Disclaimer: Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer, I just borrowed them :)
Chapter 9 (Promise)
Bella's POV
"I've got it." I said, walking forward to take the phone from Charlie's outstretched hand. Jacob looked stressed.
"Hello?"
"Bella Dwyer?" a woman's voice said on the other line.
"Swan. Bella Swan." I corrected.
"Oh. Maybe I have the wrong-"
"My stepfather's name is Phil Dwyer. Why, who's speaking?"
"Ah, so you are Bella Dwyer."
"No, Swan. Bella Swan. Who's speaking?" Who was this person? How did they get this number?
"I work for Phoenix police, Bella Dwyer/Swan." Ok, I hated this woman. "Your stepfather, was found by the police and bought back to Phoenix,"
So Phil had been found? Had he been arrested? "Really?" I sounded too happy.
"Yes, he was found in an alley in New Hampshire. A lucky find really. Where are you, so you can come back to him?"
What?! Go back to him? Were they crazy? He killed my mother! "What? Has he not been arrested?"
"And why ever would we do that, dear?"
"Err, I don't know; maybe because he killed my mother!?" I screamed down the phone
"I really doubt that, dear." Angry tears rolled down my face. "Now, where are you? Phil needs someone to look after him: he is in a very unstable condition right now." Leave? I can't leave. I won't leave.
"I'm sorry. But I can't move back. I am staying with my real father." A large, warm hand rested on my lower back, and I relaxed.
"But your stepfather is your legal guardian. Bella, you must come home. Phil needs you."
"He doesn't need me. He needs to get over my mother, and the alcohol!"
"He's in rehabilitation, Bella. No alcohol for your father now."
"He isn't my father" I hissed.
"Now, now, calm down. Why don't you tell me where you are, so we can get you back to Phoenix?"
"Don't you get it? I don't want to go back!" Jacob's soft touch became a painful grasp.
"But you have to, Bella. Phil needs you, and you need him."
"I don't. I have everything I need here; in La Push," My hand covered my mouth. I did not just say that.
"Ah, so you're in La Push. Washington, right?" A scratchy sound, said that the annoying woman was taking notes,
"You aren't leaving." Jacob said and gripped my wrist in his hand. "Bella, don't even think about it."
"I have to, Jacob. They'll find us, even if I don't say where we are exactly." His black eyes filled with tears, but he tried desperately to rein them in. A sharp stab ran through me, and I cried out in pain.
"See, Bella. This is what will happen if they separate us. I won't let them take you. Please don't leave me." It hurt to see him like this.
Maybe if I left, he would get over me. So, I whispered into the phone "West side of La Push. Down towards the cliffs. There is a little cabin with a police cruiser outside."
"Thank you, Bella. We will send someone down to pick you up."
"When?"
"Tomorrow."
"Ok. Thank you, I guess."
"You're very welcome, Bella." She was obviously pleased with herself. She hadn't done anything amazing. I had done all this for Jacob. Said person, was kneeling on the floor, and staring at a point in the distance. I threw the phone at the wall, kneeling down in front of him and wrapping my arms around his neck.
"Love you Jake." No answer. He sniffed, burying his face in my hair. "Come on, it's going to be alright. Everything will be alright." I started to cry myself. Charlie walked in, took one look at us, turned red and walked out the way he had come. Awkward.
"I love you, Bella." Jake whispered.
"Really?"
"Of course I do. Why are you going?"
"I need to Jake. For you. You can move on."
"No I can't. That's what an imprint is, Bells: A soul mate. I imprinted on you. You're mine."
"You make me sound like a possession." I joked. That earned me a glare.
"Bella, you are my world. No matter what I had to do, I would always make sure you were happy. It hurts to be away from you. It is life itself, to be near you. Bella, don't leave. You can't leave." But I didn't reply. I knew I had to do this; Jake needed to move on.
An hour later, Jacob was sitting on the sofa, ignoring anything I said. Rachel and Rebecca had come round, and helped me pack my suitcase. Rebecca had been sad to hear I was leaving, hugging me tightly and whispering nice things to me. On the other hand, Rachel had been inconsolable. She had gone into a depressed state, not talking, only crying quietly and grabbing on to my hand when I was near. Charlie was in a similar condition: sad, quiet but drinking his blues away. Billy had gone to Sarah's grave. The house was disturbingly quiet.
The next day I talked to Sam.
"Bella, you can't leave."
"Everybody sounds like a broken record. I'm leaving, Sam. Phil is my legal guardian and I need to go back to him. He won't hurt me because he can't drink. I don't want to go, Sam, of course I don't. But I am a minor and he is responsible for me." I had repeated my little speech about ten times in the last two days. Did nobody see that I had to do this? I had to go back to Phil.
"What about us, Bella? We want you to stay. Does that mean nothing to you?!" That hurt.
"Come on, Sam. I love you. All of you. And this is the hardest thing I have ever had to do, but I need to do it." I took a deep breath and puffed up my cheeks "I'll be back; that I can promise you. You aren't getting rid of me that easily. Say goodbye to Emily for me. I love you. Bye." And I hung up, flopping down on to the couch. Everything was done. My list was all checked off.
Say goodbye to Quil - check
Say goodbye to Embry and Tiffany – check
Say goodbye to Brady – check
Say goodbye to Collin – check
Say goodbye to Leah, Seth and Sue – check
Say goodbye to Emily and Sam – check
Say goodbye to Rebecca – check
Say goodbye to Rachel – check
Say goodbye to Billy – check
Say goodbye to Jared – check
Say goodbye to Charlie – check
Say goodbye to Jacob -
Ok, so maybe my list wasn't complete just yet. With the others, there had been tears, a lot of them, but I wasn't ready to face Jake. He still refused to talk to me; preferring to stay locked away in his room, than with me. A knifelike pain shot through me. Is this what it is going to be like? Getting pains every time I think of him?
"Yes." A deep, husky voice said from behind me. I jumped, twisting around to get a good look at Jacob. Did I say that out loud? He looked terrible. His eyes were red and blotchy and he had bags under his eyes. As If I hadn't already felt bad enough. "You're really leaving?" I nodded, and he repeated the gesture. "Promise me something?"
"Anything." His lips twitched.
"Promise me you'll come back. When you're sixteen, and you can leave him, promise you'll come back to me?"
"I promise." I vowed, taking his hand and pulling him down on the sofa next to me. A question had been bugging me though. "Sam imprinted on Emily, didn't he?"
"Yes."
"So, why did he hurt her? You could never hurt me. It's impossible."
"Not impossible, but hard."
"Jake, why does everyone treat me like a queen?"
"Because you're special." He answered, shrugging.
"I'm not anymore special than Emily."
"That's not true."
"You're biased." I teased.
"Yes... Bella, did I ever tell you I'm true alpha?"
"Brady mentioned it. I thought Sam was alpha."
"He is but I should be. All depends on blood. I carry alpha blood because my great grandfather, Ephraim Black, was the last alpha. His sons and their sons have all been chief, from then on."
"Why don't you step up to alpha?"
"I don't want it." Understandable. But why did I have this weird pining for him to be alpha?
"B-b-but I want it. I think you should take it, Jake." A shell shocked expression clouded his face. "You were born to be alpha, Jake. Promise me you'll think about it, before I come back?"
"I promise."
"Good." I stated, before throwing my arms around him and holding him close. I never wanted to let go. But I had to.
Later that day, I drove back down the 101. The road I had never wanted to drive back down. I had tears running down my face, as I remembered my tearful departure. Rachel had broken down into tears, offering to go with me. But I couldn't take her away from her pack. Charlie had said the same, but his town needed him. Billy had hugged me close, begging me to come back. Rebecca had smiled sadly, but she knew it was a lost battle. The rest of the pack had begged and pleaded. No one was changing my mind. But Jacob had done all of the above. It just wasn't enough. The painful gap in my chest, widened every mile we drove further away from La Push. Somehow I knew it wasn't going to let up, until I returned to La Push. Until I came home.