Disclaimer: All familiar characters belong to SM. No infringement intended. Anything original is mine, though. Rated M for future chapters.
This is an AU/AH story. My first fanfic in the Twilight world.
CHAPTER FIVE
Bella chuckled to herself as she went through the pages and pages of uploaded photos on her laptop, trying to choose her favorites to go into her online album. She had started a private Facebook page chronicling her adventures, only accessible to Jacob, Sam, and the friends she made along the way who were included in her pictures.
Her pictures from Las Vegas were a huge hit with her friends, particularly the Denali's. Tanya, Kate, and Irina were extremely vocal about her Vegas adventures, and had become online friends with Tia and Benjamin to get the inside scoop on her tower jump and impromptu karaoke show. Jacob had been an anxious mess when he saw the video of her jump, scolding her like a parent at her "dangerous actions". He only stopped when Tanya had commented, teasing him about his dangerous cliff diving habit that he passed onto Bella. It was amazing to see her friends, both new and old, communicating together online.
A month had passed since Bella had left Las Vegas, and she had posted many more photos of her trip. White water rafting on the Colorado River with Alistair, the "sexy tour guide"- according to Irina; riding a mule down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon with Siobhan and Liam- the sweet thirty something couple from Belfast, celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary. She posted pictures of London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona and the UFO Museum in Roswell, New Mexico. There were numerous photos of the vintage trailer she stayed in at the El Cosmico campground in Marfa, Texas. Photos of her lounging on the deck of the trailer with Bree and Riley, a young hippie couple that taught her how to roll clove cigarettes. A few pictures of her and Bree posing in front of "Prada, Marfa", an art installation in the middle of the desert of a fully stocked mini Prada store.
There were photos of her weeklong stay in Austin, Texas. The friends she'd made- Peter and Charlotte, on break from Northwestern University- the Continental Club, where she spent more than a few nights listening to live blues. The food truck that served the tacos that Bella and Peter had survived on for four days before the smell of cumin turned their stomachs; live jazz at One World Theatre; dancing at Zilker park with Charlotte while attending 'Blues on the Green' one night.
Peter and Charlotte, Bree and Riley, Siobhan and Liam, and even Alistair "the sexy tour guide", were all a part of Bella's Facebook adventure page, all commenting on her different photos and communicating between each other, getting the 'inside scoop' on what she was doing when they were not there to see for themselves. It was amazing to see them all becoming friends before her very eyes.
Bella finished uploading her photos from her two days in Branson, Missouri before leaning back in her king sized bed with a sigh of satisfaction. She was currently staying at the Crowne Plaza in downtown St. Louis, stuffed full of the local toasted ravioli and looking forward to her visit to the Arch and the St. Louis zoo the following day. It was Tuesday, and she had reservations for a weeklong stay at a cabin in Gatlinburg, Tennessee starting on Thursday evening. She was slowly making her way to Florida and from there; she wasn't sure where she was going.
As much as she was enjoying her cross country road trip, she was getting a bit lonely on her own. True, she made new friends at most places she traveled to, but she only left them after a few days, heading onto a new adventure. Bella was thinking about staying longer in Florida, maybe finding an apartment to rent for a while. She wasn't sure where, but she figured that she would know when she got there.
Her phone ringing brought her out of her thoughts and she reached for it on the nightstand, grinning when she saw Jacob's picture on the screen.
"You online just waiting for updates, Jake," she teased, glancing at her open laptop at the foot of the bed.
"A country music show, Bells? Really?" Jacob teased, making Bella laugh. "I thought I taught you to enjoy better music than that."
"It was Irina's idea," Bella argued. And it was kinda on the way to St. Louis from Austin."
"I guess I can't complain too much," he said. "At least you're not jumping off of skyscrapers or white water rafting with strangers."
Bella rolled her eyes. "I survived both, didn't I?" She got comfortable on the bed, pulling the blankets up over her feet. Despite the intense heat outside, the air conditioning unit was hard at work turning the room into a freezer. She was feeling too lazy to get up and turn it down. "Are you guys still in Nevada City?"
Jacob and Sam had left Portland while Bella was still at Yosemite. They had driven around, checking out different towns for a couple weeks before stopping in Nevada City, California. Both of them liked the touristy Gold Rush town and the close proximity to the Tahoe National Forest.
"Yeah, we're still here," Jacob grew quiet for a minute. "We rented a little house last week. This might be the place, Bells."
Bella's eyes watered slightly at the tone of her dearest friend's voice. "Feels kind of like home?"
"Yeah, it really does. Our landlord is an old guy, runs his own mechanic shop down the street. He's getting up there and thinking about selling…"
"Really?" Bella sat up, excited at Jacob's words. "Are you and Sam going to buy it?"
Jacob chuckled at her excitement. "Actually, we're gonna work there for a bit. Tom doesn't want to sell to just anybody, he wants to make sure the buyer's know what they're doing." He cleared his throat. "But it's looking good. He likes our work so far. He's been admiring your truck a lot."
Bella growled playfully. "Don't be selling my baby, Jacob Black! I will be back for it someday!"
He laughed. "I'd never sell the Beast. He just likes to drool over it. I think he noticed it before he even noticed me and Sam standing there."
There was a moment of silence and Bella relished in the sound of Jacob's breathing. Even though they spoke to each other every few days, she missed seeing his face on a daily basis.
"So you're in St. Louis now," he asked, changing the subject to her.
"Yep, lounging in my giant bed in the Crowne Plaza," she teased. "I'm checking out the Arch and the zoo tomorrow. I have a reservation for a week in Gatlinburg Tennessee in a few days. Going to start slowly making my way to Florida."
"What's the agenda for Florida?"
"I'm just going to wing it." She admitted. "Maybe Orlando and Tampa. Maybe Miami. I think I'd like to check out the Keys. Hell, maybe some place will grab me like Nevada City did for you and Sam, and I'll stay for a while."
"We miss you," Jacob said suddenly and she could hear the sadness creep into his voice. "I miss you. If you ever get sick of traveling, you know you're always welcome here with us. There's even an extra bedroom for you to stay in."
Bella sniffled, a tear escaping in a trail down her cheek. There were some days that she missed Jacob so much that it hurt. "I miss you, too. I've met some amazing people on my stops, but none of them are you. You've been my home for so long, it's hard to get used to being so far away."
"I hate not being able to watch over you," he admitted. "I know you can take care of yourself, but I can't help it."
"I'll be fine, Jake. I've done fairly well so far."
"You have. Although I could wring Tanya and Kate's necks for talking you into that damn Las Vegas jump," he joked. Partially.
Bella laughed through her tears. "But if I hadn't have gone to Las Vegas to make that jump, I never would have met Tia and Benjamin and I wouldn't have become the karaoke sensation I am today."
Jacob's laugh rang out loudly and she smiled, happy to hear the sadness melt away from his voice. "You had a room full of drunken Elvis' in love with you, from what Benjamin says."
"Well duh. I'm all kinds of sexy, don't you know?"
They talked for a few more minutes before saying goodbye. Bella plugged her phone and laptop in to charge and fell back on the bed with a sigh. Yes, she desperately missed Jacob. He was the one constant in her life, her only family. She knew that she needed to get out and experience life, and she had loved every minute of it so far, but sometimes she wondered if she should just say enough and head back to her constant.
Only time would tell.
*.*.*
The views from the Arch were beautiful and Bella took dozens of photos from the top. At the zoo, she strolled leisurely from exhibit to exhibit, taking photos of every animal she saw. It was a nice outing, but Bella was still weary from all the driving. She left the zoo mid afternoon, stopping for some more toasted ravioli to take back to her room, where she ate and watched TV until she fell asleep.
The next morning, she left St. Louis, heading through Illinois and Kentucky and into Tennessee. On the drive between Clarksville and Nashville, the clouds in the west started to get dark and threatening, the radio warning about severe storms expected in the area for later that day. She made it to Nashville before the heavens opened up, sending solid sheets of rain down in torrents. Bella could barely see sign for the next exit, but she carefully managed her way off I-24 and into the parking lot of a Holiday Inn Express. She ran from the car and into the lobby, getting drenched in the ten seconds she was in the rain.
The room was standard, clean and dry, and Bella immediately towel dried off before pulling on a warm pair of sweats to ward off the chill. Grabbing the remote off the nightstand, she turned on The Weather Channel before going to the window to watch the worsening storm outside. A giant Waffle House sign caught her attention and her stomach growled at the thought of smothered, covered and capped hash browns and peanut butter pecan waffles. She was considering getting back out in the storm to fill up on greasy goodness, but the wind picked up and lightning streaked across the sky and she decided that vending machine fare might be the way to go instead.
Settling on the bed with her laptop, she logged into her Facebook account and updated her location to her friends. In the background, the meteorologist on TV warned of tornado warnings in the south and heavy rains with flooding a possibility for the next couple of days and Bella cursed at the thought of the weather keeping her stuck in the hotel instead of lazing in a cabin on the other end of the state.
Thunder crashed outside, shaking the building and her frustration at being stuck in Nashville was immediately replaced with nerves. Bella was not usually afraid of storms, but being alone in a strange place with the threat of tornados had not crossed her mind when she set out on her trip.
Digging her cell phone out of her purse, she dialed Jacob's number, breathing in a sigh of relief at the calming sound of his voice.
"You okay, Bells?"
She sighed, leaning back against the headboard. "Just holed up in a Holiday Inn with a raging storm outside. I'm not interrupting you at work or anything, am I?"
"Nope, it's my day off. And you can interrupt me any time." He assured her. "Where are you stuck at?"
"Nashville. And there's a Waffle House across the street calling my name, but I just dried off from my run from the parking lot to the hotel," Bella pouted, reveling in the sound of his warm laugh in her ear. She could hear the sound of his fingers tapping on a keyboard and his laugh morphed into a groan.
"From the radar, it looks like you might become well acquainted with your room. You might want to push your reservation back a day or so in Gatlinburg."
She glanced at the TV, catching the local radar on the screen. "I'll probably call them tonight before I go to bed. The weather guy said it could last a few days."
"Just be careful," Jacob warned. "Now, onto happier subjects. Tell me about the zoo."
Bella chuckled and went into detail about the St Louis attractions, focusing the most on the toasted ravioli and Ted Drewes frozen custard she indulged in. "Swear to God, Jake, when I find a place to stay for awhile, I'm gonna learn how to make that shit and mail it to you in dry ice. It was orgasmic."
"I'll eat whatever you send me. I love Sam to death, but the boy can't cook for shit. I'd kill for a pan of your lasagna."
Bella laughed. "Well you could have cooked it yourself if you paid attention when I offered to teach you how to make it. But nooooo, you went all 'me man, you woman' on me."
"I have no problem with the manly grilling, Bells, but that fancy shit is woman's work," he teased her. She just rolled her eyes at the familiar comment he would always try to piss her off with.
They talked for a little bit longer, until the storm died down a little outside and Bella's stomach growled loudly. "We're getting a break in the rain, I'm gonna run across the street for food before it starts up again."
"Be careful," he warned her again. "And call me before you go to bed to let me know you're okay."
She agreed before hanging up, grabbing her purse and keys to make a run for her dinner while the rain was a little more tolerable.
The storms lasted for two and a half days before the sun finally made an appearance. A few tornadoes touched down during that time, the closest one about ten miles away, but thankfully, nobody was hurt. Bella was relieved to finally get back on the road.
The drive was beautiful the further east she went. She made a pit stop in Knoxville to take pictures of the Sunsphere and the World's Largest Rubik's Cube before walking around and exploring the World's Fair Park and Market Square. She stopped for lunch at Café 4, indulging in fried green tomatoes and shrimp and grits before walking back to her car to get back on the road.
The rain started up again about ten miles outside of Knoxville, getting heavier the closer she got to Gatlinburg. Halfway there, she was white knuckling the steering wheel, listening intently to the weather on the radio. Another round of storms was rolling through, sparking up back near Cookeville and moving east in her direction.
Bella drove on for a few more miles before traffic slowed to a crawl, the glare of red and blue lights catching her attention further up ahead. It was getting dark fast, heavy gray clouds covering what was left of the waning sunlight and she was afraid of getting stuck on the interstate if more severe weather was about to strike.
Right before traffic came to a standstill, she caught sight of an exit ramp coming up to her right. Hoping to bypass what she figured was a car accident up ahead, she merged into the turn lane and left the interstate, ending up on a narrow two lane road with tree covered hills on one side and the river on the other.
Bella drove slowly, keeping her eyes peeled for anywhere to stop and wait out the storm. Anxiety crept up on her the further she drove with not a building in sight.
"What the fuck," she muttered, turning her wipers on high as she struggled to see through the dark and rain. The river to her right reminded her of the rapids of the Colorado River, the heavy rains making the water lap up over the road. There had to be a gas station somewhere, or at least another road she could take to get her to an exit ramp further up the interstate.
A gust of wind suddenly pushed against her car and an echoing crack outside made her scream. Up ahead, a huge tree seemed to fall from the hillside in slow motion, crashing across the road as Bella's foot slammed down on the brake to keep from hitting it. Her heart plummeted as the tires skidded over the water, the car hydroplaning across the narrow lane. She screamed loudly, desperately trying to turn the steering wheel towards the hill on the left, but the Volvo spun to the right, towards the river that was growing higher by the second.
"Nonononononono," she shrieked, tears of sheer terror filling her eyes as the car spun off the road, the front end going into the river. Water splashed up over the hood as she unhooked her seatbelt with trembling hands, reaching for her purse in the passenger seat, pulling it over her head with her right hand while rolling down her window with the left. The shock of the water made her gasp as she pushed off of the floorboards, using all of her strength to pull herself through the window as the water rushed in with a deafening roar. The car moved swiftly down the flooding river, sinking quickly as she managed to pull herself to the roof.
"Help!" She screamed, clutching the car frame as tightly as she could, looking around wildly for anything to grab a hold of. Up ahead and coming up faster than she thought possible, a small grove of thin trunked trees coming up from the riverbed caught her eye. Bella reached out with one hand and with a prayer to whatever or whoever was listening, she let go of the car completely, grasping at the branches as she shot by.
She barely felt the sharp sting of the branches cutting into the flesh of her hands as the Volvo was swept out from under her, the weight of the water dragging her beneath the surface. She managed to pull her head above water, wrapping an arm around the trunk of the tree as she fought for footing while choking and gasping for breath.
"Please help me, Daddy," she sobbed, holding onto the tree for dear life, trying desperately to pull herself up further. "Daddy, please!"
The water was up to her waist, trying to drag her down as her feet pushed against the weight, trying to find anything solid to push against. She wrapped her leg around the trunk, finding a lower branch that held her as she pushed up with her foot while pulling with her arms. Bella managed to move about a foot up the tree, straddling another branch and wrapping both arms around the trunk. Water still flowed over her, but now it was just about mid thigh and she felt slightly more secure with her grip.
Bella leaned her forehead against the tree, letting her sobs overcome her as the direness of her situation hit her full on. She was trapped in a tree in the middle of a river during a flash flood. Her car had been swept away by the current and she was in the middle of bum fucked Egypt all alone.
She reached a trembling hand into her waterlogged purse, grasping her phone, praying that it wasn't destroyed. Bringing it up to her face, another sob escaped her lips when it failed to turn on. She dropped it back into her purse before closing her eyes in defeat.
"I don't know what to do," she whispered. She was starting to feel the cold from the water and exhaustion was creeping through the rush of adrenaline that had ramped up when this nightmare first began. "Daddy…"
A loud honking sound blared suddenly through the noise of the rushing river and her head popped up, her eyes scanning through the dark surrounding her. Through the rain and her tears, she could see a large vehicle on the road, its headlights blinking on and off. Hope filled her and she let go of the tree with one of her arms, waving it above her head.
"Help me!" She shouted, her voice cracking. "I'm out here!"
Bella burst into tears when she heard the most beautiful sound in the world.
"Just hold on, honey! We're going to get you out of there!"
She could see two large figures beside the vehicle and even from this distance, she could tell they were men. One seemed to be built like a bear, tall and wide in the shoulders while the other one was a little taller, but not as bulky. They were the most glorious things she had ever seen.
Bella watched as the taller of the two men pulled on a life jacket while the wide one moved to the front of the vehicle. She closed her eyes for a minute, praying under her breath for another miracle, but the words died in her throat as the branch she was straddling jerked suddenly. Her body jolted and her arms tightened even more around the trunk. She shrieked as the branch gave way completely and she slipped a couple feet down the tree, once again searching desperately for a foothold.
"Help!" She screamed, fighting against the current that pushed against her, water smacking her in the face, making her choke. Her arms were burning from the strain of her grasp, and she screamed as her hands started to slip from the trunk. "Nonononono!"
"Don't let go!" The voice was tinged with panic and Bella struggled to secure herself. "I'm coming, honey! Just don't let go!"
"I'm trying!" she sobbed, her toe catching another branch. She tried to push herself back up the tree, but her foot slipped and she went under the water, barely grasping onto the branch now with one hand. She reached back out, grasping for the same branch as her head broke the surface once more. "Daddy!"
Her cry was cut off as she lost her grip completely, the current grabbing at her and dragging her under. She struggled for the surface, kicking desperately and reaching for anything that would ground her. Her arms and legs flailed, water filling her ears and nose as she fought the urge to inhale.
She was swept back into something hard and a strong arm suddenly wrapped around her waist, dragging her up roughly. Her head broke the surface and she gasped for air, choking violently as she swallowed a mouthful of river water.
"I've got you, honey, I've got you," the voice said in her ear. Bella desperately wanted to say something, but all she could manage was another violent coughing fit. A life jacket appeared over her head as her savior quickly and efficiently strapped it on her. "I'm going to bring us back to the shore, just lean back against me and keep your head above water, okay?"
Bella could only nod, exhaustion leaving her a worthless mass of dead weight in the stranger's arms. The arm around her waist never left her as the man slowly fought against the currant, bringing them closer to shore.
Before she knew it, she felt herself being lifted out of the water and cried in relief when she was laid back against solid ground. She opened her eyes and found herself staring into the face of an angel. Beautiful green stared down at her in concern and relief and she felt the comforting weight of a hand on her face before she finally let the darkness claim her.