Chapter Three - Moonlight
Back at the house, we organized a family meeting to go over the day's events. I stood in the centre of the living room, looking at everyone seated on the couches.
"Okay, everyone," I began. I launched into the tale, starting with meeting Juliet, the imprint, her relationship with Harper. I finished off by telling them she was coming over for dinner and movies after school the next day.
"Well, congratulations, Seth," Carlisle clapped Seth's back. "You want to call your family, let them know?"
"I guess so," Seth shrugged. "I don't really talk to them much anymore."
"Seth, that's ridiculous!" Esme put her hands on her hips, peering up at the boy. "Why?"
"Leah's poisoned our mom. She's totally anti-Cullen! They're both being ridiculous. Bella's gonna be our sister soon, and Edward's gonna be our brother in law. It's putting a real strain on Charlie. He doesn't know why they hate you so much - and he won't know until the marriage is sealed," Seth fumed. "So, no, I really don't want to talk to them."
My stomach dropped as Esme hugged Seth. What if Leah poisoned Charlie as well? Would my grandpa hate me? Would he call me a monster, an abomination like the other wolves did before my birth? Jacob's imprint was the only thing that changed their minds, in the end.
I suddenly didn't feel like talking much. All the happy bubbles that had built up in my chest popped, leaving an unpleasant and bitter soapy residue.
"I'm gonna go work on my homework," I grabbed my tote bag from the floor and hoisted it over my shoulder. Edward and Jasper were both watching me sympathetically - or in Jasper's case, empathetically. I just jogged up the carpeted stairs, down the long hallway and up another flight of stairs. Down that hall was my bedroom, my safe haven.
I threw down my bag and pulled out my phone without even realizing it. The only person I wanted to talk to was Juliet. I flopped onto the bed and pulled up a new text conversation.
Me: Hey, what's up?
Juliet texted back almost instantly.
Juliet: Nothing, bored. What's up with u?
Me: Ugh, family drama. Totally cool if you come over tomorrow tho.
Juliet: Awesome, what kind of drama?
Me: My grandpa is getting remarried. His step daughter doesn't like grandpa's kids but his step son does. Everyone is fighting.
Juliet: Your uncle's dad is getting remarried and your uncle has drama with the step siblings? They sound like teenagers!
Me: U don't even know, man. It sucks!
Juliet: Damn. We'll take your mind off it tomorrow :-)
Juliet and I texted all the way until dinner, when I had to put my phone away. After Jake, Seth and I were done eating, we resumed our conversation easily. It was so easy to talk to her. She didn't talk about her family much, so we mostly focused on our interests, hobbies and getting to know each other.
I learned how she met Harper, how dependant he was on her. He got jealous easily, Lewis was the only guy she was really allowed to be friends with. That was ridiculous to me - why would you limit who your partner talks to?!
Around eleven, we said goodnight and Jake knocked softly at my door.
"Come in," I whispered. He entered, shutting the door behind him.
"Can't sleep?" I asked, sitting up in the patch of moonlight on the wide bed. Jake shook his head. I smiled and opened up the covers, motioning for him to join me.
"Won't your parents get mad?" Jake asked, climbing into bed with me anyways. I snuggled up to him automatically.
"I think they're a little preoccupied," I whispered. "Besides, I slept with you all the time when I was a baby. Why's it different now?"
"You're right," he rumbled. I drifted off to sleep, listening to the steady flow of the river near our house, the soft hum of the house, quiet murmurs every so often, Jake's heartbeat and his steady breathing.
I think, for most people, anyways, waking up with a vampire standing over your bed is not a great way to start the morning. On the other hand, it was a regular occurrence for me.
"Fun night, have we?" Emmett folded his arms, the thick veins standing out as he grinned down at Jake and I, entwined under my lilac purple duvet.
"Emmett," I closed my eyes. "Vampire limbs can be reattached, right?"
"Yeah, with some venom," Emmett answered. He sounded confused.
"You have thirty seconds to leave my bedroom and my business before I ask Rosalie to remove your you-know-what and hide it," I growled. "March."
Emmett yelped like a scared dog. "Alright, Esme just wanted me to tell you she made pancakes, bye!"
He was gone in a flash. Jake's deep chuckle vibrated next to me. I snuggled in deeper, not wanting to get out of the warm bed. But, sure enough, Esme's mouth-watering chocolate chip pancakes taunted me from downstairs. I could faintly smell the decadent chocolate, melted into the hot, doughy pancake… the creamy butter, melting over it. I typically hated human food, but damn Esme made some delicious pancakes.
"Time to get up, little vampire," Jake patted my butt. "C'mon."
I got up, stretching out. My curls had decided to behave today, thankfully, but it was almost time for a haircut. They were starting to hang past my waist.
Downstairs, Seth was already shoving whole pancakes into his mouth. Luckily Esme always made a ton, knowing the wolf boys'… wolfish appetites. We sat at the kitchen table in a puddle of golden sunlight. Esme's hand sparkled as she placed a dish of hot cakes before us.
"Are the others skipping today?" I waved out the window with my fork.
"Sunlight won't last, clouds incoming," Alice waltzed into the room. "There's an outfit on your bed."
Sure enough, heavy dark clouds descended over the town, stripping away the beautiful light. I sighed, at least I enjoyed it while it lasted. After breakfast I ran at top speed up to my room. On the now-tidy bed was an outfit for me.
A pair of slightly pre-distressed overalls, a white t-shirt and a cute pair of brown combat boots. Thank you, Alice. I dressed quickly, leaving my curls down and free. I did my usual makeup, applying a little mascara and lipgloss.
"Renesmee, time to go!" Bella yelled from downstairs. I grabbed my tote bag, checked to make sure I had what I needed and thundered down the stairs behind Jake and Seth.
It was warm and humid outside. Everything was drenched in a greyish-blue colour from the clouds. The sky loomed over us, threatening a thunderstorm and probably those warm, fat raindrops. I grinned. My favorite weather was humid summer storms. There was a picture of me on Carlisle's desk from the day we moved here, sitting on the window seat in the attic overlooking the forest while rain pounded the glass. I was wearing my favorite white dress and holding a single red rose. Alice posed me and took the photo, making sure I looked very deep in thought. I pretended to be thinking of my lost love, wondering if he'd ever return. I preferred the picture we took right after that, of Alice and I collapsed on the floor with our heads together, in the middle of laughter. That picture was on my dresser.
"Who are you riding with?" Edward asked, handing me an apple. I stuck it in my bag for later with a smile of thanks.
"I'll ride in the Jeep with Em and Rose," I pointed to the tall, currently roofless car. Edward nodded, reminding me of the merits of seatbelts - as if Rose would ever let me ride without one - and headed to his Volvo where Bella was waiting with a sappy smile.
I easily vaulted into the Jeep, declining Emmett's help. After Rose made sure I strapped in, we were off. I liked riding in the Jeep best out of all the cars. We were higher up than regular vehicles, and that made me feel special and tall. And powerful.
At school, I met up with Juliet outside the Socials room. We hugged, already familiar with each other. Jake and Seth hadn't arrived yet, probably at their lockers. That was when a girl with a blonde bob walked up to us, hips swaying.
"Juliet, so nice to see you," the girl sniffed, looking the opposite of what she said. Juliet cringed away. The girl barely noticed. She was too focused on me.
"Hi, I'm Amber Reese," she said with a charming, too-white smile. I gave her a terse smile - there was no reason for me to be hostile yet, but I didn't have a good feeling about this girl.
"Are you dating Jacob Black?" Amber asked point blank, trying to seem nonchalant. I fought to remain neutral - there was my reason not to like her.
"I am not," I answered. She grinned triumphantly.
"Oh, so is he single?" She waited for my nod before continuing. "Look, you're knew, you don't know who to hang with yet. I get it. My friends and I sit at the table by the window. Come join us, oh, and bring that yummy Seth kid. See ya around."
Juliet turned bright red as Amber attempted to swan away gracefully - the swing of her hips was much too forced. I didn't care about critiquing Amber's exit, though. I was more focused on my friend, who looked like she might cry.
"Uh, can you believe that?" I rolled my eyes. "That was so rude. Who does she think she is, Britney Spears?"
Juliet laughed nervously. "That's Amber. She probably does think she's Britney."
"Whatever," I slung my arm around Juliet's shoulder. "She'll be disappointed to find out I'm already hanging with the coolest girl in school."
Juliet leaned into me, the tension leaving her face. My heart twinged as I realized she'd been genuinely worried I'd hang out with Amber instead. Yeah, not even if Hell froze over. Seth chose that moment to bound up to us as the first bell rang, a wide smile on his face.
"Hi, Seth," Juliet smiled. If it was possible, Seth's face got even brighter.
"Hi, Juliet," Seth ran a hand over the back of his neck. "Er, did you sleep well?"
"I can't complain," she answered with a laugh. We filtered into the classroom, going to the seats we chose yesterday. Throughout the class, Seth and Juliet resumed their little game from yesterday. They took turns asking each other questions, quietly, while the teacher wasn't paying attention. At the end of class, with thorough prompting from Jake, Seth asked for her number.
"Not - er, not that I'm implicating anything untowards," Seth stammered, his dark cheeks taking on a more russet tone.
"No," Juliet didn't take her eyes away from his as she wrote her number across a scrap paper. "Of course not."
They both seemed a little dazed after the interaction. Seth's hand brushed Juliet's as she handed him the paper. I smiled inwardly, knowing they were meant to be together.
And they're going to die together, too, the wicked little voice in the back of my head chimed. I squashed it. Humans experienced loss all the time - just because I hit the life jackpot didn't mean I should be exempt from that as well. It was selfish of me to expect my friends to stick around forever, stay young forever just because I was.