Sorry guys, there was one small hiccup in the last chapter. After rereading it after it got posted I noticed that I made Alexis a year younger than everyone else when I meant to make her a few months older than Bella. Sorry! I'm totally using pregnancy brain as my excuse for that little problem lol. So to clear things up her birthday already passed, it's February 14, and she is 18 years old. Also I apologize for the long delay in this chapter. I was busy with work and my doctors appointments. And guess what?! I'm having a cute baby girl!Anyway. thanks for reading everyone and I hope this next chapter is as good or better than the rest because now I'll be trying to focus more on Alexis and not her trying to accommodate to Bella for Charlie. Enjoy!
The next day after Bella's crash, rather than sitting at the Cullen's old lunch table she came and sat with us, immediately jumping into our conversation about what kind of animal is being seen in the woods and telling us whatever Charlie had told her about the case. I laughed at Mike's poor attempt to ask Bella on a date to the movies and mentally applauded her success in making it into a group thing and we all agreed to go. The night of the movie Jessica and Angela were texting me as I was about to get ready for the movie. Angela was sick with the flu and Ben is staying behind to take care of her and with them out, Jess didn't want to watch Mike flirt with Bella in front of her. I felt bad for her. I had thought that the two of them going to prom together would make Mike realize that she really liked him and Bella obviously didn't but he's blinded by his own second head and doesn't see any of that. It's ridiculously sad actually. And earlier Bella had texted me saying that she invited Jake to go along with us. At first I was kind of excited, but now that I'll be the only girl other than Bella I knew how things would turn out with both boys and decided to skip out on the movie as well. I told Bella that mom and dad decided to go on a date night and I was the only one home at the moment to watch Jenna, which was half a lie. They did go on a date, but everyone else was home too.
So while trying not to think of the three on a date I decided to use the computer and look for jobs available for high school students in town. It's not something I'd really like to do but my parents decided that now that I'm 18 I need to find a job and make my own money to spend whenever and however I'd like rather than asking for an allowance from them whenever I go out. With no luck finding a job near home I called Charlie because apparently my folks asked if he could get me a spot as a receptionist or something at the station. He was reluctant about that and said he could get me an opportunity to work at a diner in La Push with an old friend of his. After calling to let him know that I was interested in applying for the diner he said he'd give Sue Clearwater, the owner of the diner, a call and see when she can fit me in for an interview. Ten minutes later he called back to tell me that she was available any time tomorrow. It was way too soon in my opinion and didn't give me enough prep time but whats done is done so I thanked him and ransacked my closet for a nice interview worthy outfit to wear before settling down with Jenna to read her a bedtime story. I settled for my nicest white blouse, black formfitting dress pants, a peach blazer and black flats.
Sue Clearwater was the nicest woman I've ever met! When I showed up for the interview she complimented my choice of attire but laughed it off saying there was no need for an interview all she wanted was to meet the daughter of Regina and Doug. I was a bit nervous about my hair color so I told her that if it was too much I had no problem dyeing it a more natural color but she said she loved it especially the way I had it in a loose bun to show off the colors. She definitely approved of my appropriate amount of light makeup and said I passed to inspection and that it was time to throw me in with the wolves after showing me the ropes.
My first day was a bit hectic since I was completely new at everything but the women I was working with helped me out and gave me pointers on how to hold more plates on one arm and to abbreviate when I take orders in order to move things along faster. All in all, after getting used to a few things and getting into a groove, it was a fun job. After my shift was over I told Sue that if she thought I was good enough I would absolutely love the job. She hired me right then and there before sending me home and telling me she'd call later after she made a list of where to fit me in for the rest of the week.
The day after the next was my next shift at the diner and everything went off without a hitch. I needed a bit of help with everyone's names but taking orders, walking around holding dishes and talking to the customers was a breeze now. During my shift I got to meet Sue's kids, Leah and Seth. Leah was weary of me and didn't talk much but I didn't mind. And Seth was a cutie! He sat at the bar and chatted with me while I cleaned up until a table needed my attention. He loved the outdoors (what boy in this town didn't?) and played video games but got bored fairly easily with them not liking to sit for too long. He and Leah don't get along because she is too overprotective of him. Which I can understand both sides to, I try not to get too involved in Evan, Mia and the twin's personal lives but sometimes you just cant help it. He told me he was glad someone closer to his age was working at the diner now and that he'd stop by to see me and hang out more often, which was very nice of him and I told him I'd look forward to it.
The next day I was surprised to get a text from Bella asking if I wanted to go on a hike with her. She wanted me to help her find a secret meadow that she had found once before. Reluctantly I agreed since I had nothing else to do that day and a hike would do me good.
We walked along paths and trekked through thickets for about an hr before we came to a opening in the woods and judging from her reaction, either this wasn't the place or the beauty of it died because of weather reasons or something.
I was about to comfort her when she look up and saw a weirdly dressed dark man staring back at us.
"Laurent." Was what came out of Bella's mouth as she stared at him in slight fear. Who is this guy? How does she know him and why is she getting fidgety? A million questions popped in my head but I chose to stay quiet for now.
"I didn't expect to find you here." The man named Laurent said to her. "I wanted to visit the Cullens but," he continued, " The house is empty." So he knew the Cullens? Is that how she knows him? "I'm surprised they left you here." He spoke again. "Are you sort of a...pet of their?" What the fuck?
"Yeah, something like that." She told him. Then he asked, "Do the Cullens visit often?" If he knew them wouldn't he have known that they moved?
Bella became scared but it quickly changed to a plain face as she lied to him. "Yeah, absolutely. All the time." Why is she lying to him? "I'll tell them that you stopped by." She continued her lie but he probably saw threw it. "Well, he's probably far away isn't he?" He asked her. "Why are YOU here?" Bella countered.
"I came as a favor to Victoria." Who the hell is Victoria? She sounds like a bitch. "For?" Bella insisted.
"She asked me to see if you are still under the protection of the Cullens."
By this point I'm completely lost. Why would Bella need protection from this person he's talking about? What beef did they have in only a year? "Victoria feelings it's only fair to kill Edward's mate given he killed hers. An eye for an eye."
So the beef is with Edward and he got Bella caught in it? What a fucking asshole! Even if the guy was speaking gibberish I knew that he was either giving Bella a warning of here to hurt her. Either way I instinctively stepped in front of her a bit causing the guy to look at me before Bella did the stupidest thing in the world. She threatened him. And he retaliated by saying Edward must not care as much as she hopes since he left her behind.
I was really fed up with this guy and spoke out without meaning to. "What the fuck dude! If this Victoria bitch has beef with Edward it needs to stay with Edward. I doubt Bella had anything to do with what happened between them." I knew I should have stopped but I couldn't. "And one more thing, if she has beef with anyone she should deal with it herself and not send in a sucker like a pussy!"
The guy looked me up and down before yet again turning back to Bella. "Victoria won't be too happy with me killing you but I cant help myself. You are so mouthwatering."
I didn't know what to say to that. Was this guy a fucking rapist?! Bella spouted more BS when I heard a growl come from the woods around us. Suddenly the fucking rapist killer was in front of us! He whispered in Bella's ear and all she could do was stand there in fear. When he was about to hit Bella of something, she closed her eyes and her last words were, "Edward I love you."
Everything that happened next was unbelievable! The guy stopped his advance on Bella being distracted by something that turned into a bunch of somethings! A big ass wolf walked into the clearing followed by four more wolves! The Laurent guy took off running at super speed and all the wolves went into pursuit after him. All except one, a russet colored one, who looked back at Bella before he too took off after the guy. I wasted no chance on standing around in case the wolves came back, KI grabbed Bella's arm in a death grip and ran as fast as i could while dragging her out of the woods as best as I could.
Coming out of the woods, the first thing we do is inside of Bella's house and she immediately runs into the kitchen and tells Charlie about the wolves we just saw, leaving out the part about the guy trying to kill us but whatever it's too late for him to save the guy now. That night Charlie, dad and a bunch of other men went out to try and hunt the wolves. It was hard for mom to relax knowing dad was out there with huge dangerous animals.
I worked at the diner the rest of the weekend and Leah was used to seeing me around and even started having small talk with me. Though I think it was influenced by Sue and Seth, it was still nice to be able to start talking to a girl my age with a backbone and mouth to match my own. Seth was so sweet and came by every day of my shift and once he even brought me a rose causing Leah to snort when he got embarrassed after I thanked and hugged him.
It was Monday after school when I came in to work and saw all three of the Clearwaters sitting in a corner of the bar together. I went over to greet them when they told me the news about Harry. I was sad for them and new I couldn't do anything but give them comfort and my condolences. I pulled Sue and Seth into separate big hugs and and patted Leah on the shoulder before Seth started tearing up and reached for me again. Seeing as I was the only one other than his family Seth was seeking comfort from, Sue called in another waitress to take my shift while Seth and Leah lead me to their house for the day.
We sat around the living room in silence for hours, consoling Seth and letting Leah lash out angrily until Sue came home and the two women fought about Leah's outbursts until the most unnatural thing happened. Leah changed into a big ass wolf and ran outside. Seeing Leah changed evidently freaked Seth out and he ended up changing to and I had to carefully get him to follow me outside while keeping a distance from him because I had no idea what was happening and I was internally freaking the fuck out.
When we got outside Sam and his friends were there carefully talking to Leah and getting her to calm down. He slowly talked both of them into calming down and then coaching them into turning back to normal. But when they went back to their human bodies they were completely naked which became an incredibly awkward experience for me.
After sort of explaining what was happening to the three of us one of the guys in Sam's group asked what was going to happen to me. Hearing that I looked at each and every one of the men standing near by to try and gauge the situation I just got caught in when I noticed Jacob was there as well. I looked into Jacob's eyes and suddenly I felt my heart tingle as if I was so excited to see him that my entire body could explode from happiness. If I could describe it in simpler ways, it would be like when all the Disney princesses saw their princes, "love at first sight". I smiled at him like an overjoyed child in a candy store when I saw the look of amazement and love in his eyes as well and got even more excited when he smiled back at me.
But it was short lived as he snapped out of his stupor and shook his head before glaring at me. After that he turned into a wolf himself and ran off into the woods. The feeling of huge rejection filled my heart as tears spilled out of my eyes uncontrollably as I watched him leave until Sam had come up and held me with one of his arms while looking at me with sympathy and understanding before saying that I needed to go to his house with the rest of them for a while. Seth and Leah chose to carpool with me since they either didn't like or didn't know anyone else well enough to ride with them. It was a long and silent ride to Sam's house for the three of us.
Once there the three of us were pilled into the house and I was introduced to a beautiful Quileute woman with a very noticeable but non-ugly scar on her face named Emily. Apparently this is her and Sam's house and they are a couple. I couldn't help but feel a bit jealous as I watched them greet each other before turning and yelling at the men/wolves to stop doing whatever it is they were doing. Emily pulled me into the kitchen to help cook for the wolves while Sam took Seth and Leah outside for more privacy or something.
Emily explained a few things to me while we cooked. Occasionally turning around to tell the men to knock it off with the roughhousing while IN her house, and I'd ask a few questions of my own.
I learned that for every vampire that comes near the area, the more Quileute men become wolves to protect the human's from them. Also that Leah was the first woman in history to turn into a wolf. (Poor girl.) They have a natural and constant body temperature of 108 degrees, and have to eat constantly to maintain their new metabolisms. They are incredibly strong and can withstand the freezing cold. Also they skin is nearly impenetrable in order to fight off vampires. And lastly, I learned that there was a treaty with a group of vampires and the Quileute tribe.
But the answer to my next question nearly knocked me on the ground. I had asked who the vampires in town were that agreed to the treaty and one of the men from the table spoke up and said the Cullen's with so much venom in his voice. It was so much to take in that Emily had me take a minute to process everything while she continued to cook.
After somewhat adjusting to the idea of vampires and shape-shifting wolves, I hung out with "the pack" as they call themselves, for a while to get to know them and also to wait until Seth and Leah were finished with their training.
It was getting late by the time everything was done, eaten and training was over but Seth didn't want to go home yet since he was having way too much fun so Sam gave me the ok to hit the road and go home since the other two can find their own ride or run home via wolf-form so I decided it was time.
As I walked out of the house I saw Jacob stalking toward me but not coming in my direction, more like walking to get to the house. As I ignored the fluttering in my chest my mouth opened before I could think about it. "Hey are you ok?"
He stopped just in front of me before answering, still not looking at me, in a pissed toned. "I'm fine." and continued toward the house. I stood there trying to get a hold of myself and wondering what caused him to be so hostile towards me when Leah spoke up from behind me, scaring the crap out of me in the process, "I'll hitch a ride with you." turning to look at her, I said, "yeah, sure." before turning around and head back to my car, female wolf in tow behind me.
That night I thought of the new group I had become a part of and how weird my life is going to be from now on now that I know what goes on behind the scenes and I couldn't help but think about Jacob. How great he looks with his new haircut, how fantastic his muscles are and how beautiful I find the colors of his eyes. His face was all I could dream about that night.
Tuesday morning I woke up from a great dream I had of Jacob and I. The longer I thought about the dream though, the less I could remember. Either way it had me in a good mood and I had plenty of time to get dressed for school so I thought I'd put a little more effort than normal into it. I had decided to wear a royal blue button up shirt with leggings, black ankle high boots, a leather jacket and a tan scarf.
It was pretty uneventful at school other than Bella not showing up but I couldn't care less about her any more. I mean, who willingly hangs out with, let alone dates a vampire! After school everyone was busy with stiff so we all went our separate ways and I went home. I didn't have much homework so I finished it pretty fast while listening to Paramore on my Ipod.
About an hour after I finished everything I got a call from Emily asking if I'd like to go over and hang out just us to get to know each other better and I agreed. So for about two hours she and I hung out at her house and talked about many things until Jacob walked in but stopped in his tracks as he noticed me. Excusing herself, Emily got up and walked out of her kitchen/dining room, leaving Jacob and I alone.
It was an awkward silence before I finally worked up the courage to ask why he's been acting the way he had been to me. "It. The imp-. It's just a wolf thing." he said with much difficulty. I wasn't satisfied with his answer but I didn't push it. "Well, whatever it is. It's really bothering me and I'm just trying to be your friend again." He wouldn't look me in the eyes quite yet so i urged on, taking a step towards him. "I don't know what I did to make wolf you angry but do you think we can forget about it and start over?" When I stepped closer he finally looked up at me and hopefully into my eyes. "Can we be friends again? Please?" We looked at each other for a moment then Jacob gave a sigh before he gave me an answer. "Yeah, yeah we can be friends again." I smiled at him and he gave me a small smile back. "Good." I said, "Now go away! Me and Emily were having girl time." Almost immediately he frown, "But I'm hungry." I laughed and gave him a look of fake sympathy, "Too bad go find food somewhere else." And with a final groan signaling the end of the conversation, he turned and walked back out of the house. When Emily came back into the kitchen she didn't ask about what happened between Jacob and I, and we continued on with our day together.