Chapter 6
•Secrets, Lies, and Guys•
"'Well' what?" prodded Bella.
"Uhhh... Paul had left his... jacket here and..."
"You Quileutes never wear jackets. You're always hot-skinned." She pressed a palm to Jacob's bare arm and pretended to jump back as though she were burned.
"You're just so funny," he teased.
"I am, and you need to tell me the truth," she said.
"Umm, okay, did I say jacket? I meant... uhhh..."
"Just shush! I know that Paul didn't forget anything. I can tell you're lying. What is up?" she begged.
"Listen," he said through gritted teeth, "I can't tell you." His newly developed anger issues were flaring up. "It's not my secret to tell!" He got up and stormed out of the room. Our dumbstruck teacher looked up.
"Where are you going, mister?" he called angrily from where he was standing. He turned to Bella when he didn't recieve an answer. "Where is he going?" he said quieter and quickly.
"Uhh, he... had his cell-phone in his pocket... and it started to ring... and it was his dad... and he picked it up... and he said... it was important and... he had to leave the room... so no one could hear the conversation?" tried Bella. Her voice getting higher-pitched as she neared the end of her lie.
"Okay. He's not technically one of my students, so I guess it's okay, because it's so important..." he said, believing the lie. It's something about English teachers that they're always oblivious...
"Uhh, can I go see if he's okay?" asked Bella nervously.
"Of course," he exclaimed.
Bella rushed out of the room and looked down both sides of the hallway. He was no where to be seen. So she took off to the left, running quickly, tears threatening at the coners of her heavily make-upped eyes. She was scared he'd leave her. She didn't know why, but she just knew it. If he left, she'd lose her best friend.
Her thought was suddenly interupted by running into someone. And that someone also happened to be running. That someone was also one of the people who was practically being stalked all day. That someone was Alice Cullen.
"Oh!" Alice said aloud. "I didn't see you coming!" She really didn't. Bella had been chasing after a doggy! It's not like she can see any of the messed up wolfey things.
"Sorry, my fault, I'm really clumsy," muttered Bella, who still hadn't looked up to see who she'd smashed into.
"No, it was mine, too." Even though, because of her human senses, it was mainly Bella's, but partially Alice's. If her mind hadn't been so preoccupied with Edward's sudden anger she would have paid attention to her bionic hearing.
Bella's eyes raised and met Alice's for the first time. Neither of them had quite realized who they'd run into until now.
"You're... Alice Cullen, right?" asked Bella.
"Yeah. And you're Bella Swan, correct?" asked Alice.
"Yeah. Sorry I ran into you, I was looking for someone and..." She was cut off.
"I was, too. Who were you looking for?" she wondered out loud.
"Jacob Black, you probably don't know him but..." She was cut off again.
"I'm quite familiar with the Blacks, thank you very much," she stated in her sing-song voice freshly.
"Well, who were you looking for then?" returned Bella.
"My brother, Edward," she said simpily, as if she searched for him often.
"Oh... Could you tell me why he ran off after he saw me?" asked Bella. But she slapped a hand over her mouth, she hadn't meant to say that and when she said it, it sounded quite rude.
"Umm, it had nothing to do with you," lied Alice. "He just... When he... Well, say he's forgotton something. He looks around and sometimes a random face helps him remember. You know, jogs his memory? I'm not sure why." She's obviously created this story in advance for such a situation.
"Oh," said Bella.
"You seem pretty cool," complimented Alice.
"Uhh, thanks," said Bella.
"Can I see your cell-phone?" randomly asked Alice.
Bella wasn't sure why, but she took it out and handed it to the stranger. Alice took it and added herself to the contacts along with her cell number. Then she handed it back to Bella.
"Text me!" And with that, she walked away.
Bella just stood there for a second, watching the odd girl walk away. Then she remembered the reason she was in the hallway.
"Alice?" called Bella. Alice promptly turned on her toes, like a ballerina.
"Yes?"
"Have you seen Jacob?" Alice's petite face tightened.
"I think he went that way," she said with a straight face and pointed down a hall. She turned down another hall and left. Bella started running again. She got to the front door, but he was no where to be seen. She suddenly saw a slight movement in the woods to right.
Bella ran outside in the the drizzeling rain.
"Jacob!" she called. "Jacob!"
He slowly emerged from the woods.
"Bella," he murmured softly and came closer.
"Jacob! What is with you? Why'd you run out like that? I had to make some stupid story about your dad calling you about something drastically important!"
Jacob moved closer, within an arms distance. "Bella. Why'd you follow me?" he said quietly.
"Because I was worried!" she yelled, anger pouring out of her.
"Shhh. Don't yell. You could of gotton hurt for following me if I hadn't come back out of the woods. It's a good thing it took you so long to find me. Why did it take you so long anyway?" he asked calmly.
"Alice Cullen was in the hall... But what do you mean, 'Could've gotton hurt?' What are you doing, Jacob? What's so dangerous that you can't tell me?" pleaded Bella, still extremely angry.
"Look, I can't tell you. It's not my secret, well it is, but I can't tell it. I have no choice in the matter... Wait, you were speaking with a Cullen?" He spit the last word out like it was a vicious swear.
"Yeah, Alice Cullen. She's nice," replied Bella, now confused at his hatred toward the surname, "Cullen."
"I thought we told you to stay away from them?" he said, he voice becoming louder, his body shaking a bit.
"She just kinda started talking to me... I didn't... She... Arggg!" As you can probably tell by now, Bella isn't a very decent arguer.
Two forms walked out of the woods behind Jacob, whose body was quivering more by the second. Bella recognized them as Quil and Embry.
Embry began speaking. "Go away, Bella. You're not wanted here."
"What did she ever do to you?" asked Quil to Embry.
"Nothing, she's just not needed. She's not one of us." Bella just stood there, confused.
"Come on, Jake," began Embry, "Let's leave this trash," he said, gesturing to Bella.
Jacob had had it with Embry. Bella was still his best friend. He couldn't stand there and let his best fiend be insulted by his other friend He lunged forward, his body maliciously errupting into the form of a russet-brown wolf. A massive sight to take in when you've had absolutly no experience with anything paranormal. Bella stumbled back blindly. Embry also ripped into a wolf, a bit smaller than Jacob, but still just as scary.
"GUYS!" hollared Quil. "THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR THIS! SAM!?" he called. Bella had no idea why he'd be asking for a Sam when his two best friends had turned into wolves. But suddenly, a third wolf thundered out of the woods, his body as large as Jacob's. By then, Embry and Jake had started fighting. Jacob was obviously the better fighter though, but he had size as an advantage. The third wolf, who Bella was guessing was the Sam, tried to split them up.
Quil walked over to Bella and grabbed her by the arm. (Bella hadn't dated him yet.) Quil muttered to her, "Let's head to Emily's place," and he rushed her to a car in the school lot which obviously belonged to one of the boys who'd been in that scuffle. Bella was still dumbstruck at what had just happened.
The wolves were currently bringing their battle into the woods. Just as the last tail disappeared, the bell rang. It was time for third period lunch already. Second bell must have rung while they were outside. And now it was already third period, how time flies. Bella has lunch third period so she is okay to go.
Quil revved the car engine and raced out of the lot, to the mysterious Emily's house.
After about five minutes, they arrived to a warm welcome of five or more shirtless teenage guys.