A/N:
Whoa. Major reaction last chapter. Will he jump; won't he jump? I guess you'll see this chapter.
Beta is Lindz26, pre-reader is Renas40. They are both awesome. A special thanks to my fictwin, Belindella, for pimping out this story in her author's note of Forgettable. Much love, B.
I was soaring, the wind howling around me, making my face tingle and my skin slightly prickle. The weightlessness I was experiencing was unlike any other sensation I'd ever felt.
It was exhilarating.
I was flying.
All thoughts that normally camped in my brain were gone. I couldn't remember anything about my father, about my cousin, not even about the girl I'd been trying to pursue.
None of it mattered right now.
It was just me and the sea breeze, intermingling into one earthly force.
I could barely make out my body colliding with a harsh, wet substance, but I couldn't see. Everything was white, and pure, and so fucking beautiful. Sounds were serene and I felt completely sheltered, protected. However, when I realized I couldn't breathe, I tried to inhale, only to become aware of my lungs being blocked. My natural instinct was to kick my legs and arms out, and I was certain I was doing that, but why did I feel so numb?
After a while, I gave up, and returned to the feeling of being blissed out, which was growing more and more by the second. I closed my eyes, my head feeling much lighter than before. It was wonderful, this feeling of just not caring about anything except simply being. My thoughts weren't centralized around anything specific, and it was such a change—a good change.
I could feel myself slipping further and further into somewhere tranquil, somewhere that was fully accepting of me, for who I was. It didn't scare me in the least; in fact, I felt welcomed.
Just as I grew close to reaching this beautiful, enigmatic paradise, my body jerked violently. I was suddenly acutely aware that something was moving me, and that was when I realized I really, really, couldn't breathe. It was becoming uncomfortable.
Life was starting to come back into my hands, my feet, my legs, and I didn't waste time in kicking as hard as I possibly could.
I abruptly collided with something, and I wasn't sure what it was, but it didn't hurt, and the best part was that I could now breathe. I was choking, sputtering, and coughing as I opened my blurry eyes and noticed I was on all fours, hovering over dark sand, a gentle tide washing up against me and then retreating.
My energy was low, and I collapsed on the sand, unable to hold myself up.
Then it clicked.
I'd just jumped off a cliff. A fucking cliff! Holy shit…that had been me. I'd really fucking done it. That was…That was…fuck…It was the best feeling in the fucking world.
As I lay in the sand on my stomach, I could make out a shadowy figure making its way over to me through the darkness; however, I wasn't scared. Hell, if I could jump off a goddamn cliff, then who gave a shit about a mysterious figure?
The figure got closer and closer, and I was able to make the person out more, who was approaching extremely quickly. Were they running? I still couldn't tell who it was, and I should get up to see, but my body felt so limp and I didn't know why.
"Edward!" a feminine voice called in distress.
Was that…Bella?
"Bella," I choked, my body instantly coming alive. I attempted to pull myself up with my arms, but wasn't having any luck.
I could hear her voice, though I couldn't understand what she was saying because she was speaking so damn fast.
When she fully reached me, she grabbed onto one of my arms and tried to pull me up. I helped her out a bit, trying extra hard just to make myself stand. Finally, I was on my feet, but swaying a bit. It was weird because my mind was aware, but my body couldn't seem to function properly.
"Edward, look at me. Are you okay?" she asked, concern evident in her tone.
"I jumped," I stated proudly, but my voice was hoarse as hell and hurt my throat.
I noticed that her hands were pressed firmly against my chest, and if I had the strength, I would hold onto them. "You—" she started to say, but I cut her off.
"Did you see me?" I questioned.
God…I couldn't believe I actually did that. There was a time I never would've attempted to jump off a cliff. The adrenaline was pumping through me, and I felt like I could do anything now. That had been such a fucking rush.
She took a small step back, dropping her hands. Though it was dark, I could see her face. Her expression was twisted into a scowl. Was she angry? But I'd jumped!
"You fucking idiot!" she yelled loudly. "How could you do that? They tell you to jump and you just jump?"
As it was, my head was still feeling light, so I couldn't seem to respond back. I didn't understand why she was shouting at me. I'd done it for her. Only her. It was then that I noticed her eyes and cheeks were wet. Was she…crying?
Before I could figure it out, there was a sharp smack against my cheek, and my head flung to the side. I swayed violently, and rubbed my stubbled face that was now throbbing.
She'd just fucking slapped me.
I snapped my head forward to ask her why the fuck she did that, but she was gone. I looked over my shoulder and saw her quickly running down the shore away from me, and she eventually became a dark shadow in the distance.
"Holy shit, man!" a deep voice exclaimed somewhere around me. Turning, I saw Quil and Embry making their way over to me.
"That was fucking awesome!" Embry said excitedly.
I was starting to really feel like shit for some reason, and all I could focus on was the fact that Bella had just hit me and run off.
"I can't believe you did that," Quil said in awe. "And we were totally bullshitting you, too."
What?
"Yeah, none of us ever jumped off a cliff on E before," Embry revealed, chuckling, and I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. "Well…except Bella. That chick is hardcore."
My eyes flickered up to the cliff and then back to the ocean. It easily looked like a one hundred foot drop.
I'd actually jumped that…
I didn't feel quite so pumped up about it anymore.
The full weight of the danger I'd risked came crashing down on me, and my body went numb again. My mind became blank and my hearing was muffled. Embry and Quil were talking to me, but I couldn't hear them, nor could I see them anymore as the ground slipped out from under me and everything became darker than it already was.
X-X-X-X
The next time I opened my eyes, I couldn't feel any breeze or hear the ocean's tide washing up on the shore. Everything was quiet. I was lying down on an orange sofa—a really uncomfortable orange sofa. As I looked around, I realized I was in an extremely tiny living room with practically no room to move around.
Where the hell am I?
A throat cleared somewhere behind my head and I quickly sat up, suddenly realizing I was just in my boxers and undershirt. There was a dark-skinned man in here, staring at me. He looked a little older than me, but not by too much.
"You've been passed out all night," he said, and handed me my clothes as he sat on the arm of the couch.
What was I going to do? I was in a strange place with a strange man. I was pretty sure I was in some sort of trailer home, just based off how small everything was.
"A piece of advice," he started, his voice strong and deep, "when Quil or Embry tell you to do something. Don't." My body relaxed at the mention of their names. He seemed to know them, so that was okay, right? He abruptly let out a laugh. "Though, I can't say I'm not impressed. You actually jumped off that cliff. We've all jumped off there one time or the other, but not on ecstasy."
Ecstasy? Huh? Wait…was that what I'd been on? Everything was coming back to me now, and I remembered feeling invincible and overwhelmingly calm.
"I was on ecstasy?" My voice sounded tired as I said my thoughts out loud. At the same time, I put on my rumpled up slacks and dress shirt back on.
He chuckled. "And don't take drugs without knowing what the hell they even are." A bit fucking late now. "I'm Sam, by the way."
There were footsteps drawing near, and I looked down the trailer to see someone familiar walking towards us. Leah.
"Oh, he's awake," she remarked dryly. She had a glass of water in her hand and gave it to me. "Drink this."
I took it hesitantly, but gulped it down, realizing I was thirsty as hell.
"That was some fucking jump," she said. "The guys won't stop talking about it. Even after you passed out like a little bitch."
"Leah," Sam scolded, which instantly caused her to huff as she walked over to a small table attached to the wall and sat on the only chair next to it. Sam took the glass from me once I was done. "You could've died, you know."
I really didn't think I would've died. It was a big jump, but I ended up okay in the end, didn't I?
Leah snorted. "He's right," she chimed in.
"Leah, you didn't even try to stop him," he mentioned.
She sighed. "Well, I was fucked up. What can I say?"
Sam raised an eyebrow at her, and then turned his attention back to me. "You were lucky. I wouldn't do that again, if I were you."
An image of Bella running away from me flashed through my mind, and she suddenly became all I could think about. Where was she? Was she okay? I remembered her angry tears slipping down her cheeks and how she'd slapped me. Why had she done that?
"Is Bella here?" I questioned, and anxiously looked around.
"Easy there, sparky," Leah said. "She's not here."
"She lives with her dad," Sam revealed.
Her dad? Wasn't he the former Chief of Police? I couldn't even think of his name. However, I did know that he'd stopped being Chief several years back.
"Don't tell him that," Leah chastised quietly.
"He's going to find out, either way."
"Find out what?" I asked curiously.
"Just because she wants him around all of a sudden, doesn't mean some of us do," Leah spat.
I could already tell she was talking about Bella, and that just pissed me off. What was with this girl?
"Look," Sam began sternly, his attention on me, "there are things about Bella that you'll probably end up finding out about, but just to set the record straight, we protect her. Just because you're friends with Bella now, doesn't mean you get off the hook if you do anything to her."
Why would he think I would do something to her? I could never hurt Bella. But that just worried me, because now I wondered why they had to protect her in the first place.
"Is she okay?" I questioned Sam.
He shrugged. "Haven't heard from her. But I think she's alright…for now."
"And that's all you get to know," Leah said firmly, standing up. "You can go."
Sam stood, too, and began to walk towards the front of the trailer. "Actually, I've gotta head down to the garage."
I felt disorientated, still unsure how I got here in the first place, but I stood, as well, and followed them both out of the trailer and outside into a secluded woodsy area. The trailer home was much smaller than I'd realized, and looked like it was practically falling apart. How could someone live in this thing?
"Do you live here?" I questioned.
"Yeah, is that a problem?" Sam questioned, a bite to his tone.
"No," I said quickly, and turned away from the structure, my eyes instantly falling on a shiny black Mustang with two white racing stripes up the center. It looked a few decades old at least, but still in amazing condition. "This your car?"
"Yep," he answered, sounding proud. "It's a 1967 Shelby GT500. I picked it up at the junkyard when it was on its last leg. Did a bit of rebuilding, installed a 438 cobra jet engine I got cheap, and now it's good to go."
I was surprised that it didn't look like it had been picked up at a junkyard. It seemed like something you'd buy at a classic cars dealership.
"You did this yourself?" I asked in awe.
"Well, I had some of the guys down at the garage help me out, but pretty much, yeah."
"He's gonna sell it and make a fuckload of money," Leah chimed in with a smirk, and then grabbed onto Sam's shirt and pulled him down to smash his lips to hers. They were starting to really go at it as he backed her up against the Mustang, his hands wandering down her thighs.
I turned my head away, the heat rising up to my cheeks.
"What car you got?" Sam asked, sounding out of breath.
I cleared my throat, and saw they weren't practically molesting each other anymore. "A 2011 Volvo S80," I answered.
He looked like he was contemplating something as he pulled away from Leah. After a moment, his dark eyes reflected a sense of finality. "You like Shelby, here?" he questioned with a smile.
I really did like it, actually. Normally, I wouldn't think it'd be the type of car I'd want, but I could definitely see myself in it. "Yeah, it's cool," I stated.
"What do you say we do a switch?"
"Fuck no!" Leah shouted angrily at him. "You worked hard for this. You spent months building it up, and now you want to give it to this rich freak?"
"I wouldn't be giving it to him for nothing, babe. He'd give me his car," he explained, and then I heard him whispering quietly to her. "I can sell the parts of his ride for a shitload more than I could sell Shelby as a whole. It's a better deal."
She groaned, glowering at me, and then walked back into the trailer. "Fine. Take her. Whatever."
"You in?" he asked.
Glancing at the car, I sort of did want it. I also couldn't help but picture myself backing Bella up against the side of the car and kissing her hard. Plus, she seemed to hate my Volvo for some reason. "Yeah, I'm in," I agreed.
"Sweet. Where is it?"
"The school," I answered. It'd probably been there all night, now that I thought about it.
"Alright, we'll head over there in Shelby," he instructed, and then took his keys out of his pocket, holding them out to me. "You can drive her; get a feel for her. You know how to drive a stick?"
I shook my head. "No, my Volvo is an automatic."
He shrugged and walked around to the passenger's side. "No biggie; I'll teach ya."
Was I really going to just give away the car that my parents had bought me over the summer?
Fuck yeah.
I'd only had it for a few months and I did like it, but this was just so much better.
Screw it. I'd deal with the consequences later.
X-X-X-X
After Sam showed me how to drive a stick—and I stopped stalling the car every damn second—we switched cars in the parking lot of the school. He told me that if there were any problems with the car, to drop it off at his garage in La Push that he owned, and that he'd take care of it. He drove off in my Volvo—well, his Volvo now—and I stood, staring happily at my new Mustang.
It was a Saturday and no one seemed to be around, but I wondered if anyone was at the shack. And by anyone, I meant Bella.
I cut through the bushes and walked down the overused trail. As soon as I neared the shack, Quil and Embry walked out.
"Oh, fuck, it's E," Embry said, giving me some sort of high-fiving handshake. "We're calling you that from now on because of that sick jump you made last night."
"Yeah, you are fucking KING," Quil spoke. "And Edward is a faggot name."
"Says the faggiest fag with the faggiest name ever," Embry chastised. "I mean, who names their kid 'Quil'? Sounds like quilt."
"It only sounds like that to you because you sit around with your ho of a grandma and make fucking blankets all the time," Quil countered.
"You fucker," Embry snarled, and locked his arm around Quil's neck, bringing him down to the ground.
"Get off me, man!" Quil choked out, and soon, they were both wrestling each other.
I stared down at them, baffled. "Um, is Bella around?" I questioned.
"Clearing," Embry managed to get out as Quil elbowed him in the gut.
I moved around them and passed the shack as I walked further down the path, finally coming to the small opening of overgrown grass I remembered from the last time I was here.
Sitting in the middle of the clearing was Bella. Her hair was tied up in a graceful ponytail and she had on jeans and a blue T-shirt. The sun's rays were shining down on her at the perfect angle. She couldn't have looked more beautiful. Her eyes were downcast as she thoughtfully gazed at the grass, picking at it delicately.
As I approached, she glanced up at me, but then instantly went back to taking apart the grass. "What are you doing here?" she asked, sounding unenthused.
I took a seat on the ground in front of her. "I wanted to see you," I said truthfully.
She broke apart more grass, still refusing to meet my eyes. "Yeah, well, don't you have more cliffs to jump or something?" she questioned.
I sighed. "No."
She slammed her fist down onto the grass and looked directly at me. "Don't do that shit again, okay?" she snapped.
"Alright," I agreed without any hesitation.
"Promise me," she demanded.
I stared intently at her, hoping to convey that I was serious. "I promise."
She breathed deeply a few times in silence, and then dropped her eyes to the grass again. "Good," she spoke quietly. "And don't do E anymore." She looked up at me through her lashes, causing my heart to skip a beat. "Promise?"
I nodded slowly as I moved to sit next to her. Her neck was exposed to me, and I couldn't help myself as I leaned in and lightly kissed it. Even though I still remembered she called our relationship nothing, my lust for her overruled everything that told me not to touch her. My tongue darted out, gently pressing into her salty skin while I pecked a path to her jaw.
"You slapped me," I brought up in a whisper.
She sighed wistfully. "You deserved it," she breathed.
Everything about her right now was turning me on, but I couldn't get the image of her crying out of my brain.
"You were crying," I noted as I kissed her cheek.
Instead of responding, she pulled away from me. "I made that same jump you did over the summer," she admitted. "That was the last time I took E."
I vaguely remembered one of the guys telling me that she'd jumped the cliff on ecstasy, too, but her telling me ignited a strong reaction. Furrowing my brow, I glared at her angrily. "Why would you do that?" I questioned. Why would she risk her life like that?
She huffed. "Why would you do that?" she countered.
"Were you okay?" I asked, ignoring her, as well as my own thoughts that were trying to answer that question.
"Well, I'm sitting here, aren't I?"
I tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and slowly trailed my hand down her neck, shoulder, and arm, feeling her smooth skin. My other hand found her thigh, rubbing it gently.
God, I wanted her. We hadn't done anything for over a week now and I was realizing how much I craved her touch, even if it wasn't as intimate as I wanted it. Maybe that was all I'd ever get from her. Could I handle that? I supposed I would have to if I wanted to be around her…and I did, more than anything.
I inched my hand up her thigh, getting closer and closer to that warm spot I loved to touch.
"Don't" she snapped quietly, and removed my hand.
I tried to push through the stabs of rejection as I regarded her sullen state. "What's wrong?" I questioned.
Her eyes flitted somewhere over my shoulder, and before I knew it, she was standing up and walking away. My eyes followed her in confusion, until they landed on Black, his arms crossed over his chest as he glowered at me.
I stood and followed her, though she was already a considerable distance. She said something to Black that I couldn't hear before she passed him toward the trail. He stayed in his stance as I grew closer. When I was about to pass him, he reached out and pressed a hand against my chest, stopping me from moving. My body tensed, and I had to fight myself not to fucking rip his arm out of its socket.
"Let's just make one thing clear," he started, his voice low and threatening. "Just 'cause Quil and Embry seem to like your stupid ass, doesn't mean I will. You stay the hell out of my way." He dropped his hand. "And as for Bella…she's off limits. The other guys will back me up on that." With that, he walked away, towards the shack, and I was left standing alone.
He thought he could intimidate me into leaving Bella alone, but he didn't know that most of the time, she wanted to be with me. As long as she wanted me around, I'd be here. I didn't give a damn about him or anybody else. No one could stop me from wanting Bella.
X-X-X-X
After I saw Black, Bella had disappeared, so I didn't stick around, especially once I realized I hadn't been home all night. When I got to the house, only Jasper was there. I couldn't be bothered to even look at him, but he stopped me as I was walking up the stairs.
"Just so you know, Uncle Carlisle and Aunt Esme decided to go up to Seattle until Monday, and I covered for you by saying you were staying at Emmett's" he said. After he fucking invaded my privacy last night, it was the least he could do. "But only because it was messed up what Tanya did."
Did he have to go and fucking mention that bitch's name? I could give two shits about her now.
I nodded and continued walking up the stairs.
"But that's the last thing I do for you. I'm done," he called after me.
"Like I give a shit," I muttered to myself as I closed the door behind me.
I went into my closet and changed out of my Homecoming outfit. My cigarettes were still in my pocket, so I took them out and threw them on my desk. To be honest, I wanted to smoke one, but I didn't have a lighter. There were matches downstairs in the kitchen. That could work.
Exiting my room, I jogged down the stairs and into the living room. On my way, I regarded Jasper looking out the window.
"There's an old Mustang parked in the driveway," he analyzed.
I rolled my eyes as I walked towards the kitchen. "Yep," I replied passively.
I went through all the drawers looking for matches, but I couldn't find any. Fuck. What the hell did a guy have to do for some goddamn matches? I wondered if my father had any in his den.
Going back out, Jasper had his eyes narrowed at me as he still stood by the window.
"Where's your Volvo?" he inquired.
Jesus fucking Christ, was he the fucking police or some shit? "Not here," I answered, passing him.
Going into my father's den, I wanted to smash all his stupid ticking clocks. I opened the drawers of his desk and found lots of different kinds of papers that I couldn't be bothered to read, but no matches.
"Fuck," I cursed, and stormed out of his office and back up the stairs.
"You know that if something's going on with you, you can talk to me, right?" Jasper offered from down below.
Ignoring him, I shut the door behind me as I got into my room. Next time I decided to go out, I'd get a lighter.
The rest of the weekend passed quickly while I stayed cooped up in the house, watching movies. Jasper didn't bug me, thank God, and I enjoyed the solitude without my parents around. I had no idea where they were, but when did they ever tell me anything about them? My mom usually did, but lately, she hadn't been.
Monday morning, I threw on my leather jacket that I'd neglected all week long, and grabbed my pack of cigarettes. I stopped off at a gas station on the way to school and got one of those cheap lighters.
As I pulled into the lot and neared my parking space, I could see Emmett and Rose leaning against his Jeep. They both looked confused as I parked my new Mustang.
I got out, grabbed, my bag, and walked over to Emmett.
"Hey," I greeted.
He blinked a few times at me before he spoke. "You got a new car?" he questioned.
"Yep," I answered with a smirk. "You like it?"
"It's crap," Rose chimed in.
I rolled my eyes. "Why, hello, Rose. Nice to see you this morning. How are you doing?" I asked sarcastically.
She crossed her arms. "Have you talked to Tanya at all?" she inquired with a raised eyebrow.
I laughed, because that was funny. "Why the hell would I do that?"
"Because she's your girlfriend," Rose replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
I gave her an incredulous look. "If you think we're still together after Homecoming, then you're insane."
The school bell rang and Emmett and I went to homeroom. He asked me a lot about the car as well as where I disappeared to after the dance. I told him where I went, but I didn't let him in on anything else that happened. Me taking ecstasy might've been a bit too much for him to hear, I figured. He pestered me about taking Shelby for a ride one day, and I relented, as long as he didn't crash it or some shit.
In first period, I was finding it hard to concentrate. I kept wondering if Bella would be here today. I hadn't seen her truck in the lot, but I never knew with her. That was one of the things I liked about her. I could never tell what her next move would be. She was the most spontaneous person I'd ever known.
Mr. Jefferson, my Chemistry teacher, was giving us notes, when the classroom door opened. Tanya walked inside, her eyes glued to the floor as she took tentative steps and handed him a piece of paper. She hadn't been in homeroom or at the start of first period—like I cared.
She looked like shit. Her eyes were puffy and her face was pale. Everyone around me was whispering to each other quietly as she took a seat in the desk next to me. Mr. Jefferson resumed the lesson, and I took up taking notes.
"Can we talk?" I heard Tanya ask quietly next to me.
I ignored her, trying hard to pay attention to my fucking notes that made no goddamn sense. I fucking hated Chemistry.
A small torn paper appeared on my desk, and I furrowed my brow as I looked at it.
I just want to explain everything. Please give me at least 10 minutes at lunch.
I crumbled the paper up nice and small and made a show of throwing it into the trash can in the corner of the classroom near the front door. What was great was I actually made it in, but Mr. Jefferson clearly didn't like that.
"Mr. Cullen, is there something you wish to share?" he questioned, all stern and shit.
"Nope," I answered with a smirk. "Tanya wants to 'talk,' but you can tell her to go to hell."
Everyone around laughed, and I gave Tanya a smug smile as she sunk down in her chair, her cheeks flaming in embarrassment.
Fucking fake bitch.
By lunch, it was abundantly clear that the whole school was talking about Tanya and me splitting up. The best rumor I heard was that Tanya cheated on me to be with her pimp. I had to laugh. It was the fucking funniest thing ever and also insinuated such truth, too.
As I entered the cafeteria, I saw Emmett already sitting at a table, and he waved me over. But just as I crossed the lunch room to him, I heard "yo, E," being called behind me.
I stopped and turned around, seeing Embry, Quil, and Paul sitting down at a table. They each gave me expectant looks. Did they actually want me to sit with them? Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Emmett issuing me the same look, but just as Rose and Tanya sat down, I knew what I would do.
When I arrived at the table, there were no seats.
"Oh, I got it," Paul offered, and grabbed the chair behind him. A sophomore boy was sitting on it and tumbled to the ground as Paul shook him off. He set the chair down, ignoring the boy who was scrambling and running away. "There ya go."
"Thanks," I said hesitantly, and sat down.
"Dude, that jump you did on Friday was awesome," Paul complimented.
"I told you. He's King," Quil said.
I tried to contain a smile. Though I wasn't on drugs right now, that jump I'd taken had been pretty phenomenal. I was still surprised I'd even done it. But I couldn't help but realize that it hadn't really been me that had taken a chance like that. It had been the drug.
"You gotta do it again, man," Embry encouraged.
I laughed, but remembered that I'd promised Bella I wouldn't do that again. "I think I'm good for now," I spoke.
"Yeah, you can't top that jump. Even Bella's jump wasn't as awesome as that," Embry said.
I furrowed my brow. "What exactly happened to her when she did that?" I questioned curiously.
"She took some E, but also took some other shit, too. I guess it all hit her pretty hard, because she decided it'd be awesome to jump off the cliff. Can't say I blame her," Embry explained with a smirk.
"Was she okay, though?" I asked.
"Nah," Quil answered. "She was in the hospital for a week straight after that. Jake had to jump in after her when she didn't come up."
My eyes went wide and my breathing sped up. Why hadn't she told me that? The thought of her being in any kind of danger had me feeling paranoid.
"We thought she was dead for a while, too," Paul added. "But she just hit her head on some rocks and didn't wake up after that."
Quil laughed. "Remember how Jake was fucking spazzing that whole week," he said to them.
Embry and Paul joined in, laughing at whatever was supposed to be funny.
"Hey, guys," a breathy voice said nearby, instantly causing my pulse to quicken.
My eyes connected with Bella's, and she gave me a weak smile before glancing away.
"Why are there never any fucking seats in this stupid shithole?" she questioned, sounding annoyed.
"I got it," Paul said, and made his way to a couple tables over, which had Mike sitting there with Eric and Tyler. He stood over Mike, glowering down at him. "Get the fuck off your chair."
Mike looked up at him with confidence, but he was clearly faking it. "No way, man. Get your own," he challenged, his voice cracking.
Paul grabbed Mike's tray of food and dropped everything on it onto his lap, causing Mike to stand up swiftly. "Thanks, loser," Paul said, grabbing Mike's chair and walking back over to us. He set it down near Bella so that she could sit.
"He's such a fucking 'tard," Quil remarked, laughing.
I glanced at Bella, who was trying to suppress a smile. When she saw I was looking at her, she sighed heavily and stood. "I'm gonna go get some food," she said, and walked away.
As I watched her go, I could tell something was up with her. She had barely even looked at me, and her sultry smiles she'd always give me were non-existent at the moment. Wanting to find out, I stood, too, and told the guys I'd be back.
On my way towards the lunch line, to where she disappeared, I saw Rose, Alice, and Jasper glaring at me from their table. Ignoring them, I neared Bella, who was merely standing at the salad bar, just staring at it.
"Hey, you okay?" I whispered in her ear from behind.
She gasped, spun around, and then glared at me. "Don't fucking do that, Richie," she snapped, and turned back to the salad bar.
"Wanna talk?" I asked, since something was clearly on her mind.
"No," she answered.
I placed my hand on her thigh and rubbed slowly. "You wanna go to the art room?" I breathed in her ear. Since we'd started…whatever it was we had together…I'd found she wasn't much of a talker, but she was always game for going to the art room.
She moved away from me, causing my hand to drop to my side. "I really just wanna eat something."
I sighed, giving up. "Fine," I muttered dejectedly, and went back to the table. I tried my hardest not to think about the fact that she'd just turned down sex with me.
"Hey, E," Quil said as I sat back down, "you should come with Embry and me to the theater after lunch. You'll get a fucking good show of Jessica riding Principal Banner."
That was fucking disgusting. "Uh, I've got Cooking after this," I admitted.
They all laughed.
"Stupid fucking class," Paul said. "I don't know why Bella likes that shit. It's the only reason she even comes to this fucking lame school."
"It's the only class she's doing good in without us having to fuck with Principal Banner," Quil revealed.
"Really?" I asked, even though I should've known that Bella was doing well on her own in Cooking.
"Yeah, she has Mrs. Cope right up her ass," Quil said with a chuckle.
"She's probably doing better than me," I admitted, thinking about my pathetic low A in that class.
"Don't worry, man. We'll get you in on the scheme," Embry assured.
"Ah, sweet!" Quil exclaimed. "Looks like we're paying the fucker a visit after lunch. He'll have blue balls all day, not being able to have his daily screw with Jessica."
"Wait, what?" I questioned, unsure of what I was hearing.
"You'll get good grades for the rest of the year like us. It's a sweet deal," Embry answered.
They were actually going to let me in on their blackmailing of Principal Banner? The old me might've felt awful about taking advantage of someone in authority like that, but the new me—the one I'd very recently come to enjoy—could give two fucks, and wanted to utilize the hell out of that shit. This year seemed to be shaping up just the way I wanted it to.
A/N:
Oh, Riskward. Such scheming ways…
So, I won't be updating next week. I need a bit of a break. And I thought I could do Tuesdays, but there are too many technical factors involved that I didn't consider, so the next update will most likely be on a Thursday in two weeks.
Teasers for reviewers. Of course, if you check out the AYOR thread on Twilighted, I will post a separate teaser there, as well.
P.S. There's a pic of Edward's new ride on the profile.
Twitter: xrxdanixrx