The First Drop Of Rain

Chapter Thirty Three

{5 months later- August.}

I sat with my back against the tree, my knees pulled up to support the sketch pad, as I dug around in the hand painted pencil tin. My hair was chopped to shoulder length, though I regretted that decision now as I couldn't keep strands of it back from my eyes half the time. I was alone today, sitting at the edge of the woods that bordered La Push beach. Sam had patrols, Leah was attending to her cousin who was visiting from one of the northern tribes, and Jake was helping his sister's pack their stuff up for college. Ever since Sam had picked me up that day in spring, I found myself hanging around more often. A couple more of the boys had turned, specifically Paul and Jared. Neither one of the boys particularly enjoyed the fact that an outsider was privy to the tribal secret, but there wasn't much that could be done. Despite all of the time I was spending on the reservation, most of which was hiking or surfing with Jake, I was still able to hang around town with Gaia.

Jessica had returned shortly after spring break, and her attitude to me had changed dramatically. She apologized to me for how she had acted in the past, explained that things weren't okay for her and she was taking them out on me. Angela had started hanging around more, bringing Jessica along sometimes, but usually it was just her, Gaia of course was a permanent fixture, and the three of them now created the table at which I sat during lunch. I spent the remainder of the year eating lunch with them, occasionally some of the guys would sit with us, mainly Mike Newton. Something that caught both Gaia and I off guard however, was how well I took to driving. Gaia had barely managed to obtain her license, passing the test by a hair, but I seemed to have no problem. My official test wasn't for a month, I was still fifteen, but my driver's ed was going swimmingly.

I continued digging around in the pencil tin before realizing I couldn't find the eraser, and the frustration only built inside me. "Damn it!" I all but shouted, slamming the sketchbook shut and chucking it into the woods in frustration. I knew I'd have to go retrieve it, but for now my outburst was satisfying. Burying my head in my hands, with my elbows positioned against my knees, I pressed against my closed eyes. All my emotions seemed frayed ever since the day at the end of the driveway, like being away from Edward had severed some tie and it was slowly unraveling. It had been nearly about two months since my last outburst, which unfortunately Angela saw, and I had been hoping I had put it behind me. When Angela had witnessed the tantrum last June, she of course was all too kind to me.

{Last June}

"Ari? Are you okay?" Angela stood in the doorway of my kitchen, staring down at the cookie sheet I had just chucked across the room. The memory of my fight with Edward had come back when I burnt my hand, albeit not the same way as I had the night Sam went missing, but similar enough to remind me of the photo shoot and how easily I had caved afterwards. The first burn scar still sat long and thin across my palm, but now there was another shorter and fatter burn that crossed it to make a small x shape.

"I'm fine Ang, just... wait in the living room I'll be out in a minute." I spoke a little too harshly as I pulled the medicine cabinet open to grab the burn cream, which also reminded me of that night. I slammed the burn cream onto the counter with a huff and began struggling to open the top, but Angela's hands stopped me.

"You burnt yourself, let me." She whispered, pulling the burn cream from my unharmed hand. She opened the lid no problem and began to apply the ointment to the inside of my palm.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled, flinching only slightly when her fingernail raked the edge of the burn.

"Ari. I've known you for years, you don't have to be sorry for being a little upset." Her eyes were serious as her hands finished their work and recapped the burn cream. "You obviously don't mean for these things to happen, and nobody's gotten hurt... well other than yourself." She smiled sheepishly.