Being There
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to Stephanie Meyer.
A/N-thank you, thank you everyone for the encouraging reviews on this story. Here is the next chapter. I hope you all like it.
Nikki :) :) :) :)
Part Thirteen
Jacob ordered a cheeseburger and some large fries. Bella wasn't hungry so just settled for a diet coke. The diner was crowded, as it was a Friday night a lot of the local teenagers were hanging around, either eating or just milling about outside talking. Bella recognised a few people from school. Jessica was sitting in a crowded booth with Eric, the boy she had supposedly hooked up with but denied being interested in. A sly smile crossed Bella's face as she decided to have some fun at Jessica's expense.
"Hey Jake, let's sit over there. That's Jessica she's in my year." Bella began to tug him toward the private booth.
"Are you sure about this, Bells? They look like they're on a date," Jacob whispered.
"Exactly," Bella told him making Jacob feel confused. He followed her over to the table; the smell of the cheeseburger and fries making his mouth water. There were no other places to sit anyway.
Bella greeted Jessica cheerfully, she slid in beside her and Jacob made Eric shove over so that he could fold his long body into the small space. Jessica's face went beet red and by the angry glint in her eye Jacob guessed that they had indeed interrupted a private moment.
"Why are you here?" Jessica hissed at Bella.
"The same as you I expect," Bella replied cheerfully sipping on her coke. "Jake's treating me to some dinner."
Jessica stared at Jacob's full plate. "I can see his, where's yours?" She snapped.
"Oh I wasn't hungry after all. Hey Eric how are you?" Bella smiled at Eric, who was sitting silently, looking completely bewildered.
"Hello Bella," he gave her a small smile."I'm fine thank you. How about you?"
"Great, this is my boyfriend, Jake." She introduced Jacob who was too busy eating to answer. He just held up his hand and gave a little wave.
"So what have you two been up to?" Bella asked Jessica.
"We're out on a date," Eric answered for her. "We went to the movies and watched that new romantic comedy that's just come out and then we came here."
Bella's smile grew wider. "So you two are dating?" She aimed the question directly at Jessica.
"No," Jessica snapped.
"Yes," Eric said at the same time.
A tense silence filled the crowded booth. Jacob even noticed; he put down his burger and glanced uneasily over at Bella as Jessica and Eric stared at each other.
"What do you mean by no?" Eric was the first to break the silence.
Jessica tried to back track. "I mean yes this is a get together, we've only been on like a few outings." She hedged.
Eric's face betrayed his hurt. "A few outings, huh? Do you sleep with everyone you have a few outings with? You're ashamed of being seen with me, aren't you?"
"No," Jessica sounded panicked. "Eric I didn't mean..."
"Forget it. I know exactly what you meant," he stood up and threw his napkin on the table. "Do you mind? I need to get out of here." He muttered angrily to Jacob who was in his way. Jacob slid out of the booth and let Eric through.
Jessica turned her tear filled eyes onto Bella. "Why did you do that? You're no better then Lauren. Get out of my way."
Bella moved so that Jessica could get past her. "I'm sorry Jess. I didn't mean anything, I just thought..."
"Go to hell, Bella." Jessica fumed. She left the diner chasing after Eric.
Jacob sat back down opposite Bella and raised his eyebrows. "What was all that about?"
Bella sank back in her seat and closed her eyes. "That was me being a total ass and upsetting poor Eric. Jess is right I am no better then Lauren."
Jacob resumed eating his burger. He thought they were all overreacting. "It's your friend's own fault. She did it to herself. I think you did that poor guy a favour."
Bella sighed. "It's just lucky that I won't be at school next week. I seem to have upset everyone. First Lauren then Mike and now Jess."
Jacob finished eating and gave her a sunny grin. "I still love ya," he teased.
Bella opened her eyes and gave him a resigned smile. "Are you full now? We better get back."
He patted his flat stomach with satisfaction. "Nearly, there's just one last thing I need."
"What's that?"
"This," Jacob leaned across the table and gave Bella a passionate kiss on the mouth; leaving her breathless when he pulled away. "Now I'm done."
A few whistles made Bella blush. She peered around at the other diners and found that everyone was looking their way, smirking. Jacob laughed at her reaction as he slid out of his seat and helped her up. She hid behind him as they made their way out of the diner.
XXXXXX
Billy was waiting for Jacob so that they could head back to the reservation. Charlie was taking them back in the Cruiser. With both men's eyes on them, they shared a quick goodbye kiss before Jacob leaned down and whispered to Bella that Jared was nearby and to stay inside. "I'll be back later tonight." He promised.
Bella followed them out and waved sadly as the cruiser reversed out of the driveway and headed off toward La Push. She waited until it was out of sight then reluctantly went back inside the empty house. She went upstairs to her room and lay back on her bed, she was thinking about Jessica and feeling extremely guilty. There was not a lot she could do about it now anyway. Jess would have to sort out her own mess. It had been a long day, first with the shock of Leah phasing and then the confrontation with Jessica. Bella yawned and stretched her limbs as tiredness crept up on her. She rolled off the bed and changed into a tank top and some sweatpants before crawling under the covers and drifting off to sleep...
She was riding the motorbike, the wind pulling her hair back off of her face as she leaned low over the handlebars. She urged it to go faster, wobbling slightly as she glanced back behind her at her assailant. Running was futile, she had taken the bike thinking it would give her a slight chance but she should have known better. A familiar figure suddenly appeared in front of her like a red blur. Bella swerved and the bike shifted off to one side, throwing her over the handlebars. She hit the dirt with a thud, the impact stealing the breath from her body. She rolled over a few times before she landed in front of a pair of dirty feet. Her eyes darted upwards to be met by the glowing red orbs of Victoria. Her feline features made her appear more surreal then normal.
"I warned you that I would come for you. Where are your protectors now?" Victoria licked her blood red lips running her tongue over her gleaming white teeth.
Bella curled up into a ball and screamed as she felt the first hint of fire run through her veins as Victoria went in for the kill...
"Bells, wake up. Bella..." She sat up abruptly; her chest heaving with every breath she took. It was a moment before she realised she was still in her own bed. Charlie was sitting beside her, a worried frown on his face.
"What's wrong, kiddo? What was the nightmare about?" He asked.
Bella wiped her face with her hands, she felt the perspiration beading along her skin. "I can't really remember," she mumbled.
Charlie sighed. "I was hoping that the nightmares had stopped, you haven't had them in a while."
"I'm sorry I disturbed you. I'm fine dad, really," Bella forced a smile onto her face.
"Okay, I'll let you get back to sleep. Night Bells." Charlie patted her hand and stood up.
"Night dad," Bella replied. "And thanks."
"No problem, kiddo." Charlie slipped out of the room, shutting the door behind him and Bella was left alone again.
XXXXXX
It was three in the morning before Jacob finally crawled through Bella's window. It had been an exhausting patrol shift. Leah had joined him and Sam for the first time and had done her best to make life uncomfortable for his Alpha. She kept up a constant stream of criticisms, baiting Sam at every opportunity. Jacob waited for Sam to reprimand her but he bore it all stoically. He was still filled with guilt over the way their relationship had ended and the last thing he wanted to do was upset Leah further.
So Jacob had to bear witness to their bickering and watching in his head a replay of their break up. He was forced to share Leah's pain; linked as they were through the pack mind. The worse part was that Jacob sensed that Sam still had deep feelings for his ex, but he was supernaturally bound to Emily. Harry had told his daughter about imprinting, preferring her to hear it from him rather than Sam having to explain. Instead of making her more understanding about Sam's position, it made her the opposite. She was bitter that he had never tried to fight it, instead caving in to Emily's wishes.
Having the imprinting issue shoved into the forefront of his thoughts, Jacob became uneasy about keeping Bella in the dark. If she became more friendly with Leah it wouldn't be long before she learned about it. He mulled over whether to just tell her and get it over with then he would change his mind, Bella was under enough pressure with the red head bent on revenge, she didn't need this added into the mix. He was still undecided when he reached her house and when he finally made it into her room he found her curled up into a ball, weeping silently. She'd had another nightmare. This decided the issue for him, he wouldn't tell her. Even though he knew that imprinting would not affect him he knew Bella would fret over it. She didn't need the extra anxiety. He would just have to speak to Leah and explain how things were. He was certain that she would understand his position and not tell Bella anything.
Jacob lay down next to Bella and held her securely in his arms. Feeling his warmth surround her she soon fell asleep; her ear pressed to his heart. It took Jacob a lot longer, he held Bella tightly as she slept, gazing at her tenderly. He loved her so much, she was his whole world. He longed for the day that Victoria was killed and they could just get on with their lives with nothing hanging over their heads. They both deserved happiness and Jacob was determined that they would get it. With this thought in mind he finally fell asleep.
XXXXXX
The alarm went off waking Bella up from a deep sleep. She untangled herself from Jacob's arms and reached across to turn it off. She was soon pulled back against his chest as he reached out for her and wrapped her back in his warm embrace. "Five more minutes," he mumbled, pressing his lips into her hair.
Bella settled back down and let him have his extra five minutes. She listened contentedly to the thrumming of his heart in his chest as he breathed in and out. To her it was the most comforting sound in the world. His supernatural warmth made her sleepy and she dozed off again, forgetting to set the alarm.
The next time she woke it was to a loud knocking on the door. "Bells, are you up yet?" Her dad's voice floated through the door.
Bella's head shot up and she accidentally hit Jacob with her arm as she struggled to sit up. "Ow," he said loudly as he woke up.
"Shhh..." Bella put her finger to her lips as she tried to quieten him.
"Bells, what was that?" Charlie began to fumble with the door handle.
"No dad don't come in. I'm...I'm..." Bella felt her brain freeze as she tried to think of an excuse. Her eyes darted around the room and fell onto her discarded clothes from the night before. "I'm naked." She blurted.
Jacob rolled his eyes at her as she glared back at him. She heard her dad clear his throat noisily in embarrassment. "Right I see...well...err...you better get ready...err...see you downstairs, kiddo."The sound of his retreating footsteps down the stairs made Bella sigh with relief.
Jacob was trying not to laugh. He had a huge smirk on his face which irritated Bella immensely. She slid out of bed and began to gather her clothes together in a huff. "Aww come on Bells that was funny. I'm surprised poor Charlie never had a heart attack." He teased her playfully.
"Ha ha, you and your five more minutes. You're lucky he didn't just barge in here. You would be out there right now picking buck shot out of your butt." A mental image of her dad chasing after Jacob with his shotgun brought a smile to her face.
Jacob knew exactly what she was picturing in her head. He leapt out of the bed landing silently on the balls of his feet. He stalked over to her and grabbed her around the waist, lifting her up against his chest and kissing the back of her neck. She wriggled against him as he anchored her to his body with one arm and used his other hand to tickle her.
"Jake," she tried to get her breath as his wandering fingers sent her over the edge.
"I know what you were thinking, Bells." Jacob stopped tickling her and spun her around in his arms so that they were eye to eye.
Bella was out of breath, she gazed back at him a goofy smile on her face, he knew her so well. She conceded defeat. "Alright I was picturing my dad coming after you with his shotgun," she admitted.
Jacob laughed and kissed her gently on the lips. "He'd never catch me."
Bella joined in his laughter. She slipped her arms around his neck and wound her legs around his waist. The feel of her body pressed tight against his own made Jacob groan. She felt so good. Bella could feel his erection pressed between her legs and she gave him a flirty wink before letting go and sliding down his body to the floor.
"Hey, where do you think you're going?" He demanded.
"To get breakfast, I can't keep my dad waiting," Bella laughed again at his pained expression as she slipped out of the room.
A/N-thanks for reading!
