A New Dawn
Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. No copyright infringement intended.
The rest is mine.
Chapter Nine
"Remind me why you're tutoring him again?" Jake asked, sounding annoyed as he glared daggers over my shoulder at no doubt Edward Cullen, the very person he was talking about.
I sighed. "I only have to be a tutor for today then next week and that's it," I reminded him.
"Right, but why are you helping Cullen?" he demanded like I owed him some kind of explanation, saying Edward's name with very poorly concealed distaste.
I shrugged. "I kind of felt bad for him," I admitted truthfully.
Jake rolled his eyes, scoffing.
"What? You didn't seem to care before. Why are you acting like this now?" I demanded, getting slightly annoyed at how he was suddenly acting, like I'd betrayed him by helping Cullen or something.
"Because…don't you see what he's doing, Bella? He wants you to feel sorry for him. He's trying to trick you, and it's clearly working," he said curtly, avoiding my eyes.
What the fuck?
"What the fuck are you talking about, Jake? He's not trying to trick me," I said defensively, angry now.
Whether I was defending Cullen or myself I wasn't sure. Maybe I was defending us both. After all, Cullen and I hadn't even talked about anything besides his school work except for the Tanya and Jessica thing that I'd brought up.
Jake's criticizing voice broke through my thoughts. "Oh, please. Why are you helping him then? He's got you eating out of the palm of his hand already," he said bitterly, looking down at his tray as he tore a banana peel to pieces.
"What the hell has gotten into you?" I demanded, growing angrier the farther this conversation went.
"Nothing," he mumbled, not even looking at me.
I scoffed. "Yeah, right," I said dryly, rolling my eyes with annoyance. "You're being a real prick, Jake."
He still wouldn't look at me as suddenly the banana peel he was taking so much pride in tearing apart was all too interesting for him to tear his eyes away from to at least look at me.
Fine. Be that way, asshole.
I dumped my barely touched tray and stormed out of the cafeteria before I said something to him that I'd regret later.
Jerk.
I glanced at my watch and groaned.
Fifteen more minutes until the bell rang.
I walked out to the parking lot, pulling my hood over my head to shield me from the icy rain, and decided to sit and mope in my truck for the rest of lunch.
Jake, one of the two good friends I'd thought I'd made, was being a total douche right now. That's just great. It's exactly what I needed right now. He was acting as though I was falling for Cullen or something. I wasn't; I was trying to get some answers that hopefully provided me with some sort of closure, and I didn't think there was anything wrong with that. I didn't think there was anything wrong with not wanting to be so fucking angry all the time, and the whole situation certainly had nothing to do with Jake. This wasn't about him.
I jumped, startled, when someone lightly knocked on my window. I glanced up to see Cullen standing there in the cold rain, motioning for me to roll down my window.
Hesitantly, I did.
"Are you okay?" he asked, the rain beginning to soak and somehow tame his wild bronze hair.
"Um, yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" I asked casually, trying to keep my voice mellow even as I thought of the hurtful words Jake had said.
He shrugged. "I saw you get up and leave the cafeteria. You looked kind of angry, so I thought I'd come see if you were okay?" he asked.
I'm always angry.
"Yeah, I'm fine. You should go back inside; you're getting soaked," I commented.
He shrugged. "It's okay."
"You're just gonna stand out here in the rain?" I demanded. I sighed internally. Okay, Bella, don't be an asshole to him just because you're pissed at Jake.
He smiled crookedly at me and shrugged, pulling his best innocent face.
As if I would let him stand out there in the freezing rain after he'd come to check on me, and he knew that, too.
Oh, you're good Cullen, I thought as I narrowed my eyes at him. I was about to decline his silent plea, but seeing him standing out in the freezing rain getting soaked was making me feel a little guilty. He had come out here to see if I was okay, after all.
Come on. You still have a heart, Bella Swan.
I sighed. "Get in."
"What?" he asked, looking at me with total innocence as if he hadn't expected it.
Yeah, right, I thought, resisting the urge to roll my eyes at him.
"Get in," I said a little louder. "Before I change my mind," I grumbled.
He flashed me a brilliant smile before rounding my truck and sliding into the passenger seat beside me as I rolled up my window. He brought with him a gust of cold air and the masculine smell of cologne, but it wasn't overpowering, thank God.
"Are you sure you're okay? Did Black do something?" he demanded, saying Jacob's name with as much distaste as Jake had his.
"No," I lied.
"Bella, you're a terrible liar. Your face is like an open book," he chuckled.
I scowled. Charlie told me that all the time, and I hated that quality in myself. I could never lie without being caught, and it proved to very inconvenient at times.
He turned serious again, all traces of humor leaving his face and his tone. "What did he do?"
I sighed internally. Should I really be confiding in Cullen of all people about this of all things?
"It's nothing, stupid stuff. He'll get over it," I told him honestly.
He frowned. "It was about me." It wasn't a question. He knew.
I laughed. "Conceited much?"
He laughed sheepishly. "Oh, come on. It's no secret Black and I don't like each other. Of course it was about me. He doesn't like that you're helping me," he said simply.
"Can you read minds or something?" I asked sarcastically.
He chuckled. "I wish. Good guess, though. I can read lips."
My eyes shot to his emerald green ones. "I hope that's a joke."
He smirked, his expression amused. "It comes in handy quite often."
My eyes widened, shocked. What else had he "overheard"?
"Why did you ask if you already knew then?" I grumbled a little irritated as I shifted uncomfortably in my seat while avoiding his eyes as I could feel them watching me closely.
He licked his lips, shrugging. "I don't know. I guess I wanted to see if you'd tell me the truth," he said, still watching me intently.
"Do you do that a lot?" I demanded, feeling a little like my privacy had been violated.
"Do what?"
"Spy on my conversations . . ."
"Oh. No, not really," he replied coolly.
My eyes widened. "What does that mean, 'not really'? So just sometimes then?" I demanded sarcastically.
He laughed sheepishly, his cheeks reddening in embarrassment like mine used to quite often. "I don't know. Sometimes I can't help myself."
"What?" I asked, not sure I'd heard him correctly.
He shrugged again. "You're a very interesting person, Bella Swan."
I glanced out my window, rolling my eyes. Gee, what a line, I thought dryly.
"Do me a favor and don't…spy on me again, okay?" I said irritably, shifting in my seat again.
He was looking out his window now, but I think I saw the side of his face pull up in a smile for a moment. "I'll try, but I don't make any promises on that."
I raised an eyebrow at him even though he couldn't see.
"What the hell does that mean?" I demanded.
"It means . . . I'll do my best," he said, looking back at me finally.
"No, Cullen. You won't try, you'll do," I said through gritted teeth.
He seemed amused by my state of anger, but the amusement in his eyes quickly disappeared as he became serious again.
"I need to ask you something," he said quietly.
I sighed. "You know, your mood swings are really starting to give me a whiplash."
He ignored that, and asked his question instead. "Is Jacob Black your boyfriend?" he asked.
My eyes shot to his again, surprised to find his intense and burning with something despite the cool, marble mask he wore.
"What?" I demanded, my eyes widening with shock.
"Is that why he got so angry that you're tutoring me, he's your boyfriend?" he murmured.
What the hell? Who was he, my father?
"I don't see how that's any of your business, Cullen," I said through locked teeth, glaring at him. I was really beginning to regret letting him in my truck; I'd rather he stand out in the icy pouring rain now.
He narrowed his eyes slightly. "Is that a yes?"
Anger, that's what I felt. I couldn't believe he was acting like I owed him an answer. The nerve of this bastard was something else. He hardly even knew me.
This time I narrowed my eyes at him. "It's exactly what I said, none of your business," I repeated.
He narrowed his darkening eyes again, scrutinizing me, perhaps looking for the answer in my face until finally looking away, ending our glaring contest. "You're right; it isn't any of my business. I'm sorry."
With that, he climbed out of my truck without another word, sloshing through the puddles across the uneven pavement of the parking lot as he left me sitting there.
~*AND*~
"Okay, so let me get this straight. Jacob got mad because you're tutoring Edward. You left the cafeteria, angry, and went to your truck. Edward went out there in the pouring rain to check on you, ruining it by interrogating you about Jacob. Is that about right?" Angela asked as taking in my entire story.
"Pretty much," I said, sighing and glancing around to make sure Cullen wasn't around to read lips.
She shook her head in disapproval. "That's terrible."
"Which part?" I asked.
"All of it. The whole situation is terrible. You're stuck in the middle of a love triangle," she said.
"A what? No, no, no. I'm not," I said defensively because the idea was preposterous and unsettling at the same time.
"Yes, yes, yes. You are," Angela replied. "It's so obvious what's happening here."
"Oh, yeah, and what's that?" I demanded. "If you can explain it, please do share."
She rolled her eyes, laughing. "I see the way they look at you, the two of them. Jacob…he looks at you like you're his favorite person in the world, and Edward, he looks at you like you're the only person in the world."
I raised an eyebrow. "Angela, that's the most . . . ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Jacob is my best friend. Cullen is my ex bully."
"Hmm, yeah, I agree. It's pretty interesting, huh? I mean, a guy falling for the girl he used to torture? It's kinda like that movie…A Walk to Remember?" she said. "And, hey, you know, Edward following you into the pouring rain would have been so romantic if he wasn't your ex bully."
I snorted. "Yeah, if this were The Notebook then, yes, it would have been very romantic, and I'm sure I'd discover he'd written to me every day for a year apologizing for everything," I said sarcastically.
Angela and I glanced at each other once before bursting into a fit of laughter.
When it finally died down, she said, "I'm just saying it would be nice. I wish a guy would do that for me. I mean, if it had been anyone other than Edward getting all jealous like that it would have been hot."
"Okay, first, a guy like . . . Ben?" I asked suggestively, wagging my eyebrows at her and nudging her in the arm with my elbow. "And, second . . . ew."
She narrowed her eyes at me playfully. "Hey, we're not talking about my love life here, and you can honestly sit there and tell me you're not attracted to Edward Cullen?" she demanded skeptically.
I stared at her for a moment, finally sighed. "Look, Cullen is . . ."
"Undeniably handsome?" she offered.
"Is not bad-looking," I supplied, "but he's . . . When I see him, I don't get all weak in the knees and swoon over his good looks. I don't get butterflies in my stomach when he walks into the room. I don't dream about him. As a matter of fact, he's in my nightmares. I cringe every time I see him because every time I look at his face some awful memory pops up."
Angela's eyes softened. "I'm sorry," she apologized.
"It's okay," I assured her.
She sighed. "Look, what Cullen and the others did to you was terrible, downright cruel actually. I can't even imagine what kind of people would be capable of doing stuff like that, really, but people can change, you know."
I suppressed a sigh. Okay, so maybe people could change. And, okay, maybe Edward Cullen had for all I knew, but that wasn't the difficult part for me, to realize this.
The difficult part was forgiveness, and, in my opinion, Edward Cullen hadn't earned mine.
~*AND*~
As tired as I was by the end of the school day, I still had to tutor Cullen.
The way I saw it though is that it was as good a time as any to get some more answers.
"So, are you bipolar or something?" I asked bluntly.
His head snapped up from his textbook and his eyes snapped to mine as if trying to judge if I was joking or not.
"I'm serious," I told him.
"No, I'm not bipolar, Bella," he said defensively.
"Okay," I said simply, shrugging. "Just asking."
"Why would you ask that?" he demanded.
I rolled my eyes. "Gee, I don't know. I mean, one minute you're laughing and okay then the next you're all serious and...dark."
He raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"In my truck, I mean. One minute you think it's funny to spy on me and the next you're interrogating me about Jacob," I said.
His eyes shot to mine on Jacob's name as if my mere saying it was enough to peak his interest. "Well are you? Dating him, I mean?"
I smirked. "Well, aren't we eager to know. If you spy on my conversations anyway, what are you asking me for?" I teased.
He smiled crookedly. "Touché, Swan."
~*AND*~
I had never been more relieved to get home. All I wanted to do was crawl upstairs, have a nice long, hot shower, and then go straight to my warm, comfy bed.
Of course, I wasn't going to get to do what I wanted to do, now was I?
Charlie's police cruiser was in the driveway along with a motorcycle.
I narrowed my eyes at it. Jacob.
What the hell is he doing here? I climbed out of my truck and stomped up to the porch and into the house. Warm laughter immediately greeted my ears. I knew that laugh; it was Jacob's.
I stayed turned around, pretending to be fidgeting with something on the door as a distraction. Finally, when I could no longer stall, I reluctantly closed the door and hesitantly turned around to see Charlie, Billy, and Jacob all comfortably hanging out in the living room together.
Charlie stood up from his seat on the couch. "Bella," he greeted me, pulling me in for a one-armed hug.
I forced a smile, trying to distract myself even as I could see out of the corner of my eye Jacob sitting on our couch, staring at me.
"Billy and I went fishing today. There's some in the kitchen for you if you want something to eat," he said.
"Um, no thanks," I said, wrinkling my nose. I'd never really liked fish.
"Well, Jacob's here, too," Charlie smiled, gesturing to where Jake and Billy were sitting in front of the TV.
Even before I glanced at Jacob who was studying me carefully, I could feel his eyes on me, making me feel very awkward and a little uncomfortable.
"Hey Billy, Jake," I said politely, waving, not wanting to seem rude in front of Billy or Charlie.
Billy smiled. "Hey, Bells. Good to see you again. Charlie here never shuts up about you," he teased Charlie.
I laughed, turning to Charlie who was smiling his crinkly-eyed smile.
"You sure you don't want some fish, Bells?" he asked.
"I'm sure," I said immediately.
"Okay, well, you wanna hang out down here with us?" he asked, hopeful.
"Um, no thanks, I'm gonna take a quick shower and go bed early. It's been a long day; I'm really tired," I yawned, heading for the stairs.
His smile disappeared and I immediately felt guilty. "Alright, get a good night's sleep," he said, pulling me in for another one-armed hug and kissing the top of my head.
I smiled. "Night guys," I said to Billy and, unfortunately, Jacob before disappearing upstairs.
Unfortunately, as tired as I was that night, sleep still evaded me as all of the conflicted thoughts of today ran through my mind, especially Angela's words.
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