After falling asleep with Embry, I wasn't impressed when Paul came in and woke us both up and pulled Embry out of bed. "I don't give a shit if you love her! You will not be sleeping with my sister until you two are married!" I sat up and had to take a second look at was unfolding in front of me. "Paul?" I asked, I had to be sure it was him, with the way he was acting I thought it was my brother. "Yeah?" He stopped glaring and Embry and looked at me. Well it's Paul. "Oh nothin I thought... Oh never mind what I thought. What time is it?" I asked looking around the room. "It's five in the morning." He said so casually like it was no big deal, but I could feel the proverbial pumpkin taking over again, along with a burst of anger. Guess which one won out. "Paul! You can't burst into my room at five a.m cause you're pissed off! What if I was... " I could not say naked the whole embarrassment thing would be to much to handle. "What if I had been..." Oh no... No good reason was coming up. Shit-balls. "Paul what if I was alone in here, changing?" Aha! Good reason right there. "At five a.m?" Oh damn I was busted. "You never know! I might of been changing into pj's." I tried to rationalize. "At five a.m?" He asked again. "What are you a broken record?" I asked him laying back down in bed pulling the blankets up to my chin. "Just don't break anything." I grumbled rolling over, falling asleep again.
Waking up for the second time today I rolled over to check the time. 11:13. Better then freakin five a.m I thought to myself. It was then my phone started ringing "bangerarang" my brothers ring tone. "Hello?" I answered confused, he never calls midday like this. "Haley?! Where the hell are you? Mom called me crying." Figures it takes four days for her to realize I'm gone. "I'm in Washington Caleb." "You need to go back home Hales, you know mom needs you." "Then why don't you go back to Arizona? Oh that's right! You have a life Caleb. Have you ever thought that maybe just maybe I should have a life too? Nah you were to busy ditching me for your girlfriend!" "Haley, I-" "Don't even Caleb! All you and mom need to know is I'm perfectly fine here thanks for not asking, and the next time you think you should call on her behalf, just don't!" I hung up on him almost bursting at the seams. "Haley who was that?" Embry asked walking through the door. "Th-that was my brother." Suddenly the seams that were barely holding me together, burst for the first time in years. I collapsed to my knees crying. "I-I" started but the other words evaded me like I wasn't aloud to speak them any more, which made me cry harder. "Shhhh, it's okay Hale, I gotcha." Embry encased me in his arms, rubbing my back. "Haley it's okay, I'm here." He whispered in my ear as I hid myself in his chest. Choking back my sobs I began again. "I... Embry... I can't go back, please don't make me." I didn't bother looking up, I was to scared of what would come up, instead I untangled myself from him and braced myself for whatever was next. He inched closer to me with pain in his eyes that seemed to mirror what I was feeling. "Haley... I would never make you do anything you didn't want to." He reached out taking my hand. "I don't know what happened before I met you, but I already don't like it. Hale what happend?" He looked me in the eyes as he asked this. Instead of telling him, knowing my voice would crack as I tried to explain to him, I slowly lifted my shirt to show all my scars I had accuired since my brother left. "She did this to you?" He just barely spoke loud enough for me to hear, but I nodded my head, then pulled up my sleeves to reveal the now yellowing bruises. He went to touch them but I recoiled on instinct, causing anger to shine through his eyes, then sorrow. "Haley, baby I'm so sorry." He gently pulled me to him again hugging me like I'd slip away. "Let me see your phone hun." He suddenly demanded, making me pull away. "No." But before I had time to react he had my phone, and was calling my brother. "Embry give me my phone back!" I shouted but he just put his hand up signaling stop as he spoke. "Yes is this Haley's brother?" "Oh good! Listen here bub!" At this point Paul had walked in and from his face I'd say he had heard everything, he ripped my phone from Embry and started in. "You mother fucking pansy ass! You leave your sister alone to deal with an abusive parent on her own, then call her telling her she has to go back! What kind of fucking brother are you!?" "NO! If you want her to go back to ari-fucking-zona you get your ass up here and take her back your own god damn self! Ya hear me!" "Mother fucking La Push Washington ass hole!" "Great! See you then chicken shit!" And he hung up. If I could go paper white I would have. "Paul what did you do?! He's going to drag me back to Arizona now thanks to you!" I wanted to scream at him. "No he won't he has to go through me, Embry, and Seth if no one else, and three wolves against one hunan, I'm afraid the odds aren't in his favor." Paul looked way to happy about this. "Listen here, both of you. You will not touch my brother, unless he starts it. Do you understand?!" I was struggling not to yell at them. "Caleb is still my brother." I glared at the two of them as the both of them nodded solemnly. I'm to old for this shit I thought to myself, as found something to wear. Going into the bathroom I changed, since how the two wolves in the guest room haven't budged an inch since my little out burst. Once I was dressed, in another band tee and black skinny jeans and my neon green socks, I went back into the room to find they still haven't moved. "Are you two really not moving?" I asked them as I pulled on my converse, breaking them out of their trance they glanced at me. "Where you going?" "I'm going to see if Emily needs me to do any shopping." I responded to the question as I already out the door. "You can't be gone more then two hours, unless you have one of us with you." Paul said coming up behind me. "Let's give it another try." I told him not really wanting to be around them right now. "What? No! One of us is going with you." Again with the yelling? "No. Neither of you are going with me, actually! I'm going alone." I turned around and stepped up to Paul. "You will not boss me around! Just because you're bigger then me doesn't mean shit Paul! I could still take you." I glared over at Embry. "I could take both of you over sized mutts! So don't fucking tempt me!" I turned on my heals and rushed downstairs. "Do you need anything from the store Em?" I asked Emily as I grabbed my keys, and she just handed me a list. "I'll be back." I hollered as I was out the door.
Making sure I had everything on the list I headed to a cash register. "Haley? Is that you?" I turned around to see Jamie. My childhood friend, scratch that my best friend in the whole damn world. He had changed since I last saw him, if it wasn't for his piercings that matched mine I don't think I would of noticed him. He had neon orange contacts in, and his former mohawk, was gone and all the same length and color, black. He had his usual leather jacket though along with his band tee and leather pants. It had been years, four to be exact since I seen him, even spoke to him, and in the mere moments I had been looking at him all my old feelings came back. He of course never knew, or at least to my knowledge he didn't. "Oh my god Jamie!" I let go of the cart I was pushing and hugged him. He still smelt like cigarets,old spice, and leather. He pulled away and held me at arms length. "Is Candice here Hales? Tell me the truth." I nearly shuttered as he mentioned my mother. "No Jam, she's back in Az." "How bad was it this time?" I shifted around and pulled up my sleeves to my thermal shirt, and he went pale pulling me back to him. "Oh Hale I'm so sorry, you could of... Shit I know my parents were just as bad but you could of came with me." He said against my hair. "Jamie it's okay. We're both alive." I smiled up at him. You would of never thought he was two years older then me with the way he acted. "If I would of heard other wise Hale there would of been hell to pay." With that comment it shined through. "Ah the bad boy Jamie makes his appearance." I chuckled and fully pulled away from him going back to my cart. "You use to love that though, remember I was the John Bender to your Claire Standish." He commented looking sad. "Yeah but they were in love Jamie, we've always been, just friends." I remembered the first time we saw that movie together, I was thirteen and he was fifteen, and for months we had called each-other Claire and Bender but only cause we caused so much trouble at school, and I tried to get him to call me Allison cause it fit better, without giving how I felt away. "Best friends Haley." He corrected me. "Do you know where the first beach is Munchikin? I don't want to say goodbye yet." He looked at me with hope. "Yeah I know where it is Jam Jam, wanna meet me there in two hours?" I asked him hoping that would be enough time to put things away and get away from the sunshine twins as Seth called them. "Two hours Miss. Standish." He nodded at me. "See ya then Bender." And with that he was gone around an isle. I couldn't help but smile, my best friend was in my life again even if for a short time.