Thanks so much to my marvelous beta, KJ. She's a wizard with her mighty red pen. All mistakes, however, are mine because I don't leave stuff alone. :D

Disclaimer: All things Twilight belong solely to Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter Three

BPOV

Monday came all too quickly. I woke up to the sound of rain beating against the window. At least the weather matched my mood: gray and miserable. By the time I arrived at school, I discovered my new waterproof jacket wasn't so waterproof, and I resembled something similar to a drowned rat.

"Are you trying a new look this year?" Emily Young asked as I attempted to open my locker for the fifth time without success. "If so, I suggest trying something different."

Instead of verbally responding, I flipped her off and then continued with my task. I wasn't wasting a single breath on that bitch.

"Classy as always, LG." She huffed, flinging her hair over her shoulder as she walked away.

Leah appeared a few minutes later and leaned beside me. "Happy first day of hell."

"You can say that again." I thumped my forehead against the cool metal surface of my locker and groaned. "Can I put my shit in yours? Mine won't open."

"Here. Let me try." I stepped aside after giving her the combination. With a few flicks of her wrist, the door magically popped open.

"How did you do that?" I asked with my mouth agape.

"You should know by now, I've got skills." She blew on her fingernails and laughed. I rolled my eyes while I shoved my belongings inside the tight space. Afraid I wouldn't be able to reopen the damn thing again, I didn't close it entirely when I finished. If anyone wanted to steal my crappy jacket and emergency tampons, they were more than welcome to them.

Because enrollment at the tribal school was so small, Leah and I shared all of our classes together. Since we both opted to take several online college courses, we spent the majority of our day in the computer lab, working on the school's outdated machines.

As Mr. Ateara strolled around the room, helping students set up their usernames and passwords, I tilted my head toward Leah and whispered, "Where were you all day yesterday? Why did you need me to cover for you?"

Sunday morning, I awoke to Leah knocking on my window. She needed an alibi in case her mother called, looking for her. When I asked where she was going, she said she would explain later. I agreed; I was curious, but not really surprised. Leah sneaked around all the time. Because I wasn't as adventurous as she was, she usually waited to tell me about her exploits. She always said she didn't want to make me an accessory to her crimes. I guess she never understood I was already involved since I was covering for her.

"I went to Port Angeles." Not meeting my gaze, she bit her lip and blushed.

My brows raised into my hairline. Leah never blushed. Something was definitely up. "To see Mike? How did you get there?"

"He picked me up right outside the reservation." A foolish smile spread across her face as she looked at me with a slightly glazed expression. "We drove to the city and had breakfast, and then he took me to see a movie. And get this, even though he wanted to watch some stupid action film, he agreed to see the movie I wanted to watch instead."

Leah was a horror film connoisseur, so I knew there could only be one film that she was talking about. "Zombie Turtles: Slow, Steady, and Hungry?"

"Yeah, it wasn't even that scary, and it turns out Mike's little brother has a pet red-eared slider, so he freaked out a bit during an attack scene. We left before it ended." When I covered my mouth to stop myself from laughing, Leah smacked my arm. "It's not funny. I thought he was going to puke. Poor guy."

Listening to her come to his defense, my eyes widened. "Oh. My. God. You like this guy. You really like him."

She shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe."

-GGB-

As the week passed, it became more than apparent that Leah had feelings for Mike Newton. On Thursday, as we sat behind the school building during our lunch period, Leah smoked a cigarette and told me the latest news about her developing relationship. "Mike drove down last night to give me a present." After she grabbed her backpack and dug through its contents, she produced a shiny, new cell phone.

I took it from her hand. It wasn't an iPhone, but it still looked expensive. "Wow, this is nice. Is he rich or something?"

"Nah. He works part-time at some sporting goods store. It's just one of those pay as you go phones. Mike said he wanted to be able to get in touch with me whenever he wanted. Isn't that sweet? It also takes pictures. See." She pushed a few buttons and showed me a couple of photos of herself. "I sent those to him this morning before school."

As I handed the phone back to her, I took a good, long look at her face. She had changed. My snarky friend was almost glowing. "Well, you're right. It was nice of him. I'm glad you're happy."

"Thanks, babe. I wanted to ask you something. Mike invited me to a party tomorrow at his friend's house. I want you to come with us."

"Jeez, Leah. There's no way I would ever be allowed to go."

"For fuck's sake, I know that. In what world would Sue Clearwater ever give me permission to go to a party, let alone date a hókʷat?" When I grimaced at her words, she said, "No offense, but you know it's the truth. Anyway, we're going to sneak out. I already have a plan. Mike will pick us up at the border after Mom goes to work, and you'll tell your mom you're staying the night with me. Mike can bring us home before my mom's shift is over the next morning."

My heart raced at the thought of being rebellious. I never broke rules, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to start now. "What about Seth?" Leah typically babysat her brother whenever her mother worked.

"He's spending the night with one of his little friends." She took one last drag from her cigarette before crushing it into the ground. "Come on. I can see the wheels in your head turning. You're trying to talk yourself out of it. Live for once. Tyler will be there, and Mike says he asks about you all the time."

When I thought about the brown-haired boy from the beach, I remembered how he had made me feel uncomfortable. Even though he had defended me against Jacob, it felt as if Tyler had some sort of expectations—expectations that I wasn't ready to meet. "I don't know if I like him like that, Leah."

"No pressure. A lot of other people will be there, too. Or just come spend time with your best friend. I want you to get to know Mike." She pouted her lips.

"You promise not to leave me alone the entire time we're there?"

"Of course, I won't."

Sighing, I agreed. It was only one night. What could go wrong?

AN:

Famous last words, Bella.

*LG - Lobster Girl

Thanks to my son for the horror film title suggestion. Other titles we came up with were Zombie Kangaroos, Zombie Flies, and Zombie Sloths. Speaking of my son, I'll be dropping him off at college tomorrow. He's my first to leave the nest. It's incredibly bittersweet, and I know it's so cliché but they really do grow up so quickly. I feel like I just dropped him off at preschool. Sigh.

Thanks again to everyone who is reading and for all the kind reviews. I appreciate each of you tremendously.

As always, much love to K, Kay, Lizzie, Mandy, and Gail. I couldn't do it without you.

Until next time,

HE