Chapter 32

You sit there in your heartache
Waiting on some beautiful boy to
To save you from your old ways
You play forgiveness
Watch it now, here he comes

He doesn't look a thing like Jesus
But he talks like a gentleman
Like you imagined when you were young —When You Were Young, The Killers

Bella

In anticipation, I spent most of the afternoon dancing around the bedroom and trying on clothing for my first legitimate date with Jacob, bubbling with excitement.

I wanted to look special for this dream occasion, so I chose a summer dress that fell above the knees, with a scooped neckline and thin shoulder straps. But then, at the last minute, I suddenly felt like I was showing too much milky skin. I changed into another knee high dress that showed less skin but was much more formal looking. I was definitely out of my comfort zone. After all, driving to Port Angeles for dinner was the only plan we made, so far. I realized how labeling this a date instead of just going out together, like we'd already done, was bringing me an unusual amount of unfounded stress.

This is all your fault for not knowing how to properly date, weirdo...

The more I stared at myself in the mirror, listening to my pesky inner critic, the more I convinced myself I was now way overdressed, but I was also out of time; Jacob would arrive any minute. If I changed into something casual, I'd have to restyle my hair. I scrambled to the closet anyway and slipped on an out-of-style short, leather jacket, regulating my breathing to calm my sudden nerves. The combination didn't look bad, so I stuffed it into an oversized handbag.

When I heard Jacob drive up, I peeked outside to see what he was wearing. Dark blue denim pants and a dark button-up shirt, untucked with his sleeves folded up to his forearms. More casual than me, but hot, nonetheless.

"Bella, he's here!" Mom yelled.

While I listened to him knocking and Dad answering the door, I critiqued my manicure, and lace-up sandals, highlighting a perfect pedicure. I blew out a breath about to go but began pulling out the hair clips and hair pins from my partial updo. As I was tousling my hair into a bunch of loose curls, I noticed my hightop sneakers setting on the dresser. I grabbed them and stuffed them in the bag. Along with the jacket, they gave me some sort of comfort.

I tuned into Dad and Jacob's conversation on the way down.

"So, you're driving to Port Angeles, I hear?" Dad said.

"Yep. Just because there are more places to eat and more things to do."

"I checked the weather. There's no rain forecasted, but if that changes, would you do us a favor and head back early?"

"Dad!"

Jacob spun toward me. His shoulders straightened and, as if we were in some cheesy romance movie, it seemed like time slowed down while I watched his eyes widen and his Adam's apple bob. When our eyes connected, my entire body flushed with warmth. Regardless of how many years I'd known him and how many times I saw him, he still filled me with butterflies. Especially when he looked at me the way he was looking at me. As if dazed.

"Aww," Mom said, taking Jacob's attention away and giving me an embarrassing but welcomed interruption.

Jacob made a subtle shake of his head, cleared his throat, and said, "Sure, Charlie. We'll keep an eye on the weather."

"Wait!" Mom said and dashed out of the room.

This Lady! "Mom, we need to go." I knew what she was up to, so I clutched Jacob's hand and hurried him out the door. He seemed to take his time hanging back. I gave him a look of "this is what you get" as mom came rushing outside after us with a camera in her hand.

"Oh, no you don't! No one is getting into that car until I get one," she said.

Dad was following her with a smirk on his lips. Jacob and I exchanged "oh, well" glances and let her usher us in front of the flower bed, where she directed our positions and called for smiles. It was so embarrassing, but in the fun way.

Once inside the car, Jacob reached for the bag on my lap. "Should I put this in the backseat?"

I nodded and handed it to him.

He made a face. "What's all in here?"

"Just necessities."

We were barely out of the driveway and up the street when Jacob pulled over to the curb. "Do you have the cellphone?" he asked.

"Uh, huh. You know they never let none of us take a road trip without it."

"Let's make reservations for that new Italian restaurant."

"Jake, that place is... fancy and probably expensive."

He shrugged. "I think we should go somewhere so people could see you. You're all dressed up and everything and you... No, you don't look beautiful..."

I scrunched my brow.

"You are beautiful, and that word isn't even enough." He lifted my chin but as he was placing his mouth on mine, a despicable car horn blared, pulling us apart. I looked out the window as Emmett and Jasper drove by, honking, grinning, and waving. I'd timed our get-a-way, relieved they were still gone when we left because Emmett loved poking fun at everybody and everything. No person or occasion was ever off-limits.

I decided to use the drive to figure out how to set the date apart from other dates Jacob went on. That wasn't something I normally dwelled on, and I didn't feel good about doing it. I would rather just enjoy falling in love with him again. But ever since we got back together, it was like an annoying itch in the back of my mind. An itch that made me wonder how I compared. "Do you have any thoughts about what to do after dinner?"

"I thought I'd let you decide," he said.

"Oh, the pressure."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I just..." I felt hesitant and somewhat sheepish at the question. "I want to try to make sure we have a great time."

He chuckled. "We don't have to try, do we?"

I thought about it. "You're right. Let's just go with the flow."

Before we reached Port Angeles, I convinced Jacob that we should cancel our reservation and eat at a less expensive restaurant. When he objected, I said, "I didn't dress for people to see me. I dressed for only you to see me."

"Good to hear."

We ended up at the smaller Italian bistro whose food was just as good as the fancier Italian place, I assumed. Then we both ended up ordering from the alternative selections. Hamburgers with fries.

Jacob's expression when he saw me coming down the stairs rolled through my mind several times while waiting for our orders, and I thought about the pictures mom took. The spectacle she made from our first formal date didn't thrill me, but I was looking forward to seeing them. I wondered how Jake felt about her overreaction and said, "Sorry about Mom and the picture taking. It's not like we were on our way to the prom or anything."

"It was a little awkward but I didn't mind. I just felt under-dressed, especially standing beside you. I should have worn slacks and maybe even shaved. You were picture perfect, though, and way prettier than all the other girls at the prom."

My sharp mind prompted my swift mouth. "You went to the prom?"

Like a deer caught in headlights, he stilled, his jaw twitched, and then his ears blushed, so I knew he slipped up. "Yeah. I went with Quil's girlfriend's friend. I didn't want to, though."

"Then, why did you?"

"Because..." He sighed and explained, "The only way a junior or sophomore can go is if a senior asks them. So, we were all eating lunch together in the cafeteria and the girls couldn't quit talking about who was taking who. Quil was going, Embry was going, and other junior friends. A girl that was sitting there made a sad face at me and said, 'Oh, Jacob' sounding like 'Poor, Jacob'... 'Do you want to come to the prom with everyone?' Before I could answer, she said, 'You can be my date.' I wanted to tell her no. That I didn't want to go. Plus, I'd already turned down some other girls. They were all staring at us and when I said nothing, I could see the fear in her eyes, that I was about to humiliate her in front of everyone at the table. So, I said, 'Sure,' and I went."

The girl who put him on the spot in front of a group of people irritated me, and part of me felt like if he'd said no in front of everyone, it would have been her fault for asking him in front of everyone. Though another part of me commended Jacob for having a heart. "How was it?" I asked.

"Boring. There was too much gossiping, too many pictures, and too much sitting around, waiting for it to end."

No hooking up then? Of course, I couldn't ask him that.

"It wasn't for me, and I'm not interested in going again."

Prom had never been a bucket list item for me either, so I was surprised to find myself frowning when Jacob hurriedly said, "Unless it was with someone I wanted to go with. I mean... unless it was with you?"

An unexpected and unfettered smile splayed across my face. "Are you asking me to the prom?"

His ears reddened again. Seeing I could make him blush as much as he made me blush gave me a giddy feeling. He matched my smile. "I believe I am."

"You could do that?"

"As long as we plan for it ahead of time and if it's not scheduled for the weekend of regionals, which is typically late April or early May."

The possibility hit me, and I asked in excitement, "Whose prom? Mine or yours?"

His face puckered, and he stroked his chin. "I guess, whichever schedule permits, and if possible, both. I could come home for the weekend of yours and you could meet me in Chemawa the weekend of mine."

Chemawa wasn't but a six-hour drive and knowing Mom, she'd be excited about it and happy to take me to his prom and/or have him come to mine. "I'd love to go to the prom with you."

It was as if the universe was finally coming into alignment for us. He wrapped an arm around me, and we sealed our commitment with a light kiss. This gave me something else to look forward to than just the upcoming Christmas vacation.

During dinner, we discussed plans for afterward. There wasn't much more to do in Port Angeles than in Forks and every idea we came up with seemed unexceptional to me. I was still trying for that stand out date. By the time dinner was over and we were back inside his car, we'd settled on a movie at the mall theater. Boring. Jacob wasn't even a true movie buff like me, Seth, and Emmett, so I just couldn't leave it that way. "What about that out-door go-karting place? I've never been there."

He whipped his head toward me. "Really?" His eyes skimmed my dress, which looked extremely short whenever I was sitting. I pushed my knees closer together as I placed a hand on my lap.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure." I reached for my bag and slid out my sneakers and jacket. "I've got the necessities, and I hear people bragging about it all the time."

"It's a blast."

At the end of our racing time, Jacob reminded me I was way lighter than him. I laughed and said, "Who knew I could be so competitive?"

"I did. I played scrabble with you, remember?"

"That's because Emmett and Jasper always ganged up me."

"I kind of suspected they were passing letters to each other sometimes, but since I couldn't prove it, I never said anything. Plus, you looked cute whenever you got mad."

"No wonder they always sat by each other. Assholes!"

On our way out of the arena, we passed a rowdy bunch of guys who'd stared at us the entire time we were there. I thought I'd even heard them saying something about Jacob the first time we passed them but kept it to myself because Jacob could have as volatile a temper as Emmett, depending on the circumstances.

"Black..." a deep voice said, making me stiffen in alarm. There was at least ten of them.

Jacob turned his head in their direction, acknowledging them. "Yo, what's up?" He wasn't afraid of anything. Dallas Winston.

The ring leader, a buff, blonde, scruffy guy, wearing a black shirt with cut-off sleeves, stormed toward us. When he smiled, I exhaled.

"I thought that was you, but I wasn't sure. I figured I'd say your name just to see if you looked," he said.

"Alistair, its been a long a time. It took a minute to recognize you, too," Jacob said. "Still boxing up in Seattle?"

"Nope. I haven't boxed since I moved here three years ago."

"That's too bad. Better get back at it. You've got too much talent to give it up."

The guy shook his head and said, "Nobody misses me. I see you met your match out there on the track." He wasn't lying. I left Jacob in the dust every time. Alistair's eyes fell to me. "Because he sure hasn't met one in the ring."

"Alistair, this is my girlfriend, Bella."

"Hello."

"Alistair gave me some of my most brutal battles in the ring when we were growing up."

Alistair let out a laugh. "Shit. It never felt that way to me."

One by one, several of the other guys that closed in on us came up and greeted Jacob, introducing themselves, and shaking hands with him or patting his shoulder. I couldn't help but ponder it as we drove back to Forks. Even if Jacob didn't know them, they knew him and seemed honored to know him. "That guy and his crew seemed to really admire you," I said.

"Alistair is a tough, tough fighter but I heard he got heavy into drugs. Now he just goes around causing trouble and kicking whoever's ass he can kick. A worse bully than Paul ever was."

"Well, he seemed proud to know you. They all did. They made me feel like I was with a famous person. I think it's a sign of things to come."

He broke with laughter. "I don't know about that."

I laughed but I wasn't joking with him. Jacob had something special, and people recognized it.

Next Time: Old Ben gives Jacob something to think about.