Chapter 10

I have always been one to admit when mistakes were made. I am but a humble little New Yorker, and I can plainly admit that I totally, wholeheartedly, from the very bottom of my heart and to my very core, fucked up royally.

As I sat in the back seat of Gabriel's car, soaking wet, covered in a thick flannel blanket, I thought back to how I ended up in this terrible, horrible situation. I thought back to the decisions that I made, and how I was a complete fool for ever going through with this terrible plan after so many things went wrong.

I thought about my parents as well. If my mom didn't contact my dad, that would be the very best case scenario, but not by much. My mother was going to kill me. She was going to either string me up, beat me to death, or maybe, perhaps, die of shock herself when she finds out what I did.

And that's if the police don't get involved.

So as I sat in the back seat of Gabriel's sleek black Volvo, dripping water all over the spotless leather interior, and huddled tightly in his thick flannel blanket… I closed my eyes and cried.

"I know it's a party." I slammed Emi's bedroom door shut and glared at her. She was sitting on her bed, legs crossed, and was typing away at her pink laptop. The clicking of the keys suddenly stopped and she looked up at me with wide, and frankly, terrified eyes.

"How did you_"

"I have my sources, Emilia." I snapped, "All you need to know is that I know that it's a party."

Emi's back stiffened and she glared at me. Closing her laptop, she placed her hands in her lap and cleared her throat.

"Well, go on." She muttered.

"Go on what?" I smiled at her and she rolled her eyes. Leaning back into her pillows, she ran her fingers through her hair in frustration.

"What do you want from me? What do you hope to gain from blackmail?" I smiled wider and skipped over to the end of her bed. Hopping down, I laid down on my side and wrapped myself up in her grey comforter.

"I want details. I want to know when, where, what time, and why the hell you agreed to go." Emi snorted, pulling the blanket away from me. I pulled back, and she relented. Sitting back up in her bed, she glared at me again.

"Why are you so concerned?"

"I have my reasons."

"Ellie_"

"Emi_"

"Look, I know I've put you in a tough situation by making you keep your mouth shut about the… you know… but that doesn't mean you get to extort me whenever you damn well please_"

"This has nothing to do with the vampires" I lifted my hand to cut her off. "I have my own agenda, and it just so happens that you are a key figure in my plan." It really was just my luck that Emi was invited to that party on Saturday.

Emi sighed, and ran her fingers through her hair again, scratching at her scalp.

"Ellie… whatever you're thinking of doing…"

"You owe me… Besides, how would dad feel knowing you're spending time alone with a boy_" Emi's brow twitched and she clenched her fist.

"It's not like that and you fucking know it El." Her jaw was clenched, and I knew that I was close to overstepping my boundaries.

"Okay, look… I'm sorry, I just wanna know about the party. Please." Emi sighed, and laid back into her pillows once more.

"Fine… But only if you promise not to say anything to mom and dad." I nodded my head.

"Alright, apparently there's this girl down at the reservation named Avery; it was her birthday last weekend and she had to spend it with her mom and her mom's new boyfriend… So Gabe decided to throw her a surprise party. " That story sounded familiar, reminding me of my sleepover with Marie and Ashley.

"If it's a surprise party, then why are you going?" Emi shrugged her shoulders.

"Apparently they like to party. It's gonna be down at the beach. A ton of people from both Forks and La Push are gonna be there_"

"Emi… you hate the beach." Emi made a noise in between a grunt and snort.

"You're telling ME! I didn't want to fucking go but Gabe was all like 'Oh yeah, it'll be so much fun' and 'we can get to know each other better' and 'I'll introduce you to my other friends' and he was so convincing, and none of my excuses were any good_" She waved her arms around, then placed her face in her hands. "Jesus, you know how I get when I get nervous, I can't speak and I clam up. I just mumbled out an 'okay', and next thing you freaking know mom comes home and they're laughing and talking and ugh…"

I leaned forward and placed my hand on Emi's shoulder. It was supposed to be a soothing gesture, but her skin was so hot I had to recoil.

"Hey, calm down… Did you need to go for a run or something?" She peeked at me through her fingertips, glaring.

"I'm fine… Just frustrated. I think mom thinks I have a crush on him or something." I nodded my head slowly.

"Oh boy does she." Emi cried out in exasperation.

"Of COURSE she does. She's basically begging me to get a boyfriend ya' know. Remember Josh Bently from my math class… Remember when we took that field trip to the Space Center and mom insisted on coming?" I nodded my head. Emi was rolling now, she had jumped off the bed and began to rant completely. She was waving her arms around and pacing back and forth in the tiny space.

Mom and Emi agreed on most things. They were very similar from their likes and dislikes, and were probably as close as a mother and daughter could be without it getting weird. However, when they disagreed… They disagreed.

"I. Do. Not. Want. A. Boyfriend. I am perfectly happy and content with being alone. I will find someone when the time is right, and it definitely won't be thanks to mom's meddling_"

I just nodded along with her, listening to her go further and further into her irritated ranting. I couldn't help being pleased though; the more she focused on her agitation with our mother, the less she paid attention to my plan in action.

After Emi got her frustrations from off of her chest, she shooed me out of her room and I happily went back to mine. I was beginning to truly enjoy having a room to myself. I had privacy to do whatever I wanted; read, write, scheme. It was truly kinda freeing to be able to go someplace and be completely alone… Even if it was only for a couple of hours.

Flopping down on my large seafoam colored bean bag chair, I pulled out my phone and texted Marie and Ash.

'Totally a code green. I got the deetz on the party.' I waited for a few moments, and smiled when I got a reply.

'YASSS Gurl, u r the best!'

'Lets do this! /(*0*)/'

With Ashley and Marie on board… I was confident it would all go smoothly.

"Now remember class, make sure you study for the test this Friday. It's a big one." Mrs. Small smiled at the class as the bell rang. Everyone around me was quickly and happily shoving their books and paper into their bookbags and making their way out of the classroom door. I was also one of those students, however, when I reached the door, I was stopped by the pretty young teacher.

"Hey Ellie, can I have a word with you?" Her voice was soft, but there was danger in her words. She beckoned me to her desk with her perfectly manicured hand. She sat down in her cheap green rolling chair and looked through her metal desk until she pulled out some papers.

"Do you know what these are?" She smiled at me, and I felt sick.

"No." I looked away and she spread the papers out on her desk. Tapping her nail against the paper, she sighed.

"These are your last three assignments, and your last four exit tickets… Do you know what they all have in common?" Yes I did, but I wasn't going to tell her that. The smile fell from her lips and she sighed.

"Ellie… If you're having trouble in my class, why don't you come to me for help?" I looked down at the papers and grimaced at all the red marks. I just wasn't any good at biology. "If you don't pass this test, you're gonna have a D- in my class. It only gets harder from here."

"I know Mrs. Small. I'm really trying, this stuff just isn't sticking." I shuffled my feet back and forth, staring down at the scuff marks on my shoes. "I'm studying though, and I'll pass the test."

"Ellie I_" There was a knock on the door, and I could see Marie and Ashley waiting for me outside. "Ellie, I think you should get a tutor."

I glanced over at Marie and Ash again. They were making goofy faces, and beckoning me to come with them to lunch.

"I'll pass the test Mrs. Small. I promise!" She sighed, and shooed me away with her hand.

"I hope so Ellie, if not I'm gonna recommend you for the libraries mentoring program." I barely heard her as I ran out into the hallway and joined my two friends.

"Why was Mrs. Small keeping you?" Marie and Ashley linked their arms in mine and nearly dragged me to the lunchroom. I would have pulled away if their grips weren't so damn strong. Resigning myself to their will, I let them guide me to the lunchline to grab some food.

"Because I'm failing biology." I muttered, grabbing some fries and a chicken sandwich from off the hot plate. Ashley's eyes widened, and Marie rolled hers.

"Ugh, I bet she wants you to join the stupid mentoring program_"

"It's not stupid, your grade went up to a B Marie." Ashley put a milk on my tray and I grabbed her some chips.

"Okay, yeah, my grade went up, but it took up, like, so much of my time. I was always in the stupid library." Marie grabbed an apple and offered me one as well. I declined as we made our way to our usual table.

"That is true… But the program does work." Sitting across from the two of them, I opened my milk and took a sip.

"What exactly is the mentoring program?"

"Ugh" Marie sneered and adjusted herself in the round plastic seat. "It's a program where they pair middle schoolers with overachieving high schoolers. They tutor them in whatever subject they need help in."

"You can either volunteer, or get voluntold."

"Let me guess, you got voluntold." I pointed at Marie and she nodded.

"Not everyone can be as gifted in Math and Science as Ms. Ashley over here." Ash smiled proudly and sat straighter in her seat.

"Well, what can I say…" She blushed and ate a chip.

"Ash is a three year academic decathlon winner for the junior division. I don't know if you noticed the shadow box in the living room, but it's filled with her medals." Ash smiled wider.

"Damn, that's cool. Are you participating this year too?" Ash shook her head.

"No, I'm planning on applying to a technical high school, so I wanna study for that." Marie balled her fist and faked a couple of tears before dramatically wrapping her arms around Ashley.

"Ah, she plans on leaving me to further her educational career!" I chuckled and Ash did too.

"I'm not leaving you dum-dum, we're still gonna hang out every day… just after school." They giggled again "And besides, now you have Ellie-Bellie"

My smile faltered, but I don't think they noticed. Looking away, I cleared my throat.

"Anyway, enough of this idle chit chat. We got a life to ruin." We all leaned in closed and began to whisper.

"Okay, so Emi told me that the party is gonna be held on the Beach at La Push. I'm not sure where yet on the beach, but I'm sure it's not gonna be super hard to figure out. Marie_" I turned to look at her "I'm gonna need you to identify Candace's car, and Ashley… you gotta bring the knife."

She was taken aback for a moment, her icy eyes so big that they looked like glaciers. She held up her hands, some of her bracelets dangling together.

"The knife?" She coughed "W-Why do I have to bring the knife?"

"Because if I bring the knife, my mom is gonna notice. She has like a 6th sense with crap like this. She's gonna be on me like white on rice and none of us want that… besides, we're gonna be at your house." Marie nodded her head.

"I can carry it for you if you're nervous Ash."

"N-No, why would I be nervous?" Her face betrayed her. She was paler than normal, and the thin strands of blond hair that were curled around her face were quivering slightly.

"Don't worry, I'll be the one to pop the tire. I'm not afraid." I leaned back and took another sip of my milk. "At least, not of slashing a tire…"

"How are we gonna get there?" Marie cocked her head to the side, and placed her finger up to her mouth. I smiled, confidence washing over me.

"Don't worry about that, I have it totally covered." I had been saving up funds ever since Candace scorned me at Marie's birthday party. I was going to fund this expedition completely. "We're gonna take a taxi."

"All the way to La Push?"

"Yup."

"That's gonna be expensive Ellie." I nodded my head. "If the taxi is expensive, just think about the towing fee." We giggled as the bell rang.

"Okay, so we'll meet up after school and talk about this some more okay!" I waved bye and walked to my class with a spring in my step.

"Hey Emi, Hey Gabriel." I don't know why I wasn't surprised to see him in our kitchen after school. They were sitting down, papers scattered on the table and their laptops open to various citation sites.

"Hey"

"Hey Ellie." I walked over the fridge and pulled out a juice box. I watched the two of them for a moment, attempting to see if Gabriel really did have a crush on Emi.

He was friendly with her of course, kind and chivalrous. He was chatting with her like he knew her forever, and there was kind of a flirty edge to his voice… but it didn't seem directed at her, moreso it was just his natural tone.

I pursed my lips together tightly and made a soft humming sound.

"What?" Emi didn't look up from her screen, but Gabriel did. He smiled at me, warm and kind, and I looked away.

"Nothing, I was just… thinking about all the work you have to do for one stupid project. Kinda crappy." Gabriel nodded his head.

"Really crappy. But, that's what happens when you're in high school." I scoffed.

"I know that." I took a sip of my juice. "I think your teachers being a try-hard."

Emi snorted and Gabriel chuckled.

"Yeah, he kinda is." I felt a blush rise to my cheeks and I looked away again, blowing gently into the straw of my juice. I started to make my way back to my room when Emi snapped her fingers.

"Don't forget to study for your bio test El." I looked back just in time to see Gabriel's eyes light up.

"Biology? Did you need any help?" He looked like an excited puppy, his eyes glittering like emeralds and a large smile on his face. I bit the inside of my cheek and shook my head.

"No, I'm good." It would be just my luck that the wonder-boy that may or may not have a crush on my sister was good at Bio.

"Well help or not, don't forget to study. If mom or dad sees your grade…"

"Alright, alright, I'll go and study now." I groaned and leaned my head back, stomping back to my room.

I tried to focus on my studying, but it was getting harder and harder to focus when Saturday night was so close. Just three days from now, we were going to humiliate Candace in front of Gabriel once again… A lesson in not fucking with the Kirkland sisters she will never forget.

I laid my head down on my desk and wallowed in my own despair. As Mrs. Small came around and collected our tests from off of our desks, I was hesitant to even let her grab it. Normally the rule was something was better than nothing, but it may not have been the case this time.

It was like the test was written in an entirely different language. My short answers were laughable at best, and I guessed on most of the multiple choice. This test made me look illiterate and mom was going to kill me.

Sliding the fifty-five question test to the end of my desk, I could feel Mrs. Small's dark eyes staring at me.

"Don't forget your name Ellie." She whispered and I groaned internally. Scribbling my name at the top of the paper, she removed the packet and walked back up to the front of the room. As the bell rang for lunch, I knew she was going to call me up to her desk and question me about the test.

"Elaine_"

"I know…" I trailed off, walking head down to the front of the class. There were a couple of snickers from some of the other students, and I sent them a look so dark, they rushed from the room.

"Elaine… Did you even study?" Kinda.

"Yes… It's just hard, that's all_"

"Elaine, when I grade this test, am I going to be surprised or not?" I sighed, my shoulders sagging slightly. I played with the hem of my violet plaid skirt and Mrs. Small shook her head.

"I'm going to have a conference with your parents and suggest the mentoring program." I groaned and she placed her hands in her lap.

"What do you expect me to do Elaine. I want you to pass this class. You are a bright girl and I see so much potential in you. You just need some extra help."

"Please don't talk to my mom yet." I blurted the statement out making Mrs. Small jump.

"Why not?" I huffed.

"I just… I have plans this weekend, and she's gonna be so upset… can you just talk to her on Monday?" I couldn't have my mom ban me from spending the weekend at Ashley's… Not this weekend.

"Okay. I will email her on Monday… But I expect you to be prepared for the mentoring program and not complain." I nodded my head and headed out of the classroom where Marie and Ash were waiting.

"How was the test?" Ashley and Marie spoke in unison and I groaned.

"Lets just plan for Saturday."

When my mom dropped me off at Ashley's, she was inquisitive. Her gaze kept flickering back and forth between the road and my reflection in the rearview mirror. I was avoiding her piercing glare, and staring out at the oddly beautiful afternoon.

"Is everything okay Ellie?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Okay." If it wasn't for the fact that mom didn't want to risk bringing up my father before I spent time with my friends, I know she would have grilled me harder. Luckily for me, she and I were both vulnerable, and she dropped the subject.

As we pulled up to Ashley's house, her brows furrowed and she pointed to the extra car in the driveway.

"Whose car is that?"

"I don't know." Mom nodded her head and pulled up to the curb. Getting out of the car, she motioned for me to go up to the door with her. I huffed, not wanting my mom to dig any deeper into the situation that she already was.

Knocking on the door, we were both shocked to see a beautiful woman answer. She had shoulder length black hair, and flawless russet skin. She was tall and lean, and she most certainly lived on the reservation.

"Hello, I'm Ariel Kirkland, I came to drop off my daughter, Ellie." They were sizing each other up. Despite the smiles on both of their faces, there were two queen bees in front of each other and it was obvious.

"Ah, Hi Ariel, my name is Leah, Leah Clearwater. I'm Richard's girlfriend." My mom nodded her head and shook Leah's hand. They stared each other down for a moment longer before they let go.

"Well it's nice to meet you. Ellie_" She looked down at me "Be on your best behavior."

She waved me off and walked back down the brick steps of Ashley's house. I don't know what transpired between Leah and my mom, but there was an understanding in place.

"Um… Hello." I smiled shyly at Leah, and she smiled back, but more gently than she did at my mom.

"Hi, Ellie right?" I nodded my head.

"You can call me Leah. Ashley and Marie are in the backyard." She placed her hand on my back and led me inside. Her touch was like fire and I almost recoiled. However, I calmed myself and walked to the backyard.

"Hey Ellie!"

"Hi Mr. Wright" He was hanging out in the kitchen, and Leah stayed with him as I headed out into the backyard.

"Hey Ellie."

"Hey…" Ash and Marie were standing out by the garden, their faces filled with worry.

"What the hell is your dad's girlfriend doing here?" I muttered, huddling in a circle. Marie's face twisted, and Ash groaned.

"I don't know! She was supposed to be working tonight, and now she's not! I'm so stressed out! She is like… super girlfriend or something, we'll never get away with anything with her here."

"Okay, okay, don't worry.. We'll find a way around it… it's not like this can get any worse." As I spoke the words, I felt a wave of deja vu wash over me. For some reason, I didn't realize how wrong I was.

*Okay! The next chapter is gonna be juicy I swear, just bear with me. Thank you all for reading this far and thank you for the reviews! Please feel free to leave me some reviews and let me know you feel about the story and what's going on; is it going well, does it seem predictable? I like to hear these things!*

XOXO Randomkay