Chapter 3:

Bella wasn't the same after it all happened.

October came and went. I went to the Halloween bonfire that La Push High had every year because Jacob and the guys wouldn't let me cancel but I sat far from everyone the whole time, staring at my phone in case Bella needed me. I didn't go to Emily's house at all that month and without the tutoring, my math grade was dropping. At least one of the wolves was always sleeping under my window. I spent every waking moment with Bella, neither of us complained though. We were both too scared to be alone. Nightmares haunted her every night and I was afraid Laurent would finally come back for me, especially without the vampires around. Edward had assured me that with him in our house and his family running the perimeter, Laurent would never get to me. Although I trusted the pack to keep me safe, there was something about having had an immortal, unbreakable being inside the house that made me feel more secure. Bella's friends now talked to me at school. Mike would even walk me to class every day, always asking questions about Bella.

November was a blur. I was sleep deprived. It was funny to see that it doesn't take too long to develop dark circles under your eyes. Bella had nightmares every night and I was still sleeping in her room. She would wake up screaming at least once a night and if she wasn't screaming, she was tossing around. Her screams would scare me awake, making me think my worst nightmare had arrived.

Mike stopped walking me to class and everyone stopped asking questions. People got bored easily in this town. I had taken to naps in the library instead of lunch. School was no longer the same. Jasper had sat next to me in three classes and now the seat was always empty. The vampire had never shown anything but kindness to me and at least I felt protected from Laurent at school. Embry would show up every night to do my math homework. I'd want to tell him no but I knew I would fail the semester if I didn't let him help me. We would sit on my balcony with hot chocolate and he'd tell me about everything I'd been missing.

One day I opened the door on my way out for school and my mom was standing there. She barely stopped to give me a hug and marched upstairs, dad following behind her in his uniform. I heard yelling from mom and dad's heavy footsteps as he marched around in the hallway. Bella screamed, refusing to leave. I skipped school that day and sat at the kitchen table in silence with Bella and our mom.

December was miserable. I took up black coffee and concealer for under my eyes. I didn't want dad seeing how much this was affecting me. Bella was finally going to school but didn't speak to anyone. Her friends gave up on trying. We were doing homework at the kitchen again like we used to. She was sitting with us for dinner again too. She still wasn't talking. I still wasn't sleeping. I was leaving her alone now when we weren't at school or sleeping. We needed time to ourselves.

I spent my time at Emily's for the most part. She'd let me nap on her couch and every day after patrol, I felt the other end of the couch creak when one of the guys would settle in. Paul and Jared would take turns in the past few months sitting outside Bella's window, in wolf form, making sure Laurent wasn't around. Sam reassured me that they hadn't smelled a vampire for months, but he knew I wasn't convinced.

Billy and Jacob came over to our house for Christmas this year because Bella wouldn't leave the house and we didn't want to leave her alone. She spent the whole night in her room. On the bright side, Embry sent me a present with Jake. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the bookmark with a carving of a wolf. He knew how much I loved the legends.

January was just as dull as the rest. It was still freezing. Bella was still screaming, and I was still not sleeping. Jared had come across a vampire scent at the beginning of the month, but they weren't able to identify if it was Laurent and it had gotten away before they could catch it. It was a new semester, so I didn't have to sit next to an empty seat anymore. I could see one of the wolves in the trees on the way to school every day, running beside the car.

Emily was still watching me all the time. The pack treated me like I was going to fall apart at any second. I failed my driver's test because I almost fell asleep at the wheel. Embry called to ask where I was at least twice a week. I hadn't seen them since Christmas.

I knew I shouldn't resent her, but it was becoming increasingly obvious that Bella had flipped my life upside down. Everything bad that happened, happened because of things that involved my sister. I knew she hadn't done it on purpose and I also knew that I had volunteered to take care of her during this time. Still, I couldn't shake the resentment that was slowly building up.