I was given this prompt: The Pack competes on who can get Bella Swan the best birthday present.
P a c k. S e c r e t s.
Bella looked around Jacob's living room with a wrinkled forehead and her lips pressed together in a line as thin as paper.
She stood in the centre of a circle of five not-quite-looking-their-age-teenagers, a pile of clumsily wrapped gifts next to her.
"Why are you all staring at me like that?" she asked in a mixture of annoyance and a very unpleasant feeling of being stalked.
They all shrugged with their massive shoulders, glaring at each other for a splint second before Seth waved his hands enthusiastically. "Come on, Bella. Open them!".
Rolling her eyes and sighing loudly, Bella kneeled next to the pile of gifts and started unwrapping them.
The first thing that fell into her hands was a compass. She snorted. "Who gave me that?"
"Wait until the end, honey," Jacob explained, a smug grin on his face.
Bella considered asking further for a second but when she saw the eager expressions on all of the boys faces she knew this must be another pack shenanigan and so she went back to unwillingly unwrapping the presents.
The largest box of band-aids she had ever seen received another snort from her as well as the kneepads. She shook her head, praying that this ridiculous gift-unwrapping-party-thing going on was everything they had planned for today. She had hoped to spent it with Jacob alone.
"What the…," she stammered as she suddenly found herself holding up a rather explicit and very obviously X-rated DVD. She could feel her cheeks turning neon-red and quickly dropped the cause of her humiliation onto the pile of wrapping paper on the floor.
Avoiding the gazes of the five teenage boys around her but hearing their muffled laughter, Bella quickly grabbed the last present, a tiny box wrapped in bright red paper. Inside was a black, velvety box and her heart skipped a beat. With trembling fingers she opened the box, revealing an ancient-looking key.
"So, honey. Time to tell. Which one is your favorite?"
Bella stumbled onto her feet, the box with the key still in her hand and she faced Jacob, looking confused.
"What is going on here?" she asked.
"You choose the best gift and get to spend your entire birthday with the lucky winner," Quil explained brightly and Bella felt her stomach clench. Amazing. Those boys really knew how to mess up her non-existing plans.
"So, which one is it?"
"I don't want to choose the best gift," she stammered, looking down curiously at the key in her hands.
"You have to, Swan. Or we'll call Charlie and tell him we picked you up naked and drunk at the store," Embry grinned, earning himself a clap on the shoulder from Seth.
Bella looked up, searching for Jacob's eyes and she saw both the understanding and the smug grin in them.
"Just get it over with, honey."
She groaned, scanning the gifts on the floor, feeling her cheeks warm up again when one specific appeared in her peripheral vision.
"This," she finally said calmly, waving with the tiny box in her hands.
Her answer caused a wave of four husky groans.
"Such a girl."
"Corny."
"Out of all the awesomeness she chooses a goddamn key."
Seth, Embry, Jared and Quil shook their heads, slowly pushing and punching each other out of the room.
"Thanks guys, though," Bella yelled after them, laughing quietly when she only heard disapproving mumbles from the front door.
She turned to see Jacob smiling brightly at her and before she could make a first step, he had her in his arms.
"You really scared me for a moment. I really thought you'd pick the movie," Jacob whispered into her ear.
"Who got me that?" Bella asked, eyes closed in contentment.
"Not telling. Pack secret." She groaned and pushed out of the embrace, circling the key around her index finger.
"So, what is this for?"
Jacob grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the door full of excitement.
"Your actual present."