Today's Quote:
Roses are red, violets are blue, God made me pretty, what happened to you? ;)
I awoke with a start as a heavy weight jumped onto my stomach.
"Oof," I said, grimacing. I blinked sleepily at the weight and found myself staring straight into the eyes of a maniac. "Isabella? It's like 9 am. On a Saturday."
Bella grinned madly. "Get up," she ordered. "Get up, get dressed, get in the car-"
"Are you kidnapping me?" I asked wearily. I closed my eyes and rolled my head to the side. "Just get on with it then."
"No, silly," she said. There was an impish trait in her voice I hadn't heard from anyone in ages, let alone Isabella. "We're going to the Rez - Jacob finished the bikes!"
I shot straight up, pushing Bella off my body in the process. She went tumbling to the floor, but I paid no mind.
"He finished the motorbikes?" I repeated. I went straight for my closet, tearing off my pyjamas as I went. "Thank fucking god!"
"Morgana!" Bella chastised. She picked herself up from the floor. "Language!"
"Yeah, yadda yadda, whatever. Motorbikes, Bella. Moter. Bikes."
"Yeah, I know. I'm the one that told you, remember?" she said rhetorically, rolling her eyes. I froze. Oblivious to my surprise, Bella started going around my room, picking up dirty clothes off the floor.
"Did you just… sass me?"
"Yes. Is this clean?" She held up a pair of dark brown jeans with flowers running up the sides.
"I think so, " I said, still dumbfounded.
"Good." She chucked them at me. "Wear them with a white shirt and your jacket - it'll look great together."
Bella Swan? Giving me fashion advice? Not just that, but good fashion advice. Someone pinch me. Even as my eyes raked down her outfit (a dark blue turtleneck and black jeans), I couldn't believe it. She looked… healthy. Happy. Pretty.
"Are you… crying?" Bella asked me, looking down at my face with mild fear.
"No," I quickly dismissed. I blinked back the sudden wetness in my eyes. "Get out, I have to change."
"You're already standing in your underwear," she pointed out.
"Yeah well, I'm changing that too. Out."
Bella parked the truck off to the side of the Blacks' house, close to the trees, to make it easier for us to sneak the bikes out. When I got out, a splash of colour caught my eye—two shiny motorcycles, one red, one black, were hidden under spruce, invisible from the house. Jacob was prepared. There was a piece of blue ribbon tied in a small bow around each of the handlebars.
"Dork," I muttered, but it was with somewhat fondness.
Bella was laughing at the bows when Jacob ran out of the house.
"Ready?" he asked in a low voice, his eyes sparkling. I got the feeling those sparkles weren't for me.
"Yeah," Bella said, but she didn't seem as excited as this morning.
"Hells yes," I said. I fluttered my eyelashes at Jacob. "Let me go first."
"Not on your life, girlie."
"Rude."
Jacob loaded the bikes into the bed of the truck with ease, laying them carefully on their sides so they didn't show.
"Let's go," he said, his voice higher than usual with excitement. "I know the perfect spot—no one will catch us there."
We drove south out of town. The dirt road wove in and out of the forest—sometimes there was nothing but trees, and then there would suddenly be a breathtaking glimpse of the Pacific Ocean, reaching to the horizon, dark grey under the clouds. We were above the shore, on top of the cliffs that bordered the beach here and the view seemed to stretch on forever.
Bella was driving slowly, paying close attention to the winding road. Jacob was talking about finishing the bikes, but his descriptions were getting a million times so technical, so I had started listening to music almost half an hour ago.
'Hey'
Two minutes passed before my phone beeped with a response.
'Hey, Sweetheart. Is everything alright?'
'Yeah I'm in Bella's truck (god help me) and we're going to try the motorbikes I told you about? I figured now was a good time to text as long as you're not busy.'
"Who's that?" Bella asked when it beeped again.
"Angela," I lied smoothly.
"I'm never too busy to text you.'
I rolled my eyes at Carlisles' corniness, though I couldn't help the blush that sneaked onto my face.
'Are you sure you'll be safe on them? Jacob knows what he's doing, right?' he texted before I had a chance to respond to the first message.
'Of course he does. So do I when it comes to riding. You worry too much.'
'I love you to the moon and back. Of course I'm going to worry.'
I had long since realised Carlisle was my soulmate. I loved him more than I would've thought I could anyone. Did he know that? No. Why? Because... I'm a coward.
Before I could stop myself my fingers were typing back the words and hitting send. My brain didn't stand a chance against my heart.
'I love you too.'
I turned my phone off immediately. My cheeks burned with embarrassment. Obviously Carlisle loved me. Everyone knew that. But an annoying part of my subconscious kept nagging and telling me otherwise. And even if we did both love each other, what way was that to tell him? Over text? Ugh.
That was when I noticed four figures standing on a rocky ledge, much too close to the precipice. I couldn't tell from the distance how old they were, but I assumed they were men. Despite the chill in the air today, they seemed to be wearing only shorts. As I watched, the tallest person stepped closer to the brink.
Bella seemed to notice it too, the car slowing down quickly, and then, as the man jumped off the cliff, the car broke with a screech.
"No!" she shouted.
"What's wrong?" Jacob shouted back, alarmed.
"That guy—he just jumped off the cliff! Why didn't they stop him? We've got to call an ambulance!"
I watched as the guys on the cliff whooped in excitement, the faint sounds of it reaching my ears even that far away. I remembered my day at the beach with Leah from so long ago when she had spoken of overbearing Quiluliete boys and their obsession with wolves.
Bella threw her door open and started to get out.
"Bella, I don't think-"
Jacob cut me off with his loud laughs. "They're just cliff diving, Bella. Recreation. La Push doesn't have a mall, you know."
He was teasing, but there was a strange note of irritation in his voice.
"Cliff diving?" Bella repeated, dazed. She stared in disbelief as a second figure stepped to the edge, paused, and then very gracefully leapt into space.
"That looks amazing," I said in awe. "I am so getting Leah to jump with me."
"Absolutely not!" Bella screeched. "You are way too young!"
"Plus," Jacob interjected, "cliff Diving is more, ya know, a man's thing."
I raised an eyebrow at him, daring him to continue.
"I mean, it's just… I'll stop talking now."
"Yeah," I said, "that'd be smart."
The second guy fell for what seemed like an eternity to me, finally cutting smoothly into the dark grey waves below.
"Wow. It's so high." Bella slid back into her seat, still staring wide-eyed at the two remaining divers. "It must be a hundred feet."
"Well, yeah, most of us jump from lower down, that rock that juts out from the cliff about halfway." He pointed out his window. The place he indicated did seem much more reasonable. "Those guys are insane. Probably showing off how tough they are. I mean, really, it's freezing today. That water can't feel good."
He made a disgruntled face as if the stunt personally offended him. It surprised me a little.
"You jump off the cliff?" Bella asked.
"Sure, sure." He shrugged and grinned. "It's fun. A little scary, kind of a rush."
I looked back at the cliffs, where the third figure was pacing the edge. I'd never witnessed anything so reckless in all my life. I so wanted in.
"Jake, you have to take me cliff diving," Bella said, seemingly voicing my thoughts. I coughed pointedly. "Us. We'll make it a day."
He frowned back at me, his face disapproving. "Bella, you just wanted to call an ambulance for Sam," he reminded her.
I squinted at the man now swimming in the dark sea. I was surprised that he could tell who it was from this distance. I stared at him darkly, almost as though I could lazors through my eyes at him as punishment for what he did to Leah. In the back of my brain, I wondered if that was even possible.
"I want to try," Bella insisted, starting to get out of the car again.
"If you don't we'll just go with Leah," I warned. "And I don't think she's done it very often so more likely than not we'll die," I said dramatically. Jacob glared at me before relenting somewhat.
"Not today, all right? Can we at least wait for a warmer day?"
"Yes!" I agreed. "But I want to go soon."
Bella hummed her agreement, giving me a sideways smile that I returned.
"Soon." He rolled his eyes. "Sometimes you Swans are a little strange. Do you know that? And we're not jumping off the top."
I watched, fascinated, as the third boy made a running start and flung himself farther into the empty air than the other two. He twisted and cartwheeled through space as he fell like he was skydiving. He looked absolutely free—unthinking and utterly irresponsible.
"Fine," Bella agreed. "Not the first time, anyway."
Jacob glared at me again. I got the feeling he felt like I was the cause for Bella's sudden want for death-defying experiences. I didn't blame him though - somehow I probably played a hand in it.
Jacob sighed. "Are we going to try out the bikes or not?" he demanded.
"Okay, okay," Bella said. I tore my eyes away from the last person waiting on the cliff. I put my seat belt back on and closed the door. The engine was still running, roaring as it idled. We started down the road again.
"So who were those guys—the crazy ones?" Bella wondered. He made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat.
"The La Push gang."
"You have a gang?" I asked. I realized that I sounded impressed.
"Not like that. I swear, they're like hall monitors gone bad. They don't start fights, they keep the peace." He snorted. "There was this guy from up somewhere by the Makah rez, a big guy too, scary-looking. Well, word got around that he was selling meth to kids, and Sam Uley and his disciples ran him off our land. They're all about our land and tribe pride… it's getting ridiculous. The worst part is that the council takes them seriously. Embry said that the council actually meets with Sam." He shook his head, face full of resentment.
He continued, his voice tight. "Embry also heard from Leah Clearwater that they call themselves 'protectors' or something like that."
"You don't like them very much," I said, matter of factly.
"Does it show?" he asked sarcastically.
"Well… It doesn't sound like they're doing anything bad," Bella said, trying to soothe him. "Just sort of annoyingly goody-two-shoes for a gang."
"Yeah. Annoying is a good word. They're always showing off—like the cliff thing. They act like… like, I don't know. Like, tough guys. I was hanging out at the store with Embry and Quil once, last semester, and Sam came by with his followers, Jared and Paul. Quil said something, you know how he's got a big mouth, and it pissed Paul off. His eyes got all dark, and he sort of smiled—no, he showed his teeth but he didn't smile—and it was like he was so mad he was shaking or something. But Sam put his hand against Paul's chest and shook his head. Paul looked at him for a minute and calmed down. Honestly, it was like Sam was holding him back—like Paul was going to tear us up if Sam didn't stop him." He groaned. "Like a bad western. You know, Sam's a pretty big guy, he's twenty. But Paul's just sixteen, too, shorter than me and not as beefy as Quil. I think anyone of us could take him, I bet even you could, Morgana, scrawny though you are."
I huffed. I'd love to see them try to take me on.
"Tough guys," Bella agreed. "Isn't Sam a little too old for this kind of thing?"
"Yeah. He was supposed to go to college, but he stayed. And no one gave him any crap about it, either. The whole council pitched a fit when my sister turned down a partial scholarship and got married. But, oh no, Sam Uley can do no wrong." His face was set in unfamiliar lines of outrage—outrage and something else I didn't recognize at first.
"It all sounds really annoying and… strange. But I don't get why you're taking it so personally," Bella said.
He was suddenly calm, staring out the side window. "You just missed the turn," he said in an even voice. Bella executed a very wide U-turn, nearly hitting a tree as her circle ran the truck halfway off the road. "Thanks for the heads-up," she muttered.
"Maybe I should drive," I joked.
"Yeah right, as though I'd let you touch my baby," Bella said, rolling her eyes.
"Oh, so I can help teach you to ride a motorbike, but the second I wanna drive a truck you don't trust me?" I asked, in mock offence.
"Speaking off which," Jacob interjected, "what happened to your bike?"
I sighed, slumping into my seat. "Dad took it off me 'cause I got in trouble. It's been like, forever, too."
Jacob perked up. "What'd you do?" he asked excitedly, like this was the best thing that I had said all year. I gave him a strange look.
"I ran away." The car swerved slightly, and I carefully watched Bella's reaction out of the corner of my eye. "Things just… got too much," I lied. I noticed Bella's hands clench around the steering wheel. "How close are we?" I asked, trying to change the topic.
"Close. Wasn't that like months ago, though? How come you're still grounded?"
"Not grounded, just without a motorbike," I corrected. "And I guess Mum is still pissy with me and keeps pressuring Dad to do something, and he likes having me here so… I dunno. I think taking my bike is his way of keeping her happy enough to only threaten to put me in another asylum."
"That's messed up," he muttered. "You can stop anywhere along here," he said louder. Bella pulled over and cut the engine. My ears rang in the silence that followed. We got out, and Jacob headed around to the back to get the bikes. I tried to read his expression.
He smiled halfheartedly as he pushed the red bike to Bella's side. "Happy late birthday. Are you ready for this?"
"I think so," she said. Her voice trembled
"We'll take it slow," he promised.
"No, Jacob will take it slow. I'll teach you how to ride."
"Oh yeah?" Jacob asked. He ruffled my hair while I tried to duck his large palms. I rolled my eyes.
"Yeah. C'mon Bella, are we gonna ride or what?"
I could deal with Carlisle later.
Long time no update... oops? By this point I'm sure you guys are used to it, but still. Sorry xx
The first point of business - I've decided not to have a fling. A lot of you expressed your concerns about that so I've decided against it. Sorry to the few that wanted one, but I might add some flirting in.
And yes! Morgana admitted it! Hopefully you'll all enjoy the Carlisle/Morgana thing in this chapter. I wasn't 100% confident with it so tell me what you all think. Ugh but that girl has some serious drama to sort through. And fears. And then there's Renee...
And now for reviews! As always, thank you so, so much for taking time to comment - it means so much. :)
miss e malfoy: Thanks, and don't worry. No fling.
DxGRAYxMAN: Yeah an excellent point, it was definitely one of my major factors to consider.
Brookie Twiling: Happy Birthday! Thanks. Angela is one of my favourite characters (she's so supportive and a great friend) so I always feel like she should be written a lot nicer than what she's sometimes portrayed as. I'm glad you see it that way too
eeeeaud: Yeah, short is good - easier to write + generally fluffier. I'm glad you see it that way (Bella and Morgana). Sorry about no fling - majority rules. And yes I definitely agree it would've been kinda fun to write. But I'm definitely gonna try and incorporate some light flirting, maybe she'll even flirt with Leah to make Carlisle jealous when they finally reunite? We'll see.
Katvoondale: Thanks. She's got a long way to go, but she's definitely come so far.
Lizzy B: Thank you, hopefully you liked the little Carlisle/Morgana interaction.
Treesh: Ikr! Carlisle/OC is such a great coupling - it drives me insane there aren't many!
Lolistarkiller: I'm glad you're doing better, and I'm sure your parents appreciated it. And yeah, that must be so terrible to deal with. Again, my condolences. But going to Germany? That sounds great! Plus a new property with 21 acres? Soooo jealous right now. Yeah... fast updates are not my thing I have not-so-recently discovered. Yeah, expect a Charlie/Morgana/Power reveal (kinda) in a couple of chapters. It'll be super dramatic. And thank so much!
New World Wonder: Me too - she's a great character.
TwoHeartedMarauder: I think I'll always come back to it, it'll just take me a while. I'm not very good at speedy updates. Yeah, it definitely would be a great twist, but I think I'm more gonna play around with a friendship angle.
Guest: Lol fair enough - don't worry - there won't be a fling.
Vale Herondale: Thank you so much! That's a great point that I've taken into consideration - you're right, she shouldn't have to always be in a romantic relationship, and she and Leah are great best friends. That's a great idea (Carlisle diagnosing Bella), and one I'll try to implement in later chapters. Sorry about long waits between updates :(