JACOB BLACK
Here I was in an ostentatious log cabin in the middle of Eastern Canada, eating roasted nuts next to a ginormous fireplace and talking to an American oil tycoon and his multi-millionaire wife and kid. Can life get any weirder? The Van De Camps were very nice people. Mr. Van De Camp treated me like he did Nathaniel and Ada kept asking me if I needed anything. Nathaniel was telling us all about his last surfing trip in the Cayman Islands when Victor announced that maybe it was time for us to go to bed. I wasn't sleepy yet—I got a lot of rest at the hospital—so I asked Mr. Van De Camp if I could talk to him for a second.
"Mr. Van-"
"Call me Victor, Jacob," he said.
"Uh…V…Victor," I said, my mouth going dry. I wasn't really used to talking to rich and powerful men who wanted to take me in with nothing in return. "I was kind of…actually…I was sort of wondering if…"
"It's okay, son, you can tell me anything." Victor assured me. Son. I suddenly saw my house and Billy staring at something far away. I missed my dad. I quickly shrugged off my thought and returned to the subject on hand.
"I was wondering if you'd let me work for you while I'm here," I offered. Obviously I wasn't going to leech off these people while I'm staying here. "You're very kind to me but I'd like to earn my keep. I'm able-bodied and I really don't mind doing any heavy lifting."
Victor looked a little surprised and then he beamed at me.
"That's very noble, Jacob, but you don't have to work to stay here."
"I insist, sir. I wasn't brought up like that. I can't take advantage of your family when you don't even know me."
Victor looked at me thoughtfully and said, "The why don't you let us get to know you?"
"I…" Even if I wanted to, I couldn't allow that. My life was complicated as it is. This was just a temporary setup and if I did let them in, they'd have to know what I really am. At least I'm more human than those leeches.
"It's okay, son," said Victor. "Take your time. But if you still want to work, do you have any other skills? The law kind of looks down on letting minors do manual labor, so I'm sorry to say there's no heavy lifting for you in my company."
"I'm good at fixing cars…" There really wasn't anything else. Unless he needed seven-foot wolves to do some courier work for him?
"Perfect!" said Victor. "We have a garage downtown where some employees fix the transports needed for the mines. Some kids even work there. Friends of Nathaniel's."
"That would be great, sir," I told him. "So when can I start?" Fixing cars again. I missed doing that, even if I'll be fixing trucks for coal transport this time.
"Oh, no, no, no," said Victor shaking his head. "You just got out of the hospital! Which reminds me, Ada will check on your fever later. So off to bed with you. You're still sixteen and even my kids have bedtimes here."
Uh-oh. Now how do I get out of this one? I looked at the window and watched the snow floating down. I've never really stopped to appreciate how beautiful snow was. Hmm.. snow.
ADA WILSON
"Jacob?" I called out. It was getting pretty late and I still had to check on Jacob's fever. The poor boy. I'm glad Victor could help him out.
According to what Victor found out about him, he was a nice boy. No records of crime, drugs or anything in his permanent record. And he was also a Native American. I would love to ask him about his tribe. I always did regret not being able to pursue an American History elective when I was in college. I always thought of it as an alternate interest, but sadly, the economy interested me more. So now that I had more time to myself, I decided to take up researching the local natives as a hobby. I might even be able to help them using my education. Maybe learning about other Native American tribes might help me understand the Inuits better. They were friendly and approachable in general, but they were slightly reserved about their tribe's traditions.
"Jacob? Are you there?" It was dark in his room and he might be asleep or just like any other teenager in summer, he was hiding from the threat a parent announcing that he was sick.
"Come on, Jacob," I teased. "It's just a little temperature check and I'll be on my way."
"Ummff"
"Jacob? Are you all right?" I turned on the light and found Jacob tangled up in the sheets. He was asleep. Poor kid. Maybe he was tired from all of the week's events. I walked over and slipped the electronic thermometer in his mouth.
"Huh..98.8," I murmured. "A little higher than normal but compared to last time…" I patted his head—still a little warm, I think—and silently wished him good night before going back to our room.
JACOB BLACK
My dad said my sisters were obsessed with shopping when they were teenagers. He thought they were possessed by demons who talked about nothing else but fashion, kinds of heels and the colors that were in style that season. Apparently he hasn't met the Nazi Shopper. That's what Nathaniel called Annelise. And I thoroughly agree.
"Are you serious?" she asked sardonically.
"What's wrong with this one now?"
We were at the only place where you could buy clothes in Labrador City. The Town Square. I was checking out a batch of flannel shirts, trying to find one that fit me. I didn't care what color or pattern it was, so long as it was XXXL. Nate was XXL but his clothes still clung to my skin making me look like a bouncer. I'm glad my muscles attract girls' attention but it's really a disadvantage when it comes to clothes shopping. Especially knowing it usually gets ripped apart whenever I get angry or decide to shift.
"It's flannel!" Annelise pointed out as if it wasn't obvious. "Checkered flannel, at that!"
I really didn't see her point. But apparently, she was in charge since Nathaniel was at the counter flirting with the cashier. Annelise had rejected my choice of denim(Brokeback, much?), polyester(Don't come crying to me when you start to chafe), nylon(Why don't you just go into the forest and weave a jacket out of pine needles while you're at it!) and even leather(To the salesperson: You murderer!). The only thing left was cotton and it was either underwear or tourist shirts that said Labrador City in big, yellow letters.
"Please, please enlighten me why I can't buy this very cheap, very durable and very comfortable shirt because it's flannel!" I said flannel as if I was as offended as she was at the idea of wearing it. Annelise narrowed her eyes at me and crossed her arms.
"Do not mock me," she said in a quick and low voice. "If you wanted to go back to the 90's you should have said so, so we can find a time machine for you. If you are going to be spending time with my family, you will learn to cooperate with me. Nobody in this family, and I mean nobody shops without asking my opinion first!" Says the girl wearing a pink and purple snowsuit. Honestly, I feel like I'm going colorblind.
I might be overreacting a little bit, but this girl scared me. I didn't even think before I stammered out a 'Yes, ma'am' and threw the shirt away.
"Good," she said smugly. "Now, let's go find a real mall."
I groaned at the idea of looking for another place where she could insult the salespeople and mock the selections. I was still a little tired from last night because I had to clean up the slush I brought in to cool me down when Ada checked on me. I also had to dry my sheets with my warmth and that took half the night. The things I do to seem normal. Sheesh. Now I have to suffer through a day with the Nazi Shopper.
"Nate! Time to go!" Annelise yelled. Nate actually jumped at the sound of her voice. Who wouldn't? Screechy? Squeaky? Squealy? I don't think there are enough S-adjectives for it. The cashier giggled and winked at Nate before turning back to the customer waiting in line.
"Don't do that!" complained Nate as he stomped towards us. He turned to me and asked, "Did you get what you need?"
I held out my hands to show how empty they were. Nate shook his head and gave me a sympathetic look.
"Where else are we gonna find clothes?" he asked Annelise.
"I'm thinking the nearest mall," she replied as she checked her reflection on the glass door before exiting the store with us.
"The nearest mall is in Montreal," Nate said as we walked back to their car.
"Exactly."