A/N: A quick thank you to everyone who added this story to their alerts and/or added it to their favorite list. It truly means a lot to me.

Chapter 12-

Bella's POV-

"Hey Bella, wait up."

I smiled, turning to look back at the person who was now running in my direction, a wide grin on his- still consisting of slight cute baby fat- face.

"Hey Jake, not seen you in a while."

He shrugged me off. "Yeah, now that I am in the same school and everything…"

I hummed in agreement, him having no need to continue on with that statement, the two of us walking in silence in this packed corridor, a long school day having just ended, the need to grab our belongings and just run out heavy in the air.

Once upon a time- it seemed to be ages ago at times- Jake and I had been the best of friends. We played together. We lived right next door to the other, our breakfast, lunch and dinner all spent in the company of the other, Charlie having moved the two of us to La Push after he and Sue developed romantic feelings for one another, their marriage less than a year after we moved in.

We had lived in Forks before that, or so Charlie tells me.

I don't remember.

I don't know how and why.

I just don't remember much of my life before we moved in with Sue and Leah, Seth born mere weeks after that. I don't remember those brief moments when I had not referred to Sue as 'Ma' or when Seth and Leah had not been family, or when Jake had not been my best friend.

He had always been my best friend.

Never not.

He had always known every secret that called my heart its home.

He was the only one privy to it all, not even Leah or Sue- who knew me pretty well- could claim the same.

He was the only one who knew and understood the 'real' 'actual' me.

We had been so perfectly happy together….

But then, reality had struck us hard and fast.

We had grown up, moving up the ages from elementary school to middle school- from eating mud to talking about our latest crush, us being the best of friends all throughout that beautiful journey.

I had stupidly believed that it would always stay the same.

But then, I had entered High School, and everything I knew as correct- and just the way it was- had suddenly changed, overnight, leaving me with no choice but to accept my new reality.

Jake was two years younger than me, which meant that I would have been the only one of out of us two, to embark upon this momentous journey.

Jake would not be joining me.

He would be left back in our middle school, while I made new friends, learnt new things and walked on the path of becoming an adult…. a sad reality that we had no choice but to accept.

And, it had all been alright in the start.

Jake and I still hung out after school ended, watching movies, reading books in silence, or just trailing First beach as we spoke about who did what in school, laughing all throughout.

But then, the differences had started to crop up.

Jake could not relate to the incidents I shared; the expression of confusion evident on his face for all to see. He just could not understand why Lauren Mallory being caught in the Janitor's closet with no one around but the Janitor would cause gossip of such intensity. He was too young to read between the lines, unable to understand how news spread around in a high school.

And on the other hand, I found his daily incidents to be childish and immature. I had passed through that stage of acne, braces and awkward first dates, and did not wish to revisit it.

Like any other Freshman who was in awe of this new world opened up to them, I wanted to look ahead, and not back.

I wanted to hang out with the cool people.

I wanted to talk about stuff that almost adults spoke about, reality or at least the first taste of it now in the air.

I did not want to hang out with a kid.

And that was exactly what Jake was at that point of time.

He was an immature kid.

It was not that I was concerned about my reputation.

I could not have cared any less who thought what about me, but I just did not relate to him any longer.

I craved the maturity.

I craved that vibe of being older and smarter.

And so, I followed Leah around.

She was a year older than me. She knew the cool people, and she knew how to survive the torturous experience of High school, making her perfect in my eyes. I hung out with her friends, some of them having started to smoke and drink, wanting every experience possible.

I never smoked- could never convince myself to do so.

But yes, I did try alcohol once.

Sue's disappointing eyes as soon as I entered the house post that one drink, telling me that she knew exactly of what I had done, enough to rise the guilt in me.

I never touched alcohol after that.

I could never convince myself to disappoint someone who was the closest I had to a mother in that way.

My own mother- I did not even remember the woman. I had not seen her in years now, and I had no clue of where she was or what she did for an earning.

Last, I had heard, she had gotten married and had a new family.

Anyhow, Sue was my mother, if not by birth, then by heart. And, I considered myself blessed that it was so.

But coming back to the point, once I had started to hang out with the 'cool kids', Jake was too young to be included in that group. And so, naturally, my friendship with him had taken a back seat. It did not stop altogether, at least not in the very beginning. We still hung out, once a week if not daily- talking about general stuff like movies and books, our meetings decreasing to once in every two weeks by the end of the first semester.

It just went downhill from there on.

The last time I had spoken to Jake had been nearly six weeks back, our parents forcing us together for a dinner party. And even then, we had briefly spoken, the conversation more awkward than comfortable.

It was strange.

And a part of me hated it.

Sure, we lived next door and still saw each other in passing, but somehow, over the years, we had stopped yelling aloud to gain the other's attention, a long comfortable conversation buried deep down in our hearts.

"Bell."

I looked up, that familiar nickname pulling at the strings of my heart.

He had not called me 'Bell' in years now.

It was always 'Bella' on the few rare occasions that we were forced to meet and interact.

"Yeah?" I whispered, shyly tucking my hair behind my ears, certainly aware of how tall Jake had gotten over these last few months- the biggest proof being that I now had to look up in order to answer him.

Two years back, when I had just started High school, I had been taller than him- he did not even reach my shoulders, but now…. Wow ….

He towered over me, like a high-rise looking down at a single storied house, smirking in superiority….

Okay, so maybe, he wasn't that-that tall, but he was crossing six feet, and he was fifteen!

Like, damn.

Puberty was hitting him extra-hard, it seemed.

Was… was that a stubble on his face?

Wait. Had he started shaving?

Huh.

"I was…" Jake hesitated, running a hand through his soft long hair, pulling me out of my musings, "What I wanted to say was…"

"Yes?" I prompted, when it didn't seem like he would be continuing onto that statement anytime soon.

Why did he look so very nervous?

What was on his mind?

And, moreover, why was he behaving so weirdly?

We were friends…. right?

He could freely tell me whatever was on his mind. I wouldn't judge…. or at least, so I believed in my heart.

"Do you want to…come over in the evening?"

Um.

Okay.

"Like to hang out and stuff?"

"Yeah," he shrugged. "We can watch a movie, maybe."

Oh.

"So?" he raised an eyebrow in question, my silence certainly to blame.

"Sure," I smiled. "I need to finish my homework, but as soon as that is done, I am yours." I finished with a small nervous laugh.

He gave me a nod, seriousness shining in his eyes. "I so wish that you would be mine."

Well. Okay.

Talk about awkward!

You can see it flying in the air with the birds.

It is that evident!

So, let's get this out with, I knew that Jake had a crush on me- he had it since he was ten and first found out of feelings and hormones. I did have eyes and could see. But he was a kid….and….it was just weird. We had grown up together.

I definitely did not think of him in that sense.

He was my friend.

He was my best friend.

And that's it.

That would never change.

"Anyhow," he let out a nervous cough, "so, I will see you in the evening?"

"Yeah." I nodded my head, forcing a smile onto my face.

Wow, this was heavily awkward.

"You know where I live."

"I do."

Please, please just end this conversation here and now!

I am begging you, Jake.

"So…" he hesitated. "I am going to go. I need to talk to a friend. I will see you later."

"Okay," I nodded my head in agreement, having reached my destination- my locker.

He gave me one last nod, starting to run in the opposite direction, leaving me there behind to watch his retreating form.

I sighed, shaking my head softly and briefly.

We were going to hang out today…. after so many months of nothing but radio silence.

It would…surely be interesting….

Wait.

Had his voice started to crack, sounding more and more like Billy did with each day that passed?

Huh.