A/N: I know I said it wouldn't be a while until you saw one of these again but I just wanted to say thank you to those who reveiwed me or put me on alert. I do have to admit almost 400 hits and only 10 reviews. Anyways I'm sorry for the wait, but I hope you enjoy this chapter. So far it's the longest one. And here's what you have all been waiting for.
Disclaimer: Anything recognizable belongs to Stephenie Meyer. I am merely using her characters, I own only Amy, Ryan, and Veronica. The titles for chapter two and three are titles of songs by Death Cab For Cutie as well as the story's title.
CHAPTER 3: No Sunlight
When I was young lying in the grass.
I felt so safe in a warming bath
of sunlight, of sunlight.
Vast open sky could do no harm.
I can embrace the weather's arms.
In sunlight, in sunlight.
In sunlight, in sunlight.
With every year that came to pass.
More clouds appeared, the sky went black.
And there was no sunlight, no sunlight.
And there was no sunlight, no sunlight.
Anymore...
-Death Cab For Cutie
The rest of the day was fine. P.E. wasn't a complete torture, and I found out that Ryan's mother was the art teacher in Forks High. I really enjoyed that part of the day; I knew that this class would be my favorite of the year. The class did lack a few supplies, but I loved the atmosphere in the room. I also found out Ryan was an amazing artist. Since it was my last class of the day, it was going to be a good way to unwind. When I got home after school I found my mother talking to an unfamiliar man.
"Amelia, good thing you're here. I want you to meet Charlie Swan. He's the chief of police in town," My mom said. The chief stood and reached out his right hand for me to shake. I did so, but cautiously.
"Is something wrong?" I asked, turning to look at my parents.
"Oh no, I just came to welcome you to town, and on more formal matters, to interview your father for work," Chief Swan answered.
"Oh ok, well in that case nice to meet you," I nodded and gave him a weak smile.
"I would have come earlier, but I wasn't home this weekend," Chief Swan said. "The whole town was anticipating your arrival." I turned to my parents, wondering whether or not they had planned on alerting the whole town when we were to arrive. The chief apparently saw my questioning look.
"Everyone knew someone new was coming when the house had a 'sold' sign. There is no such thing as secrets in Forks. It's too small a town," The chief smiled at me.
"Well if the town knowing we were coming didn't sound creepy enough, that sure did," I replied. Instantly I heard my mom hiss my name and my dad try to cover up a snort with a cough. Chief Swan stared at me for a second before he began to chuckle.
"It is a bit strange, but it's the price you pay for living somewhere like Forks," Chief Swan kept laughing. "But anyways, I guess we should get to the interview then, Frank." My dad and Chief Swan went into the kitchen and my mom stayed in the living room watching one of her novelas. I quickly went up the stairs to avoid my mom saying anything to me for my blunt comment. I sat in my small desk to begin working on homework and to catch up in the reading for English.
That was where my dad found me a few hours later. I had apparently fallen asleep at my desk reading Hamlet for class. There was a crick in my neck from having slumped over onto the desk. When the fuzziness left my brain, I turned to my dad, who had an amused look on his face. He helped me up and onto my bed, where he tucked me in. He hadn't done that in years.
"Go to sleep, Aims. It's late," He said as he turned on my alarm and turned off the light in my room. The door for my room hadn't even closed before I fell back into a deep slumber. The next morning I jumped out of bed, scared half to death. That is until I glanced at my clock-radio. 6:30. A breath of relief escaped me as I realized that I had woken up early. Relaxing, I went back to sleep. An hour and a half later I found myself in first period. It was only the second day of school, but I already felt like crap.
"Yeesh, Amy, you don't look so good," Veronica commented. She barely met me and already she was taking on the blunt friend role. I let my head fall to my desk and let out a groan.
"I went to sleep late last night trying to catch up for English," I muttered, my head still down. "I read three acts and a scene from Act 4 before I pretty much passed out on my desk. I hate Shakespeare."
"Why would you torture yourself like that?" Veronica asked. "Mr. Lambert said you didn't need to go past Act 1."
"I know, but you guys are almost finished with the play. I'm behind as it is; I really need to catch up," I groaned as I sat up and pulled out my notebook and pen. I didn't pay much attention to the rest of the day. Even in lunch I was super quiet, only eating my homemade lunch. Ryan and Veronica took pity on me and kept themselves from questioning me today. They had all year to get to know me. I had noticed the two of them discussing something with their group of friends.
"So you have anything this weekend?" Ryan asked. He and Veronica had turned towards me after it seemed that they had finished planning with their friends.
"No, nothing planned. Why?" I asked as I collected my trash.
"Some of us are thinking of hanging out. Maybe going to one of the beaches if the weather isn't too bad," Ryan answered.
"Going to the beach? But it's winter, it's freezing," I looked at him as if he were insane.
"It won't be snowing anytime soon. A lot of the people on the reservation have bonfires during this time of year. We're thinking of doing the same. It's something to do, you know, rather than just stay home bored on a Saturday," Ryan explained.
"Come on, Amy. Come with us, you'll have fun I promise," Veronica gave me these puppy-dog eyes. "And maybe some of the La Push guys might be at the beach too. Let me tell you, you'll die when you see them." She gave me a wink at that comment. I could only roll my eyes in amusement at her.
"I don't know. I'm going to have to ask my parents first. As long as I have their permission and there are to be s'mores at this bonfire then I'm in," I answered, laughing at Veronica's expression of happiness. I later found out that lunch would be the highlight of my day because at the end of sixth period I received a text from my dad. It informed me that Dad had to go into the police station to finish some paperwork to begin work soon, and Mom had decided to go to the nearby town to do some early Christmas shopping. Thanksgiving had only passed a week ago; Mom usually did it the day of Black Friday, but with the packing and moving she didn't have time.
I hated the idea of having to walk home in the cold, the clouds hung low in the sky, the threat of rain always a constant. I would have asked Ryan or Veronica for a ride, but by the time I read the text they had left. I walked alongside the road; every once in a while a car would pass me by. The majority of the time only the sound of a bird chirping could be heard. It really was quiet in Forks. It felt like it was too quiet, as if the town were hiding something. But then again it could be my imagination running wild to liven up the atmosphere in Forks.
I didn't realize when I began humming a random song until I stopped. A noise coming from the trees next to the road caught my attention. It was a strangled sound. I began heading towards it. It could be a wounded animal, or a person in need of help. I pushed aside the branches of the trees on the edge of the forest. I cautiously stepped through, letting the green completely surround me. I had never been around so much green, so much vegetation. Only a small amount of light shone through the clouds, even less shone through the leaves.
I walked ahead, doing so slowly. The sound reached my ears again, this time it was a little menacing. I stumbled with a fallen branch, barely grabbing a hold of a tree trunk to steady myself. Another sound rang through the forest. A shrill shriek caused me to stop. The sound made my blood freeze, a fear so deep settled in me making it difficult to breath. Then suddenly I see something pale fly through the air and land a few feet away from me. My brain took a while to recognize what had fallen in front of me.
A scream was caught in my throat as I watched the twitching limb. Before my heart settled something else flew from the trees, this landed closer to me. I sharp scream ripped itself from my mouth. I heard the flutter of wings as dozens of birds took flight. Glassy eyes stared back at me from a beautiful face covered with pale hair. I could only stare back; my brain's signals to run away were ignored by the rest of my body.
The site of the arm and head made my stomach turn. I was desperately trying to hold down my lunch. My legs had become weak, not able to hold my weight any longer. And when a chocolate-brown bear jumped from the dark, my brain shut down. I felt myself fall before I completely blacked out.
"I'm surprised she didn't do anything."
"She was just standing there, staring. That's worse; you can't know how she really is."
"I told you two to be careful," The three voices were fuzzy, but I was still able to make out what they were saying. I tried to open my eyes, but the room was too bright.
"Hey, she's up," The first voice I had heard commented. I put my hand in front of my eyes to shield them from the light. I tried to sit up; something heavy held me down.
"Good, how do you feel?" The third voice asked. I was finally able to open my eyes completely without the light bothering them. Three very large men sat in front of where I had been laying. The one closest to me was the one stopping me from sitting up.
"Wh-where am I? Who are you?" The words just tumbled out of my mouth. I had no control over what I was saying. The unfamiliar surroundings caused the fear from the forest to come back, but with less force. My gaze fell on each of them, studying them. When my gaze fell on the one standing against the wall I recognized him as the one from the diner. And the one sitting in the armchair was one of the friends that accompanied him.
"Ok then, she's still freaking out," The one sitting in the armchair said.
"What are you doing? There was this large animal out there. It killed someone! I saw it!" I exclaimed fighting against the arm holding my shoulder down.
"Hold on, don't worry we got it under control. Calm down, ok. Jacob told me you took a nasty fall. It was a good thing he found you in time," The man sitting on the coffee table said. "Do you feel fine?"
"Of course not! I just saw someone get killed! I saw a decapitated head! Oh God, I feel like I'm going to be sick," The memory of the face staring at me from the forest floor hit me with full force. It made the vomit rise in my throat. I noticed the guy standing rush into another room. He came back quickly with a bucket. The guy directly in front of me gave me the bucket at the exact moment my stomach emptied itself. I heard one of them make a disgusted sound as I continued to heave into the bucket.
"Here you go," I was handed a napkin. After I had thrown up I felt weak, the energy completely taken out of me.
"Thanks for the bucket," I muttered as I set it down before leaning my head against the back of the couch.
"Well I'm guessing you feel better now," The same guy in front of me was doing all the talking. I shook my head no.
"I just puked my guts out in front of you three," I replied. I heard one of them laugh at my comment.
"Yeah, you make very interesting first impressions. First you crash into a door, and then you freak out, only to end up puking into a bucket. Let me just say you have some real class," The guy in the armchair laughs only to cause me to groan.
"Shut it, Quil," The guy standing said smacking his friend in the back of the head.
"Hey you two cool it," The oldest commanded. He then turned to me, giving me a small smile. "At least we know you're fine now. What's your name?"
"I'm Amy Arzola," I answered.
"Well nice to meet you Amy. I'm Sam, Sam Uley," Sam said holding out his hand to shake.
"Nice to meet you, too," I said as I shook his hand.
"These two are Quil Ateara," He pointed to the one sitting in the chair; he waved at me with a large grin. Sam then pointed to the guy I recognized from the diner. "And Jacob Black, he's the one who found you in the forest."
"Thanks for saving me," I said. I couldn't help the shyness that fell over me at that point when I looked at Jacob. He was nothing like I had ever seen before. None of them were. They were all tan, muscular, and good-looking. I had never seen anyone as tall as them.
"No problem," Jacob replied, his gaze steady on me. I felt myself grow hot as I tried to avoid looking into his eyes. The intensity of his stare was too powerful, like there was something behind it beyond mere curiosity. It didn't fit with the casualness of his voice.
"No, no, there has to be a way to pay you back for your help. Anything I could do for you, just tell me and I'll do it," I said looking at the three.
"Don't worry about that, Amy. We're happy to help anyone in need," Sam said patting me on the shoulder.
"No, I feel like I should thank you guys in some way other than just saying a simple 'thank you'," I said.
"Hey I have an idea. Why don't you take Jacob here out of our hair for a bit? He's been moping around here for too long," I noticed Quil throw Jacob a quick wink which Jacob only scowled at.
"Quil, shut your trap," Jacob growled. Sam gave them both a look before turning to me again.
"How about this, we'll leave your offer standing. When we think of something we'll tell you," Sam said as he stood up from the coffee table. "Now how about you join us for dinner."
"Oh good, I'm starving. I wonder what Emily made today?" I heard Quil ask as he made his way to what I assume was the kitchen.
"When aren't you starving, Quil?" I heard Sam mutter as he too walked in the same direction. I stayed sitting for a while. It wasn't until now that I realized that someone had taken my jacket off and my bag was missing. It was as I was looking around the room for my things that I became conscious I wasn't alone in the room. Jacob was standing across from me, the same intense look on his face.
"Can I ask you something?" He said pushing himself off the wall. He continued to stare at me, this time I saw a bit of anger or frustration, I'm not sure.
"Um, sure go ahead," I replied, fidgeting with the hem of my shirt.
"What were you doing in the forest by yourself?" His question stopped me short.
"I was walking home," I answered. His gaze became skeptical.
"Through the forest?" He asked.
"Well why were you in the forest?" I shot back. I saw him cock an eyebrow in suspicion, but there was nothing to be suspicious about.
"I was hunting, now don't be difficult, answer the question," His gaze made me nervous, but there was no need to lose my cool.
"Ok, fine, but please don't judge me. I know what I did was stupid. Really stupid now that I think about it," I said, his expression became questioning. "I really was walking home from school when I heard this noise coming from the forest. It sounded like something or someone was in trouble, which apparently I was right about. But anyways, I followed the noise. I thought maybe I could help it, whatever it was." There was silence after my explanation.
"Yeah, it was stupid of you to go into a forest you know nothing about," Jacob said matter-of-factly. "You're new around here aren't you?"
"Jacob! Amy! Get in here, the food is great!" We both turned towards the direction Quil's voice came from. Jacob chuckled and shook his head in amusement.
"We're coming!" He called back. He then turned back to me. "Come on. We don't want to keep Quil waiting." I followed him into the small kitchen. Quil and Sam were sitting at a sturdy wooden table that took up almost the entire room. Mounds of food were set on the table. Jacob went to sit next to Sam and began serving himself heaps of food. I was too shy to just sit down at the table and begin eating.
"Would it be alright if I washed my hands first?" I asked.
"Yeah, you can wash them here in the sink," A voice behind me answered. I turned to find a smiling woman at the stove. I couldn't stop myself from staring, but quickly I looked towards the sink.
"Thank you," I smiled at her before heading towards the sink. As I washed my hands I thought of the face of the woman, who I assumed was the Emily Quil mentioned earlier. Her smile was so cheerful, beautiful on one side and on the other scarred and distorted. Her skin and hair the same copper tone and deep black as the three men. Being around them made me feel not so out of place like back in Forks, where the majority of the kids in school were pale. My skin wasn't as rich a brown as the three guys' and Emily's, and my hair looked lighter compared to theirs.
"Hurry and sit down, Amy. These three are going to end up eating everything before you finish washing your hands," I heard Emily joke. I dried my hands quickly before joining the four at the table.
"Well it's not always that I get to meet someone new," Emily said as she got a plate for herself and handed me one as well. "I'm Emily Young."
"Nice to meet Emily. Thank you, I'm sorry to impose like this on you," I really did feel awkward.
"Don't worry about it. It's a nice change to have another girl around here," Emily chuckled. I smiled at her kindness and easy-going nature.
"So, where are you from?" Quil asked around a mouthful of chicken.
"I'm from Arizona," I answered. My answer caused everyone to quickly glance at Jacob who stopped midway putting a forkful of potatoes into his mouth. I looked at everyone as they stayed silent. "What? Did I say something wrong?"
"No Amy, so what part of Arizona are you from?" Sam asked.
"Um, I'm from Yuma. It's not a well-known city. People in Arizona do know it because it's so close to the border, only thirty minutes. It's a decent size for a city, a lot bigger than Forks," I could hear myself ramble and I wanted to stop myself.
"So why did your family decide to come live here?" Emily asked filling the silence left from my rambling.
"My sister goes to school in up here in Washington, and my mom wanted to be close to her. We would have moved to Seattle but my mom hates big cities. She hated going to Phoenix to visit my aunt," I answered. We continued eating and everyone continued to ask me questions, everyone except Jacob. He was pretty much quiet during dinner. There were times when Quil did cause him to chuckle, but it seemed that Jacob didn't really wish to speak to me.
"Oh, you really need to try it! It's delicious! My aunt makes this really good one, it's super spicy, but it's just amazing. How about I bring down the recipe one of these days, and I'll show you how to make it?" I said. The topic had turned onto food. I found out that there were no decent Mexican food restaurants around; therefore they had yet to taste one of my favorite dishes, chicken with mole and red rice.
"That would be great," Emily said. I was completely stuffed from dinner and I felt so relaxed. My eyes caught sight of the clock on the wall. It was almost eight o'clock.
"Oh my God! It's late; I really need to get home. My parents are going to kill me," I jumped up from my seat picking up my plate.
"Wait hold on, let me get your things," Emily said as she went into the living room. She came back a minute later with my jacket and bag. I thanked her as she handed them to me.
"Jake will take you," Sam said standing up from the table. Jacob stared at Sam like he wanted to say something.
"No no, I can just call my dad," I said. I really had taken enough advantage of their generosity. I saw Jacob perk up and open his mouth.
"No, it's fine. Jake won't mind giving you a ride. Besides I don't think your parents would be able to get here, it's dark," Sam replied.
"Yeah, I don't mind," Jacob's voice sounded strained.
"Ok, thank you so much," I turned to Jacob. He stood, taking his car keys from his front pocket. I thanked Sam and Emily profusely for their hospitality and said goodbye to Quil. I followed Jake out the front door and into his car. He took up the majority of the space in the front seat. His head skimmed the roof of the car. I put on my seatbelt as Jacob turned on the ignition. I waved goodbye to the three bodies standing in the doorway as Jake pulled onto the street. The car was awkwardly silent for a few minutes.
"I was serious about paying you back for today," I said, the tense silence had become too much for me. Jake glanced at me quickly.
"You don't have to. It was the right thing to do. But then again I wouldn't have needed to if you hadn't gone in the forest by yourself," Jacob said, his gaze steady on the road ahead.
"I know. I'm sorry for my stupidity. I just thought that I could help whatever was in trouble," I said. I really did feel like smacking myself.
"It's fine as long as it doesn't happen again," Jacob replied.
"It won't," I said simply. We both stayed silent after that for another few minutes.
"It looked like something out of a horror movie," I whispered mainly to myself.
"What did?" Jacob asked.
"The bear killing that girl," I clarified. "The girl was so beautiful, I'm sure she'll be missed. Maybe we should report it. I mean, her family must be wondering where she's at, they need to know what happened."
"Don't worry we already did," Jake answered stiffly. I stared at him.
"Oh, that's good," I said softly. I turned to look out the window. The moon was full, but about to be covered by the clouds. "It's always cloudy here, huh, even at night?"
"Huh, oh yeah. That's how the weather is," Jacob responded never once moving his eyes off the road.
"That's sad, you can't see the stars. Back home you could see them so clearly. I would have to say that is one thing I really miss. Melissa, she's my best friend, and I used to go on my roof and watch the stars appear one by one," I continued.
"I'm guessing it must feel like you're trapped in a box. No open skies here," Jacob inquired. I turned to look back at him.
"Yeah, you could say it's like a box. I never thought I would say this, but I miss the heat," I chuckled. "Not the artificial heat from a heater, but the sun warming up your skin, as if from the inside."
"That sounds nice," He murmured.
"It does," I agreed. We were now pulling into town. I directed him to my house, where we found the lights on in the living room as well as a police car in the front of the house. It didn't hit me until now what it would seem like to my parents if I had disappeared for so long without calling.
"Oh wow, yeah, I'm dead, so dead. I can only imagine what my parents must be thinking happened to me. I bet they have the whole town searching for me," I babbled as I began getting out of the car.
"It seems like they do. They even have Charlie here," Jacob observed. "We should have called them when we found you. I'm sorry."
"No it's alright. I should have remembered to have called them. But anyways thank you for everything. I would invite you in, but I'm guessing it's not going to be a pretty sight in there," Jacob laughed at that.
"Yeah, and you're welcome, for everything," Jacob said. I waved goodbye and began walking towards the door when I heard my name.
"I would like to thank you also," Jacob said when I reached the window in the passenger's side.
"Um, for what?" I was surprised by Jake's comment.
"Well, for not saying anything about Emily's scars. I should have warned you before you saw her, but you were cool about it. It's a really delicate subject for Sam," Jacob explained.
"Oh you're welcome. It was nothing. I know what it's like to be scarred too, as well as have people stare," I said. I smiled at him softly before waving again and walking towards the door. When I reached the door I watched him drive off into the night. I took a deep breath before entering the house. I was preparing myself for whatever scene was inside.
