SIX PART THREE
The commotion outside of the tent had Eden grumbling and rolling over. Her face buried beneath Paul's empty pillow and she breathed in the lingering essence of his cologne. Outside, the commotion continued and Eden grumbled a little more, finally resorting to yelling out "Can you all knock it the hell off? Some of us are sleepin."
For a minute or two, the commotion died down. And then it was going all over again. This time, Eden sat up. Focused on who was yelling at who and exactly why. Eden heard her sister arguing with Edward and Jacob about something in heated hushed tones close to her tent and she crawled out of the sleeping bag and over to the tent opening, peeking out at the three.
"Do ya mind? Can you take this neverending rollercoaster back over where the others are, maybe?"
Bella gazed at her sister sheepishly. Tensing a little because she wondered exactly how much her sister heard. The question was answered when Eden pointed out quietly, "Not that anyone cares or asked for it, but I'm with Edward. Maybe you should just let the man go. Damn. I mean Jacob's a meatball, but at least with Jacob we wouldn't all be on top of a frozen mountain at fuck all o'clock in the morning on a weekened because someone just had to go and piss off the leech mafia." Eden hadn't meant to snap or even say everything she said, but lack of sleep and frustration will test and try a person's patience until there is none. "Sorry. I'm just tired. Done with all this." Eden was quick to apologize.
"Like I keep telling Edward, things don't just work like that. They don't, okay? Can everyone just stop?" Bella fumed in irritation.
"I can't live like this. If you go through with it Bella, I don't know how I'm gonna survive." Jacob pleaded.
"Jesus Christ." Eden mumbled at the outburst Jacob made before rushing off. She gave her sister a pointed look and mouthed, "Go after him! He was there for you when literally nobody else but me and dad gave a shit. Christ." to her sister. Bella nodded and after a second or two, she hurried off after Jacob.
Edward stood there, studying Eden intently.
"The dog.. He wasn't forward with you last night, I hope?" Edward inquired as he tried and failed at hearing every single thought on Eden's mind. Quite a few of them were cause for concern and he found himself wondering for probably the thousandth time since he met her why exactly she felt the way she felt about certain things. Then deeper, there was the fact that Eden secretly wouldn't have minded at all if the dog who'd imprinted her had maybe tried to be a little forward.
He filed that one away for later because it amused him just a little too much.
"Nope. Behaved himself so well I almost forgot he was there." Eden answered quietly. She gave a shrug and shuffled around inside the tent a little.
Except you know you couldn't help but be painfully aware of his presence. The warmth of his body, the way his arm went over you so snug. The urge you caved into at 3 am to roll over and smoosh yourself against the poor guy. And you wonder why he cut tracks before daylight, Eden. Could you be any more annoying if you tried? The thoughts came, ambushing her.
Edward's brow quirked and he chuckled quietly to himself. Walking a little closer towards Eden with a curious gleam in his eyes. "You were blushing. Just now when I asked you that."
"Me? No. Nope. I wasn't. I don't blush, Edward. Ever."
"Yeah, that's a lie. You blush a lot, actually. Particularly around a certain grumpy dog." Edward taunted, nodding in Paul's direction. Eden followed his gaze and she fidgeted, muttering something to herself.
"What'd you say?"
"You're the one with the satellite radio hearing, you tell me." Eden retorted, giving Edward a dirty look.
Paul grumbled to himself when he spotted Edward chatting up Eden. Rather than go storming over, he stopped. Gave himself a little time to kind of cool down. Maybe use his enhanced sense of hearing to find out what was being said.
He smirked a little to himself when he realized that apparently, Eden and Edward were having a bit of a bickering sibling situation.
Then he caught on to what was being said. And he took a deep breath or two, as he tried to process it. Or more to the point, what he did with what he'd accidentally overheard. She apparently felt something where he was concerned. But she told Edward that it didn't matter, stating again what she'd hinted at on more than one occasion already. In addition to that, she seemed to be onto the fact that he'd imprinted. But she thought it was someone else and that him being up here in the first place was keeping him away from this other person. He sat down on the ground, staring at his hands. Everything rushing around in his head at warp speed, nothing staying long enough for him to really grasp. He hadn't expected her to feel anything towards him beyond what he'd assumed she felt, which was annoyance. Irritation.
Maybe he'd been onto something earlier when he thought she was putting on a front.
Edward gazed at Eden and chuckled. "You do realize that maybe hiding the way you feel isn't the strongest strategy. That one is not good at subtleties at all."
"I'd really rather keep it to myself, thank you very much. The guy's already fucking annoyed I even breathe. Why do you think I go out of my way to keep quiet? It's not just because I'm in awe of him or whatever like you said, it's because I don't want him to completely hate me. Not that I'd blame him if he did, given the circumstance."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. Pretty sure that thanks to this entire debacle, he's been dragged away from someone more important. You and my sister and all this chaos." Eden muttered, shaking her head as she muttered yet another apology. "Sorry. It's just lack of sleep and a whole lotta frustration, alright? Can we just drop this shit for now, Edward? This is not the time or the place. Just focus on whatever it is we're all up here to do and nobody, especially not Paul, getting dead or injured. Leave my personal situation alone. I'll handle it. Or not."
"By not handling it? In what world, Eden, does that make any sort of sense?" Edward asked calmly as he tried to make it make sense for himself. It didn't. No matter how hard he tried to make it.
"Plenty if it turns out I'm not meant to be for him. There's really not an ounce of hope in the situation, alright? Just.. Get lost, okay? I'm getting a headache. You're giving me a headache." Eden grumbled as she raised her hand and rubbed at her temples while glaring at the stoic vampire.
"Says Eden, every single time I get too close to a touchy subject. You need to open up. Let some of the things you cling to so desperately out." Edward chuckled as he calmly stated it.
"Oh no, nope. I happen to love my sister and I don't want to completely lose her in my life." Eden insisted. ,,If he keeps this up, she thought to herself, I'm going to tell them both exactly how I really feel and it won't be pretty."
"It's okay to love someone and disapprove of their actions. It's also okay to tell them you do." Edward could pick up on what she'd just been thinking, so he was trying to reassure her to stop holding it all in. Sooner or later, she was going to explode. He was personally surprised she hadn't already. She'd been through a lot. Everything she knew now was a lot for a person to take in.
"Yeah, not gonna happen." Eden grumbled.
When Bella stormed past them, Eden shot up and bolted out of the tent, catching up to her sister and stopping her. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"I thought Jacob was going to jump. I was trying to stop him and then he.." Bella trailed off and Eden swore quietly as she looked at her sister and waited on an answer. "He what, Bella? What'd he do?"
Her eyes settled on the way Bella was holding onto her hand and grimacing as if she were in pain. " I kissed him because I thought that would make him stop and think and I...He tried to make the kiss last longer and I got mad so I punched him in the chest."
"Is that what's wrong with your hand?" Eden asked. Rolling her eyes when Bella wasn't looking because if the situation wasn't messy enough already, what the hell did she think asking Jacob to kiss her was going to accomplish exactly? She tapped her foot against the grass and fought the urge to point it out to her sister. She had to strongly fight the urge, because from her outsiders perspective, this entire shit show could be avoided on most fronts if Bella would simply pick one or the other and stop leading someone she knew cared deeply about her around by the nose.
,, Typical, Eden thought, she's got people falling at her damn feet and still somehow, it's not enough. Would there even be half this fucking fanfare if I were the one in danger? Not likely." and instantly as the thought came, Eden shoved it down and cringed at herself for even having it. She wasn't supposed to feel this way about her sister. She hated the fact that she did and she couldn't stop it lately so much worse.
"Yeah." Bella admitted. Edward walked over and Eden walked away, going off to find Jacob. Irritated by the entire rollercoaster the three had going. Beyond done with it. Tired of watching her best friend get shoved to the side and led around by Bella.
She found Jacob sitting on a steep part of the mountain, staring down at the canyons. She wandered over and flopped down to sit beside him. "Look. I know things have been tense between us since everything happened. I know we haven't been best friends in a really long time but.." Eden started, paused to take a deep breath as she tried to think of how to say what she was going to next. She dropped her gaze to her jeans and sighed a little. "This isn't good for you, okay? You have to let go. One of you has to walk away and it's going to have to be you, Jake. I'm.. I'm so sorry. This is only hurting you and as your friend, even if we're not close at all anymore, I hate watching it. I know you're going to let this go in one ear and out the other but Jake, trust me.. This will pass."
"I just hate it, okay? It's not fair. I know what's coming and I'm trying to stop it. I'm trying to save her. Why's it have to be him, huh? What's so great about that leech?" Jacob ranted and went quiet. His jaw set.
"Stop trying to save her. Look, I love my sister okay? I really do. And I tried to do the same thing you're doing now, at first. But sometimes people don't wanna be saved. Whatever happens from now on is up to her to fix. Maybe that's the way it needs to be. Maybe she finally needs to just learn things the hard way."
"I just want to imprint already. Fucking get it over with so I don't hurt all the time anymore. I try and I try and I can't." Jacob muttered as he gazed down at his hands. She'd probably think he was beyond pathetic if she had any clue that he'd actually tried to make himself imprint on her more than a time or two since they'd come up on the mountain the night before. If Paul wasn't going to wake up and see what was right in front of him, he'd told himself, it would be better for everyone if he could've just somehow made himself imprint on Eden.
Why did it have to be this way? It wasn't fair.
Just the reminder of the stuff Paul had told her about the imprinting bond and the suspicion she had that he'd imprinted on someone and this entire shit show was keeping the two apart had Eden tensing just a little. She laughed quietly. Nodded her head in agreement. "Sometimes we don't get what we want in life until we really need it, man. Sometimes we don't get it at all. It is what it is."
"Gee thanks." Jacob grumbled as he gazed at Eden for a few seconds. Long enough to see that something was bothering her. It was probably the first time he'd actually paid attention to a girl that used to be one of his closest friends in literal months. He sighed.
"I'm sorry." Jacob muttered as the realization took over.
Eden shrugged. "I get it, okay? You've always been in love with her. If it helps, the fact that you're too damn stubborn to just give up on her has kind of been a serious comfort for a while now. I don't worry as much."
"But you're one of my best friends. And I just kind of forgot all about that." Jacob questioned as he looked over at Eden in concern. Something was eating at her. From the looks of it, something had been eating at her for a while now.
"Frankly, Jacob, I'm fine. Shit happens. People drift." Eden shrugged it off. " Bella told me you tried to keep the kiss going." Eden cringed at Jacob and shook her head. "Not cool."
Jacob cringed and a hurt look crossed his eyes for a few seconds. "Lot of good that did, huh? Is her hand alright?" he asked in concern.
"She'll be fine. It's her own damn fault for pulling that shit. I swear, it's as if she's lost her fucking mind all of a sudden." Eden shrugged it off and shook her head. She leaned back a little, gazing up at the sun as it rose higher in the sky. Laughing a little. "Is it bad that I've gotten to this point where I'm just kind of checked out of it all? I've literally taken all the bullshit that's thrown at me as far as all this goes until I can't take any more of it. And now I'm just like.. Waiting for and dreading how I know this has to end for her in equal measure?"
"Not really." Jacob admitted.
"Between all of this and other stuff, I'm just ready for things to go back to calm and boring."
Jacob eyed her and asked after a second or two, "What stuff?"
"I'd rather not." Eden answered quickly.
"If it involves Paul.." Jacob started.
"It does, but it's mostly a me thing." Eden admitted as she gazed down into the canyons and the thick forests at the foot of the mountain. "If I hadn't even met him." she started, going quiet.
"What?"
"I dunno.. There's something about him. I can't stop thinking about the guy or feeling drawn to him and it seems like the harder I try to stay the hell away because I know I'll only mess it up, the more I find myself thrown into situations where I'm around him? And the more that happens the more I.. Forget it. This is dumb, okay? Can we please stop talking about all this shit and talk about literally anything else?" Eden pleaded as she looked at Jacob.
"Do you have a crush on Paul Lahote? Gross." Jacob snickered a little, a weak smile coming before he could stop it. For a second or two, he found himself able to kind of sit aside everything he felt about Bella and the huge mistake she was about to make with her life.
Then it all came rushing back and he tensed and went quiet.
"I do not." Eden scowled a little. But if the tension that took over her body and had her almost folded into herself was anything to go by, Jacob knew for fact that she had to be lying through her teeth.
"You do." Jacob gazed at her, letting what she wasn't saying and didn't actually need to tell him process.
"Nope. Besides.. I can't even breathe around the guy without it seeming to annoy the living hell out of him, apparently." Eden admitted after a second or two. Shrugging to pretend as if she didn't care but deep down, it frustrated her and it hurt more than it should have given that she barely knew the guy.
Jacob eyed Eden with a raised brow. "Paul's just naturally that way? He's that way with everyone. Trust me."
"I believe you, I just.. Look, I know that deep down in there, he's not a complete jerk. There's all these little things he's done to kind of indicate that. But that being said, it doesn't even matter because thanks to this shit my sister and Cullen have dragged down on all our heads, the guy hates me." Eden went quiet again. Then she pulled herself off the ground and held out her hand to Jacob.
"Look. You're going to be okay, Jacob. You'll imprint and hopefully, you'll forget all about my sister. And this person will be so much better. Just don't give up on me, okay? I refuse to let you become another casualty of this shit." Eden made Jacob look at her as she gave him begging eyes. "If you need to talk, find me. Talk to me. I don't mind, contrary to the way I've acted as of late."
Jacob nodded.
"Be careful with Lahote, okay? I've only ever seen the guy be angry or annoying." Jacob cautioned her.
"After this weekend, probably not gonna see the guy again at all. Sucks, but that's how it will most likely go. He'll go back to whatever and I'll go back to bitching about letters in math."
"Maybe not." Jacob gazed at Eden in concern as he stopped her from walking away. "Since when do you give up, huh? Since when does anything scare you?"
"Since I realized that sometimes giving up is better than constantly beating your head against a fucking wall in life. Sometimes when you want something to happen a lot it's scary, okay? That's what this is. I may or may not feel a certain way and it may or may not scare the living hell out of me. Because I've just spent two years watching first hand what really strong feelings can and will do to a person, Jake. I… I don't want to deal with it."
"Yeah. I don't blame you. Not at all. I wish I'd chosen that route, looking back. Just makes me so fucking sick. I know your sister's going to go through with it all. She's going to throw everything away on him."
Bella stepped out and Eden swallowed hard.
"Can I talk to Jacob?" Bella asked quietly. Eden nodded and then she wasted absolutely no time in getting the hell away from the two of them.
In her rush to do so, she collided with Paul. Paul reached out wordlessly, grabbing her hip to keep her steady, because she'd been hauling ass and as per usual, not watching where she went while doing so.
"I'm fine. I just need to go."
"Where?" Paul stood taller, towering over her. Staring down at her intently. Still trying to process what he'd overheard earlier, thanks to his enhanced sense of hearing. "C'mon, where the hell could you possibly have to go right now, huh?"
When she fumbled and fumbled but couldn't answer, he chuckled and gave her a firm look as he nodded to the tent nearby. "If you need a time out away from everyone, go in there."
" I want off this fucking mountain. I wanna be alone. Completely alone. I.. I can't stay here, alright? I shouldn't even be up here." Eden insisted, folding her arms over her chest as she did so. Paul didn't budge, not even an inch. He nodded towards the tent again.
"We can do this the easy way, Eden.." Paul paused and took a deep breath. "Or we can do this the hard way."
Eden's brow raised and she glanced off to the side of him as if she were about to push past. Before she even realized what was happening, he'd scooped her up and he was wandering over to the tent. Putting her inside. Zipping the tent from the outside and sitting down in front of it.
She shoved at the tent flaps and started to work on unzipping them from her side, but Paul leaned back more firmly. "Let me out."
"Nope. I turn my back on you and that fucking leech shows up. Not lettin it happen again." Paul answered.
"Goddamn it, I'll cut my way out."
"Not if your pocketknife is still in the pocket of my jeans you won't." Paul chuckled and smirked to himself as he said it.
Bella wandered over to where he sat. "What the hell are you doing?" she asked as she nodded towards the tent and the way it was being shoved and hit from the inside. Paul tilted his head, gazing up at Bella. "Not letting her out of my sight. What the fuck's it look like?"
"At least you're finally watching out for her." Bella grumbled.
"A lot better than you, if we're being honest. Who just ran off to torture Black a little more just now? Because it wasn't me, Bella." Paul glanced up at her, smirking when she glared at him and her mouth opened and closed over and over again while she stammered and searched for something to say.
"Where was she going?"
" I think all the fucking drama was getting to her, alright? In case you haven't noticed, your sister doesn't like a lot of this shit. She's not a very confrontational person. Kinda think she hates being around a lot of people too, but that's beside the point." Paul shrugged as he said it.
The fact that he'd noticed that had Bella really gaping at him in shock. She sat down beside him. "Are you okay, Edie?"
"Considering I slept in a tent, I pissed in the woods and a leech keeps trying to suck my blood like it's a fucking margarita, yeah. I'm solid." Eden retorted, taking a few deep breaths. " I just wanted to go for a walk. Calm down."
"That's not a good idea." Bella told her sister. "Not with what that vampire tried to pull last night."
"Yeah. I figured you'd say that. You do realize that if you maybe hadn't decided you wanted to bang a vampire none of this would be happening, right? I love you, Bells. I really do. But that's the truth." Eden sighed and took a few long and deep breaths to relax.
She felt a little better, finally putting the words out there.
Bella tensed a little and nodded. Swallowing hard as she muttered quietly, "I know. I know and I'm so sorry, okay?"
"Sure. Sure you are. You're getting exactly what you want." Eden spoke up. "What about next time the shit hits the fan, huh? How many more times are we all going to have to give? What will it take, Bella? Do you not see the danger in all this? Is it really worth it? These guys shouldn't even have to be up here, doing this. And if… Nevermind. I need to shut up now." Eden trailed off, resting her forehead against the top of her knees. "I'm just having a shit day, alright? I'll be fine. Just.. Just go. Go." she said it firmly.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm not a child, Bella. I'll be fine. Just go." Eden took a deep breath as she repeated herself and rolled her eyes.
She felt a lot lighter. She'd finally managed to say what she felt without it being in anger. Most of it, anyway. Enough of it for the time being.
"She told you to go, Bella. Go." Paul stated calmly. Bella glanced from Paul to the closed tent and back again. Glaring at him a second or two.
"I didn't make her say any of that." Paul shrugged. "How long did you expect her to bite her tongue though?"
"If you upset her.. In any way, Paul. I'm going to kick your ass. Are we clear? That's as close to an okay with everything as you're getting from me. And you're only getting that because you're really proving me all sorts of wrong." Bella turned and walked away.
"Hey.. Permission to enter?" Paul spoke up after a few seconds.
Eden mulled it over. "Sure." she answered after a second or two. Quick to wipe her eyes because the parts she hadn't said to Bella just now were still kind of eating away at her.
But she was taking baby steps.
It wasn't as if she intentionally wanted to take a match and light a fire to the strained relationship she already had with her sister.
Paul sat across the tent, staring at the comforter for a few seconds. "You okay over there?"
Eden shrugged, choosing to stay quiet.
Afraid if she opened her mouth, she was going to tell him exactly how she felt where he was concerned and she honestly did not want to have to spend another night in the tent with him after she did so and made things even more awkward and tense between them.
Paul eyed her for a second or two and repeated his question.
Eden shrugged again. "Yeah. I guess everything just got to me and I had my limit." she made sure she was quick to divert her eyes off of his.
Apparently this time, he wasn't having it. He reached out, tucking his fingers beneath her chin. Making her look at him. He started to say something but then he went quiet. Oh, he kept holding onto her so she had no choice but to look at him, but he didn't say anything.
"Whatever it is, just say it." Eden finally mumbled.
Paul chuckled and shook his head no. "Oh no. Nope. Not gonna happen."
"Look.. You had to witness at least two of my meltdowns so far this weekend. If you want to talk, Paul.." Eden offered.
"They weren't actually meltdowns though. They were a logical reaction to a lot of bullshit you shouldn't even be caught up in to begin with." Paul explained as he caught himself staring at her. His eyes leaving the warm and chocolate depths of her eyes to settle on her lips. He leaned forward slightly. On autopilot.
He almost couldn't take another second of any of this. The urge to be closer to her. To finally just let go and reveal himself. It was so overwhelming.
But so was the fear that came with it.
Which made him feel fucking pathetic, because thanks to his keen hearing, he knew now that he had nothing at all to fear. And yet, he couldn't just give in. Let go and stop fighting so damn hard.
Because there was that small fear of the future. What if at some point, the bond wasn't enough for her? Or him? What if they couldn't make anything work no matter how hard they tried? What if he woke up one day and she was just gone?
He chuckled at himself bitterly.
Eden leaned forward too. And to his surprise as well as her own, she closed the distance between them as she moved to sit between his legs, facing him with her legs over the tops of his thighs and resting on either side of his body. "Sorry." she muttered awkwardly.
Paul shrugged. "If I wasn't okay with it, you'd know it." he admitted with a calm smirk.
She leaned against him awkwardly, letting out a few ragged breaths. "I hate that she keeps doing this and putting you guys in the fucking middle. Nevermind me. I can ignore the bullshit. I can always just pack my happy ass back up and go to Florida to escape. But like.. Thanks to her idiot boyfriend, you guys pretty much have to give up any shred of normal." Eden muttered as she rose up a little to look at him. She bit her lip and he shifted the way they sat just so Eden didn't pick up on anything and things didn't get awkward.
"You'd really leave?"
"Not in a million years. Sadly, my gullible ass would be too worried about her stupid ass being safe. One of us has to have sense. She's possessed it all this time. I guess now it's my turn to be the practical one. Besides.. My mom and I don't exactly get along. Dad.. He says it's because to an extent, I'm a lot like her?" Eden laughed quietly as she said it.
Paul chuckled. "So you're not leaving?"
"Nope. Besides, somebody has to stick around. Look after the old man. Stop Jake's idiot ass from going off the rails when this plays out and runs it's course. Why? Would you miss me just a little?" Eden laughed quietly as she tilted her head a little and stared at him for a few seconds. Trying like hell not to get all dazed and focus on his lips like she seemed to do.
" Well, you are the only one who gives my shit back to me." Paul admitted, chuckling quietly as he found himself doing it again, staring at her mouth like an idiot. He slipped his arms around her before he could stop himself from doing it and he chuckled again when he saw big brown eyes get wider, kind of as if she were a deer caught in headlights.
Eden swallowed hard and muttered something to herself. With a little focus Paul realized that she'd muttered a warning to herself not to be an idiot and make things weird.
"Ya mean things can get weirder than this?" Paul joked.
"You.. you heard me?" Eden raised her hand, tangling it in her hair as she gazed at him and the slightest hint of red crept into her cheeks.
"You'd be surprised what I can hear. Enhanced hearing. It's kind of another part of this. Sometimes it's useful, most of the time, it's a pain in my ass." Paul admitted with a teasing smirk and a shrug. The fact that she got fidgety when he admitted that he could hear her had him chuckling again.
"Lovely. All this time, you've had to hear my mumbled ranting." Eden shook her head and just as she was about to apologize, Paul raised his hand and pressed the side of his finger against her lips. "I swear to God, woman.. If you apologize one more time."
"Okay, alright. I just.. I know I'm annoying?"
"You're actually not?" Paul gazed at her. "If you were, trust me. I'd have definitely been the one to tell you by now."
Noise from outside had Paul tensing and Eden about to spring off his lap where she'd been sitting. Paul turned himself to face the tent opening and he peered out, turning around to face her quickly. "Shit. Look. I gotta go now. Stay put and stay quiet. Do not come out of this tent."
He was about to crawl out of the tent when Eden tapped his shoulder and quietly placed her second knife into his hand. " I know you think you're nearly invincible, okay? But like.. Just take it, okay?"
Paul eyed her with a raised brow. She offered the knife again.
"No. You keep it here with you."
"Paul.."
"I'm not arguing." Paul shifted into his wolf form and headed down towards the commotion before Eden could argue.
Eden crawled back into the tent and zipped it, turning to look out one of the little mesh windows to try and figure out what exactly was going on.
And despite her best attempts not to, she spent the next hour or two worrying. Jumping at every noise. Tensing at every growl or scream that sounded like it held agony and not anger.
[ post script ] EEEE! Oh my gosh oh my gosh, thank you so much! I can't wait to read the next part of The Life of Rosalie Hale, MysteryFan1997! I'm loving it, okay? I'm really, really, really, really emphatically loving it. And a huge hug to QueenOfGoodbyes and NinaBacini also yes agreed I will try to keep Paul away from trees going forward! I love you guys so much all of you!
Also huge thanks to every single person who is reading and took the time to leave a comment you guys have me all teary eyed over here I s2g! Oh yeah and a huge thanks to everyone favoriting and following im blown away!