It wasn't unusual for Delilah to choose to stay the night at the Cullens house anymore. Especially now that she was trying to avoid her father and the inevitable conversation she had to have with him. But her dad wasn't the only, or even the main reason she stayed with the Cullens that night. She really couldn't stop thinking about Embry, and how he'd acted after the game. She'd never seen anything quite like it. The way he flew in the air as he jumped at Nathan and the way he shook so ferociously was replayed in her mind over and over.
She wondered how Julie was doing and how much she'd thought about it since. She'd been more freaked out than Delilah had been in the moment and she hadn't texted her about it. This was expected of their personality types. Though they were the two that could keep their cool the best of their friend group, Julie was terrible with violence and confrontation. Her biological dad had been an abusive drug addict who took his issues out on her, her brother, and her mother. Julie was dropped off at the Coleman house whenever he got really bad. That was something Delilah's mom had initiated when she realized how dire the situation was in Julie's house. She didn't come over as much after her dad went to jail, but his treatment of her never left. Embry's attack on Nathan was not like anything Delilah or Julie had ever seen, so Delilah wasn't surprised by Julie's reaction. In fact, she was pretty worried about her.
Delilah didn't know why she wasn't more freaked out by the whole scene. It was almost superhuman, how he flew across the room. But, for some reason, it made her feel comforted more than anything else. She was a smart girl, she never got into drugs or got involved with the wrong people, even as a phase. And she didn't think anything had changed, even with Embry's outburst. She saw good in him above all else, and she didn't think what he did was out of hate for Nathan, but rather care for her. Which, in the end, she felt was good to have in her corner.
Maybe it helped that the Cullens agreed with her gut reaction, even Rosalie, who had seemed the most indignant when it came to her revulsion toward Embry. Not only did Rosalie's smug reaction as they got into her car after the outburst an indicator that she felt this way, but she bluntly told Delilah how she felt that very night when they'd gotten back to their house.
"I don't see issue with it," She'd said breezily, not looking up from the novel she'd been reading. "He had it coming, if you ask me."
The other Cullens left Delilah with similarly reassuring sentiments. Emmett even said he would've done the same thing if he hadn't already left before Nathan had started being confrontational with Delilah.
Delilah was just happy her father had found it in him to courteously leave right after the game ended, rather than waiting to talk to Delilah for himself. He didn't need to be seeing her involved in violence or anything, he'd probably try to place restrictions on her, which was the last thing she wanted.
She slept in that day, almost until 10:30. By the time she got downstairs, she spotted Seth munching on some sort of pastry that Esme had made for him. Esme called Seth her own personal food critic because she said he always gave her honest feedback. Delilah found this funny, seeing as Seth had liked everything she'd ever seen Esme make for him. Well, if the shoe fits, Delilah thought. Esme was an exceptional cook and baker.
Then Delilah saw Jake and Embry at the dining room table, mumbling amongst themselves somewhat casually, somewhat tensely, Delilah couldn't figure which emotion led the charge. She watched them for a few more minutes, grabbing for a premade piece of sourdough toast that had been stacked on a plate on the granite countertop.
"Delilah." Embry said, the way in which he turned in his chair indicating just how present he really was now that he saw her. She took a deep breath, smiling at him as she braced herself to walk over to him. She didn't get the chance, though. He got up from his seat and met her in the kitchen. She looked up at him, watching as he nervously looked for just what he wanted to say next.
"I wanted to come see you. I didn't know if I should, but Jake said-" Delilah cut him off, her eyes reflecting the ease she wanted him to feel.
"Why shouldn't you?" She asked, resting her hand on his forearm. It was often hard to comprehend just how massive he was in comparison to her. And she had never considered herself petite, by any means. He was tall and his entire body could be described as built. Even his hands felt like they were close to double the size of hers, which was an exaggeration. But only by a little bit.
"Oh, I don't know. Would you want to go downtown today? With me?" He seemed to want to move past his last sentiment quickly, as soon as she seemed to still feel safe and comfortable around him, it seemed. She was surprised but relieved. It wasn't as if she was afraid of him, and she never wanted him to think so.
"Yeah, I'd love to. I'll need to get dressed. And Renesmee and Jasper wanted to hike…" She looked to where Renesmee sat next to Seth, and then to where Jasper stood with Alice up against the wall.
"We can go another time!" The preteen quickly blurted, resting her head in her hands as she smiled between Delilah and Embry. Jasper mumbled gruffly in agreement. He didn't seem as if he hated Embry really, but he seemed put off by him. Delilah thought he seemed like a less severe version of Rose, though she had appeared to come around the night before.
"Well then, we can go now." Delilah accepted his offer, smiling at him before she scurried up the stairs to get dressed and gather her things up.
Embry watched her, his heart beating so fast he could hear a ringing noise in his ears. He had been nervous the entire night before that he'd brought himself back to square one with her after his loss of control.
What he had expected more, though, was for Rosalie to take the opportunity to create a jadedness in Delilah toward him. But she didn't, in fact, she'd defended and supported his actions from what Jacob had told Embry. This shocked Embry, but he was grateful to her. After all, she seemed to be Delilah's favorite of the Cullens, just by observation. Embry had thought this would be a disadvantage, but apparently nothing was certain with the bloodsuckers. Embry didn't know if it made him nervous or curious. Or both.
"You look tired." Delilah found herself saying as she looked over at Embry as he drove down the winding road. He had been zeroed in, but her talking brought him out of his concentrated state.
"I'm a little tired, I guess," He admitted, looking at her for a moment and giving her a shy smile. "I guess I was just worried that you'd be upset with me after last night." He admitted, looking away from her before he said the second part of his thoughts. Delilah was an empathetic person. She often felt what other people felt. Olivia said it was because she was a Libra, and Libras were really compassionate by nature, apparently. Delilah had never gotten too far into Astrology, but she figured it sounded accurate enough.
"I was never upset, just a little taken aback is all. He probably deserved it anyways." She laughed a little bit, hoping that her comment would give Embry an excuse to be lighthearted about the situation. It didn't seem to have the effect she wanted, though. As she watched him look at the road, his eyes were narrowed as he stayed deep in thought.
"I shouldn't have acted that way in front of you, I'm sorry." Delilah felt herself lean toward him as he paused. She was glad that he saw that he shouldn't act like that, of course. But she also felt protected by his reaction, in a weird way. It was in the car that she finally admitted to herself that his reaction felt like she was in safe hands, like she wasn't going to have to worry about anything when he was around.
"You'll tell me if he comes near you again, then?" Embry continued, looking at Delilah with a concerned look on his face.
"Yeah, I'd feel better if you knew," Delilah admitted, and she saw a smile flash across his face, his cheeks even turning a bit pink after she gave him her answer.
Delilah suggested that they use the air hockey table that one of the downtown bars had in the back. Embry told her they'd probably get carded, but she told him it was worth the risk and there was nothing better to do anyway. She didn't think that they would get in trouble. After all, she already knew Embry would be bigger than every one of the guys in there. Plus Delilah had played at that very table a few times a month for the last year with Olivia, and no one had ever said a word to them. Well, she hadn't gone in with Olivia in a while. She hadn't seen Olivia outside of school in a while, really.
And sure enough, Delilah was right. She'd walked quickly to the back of the bar, holding Embry's hand while she led them to a back room that Embry never would have thought they were allowed to go in, even if they were technically allowed in the bar. They got in, though. And they played 12 games, Delilah winning 8 of them. Embry wished that he could say it was all because he let her win, but he knew deep down that it wasn't true. She was good and he had lost, fair and square.
They left because Delilah had seen that it had started to sprinkle. She told Embry about her affinity for the atmosphere when it sprinkled. She loved it when it was raining so lightly, half the time it takes a moment for you to know whether or not it's your imagination or if it had actually started raining.
The rain had stopped, and they were aimlessly walking up and down the streets now, popping into shops that peaked their interests. Not that there were that many to choose from. It was Forks, after all. Delilah had noticed it when Embry grabbed her hand. In fact, she'd noticed the way he'd stared at her swinging arm for almost twenty minutes before he actually bit the bullet, taking it as it swung backward and lacing his fingers with hers. She tried not to have a physical reaction, she didn't want him to think she was opposed to his gesture. But mostly, she didn't want him to let go. She felt good around him. And it was after he had held her hand for about five minutes that Delilah had decided that if he made a move, a real move. She'd let him.
She thought about how she would really react if he tried to kiss her. She wondered what she'd feel if he did. If she'd see it coming like she'd seen the way he wanted to hold her hand. He was smart, she thought. Maybe that was why he had been so nervous to take her hand. Maybe he played it slower than Nathan or even Trevor before him, though Delilah had only dated Trevor for two months freshman year and he'd only ever pecked her on the lips.
Delilah hadn't really considered how deep her feelings for Embry ran, because really, they'd only known each other for a short time. She didn't know if she was even supposed to feel as connected to him as she did. But, well, she did feel that way.
While Delilah considered her own feelings, Embry considered whether or not it was ethical to ask Edward how Delilah was feeling about him, and if she'd progressed in her emotions in the romantic department. He knew the answer was no, it was definitely not ethical, but that didn't stop him from considering it. He thought about how she hadn't really needed to take his hand when they'd gone into the bar, he could've just as easily followed her lead without that. He thought about where he had to draw the line when it came to overthinking her every move. Embry didn't want to scare her off, that was the last thing he wanted to do. It was just so much harder and so much different than any other imprinting process that he had ever witnessed. She knew nothing of the legends and he had already promised the Cullens he wouldn't tell her anything. That he'd leave it all up to her. But it was hard. He wondered how lost or confused she felt, given the fact that Edward had confirmed that she felt strongly for him right away. That imprinting was in fact a two-way street. He thought about how much easier it would be to tell her everything. She'd played it cool after he'd the altercation at the gym, maybe she could handle it.
Embry was lost in his own thoughts when he felt himself halt. His hand was still intertwined with hers, and she'd stopped in her tracks, turning to look down an alleyway. Her stare was glazed over, almost completely blank.
"What's wrong?" Embry asked her quickly, shuffling to where she stood.
"I just, I was having this nightmare after my accident. About this sort of... demon attacking me. It happened right here, in my nightmare. I was having it every night and then-" Her sentence stalled as she squeezed her eyes shut, then looking right back at the dark space when she opened them.
"And then what?" Embry pressed gently. She looked up at him, her green eyes were filled with a strong look of realization.
"I met you." Delilah hadn't realized it until she said it out loud. But it was true. She hadn't had the nightmare, or even thought about it, after she'd met him.
"Now I'm afraid it's gonna come back." Delilah crossed her arms over her chest, like she always did when she was uncomfortable, nervous, or afraid.
But Embry took her into his arms, wrapping himself around her, Delilah's head pressed against his chest. It was then that she had another realization. She didn't have to comfort herself anymore because he was there, and he wanted to.
He was warm, warmer than anyone else she'd ever embraced so deeply. She didn't know if it was his temperature or him that calmed her down, she figured it was both, but she was grateful. Once again, he'd been there to make her feel safe.
And while she felt comforted, Embry was worrying. A lot. There was more to her nightmare, he knew it. And he thought other people knew it too.
Hi again! I hope everyone who reads this story is still safe and well. I'll be honest, writing this is the only thing keeping me sane with the whole quarantine situation. So, I hope reading it is helping keep at least one other person sane too. Please let me know your thoughts if you have any, and thank you for your continued support!
-J