Cassie awoke early, feeling quite rested. She looked over at her alarm clock and saw that it was only seven in the morning; she got up and stretched, then decided to take a shower. Even if she was only going to the beach, she still wanted to have that refreshed feeling that hot water always so generously provides.
She didn't take long in the bathroom. Once she was finished, she put on her yellow and blue bikini, and threw on a pair of short-shorts and a tank top. She flitted down the stairs and headed to the kitchen. No one else was up, so she figured she would start on breakfast. That's a sure fire way to wake them up.
She started whipping up the mixture for scrambled eggs, and put some bacon and sausages on the frying pan. She continued with this until she thought she had enough food to feed the four hungry men who lived with her, and herself. As the scents wafted through the house, shuffling and thumps could be heard from upstairs. She chuckled to herself as, one by one, the four guys came through the kitchen door.
"Morning, sleepy heads. I figured this would get you guys up."
All four of the guys looked like complete bed-heads, but they acknowledged her with a nod and her dad smiled at her.
She filled their plates up, and then loaded her own plate. Man, my appetite really is growing. How strange. Once again, she felt the huge force of hunger, much stronger than normal, hit her.
They ate in silence, only a few moans of delight coming from one of the guys once in a while.
"It's so nice to have a girl in the house. Now, we don't have to rely on take-out so much when Emily kicks us out."
Jared, Paul and Cassie's dad nodded their heads in agreement with Embry, but Cassie was too caught up in her own thoughts to notice. Jacob. She wondered if he would be at the beach today.
"Hey, are you guys going to the beach too?"
"Paul, Embry and Jared are going. I'm heading off to Port Angeles to meet with an old friend."
Cassie glanced at her father. Old friend, huh. "Sure, sure. Do you know who else is going?"
Paul laughed. "You might as well ask what you really want to know. You're not fooling anyone." Cassie raised her eyebrows at Paul. "You want to know if Jacob will be there."
Cassie's eyes widened. "N-No. I just wanted to know who all would be there. That's all. No one in particular I was wondering about."
Paul, Embry, Jared, and her dad looked at her with an expression that said, "Right, we believe you… not really. We'll pretend we do, though, just for your sake."
"Whatever you say, Cass." Her dad mused.
"Aren't you supposed to be freaking out over that, though? Like, if I was 'interested' in seeing Jacob at the beach. Shouldn't my 'inquiry' worry you?"
"In case you haven't noticed, Cass, I'm not your average father figure. And, further more, if you were interested in Jacob, I wouldn't mind – he's a great kid."
"Yeah, everyone is saying that." She mumbled to herself. Obviously, they heard her because they chuckled. "Anyway, you guys get to do the dishes and clean up since I cooked breakfast."
The three groaned and slowly got to work. Ah, the power of a woman…and food.
She headed back upstairs and sat at her desk. She turned on her laptop and discovered that there was, indeed, wireless Internet connection. Good to know dad isn't as primitive as I originally thought. She checked her email and found that a few of her friends emailed her. Most of the messages were the same: how's life going, what she's up to, and from the girls, inquiries about any possible hot guys. She typed up her responses and sent them off.
She surfed the Internet a bit when an idea hit her. In the Google search box, she typed in 'vampires'. She didn't really know why she did, but she was genuinely curious. She scanned through the pages until she came upon a title that caught her attention: "Old Quileute Legends: Vampires and Werewolves". She clicked on the link and scanned through the information. According to the website, the Quileutes referred to 'vampires' as the 'cold ones'. The Quileute men were apparently descended from wolves, and their one natural enemy was the vampire; they existed to destroy the 'cold ones' and protect their land. This is interesting. I wonder why dad never bothered telling me about this. She continued to scan through the page, but didn't see much more that could help her.
She checked the clock and found that it was nine o' clock. Wow, I've been researching that long? She got up and started to pack her tote for the beach. After she was sure she had what she needed, she plopped down on her bed and turned her iPod on. She listened to some of her favorite songs while she waited. She couldn't help but let her thoughts wonder to Jacob, yet again. Man, I'm getting in too deep with this dude. I barely know him.
She sat there for a while just swimming in the thoughts of Jacob until she heard a car pull up outside.
"Cassie! Kim and Emily are here to pick you up!" Her dad's voice boomed up the stairs. I just realized; why can't I go with Paul, Embry and Jared? Cassie grabbed her tote and headed down the stairs and out of the front door. Paul, Jared and Embry were pilling into Paul's jeep, which, now that she looked at it, didn't look as though it could fit any more people. She headed over to where Emily and Kim were, and got in the back seat. She wasn't really paying attention to who was in the back, but once she was settled and she looked to her right, she discovered Jacob staring at her. Her eyes widened.
"Uhm, hey Jake… didn't see you sitting there." She laughed a little embarrassed and Jacob smiled.
"I'm not that hard to miss, am I?"
"Oh, no…you're not hard to miss at all." She mumbled, but from the look on Jacob's face, he had clearly heard her.
As they started to head to the beach, Cassie turned to stare out of the window. It was truly a beautiful day, and she was very grateful that the sun had decided to make an appearance. She was extremely aware of the gorgeous boy sitting next to her, and that made it very hard to concentrate. She tried very hard to keep her mind from wandering to Jake, but she found it nearly impossible. Cassie was a naturally observant person, and although she had only been in La Push for two days, she had already decided that Jake was indeed a great guy. She could feel it, deep down.
Soon, the path that led to First Beach appeared, and the car slowed to a stop. She hopped out and started walking, before making a sudden stop and turning around.
"Hey, Em, do you need any help with the stuff that you brought?"
"Nah, we're good. Jake over here carries twice as much as Kim and I." She smiled at Jake, who rolled his eyes and also smiled. Cassie nodded her head, and walked off in a daze. Jake had officially dazzled her. Yes, dazzled. She wasn't aware that people could actually do that, but now she knew better.
As the water came into view, Cassie stopped to admire the sight. Although First Beach was nothing compared to the beaches in The Bahamas (she and her mother had been once, on vacation), it was beautiful in its own way. The water sparkled under the bright sun, and little kids and teenagers ran along the edge of the water. She followed after Emily, Kim and Jake, and helped them set up. Jared, Paul and Embry showed up a few minutes later, followed by Quil, Sam, Seth, Brady, Collin and a little girl whom she did not recognize.
"Hey, Em, whose the little girl?"
"Oh, that's Claire, my niece. Quil is like her personal babysitter, so you'll be seeing her often." She smiled at Cassie and turned her gaze towards the little girl who came bounding up to her.
"Auntie Em!" Claire ran up and hugged Emily with as much strength as she could muster.
Most of the guys were already wet and swimming about, so Cassie stripped down and made her way to the water. She felt a pair of eyes on her as she was walking, and noticed Jacob staring at her. She felt her cheeks redden. Well, now I know he isn't as subtle as I thought.
The water was just the right temperature – a mix between warm and cold, but not hot. She swam out a little deeper and enjoyed the feeling of the water, cooling her down and relaxing her at the same time. She stayed in the water a bit longer, and then joined the rest of the girls on the shore.
"Cassie, how do you like La Push so far?" Kim sat opposite Cassie munching on a piece of watermelon.
"Uhm, it's nice, I guess. I like the forest, and the rain, too. I could definitely get used to the sights around here." She didn't know if Kim picked up on the double meaning behind her words, but there was one particular sight she was referring to.
Emily decided to take a seat next to Kim. "So, any boyfriends in the picture?"
Cassie's eyes widened a bit and her cheeks turned a bit pink. "Nope. I haven't had a boyfriend in a while."
Kim and Emily exchanged a glance and their smiles widened. "I see. Are you hoping to change that anytime soon?"
"Uhm. I don't know." She stumbled on her words. They were up to something. "Maybe?"
Emily nodded her head and turned her attention to the swarm of huge, shirtless men that were making their way over to the three girls. They were still a little distance away.
"Do you guys ever get used to that?" Cassie made sure to emphasize the last word.
"Get used to what?"
"The whole huge, shirtless, hot men thing." Cassie still was stumped over how there could be so many gorgeous men in one area without a catch.
Emily and Kim shared a laugh. "Well, you feel like you get used to it, but then you find yourself being amazed all over again."
She sighed. So, this was not something that would easily pass. Sam made his way over to Emily and kissed her on the cheek. Cassie watched and couldn't help but wish she had that. Jacob sat down next to her, putting a tiny bit of distance between the two of them. She glanced at him and nearly jumped him. A wet, half naked Jacob in such close proximity is a dangerous situation to be caught in. She took in deep breaths, trying to calm her hormones. She caught Kim staring at her and her eyes widened. Kim let a smirk take over her features.
"Kim, what are you smirking at?" Jared came over and sat next to her, also kissing her on the cheek.
Her gaze never left my face. "Oh, nothing. I'm just observing something." Cassie looked away in embarrassment and nimbly scratched the back of her neck.
"Alright, who's ready to eat?" All that could be heard were the excited words of the men that surrounded Cassie. It would be unwise to get in between these men and their food. Her stomach growled in protest; she felt as though her appetite was adapting to that of the men she was in the presence of.
After she got her food, she allowed herself to reflect. Reflecting was a common thing for Cassie to do. This is definitely an interesting place, with a lot of interesting people. Kim and Emily are up to something; I can feel it. She stole a glance at the two women and narrowed her eyes. She would find out what they were planning eventually.