AN: honestly, Jake is being too pushy. why am i making him so pushy? oh well, i still love the love-sick pup. but just to clarify, he wasnt shoving himself and bella on emily and sam. they were in the know with his plan and agreed with it. anyway, second revision, yay! i'd like to finish them tonight, but that won't happen. money to made. ugh. im so tired. anyway, enjoy~
"You want me to bring you your overnight bag, Bells?"
"Please."
"She'll be fine, Charlie, don't worry. We've got her covered. And I'll bring Bella back myself when she wants to come home. Unless you happen to be visiting then, and then you can take her if you like, but don't worry about making another trip." Jake reassured Charlie with an easy smile.
Charlie looked uncomfortable, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "I guess. But I think I'll still bring Bella's bag over tomorrow morning when I'm heading to work. It's in the opposite direction, but I'll just get up a little earlier. I know it'll set you at ease kid, I wouldn't like not having my stuff either." He grunted out a sigh and rocked back onto his heels. "Well if that's all, I think I'll get on home now. You be good, Bells."
"Always am." I stepped forward carefully to receive his awkward one arm hug and moved back to stand beside Jake. "Night Dad."
"Night, kid. See you 'round, Billy."
"Count on it." Billy tipped his head forward in acknowledgment with a smile. We all watched as Charlie walked off the porch and climbed into his cruiser, and laughed a little when he flashed his lights at us before pulling away. Jake, grin withstanding, turned to me.
"We'll go ahead and start walking to Emily and Sam's place. Paul, Jared, and Sam are staying with Jared so you and the girls can have the house to yourself for the night. Don't worry though, everyone will be there by morning for breakfast. Don't be alarmed if you get woken up by shouts and someone tripping over you or something. It's normal."
"I'm going to die. You want me to die. This was your plan all along." I teased, bumping my shoulder against his arm. A year ago we were about the same height. Now… well he towered at least a foot and a half over me. It was kind of pitiful. I'd missed so much of his growing up when I moved as a kid. And I'd gone and done it again since having Edward in my life. I'd neglected Jacob. I was a horrible friend.
"Jake… I'm sorry we haven't seen each other really at all over the past year. I—"
"Don't worry about it." Jake shrugged, looping his arm through mine. "You were busy. I was, too, sort of. Working on projects, doing actual work so I could afford said projects. We both had things that needed to be done. No hard feelings. You're here now, and that's all I care about."
The tightness in my chest was relieved slightly. "Thanks, Jake. You're too nice for your own good, you know that right?"
He grinned. "It's a blessing and a curse."
We walked in easy silence after that. I liked it on the Reservation. Everything was so easy going and laid back, it seemed. I could like the people. I had a little bit of family here. I had to keep myself from losing myself in a daydream of what it would have been like to live here, in La Push, with Jacob and Billy. But instead of blocking the mental pictures I got, I welcomed them. I could see myself and Charlie living here in a little house at the end of the road, or maybe next door to Jake. I would walk to Jacob's and we would walk back to Emily's and all hang out together. I would help Emily cook lunch for all the guys, and then we'd all run down to First Beach, barefoot even though it was cold and raining and have a bonfire to stay warm. We'd all tell stories, whether they be scary stories or old legends. And then we'd go home, only to do it all again the next day. I couldn't help but smile, my heart clenching painfully. Because I knew I would never have that. That was a Bella Swan for another lifetime. A parallel world where things were warmer and alive.
"What're you smiling about?" Jake asked, looking at me with a funny expression.
I shrugged, still smiling as he helped me up the steps to Sam and Emily's house. "Nothing of consequence. So I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow." Jake grinned. He stood there for a minute, clearly unsure of himself, before moving in for a hug. "I missed you, Bells." He said quietly, squeezing me a little tighter before letting go altogether. "Try not to drop off the radar again, 'kay?"
"I'll try not to." I said, trying to make myself believe it. But it didn't matter if I believed it or not, because Jake looked satisfied. His sad smile morphed into his trademark easy grin, setting his perfectly white teeth on display. I couldn't help but return the smile.
"Then have fun."
As he walked away, I turned to knock on the door, rocking back on my heels anxiously as I waited for it to open. A minute or two passed before it swung open, revealing a slightly disheveled and very pink Emily. She smiled when she realized it was me and stepped to the side, gesturing for me to come inside.
"Bella, hey! Come in. Sam was just about to leave for Jared's. Kim should be on her way now. She's bringing Leah along. Try not to be put off by my cousin. We're not on the best of terms, but it's mending. Hopefully you two will get along as well as the rest of us."
"Hopefully." I say quietly as I step into the entryway. Sam hooked his bag over his shoulder and leaned down to kiss Emily. I blushed and turned my face away quickly, looking around the open room instead of the happy couple. It was a little smaller than I'd expected, but it was very homely. The living room to my left had two couches and one loveseat bordering a large, plush looking rug. A very worn looking coffee table sat in the center in front of a small red brick fireplace. To my right was the kitchen, which looked a little bigger than the living room, with an island kitchen and two dining tables pushed together to form one big table, with more than twelve chairs surrounding it. Very much needed, I guessed, if everyone congregated here for meals and whatnot. I loved it.
"So!" Emily said once Sam had left, standing beside me now. "Is there anything you had in mind to do tonight? I honestly hadn't planned on having any guests over. I'm normally better prepared."
"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to crowd on your night. But Jacob wasn't going to let me say no."
Emily laughed fondly. "He is very persistent. You'll learn to live with it. How about popcorn and scary movies? I've got a few new ones I've been dying to watch but haven't had the chance to."
"Sounds great."
"Perfect. I'll get everything set up. If you'd like, you can sit in the living room and wait. Kim and Leah will be here any minute. Don't be alarmed when they just come on in. Oh! That reminds me. If you're ever on the Rez and feel like stopping by, just come over. The door is always unlocked during the day, and only unlocked at night if I'm expecting anyone. You're family now so don't even give it a second thought."
"But we just met. We hardly know each other." I blurted, shocked.
She just smiled. "You're family to us now. Don't worry about anything."
"But-"
"Emily!" Kim shouted as she burst into the house, gasping. "There's a—"
"Kim, you're early." Emily said, interrupting Kim with a stern look. "Did you get your sleeping bags like I asked?"
For a second Kim looked confused, but then her eyes fell on me and widened. "Oh, Bella. I didn't even see you there. Emily, can I talk to you outside? It's really important."
"Of course. I'll be right back, Bella. Make yourself comfortable. I have three couches, so pick whichever you like best. They're all amazingly comfortable." And with that, Emily hurried outside with Kim. I ignored the urge to eavesdrop and walked over to the couches, sitting on each of them—bouncing up and down to test them out—before finally settling on the loveseat, relaxing back into the soft, worn cushions. I took off my boot and slid on my support brace, sighing in relief. I really hated that thing. I was glad I could wear the brace to sleep in now, and do some walking. It was so much quieter.
"So! Back to movie night!" Emily said as she hurried back inside. She immediately went to the kitchen. Kim stood in the entryway for half a minute before deciding to join me on the loveseat.
"I like this couch, too. It's the most broken in, so its squishier. It's awesome."
"I can move if you want to sleep here." I say, slightly alarmed. Strike two. First I barge into their lives unannounced via Jacob. Now I take someone's favorite spot. Good job, Bella. Good job.
"Oh no, don't worry about it." Kim said, waving a hand dismissively. She looked deceptively calm, but her eyes revealed how nervous she really was inside. Kim was almost as bad as I was about hiding her real feelings, only she seemed to babble away he anxiety. I didn't. It was nice to know we had something like that in common.
"So… if you don't mind me asking… what's going on?"
Kim jumped at my question, but before she could answer, Emily walked in with two large bowls of popcorn.
"She was just saying that Leah wasn't going to be joining us. It was a bit of a personal issue and we didn't want to alarm you with anything like that. We're supposed to be relaxing and enjoying ourselves for the next few days. So let's do just that."
And so we stayed up almost all night, watching scary movies and eating bowl after bowl of popcorn. At one point Kim went to the kitchen and brought back a case of beer. When I declined, she insisted, trying to explain to me that it wasn't normal beer—that it was fruitier than anything else. Like grown-up juice. It took Emily and Kim almost half an hour to convince me to drink one, but when I did, I won't lie and say I didn't like it a bit much. I probably drank the most between the two of us. After a long while of nursing our last bowl of popcorn, Emily offered to do my hair. And I let her put it up in one long braid down my back.
"You didn't tell us you had a boyfriend." Kim pouted, trying to keep her head still while Emily braided it. I watched, intrigued with the level of skill Emily had with doing hair. Kim's braids looked much more complicated, but they suited her face more than the French braid I had.
"It never came up." I shrugged. My tongue felt heavy and the room was sitting at an odd angle, despite the fact that I wasn't. I was sitting near perfectly straight. "I don't like to talk about him much."
"Why is that?" Emily asked distractedly, moving on to a new section of Kim's hair. "I love to talk about Sam when I get the chance. He spoils me, and I like to brag sometimes. He likes it when I brag about it."
"Jared doesn't. He feels like he has to compete sometimes. I tell him it's not a competition, but he doesn't listen." Kim rolls her eyes. "Boys…. Hey, let me up for a sec. I gotta pee."
Emily finished the braid she was working on, tied up the unbraided portion of Kim's hair, and then released her to go use the bathroom. When we were alone, she turned her attention to me. Despite the fact that we were both very drunk, her eyes seemed too focused.
"So… why don't you talk about your boyfriend much?"
I shrug a shoulder, trying to stay indifferent. I could feel my anxiety bubbling to the surface. "I just don't. I guess I'm not the bragging type."
"Yeah…" she nodded. "Yeah, you're pretty quiet about pretty much everything. Does he buy you gifts?"
"Oh he tries." I scoff, shaking my head. "And they're so extravagant. I turn him down a lot. I'm not a huge fan of gifts or surprises or anything like that, but he tries. I think his sister is plotting something for my birthday in September, but he won't give anything away."
"Your birthday is just a few months away!" Emily said excitedly. "I won't try to throw any surprises on you, but what would you say to a small bonfire party. Like we had tonight except a little bigger, and we'll cookout and I'll make a cake, and there will be presents from anyone who chooses to bring something. Please, Bella?"
I sighed. "Sure, I guess. But no surprises!"
"No surprises." She agreed with a grin. Kim came back then, plopping down in front of Emily once more, wobbling a little and catching herself before she fell over. She giggled and tilted her head back to look at Emily.
"Hurry up. I'm tired."
"Alright, alright. Five minutes tops. You're the one who wanted your hair braided all complicated-like."
"And you're the one who agreed to do it, knowing we're all drunk off our asses and ready to go to bed."
"Be quiet."
Not only did Kim fall silent, but not three minutes later, she'd fallen asleep. Emily struggled for another ten minutes with Kim's hair, having to braid and balance her head at the same time. I ended up having to hold Kim's head up for her while Emily braided. When it was all said and done I fell back onto the floor and immediately closed my eyes.