High School Sweetheart [Jacob & Edward]

six.

That's Bella's first mistake. She got caught by Jacob of all people. She knew once he got his nose on a scent, he wouldn't just let it go. Their dad's old truck wouldn't be able to catch the cars in the group that had hit Charlie, so Jacob spends all of his free time with the pack. He spends it under some old, rusty car that he'd gotten out of some junkyard, trying to fix it up as best he can. When he's not under that car, he's at the bait shop trying to get extra money to spend on the car. It's an obsession. An obsession that worries Bella enough that she starts following him into the shack. He shakes her of course, leaving her with Leah. Though, if it means keeping an eye on him, she'll take it. 

To Leah's credit, she tries to be a good host, tries to include Bella in whatever she's doing. Maybe it's the empathy from trying to keep an eye on Seth, but she seems determined to make sure Bella feels welcome. 

Currently, they're in the kitchen preparing some kind of lunch for the pack. Leah's humming something as she slices up meat and Bella's trying to help, but her mind is outside. The boys made a run into town to get something from the local auto parts shop and now they were carrying their haul into the garage. 

It was just a car. Bella knew it was just a car, but she also knew what building it meant. She knew that if he succeeded, there would be no stopping him, nothing she could possibly do. If Jacob couldn't get the hunk of junk to go Mach 10, which was the more likely option, she also knew what that meant. He'd lose so much time, so many years, trying to get it to work. He'd only get angrier when it didn't. Instead of being happy Billy was still with them, he'd spend the rest of the time his dad has bitter. 

"Hey," Leah's hand on her shoulder brings Bella back to the kitchen, "he's going to be fine. We'll keep an eye on him." 

It'd be nice if Bella could just put trust in that, but she had the sneaking suspicion that Jacob hadn't told them everything. He hadn't told them all of the details of that night, why he was suddenly putting all of his interest into this shitty car instead of into his motorcycle. The boys are happy to go along with the new development as well, Embry and Quil bickering under the hood while Seth plays around with the interior. They seem happy just to seemingly have Jacob back, Jacob who had always had an interest in working on anything with an engine and wheels. 

"So, you think she's gonna tell her?" Embry asks, trying his best to discreetly glance up at the kitchen window.

"Like ever or today?" Quil responds, not taking his focus off of the wires around the engine. 

Embry looks like he's about to respond, but pauses as they hear the quiet, little shuffle of Seth sliding out of the backseat.

"Will you two drop it already?" he huffs, shaking his head as he yanks the carpet with him. 

"Aw, c'mon, Seth. Don't you want her to be happy?" Embry mutters in a surprisingly serious tone.

Seth glances up at the window for a long moment, eyes catching Bella in the window. Her eyes are on Jacob, whose legs are sticking out, as he drips oil into a pan underneath the hunk of metal he calls a car. She's not here to spend time with them. She's clearly here because she's worried about her brother and she was well known to do anything to protect him. Anything.

"Yeah, but I don't want her getting hurt again." He mumbles, turning away as he tosses the putrid carpet over into the rest of the pile. 

Embry's about to say something, but it's covered by the sound of Seth starting the vacuum. 

Jacob almost looks as if he's back on track, back to the old Jacob who everyone was fond of. Matter of fact, he seemed to make an impression everywhere he went. Even on a Cullen, specifically Edward Cullen. Bella hadn't shared her theory with Jacob. She didn't want him chasing after them if they were actually dangerous, and didn't want to put them in danger if they weren't. She hadn't even had time to study them from afar, because Edward would stop in the middle of whatever they were supposed to be doing in Biology to ask about Jacob.