Protectors
I do not own any of the characters in Twilight.
BPOV
As soon as we arrived back at our house, Roxanne was immediately going from room to room looking for Anne, pulling me along with her. "Rox, Rox, stop. We don't need to do this. I'm fine there's nothing wrong. You need to calm down, this really isn't that big of a deal."
"Absolutely not, we are telling Anne about this and we are telling her right away. I don't want you to play this down or forget about anything that creep pulled out there." Her face let me know she was not about to back down on this. In the short period of time we've been friends I could tell that there were times when you could persuade Roxanne and there were times she was not going to move an inch. She could be a real force to be reckoned with!
We found Anne, Sam and Drake sitting outside on the deck. "Good, I'm glad you're all here. We have got to tell you something that happened in town."
I was pulling on Roxanne's arm now. "Rox, I'd really rather not make this public knowledge for the whole house. Anne, can we talk to you for a minute, privately. Sorry guys, this is something I'd like to keep a little private."
Both of them got up, Sam looked at Roxanne and I, he patted Anne on the back and said, "No problem ladies, we can take a hint. We know when we're not wanted. See you later." He winked at us letting us know he didn't take our dismissal personally.
"Okay, I'm all ears. What happened?" Anne waved her hand for us to sit.
"Bella, you tell her and don't leave anything out." Rox stood looking at me with her hands on her hips.
"Well, I'm not sure if you know him or not, but that guy Derrick…" I couldn't help it I started laughing again. Anne just looked from me to Roxanne. "I'm sorry, I just think it's so funny. Let me get this out. Derrick found us in town and asked to join us. Well to make a long story short, he decided to let me know how he felt about me by grabbing me and shoving his tongue down my throat and…" I starting snickering again, I couldn't help it. How could a guy say that to a woman and think she would actually like it? "told me that 'he could make me feel real good!"
I looked at Roxanne and Anne at that point with a smirk on my face. "So that's the story, that's what happened."
Roxanne shook her head, "No, Bella's playing it down. I had gone to the ladies room so Bella could let him down easy and apparently he was a little too aggressive in trying to capture Bella's attention. When I came out of the ladies room the chair was knocked over and she was furious. I told him to get lost, but he proceeded to tell me it was Bella's decision, not mine, to ask him to leave. He actually believes Bella likes him!" Roxanne had a very worried look on her face as she quickly looked at Anne and me.
Anne sighed and then looked back at me, "Bella, does he make you nervous?"
"Not really, I actually feel sorry for him. I don't think he'll do anything further, but Roxanne is worried he'll corner me in the laundry room or something. I think she may be a little overprotective." I looked over at Roxanne and she was shaking her head disagreeing completely.
Roxanne's protective nature made me smile, she really was a great person and I was lucky to have her in my life. In a week's time we had become friends for life. She was naturally cautious about everything, almost paranoid at times, but I loved her all the more for it.
"Here's how we'll handle this. Bella if you don't mind I'm going to let Sam and the guys keep an eye on Derrick to make sure he doesn't bother you with unwelcome advances anymore. If he tries anything else, he's out. No ifs ands or buts, he'll have to find a new house if the administration will allow him to stay."
"Roxanne, you have to understand I don't want to take this any further if Bella isn't willing. This is Derrick's education and future, if I go to the administration and ask for him to be removed they are going to want to know why. It could get real messy and this could just be an over zealous guy." She looked at Roxanne and quickly said, "Don't worry we'll make sure that Bella is protected and he doesn't get anywhere near her. Do you both agree?" She looked at us waiting our agreement.
I nodded my head while Roxanne scowled. "If this is how it's going to be handled, fine. But if he even looks in her direction, I'm all over him. I don't care, I'm not taking a chance with him getting over zealous to the point where he does some serious damage." She looked at the two of us and her face showed she was committed to this with every fiber in her being. She was small but she was determined to do whatever necessary to protect me.
I got up and pulled her up into a hug. "Rox, thank you. Thank you for loving me the way you do, but I'm sure I'll be fine. I'm going to head upstairs and lay down before dinner. All that laughing took a lot out of me."
As I was leaving the deck, she called out, "I'll be up around seven, we're going out tonight! I want to have fun tonight and forget all about that creep." I waved my hand at her and continued walking towards the stairs.
Even though Roxanne could get a bit carried away with her feelings about Derrick, it made me feel great knowing that we had forged such a strong friendship in one week. The day was fun in spite of Derrick's antics. The whole thing brought back memories of Forks and I decided to give Jake a call. I hadn't spoken to him since the first day and I promised him I would call.
I sat on my bed and pulled out my cell. With all the excitement, apparently I had missed three calls, all from Renee. Ugh, I was going to have to call her back as well. So much for resting!
Dialing Renee first, always tackle the difficult task before the pleasurable one! "Hello? Bella, is that you?"
"Yes Mom, the caller id showed it was me, didn't it?" Sometimes Renee could say some of the most ridiculous things. I snickered to myself. "So did you like the photos I sent? I figured if I sent you an email describing everything, you'd insist that I send pictures."
"Oh honey, they were great. Your room looks wonderful and that house…you're living in luxury in comparison to Charlie's' small place. So how are the classes, are you enjoying them?"
"They're great Mom. I never thought I would like college as much as I do. Its so stimulating, nothing like high school. The school and surrounding town is so much fun, I'm glad I made the choice to come here." I was playing with my hair, twiddling it around my finger as I spoke to her. I really did miss her, but part of me knew if I spent any amount of time with her she would start getting on my nerves. Pushing the boundaries of digging deep into my thoughts. The past year was tough on her as I was getting over 'him', she really wanted me to move to Florida and didn't believe me when I told her I was doing fine. I must have really scared her when Charlie had her come out during my meltdown. She only calmed down when she came to graduation and saw for herself that I was handling everything.
"So tell me all about Roxanne and the boys you've met. You have met some boys, right? I mean you aren't spending all your time on studying are you? You need to make time to socialize Bella, I know how you get." I could hear the concern in her voice, I hated when she became the concerned mom!
Rolling my eyes in frustration I said, "Mom, Roxanne is great as I told you in my emails. As far as boys are concerned there are a few in the house and I'm making friends with them, but that's it. They're just friends, so don't start. I'm here for school Mom! Most mothers would be telling their daughters to study and forget about boys. Here you are pushing me to disregard my education and go on a boy hunt. Honestly Mom!" I couldn't help letting my frustration out, I had to make her understand that having a boyfriend was not at the top of my priority list. I knew I was being short with her, but I wanted her to stop pushing me. She really wanted me to find another boyfriend so I could forget all about 'him' as she put it. That wasn't likely to happen any time soon.
"I know honey, but you have to understand. I only have your well being in mind, and I never said to disregard your education. I just want you to have a well rounded college life." She sighed into the phone, probably realizing that she'd lost the battle again.
"It's okay, I understand. So how's Phil and what have you been doing?" changing the subject quickly. I knew she was going to start telling me all about her latest escapades, so I laid back on the bed and made myself comfortable for the rest of the call.
After she had finished telling me all about her latest adventures, she was taking surfing lessons, I cut her off telling her I had to head down and grab something to eat. Before I ended the call I promised I would send her the photos I had taken today so she could see how wonderful Burlington was. I knew if I didn't make an excuse of some sort, she'd keep me on the phone another hour and I still had to call Jake.
Dialing Jake's number quickly, I sat up. I was getting too relaxed and knew I'd fall asleep if I wasn't careful. He answered on the first ring, "Hello". His voice sounded as if he'd been expecting a call and was angry about something.
"Hey Jake, how you doing?" I closed my eyes picturing his face, my own personal sun.
"Bells, I'm so glad you called. I miss you. So I'm guessing you're missing me too if you're calling me on a Saturday afternoon." He chuckled and I realized just how much I really did miss him. I hadn't really thought about him much during the week and the sound of his voice and his laughter made me slightly homesick.
"I'm great, and Jake…3 hour time difference remember. It's evening here about six, I'm calling before I head out for the night. I just wanted to call and let you know how everything was going. The last time I called was for Charlie and it was too early in my relocation to give you any details."
"So tell me all about it, I don't really have anything to report from here. Nothing really changes on the rez, you know how slow going it is!"
"Well, my roommate is great, you'll love her. She's funny, caring, a bit over-protective…" He interrupted at this point, "Why would she be over-protective Bella, what happened?"
Ut oh, my other protector, I shouldn't have let that slip. "Nothing, nothing at all. She just likes to stay by my side, she feels like I'm just a country girl and need to be watched over." Phew, hopefully that will ease his mind.
"Oh, okay. You would tell me though if something were wrong, wouldn't you? You know Bells, I would fly out there tomorrow if I thought somebody was hurting you?" I could hear the concern in his voice, and knew he was serious. Even if he couldn't afford the airfare, he would be here if I asked.
"No, don't worry. I'm great. Classes are great and I really love the town of Burlington. Jake this was the right decision. I needed the change of geography, you know I love you but I needed to do this. Even I didn't realize how much, until this week. Taking these courses is exhilarating, the week flew by and I have so much homework, but I'm actually looking forward to digging in and getting it done."
"Looking forward to homework, Bells that's just crazy! You really need to get out and have some fun; maybe I should fly out just to make sure you learn how to have fun. I could be your professor of enjoyment!" He and I both laughed at that.
"Believe me Jake, Roxanne wouldn't allow me to only focus on school. She's giving you pretty stiff competition on showing me how to relax and enjoy life. So how's things with everyone in Forks?"
"The same, nothing changes around here. You know that. Jared and Quill are being jerks as usual, Charlie's great. Billy is keeping him pretty busy so he doesn't miss you so much."
"Great, I'm glad. I wouldn't want him to get lonely. Well Jake, I'm going to get ready to head out for the night. I have no idea what Roxanne has planned, but I should start preparing. I'll call you soon okay?"
"Sure, sure. Bells? I love you, don't forget that okay?"
I smiled, "No Jake, I would never forget that. Love you too." I hung up and sat there looking at my cell. I did miss him, but knew it was best to distance myself from him. Even though we had worked out the fact that I wasn't interested in him the same way he was interested in me, if I hadn't left he would never pursue anyone else. I knew I had to leave so he could find someone special to share his love and life with. I didn't want him pining away on me when there was no way I could return those feelings.
There wasn't much time to dwell on my call with Jake, as Roxanne burst into the room. She looked so excited, I found myself smiling because her enthusiasm was so contagious.
"Girl, get ready! We're all going out tonight!" Roxanne was grabbing clothes from her closet and throwing them on her bed. "What should I wear? Bella what do you think, the green tank with my black jeans and this blazer, or my blue jeans, this white T and the red sweater?" As she was asking me, she started holding things up to show me and was looking at me with a panicked look.
"Whoa, wait. First of all where are we going? Second, I'm not a fashion coordinator, look at me Rox! I can barely dress myself."
"Oh sorry, I forgot to tell you. We're going dancing, it's going to be great" she squealed. Anne, Sam, Drake, Ian, you and I are heading out to City Hall Park. There's a dance marathon being held tonight with local bands and DJs. This is going to be so much fun, Bella. I haven't been dancing in, I can't tell you how long. It turns out that this marathon is held once a year to raise money for the City Arts Community Program." She had already made her decision as to what she was going to wear and was entering the bathroom to change.
"Wait a minute. I don't dance! I'm Bella, remember klutz with a capital "K". What were you thinking, how could you think this would be good for me? No, there's no way I'm going. You guys go on without me; I'll be fine here. I wanted to catch up on some reading anyway." I sat back down on my bed and reached over to my desk to grab a book to read.
Roxanne came tearing out the bathroom, grabbed the book out of my hands and threw it on the desk. She stood over me in only her bra and jeans with her hands on her hips, "YOU ARE TOO COMING! This is going to be great. Don't you see, it doesn't matter if you're a klutz and don't know how to dance. It's a dance marathon with tons of different kinds of music and entertainment. You don't have to dance if you don't want to. But hanging out with us all night as opposed to hanging out in this room reading is a much better Saturday night. Even I have to believe that you like us way more than hanging out by yourself. And" as she glanced over at my desk, "reading a book you've read how many times? Now get a move on it, put on your sexiest jeans and that really cute pink top you have in your closet because we have people waiting for us!" She grabbed my arm and pulled me off my bed and pushed me towards my closet.
Whining the whole time, "Roxanne you have no idea the damage I can cause by even getting next to a dance floor. This is just asking for trouble. I'll go because you're forcing me so I have no choice, but you will be responsible for any physical harm that comes to anyone, or any damages that may be inflicted to any property as a result of my klutziness." I put on my jeans and shirt and headed into the bathroom to fix my hair and make-up while she finished getting dressed.
This is going to be a long night and it was only seven o'clock!