The Only Exception
AN: I'm going to continue this story in first person in case you notice the difference in the way of writing.
Chapter Two: Bella's POV
The next morning, I wake up before Embry and take a moment to just watch him sleep. He looks so peaceful while he sleeps and it warms my heart. Sometime I forget he's the same age as me with his size and all of his responsibilities. I finally drag myself out of his bed and to the bathroom to get myself around for the day. I start the water before going back into his room to grab the things necessary for my shower. Embry is still sleep and while part of me is glad for that fact the other part is sad too. I'd love for him to join me in the shower but I know that he would make things fairly difficult and definitely draw out my quick shower. Shaking my head to rid myself of the images I rush to the bathroom and take my shower. While I'm in the shower I hear a loud howl not too far from the house followed by Embry's steps into the bathroom.
"Hey babe, that's Sam out there. I'm not sure what's going on but I'll be back as soon as possible," he says poking his head in to kiss me.
"Be safe," I tell him as he's walking away.
I finish up in the shower and move into his room to pick up a bit. I look around and imagine some of my things in here. Actually I do this around the whole house, I know I'll be here a lot and while it's very nice, you can tell only a male lives here. He just needs a womanly touch around here and I'm more than happy to help. A good hour passes before Embry comes back home. I can't really read the look on his face so I walk over to him and wrap my arms around his waist. He leans down and breathes in the scent of my hair for a moment and I can feel him relax.
"Jake joined the pack today. And he is not happy with any of us," he mumbles into my hair.
"Why?" I ask.
"Well for one Jake's been in love with you since you guys were kids but when he phased and thought of you, a few of us had some memories as well. He knows that you've been with us. In that way. He also thinks that we've taken advantage of you. Jake's upset with me the most because I knew how he felt about you since we were best friends. He doesn't really understand imprinting and I get that. It just sucks," he tells me.
I pull him over to the couch and sit us both down. "I didn't know that Jake was in love with me. That's gonna be hard to talk about with him but I definitely will. And he's gonna have to understand that I make my own decisions. None of you forced me to sleep with you and I'll clarify that as well. I mean I knew he was pissed about the whole Paul thing but I just figured that was because he hated Paul," I respond.
"While that's true there's always more. Jake is still stuck in wolf form; he literally can't calm down enough to turn back. I don't want to be that over protective boyfriend but maybe just give him a few days or so to maintain his anger. I just don't want there to be any accidents where you end up injured," he reasons touching my face.
I lean in and give him a quick kiss. "No problem. I'm not really ready to see him anyway. I have to deal with my dad and Paul before I can even think about Jake," I say sighing.
Embry and I talk for a bit before I make us some lunch. After he eats he decides he's going to go back out to check on Jake. I tell him while he's doing that I'm going to go deal with Charlie. I'm not really sure how the talk is going to go but I just have a feeling it's not going to be all that great. I find myself looking around Embry's house again noting that there is more than enough room for me if need be. We walk out of his house together and he kisses the life out of me before wishing me luck with Charlie. I wish him luck with Jake and the others before climbing in and heading home. I get out of La Push without a hitch and hop onto the highway that will take me to my house.
As I get closer to my house I can see Charlie's cruiser in the driveway. I park next to it and sit in the car for a minute trying to gain some composure. I'm hoping he is in a decent mood so that we don't have a terrible fight. Finally getting out of the truck I straighten up go inside. I know he's sitting in the living room watching something on TV so I head directly there. He barely glances at me as I walk into the room and sit down on the loveseat.
"Oh look who's finally home. What the hell were you thinking Bella? Do you know how worried and pissed off I've been? I'm your father. You do not hang up on me," he finally says looking at me with a purple face.
Fuck he's really angry. "Yes, I am home. I told you I'd be here today just like I told you I was safe," I begin.
"Safe? Staying the night with some boy?" he asks incredulously.
"Yeah dad. That's what I said," I sigh.
"Do you think this is a damn joke Bella?" he stands up.
"No I don't. I was honest about where I was. I was seriously safe and there are a bunch of people down there I could go to if I didn't," I try to reason.
"Your behavior lately has been out of control. Don't think I don't know about you dating the man-whore of La Push. Ever since Edward left you've been a whole new person. And not in a good way. You need to make some changes Bella. You're grounded until I say otherwise," he snaps.
"You can't ground me. I'm 18. I'm an adult," I yell standing as well.
"In my house, you will do as you're told. Is that clear?" he asks.
"Yeah it's clear," I say bumping his shoulder as I pass him.
I stomp up the stairs and go into my room. I pull out my two large suitcases before quietly filling one with my clothes. I shove my laptop, chargers, and pictures in with the clothes before forcing it closed. In my next suitcase I pack as much of my possessions as possible. I go into the bathroom and grab all of my toiletries also throwing them in the second suitcase. I put all of my favorite books in there before zipping it up and grabbing my backpack. I look around for my phone to text Embry and let him know what's going on but I must have left it in my truck. I grab my bags and carefully drag them down the stairs as I head to the door. Charlie looks up from the living room looking confused and even more mad than before.
"Where the hell do you think you're going? I told you that you were grounded," he says standing in my way.
"I told you I'm an adult. I'm moving out and I'll be back to grab the rest of my things," I state.
He lets out a humorless laugh before taking a step towards me. "You've got nowhere to go Bella," he smirks.
"I've got plenty of places. Please move out of my way," I ask huffing.
Charlie looks at the determination on my face and sighs before moving out of the way. I start to walk past him and give him one last look. He doesn't open his mouth to say anything and neither do I. I'm thankful it isn't raining so I can just put my suitcases in the back of the truck without worrying about my stuff being damaged. I take one last look at my house before backing out and heading towards La Push. I plan on going to Embry's and getting my phone before calling Leah to see if I can stay with her for a while. I just feel like it would be way too soon to move into Embry's and I don't think it would be healthy. We barely know each other and living with each other so soon could cause problems.
As I pull up to Embry's house I see him standing just inside the door talking to Paul. Great, just another person to deal with. I sigh getting out and walking towards the door. Embry meets me on the porch and kisses the top of my head. He looks at me with questions in his eyes but I shake my head indicating we'd talk about it later. I follow him into the house as he steers Paul to the kitchen. We all sit at the table and Paul begins to talk.
"Bella, I'm sorry about how things went down at the end of us. But I literally couldn't tell you anything," he says looking at me.
I can see the truth in his eyes. "I know don't apologize to me. I'm sorry for the things I said to you. You've always kept me safe so I should have realized that was what you were doing. Sometimes I can be really selfish," I tell him honestly.
I look over at Embry and he gives me a small smile. Paul looks between us and I can tell he's okay with this. "Bella, I'm really glad you found someone to give you everything you deserve. And I'm glad I got to get to know you," he admits.
"Thank you, Paul. You're gonna be next! I hope you find someone who knows how to tame your wild beast!" I joke.
He lets out a loud laugh and a snort. "Yeah right, I'm not gonna be tied down, ever, by anyone," the way he says that I can tell he believes it.
"Whatever Paul. Friends?" I ask sticking out my hand.
"Of course shorty. Be good to her Embry, this is a good one for sure," Paul says shaking my hand. He stands up and claps Embry on the back before saying goodbye and leaving.
After I few moments of silence, Embry looks at me and I look down knowing that it's time to talk. He moves his chair closer to mine and takes my hand in his. "What's wrong Bella?" he asks.
"Well, it didn't go good at all. He tried to ground me and I told him he couldn't because I was an adult. He told me I had to live by his rules while I lived under his roof. So I packed my bags and I left," I rush out.
"Oh babe, I'm sorry. Maybe he just needs time to calm down," Embry tries to reason.
"Even so, I don't want to have to deal with this anytime I want to stay the night with you. I'm 18, he needs to recognize that fact," I say sighing.
"It's hard for dads with daughters though, Bella. And you know you're more than welcome to stay here," he tells me.
I look at him and let out a small smile. I knew he'd suggest that. "I can't do that. Everything is so new Embry. Staying together so soon could cause problems for us down the road," I state.
"Bella, you're it for me, for the rest of my life you're gonna be the only woman in my life until we have daughters. I want you to stay with me so that we can get to know each other better," he grabs my face.
"I was thinking of staying with Leah for a few nights at first. While I know we're both in it for the long haul, the long haul doesn't have to start tonight. This moment," I stare into his eyes.
"It's not like we're just meeting each other Bella, we knew each other before the wolves and we've been dancing around each other for almost two months now! If you really wanna stay with Leah then I won't force you to stay with me but I'd prefer it if you did stay with me," he smiles.
God, he makes it so hard to say no to him. "Okay, we can try it out. But if we have any issues I'll go stay with Leah for a few nights or something," I cave.
"If we have any issues we're going to talk them out and make up because we're adults. No running Bella. I mean it," he says mock sternly.
I laugh and give him a deep kiss. Before things get heated, he suggests we bring my bags inside before it spontaneously decides to rain. I agree and following him out to my truck. Of course he easily grabs both bags before bringing them inside and taking them right into his room. We look at each other for a moment before attacking each other and letting our clothes fly everywhere. I can hear my phone begin to ring but I ignore it letting all that is Embry fill my senses completely.
AN: And that's the end of Chapter 2! I hope you all enjoy! Let me know your thoughts on Charlie, Paul and Bella's leaving! And what about Jake? What do you think is going to happen when he and Bella finally cross paths? Drop a review!