A/N: It's been a long time. Here's another chapter, hopefully you will enjoy it. I want to thanks those readers who continue to read this story even though I'm horrible at updating. Good news is that I'm already working on the next chapter. Hopefully it will take me less to write it out than this one. So anyways on with the story.

Disclaimer: All recognizable material belongs to Stephenie Meyer and title of chapter to Silversun Pickups.

CHAPTER 9: Little Lover's So Polite

"You don't understand. There's nothing worse than having to watch your great aunt drool in her sleep. I hate my parents for making me go to that stupid family reunion," Veronica grumbled as we walked towards the parking lot.

"It couldn't have been all that bad," I said sympathetically.

"Oh, but it was. I was practically snowed in a tiny cabin, playing Yahtzee for an entire three weeks. I thought I was going to go insane," Veronica replied.

"I love Yahtzee," Ryan said absentmindedly while he looked for his keys.

"Shut up Ryan, I'm trying to vent here," Veronica hissed. I laughed at them.

"Come on Veronica don't be so dramatic," I said.

"Ok fine then. Enough about me how was your break?" Veronica asked. I shrugged.

"It was good, I made some new friends," I answered. Veronica perked up at the news and Ryan continued to be entranced with his backpack.

"Really, tell me more," Veronica smiled. "What kind of friends?"

"You know friends," I answered looking at her weird. She rolled her eyes at me.

"Amy you have to give me something here. I'm desperate for some gossip," Veronica pleaded.

"I never took you for the gossipy type," I stalled.

"I know, but I have to at least believe someone had an interesting break," Veronica replied.

"Fine, you remember the La Push guy I told you about. The one that saved me in the forest," I began. Veronica nodded her head, completely entranced by the story. "Well I've been hanging out with him."

"Is that so?" Veronica asked.

"Yeah, I invited him to my parents' Christmas party and he invited me to his friends' bonfire on New Years," I answered. Veronica's eyebrows rose up at the news.

"Hmm, he's met the parents and you have been accepted by the friends," Veronica said suspiciously.

"It's not like that Veronica. Don't read too much into this, it was a friend thing. His friends went with him to my parents' party and my sister came with us to the bonfire," I said.

"Right, whatever you say," Veronica said wiggling her eyebrows at me. I nudged her slightly causing her to run into some guy. "Jerk."

"Amy!" We turned at the sound of my name. We had just reached the parking lot, and the sounds of cars and teenagers saying goodbye were heard. I searched for the source and my eyes fell on Jacob standing next to a motorcycle. He waved at me earning even more stares than he had been receiving. Who wouldn't look at a tall and big guy wearing a leather jacket and standing next to a motorbike? He looked intimidating. I waved back and then glanced at Veronica and Ryan, who each gave me a look.

"Only a friend thing?" Veronica asked.

"Shut up," I hissed before leading them to where Jacob stood.

"Hey Amy," Jacob smirked at me, this only added to his badass image.

"Hi Jake, what brings you to Forks High?" I asked.

"You're not going to introduce me to your friends?" He asked, completely ignoring my question. I decided to play along.

"This is Veronica and Ryan, Veronica and Ryan this is Jacob," I informed. Ryan nodded his head at Jacob, who did the same.

"What a coincidence, we were just talking about you," Veronica said. I turned to her wide-eyed and gave her a pointed look. She gave me a quick wink.

"Is that so?" Jacob's smirk became even more pronounced.

"I was telling them about Christmas and New Years," I explained. Jacob looked amused and Veronica sent me a wicked look. "Shouldn't we be on our way now, Ryan needs to get to work and Veronica has… what were you telling me you had to do after school today?"

"Actually, I came to see if you weren't too busy today. I can give you a ride, so Ryan can get to work faster," Jacob said. Veronica's smile became wider. She gave me a sly nudge with her elbow.

"That is a great idea Jacob!" Veronica exclaimed. "Don't you think so Ryan?"

"Yeah sure, but we really do need to get going. I still need to stop by my house," Ryan said.

"Well it was nice meeting you Jacob, and I'll see you tomorrow Amy," Veronica said. She grabbed Ryan's arm and began to pull him. "Come on Ryan."

"Bye Amy, Jacob," Ryan smiled and followed Veronica. They waved before walking away.

"So Jacob what really made you come here?" I asked curiously.

"I really did want to know if you were busy," He answered.

"Why?'

"I have something to show you. So do you want to come?" Jake looked at me hopefully.

"I'll have to call my parents to tell them I'm getting home late, but ok," I answered.

"Oh right, we don't want a repeat of last time," Jacob teased. I called my mom leaving a message on her voicemail. When I was done Jake held out a helmet to me. I noticed it was the only one he had.

"Thanks, but what about you?" I questioned as I pulled off my knit cap. He helped me put it on.

"I'm good, besides I'd feel better if you had it on instead of me," He tightened the strap and checked to see if it was secure. He mounted the bike and patted the space for me to sit on. By the time Jake had started up the bike and had us speeding out of the school parking lot, it had become empty. I could feel the force of the speed as it made the air press against me. I instinctively put my arms around Jacob's waist. The speed was exhilarating, but I couldn't stand to keep my eyes open for too long. After many twist and turns Jacob began to slow down and finally coming to a complete stop.

"You alright?" He asked as he dismounted the bike. I felt disoriented and light-headed. I was trying to take off the helmet, but I was having a hard time with the strap. "Here let me help you with that."

"Thanks," I responded when it was finally off.

"No problem," Jacob chuckled. "Nice hair." I combed my hair with my fingers trying to get it to behave. I finally gave up and stuffed my knit cap back on.

"How do I look now?" I sarcastically asked. Jacob chuckled again.

"Great, so can you get up?" He asked as he stepped aside to give me space. I shook my head.

"I don't think my legs have the strength to hold me up right now," I answered.

"Come on, I'll help you," He put his hand on my waist, guiding me as I stood up and slid off the bike. He didn't let me go until I had completely regained my balance. "First time on a motorcycle?"

"Yep, you could have warned me at least," I said. He shrugged and threw me a smile.

"Yeah I could have, but then you would have thought about it and not have come along for the ride," Jacob explained.

"So what did you nearly kill me for?" I asked looking around at the surroundings. We were at a cliff.

"I wanted you to see this," He spread out his arms. He was motioning towards the horizon. I stepped ahead and got closer to the edge. The deep overcast caused the ocean to look a dark, stormy grey. The water looked dangerous, as if it were a deep black hole waiting for its victim.

"Do you want me to jump off the cliff or something?" I asked confused. Jacob looked horrified at the idea.

"No, I just wanted you to see," Jacob answered joining me. "The guys and I sometimes dive from here during the warmer days."

"Wow, it looks pretty high, is it really safe?" I asked.

"Yeah, it is for us. We know what we're doing."

"Will you ever show me?"

"How to dive off? No, your parent's will probably kill me if something happens to you."

"No, will you bring me when you and your friends dive?"

"Oh sure," Jacob replied softly. We stayed silent overlooking the ocean and feeling the salty ocean breeze. I could see some of the beauty Jake was talking about in the darkness of the scene, the turbulent waters, and the threatening clouds.

"Thanks for bringing me here," I said. Jacob looked down at me.

"You're welcome; you said you wanted to paint me, so I thought it would be better if you saw where I liked to be. I was hoping this would inspire you at times."

"This is perfect," I answered. I began to walk around and explore the surroundings. There was a moss covered boulder near the edge. I walked towards it to see if I could somehow climb it.

"Amy what are doing?" Jacob asked, panic lacing his voice. "Don't get so close, you could slip and fall."

"Don't worry Jake, I'll be fine. I just want to see something," I reassured him as I began getting on the boulder. I noticed that Jacob had followed me and was preparing himself to catch me if I did fall. "Jacob calm down, I won't fall."

"You never know," Jacob said as he watched me reach the flat top of the boulder. I sat down letting my legs dangle off the side.

"Come and join me," I patted the space next to me. "The view is great." I waited for him to join me, pulling out my sketchbook as I did so. It didn't take as long for him to climb the rock. There was some wind causing my hair to fly everywhere around my head. Jacob's hair was doing the same thing.

"Why are you the only one of your friends with long hair?" I asked. I had noticed at the bonfire. There were some boys with very long hair in braids, but for the guys that Jacob actually talked to and hung out with they all had short, cropped hair. He didn't answer me right away. At first I thought he hadn't heard me, but then he shrugged.

"I'm comfortable with it long. I cut it short a while back, but I don't know. I'd much rather have it long," He explained.

"Does it have sentimental value?" I asked. Again Jacob waited to answer my question. This time he sounded a bit more rigid.

"A little I guess, sometimes something represents or reminds you of something specific," Jacob shrugged. He stuffed his hands in his jeans' pockets.

"Makes sense," I murmured. "So tell me something."

"What?" Jacob asked.

"Tell me something about yourself." I clarified.

"Like what?"

"Anything, whatever you feel like telling me. Tell me what you like about your friends, this place. If you could be anything else in the world what would you be? It can be personal, random, meaningless, or introspective, it doesn't matter. Just talk," I replied.

"Just talk?" He murmured.

"Mhmm, talk about what you like to do," I said preparing myself to begin drawing.

"I like cars," He stated. He didn't look at me as he began to talk.

"What do you like about them?" I questioned.

"I like to take them apart and rebuild them, make them faster, better. It helps me relax; I completely rebuilt my car with some help from Quil and Embry, but mainly by myself. I've pretty much become the town's mechanic. Embry, Quil, and I were thinking of opening up our own business, you know make it official."

"That sounds like a good idea," I said as I drew his outline softly.

"Yeah," He whispered.

"Have you ever thought of leaving La Push?" He didn't answer my question. I looked up from my book; he was staring into the horizon. "Jake, are you alright?"

"I can't leave La Push," Jake answered, and something about the way he said it sounded so sad.

"I'm sure if you wanted to you could."

"No Amy, let me put it this way. There's a greater reason for me to stay than to go. I'm tied to the town and its people, my people," Jacob responded. "Besides I can't leave my father just yet. He needs me."

"Oh I see. He means a lot to you, huh?"

"Yeah, he's the only one I have left. My sisters have their own lives now. We depend on each other, my dad and I," Jacob answered.

"I know this is random, but I'm curious to know, how old are you exactly?" I questioned.

"What do you think?" Jacob replied.

"I would say around twenty, but then that wouldn't make sense as to why you were hanging out with a high school girl. That is unless you're trying to take advantage of the situation," I teased.

"Do you really think I would be capable of doing that?" Jacob asked a little shocked.

"From what I've learned about you not really, but physically you have the upper-hand in such a situation," I answered.

"Well to tell you the truth, I'm seventeen and I would never do something like that," Jacob stated firmly.

"Don't worry I know you wouldn't. But to be honest you don't look seventeen," I said looking up at him. He had been watching me.

"Yeah none of us do," Jacob muttered quietly.

"What do mean by us?"

"Uh nothing," Jacob answered flustered. He began to fidget.

"Jake could you try not to move around so much?" I suggested.

"Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. So back to your age, how is it that you look so much older?"

"I don't know, something in my genes," I saw him shrug after giving his answer.

"Can I ask you a question now?" Jacob glanced down at me.

"Sure go ahead," I followed his example and shrugged.

"What do you plan to do after you graduate?" Jacob inquired.

"I hope to get accepted into one of the state universities back home. My parents want me to apply to some schools here as well in case something happens, but secretly I think my mom doesn't want me to go too far away," I answered.

"So you still don't consider Forks home yet?" Jacob questioned.

"You and Veronica and Ryan really have helped with the transition, but I just grew up in Yuma. That is where my life is really, my friends, my family. Everything I love is there, and I'm stuck here in a place that is so opposite from what I have been familiar with all my life. Everything is just so strange and different, I feel like I'm missing part of my identity. I don't know, it's all so complicated," I responded.

"But won't you miss you're parents?" Jacob said.

"Of course, but isn't that the point of going off to college? To gain some independence, create your own life away from your parents?" Jacob seemed to be thinking over my questions.

"I guess… so are you finished?" He switched the subject easily.

"Not yet I need to finish some of the shading and outlining, then you can begin to move," I informed.

"I never knew modeling could be so hard," Jacob complained.

"For some it's easy, for others it's harder," I shrugged.

"Fine, but tell me when you're done."

"I will, now stop moving. I swear you're worse than a three-year-old."

"I'm sorry I can't help it," I looked at him and I knew he couldn't. From what I had studied during this session and other times we've talked, Jacob was made for action. His muscles seemed to pull effortlessly under his skin. Every part of him screamed movement, his eyes continuously studying the surroundings, his fingers always playing with something or tapping on his legs. When he did sit still it seemed he was itching to start moving again. I finished the first part of my sketching; now what I need to do was fill in the shading and details.

"Ok I'm done, you can move again," I announced before closing my sketch book.

"Finally, ok, so Amy how do you feel about heading back to the rez for some food?" Jacob stood up from his seat and stretched.

"I would love to go," I replied and followed him back to his car. He opened the door for me with an exaggerated flourish and I hopped in. The drive was short and soon we were stopping in front of a small garage on the side of a house. The house looked quaint and the garage, which had the door closed, was in need of a new paint job.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Jacob said when I stepped out of the car. He led me to the door and began to give a small tour of the place. "Ok here is the most important room of the house besides my room, the kitchen."

There wasn't anything special in the room. There was a pile of mail on the table, some dishes in the sink. The house was neat for two men living alone. Jacob went to the fridge and began to pull out ingredients. I watched him and saw how big he actually looked in the kitchen. He made everything appear tiny next to him, a giant in a doll house. It was a pretty comic sight.

"I thought that we should have dinner here today. It's not good to bother Emily so much for food. Especially now since the wedding is so close," Jacob explained as he pulled out some plates. I went to join him to help with the preparation of the food.

"Sam and Emily aren't married yet?" I asked.

"No, but they've been together for a while now," Jacob answered.

"Oh, I just assumed that they were since they lived together and all. They act like a married couple already," I said.

"Yeah they do. Everyone, well almost everyone, is excited for it," Jacob said as he poured some pasta with water in a pan and put it on the stove to boil.

"Almost everyone?' I asked.

"Well there are some people who aren't looking forward to the day," Jacob shrugged. It sounded like it was something that was common knowledge. At that moment there was a knock on the front door and then the door opened.

"Jake!" We heard a feminine voice call from the living room. "Oh, Jakey!" I saw Jacob roll his eyes at the nickname.

"I'm in the kitchen," Jacob shouted back. He shook his head in exasperation.

"Oh, hey, who's your friend?" We looked to the kitchen's entrance to find a woman standing there. She looked at me with a small smirk, but there seemed to be nothing similar to amusement in her expression. Something about her distorted the beauty of her face. She stood tall and lean, and like Jacob she had the same russet skin, dark hair cropped short, and the dark eyes.

"Hey Leah thanks for barging in like that," Jacob sarcastically greeted.

"No problem, kid," She smirked wider at him. I looked at her. "So who's the girl?"

"Amy this is Leah Clearwater, Leah this is Amy Arzola," Jacob said monotonously.

"Nice to meet you," I said politely.

"So this is the Amy you've been talking about," Leah said without emotion as she dropped herself onto a chair. "So I assume you've already met the whole gang."

"Um, yeah, I guess," I stumbled. Her tone, her expression, everything about her intimidated me. I've never been good with handling really blunt, forward people.

"Well then I feel left out, he didn't introduce you to me," Leah taunted. "Now Jake, why didn't you let me meet your friend?" I noticed that Jake's jaw clenched in annoyance before he turned his complete attention to the stove. I swear you could feel the thick tension crackle like static in the air.

"Leah shouldn't you be somewhere else making boys cry rather than bothering me?" Jacob countered.

"It's not fun anymore. And besides I like annoying you, you're the biggest challenge," Then she looked at me with a strange look. "Well… used to be." She came up to the table and sat across from me.

"So what were two talking about before I got here?" She picked at the table clothe on the table. Jacob sent me a quick glance before looking back at her.

"Nothing just telling Amy about La Push," His discomfort showed and I wasn't the only one to pick up on it. Leah's eyes narrowed into slits.

"Is that so?" She asked slowly. She turned to me, her dark eyes staring into mine. "So what was he telling you?"

"Um… he was talking about a wedding…" The mention of the word caused her to flinch and Jacob to tense up again. Now I knew the answer to my last question. Leah stayed silent and the previous tension was nothing compared to this one. I looked towards Jacob, but he was staring at the stove. "I'm sorry… I didn't know… I … it's just…"

"You didn't know Amy," Jacob muttered.

"I'm going to go now, have a good dinner," Leah said as she got up from the table.

"Amy, can you leave us alone for a moment?" Jacob asked; he leaned against the counter. I stood up quickly, noticing that both of them towered greatly over me.

"Yeah, I'll be outside," I answered before making my way out of the house. The guilt was eating at me. I could still see Leah's expression at the mention of the wedding. The feel of the cold air when I opened the door was like a breath after being underwater for too long. I sat on the wooden chair next to the door. A car drove past and I could see someone taking out their trash down the street. I sat outside for a while before the door opened. Leah walked out; she gave me a quick glance before walking down the street. Jacob stood next to me.

"Come on the food is ready," He motioned his head towards the inside of the house. He gave me a reassuring smile. I followed him in. I sat back in my old seat and watched as he served a plate for each of us.

"I feel horrible," I blurt out. Jacob looks at me as he sits down across from.

"Don't worry about it, you didn't know. I explained it to Leah and she understood," Jacob said. I moved some of the macaroni around my plate.

"It didn't seem that way when she left," I muttered.

"Yeah well Leah isn't the friendliest person, I mean I'm her friend and she treats me like crap," Jake chuckled and his laughter caused me to smile. We began to eat and we talked. But even then Leah's expression wouldn't go away. I was watching Jacob serve himself what seemed like his sixth serving when I asked him.

"Can you tell me what happened to Leah?"

Jacob came back to the table slowly, stirring at his food. He sat down before he looked up at me. "It's not like it's a secret around here, but it's a pretty painful story. I don't want you to feel even worse about earlier."

"I just don't want to say something like today again," I explained.

"Yeah, ok, but I have one more request," Jacob said.

"Sure, what is it?" I was a little scared to find out what information I had requested.

"Don't judge the people included too harshly." Jacob's request confused me and he noticed my puzzlement. "You'll understand later."

"Ok then, I guess I'll start from the beginning. Um, Leah wasn't always so bitter and unfriendly, I guess you can say. She was actually well liked and nice, but that was before Sam. You have to understand that Sam and Emily weren't always together. Before Sam was with Emily, he had belonged to Leah."

"Leah? But Sam and Emily look so right together," I said, remembering the night that I spent at their house.

"Yeah they do, but Sam loved Leah too, and he broke her heart. They were high school sweethearts and there was a rumor going around that he was planning to propose after she graduated. It would have happened if he hadn't met Emily. I can't explain the whole story to you, at least not yet, but to sum it up, Sam broke Leah's heart because he was meant for Emily."

"So was that his excuse? He was meant for Emily?" The words sounded wrong. I couldn't believe that something like that could happen to someone.

"No, it's hard to explain. He loved Leah, but when he saw Emily, she became everything to him," Jacob defended. "It was something he couldn't control."

"You make it sound like it's some supernatural force or something," I commented.

"Yeah, I guess you could say," His mouth quirked, but he soon turned somber. "Leah was pretty broken afterwards; she became who she is now. Sam felt so guilty and he still does. He really did love her. But Leah's doing better now; she's going to be a bridesmaid in the wedding."

"Wow a bridesmaid!" I couldn't imagine myself being able to handle that if I were in her situation. To lose your love like that, that was just plain cruel.

"Yeah, she and Emily had promised each other when they were younger they would be each other's bridesmaid," Jacob shrugged.

"I still don't understand the whole situation though. I mean I get that Sam left her and got with Emily, but why?" I questioned. Jacob looked at me troubled. I could tell there was something he wasn't telling me.

"I really can't explain it right now, later I will, but for right now that's all you need to know," Jacob answered as he picked up our plates. "I promise that later I will explain correctly ok. For the time being, it's best not to bring this up, especially in front of Leah; it's a sore subject with the gang."

"Ok, I won't." I promised.

"Alright, well let's go to the beach for a while before I have to take you back home," Jacob said, leaning on the counter. I followed him out of the house. It was too cold to attempt getting near the water so we just continued to talk as Jacob taught me how to skip rocks. I really was getting used to Jacob. It had never been so easy to talk to someone, especially a boy. He didn't judge me; it was easy to be myself around him.