Bella slid her shirt off as she walked toward her closet, and a sharp hiss startled her. She spun toward the noise and yanked the shirt over her chest to cover her bra-clad torso as they both screamed in surprise.
Embry Call sat at the head of her bed, as red-faced as Bella for once. She spun around and slid back into her shirt. Hastily buttoning it back up, she yelled, "Embry, for fuck's sake, bro!"
She felt more than heard him stand and step closer as he said, "B-bells. I'm s-so sorry. I swear I-I didn't mean to…"
Turning back toward him, she ignored his awkward stuttering and threw herself at him. Embry's arms flew open to catch her as she hugged him. They slid around her torso and squeezed her tightly enough to halt her breath. She gasped for air when he finally let go and looked up into his face, panting. His familiar impish grin made her smile as they both calmed.
Bella asked, "What are you doing here? Not that I mind, but…" Glancing to her right, she realized the window was open. "You climbed in through the window?"
"Uh, yeah." Embry reached up and rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry about that."
"How did you even know it was mine?" Embry had never been to Charlie's house, though Jacob had many times.
Bella knew it likely should offend her that so many of her friends felt it necessary to make themselves right at home in her bedroom without asking first. Despite that, she was too happy about seeing Embry to mind. Suddenly, the memory of Quil's tear-filled eyes the previous morning slammed her, and Bella immediately scowled. She reached up and delivered two hard slaps to his chest, the impact stinging against her palm.
Jesus Christ, he's like a brick now.
Embry jumped back and asked, "What was that for?"
"You know!" She yelled, "How could you hurt Quil like that? You just ran away from him like he's nothing, Embry! That's your best friend!"
The boys knew how she felt about abandonment. Embry's face fell as he took another step back and sunk onto her bed.
"That's part of why I'm here, really," he said, staring at the floor. "I miss you guys. All of you. I'm just pretty sure you're the only one that will even speak to me right now. You're also technically the only one they did not order me to stay away from." Embry's head jerked up, his eyes wide, nearly panicked-stricken as they met hers. He'd clearly said too much.
Bella stood straight as her temper flared. "Sam Uley cannot keep you from your loved ones! He does not own you, Embry!"
Embry shook his head. "Bells, I wish I could tell you everything that's happened. That I could tell all of you… but I can't. I just…" Embry's eyes filled with tears as his breath hitched. "I needed to get away from everyone for a minute, and this was the only place I could go with no one immediately suspecting it. You're my only safe friend right now. I can't trust anybody. I'm not fucking allowed to trust anybody."
The hopelessness in his voice filled her with sadness, washing away her anger in an instant. She crooned, "Oh, Embry… "
"I saw Leah at the hospital. You know… after Harry? She wouldn't even acknowledge me. It's just as well. I'd deserve it."
No, Bella didn't know. Leah never mentioned it. And no one deserved to be ignored by someone that loved them.
Bella said, "She had a lot on her mind, you know? I bet she wasn't even thinking of anything except Harry. Try not to take it personally. I'm sure she was glad to see you're okay, even if she's mad right now. We've all been worried about you. None of us really feel… whole without you around."
Leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, Embry buried his face into his hands. "I panicked when I ran into Quil, but then I had to go. I didn't want to run off like that, but I had to. There was no other choice, Bells, and there wasn't time to explain."
Embry scoffed into his hands, the muffled noise sounding more like a snort. "Who am I kidding? I couldn't have explained if I wanted to, and I can't lie to Quil. I don't want to lie to Quil, ever. Besides, he sees right through me every time."
She tried to soothe him by reaching behind him to rub his back. As he lowered his hands, the corner of his mouth lifted in a soft, appreciative smile.
Glancing down at his bare chest, she asked, "So, what is it with all of you being shirtless all the time, anyway?"
Embry laughed. "Hot-blooded, I guess."
Hmmm. Embry's skin was familiarly feverish. Is all of Sam's crew this way, too? Leah was also warm. Perhaps it was simply a genetic thing among the tribe. Or maybe Bella was actually just cold all the time, as Jacob said.
"So, you needed to get away to see a friend for a little while," Bella said. "Why else are you here?"
Embry chuckled nervously and admitted, "Uh, I got in a huge fight with my mom tonight. You know how she is. I don't want to go to Sam's because he'll just bitch at me."
Bella nodded. She understood how volatile Tiffany's behavior could be, especially when she'd been drinking. She treated Embry like shit on a good day.
Didn't Sam know that by now? The thought of him bitching at Embry for something he couldn't control renewed her temper. Sam Uley didn't seem like much of a friend.
Bella asked, "So, you wanna stay here tonight? Like, our little secret so Sam doesn't know?" Take that, Asshole!
Embry's eyes widened at the offer and asked, "Could I?"
Bella couldn't resist his puppy-dog eyes or the slight quiver of his bottom lip. He looked so eager to have somewhere to be and tired and lonely. Bell knew exactly how that felt. Just like that, her anger vanished again, and she grinned at Embry affectionately. "Of course you can. You can always come to me, okay? Anywhere I go, you'll be welcome with me. Are you hungry?"
His shoulders drooped in relief as he released a grateful sigh. "Yeah. I'm starving."
Probably literally. There was a reason Embry always ate at Jake's or Quil's.
"Come on," She said, standing. "Let's go get you something to eat. Making all those muscles probably burns a lot of calories."
He cackled as he followed her from the room and said, "Like you wouldn't believe."
His laughter made her spin toward him to hug him again in her happiness to hear it. With a little more spring in her step, she practically bounced down the stairs to the kitchen.
Bella reheated leftovers from supper for Embry and watched him eat with enthusiasm. She graciously handed over the large serving of blackberry cobbler that Charlie saved back for her afterward. Embry smiled in appreciation and wolfed it down as fast as everything else.
One look as he pushed the empty container toward her had her heading back toward the fridge. He watched her curiously as she made him a thick ham and cheese sandwich, so loaded with meat, veggies, and other fixings that she could barely hold it together. He chuckled as she sat it in front of him and picked it up with both hands, his long fingers keeping it together without a problem.
"I think your appetite has finally met Quil's," she said with a wink.
Chewing, he shook his head as he tried not to laugh. Finally, he swallowed and said, "Not for long, I'm sure."
"I'm sure you're right," she said. "You boys all better marry someone that likes to cook and can afford to feed you one day."
Embry joked, "I guess I'll have to find me a cougar, then."
Try as she might, she couldn't get him to confide in anything he was going through if it concerned Sam. He couldn't give her any answers and seemed to struggle to speak when he tried. He apologized more than once, and eventually, Bella stopped asking questions.
After washing the dishes, she put her laundry in the dryer and went upstairs to change into what sufficed as pajamas lately - an old t-shirt and shorts. Embry laughed when she came downstairs, recognizing the shirt as one of Jacob's old ones.
"Steal that, did you?"
"Uh…" Bella looked down and tugged at the shirt, laughing. "Borrowed a long time ago? It's not like it fits him now, anyway. I have a few of his old shirts, actually." She gestured toward the stairs and said, "If you don't want Charlie to know you're here, you'll have to crash out in my room. I'm not sure when he'll be home. Otherwise, you know where the couch is." Bella pointed her thumb toward the living room over her shoulder.
"I…" Embry hesitated and grinned bashfully. "This is going to sound really fucking weird, but… Is it cool if I sleep with you? B-beside you, I meant. I just… really miss you all, and the… contact would be kind of comforting."
Bella gave him another sympathetic smile. She understood the need for human comfort, and it didn't sound weird to her at the least. "Come on."
She led the way back upstairs, and Embry followed her in silence. She pointed and said, "If you need to use the bathroom, it's right here. You can even shower if you want or something. No biggie."
"Thanks, Bells." Embry ducked into the bathroom and closed the door. Bella went into her room and climbed into bed. A few minutes later, Embry joined her and lay atop the covers at her side.
"Hey, Em?"
"Yeah?" He turned his whole body to face her and resettled himself
"It's gonna suck not being able to tell the guys I saw you. They miss you too. Terribly. I just want you to know that."
"Yeah, I know," he said and sighed. "I saw it on Quil's face. I miss everyone, too. Especially Quil. You don't know how much."
Recalling the devastation on Quil's face and her despair with Cullen's abandonment, she said, "Actually… I think I do."
He smiled at her sympathetically and subconsciously rubbed his chest where she'd slapped him earlier. "Yeah, Bells. I think you do."
She lay her hand on his side. "We all love you, Embry. You know that, right?"
He nodded. Despite the darkened room, Bella could see the shimmer of tears in his eyes. Embry grabbed her hand and slid it toward his back, guiding her to move closer. Bella draped her arm around him snugly and closed her eyes. The warmth radiating from his enormous form soon made her drift to sleep.
When Bella woke later that morning, Embry was gone. Her window had closed, and the opposite side of her bed was smoothed over. It was as if he was never there.
Bella called to check on Jacob first thing. She felt surprised when a snappish Billy answered the phone and abruptly told her she'd have to call back later. His tone left her confused and worried, wondering if Harry had taken a turn for the worse. It filled her with dread.
Of course, Billy would only stress further if Jacob had fallen ill, too. She scolded herself as she hung up the phone, wondering how she could have forgotten to check on her best friend before driving home. She could have at least called while she was at Leah's.
Then again, had I not come home when I did, I wouldn't have seen Embry. Knowing she couldn't tell him about Embry only made her feel worse, and her friend's absence when she woke left her wondering if, perhaps, she had dreamed it all.
Bella dressed quickly and rushed through applying her makeup, accidentally making it slightly darker than usual. She shrugged at her reflection, unsure if she cared or not. The heavy slate eyeshadow oddly matched her mood, echoing the dark cloud that seemed to hover over her since she'd spoken to Billy.
Charlie was awake when she went downstairs, parked in his recliner, watching the news with a large bowl of cornflakes in one hand. Without looking up at her from the living room, he hollered, "Where the hell are you going this early on a Sunday morning?"
"Grocery store," she hollered back as she rifled through the kitchen cabinets for her box of granola bars. "Then I gotta run back out to Jake's later."
"Uh, huh," he said suspiciously. "Come in here for a minute. We need to chat."
The urgency in his tone made her stomach flip. Bella nearly dropped the granola bar in her hand and carefully closed the cabinet door. She moved tentatively to the next room and sat on the sofa facing Charlie.
Hesitantly, she asked, "Ch-Dad? What's wrong? Is it Harry? Did something bad happen at work this morning?"
Charlie gave her his best interrogation face as he set his bowl on the small table next to his recliner and sat up straight.
Her shoulders drooped as she hissed, "Fuck. What the hell did I do now?"
Charlie chuckled, to her annoyance. "Glad to know that look still works." She growled. Charlie raised one eyebrow at her as he tried not to laugh. "So, do you want to tell me who the shirtless giant Mrs. Caldwell saw sneaking into your bedroom window last night is?"
"Nosey old bitch," Bella muttered under her breath as she shook her head.
It was a wonder Mrs. Caldwell never spotted Edward's coming and going despite his mind-reading capabilities. The middle-aged woman next door had a hard-on for one Charlie Swan and used any excuse she could find to gain his attention. Fortunately for Bella (and half of the Forks population), Charlie wasn't interested.
"You usually ignore her gossip," Bella teased, trying to calm herself before her dreadful mood turned her entire day into one long anxiety attack.
"Well, she rarely flags me down wanting to talk about you. Don't distract me, Bells. Was it Jacob Black, or do I have to shoot somebody?"
Bella snorted despite the redness flooding her cheeks. Charlie wouldn't shoot Jacob. He would just tell him to quit denting his siding and use the fucking front door. She wasn't as sure how he'd feel about Embry, even if he liked him well enough.
How the hell do I handle this conversation? She'd promised Embry she would keep his staying the night there a secret, but… if Bella couldn't trust her own father, who in hell could she trust? It wasn't as if Charlie was unaware of Tiffany 'One-More-DUI-Means-Prison-Time' Call.
Bella closed her eyes to clear her head and sighed. Carefully, she said, "Dad? Can you… not be Charlie Swan, my police officer father, for a few minutes? Can you, like, just be a good friend about something for me?"
Charlie's brow furrowed as he stared at her incredulously for ten seconds. Finally, he grumbled, "Yeah, you're gonna just freak me the fuck out, Bella. What the hell is going on?"
She laughed. She couldn't help it. "I'll tell you, but I need you to keep it a secret, or I can't. It wasn't Jake, but it wasn't someone you need to shoot, either. I promise." As he became agitated, she added, "It's not whatever you think it is."
He rolled his eyes and glanced away as he sighed. Suddenly, his eyes snapped back toward Bella knowingly as he pointed at her and said, "Embry Call. Am I right?"
Bella's mouth dropped open in surprise as she nodded. "He, uh… Tiffany." Bella shrugged, knowing it was enough for Charlie to understand. "But he's… He came here because he wanted to be somewhere safe where no one knew where he was."
Charlie relaxed somewhat as he sighed again. "Why here, though? I mean, I don't mind if he really needs somewhere to go, but I didn't know he even knew where we lived."
"Um, yeah. Jake must have shown him at some point."
She wasn't sure that was true now that she thought about it. How did Embry know where she lived if Jacob hadn't shown him? How had he got to her house in the first place? La Push was twenty minutes away by vehicle. Embry didn't even have a driver's license because Tiffany wouldn't take him to the DMV to get one. Bella had offered to take him to get it, but they never seemed to find the right time. He hadn't even worn a shirt! Bella told him the door was open if he needed somewhere to go, but she assumed that implied her driving somewhere to pick him up.
Pulling her from her thoughts, Charlie asked, "You okay, Bells?"
"Yeah." She nodded, meeting Charlie's worried stare. "There's just… a lot of tension. You know, with Embry running around with Sam's crowd these days. He's still beefing with Jake and Quil. That's why he came here instead. He said he felt like I'm his only safe friend right now."
"I see," Charlie said as he leaned back in his chair and reached for the rest of his cereal. "I won't say anything about it, kid. So he just slept over. No funny business? You swear?"
Bella laughed, nodding. "I swear. Embry's like… like a little brother to me, really. You never have to worry about that."
"If it had been Jacob, would I have to worry about that?" Charlie gave her a mischievous smirk as he took a large bite of his cereal. Just like that, she knew Billy had told Charlie he caught her and Jacob kissing on the picnic table.
After swallowing, he added, "I just wanted to be sure you aren't the reason Jake and Embry aren't talking. Are you dating Jacob now? I mean, I don't give a shit, but I'd like to know."
"That depends. Are you still my friend right now, or are you Cop-Dad again?"
Charlie chuckled, nearly sending milk out of his nose. He grabbed a Kleenex from the box on the side table and wiped his nose and mouth. " Cop-Dad. Nice. You should put that on a shirt." Suspiciously, he appraised her for a few seconds. "Definitely Cop-Dad."
Bella sighed as she stood. "That's what I thought. And, no, Dad, we aren't dating. We're still just Jake and Bells."
Charlie gave her another incredulous glance as if to ask, "Yeah? But for how long?"
Bella reached for the empty coffee mug beside him to refill it as she silently admitted to herself that, despite their conversation about their feelings, she wondered the same thing.