Chapter 4: Making Friends

I can feel the tension radiating off of Jake, and I assume it has everything to do with my brother's interruption. I'm actually glad for the distraction, knowing that my conversation with Jake was heading to a full-blown argument over his almost obsessive dislike of Paul's friends.

"Wanna take a walk, sis?" He asks and I nod in agreement before taking the hand he's extended and let him pull me up.

"Bella, do you want me to come with-"

Paul glares at Jake, "I've got her, dude. She's my sister, do you think I'm going to let anything happen to her?"

"She's my girlfriend, so I should be with her-"

"What the fuck, Jake?" I jerk my head towards Jake and glare, "That is not a conversation we are even close to having, could you not put a label on something that isn't even happening?"

"Bells, I thought we were seeing where things go." He replies.

"Really? Because you've not once asked me how I feel about any of this" I retort angrily.

"We've talked for our entire lives!"

"Yes, we have talked our entire lives, as friends. Not once have we talked about moving from friendship to a relationship. Literally no conversation about it all, so how does that translate into you calling me your girlfriend?" I retort.

"We should talk now then-" Jake grabs my arm and I move closer to Paul.

"Dude, you need to chill." Paul warns.

"Paul is my brother, who I am also here to spend time with, I don't need you with me every second, Jake. Please." I add, trying to calm myself.

Jake opens his mouth to say something, but Paul steps towards us, and Jake snaps it shut, turning his attention to me, "I'll wait for you here."

"You don't need to wait for me." I reply coldly.

His dark eyes narrow at me and he crosses his muscular arms across his equally muscular chest, "I want to talk to you."

"Tonight isn't about us, Jake. Tonight is for me to spend time with my brother, and meet some of his friends." I argue and I can feel the tension radiating off of my brother from where be stands with an arm around my shoulders.

Jake says something under his breath, too quiet for me to hear but I can feel Paul shaking slightly. He takes a deep breath and presses his lips to my hair, "Let's go baby sis."

I follow Paul away from the bonfire, passing a tense looking Leah who doesn't even make eye contact, heading down a narrow path that leads towards the woods, "Um, where are we going?"

"Just to talk, away from all of the kids and noise." He replies.

"Kids? Aren't you barely a year older than me and Jake?" I scoff and he laughs.

"Yeah, maybe," He chuckles, "Why are you with Jake? He's fucking possessive."

"I'm not with Jake in the way he is making it sound, we're only friends. If anything we're just hanging out and getting to know each other."

He scoffed, "You've known him your whole life so he can sit back and let you make other friends. I want to spend time with you, introduce you to my girlfriend and my friends, and Jake has hogged you the entire night."

"I'm sorry, Paul. I really don't intend to ignore you." I begin and he laughs.

"Bella, you're fine. Jacob is just a bit much, and you looked like you needed rescuing." He grins at me.

"Leah said he can be really obsessive, is there something I'm missing about him?"

I watch as the smile fades from his face. If I had blinked I would have missed it, and before I can ask him what was wrong he schooled his features, "Leah is a good judge of character."

We keep walking and I steal sideways glances at him, however much like myself he has mastered the art of having a poker face, "Paul, what happened between Jake and you?"

He slows down and is quiet for several beats before he answers, "What has he said?"

I stop walking all together, toeing the ground nervously, "He mostly warns me off about Sam, and even though I've tried to explain that staying away from Sam's 'gang'", I gesture using finger quotes, "includes you, he is still kind of relentless. He's not said it outright, but it's almost as if he thinks Sam somehow brainwashes you."

Paul scoffs loudy and shakes his head, "He's such a fucking idiot."

"You two were friends when you and I first started talking, what happened?" I press.

"Jake and I used to be a lot closer, but as we got older we just drifted towards separate groups of friends." He shrugs, "He's just different."

"Different how?"

"I'm not saying he's a bad guy or anything, but we're just in different places I guess. I'm trying to get my head on straight and look towards a future, and he's just a kid."

"You keep saying that but my point remains, he's only a year younger than you." I raise an eyebrow at him and he smiles at me. It's the first time I realize Paul and I have the same dimples.

"Life for Jacob is different. His dad is the Chief, so by bloodline alone Jake is going to take the reins one day, even if he's not ready for it. He's got a guaranteed future mapped out for him while the rest of us need to figure our shit out. He'll always have a roof over his head, money in his pocket, whatever the tribe can do. We don't have that luxury."

"Doesn't the tribe pay for your security?" I ask and he shrugs again.

"It's just a small stipend. I work other jobs just to make ends meet. I've been lucky to live with Charlie so I can put some money away. Having Jerome's house will help, but it needs work."

"You call him Jerome." I say quietly and his cinnamon eyes meet mine.

"He's lucky I call him that."

"Do you ever write to him? Call? Anything?" I ask and I watch as he shakes his head.

"No. He made his choices Bella. He fucked around on every woman he was ever with, he drank, he hit us, he's a fucking punk ass bitch. He can rot for all I care." He replies angrily and I can see his hands tremble.

I take his fists in my hands and try to soothe him, "I'm sorry." I reply while rubbing my cold hands across his hot ones.

"Don't be. His whoring around gave us each other." He smiles briefly and I return it.

"I'm really glad it did."

He pulls me towards him and hugs me, resting his chin on the top of my head. I still can't understand how he runs so damn hot, but right now I don't care, I just enjoy having my brother close to me.

"He's in upstate New York. He was constantly causing issues when they had him upstate Washington, and they'd threatened to ship him across the country more times than I can count. Guess they finally had enough."

"Did you have contact with him when he was still in state?" I ask.

"The last contact I had with him was my fist in his face. It's the last time that motherfucker put hands on me. He was snot slinging drunk, left the house, wrecked into a fucking family. He killed them." He shakes his head, "I should have killed him first."

"What about your mom?" I asked. Over the years I had tried to get Paul to open up about our father and his mother, but up until tonight he had remained tight lipped.

"She was in the car with him." He replied before pressing his lips to my hair, "She died in the wreck too."

"Paul..." I tried to look at him but he just held me closer.

"She made her choice that night, Bells," He said softly, "Just like every other time Jerome hit us, she chased after him. I had a broken arm from that fight, was all bloodied and banged up, and she left me there to chase him. She always did. Charlie showed up, and we never looked back. Your uncle is a good man, he's the father I never had, and he's the only man I'll ever call Dad. We are so fucking lucky to have him."

"Yes we are." I agree and several beats of silence follow, "What do you want to do now that we're out of high school, Paul?" I ask and I feel him sag against me.

"I'm not the scholar that you are, baby sis. I barely made it out while you graduated in the top ten of a huge class." He reminds me.

"College is different. In high school we had to follow a curriculum they mandated, in college we have a choice. If I bring some stuff home from Port Angeles community college will you at least look over it with me?" I ask hopefully and he pulls away.

"Does this mean you're thinking of staying local?" He asks.

"I'm keeping my options open." I smile and he returns it.

"Come on, I want you to meet my friends." He pulls me along with him, and we keep chatting as we make our way down a narrow path, "There the assholes are," He says with a chuckle as we approach an overturned tree, with two men sitting on it, "Guys, this is my sister Bella. Bella, this is Jared Cameron, and Sam Uley."

Sam Uley, the man who was across the bonfire from me that seemed to make time stand still, the man whose chikdren I'd somehow daydreamed about having is finally in front of me without Jake's interference. His curly hair is shaggy, and messy from where he must have recently run a hand through it, and his russet skin is smooth. He's wearing a black t-shirt with cut-off denim shorts, and his feet are in a pair of black flip-flops. The beer he was drinking earlier is long gone, replaced by a bottle of water. Neither Sam nor I can look away from each other, and an unfamiliar voice breaks our concentration.

"Nice to meet you. Paul's been excited to have you back in the area." Jared says and I finally look away from Sam and smile at Jared.

"I'm really glad to be here, it's kind of crazy to find out you have a whole family you knew nothing about." I reply.

"Plus a pa-" Jared begins and my brother puts him into a headlock and I laugh as the two fight playfully. Sam and I keep glancing at each other, and his previously serious face seems softer.

"How are you liking La Push so far?" Sam asks. His voice may possibly be the sexiest part of him. Deep, smooth and warm, it reminds me of a blanket fresh out of the dryer wrapped around my body.

Much like I'd him wrapped around my body.

Where the hell did that thought come from?

"Charlie and Paul have been really welcoming. Leah and Seth are great, and it's always helpful that I've known Jake my entire life." I offer, hoping it's too dark for him to notice my blush at my previous thoughts.

"Are you and Jake dating?" He asks abruptly and I shake my head.

"No, we're just friends." I reply and I see Sam's lips quirk up in the briefest of smiles.

"It looks like more." Jared says as he and Paul approach.

"That's because the baby Al-" Paul suddenly stops speaking when Jared shoved him, "the baby Chief follows her around like a puppy."

"I'm not much better, since I don't really know anyone I've been the puppy following him tonight." I chuckle.

"You know us now," Jared gestures between Sam and him, "and you're related to this asshole."

"He's not an asshole." I laugh and Jared lets out a loud scoff.

"To you and Emily, no. To the rest of the world, Paul Lahote is a true asshole. It's in his DNA." Jared grins at me.

I raise my eyebrows and smirk at him, "Well if it's in the DNA I must be one too."

"Jury's out on that one, little bird." Sam says, surprising me.

"Little bird?" I query and he nods.

"Swan. Bird. And you're pretty tiny." He states as if it's obvious.

"Of course I'm tiny compared to a bunch of six plus foot behemoths. I'm five seven!" I argue and Paul picks me up and spins me around.

"My adorable baby sis," he grins at me. I love this side of Paul, so young and carefree, "Hey, we really should get back to our girls, you ready Jare?" Paul says as he turns away. I walk towards him and reach out for him.

"You're leaving me here?" I ask and Paul's eyes jerk over to Sam.

"Sam, you'll watch out for her, right?" Paul asks, and Sam nods, never taking his eyes off me.

"Absolutely." He says resolutely and I supress the shiver his voice causes in me.

Paul jogs off, and Sam gestures for me to sit on the tree. I leave some space between us, but I can still feel his body heat, and I wonder if he's as nervous as I am.

"So..." I trail off nervously and he chuckles.

"Sorry, I kind of forced Paul to bring you back here, I thought we could talk in private." He says quietly and I meet his dark hazel eyes, "I saw you across the fire and just really wanted to get to know you."

"Yeah, that was kind of intense." I reply nervously.

"You felt it too?" He blurts out and I can tell from the look on his face he didn't mean to.

"Um, I think so? It was like time stood still, I know it sounds stupid, but it was just, wow." I chuckle.

"Yeah, it was." He agrees.

"Why did we both feel the same thing? Is it something we ate?" I ask and he smiles at me. I notice it transforms his entire face, and what was a handsome intensity turns into a beautiful release.

"Have you heard any of our legends?" He asks and I nod my head.

"Jake mentioned that the elders will sometimes tell stories, but that they weren't going to be here tonight, but over the years he's talked about some of the taller tales."

"Like what?" Sam asks and I stare into his dark eyes.

"The one that intrigued me the most was about the cold ones, I happened to be reading Interview with the Vampire at the time and Jake got a kick out of teasing me with that one."

"Do you remember anything more about that legend?" He presses.

I can see why Leah says he's always so serious now.

"Um, something about our descendants being shapeshifters who protected humans from the cold ones, he said that according to the legends the Quileute had always shifted as wolves."

"Did you believe him?" He asks.

"He laughed it off and thought it was just old men telling scary ghost stories." I shrug, "I think he was trying to warn me before I went to one of the official bonfires just for the tribe."

"That's what Jacob thinks, what about you?" Sam asks, moving closer to me.

The first fleeting thought I have is that I want to kiss Sam Uley. I push it from my mind as quickly as it appeared, mentally chastising myself for thinking about a man I just met that way. Jake and I had talked about so many things over the years, and of course the legends would come up especially once the DNA testing proved I am indeed one half Quileute. I want to tell Sam that the legends are just stories told by old men who want to pass the awe and wonder of their tribe down to the future generations because that's what Jake had told me.

Jake's opinion always made the most sense to me - life on the rez wasn't glamorous, and the younger generation was itching to be free. More people were graduating and leaving the rez as quickly as they could, going away to college, marrying a non-native, or anything else they could do to separate them from being just another rez statistic.

I chose to run to the rez.

Once I knew that Jerome Lahote is my father, and that I had a brother who had been struggling for years, I wanted nothing more than to be here. Paul and I had gotten close almost immediately, and when he asked me to come home for at least a summer before I started the next chapter of my life there was no hesitation. I'd never had a family, and other than my stepfather Phil and a couple of decent friends along the way I'd never had anyone give a damn about me. Here, I had an uncle who was doing everything he could to show me I was wanted, a brother who loved me unconditionally and a best friend who'd waited his entire life for me to finally be back here.

So what if the elders told a few tall tales to entice us to stay?

"The legends are what keeps you here, right?" I ask Sam and his hazel eyes meet mine.

"Why would you ask that?" He counters and his sharp features soften some.

"Because from what Jake always told me, it seemed like as soon as someone was of legal age they left. Like his sisters." I reply and Sam's expression turns thoughtful.

"It's not an easy life for some of us rez kids," He begins and I can tell he's guarding his words carefully, "but there are some of us who want to keep the traditions of our people alive. Those legends have been passed down from generation to generation, added to by each Quiluete family as time goes by. Sure, a lot of us have hopes and dreams to get away from La Push and forget everything they've ever experienced here. Others, like myself, believe in the magic of our ancestors."

I take him in, a face that softens when he speaks to show his true age, eyes that are kind and friendly, warm hands that are gentle as he threads his fingers with mine. His curly hair topping a masculine face with sharp cheekbones, fading into plump lips that are begging to be touched.

"Beautiful." I whisper, and Sam's lips curl up into the most beautiful smile I've ever seen.

"You believe them?" He murmurs, dropping my hands to gently cup my face.

"Everyone believes in something, right?" I reply softly. I can feel almost a tether pulling me towards him, and I'm about to ask him if he feels it too when we're interrupted by another voice.

"So Paul just left you alone out here?" Jake says. Sam had dropped his hands almost immediately upon hearing Jake's icy voice. I look towards my oldest friend and see that his arms are once again crossed across his chest, and I can also see him flexing his muscles.

"I'm not alone; Sam's right here." I offer.

"What are you doing with her, Uley?" Jake asks and Sam watches Jacob intently.

"You should calm down, getting angry right now isn't an option." Sam replies calmly.

"Bella, come on, please?" Jake pleads and I walk towards him, but Sam reaches for my hand again.

"Be careful." He whispers and I furrow my brow at him, "There will be another bonfire soon with the elders, tribe only. Pay close attention to the stories."

"Let her go, Uley." Jake growls.

"Will you be there?" I ask and he gently squeezes my hand.

"I wouldn't miss it." Sam says and then he stands, "Jacob, I'm heading back to the bonfire, I'll see you around. Nice meeting you, Bella." He kisses my hand before dropping it and smiles at me before jogging off towards the beach.

I feel a pull in my chest as I watch him run away. He glances over his shoulder and grins briefly at me before disappearing into the woods. I turn back towards an obviously agitated Jake.

"Jake, you're shaking, and you're sweating, are you okay?" I ask and he meets my eyes.

"I'm fine. I just hate that Paul left you up there with Sam." He huffs.

"Why do you have such an issue with him?"

"I'm just tired of him always being around, watching, acting like he's some protector or some shit. They take things way too seriously." He shakes his head and then threads his hand with mine, "Enough about them, I just want to introduce you to some more of my friends."

"Okay." I smile at Jake, but I can't help the pull I feel that makes me want to go back to Sam.