Helloo!
I'm having some email issues, and I'm not receiving your reviews in my inbox, that's why I haven't replied to any of you.
Please know that I do read your reviews, and they make my heart happy :) Thank you for coming with me on this crazy ride, I appreciate it.
By the way, I recently edited a few of the one-shots I had:
1) Growing pains
2) Neither forgiven nor forgotten (which now is called Forgiveness and Absolution)
3) Kid of cute
I plan on editing the rest of the one-shots and slowly making my way through Red Moon and Pack souls. This is because I noticed so many mistakes and I don't like how certain things turned out :)
Go read the four one-shots I mentioned above, I hope you liked them too!
Anyway, enjoy this chapter and I'll see you on te next one.
WARRIOR
Chapter 3.
The first week of classes came and went without hiccups. I actually liked my classes; my professors seemed okay, and even though the coursework was starting to pile up, I was determined to tackle it and not let it overwhelm me.
I spoke with my dad the day after my panic attack and walked him through what happened. He insisted I saw a therapist, but I still wasn't sure about it, which was ironic since I wanted to become one.
Charlie and I had become closer since the Cullens left. I worked hard to repair the breach that had been caused by too many secrets and too many lies. I confided in him about most things that happened in my life, my fears and hopes for the future, and he welcomed the conversations with a bit of awkwardness but the best of intentions. Whenever I wanted to tease him, I would sit in silence next to him in the living room while he watched one of his precious sports games. He'd raised me to understand the games, but he never got me to love them as he did.
So, I'd sit next to him in silence and occasionally look at him. At first, he ignored me, wanting me to talk in my own time. But after the third time I did it, he finally caught up and told me I sucked. I laughed and kissed his cheek. It was fun messing with my dad.
Jake told me that Charlie was over the moon at our newfound relationship. As we suspected, Dad and Billy gossiped like two old ladies would. It was adorable.
So, seeing as he was happy with the turn of events, I relied on him more, and he took it proudly in stride.
Sometimes, I felt a bit sad at how I had taken my dad for granted, but if there was something I did not allow myself to do, it was wallow in the past and the things I could not change about it.
"Watch out!" I looked up to my side just in time to see a dude on a bike trying to move out of the way but failing miserably, seeing as he ran me over.
I'm not sure what happened. I registered the pain in my ankle and my side, but I was more shaken up than anything. The dude on the bike got up quickly and helped me over.
"Shit, are you okay?" I took his hand and stood, trying not to put weight on my ankle.
I dusted off my jeans, noticing scratches on my hands, but nothing out of this world. The guy was cute in a conventional way, with blond hair, blue eyes, and an incredibly tall and athletic body. He wore jeans and a hoodie, typical student attire for the first week – when everyone was not tired out of their minds to dress like a decent person. He seemed intact despite having fallen off his bike. He didn't even have a hair out of place.
So unfair.
I hopped away from the guy so he could pick up his bike now that we'd established I was ok-ish.
"I'm really sorry." He looked repentant. But accidents happened, especially to me.
"It's fine. I was distracted, and it was an accident. Don't worry about it."
He shook his head. "Is your ankle hurting?"
I looked down and saw it was swollen, probably a sprain. I nodded at him with a grimace.
"I can take you to the nurse."
Great! Less than two weeks in this place, and I was already visiting the nurse's office. Good start, Bella! Dad would have a field day with this.
I wanted to say no, that I did not need the nurse, but the truth was that I did need the nurse, and if I was going to skip a class because I was hurt, then at least I had to do something about my injury. And it was okay to accept help, as Angela kept reminding me. I didn't have to distrust everyone that crossed my path. Not everyone was out to hurt me just because.
"Thank you, that would be great." He was nice enough to wait during my inner monologue. As soon as I accepted his help, he gave me a set of instructions on how to get on his bike so I didn't have to hop all the way to the nurse. Once he made sure I wouldn't fall off, he got on, fixed his backpack, and started pedaling effortlessly around campus.
I felt like a kid who wanted to go on the adult's bicycle, and this was the only way. The dude was certainly a jock; no one would pedal that effortlessly with a girl in the back and not break a sweat unless they were used to carrying weight and judging by his physique, he was a jock.
I couldn't wait to tell Jake about this embarrassing moment. He'd never let me live it down.
The athletic biker got us in record time to the nurse's office. He talked up a storm while he held most of my weight along the way. He was friendly.
"Hi! I'm Connor. Could we see the nurse?" Connor asked the secretary in the empty space.
Of course it was empty; it was the first week of class, only I would run into trouble in the first week of class.
"Sure thing, darling. Fill out this form, and you can go right in when you're done. I'll let her know." She gave Connor a form and walked towards a second door next to the desk, where I saw an older woman sitting at a desk.
Connor gave me the form with a sheepish smile. "I don't know your medical history as well as you do."
I smiled at him and accepted the form and pen. After scribbling my information and giving it back to the secretary, I hopped the ten steps to the nurse's door and hopped inside, sighing in relief when I sat again. The secretary then put my papers in front of the nurse on her desk and left.
"Alright, Miss…" She looked down at the papers and up at me again. "Swan. What happened?"
She looked at me with interest but in a warm way. It didn't make me feel uncomfortable or like a klutz for being in her office on the first week.
"I got run over by a guy in his bike." I smiled a toothy smile, to which she laughed. "I hurt my ankle." She nodded and made notes on her computer.
After asking some more general questions about my overall health, allergies, and medical background, she stood up, put on a pair of gloves, and kneeled before me.
"Could you please lift the leg of your jeans?" I did as instructed and watched as she carefully took my leg in her hands. "Your ankle is swollen, and at first look, I'd say it's a small sprain, given the amount of weight you're putting in it. I'm going to touch, and you'll tell me where it hurts."
She had such an air of authority without making you feel under the microscope. She started prodding and touching around my ankle, acknowledging my winces of pain when it hurt.
"Okay, I don't think X-rays are needed now. Judging by your level and location of pain, you just sprained it lightly. It got swollen because it's still an injury. So, I'm going to remove your shoe, and I'm going to bandage it. Is that okay?"
"As long as I don't have to go to the hospital, I'll agree to anything you say."
She laughed and patted my leg. She walked toward a cabinet, opened one of the drawers, and started picking an assortment of things into her arms. I might have been scared had she not told me what she would do.
She walked back to me and organized everything on the desk.
"I'm going to apply this cream first for the swelling. It will be cold at first, and then it'll get warm. If it stings or burns, let me know." I voiced my understanding, and she got to work. I gasped at the cold contact of the cream against my skin, but almost immediately, it started getting warm.
"It's getting warm, but so far so good."
She smiled and acknowledged my words. Then, she grabbed the bandage and showed me how to do it. It was tight and restrictive, and the immediate relief I felt was tremendous. She gave me a spare bandage and told me to take some ibuprofen for the pain and swelling and rest for the next week.
"I have a birthday this weekend back at home. Does that mean I can't go home?"
She thought about it for a few seconds. "Your ankle needs rest to heal. So, if it's not life or death, stay here and rest. As for classes, if there is anyone who can get you the notes for the next week, use that. If not, I'd recommend going but taking it easy. No running from one room to another."
I nodded, even though I was bummed about not going home this weekend. But maybe it was for the best. Since my meltdown on Sunday, and whatever it was that happened to Paul, I had avoided their texts and calls. I told myself it was because I wanted to navigate my first week alone, but the truth was that I was avoiding them without a good reason. Angela gave me the stink eye but respected my decision to get some distance.
"Yo, you're alive!" Connor was still sitting in the waiting room when I came out.
Despite myself, I laughed. He was just so energetic. It was different from how Mike Newton had been at school. With Mike, I had imagined him as a Golden Retriever, eager to please, sweet but overenthusiastic sometimes. Connor gave me a different vibe.
"I'm alive but on bed rest for the next week."
"Darn, that's harsh." I shrugged and hopped next to him. The pain had diminished significantly, and the bandage helped me walk more comfortably.
"Where to now?"
I stopped next to him. "Connor, I don't need you taking me anywhere anymore. It was an accident. Don't you have somewhere to be?"
He shook his head. "I don't have classes anymore. And I know it was an accident. I'm not helping you out of guilt."
"I'm not interested in dating." I said as kindly as I could as a preventive measure. Was it presumptuous of me to assume he wanted to help because he wanted a date?
"I'm not interested in girls." He winked and laughed when I blushed. "So, where to now?"
I accepted his help towards my dorm. Since it was so busy now, he left his bike parked outside the nurse's office building, and we walked slowly to my building. He was energetic, talkative, and had a never-ending supply of energy. I felt so at ease with him. We joked around and laughed a lot. It was such a weird thing. He was one year ahead of me, studying psychology and literature simultaneously. He didn't know if he wanted to be a writer more than he wanted to be a therapist, so he said he'd do both. As I said, never-ending supply of energy.
He'd agreed to help me with my notes for the few classes I'd be forced to miss, even though he was a year ahead.
"What about your own classes?"
"Your schedule is different than mine. I won't miss any class, and I already took your classes, so it's not gonna be a hassle."
"Fine. I accept your gracious offer."
He grinned.
Angela came in a few minutes after we did. She stopped dead when she saw Connor sitting on the stools in the kitchen. She looked at him and looked at me. It was so obvious what she was thinking.
"Ang, this is Connor. He ran me over with his bike."
Connor huffed. "I said I was sorry."
"Doesn't change the fact." I smiled.
"Are you okay?"
I shook my head. "Sprained ankle and mandatory rest. I won't be able to go home this weekend."
She looked so dejected that I almost apologized. I didn't since it was no one's fault. It was just one of those things that happened.
"I'll stay with you."
Connor, wisely, didn't say anything.
"Ang, no. It's Jake's birthday. He's your boyfriend, you're going. End of story. And you'll only be gone for two days."
She looked at Connor again with distrust in her eyes. Connor shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. I'll call Jake and celebrate with him over a video call."
She nodded and silently – more like sullenly – walked to her room. She closed the door, which meant she was upset about something.
Connor stayed for dinner, but Angela did not come out. He eventually left after taking my number and ensuring I was okay.
I sighed when I closed the door behind him. Angela opened her door, startling me. "Jesus. Ang. Were you listening with your ear pressed to the door?" She did not accept my joke.
"What are you doing, Bella?"
I didn't like her accusatory tone. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"What is going on between you and the Connor guy?" She crossed her arms over her chest.
"Oh my god! Really?" She nodded. "Nothing is going on. Okay? He ran me over with his bike, took me to the nurse, and walked me back."
"He likes you."
I rolled my eyes. "He does not. At least not like that. He's gay."
"And I'm the queen of England."
I dismissed her attitude. "Spit it out. Whatever you want to say, say it."
"You've been avoiding Sam and Paul, and now you invite this guy over. What are you doing?" I saw the concern in her eyes and relaxed my stance.
"Ang. I don't understand what's happening between the wolves and me. It's as confusing as it is exciting. Nothing is happening nor will ever happen with Connor, even if he weren't gay. He offered to take notes for my classes, and we decided to be friends. That's all."
She studied me silently. "I believe you. But you need to speak with the wolves. You've gone radio silence, and my phone battery can't take any more interrogations from them."
My heart fluttered. "They've been writing you?"
She rolled her eyes. "Of course they have!"
She said it like thinking otherwise didn't make sense.
"Why do you say it like that?" I narrowed my eyes in suspicion.
"Like what?" She replied too innocently.
"Like them doing otherwise simply is not a choice. Like it wouldn't even cross their minds."
She struggled to find her words. "They called you every day."
"For a week. Not enough to establish a pattern of behavior."
"They like you."
"We're friends, and I'm in the group chat. It's a given they like me." I knew she meant romantically.
"Whatever."
"Is there something you know that I don't?" There was. I knew there was.
"No." She said too fast and couldn't even hide her grimace.
"I'm not even going to ask what that is. Are we okay?"
She smiled, closing the distance to hug me. "We're okay. Sorry for the weird jealous act."
I laughed. "Well, if anything, you're a hell of a she-wolf."
She smiled proudly, stepping back. "I know."
