Chapter 6- Mate?

Bella's POV-

The drive to Forks was spent in terrifying silence. I could not bear to fill the void with meaningless music. I was overly nervous to do that. Instead, I continued to ponder over the 'what ifs' while the miles between La Push and Forks reduced and my destination came closer.

Was I doing the right thing?

What if they were to attack?

I was stupid enough to attempt to go into a hungry lion's den; it was bound to skin me alive and eat me like a mid-morning snack!

But I had to do this. I could not let them live here. No. Never. So many children would lose their innocence with this one decision of theirs! Being a shapeshifter wasn't easy. There were compromises. And sacrifices. Their entire life would change. And not entirely for good. Nobody wanted this for the youth of La Push. Not even the elders. Or their own parents, for that matter. It was heartbreaking for a parent to see their child struggling to attend school and keep up grades in the age when education truly mattered for the betterment of the future.

I had to avoid this happening.

More wolves meant more shit for Jake. He was already stressed. He did not need more of it.

With this thought in mind, I continued to drive further.

I wasn't naive enough to believe that they would pack their bags and leave instantly on my command. I was prepared to plead, argue, fight- anything and everything in between!

But I had to try.

As the roads began to thin down, my destination coming closer, my heartbeat began to rise. Would I ever live to see these roads again?

Would I remain alive to drive back home?

I had to remain positive, I deduced. I could not give up. Especially not before reaching my destination!

Maybe, I could have brought someone of the wolf variety along. For moral support and safety.

Sam, of course not. He would never support me in my lunacy. Paul, definitely not. He would kill first and then ask the important question of why he was tagging along. Quil was too immature to head a meeting of this kind. He would laugh first before pretending to be a scary ass being. Jake would refuse to come; instead, would lock me up in the house and never let me out again till the bloodsuckers resided in town. He was the kind to suffer in silence! Embry would tell Jake. They were best friends since nappies. No secrets between them. Jared? Hmm. Maybe.

He was higher up in the pack hierarchy being the beta. Moreso, was calm and acted only after careful thought. I could have got him along. I would have felt safer. And with a wolf along, would have been taken more seriously.

But as they say, hindsight in 20/20. And I was close to reaching my destination.

I took one last deep breath in, putting the truck to park in the narrow driveway.

No time to back out now.

The house looked different than what I had once seen it as. The same one level simple cottage that wouldn't stand out in a town like Forks, but with a fresh coat of paint lining it. And it looked cleaner from the outside, all the weeds in the yard tended to be a house well lived in.

Huh. Vampires too bothered about keeping their surroundings clean? Strange!

Weren't they like, I don't know, dead?

With shaking legs, I exited the truck, nervous but determined, taking a small step forward.

I had to do this.

For Jake.

For the pack.

With one last retreating smile, I rang the doorbell, a shrieky sound making me jump at my place, my heartbeat audible to even my own ears, as I placed a hand on my heart to calm it down.

Best case scenario, I would have a panic attack and would faint before being chomped for dinner. Worst case scenario, I am dinner.

If I had to choose one, I knew which one it would be.

I rang the doorbell again, when after a few long minutes, the door was yet to be opened.

Was anyone home?

Had they all gone on a killing spree?

Should I alert the wolves?

"Um, yes?"

The door was slowly opened, a girl, a human girl close to my age, staring back at me, waiting to be answered.

Had I got the wrong house?

She was definitely not a vampire!

But...this was the only abandoned house in Forks?

Had they lied to Sam about their whereabouts?

But...Sam had mentioned that he had done his own research to find out where they were residing?

Who was lying then?

"How can I help you?" she repeated, not quite amused by my presence. In her defense, I was standing at her doorstep gaping like a useless fish, waiting for the aliens to come down from wherever and take me back to their planet. Or something.

"Um..." I was puzzled. Truly. "You live here?"

She frowned. "Not really. I like to sneak into empty houses and pretend like they are mine." What? "Just kidding." A chuckle left her lips. "Yes, my parents and I just moved to Forks a couple of days ago and have bought this old dump. I am Tia, by the way."

Her parents? Humans?

It had to be that. A human couldn't survive amongst a coven of vampires. And she didn't look like a pet? She was smiling and had no bite marks on her body...

"Bel...Bella." I faintly remembered to introduce myself. "I was just passing by...I was wrongly informed that someone else had moved into this house."

"Oh?" she frowned. "Strange. My parents have briefly interacted with a few of the residents. A Mr. Newton?"

"Oh, yeah. He owns Newton Outfitters in town. His son, Mike, is our age. Sorry, I assume you are seventeen?"

"Yup." she smiled. "So, Bella, you live in Forks?"

"No, La Push. It is a half hour from here. You should visit sometime; it is beautiful!"

"I sure will." she smiled. "I had secretly hoped that you would say yes." she giggled. "I am terrified to go to a high school in which I know nobody, come next week. It would have been nice to have a friend."

I shrugged. "Sorry. I attend school in La Push. But I do know many of your classmates. I conduct a yoga class in town, frequently attended by many of them. If you want, you can come down one day and meet them before the dreaded first day arrives?"

"Really? That would be great!" she grinned. "It would be a huge help!"

I smiled, waving her off. She seemed to be a sweet girl. Maybe Sam had got it wrong. There were no vampires residing here.

"Okay, then. It was nice meeting you." I shrugged, taking a step back. I felt like a fool. I had knocked on her door for no apparent reason, simply believing that vampires called this normal-looking house their own. As if!

"Same." she smiled. "See you soon, Bella!"

"Yea." I embarrassedly whispered, walking back towards my truck, needing to rethink my next step.

I was such a fool!

Tia's POV-

"Phew." I shut the front door tightly, in Ben's arms as soon as the action was done, my family staring back at me, all gathered in the living room of our new house.

"Who was she?" Rose questioned, fear in her eyes. "A threat?"

Out of all in my family, Rose was the most protective. Even more than Jasper at times. She worried incessantly about us coming across a threat.

I waved her off. "Just a curious human. A passerby."

I had no reason to repeat the conversation that occurred; they had all heard it anyhow.

"You want to attend high school?"

Ben raised my chin softly, my eyes meeting his.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He looked hurt.

I softly giggled, taking is hands in mine. "No, silly. I fibbed on that. I know my future. I don't need to go anywhere specific to figure it out. I just said that to appear more normal in front of her."

"Well," Alice sighed. "It is a good thing you fibbed. This was the opening we needed."

"What do you mean?"

Everyone in the room was cluelessly staring at her, before she moved to the right, letting a shaking Jasper come into view.

Why was he shaking?

Why were his eyes coal black?

He didn't appear angry. Or hungry. More like taken-aback.

"Alice?" Leah asked, just as Garrett and Rose mumbled an 'oh shit' simultaneously, possibly figuring out what was going on with Jasper.

"He found his mate." Alice smiled, solving the puzzle for the rest of us, unmated ones.

"When a vampire scents their mate, they know immediately." Garrett added. "Jasper is just in the vampire equivalent of shock. This is the expression we all replicate in that one precious moment." he laughed.

"Who? Bella?" I shrieked out. "But she is human?"

"Does not matter." Rose shrugged, now firmly on Jasper's side. "She is Jasper's mate. And our new sister."

But she was a human?

I know. I know.

I am human, too.

But the situation was vastly different than what it had been between now and then, no matter how few years had passed in between.

I had no family searching for me.

I could easily disappear without a trace.

Bella had a family. It wouldn't be as easy.

But this was Jasper's happiness on line; of course, he deserved the happiness. He deserved to be closer to his mate.

We would do anything and everything to get him closer to his mate.

"I... I need some time to think. Nobody act until I return." He quickly rushed out of the house, leaving ten confused faces staring at his retreating form.