Your Pain is My Pain

JacobxBella

Rated M

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or the franchise, as it belongs to Steph Meyers

Your Pain is My Pain

Chapter 20

Suspension for Bella finally came to an end, and she was back at school the next week. She was doing good despite her suspension, and everything seemed okay. As soon as she walked back inside of Forks High School, everyone was telling her how awesome she was to stand up to Mandy Holmes, calling her a badass for kicking her ass, and that she was bound to be the coolest kid at school. No one had ever gone up against a member of Darren's gang before and be able to walk away and live to tell the tale. Bella wasn't sure she wanted the title of 'coolest kid in school' for that—she didn't want the title at all—but she also knew it was inevitable, according to Jessica at least. As for Angela, she was just happy to see her friend doing much better than she had before. In fact, she seemed much happier, and that was always a plus in her book.

The first two days of her return had been relatively quiet for Bella, nothing out of the ordinary besides her newfound popularity. However, on Wednesday, an encounter happened that shook up the quietness of her return to school. After lunch that day, Bella was walking with Angela to their next class of the day. Jessica had been with them during lunch, but had split to be with Mike, the two of them back on in their relationship again. The two of them were talking and laughing as they did when they were suddenly stopped at the library. The reason for their stop was due to two faces Bella hadn't seen in a while, Zoe and Chris.

Zoe looked at Bella before saying, "Bella, we need to talk to you for a minute."

"I don't really want to, Zoe," Bella replied easily, not feeling threatened like she had with Mandy and Darren.

"Please Bella, it's important," Chris said from where he was leant against the doorway of the library.

Bella hesitated, not sure if she could trust them. Just because she didn't feel threatened by them didn't mean they wouldn't turn on her like Darren and Mandy had. She glanced at Angela for a moment, trying to weigh her options. Angela, seeing her dilemma, told her, "I'll wait for you out here. Don't worry, I won't leave until you come back out."

Nodding her thanks, she followed Zoe and Chris into the library. As they walked inside and over to some shelves, Bella asked, "Why are we in here?"

"Because it's safe to meet in here," Zoe answered. "Darren never steps foot in the library, so it's easy for Chris and I to talk freely here without him knowing."

Chris looked around momentarily before looking back at the brunette. "Listen Bella, we need to talk to you because we want to warn you."

"About what?"

"About Darren."

Zoe nodded in agreement. "While you were out on suspension, Mandy, along with her being suspended until next school year, she was also put on house arrest for violating the restraining order against her. She can't leave outside one hundred feet of her home's property line."

"Not only that, but Jeff was also sentenced and is now in jail," Chris added. "Darren is pretty pissed about it, especially at you because you were able to take out half his gang."

"And now he's sworn revenge on you when you least suspect it." Zoe looked down at her shoes for a moment before looking back at Bella. "We just thought we should warn you because we still care about you, and like to think that we're still your friends, even if you don't hang out with us anymore."

Bella stared at the two of them in shock for a moment before blinking, nodding slowly as she processed all that they had told her. Looking back at them, Bella gave a small smile before saying, "Thanks for telling me, guys. I'm grateful that you're looking out for me, and again, thanks for letting me know all this."

"It's no problem, Bella. Just be on the lookout, okay?" Chris told her.

Zoe nodded and mentioned they needed to get to class, but they'd see her around. Surprisingly, she gave Bella a hug before departing the library, Chris ruffling her hair a bit before leaving behind his friend. Bella watched them leave before doing the same and exiting the library. As soon as she stepped out of the library, Angela stepped up to her and immediately locked arms with her asking, "Are you okay? What did Chris and Zoe want? They didn't hurt or threaten you, did they?"

Shaking her head, Bella answered, "No, they didn't. They wanted to give me a warning about Darren. Apparently, they're looking out for me despite no longer being a part of Darren's group."

"Are you sure you can trust them?"

"Of any of them, I know that Zoe and Chris don't mean me any harm. I promise that they're simply looking out for me, especially now that Darren has it out for me."

Angela looked skeptical but nodded. "Okay, if you say so, Bella. If you can trust those two, then I trust your judgement. But please, promise me you'll be careful concerning them, especially Darren."

"I promise, Ang."

The two of them heard the warning bell ring, prompting them to hurry to their class. They quickly entered the classroom and took a seat at their desks just as the bell rang to begin class. And as class commenced, Bella couldn't help but wonder exactly what sort of revenge Darren had planned, according to Zoe and Chris. Whatever it was, she was going to do like they suggested and be on the lookout. And more importantly, watch her own back.

Bella laid on her bed a few hours after school, her mind still thinking about the warning that Chris and Zoe had given her about Darren. She hated to admit it, but she was worried and scared about what Darren would and could do. And with him saying he'd get revenge when she least expected it, it would only cause her to make herself worry more. She wondered if she should tell Charlie and let him handle it again, but it was having her dad and the police involved that had gotten Darren angry to begin with. Oh, what was she going to do?

A tap on her window caught her attention. Sitting up, she frowned and asked, "Who is it?"

"Embry," Embry's voice responded. He then opened the window and climbed inside, giving her a smile.

"Hey Embry. What brings you by?"

"I'm here in Jacob's stead. He asked me to stop by and check on you, as well as keep you a bit of company. Jake was going to come, but he's busy with Sam right now; Quil phased."

Chocolate brown eyes widened in surprise. "Is Quil okay? How's he taking it?"

"Honestly, better than the rest of us did. And he's fine, so don't worry. In fact, I think he likes this transition more than we do."

Bella still couldn't help but hope Quil would be okay regardless. Embry, being the more attentive of his friends at times, could see that the brunette seemed a bit distracted, like something was bothering her. Frowning in concern, he asked, "Is everything alright, Bella?"

She contemplated telling him the truth before deciding to do just that. Shaking her head, she answered, "No, not really. It's just that…well, do you know about the group I ran with back when…I was at my low point?"

"Yeah, I do. We all know a bit about them through the Pack mind, and we know they're all bad news, especially with what happened to you at the movie theater with that one dude."

"Right. Well anyway, Darren is the leader of the group and he's apparently very pissed about the fact that one of his members is in jail and the other suspended and on house arrest. He's got it out for me now and has sworn revenge on my when I least suspect it. Darren isn't to be trifled with and when he makes a threat, he will carry it out. I'm not sure what to do now because if I involve Charlie and the police, it will only make things worse."

Embry contemplated what the girl had told him for a moment before nodding. Giving her a reassuring smile, he said, "Don't sweat it, Bella. Me, Jake, and the others will handle it. Or at the very least, Me, Jake, and Quil."

Bella shook her head. "No Embry, I don't want you guys getting hurt, especially because of me. Darren is dangerous."

"And so are we when provoked. Trust us Bella, you're our friend and we won't let some punk hurt you or get the better of us."

"I don't believe you all are dangerous," she replied after a moment. She then smiled. "But thanks anyway, Embry."

He smiled, telling her it was no problem before deciding to take his leave. Embry started to exit her bedroom via the window but stopped and looked back at her. Giving her a sheepish, almost uncomfortable look, he said, "By the way, Emily said that you could no longer step foot in her home again whenever you come to the Res."

Raising an eyebrow, Bella asked, "Why? Because I told her the truth and she didn't want to hear it?"

"No, not necessarily because of that. She uh, she took offense to your comment about her muffins."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, I know it sounds stupid. Baking, particularly baking muffins is Emily's pride and joy, so to have you offend them insulted her. And it didn't help when Paul off-handedly agreed with you upon saying that her muffins were dry."

Bella couldn't help it, she had to laugh. Calming down, she asked through a giggle, "Really? Paul agreed with me?"

Embry chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, he agreed they were dry. I won't lie, I'm sure others think so too—myself included—but we won't say it to keep the peace with Sam and Emily."

"Right, okay. Well, you tell Paul that I'll bake him muffins whenever he wants them. And you can have some as well, Embry."

Laughing, Embry laughed before bidding her 'farewell' and leaving, Bella shutting the window behind him with a giggle. Shaking her head, she made a mental note to pull out her gran's muffin recipe that never failed to be a hit. Checking the time, she saw it was forty-five minutes until dinnertime, and Charlie would be home soon. Exiting her bedroom and heading down the stairs, Bella rolled up her sleeves to begin cooking.

Father and daughter sat at the table eat dinner, talking about this and that. Charlie asked Bella how her day had gone, and she told him it had gone well, making sure to omit her encounter with Chris and Zoe. There was no reason to get him worked up about that. Taking a sip of her coke, she asked, "What about you, dad? How was your day?"

Swallowing his mouthful of food, Charlie answered, "It was alright, not too busy."

Charlie suddenly blushed, causing Bella to raise an eyebrow in interest. Seeing her looking intently at him, he cleared his throat and said, "I uh…I met someone while on my break today."

Surprised, Bella blinked before smiling. "That's great, dad."

"You think so? You don't think your old man is too…well, old to get back into the dating scene?"

"No way, you're still young. And as far as I'm concerned, any woman would be lucky to have you. So, when's the date?"

Charlie's face turned redder than it already was. "Oh, it's too soon for that, kiddo. However, she did invite me to coffee. Hopefully, if things go well, you may meet her soon."

Bella smiled, happy that her father had met someone that he seemed to be genuinely interested in. "I hope so, too. What does she look like?"

"She's got pale, smooth skin, the prettiest smile, and blonde hair with stunning blue eyes. She told me she grew up here in the states, but she's originally from France, having moved over when she was ten."

"Oh, she's French?"

"Yes, though it was obvious when she introduced herself."

"What's her name?"

"Her name is Victoire."