"What should I wear?" Kali called from the bathroom to Jacob who was sitting in his bedroom on his bed.
"Clothes." He sighed. They were going to be late.
She poked her head out of the door, still in her undergarments.
"Oh really? I can't go like this?" She stepped outside of the bathroom showing her partially nude body. Jacob rolled his eyes at her silliness.
"Baby, it doesn't matter. It's not a fancy affair. It's on the beach!" Jacob exclaimed grabbing her by the shoulders and pulling her into his room before Billy came out and had a heart attack.
"Fine. Jeans and a T-shirt it is!" She sighed deeply getting dressed.
"Okay, lets go. Dad!" He yelled the last part heading towards the living room as Kali tagged along behind him. They walked the short distance to the beach where Jacob had to take over pushing Billy's chair for him. They made it to a small circle of people, Kali had already been introduced to majority of them over the past week. There were still a few faces she didn't recognize, mostly women.
They all said hello and took their seats. People were roasting marshmallows, which Kali and Jacob quickly joined in on making a mess with the sticky goo. Jacob shoved one in Kali's face getting it all over her mouth and nose.
"Ah! Jake! Oh you're gonna get it now!" She grabbed a handful of sand and dropped it in his hair. Jacob stared at her with mock horror, which quickly turned into a look that told her to run. She screamed and jumped up running towards the ocean. Her short legs were nothing compared to Jacob's long stride he caught her quickly and picked her up in his arms swinging her around. She laughed uncontrollably, begging him to let her down.
"Please, I can't- I can't breathe!" She shouted as he continued to spin her around.
"Will you two cut it out?! We're about to start." Sam's voice boomed over Kali's screams. Jacob swiftly placed her on her feet.
"Damn, I wish I had that kind of control." Kali whispered.
"Trust me, baby. You do." He kissed her quickly then ruffled his hair getting sand all over Kali. She pouted and walked back over to where they were sitting. Jacob followed her sitting as close as possible, keeping her warm. It didn't take much for Billy to get everyone's attention. His voice was so soft but it claimed authority that everyone respected fully.
He began with the stories he told Kali the first night they met, of their ancestors and how they were linked to the wolves. He then began a story that was new to Kali, of the Cold Ones. The more he described these "cold ones" the more they sounded like an odd version of vampires. Kali was so enwrapped with every word Billy spoke she didn't realize she was gripping Jacob's hand with more force than necessary until he rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand. She sat back up straight and mumbled an apology to him. He smiled back pulling her even tighter to his side.
The night seemed to fly by for Kali, hearing Billy and Old Quil tell the past of the Quileute tribe. She soon felt the sleepiness take over as she placed her hand on Jacob's should she could feel herself begin to drift off.
She woke up in Jacob's small bed. She searched the sheets to come up empty handed.
"Jake?" She called out softly, not knowing what time it was. There was no answer so she sat up and looked around. The sun was shining through the curtains telling her it was probably late morning to early afternoon. "Jake?" She called again, this time standing up and walking out into the living room. Billy was sitting in front of the television watching the sports channel, of course.
"Good morning...afternoon." Billy greeted looking over at her.
She smiled in response. "Good afternoon. What time is it?"
"A little before twelve thirty." He answered looking down at his watch.
"Oh, I didn't mean to sleep so late! Do you know where Jacob went?"
"He went to go visit some friends, but he left this note for you when you woke up." He reached over to the coffee table to pick up a folded piece of notebook paper and Kali walked over to take it from him.
"Thank you." She said and opened the paper quickly.
Good morning, baby. I hope you slept well and enjoyed yourself last night. I had to meet some friends today for lunch but please meet me in the woods behind the garage at 3 o'clock. I have something important we need to talk about.
Love you
She read the note over again and decided to go ahead and take a shower. Once she was washed and dressed she sat in the living room with Billy and talked about the coming up football game he was excited about. Kali didn't know much about sports but humored Billy with pretending to know what he was talking about.
When three o'clock came around she stood up, said goodbye to Billy, and headed out into the woods. She walked behind the makeshift garage and into the dense forest. She stood in a small clearing and waited. She couldn't take the suspension. Nothing good ever came from the phrase "we need to talk" and she was terrified what was going on. She ran through everything that happened last night to try and find what she did wrong that could possibly upset Jacob enough to break up with her after flying her all the way across the country to meet his family and friends. She came up blank, but that didn't stop her from worrying.
The feeling of someone wrapping their arms around her waist make her squeal before she realized it was Jake and laughed at herself.
She turned around and smacked him on the shoulder.
"Jeez, are you trying to give me a heart attack?" She joked stepping into his arms, hugging his waist like a child hugs their parents. She couldn't live without Jake and couldn't stand the thought of breaking up now.
"Of course not." He laughed into her hair. "How did you sleep?"
"Good, you?"
"Fantastic." They continued to hug each other not saying anything else. Kali didn't want to bring it up, hoping he would forget wanting to break up with her. She felt him sigh underneath her and she new the inevitable was coming.
"Kali..." He started pulling her arms length from him so he could look in her eyes.
"Oh, God." She said under her breath. He raised his eyebrows at that. "You're really going to break up with me like this? Fly me all the way out here, get attached to you family and friends, and then dump me in the wet woods? What did I do-" he interrupted her rambling with his lips. They kissed passionately for longer than Kali could hope for. She threw herself into this kiss, thinking it would be their last.
When he finally pulled away she was panting for air and Jacob was laughing.
"What's so funny?" She exclaimed.
"I'm not breaking up with you, silly girl!" He pulled her to him again. "What in the world would give you that idea?"
"Well, in your note you said we needed to talk..." The look he gave her made her continue, "and then you started 'Kali...' nothing good ever comes from that."
"We do need to talk. But I'm more worried that you are going to be the one that breaks up with me." He took a deep breath, placing one finger on Kali's lips when she went to protest.
"You remember the stories from last night?" She nodded silently. "They're not just stories. They're all true." She gave a confused expression. Jacob took a step back, when Kali followed him he placed a hand on her shoulder giving her a pointed look to stay where she was. He walked about ten meters away and began to take off his clothes.
"Jacob! What are you doing?" Kali exclaimed looking around as if someone was watching.
"Proving something. Just please don't be scared, okay?" She didn't respond, just stared at him dumbfounded. He took a deep breath and his form seemed to shimmer, but the next blink of an eye he seemed to explode right in front of her and in his place a giant copper wolf the size of a large bear stood. Kali was completely frozen as she looked in front of her where her normal human boyfriend was standing. The wolf took a hesitant step toward her, in which she took a step back. The wolf dipped its head so she could look into its eyes. No, Jacob's eyes. It was Jacob's eyes that stared back at her.
"Jake?" She asked quietly. The wolf seemed to nod its head. She reached a hand out to touch its fur. The moment they made contact she knew it was her Jacob.
"What. The. Hell. All those stories were true?" She sat down on a near by rock, rethinking her entire life. Werewolves? Vampires? What else was there? She placed her head in her hands, her thoughts going a mile a minute. She felt a hand on her back and jumped slightly before she realized it was Jacob.
"Are you okay?" His voice was gentle moving his hand off of her back.
"My boyfriend...is a giant wolf...yeah, I'm okay." Her voice shook with every word. Everything she ever knew about the world she lived in was a lie. There was so much more out there than she could ever have known. They were silent for what felt like a lifetime. Jacob could tell she was obviously upset and didn't want to push her too far. He heard her soft sobs and felt his heart break.
"Kali, I'm so sorry. I wish I had told you sooner. I just didn't want you to jump to conclusions before you got to know me. I wanted you to know who I was, who I really am." He pulled her into his arms and she threw her arms around his neck, clinging to him.
"I'm not mad, Jacob. Not at all, I'm just so very confused. Werewolves? vampires? What else is out there that I was always told was fictional?" He rubbed her back as she let it all out. It didn't take long for her to calm down. She pulled back and quickly wiped her face.
"I'm sorry. I'm sure this is not the reaction you wanted." She laughed at herself.
"Are you really apologizing right now?" Jacob was dumbfounded by her reaction. He could handle her being angry for lying to her, but her feeling sorry because she was upset was not something he had prepared for.
"Well, I know that was hard for you to tell me, and I didn't really react very well." She was completely serious, that much Jacob could tell.
"You are so silly." He placed a hand softly on her cheek. "I'll tell you anything you want to know. I'm sure you have questions." She nodded slowly.
"Can we go eat and talk? I'm starving!" She said, her stomach growling as if to emphasize her point. They both laughed and stood.
"Of course. Let's get out of here."
"Um, Jake?"
"Yeah?"
"You might want to put your clothes back on..."He jumped, startled, realizing he never redressed himself. He quickly covered up while Kali watched, looking at Jacob in a whole new way. One that wasn't necessarily bad, just different. He looked so much older to her, wiser than she could ever be. He noticed her stare but didn't ask, he simply reached a hand out to her that she took happily.
"At least you didn't faint. I was worried there for a moment." He joked elbowing her lightly in the side. She rolled her eyes.
They walked out of the woods and back into the small house. Billy was nowhere to be seen. They made sandwiches and sat at the small kitchen table.
"Ask away." He said, taking a huge bite out of his sandwich.
"Hm, how old where you when you changed?"
"Sixteen."
"How old are you really?" He hesitated.
"Technically, I have only been alive for eighteen years. However," He said quickly when he saw her surprised look, "my body is the age of a twenty-five year old." She laughed at that.
"Okay, do you like...um, being..." She didn't know how to finish her thought without offending him, so she trailed off hoping he would understand what she was thinking.
"I hated it when I first changed. I hated who I was. I tried so hard to reject it. But Sam, our chief-"
"Oh my God. Sam is a werewolf too?" Kali exclaimed.
"...Yes. Sam went through this by himself. He was the first of our generation to change, so he had it worse than everyone. He became the chief of the tribe and now he helps everyone else get through it. He showed me all the good things we can do being who we are. After I accepted that, I began to enjoy it. More than being a human sometimes." Kali nodded along, soaking everything in.
"There's something else I should probably tell you about. You heard about imprinting last night. Do you remember?" Jacob reached across the table and took one of Kali's hands in both of his. She nodded looking up confused.
"Well, it's a lot more common than the stories lead on...I though it was never going to happen to me. That was until that day that I walked into your father's restaurant and laid my eyes on you. Then I knew you were the one I was meant to be with for the rest of my life," Kali's eyes widened in surprise.
"Um, wow." Was all she could say. She looked down at their hands intertwined together. "Jake, I-"
"I didn't say that to freak you out. I know you're young. Hell, I'm young too, but I have this weird wolf thing ruling me. But you are under no obligations, I don't want you to feel like you have to stay around. If at any point you are unhappy...I won't hold you here." Kali could tell it pained him to say that. She couldn't picture being with anyone else.
"You'll never have to worry about that. Jacob, I love you. And I plan on spending the rest of my time on this planet with you." They smiled at each other before Kali starting throwing even more questions at him.
They spent the rest of the day talking, Jacob answering ever question Kali could think of, laughing at some.
"So...what about silver? Would we have to get gold wedding bands?" Kali asked in all seriousness, she was shocked when she heard Jacob's booming laughter. She looked up sharply, not understanding what was so funny.
"What? I'm serious!"
"I know, I know." He continued to laugh. She folded her arms across her chest angrily. He finally calmed down and reached across the table to pull her arms away from her body, taking her hands in his own. "Sorry. I know this is hard for you. No. Silver doesn't both us, we can get silver rings if you like." She was quiet for minute before continuing with her questions.
By the time Billy got back from Charlie's house it was close to midnight. Charlie had drove Billy home so he stopped in to say hello to Jake.
Kali was asleep on the couch, her head resting in Jacob's lap. He was softly stroking her hair as he stared down at her sleeping form. He looked up to the sound of a car pulling into the driveway. He relaxed when he heard his father's voice mixed with a voice he recognized as Charlie's. When the door opened it revealed Billy rolling himself in, laughing at something Charlie said.
"Hey!" Charlie boomed when he saw Jacob. Jacob flinched at his volume and looked down at Kali to make sure she was still asleep. Charlie followed the direction of his eyes and noticed the small figure resting in his lap.
"Oh, sorry!" He whispered. He took a seat across from Jacob on the small reclining chair. "Is this the girl Billy keeps talking about?" Jacob nodded throwing a smile in Billy's direction.
"She's an amazing young lady." Billy stated simply, he wheeled over next to Charlie.
"You know, Bella hasn't stopped asking about you since she found out you were in town. You should give her a call." Charlie changed the subject abruptly. This threw Jacob off guard. He knew he would have to face Bella at some point, he was just hoping for a little more time. He looked down at Kali and knew that there were no feelings left for Bella other than friendship. He faced Charlie again and smiled.
"That would be nice. I'll give her a call tomorrow morning. But I think I should bring Kali to bed, I'm sure this isn't very comfortable." Charlie nodded and stood slowly. Jacob maneuvered Kali into his arms so he could pick her up and rose. Charlie patted him on the shoulder.
"It was good to see you. I hope you'll stop by at some point before you leave." Jacob smiled and walking into his bedroom, laying Kali down on his small bed. He stripped down to his boxers and climbed in with her pulling her as close to him as possible. He fell asleep quickly, happy with how accepting the woman in his arms was. He was truly the luckiest guy in the world and in that moment he couldn't have wished for more.
Jacob woke up to the sound of banging in the kitchen. He sat up with at start and searched the room for Kali. Not seeing her he jumped up and ran into the kitchen where he saw her picking up pots and pans that must have been the source of the noise. She looked up when she saw his feet walking towards her.
"Sorry! I was trying to be quite but they all fell out of the cabinet!" She whispered. For the first time Jacob looked at the clock. It was only seven in the morning.
"Kali what are you doing up so early?" He questioned as he bent down to help her pick up all the pots.
"I got hungry..." She answered sheepishly. He chuckled and began organizing the cabinet so it wouldn't make any more noise. He handed her the pan she wanted and she got back to work on her breakfast. "Want any?" She asked looked down as he finished up.
He nodded and placed the last pan in the cabinet. He rose slowly and moved to stand behind Kali. He wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his head in the crook of her neck. Placing small butterfly kisses up and down her neck and behind her ear. She smiled and leaned her head away from him to give him more access. He began to nibble on her ear and she let out a soft moan before she heard a noise from Billy's room. Jacob didn't move though.
"Jacob! You father is awake!" She said attempting to pull away from his grip.
"So?" He asked in between kisses.
"So! I don't want to look like a hoe in front of your father!" He finally stepped back right as the door opened.
"Good morning! Surprised you managed to pull this one out of bed! Usually sleeps until mid-day!" Billy gestured toward Kali causing Jake to chuckle.
"She actually woke me up with her banging around in here." He answered leaning against the counter top. Kali rolled her eyes at him as Billy chuckled and wheeled himself over to the kitchen table.
"Well, if you two are done picking on me, would you like some breakfast, Billy?" She asked grabbing the carton of eggs from the refrigerator.
"Yes, please." He grabbed the remote and cut the television on to the local news station as Kali continued to cook with Jacob standing next to her rubbing her back softly. She tried to contain herself with Billy just a few feet away but she couldn't always hold back the sighs.
When she was done cooking, her and Jacob set the small round table and began eating. Billy seemed impressed with her cooking, which made her feel better. Her mother use to always tell her the way to a man's heart was through his stomach.
"Thank you, Kali. That was great!" Billy said taking his plate to the kitchen.
"You are very welcome." She replied taking a bite out of her toast. He rolled himself into the living room, leaving her and Jacob alone in the kitchen.
"So what do you want to do today?" Kali asked.
"Well...I was actually thinking that I could introduce you to the Cullens today. What do you think?" Kali swallowed her drink hard and looked up quickly.
"The vampires?" She whispered looking around paranoid. He chuckled at her reaction and nodded.
"Yes, the vampires. But they're good, remember? Well, as good as they can be."
"...Okay." She breathed deeply. "What time?" Her full attention was directed toward her plate as she tried to calm herself down. It was like Jacob said, they were good vampires, they didn't hunt humans.
"I'm not sure. I'm going to go give them a call." He stood up and grabbed the phone from its stand.
"Don't wake them up! They're probably still a sleep!" She said, quickly standing up reaching for the phone.
"Vampires don't sleep." Was all he said before dialing the number. The phone rang once before a female voice picked up, it wasn't a voice Jacob recognized, however.
"Bella?" He asked suddenly not so sure of himself.
"Jacob? Is that you?" Her voice jumped with excitement on the other side.
"Yes, it's me...You sound different. Is everything okay?"
"Yes, everything is perfect. I heard you were coming back into town!"
"Yeah, that's kinda why I called you. I was wondering if I could come over, say hello to everyone. There is someone I want you to meet." He looked down at Kali with a smile.
"Of course, of course! Come whenever!"
"Okay, we'll be there around ten!"
"Great! See you then." He hung up the phone still slightly bothered by Bella's voice.
"See, not so bad." He said grabbing Kali's hand. She smiled slightly up at him and rose up on her tip-toes to kiss his lips lightly. Jacob wasn't having that, he reached down to scoop her up in his arms. He crushed her to his body as his lips devoured hers. They stood like this for a while before Kali needed to pull away to catch her breath. When she was able to talk again she told him she wanted to go take a shower. He raised his eyebrows seductively and she rolled her eyes at him. He placed her back down on her feet and she strolled through the living room and into the bathroom.
He sat on the couch tuning into whatever Billy was watching on the television. Kali walked over to stand behind him, she leaned down and wrapped her arms around his chest. She placed her lips by his ear and whispered.
"I'll be in the shower...if you need me." He perked up at that and she placed a small kiss behind his ear before walking away slowly.
"Did you see that? What a bogus call!" Billy's voice jerked his gaze away from the retreating form of Kali.
"Yeah...ridiculous." He sat there for a minute listening to his father rant about the new refs this year. He nodded silently until he heart the shower turn on and Kali's voice softly singing to herself. Billy didn't seem to notice the difference. So he stood and walked into the small bathroom. He could see her silhouette behind the sheer shower curtain.
He stripped down and joined her in the cramped space, she looked at him over her shoulder as the water ran down her naked body, he pressed himself against her back and kissed down her shoulder.
"Hey." He mumbled against her skin. She smiled and turned around in his arms. He hugged her to him as they let the water crash down on them.
"I'm scared." She said quietly. She knew he would hear her.
"Of what, baby?"
"That they won't like me. Especially Bella." She buried her head in his chest. She felt him bounce with laughter. She looked up outrage.
"What?!"
"I'm taking you to meet a coven of vampires, and you're scared they won't like you?" He placed both hands on either side of her face. She nodded slowly, confused why that was funny.
"Trust me, it's impossible not to love you." He kissed her forehead and continued to show her just how much he loved her.
Kali's leg bounced in anticipation as Jacob drove toward the Cullen's house. He reached over to place his hand on her thigh. They exchanged a meaningful glance before she took his hand in both of hers. She rubbed small circles on the back of his hand.
"I love you." She mumbled.
"I love you too." She continued to draw different patterns to keep her mind busy.
"I'm really glad you told me about your heritage, I feel like I finally know you completely. All this time it felt like you were hiding something from me but I never wanted to push you to tell me." She looked at him smiling. "And now you have and I just feel so much closer to you." He returned his smile and turned his attention back to the road ahead of him.
"I was worried that you wouldn't give me the chance. That you would crack me up to be some crazy person. Then with the whole imprinting thing I didn't want to come off to strong. So I had to hold back so much of what I felt because I didn't want you to freak out on me." She laughed at that. She would have thought he was crazy.
He pulled on a dirt road that seemed to stretch for miles. It was framed with large standing trees giving the driveway an eerie feel. She gripped his hand even tighter.
"Breathe." He said once they pulled up in front of a large house that screamed money. She followed his orders, taking a deep breath before he got out of the car and walked around to open her door. She stepped out slowly, once out of the car Jacob wrapped his arm around her waist and lead her up the stairs. A man a little taller than her with very pale skin and blonde hair opened the door before Jake even had a chance to knock. He was gorgeous, probably the most attractive man she had ever seen.
"Hello, Jacob. It's so good to see you again." They smiled and shook hands, he then directed his attention to Kali. "And who is this?" He reached his hand out for hers, which she took, his hands felt like ice.
"Carlisle, this is Kali. Kali this is Dr. Carlisle Cullen." She smiled when she heard the word doctor. Of course he was a doctor, he was perfect.
"It's so nice to meet you." Kali said politely, she almost forgot that he was a vampire.
"The pleasure is all mine. Please come in, everyone is very excited to see you." He stepped to the side letting Jacob lead her inside. Her breath was taken away the moment she stepped in the doorway. The whole back wall was a huge glass window showing the beautiful view of the green woods behind them. The layout of the house had a very open feeling.
"Wow." She breathed before someone stepped into her view. She was short with spiky black hair.
"Hello. I'm Alice! It's so nice to meet you." She said before she wrapped Kali in a hug. Kali froze by the sudden movement but quickly relaxed so she didn't offend Alice and placed her arms around her as well in a quick embrace.
"Alice, I think you frightened her." Kali heard a male voice with a subtle southern accent come from behind Alice. She looked up to see another blonde male with pale skin. He was also very beautiful, but he had more of a dark feel about him, unlike Carlisle.
"Right, sorry." She pulled away abruptly taking a step back.
"I'm Jasper." He introduced himself, placing his hand out for Kali to shake. She did with a smile. Another couple came down the stairs, the girl looked like she stepped off the cover of a magazine with her flowing long blonde hair and perfect face. Her body was every guys dream and Kali couldn't help but feel a little self-conscious around her. She introduced herself as Rosalie. The man next to her looked like some kind of body-builder with giant muscles. He had short brown curly hair and kind looking gold eyes. Now that Kali stopped to look around they all had gold eyes and pale skin. She then remembered that this was a feature Jacob had told her about, only the vampires that fed on humans had red eyes. She shuddered at the thought of staring into something so unnerving.
The next woman to walk up to them had brown hair that came a little below her shoulders. She had a heart shaped face and had a motherly air about her. She introduced herself as Esme, Carlisle's wife. The only two people left, Kali assumed had to be Edward and Bella. They were beautiful, they all were. Edward walked forward slowly and shook Kali's hand greeting her with a smile. Bella did the same but seemed to be looking Kali up and down, this made her even more uncomfortable. Jacob finally came to stand next to her, placing a protective arm around her waist.
"Kali, this is Edward and Bella. Edward, Bella, this is Kali. My girlfriend." Bella looked up at the word seeming to ask a question with her eyes. He nodded. "Yes, I did imprinted on her, and yes she knows everything." They all seemed to let out a synchronized breath.
"Well, we're happy to hear that Jake. When Bella said you had someone for us to meet we assumed it was something along that nature." Carlisle explained, everyone around them seemed relieved.
Jacob finally looked over Bella for the first time and couldn't help but notice the obvious difference.
"Bella...you- you're not human anymore." He stuttered out. Her skin was paler than normal, no more color in her cheeks. Her eyes were no longer brown but a bright gold and her face fit the rest of the Cullen's around her.
"I-I thought you knew..."She answered sheepishly. She seemed to be anticipating an angry reaction. But Jacob had been expecting this to happen at some point and now that he was happy with Kali he couldn't be angry at Bella's decision. He knew what he would go through to be with Kali forever if he could.
"Well, I'm happy that you're happy." Was all he said earning a smile from Bella.
They spent the day at the Cullen's house, Kali really enjoyed getting to know everyone. They all told her their stories of their human lives, and how they became vampires. Carlisle stunned her the most, everything he went through trying to reject who he was and what he had become. He was truly amazing in her eyes, she spent most of the time there bombarding him with questions.
He had just finished explaining what made him want to become a doctor when she realized she was being rude.
"I'm sorry, I don't mean to interrogate you. I'm just so curious." She blushed and looked down at her hands. He heard his melodic laugh and looked up.
"Don't worry about it. I've told my story many times." Kali was once again stunned by his beauty. It made sense to her for vampires to be so attractive, it definitely lured humans in, just like she was now. She felt a warm hand on her back and turned to see Jacob smiling down at her.
"Billy has dinner ready for us, you ready to go?" She looked at her watch and was shocked by the time. It was already seven o'clock, she didn't realize how long they had been there and the noises her stomach made her showed how hungry she really was.
She nodded and they stood to leave. Carlisle stuck out his hand but Kali hugged him instead. He cautiously wrapped his arms around her returning her embrace.
"Thank you for everything, you truly are an inspirational man." She said once she pulled away.
"That's very nice of you to say. Thank you for bringing her, Jacob. You've got an amazing girl on your side. I suggest holding on to her." He laughed and Jacob smiled and pulled Kali to his side.
"I'd have to agree." He kissed the top of her head, causing her to blush deeply. They said goodbye to everyone else and took their time walking towards the car. They stopped by the passenger door.
"This was great. Thank you." Kali said breathlessly. He kissed her softly before opening her door for her.
"No, thank you. For being amazing." She smiled and he shut her door and climbed in the driver's side before starting the car and heading home.