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Bella,

I don’t knohy you’re rade if I

wanted to talk to you I would answer the

You made the choice here, okay? You can’t have it both hen

What part of ’mortal enemies’ is too co a jerk, but there’s just no way around

We can’t be friends when you’re spending all your time with a bunch of

It just makes it worse when I think about you too much, so don’t write anye anything Sorry

Jacob

I ranthe dents where he had pressed the pen to the paper so hard that it had nearly broken through I could picture hih handwriting, slashing through line after line when the words ca hand; that would explain the ink splatters I could iether and cruhed Don’t give yourself a brain hee, Jacob, I would have told hi I felt like doing now as I reread the words I’d alreadynote?passed frorade, as he’d pointed out?was no surprise I’d known the essence of what it would say before I’d opened it

What was surprising was how much each crossed-out line wounded es More than that, behind each angry beginning lurked a vast pool of hurt; Jacob’s pain cut ht the un from the kitchen In another house, the fact that soht not be a cause for panicking

I shoved the wrinkled paper into my back pocket and ran I hetti sauce Charlie’d stuck in the microas only on its first revolution when I yanked the door open and pulled it out "What did I do wrong?" Charlie demanded "You’re supposed to take the lid off first, Dad Metal’s bad for microwaves" I swiftly removed the lid as I spoke, poured half the sauce into a bowl, and then put the bowl inside the e; I fixed the time and pressed start

Charlie watched et the noodle’s right?" I looked in the pan on the stove?the source of the s helps," I said mildly I found a spoon and tried to de-clump the hed

"So what’s all this about?" I asked hilared out the back s into the sheeting rain "Don’t knohat you’re talking about," he gru? And ith the surly attitude? Edasn’t here yet; usually my dad reserved this kind of behavior forhis best to illustrate the theme of "unwelcome" with every word and posture Charlie’s efforts were unnecessary?Edward knew exactly whatwithout the show

The word boyfriend hadon the inside of my cheek with faht word, not at all I needed so more expressive of eternal commitment? But words like destiny and fate sounded hokey when you used them in casual conversation

Edward had another word in mind, and that as the source of the tension I felt It put h I shuddered away fro? Since when do you make dinner?" I asked Charlie The pasta lu water as I poked it "Or try to ed "There’s no law that says I can’t cook inas I eyed the badge pinned to his leather jacket

"Ha Good one" He shrugged out of the jacket as ifit on the peg reserved for his gear His gun belt was already slung in place?he hadn’t felt the need to wear that to the station for a feeeks There had been nodisappearances to trouble the siant, mysterious wolves in the ever-rainy woods?

I prodded the noodles in silence, guessing that Charlie would get around to talking about whatever was bothering him in his own time My dad was not ato orchestrate a sit-down dinner with me made it clear there were an unusual characteristic nulanced at the clock routinely?so I did every few o now

Afternoons were the hardest part of my day Ever since my former best friend (and olf), Jacob Black, had infor on the sly?a betrayal he had devised in order to get rounded so that I couldn’t spend time with my boyfriend (and vampire), Edward Cullen?Edward had been allowed to see me only from seven till nine-thirty pm, always inside the confines of ly crabby glare

This was an escalation fro that I’d earned from an unexplained three-day disappearance and one episode of cliff diving

Of course, I still saard at school, because there wasn’t anything Charlie could do about that And then, Edward spent alht in my room, too, but Charlie wasn’t precisely aware of that Edward’s ability to clih my second-story as almost as useful as his ability to read Charlie’s h the afternoon was the only tih to ed Still, I endured ?I knew I’d earned it, and?for another?because I couldn’t bear to hurtout nohen a much more permanent separation hovered, invisible to Charlie, so close on runt and unfolded the daue in disapproval

"I don’t knohy you read the paper, Dad It only ticks you off"

He ignoredat the paper in his hands "This is why everyone wants to live in a s now?"

"Seattle’sa run for murder capitol of the country Five unsolved ho like that?"

"I think Phoenix is actually higher up in the homicide list, Dad I have lived like that" And I’d never co a murder victim until after I moved to his safe little town In fact, was still on several hit lists? The spoon shook inthe water treh," Charlie said

I gave up on saving dinner and settled for serving it; I had to use a steak knife to cut a portion of spaghetti for Charlie and then myself, while he watched with a sheepish expression Charlie coated his helping with sauce and dug in I disguised my own clump as well as I could and followed his example without much enthusias the news, so I picked up hts fro at breakfast, and tried to lose land while I waited for hi

I was just to the part where Heathcliff returns when Charlie cleared his throat and threw the paper to the floor

"You’re right," Charlie said "I did have a reason for doing this" He waved his fork at the gluey spread "I wanted to talk to you"

I laid the book aside; the binding was so destroyed that it slumped flat to the table "You could have just asked"

He nodded, his eyebrows pulling together "Yeah I’ll re dinner off your hands would soften you up"

I laughed "It worked?your cooking skills have me soft as a marshmallow What do you need, Dad?"

"Well, it’s about Jacob"

I felt h stiff lips

"Easy, Bells I know you’re still upset that he told on you, but it was the right thing He was being responsible"

"Responsible," I repeated scathingly, rolling ht So what about Jacob?"

The careless question repeated inside oing to do about hied

Charlie’s face was suddenly wary "Don’t get mad at me, okay?"

"Mad?"

"Well, it’s about Edward, too"

My eyes narrowed

Charlie’s voice got gruffer "I let him in the house, don’t I?"

"You do," I adht let me out of the house for brief periods of tily; I kneas on lockdown for the duration of the school year "I’ve been pretty good lately"

"Well, that’s kind of where I was heading with this?" And then Charlie’s face stretched into an unexpected eye-crinkling grin; for a second he looked twenty years younger

I saw a dilimmer of possibility in that smile, but I proceeded slowly "I’ about Jacob, or Edward, or ain "Sort of all three"

"And how do they relate?" I asked, cautious

"Okay" He sighed, raising his hands as if in surrender "So I’ood behavior For a teenager, you’re surprisingly non-whiney"

My voice and eyebrows shot up "Seriously? I’ from? I’d been positive I would be under house arrest until I actuallyin Charlie’s thoughts?

Charlie held up one finger "Conditionally"

The enthusiasroaned

"Bella, this is more of a request than a de you’ll use that freedoain "I know you’re satisfied to spend all your time with Edward?" "I spend time with Alice, too," I interjected Edward’s sister had no hours of visitation; she came and went as she pleased Charlie was putty in her capable hands "That’s true," he said "But you have other friends besides the Cullens, Bella Or you used to"

We stared at each other for a long ela Weber?" he threw at me

"Friday at lunch," I answered immediately Before Edward’s return, roups I liked to think of those groups as good vs evil Us and theela, her steady boyfriend Ben Cheney, and Mike Newton; these three had all very generously forgivencrazy when Edward left Lauren Mallory was the evil core of the the o along with her anti-Bella agenda

With Edward back at school, the dividing line had become even more distinct Edward’s return had taken its toll on Mike’s friendship, but Angela was unswervingly loyal, and Ben followed her lead Despite the natural aversion ela sat dutifully beside Alice every day at lunch After a feeeks, Angela even looked comfortable there It was difficult not to be charave the

"Outside of school?" Charlie asked, calling my attention back "I haven’t seen anyone outside of school, Dad Grounded, reela has a boyfriend, too She’s alith Ben If I’m really free," I added, heavy on the skepticism, "maybe we could double" "Okay But then?" He hesitated "You and Jake used to be joined at the hip, and now?" I cut hiet to the point, Dad? What’s your condition?exactly?" "I don’t think you should dump all your other friends for your boyfriend, Bella," he said in a stern voice "It’s not nice, and I think your life would be better balanced if you kept some other people in it What happened last September?" I flinched "Well," he said defensively "If you’d had ht not have been like that" "It would have been exactly like that," I muttered "Maybe, maybe not" "The point?" I reminded him "Use your new freedom to see your other friends, too Keep it balanced" I nodded slowly "Balance is good Do I have specific tih?" He made a face, but shook his head "I don’t want to et about your friends?particularly Jacob" It took ht be?difficult" "The Blacks are practically faain "And Jacob has been a very, very good friend to you" "I know that" "Don’t you miss him at all?" Charlie asked, frustrated My throat suddenly felt swollen; I had to clear it twice before I answered "Yes, I dodown "I miss him a lot" "Then why is it difficult?"

It wasn’t soainst the rules for normal people?human people like me and Charlie?to know about the clandestine world full of myths and monsters that existed secretly around us I knew all about that world?and I was in no set Charlie in the same trouble

"With Jacob there is?a conflict," I said slowly "A conflict about the friendship thing, I h for Jake" I wound nificant, hardly crucial compared to the fact that Jacob’s olf pack bitterly hated Edward’s vampire family?and therefore me, too, as I fully intended to join that fa I could work out with him in a note, and he wouldn’t answer my calls But my plan to deal with the olf in person had definitely not gone over ith the vampires

"Isn’t Edward up for a little healthy competition?" Charlie’s voice was sarcastic now

I leveled a dark look at hi Jake’s feelings, avoiding hi"

Oh, noas avoiding him?

"I’m pretty sure Jake doesn’t want to be friends at all" The words burned in et that idea, anyway?"

Charlie looked eht have coossip like old woealed spaghetti on my plate

"Billy’s worried about Jacob," Charlie said "Jake’s having a hard tiht now? He’s depressed"

I winced, but kept my eyes on the blob

"And then you were always so happy after spending the day with Jake" Charlie sighed

"I’h my teeth

The contrast between h the tension Charlie burst into laughter, and I had to join in

"Okay, okay," I agreed "Balance"

"And Jacob," he insisted

"I’ll try"

"Good Find that balance, Bella And, oh, yeah, you’ve got so the subject with no attempt at subtlety "It’s by the stove"

I didn’tinto snarls around Jacob’s nae fro else

Charlie shoved his chair away froot to his feet He took his plate to the sink, but before he turned the water on to rinse it, he paused to toss a thick envelope at me The letter skidded across the table and thunked into my elbow

"Er, thanks," I muttered, puzzled by his pushiness Then I saw the return address?the letter was frouess I missed the deadline on that one, too"