A/N: A side of Bella and Paul with a main course of Leah and Aaron. =]
Paul tentatively walked into the house, he knew Bella had been crying because he could smell the salt, and he could feel remnants of her sadness.
"Ok, Mom… Yes… I love you too, we'll see you soon," Bella said hanging up the phone.
Paul looked around curiously, everything was clean. It was spotless, everything was dusted off, straightened up, there was a load of clothes in the washer, one in the dryer, and one folded on the table. The dishes were drying in the sink and the garbage was overflowing with old food from the fridge.
"Uh… Bella?" Paul said questioningly.
"Hey! I hope you don't mind I cleaned… I tend to clean when I talk to my mom…," she said, slightly worried she might have gone too far.
"No, I mean that's fine… I just didn't expect you to be so chipper," he said pulling her towards him.
She smiled up at him. "I was a wreck, then I called my mom, she always makes things seem clearer. She sees the world in such a childlike view… thinking about things from her point of view makes it so easy.'
He kissed her softly. "So we're going to Jacksonville?"
She laughed. "Alice?" she questioned.
He nodded. "She called me about 10 minutes ago," he said laughing.
"Do you mind going?" she asked.
"No, not at all, I can't wait to meet your mom and Phil, and I'd love a chance for us to get away from everything here and just be normal," he said kissing her forehead.
"I love you," she said, leaning her head on his chest.
"I love you, Bella," he said into her hair.
"Okay then, let's go pack! We leave in two days!" she said laughing.
"How long are we staying?" he asked.
"Well, I only have school Monday and Tuesday because of Thanksgiving break, so if you don't mind spending Thanksgiving with my mom we can leave on Sunday…," she said tentatively.
"That sounds perfect, Bells… Don't worry about a thing, it will all work out fine," he said kissing her once more.
Leah and Hayley came over Sunday afternoon for girl time. Much to Bella's surprise, Leah confessed to thinking about seeing Aaron outside of school and the rez… almost like a date. Hayley strongly encouraged her to do so; but Bella was a little more reserved. She knew Leah was hurt badly before and didn't want to see her hurt again.
Bella spent Sunday night at Charlie's, with Paul snuggled beside her. She made lasagna for dinner, freezing a few squares for later in the week.
Charlie wasn't too happy about Bella being gone for Thanksgiving, but Billy invited him to their house, and Bella promised she would make an entire Thanksgiving dinner the weekend they got back, he happily conceded.
Monday morning, Leah and Hayley drove Bella and Paul to the airport before going to school.
Bella was like a child when they stepped off the plane in Jacksonville. She tilted her face to the sky, sucking in a deep breath of the stifling heat. She loved it. It wasn't quite as dry as Phoenix air, but it was close enough.
It was going to be an excellent week, she thought to herself.
~Meanwhile, Back in Forks~
Leah kicked around the idea of seeing Aaron out somewhere. She didn't want to invite him out on a date, but more of a casual get together. The gang decided to throw a pre-thanksgiving party at the bar, so she decided to invite him.
True to their usual tradition, he sat with her and Hayley at lunch. When Hayley excused herself to the restroom, Leah decided now was her chance.
"So, the guys decided to go back to the bar in Port Angeles for a pre-thanksgiving party tomorrow night… if you're out maybe you could stop by?" she tried to keep it casual, but made it a question at the end.
"Oh, yeah, sure… I love hanging out with you. With the gang, I mean," he said clearing his throat.
Leah was thankful he didn't have super hearing because her heart was pounding in her chest.
"Ok, great," she said lamely. "I'm not sure who all is going to go, but it should be fun."
They made small talk until Hayley came back. They all chatted together until the bell rang and they all went their separate ways.
Leah told Hayley of her asking Aaron to come to the party. Hayley squealed extremely excited for Leah.
Tuesday, after-school, Leah dug through her closet for something to wear. She was growing extremely frustrated. She heard a knock at her door and ran to answer it. She was shocked to see Emily standing there.
"Hey," Emily said, nervous.
"Hi…," Leah said confused.
"I, uh, I just thought you might like some help getting ready tonight?" Emily asked hopeful.
"I'm fine thanks," Leah said, about to close the door. "Actually, you know what, that would be really helpful… I'm kind of at a loss," she said sheepishly.
Emily's face lit up. "Oh good!" she said, walking in the familiar house.
The girls fell into easy conversation. Leah realized how much she missed her cousin, saddened that fate turned them against each other. But, if Leah was being honest, it was Leah that turned them against each other.
Especially now, knowing everything about the pack, knowing about imprinting, she was still such a bitch to Sam and Emily, knowing that neither of them had a choice.
She was disappointed in herself, at her own behaviors. She was also saddened because she felt responsible for Emily's scars. If Leah would have just been happy for them, not said all those terrible things to Emily that day, then Emily would have never refused Sam, would have never had that argument with him, and would have never gotten injured because Sam lost control.
Emily, sensing Leah's inner battle, hugged her cousin. "Leah, I'm so sorry for all the pain I've caused you, I so wish I could take it all back, I really hope you find what you're looking for," she said, a tear sliding down her ruined cheek.
Leah returned Emily's embrace, enjoying the comfort of someone who knew her so well. "I'm sorry too, I should have been happy for you two, especially now that I know exactly how strong your bond is… instead I was blinded by my own self pity that I treated you awful," Leah said, tears filling up in her own eyes.
Emily squeezed Leah once more before pulling away, wiping at her eyes. "Let's find you something to wear for tonight, huh?" Emily said, knowing they both understood each other and that things would be easier from now on.
Leah nodded, dabbing her own eyes.
After another 30 minutes of searching through the closet and trying things on, they decided on a tan tunic with a scoop neck. It had a braided brown leather belt to cinch the waist. She would wear it with a pair of sheer brown leggings and just below the knee brown leather heeled boots.
She put the outfit on and looked in the mirror. She thought she looked great. The tunic emphasized her tiny waist and the heels made her already long legs look even longer.
They decided to straighten her hair, so it hung thick and glossy just above her shoulders. She put no makeup on except eyeliner and mascara.
Emily excused herself to go get dressed as Leah was doing her makeup. "Hey, thanks a lot, Em," Leah said truly grateful for her cousins presence.
"Anytime, Lee, I'm always here for you," she said, hugging her once more.
Leah put the finishing touches on her outfit, and grabbed a thin jacket on the way out the door.
She drove to Port Angeles, a ball of nerves. She walked in, going straight to the bar to get a drink. She needed to get a handle on her nerves before the gang got there.
She took a shot of tequila, and then sipped at her margarita until the gang showed up. Hayley and Jacob were the first ones there. Hayley hugged her, "you look amazing, Leah!" she said, giving her a wink.
Leah smiled back, her nerves subsiding as the alcohol loosened her up a bit. Being a wolf, she was able to drink substantially more than a human because her metabolism was so fast it burned it up quickly.
She just downed another shot of tequila, her liquor of choice, when she turned to see Aaron walk in. Her face lit up, until he moved to the side, revealing the blonde he was with the other night.
Her face fell, but she quickly recovered. She convinced Hayley to do a shot with her, downing her third shot of the night. Aaron came over to them. Hayley sheepishly said hello, while Leah fought to remember the blonde's name. It was something that started with a B… oh shit.
"Leah, Hayley… you remember Bethany?" Aaron said politely reminding them.
"Oh right, Bethany…" Leah blurted out. She tapped her shot glass on the bar, waiting for the bartender to fill it up again.
She downed it and Hayley looked slightly shocked. Jacob leaned down and whispered in her ear, "faster metabolism, babe… she's still alright for now, I'll keep an eye on her, I promise."
Hayley smiled, leaning back against him. She was so happy they met that night in the bookstore.
Leah tried to pull herself out of the slump. She was embarrassed that she spent so much time trying to make herself look good for Aaron… she was angry that she invited him at all… but most of all, she was pissed off that he brought the blonde with him.
She was so wrong for him! She flirted with all the pack boys, and didn't try to hide it. She even went as far as trying to feel up Embry when Kim was in the restroom and Aaron was getting her a drink.
Bethany felt Leah staring daggers at her and quickly made her way to the restroom.
Aaron came over to Leah, waiting for Bethany to come out. "You know she's a flirt, right?" Leah said without thinking.
Aaron laughed. "Yeah, I know… that's why I've been thinking…," he paused.
Leah swallowed thickly. She had been thinking too, she was thinking about the show she watched on E!News just this morning. It was a documentary on Country Pop Star Taylor Swift. Leah enjoyed her music once in a while, and since there was nothing else on, she watched it. One thing the girl said really stuck with her.
So there is a time for silence, and there's a time for waiting your turn; but if you know how you feel, and you so clearly know what you need to say, you'll know it. I don't think you should wait. I think you should speak now.
It really stuck with Leah, she felt the words bubbling up in her throat… she wanted to tell Aaron to dump Bethany and give her a chance. The words were so close…
"…I think I'm going to take her off the market," Aaron said, pulling a small velvet box from his pocket. He opened it to reveal a beautiful simple diamond ring.
Leah's eyes instantly flooded with tears. She looked at the ring, blinking rapidly, praying the tears didn't fall. She didn't realize just how much she had fallen for Aaron until now, when it was too late to do anything about it.
They was no way in hell she was going to say anything to him now. She hated Bethany, knew she wasn't nearly good enough for him, but couldn't inflict the pain Sam and Emily inflicted on her.
She stared at the bar, fighting to regain her composure. Her thoughts were racing around in her head; she couldn't make sense of anything.
She took a deep breath, looking back up at his face, trying to find the words to say the right thing.
When she looked at his stricken face she almost laughed. She felt the walls around her heart crash to the ground. Without even knowing it, Aaron had wormed his way into her heart, and now he was going to break it.
She looked into his eyes once more and felt her whole world shift. She brought her hand to her open mouth as all the ties in her world were severed, there was only Aaron now. Aaron held her to the earth, Aaron was the reason she took her next breath, and Aaron was all that mattered.
She stood so quickly her stool crashed to the ground. It was so unfair! She finally imprinted, on someone she would never have. She wanted to die, she wanted to scream, she settled for running from the bar, the tears spilling over onto her cheeks.
"Leah!" Aaron called as she burst from the bar. She paused outside, it was raining, surprise surprise. She didn't even care though. She heard footsteps coming towards the bar door and jogged down the wet sidewalk.
She sagged against the wall, tired of running from her issues. She was crying at her misfortune, at the general unfairness of life, and at the loss of Aaron when she felt him come up behind her.
"Leah, what the hell?" he said roughly.
"I'm a wolf," she whispered.
"What?"
"I'm a fucking wolf!" she shouted turning towards him. She hated how her heart lurched at the sight of his beautiful face drenched with rain.
"Why are you telling me now?" he said, angry.
"Because when we were kids we used to talk about how much we would hate being like the stories! How it would be terrible to have the pack mind, have your choices taken from you, be an animal. I didn't want you to know, I didn't want you to be disgusted with me too…," she said, hanging her head, rain mixing with her tears.
"I don't care that you're a wolf, you know me better than that, so what are you really telling me, Leah?" he said, knowingly, almost desperate.
She looked up at him, fire snapping in her eyes. She turned to walk away, but he pushed her against the brick wall, holding her there with his body.
She knew she could break away if she wanted to; she was much stronger than him after all. But standing there, him pressed against her, made her feel dwarfed by his tall frame. Something that was hard to do with her 5'7" stature, and 3 inch heels.
She felt the hard muscles of his body pressed against her softer shape and she melted. The fight left her body and she decided to just tell him the truth. It didn't matter now, she was already humiliated, she would never be able to face him again. Being away from him would kill her, but she didn't care. She didn't want to live as a reject with an imprint that she couldn't have.
"I imprinted on you," she mumbled, looking at his chest.
She felt his fingers under her chin, lifting her face up towards him. "What the hell took you so long?" he said, lowering his mouth to gently capture hers.
She kissed him back, slowly at first, but then his tongue darted out to caress her lower lip and she was lost. She arched her back into him, hooking her fingers in his belt loops, pulling him closer still. She opened her mouth, letting him slide his tongue along hers.
Once his words sunk in, she pulled back. "You knew?" she said incredulous.
He nodded. "Once I spoke with Bella alone and didn't smell wolf, I knew it had to be you. I was so attracted to you, the second I laid eyes on you. I knew that if I were a wolf, like I should have been, you have been my imprint. I felt the pull the second you ran into me in the hallway. I wanted so badly to ask you out, but I knew you were still too bitter over what happened with Sam to let anyone in… so I waited, not so patiently, until you figured it out…" he said, still slightly breathless.
"What do you mean like you should have been?" she asked, still shocked.
"I'm half Quileute, my great grandfather was a Quileute wolf, but when my father married a Makah, she insisted I move to a vampire free environment until I passed my phasing years. She was afraid if I turned into a wolf I wouldn't go to college or be able to live my life. My father warned her that if I was meant to have a place in Quileute history that it would find a way. When I saw you, I knew it had found its way," he said, cupping her cheek.
"You knew I would eventually imprint on you?" she said, fishing.
He nodded, smiling at her.
"and you were still going to get engaged to that bitch!" she shrieked.
He laughed. "No!" he said shaking his head. "I was never going to marry her, geeze, she's so dense! I just had to do something to make you realize that you wanted me. I should have waited until it happened on its own, but I've wanted you so bad, I couldn't wait any longer," he said sheepish.
She laughed, tipping her face up to kiss him again.
"We should get back, I'm sure everyone is wondering what happened," he said laughing.
"What about the blonde?" she said bluntly.
He laughed. "I guess I have to take her home, I did bring her here."
Leah shook her head. "No way, someone else can take her home; you're not sitting in a car for an hour with Miss Grabhands."
He burst out laughing, grabbing her hand and walking back towards the bar.
As they were walking in, blondie was walking out, lip locked with some guy way too young for her. Leah laughed as she shrieked, being hit with rain.
"Don't worry honey, you're no where near sugar, you won't melt," she said sweetly, pulling Aaron into the bar behind her.
They both were laughing as they sidled up to the bar, soaking wet.
The bartender threw them each a towel, muttering something about 'crazy kids.'
The pack looked at Leah and Aaron curious, wondering what happened in the rain. Leah was feeling incredibly light and bubbly. Either being in love, or being buzzed, she decided she wanted to sing.
She turned towards Aaron, a devious glint in her eye. She didn't want to be bitter, bitchy Leah anymore. She missed her old self, she missed her spark for life, she missed loving every second of the day. Now, with Aaron, she had something to love, something to look forward to, a reason to be.
She kissed him squarely on the mouth, ignoring the wolf whistles the pack let out. She went over the DJ, asking him to stop the music for a minute.
She walked onto stage, grabbing a guitar as she went. She sat down on the stool clearing her throat.
"This is a song that, due to recent events, holds a lot of meaning for me," she said, smiling at Aaron.
She strummed the guitar in a sweet, coy melody before singing.
I am not the kind of girl
Who should be rudely barging in
On a white veil occasion
But, you are not the kind of boy
Who should be marrying the wrong girl…
She laughed, looking at Aaron.
I sneak in and see your friends
With her snotty little family
All dressed in pastels
And she is yelling at a bridesmaid
Somewhere back inside a room
Wearing a gown shaped like a pastry
Aaron was staring at her, mesmerized, a light in his eyes. She was thrilled that she imprinted, thrilled that her hurt was finally healed. She found it ironic that it took fate to shove her past heartache in her face from a different perspective to heal from it. She understood what Sam felt like, hearing it in his thoughts and feeling it first hand are two very different things.
This is surely not what you thought it would be
I lose myself in a day dream
Where I stand and say:
Don't say yes, run away now
I'll meet you when you're out
Of the church at the back door
Don't wait, or say a single vow
You need to hear me out
And they said 'speak now.'
She decided from this moment on she would let the past go; live in the moment, live for the future. She was long ago tired of being bitter, but didn't know how to let it go. She wanted to show everyone who she really was. Fun, spontaneous, caring, and lovable. Not the bitter, broken mess she used as a front.
Fun gestures are exchanged
And the organ starts to play
A song that sounds like a death march
And I am hiding in the curtains
It seems that I was uninvited
By your lovely bride to be
She floats down the aisle
Like a pageant queen
But I know you wish it was me
You wish it was me, don't you?
She was surprised at how easy it was for her to heal. Although, if she was being truthful, she had started to heal the moment she ran into Aaron that day. She thought he had unknowingly crawled into her heart, but in reality, unbeknownst to her, he took down her walls brick by brick.
Don't say yes, run away now
I'll meet you when you're out
Of the church at the back door
Don't wait, or say a single vow
You need to hear me out
And they said 'speak now.'
I hear the preacher say
'Speak now or forever hold your peace,'
There's the silence, here's my last chance
I stand up with shaking hands, all eyes on me.
She locked eyed with Aaron, knowing she loved him, not caring how much of that was due to the imprint and how much was due just too good old fashioned chemistry. But she was smitten.
Horrified looks from everyone in the room
But I'm only looking at you…
I am not the kind of girl
Who should be rudely barging in
On a white veil occasion
But, you are not the kind of boy
Who should be marrying the wrong girl.
Don't wait, or say a single vow
You need to hear me out
And they said, 'speak now.'
And you say
Let's run away now
I'll meet you when
I'm out of my tux at the back door
Baby, I didn't say my vows
So glad you were around when they said
'Speak now.'
She stood up, laughter bubbling up in her throat. She was laughing at what just happened between her and Aaron, laughing at her silly song choice, laughing at the way blondie looked as her caked on make-up slid down her face, laughing at the way she looked at Aaron and just wanted to slide to the floor in a puddle of ooze.
She slid the guitar back into its holder, hopping off stage and flinging herself into Aaron's waiting arms.
For the first time in a long time, Leah Clearwater, the resident hard ass, felt like a little kid; content, excited, and loved.
A/N: Leah finally found her own happy ending. This was super fun to plan and write! I really like Leah because everyone knows what it feels like to have that one great love that just never seems to work out. I knew I didn't just want her to imprint on some random guy, have a few arguments, then just all work out. It had to mean more than that because she had been through so much. I feel like this scenario does her justice.
The song was Speak Now by Taylor Swift, and that was an actual quote from her. It really spoke to me, so I had to use it. The song is a quirky, albeit childish song that you should listen to at least once!
Someone mentioned me writing Edward's happy ending. I'm not sure that I will devote any length of material to it, just because the place I'm writing from doesn't hold Edward in high regard. As we progress, that might change though. =]
Thanks for sticking with me thus far! I hope it is still entertaining, there is much more hilarity and drama to ensue!
Questions, Comments, Ideas? Review if you'd like! =]