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Twilight A.U (Story #7/Pt. 1) |
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(Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it.)
Twilight A.U Pt. 1 _______________________
About a month ago, the Cullen's welcomed Bella into their house to live, permanently. Charlie didn't really approve of the situation, but, he knew it was easier to have her still in Forks, than somewhere else. They still went to school and continued to get decent grades.
However, a few days ago, on St. Patrick's Day weekend, they came in possession of a strange girl. She was no more than 16 or 17 years old. Alice and Jasper found her, walking around in the dense forest, by herself and, clothes tattered a bit and confused. She could barely speak and had little recollection of what happened prior to meeting them. Carlisle found nothing physically wrong with her, other than she couldn't really remember, well, much of anything, and she wasn't human. They knew she couldn't survive out on her own, so they let her stay in the refurbished attic and called her Jade, the name found etched into the back of the pentacle necklace she wore.
Today was the most peculiar, as they had went out to hunt, leaving Jade home with Esme and Bella. Bella had taken to Jade almost instantly and protected her like she as if she was her sister. When they returned, a brown sealed envelope was sitting in front of the door. Carlisle picked it up and saw that it had 'Jade' on the front with their address. He couldn't sense anyone around, so he took it inside. They found Esme up in the sitting room with Jade.
"Honey, did you see or hear anyone come by before we got home?", he asked.
"No, I didn't", she answered. "Why?"
"Because we found this on the steps", he said, holding up the envelope, before setting it on the coffee table. "And it has Jade's name on it."
Her eyes enlarged in surprise. "Here Jade, you keep trying", Bella said, handing Jade the book they were reading.
"O...k", Jade replied hesitantly.
The others went into the kitchen to talk.
"What does it mean?", Esme asked. "Do you think someone is looking for her?"
"I don't know", Carlisle admitted.
"And if it is someone looking for her, are they going to help her or hurt her?", Bella asked, worried.
"Nothing is going to happen to Jade, Bella", Emmett said. "We're gonna make sure of that."
"Did anyone else just hear ripping paper?", Edward asked.
At once, everyone bolted to the living room, where Jade had the enveloped opened at her feet and was twirling what looked like a small silver metal case in her hands. Bella went for her, but Alice held her back.
"No, wait", she said. "Watch."
They watched Jade fumble with the case, before figuring out how to open it. It opened silently and the screens inside lit up.
"Authorization please", said a computerized voice. "Authorization please."
"Aw-thor-eyes-a-shh-eye-on", Jade pronounced faultily.
"Verbal authorization confirmed", the computer voice said again. The screens changed colors and it spoke again. "Finger print identification please. Finger print identification please."
Jade looked a bit confused, but hesitantly pushed her right index finger to the bottom screen.
"Finger print identification confirmed" it said. Beeps and flashing lights emitted from both screens along with blinks of what looked like pictures. "Memory recall in progress. Please remain still."
Then, without warning, bright flash of light bursted from the device that made the Cullen's and Bella cover their eyes. When the light subsided, they gasped. Two steady streams of multi-colored light were going from the screens, directly into Jade's eyes. She sat where she was, unblinking and unmoving.
"What is it doing?", Rosalie asked.
"I don't know", Carlisle said, watching in amazement.
They stood watching her for almost an hour, before the light streams suddenly turned off. She sat still, on the couch for a minute before, in a blink, she was gone. They all looked around wildly, trying to find out where she went. They searched the entire house, the yard and all of the surrounding woodlands till they reached town. They came back at midnight, after finding nothing.
"Where did she go? Did you find her?", Bella asked, worried.
"We couldn't so much as trace her, Bella", Edward said. "We don't know where she went and Alice can't see her anymore."
Bella began cry and Edward pulled her in his arms. He picked her up and carried her up to their bedroom. She cried and cried, until she eventually cried herself to sleep. He lay next to her, softly humming her lullaby, hoping to ease her.
The next morning, she woke up and got ready for school with everyone else. They got to school at their normal time, just before the bulk of the students showed up and stood or sat on the low wall by the door, like they did everyday before.
Just after everyone arrived and were waiting for the bell to ring, almost everyone turned towards the lot entrance and their jaws dropped. A metallic electric blue Mustang Shelby Cobra GT 900, looking like it had just jumped out of a dream racers magazine page pulled in. It pulled into an empty spot and the engine turned off. The right door opened and a few boys let out a wolf whistle. A girl, no more than 16 or 17 got out. She was in ballet flat black shoes, tight dark blue jeans, black and blue T-shirt and black hand bracers. Her brown hair was a bit below shoulder length and straight. Her skin wasn't pale but wasn't tanned either, and her eyes shown brilliant sapphire blue.
She grabbed her bag from the car and closed the door. Almost all of the guys followed her up to the door, either with their eyes or walked behind her. As she drew closer to the Cullen's, she looked at them and winked, but continued past into the school. They all watched her pass, but couldn't help but think how familiar she looked.
"Ok, how come they don't do that for me?", Rosalie asked, looking after all of the guys that had followed the girl inside. "What does she have that I don't?"
"Pigment", Bella said, looking between the doors and Rosalie before grabbing her bag and hopping down from the wall. "And a pulse, perhaps."
Alice, Edward, Jasper and Emmett snickered at Bella's remark and followed her. None of them saw the girl again, till lunch, when she walked through the cafeteria and out the doors. She came back through the same way at the end of lunch, holding what looked like a homemade burrito. She was the main topic of conversation throughout the entire day. The guys were either thinking about her or her car and the girls were either envied of her or hated her because she was prettier than they were.
At the last class, Bella and Edward took their seats in biology, getting ready for their test. As they were just getting settled Edward looked towards the door and groaned.
"What?", Bella asked.
"Looks like miss hot pants is going to be in our class", he answered, nodding towards the door.
Bella turned and saw the girl coming into the room, with a crowd of guys blocking the door. She went to the teacher and handed him her slip, the same one Bella had to give when she first started.
"What are they saying?", Bella asked.
"He's telling her that we are taking a test today, but to see him after class to get the notes of what we did so far", Edward replied. "He just said she's gonna sit, right there."
He pointed to the empty table right beside them. She walked over and sat down, after throwing a wink at Bella. She sat at her table, by herself, drawing and writing things while everyone else took their tests. When the bell rang, the teacher had already given her the past notes, so she put her things in her bag and got up. She flipped her hair back behind her, hitting Mike Newton in the face, nearly making him faint, before leaving. Bella looked down to pick up her bag and saw a piece of paper on the floor.
"What's that?", Edward asked.
"I don't know", Bella said. "I think that girl dropped it."
"What is it?", he asked again.
Bella opened it and her eyes got as wide as golfballs.
"What?", Edward pressed.
"It's from her, to me", she said. "'Bella, see you later at the house, after a small drive.'"
"Do you think-?", Edward started.
"It could be", Bella finished.
They left class and met the others in the parking lot.
"You got one, too", Alice said, pointing to the paper in Bella's hand.
"How did you get yours?", Bella asked.
"She just handed it to me", Alice said simply.
"Well, if we're gonna know for sure, we better get back to the house", Emmett said.
"And call Carlisle", Jasper added.
They got into Edward's car and Emmett's truck and drove back to the house. They waited until Carlisle came home, told him about the days events and then waited still. Sunset came and went and still they waited.
Finally, at half past seven that night, the roaring of an engine came up the drive. They recognized it at once as the same car from before. They went out and stood on the front steps as the Mustang pulled up to a stop in front of the garage door. The right door opened again and the same girl got out. She closed the door and leaned against the car door. In the light from the house, the necklace she wore sparkled and shone, looking exactly like Jade's. They knew then, it was her.
"So, you like the ride?", she asked.
"Jade!", they shouted.
Alice, Esme and Bella ran to hug her. She giggled and hugged them back.
"What happened?", Bella asked.
"Where were you?", Esme asked next.
"We missed you, Jade", Alice said.
"I'll explain when we go inside", Jade said.
They went inside and sat down in the living room.
"When is he coming?", Alice asked.
"Later tonight", Jade answered.
"Who's coming?", Emmett asked.
"Later, bud", Jade said.
"Right", Esme said, wanting to know everything. "What happened?"
"Ok", she said, pulling out the same silver device that was delivered to her the day before. "I will let PADIK explain."
"PADIK?", Edward asked.
"Yes", she said, opening it and laying it on the coffee table. "PADIK?"
Two multi-colored streams merged and made a 3-D image of what looked like a doll head emitted from the screens.
"Yes, mistress?", it asked, in the same computerized voice.
"Will you please explain what you are and what you did yesterday?", Jade asked, sitting back on the couch, looking at her watch.
"Yes, mistress", it said. "I am PADIK. A Personal Assistant and Discretional Information Keeper. It is my duty to store the most critical of my mistress's information in my memory. Along with other things, I can detect threats to my mistress and determine the best way to solve them. I am linked to my mistress at all times. When my mistress went missing, I was dispatched to find her and relay that she was alive and well."
"How did you know to find her here?", Emmett asked. "What, do you go through the post office?"
"Negative", PADIK went on. "I have a very strong homing device and am able to pinpoint an individual with their brainwaves to within 1/1,000th of a centimeter. Once my mistress opened me, and made it known it was her, I unlocked my highly encrypted memory bank and relayed her past memories directly to the memory center of her brain. Once my mistress's memory was completely restored, I transported her to her home where Sir helped her with the aftershock."
"Aftershock?", Bella and Rosalie asked at the same time.
"When your brain is in neutral, like mine was for a while and it suddenly snapped back into active, it shocks you", Jade said matter-of-factly. "Generally it's good to have someone help you go through it. It makes it easier. Contactual comfort works wonders."
"And that's who's coming later?", Jasper asked.
"Yes", she replied.
"So, you're like her second brain, almost, right?", Edward asked.
"That would be correct", PADIK said. "Mistress?"
"Yes, PADIK?", Jade replied.
"My previous overview of your automobile has yielded the detection of a loose cylinder on the passenger side", PADIK said.
"Oh, ok", Jade said, looking out of the window at her car. "Thanks, I'll take care of that in the morning."
Just then, a knock came on the front door.
"It's Charlie", Edward said.
"Who's that?", Jade asked.
"My father, and the police chief", Bella said, pulling her hair back.
"Gotcha", she said. "PADIK: house mode."
"Yes, mistress", PADIK replied and marvelously transformed into a black and white kitten. She gave a small meow and jumped onto Jade's lap. Edward got up and answered the door as everyone found a spot to sit.
"Hello, Charlie", he said. "Please, come in."
Charlie came in and took off his coat, then tucked it under his arm.
"What brings you here, if I may ask?", Edward asked.
"I just came by to see how Bella is doing", Charlie said.
"Of course", Edward said leading Charlie into the living room. "Bella, your father's here to see you."
"Hi dad", Bella said, getting up from the other couch to hug her father. "How are you?"
"Ah, you know", he said, sitting in the spare chair Edward just brought in for him. "Work, work and work. "
"Yeah", Bella said, chuckling.
"Oh, hello", Charlie said, finally seeing Jade.
"Hello", Jade replied, not getting up, but giving a small wave.
"Dad, this is Jade", Bella said, gesturing to her. "She just moved in from out of town."
"Oh", he said, nodding.
"She's my niece", Esme added, when Charlie looked a bit cautious. "She was living with her boyfriend for a while and they had house problems."
"Domestic?", he asked.
"No, structure problems", Jade said. "The apartment we were staying in was pretty much falling apart, so I called my aunt to ask if we could stay with them for a bit."
"Well, it's nice to have family willing to help you out", he said.
"Yes, it is", she concluded.
"Where is he?", he asked, looking around.
"He will be arriving later this evening", Carlisle answered, bringing in a tray with water filled glasses. "Water, Charlie?"
"Oh, no thank you, I better get going", Charlie said, getting up from his chair. "The Clearwater's are expecting me for dinner tonight."
"Oh, that's ok", Carlisle said, handing a glass of water to Alice. "You're welcome anytime."
"Thank you", he replied, putting his coat on. "I'll see you later, honey."
"Alright, dad", Bella said, hugging he father, before he left.
They waited until his car was gone before Alice put the water glass back on the tray. "I'll go water the plants upstairs", she said, taking the tray and getting up.
"PADIK: normal mode", Jade said and the kitten transformed back into the silver device it was before.
"That's cool", Emmett said pointing to PADIK.
"I'm gonna have to fix your casing again, too. When I was petting you I felt a loose wire", she said.
"So, that thing-"
"PADIK", Jade corrected.
"PADIK, right", Emmett started again. "PADIK, can scan a car to see if there's anything wrong with it?"
"Yeah, she can", Jade answered. "She's always been a big help in the garage."
Emmett got a look like he wanted to ask something but was a little scared to.
"Emmett, just ask her", Edward said, shaking his head.
"Ask me what?", Jade asked, intrigued.
"Well, I was kinda wondering if PADIK could help me with my truck?", Emmett asked. "It's been making this funky rattle for a bit and I have no clue what it is and I've all but ripped it apart."
"Sure, no problem", Jade said, getting up grabbing PADIK from the table. "Show me the specimen."
"This way", he said, leading Jade down to the garage.
Bella followed, not wanting to lose Jade again. Edward also followed along with Rosalie, so inevitably the rest of the family followed. He turned on the lights, which also opened the garage door and showed Jade his large truck.
"Hmm, nice selection", Jade said, looking closer at the truck. "Jeep Wrangler. Off road lights, lift kit, trick suspension, brush bars. Not bad at all, if I do say so myself."
"Thank you", Emmett said, then looked back at Rose with an impressed look.
"Ok, fire her up and let's see what's up", she said, opening the driver's door.
He put the key in and let the engine rumble. Jade stood back, listening to the sound. He let it run for a few minutes, before shutting it off.
"What do you think?", he asked.
Jade was about to answer, when someone else answered before her.
"Sounds like the right is running smoother than the left. You might want to tighten the crank shaft."
They all turned and saw, leaning in the garage door way, a tall guy, a bit under Edward's height, no more than 18, short dark brown hair, not pale/not tanned skin, with magnificent emerald green eyes. He was in camouflage cargo pants, sneakers and a dark green muscle shirt. Jade smiled widely, and giggled as she ran and jumped onto him. He caught her with no problem and spun her around on the spot, grinning.
"Hello, you!", he said, setting her back on her feet. "You miss me?"
"Hi baby!", she squealed, wrapping her arms around his neck, gleaming up at him. "Yes. What took you so long?"
"Turbulence", he replied. "And I had a hard time trying to figure out which to take: the Hummer or the Porsche."
"And so you took which?", Jade asked.
"The JPC 600", he said. "The green one."
"Ah", she said, then turned back to the others. "Everyone, this is my husband, Matt. Matt, these are the nice people who took such wonderful care of me. That's Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper, Alice, Edward, Bella, Esme and Carlisle."
"Pleasure to meet you all", Matt said, nodding his head a bit as he was trapped by Jade. "She wasn't any trouble, was she?"
"Welcome, Matt", Carlisle said. "No, she wasn't any trouble. We're glad to have her."
"Do you bring my stuff?", she asked, looking back at Matt.
"Yes, it's all on the bike", he said and she bounded out of the garage. "I hope it's alright that we stay here with you."
"Of course", Esme said, stepping up to stand next to Carlisle. "We've all grown attached to her a bit. And we have plenty of space. Jade's up in the attic right now, but if you-"
"Oh, no, that's just fine", Matt said quickly. "If it's good enough for Jade, it's good enough for me. And I'm not just saying that. Sometimes it gets scary how much we're alike."
Jade came back with two suitcases, looking ready to burst at the seams.
"You better not have broken anything", she said, rolling the suitcases past everyone and into the house. They heard the cases clank on the steps, then heard the attic door open. Before it closed, Jade shouted, "PADIK! VAMOS!" PADIK, what was sitting on the hood of Rosalie's car, transformed back into a kitten and streaked out of the garage.
"Whoa", Bella said, looking where PADIK was before. "Where does she get all these things?"
"She makes them", Matt said, coming back from getting his single bag. "Or blends things together and tweaks them. She's really very smart. Even though sometimes she's too smart for her own good."
"What to do you mean?", Alice asked.
"Did you guys happen to hear about the CIA and FBI hacking two years ago?", he asked.
"Why would she do that?", Edward asked.
"She didn't do it to be malicious, or to take anything", he said. "She just wanted them to see that they need to step up their security. Which they did. They called in a specialist."
"Who?", Bella and Rosalie asked at the same time.
"Jade", Alice said.
"But, we are keeping her from doing that again", he said.
"Well, I'm sure you'll want to unpack", Carlisle said, clapping his hands together, business like.
"Thank you", Matt said.
"And get settled a bit", he went on. "Um, so, why don't you and Jade, meet us in the kitchen, when you're finished?"
"Of course", Matt replied and went off to find Jade and their room.
Close to an hour later, Jade and Matt came into the kitchen. Everyone else was already there, chatting.
"Hello again", Jade said, standing next to Matt. "So, when does the Q and A start?"
"Now", Alice said, holding Jasper's hand.
"Shoot", Matt said calmly.
"Alright", Carlisle said. "Well, the first question had to be: What are you, exactly?"
"Told you", Jade said, looking up at Matt them to the others. "We don't know exactly what the term is for us. We have just called ourselves 'Cats'."
"Because, though we are dead", Matt went on. "We have the same traits that you do, though some of ours are more intensified. Sight, smell, hearing, speed-"
"How can you be sure that you are faster than a vampire?", Edward asked.
"We spent some time in Egypt", he stated. "They had two very lovely and kind vampires that were very fast. We out stripped them by a mile."
"I just may have to see that", Edward said, smirking then saw Carlisle and Alice glaring. "Sorry, go on."
"How old are you?", Rosalie asked.
"I will turn 291 this Halloween", Jade said with a tone of pride.
"And I am 286 as of last July 17th", Matt said.
"Who or what, made you like you are?", Jasper asked next.
"To be honest, we don't know", Matt said. "The last thing that both Jade and I remember of being human was going through a tunnel and seeing a gold light at the other end, but not what was on the other side."
"After that point, we woke up, without a pulse, alone, a quarter metal, outside somewhere. Later, we were contacted by someone who needed us. They took us to a place and gave us field work to do. Almost like being in the CIA", Jade said.
"Now, you two were made at different times", Carlisle said. "How did you come across each other?"
"It was in, what 1729, wasn't it?", Jade asked, looking back at Matt. "Or 1730?"
"I think 1730", Matt said, unsure.
"Anyways, 1729 or 1730", Jade began again. "I had been 'working' for a bit and I had found that who I was 'working for' was killing vampires and humans. They tired to get me to, but I, however, had other ideas. I say live and let live, even if you're dead. So, after I went off, or rogue as they would have called it, they decided to kill me."
"That's where I come in", Matt interjected. "Just a year after I was 'made', they gave me a picture of Jade and told me where she was. They said, "track her down and kill her. She is gifted, such as you, so she won't be easy, though she won't be hard." Pfft! Yeah right."
"What happened?", Emmett asked. "Obviously you didn't kill her."
"I tracked her to Greece", he continued. "Santorini, exactly. She was staying with her aunt. I watched her for a few days, before I found the right time."
"When?", Esme asked, intrigued by the story.
"During the wet season", Jade interrupted. "Rain is best for washing away evidence. I was sitting in my aunts house and she was at her friend's for a get together. A knock came on the door. I answered it and who's on the other side? Mister soaking wet here, with a crossbow. But he did the one thing he wasn't excepting."
"Which was?", Jasper asked, wanting them to continue.
"I hesitated", Matt said. "I saw her standing there, and.... I just couldn't pull the trigger. So, I did what anybody would do. I kissed her. Yep. I dropped the bow and kissed her."
"And you didn't punch him?", Rosalie asked.
"No", Jade replied. "I just- have you ever kissed someone and, even though everything in your head says one thing, you know that it's right?"
Everyone was silent.
"Well, that's what it was, and thankfully we trusted our hearts", she said. "I wonder if they rebuilt that house yet?"
"You blew up your aunts house?", Bella asked, shocked.
"No", she went on. "Though I did break her clock, but I sent her a new one. So, we knew that if he went back without me dead, they would kill him and me, so we did what we had to."
"You faked you own deaths", Alice said.
"Yes", Matt answered. "We made it look like I chased her to an abandoned house and she killed herself and me. Which worked, they sent out our deaths over the designated frequencies-"
"Which I hacked and listened to from my house, in Spain", Jade cut in. "After that, it was smooth sailing. Until I went for a little trip by myself a month ago."
"When you lost your memory", Carlisle added.
"Yes", she said. "Then, PADIK, who was at my house, came and restored me. You know the rest after that."
"So, I have a question", Bella said.
"Go for it", she said.
"If you guys 'died' and nobody knows that you are still alive, didn't you have to change your names?", she asked.
"No", Jade said. "The place that we were 'with' before, had very little to almost no technology. And, if they found a way to integrate it now, they would have found us already, if they were still looking. They are anything but patient."
"Oh", Bella said.
"But, it's been a while since either of us have been in contact with them, almost 245 years, so, we just have to take it one day at a time", Matt said.
"So, they could still come after you?", Edward asked.
"Well, they could try", Matt said. "See, when you 'work' for them, they implant a tracking chip into your shoulder blade. If you take it out and burn it, they can't find you, at all."
"And you don't have yours anymore", Alice said.
"Nope", Jade said. "Amongst other things, I am very skilled with a sharp knife."
"Ew", Bella groaned, turning her head into Edward's chest.
"So, you see, they couldn't find us if we were standing in front of them, waving", Matt said.
The others nodded. At that time, PADIK made a dinging sound in Jade's hand.
"What?", Jade said, opening to the screens.
"Mistress, I have just finished a preliminary weather check and there will be thick overcast and 13 percent human visibility. Perfect conditions for a night drive", PADIK said.
"Hmm, really?", she said, an impish smirk spreading across her face. "I think I know what I'm going to do before crunch time."
"She's gonna go for a joy ride", Alice said in Jasper's ear.
"Can I come with you?", Bella asked. "I've never ridden in a Mustang before."
"Bella, I don't think that's a good idea", Edward said, concerned. "I'm sure she's a great driver, but I just don't feel comfortable with-"
"No, that's ok", Jade said. "She can come. If it were the bike I would say no, but, with what I do to my cars, I could go through a 500 year old tree and not put a dent in the casing."
"Well-", Edward started again.
"I'll be back in time for school tomorrow", Bella said.
"Oh, ok", Edward said, then turned to Jade, seriously. "But, if anything happens to her, I'm going to personally dismember and kill you."
"Deal", Jade said, pulling her car keys from her pocket. "Andiamo, Bella."
"She means, 'let's go'", Edward said, when Bella turned to him, confused.
Bella followed Jade down and out the front door, to the car. They got in and closed the doors. As soon as the doors shut, a racing harness came out from the top, bottom and sides of the seats, locking them in. Jade put the key in a revved the engine. As Bella looked around, the car looked a bit like something described in a sci-fi novel. It had LED read-outs, computer displays, flips, switches and buttons just about all over the dash and console. Jade attached PADIK to the console, above the stereo first. She then pushed a few lit buttons on the dash, switched some switches next to her left leg, and flipped stuff above her head. As she pushed one, it turned on the stereo, which began playing a fast paced song that she didn't quite recognize, but the luminesant screen said, 'Garab: Rachid Taha'.
"Alright, let's blow this popsicle stand", she said, pushing a last button on the wheel that, actually turned the windshield into what you would see looking through night vision goggles.
Bella turned her head to look out of her window, but saw nothing but foggy blackness as Jade stomped on the gas. She felt like she wasn't moving at all, but when she looked at the windshield, she saw everything going past the car incredibly fast.
"So, where to go?", she asked, pushing a button that brought up a computerized map on Bella's side of the windshield. "New York sounds good. L.A. is nice. San Francisco is gonna have another earthquake in a few hours, so that's out. Vegas is supposed to be clear because of the match. Hmm.... where do you want to go, Bella? Pick a place."
"Wait, you're saying we can go all the way to New York City, and be back here in the same night?", Bella asked, awestruck.
"Yup", Jade replied, not taking her eyes from the road. "Pick a spot."
"Then, New York it is", Bella said, settling into her seat.
"Cool", she said. "PADIK, find the emptiest way to get to NYC."
"Calculating journey", PADIK said, the screens flipping through what seemed to be road maps. "Emptiest path to destination shown, mistress."
"Groovy", Jade said, pushing the gas pedal down even more.
To Bella's bewilderment, they reached New York City in just under a half hour. They found a place to park, in a ramp and went to walking around. They went shopping on Madison Avenue, saw 'Cats' on Broadway, ate at Planet Hollywood, and watched part of a live broadcast of the L.A. auto show. Just as they were leaving Barney's, Jade's cellphone rang.
"Hello?", she asked into the speaker. "Yeah. Ok. Bella, it's your vampire delight."
Bella took the phone with chuckle, knowing she mean Edward.
"Hello?", Bella asked into the receiver.
"WHERE ARE YOU?!", Edward shouted loudly enough that Bella jerked the phone away from her ear instantly. "IT'S AFTER 10:30 AND YOU HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL IN THE MORNING! I'VE SEARCHED ALMOST THE ENTIRE STATE OF WASHINGTON LOOKING FOR YOU! YOU HAVE ME OUT OF MY MIND WITH WORRY NOW, I HOPE YOU KNOW THAT! NOW TELL ME WHERE YOU ARE!"
She waited until the phone was silent for a second before putting it back to her ear.
"Promise you aren't going to flip out?", Bella asked, warily.
"Not completely", he answered honestly.
"We're in New York City", she said, hesitantly.
There was a split second of silence, just enough time for Bella to yank the phone away before he exploded.
"WHAT?! YOU'RE IN NEW YORK CITY?!", he yelled. "WHY.... AND HOW ARE YOU IN NEW YORK CITY?!"
"Well, I'll tell you, if YOU QUIT YELLING AT ME!", Bella shouted back into the phone. She panted slightly, from yelling and looked up at Jade who was clapping and smiling for her standing up for herself. She took a deep breath, let it out and put the phone to her ear calmly. "Now... Jade asked me where I wanted to go, and I said, off the top of my head, 'New York City'. So, we came to New York City. We went shopping, saw a Broadway show and had a midnight snack. And, though I know you are just being protective, we were going to make a quick stop on the way back to the house, before getting back about, what 2am, do you think?"
"Yeah, close to that", Jade said.
"But, Bella-", Edward started, but she cut him off.
"Edward, honey, I have to go, we still have to trek a bit to get back to the car", Bella said. "I'll talk to you when we get back. Love you."
She kissed into the phone before turning it off and giving it back to Jade. They walked back to the car, still where it was and untouched, got in and sped off. They stopped off in L.A. for a bit, then went back to Forks. They pulled up in front of the Cullen's house, at shortly after 1:30am.
"We cut travel time by a half hour", Jade said, looking at the dash before turning the car off. "Hmm. Not bad."
She detached PADIK from the console and they opened their doors. Edward was to Bella in a fraction of a millisecond. He looked her over, making sure she was all in one piece.
"Edward? Edward? Edward! I'm fine!", Bella said, sternly. "Now, back up a bit or you won't get your present."
"Present?", he asked. "You got me a present?"
"Yes, I did", she said, getting her bags from behind her seat. "What kind of a fiancee would I be if I went on a trip and didn't get my handsome husband-to-be a gift?"
"A pretty weird one", Jade said, from the other side of the car, also getting her bags. Matt was by her, taking her bags, so that she didn't have to carry them. "But I still have to ask: is it the right color? I mean-"
"I think the color is fine", Bella replied. "But, the size-?"
"Oh, the size should be plenty", she replied again. "If I think it'll work, nine times out of ten.... it works out."
"Ok, I'll take your word for it", Bella said, closing her door and turning back to Edward, who was looking into the bags he was holding. "It's not in there, Edward."
"I think you'll like it too", Jade said to Matt, as she closed her door.
"Why?", he asked.
"Because I got you, something kinda like it", she said, smirking.
"Oh, man", he groaned, following her into the house. "You didn't get me another rainbow speedo, did you?"
Edward gulped audibly at hearing this.
"Nope", Jade answered. "And technically that wasn't a speedo.... it was a thong."
He followed Bella into the house, hoping and praying that that wasn't what she got him. They showed everyone what they got in New York City and L.A., minus a few things in red and black boxes. Bella went to sleep soon after that and Jade went up to her attic room with Matt.
At school, later that morning, Jade arrived last, like the day before, as she had to get a new school bag for Matt, making Matt go with Emmett, Jasper and Edward in the truck. She got out of her car and walked up to the school with a large number of guys following her. They stopped and backed up, however, when she reached the steps. Matt stepped forward, grabbed Jade around the waist and tossed her over his shoulder. He glared at the other boys, then turned and walked back to the others.
"What was that for?", Jade asked, as Matt set her back on her feet.
"I think Mike is sexually frustrated to the point that it's driven him insane", Edward said. "He was going to grab your butt."
"Obviously, he told me and well..." Matt trailed.
"That's ok", Jade said, soothingly. "At least it saves me from killing him in broad daylight."
At that exact moment, the first school bell rang.
"Alright", he said, grabbing Jade's bag. "Come, my darling. You get a ride to your first class."
"Oooh, goody", she said, jumping onto his back. "Let's go."
He carried her into the school, with Bella and the rest of the Cullen's following. He put her down by her first class, with Alice and Rosalie: Chemistry. They gave each other a quick kiss, before he departed.
Matt went to the office and wasn't seen again until lunch. At lunch, they were playing music requests, as the Casino dance wasn't too far away. Eric was behind the mixer table and almost everyone was moving in some fashion to the music. Jade and the others were already there, sitting, bopping and talking. Matt grabbed a chair from a nearby table, set it down and sat directly behind Jade, making her jump a bit.
"Wah!", she cried out, looking back to see him laughing, along with the others. She picked up the notebook she had been writing in and began to hit him over the head with it. "Don't, you, scare me like that."
"Ahh! Help! I'm being beaten with Chemistry homework", Matt said, still chuckling. Edward had to stop himself from laughing. Matt laid his head on Jade's shoulder as she went back to writing in the notebook. "You know, hon, homework was meant to be done, you know, at home."
"Thank you, Captain Obvious", Jade said, looking up, then back down at her work. Edward stifled another laugh. "I'm just doing this so that I can get it out of my system. Then I'll do it the other, easier way."
"Ah, regular work is boring", he said. "You might as well be a amebae on the energy scale. Hey, speaking of energy: what's we doin' this weekend? I heard there are supposed to be some kill waves down at the bay. Take the board out. Catch some tunnels."
Edward stifled yet another laugh bringing attention to himself.
"Alright, what is so funny?", Bella asked. "Hmm? Come on."
"Mike is listening to every word Matt says", Edward whispered, so only they could hear him. "When you said, 'beaten by homework', he thought about beating your head into the pavement. When you said 'captain obvious', he thought, 'more like captain oblivious'. And just now, when you were talking about surfing, he thought about you drowning and him getting Jade."
"Oh, that little-", Matt growled, getting up, but Jade pulled him back down.
"Matt, drop it", she said. "Leave it alone. Don't forget, I can take care of myself."
"True", he said, relaxing a little. "But, if he does something, funny in class and I find out, he's gettin' hung on the flag pole by his jock strap."
"Deal", she said. "As long as I get the vid of it."
"You know it", he said, laying his head on her shoulder again.
Just then, a Spanish style song came on and Eric's voice was heard throughout the room.
"A'ight everybod'!", he shouted. "Let's see if the new addition to our school can get this one!"
Jade recognized the song right away and got an impish look on her face. She turned her head and saw Mike still staring at her, then turned to Matt.
"Smoke 'em", he said in her ear.
"Let's go", Alice said, getting up.
She nodded and went to the middle of the lunchroom, where a wide space was made.
"Vamonos!", Jade shouted in perfect Spanish as the song picked up. "Moviendo como el mar y, esta, fiesta, va empesar. Como un rimo caliente, como fuego, fuego."
"Fuego, fuego", Alice called back, in perfect Spanish as well. "Traillendo en ti la islas, bailando en cada esquina. En la calle los ninos cantan, fuego fuego."
"Fuego, fuego", Jade called back, with, by shock and amazement, Rosalie.
All three of them went on with the song, as if planned.
"Al O.C asta lower east side, vamos acener al noche", they sang perfectly. "Jersey asta la islas la noche entera vamonos. Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, vamos acener la noche. Hitsville asta ATL la noche entera vamonos. Oh, ah, si sube lo, esta caliente del calle al club. Oh, ah, si sube lo, como fuego, fuego. Fuego, fuego. Oh, ah, si sube lo, esta caliente del calle al club. Oh, ah, si sube lo, como fuego, fuego. Fuego, fuego."
An instrumental portion played and Alice knew what it was.
"Baila conmigo. Con esta opurtunidade. Siente como un sueno. Acuenta si puede", she sang perfectly.
"Como fuego. Como fuego", Rosalie came in after. "Baila conmigo, baila conmigo."
"Oh, ah, si sube lo, esta caliente del calle al club. Oh, ah, si sube lo, como fuego, fuego. Fuego, fuego. Oh, ah, si sube lo, esta caliente del calle al club. Oh, ah, si sube lo, como fuego, fuego. Fuego, fuego", they sang then ended it.
"Party, fiesta, together, forever, siempre. Come on and sing this song. Party, fiesta, together, forever, siempre. We're dancin' all night long."
"All night long", Jade ended, and the entire room roared and echoed deafly with cheers and applause. Rose, Alice and Jade sat back down as other people came out where they were to dance.
Lunch ended a bit later and everyone went to their next class. Matt had Chemistry now and Jade had Earth Sciences. Mike was in the same class and sat next to her, in the back row. She made it look like she was paying attention to the movie they had to watch, along with Mike, but was instead, writing more in her story book. He made not a move at her, but when Matt came to get her so that they could go to Advanced Astro-physics then Biology, Mike just glared at him.
They arrived at Biology with Bella and Edward. Matt gave his slip to their teacher, got his book and took the empty seat next to Jade, which he moved his chair over to be right next to her. Mike, who sat with Eric, at the table on the other side, was almost constantly glaring in extreme loathing, at Matt. Edward found it hard to concentrate sometimes, due to the things he was hearing from Mike's mind.
"Wow. He really, really has it in for Matt", Edward said, as he and Bella worked on their slides. "You should hear the things he is thinking."
"Like what?", Bella asked, looking over at Mike then back.
"Typical guy revenge thoughts", he said, putting the next slide in the microscope. "'Cut the brakes on his car', which would be hard because he has a bike. 'Start rumors that he's gay', hmm, sounds a bit familiar. 'Slip windshield washer fluid in his soda', like that would work. 'Try to drown him at the beach', 'Run him over with a car', typical stuff."
"All of which would not work, because he's dead already, in most general terms", Bella said, looking into the eyepiece. "Second stage of division."
"I'll believe you", he said, writing it down on their worksheet.
Just then, Jade and Matt came over and stood in front of them.
"You done, already?", Bella asked, looking up.
"Yeah", Jade replied. "We finished in the first ten minutes. Mr. Scientist here is good with the Bio. and Chem. stuff. I'm the tech-girl."
"Is that why you're taking Advanced Astro-physics and Computer Tech.?", Edward asked, looking up from writing their last answer.
"Well, I have to have something that I can work with", she answered. "I can't be bored all the time."
"When are you ever bored?", Bella asked, pointing her pencil at Jade.
"It's good to be bored every once in a while", Jade replied. "It's fun. I've come up with some of my better ideas when I was either bored out of my skull or looking for something to do."
"Actually, did you know that the human brain is more active when it's bored than when it's doing a specific thing?", Matt asked.
"I did not", Bella said, as Edward took their completed worksheet up to the teacher's desk. "Well, I've learned something new already."
Edward sat down as Mike got up to take his sheet up to the teacher, while still throwing glares at Matt.
"Matt, Mike is really pent up", Edward said, leaning closer to him. "He sees Jade as some kind of, trophy. He thought of Bella kinda like that, but not like this. Sorry, sweetie."
"Oh, I don't mind", Bella said, scribbling on her notebook cover.
"What can we do about-?", Matt began, but stopped when their teacher came over.
"Excuse me, but Matt can you help Angela and Jessica go over their answers?", he asked.
"Sure", he agreed.
"Thank you, and Jade can you go over and help Eric and Mike?", he asked Jade.
"Ok", Jade replied, looking at Matt.
The teacher left and Matt grabbed his book.
"Jade-", Matt started, but she stopped him.
"Matt, I'll be ok", she said, putting her hand against his cheek, calming him a bit. "If anything, it'll get his mind off of you for a bit. Edward, will you give us a recap later?"
"Sure", he agreed. "And Jade.... no flirting, please."
She shuddered mockingly and grabbed her book from her seat as she went to stand by Eric and Mike's table.
"Hello, Eric. Mike", Jade said, standing in front of them. "So, how did you do?"
Eric slid their sheet towards her. "I think we missed the merging questions."
"Actually, you only missed two", she said, then turned the sheet around so that they could see it. "You got these two flipped around. The cell connects first with the inner then the outer. That's why cells are more apt to not merge well or at all when they do because of that. Other than that, you got them all right."
"Um, Jade?", Mike asked, faultily.
"Hmm?", she hummed, initialing the two questions that they had gotten wrong.
"Uh, you- you and that new guy, Matt", he went on. "Are, you, and him.... ya know....?"
"Dating?", Jade asked, looking up at the board, for the day's date, though she knew it already.
"Yeah", he said.
"Yes, we are", she answered, sliding the sheet back to them. "There. See ya."
She took her book and went back to her and Matt's table. She and Matt met trying to get to their seats, but, not having a lot of room to maneuver, he picked Jade up and set her on her seat, before squeezing behind her to get to his seat. The bell rang a few minutes later and everyone got up to leave, with Jade, Bella, Edward and Matt, surprisingly in the lead. They all piled into their cars, and went straight back to the house.
"Whoo-hoo!", Matt exclaimed, getting out of Jade's car, which was behind Rosalie's car and in front of Emmett's truck. "One more day, then it's off to catch some waves."
"You're actually going surfing?", Bella asked, grabbing her bag from the car.
"You know it", he replied, still excited. "Gonna catch some air. Swerve a tunnel. It's gonna be awesome!"
"There's gonna be a lot of overcast on Saturday", Alice said. "We could all go."
"I'm in", Emmett said. "I've always wanted to try surfing."
"That should be interesting", Rosalie said, hinting on sarcasm.
"Ok. So, this weekend, everyone's going to the beach", Alice said, and everyone nodded. "Ok."
"Are you gonna surf?", Bella asked, looking up at Edward.
"Me, surfing? Yeah, I think not", he said, opening the door.
"It wouldn't be bad to try", she said. "Who knows? You may even like it."
That Saturday, all the Cullen's, Bella, Jade and Matt descended upon North Beach, in the bay. It was one of very few beaches not on wolf land. It was overcast, just like Alice had said, and had not signs of clearing. Though it was fairly good weather wise with good breezes and good light, despite the absence of the sun. It was a good day, for surfing, so Matt kept saying. They had been at the beach no less than twenty minutes, when Jessica, Angela, Eric, Mike and Tyler showed up. They set up on the beach a good bit away from the others, with Mike and Eric already in their wetsuits. Matt and Emmett were coming back from changing into their suits when the others arrived.
"I knew they would show up", Matt said, setting his clothes down next to Jade. "All humans travel in packs."
"You ready, Matt?", Emmett said, picking up his surf board that he had bought from the surf shop.
"You know it, dude", he replied, grabbing his own board. "Let's go."
They trotted down to the water, with Esme following them with her video camera, wanting to tape their first family outing to the beach. She turned the camera back to Bella, who was cuddled up with Edward, under a blanket. Alice was laying on Jasper's lap, reading a book. Jade who never left PADIK behind had her opened on her bag and was playing an eclectic series of songs. Everyone smiled and waved at the camera, then she moved back to Emmett and Matt paddling out to the waves.
"I bet you two to one, Matt's gonna knock Mike off his board", Jade said, writing in her notebook.
"Not if Emmett does it first", Rosalie said.
"And it looks as if we have a bet", Esme said, turning the camera to face herself then back at the water. "Let's see who wins."
She turned the camera around and got Mike, Eric and Tyler, with their boards, going to the water. They hit the water paddling. Matt had already caught a good wave and now it was Emmett's turn. They reached the waves and tried to catch the same wave Emmett was surfing. Tyler got it after the second try, but fell, Eric waited for another one, and Mike was just about stood up on his board when it flipped straight up and knocked him back into the water.
"Told ya", Jade said, getting up to sit on one of the larger rocks, closer to the water.
Rosalie shook her head, then clapped loudly as Emmett pulled a perfect 360 on his wave. Jasper was reading with Alice, waiting for the others to come back so they could play beach ball.
"Whoo! Alright, baby!", Jade shouted from the top of one of the rocks on the beach nearest to the water.
"Watch this", Matt said, looking back from Jade to Emmett, who was floating next to him.
He grabbed his broad, dove under the water and came back up paddling out a bit further. He turned as a really good wave came and went with it. He stood up and pulled out all the stops for this one. Melancholy, 720, loop-de-loop and his favorite: backflip. The wave died out and he came back in. Emmett followed him back up onto the beach.
"How was that, sweetie?", Matt asked, squeezing most of the water from his hair.
"That was illin'!", Jade replied, giddily, jumping down from the rock and walking back to the others with him. "You do know that if I liked surfing I'd totally kick your butt, right?"
"Maybe", he said.
"So?", Emmett asked, kneeling next to Rosalie. "How'd I do for my first try?"
"I thought you were spectacular", she said, giving him a big kiss.
"Hey, hey!", Edward teased. "Get a room, would ya?"
They both stuck their tongues out at him in response. Matt and Emmett grabbed their clothes and went to change. They were back five minutes later.
"Now, who's up for some beach ball?", Emmett asked, taking out the beach ball.
"I am", Jasper said, closing the book he had been reading to Alice.
"Me too", Edward said.
"I'm in", Jade said, raising her hand.
"I just gotta position the camera so that it catches us playing", Esme said, getting up, with the help of Carlisle. She set the camera down and made sure it was pointing where they would be playing. "Ok."
"Alright, youngest serves first", Edward said, handing the ball to Bella. "That's you."
"You know I can't play sports", she said, looking up at him.
"Try, honey", he said, using his irresistible velvet voice. "Ok?"
"Oh, alright", she said, taking the ball.
Esme was the score keeper as there was no net, just a line they made with some sticks. Emmett, Rosalie, Carlisle and Matt were one side, Jade, Bella, Alice, Edward and Jasper on the other. Bella tossed the ball up a few times before she tossed it up and gave a really good whack. Her aim was off a bit, because it hit Jade in the back of the head.
"Oops. I'm sorry, Jade", she said, covering her face. "I told Edward I'm not good at sports."
"That's ok. I'm good", Jade said, picking up the ball and taking it back to Bella. "Here, try it like this."
She gave Bella the ball, and showed her the easiest way to serve the ball, without a lot of force. She tossed it and did what Jade showed her and she actually got it over the stick line. Carlisle hit it back and Alice returned it. Matt got it then, and Jade jumped up and spiked it straight down.
"One point", Esme said, pointing to Edward and Bella's team. "Emmett to serve."
Emmett cracked his neck, tossed the ball up and torpedoed it towards Alice, but Edward got to it first, rocketing it back to Carlisle. He lobbed it back, and Bella knocked it right back to Rosalie. It went back and forth for a bit, till Carlisle thumped it over the line and Jade, jumped up high, swung her arm back and sent it spinning back to the sand, where it was embedded at Matt's feet.
"21!", Esme called, getting up. "Left team wins!"
"Hey!", Mike called, coming over to them, with Eric, Tyler, Jessica and Angela. "That's pretty good. Can we play?"
"Um...", Carlisle hesitated.
"Sure", Matt said, with a smirk on his face. "In fact, why don't we make a little bet, Newton? You, Eric, Jessica, Angela and Tyler against me, Jade, Bella, Alice and Edward. We win, you leave Jade alone and forget about her. You win, you get to go out on a date with her. One date. Deal?"
"Deal", Mike said.
"This is not going to end well", Bella said, softly.
Mike served up and the game was on. Points were back and forth, back and forth, until they tied up at 35. As a tie-breaker, it was a solo match between Matt and Mike. The others sat down on the side to watch. Bella looked over at Jade, who didn't seem the least bit worried.
"How are you so calm?", she asked.
"Because", Jade said, looking at Bella. "Matt has never lost a match over me in over 260 years and he is not going to start now."
"But, Mike is the captain of the Volleyball team", Bella stated. "State champs, undefeated three years in a row."
"Matt led Spain and England to beach sports gold in the Olympics, four times", Jade said. "I don't need to worry. That and it gives you wrinkles."
"Whoa", she replied. "That's good."
They watched the two battle it out. Just as Bella said, Mike was a very good player, but like Jade said, Matt was better. They went back and forth, neither one giving an inch. The score was close, with Matt winning by five. If he got a good spike, it was over and he knew it. Mike scored another point, getting him closer, agitating Matt. He bent over, pretending to pant in semi-exhaustion, but he just looked up at Jade, and gave her a wink.
"It's over", she said in Bella's ear.
Bella looked up as Esme blew the start whistle again. Mike threw up the ball and jumped after it. He hit it with everything he had and it whizzed through the air. Matt didn't even seem to notice, until it was close to him. Then, in a split second, the ball was back over the line, rolling in front of Mike. He had jumped up and force spiked the ball down onto the sand. Mike looked down at the ball, in utter shock.
"Matt wins!", Esme shouted.
The Cullen's and Bella cheered loudly. Jade leapt to her feet and jumped into Matt's outstretched arms.
"I knew you wouldn't lose", she said, before kissing him deeply.
"Have I ever lost?", he asked, and she shook her head, still smiling. "Then why would I start now?"
She hopped down and Matt stepped across the line, to Mike, who was being reassured by his friends. They all looked up at him.
"Good game, man", Matt said, holding out his hand, which, to his surprise, Mike took. "You got skills."
"So do you", Mike replied, letting go. "A deal's a deal."
"Alright", he said. "Don't take it too hard."
He turned, stepped over the stick line, pulled Jade onto his back and walked back to the truck with the others. As they ascended the stairs back, they heard Mike ask Jessica to the Casino dance, to which she agreed.
The Casino dance: the first of three themed dances that ended with prom. Of course, all of the Cullen kids were going, and now, so were Matt and Jade.
To celebrate the beach victory, all of the Cullen's and Matt went up to the high mountains for a hunt. Though Matt didn't hunt, he still went along, while Bella and Jade, took a small drive.... to L.A, but neglected to tell the others that.
"I can't thank you enough for this, Jade", Bella said, as they walked onto to show floor. "Are you sure that there is absolutely nothing else that I can get you?"
"Bella how many times do I have to say it?", Jade asked, turning to Bella. "I get a frequent buyers mega discount. And, you said it yourself, this is what he said he liked. That and that's the only thing I need that I don't have."
"Ah, you're back, Ms. Jade", the salesperson said, walking over to Jade and Bella. "How are you?"
"We are just fine, thank you", she replied. "Is everything ready?"
"Everything is set and made to your specifications", the man said. "They are awaiting in the same place."
"Thank you", she said. "Payment the same."
"Of course", he said, understanding as they turned and walked away. "Enjoy them. Au revoir!"
They went back outside and Jade clicked everything into place.
"I'm not driving?", Bella asked, getting in the car.
"Not that you can't drive, but I can make the return trip easier and faster without having to worry about losing you in California traffic", Jade replied, applying the gas needed to get back home. "That and I don't think he'd like it very much if you got to have fun with it before he did."
"Yeah, he can get jealous", Bella said, looking out of the window at the scene flashing by.
They reached the house at a bit after sunset that same night, and had just enough time to get everything set up before the others got back. They pulled up in Emmett's truck and Matt and Edward jumped out of the back with Jasper. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Everything was where it was supposed to be, but the atmosphere seemed a bit, anxious. Bella and Jade were up in the sitting room, just off the kitchen, playing Scene It: Disney.
"Oh, I got it! Flounder!", Jade said excitedly.
"The correct answer is Flounder", the game said on the TV.
"Yes! I got it!", she said, moving her piece, that was a film reel, four spaces.
"Hello", Bella said, picking up the dice to roll. "Back already?"
"Uh, yeah", Edward said, looking around. "So, erm, what have you two been doing, since we left?"
Bella and Jade looked at each other. "Nothing", they said together, completely unconvincingly.
"If you expect us to believe that, I got a bridge to sell you.... in the middle of the Atlantic", Matt said, crossing his arms. "Now, what did you two trouble makers do?"
"Nothing", they repeated in the same way as before.
"Did you break something?", Esme asked.
"No", Bella answered honestly.
"Did you kill someone?", Emmett asked.
"No, and that would be having fun, not getting into trouble", Jade corrected, rolling the dice for her turn.
"Then why are you both so secretive?", Edward asked.
"Should we tell them?", Bella asked, looking at Jade.
"No", she replied. "If we tell them, it will completely take away the looks on their faces when they see them."
"Right, right", Bella replied, nodding. "Good thinkin'"
"As always", Jade said, mocked superior.
"Let's show them now", she added.
"Ok", Jade said, then looked at the game board. She moved the scene marker piece all the way to the end. "You win. Let's go."
"This way", Bella said, leading the way downstairs. They followed her outside, where they stood, in front of the garage doors. "Ready?"
"Go ahead", Carlisle said.
"Matt-", Jade started.
"-and Edward", Bella finished.
"Behold your appreciation presents", they said together and opened the garage door.
Everyone's jaws dropped to the ground instantly. In the forefront of the garage, where two of the best cars of a guy's dreams. One, was a silver Lotus Exige S 240. Capable of zero to sixty in four seconds, and past a hundred in ten seconds. Four cylinders, 240 horsepower and 170 torque. Next to that, was a deep green, almost black, Ferrari California. 460 horse, 350 torque, zero to sixty in 3.7 seconds. Eight cylinders, with seven speed gearbox and a twin engine with direct injection.
"Whoa", Edward whispered, completely stunned,
"Holy shnit-balls", Matt said, looking at the cars.
"Well, what do you think, hon?", Jade asked, walking over and leaning against the Ferrari. "Did I do, or did I do?"
"Oh, you definitely did", he said, moving up for a closer look. "Twin engine with direct injection, no way."
"Well", she said, mock buffing her nails. "I know my stuff."
"You- there is no way you could've bought this", Edward said, running his hand over the surface of the Lotus. "This car is $60,000."
"Just a penny over $65,000, actually", Bella smirked. "And Jade paid for it, in exchange for something."
"What?", he asked, looking up at her.
"Nothing that need concern you", she replied, patting his cheek gently, then turned back to the car. "So, do you like it?"
"Eh, it's ok", he said, teasing her. "I'm just kidding. I love it. But, not anywhere near how much I love you."
"I know", she said.
"You do know that I'm gonna have to pay Jade back, right?", he stated.
"You can try, but that doesn't mean she's gonna let you", she said, knowing she couldn't talk him out of it.
They looked over at Jade and Matt, who was pleading with Jade to tell him where she got it. Carlisle and everyone else had already went inside.
"I ain't tellin' you dang thing, buster", she said, not giving in.
"Well, then, I hope you don't expect to relax tonight", he said, his voice full of suggestion. "It's a good thing that attic is sound proof. You could wake up the entire west coast."
"I could try", she said.
He leaned forward, making her lay on the hood of the car. A low playful growl came from his chest as he made to bite her neck. His teeth were bared and ready to bite, when PADIK interrupted.
"A secure message, for mistress", she said, in her computerized voice.
"What does she want now?", Jade said, sitting up and looking at the message.
"Isn't she supposed to be in Kuala Lumpur?", Matt asked, tapping on Jade's stomach, to distract himself.
"According to this, she still is, but she wants-", she started, then heaved a sigh. "She wants to know if she can borrow the Mustang."
She replied to the message, then PADIK changed into a lovebird and flew into the house. They got off the car, and went inside with Edward and Bella.
The few remaining months of school came and went in what seemed like no time at all. In that time, Edward repaid Jade for his car, and Bella repaid her, with the bamboo mat that Jade requested in return.
Everyone posed and smiled at graduation and showed off their diplomas. They all went to the extravagant party that Alice had planned at the Cullen's house, and almost everyone at school was invited. Angela, Ben, Eric, Mike, Jessica, Tyler, Lauren were in the first wave of people to arrive. Jade and Matt came back along with the third and final wave of people, because they needed to get somethings from the store for the party. Charlie wasn't at the after party, though he could have used it as an excuse to try and convince Bella to stay. She had already told him that she was moving after graduation, with Edward and everyone else and she couldn't tell him where, mostly, because, none of them knew where they were going next.
It was going well, though it hit a snag when Jacob, Quil and Embry showed up, despite the fact that not too long ago, Jacob had kissed Bella without her permission and got hit in the face, inevitably breaking Bella's hand.
"What do you want?", Bella asked, irritated, as she answered the door to find him there.
"You invited me, remember?", he asked.
"In case you forgotten about me hitting you, that was me, uninviting you!", she all but shouted at him.
He didn't pay attention and came in anyways. He looked around the room at the many people that were there, including Matt. They didn't see Jade, however, which made the three of them glad. Due to the fact that they weren't happy with the fact that Matt and Jade were Cats and weren't constrained by boundaries, they could go where they wanted. Jacob was especially wary of Jade, because when she found out about the kissing incident, she tracked him down and dislocated his wrists and jaw.
Bella looked around for a way to get out of having to follow them, she saw Alice coming down the steps, her white skin, glowing under the purple light.
"Alice!", she shouted hoarsely, from talking to her friends loudly over the music.
Alice looked up, her eyes narrowing at the sight of the three werewolves. She was by Bella quickly. "I didn't know you invited your other friends", she said, trying to be friendly.
"Yeah, well...", her voice trailed off, not wanting to fight.
"I'm glad I found you", Alice said. "We need to talk."
They made to go upstairs, but Jacob put his arm out in front of them, blocking their way. "Not just yet."
"Excuse me?", Alice sneered.
Then, Jasper seemed to appear out of nowhere, directly on the other side of Jacob. He took in Jasper's agitated face and quickly took his arm down, as he would like to keep it.
"Problem?", he asked, looking at Jacob.
"No. No problem", Jacob answered. "I just want to talk to Bella for a minute, alone."
Bella shut her eyes and made her way out to the backyard, with the werewolves following.
"What?", she snapped.
"Where are you going?", Jacob asked.
"Is that what this is about?", she asked back. "You came all the way here, just to ask where I'm going?"
"More or less, yeah", he said.
"I don't know", she answered.
"You don't know, or you don't want to say?", he inquired.
"I mean, I, don't, know", she replied, getting annoyed. "We don't know where we're going yet."
"So, all of them are leaving too?", he asked.
"Yes. We, are all moving", she corrected. "I don't know where it is or if or when I'll be back."
Jacob opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a low meowing sound coming from their right. When the werewolves were all looking, someone came down quickly and scooped up Bella, then carried her to the roof. It was Matt. They looked up and glared.
"Cat", Jacob said.
"Dog", Matt replied in the same tone.
"I wasn't done talking to my friend yet, feline", Jacob said, trying to keep his tone steady.
"Yes, you are", Matt said. "See, Bella has guests that she still needs to see before she leaves." He brought his free hand up to his face as his other one was holding on to Bella so she didn't fall. "Edward. I have Bella on the roof."
Not two seconds later, Edward was there, to take Bella back into the house. "Good looking out, Matt."
"No prob", he said, before he and Bella disappeared off the other side of the roof. "Now that that is over, you can go now."
Aquajade · Mon Jun 22, 2009 @ 11:16pm · 0 Comments |
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