Wolf Boy
Disclaimer; all characters and copyright belong to SM.
A/N-thank you for the kind reviews! I think we need some light relief in this story….
Part Forty
A week later;
Charlie sat on the edge of the bath in Connie's tiny bathroom and pulled the black velvet ring box out of his shirt pocket. He snapped it open and studied the white gold engagement ring carefully. The single diamond twinkled in the shaft of light shining through the room's only window. He had spent days hunting for the perfect ring, it involved discreet detective work on his part, gently coaxing out of Connie what type of jewellery she liked- "Nothing flashy," was her constant refrain.
He had come across some old photographs of Connie holding Colin as a baby. She was still married to her childhood sweetheart then, the ring she was wearing was halo shaped, definitely blingy with its zirconia stones and yellow gold band. This was the complete opposite to what she said she liked-which confused Charlie for a while-until he gave it some thought and decided that her old flashy ring just reminded her of her troubled marriage, she was younger back then, and tastes changed. Obviously, she would prefer something more subtle now.
Charlie's hand shook with nerves as he thought about proposing. He was taking Connie out to one of the most expensive restaurants in Port Angeles. They had musicians and everything. He planned to propose with the subtle sound of violins playing discreetly in the background. He had seen the whole thing done on T.V. A guy on one of those ridiculous reality dating shows that Bella and Connie were addicted to had done the exact same thing. He had dropped down on one knee during a romantic dinner and fished out an expensive diamond. With violins playing in the background he had given a long, soppy speech about meeting the love of his life…. blah, blah, blah.
Just the thought of doing the same thing had given Charlie hives. He had been constantly scratching for the past few hours. He had put a soothing balm on the rash, which was slowly spreading from his chest up toward his collarbone, but nothing seemed to be working. "Get yourself together, man!" He muttered under his breath.
He took another deep breath and stared at the ring. He had been practising the proposal in his head all morning. He tried again. "Connie Littlesea, I never thought my daughter forcing me to use a dating app would lead me to meet such a wonderful- "
A loud rap on the door made Charlie jump. He was so startled that his hand jerked. Like a scene out of a bad comedy he watched the small velvet ring box sail through the air, turning upside down on its journey toward the open toilet. The engagement ring he had spent so many hours searching for fell out of the box and plopped into the toilet bowl with a tiny plink.
Colin rapped on the bathroom door again. He was desperate to take a piss. He heard a strangulated cry from the other side of the door, followed by the words- "No, no, no…. this can't be happening!"
"Charlie, is that you?" Colin knocked on the door again as he began to hop from one foot to another. "Are you having trouble going or something?" He grimaced, trying not to imagine what a bomb site that would leave behind if the older man's bowels were playing up. "I'm not clearing that up." He mumbled under his breath as he began to beat a hasty retreat. He would find somewhere else to take a piss.
Before Colin could escape, the bathroom door was abruptly thrust open and a harassed Charlie appeared. "Why did you have to bang on the door like that?" He demanded in frustration. "It's stuck in the u-bend now and I can't fish it out!"
As far as Colin was concerned that was too much TMI. He really liked and admired Charlie, but hearing about his toilet habits was a step too far in his book. "I'm sure it will come unstuck eventually. Um…I'll find somewhere else to go." He edged toward the stairs.
"Oh no, you don't!" Charlie reached out and grabbed Colin by the shoulder. This wasn't a smart move as Colin had grown exponentially since turning wolf and all it served was to wrench Charlie's shoulder. "Ow!" He groaned in pain, rubbing the sore spot vigorously with his other hand.
"Are you okay?" Colin was immediately apologetic. "I am so sorry."
Charlie gasped with the pain but he decided to use this to his advantage. "There's no way I can get at it now. You'll have to try. Your arms are longer and you'll be able to reach further."
Colin's face turned ashen. "Oh, please, anything but that!" He begged.
"Get in!" Charlie ordered the young shifter. "This is a matter of the highest importance."
"But I need to take a piss." Colin whined.
"Use one of your mom's vases." Charlie said impatiently as he forced Colin into the small bathroom ahead of him before quickly closing the door behind them.
Jacob dropped Bella off at Connie's house. He had to admit having her and Charlie living on the reservation was proving to be a blessing. It had eased his worries about her safety, knowing that she was so close. It also eased the burden on the pack. They weren't forced to constantly stake out the Swan's house in Forks every day now that they were within the protective boundaries of La Push. It gave the wolves more time to concentrate on tracking down Victoria.
As Bella began to climb out of the car, Jacob leaned across and grabbed her waist, pulling her back toward him. He kissed the back of her neck. "I'm going to miss you." He murmured against her soft creamy skin. "You're so beautiful."
"I'll miss you, too." Bella smiled, blushing like crazy at his compliment.
Jacob kissed the side of her head and reluctantly let her go. "I'll see you later. Love you."
"I love you more." Bella leaned in for a proper kiss this time, smiling against his lips when he murmured more words of love. When they finally parted, they were both breathing heavily. "I better go." She said with a resigned sigh. She climbed out of the car and shut the door, blowing kisses and running alongside the vehicle as Jacob slowly drove away.
Bella was practically skipping as she let herself into Connie's house. It was weird how the tiny house was already beginning to feel like home. The two up two down building had been lovingly looked after by Connie, it was beautifully furnished, the older woman had exquisite taste. Bella hoped Connie would be able to work her magic on her father's house in Forks. The décor had not been updated in years, the police chief had done nothing to it since Renee had left, apart from giving the walls a lick of paint now and again.
Happily humming to herself Bella thought about what Connie had confided in her the night before. She had told Bella that she had planned the perfect proposal. Connie knew how much Charlie loved his baseball. With military planning she had bought tickets to one of the local teams upcoming games. She couldn't afford the Mariners, so this was the next best thing. She was going to stand on the plate before the game started and propose to Charlie who would be watching from the stands.
"I've bought tickets for everyone, Bella. You, Colin, Jake and Billy, too. I even asked Harry and Sue!" Connie had danced around like a little girl at Christmas.
"That is amazing!" Bella had squealed, dancing along with her. "You are a genius! Dad will love it!"
"I know, right?" Connie hugged Bella tight in her enthusiasm. "It'll be much better than some staid old proposal in an expensive restaurant like we see on those ridiculous reality shows."
Bella smiled at the memory as she skipped up the stairs toward Colin's room. She was so grateful to him for giving up his bed for her. He was the sweetest almost brother in the world. She couldn't wait until he was officially her step brother. As she passed the bathroom, she heard some strange noises coming from inside. Bella paused, pressing her ear to the door and listening curiously.
"I'm stuck! My freaking hand is stuck!"
Was that Colin? He sounded panicked.
"For goodness sake! How did you manage that?"
That was Charlie!
Bella pressed her ear harder against the door.
"Just yank your hand out." Charlie again.
"I can't. I'm telling you, Charlie, it's stuck." Colin's voice was rising higher the more he panicked. "What am I gonna do? The guys are never gonna let me live this down once they find out!"
"Don't tell them then." Charlie snapped impatiently.
"You're forgetting the pack mind, Charlie." Colin lamented miserably. "As soon as I think about it, they're gonna know."
"Well don't think about it then. Simple." Charlie was showing no sympathy at all.
"That's impossible. I'm never gonna forget this day as long as I live!"
What on earth was going on in there? Bella knocked on the door tentatively. There was suddenly a resounding silence. She knocked again and waited. Still nothing! Frowning, she pushed on the door but it felt like it was glued shut.
"I know you're in there." Bella said testily, giving up. "Dad! Colin! Open the door!"
"Is that you, kiddo?" Charlie checked warily. "Are you alone?"
"Yes." Bella replied in exasperation. "You're lucky it is me. What are you doing in there?"
"Nothing for you to worry about, Bells." Charlie said unconvincingly.
"Maybe she can help." Colin asked hopefully.
"No, we've got this." Charlie answered in a hushed whisper. "I'm a man and you're a werewolf. We can do this!"
Bella rolled her eyes and banged on the door again. "Dad, just let me in and tell me why you and Colin are locked in the bathroom together."
"My hands stuck in the u-bend, Bella." Colin yelled from the other side of the door.
"What? Why?"
"Thanks very much, Colin." Charlie scolded him irritably.
"Dad, just open the door." Bella was getting tired of this now. She stood back and waited. Eventually she heard the lock click and the door opened to reveal a sheepish looking Colin kneeling in front of the toilet as if he had just been sick or something. Charlie was standing awkwardly next to him, his face beet red with embarrassment or irritation, it was hard for Bella to tell. "Someone, just please tell me what's going on?"
Charlie sighed heavily and shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "I had an accident." He admitted.
Bella grimaced as she wondered what he meant by accident. Surely, he didn't mean…?
"Not that type of accident!" Charlie barked at her when he caught the horrified look on her face. "I dropped something down the toilet bowl and I can't get it out. Colin was supposed to be helping…" He threw the poor kid an annoyed glance. "And this is where we ended up."
Bella shook her head in disbelief and began to roll her sleeves up. "Leave it to me." She said, rolling her eyes again. "Come on, Cole, I'll save you."
A relieved smile spread across Colin's face as he waited for his almost sister to rescue him.
"You are a genius, Bella." Colin praised her as he flexed his fingers to check they were still working.
"That's me." Bella laughed. "All it took was a bit of wriggling and you were home free."
Charlie sighed impatiently. "Can we do a rain check on the congratulations. What about my…. the um…thing I dropped down the toilet?" He suddenly looked cagey.
"A wire coat hanger should do the job." Bella decided. "What exactly did you drop down there?" She peered down at the bowl, grimacing again.
"Nothing for you to worry about." Charlie was suddenly intent on chasing her away. "I can take it from here. A wire hanger sounds perfect. Off you go, Bells. I'm sure you're busy."
"Why are you trying to get rid of me?" Bella asked suspiciously.
Charlie let out a fake laugh and nudged Colin in the side. "We're not trying to get rid of you. Right, Colin?" He glanced up at Colin, who glanced back at him totally confused. "Right, Colin?" Charlie said again, doing little to hide his exasperation.
"Oh…yeah, right." Colin nodded his head in agreement even though he had no idea what the hell Charlie was on about.
Bella gave up on trying to work out why they were acting so weird. Angela was coming over for coffee. "Look, Angela is coming over soon and I need to get ready. Just make sure you clean up after yourselves." She ordered as she finally left them alone to their devices and headed to her room to get changed.
"So, Colin." Charlie said, turning to face the bewildered teenager. "Where does your mom keep the wire coat hangers?"
A/N-thanks for reading!