Back to the Start
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.
Homework
A thick strand of trees and shrubbery concealed Jacob's garage from the house. The garage itself was comprised of big perforated sheds that had been bolted together with their interior walls knocked out. Under this shelter, raised on cinder blocks, was what looked a completed automobile. Bella recognized the sign on the grill, at least, this was Jacob's pride and joy, his Volkswagen Rabbit.
"What do you think?" He asked Bella, sounding like a proud parent.
Bella decided to drag out her response a bit, just to tease him a little. She walked around it, tapping her chin, looking the vehicle up and down as if she was inspecting every inch. In reality she knew nothing about cars, so her opinion didn't really matter one way or the other, only to the nervous boy standing a few feet away from her.
"Well?" Jacob asked again.
Bella broke out into a broad smile, not able to keep up the act any longer. "Its perfect, Jacob. Just perfect."
Jacob's answering smile was one of happiness growing, much as a spring flower opens. Bella felt almost blinded by it. "Cool!" He said, holding out his hand for a high five.
Bella had to jump up to tap his palm. He was getting so darn tall. She was sure he had grown a couple of inches since she had last seen him. Jacob laughed at her, reaching out with one long arm to ruffle her hair.
"Hey!" Bella batted his hand away playfully.
Jacob just laughed again. He opened up the passenger door of the Rabbit so she could sit on the seat instead of the ground. Pulling up some stray parts, he began to sort through them. While he worked, Jacob chattered happily, needing only the slightest nudges from Bella to keep the conversation rolling. He opened up more on the progress of his sophomore year at school, running on about his classes and his two best friends.
"Quil and Embry?" Bella interrupted. "Those are unusual names."
Jacob chuckled. "Quil's is a hand me down, and I think Embry got named after a soap opera star. I can't say anything though. They fight dirty If you start on their names-they'll tag team you."
"Good friends." Bella raised on eyebrow.
"No, they are." Jacob insisted. "Just don't mess with their names."
Just then a call echoed in the distance. "Jacob? Bella?" Someone shouted.
Bella and Jacob looked at each other. "Charlie." They said in unison.
"I suppose it is getting late." Jacob sighed, mourning how quickly the time had passed.
"Yeah." Bella was full of regrets too. "Thanks for showing me a great time, Jacob. I had fun."
"You did?" Jacob's eyes sparkled at her compliment. "Really?"
Bella was stunned that he sounded so surprised. He must think she had some kind of great social life or something. She flashed him a sincere smile. "I did. And I love your car." She added.
Jacob's smile grew impossibly wider. He ducked his head, suddenly shy. "So, are you still up for the tutoring sessions?" He checked.
"Sure. Come over on Monday after school. We'll start then."
Jacob raised his head again, looking straight at her this time. "I'll put it in my diary." He joked.
"You do that." Bella laughed. She heard Charlie calling their names again. "I better go. Bye, Jake."
"Bye, Bells."
Bella felt his eyes on her as she left. As she walked through the trees, she found that she was still smiling and there wasn't even anyone watching. She felt so weightless, all the former stresses of the last week completely washed away. She slowed her pace, just to make the feeling last longer.
"Hey, Dad." Bella flashed her father a grin.
Shock flitted across Charlie's face before he pulled his expression together. "Hey, honey. Did you have fun with Jacob?"
"Yeah, I did." Bella said cheerfully. "Did you and Billy have fun watching the game?"
Charlie's expression soured. "Don't even get me started on that wash out of a game." He grumbled.
"The Mariners lost again, didn't they?"
Charlie just nodded. He opened the passenger door to the cruiser and ushered her inside. Bella tried to hide her smile as she slipped smoothly into the seat, buckling up as she did so. She decided she would make Charlie a special dinner as a treat, that should put him in a better mood, and make up for the disappointing game.
As Bella climbed the stairs to her room, she felt the last of the afternoon's sense of wellbeing drain from her system, replaced by a dull sense of fear. She didn't know where this apprehension was coming from, but she felt reluctant to enter her room. For a place of quiet and rest, it had become one of anxiety and unease. She always felt the same odd sensation of being watched. She knew she was being ridiculous, there was never anybody there, and she didn't believe in ghosts.
Steeling her nerves, Bella pushed on the doorhandle, immediately feeling a cold prickling sensation running down her spine. She peered into the room quickly, taking extra care to examine the dark shadows, which seemed to her extra menacing. The only sound was of her own harsh breathing. Brightness flooded the room as she snapped on the light.
A sharp creak came from the old rocking chair placed under her window. Bella's terrified eyes darted in that direction, but there was nothing there. There was no movement. Everything was dead silent. It was her imagination playing tricks on her again.
"Pull yourself together, Swan." Bella scolded herself as she stepped into the room and closed the door.
On Monday morning, Bella woke shuddering, her dying scream muffled by the pillow.
As the dim morning light filtered through the fog outside her window, Bella lay still in the bed and tried to shake off the bad dream. It was the same dream she had experienced two nights in a row now.
She was alone in the woods. Edward Cullen was there, his eyes were dark, unfriendly, filled with some secret he didn't seem inclined to share. She stared at him as she started backing away, frantically searching for a way out. It made her panic, having him there. His shape seemed to shiver and change in her peripheral vision. Yet he did nothing but stand and watch. Then from behind her came a menacing growl….and it was always at that point she woke up.
Charlie stared at her during breakfast, and Bella tried to ignore him. He had come running into her room the first night she had experienced the dream, thinking she was being murdered in her bed or something. She felt like a stupid little kid as he tried to comfort her, and she begged him not to make a big deal of it if it happened again. Thankfully he had listened to her. Still, that didn't ease the worry lines on his forehead as he slowly ate his cereal.
After breakfast, Bella washed the dishes, watching the dust motes stirring in the sunlight that streamed through the back window. She thought about the dream, wondering if Jacob's scary stories had affected her more than she realized, and whether her subconscious mind was trying to make sense of them. Charlie called out a goodbye, and she heard the cruiser pull away from the house. After loading the washed dishes on the drainer by the sink, Bella reluctantly got ready to leave for school. She hesitated on her way out the door, her hand on her rain jacket, wondering if she could tempt fate and skip school for the day. That way she could avoid any possible interaction with Edward Cullen at all. It was bad enough that he was haunting her nightmares, she really didn't want to have to see him in person.
However, her usual common sense kicked in, and with a weary sigh, Bella folded her rain jacket over her arm and stepped out into the brightest light she had seen in months.
By dint of much elbow grease, Bella was able to get both windows in the truck completely rolled down. Surprisingly, she was one of the first ones to school, her clock must be wrong. She parked and headed toward the cafeteria. The benches were still a little damp, so she sat on her jacket, glad to have a use for it. Her homework was mostly done, but there were a few Trig problems she wasn't sure she had right. She took out her book industriously, but halfway through rechecking the first problem she started daydreaming about the day she had spent with Jacob. She sketched inattentively along the margins of her homework as she thought about him, only coming back to herself when she heard some other vehicles beginning to pull into the parking lot. She glanced down at the page to find she had drawn the outline of a face, the shape very much like Jacob's, with long black hair framing it. Feeling the heat rising to her cheeks at being caught idle, she scrubbed the picture out with an eraser.
"Bella!" She heard someone call. She immediately froze, thinking it was Edward Cullen. Then she saw Mike Newton running over to her and she relaxed again.
The other students were all piling in now. Everyone was in t-shirts, some even in shorts though the temperature couldn't be over sixty. Mike was wearing khaki shorts and a striped rugby shirt as he swung onto the bench seat next to her.
"Hey." Bella greeted him with a halfhearted smile.
Mike's grin stretched across his face at her acknowledgement of his existence. How easily pleased he was, Bella thought idly, he was always so delighted to see her. She couldn't understand why.
"I never noticed before – your hair has red in it." Mike caught a strand that had been fluttering in the light breeze between his fingers.
Bella was not comfortable with him touching her, even if it was her hair. She tucked it behind her ear. "Its only like that in the sun." She muttered.
Mike didn't seem at all perturbed by her less than stellar response. "Great day, isn't it?"
"My kind of day." Bella agreed.
"So, how was your weekend?" Mike's tone changed when he asked that question, sounding a little too proprietorial for Bella's liking.
"Oh, I had a wonderful time." She gushed, injecting even more enthusiasm in her voice for Mike's benefit. "I spent all of Saturday in La Push with Jacob. We went to the beach, then he showed me the car he's fixing up. He is so clever."
"Great." Mike muttered, looking crestfallen.
"And on Sunday I mostly worked on my essay." Bella added-there was no need to tell him that she had finished it-no need to sound smug.
Mike hit his forehead with the heel of his hand. "Oh, yeah – that's due Thursday, right?"
"Wednesday, I think."
"Wednesday?" Mike frowned. "That's not good…. What are you writing yours on?"
"Whether Shakespeare's treatment of female characters is misogynistic."
Mike stared at her like she was speaking a foreign language. He blinked a few times as if to clear his head. "I guess I'll have to work on that tonight." He scratched the back of his neck, glancing away then back up at Bella's face, as if he was working up to say something. "I was going to ask if you wanted to go out."
"Oh." Bella said flatly. Why couldn't she ever have a pleasant conversation with Mike without it getting awkward?
"Well, we could go to dinner or something…and I could work on it later." Mike smiled at her hopefully.
"I can't. I have plans."
"With who?" Mike asked suspiciously.
"Jacob Black."
"Again?"
"Yes, he's coming over for a study date." Bella said in a rush. "And, anyway, I think…and if you ever repeat what I'm saying right now I will cheerfully beat you to death." She threatened lightly. "I think if you took me out it would hurt Jessica's feelings."
"Jessica." Mike sounded genuinely puzzled.
"Mike, are you blind?" Bella laughed. "The girl adores you."
"Oh." Mike exhaled – clearly dazed.
Bella took advantage of his bewilderment to make her escape. "It's time for class and I can't be late again." She gathered her things together and stuffed everything in her bag.
Mike escorted her to her first class of the day as per usual, but his expression remained distracted. Bella could only hope that whatever thoughts he was immersed in they were leading him in the right direction. She didn't feel guilty for using Jessica as an out this time, as the other girl really did like Mike Newton, so really, she was doing her favor, was how she tried to justify it to herself.
When Bella saw Jessica in Trig, she was bubbling with enthusiasm about their upcoming shopping trip. Unbeknownst to Bella, she had invited Angela and Lauren to come with them. Bella was happy about Angela tagging along, but Lauren? She shuddered internally. She had no idea of where Lauren's hatred of her stemmed from, but the two girls just did no get along. Still, there was no backing out of it now as the whole shopping extravaganza had been her idea in the first place.
Jessica talked of nothing but the dance on the way to their next lesson, which was Spanish, continuing on in a hushed whisper uninterrupted until that class finally ended. And then five minutes later they were on their way to lunch.
Bella was dreading going into the cafeteria. She had seen neither sight nor sound of Edward Cullen all morning, but was worried he might be lurking at the same table as before in the cafeteria, waiting to ambush her again. She shambled along, keeping close to Jessica, not wanting to be alone.
Once inside, Bella darted one quick glance toward the Cullens usual table, only to find it empty. They weren't there. With a burgeoning hope in her heart Bella scoured the rest of the room, a shiver of relief washing over her when she noted Edward was nowhere in sight. Nor were the rest of his family. Her mood improved considerably and the tension eased from her shoulders as she finally allowed herself to relax.
The day got even better when she turned up for Biology, saw Edward's empty seat, and felt a new wave of delight. Even Gym couldn't dispel her good mood. They had a lecture on the rules of badminton, the next torture they had lined up for her. But Bella didn't care. She was feeling too lighthearted to let it bother her.
Bella was glad to leave campus, so she could get home and start preparing for Jacob's arrival. She was looking forward to his company. He was so easy and fun to be around. Right as she walked in the front door, Jessica called, gushing that Mike Newton had asked her out to dinner. Bella celebrated with her, relieved that Mile finally seemed to be catching on. That was another problem dealt with.
Setting up everything up in the front room in readiness for the upcoming study session, Bella got started on the food prep. Soon she had fish marinating for dinner, with a salad and bread left over from the night before, so there was nothing else to do there. All she to do was wait.
Right on cue there was a knock on the front door. Bella nearly tripped over her own feet in her eagerness to answer it. As soon as she opened it and saw Jacob's smiling face, she felt the same sense of well-being that she had experienced before in his company.
"Hi, Jake." She greeted him, naturally shortening his name.
"Hi, Bells." Jacob did the same to hers.
They stood there, gazing at each other and smiling for quite some time, him on the porch, her standing in the doorway. Until eventually the sound of a passing car seemed to wake them up.
"Oh." Bella laughed, stepping aside to let him in. "Come in."
"Thanks." He said, moving past her into the hallway.
Jacob had left his long black hair swinging free. It was glossy, luxuriant, and thick. Bella had to restrain the urge to reach out and touch it. It reminded her very much of the sketch she had been doodling of him at school that morning. Her color infused cheeks dimpled with a blossoming smile at the memory. She didn't see the captivated look on Jacob's face as he tried not to stare.
"This way." Bella led him into the front room where she had laid out everything in preparation for what they might need-which included several types of snacks arranged into plastic bowls and some cans of soda.
"Wow, Bells, you've thought of everything." Jacob said, impressed.
"Oh, its nothing." Bella's hands fluttered awkwardly by her sides. "Make yourself comfortable."
"Thanks." Jacob dropped his bag and sprawled on the floor, one hand automatically reaching for the candy.
Bella laughed as she watched him flick the candy into the air and capture it in his open mouth.
"What's so funny?" Jacob asked.
"You are." Bella replied, her brown eyes dancing with mirth.
Jacob looked suddenly shy. He was such a paradox, Bella thought, confident one minute, bashful the next.
"You really like spending time with me?" He asked, marveling.
"Very, very much." Bella admitted honestly. "I never knew study sessions could actually be fun."
"Me, neither." Jacob grinned. He reached for the cans of soda and popped them open, passing one to Bella as he did so. He held his up ceremoniously in front of him. "Here's to responsibility." He toasted.
"You're such a dork." Bella giggled.
Jacob grinned as he touched his can against hers.
A/N-thanks for reading!
Hey guys, I came across this post on Reddit and thought I would share here:
"Out of all the things that the movie adaptations omitted and changed, there's one seemingly inconsequential thing that bothered me the most: the length of Jacob Black's hair in Eclipse.
One of the most unexpectedly striking and gut-punchy elements of the Eclipse novel to me was Jake's appearance and the heartbreaking reason for it:
He was growing his hair out (to what I imagined to be about shaggy shoulder-length) to try and look like his long-haired, pre-transformation human-self again, in a desperate attempt to look the way he did back when he thought Bella liked him. When they were free of supernatural meddling. When there was just the two of them. When he was happy.
Jacob is a tragic figure in Eclipse. In many ways it's his own personal New Moon.
He's grieving. Grieving his relationship with Bella, grieving the simple human life he lost, grieving the life Bella will lose when she turns, grieving the life he and the girl he loves will never get to lead, grieving his natural soulmate who was stolen away by a supernatural force.
I find that to be an important angle to understand why he acts the way he acts in the book, which is often times inexcusable but at the very least makes sense given how he was mad with grief, not too dissimilar from Bella in New Moon.
He doesn't care for his life, he didn't want to live like that, he doesn't care for himself, all he has is pain and rage, at the world, at fate and, most importantly, at himself.
Which brings us back to his hair: the buzz cut is a version of himself he absolutely hates at that point in time and actively tries to distance himself from.
It's how he looked when everything went wrong.
When he phased against his will, making him lose his simple human life, when he had to join Sam, making him lose touch with Bella, making him cold and bitter, shackling him to a possible future imprintee who wouldn't be her, when he failed to take care of his duties in the pack and Bella at the same time, almost losing her to the sea and then losing her to Italy and her unbeatable, drug-like love for Edward.
He tries to flee from all of that, tries to return to the long-haired, happy-go-lucky kid he used to be, knowing full-well that that's impossible.
Just like Bella, he is trying to force together two worlds that are fundamentally incompatible.
And all of that can be read from his haircut alone (or rather the lack of one).
It's such a simple element of his characterization that can be (and was) easily brushed over by the movie but it's an important, key aspect of understanding how Jacob works in Eclipse.
And to add insult to injury, the one character, in a movie filled with terrible, unnecessary wigs, who narratively and thematically needed to have longer hair, didn't get a wig.
One of the many reasons why I much prefer the books over the movies."
What do you guys think?