Chapter 17: Simmering Down
Disclaimer: S. Meyer owns Twilight.
Jacob kissed her goodbye. "You sure you don't want me to face the music with you?"
"No, I'll be fine, go get some sleep, Jake."
"There's an empty bed upstairs," he snickered as his eyes danced in his head.
"Ha, ha, very funny. That gun's still loaded you know."
"Jeez, I was just kiddin'. When should I come to see you again?" He took her hand, kissing each knuckle.
Bella hung her head. "Let's wait 'til things cool down a little."
Lifting her chin, Jacob gazed into her eyes. "Hey, things'll work out. He can't stay mad at us forever."
He kissed her quickly once more and left her sitting on the couch waiting for Charlie to return to the house. Coward that she was, Bella couldn't bring herself to go into the back yard; he needed time to simmer down.
Ninety minutes passed and he still hadn't come back inside. Bella finally fell asleep. She awoke at one point, and decided to go back to bed. As she headed up the stairs, she heard Charlie's snores coming from his room.
The following morning, Bella hopped out of bed to fix Charlie his food. When she entered the kitchen, he was already finishing up, putting his empty plate and utensils in the sink. While she stood there, he grabbed his jacket and holster from the peg, rushing out the door without looking her way or saying a word. He got in his cruiser and took off without a backward glance.
Bella went through the motions of making herself something to eat. Just as she sat down at the table, the phone rang; it was Jacob of course.
"Hey, Bells. You all right?"
Her eyes welled up. "How right do you think I could possibly be?"
"Okay, so I get your point. How 'bout Charlie? What did he say after I left?"
"Nothing! I waited on the couch for hours. I don't know for sure how long he stayed outside, because I drifted off. When I went upstairs he was already in his bed, asleep. Then this morning, he left the house as soon as I got up. He never said a word. He wouldn't even look at me."
It was obvious; Charlie was still pissed. "So do you think he'd go ballistic if I showed up at your house tonight?"
"How should I know? He's not talking to me."
"Damn, I hate it when everything's up in the air like this. I'll call you tonight, and see how things are going. He'll come around, I promise. Hey … one more thing … I love you, Bells."
She wiped away a tear. "I love you too. Bye, Jake."
Bella and Jacob filled the day with work and school. Charlie didn't come home for dinner that evening, but instead ate at the Lodge, leaving Bella alone at the house with her thoughts.
After school, Jacob decided to talk to Billy about their little situation—okay, their big situation. He put his books down on the kitchen table and turned to his dad who was busy trying to re-glue a heel onto one of his shoes. "Hey, Dad, I need to talk to you about something really important."
Billy looked up from his task, setting it aside on a nearby cabinet and wheeled over to the table. "Go ahead, Son, I'm listening. Have yourself a seat."
Jacob slumped into a chair and covered his face with his hands. Talking through the gap between his fingers, he blurted, "Bells and I are in trouble."
"Okay … so what kind of trouble?"
Peeking through his middle and forefingers, Jacob continued. "The kind that cries a lot and wears diapers."
Without batting an eyelash, Billy sighed, yet calmly said, "I see."
"And that's not all."
Billy braced himself for the worst. "It's not twins, is it?"
"Oh god, I hope not! She hasn't seen a doctor yet. Jeez, I never even thought about that.
"But here's the thing. I snuck into Bella's room last night after Charlie went to sleep. He woke up and caught us together in bed. He was understandably upset and yelled at us, but hasn't spoken a word to me or Bella since I told him about the baby. Bella doesn't want me to come near the house until he calms down. I can't stand being away from her. If he's still upset after tomorrow, do you think you could go over there with me?"
What was a father to do? Billy loved his son. He didn't particularly love this situation, but that was water under the bridge. Now he had to help Jacob in any way that he could. He thought it best to let Charlie cool down for a day or two, then he would try to talk to him.
He began speaking softly. "So … you and Bella. You really love each other, eh?"
His wise old eyes looked deeply into the tortured gaze of his son. "I'm not going to lecture you. What's done, is done. You and your sweetheart are feeling pretty low already, I would say. Far be it for me to add to your misery. It's too late for that anyhow. Just let me know how else I can help you two.
"And, what about the pack? Do they know about this yet?"
Jacob steepled his fingers, rubbing them against the cleft in his chin. "The only one who knows is Quil. I told him to keep it under wraps. I did tell him he could let Embry know. So far, I think he's kept his word. Oh yeah, I forgot, Embry's in on it too."
Billy nodded his head knowingly. "I think Sam should be told, along with the council. Do you mind if I make that announcement to them for you?"
Finished delivering his news, Jacob pushed himself up from his chair, ready to dive into the fridge. "That'd be great. Go right ahead."
Billy wheeled closer to his only son. "Now I need to tell you something equally important." He smiled up at his Jacob. "Can you scrunch down a little so I don't have to stare at your belt buckle?"
Hunkering down in front of his father, Jacob peered intently at him. Billy reached out and pulled Jacob into his arms, kissing his cheek. "I love you, Jacob, and nothing you could ever do would make me stop loving you. You're my son, my flesh and blood. That baby will find a place in my heart too. He'll be part of you and part of Bella; there's no way I could not extend my love to that little one." He squeezed Jacob tighter. "Now, be a man, and face up to your responsibilities. I know you'll do the right thing and make me proud."
With a lump rising in his throat, Jacob replied, "Thanks for being my Dad, and for always loving me. I love you too," he sniffed.
. . . . .
Bella went to bed early. It was only 9 P.M. Charlie wasn't home yet. She cried herself to sleep.
At 10:30, Jacob called just as he promised he would. "Is the coast clear?"
"I don't know …" she groaned.
Jacob blew out a burst of air. "Jeez, still not talkin' to you, huh?"
"I don't even know what time he got in tonight. I went to bed, and he hadn't even been home all day."
"Well, damn, I almost hate to tell you that I spoke to my dad about us."
"Oh god, no, Jake. He didn't beat you or anything, did he?"
"Hell, no—just the opposite. He told me how much he loved me, and that he'd do anything to help us. He said he would talk to Charlie too."
The tears started again as she moaned, "What are we gonna do, Jake? I can't live with all this tension hanging over me for much longer."
"My dad will come over here if something doesn't break tomorrow. I know 'cuz I'll be with him.
"I better let you go. You go to sleep. And I don't want you worrying. Do you hear me? Now, promise me."
"Okay … night, Jake. Love you."
"Love you more. Night, honey."
The very next day, played out the same as the day before. Bella was feeling depressed, and Jacob—he wanted to see her in the worst way. He was tempted to sneak over during the day, but with their luck, that'd be the time that Charlie decided to make his appearance at the house. So the lovesick boy waited it out, but not for long.
Under the cover of night, Jacob was back up in that tree again.
Hanging out her window, Bella chastised the poor boy. "Jake, you're going to make things worse."
"That's impossible. There's no way in hell that things could get any worse. Now look out!" Just then, Jacob's keen hearing picked up a telltale crack. Uh-oh. It's worse!
Bella let out a scream as the branch snapped in two and Jacob went tumbling to the ground. A few minutes later Charlie was on the scene, knocked out of his angry mood and filled with concern for Jacob. He was pretty banged up; his arms and legs scraped raw. But it was when Charlie tried to help him up, that he really got worried. Jacob howled in pain when he put any weight on his right leg. Just great—it was broken all right.
Charlie ran a hand through his hair, and muttered, "Well, I can see I'm not going to able to keep you two apart.
"Don't move, I'm going back to the house to change clothes, then I'll take you to the hospital."
Bella ran out of the house, fully dressed, and knelt by Jacob's side. "My god, Jake. Now you've done it."
"Yeah, you got that right, Charlie's back to talkin' to us."
Her dad returned, and he and Bella helped Jacob hobble into the cruiser. It was a quick trip to the ER, and lucky for them, Carlisle was on duty.
All the cuts and abrasions were cleaned and dressed, an IV lock placed, and then Jacob was off to the XRAY department. Holding his hand, Bella stayed with him every step of the way.
Carlisle looked at the XRAYs and lied through his teeth. The tibia was broken in two places, but he said to Charlie, "It's a greenstick fracture. I'll put an immobilizer on it. It won't take long to heal."
He called to one of the nurses. Ms. Merrell, can you get this boy some Dilaudid? He'll need eight miligrams."
"Eight milligrams, are you sure? That's an awful lot of Dilaudid."
Carlisle nodded at her. "He can handle it, he's a awful lot of boy."
MS. Merrell frowned. "Dr. Carlisle, I don't really feel comfortable giving that large a dose."
The tall vampire smiled at her reluctance, but understood completely. That large a dose could send a person to lala land permanently. "No problem, just get me the vial, and I'll give it to him."
The nurse returned with the drug and the supplies to administer it. Carlisle injected the IV lock with the med and waited a few minutes for the narcotic to kick in.
Turning to Charlie, Carlisle remarked, "Chief Swan, you want to call Jacob's father now, and tell him what happened?" He winked at Bella.
While Charlie left the ER to make the call, Carlisle reset the bones, and took another XRAY to be sure they were aligned correctly. Everything looked good.
Carlisle instructed Jacob in the use of the immobilizer and had the nurse adjust some crutches for Jacob's height. Then he told Jacob, "Tell your dad to come down here tomorrow to fill out the paperwork; you're still a minor. If this wasn't an emergency, I would've had to wait for his permission."
Charlie stepped into their cubicle at that moment.
"Thanks, Doc, You're all right for a—" Jacob almost slipped up and said leech. He quickly added the word, "paleface."
Carlisle grinned and shook his hand, along with Bella's and Charlie's. He advised Jacob, "Stay out of trees." then whisked himself away to tend his other patients.
Bella volunteered to drive the cruiser so she could drop Charlie off at the house. While they drove to La Push, her dad called Billy to let him know that Jacob was on the way so he could have some help getting him into the house.
Embry greeted them at the driveway, shaking his head in disbelief. "Damn, Jake, the things you do for love."
Jacob grinned even as he winced with the pain. "Shut up, Em, it worked, didn't it?"
"Yeah, but now you're out of commission."
"Wanna bet?"
His best friend and his best girl helped him sit on his bed. "Okay, Em, this is your cue to leave. C'mere, Bells." He pulled Bella onto his lap which was definitely not out of commission.
Embry got the hint, and brayed, "Nothing can keep a good wolf down. I'm outta here. Good to see ya, Bella. Later, man!" He made a hasty retreat.
As they were joined at the lips, Billy wheeled into the room. "Looks like all is well on the Western front, eh?" He chuckled as he propelled himself out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him. Ah, to be young again!