I woke at dawn. Twilight was such a peaceful time of day. It was bitterly cold to most people, so everyone snuggled into their warm beds. But animals were preparing for their day. It was magical to witness all around me.
When the sun came over the horizon, I hoped she had slept long enough. I had to go. Isabella distracted me all weekend, so I wasn't ready for school at all.
There were so many girls at school that I was flirting with in some capacity before I met Isabella. Obviously that had to stop abruptly. None of them seemed worth the effort now. So I just ignored them all, pretended I was deaf. They did not all deserve the same explanation I gave Anna.
After school, I ran home to take the fastest shower known to man. I brushed my teeth, hoping that I would finally land that kiss. I bagged up my shirt and shoes to carry them in my mouth. Then I ran to Forks for my blueberry pie date.
In my sleep clearing, I phased to human and got dressed. I stepped onto the road. I wanted to make it look like I had walked there or something.
She drove past me and pulled into the driveway ahead of me.
She ran right out onto the road. "I was afraid you'd beat me. You didn't walk here, did you?"
"No, I was dropped off," I lied.
"I can give you a ride home after, if you'd like."
"That's sweet, but you don't have to."
She looked a little downcast. "Is someone coming to pick you up?"
"Oh, no. I was just going to run through the woods. It's not far, cutting through the woods. And I run pretty fast." I hoped this sounded believable, but I had my doubts.
"Really?" She looked skeptical. Apparently, she also had some doubts. She had grabbed my hand and was pulling me toward the house. "You live in La Push, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do."
"Okay." She dropped my hand to unlock the door. Then she grabbed it again to bring me inside. "Sit," she commanded, pointing to the table.
I sat. She retrieved the pie out of the fridge. It looked like she and her dad had barely put a dent in it. She got two plates and two forks.
"Can I give you a gigantic piece?" She asked me, looking at me out of the corner of her eye.
"Sure, I'll eat it." She cut a quarter of the pie in one piece and put it on my plate.
"Can you handle that much?"
"I can." I said, nodding slowly, "But you need to eat some, too."
She cut herself a sliver. "I haven't had much of an appetite lately since someone keeps putting granola bars in my truck. They're delicious but very filling."
"Maybe you should report them to the police," I suggested playfully.
She laughed. "Never! My dad would flip."
"Why's that?"
"Well, Paul," she looked me in the eye. "They appear at mysterious times when no one has been around. And they are all the same flavor, a flavor I recommended to a boy that I just met. And I don't think my dad wants me getting involved with any boys that I just met."
"Why's that?" I asked, my eyes darting around her entire face, trying to memorize every expression as she spoke animatedly.
She looked me in the eye, deciding how much to tell me. With a heavy sigh, she said, "He didn't like Edward. He wants me to find myself, be single for a while, and I'd agree with him, in theory at least, but sometimes that's just not how it goes."
"So he doesn't know about our date?"
"He knows you brought the pie, and he knows that you're coming to help finish it. But he doesn't know that it's a date. I suspect he has a hunch though."
I didn't know what to say to that. This was my first date ever. I had no experience when it came to sucking up to parents. I had no advice that would make it easier with her father. So I changed the subject. There was so little that we knew about each other. So many topics were waiting to be explored. I wanted to start with the basics,
"Hmm, Isabella," I leaned back as I spoke slowly, letting my body spread out in the kitchen chair. "What year are you in school?"
"Senior, you?" Her eyes were on my body now. I liked how that made me feel.
"Senior," I said. While eating my pie, I let my eyes wander around her body now too. It was easy to let my eyes linger on her perfect tits and shapely legs. Delicious. "So are you seventeen?"
"Eighteen. I had my birthday last week." She stopped looking at me and took a bite of her pie.
"Oh, happy birthday." I studied her face again. "Wait! Your birthday was right before Edward left you in the woods?"
She nodded. "I really don't want to talk about them." She still wasn't looking at me. Her gaze was on the table.
"Ok." They were a definite mood killer, so I was fine with that, too.
"So, are you seventeen or eighteen?" She asked me, finally looking at my face again.
"I'm eighteen too."
Her face lit up. "Did you just have a birthday too?"
"No, my birthday is in July," I explained. "My parents messed up my kindergarten registration, so I've always been one of the oldest in my class, except for the kids who got held back."
"Oh, me too," she said, watching me eat pie. "Not the kindergarten thing. But I've always been one of the oldest too. It's just because my birthday is so near the beginning of the year."
"Hmm, so that's one thing we have in common." My eyes kept snapping back to hers. There was some sort of pull between our eyes. It felt so intense. I didn't want to look away.
"And we both love berries," she added.
"I love berries. That much is clear." I pointed to my empty plate. "I'm not convinced that you do yet." I said, eyeing her plate with disdain. Most of the pie was untouched on her plate.
"Have you started reading the book I gave you?" She was changing the subject. Maybe she truly didn't like berries.
"I have. It is gripping. I think I'll finish it in a few days, then I'll return it to the library.
Isabella groaned. "I have to tell you something," she said apprehensively.
My heart was racing. "Ok, this doesn't sound good." I braced myself.
She spoke really fast, like she was nervous. "It wasn't my idea and I'm telling you this because I kind of have a crush on you and I don't want to mess things up with you. But I did plan this before I really knew you, ok?"
"What is it, Isabella? You can tell me anything."
She groaned again. "I have this friend that I hang out with at the library. Next time we go, she's bringing her boyfriend and his friend. Since Edward dumped me, it sounds like she wants it to be a double date."
I was pretty sure she was telling me about our double date, the one that Kim was setting up for us.
"Oh." I was unsure how to react. "What day?"
"Wednesday. I wanted to warn you in case you came at the same time as us. I'm not interested in anyone else."
"Only me?" My heart was beating frantically again.
She nodded.
"I could come to the library and scare him off if you'd like."
"I wouldn't mind if you did." She smiled. "But please, if you can, handle this delicately so you don't damage my friendship. I know she's just trying to help."
"I'll think of a way," I promised. "What time will that be?"
"We usually meet around 3:00 pm on school days."
"I can make that work. Isabella, are you going to finish that pie?"
She shook her head. "Want to finish it for me?"
"No, I've been waiting for you to finish it so I can kiss you."
She cut off a chunk and put it in her mouth. I smiled at her eagerness. The pie should probably be in the fridge. It had been on the counter for a while. I stood to put the pie pan away. Then I shut the fridge door and turned around.
Isabella was right in front of me. She swallowed. Her plate was empty.
I put my hands on the small of her back and gently pulled her body flush against mine. She put her hand on my shoulders, winding them around my neck.
I lowered my face to hers, maintaining eye contact until the moment my mouth crashed on hers. Blueberries. She tasted like blueberries.
Her lips were moving against mine so softly. She slipped her tongue into my mouth. I seized the moment, caressing it with my own until she was moaning a little.
Suddenly, she pulled away. She needed air. She was giggling. I smiled down at her, still in my arms.
"What's funny?" I asked. I knew it was a good kiss. I wasn't self conscious about that.
She bit her lip. "I'm just kind of proud of myself for being bold with you."
"I like that you're being bold with me." I confessed. "Don't ever stop."
"Ever?" she asked, bringing her lips back to mine.
"Ever," I said, brushing my lips against hers.
She pulled away again, before we even really got started. "As fun as this is, we should go now. I need to get back in time to make supper before my dad gets home."
"Go where?" I asked.
"To take you home."
"Oh! Yeah, ok." I couldn't explain the wolf run to her, not yet. It would push her away if I told her before she was ready. So I guess she was driving me home now.
"You don't have a backpack?"
"No. I pack light."
"Alright." She took her hands off my shoulders. I guess I was supposed to remove my hands from her waist, so I did that. I leaned against the fridge as she placed both plates and forks in the sink.
Then she grabbed my hand and led me to her truck. She got in the driver's seat. I sat in the passenger's seat, slid all the way to the middle and wrapped my arm around her shoulder.
"I think I might get distracted by you sitting like that."
"Do you want to switch places?"
"It's a stick shift," she warned me.
"Most cars on the rez are."
"Push over a smidge," she instructed.
I moved closer to the passenger side door. She sat on my lap, then slid onto the passenger seat next to me. That made me so hard it was embarrassing. I had to hope she didn't notice.
I slid to the driver's side. She dropped the keys in my hand after she slid into the middle seat. I pulled us out of the driveway, then put my arm around her.
"Sorry, there's no radio," she said, a little embarrassed.
"I don't mind that. What would we be listening to if you had a radio?"
"I don't know. I'd let you decide since you're driving. Isn't that the rule? Driver's get to pick?"
"Hmm. I think I'd choose this so I could hear you better."
She snorted. "That's really corny, but I like it."
"So you like corny pick up lines? I'll have to remember that."
"I like them from you." She said, her eyes twinkling.
I laughed this time. "That was good, very corny."
She smiled. "I'm glad you liked it. So, I don't know the rez very well. I know how to get to the beach. I know how to get to Jake's house. But that's about it."
"Ah, well, spend enough time with me and that will change. I live on the same street as Jake, so you've passed my house, I'm sure."
"That's convenient."
"The residential part of the rez is pretty straightforward to navigate, as is the business district."
"The business district?"
"The gas station and attached convenience store."
She laughed. "That's the business district?"
"We're an up-and-coming community. The business district is under development. Anyway, it's the recreational areas that can be more confusing to navigate. That is all the pools and rocks around the beach and the trails in the woods."
"But you can help me find my way?" She sounded a little excited at the prospect.
"It would be my pleasure, Isabella."
"Maybe this weekend?"
"You don't have to work?"
"I have to work Saturday, but not Sunday."
"That's awesome!" I exclaimed. "So I can have you for a whole day?"
She grinned at my enthusiasm. "If you want me."
"I do." She had no idea how much I wanted her.
She reached up and held my hand that was on her shoulder.
"Do you have a good raincoat?" I asked. "I don't know what the weather is supposed to be on Sunday. But the rainy season is coming."
"I have a good raincoat, yeah. It's still pretty warm, though. It would be nice if it was a good beach day."
"That would be a gift from the spirits."
"The spirits?"
"Uh, yeah, you said Jake told you some of our legends. We don't have a god, like a Christian God. We have spirits in our traditions, the spirits of our ancestors."
"But you have a lot of Bible names: Paul, Samuel, Jacob, Rachel, Rebecca."
"Oh, that's a holdover from colonization. More and more young families are moving back to traditional Quileute names."
"So are you planning on staying on the rez?"
"Mhmm, I am."
"What do you want to do for work?" She asked. These were tough questions.
"Right now, I work for the council. I used to want to work at sea like my dad, but now I'm not really sure. What about you? What do you want to do?"
"I'm also not sure. When I was with Edward, we were talking about going off to college together, but I'm realizing that was his dream. I'm not ready to be so far away from my dad yet."
"Oh?"
"I grew up with my mom," she explained. "I haven't even been here a year. I kind of want more time with him. I don't want to move away from the area."
"So you guys are close?"
"Kind of. We're kind of like two peas in a pod. We don't chit chat a lot but we vibe really well together, understand each other. Sometimes I think it would have been better growing up with him here instead of with my mom."
"Why's that?" I was surprised at how much she trusted me with her story.
"My mom's a free spirit, bound to roam the earth." She was resting her head on my chest a little. It was so soothing.
I forced myself to focus on the road. "Sounds fun, but it's not exactly a stable environment for a child to grow up in."
"You can say that again." Now she was playing with my fingers. Every touch was all-consuming. "I've been rambling," she said. "Tell me about your parents."
"There's not much to tell. My mom is also a free spirit. I haven't seen her in a decade, so a little more free than yours. My dad is more stable, but he's working at sea. When I was younger, he did a month on, a month off. He'd pawn me off to his sister while he was away. Now he chains contracts, so he's at sea for six months and then he works at a ski resort for as long as they let him. I only see him a few weeks a year."
She was looking up at me, sadly. "Do you have any siblings?"
"Not that I know of. You?"
"No. So you're all alone out here?"
I pulled into my driveway. "I wouldn't describe it like that at all. I've got good friends and family that care about me. I've got my aunt, who is like a mother to me. And my dad sends money and pays the bills for the house. I'm not destitute or anything like that."
"That's good," she said, looking up at me.
I looked down at her and saw pity in her eyes. "I don't want you to pity me, Isabella. I have a good life, just unconventional."
"It sounds like you don't have anyone who really cares for you."
"No, that's not true. My dad cares. My aunt cares. My friends care. I understand it's not like your relationship with Charlie, but it's good enough for me.
"I care," she breathed, not taking her eyes off of me.
"What?" I wasn't sure if I heard her right.
"I care too. I know we don't know each other well, but-"
My lips were on hers. I was trying to pull her onto my lap, but the steering wheel was in the way. I slid towards her and she straddled my lap, kissing me, her mouth open, our tongues entwined. The taste of blueberries had faded. Now she tasted like Isabella and it was so good.
After a few minutes, she pulled away for air again. I'd have to teach her how to breathe through her nose more reliably.
"I care about you, too." I whispered.
She smiled at me, and her entire face lit up. "How about tomorrow I bring the pie here? Then you can have the pan back."
"That's a brilliant idea."
She kissed me again, quickly this time. "I should go."
I took my hands off of her so that she could climb off of me. She moved to the driver's side. I moved to the passenger side.
"Sweet dreams, Isabella," I said as I hopped out of her truck. I stood in the driveway, watching her drive off.
When she was out of sight, I went to the door. There was no fresh scent of Anna, thankfully. I went into my house and went right to Isabella's book. It was entertaining, and I wanted to know what happened. There were a couple of places that were hot enough to jerk off to. Each time I got to those parts, I had to wonder if that was what Isabella had been masterbating to when I saw her in the tree.
Then, all I could think about was her straddling me in the truck. It would have been so easy to rip her jeans open and fuck her right there. Would she have resisted? Would she have loved it?
After some time reading, my stomach was gnawing at me. I got up and made dinner for myself. I continued to read while I ate.
When I got down to the last thirty pages, I stopped. I'd save those for after Isabella's visit tomorrow. I did some housework and ran to Forks.
Another granola bar went into the seat of her truck. Then it was time to do the loop around her house to make sure everything was in order. I needed to know she was safe. As always, her father was watching TV in the living room.
I walked around to her room and I could not hear any rustling pages. Instead, a wet rubbing sound filled my ears. At first I thought she was having sex. For a second, I was crazy with jealousy. There was only one heartbeat. That realization calmed me instantly. She was touching herself again. She was really going at it.
I wanted to see so badly. I wanted to climb that tree and watch. So I ran to my clearing in the woods. It wouldn't be right, violating her privacy like that, not again. I jerked off in the woods, trying to imagine what she was doing, though.
Then I lay down as a wolf. It was drizzling lightly, but I couldn't feel it as a wolf, not when I lay under the trees. I couldn't watch the stars, but I could watch the rain on the grass. It made a pleasant sound, dripping through the trees. The sound made it easy to fall asleep out there.