Drowning

Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.

A/N-thank you for the kind reviews, Nikki.

Part Ten

Jacob sat on the edge of the cliff with his legs dangling precariously over the edge. He was enjoying the peace and quiet; he stared down at the sea below, although it was still choppy, it was much calmer than the previous day. The weather had improved considerably and he was now waiting for his friends to arrive so they could attempt the infamous cliff dive. He had been unable to persuade Bella to cut school and join them, she chided him again for slacking off but after the previous night's events with Joshua and his mother, he had an urge to just be reckless. Thinking about his mother just brought his mood down and he was thankful when he finally heard his friend's noisy approach. As usual Quil was making enough noise for ten people, he was hyper at the best of times, Jacob's other friend Embry was much quieter.

"Hey, dude!" Quil hailed him as he dropped the bag he was carrying next to Jacob. He heard the distinct clink of glass and glanced at Quil enquiringly. A huge grin crossed Quil's face as he began to open the bag and rummage around inside. Embry made himself comfortable next to Jacob as they both waited for the big reveal. "I've brought something that is going to make this day much more memorable." He continued. "Ta dah!" Quil pulled out a large bottle of Jack Daniels. His grin widened. "Borrowed this from my grandfather, he won't miss it, it's been in the drinks cabinet forever." His eyes sparkled as he held the bottle in front of Jacob and Embry triumphantly.

Jacob's face darkened as he stared at the bottle. Was Quil for real? Could his friend really be that clueless? His eyes travelled to Quil's face, he was looking a little uncertain now that his two friends didn't seem as eager as he was about his prize. Quil put the bottle down beside him as the silence became more tension filled with each passing second. "I thought it would be fun." His voice sounded extra loud and he gulped as both Jacob and Embry continued to stare at him with stony expressions. "Come on guys, lighten up?" He continued. "What's the big deal?"

"The big deal?" Jacob grabbed the offensive bottle and shook it in Quil's face. "Are you really that dumb?"

"Yeah Quil." Embry shook his head in disgust. He had risen to his feet and had his hands thrust in his pockets. The fun had gone out of the day for him. "I'm going home. See you later." With his head down and his chin length black hair hiding his expression, Embry slouched off without saying anything further.

"I don't understand." Quil turned his attention to Jacob who was stuffing the bottle in his own back pack which was filled with his unopened text books. He hauled it onto his shoulder and began to follow after Embry. "Jake? Dude tell me what's wrong?" He called out in confusion.

Jacob threw him a look of disgust. "The fact that I have to even explain makes it all so much worse." He continued to walk away. "My mom's an alcoholic dickwad, and Kay is just recovering from her latest brush with the drink. Not everyone has the perfect life like you." He spat.

Quil's face paled a little under his tan skin as the enormity of his mistake sunk in. "Jake I'm sorry." He called after his friend.

"Just leave me alone." Jacob yelled as he disappeared out of sight, the bottle in his back pack weighing heavy on his shoulder like a bad omen.

Jacob was so distracted that he didn't notice that Billy's truck was parked outside, he had returned from his latest job and was in the house, unpacking and washing up after the long drive home. Jacob marched inside the house and headed straight for the kitchen so he could pour the bottle of Jack Daniels down the sink. He wanted it gone. Before he had time to follow through with his plan he heard movement behind him. He whirled around, his heart beating wildly in his chest, expecting to see his mom with Joshua, but it was his father. "Dad, you're home." He said stating the obvious.

Billy was wiping his hands with a towel; he had heard someone enter the house as he washing his face and had come to investigate. "And you it seems." His eyes narrowed as he studied his son. Jacob had guilt written all over him. "Why aren't you in school?"

"I was feeling sick." Jacob mumbled. He knew his dad would see right through that lie, but he was so startled to see Billy that he couldn't think of any better excuse.

"You don't look sick." Billy strode toward him as Jacob ducked his head. "Have you skipped school again? Have you?" He demanded. He was tired and irritable, it had been a long week and he hadn't been feeling that great. He had come home hoping for a little peace to be confronted with this. "Give me an answer?"

Jacob raised his head; he swallowed thickly as he dared to glance at Billy's irate face. "I told you already."

"And that is the story you're sticking with, huh?" Billy threw down his towel and shook his head in disbelief. "Do you know how hard I work to pay the bills so you have food to eat and a roof over your head? Do you think I work all the hour's god sends for fun? The least I should expect is that you get your lazy ass to school every day." He roared.

His loud tone startled Jacob, who jumped a little. His back pack jiggled the bottle and Billy heard the clink of glass. He was so attuned to Sarah's drinking that the sound seemed to reverberate around the house and sound louder than it actually was. Billy stalked toward Jacob, who began to back away from him until he hit the cabinets behind him and he could retreat no further. Billy held out one hand. "Give me your bag?" He ordered, his voice was ice cold.

Jacob knew there was no point in protesting. He handed his back pack over to his father and watched anxiously as Billy ripped open the bag and pulled out the bottle of Jack Daniels. "It's not mine." He whispered. He hated the fact that his voice was shaking. He had never seen his father so angry. Billy was gripping onto the bottle so tightly it looked as if it might shatter. "Is this your mother's?" He shook the bottle in front of Jacob's face for effect.

"No." Jacob mumbled.

"Where did you get this? Where? You know what this stuff does. You've seen the state of your mother when she drinks. How could you?" Billy snapped.

"I wasn't going to drink it. I would never do that." Jacob felt faint. His heart was beating so rapidly he thought he might pass out.

"Who gave you this?" Billy demanded again.

"I don't know." Despite his own anger at Quil for bringing the stupid drink in the first place he wasn't about to rat his friend out. It was something you just didn't do. It went against the bro code.

Billy's eyes closed as he tried to keep his temper under control. "You make me sick. Do you hear? Go to your room I don't want to look at you right now."

Resentment built up inside Jacob. He was sick of getting blamed for things that weren't his fault. First he'd been hit by Joshua and now his dad was unfairly accusing him of being a secret drinker like his mom. He felt his hands shaking as he took deep breaths. Everything felt out of control, he felt out of control. He couldn't breathe, not in this house. "It isn't mine." He yelled at Billy. "I hate this, I hate you." Jacob darted past Billy and ran out of the house. Billy chased after him but he wasn't quick enough, all he saw was Jacob disappearing down the dirt track on his bike as he cycled away.

Bella was writing furiously. She ignored Mike who was sitting near her and trying to get her attention. She wanted to get all her notes correct; there was no way she could fail. They had an upcoming test and Bella was determined to ace it. The higher the scores she got the easier it would be to progress to the next level. She wanted to be top of the class, she wanted to be perfect. The harder she worked the more ordered her life felt. She wanted to achieve something, something that would make her dad wake up and finally notice her again.

"Isabella Swan, can you come here for a moment, please?" The teacher's voice startled her. She raised her head and looked at him enquiringly. "There is someone waiting for you in the office. Could you go straight there please?"

Bella felt all eyes on her as she packed up her books and shoved them in her bag. Going to the office normally meant you were either in trouble or there was bad news. She couldn't be in trouble so it had to be the latter. With her heart in her mouth and lead in her chest she stumbled out of the classroom and took the long walk to the office. It had to be her dad. Charlie's job could be dangerous at times, had something bad happened to him? Was he injured? Had he been shot? Had he….different scenarios began to play out in her mind and she felt tears prick at her eyes as old memories of losing her mother assaulted her. By the time she reached the office she was in a distressed state and on the verge of a panic attack. "I was told to come here." She stammered to the school secretary who was sitting behind her desk.

"Are you feeling alright, dear?" The secretary immediately noted Bella's white face, she looked as if she was about to be sick.

"Is it my dad?" Bella clutched her bag to her chest as the tears finally escaped her eyes.

"No dear, a boy is here to see you. He called himself Jacob Black. He said he's a friend of the family. He looks very distressed himself, just like you. Is there something going on here?" She asked curiously.

"Jake?" Bella took a second to digest this news. So it wasn't her dad? Why was Jake in her school? She turned around and glanced through the glass panel into the corridor, she saw Jacob sitting on one of the chairs, his shoulders were hunched and he looked tense. She turned back to the secretary and forced a smile on her face. "Yeah, he is a family friend. I'll go talk to him. Thanks." She quickly exited the office before the woman could enquire further.

In halting sentences Jacob told her what had happened. Bella listened in silent horror as the events of the day unravelled. She couldn't believe that Quil had been so stupid or that Billy would actually think that Jake would turn to drink after seeing his mother become addicted. Jacob was trying not to cry, he hated doing so. It was very rare these days that he did, some dumb thing about being a man and not showing emotion, but he was on edge and Bella could do nothing but hug him fiercely until he calmed down.

After a while she let go and peered into his dark eyes. "You alright now?" She asked softly.

"Yeah." Jacob mumbled. "Sorry for losing it. I didn't know where else to go."

"You want to get out of here?" Bella asked as a way to distract him from his embarrassment that he had shed a tear.

"Where will we go?" Jacob wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and finally let a smile break out on his face.

Bella's heart lightened when she saw it. She thought hard for a second before taking his hand and yanking him toward the school entrance. "Bowling, I fancy going bowling." She announced. "Hitting those damn skittles is a good way to vent your frustration."

"It means you cutting school." Jacob automatically took Bella's bag from her and slung it over his shoulder. "Are you sure you're up for being a rebel?" He teased her.

"This one time maybe and it's only half a day." Bella squeezed his hand, glad to see him coming back to his old self.

A/N-thanks for reading!