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Chapter 6

I woke up Sunday to gray skies and a light drizzle.

It was disorienting. The week had flown by too fast with non-stop activity.

Thursday, the rain had lightened up and the sun had made a short appearance, making it the perfect day for our exploration of Port Angeles. The town was far livelier than Forks, though that didn't take much. That morning and most of the afternoon had been spent fooling around in some of the local shops, and that night eating dinner at some small Italian place, finishing off the day with a late night movie. Yeah, it had a movie theater. I nearly cried in happiness.

Friday the good weather persisted, so Embry took me hiking around La Push. However, the trip degenerated by noon to another day of messing around on First Beach, though I did get to check out the tide pools, which were wicked cool.

Saturday, the weather turned against us, so Embry declared it 'movie day' at my house. After digging through what felt like hundreds of boxes, we finally uncovered my DVD stash. The day was wasted lounging on the couch and fattening ourselves with junk food like true teenagers.

And, so, it seemed as if Sunday had come too soon. It felt odd to return to the Black's when it felt like just yesterday I had been sitting in the tiny living room bleeding everywhere.

Speaking of my injury, I glanced at the mirror above my dresser and winced. The bruise had definitely darkened to a deep purple around my eye. But on a bright note, the bruise on my nose had already started fading to a sick green color. I checked the clock. I still had enough time to put on some concealer before Embry got here.

The doorbell rang.

Or not.

Of course, Embry had to be early today of all days. The front door opened, and I heard the sounds of my mother greeting Embry, as I rushed into the bathroom. I felt a stab of pity for leaving him alone with her, but then remembered he was the one who had felt the need to be early.

After doing a poor job of blending in the makeup, I made my way down stairs, trying, and failing, to appear less rushed than I really was.

I found Embry and my mother in the kitchen, talking cheerfully about how I seemed to have a disease that prevented me from ever being on time.

Ignoring the jabs, I grabbed Embry by the arm and pulled him towards the front door. An action, I realized, was only accomplished with his backing. It was painfully obvious that if he had wanted, I could have pulled and pushed till next Christmas, and he wouldn't have even budged an inch.

"I'll have her home before nine, Mrs. Cunningham," he called back.

"Oh, you're such a sweetheart, Embry," she cooed. "Just have her home whenever works best for you. I appreciate you busing her lazy butt around."

I slammed the door behind us before she could get in another word. I threw a glare at Embry.

"What?" he asked, hands raised. "It's not my fault she loves me."

I rolled my eyes. "You have got to be the world's biggest suck up."

"You're just jealous she loves me more than you," he shot back, squeezing into the now familiar, rusty black truck.

I climbed in after him, sliding awkwardly over the slippery, worn leather that seemed to be molded to an entirely different butt shape than my own.

The car ride was spent with Embry chatting away.

"Did I tell you that Seth was going to be there?"

Only about four times.

"He's a really good guy; one of the nicest, most honest people you'll probably ever meet."

My eyebrows shot up. "Really?" I couldn't help but add in surprise. I had discovered Embry did not give out compliments lightly, so, for him to speak so highly of someone, meant that the kid must be a bloody saint.

"Trust me, I would know," he mumbled, more to himself.

I nodded for lack of a better response.

"So he's our age?" I inquired, more to fill the silence than my own curiosity.

Embry paused for a moment. "Well, actually, he's fourteen."

"Oh," I said, surprised, "cool. So, are all of the kids down at the reservation pretty tight, then?"

Embry faltered. "Well, some of us are."

"Right," I commented, suspicion leaking into my voice. He was acting a little off today.

"We're here!" Embry cried, already outside of the car before I even noticed we had stopped.

He had made it to the front door by the time I managed to untangle myself from the seat belt and roll out of the truck.

"Hey, Billy! We're here!" He disappeared into the house, leaving me outside.

I raised an eyebrow. What the hell was that? Did I say something wrong? I thought back to the conversation. Everything I had said had been pretty normal. I shrugged. Teenage boys were weird.

I shuffled into the house, taking off my coat on the way.

"I suppose it would be a waste of breath to ask who you are rooting for," an amused voice sounded somewhere off to my left.

I blushed and looked down. I had dug through some boxes last night to unearth my ancient Duke basketball jersey that had once been my dad's. It was five sizes too large and hit me around mid-thigh, making me resemble a little kid trying to wear their parent's clothes. Which was exactly what I was doing, but that was beside the point.

"My dad made sure I was a die-hard Duke fan before I could even talk," I explained, adding, "It's good to see you again, Billy."

"Likewise." The older man smiled up at me warmly. "Now, let's make sure you get some food before these wolves eat it all."

Billy rolled himself into a room off to the side, which I remembered to be the Black's tiny kitchen. Three lumbering figures stood around a table literally overflowing with food. I watched with a bit of disgust as they tried to cram as much junk food onto their tiny Styrofoam plates as physics would allow.

"Leave some for Alexis, boys," Billy commanded, voice easily able to overcome the noise they were making.

One of the figures tore themselves from the table and turned to face me.

I almost mistook him for Embry at first glance. He had matching cropped black hair and dark russet skin, but this boy was tall and gangly, and his muscles weren't nearly as prominent as the other two.

"So, you're Alexis, right?" His face was lit up by a huge, happy grin. Embry was right, the boy practically radiated honesty and sincerity.

"Yeah," I said with my own openly warm smile. His attitude was contagious. "You must be Seth, then."

He shook my hand enthusiastically. "Yup," he chirped, excited that I knew of him.

His face became suddenly serious, as his happy brown eyes squinted down at me. "The bruise isn't really that bad, anymore. Does it still hurt?" he asked with surprising concern. The comment attracted the attention of Embry and Billy.

My cheeks flushed red. "Eh, no it doesn't really hurt that much. And I made it look a little better with makeup. It's a miracle worker," I rushed out.

He hummed still squinting down at the bruise.

"You aren't seriously fourteen, are you?" I spat out, desperate to get the attention off of me. I immediately wanted to kick myself. Well that wasn't rude at all. At this rate, I was officially becoming an expert on how not to make friends.

But Seth just laughed warmly and sent me another beaming smile. "Yup, the size runs in my family."

"You and the rest of La Push," I muttered, but apparently not quietly enough.

All three boys began to laugh. "I thought I already explained this, Alexis. It's a Quileute thing," Embry said, mockingly, appearing beside me with a plate full of food.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it now," I grumbled, shrugging his arm off.

"The game is about to start, kids," Billy called from living room. I raced to grab a plate and shove it full of anything I could get my hands on. I was not going to miss this game.

A large russet hand reached for the bag of Doritos as I grabbed hold of the opposite end. I lifted my eyes to glare into a pair of dark brown one's.

"Give it up, Quil," I hissed tugging.

Okay, so I was still holding a grudge about the M&M thing. Mini's were simply delicious. End of story. Not my fault Quil was ignorant and close minded.

His eyes narrowed. "I'd like to see you try and take them."

So much for our truce.

"The toss up is about to start, Alexis," Embry shouted from the other room.

Over my dead body was I going to miss the toss up. Everyone knew that the toss up was basketball's superstitious barometer for who would win. But like hell was I going to give in to Quil and his freakish appetite.

"Quil, you already have the entire bag of Lays on your plate. You don't need these Doritos," I explained slowly, as if I were dealing with a child.

"Actually, I think I really do. Now, if you would just kindly let go…" he responded, with a confident smirk and sharp tug of the bag.

Thinking fast, I did the first thing that came to my mind. "Oh my god, a bear!" I cried, pointing at the window, face twisted in shock. Quil tensed and spun. I tugged at the bag with all of my strength.

It definitely did not go according to plan.

See, when Quil turned, he actually didn't let go of the bag, so when I tried to tear the bag away, it exploded.

End result: Doritos rained down from the ceiling of Billy's kitchen.

My mouth dropped open. Orange chips were everywhere. Quil turned, and we stared at each other in horror.

"This is so your fault!" he shouted, finger pointed accusingly.

I came back to my senses instantly. "What!? No, it's not! This is completely your fault! If you had just let me have the bag-"

"If you had just given me the bag, then none of this would have even happened!"

"What are you both screaming abou-?" Embry froze when he caught sight of the kitchen. "What the hell happened?"

"It's his fault!"

"It's her fault!"

"Uh-huh, I'm sure," he said, skeptically, eyeing the two halves of the red Doritos bag we both gripped.

We both rushed to explain our side of the story, which deteriorated to a shouting match to drown out the other's voice.

Seth and Billy appeared in the threshold.

The boy made a noise of awe. "I didn't know Doritos could stick to the ceiling."

Billy simply sighed. "I'll find the broom."

"Are you kidding me?! What kind of pass was that?!" I cried.

Quil and I had finally been allowed to rejoin the others after scrubbing the kitchen clean of the mess. Of course, it wouldn't have taken that long, if we hadn't begun arguing half way through and started a food fight.

In my defense, I didn't throw the first chip, technically.

"What was that?! What kind of professional player misses two free-throws?! I could have made those blindfolded!" I leaped up from my position on the couch. Michigan State was losing by 20 points to NC State. Freakin' NC State. This was not happening. I was not going to let Embry win our bet! Honestly, I didn't even have twenty dollars on me, and I had blown my allowance when we went to Port Angeles.

I didn't even realize I had been pacing until a hand shot out and yanked me back onto the couch.

"You do know they can't hear you, right Lex?" Embry mocked.

I huffed and sank back into the couch. I risked a glance around the room and found everyone's eyes locked on me and dancing in amusement. I flushed and immediately wished the couch would swallow me whole.

"I, uh, get a little excited during these games," I explained, weakly.

The three boys snickered, but Billy just sent me a warm smile and turned back to the game.

I followed his example after poking Embry and Seth in the ribs, an action that I think hurt me more than them. What were these boys made of anyway?

"I'll just leave my number here on the counter, Billy."

"Now, Alexis, that really isn't necessary. I can take care of myself," Billy argued, trailing behind me into the kitchen.

I waved him off. "I know, but just in case you ever get bored or feel like some greasy fast food, I'll be your girl," I told him, grinning. I scrawled my home and cell phone down on the pad next to the Black's phone, feeling distinctly proud of myself.

Embry was waiting for me by the front door with my jacket in hand when I bounced out of the kitchen. His large smirk drained the excitement out of me instantly.

"So, about those twenty dollars…"

I ignored him and snatched at my jacket.

"Hey, don't think you're going to go back on it! You shook hands! I have three witnesses!"

I continued to ignore him, as I turned back to Billy. "We'll see you Thursday, Billy. I'll try to bring some food to make up for the mess earlier."

He waved his hand, dismissingly. "I count a small mess as the only casualty after a night with these boys a blessing," he said, laughing with his booming voice. "But food is always welcomed."

"I'll remember that," I said, chuckling with him.

My world suddenly tilted, and I was crushed in a burning hold.

"Seth," I gasped. "I can't breathe."

I was instantly dropped. Seth looked down at me sheepishly. "Promise to visit La Push soon, okay?"

I nodded eager to please the absolute saint of a boy. "It all really depends on if Embry's willing to drag me up here, though."

The two boys traded looks over my head. My eyes flickered between them.

"Hey, how come Seth got a hug and I didn't?!" Quil whined loudly. I rolled my eyes and held out my arms. I was swept up into another fiery embrace and then quickly dropped back onto earth. Hugs with these guys were very disorienting.

I waved a final goodbye and trudged after Embry out the door.

"Alexis, you promised," Embry complained, facing me as he walked backwards. I immediately checked to see if there was anything he could trip on and was disappointed when the path was clear.

I glanced back up and regretted it immediately. He was giving the puppy dog eyes.

I sighed. "I know. I just don't have the money right now. How about we back it with an IOU?" I asked hopefully. His eyes narrowed; he didn't trust me. "You want me to sign my name in blood or something?" I said, irritated.

His eyes lit up. "Sure that would work."

I rolled my eyes and climbed into the car. I waited for him to walk around before responding. "I'm not signing my name in blood."

"But you said-" I gave him with a dry look. "Fine, but you better keep up your end of the bargain!"

"Sure, sure," I responded, flippantly, focusing my attention on the side mirror. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Embry tense and his knuckles tighten around the steering wheel.

"Are you okay?" I asked, worried something was wrong.

He snapped out of his thoughts. "Oh, yeah, good, fine, yeah."

I sent him a suspicious look, but turned back to the house to see Billy in the threshold of the door, seeing Quil and Seth out.

He remained in the doorway long after the two had disappeared into the woods. I watched his silhouette in the side mirror, as we turned out of the house.

"He seems so lonely," I said softly without thinking. Embry's eyes flickered over to the rearview mirror. "Doesn't he have any kids?"

"Three actually."

"Three?! Where are all of them?" I asked, shocked. How could they just leave their handicapped father to fend for himself?

"Well, the twins have been doing their own thing for awhile, now. Rachael's a full time college student at Washington University, and Rebecca married a surfer and lives in Hawaii. Both are caught up with their own lives."

I nodded, absentmindedly, still not happy with the excuses. "And what about your friend, Jacob? Where is he?"

Embry stiffened at the name. His knuckles turned white on the steering wheel. "He's…sorting himself out."

I watched him with narrowed eyes. His face was twisted as if he were in pain. "And people do that sort of thing in Canada?"

He sent me a sharp glare. I flinched and immediately wished I had just kept my mouth shut. The air in the car became tense.

"I'm sorry, it's really none of my business," I conceded in a strained whisper. I saw out of the corner of my eye Embry's grip loosen.

"Look, it's just really complicated. When he found out she was marrying the-" he cut himself off, looking angrily out at the road, as if it were too painful to even form the words. His hands trembled on the wheel.

"He left over a girl?!" I cried, appalled.

Embry winced. "It was much more complicated than that, see-"

"He left his handicapped father all alone after being rejected by a girl?!" I was almost shouting now.

Embry sent me an irritated look. "Just trust me when I say it was a lot more than that."

I huffed and crossed my arms. "No girl is worth causing the people who really love you pain," I declared, firmly.

"This was more than just rejection!" Embry defended. "She gave up everything for that thing!" he spat.

"Which makes it okay for Jacob to do the same?" I hissed back.

Embry slammed on the brakes. I went flying forward only to be jerked back by my seat belt. I looked over to see him shaking.

Eyes wide, I watched him take deep gulps of air, almost as if he were struggling to control himself. Tense minutes passed in which I was too afraid to speak.

Finally Embry breathed out, "I shouldn't be taking this out on you."

Oh, so now he was sorry after nearly cutting me in half with my seatbelt?

I glanced out the window. I had to apologize. I couldn't afford to lose my only friend in Forks. Man, I was pathetic.

I took a deep breath and swallowed my pride. "I shouldn't either. He was your friend, and he hurt you. I know how that feels. But I don't have the right to judge him over something I know nothing about."

I watched Embry stare at me in the reflection in the window. It held a burning intensity, as if he was really seeing me for the first time. Being a coward, I refused to make eye contact.

"We seem to have a knack for screwing up together," he told me flatly, voice emotionless. I risked a glance. He stared stoically out at the road before us.

I faced forward as well. "See, told you we're perfect for each other." My voice held a grim edge I couldn't hide.

The ride was spent in silence, both of us too caught up with our own thoughts to really pay the other much attention.

I knew something was off with Embry now, and it had something to do with this Jacob Black kid. Whatever it was, it was causing Embry emotional and physical pain, and as my only friend in all of Washington, I made it my self-appointed duty to fix this for him. It was the least I could do, right?

I climbed out of the truck, and we traded weak goodbyes.

As I stood on the curb, watching Embry drive away, I thought back to look on his face as he shook.

I decided then I was going to make it better.

Whatever it was, I would fix it.