Telling the Truth

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.

Part Fourteen

Bella lay back on her bed, the breeze blowing through the gap in her window making her shiver. She had left it ajar at Paul's request. He had promised to come over as soon as his patrol was over. She glanced at the clock, the glowing red numbers showed that it was now two in the morning. Bella rolled onto her side and pulled the thick blankets up to her chin. Paul must have got delayed for some reason. She tried to keep her eyes open but she was so exhausted that before she realised she had drifted into sleep.

The loud insistent ringing of her alarm made her jolt awake. Her long hair fanned around her face as she sat up, rubbing at her bleary eyes. It was now seven am. Paul had not come by at all. Bella felt hurt, he could at least have texted her if he was too tired to come. He was the one who had told her to keep her window open. Well if he would rather spend the night in that cold, dank cave rather than next to her, then that was up to him. A fleeting thought passed through her mind, what if he had spent the night with another girl. There were plenty who would offer him a warm bed for the night and a lot more besides. Even though he had assured her that he would wait, Bella knew that Paul was getting impatient with her continual rebuttals.

She felt unwelcome tears begin to streak down her face. Who could blame him, really? She had no experience whatsoever. What had he actually got out of being in a relationship with her other than unnecessary grief. As she always did, Bella let her insecurities get the better of her as she began to paint all sorts of scenarios in her head about Paul cheating on her.

"Kiddo, I am heading off to work..." Charlie called up the stairs. "I'll see you tonight."

Bella tried to keep her voice even as she replied. "Alright dad see you later..."

The loud banging of the door indicated that he had left for the day. Bella slowly got out of bed and made her way down the stairs. As she entered the kitchen she noticed that her dad had made her some toast and a cup of coffee. For the first time that morning a small smile crossed her lips. She turned the radio on to fill the silence while she ate the toast. Listening to the news kept her mind off of Paul and what he was doing. After she had finished eating Bella went back upstairs and headed for the shower. She needed to get out of the house and do something. The cupboards were looking pretty bare so she decided to go shopping once she got dressed.

XXXXXX

Bella parked the Chevy outside the small store that served the local townsfolk. It did not have luxury items but was always well stocked with the most necessary produce. She entered the store and began to browse along the narrow aisles, she fancied cooking up something different for a change, tired of all the fish related dinners that seemed to be permanently on the menu. As she approached the back of the shop she heard the door pinging and a voice she instantly recognised as belonging to her school friend Jessica Stanley echoed through the air. Bella hid behind some cardboard boxes that had been stacked high, she did not fancy having to deal with Jess right now.

Jessica was accompanied by one of the quieter girls in school, Amber Jenkins. She was the type who said little, but would follow the most popular group. Normally she was hanging around Lauren, Bella's arch nemesis, but today Jess had the pleasure of her company. From the tittle tattle that was pouring out of Jessica's mouth it seemed that Amber was on a fact finding mission. Probably when she had her fill of gossip she would run straight to Lauren and fill her in.

They were talking about hot boys and Bella rolled her eyes when Jessica boasted that she had Mike Newton wrapped around her little finger. Yeah right, that was why the guy was constantly trying to get her to go out on a date with him. The conversation turned onto other boys in her year as Jessica discussed the merits of each one in turn. Bella was getting restless as she became fed up of hiding. She was just about to emerge from her hiding place when Amber made an unexpected comment that nearly made her stumble into the boxes she was hiding behind.

"All of those are just clueless boys, you should try for a real man, like Lauren..." Amber said, a smirk crossing her face.

Jessica shot the girl a dark look. "Yeah and who would that be. Lauren has been around the track so many times I am surprised anyone would go near her. " She said irritably. Lauren was not her favourite person either.

Amber just gave Jessica a smug smile. "You remember that hot guy that turned up at the school that day to pick up Swan?"

Jessica frowned. "Yeah, his name was Paul or something, he was handsome but very rude to me..."

Amber just arched an eyebrow at her. "Well it seems that he has been dating that Swan girl, although I cannot imagine what he ever saw in her... " she replied bitchily.

"Bella's not that bad..." Jessica said grudgingly. "What has this got to do with Lauren?"

Amber then threw the bombshell that broke Bella's heart. "Well it seems that he got bored with little Miss Prissy Pants. I was with Lauren last night at the Diner when he walked in with some of that gang he hangs around with. They are all so hot..." she pretended to fan herself down.

"Get on with it Amber..." Jess said impatiently.

"Well Lauren made a comment about that Swan girl and he came marching over, he looked Lauren up and down and smirked at her. She said to him would he like to know what it would be like to spend time with a girl who knows what she is doing and guess what, not ten minutes later they left together. When I called Lauren this morning to get the gossip well she told me it was the best night of her life..."

Bella couldn't take it anymore. She ran out of her hiding place, dropping her basket of shopping to the floor. She fled past a startled Jessica and Amber and out of the shop. The cool air hit her flushed face as she finally made it to her truck and yanked the door open. Tears ran down her face as she fumbled with the keys, trying to fit them in the ignition. She heard Jessica calling her name as she managed to turn on the engine and floor the accelerator. Bella did not look back as she drove away from the store, her vision blinded by her tears.

XXXXXX

Bella drove aimlessly around, not knowing where to go. Her worst fears had been realised, why should she be surprised? Whenever she felt settled or happy, something would always happen to turn her world upside down. She thought about the night before, it had been a fun evening. Paul had seemed to enjoy spending time with her dad. He was a good actor, she had no clue that as soon as he left her he would go seeking out an easy lay. He had a reputation with girls that he had never denied, she had just thought that because he had told her that she was the first girl he had ever loved that it meant something. A bitter laugh escaped her lips, she was an idiot. Leopards never changed their spots. It was the same scenario with Edward, he had expressed his love for her every day, then he had upped and left. Oh yeah he was back now after she had stupidly risked her life to save his, but did he really want her back or was it because he wanted what he couldn't have?

"I am a pathetic fool..."she said out loud. "Well I am not taking it anymore..."

Bella swung the wheel of the truck around and headed for La Push, she was determined to hunt Paul down and tell him what she thought of him. He may have broke her heart but she wasn't going to take it lying down like she had with Edward. It might be a waste of her breath but she was going to tell Paul exactly what a lying scum bag he was...

XXXXXX

Paul left the hospital, a bag of his dad's belongings under his arm. It had been a long night. After he had finished his patrol shift he had stopped off at home to get a change of clothes before he went over to Bella's. He had entered his house to find his dad comatose on the floor, a pool of blood was covering the floor where he had hit his head on the hard wood. The smell of stale beer made it clear how his dad had ended up like this. Paul had called for an ambulance and had to accompany his old man to the hospital. The doctors had stitched up the deep cut on his father's scalp and kept him overnight to monitor him. Paul had slept on the hard plastic chair by his bed, worn out with exhaustion.

The nurse had woken him up that morning to tell him that he could take his father home later that day. She then handed him the bill for his father's treatment. They had no medical insurance, as he looked at the huge cost he could have cried. He really needed to see Bella, she would know what to do. He longed to feel her soft body in his arms as she assured him it would all be okay. She was the one good thing he had in his life.

As he trudged toward Forks and her house he passed the local diner. He saw a smug looking Quil getting out of a blonde chicks open top convertible. The blonde gave Quil a salacious wink before speeding off. Paul shook his head in disbelief. Now he had taken himself off the market it appeared that Quil was trying to take his place. Well good luck to the dude, although his pack brother really needed to raise his standards. Paul recognised the blonde, she had quite the reputation, although he had never been interested.

He circumnavigated Quil, not wanting to get into a conversation with him. He was sure to see the results of his pack mates night when they were all phased. He grimaced at the thought. Finally he reached Bella's house and groaned when he noticed that her truck was gone from the driveway. He had missed her. "Shit..." he muttered in frustration.

Paul decided the best thing he could do was head home and wash up. He was so fucking tired. Once he had a shower he would feel a lot better then he would seek Bella out. Deciding that it would be quicker if he just phased Paul stashed his father's belongings at the back of the Swan house and then ran into the forest, stripping down quickly before he phased.

XXXXXX

As he emerged from the trees near his house Paul was delighted to see Bella's red Chevy parked nearby, it seemed she had sought him out instead. He ran over to the truck swiftly and gazed around looking for her. Light footfalls behind him made him spin round, she was there...

"Bella..." he said happily as he caught her up in his arms and hugged her close, dropping all his normal defences. He felt so relaxed around her now.

"Put me down asshole..." Bella's voice was cold as she pushed against him until he released her.

"Babe, what's wrong?" He asked in confusion as he took in her steely expression, she looked royally pissed.

Bella put her hands on her hips and glared up at him, sparks shooting from her eyes. Even though she appeared livid, Paul thought she looked utterly beautiful. "I came here all ready to tell you just what I think of you Lahote, but you know what. YOU ARE NOT WORTH IT. WE ARE OVER..." she yelled before marching past him, not looking back.

Paul stood watching her go in stunned silence, what the hell had just happened? He saw her reach the truck and climb in. As soon as it hit him she was just about to leave, he ran over to her and yanked the door open. He matched her glare as he confronted her.

"Tell me what the hell is going on or I won't be responsible for my actions..." He muttered angrily as he faced off with the girl who had stolen his heart.

A/N-Phew that was angsty...thanks for reading!