shitty mood.

Jacob knew that I had guy problems. Hell, all of fucking La Push knew that I had guy problems. After my last boyfriend, right after the incident with Paul, I hadn't even gotten a guy to talk to me.

Apparently, because Paul had gotten everyone to think that I came onto him, and that's why Jacob stood up for me. My friend from Forks, Jess, had told him that she was going to cut his balls off and put them in a shredder. I had been a little more than proud of meek Jess for that one.

It wasn't fair. This is what he was turning into. I didn't know what it was a result of. Was it because of that Swan girl? No, no one person could have changed such a sweet guy into such an inconsiderate bitch.

Was it something to do with me? As far as I knew, I didn't do anything to him. The guys didn't either. We barely saw him anymore, how could we do anything to him?

Was it his Dad? No, Billy would never do anything to hurt Jacob. Jacob was Billy's whole world, and he loved Jacob more than anything. The day that Billy Black did anything to deliberately hurt Jake, was the day that a donkey won the Kentucky Derby. It could never happen.

The only other thing was the weirdness that was happening in La Push. Jared Cameron, the one that had been hanging out with Douchebag McGee, had suddenly started hanging out with Sam Uley. I didn't really know the guy, but he seemed okay. The elders of the tribe were in love with him. They treated him like he was Jesus.

Maybe something happened with Sam Uley? He stared at Embry and Jake, and freaked them out. The stare he gave them seemed like he knew something that they didn't. It seemed like he was expecting something from them. Often times, I would get all protective. The last time this had happened had been two days ago.

"What the hell are you looking at?" I yelled, from across the parking lot. My hands were firmly on my hips and I was standing in front of my boys. Quil, oddly enough, had cancelled plans to get ice cream to study, or Old Quil was going to kill him when he failed Spanish.

Jared's eyes narrowed at me and his body began to shake.Even blur at the edges a bit. I thought that he was convulsing.

Sam placed a hand on the younger's arm and the shaking ceased. It looked like they shared another word or two, and then they disappeared into the woods.

I was thanked by two big bear hugs.

Maybe something had to do with that weird stare Sam had, and the change in Jared. I had initially thought that it was drugs, but what if it was more than that?

One thing was for certain; I was going to find out.

When I got out of my car and went into my house, I thanked God that it rained all of the time in La Push, so that my Mom didn't ask me about the tears rolling down my cheeks.

A/N: So, you guys may be wondering why I published the story, and posted the first two first chapter all in one day.

Well, this is not the first time this story has been on FF. I posted it last summer, and it wasn't very popular. So I tweaked it a little, and here we are!

Also, I have written a bunch of the upcoming chapters already. If I get at least three reviews, I'll post the next chapter by the next day. If not, you'll have to wait a week for each update.

I'll give every person a response in the next chapter if you review.(: