A/N: Bella's not in Kansas anymore, Toto

Chapter 2

Language Barrier

Bella's POV

The sound of steady rain and low rumblings of thunder woke me early the next morning. I sat up disorientated, just moments before the events of the previous day washed back over me, and was immediately engulfed by a huge sensation of relief; realising I wasn't at Renee's house any more.

In fact, it was such a strange feeling to wake up without the familiar pang of panic in my heart that I found myself smiling broadly.

With a newfound energy, I jumped out of bed, checking the clock radio as I did.

6:45 am.

The room was dimly lit, and for a moment I wasn't sure whether it was dawn outside or dusk. The pitiful amount of light that was leaking through the windows, as the storm outside continued, gave away no clues.

Pausing for a moment, I absorbed the sound of the rain, before yawning contentedly, I flicked on the light switch, and stumbled towards the full length mirror.

For a moment I avoided looking directly into it; instead, I focused on the various magazine cut outs of some blond haired bloke that framed the top half of the mirror. Peering in closely, I squinted.

"Josh. Hutcherson," I read out loud, snorting the air from my lungs and smirking to myself. "Hmm, spunk..."

I had absolutely no idea who this guy was, but then considering Renee was always having her electricity disconnected, the only time I ever really got to watch TV was when I was at one of the girl's houses.

Immediately distracted, I paused, pulling on my bottom lip with a growing sense of unease.

Jacob had mentioned a few things the day before that I'd been completely ignorant to as well. How much else was I unaware of?

Was I going to be an oddity here?

Shaking my head, impatient with myself, I pushed these pessimistic thoughts from my mind. Naturally, there'd be a few things I'd be unfamiliar with, and telling myself I was overreacting as usual, I headed to my suitcase, unzipped it and rummaged around for my little bag of toiletries. I needed a shower. I'd realised I was still wearing the clothes I'd put on at the very beginning of my journey—way back in my old bedroom—and was anxious to get them off.

With my toiletries bag under my arm, along with a clean set of clothes—and one of the jumpers I'd bought the night before at Port Angeles airport, I ventured out in search of the bathroom I was to share with my cousin.

As I stepped into the hall, I was met with the sound of low guttural snoring, alerting me to the fact that either Billy or Jacob was still fast asleep. It was a sound that immediately made me tense. The sound of snoring in the past indicated that Renee had a guest—guests that quite often mistook me as "part two" of their stay at my mother's house. And heaven help me if any of her men ever showed even a passing interest in me.

Passing an open door, I glanced in discreetly. The huge, hulking figure of my cousin, Jacob, was strewn across the bed. His long legs were hanging over the sides, and despite the continued sound of his snores, I found myself instantly at ease.

I loved him already, and there was something so incredibly safe about his presence.

Mumbling unintelligibly in his sleep, he rolled over, before I closed his bedroom door carefully and continued down the hall.

The small bathroom was at the end of it. I slipped inside, and emerged again half an hour later feeling almost human again, before setting out in search of the Kitchen.

To show my appreciation to Billy and Jacob for inviting me into their lives, I decided to make them breakfast. I was a pretty good cook; I'd learned to do it years ago. I kind of had to—it was either learn to cook or starve, because Renee never cooked.

She was too busy with her liquid diet, and heaven forbid if she fed her child!

Finding myself becoming rigid, I paused instantly annoyed at myself, before forcing my mother from my mind.

I refused to let thoughts of her continue to poison me.

The kitchen in Billy's house was small and cosy; in keeping with the rest of the house. It was also pretty well stocked, so I got busy cooking. I fried up some bacon and eggs and made pancakes, before setting two plates down on the small table that sat in the middle of the room.

Just as I was pouring two glasses of orange juice, I heard movement above me. Then, after heavy thudding footsteps—that made the timber in the stairs groan loudly—Jacob appeared in the doorway yawning loudly as he rubbed his face with the heel of his hand.

As I appraised him, I broke into a broad grin. His hair was dishevelled, and he was wearing a pair of flannel pyjama pants with a ratty looking cotton t-shirt. He was almost child-like despite his enormous stature.

"Hey, Bella," he mumbled with a sleepy smile as his eyes dropped to the two plates of food. His entire face suddenly lit up with delight. "Wow, I thought I smelled something good!"

"Yeah, I got up first, so I thought I'd make myself useful. Knock yourself out," I replied almost in laughter.

He was staring at the food practically salivating.

Without the need for another invitation, Jacob pulled the dining chair out with a loud scraping sound across the linoleum floor and dug in to the food.

I watched him eat for a moment, almost aghast. He was shovelling the food in his mouth, without spilling a fraction of it, and even more shockingly, without choking to death.

"So ... what time does Billy usually get up?" I asked, shaking my head in wonder.

Jacob stopped eating and looked over at me. "Billy?" He swallowed his food before he continued, "He left early this morning for work. I don't think he wanted to disturb you."

"Oh ... right-o," I replied, my heart falling a little. It would have been nice to have spent my first morning with Jake and my uncle, but I knew it couldn't be helped. Besides, I was more than used to eating without Renee.

Flashing me a quick, encouraging grin, and half shrugging, Jake turned back to his breakfast.

I watched him eat in awe for a moment longer before I broke into laughter. "Bloody hell, Jake, when was the last time you ate?"

"Last night," he answered innocently, with a mouth full of bacon and egg, before throwing me another quick grin, he picked up his orange juice and downed it in one gulp.

Chuckling breathily, I handed him Billy's plate of food. "Here, you might as well eat this as well. No sense in it going to waste."

With his eyes lighting up, he reached for the plate, but stopped himself in hesitation. "Have you eaten yet?"

"No, not yet, but don't worry, I'll just have some toast or something. You got any Vegemite?" I asked. I hadn't seen any in the cupboard.

"Vegie-who?" Jacob asked blankly.

"Vegie-mite," I repeated.

He paused for a moment in thought before breaking into an apologetic grin. "Sorry, Bella, I've never heard of it. What is it?"

I sighed lightly to myself. "Never mind, I'll just have that Goobers stuff I spotted in the cupboard."

Jake's boyish grin broadened again, and as he finished off Billy's breakfast in the same crazy manner as he had his own, I made myself some toast and was surprised to discover that peanut butter and Jelly—or jam as we called it at home—wasn't as terrible as I first thought.

After breakfast, I washed the dishes, while Jake helped—rather clumsily—as he told me funny stories about the sort of things he and Billy had been eating since his sisters had moved out. It was surprising to me how relaxed and comfortable I felt already. It was a strange feeling for me; I was used to being constantly on guard. It was almost inherent in who I was. But the simple act of hanging out with my cousin without the fear of my mother's presence was something I could definitely get used to.

After cleaning the kitchen, I turned to hang the tea towel over the handrail of the oven, when Jacob suddenly grabbed my hand and whirled me around to face him.

"Bella—I almost forgot!" he exclaimed as excitement lit up his eyes.

I was taken aback. "What?"

"I've got something to show you! Give me five minutes to get dressed, kay?" He was already half way up the stairs, taking two at a time.

I laughed impulsively—thinking that he couldn't possibly get any more zealous—and nodded in agreement.

It took Jake less than five minutes, before he bounded back down the stairs dressed in jeans and a Jumper. Then, without pausing, he grabbed my hand and pulled me out into the front yard.

"Oh crap!" I uttered involuntarily as the cold hit me. The rain had stopped but the air was like ice. Wrapping my free arm around my torso, I shuddered violently as Jake continued to pull me along without a pause.

We stopped short in front of a car; a red Jeep Cherokee 4WD.

"So, what do you think, Bella?" Jacob asked with an enthusiasm that I didn't understand.

I paused, shivering uncontrollably, wondering what I was missing. "Um … it's great, Jacob. Is this your car?" I asked, trying to sound politely interested before rolling my eyes discreetly.

What the hell was it about boys and their cars? I for one never could understand the excitement they managed to generate over them.

"No, silly, it's yours!" Jake replied laughing.

All at once, I understood the excitement!

"It's mine ... how?" I was flabbergasted.

"It's from Uncle Charlie—here," Jacob explained, thrusting a folded piece of paper in my hands.

I unravelled it; it was a handwritten note from The General:

Isabella,

I thought you could use a reliable and sturdy car while you are in Forks.

Look after it.

Charlie x

Holy shit!

Jacob nudged me enthusiastically; the unintentional force of it sent me stumbling sideways, but I laughed it off good-naturedly. I was still literally reeling.

I had always dreamed of owning my own car. I used to fantasize about running away with Kel and living out of the trunk, but all I'd driven was Renee's piece of crap on the many errands that she'd sent me on.

"Holy shit, this is so—bloody fantastic!" I burst out.

"So, do you want to take her for a spin?" Jacob asked revelling in my excitement and holding up a set of keys for me.

"Definitely!" I replied with copious amounts of enthusiasm.

Grabbing the keys from Jacob, I turned and jumped into the … passenger side….

Standing at the passenger side door in front of me, Jacob flashed me a funny look. "You want me to drive, Bella?"

I laughed to myself lightly. "No, just a habit. Something I'll have to get used to."

Something else, that is.

Sliding back out of the car, I climbed into the driver's side and inserted the key into the ignition. It started smoothly; another thing that I wasn't used to. It used to take a hell of a lot of kicks, and the threat of an all-out hissy fit, before Renee's car would ever start.

I turned to Jacob, who was jumping into the passenger's seat, the car tilting alarmingly with his weight. "So, where to?"

"Well, Dad suggested we go to Port Angeles so you can get some school supplies?" Jacob replied, raising his eyebrows, his grin unfailingly present.

I shrugged. "Sure, you'll have to direct me though. I'll probably end up in the middle of Woop Woop otherwise."

"The middle of where?" Jacob asked curiously, giving me that funny look again.

Smiling to myself self-consciously, I cleared my throat. "Oh ... just a daggy expression."

Despite the fact that he was already grinning, his lips were twitching, hinting that it was about to broaden. "Tell me another one?"

I thought for a moment, before adding, "We're about to dodge skippy on the black top."

At Jake's dumbfounded expression I chuckled, but I was beginning to feel awkward again

"What does that mean?" he asked, his forehead bridging almost comically.

"Um …" I tugged my lower lip. Now that I thought about it, it sounded completely ridiculous—it made me sound like the oddity I was. "It's something you say before you go driving. Skippy is the kangaroos, and the black top is the … road," I mumbled, lowering my gaze, as Jacob all but burst into laughter.

"Do you really talk like that?" he teased me, nudging me playfully with his elbow.

"Me? God no, but I'm from a small town too. A lot of the locals say stuff like that. Some things I say, though, I don't realise, I guess," I explained, with a shrug of my shoulders. "Tell me a weird phrase that you Yankees use?" I asked him, in attempt to take the focus off me and my obvious Australian oddness.

Jacob inclined his head slightly as he thought for a moment, his grin momentarily fading. "The guys at school are going to be psyched when they see your mug."

I thought about it for a moment before scoffing. "Too easy, I know what that means."

But if truth be told I had no idea; which only increased the panic I could feel growing within me.

"What does it mean then?" Jacob asked, folding his arms confidently, and when I hesitated, he laughed. "Bella, you're gonna run out of gas."

"Oh, right," I said quickly, remembering that the car was still running.

Easing the car on to the road, I drove down it carefully.

"Hey, Bella...?" Jacob piped up with hesitation, breaking the silence between us while I got used to the fact that I was driving on the opposite side of the road.

I glanced at him. "Yeah?"

"Would you mind ... if my girlfriend, Nessie, came along?" he asked, his tone almost sheepish.

Smirking to myself, I turned to tease him, "Oh, you have a girlfriend, do you? Do tell?"

His olive skin deepened in colour and he began fidgeting in his seat awkwardly. "Well, we haven't been together for that long, but she's ... special."

My returning smile was warm and knowing. "Of course she can come. Where does she live?"

As though it was controlled by a switch, Jacob's face immediately brightened again. "Just up the road. Thanks, Bella!"

"No worries," I replied.

Nessie literally did live just up the road. As I pulled up carefully in front of her house, which looked a lot like Billy's, Jake jumped out of the car just as a pretty girl with long, golden-coloured hair ran down the path to meet him, throwing herself into his outstretched arms.

They hugged tenderly—which almost thawed out my frozen, cynical heart—but then they started eating each other's faces. It was so blatant, yet intimate that I looked away quickly, feeling embarrassed that I'd witnessed it.

I fiddled with the controls on the car's radio and air conditioning, to give them a moment of privacy, but when I looked back over at them a couple of minutes later, they were still at it. Jake had lifted her off the ground and held her to his eye level as they continued to kiss over and over again. I could actually hear the smacking of their lips from inside the car.

Groaning, I rubbed my forehead with the palm of my hand, squeezing my eyes shut in exasperation. "Oh, give me a bloody break," I muttered, scoffing to myself, before allowing a reluctant grin to spread across my face.

I accidentally—on purpose—honked the horn—for a good ten seconds, as Jake pulled himself away from Nessie and turned to me, flashing me a dazed, apologetic smile.

Chuckling to myself openly this time, I wound down the window, flinching from the icy wind that hit my face. "Sorry, I slipped!" I sang out jokingly.

Jake's grin broadened, and I rolled my eyes at him knowingly.

"Hurry up and get into the car, before the two of you freeze to death," I called to them; though, I suspected they were feeling a lot of things, but cold wasn't one of them.

Grabbing Nessie's hand, Jake pulled her toward the car. She climbed into the back seat and he clambered in after her.

I was the chauffeur?

"Bella, this is Nessie," he introduced.

"Hi, Nessie, nice to meet you," I said sincerely, offering a friendly smile.

"Hi, Bella," she replied brightly.

Jacob turned to her then and added, "This is the famous, Isabella Swan."

Famous?

"It's just Bella, Nessie," I corrected him distracted. "And ... why am I famous?" It was a horrifying thought.

Jacob laughed again. "You should know that one, Bella. Small town, new student … from another country...?"

I failed to see how that would make me famous. Okay, so maybe I was a little naive, but famous was the last thing I would have wished upon myself.

Jake's laughter continued, this time with obvious amusement. "You look a little green all of a sudden, Bells."

So much for my plans of blending in at Forks High School. I had been really relying on it too.

"Bugger it! bugger! bugger!" I muttered under my breath.

"It'll be cool, Bella. You're going to be so popular!" Nessie piped up with enthusiasm.

I wanted to laugh dryly and explain how "popular" and I were an oxymoron. At my former school, I got through the day creating and attracting as little attention as possible, and that's how I preferred it. I tended to be shy, awkward and horrendously clumsy at times, and I only ever felt comfortable around the guys.

I bent my head into my palm, feeling like I might get a migraine.

Leaning forward, Jake put a consoling hand on my shoulder. "You okay, Bella?"

I shook myself out of it.

Okay, I suppose I should have expected it. It was no big deal, I could handle it, and it'd blow over in a few days anyway...

"Yeah—no I'm fine." I turned the key in the ignition. "So, show the way, cuz!" I said with feigned enthusiasm.

"That was so not convincing, Bella." Jake grinned teasingly, before leaning back again and snuggling close with Nessie.

I had not driven ten minutes down the road, when I was completely over the slopping and slurping that was coming from the back seat. I'd glanced in the rear view mirror several times, and Jake and Nessie were so completely absorbed with one another that I could only conclude one of two things: they were either so pukingly in love that they were honestly unaware of my presence, or that they had no shame what-so-ever.

"Oi! You two in the back seat!" I called to them in slight exasperation.

As I caught Jake's gaze through the mirror, he flashed me a rueful smile. "Sorry, Bella. We're not being much fun, huh?"

Releasing my breath, I almost broke into a smile—deciding to take them in good spirit. "Just keep the pashing down to a bare minimum, or one of you will be banished to the front seat. You're fogging up the bloody windows!"

Giggling, Nessie sat forward, leaning her elbow on the back of my seat. "What did you call it, Bella? Pashing?"

I cleared my throat wanting to groan to myself; I suspected I was about to be laughed at again. Despite my previous assumptions, obviously not everyone called it pashing—from this country, at least.

"Umm ... did I? I can't remember ..." I mumbled, feeling heat rise and gather in my cheeks.

"Is that what you guys in Australia call making out?" she asked lightly, with laughter in her eyes. "Where abouts in Australia are you from, Bella?" Nessie suddenly enquired without waiting for my original reply; which I was secretly grateful for. The fear of being the oddity I suspected I was, was quickly becoming reality. "Was it in Sydney?" she prompted me when I still hadn't offered a reply.

"No… nowhere near Sydney. I'm from country New South Wales," I answered.

"Did you have a pet kangaroo?" she asked.

I glanced sideways at her. She was serious—as far as I could tell anyway—and I wanted to cringe.

A pet kangaroo?

"Um... no. That's actually illegal," I answered her eventually, making an effort not to sound sarcastic.

"Nessie, really? You don't believe that do you?" Jacob teased her with tenderness behind his words.

"Sorry, Bella. I didn't offend you, did I?" Nessie asked me. I met her gaze again through the rear view mirror, and her eyes were widening sincerely.

"No, don't be a dag," I replied warmly.

When I glanced back at her through the mirror, she looked bewildered.

Oh my God—what now?

"A—a what ...?" she asked, her eyebrows meeting, her expression remaining puzzled.

I groaned beneath my breath—something I had already done multiple times—before responding. "It's something I call my friends when they're being ..." I let the sentence trail off, uncertain.

I had no other words for it.

"I think she means you're being a silly bear," Jake said to her with affection laced thickly in his voice, before the lip smacking and slopping started up again.

I discreetly rolled my eyes, while trying to keep my half-cringe from becoming noticeable.

"I know, we're a bit gross to be around, huh?" Nessie offered apologetically, when my casual charade was no longer fooling them.

"Well, just a little bit," I replied, feeling my lips curve slightly.

I guess they were harmless and only minimally sickening.

"Did you have a boyfriend, Bella—back home?" Nessie asked without a pause, her expression puckering with sudden interest.

"No, all the boys back home were a bunch of wankers!" I replied a little too passionately. Especially when most of them were sons of the men Renee often brought home for a drunken, one-night romp. Just the thought of them made me want to shudder. Thankfully, they left me alone, obviously never seeing anything in me—or enough similarities with my mother—to be interested in me. But then, it probably had more to do with the fact that I'd stared them down with hinted violence if they even thought of approaching me. I refused to be anything like my trash-pile excuse for a mother, and I was determined to let every single person in town know it—especially her.

Realising that my reaction probably seemed slightly irrational, I cleared my throat and quickly glanced in the mirror back at Jake and Nessie. I didn't miss the pointed glance that they shared.

Sighing, I removed one hand from the steering wheel to run through my hair, becoming frustrated that I was allowing Renee to continually invade my thoughts.

We drove in silence for a couple of kilometres, with slopping and slurping noises the only sounds breaking it. It was almost impossible to ignore, and my patience began to wear thin faster than my desire to gag.

But as I drove passed a street sign, the name on it caught my eye and I began chuckling. "There's a town called Beaver here?"

It was enough to sever Jake and Nessie's lips; they both sat forward and laughed together.

"Hmm, that's still pretty tame compared to some of the towns back home," I added, determined to keep them distracted from round three in the back seat.

I had Jacob and Nessie cracking up with all the funny towns that I knew. Jacob's favourites were 'Humpty Doo' and 'Fanny Bay'. It was an effective form of distraction, and the only sounds that came from the back seat from then on were Nessie and Jake's continued laughter as I added ridiculous sounding Australian towns after another.

By the time we arrived in Port Angeles, I think I had exhausted them. And it was worth feeling completely bogan not to hear the product of their love in my ear, while I drove on the other side of the road in a foreign country.

"Oh, Bella, you're so funny!" Nessie exclaimed as we piled out of the car.

I was getting the impression it was a definition of me that was going to stick.

...

Port Angeles was a really beautiful and scenic sea side town. The weather was still overcast and drizzling, but even that couldn't take away from the beauty of the place. It was so opposite to anything I'd ever seen before. I was in awe. I wanted to just sit and stare at the mountains, but Jacob insisted on dragging me around and showing me as much as possible in the few hours we had.

I managed to buy the things I figured I'd need for school the next day as well as a few more articles of clothing, and after, Nessie and I found a booth in a café, and waited for Jacob to eat lunch together. We'd split up during the shopping section of our visit to spare Jake the agony of it. I'd actually thought Nessie would go with him, but in true female spirit she stayed with me and was a huge help. I was totally clueless when it came to fashion.

"So what do you think of Jake?" Nessie asked after a pause, going all starry eyed at the mere thought of him.

"Umm ..." I began awkwardly.

I wanted to cringe again and wondered if I should state the obvious—that Jake was actually related to me—when Nessie quickly added, grinning sheepishly, "I mean, I know he's your cousin and everything, but you know, say he wasn't…?"

I chuckled softly. "Okay, if Jacob wasn't my cousin, I'd say he's definitely a spunk!"

"Who's got spunk? Me?" Jacob piped up, suddenly appearing again with that broad, boyish grin of his in tow.

"But of course, who else?" Nessie replied, her whole face lighting up as she beamed at him with concentrated amounts of affection.

Jake took the seat next to her and they quickly began another round of blatant, public slopping that had a few customers staring appalled. I only hid behind my menu, feeling the back of my neck prickle with associated embarrassment.

I was most definitely not used to having so much attention drawn to me.

The waitress arrived and cleared her throat. Jake and Nessie pulled apart, before scanning the menu, not the slightest bit embarrassed by their in-house display of affection.

They ordered the same thing—even the waitress rolled her eyes—before turning her attention to me, her pencil poised expectantly.

"Umm ..." I mumbled in contemplation as I read the menu. Nothing really jumped out at me, plus I wasn't terribly hungry. "I'll have chips and tomato sauce, thank you."

The waitress rolled her eyes again, this time more evidently, before she asked with a bored tone to her voice, "I'm sorry? What is it you'd like?"

"Chips and sauce?" I repeated, feeling indignant by her obvious patronising attitude.

I didn't get why she was looking at me the way she was!

What cafe didn't sell bloody hot chips?

"I'm terribly sorry, miss, but we don't sell chips and sauce. I'm sure you could find a Taco Bell somewhere if you're so desperate for it."

I felt my face climb ten degrees higher, and cloud defensively, but at the same time I was flustered and embarrassed. I looked over at Jacob; his expression was a mixture of puzzled amusement, and with my cheeks burning hotter by the second, I quickly scanned the menu for something else, before suddenly realising my error.

Sighing, I raised my gaze to meet the eyes of the snotty waitress. "Sorry, I meant fries and ketchup. Thank you," I corrected, while completely failing to sound anything other than meek.

She wrote my order scoffing blatantly before walking off.

Bloody hell!

I was all hot and bothered and paranoid that people were staring at me. I wasn't aware that my English seemed to be a different language all together. It drew attention to me and for someone who preferred to blend into the background, I hated it!

Jacob was on the verge of laughing, but something—probably my expression—stopped him. "It's okay, Bells."

"Yeah, she's a rude bitch! We should complain," Nessie added, folding her arms and scowling in the direction the waitress went in.

Okay, it was just one rude waitress, I didn't need to overreact.

But sighing again heavily, I pressed my fingertips into my forehead, trying to convince myself that I was exaggerating the situation. But I had a sneaking suspicion that this was what I had to expect on my first day of school.

Me, Bella Swan, the complete oddity, that no one would understand.

A/N: BTW "spunk" means a good looking guy, not … what I recently discovered it means outside of Australia… LOL!

Thanks for reading/rereading again :)