Chapter Text
Here With Me
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.
Chapter Twenty-Eight-A Friendship Hard to Define
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Charlie's voice bellowed down the hallway.
Jacob jumped back from Bella like he had been electrocuted. He hadn't heard the police chief come inside, neither had Bella. Being back in his pre-phase body meant he was having to rely on his normal human senses and they seemed severely lacking, especially when his whole attention was focused on Bella.
"Jacob Black, you better have a good explanation for this!" Charlie thundered as he marched into the kitchen.
Jacob was too shocked to speak. He stared, unable to comprehend why the older man's face was turning a deep purple. Surely it couldn't be because he had been caught kissing Bella on the forehead. Okay, his lips might have lingered longer on her skin then was necessary, but Bella hadn't protested, and he couldn't understand Charlie's overreaction.
"First I get a call from my daughter's school to tell me she's skipped again. Then right after I get another call from Billy telling me that you never turned up at school, either." Charlie yelled. His steely gaze moved from Jacob onto Bella. "Care to explain why I've come home to find him here with his lips glued on your forehead?"
"Ch-Dad," Bella did her best to soothe him. "It's not what you think."
"Then explain it to me, Bella." Charlie snapped. "I've just issued one restraining order against a boy. Should I be adding Jacob to that list? You're not supposed to see each other for a couple of weeks after this daft idiot decided to act like prince charming and rescue the damsel in distress by climbing the tree outside your room and breaking the window."
"You did lock me in." Bella pointed out mildly. "Jake was just trying to help."
"Help! Help!" Charlie's face was turning an alarming shade of puce. The poor guy was clearly stressed to the max having to deal with all these horny boys chasing his precious daughter. "To top it all I had that Newton kid hassling me about whether he would be allowed to take you out on a date."
"Newton?" Jacob and Bella said in unison.
"That's what I said." Charlie seethed. "I told him where to go. Don't even think about dating any boy for the next one hundred years, my girl." He wagged his finger in Bella's face wildly.
"Mike Newton is the last boy I'd choose to go on a date with." Bella huffed indignantly.
"Good!" Charlie expostulated. His eyes narrowed again as he glared in Jacob's direction. "What about this one?"
"This one is your best friend's son who you've secretly been plotting to marry me off to for years. Don't you dare deny it!" Bella retorted furiously as her own temper began to rise.
Charlie's mouth gaped open like a landed fish. Jacob tried not to laugh at the police chief's stunned expression. He couldn't deny the truth of Bella's words. It was common knowledge that Charlie and Billy had said this to each other many times over the years-they could pretend they were only joking, but it was done with serious undertones.
"Charlie, take a deep breath." Jacob interjected when the older man failed to breathe.
Charlie did as he asked, shaking his head as he did so. "You're supposed to be at school. What do you expect me to do here?"
Jacob saw tears well in Bella's eyes turning them liquid gold. He immediately reached for her hand in comfort. He couldn't bear it when she was upset in any way. Charlie watched their hands link together and he frowned deeply.
"What is going on with you two?"
Jacob and Bella exchanged a long look. Jacob rubbed his other hand along her arm and smiled at her reassuringly. "It's fine, Bella. Let me talk to him." He met Charlie's worried gaze. "It's not what it looks like, Charlie." He glanced at Bella again before resuming talking to her father. "Bella and I... we’re.... we’re friends...really good friends. She needed support and I wanted to be here for her. You know."
Charlie quickly jumped in. "Don't bullshit me, son. I'm close friends with your dad, but you don't see me holding his hand or kissing his fevered brow when he's had a bad day. You want more, or she does, or both."
Jacob was flummoxed by this quick response from Charlie. He wasn't used to the police chief being so openly involved in Bella's love life, normally he shied away from even discussing it. But then this wasn't the Charlie he knew from his own world. This guy hadn't gone through what his counterpart had. He hadn't been forced to witness his daughter get into a controlling relationship with a guy he abhorred, then watch that same guy abandon her, sending her spiralling into a deep depression as a result. His daughter hadn't run off, twice, for reasons he couldn't understand, coming back severely injured the first time, and then bringing back the bastard who had hurt her the second. Just thinking about the emotional turmoil the Charlie Swan, he knew, had suffered was a sobering experience. Just one look at Bella's face showed Jacob that she was thinking the same thing.
"I'm sorry, Dad." Bella said suddenly. She stepped forward, letting go of Jacob's hand as she cautiously put her arms around her father's waist to hug him. "Jacob and I can't define what is going on with us yet. But I like him very much. I know you do as well. I'm sorry we skipped school again, but I've been stressing about the restraining order and Jacob kinda came to my rescue again."
"Yeah, he's a regular hero." Charlie drawled sarcastically.
Jacob sighed in relief. At least the police chief's complexion had returned to a normal colour so he wasn't in danger of having a coronary. But the most important thing was Bella's response to her father's question. He had gone down the old route of declaring they were just close friends, expecting that was what Bella would want him to say. But instead, she had played things differently. She had openly admitted-to Charlie of all people-that there was something more than friendship going on here. Jacob liked that answer. It was an honest one. They had to be careful what they said here for the younger Jacob and Bella's sake.
"Well, you're both young still." Charlie blustered as he hugged his daughter fiercely. "Take it slow. Give it time before you jump into that definition, okay?"
"Yes, Dad." Bella promised.
"Sure, sure." Jacob agreed fervently.
Bella sat on the floor of the garage watching Jacob work on the Rabbit. He had decided to do his younger counterpart a favour and restore the VW to her former glory. He had already done it once. He knew the mistakes he needed to avoid, which meant that he was able to save substantial time. It also gave him a much-needed project to focus on while he was stuck in this world. He had no idea when he would jump back into his own. He just hoped when he did, that he would pull his Bella along with him. Who knew what chaos their counterparts were doing in their universe in the meantime? It didn't bear thinking about.
"So, you're Alpha now." Bella's gentle cadence came from behind him. He turned at the sound of the wistfulness in her voice. "Chief, Jacob." She joked lightly when she caught him looking. A faint blush coated her cheeks under the intensity of his gaze.
"Yeah, that's me." Jacob said hoarsely. He smiled at her before turning back to hover over the engine. His nimble fingers found one of the parts he was looking for and quickly adjusted it.
"Are you okay with that?" Bella asked. "I know you struggled with the decision to let Sam stay in charge in the past."
"It was time." Jacob grabbed an oily rag and wiped his stained fingers as he turned to face her again. "How do you feel about that?" He turned the question onto her.
Bella was quiet for a minute as if considering her response. "I've always loved watching you work. You are so talented. I've watched you grow from a boy, confident, but as awkward as I was, into this beautiful and graceful man."
"I'm a boy again right now." Jacob gestured at his body.
"I can see the changes already." Bella's expression remained wistful as she let her eyes linger on his body. "The definition of muscle is there. You're taller. I don't think it's going to be long. Is it?"
She sounded so melancholy that it tugged at Jacob's heartstrings. He wound up hunkered down in front of her, one warm hand cupping her face. He stroked her cheek with his thumb, leaving an unintentional grease mark on her delicate skin. It made her look too cute and he smiled at her tenderly.
"It was always going to happen to him."
"I know." Bella was sad and reflective. "I hope it's easier for him than it was for you. I hope she is here to support him."
"I think she will. Significant changes have already been made here." Jacob reminded her. "I think they'll both be okay."
Bella's hand covered his, pressing it back against her cheek. She leaned forward, her lips near to his as if in silent invitation. Jacob instantly closed the gap, pulling her closer, his lips warm as they landed on hers.
"Jeez, Em, look at this!" Quil laughed, his big voice echoing against the metal walls of the garage as he and Embry barged inside. He noticed the grease stain on Bella's face. "Interesting makeup there, girl."
Jacob cussed under his breath, as he rose, issuing the full force of his glare on his two best friends. Quil had a paper sack in his hand which he held out toward Jacob like some kind of parley. "We knew you would be working, but we thought it would be on the car." He quipped.
"Shut it, moron." Jacob scowled as he grabbed the paper sack from Quil and opened it.
"We just came by to say hello and have a drink." Embry said, falling easily into the role of peacemaker.
Bella had her head down and was blushing scarlet. Jacob had pulled out three canned soft drinks from the bag, he offered her one but she waved his hand away. Jacob sighed and threw the other cans at his annoying friends. Quil caught his can easily and popped it open. He was wearing one of his shit eating grins, not bothered at all that he had upset the apple cart. He loved mischief.
"I'm only teasing you, Bella." He chuckled. "I mean I'm entitled to get my own back a little after what you said about me and Em at the beach."
"Huh?" Bella raised her head and darted a confused glance in his direction.
Embry hit Quil in the shoulder. "Did you have to bring that up, dude?" He muttered, embarrassed.
Quil didn't care. He made kissy noises in Embry's direction. "Don't be jealous, baby." He joked.
Embry just rolled his eyes again, his cheeks flushing slightly. "Idiot!" He muttered.
"At least now we know why you skipped school, Jakey boy." Quil plonked his butt on one of the spare crates. "It was so you could lock lips with this cutie in secret." He gave Bella an admiring glance before Jacob cuffed him hard on the back of his head. "Ouch!"
Embry shook his head at Quil's antics. "Ignore him. He's just weird."
"My weirdness makes me hot. Right, Bella?" Quil raised his eyebrows and winked in her direction.
This Bella was used to Quil and his games. She had recovered her composure now. She stared Quil right in the eyes, widening her own to look all cute and innocent as she pretended to have misheard him. "Your weirdness makes you full of snot? Aww...you poor thing. Lend him your oily rag to blow his nose on, would ya, Jake?" She deadpanned.
Jacob and Embry collapsed with laughter at the disgruntled expression on Quil's face as Bella flashed him a mocking smile.
A/N-thanks for reading. A little bit of light relief.