Bella POV:
Finally graduation is over with you would think I would be happy. This last week has really sucked, I have been feverish and nauseous. The strange thing is, I am unable to recall a day where I have ever been sick before, not even the sniffles.
One thing I am overjoyed over is I am finally going to be getting away from my bitch of a mother. I have been accepted to Carnegie Mellon University. As far away as Pittsburgh is from Phoenix I still think it is not far enough, perhaps I should have applied to schools in Europe after all I am still on the same continent as her.
Renee has been acting rather strangely this past week as well. Most mothers are supposed to care for their sick children, not Renee. In fact Renee has been keeping her distance and has been strangely, but welcomingly quiet.
I must really be lost in my thoughts, it has just occurred to me someone is banging on the front door, better go see whose here. I run to the foyer and swing open the door, and cannot repress my surprise.
"Charlie what are you doing here" I asked stunned. "Not I'm not thrilled to see you" I quickly recover.
"Hey kid, I just came to see how my favorite girl is doing" He says while ruffling my hair. "Your mom called and said you have been sick this past week."
I then glance out to the driveway and see his car in the drive. Okay queue confusion time. "Dad, you drove for days because I am feeling a little under the weather?" I'm sure by the look on my face he is aware that I'm having just a little bit of a hard time swallowing this one.
"Well actually, it a little more than that" The way he says this I can tell he is having a tough time with this conversation. "Your mother and I have been talking and well, we think it best that you spend the rest of the summer up in Forks with me, I came to pick you up" He says smiling slightly.
Ok, I've gone from slightly confused to full blown out of body experience. My mother who has never, allowed Charlie any where near me with out her being present is sending me to live with him. What the hell is going on?
"Dad, no offence but mom, has been so overbearing where is comes to me spending any time with you and now she's just fine with me moving in with you?" I ask
"Well your mother had decided that we haven't been able to spend anytime together and she thinks that it is only fair, for us to have some time." He tells me. Now I know he is lying. Renee doesn't know the meaning of the word fair. And I know damn well she would be so selfless, but I'll keep these thoughts to myself.
"Well, if you'll excuse me I have to go pack, I wasn't aware of this, and haven't prepared anything." I tell him as I turn and run up the stairs to start packing.
As I am packing I begin to try to make sense of what is going on. I'd gladly jump at the chance to get away from Renee any way I can, but this is still strange. You'd think I'd blame Charlie for never standing up to Renee, but I've seen her in action and know what she does to men. Renee has away of sucking all the testosterone out of any guy she has dated, as I've witnessed from Charlie over the years. Not to mention I've seen her in action with her new husband Phil, it's disgusting.
It takes me a few hours to pack and I come down stairs to find Charlie in front of the TV engrossed in sports, poor man is probably trying to recover some of his manhood, stolen by that bitch. "I'm packed let me call Renee and let her know we are leaving, I'm sure she'll want to see me off" I tell him.
"Actually Bells, your mother thought it would be easier for guys, if you don't say goodbye" again with the lying Charlie, really.
"Ok let's go" I say as Charlie snatches up my bags for the trip.
We load up the car and head out. As is usual for myself and Charlie we fall into our usual silent treatment. Still feeling under the weather I quickly find myself drifting off to sleep.
Emmett's POV:
Damn it! I thought to myself as I lumbered through the forest in my bear form. I just can't take it anymore, night in and night out having to hear the sounds of three other happy couples in the house, was just too much.
Unfortunately I got the short end of the stick in the were gene pool. Don't get me wrong being a bear is great, it's just that were bears are the rarest form of shifter and there are more males than females., which makes finding a mate for a males, well impossible really. Also unlike other shifters bear shifters are preprogrammed to respond to other bears alone. At least other types of shifters are other to co-habitate with other species of shifter as well as some mixed human relationships.
It's not like I haven't tried to find a mate. When I'm on vacation from the Forks PD, I often travel the country searching. Only once have I even come close to finding a mate some friends of the family alerted me to an unmated female, but another male swooped in, I was so close only a day too late. I'm only 42 which in immortal terms is relatively a short time, but that is 42 years alone.
I wish the rest of my family had survived the shifter wars, but alas as with most bears it just wasn't so. Bears are the most formidable fighters so of course they were used on the front lines, and are now an endangered species. I guess unlike other orphaned shifters of the time I was lucky, Carlisle Cullen and his wife Esme, adopted a group of us orphans.
Well in a few weeks, I will get to go on another mate finding expedition. I think I'll try Montana next. I would be on vacation now if it weren't for Chief Swan having some emergency situation with his daughter. I guess I can't begrudge having my vacation switched after all that man never takes vacation.
Perhaps Montana will be my lucky break.