CHAPTER IV: BUT DID U DIE?

I was doing my best not to feel nervous while waiting on the side of the road for a familiarly-beaten Chevy pickup, but it was pretty hard to be calm and collected when I'd spent all of last-night researching into pictures of motorbike accidents and statistical data for motorbike crash deaths. Of course, I only had myself to blame for the anxiety I had about today, but if asked, I'd only claim that I've had a lifelong phobia of motorcycles. The only good thing about humans was that they couldn't tell whether you were lying, unless you had the inherent ability to expose yourself through stutters and flickering gazes.

Speaking of terrible liars—I had a hunch that Bella was one of them. From what I gathered during our first meeting, she didn't seem very cunning. I couldn't deduce from a single chat whether she was clever (we had only exchanged slight pleasantries, which amounted to a very few sentences) so I didn't have the best data to go on, but mark my words—Bella was a bad liar, and I'd learn to what extent it went by the end of our motorbike date.

Third-wheeling a date between someone infatuated and someone oblivious. I never thought I'd have to endure something so hilariously awkward, but I supposed there was a first time for everything. As such, I wasn't expecting to be going somewhere willingly with Jacob Black, yet here I was.

Talk about a twist of events.

It was pathetically obvious that I had tried with my appearance. There was literally no reason to get dressed up for hanging out with two people I hardly even knew—let alone, cared about the opinions of—but what they didn't know, and what I probably wouldn't tell them, was that I somehow managed to score a date with Tommy Long's older sister, Roxanne. I realized the best approach to escaping Jared's radar was to avoid being home, avoid getting dressed with him in the vicinity of the house, and to be picked up from a neutral spot. Kallie didn't have a car, and I had to share my car with Dad (who sometimes stayed home for his work, but mostly had to drive to the archives during the week) so I was going to have Bella drop me off at Irma's Diner whenever we finished up with the bikes. Hopefully it'd be around 5—the time Roxanne and I agreed on—but if it was earlier, or later, I didn't really care. What I did care about was slipping under Jared's nose.

Really, this date with Roxanne wasn't so much of a date as it was an experiment. She needed a tutor for English, and just-so-happens, I was incredibly good at English. What I wanted from this "date" was to see if Jared was stalking me, or keeping tabs, or doing something that allowed him to keep me single as a Pringle. I was suspicious of him, considering he was everywhere I went, always knowing about my dates and putting a stop to them before I even had the chance to open the door and get into their cars. How the fuck did he know me and Kallie were at La Push beach? How'd he know I was going on a date with Joshua from science when I kept it quiet and got ready at Kallie's house? I was sick of this shit.

It made me wonder—if Paul and I ever got to trying a relationship, would Jared try sabotaging that, too? I could only wonder.

Before I could further isolate myself into my thoughts, I saw Bella's truck pull around the forested street corner, her face visible to the brightly-lit front-window. She had a tentative smile on her face, and when she threw up a hand outside of the side-door's window, I threw one back up; without Jacob yet in the vehicle, I had every reason to be polite.

When I hopped in the front, Bella threw me a look. It seemed a twist between hesitance and determination. Weird. I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Uh, that seat's..." She stopped herself.

"What? Dirty? Wow, I feel. My dad spilled coffee in the passenger seat yesterday, and I've been feeling a little irritated ever since—"

"No, it's not that," Bella said, and she sounded rather... snappish. It made my smile drop, and my eyes cut towards her. "That's Jacob's seat."

It took a minute for me to absorb her words, and to recognize them as an implication—but boy, when the realization hit, I could feel the steam coming out of my ears. "Oh, hold—hold up. You expect me... to sit in the back?" I laughed. "You're fucking crazy. This is a freakin' three-seater!"

Bella flinched. "Jacob said he won't come if you're sitting beside him," she said quickly. "I'm sorry!"

Well. I should have expected that. Jacob went from picking at me to hating the very sight of me, so I'd have to go with the latter as his feelings for me today. He probably had a right laugh when Bella agreed to have me sit in the trunk; I bet he took a peak at this week's weather, and was even more determined. Cold and gloomy; the kind of weather I was always complaining about in class.

I stuck with my wits, though, and let my eyes slant into a deadpan, are-you-serious? expression. "You're telling me... that you want to condemn me to the back—the back, where if it rains, I'll turn into a fucking mudpie—just because you want that oversized-donut of a dick-hole happy?"

Bella's face reddened—I really didn't understand why, but it may have had something to do with my unfiltered mouth—but she nodded anyway. I was sure she recognized this argument for as idiotic and childish as it really was, but she was too determined to have her precious Jake satisfied that she was going to disregard logic.

"You're a real peach," I drawled, deciding that if she was going to be like this with me, then I wasn't going to play nice like I told myself I would. The angry, chihuahua-like part of me was ready to rock and roll, utterly set on making today a living fucking nightmare for Jacob Black. With that satisfying thought in mind, I let a small smile slip through my exterior; no other words spared on the matter, I happily sentenced myself to my fate.

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When we pulled up at Jacob's house, I jumped out of the truck and took my sweet-ass (I refused to admit that I was actually struggling) time to get up into the back. When I was finally there, I looked around, observing the spots of mud and slush that were telltale signs that when it rained, Bella didn't bother to clean her truck from the mudholes she encountered. If I got today's clothes dirty, I was certainly going to attempt the mass-homicide murder of Jacob and Bella. Did she even have a name for her truck? My car was named Lilly, against the recommendations of my Dad who wanted to name her Betty, and she had a "Shit Happens" sticker on the bumper. There was a little monkey in the decal holding his hands up in a What Can Ya Do? gestured.

Dad thought it was downright juvenile. But what did he know? Buzzkills have no sense of humor. Why else did he hate Billy's gift?

As Jacob got into the truck, he wasted no time in shooting me a wicked grin. It made me drop my suave act enough just to scowl and claw at the air. If he wanted to antagonize me, then I'd waste no time in returning the favor, dammit!

Billy's house was about ten minutes away La Push Beach, and Bella mentioned that she was going to a road about two minutes from there, so I was assuming this would be a brief, twelve-minute drive. When Bella started up the truck, I nearly flinched, and I held tight onto the sides. This bitch did not know how to drive, if she thought you kicked the engine like that. Or maybe this truck was just fucking broken.

About eight minutes into the trip, I saw the eclipsing image of La Push's cliff on the horizon. I flashed back to the other day when Kallie and I were going to go balls-deep and risk broken bones for a thrill, and then Jared and his stupid posse showed up! Wow, I really just wanted to punch him. That's probably the reason I was pretending me and Roxanne had a "date" this evening, and I'd brag about it to Jared later if it went swimmingly. If he found out I actually managed to go through with one, he'd be livid. I couldn't miss the temper tantrum that would certainly accompany it. That'd just be sad.

Bella opened the window, and yelled out of it, "Hold on!" But she was a bit behind on the memo, because I didn't get a chance to hold onto anything; before I could panic and save myself from the impending doom, Bella was swerving the car hard, and I was moving along with it, my head slamming into the side which I was meant to hold onto. I could feel a ringing start in my head, ears searing from this foreign feeling, and I could hear myself grunt and groan, and if this were any other place, I might have even cried.

But Jacob was here. And well... I didn't feel like crying in front of my sworn arch-enemy. He could use that against me, after all.

The truck skidded to an abrupt stop, and doors slammed as the driver and the passenger hopped right out. I used the hand not groping my head to mindlessly palm at the side metal, grabbing it tight as I pulled myself into a slumped position. "Ow..." I groaned. This sucked. I should have fought harder to be in the front seat if Bella's atrocious driving was gonna put my fucking life at risk.

"Alissa, are you okay?" Bella cried, pulling out the trunk door so I wouldn't have to hop off the side. I was tired, however. I didn't feel like getting up and getting out, for whatever the fuck it was that had Bella freaking out. This bullshit was getting to be too much for me; I wasn't sure I'd be able to actively pursue a friendship with someone that didn't know her ass from her elbow when it came to common, everyday sense.

"Does it fucking look like I'm okay?" I snarled at her. I pulled my hand from my head, and I felt even more anger boil deep in me at the sight of red covering my palm. "Fucking hell. Did your mother ever reach you how to properly park a vehicle?!"

Jacob slammed his hand on the truck's side, and I felt the truck move, alongside me and my own body. My head lolled from side to side, a sensation that made me sick when it rattled the piece of me already half-broken. "Don't talk to her like that," he echoed Paul's words from the cafeteria.

"I'll talk to her however I fucking like," I said bitterly, giving him a look that dared him to contradict my words. When he stayed silent, a steady look of disdain on his face, I turned my attention over to the pallid girl beside him. "What the fuck had you stop, anyway?"

Bella's eyes lit up, and her mouth formed an 'o'. "Oh—" She hurried away from the truck, and she near-instantaneously disappeared from sight. Jacob followed suit.

"Aw, fuck," I said, placing my hand back on the side of my head as I scouted my body across the truck's terrain. I felt rocks drag themselves along with my long-ways blouse, most definitely tearing the shirt at its seams, but I didn't regard them with any significance. I could easily buy another blouse, and I could easily schedule my study date with Roxanne another day.

I was too curious to see what Bella failed to mention. Was there another dead hiker on the side of the road?

Gravity pulled me swiftly to the ground, and if I were a cup of water, I would have sloshed my innards out and toppled over. Thankfully, due to a steady pair of legs that belonged to yours truly, I was able to stay standing. I refused to stop and take a breath—I'd live, if this did cost me anything—so I scurried over to the front of the truck, where a pair of assholes were standing, the shorter, less-shapely one pointing at something beyond the crashing waters below the road.

If I squinted, I could see the barest outlines of four boys on the cliff.

Paul.

Sam.

Embry.

Jared.

"That's what worked you up?" I asked furiously, my angry gaze remaining with Jared as two of the boys rough-house and throw him off the cliff. Even from here, you could hear the hooting. I felt wistful about the fun they were having; instead of getting a good day out of the house, I was aching and shivering. "God, you're so fucking stupid."

Bella flushed deeply, looking at me with a guilty face that screamed, "I know I'm stupid!" "I'm sorry—" she started again, but I scoffed. And I was pleased with myself when it made her stop talking. Score one for Team Alissa.

Alissa, 1.

Bella, -5.555555.

Jacob's gaze was more reproachful than it was neutral, which meant the more I insulted and hurt Bella, the more angry he'd get. And well, I didn't appreciate being slung around and sustaining an injury while she was unharmed; if it took one hell of a verbal ass-whooping to bring her down to my level of pain, then well—who was stopping me? The power of Jacob and his mechanic biceps? No-sir-ree-Bob.

"They're not actually fighting," I told Bella, my superiority-complex coming in clutch with the patronizing tone my voice took with her. "They're cliff-diving. I'm sure you know what that is."

Bella flinched. "Cliff-diving... on purpose?"

Jacob jumped in; "Ah, it's scary as hell, but it's a total rush."

An adrenaline rush. We watched as one of the boys—I could tell from here it was Paul, just by the familiar whoops he made as he began to jog faster to the edge—threw himself into the air, then spun off to the water below, twisting and performing cartwheels on the way down. I pursed my lips, then wondered—Wow, could I do that, too? Or was this an ability that was for hotties only.

Jacob nudged Bella in the shoulder. "Most of us jump from lower down."

Bella had a contemplative look on her face. She looked at him hopefully. "Think I could?"

I scoffed. "Are you an adrenaline junkie or something? I mean, Jesus—motorcycles, then cliffs..."

Bella quietly said, "It seems fun."

Jacob rolled his eyes, more for my comments than at Bella's expense. "Maybe on a warmer day. And not from the top. We'll leave the showing off to Sam and his disciples."

There's that bitter edge again. I remembered the dislike he had for Sam and them; sad thing was, Embry had the same dislike for them. And now he was part of their clique. It just didn't feel right. But I couldn't put my finger on a right answer.

Bella frowned at Jacob. "You don't like them."

Another scowl, destination: Jacob's face. "They think they run this place. Acting all badass, calling themselves 'protectors.'"

"What are they protecting?" Bella asked. She seemed confused.

"The tribe, the land, their right to be jerks. Embry used to call them hall monitors on steroids; now look at him." That same look of disdain that Jacob had a habit of giving me was back on his face.

I laughed aloud, bringing the two's attention back to me. "They're not on steroids, dumbass. If that was the case of their little pack, Embry would be a lot broader," I said. I still had my hand on my head, not wanting to risk an onslaught of blood when my eyesight was on the line.

Bella shook her head, but held a determined glint in her eyes. She looked to Jacob— "What happened to him?" she asked.

Jacob looked like he was in pain. "He missed some school - then, out of nowhere, he's following Sam around. Same thing happened with Paul and Jared. They weren't even friends, and now—Sam owns them." Jacob shook his head. "Sam keeps giving me this look, like he's waiting for me or something; it's kinda freaking me out."

Bella suggested, "Maybe you should just avoid him."

Jacob shrugged, before quietly saying, "I try but..." He was staring over at the rowdy two that remained from the once-foursome.

Bella pulled him into a side-hug. It felt very friend-zone-ish. "Hey. If it gets worse, we'll go to my Dad. Or you can come stay with us."

Wow, were they having a moment? Wouldn't it be a shame if—

"Hey, if they do get you, I'm sure you'll be a lot more attractive. You're kind of ugly now. When Paul changed, he went from cute to hella hot. If Sam recruits you, you should be thankful." I grinned.

Jacob shot me a sneer, as Bella jumped back out from Jacob's arms. She saw his anger smack-dab on his face, and quickly pulled on his arm—yanking him towards the truck. The angry look still remained.

I looked back towards the cliff. I could see Sam already looking in my direction. His attention was on Bella's back. With a jolly grin that came with provoking Jacob, I gave the scary-lookin' man a wave.

He waved back. And the wave didn't feel hostile, as I assumed it would be. I didn't know Sam very well, but he knew my heritage, so maybe the friendly gesture was because of Jared.

Regardless, I felt very pleased with myself.

FFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Once I was seated in Bella's truck, able to enjoy front-seat privileges now that I was injured, I told the driver, "Take me back to my house, please." If I was going to bleed all over the place, then I wanted to do in the safety of my own home. Besides, fuck hospitals; I'd rather bleed out and die in the grass than go anywhere near one.

Those were the wrong words to say. Jacob turned and gave me a nasty glare. "What? Why?!"

"Because I'm hurt! Duh!" I pointed at my head, making the mistake to remove my bloody hand from said injury. I hissed; that shit hurt. If I didn't get this looked at, I was definitely risking passing out. Also, I needed a change of clothes. A lot of the blood that leaked from my wound aligned down the left side of my head, and my collar was stained red because of it. How smashingly chic.

Bella looked at me for a moment, that same sorry look on her face, and then she turned on the engine. "Okay," she said quietly. She'd probably jump off a fucking cliff for me just to lessen the guilt.

Jacob spluttered, pointing at me and then at her, before he went completely silent. His arms were crossed, and he had an angry look on his face. He was totally throwing a temper tantrum. What a little baby.

Bella reversed out from the slot of land, then starting driving in the direction we were already going. We didn't get very far, though, before... someone walked out into the road.

A yelp left Bella's lips, and she came to a sudden stop that had all of us jolting forward. I hit my head again. That was a beautiful consequence that came with not having a seatbelt on. I groaned aloud, murmured a soft, "Fuck," and shook off the pain so I could see who had walked in front of the truck.

Oh, fuck. My eyes went wide with fear.

It was Paul.

Well, this just got interesting.

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A/N: I will be counting up votes for whether you want Alissa to shift, so make sure to add your input! :) I hope you guys like the story so far, and it will definitely be getting faster in pace since we're now actually in the events of New Moon. If you want Alissa to be friends with Bella, just tell me; otherwise, I'll probably make her enemies with the girl lmao.

Love y'all! Your reviews and favorites and follows mean the absolute world 2 me ,)