A/N: So, we're getting into the plot a little more here! Enjoy!
Bella
Edward's waiting in the parking lot with the weirdest look on his face. He doesn't even notice us, just sitting in his car with the windows up. Emmett grins, moving quickly and silently for the passenger seat. I trail behind him, waving at the rest of my family, going for Jasper's car.
Emmett opens the door and slides in with a triumphant smirk. Edward jumps and I'm surprised. Shouldn't he have seen Emmett coming? Weary, I take my seat in the back, strapping myself in.
"I bet Mrs. Goff thinks you're on drugs, you've been so erratic lately," Emmett says. "Where were you today?" Edward chances a look at me through the rearview mirror, his mouth set in a strange line, like he doesn't know whether to laugh or frown.
"I was… doing good deeds," he explains vaguely. "Caring for the sick, that sort of thing."
"Oh," Emmett says, nodding. "The boy."
"Wait, Beau?" I ask urgently. "What's wrong with Beau?"
"There was a blood typing lab today," my brother says. "Beau doesn't like blood."
"Sure has some flavor though, huh?" As soon as Emmett makes the comment, Edward snarls, vicious and decidedly unplayful. Emmett holds his hands up placatingly.
"Easy, kid, I was just saying," he defends himself. Before we can leave though, Alice comes skipping up to the driver's side window, hand outstretched.
"I only saw that I did," she says. I tried not to pout, but it was hard not to feel excluded when they had their little telepathic conversations. "I don't know the whys. You'll have to tell me later."
"Alice—"
"I know, I know. I'll wait," she says. "I'll see you at home."
We set off then, Edward driving as fast as he possibly could. I grip the arm rests, pressing against seat. We're home before I can—thankfully—lose my lunch. I stick my tongue out at him as we get out of the car. Emmett laughs, hauling me up into his arms as I teeter around.
Inside, he sets me carefully on the couch, tousling my hair and laughing as I try to dodge him. Jasper's getting out the giant chess set, which is really eight chess sets conjoined. The summer before I turned 14, they tried to teach me, but it was far too complicated. I opted to loiter in the mall with my new friends instead.
Everyone does their own thing, waiting for Alice and Edward to come back. I flick on the tv, scrolling to find a rerun of the Vampire Diaries. I love to watch vampire shows, if only to laugh about how inaccurate they are.
Edward makes a face at my choice, bypassing my sector of the living room entirely for the piano. I sigh, switching off the TV. Mom and I watch him, listening as he warms up, brushing the keys to play an arpeggio. He starts up a simple melody, soft and solemn, rising and falling in complication like waves.
Soon enough, everyone gathers to watch him. Music soothes the savage beast, I think. Rosalie leans against Emmett, a frown on her face. I can pretty much see the cogs turning in her head. This song isn't for anyone one of us.
"It's lovely," Mom murmurs. "What's it called?"
"It doesn't have a name," Edward mutters, still playing. Alice comes to join him, her voice ringing out like a bell. They harmonize, the melody changes, and Edward admits something, so soft that I have to strain to hear him.
"It's a lullaby."
My stupid brother, so hopelessly in love already, bows his head over the keys as he finishes. Mom strokes his head reassuringly, speaking quietly to him.
"Come on, Eddie Boy," I say, breaking the tender moment. "Let's go get a milkshake."
Edward rolls his eyes at me but complies. I follow him out to the garage, hopping into the passenger seat of his car. Edward scowls wordlessly as he drives, but thankfully, he goes slow. Well. Slower. He's still leagues above the speed limit, but I'm not worried for my life.
There's a single diner in Forks, but it has the best milkshakes I've ever had in my life. Edward hands me a twenty and I run in, leaving him idling in the parking lot. Once I'm happily sucking down my Oreo Crème Blitz, we drive down to the nature center to sit in the parking lot.
"Well?" he asks me.
"Well," I start. "I really did want a milkshake."
"This can only end in disaster," Edward says, and I fight the urge to roll my eyes. The edgelord strikes again.
"They're not that bad for you," I say, ginning as I shake my milkshake at him. Edward ignores me, staring out the window.
"Emmett wants to go hunting soon," he says.
"You're going to have your mushy gushy emotional talk with him?" I ask, incredulous. This pulls a smile on my brother's face.
"I suppose not," he says. "Best to get that out of my system now."
"If you're going to date Beau, you need to talk like a human being from this century," I tell him, serious. "Your meme literacy is abysmal."
"I know the main ones," Edward says, avoiding the conversation entirely. "Yeet. Road work ahead. Chickens. My bases are covered."
"Jesus Christ," I tell him. "So, the Seattle date?"
"That might be a grievous mistake on my part," Edward admits, cringing. "I didn't like the thought of him with some shallow little girl at prom or stuck in some stuffy basement with those awful Neanderthals."
"If I could punch you, Eds, I would," I say. "You can be a real bitch sometimes. Those are my friends you're talking about."
"Beau has said as much," Edward says, a worried expression on his face. "Eventually, he'll… find me unbearable. I'll take what I can get for now."
I twiddle my thumbs, struck by the sincerity of his words. Edward was a private person, and when he did choose to talk about his feelings, he didn't talk about them with me. I'd expected to have to coax him into talking.
"Look," I start, unsure. I'm not great with the emotional stuff. "Beau already likes you, okay? He might not like you all the time, but he has feelings for you, I think."
Edward shakes his head, refusing to see. I sighs; I know a lost cause when I see one.
"Let's go back," I say. "I have a lot of homework to do."
Back home, Alice breaks the news that Peter and Charlotte are coming to visit. They don't know about me, so the plan is for Rosalie to take me a hotel for the few days they'll be around. Of course, Edward pitches a fit, and in the end, Alice lets him probe her mind while she concentrates on the more traditional vampires.
Once he's soothed, he and Emmett go on their way. It's pretty quiet that night, just us girls. Jasper and Dad decide to go scope around, figure out Peter and Charlotte's path from Alice told them.
It's fun. We sit around and gorge ourselves on snacks—well, I do, anyways. We watch cheesy romcoms and I play with Rosalie's hair, twisting it into elaborate braids upon braids, just like I've always done.
When I fall asleep, homework half forgotten, mom carries me upstairs and tucks me in, promising to get me up early so I can finish it.
Friday morning at school, I'm groggy, but at least my homework is done. Beau slides into his seat third period, smiling wanly at me.
"Hey," I say softly. It's weird to think he'll be a part of my family eventually, even if he doesn't know it now.
"Hey," he returns. I can tell he's dying to ask about my brothers, maybe an explanation for whatever bullshit Eds pulled yesterday. He doesn't ask, though, and I'm strangely touched. All we talk about is each other.
At lunch, the buzz is about the weather. Mike repeats the forecast over and over, even after we beg him to stop. We girls gush about the tanning prospects. I glance at my skin, a sad, pale brown. It could use some warmth.
"Should we go to the nature center?" I suggest. Even Beau looks interested in the prospect of good weather.
"No way," Eric says. "No hiking."
"Let's go to the beach!" Jessica decides excitedly. I perk up immensely. For a little while, we lived in Maine, right by the water, in a giant old lighthouse. I adored the place, and the ocean. Emmett would come swimming with me, telling me about all the old fisherman tales, about krakens and sirens. I used to pretend I was a mermaid queen, with Alice and Rosalie as my subjects, who had to protect my kingdom from the krakens, usually Emmett and Jasper. Edward never really took part in our games.
"Oh, for sure," I agree. Pretty much the whole table's in agreement, even Beau. I loop my arm around his shoulder and grin excitedly.
Dad and Jasper head out again after school, trying to intercept our visitors and guide them back, presumably to make sure they didn't hunt anywhere close to us.
"I'm going out with my friend's tomorrow," I say casually. We're going to La Push, and my family has a weird rule about the reservation. They won't tell me why we're not allowed up there, so I don't bother to tell them what I'm actually doing.
"That's fine," my mom says easily. "Just make sure to text and keep us in the loop, sweetheart."
I promise I will, turning to my homework. My phone's blowing up, all my friends chiming in with what they're bringing, what they want to do. It's the first week of march, definitely too early to get in the water, but Jess and a few others are adamant.
Tomorrow, I get up early and snake Mom's car, the most inconspicuous of the cars. It's a plain black BMW. I drive up to Newton's Olympic Outfitter's, where everyone is meeting. So far, Mike, Eric, Tyler, Angela, Jess, and Lauren were the only one's here. We sat on the hoods of our cars and waited, yawning as we chatted.
Beau's the next to arrive so I wave him over. He gives me a grateful smile and hops up onto the hood of my car, albeit a little clumsily. He flushes but grins when I nudge my shoulder against his. A few more people gather, and finally, everyone who'd said they'd come have arrived. We pile into different cars, squeezing two to a seatbelt—save for the driver. Beau gives me a wink, nodding in Mike and Jess's direction. In the end, Jess sits half in Mike's lap, half on the gear shift for the drive. I'm on Beau's lap, his arm a comfortable weight around my waist.
First Beach is really pretty, a mile-long crescent wedged between cliffs. We pile out of the cars and claim one of the fire pits, squeezing together on the logs there. Beau doesn't venture out from my side, so we talk to Angela and Lauren about prom.
Soon enough, the group wants to split. A group of guys want to hike out to look at the tide pools, but some of us girls want to get in the water. Surprisingly, Beau decides to go hiking with the guys. I wave, watching him disappear into the trees. Jess, Lauren, Cissie Davis, and Amanda Dilley all zip up into wet suits heading for the water. Angela and I watch them go, trying to catch the meager March waves.
"Yo," someone says. I look up to find some of the La Push kids smiling at us. "Can we join you?" Angela blushes and sputters, but I don't, smiling invitingly and gesturing for them to sit. The oldest amongst them, Sam, settles on a log and immediately pulls his phone out. The others, a girl, Kim, her boyfriend Jared, and his best friend Paul, chat with us. We make small talk for a while before another trio of La Push boys come to join us.
One of them in particular catches my eye.
He's gorgeous in the extreme. Tan, almost as dark as I am, with hair that falls like perfect silk down to his elbows. He has it tucked carelessly behind his ears. His eyes are rich and dark, wide, and his nose strong. Most of all, his smile is sunshine itself, beckoning me in.
"Hi," I call out. "Come sit with us."
"Hey, I'm Jake," the boy says, grinning at me. Even his teeth are perfect. "This is Quill and Embry."
"I'm Bella," I offer. "This is Angela. The rest of us are either in the water or hiking." The girls were coming back now, and the single boy—the one who didn't look put out—perks up at the prospect of girls.
We all make small talk, chatting about school, last football season, the current hockey season, and the upcoming lacrosse season. Unsurprisingly, it's the big sport around here. Jake sits next to me, arm thrown casually on the log behind me. He's easy to flirt with, blushing when I twirl a lock of his hair around my finger and tell him how good it looks.
Eventually, the hikers come back. I smile over at Beau, who waves at me. Poor guy has his palms all scrapped up. Jake lights up in recognition.
"Yo!" he crows, hopping up to dap it up with Beau. I giggle as they fumble through it. "How's the truck, dude?"
"It runs surprisingly well," Beau says. "So long as I don't take it past 60."
"Yeah, I wouldn't recommend that," he says. He smiles at me then, sitting back down. "You know Bella?"
"Sure," Beau says, taking a seat next to Jake.
"So how do you guys know each other?" I ask.
"Jake's dad is my godfather," Beau explains. "How're the twins, by the way?"
"My older twin sisters," Jake tells me. "Rachel got a scholarship up to Washington. Becca's doing some environmental cleanup project in Hawaii. She met a guy. Surfer, apparently."
"Nice," Beau says appreciatively. In a move that surprises me, Jake slides his arm around my shoulder, pulling me a touch closer. Beau smirks at us, and I just know he's going to make some shithead comment, but before he can, Lauren cuts in.
"So," she says, in a tone that implies that she's not here to play nice. I can't tell if her problem is me or Beau, but she's been almost unbearably bitchy recently. I don't like to think that about other girls, but she's really trying my patience. "How do you all know each other?"
Beau tells her patiently. Jake seems a little uncomfortable now, with Lauren's scrutinizing gaze on him. I reach for his hand, lacing our fingers together. There's something about him that invites intimacy. He's so sweet, and I can't help wanting more of him. Call me selfish.
"Don't you two look comfy," she snarks. Cissie laughs, shaking out her damp hair.
"Bells, what happened to the basketball player? Joey Reed?" she teases me. I roll my eyes, refusing to be intimidated.
"Joey's just a friend," I say, though it's more for Jake's benefit. He laughs softly, shaking his head.
"Well," Lauren says, clearly not ready to give up yet. "Beau, what about you?"
"What about me?" Beau says, seemingly cool. It seems only Jake and I can see the flash of panic in his eyes.
"Why did you invite your new friend up?" Lauren sneers. "Edward? Aren't you guys friends now?"
"You could've invited Edward Cullen and you didn't?" Cissie gasps. I scowl at her, but she ignores me resolutely. The boy on his phone, a man really, looks up now, interested.
"Dr. Carlisle Cullen's family?" he asks. I stiffen, uncertain. Hesitantly, Jake withdraws his arm. Beau cocks his head, curious.
"The Cullen's don't come here." He says it with such firm authority, I just know he knows. But how? How could he know about my family?
A/N: Let me know what you thought!