During her lunch period, Valentina sat with Bella again, whispering about the former's pregnancy. "So when did you find out?" The senior asked.
"Uh, like, a month ago. I started throwing up alot, losing a ton of weight, y'know, the likes. My mom took me to the doctor and bam! I'm a teen mom," Valentina spoke quietly, reaching into her bag of chips.
"What about the dad?" Bella saw she struck a sore subject and attempted to backpedal, "Nevermind, I didn't ask, sorry."
"It's fine Bells," Valentina assured, using Jacob's nickname for the pale girl, "I broke up with him. He said it was him or the baby and I said 'Bye'." The girls laughed out just as the bell rang.
As they were gathering their things for their fifth period, Bella turned towards her new friend, "Are you coming to Jake's tonight?" Valentina smiled and nodded. "Cool," Bella responded with an awkward thumbs up and they went their separate ways.
"That is so not fair!" Valentina yelled to Jacob, who only laughed. The green-eyed girl continued, "That's literally like asking if you wanna smoke crack or go for a jog!" Bella laughed wholeheartedly, the game of 'Would You Rather' going smoothly.
"Okay, okay, I have one," Bella stifled her laughter, "Would you rather have a horse watch your dog or have a horse in a hospital?"
Valentina threw her hands in the air exasperatedly, "I hate this stupid game!" Her friends laughed at her, Jacob pausing his work on the motorcycles to meet the new girl.
"So what brings you to Forks?" Jacob looked at Valentina. "I mean, it's not like there's a whole lot of jobs or even things to do."
With his question, Bella looked uneasily at the other brunette. Jacob looked between the two girls, knowing that the reason had to be gossip worthy.
"You don't have to tell me," Jacob stated, "I get it, personal business and all." He bumped Valentina on the arm with a smile on his face.
"I'll tell you later," the green eyed teen teased, "maybe."
"Hey, uh, it's me. It's Valentina. Your sister." Valentina and Bella both cringed at her words. "I, um, I really need to, uh, talk to you." Bella encouraged her to continue. "It's, like, super important so please call me back," Valentina hung up the phone and fell backwards onto her bed.
"Well," Bella started, taking a seat next to the pregnant teen, "it could've been worse."
"Really?"
"No, that was pretty bad," both girls laughed at this, despite the eternal internal misery Valentina seemed to be going through. Bella looked through Valentina's history book as she asked, "So who's your doctor? Is it Dr. Mason? Her mom actually delivered me," seeing the look on the other teen's face, Bella started again, "Sorry that was really weird, I shouldn't have said that."
"No you're fine Bells," Valentina spoke in between soft giggles, "she was supposed to be my doctor but she's out on maternity leave so my new one is Dr. Cullen? I think?" Valentina watched as Bella's face fell, her eyes seeming to overflow with depression and panic.
"Dr. Cullen? Like, Dr. Carlisle Cullen?" Bella asked frantically.
"Uh yeah I think, why?" Valentina became worried as Bella began packing her backpack messily.
"I have to go, sorry!" Bella yelled as she ran out of the Thurston house. Valentina remained confused about the strange interaction until she saw her the next day.
Bella's face was sullen, even more so than the first day they met. Her skin seemed to drip sadness from the pores and the brown eyes Valentina knew so well held ever present tears.
"They came back," Bella whispered at the lunch table, not even looking up from the empty tray in front of her. "They came back without him."
While Valentina was utterly confused, she remained supportive to her friend. "Who came back?" she asked gently.
"The Cullens," Bella sighed, "Alice said they came back to Washington a month ago but just came back to Forks this week."
"Who did they come back without?"
"Him, my Edward," Bella's tears began to fall unwillingly.
Valentina was angry at whoever this Edward was, he and his family obviously didn't care enough about Bella to tell her that they were back, and Edward didn't care enough to even come back!
"Bells, do you wanna skip?"
The sad teenager only nodded emptily while Valentina retrieved her stuff, gripped tightly onto her friend's hand, and led them out of the cafeteria into the overcast that was Forks.
After leaving in Valentina's car, they went to the diner that Bella and her father, Charlie, frequented.
"Hi! Can I get two chocolate milkshakes? Thank you." Valentina had ultimately decided that food would cheer Bella up, seeing as it did for her.
"He said forever, was it all a lie? A ploy just so he could be around me?" Bella seemed to be talking to herself, though the words were clear to Valentina.
"Listen Bells, I have no idea who Edward is or the relationship you shared, but I can tell you without a doubt - and I know you don't wanna hear this right now - that if he truly cared as much as you said he did, he would be here," Valentina rubbed small circles on her pale friend's back, soothing her as a mother would.
At that moment, Jacob Black walked into the small dinner, his long black hair pulled into a ponytail. He briskly walked over to the table that the two girls sat at and knelt down beside Bella, simply pulling her into a hug.
"I called him, figured he could probably help more than me."
"Thanks Val," Bella's muffled voice arose from her place in Jacob's neck.
Valentina inched her way out of the booth, making way for Jacob and Bella to continue their embrace, and took the place across from them. She smiled at the waitress who set the two large chocolate milkshakes in front on the girls before leaving. The green eyed teen sipped her milkshake before asking, "So, Jacob, how's things?"
Jacob rolled his eyes annoyed, "You remember Embry? He left us for Sam's gang." Valentina vaguely recalled Jacob mentioning the supposed "gang" of La Push. Though, to her, it just sounded as if they were a group of boys hanging out; though she knew Jacob and Quil must be hurt by Embry joining them, seeing as he talked disapprovingly about the boys as well. Jake scoffed, continuing, "I mean first he shoots up - he's got to be 6'5 right now - then he gets all buff like he's on steroids or something, then he got all 'sick' and - boom - he's got a haircut and tattoo, hanging out with Sam and his disciples. It's just sickening."
Valentina shrugged, understanding where the anger came from. "Have you talked to him?" she asked.
"I couldn't if I wanted to, he's ignored all my calls and says it's better if we aren't friends for the time being and that I'll 'understand soon' whatever the hell that means." Bella's head came up from his shoulder when he said this.
"Maybe he just can't talk about it right now?" Valentina suggested.
"I don't know, Val. I just hate the way Sam looks at me now, like I'm next," both girls became worried at this, Valentina because the idea that Jacob may be part of a gang, or worse, was terrifying, and Bella because the thought of losing anyone else was almost enough to send her into a panic attack.
Valentina sat at the table she and Bella were accustomed to, only to see her friend sitting at a different table with a group who welcomed her warmly. The pregnant teen's shoulders dropped and her green eyes fell to her lunch, which suddenly became unappetizing. The cafeteria became quiet, beckoning her to look up.
She saw a group of unnaturally pale people whose familiar golden eyes sat atop dark purple circles, almost as if they hadn't slept in years. They looked at her with a sense of confusion and Valentina pieced together that the group must be the Cullens, and she must be sitting at their table. Valentina suddenly felt a pull on her arm, looking up to see Bella. She grabbed her things, quickly following her friend to another table.
"Sorry about that, I thought I told you about sitting here today, guess not, sorry," Bella bit her lip in embarrassment.
"It's fine, they just - nevermind," Valentina shook her head, picking at her lilac nail polish.
"What, Val?"
"It's just that they make me kind of uneasy, I don't know. I know they're your friends but they make me feel - weird." Valentina settled for the least offensive yet most descriptive word she could.
Bella sat back in her chair as a blonde boy came up to them, directing his interest in the pale brunette.
Valentina zoned out, only coming back to Earth when Bella slapped her lightly on the shoulder. "Well?" Valentina's confusion made Bella reiterate, "Did you wanna go see Facepunch with us? I might invite Jake."
"Uh, yeah sure, sounds fun," Valentina figured the annoying blonde boy had asked Bella to the movies and she was only asking people to avoid being alone with him.
"So, uh, you're Valentina?" The blonde's attention was now on the curly-haired brunette.
"Yep, that's me!" she smiled widely, hoping to get the attention off of Bella.
"Oh, I'm Mike," he introduced himself as his cheeks reddened.
Bella introduced the newest addition to Forks to the rest of her friends, all of them accepting with the exception of Jessica, who became huffy at the idea of another girl for Mike to gawk at besides her.
"I need you to see a movie tonight," Valentina spoke into her phone, flipping through her closet, deciding what to wear.
"Listen, Val, you're not really my type," Jacob's laugh boomed into Val's ear. She smiled and rolled her eyes.
"Ugh, how you hurt me Jake, but it's not just for me. Bella's little friend Mike wanted to go the movies with her and she invited a bunch of us to go with them."
"Ooh, I got it. What movie and what time?"
"Facepunch, 8 sharp, and Bella's paying for your ticket," Valentina relayed the information which Bella had given her only minutes before the call.
"Alright Val, see you at 8."
Valentina didn't seem to be the only one who couldn't stomach the gore, as Mike's face paled more with each scene. She quietly noted that Jacob's hand was wrapped around Bella's, and Mike's seemed to be looking for the pale girl's hand. The pregnant teen sat beside Jacob, sandwiching him between Bella and herself. Valentina was quick to lay her head on his shoulder when the gory scenes became too much and she thought she might throw up.
Her head only lifted when she heard Mike scurrying away with the promise of getting ill. The two girls, alongside Jake, followed suit, with Valentina also going into the restroom, although she only did so to give her friends some privacy. As she made sure that no one else was in the bathroom, she gazed into the mirror, lifting her shirt slightly, as to see the small bump that formed. She smiled but quickly ran out to her friends when she heard a commotion.
"Jake, Jake, Jake! The movie's over, what are you doin?" Bella's hand rested on Jacob's chest, creating a barrier between him and Mike. She took her hand away, staring at it strangely, "You're...really hot. Like you feel like you have a fever, are you ok?"
"I don't know what's happening," Jacob breathed heavily, "I gotta go." Valentina only watched as Jacob left the theater and ignored Mike's insult.
"I, uh, I guess I'm gonna take Mike home," Bella's face showed only confusion at her friend's outburst, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yeah, see you tomorrow," as she hugged the pale girl, Valentina whispered in her ear, "and tell me everything about you and Jake."