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Disclaimer - This is based off of the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer. She created the characters and the basic plot, and this is my spin on it. These are my words about her world. Stephenie Meyer has all of the rights to her characters and the parts that were taken from her plot.

Chapter Fourteen

It was easier for Bella to ignore the pounding echoing off of her front door this time. The last time Sam Uley had stood outside her small front porch, desperately banging on the wood as he tried to get her attention and gain entry, Bella had been in a state of shock after just witnessing her best friend explode into a giant wolf in front of her eyes. The last time, she hadn't been running from Sam; she'd been running from the werewolves.

This time, she was running from Sam.

Well, not running from him, per se. But Samuel Uley was definitely the problem.

And Bella had other problems that needed her attention more. Problems that currently resided in a math book. Bella needed to get herself more focused on her schoolwork and less focused on relationship drama. Sam and the pack had taken over her life lately, and just a day before she hadn't thought anything of it. Now, things were different. Sam had some groveling to do, and Bella had homework, so his groveling would have to wait.

Bella blinked down at her Calculus textbook and copied the next equation into her notebook so she could begin to solve it. Her eyebrows pulled together as she squinted down at her handwriting. Calculus was not her best subject, and the constant drumming against the front door wasn't helping with her concentration.

Bella was sure no human being could make as much noise as a werewolf could.

Eventually, Bella finished with the math and moved on to English. It was a creative writing assignment, and Bella's thought process was being challenged. She needed write a fable, which needed to teach a lesson. And the only characters she could come up with were – naturally – wolves.

After exhausting every ounce of creativity in her brain to come up with a plotline that featured a mother bear and her cubs, she knew she would never be able to get a story written with her stomach growling as much as it was. She needed a snack, and she would need to eat something before writing anything worthy turning in for a grade.

She leaned her head back against the headboard, dreading having to go downstairs. She knew he was still down there. Charlie wouldn't be home from work until eight o'clock, giving Sam a good three hours before he would need to make himself disappear. Her cell phone continued to chime every now and then, lighting up with a new text message, all of them from members of the pack trying to coax her to hearing Sam out.

But Bella just wasn't in the mood.

Bella tried three times to get a story typed up, but each time she angrily deleted them. She was too focused on her desire for a bag of chips and Sam's persistency outside to be creative.

So downstairs she went.

When she first passed by the front door, she didn't spare it a glance. She knew he'd be peeking his face in the little window, trying to catch her attention and get her to unlock it and let him in. Bella was lucky Charlie would notice a broken door, or she was sure Sam would have forced his way inside by then.

She poured a can of soda into a glass and snatched up a bag of chips, determined to get in and out quickly and get back to her paper. Of course, that plan was shattered.

When she looked up at the little window above the kitchen sink, she froze in her tracks.

He was there, watching her, eyes pleading and heartbroken.

Bella's eyes met Sam's through the glass. His deep brown eyes were hard with tension, but his lips were parted gently. He wasn't angry with her. His anger, undoubtedly, was pointed towards Jacob. And perhaps to the rest of the pack for allowing Bella to flee. He reached up to press his palm against the glass. "Bella," he begged. His voice was muted by the glass. "Please, Bella. Let's talk about this."

Bella swallowed, and stared at him. Leaving him in the dust had been easy, Bella realized, because Sam hadn't been standing right in front of her. He hadn't been there to look at her as he was right then – with so much love and adoration that she couldn't possibly walk away from him. Looking into his eyes only cemented the imprint bond that flooded between them, connected them. Seeing him made Bella want to rush into his arms and never let him leave her side again. He really was handsome. And she loved him so much.

Bella found herself being very quickly convinced that she should go open the door. But as she took the step, reality set in.

He'd lied to her. Twice. Once when he told her his relationship with Leah hadn't been serious at all, and again when he'd told her he could never lie to her because of the imprint. Had he just been trying to gain her trust? If so, he'd only served to make his situation worse.

Bella lifted her chin high and shook her head. "I'm busy right now," she said. Even though a wall separated them, she knew he could hear her perfectly. Hell, he'd probably heard the eraser of her pencil brushing against the notebook upstairs five minutes ago.

"You don't understand, Bella," Sam begged. "Jacob doesn't –"

"I said not right now, Sam," she snapped. "I have schoolwork to do. I'll deal with you later." And with that, Bella stomped back upstairs and shut her bedroom door. It didn't block out the sound of his pounding when he resumed, but it did help prove Bella's point.

Sam Uley was in his own personal hell.

He'd never felt worse pain than that which he was feeling on that very day. Stabbing, crippling pain that radiated all over his body, centering in his heart.

Rejection.

That's what it was. His imprint was rejecting him. His imprint had run from him, and now she was pushing him away, locking him out. Ignoring him.

And he couldn't even blame Jacob.

Well, he could. Jacob had opened his mouth when he didn't have all the facts. He'd made assumptions on Sam and Leah's relationship, and those assumptions had been wrong.

But Sam hadn't been completely honest with Bella, and that part was Sam's fault.

It was true that Sam had once spent a great deal of time at the Clearwaters' house. Jacob assumed that meant Sam had slept with Leah.

Jacob was wrong.

Harry had been concerned that Leah was going to phase, but he wasn't sure what signs to look for – if they would be the same in a female as they were in a male. So Sam had volunteered to spend evenings there, to watch her behavior and monitor her. Together, they'd determined Leah wouldn't be phasing.

Sam hadn't realized Harry had an ulterior motive: that he'd been hoping spending so much time with Leah would make Sam fall in love with her.

Sam had set Jacob straight. Now he just needed a chance to talk to Bella, to make her believe the misunderstanding.

He heard her upstairs in her bedroom. Every now and then, a plastic bag full of chips would crackle as she stuck her hand inside to retrieve one. She was humming to herself, a beautiful sound to Sam's ears. His fist was moving independently as he hit it against the door with no reservations. He didn't care that he was probably irritating her next door neighbors.

He needed to talk to Bella, but ultimately, it would be Bella's decision. Sam could only hope he could convince her to hear him out.

"Bella's been really stressed out lately, Sam," Jacob had said earlier. "You need to realize that she's still adjusting to this world. It may seem like she's got it all under control, and maybe she does with some things, but she's not perfect. She needs time to herself. Maybe this is what she needs – space. Just for a little while. And when Bella's ready, she'll come to you."

She'd assured Jacob she wasn't leaving Sam in the dust. She was going to come back to him eventually. Whatever his imprint wanted, she would get. And if what she truly wanted was space, he would have to give it to her. At least until she was ready to give him a chance to explain himself.

Perhaps he deserved to be in the dog house for a while.

Charlie brought a pizza home for dinner that night, and Bella was grateful. She hadn't felt like cooking that evening. The two sat in front of the television in the living room like they always did, resting their plates on the small glass coffee table. She was thankful that Charlie's attention was focused on the baseball game, because right then, she couldn't carry on a conversation if she tried.

Bella knew Sam was still outside. Of course, he wasn't on the front porch anymore, and he wasn't knocking. But she knew he was out there, especially because the vampires were still an issue. She didn't know if he would be in his human form or his wolf form, but his presence was something Bella was absolutely sure of.

"How was school today?" Charlie grumbled when a commercial replaced the game.

Bella shrugged. "Normal, I guess." She swallowed another bite. "They gave the deadline for SAT sign-ups. It's next Thursday. I haven't decided whether or not I want to take them again."

"Whatever you decide," he responded absentmindedly. That statement was pretty much a summary of Charlie's entire personality.

Bella shook her head as he struggled with a long string of cheese that threatened to bring the entire slice with it. "I started filling out my common application," she told him. School was the only thing the two could talk about for long periods of time – which, for them, meant more than two sentences each. "I added the University of Phoenix to my list of schools to send it to," she blurted before she really thought about it. Once it had been said, she gasped, shocked at herself. She hadn't admitted it to herself, when she'd made the addition that afternoon. She hadn't really thought about the choice she'd made. It certainly wasn't permanent – she could remove the school at any time because she hadn't sent it out or even completed the application – but something about the choice felt final. She'd added the college while she was still fired up about Sam. Now that she'd had enough time to calm down and think about it, she wasn't as sure about her choice as she had been when she'd made it. She was furious at Sam, that was for sure. But that didn't mean she could never forgive him. He hadn't cheated on her. He'd lied to her. And yes, he would have a lot of making up to do for things to be okay between them, and it would be a while until that time came, but she loved him. She was his imprint, and she loved him. She couldn't live without him even if she tried.

"Arizona?" Charlie repeated. "That's nice. Your mom will be excited about that. I know you've been wanting to go there for a long time. You should add Arizona State to the list, too, though. You never know which school will offer you more scholarship money."

Bella bit her lip. "I'm working on the application essay now. I'm not really sure what to write about." She shrugged. "I'll probably use the one about challenges and failures or something."

"What have you ever failed at, Bella?"

Being an Alpha werewolf's imprint. "Lots of things, Dad," she said aloud.

"No, you haven't."

Bella grinned. "You're my father. You might be a little bias to the subject."

Charlie reached for another piece of pizza. "You've had spotless grades since Kindergarten, and you're not a teen mother. I think you've succeeded at your teenage years, Bella."

"Don't speak too soon," she teased. "Final grades aren't posted yet, and I haven't gotten my diploma."

He rolled his eyes, but the game came back on and the conversation was efficiently ended.

As the pitcher threw pitch after pitch, Bella allowed her mind to wander. She wondered if Sam was outside. It was still daylight, but the sun was setting, casting a red glow over the sky. She had no doubt there was someone outside – one of the wolves. But would it be Sam? Or would he be keeping his distance until she approached him? Suddenly overcome with a spout of rage, Bella wanted to hear what he had to say – if he was going to accept his mistake or try to lie his way out of it.

"Are you finished?" she asked, gesturing to the box on the coffee table.

Charlie glanced at it and nodded.

Bella picked it up and stood "I'll transfer these last few pieces onto a plate and take the box outside to the trash so it's not taking up space in the one under the sink, okay?"

Charlie blinked a few extra times, Bella's only signal that he'd even heard her.

Once outside, Bella tossed the box into the large blue trashcan on the side of the house. She threw a glance towards the woods, half expecting a giant black wolf with large yellow eyes to be standing within the seclusion of the trees, watching her. She saw nothing and frowned, suddenly a little concerned.

She was stumbling towards the trees before she really even thought about it.

She didn't have to walk far into the forest to confirm her suspicions. She'd been right about there being a wolf watching over her in the woods, but it wasn't Sam. Quil, with his chocolate brown fur and large innocent eyes, looked up at her when she found him.

"Hey, Quil," she said softly. "I'm sorry. I should have come out earlier." She felt guilty that she'd sat inside and pigged out while poor Quil stood outside in the mud and listened. "Are you hungry? I'll go grab you some pizza."

Quil shook his oversized wolf-y head.

Bella paused. "You're not hungry?"

He shook his head in denial again.

Bella bit her lip. "That's odd. Are you feeling okay?"

This time, he nodded.

Bella crossed her arms over her chest, annoyed. "You know, you're a lot more fun to talk to when you're human. More annoying, but still more fun."

Quil's wolf-lips pulled up in an odd smile and he barked a scuff that was probably meant to be a laugh.

Bella bit her lip. "No, but seriously – can you phase? I really want to talk to you. The human version of you."

Quil hesitated.

"Please, Quil," Bella begged.

He shook his head, eyes pleading with her to understand . . . something.

It clicked in Bella's brain. "Oh," she breathed. "He won't let you phase, right? You have to stay a wolf, just in case?"

He nodded.

Bella sighed and glanced around. She couldn't exactly be angry at Quil or Sam. They were just trying to keep her safe from any lingering vampires who were lurking around Forks and wanted to kill her. Her eyes were trailing across the forest floor when they happened upon something she hadn't been expecting.

Nestled between two trees, resting against a fallen tree, was an indent in the leaves. They were an odd mixture of green and brown and mud, and they were all squished and trampled, like a weight had been put on them for a long period of time. The indent was roughly the size of –

Bella gasped and pointed. "Wait a minute," she breathed. "Has Sam been sleeping out here every night?"

Quil looked at her like she was stupid.

"Every night?" she squeaked. She stared down that the little make-shift bed of leaves. She could picture him gathering them from the forest floor and piling them up so he would have a soft place to lay all night. The image made Bella's gut clench in guilt. She'd shut him out of her life without a word. "I just thought he was staying late and coming back early! I didn't know he was sleeping out here!" The thought made Bella sick. She'd been warm and comfy in her bed while Sam was laying in the mud and filth of the forest floor.

Quil bumped her knee with his nose affectionately, his way of comforting her without a human body. Bella reached down to rub her hand on the top of his head like she would a pet dog.

Another realization dawned. "It rained last night, Quil! And not, like, a little drizzle or something! It was a full-fledged thunderstorm, with lightning and –" Bella waved her hands around, flustered. " –and thunder!" She felt horrible, unable to get the image of him lying in the mud, soaked by the rain but being loyal to Bella anyway. Of course, that was before she'd found out he'd slept with Leah. But still – the romance in the gesture was not completely lost. Just slightly damaged.

Quil just stared up at her like an obedient puppy.

Bella continued as a rush of emotion flooded her heart. "Oh, my God, Quil. I'm so mad at him, Quil. So mad at him." She shook her head, staring up at the sky that was peeking through the tree branches. The sun was setting deeper now, but the light was still breaking through the trees enough to allow Bella to see. She would have to go inside before it was pitch black. "He lied to me, Quil. Big time. I-I mean, I knew he wasn't a virgin, Quil, I'm not an idiot. But – he looked me in the eye, Quil! He looked me in the eye and told me nothing about his relationship with Leah was ever serious. He promised me they'd only went out on one date, Quil! One date, and he didn't even enjoy himself!"

Bella felt hot, furious tears begin to prickle her eyes and spill over her cheeks. Quil moved closer to lay down in the dirt and formed a half-circle with his body. With his oversized head, he gestured for Bella to lean against him and make herself comfortable.

Bella did so but didn't stop talking. "Is sex really that low-key to you? To you men? Huh? Is it so meaningless to you that it doesn't even mean anything to you?"

Quil shook his head.

"No?" Bella demanded. "No what? No, it doesn't mean anything to you, or no, I'm making the wrong assumption?"

Quil just stared at her in dismay, unsure of how to answer.

Bella groaned. "See, this is a problem. We can't communicate. I need to talk to you, Quil. I need to talk to someone!"

This time, Bella knew exactly what the expression on Quil's face meant.

She sighed. "Yeah, you're right," she whispered. "I should talk to Sam." She sent him a sideways, knowing glance. "Is he listening right now? You know – with that weird wolf mind-sharing thing?"

The chocolate fur on his head blew in the breeze as he nodded.

Bella heaved another deep sigh and closed her eyes. "I can't believe I'm about to say this. I was so hell-bent on letting him sweat it out for a few days before I even considered hearing him out." She closed her eyes and shook her head, defeated. She couldn't fight it – the pull of the imprint. She was absolutely furious with him, but he missed him like crazy at the exact same time. She couldn't stay away from him. She could stay mad at him, but she couldn't not be around him. She wasn't strong enough to keep him out of her life for any significant length of time. "I can't believe I'm about to say this. Sam? If you're listening to me talk to you through Quil's ears because you're a werewolf right now and therefore are a part of Quil's mind –"

Quil's rumbling animal laughter interrupted her.

Bella slugged him on the shoulder. "Shut up, Quil! I don't know how it works."

He turned his head away innocently.

"Anyways," Bella continued, "Sam. Consider this your invitation to my house this evening to talk." She bit her lip. "Wait until Charlie is completely asleep, and then come through my window. I'll leave it unlocked." She thought for a moment, and then added sternly, "But don't think I'm forgiving you. Because I'm not. Yet. I'm just going to give you a chance to explain yourself."

Quil chuckled again, and Bella smacked him again. "Did he get all that?"

Quil nodded.

Bella sighed and heaved herself up off of the ground. She brushed her shorts off and glanced towards her house, where the shabby lamp in the living room was shining through the window and illuminating a square in the yard. The sun had officially disappeared and Bella needed to get inside before she needed night vision goggles to find the front door. "I'd better get inside. Charlie will think I got trapped inside the garbage can or something." She snorted. "Not like he'd even notice I'm still gone until the Mariners' game is over."

She walked forward a few steps before she turned and gave Quil a smile. "Thanks for being out here, Quil. Promise me if it starts to rain, you'll go home."

Quil growled and shook his head.

Bella rolled her eyes. "Alright, fine. At least phase and come hang out in the house."

He gave her a look that said he probably wouldn't do so but was willing to agree just to appease her. Bella would have to be satisfied with that.

She waved goodbye, and just as she was ready to exit the treeline, she turned and called, "Hey, good talk, Quil."

His rough laughter echoed into her ears and had Bella grinning at the humor of it all as she locked her front door behind her.

I have to say, I'm a little peeved at how many of you guessed that Sam didn't actually sleep with Leah. So I guess can't ask if this chapter was a shock for you, because a good many of you guessed that Jacob's facts might not have been correct in your reviews. Oh, well. Can't shock 'em all, right?

I'm very surprised at the mixed response I got from last chapter, but I'm pleased with it. That's exactly what I wanted you all to feel from it. What do you think now? Is he still scum? Is the world still ending? It's still gonna be a little rough for Sam and Bella for a little while because the imprint can't fix everything.

Once again, thank you all for the wonderful reviews! Please keep them coming. I am SO THRILLED with the response I'm getting from this story.

Remember that one-shot I've been mentioning for, like, a month? It's coming. I swear. It'll be up before this story is over. Classes just started back, and I'm a little swamped. Something had to give.

See you in Chapter Fifteen.