Chapter 3
BPOV
With the weight of my impending death on my shoulders, the week was passing by rather quickly. It was Thursday and as I walked towards my friends sitting in the cafeteria I watched all of their smiling faces. It had been a long time since I tried to contribute to their normal conversations, but I continued to sit with them everyday. They had already figured out awhile ago that I was too broken to maintain any kind of façade these days especially after Jacob and I stopped hanging out together. There was only one more day of exams before Christmas break. All of the attention I spent on my schoolwork these last few months had granted me an early graduation, which meant I didn't have to return in the spring except to graduate with everyone in June. I hadn't applied for any colleges even though I was going to finish technically in December, so I had planned to stick out the last semester with a bunch of elective courses that didn't mattered whether I would pass or fail, so I wouldn't have to look for a full time job like Charlie wanted me too.
I started to wonder if I would miss any of them. Jessica and I had never been that close, but I had always appreciated Angela's kind ways. I knew she would care if I didn't come to school the Monday after break; I hadn't missed a single day since Edward left except for that first week. I have still not made a decision one way or the other and I knew I was running out of time. The only decision I have made is the fact that I am leaving. Even if I chose not to go with Laurent, I certainly wasn't going to stay here and just wait for Victoria while my friends and family was close by. I had to leave in order to draw Victoria's attention away from Forks, but even if I left how long would she search for me here. Who might fall victim to her while she tries to figure out where I would go? I obviously couldn't tell anyone what was happening, but I was afraid Victoria might torture Charlie in order to uncover my whereabouts.
I considered telling Jacob about Victoria, but he and the other werewolves are always so gun hoe about fighting. They were all still so young; could I really ask them to put their lives on the line for me? What if one of them got hurt…or worse, what if one of them got killed? No, I just couldn't have that on my conscience. No else had to die, except me and that was how it was going to be.
As the bell rang out, I followed Mike to biology and sat in my normal seat. I was beyond listening to the lecture at this point to care what we were discussing, but Mike always tried to keep me from drifting off too far. Mike had always been considerate enough to partner with me in gym, which was extremely dangerous. I actually think I have struck Mike probably more times than I have ever hit any ball. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to protect people from the fact that I was going to die. Maybe it would be easier for them if they just thought I ran away or I was studying abroad and decided not to come back, I don't want them to be affected by my choice to love a vampire, which has ultimately led to my choice now; whether I die by Victoria or Laurent.
Charlie was the one I was worried about most, he would be devastated to find my lifeless body when Victoria got to me or worse, he could be killed by her too if he was around when she came. I wondered what he would think if I left, would he search for me? I needed to make sure I kept as much pain away from Charlie as I could. He had done the best he could with me and he did not deserve the heart break of knowing he couldn't save me.
The next day at school, I made an extra effort to look interested in everyone's conversations. I smiled at Angela from across the table as she told a story about the trouble her little brothers had gotten themselves into. She seemed to notice this extra effort, because after school as I was approaching my truck she came up to me.
"Hey Bella, you look well today, I am so glad to go on break. Have any plans for the weekend?" she asked.
"Well, I have been considering going on a road trip next semester since I am technically done with classes. I might have trouble convincing Charlie though, but I may have to remind him I am a legal adult in order to pull it off. I am just ready for some new scenery" I told Angela.
"That's wonderful, Bella."
"Thanks, with any hope I will find an adventure that's worth never coming back from." Angela hugged me and told me to make sure I say goodbye before I go. I agreed, but figured I would worry about keeping that promise later. After that, I went to the bank and withdrew the contents of my checking account. I hurried home, tidied up and made Charlie's dinner like always. I even sat around with Charlie after dinner to watch the news with him. Finally, I announced I was going to bed and went upstairs to plot my next move.
I sat at my desk and just stared at my computer. I only had one more day to figure of this out, because by Sunday Laurent would return. I kept thinking that some inspiration would just come to me and I would just know what to do next, but all of the stress was getting to me and my eyes grew tired. Before I knew what I was doing I had already walked over to my bed and flopped down on top of my blankets. It seemed like only minutes later when a single ray of sunshine beamed down on my closed eyelids causing my mind to suddenly surface, realizing it was morning already. As I peeled open my eyes to see where the light was coming from, a glimpse of color poking out of my top desk drawer came into focus. I slowly rose from my bed, shut the curtains and opened the draw to see an old stationary kit inside that I used to use to write letters home to mom when I was a kid staying with Charlie for the summer. I pull out the lavender paper and reached for a pen. The next four hours I spent writing letters, one for Renee, one for Charlie, one for Jake, one for Angela and for some reason one for Edward. I must have drafted at least a houndred different letters for each person before I was really able to get them right, but I wanted to make sure I said everything I had to.
I laid the ground work for my escape, in the letters and then sealed them. I watched Charlie from my window; head out to go fishing as I put all of the letters into a neat pile. Then I walked over to my closet, grabbed a duffel bag and packed the essentials. Next, I ran downstairs got two trash bags and packed like I wasn't coming back. I took the trash bags out to my truck and dropped them on the floor on the passenger side and shoved it under the dash as much as possible.
After that I went in the kitchen and wrote down instructions for as many meals as I could think of, before heading to the grocery store. I made a quick stop at the post office and dropped my letters for Renee, Jake and Angela in the mail box outside the front door. By the time I left the grocery store I think I had bought enough food for Charlie to last three months without me. I put away as much of it as I could and then had to resort to hiding the rest in the hall closet so Charlie wouldn't be suspicious when he got back. I had just finished the last of the laundry, when Charlie showed up. His eyes bulged at the sight of all the piles I had made in the living room while folding, but he didn't say much other than he was worried he wouldn't be able to see the game. I put away all of the clothes and started to work on Charlie's favorite dinner. As the scent of roast beef, slowly made its way to the living room, Charlie came waltzing in to check out the progress.
"That smells really good, bells."
"Thanks" I told him.
Charlie's game ended just as the food was done cooking and he came back into the kitchen to eat. We were both silent for a long time, while we ate. I had planned to have more conversation than this, but all of the chores I had done made me hungrier than I had anticipated. After I finished, I started on my dishes and was surprised when Charlie picked up a dry towel and stood next to me drying everything. I was afraid he could sense that I was leaving, but I was too scared to test my theory; instead of talking we would just smile at each other when we made eye contact. As I was watching the water go down in the sink, Charlie surprised me when he reached over, hugged me and then announced he was going to bed. I hugged him back extra hard and watched my father go upstairs for the last time.
I felt almost as if I was in some kind of hazy as I made my way to my room. I sat on the edge of my bed and told myself this was the last time I would see this room. The sound of Charlie snoring told me it was time to go. I dressed a little warmer, grabbed my duffel bag and Charlie's letter. I went down stairs and placed the letter for Charlie in the front pocket of his coat, with the end sticking out so he could see it and then walked out the door as quietly as possible. I sat in my truck and stared at the house half expecting Charlie to come racing down the stairs and stop me, but there were no sounds coming from the house. With a lump in my throat, I turned the key in the ignition and drove away from the house I called my home for the last two years. I didn't even have a destination in mind but as I drove down the one-o-one I parked on the side of the rode, rolled down my windows and looked towards where the meadow was.
Just as I put my hand on the handle to get out, I felt a breeze on the right side of my body, and instantly, I couldn't breathe.
"I am not sure whether I am surprised or not that you chose to come with me" Laurent said.
I was so shocked, I couldn't even speak. He must have come early and just been waiting for me, but what do I do now? Laurent kept looking at me as the inner babbling inside my head raged on. He didn't seem to notice how shocked I was or if he did he attributed it toward another emotion. Either way, my choice had been made whether I really chose it or not. Now I was about to embark on a journey with a vampire of questionable restraint and for some reason as the shock faded away, I felt no fear, because from now on it was out of my hands.
AN: I am still looking for ideas for what Laurent and Bella can do and the next chapter I am trying to write in Laurent's pov but it is turning out to be harder than I thought. He doesn't really get much dialog in the book so I am having trouble really relating to him so I can write it in his words. But I will power through it as best I can. Reviews keep me happy and writing! Review!