Chapter Five - Rainfall
Over the next two weeks, I texted Juliet nonstop. We always had something to say to each other. She was at our house almost everyday after school - Rose was getting annoyed with the human charade, but she loved Juliet enough to go with it. Seth was texting her an awful lot as well, not to mention Alice. Poor Juliet's phone was probably blowing up all the time.
School was completely awkward. Harper really had it out for Seth. He was slowly on his way to becoming openly hostile at the lunch table. I was trying to be Switzerland during the nuclear lunch warfare, but I was slowly becoming team Seth. Harper no longer deserved the benefit of the doubt. He was trolling for any excuse to point fingers at Seth. Juliet and him weren't doing anything wrong - just building a friendship.
It all came to a crest on Friday. Harper stole Juliet's phone while she wasn't paying attention in math class and guessed her password easily. She was a little… hare-brained at times. Her password was all one number, 3333.
I was in bed, reading a book when Edward came in, looking panicked.
"Juliet ran all the way here," he said gravely. "Something is wrong, but her thoughts are bouncing everywhere. I can't pin anything down."
"Harper," I snapped, throwing my book down. Sure enough, I heard feet pounding the gravel in the driveway. I shot out of bed like a rocket, barging past my father and down into the foyer. Esme had just opened the door and was holding the crying Juliet in her arms.
"Jules!" I cried, running forward. "You're soaked - we gotta get you warm."
Alice was the closest female to Juliet besides me, so the two of us brought her to my bathroom suite. We stripped off her icy soaked clothes and Alice ran her a bath. She made sure to add a calming bath bomb and lots of nice-smelling bubbles. I padded into my closet, looking for a change of clothes. I picked out some neon green fabric shorts and a soft black hoodie.
When I got back into the bathroom, Juliet had calmed down. Alice sat on the counter across from the tub while I sat on the floor, leaning against the bath.
"Harper stole my phone," Juliet took a deep breath. "He went through all my conversations with you guys and even with Lewis! Now he - he's saying I cheated on him. That I cheated w-with Emmett and Edward and Seth and Jake, 'cause I have text conversations with them. But I didn't, Renesmee, you have to b-believe me!"
"Of course we believe you!" Alice and I said in unison.
"Harper is crazy - I'm gonna open up a can of whoopass on that scrawny little fu-" I ranted, covering my mouth before Esme could hear me drop a serious bomb.
"Please tell me you dumped him," Alice leaned forward earnestly.
"I did," Juliet wiped her face. "But he still has my phone and they're going to kill me if I don't get it back."
"Your parents?" Alice pressed. Juliet bit her lip, taking a deep breath. Alice leaned forward more.
"My current foster parents," Juliet sighed finally. This was what Alice was waiting for.
"You're in foster care?" Alice feigned surprise, clapping her hands to her cheeks for effect. I shot her a dark look. There was no need to make Juliet feel like a freak!
"Why didn't you tell us?" I asked softly, leaning against the tub with my cheek pressed to the wall. More tears filled my best friend's eyes.
"People always treat me like a freak when they find out - they think teens who haven't been adopted yet are psychopaths or criminals. That's all I am to them," she told me, blinking. "I was gonna tell you this weekend."
"It's okay," I told her. "You weren't ready, that's fine. For the record, I don't see you any differently than before."
"I'd hug you, but I'm a little damp currently," Juliet said. "And naked."
We settled for holding hands, instead. Alice disappeared after a moment to talk to Carlisle about something.
"How about hot drinks?" I asked. Juliet nodded. I left her to dry off and get changed. Esme was downstairs making hot chocolates while Seth paced back and forth. The second I passed into the kitchen he rounded on me.
"Is she alright?" He asked. I nodded at him. "I'm so gonna kill that Harper kid!"
"You and me both, Seth," I sighed.
Esme looked like she was hiding something.
"Why don't we set you kids up with a movie," Esme said. It was not a question. I collected Juliet and we met the boys in the theater. Seth's sentence dropped off when he saw Juliet. His eyes ran up her long, toned legs, to her thighs, and the cozy sweater that hung down past her hips. He was effectively rendered speechless.
Juliet noticed and a pink blush spread under her freckles. We got into our usual positions and switched on a movie. Over the movie, with my sensitive ears, I picked out the words 'family meeting'. After eye contact with Jake and Seth, I realized they noticed the same thing. Juliet was the only one focused on the movie while we strained to hear what was happening elsewhere.
"We all know Juliet is a foster kid," Alice was saying. "Edward and I did some digging after the first day, but it wasn't until he went to drop her off that we really found some red flags."
"Juliet doesn't like thinking about it," Edward took over. "First red flag. That made it hard to dig until I got close to her foster family or caught her in a vulnerable moment."
"Her situation is bad," Alice chimed in. "Half her foster parents have taken out some form of abuse on her, emotional or physical in some cases. She's a fighter, though."
"Currently she's facing neglect," Edward said. "I hate to put her business out like this, but it's been deemed necessary. She isn't getting the care she needs at home - she's only there so the family looks good to the community. Really, she's barely being fed or clothed."
"In summary, it's shit," Alice sounded frustrated. A sob came from someone, likely Esme.
"Which is why we're presenting a case to the family," Edward's voice chastised Alice slightly.
"Because it's shit," Alice interjected.
"Thank you, Alice," Edward sighed. "We're asking for the Cullens to adopt Juliet."
A few gasps. A chair scraping across hardwood.
"Edward, you have to understand -" Carlisle was saying.
"The Volturi-" Jasper chimed in.
"-just not safe!" Rosalie's voice took over.
"Quiet!" Alice hissed. "This has to be a secret. Hear that, guys? A secret!"
We knew she was directing that at us. It was obvious we could hear. Juliet was the one who had to be kept in the dark. If the majority voted against adopting her, she'd be crushed. My heart was racing, though, and I could hear Seth's from across the room. He seemed to be struggling with a mixture of anger and hope. Juliet casually crawled over to him and sank into his arms, resting her head on his chest. His arms automatically wound around her. I smiled at the cute moment before tuning back in.
"If we decide to adopt Juliet," Carlisle's steady voice silenced the rest. "We have to tell her what we are before making the offer. In the event of the Volturi snooping around, we'll assure them that Juliet has promised to be turned when she reaches full growth."
Rosalie gasped. "Carlisle, no! That's her future you're signing away!"
"What if she and Seth want children one day?" Esme fretted.
"We'll talk to her," Carlisle scolded. "Of course we'll make sure she's well informed. We can delay her transformation, anyways, like we did with Bella's."
"Her future, Carlisle," Rosalie reiterated quietly.
"And what of now, Rosie?" Carlisle spoke softly, to her only. "She needs a family who can love her and care for her. She's already so adjusted here. If the foster system bounces her around again, that will damage her. This is for her future, my dear."
"We'll take a vote, Carlisle?" Edward prompted.
"My vote is a yes, completely," Carlisle said confidently.
Edward was next. "Yes."
Bella. "Yes."
Rosalie. "I'm so sorry, no."
Emmett. "Hell yeah!"
Alice. "Of course, I foresaw it."
Jasper. "…Yes."
Esme. "Of course."
I vote yes! I mentally screamed at my dad. He chuckled.
"There's three resounding yes votes from the movie room," he announced. I caught Seth's eye, then Jacob's. We shared a private smile.
"We'll tell Juliet tomorrow," Carlisle decided. "She's been through quite enough tonight."
"May I confess," The smile was audible in Alice's voice. "I saw her staying with us for an extended time. So, in my spare time, I was ordering things online and shopping at the mall. I subtly found out her likes and dislikes and then I designed her room!"
"Of course," Emmett laughed. "Only Alice."