Sorry for the long wait. =]
Jacob's POV
"I don't know, everyone's just acting…. Different lately." I sighed, getting frustrated, seeming as nobody else noticed what I did. Quil looked around suspiciously, almost as if he was being condemned to death.
It had been a month since we'd discovered Nessie's bruises. She claimed she didn't know where they came from. She was lying, I was sure, as was everybody. Edward, though, he was getting frustrated. Living with him on a normal basis, Nessie had learned to work her way around her thoughts, trying to avoid them if necessary. She was pretty good at it, however, I still needed some work. Edward would shoot everybody bitter looks as the very sound of the word "lie" crossed through their minds. He wasn't able to come to terms with that, but he knew it as well, somewhere.
Blondie was on my ass about it the whole month. She assumed that I knew what was wrong, an assumption that was stupid to make. If I knew, I wouldn't be constantly pestering Edward to see if he'd found out anymore. If I knew, I would have said something right away. Bruises… could that dream be a flashback, rather than just a nightmare? I convinced myself otherwise- she would have said something. But she acted normal now, like nothing had happened, and continued with life.
"M-maybe you're just over-analyzing the situation, Jake." Quil offered, looking over his shoulder. I nearly growled at him, but then realized that the action would get me nowhere. Oh please, like this was.
"I'm not over-analyzing anything, Quil." I said rather harshly. "First, almost everybody I know seems like they're hiding something from me, then we find bruises on Nessie arms. Am I over-analyzing something, Quil? Am I?"
"Bruises, eh?" he said, his voice getting lower. I leaned in, almost expecting him to tell me more. Naive, I was. "Again, Jake, Over-analyzation. Wasn't Bella real clumsy when he was human? Maybe Ness-"
"Quit bullshitting me. On both of her wrists, there are bruises circling around them. What do you think she did, beat her wrist senseless with a towel rack, by accident, and then do it to the other one by accident?" I snarled. Something was going on, and I was being left in the dark.
"What's going on?" Embry asked, walking through my front door. I saw the look he gave Quil, but chose to ignore it.
"No, you tell me what's going on!" I demanded. He looked at me for a second, about to say something with a hostile expression on his face, until I spoke again. "Why's everyone acting weird around me?"
"Maybe you're just over-an-" I snarled before he could finish.
It seemed like this situation was an apartment, and everyone had the key- except for me. Geez, how many god damn bones were hiding in the closet?
A lot more than I expected.
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I'm sorry this chapter is so short after a long wait. The thing is, is that I can't decide what to write next-- so I'm leaving it up to you.
Would you like to read the revelation of the events next (The Preface), or do you want a chapter or two more of Jacob trying unwinding of the mystery? Consider- If you choose revelation, everything will go from slow to extremely fast-paced and might look out of place, however, you'll get what you've been waiting for. But if you choose to Unwind the Mystery, your in for a little bit of a wait, yet it makes the story more proportional.. also, if you choose this option, why don't you help me come up with parts for the next chapter leading up to the revelation? This story is in your hands, now, readers! Now review your vote!