Title: Point of No Return

Pairing: Jacob/Bella

Status: Complete

Word Count: 51,090

Genre: Angst/Romance/Suspense/Hurt & Comfort/Fluff/AU

Rating: M

Summary: The Cullens never came to Forks. Instead, Bella accepts Jacob's invitation to hang out more in LaPush with him, and they become best friends during her first year in Forks. When James passes through Forks, everything Bella knows changes.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to the Twilight Saga and it's characters. This is purely artistic fiction drawn in inspiration from Stephenie Meyer's words.

Author's Notes:

Hey chicas, thanks for choosing to read my fanfic!

I worked really hard on planning this fanfic's release, creating an outline for the fic, brainstorming, and coming up with ideas to write this work.

I welcome all reviews, positive, and negative. Positive reviews will definitely make my day brighter, and I will absolutely cherish them. But I also appreciate constructive criticism that can help me improve my writing style for the future.

enjoy xoxo

Chapter One

Bella's Point Of View

I was laying down, stretched leisurely over the frayed couch that was permanently posted in Jacob's garage. One of my arms hung off the edge of the couch, with my fingers mindlessly brushing against the floor. The rest of my body was sprawled out all over the cushions.

Jacob was working on rebuilding the Rabbit, that was stationed just a few feet from where I rested on the sofa. It was an old red thing that would normally have no value to me, but now meant a lot because of all the effort Jacob had put into it.

I even knew that it was called a mid 80's Volkswagen Rabbit. His Rabbit featured a 1.6 liter, 4-cylinder engine that produced 65 horsepower. I learned all of this simply by watching and listening to Jacob as he worked.

Suddenly, he asked me to hand him the wrench, speaking in a deep, theatrical voice that mimicked Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator: "Hand me the wrench... if you want to live."

We had just watched the classic sci-fi movie last night after we'd both finished our homework, and his failed attempt at recreating the actor's deep threatening tone he'd just tried to execute had just made me laugh so hard I had actually been snorting, tearing up and was left with aching ribs from laughing so absurdly hard.

Still chuckling, I lazily reached around for the tool, which was somewhere in the rust-coloured toolbox that sat at the foot of the couch.

I'd finally stopped guffawing long enough to take some steady breaths, wipe away the tears that were starting to form beneath my eyes and actually attempt to do the task he'd instructed in that disastrous, comical accent.

Our childish banter had made our time together so much fun. Jacob's brainless, sometimes irresponsible, immature facetiousness humor brought me out of my usual neurotic and timid self, drawing me into his world where we'd revel in giddy shenanigans until the sunset.

Jacob was so easy to talk to, and so easy to be with. It's no wonder our friendship had formed effortlessly.

I remember when Jake and I first started hanging out.

Jacob had just brought me my rebuilt truck on my first day in Forks, and he'd invited me to join him in LaPush whenever I wanted. That's when I first made the decision to start hanging out with him.

I'd half nervously, half excitedly decided to accept Jacob's offer. He'd said it with so much spirit, happiness and heart, that I could already feel the walls I made in Arizona, start to break away just from the mere, short presence of his company.

The next day, I drove down to LaPush with a mix of anticipation and anxiety, following behind my dad Charlie's, cruiser. Charlie had led the way to Billy and Jocob's house the very first day I wanted to go there, saying that it was because he wouldn't want me getting lost in a town as small as Forks.

But I think he'd just wanted an excuse to drink beer with Billy all day and maybe keep a slight eye on his only daughter hanging out with a boy, regardless of it being Jacob, who he'd known forever. Still, it was nice of him to lead the way. Getting lost my second day in Forks would have truly been embarrassing.

When I first pulled in front of Jacob's place, I saw him already waiting on his porch for me, wearing a massive smile. The loud, distinct roar of my truck's engine had given away my arrival. Jacob probably knew that sound by heart, considering how long he took to rebuild the red beast. At first, I'd been self-conscious about it, but by now it was old news.

I stumbled as I got out of the truck and headed toward Jacob. I bit my lips so hard that I tasted blood, a sure sign of my nerves. As I reached him, a nervous smile spread across my face, mixing with a hint of giddy excitement.

Jacob's house was modest in size, with a structure similar to a cabin, with crimson-red colour panels along the sides of the house. His house had an almond brown roof and an almond brown wood porch. Instead of having the usual stairs that leads to most porches, Billy and Jacob's porch sported an almond wood wheelchair ramp, matching the same wood as their porch.

That day, despite being a little nervous and anxious to hang out with Jake, he and I had clicked instantaneously.

We already had the bond of knowing each other since we were kids and having parents who were best friends, but if neither had been true I think we still would have always found each other.

We'd joke about it all the time, that our friendship was destined. As destined as the Spirit warrior was to become a wolf, we were destined to be friends.

And we only grew in attachment, and in mutual imposing visits since then.

We saw each other basically four days a week, went to bonfires together, went swimming, did homework, and I would sit by him and chat while he worked on his new mechanic projects.

We couldn't stay away from each other. And, Charlie and Billy didn't care in the least.

Charlie had never really held a primary parent role in my life. I'd say it was my mom, Renee, who I was with for ten months every year, but in reality, it was probably me.

My mom, Renee, had a very eccentric, carefree, breezy sense of self. It made her adventurous, and fun. But she was also forgetful, erratic and flighty and in turn, her personality made me the responsible one out of both of us.

Charlie on the other hand was stable. He lived in the same small town his whole life, ate at the same diner, kept the same friends and held the same police chief job for essentially his whole adulthood.

But he didn't really get the chance to parent me, since I only used to only see him every summer when I'd coke Forks to live with him every summer vacation until I turned around fourteen and had enough of the rainy, damp summers.

Charlie was lenient, but responsible, and good-natured. But he was a quiet, nervous, awkward man. Since I first arrived in Forks, he'd accurately perceived that I was responsible and old enough to not need a heavily involved, hands-on parent.

He essentially lived his own life, and I lived mine. He went fishing with Billy on the weekends, he kept to his steady, busy work schedule, and I was left home alone a lot. At least, at first. That was, until Jacob and I began to hang out once a week after school, to twice a week, to now, when he and I hang out at least four days a week together after school or on the weekends, at one of our houses, usually his.

When I first arrived in Forks and started living with Charlie, I started doing the cooking at Charlie's just like I had done at my mom's. He had awkwardly told me that I didn't need to do "all that" and that he could take care of himself, but there was really no point in me cooking dinner each night for myself when I could easily just double the portions and make enough for the two of us.

Besides, either I cooked, or we'd end up eating delivered pizza, microwave dinners or greasy food from the diner that couldn't be that good for his heart. I ignored his dismissal to having me cook, and he reluctantly tried the first meal I cooked, on my first night of arrival, with fussy apprehension.

Charlie had probably been expecting a dish as eccentric as my mom's used to be when she'd lived here. Renee had always been too charitable with ingredients, forgoing the cookbooks and leaning into cooking with her emotions and chi, that she would end up cooking a dish much too sweet or spicy that I just took over the cooking back in her kitchen as well.

Since Charlie had first tried my first cooking, he told me in a gruff, bested tone "It'd be fine if you kept cookin' round the house, I guess." and we ate most meals at home, in agreeable silence since then.

At first, we ate at home a lot, in our agreeable silence, except on the days Charlie called to let me know that he'd be late at work. On those days, I'd eat alone and just leave him leftovers, in a tupperware in the fridge.

Now, Charlie, Billy and I would eat together at Jacob and Billy's house a couple of days a week. Since I was there so often, it only made sense.

Jacob and I would either cook dinner together in Billy's kitchen, usually resulting in pasta sauce splattered all over the both of us, after we'd play around too much and annoy each other to the point of physical, pasta sauce retribution while cooking.

If Jacob and I were too preoccupied hanging out outside, Billy or Charlie would go ahead and order the all of us a couple of large pizzas.

On the three days, I didn't hang out with Jacob, I had work after school at the Newton family's hiking store. I used to work solely alongside Mike Newton. He was constantly flirting and giving me glances that I had no interest in interpreting.

But, when Mike started to fail Chemistry a couple of months ago, he complained to me one day about it, saying that he wouldn't be able to work with me anymore because he'd need to see a tutor on the days we worked together.

I had nodded my head, 'mhmm'd' considerately at the right parts of his rant, and when he kept complaining I replied to his news the best I could in a false sympathetic tone, as I tried not to jump for joy that I wouldn't have to work with him anymore.

But when I arrived home that night, an idea came to me that filled me with real excitement about my part-time job, for the first time ever.

I immediately called Angela who I knew had been wanting to get a part-time job so she could have more money and I told her the news that Mike wouldn't be able to work on the days that I work anymore because he needed after-school chem tutoring now, and I told her that the two of us should work together, in an over-excited tone, as the words rushed out of me.

Angela easily got the job and since that day we've worked together at the Newton family's hiking store in joyous harmony while chatting and delving into our personal lives when customers were farce and the store was empty. And, I was finally free from the confines of a workplace with a flirty, insistent Mike Newton.

At school, I mainly stuck with Angela. She was a reliable, dependable friend and she wasn't a massive gossip.

I also hung out with Eric Yorkie and Jessica Stanley quite a lot. Eric was Angela's boyfriend, he was nice, intelligent and funny and Jessica was close with Angela when I'd first met her, but she slowly started to cozy up with Lauren Mallory when Angela and I became closer friends.

Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley also sat at our lunch table, but I just couldn't really get along with either of them.

Tyler Crowley was always on an on and off again relationship status with Lauren Mallory. They were a toxic duo that I genuinely had no interest in.

Tyler Crowley barely spoke to me, and Lauren always spoke to me when she had an alterative motive. If there was gossip involving me, usually not true, thanks to the rumour mill at this small town high school, Lauren would reach out as if we'd been best friends forever and outright ask about it.

After Lauren got her fill of her long-awaited answers to the latest gossip, I would always have to hear her dish more rumours right back out, as if I wanted to hear them. (I didn't) I could just never find her pleasant.

Mike, I was visibly nicer to. But it was all curated fake niceties, civility and politeness that I expressed towards him, at least on my end.

With Jacob, I didn't have to curate a personality, put up walls or need an alterative motive to see him.

With Jacob, it was easy.

As easy as breathing.

I brought my head out of my thoughts and dug my hand through the red toolbox until I found the wrench I'd been looking for.

I rolled my legs off Jacob's couch where they were laid lazily sprawled horizontally up on the armrest and I leaned forward, handing the tool to Jake, who while I was laughing, climbed out from the hood of his car and stood before me.

"Here, all yours." I told him.

Jake didn't grab the wrench from my lax grip right away. Instead, he had brought his oversized hand and wrapped it around my fist that encircled the tool and let his fingers brush against my hand for a second longer than normal.

"You're awesome, Bella, thanks," he said before gently pulling my fingers apart with a soft touch, pulling the wrench out from my clenched hand.

"Always making my life and job easier," Jacob added with the biggest smile on his face.

The laughter that filled me up just seconds before quickly evaporated and I immediately sobered up. His brisk, warm, comfortable touch oddly left me wanting more. Despite his hands lingering on mine for seconds longer than usual, it had still felt too brief a time.

I stared into his dark brown eyes, set beneath his thick ebony brows and felt the need to wrap my arms around his constantly growing frame. My reflection on our friendship that I ruminated over– buried in the couch cushions had left me in a sentimental, saccharine state of mind.

The sun setting through the open garage, only added to nostalgic feeling, reminding me of every past sunset Jake and I experienced together, in this garage since I moved to Forks.

The dwindling rays of pastel oranges, pinks and yellows flirted with the sky behind layers of gray Forks clouds as darkness started to take its place.

The waning light and bursts of colours signaling the end of the day, and impending night didn't help decrease the swell of emotions I was assaulted with.

Without thinking, I shot off the couch, in the now dimly lit garage and clumsily bounded toward Jacob's lanky frame, and I immediately wrapped my arms around his skinny, evergrowing torso. His russet arms and woodsy scent engulfed me as he returned my hug.

We stayed gripped in each other's arms for what felt like a long time.

"Bella…", he began, just as I found the courage to be vulnerable.

"I'm so glad you're my best friend, Jake," I managed to say with my voice soft as I eventually breathed out from between his arms.

I felt his body tense and freeze for a moment before he finally relaxed and pulled me in tighter, the top of my head slipped underneath the crook of his chin. His tall build didn't feel intrusive, or overbearing wrapped around my small frame; instead, I felt safe and at home.

"I'm the lucky one here. Should I remind you that you're the one who came all the way from Arizona to be with me?" Jacob smired, kidding around.

"You're so silly. You make it sound like I flew all the way here, just for you." I giggled, rebutuling his accusation.

"Am I wrong?" He said, lifting up an eyebrow as if to challenge me.

"Completly. Utterly. Wrong." I whispered, with my resolve to prove him wrong waning with every word.

I felt like we were each one-halves of a whole.

Our bond was strong, impenetrable.

"Now you are just being mean. You're breaking my heart." He teased with fake sadness.

I reluctantly pulled out from his arms.

And then, I turned on the lamp adjacent to me, lighting up the garage once again.

Jacob and I easily slipped back into our childish banter and the garage was filled with our laughter once again, until I had to drive back home.

Jacob helped me pack up my backpack with my books that I'd left scattered around the garage. And then he slowly walked me to my car, and saw me off, telling me to get home safe.

I started up the truck and slowly drove out of Jacob's driveway. All I heard was my loud, roaring engine as I drove off. And then in the distance, I heard Billy's loud, deep, authoritative voice calling Jacob to get inside as I drove away.

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