The rest of the day went by quickly. We fished for a few more hours before parting ways. Jacob promised to call in a few hours once they got the details of tomorrow worked out.
Charlie was quiet on the way home and I was glad. The pain in my chest was getting worse and I didn't want to talk. I wondered if it was possible I was having a heart attack but dismissed the idea quickly.
When we got home I immediately took a shower to get the smell of woods and fish off me. Afterward I sat on my bed, starting once again at the rocking chair. I realized, it was mostly when I was alone that the pain roared, almost feeling as if my chest was on fire and thoughts of Edward invaded my mind. Not only of Edward though. All the Cullen's. Alice in particular I really missed. I missed our friendship, having someone to talk to and lean on.
"Bella! Phone!" Charlie called. I glanced at the clock realizing it was after 9. Did I really sit staring at the chair for 2 hours? I shook my head and went downstairs picking up the phone.
"Jacob?" I asked assuming it was him.
"Hey Bella. So Quil and I were talking and we thought we'd head out about noon if that's okay with you?"
He sounded weird. "Yeah that's good for me. Is everything okay?"
"Yeah," he sighed. "I just can't get a hold of Embry. We went to the beach after I dropped dad off and Sam was there. He and Embry talked for a bit…something is happening."
"Like what, Jake?" I worried on my bottom lip. This all didn't seem like a big deal earlier, but now listening to the worry in Jacobs voice…
"I don't know. Embry left. He wouldn't talk to me and
Quil and we can't get a hold of him now."
"I'm sure everything is fine, Jacob." I tried to assure him.
He sighed. "I'm sure you are right. Anyway just come to my house tomorrow. Do you need the address?"
"Yes." After scribbling the address down, we said goodnight. I walked into the living room plopping down on the couch. I hadn't told Charlie of my plans yet.
"So tomorrow I'm going to Port Angeles with Jacob and his friends." I said casually.
"Oh yeah?" Charlie smiled. "That sounds great. I'm glad you two made friends so quickly. Jakes a good kid."
It was a little strange actually. I don't make friends easily but being around Jacob was..simple. "Yeah he is. I was also thinking about getting a cell phone if that's okay."
I didn't really need his permission since I would be paying for it, but asking just felt like the respectful thing to do.
"That's probably a good idea. Nice to have in case of emergencies." He agreed. We sat in silence for a few moments watching the news before I got up, stretching.
"Ok I'm going to bed." I said.
Charlie said goodnight and in a move that was nothing like me when I passed I stopped to give him a quick hug. "Night."
His cheeks turned slightly pink. Laughing as I walked up the stairs, I was suddenly happy. Really happy. The growing relationship between my dad and I made me happy, I realized.
"Edward?" I called, frantically running through the woods. I could barely see in front of me it was so dark. Just the light off the moon to guide me.
"Edward! Please!"
The trees broke and I came into a clearing. I looked around not seeing who I was searching for.
"Edward?"
A growl answered me, I jumped. Out of the trees walked the large wolf and I relaxed. "What are you doing here?" I asked him. He came closer and I sat on the ground waiting for him. He sat beside me, nudging my hand.
I forgot what I was doing here. I was looking for someone wasn't I? It didn't matter. I wrapped my arms around the wolf, feeling at ease.
"Bella?"
I jumped up. Edward. I was looking for him, I remembered.
"Bella, get away from it. Now."
I looked at the wolf. "Why? He won't hurt me."
Edward took step closer and the wolf growled. "Come, Bella. It's dangerous."
Edward took a few steps closer and reached for me. The wolf snarled and lunged, knocking Edward back making him fall. He got up quickly and ran to the wolf fist ready to fly.
"No!" I screamed running toward them.
With a gasp, my eyes flew open. What is with these dreams? I rubbed my wet eyes and glanced at the clock. 4:17 a.m.
Earlier than I'd like but I knew the chances of me sleeping more were slim. The dream was so much like the other I had. I almost felt like it was telling me something, but what? Why are Edward and my wolf fighting in my dreams? My wolf, I thought, when did it become mine?
Without thinking I put on my robe and went downstairs, out the back door and sat on the porch steps exactly like I had last night. A low whine greeted me. I smiled. "Hey." I whispered as the wolf came to sit beside me. It's nose nudged my cheek. "Were you following me today?"
His eyes widened, just a tiny bit and he huffed before letting out on small bark. Yes.
I laughed. "Why?"
He rolled his eyes and I groaned. "Right. We need a better way to communicate if we are gonna be hanging out regularly."
Two small barks. No. I felt panic grab me. Strangely I had grown attached to this animal and the idea that I wouldn't see him upset me more than it probably should. When a wet tongue licked at my cheek, I realized I was crying. How ridiculous.
I patted his head. "It's okay. I'm sure hanging out with a human is pretty boring. You could be running with your pack or hunting or whatever it is wolves are actually suppose to do."
Two barks. What? I thought about what I said earlier and realized maybe he meant we didn't need to communicate.
"We will be hanging out… right?"
One bark. Relief filled me. "Okay. Good. This proves it, we need a better way to communicate."
He huffed and barked twice. I rolled my eyes. He laid down curing his long tail around his body, with his head on his paws.
"Fine." I relented. "I'm not sure I could have come up with a better way anyhow. Not like you know how to spell." His ear twitched.
"Can you spell?" It seemed absolutely ridiculous to think of a wolf being able to spell but the fact that he is laying in front of me without trying to eat me is also a bit ridiculous.
He huffed at me. Doesn't seem to like the idea of communicating much.
"Fine. We'll stick to one sided conversation." I said rolling my eyes. The wolf chuckled at me.
"Though it would be nice to know what to call you. I could pick up some foam letters today." I mumbled, mostly joking. "You could point to the letters to spell your name. If you can actually spell that is. I have my doubts."
He lifted his head, eyes narrowed. Two barks. I laughed. "Okay, okay. I'll stop."
He let out a sigh and laid his head back down. We sat in comfortable silence and before I knew it we were watching the sun rise. I stood up, stretching.
"I should go inside before my dad gets up."
He whined at me. I patted his head. "Maybe if I get back early enough we can meet at the tree line and go for a a walk?"
He stood, cocking his head to the side for a moment then let out one bark. I smiled at him. 'Okay see you later.'
Another great use for a cell phone would be GPS, I thought angrily turning around for the second time. I was trying to find Jacob's house but the directions Charlie gave me sucked and having the address done me no good with my horrible sense of direction.
Oh wait, there it is. Finally turning on the right road, I found his house. When I pulled up to the small red house Jacob and Billy were sitting on the porch and it looked like I caught them mid argument. I stayed in my truck, not wanting to interrupt them. Jacob glanced my way and held his hand up to his dad and came to the truck. I waved just slightly at Billy, not wanting to be rude. He smiled back. Jacob got in, slamming the door and out his seat belt on.
"Hey." He sighed. "Sorry. Old man is driving me nuts."
I nodded. "It's okay. Where to?"
"Quil's house."
I nodded backing out. "What about Embry?"
Jacob huffed. "We still can't get a hold of him. That's what I was arguing with my dad about. Something is going on and it's not okay, but he's all it's tribe business you'll understand one day. Like what does that even mean?"
I shook my head, stopping at a stop sign. Jacob pointed to the left. "I don't know, Jake. Maybe nothing is wrong."
He looked doubtful. "Maybe."
It was silent the rest of the way, other than Jacob giving me directions. The silence wasn't as comfortable as it was yesterday. Jacob was tense. His hands laid on his legs, balling up into tight fist every few moments and I could see his jaw working where he was grinding his teeth.
The second we pulling into Quil's he came running out of his house. Jacob got out quickly and met him at the front of the truck. I took my time getting out.
Hearing the tail end of what Quil was saying as I opened my door.
"... he looked rough. I yelled his name, but he just ran off into the woods. I was going to go after him, but Sam and Jared was with him…."
"Dammit! This is all messed up. Em didn't want to join them." Jacob huffed. I haven't been around him long but it was strange hearing him talk that way.
"Hey guys." I said, both their eyes snapped to me. "I don't know exactly what's going on but we can reschedule if you want."
They looked at each other and at the same thing shook their heads.
"No. If you're still up for it then I think it'll be nice to get outta town for a while. Stop thinking about all this crazy stuff." Quil mumbled. Jacob nodded in agreement.
I agreed easily. We decided even with just the three of us it would be more comfortable to take Quils moms car. She said it wasn't necessary but I left her my truck keys in case she needed to leave and we left.
They wanted to get away to stop thinking about all this crazy stuff but all the way to Port Angeles it's pretty much all they talked about. Quil said maybe it's drugs. Jacob said that was ridiculous, no way the console or his dad would let that happen. In turn Quil said had to at least be steroids cause Embry was looking more buff and even taller than when we had seen just last night.
"Steroids don't work overnight." I mumbled.
"Bella is right." Jacob said to Quil. "Plus dad said it's tribe business. Why would a bunch of guys doing tribe business need steroids? Not like we need bodyguards, nothing bad ever happens."
"Yeah," Quil chuckled, "nothing bad except a dude on steroids forcing younger guys to be in his gang. Hey, maybe Sam is a pedophile?"
I rolled my eyes. "Okay I don't know Sam at all, but I do know there is no way in hell Billy is allowing a pedophile to recruit boys to a gang. Come on, guys whatever it is obviously isn't bad or Billy wouldn't be allowing it."
"If it's not bad then why doesn't he just tell me so I can understand?" Jacob asked, looking out his window. Without thinking, I reached over putting my hand on his.
"Jacob, just listen to your dad. Stop with the crazy conspiracy theories. Embry is okay. Your dad is not allowing anyone to hurt anyone, I guarantee it."
He nodded and flipped his hand up to grab mine. It felt a little intimate to be holding hands like this but I didn't say anything about it.
"Almost there. Where to first?" I asked.
We discussed lunch and finally decided on a pizza joint. Afterwards we went to a small scrap yard Jake wanted to go to find a few parts for his car. When that was done Quil demanded to stop at the video game store.
They were currently arguing over where to go next. Maybe it was a bad idea to be driving two teen boys around with no plan, who knows where they have me go next, I thought. As slightly annoying as it was to basically be their chauffeur, I was having a good time. They argued like brothers and the banter was entertaining to listen to.
While they were still arguing I drove around and found a cell phone store. Parking and turning the car off I turned in my seat looking at them. "Okay I'm going to get a cell phone. If you all haven't decided by time I get back, I'm picking."
They immediately went back to arguing. Boys, I thought with an eye roll. Waking into the store I rubbed my chest. Since we left Forks the pain has intensified. It was so strange how it felt like it was pulling me, almost like it wanted me back in Forks.
A few hundred dollars later, I got back in the car with a brand new cell phone.
"So," I said, starting the car. "Where to?"
They had it narrowed down to the laser tag, bowling and mini golf. I vetoed laser tag and Quil said bowling was for old people so we needed up at mini golf. We played two rounds. I lost both times, but it was nice being with them. They kept the conversation going, including me but not making me feel like I had to talk. By time we were done it was almost 6pm and I felt a bit sad knowing I wouldn't get home in time to walk with my wolf.
We stopped a sandwich shop and grabbed dinner, decided to take it down to the waterfront park and walk while we ate. Quil grabbed his sandwich and walked ahead of us pretty quickly. Not wanting to put up with my slow pace, I guessed. We walked quietly eating our food.
A few other groups of people were walking around us, but as the sun started to set it was just us and a few guys behind us. I kept glancing back. They had been behind us for a while now. Quil has slowed down to my pace and was walking with us. He and Jacob were talking about the parts we picked up today and how long it would be until the rabbit was ready.
I heard a catcall and looked back again. The guys were closer. Something about those guys were making me uncomfortable.
"Hey, guys can we head back toward the car now?" I asked, interrupting Jacob saying something about brake pads.
He looked at me, seeing the uncomfortable look on my face. "You okay?"
"Yeah those guys behind us are just creeping me out a bit. Probably just the dark getting to me."
They both looked back at them and agreed to go back. Quil moved so I was in the middle of him and Jacob as we turned around and passed them. I heard them laughing and looked back. They turned around too. Crap. Don't freak out, they are probably harmless, I told myself.
"Hey girl!" I heard one of them yell and turned to look at them.
"Don't Bella, just keep walking." Jacob said, his face tense. I nodded, picking up the pace. We had been walking for over an hour. How long until we were back at the car?
"Why don't you leave those little boys and come hang out with some real men?" Another called.
I realized they weren't going to leave us alone.
"Bella, where's your phone?" Jacob asked, looking at the guys who were getting closer.
I patted my pockets. My brand new - in case of emergencies - phone was in the car.
Jacob swore when I told him. Suddenly the guys sped up and passed us. I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking they had given up.
No, they just got ahead of us and stopped. Jacob put his arm around me and I almost flinched at the heat rolling off his arm. I glanced at him, beads of sweat on his forehead. Was he getting sick?
We stopped a few feet in front of the guys.
"We don't want any trouble." Quil told them.
One of the guys took a drank out of a dark beer bottle and laughed. "Neither do we."
He came closer and Jacob tensed more. It almost felt like he was shaking. He let go of me and walked forward.
"Back up." He told him. The laugh laughed in his face and pushed Jake back.
I stared at Jacob. He was so angry it almost looked like he was shaking. He shook his head and took one step toward the guy and swung, hitting him right in the nose. The guy was forced back a few steps and blood was pouring out of his nose.
"Jacob!" I yelled. Quil ran up to Jacob ready to fight in case the other guys got any ideas.
"We said we don't want any trouble. Back off."
Jacob was shaking. Literally vibrating in his skin.
One of the guys yelled, cursing Jake as they scrambled to get their friend and leave. I ran to Jake's side.
"Are you okay?" I asked, grabbing his hand, it was bloody, already swelling and still shaking. "Calm down. They are gone."
"That was awesome, Jake!" Quil laughed, holding his fist up to bump Jakes. I rolled my eyes. I touched Jacob's forehead.
"You're burning up. Are you okay?" I asked, concerned.
Jake shook his head. "I don't know. I think I need to go home."
He was staring at his hands, still shaking. I nodded and we quickly walked back to the car.
Jacob didn't say a word the whole way home. He stared down at his trembling hands, face tense. I asked him if he was okay a few times and he just nodded. I dropped him off first, telling him to give me a call to set up some plans to hang out again soon.
"Do you think he's okay?" I asked Quil, once we were heading toward his house.
He shook his head. "I don't know he seemed kinda spooked. I'll call him when I get home."
I nodded. He didn't say anything else, so I stayed silent. When we got to his house, he ran in to get my keys and said a quick goodbye.
When I got home I didn't see Charlie's car, guessing he got called in. I parked and went inside. Turning lights on as I made my way to the kitchen.
A scream built in my throat when I saw something staring at me from the back door, but it died when I realized it was my wolf.
"Oh my gosh." I said opening the door and going out. "You about gave me a heart attack."
"Something is wrong!" I snarled, pacing the tree line in Bella's back yard.
Sam sighed. "You can't go in wolf form, Paul and by time you go get your car to drive they'll be back. Just try to calm down."
He didn't understand. I can't calm down. I can feel her fear, the wolf could feel it. Something is wrong. I growled. The fear that she was feeling was eating at me. I paced more, needing to do something.
"She is with Jacob and Quil, she's fine. Maybe they are doing something scary?"
Sam didn't believe that anymore than I did. She is terrified and there's nothing I can do about it.
Suddenly as it came the fear died down, still there but not nearly as intense. My muscles relaxed slightly and I sat on my hunches. She's okay.
"See just calm down. I'm sure she is fine." Sam said. I huffed. I wouldn't be able to calm down until I could see that she is okay. I started pacing again.
I don't know how long it had been but finally I could feel her getting close and not long after I heard her truck coming. Thankful that Charlie wasn't home I went to the back porch and waited at the door for her, like a dog waiting to be let in. Sam was laughing my thoughts. Listening as she walked in the door and through the kitchen. I scared her. I didn't care.
She came outside and I immediately started sniffing her. No blood. No weird smells. She's fine. The wolf purred as she ran her fingers through my fur asking me what was wrong. She could see I was tense. But I was frozen, unable to form a thought because I realized that while the wolf was worried about her and needed her...so did I. I wanted to phase and hold her in my arms, making sure she was okay for myself. Ask her what happened and kill whatever scared her so badly.
Fuck me, I thought.