Chapter 2:

Charlie and Renee had decided that arriving in Forks on a Friday would be the best decision, that way we'd have the full weekend to get settled before starting school.

And as my alarm went off for the third time, I couldn't be more thankful that it was Saturday instead of Monday and that I could sleep in instead of wake up at eight in the morning.

When I finally managed to drag myself out of the bed, it was already noon.

I normally didn't get up so late, but the natural sound of rain hitting my window and the cold put me into the best sleep I'd gotten in a while.

I threw on some jogging pants and a hoodie, the only one I owned. Wearing anything longer than a mid-sleeve in phoenix was like a death wish, so most of my wardrobe that I brought with me consisted of short sleeves, tank tops, and jogging pants.

I'd have to go shopping soon.

Bella and Charlie had already been on the couch looking at the tv (which I doubted they were really watching) when I got there. Bella fidgeted with her fingers and Charlie had that look like he was about to clear his throat for the hundredth time since we arrived.

As I entered the living room they both instantly relaxed, looks of relief flashing across their face as they mumbled a low "Morning".

I smiled at them as I made my way to the kitchen, looking through the fridge for something to eat.

"So, what have I missed?"

"Not much. Just reruns of Clemson vs Duke" Came Charlie's gruff voice.

The pizza from last night sat in the middle of the fridge, neatly packaged (most likely courtesy of Bella). But apart from that and the essentials, the fridge was bare.

Looks like it would be cheerios today.

After fixing my bowl I made my way to the couch, Bella and Charlie scooting over to give me more than enough space.

"I meant in general. Anything exciting happen around here?"

"Well, let me see… The jobs been pretty tame, thankfully. Apart from some bear attacks, nothing too eventful."

"Bear attacks?" Bella piped in. Charlie just hummed in agreement, Hmm.

"Harry and Billy have been doing fine for the most part. Harry's doctor said that his blood pressure is getting a little high though, so Sue has put a break on the Fish fry's. Seth and Jacob are doing good."

"How's Leah doing?"

"I haven't seen her lately, but Harry said she's been going through a bad breakup. She could probably use a friend."

I nodded, "I'll try to go see her soon".

I could deal with heartbreaks. I'd never really experienced then myself but I had spent many nights holding friends hands as they went through them. Besides, it'd be nice to see Leah again.

Bella had stayed mostly quiet during the conversation, but I could feel her eyes on me the whole time.

I turned to meet her gaze, only to find her eyes lasering my cereal.

"Bella?"

"Hmm?" her eyes focused again and she was back.

"I can cook dinner, you know. Sometimes…" She offered, looking at Dad "I actually cooked a lot back home"

A horrified look crosses his face for a second before he barely manages to bring it to just reluctance. Renee had been an …. Adventurous cook to put it nicely.

For my last birthday, she tried to bake a homemade cake herself and you can guess how that turned out.

I can still remember the embarrassment of watching my friends try to choke it down. We all threw our slices away when Renee wasn't looking, and later on Bella and Phil snuck us some cupcakes.

"She's a great cook" I piped in, causing Bella to look away. She'd told me herself that taking compliments made her uncomfortable. I still gave them anyway though. While she may not know how to respond to them, I knew she appreciated them.

Charlie was silent for a moment before nodding, "Sounds good."

Sometime during the game, the rain slowed down and then came to a stop.

I was kind of disappointed but on the bright side, it opened up the opportunity for a jog.

Don't get me wrong, I loved being back here. But so far it's been either hanging with Bella while she reads, watching tv with Dad, or organizing and reorganizing my room.

We'd only been here not even a week. I'm sure it'd be better once I started school and reconnected with some old friends (and hopefully make some new ones) but as of right now, I was a little restless.

And when I was restless, I exercised.

Lacing up my sneakers, I closed the door behind me and took off.

We lived someways away from the heart of town. Just a few miles from being considered the outskirts.

A nice area. It wasn't necessarily a neighborhood but we had a couple of neighbors, most of them older people.

In the front yard across from us, a group of children looked like they were playing tag: Ms. Mabel's grandchildren that came over every weekend. When I was here last they were no more than toddlers.

waved at me from the window where she sat watching them. I waved back and smiled at the kids as I passed by.

On our left was 's house. Or was. Otis Cleaver was a nice old man. Every Halloween he gave out handfuls of big king-size candy bars.

Sometime when I was gone he had passed through, the house now stood vacant with a weathered "for sale" sign out front.

The longer I jogged the more pretty the scenery got.

This is what I loved to see. The true beauty of Forks.

Neatly trimmed lawns turned into tall grasses and planted oaks turned into wild cedars and moss-covered pines. They stretched tall, the highest branches leaning over the road from both sides to make some sort of canopy.

I let my hands graze the greenery, marveling at the beads of water laying docile on top of them.

The sun had just started to creep down the sky when I remember my promise to Dad not to go too far and turned around.

There's a red pickup truck in the driveway when I get home.

I'm not sure who it belongs to. I'd never seen it before in my life, and Dad didn't mention anyone coming over.

I don't have to guess very long though. As soon as I get closer to the house, I'm greeted by the booming laughs of Dad and Billy.

They're out in front of the house, drinking beers and fake wrestling. It takes a moment for them to notice me.

"Is that little Helena Swan?" Billy ask

"As far as I know." I joke, before leaning down and giving him a hug.

"You're about a foot taller than the last time I saw you. Hell, you'll probably be taller than your old man soon."

"I know right?" Charlie pipes in "Almost didn't recognize her at the airport."

I gesture towards the car, "New Truck? I thought you'd never part with the Tempo."

"And you thought right" Billy smiles, "It's not mine". He looks over at dad, the two of them sharing a look before Billy begins to do a drum roll on his lap.

Charlie took a sip, "I got it for you girls."

"Me and Bella?"

"Mmhmm." He cleared his throat, putting on his sheriff voice "Of course, Bella will be driving you around for now but once you get your permit, it's both of yours."

I hugged him, yelling excited thank yous towards him. Charlie waved them off, but the smile on his face gave away his satisfaction with the response.

I walked around the truck, rubbing my hands over the surface.

The red paint was a little chipped and there was a faint smell of cigarettes clinging to the chairs.

It wasn't something I would've picked for myself, but a car was a car.

In the middle of my inspection, I heard the sound of a screen door closing.

Bella came to a stop right in front of me. She wore a big smile on her face, the first true one I'd seen since we'd gotten here.

"Hey Helena. Long time no see." Came from beside her. Jacob Black.

It had been a while since I'd saw him last but he was easy to recognize.

While his hair was longer, he'd grown a few inches, and you could make out just the faintest outline of muscles under his faded t-shirt, he still looked the same: russet skin, kind eyes, and a boyish smile.

We'd never hung out that much ourselves, him being at that age where he didn't want to play with girls like me and his sisters.

But if the way he kept glancing at Bella was any indication, he'd definitely grown out of that phase.

While Dad and Billy stayed outside on the porch talking, me, Bella, and Jacob found our way inside.

The three of us sat at the table, talking over the last of the leftover pizza. Jacob caught us up on the local drama (well, he mostly caught me up. Bella didn't really know about anyone he was talking about).

Apparently, Rachel was doing great in college. She had majored in Art and even gotten an internship.

"I never thought I'd see the day Rebecca settled down."

"Well, I wouldn't call it settling down. He's one of those surfer dudes who's a 'free spirit'. Nice enough though. They live in Hawaii"

"Hawaii? I know the wedding must've been beautiful"

Jacob deflated a little at that. "I wouldn't know. They eloped " he rolled his eyes, "No one got to see it. We didn't even know about it until it was done."

"That sucks" Bella offered.

"Yeah, it does. My dad was so sad that he didn't get to walk her down the aisle... Or, well, wheel her"

Jacob changed the topic, clearly still upset about the Rebecca thing.

We talked about Leah's breakup. Apparently, it was with Sam Uley, who she had been dating since middle school.

"The guy disappears for like, a month, and shows back up all buff and like, three feet taller. And then he just dumps Leah "

"Three feet taller?" Bella asked, clearly doubting.

"Yeah, Jacob. It's alright to embellish a little but come on. At least try to make it believable"

"No, I swear" Jacob laughed, "But that's not even the craziest part. A week after the breakup, guess who Sam shows up dating?"

"Who?"

He leaned in, his voice lowering. " Emily. Freaking. Young."

"No" I gasped.

"Yes."

That was just horrible. The utmost betrayal! If I wasn't thinking about going to see Leah before, I definitely was now.

"What's so bad about Emily Young?" Bella questioned.

"Emily is Leah's cousin and like, her best friend"

"Oh. That's really messed up."

We debated the reason for Sam's sudden change for the rest of the night. Jacob said drugs, I said cult, and Bella said something about radioactive spiders.

It was late when Billy and Jake finally left and I definitely felt better.

I said goodnight to Bella and Dad and headed upstairs.

Showered, lotioned, and less tense, I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I couldn't see or hear anything. Only feel.

I was laying on something soft. Perhaps cotton or shag. Soft and big. A carpet? No. Too warm to be a carpet.

I ran my hands through it, grasping it tightly and holding on.

Beating.

Whatever it was pulsates under my palms. Steady. Fast. Alive.

I needed to see it. To know what it was.

I fought with myself to wrench open my eyes and then, then I saw it. Just a flash. Fur. Brown.

And then, just like that it was gone.

I tried to get back to it but every time I blinked, a new image came up. A window. Baseball. Bruises. Metal.

It was like someone was flicking through different channels in my mind.

The harder I tried to return, the further away I got.

With every click, the images got more dark. I could feel myself getting colder and colder. Dread pooled in my stomach. Dread and Fear.

No. Take me back. I begged. Please.

Mirrors. Screaming.

Take me back! Take me bac-

Darkness. That was all I saw.

It took me a second to realize that I was in my room. It was just a dream. A scary, random dream but a dream nonetheless.

As quietly as possible, I made my way to the possible.

It wasn't until I looked into the mirror that I noticed how disheveled I was.

My face shined with sweat and my breath came out in pants as if I had just got done running a marathon.

Splashing some water in my face, I tried to pull myself together. But all I could think of was the hell I'd just awoken from.