CHAPTER TWENTY
"Happy Birthday!"
I screamed and practically jumped out my bed. Aunt Corinne bit back a laugh.
"Aunt Cor! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" I asked, resting my hand over my heart.
"No, just giving you a birthday wake-up call!" she said. How is she always this cheery in the morning?
I groaned as I made my way back to my bed.
"Don't you want to get ready? Isn't Jacob coming by to drive you to school?"
"How'd you know?"I asked. She just shrugged.
"I'll start making breakfast while you get ready." I groaned again as she made her way downstairs. My bed was so warm and inviting. I wanted nothing more than to spend the whole day in it. The school week was almost over and I was already ready for the weekend. Actually, I was already ready for summer! After trying and failing to catch a few extra minutes of sleep, I got up and got dressed for the day.
"Happy birthday!" I jumped from my position in front of my mirror. This time I managed to keep from screaming.
"What is up with everyone scaring me today?" I asked, irritably.
"Whoa, someone got up from the wrong side of the bed," Jacob joked. He made his way over to me and enveloped me in a hug. I hugged him back.
"I blame Aunt Cor for that," I said. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the moment. His hot skin always felt so good against mine. Being in his arms was a comfortable place for me.
"Breakfast is ready! Hurry up or you'll be late, Jade!"
Jacob and I broke apart. He took my hand in his and led me downstairs. The smell of pancakes and syrup filled the air. My stomach grumbled and Aunt Cor handed me a plate with a stack of pancakes. Jacob took a seat and began to devour his stack of pancakes which was four times the size of mine. He finished his food in record time, while I barely made a dent in mine.
"What's wrong?" Aunt Corinne asked, seeing my lack of appetite.
"Nothing," I told her. "Just tired." She looked concerned. "Well, we better go. I don't want to be late. Thanks for the breakfast Aunt Cor!"
I grabbed Jacob and we both headed out the house.
"Wait, I forgot my keys," I cried.
"It's alright, we can take my motorcycle," Jacob said. I feigned surprised.
"You're passing up a chance to drive my car?" Jacob thought it over.
"Yeah, I'm sure I'll have other chances," he smiled. I laughed. It was true. Jacob practically drove my car more than I did. I took my place on his bike and off we went.
Jacob eased his motorcycle into the parking lot and stopped where my friends were.
"Hey, Jake, nice bike," TJ cried, making his way towards us. The two guys did a little hand shake.
"Happy birthday, Jade!" Jennifer cried. The rest of my friends greeted me as well. The bell rang and all the students in the parking lot began to retreat into the school.
I turned to Jacob.
"I'll see you after school?"
"Do you even have to ask?" he replied, giving me a kiss. Before our kiss could deepen, I heard a growl come from Jacob. He pulled back and his eyes glared at something behind me. I looked around and saw Matt and his friends still huddled around his car, glancing at our way.
"You should go," I told Jacob. I didn't want a fight or anything to start.
"No, I'll wait until you get inside," he told me. I gave him a look. "I'm not going to fight him or anything. I just want to make sure they don't bother you on your way to the building."
"It's okay, Jake, we'll walk with her," Shaun told Jacob.
"Yeah, just get out of here. As much as I want to see Matt's ass handed to him, I'm afraid you'll just end up killing him instead," TJ joked. The guys all laughed. Jennifer and I didn't join.
"That's not funny, TJ," Jennifer scolded.
"I'll see you later," I told Jacob, kissing him one last time. He nodded and cast one last glare at Matt before riding out of the parking lot.
"Happy Birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Jade! Happy birthday to you!" I smiled as Emily, Kim, Rachel, and the La Push guys sang to me. I leaned in and blew out my seventeen candles. Everyone clapped and cheered.
Immediately, Emily began to pick off the candles so she could cut the cake. The guys already had their plates ready for the delicious looking chocolate cake.
"Jade gets the first slice!" Emily announced.
"Then me!" Embry cried.
"No, me! I'm first in line!" Brady exclaimed.
"There is no line!"
"Yes there is," Paul shouted. "It's behind me!"
Emily rolled her eyes and muttered something about headaches.
"Ladies first," Rachel said. "Then you guys can sort out whoever goes first after that."
We laughed as the guys all began to argue. After getting our slices, us girls went into the living room to avoid getting caught in the chaos.
"So what are you doing this weekend?" Rachel asked me.
"I don't know. My friends said they wanted to take me out on Saturday."
"Where to?"
I shrugged. "We're ditching tomorrow so we could go shopping."
"Are you gonna let Jacob know this time?" Emily asked, with a smile. I giggled.
"Yeah, I guess I should.
The sound of a plate shattering in the kitchen was heard.
"It wasn't me!" we heard all the guys chorus.
"For the love of…" Emily muttered, standing up and making her way to the kitchen.
"It was Jared!" we heard Paul cry.
"Liar! It was Paul!" Jared exclaimed. It was Rachel and Kim's turn to mutter something under their breath. They both stood up and headed towards the kitchen as well.
"Alright, everyone out of the kitchen!" Sam's voice boomed. "Except you two!"
I chuckled to myself as Jacob strode out of the kitchen followed by this pack and Collin and Brady. Jacob took a seat beside me while everyone else found their own spot. Brady turned on the TV and soon an argument ensued on which TV show to watch.
"Ugh, I don't know why I stay for these things," Leah cried. "I'm leaving, Jake."
Jacob nodded. "Do a quick patrol. Embry go with her."
"I just got off patrol," Embry told him.
"Quil?"
"I have it later on tonight."
"Seth-"
"I don't want to patrol with Leah!"
"I can do it myself, Jake," Leah said.
"No, we always double up," Jacob said, firmly.
"It's alright, Jacob," Sam said appearing from the kitchen. "I sent Paul and Jared to do patrol."
"I'm still gonna go," Leah announced as she headed towards the door. Only Sam and Jacob acknowledged her leaving.
"I should go, too," I told Jacob.
"It's still early," Jacob said.
"I'm pretty tired."
"Then I'm driving you home."
"See, I'm even too tired to argue with you," I said. I got up and went to the kitchen to say my goodbyes.
"Are you okay?" Jacob asked once we were out of Emily's house.
"Yeah."
"You've been pretty quiet tonight. You seem distracted or something."
"No, I just don't feel well."
"Are you getting sick?" Jacob asked, worried. "I hope you're not getting sick!"
"No, I'm not getting sick. That's not what I meant." Jacob looked relieved. "I just…" I stopped walking. "Have you ever had that feeling in your chest that was telling you that something big is about to happen?"
Jacob looked nervous. "What do you mean?"
"It's hard to explain," I said and resumed walking. "I just have this feeling that something's going to happen."
"I'm sure it's nothing," Jacob said. "Maybe you're just really tired?"
"Maybe." I got in the passenger's side and waited until Jacob took his place behind the wheel.
"So, I heard you're going out with your friends this Saturday," Jacob said once he was inside.
I nodded.
"And you're ditching tomorrow?"
"Yeah, it was either that or we go to Seattle Saturday morning then I won't see you at all that day." Jacob smiled. "You don't mind, right?"
Jacob shook his head. "Just be careful. There's a chance you might run into a bloodsucker."
I gave him a look.
"I was joking," he said. "No more supernatural talk, I remember."
"No, it's not that," I told him. "Maybe I shouldn't go out with them this Saturday."
"What? Why?" Jacob exclaimed. "You have to go!"
I blinked at him in surprise. "I have to go? I don't have to go."
"I know, I didn't mean you have to go, I mean that you should go," Jacob said. "They probably want to take you somewhere for your birthday. You said you wanted to do normal things and be around normal people."
"Yeah, but I just can't shake this feeling. What if something bad happens on Saturday? I should really listen to my instinct."
"You'll be fine," Jacob reassured me. "Nothing's going to happen to you. I'll make sure of it."
"What are you gonna do? Follow us?"
"Maybe," Jacob said trying to be mysterious. I rolled my eyes. "Just go Jade. Nothing bad is going to happen."
"Okay, if you say so," I finally agreed.
He kissed my hand and turned his attention back on the road. We got to my house ten minutes later.
"You want to come in and stay for a while?" I asked, unbuckling my seat belt. "You don't have to patrol tonight, right?"
"No, I don't," Jacob said. "But, I should probably get back. Sam mentioned he needed to talk to me about something."
"Oh, okay." It was hard trying to hide the disappointment in my voice. "I guess I'll just see you tomorrow then?"
"I can come back later," Jacob offered.
"No, it's alright. I'll probably just to bed soon anyway." I managed to give him a smile and placed a kissed on his cheek. "Good night, Jacob."
AN: Thank you for all the wonderful love and support readers! I know this is a short chapter, but I will make it up to you by giving you a preview for next chapter!
Chapter Twenty One Preview
My eyes wandered around the room, not knowing what Bella saw. Then I caught a glimpse of Emily clutching onto Sam's arm. Kim and Rachel were seated on the couch, Jared and Paul both standing up. I noticed that they, along with the other members of the pack seemed to be on guard. I caught sight of Jacob who was at the back of the room, standing beside Edward. They were whispering amongst themselves, and Jacob did not look happy.
"What's wrong?" I asked Bella in a low voice.
"I don't know," she whispered back.
I know, I know. Crappy preview. But anything else would've given too much away. =P Please review and let me know what you think of my fanfic. I also love reading your predictions. Hehehe. Anywho, this fanfic is close to being halfway done! Any suggestions on my next fanfic? I have tons of ideas written up for Twilight, as well as Vampire Diaries, Charmed, and Harry Potter. =)