Chapter Four:
Don't Let the Door Hit You
also known as: I Hope that Door Hits You Five Ways to Sunday on the Way Out
Caroline's car search was not going as smoothly as she would have hoped. The only vehicles even remotely within her price range were fixer-uppers and had some problem or other that she couldn't possibly begin to understand. And although she had a good enough understanding of cars to know what sounds they should be making and what sounds they shouldn't be making, she was otherwise way out of her element.
The Cullens had long since left town and Bella insisted that Caroline keep the car as long as she needed it. But she finally got a good look at Bella's old truck when she sent a picture update for Charlie on Monday and she had a feeling that that car was on its way out and she would be needing her Benz back sooner than Caroline was ready to part with it. Driving a nice car was beginning to get to her head.
Emily assured her that Quil, Embry and Jake would all be more than happy and willing to help her fix up a set of wheels for her, but Caroline didn't make a habit of asking for favors from people, especially people she didn't know well - or at all in Jake's case.
She was no closer to finding out anything about her father or these attacks. The media had stopped reporting on it once it was determined that the young woman didn't remember anything and it was closed as an animal attack. The media was crying wolf, but Aunt Sue wouldn't have it. The tension between Charlie and her aunt was growing by the day as he tried to find answers for the animal attacks and Sue shut down every avenue that led to the wolves being the culprits.
From their hushed conversations at night, Caroline knew that Sue was the wolves biggest advocate in the house. She overheard them arguing while they thought she slept. Interestingly, Charlie kept insisting that Sue talk with Sam, that Sam would know about the pack and if it wasn't his pack it was another.
None of this was brought up to Caroline. She was left to speculate and put together pieces of softly but angrily spoken words and any case information she could get her hands on. Charlie wasn't one to bring work home with him and she wasn't about to break into his office at the police station so her progress was slow going.
Until she received another envelope in the mail.
In the same chicken scratch handwriting, this letter came with a note.
You're not wrong - keep looking
Surround yourself with people
More people, more ideas, more knowledge, more answers
The letter is oddly familiar and kind. It makes Caroline think that whoever wrote it cares about her, and whoever wrote it knows what is going on but they aren't willing to tell her more. Or maybe they can't.
But who does the writer want her to surround herself with?
Caroline stashes the letter with the photo she received in a box underneath her bed. Not her most clever hiding spot, but it will have to do for now. She sleeps with her monsters under her bed and their words in her mind.
By the time Thursday rolled around Caroline was exhausted from taking care of Charles, - and sometimes Charlie - working day shifts at the bar, and trying to find a car that she almost decided to skip out on game night at Emily's. Of course, Caroline, who had to make a big deal about not being a flake when she first met all of them, had an anti-skip reputation to uphold.
She had spent most of the day researching the animal attacks around Forks and La Push, but, to no surprise, it all came up empty. There hadn't been any incidents with hikers since the young woman was attacked a week ago and she still didn't have any memory of the attack - and she likely never would. Online sleuthing wasn't getting her anywhere. Tomorrow she was going to begin her 'field research'.
When Caroline rolled up to Emily's house, she made sure to park a little ways down the street and on the other side. Emily didn't have any close next door neighbors, so Bella's car looked out of place parked seemingly on the side of an empty lot but it would have to do. The smell and all that.
Emily lived in a five bedroom house with Sam, so it wasn't small by any means, and it didn't seem to ever be empty. The only other car was the one Emily and Sam shared, although Caroline never saw Sam drive it to work.
She was afraid she was early but when she checked her watch she was, without any surprise, late as always.
She grabbed her expansion pack set of Cards Against Humanity and Red Flags - The Game of Terrible Dates. Everyone was required to bring a game that night and they were the only games that made it through her purge after her move to Forks. She stood outside the front door for a moment, trying to collect herself. The purge consisted of donating many of her own things as well as most of her father's belongings. Her chest ached to think about it and she wasn't sure that hollow feeling would be leaving her in her lifetime. With a deep breath, she rolled back her shoulders and lifted her chin. The world still turns, she told herself.
A chorus of hellos greeted her as she entered, most of the voices coming from the table where Jared, Kim, Shawn and two other shirtless boys sat playing the original CAH set. She held up her expansion pack with a knowing smile and the boys around the table cheered.
"I should have known this game would be a favorite around here." She rolled her eyes, tossing the expansion back to Embry before making her way to the kitchen as Emily put a plate of cookies in the oven. "Those better be chocolate chip and they better be for me."
"They're for everyone," Emily said in a motherly tone, "but I'll give you a five minute head start. These guys eat like you wouldn't believe."
Two younger, but equally as large, shirtless boys she hadn't met before came up to her from their seats at the game table, "yeah, it looks like they eat like pigs." She winked at Emily before putting one hand on her hip and another on her chin. Giving them both over exaggerated once overs she pursed her lips. "Don't tell me... Brady," she pointed to one of the boys, "And Colin?"
"Oooh," The one she called Brady frowned. "So close."
"But I'm Brady, and that's Colin. Anyone could have messed it up, although your odds were pretty good."
The other boy - Colin - nodded, "50/50 shot and ya blew it. How does it feel?" A massive arm wrapped around her shoulders.
She smirked at them, feeling oddly pleased with the unsolicited touching. Observing the group last week at dinner showed her that they were always touching each other. Personal space didn't exist in this house, and she didn't seem to mind it.
"Actually," she teased, "you're Brady now, and you're Colin. Consider yourselves renamed." The boys shared a look. "You look more like a Colin anyways," she added with a slight frown. "I wouldn't want to be named Brady if I were you."
Brady gasped and Colin took the moment to punch his friend in the gut.
"Colin is a better name isn't it?" Colin laughed, sending her a flirtatious look.
"Yes, it is." Caroline slipped out of their grasp and made her way to the table and sat next to Jared. "But you're Brady now, remember?" She gave him another quick once over, this one paired with a delicate frown. "You look like a Brady."
It was Colin's turn to be offended as Brady roared with laughter. "You're even cooler than I thought you'd be!"
The boys joined her at the table, sitting to her left. She grabbed the deck of regular playing cards off the table and shuffled them. "Anyone want to play President?" After a quick explanation of the game, she passed out the deck. Jared, Kim, Shawn, Colin and Brady all ended up playing. Sam and Emily sat in the kitchen playing Guess Who while Embry and Seth gave Claire Cards Against Humanity cards behind Quil's back. After a couple of times around the table, Caroline was the reigning champion - or President - of the game, Shawn was her usual Vice President, and Colin and Brady almost always at the bottom of the barrel as Scum 1 and Scum 2.
Shawn reached over and gave Caroline a high five. "We have to get our campaign started! We're on a roll!"
Kim dealt out the next round of cards. "As long as I can be your campaign manager."
Caroline nodded quickly, "I wouldn't have it any other way, Kim."
"An all women team?" Jared asked almost sadly, as if he felt left out.
"Just as it should be," Caroline gave a crisp nod, sharing a teasing look with the girls. They all laughed good-naturedly. She punched Jared lightly in the shoulder, flinching at how much harder he was than she thought he would be. She was beginning to think all of these guys were made of stone - or even steel. "If you want, you can write our slogan. How does that sound?"
"Wait! Don't we get to be a part of this?" Brady frowned.
Shawn tsked and said, "If you think I'm going to let you anywhere near me or our future Madam President." She and Caroline smirked and lifted her chin to look down at both of the boys in front of them, even though they towered over the girl's similar 5'7'' heights. "Then you're more delusional than I thought." Shawn finished.
This time the whole room joined in on the laughter at the two youngest players' expense.
"Now, now, boys," Caroline placed her cards face down on the table. "I'm sure we could find a place for you. Two big guys such as yourselves? Our security detail would love to have you."
Seth and Embry snorted from the couch but Caroline shot them a look. "In My America," she said in a presidential voice, "everyone will have an equal opportunity to serve in my White House. And anyone with a bad attitude about it," she narrowed her eyes, "will face my wrath."
And Caroline is sure that threat would have held true if she didn't lose that round so epically that she went from first place to dead last in one hand.
It felt good to laugh with them. She was flirting innocently with everyone, trying to get them all to like her. She was over-compensating but they way they all fed off of her energy kept her going much longer than she thought she could. She hadn't felt this carefree in a long time.
"So where is this elusive Jacob Black I have heard so much about?" Caroline asked between rounds as she made her slow comeback. "And more importantly, where is the ray of sunshine that is Paul and my cousin?"
"I'm right here!" Seth pouted, avoiding a punch from Quil as the older boy snatched Caroline's expansion pack out of his hands to keep the cards away from Claire.
"My other cousin," Caroline rolled her eyes. "Your sister?"
"They should be back soon," Sam called from the kitchen. Caroline knew that he loved Emily, but Sam always seemed oddly in tune when it came to news about Leah. It wasn't a cause for alarm, no one else seemed to notice or if they did, they ignored it. It was just interesting to her. Another layer to this group that she had yet to peel back.
Caroline grabbed the cards as Jared dealt them to her and organized her hand. "And where exactly did they go?"
Seth said "Canada" at the same time Sam answered "Seattle." Caroline quirked an eyebrow at the both of them and gave them a faint grin. A clear indication that it didn't matter what they said next, because she wasn't going to believe them.
Sam glared at Seth and he glared right back. "They were in Canada but spent the last night in Seattle. They're here now."
Caroline frowned, "they're here right now?" As if on cue, Leah and Paul walked through the back door of the house. Paul was shirtless, like most of the men in the room, and Leah had just finished saying something rude to him in typical Leah fashion.
Caroline jumped up, eager to talk to her cousin, or even just get her cousin to acknowledge her. She made her way to the backdoor and blocked Leah's path. "Hey!" She said awkwardly. Good start, she groaned to herself. "Long time no see?" Idiot.
Leah's eyes softened, albeit only barely. A smile ghosted on her lips, "yeah, long time. Not since Emily moved back."
Caroline flinched. Definitely still weird. "Yeah, been busy." She hadn't come to visit in order to not get in the middle of the situation, but in doing so she also didn't see her cousin when she needed someone to be there for her. She turned and watched Leah make her way into the living room and plop down on the couch before changing the channel. "Hmm," she smiled at Paul. "That went about as well as I could have hoped. Glad to see your smiling face again." Paul's frown only deepened but she didn't miss the flash of amusement that spread over his features.
"Don't get used to it." He said before making his way to Shawn who was waiting for him with open arms.
"I wouldn't dream of it," Caroline said to his back.
"You must be Caroline." A deep voice sounded from behind her.
She smiled before turning on her toes to face the new voice. The man in front of her was easily 6'7, maybe even taller. His russet skin was covered in a thin sheen of water from the sprinkling rain outside. Did none of these guys shirts? But Caroline would be lying if she said she wasn't impressed with what she saw. She held out her hand to him and grinned, hoping her tanned skin kept most of her blush at bay. "It appears I can now finally meet the Great Jacob Black."
She furrowed his brow at his facial expression. His jaw was slack and he stared at her with a tenderness reserved for someone you knew intimately. For a few short seconds, Jacob Black looked at Caroline like she was radiant.
She felt her cheeks flush as blood rushed to her face. Then, as quickly as his eyes locked on her, they narrowed and hardened. His jaw clenched and she cocked her head to the side, her hand still outstretched and feeling almost cold. The blush from early now felt suffocating and embarrassed.
Before she could retract her gesture, Jacob Black dropped the nastiest f-bomb she had ever heard, turned on his heel and all but ran out of the door, slamming it behind him. Seth got up from his seat next to Claire and ran after him, promising an explanation to her as he went.
Caroline dropped her hand and turned to face the wide eyes of the group in front of her, the grin wiped clean off her face. She was fuming and although she added as much venom to her voice as she could, she was also a little scared. "Don't let the door hit you on the way out, asshole."
LINE BREAK
"He didn't mean it like that." Emily said for the ninth time as Caroline shoved another chocolate chip cookie into her mouth. Anyone who stared too long got a nasty glare and anyone who got too close got a punch.
Caroline gave her a look and scrunched her nose. "Mmm, I'm pretty sure he did." She grabbed her glass of milk and took a gulp.
Brady and Colin sat across from her giving her puppy dog eyes but she didn't budge. The cookies were hers and hers alone. Although they were pretty cute, she tried to reason with herself but no. Her ego had been bruised, squashed really. She deserved these cookies. She was trying to play it off as a joke but she was freaked out. No one had ever looked at her like that, with such unadulterated loathing. She wanted to put as much space between the two of them as she could, and she had a feeling they could read right through her. The guys all looked sad for her, as if they were upset she was afraid.
Except for Colin and Brady, who were lusting after her cookies.
"He'll be back soon," Colin said, eyes never leaving the plate of cookies in front of her. "He'll apologize, explain himself and everything will be right in the world. It's kind of awesome - I mean, it isn't but you'll see."
"He's got a lot on his plate right now," Kim added. "He's busy and stressed about… everything."
"Yeah, well," Caroline licked her fingers, laughing to herself as Brady openly drooled. "We're all a little busy and stressed aren't we?"
Kim paled at that, looking around the kitchen for help.
Emily filled up her glass of milk in that caring, motherly way she did everything. Normally it soothed her, but Caroline's ego was shot and was seeing red. "You have to understand, Caroline. Jake is -" she paused, trying to think of the right words to say. "Important to the tribe. The work he does is stressful and really important. He can't have any distractions and -"
"Any distractions?" Caroline shoved herself away from the table. "What is that even supposed to mean? Me hanging out here is a distraction? I don't even know him - I don't - what does that even mean, Em?" She shook her head incredulously. Now she was more embarrassed and ashamed than before. So much for surrounding herself with people to find answers.
When it was clear that no one was going to answer her she grabbed her bag off the back of the chair and said, "This has been fun, Emily, but I'm actually gonna leave now. Can I have a bag for the rest of these cookies?"
"No, no, no," Shawn grabbed the plate from Caroline's hand. "You can't have both. You either wait to talk to Jake and eat more of Emily's delicious, homemade cookies," the boys groaned at that, "or, you leave - empty handed."
The challenge was clear and Caroline weighed her options. She was never one to turn down a good competition, but she also didn't want to be there any longer than necessary. With a pained look she turned towards the door dramatically, pretending the decision was difficult and weighing on her but in reality, she couldn't get out of there soon enough. "So be it. Have your cookies, you dogs." Her comment eliciting a curious reaction as Brady, Colin, Quil and Jared all shared wide-eyed looks. Curious, indeed, she thought. "I will be on my way then. Don't choke." She said as she put on her shoes.
"Wait, Caroline," Quil grabbed her arm, dropping it and stepping back when she flinched, an almost pained look on his face when he realized why she was jumpy. He sighed, "will you come back soon?" He asked softly. "You shouldn't hide away from us - any of us," he added pointedly.
Caroline searched his expression, his genuine concern threw her off. "I'll consider it," she found herself promising. Just not anytime soon, she thought when she remembered Jake's face.
Shawn and Kim stood in front of the door with their arms crossed and Caroline realized her escape was going to be more difficult than she thought.
"Oh, let her go," an ally called from the couch. Leah, her savior. "Jake was a dick and she couldn't handle the heat." Or not. Caroline bristled under Leah's scrutiny but if the wounded dog was the card she had to play to get out of there before he returned, then so be it.
She didn't really want to leave, she was having fun hanging out with all of them and really did plan on coming back, she did work in La Push afterall, but she couldn't go back on her dramatic exit now. Once an exit was initiated, one couldn't possibly take it back. She had made this bed, now she had to sleep in it. Her pride - what was left of it - was hanging in the balance.
No amount of sweet talking from everyone convincing her of Jake's upstanding personality and otherwise kind-heartedness could convince her to stay tonight. A lot of things happened too fast and she didn't know how to explain that the mysterious circumstances surrounding her father's death, the recent attack on the hiker and now the dangerous glint in Jake's eyes were piling up and she needed to think, alone. The only way she knew how to express herself was through making as many jokes as she could in a sentence and dramatically reacting to things around here while she freaked out on the inside.
She was becoming increasingly aware that as each minute passed, he was more likely to return and even if it was a little misguided, and her head told her that this man was the same boy who put mud in her hair and would never hurt her, Caroline couldn't separate his glare from her fears of what she would find when she found the answers she was looking for in the forests of La Push and Forks. She couldn't place the feeling, but she was sure he was a part of it. A small part of her told her that they all were.
"Really, guys, it's been a lot of fun and I'm glad I was included in your game night," she looked at all of them quickly, trying not to let her panicked expression peak through, "but I told Charlie I would take Charles for a walk tonight and it's already so late…"
"You're not going on a walk now." Paul frowned at her. "It's dark out and it's not safe."
"Thank you, my friend, for the observation, but," she grabbed her car keys out and hit the automatic start button to heat it up, "I can handle whatever goes bump in the night in Forks, Washington, population: 4,000."
Embry came in through the backdoor, "Jake is on his way."
"Ladies and gentledogs," she smirked at the way the boys flinched at the nickname, "that is my cue, you have all been a wonderful crowd and I look forward to your votes this upcoming November," she gave a big overdramatized bow, "it's been swell." She turned back to the door. "Madame Vice President, Honorable Campaign Manager," she nodded to Shawn and Kim. "You have my number, feel free to call it." She turned back to the room from the front door and saluted everyone before she slipped out and into the night.
She shut the door behind her and all but ran to her - Bella's - car, not pausing until the doors were locked and she was on the freeway.
mysterious notes from allies? or enemies? is it the same person who dropped off the photograph? who can say...