The next morning startet off eventful. The loud voice of uncle Charlie woke me up. Slowly, I put the warm blanket aside and headed downstairs in my pyjama.

"This is not up for discussion, Bella. You'll go to La Push with Rileigh."

"But dad. You don't understand. Edward's not going to be there."

"Yeah? Well, that's just too bad for him," said Charlie.

"Please, just let me go with Edward," said Bella.

"I said enough. Jacob will be here any minute to pick you up."

"Fine." Bella's tone tripped with sarcasm. She then saw me standing right behind her. She glared at me before slamming into my shoulder while walking outside. Charlie sighed when he noticed my presence.

"How much did you hear, kid?" he asked.

"Pretty much everything," I said while grabbing a cup from the table.

"Don't worry. She'll calm down in time," said Charlie. I nodded my head. I really hoped so. I didn't want to get into another fight with her. I already had enough to worry about.

"Hey, you don't mind that Jacob will drive you to school, right?" I shook my head even though I had a bad feeling about this kid.

"Good. For a second I felt guilty for leaving you alone with Bella and him." Charlie grabbed his jacket.

"You don't have to worry about us, Charlie. Everything will work out."

"Right. You know, Bella was once like you. Full of life. But this person is long gone."

"What happened to her?" I asked.

"You remember when I told you that Edward left her for a few months?" I nodded.

"That's when it started. I don't really blame her. It's that Cullen kid. It's all his fault. They should've never met each other. Maybe things would be different then." My eyes fluttered shut. Of course he would say this, and I knew better than disagree with him.

"Anyway, you should get dressed. Jacob's going to be here any minute, kid." Charlie then left left the kitchen, leaving me all alone.

"Can you please calm down. Rileigh is in the kitchen and Charlie's still upstairs to get ready for work."

"You're kidding, right? I won't calm down, okay." I closed my eyes when I heard Jacob's voice.

"Please, do it for me, Jake. I know that you don't like the arrangement."

"Don't like it? I hate it, Bella."

"Hey, what are you two talking about?" I asked when I joined them in the living room.

"Nothing that concerns you, girl. I will be waiting at my car for you," said Jacob.

"Why would you do that? I was talking to my friend and you interrupted us."

"It wasn't my Intention," I said.

"Nothing you do is ever your fault, right?" Bella said, turning to grab her bag.

"You better hurry up. I don't want to be late because of you." She slammed the front door behind her. I sighed. This was going to be a very long day.

My hands were shaking as I let my eyes wander around the parking lot. La Push High was nothing like Forks High School. The school building was a whole lot smaller and there weren't as many students as in Forks. Bella and Jacob were long gone, and to be honest, I didn't mind. They had argued the whole time and I was sick of hearing Bella's complains.

"Leigh?" My whole body shivered. There was only one person who had ever called me by this name, but Ethan wasn't around.

"Paul, what are you doing?"

"Obviously I'm waiting for a pretty girl to make a up her mind," he said.

"Are you going to class or should we skip? I wouldn't mind in the least, you know."

"I'm not skipping class," I said.

"Good. Let's go then. The others should be waiting for us," said Paul. I stopped dead in my tracks.

"The others?"

"Yeah, I hope you don't mind. Quil, Embry and Seth will be joining us." He raised an eyebrow when he saw my shocked expression.

"Hey, don't worry about it. They're cool as long as you're not like your dear cousin." He chuckled while I stared at his face. There was no denying the fact that Paul was good-looking. He had grown a 3 day beard, which emphasized the attractive features of his face. I had no idea why he would think for one second that I was anything like Bella. I would never be like her. I shook my head.

"Let's go, Leigh. You don't mind me calling you by that name, right?" I was taken aback for a second. Did I mind? No, not really. Paul placed his large hand on my arm and lead me towards the entrance. Within seconds we wandered down the school hallway. Everybody was staring at us. My eyes fluttered shut for a moment. I wasn't used to this kind of attention.

"You need your timetable, right?" I nodded. He then said that he would take me to the secretariat.

"Hey, Lahote. Who's your friend?" A pretty blonde girl walked up to Paul.

"None of your business, Emma."

"Come on, don't be like that, Paul." She tried to touch his cheek, but he grabbed her hand rather roughly.

"I told you last week and I will tell you again. Stay the hell away from me and my friends. Rileigh is none of your business."

"So her name is Rileigh? Pretty name for a slut like her." The girl laughed in my face. If only she knew the truth. Paul's body shook when he faced her.

"What did you just say, Kinowa?"

"Nothing," said the girl. I almost felt bad for her. Almost.

"That's what I thought. Now, move along." Paul didn't give her a second glance as she stormed off. Well, that was awkward.

"I'm sorry about her. I thought she would know by now that she doesn't mean anything to me anymore." I should've known that he had hooked up with her. I looked into his eyes.

"You don't have to apologize. Just show me where the secretariat is, okay."

"Right. Let's go then." He didn't force conversation, and for that I was thankful.

"Am I going to see you at lunch?" Paul's deep voice startled me when I left the office. I hadn't expected that he would be waiting for me. Not after the way I had treated him.

"I don't know, Paul. Bella might want to talk to me. I'm not sure if I will be able to meet your friends." I saw the look in his eyes. He didn't believe me.

"Right. If you change your mind you know where to find me." He nodded twice, staring at my face. His eyes bore into mine as if he was searching for something, anything, but my face give away nothing.

"See you around, Leigh." I shook my head when he finally looked away. He had a slight smile on his face. I laughed when he turned towards me one more time, walking backwards before making his way through the crowd. I would never say it aloud, but Paul was kind of cute. I would never date him, of course. Chances are I would be leaving Forks soon, and I didn't want to get involved with someone. Bella and her boyfriend caused enough trouble and Jacob Black made things even worse. I shook my head, walking to my locker. The whispering did nothing for me, and I ignored the odd looks I got when I opened the looker door to put my books away. Two teenage girls passed me. They were pretty, both tall with dark wavy hair and tanned skin.

"Do you really think he fucks her, Susan? I mean, look at her. She's not even that pretty. Her cousin is way prettier and she got Jacob Black and Quil."

"I think she's a slut. Just like her cousin." I slammed my locker door shut.

"Shit, I think she heard. Let's go," said the same female voice. I was so tired of this. They were all the same. Without sparing them another glance, I headed to class. I had heard enough. I balled my hands into fist, wiping a tear I didn't know had fallen. I had promised myself that I would never let them get to me, but it was harder than expected. I drew in a sharp breath, letting out a humorless laugh when I reached the classroom. With shaking hands, I opened the door.

"You're late." I stopped dead in my tracks. That voice. I knew that voice. Cold fear shot through my veins, and my mouth parted slightly. My chest deflated and I suffocated in my terror and panic when I met his dark eyes. I took a moment to examine him as a cocky smirk plastered on his face. My lip quivered and a sob threatened to choke off my voice when I said his name.

"Jack." I couldn't move my feet, couldn't breathe. I stared at him for the longest time before he cleared his throat. Everybody kept looking at me.

"What are you doing here?"

"Now, now. Is that any way to talk to your teacher?" My eyes got wide.

"Teacher?"

"You got that right, Miss. Would you mind taking a seat and let me do my job?" I didn't answer. Instead I was frozen in place.

"Just sit down, Rileigh." Jack turned to face my cousin.

"Did I tell you to speak, Miss Swan?" Bella shook her head. Jack turned to me once again.

"As for you. Sit down, and keep your mouth shut." A loud gasp from me echoed through the room. I would never submit to him. I stared into his eyes, daring him to do something in front of twenty students.

"No!"

"Why, that's a shame, girl." The sarcasm in his voice was evident.

"I think detention after school would do you some good, don't you think?" Jack headed towards me with a smirk while I backed away from him. It was hard to believe that he was a teacher at La Push High. Did he kill someone to get the job? As far as I know he was an alcolic. He worked for Greg, dealing drugs.

"You will see me after school. I think we need to talk about that big mouth of yours." I took another step back until I had reached the door. Bella kept looking at me as if I had lost my mind, but she had no clue who this man was. I did the only logical thing. I left the room in a hurry. I had to call my brother. Ethan would know what to do about Jack.

My shoes squeaked on the hard floor as I walked down the empty school hallway. My mind was racing. Should I leave school? What about Charlie? Would he notice that something was wrong with me? I couldn't tell him about Jack and Greg because it would put him in danger. It was bad enough that Ethan wasn't with me. I didn't want to lose Charlie, too. My uncle wasn't useless, and he could arrest Greg for what he had done, but this man had a whole gang behind him that wouldn't mind killing me and my family.

My face scrunched up in frustration. What was going to happen now? I let out an angry sigh, closing my eyes. I could do this. When I opened my eyes, I had the strength to call Ethan. My phone call went straight to voicemail.

"Ethan, it's me. You need to come to Forks as soon as possible. Jack is here, okay. He's found me and I'm sure Greg will be here soon enough. Please, just come and get me. I need you. Talk to you soon, bro." I ended the call with a deep sigh. I wouldn't stay another minute in this building.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" I turned to see a familiar face.

"You're Brady." A glimmer of recognition flickering across his face.

"Yeah, that would be me. Anyway, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in class right now or something?" He moved towards me so quickly that for the moment I feared that he was about to hit me.

"Tell me, did something happen?" he asked, his voice deep and gravelly. I said no, but he wouldn't let it go.

"You know you can tell me, right?"

"There's nothing to tell, okay."

"Right. So you calling your brother begging for his help was nothing?"

"What did you just say?"

"Nothing. It was nothing." He scrached his neck. An awkward pause followed before I raised my voice at him.

"How much did you hear?"

"I heard everything."

"How? I didn't see you. Do you have superhuman hearing?" A laugh escaped me.

"Something like that. Listen, I gotta go now."

"Wait! Where are you going?"

"I've something important to do. See you around, Rileigh." He was gone before I could respond to him. This kid had all kinds of strange shit going on just like me. I took a deep breath, heading to the entrance when I noticed another familiar face. Embry Call leaned against a locker, his eyes closed. My stomach hurt when I looked at his face. It wasn't the first time that I had this weird feeling around him. I approached him silently, hoping that he wouldn't turn away from me.

"It's you," he said as his eyes fluttered open. Just as we were about to make eye contact for the first time, an irritated voice interrupted us.

"Leigh?" I wanted to look at Paul, but I couldn't. Not when I saw Jack walking up behind him.

"Why am I not surprised to see you here, Mr. Lahote? Wasn't it enough that you and Mr. Call were late to class yesterday?" Jack turned to me.

"I'll see you all in detention, is that clear?"

"No!"

"Rileigh, don't!" I ignored Paul's curious look when I walked away. There was no way in hell I was going to be in the same room as Jack. I just had to figure out what to do next. The school day ended quickly. My eyes were swollen when I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I hated that I wasn't strong enough to face Jack. I hated that he was in Forks. I had another ten minutes before detention would start, and I was having a mental breakdown. I didn't want to go, but I had to since I didn't want to draw attention to me. With shaky hands, I left the bathroom and went to meet Embry and Paul at detention. Jack was already in the room when I arrived.

"About time you show up, Miss McCall. We were waiting for you." I sat next to Embry.

"Now, where is that friend of yours? Where is Paul Lahote?"

"He's ill, sir," said Embry.

"Feeling sick when he should be in detention? That's just too bad." Jack walked around the tiny room.

"You will be here for two hours while I go to my favorite coffee shop. This night will be interesting." Embry narrowed his eyes at him. He muttered something like, "What the hell is this guy talking about?". I, on the other hand, held my breath. What if Jack was going after me and my family tonight?

"If you're not here when I'm back, you'll face serious consequenses." Jack glared at me. He slammed the door behind him when he left. Ten minutes went by before the door opened again. Paul walked inside. I stared at him. Didn't Embry say that he was ill?

"Hey."

"Hi," I said.

"How long has he been asleep?" Paul glanced at Embry.

"Let me guess. He hasn't moved since detention started, right?" I nodded. There was no use to deny the obvious.

"Hey, Call. Move your ass." Embry stirred in his sleep. Paul walked up behind him and slapped him.

"Wake up, Call." Embry's eyes opened and for the first time I could see his dark brown eyes. A rush of cool air hit me.

"Fuck!" Paul's booming voice echoed through the classroom.

"Tell me you didn't." Embry didn't say a word. Instead he kept his gaze on my face.

"You fucking bastard. You know that I like her." Paul didn't hesitate. He jumped on Embry, hitting him straight in the face.

"I don't want her."

"Fucking liar. I saw the look in your eyes. You fucking imprinted on her, did you?" I stood frozen in place as I had no idea why they were fighting or what imprinting was.

"You'll stay away from her, do you hear me. She's not like Nicole, okay." Paul stood, never looking at me. He held out his hand towards Embry to help him to his feet. Paul glared at his friend from the corner of his eyes.

"You still have to talk to Sam." Embry nodded his head, leaving me confused and utterly bewildered. He then stared at me. The whole world shifted around us. Nothing mattered anymore. Not Jack. Not Greg. Nothing. I couldn't take my eyes off him. I never noticed that Paul had left until I heard a loud bang. Embry opened his mouth to say something, but then decided otherwise. I headed towards my seat and grabbed my bag. I needed to leave before I would do something I would regret later. Embry didn't move when the door opened.

"What do you think you're doing, Miss McCall?" I closed my eyes. Jack was back.

"It was me, sir. I wanted to leave, but she stopped me."

"Is that so?" I couldn't move. Why would Embry take the blame? It was all my fault. I wanted to leave. Not him.

"Well, you can go now. Mr. Call, you'll have detention with me for the next two months." My jaw dropped. He couldn't do this. It wasn't fair. Jack smirked at me.

"Are you going to say something or are you just going to stare at me all day, Miss McCall?" I shook my head.

"Good. Now, leave. You wouldn't want to be late." Embry didn't look at me when we left the classroom. Just as I was about to thank him, he walked away from me.

"Rileigh, wait up!"

"What do you want?" I asked, turning to face Brady.

"Whoa, what happened to you?" He seemed irritated.

"Nothing. It's nothing."

"I just came to say hi," said Brady.

"Can I ask you something?"

"You just did."

"Wait. You can ask me anything."

"What's the deal between Paul and Embry Call?"

"Hell if I know," said the teenage boy, obviously lying to my face. I was sure that he knew something.

"Listen, I will see you around, Rileigh." Brady didn't wait for me to say something. He just disappeared into the woods.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm waiting for Bella and Jacob?"

"No, you're not. Come on, I'll give you a ride home." My mind went blank.

"Please, just get into my car. I had a bad day," said Paul, walking towards an blue Jeep.

"You coming or what?" The idea was tempting, but Charlie wouldn't like I was spending time with Paul. He had already taken out his car keys, leaning against the Jeep. I sighed deeply. This wouldn't end well, but nobody would find out about my weird sort of friendship with Paul. Finally, after five minutes, I headed in his direction. His cheeky smile disappeared when he opened the car door for me.

"Don't mind the chaos," said Paul as soon as he sat beside me. The smell of peppermint and beer lingered in the air.

"What do you think about Call?"

"Embry?" My eyes became wide. Why would he ask that kind of question?

"Yeah, do you like him?" I let out a small laugh while Paul looked utterly lost.

"Why are you laughing?" He got more frustrated when I stopped laughing.

"Do you have any idea what you're doing to me?" His gaze lingered a little too long on my lips.

"Can I kiss you?" His deep voice was bearly above a whisper. No boy or man had ever wanted to kiss me and now was a really bad time to think about kissing boys. I still needed to figure out what to do about Jack.

"I'm going to kiss you now so if you don't want this, you better say it now." Just as his sweet lips were about to touch mine, something crashed into his car. At first I was startled, but when I looked at Paul I saw an emotion I had never seen before on his face. Regret. His eyes were closed when he finally found his voice again.

"Are you hurt?" I shook my head.

"Good. Now, let me take you home." He stared at me for a another moment before starting the engine. My heart was beating fast against my chest when Paul stopped the car in front of Charlie's house. I opened the door, but Paul grabbed my arm.

"Wait," he said.

"I don't know what came over me. I mean, I almost kissed you. I'm an idiot." He took a deep breath.

"You can stop me anytime, you know. Cause this is really awkward." He let out a chuckle.

"Just be sure that I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me."

"Okay."

"Good. Now, you should probably head inside. Your uncle keeps staring at us." He pointed at the kitchen window. I was confused for a second. Shouldn't Charlie be at work?

"Right. Thanks for the ride." He was sending some hearty laughter my way when I left the car. I didn't want to be alone right now, but I knew that my friendship with Paul wouldn't end well. My hands were shaking when I opened the front door. I half expected to see Charlie when I stepped inside the living room, but I was in for a surprise. My fear of him consumed me. Why didn't I see that coming?

"Jack." I backed away from him.

"Now, now. Why would you want to leave so soon? I'm here to do what I should have done when I first saw you." He pushed me up against the wall.

"You know, Greg wants to kill you quickly, but I would never do that." He put a gun to my head.

"I will show you what I would do to you before blowing your brains out." I let out a muffled scream. A sob escaped me when I looked into his eyes, and then I slapped him.

"Rileigh, open the door." I turned to face the door when I heard Paul's voice.

"Ah, I see. Your little boyfriend is here to save your pretty ass. Let's see if he is man enough to fight me, shall we?" Jack wiped the blood of his lip, letting go of my arm when the front door was broken down.

"Get the hell away from her you sick bastard." My eyes were closed when I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, telling me that Jack was gone.

"What the hell was that idiot teacher doing here?" I couldn't move. He shouldn't see me like that. Broken and confused.

"You have a lot of explaining to do. Starting right now." He was beyond furious.

"I don't know why he was here."

"Another lie." He looked me in the eyes.

"Why won't you tell me the truth?"

"There's nothing to tell."

"Don't play games with me. That man hurt you and I want to know why?" Paul grabbed my arm. I swallowed hard when our eyes met.

"Hands off, boy!" Charlie walked around the living room. He was pale, his face set in tight lines. Paul let out a laugh.

"Does he know something?" he asked. I closed my eyes.

"That's what I thought. If you're ready to tell me the truth, you know where to find me." Finally, he let go of my arm. When I opened my eyes, he was gone.

"Do you want to explain yourself?"

"Not now, Charlie." It was wrong to let out my anger, but right then all I could think of was Paul Lahote's disappointed face.