9AN: Another contribution to the TPF Short Story Challenge March/April 2023 contest.
Prompt: Open your eyes and stay with me.
Bella Swan was certain of where her life would take her once upon a time. When she moved to Forks, she found purpose and love in a family of vampires, namely her first boyfriend, Edward Cullen. She'd found intrigue and mystery in the broody immortal 17 year-old, falling fast for his appeal and gentlemanly nature. For her first love, he was quite the catch, beautiful beyond words with a body that her young teenage hormones begged for. Unfortunately, his control was the worst around her and every time they got even close to hot and heavy, he would suddenly be on the other side of the room.
But she saw her future in him, in being a vampire right alongside him and his family. She wanted it with every fiber of her being, even though he refused her at every turn. Even after the James incident where her human vulnerabilities were put on blatant display, Edward refused to let her turn, instead going so far as to nearly drain her dead while attempting to suck out the venom and losing control of his bloodlust. It was an 'accident', surely everyone in their family would slip up in that situation. She'd made and offered excuse after excuse for his actions but there was no denying that she no longer felt safe around him.
So when presented with the choice to go visit Billy and Jacob with her father in the one place the Cullens weren't allowed, Bella jumped at the opportunity. She needed to clear her head, and between Edward's clinginess and morose apologies, and Alice's well-meaning attempts to lighten Bella's mood, Bella was feeling quite stifled. With promises that she'd be careful, and an ever-increasingly awkward goodbye kiss, she followed her dad's cruiser down to La Push.
It was strange that the last time she'd been there had been an awkward time spent getting to know a bunch of humans, while Jacob stole her away to fill her head with Quileute folklore. Now, here she was sitting at a large table stacked with food with a bonfire going nearby, Jacob to her right and Charlie to her left while she and Jacob stumbled over half-assed attempts to reconnect. He tried to talk about more 'spooky stories', but it just wasn't as impactful as it used to be. She would have considered herself the foremost expert on the supernatural at that gathering, but there was something about the knowing look in Billy's gaze as his dark eyes lingered on her that suggested he was...aware.
Soon enough, Bella found their gathering being joined by another group of La Push residents, though they looked distinctly different than the others she'd met so far, and not just because of the matching tattoos on their arms. The tallest and bulkiest man by far seemed to lead their little group while three young men and a beautiful woman followed close behind. This had one of the women Bella had met earlier, Emily, jumping to her feet and racing into the large man's arms. It wasn't until the woman's diminutive figure was embraced in the man's massive arms that Bella realized this guy could give Emmett a run for his money in terms of sheer mass.
Bella only just caught the sneer of disgust on the beautiful woman's face as she took in the obvious lovebirds. The closer Bella looked at this newcomer, the more she seemed to notice just how stunning she was. From the short, midnight-black hair that framed her strong features to the intensity of her dark eyes glaring beneath thick lashes, she was a vision of Native beauty. Why couldn't Bella seem to force her gaze away, and why did her eyes want to linger on those full lips?
Suddenly, a young boy obviously in this teens jumped onto the woman's back and began teasing her. Their bickering instantly turned into a mock fight and Bella found herself distracted for an altogether different reason. This woman was fit! She was only wearing a pair of cutoff jean shorts and a thin tank top that hugged her upper body tightly, showing off toned muscles and a pair of legs that seemed to go on for days! The woman had the boy pinned face-first on the ground in a matter of seconds, but that was enough time for Jacob to notice where Bella's attention had gone.
"That's Sam Uley's gang," he muttered, stabbing at his plate aggressively. "They run around the Rez acting like they own the place, and no one seems to care. It's like they have the whole tribe under their thumb. I used to be good friends with the other boys, Paul, Embry, and Quil until Sam got ahold of them. Now it's like they're strangers who can't be bothered to spare any time for me."
"Who's she?" Bella found herself asking, her gaze unable to fully leave the sight of the woman and teen continuing to playfully shove each other around while the rest of Sam's 'gang' made their way over to the table.
"Hmm?" He glanced passed Bella's shoulder, a huff of disappointment leaving his lips. "That's Leah Clearwater, bitch extraordinaire. Get this, she used to be engaged to Sam until her cousin Emily there came back to the Rez. Next thing anyone knows, the engagement is off, Sam is dating Emily, and just as quickly Leah is following behind Sam like a kicked puppy."
Bella could have sworn she heard a familiar noise, but there was no way one of the Cullens had followed her to La Push. So why was she hearing a low growling sound? When she looked up, she noticed several of Sam's gang were glaring at an oblivious Jacob, while Leah's eyes narrowed with murderous intent on the boy. There was no way they could have overheard Jacob's quiet words over the din of continuous noise from the gathering, but Bella was finally able to pinpoint that vicious sound. Leah Clearwater was growling at Jacob, a feral, inhuman sound that shook Bella to her core.
Suddenly, a lot of things began to come together in Bella's head. The Quileute legends about Cold Ones were certainly true, Bella knew that one for a fact. But did that mean the tribe's 'Protectors' were just as real? It would make sense why the Cullens obeyed the whole 'the Cullens don't come here' rule. Were they really- "Werewolves?"
She didn't realized she'd whispered the word aloud until five heads suddenly snapped her direction. The intensity in Sam's gaze was at once terrifying and paralyzing, pinning the human in place as she began to tremble. Jacob, of course, was still oblivious as ever as he continued abusing his food. How could he sit there stewing in his teenage angst when Bella was certain her life-expectancy had just dropped from years to minutes?
Then Sam was approaching where they were seated and Bella's heart threatened to beat its way out of her chest. She wondered idly if she had time to get off a heartfelt goodbye text to Alice, when the entire gang stopped on the other side of the table. And just like that, they all relaxed into a casual stance as Sam smiled at Charlie with this charming look that had Bella understanding just how this intimidating man had put an entire tribe at ease.
"Chief Swan," he called out good-naturedly. "It's good to see you again."
Bella swallowed as Charlie looked up as he choked back a bite he'd just taken of his burger. "Sam Uley, right? Still staying out of trouble down here?"
Sam nodded, though if Bella weren't watching him so close she would have missed the twitch at the corner of his eye. If only Charlie knew the kinds of creatures that went bump around the Olympic Peninsula. "Of course," he responded just as enthusiastically, "I gotta keep these knuckleheads in line." He elbowed one of the other guys jokingly, though the force of the blow seemed genuine judging by how hard the young men fell into the next guy.
"I was wondering," Sam continued as the two boys began roughhousing, "would you mind if we borrowed Jacob and Bella for a bit? We had some stuff that we've been meaning to talk about with that silly old Cullen legend."
Charlie frowned as he turned to look at Bella and Jacob. "I didn't know you knew Sam," he narrowed his gaze at Bella who did her best to keep her face as innocent as possible.
A subtle elbow to Jacob's side kept the boy quiet as Bella smiled at her father. "We met when a group of friends and I from school went to First Beach, remember? Angela, Jessica, the whole gang?"
Charlie held Bella's gaze for a brief moment before eventually turning back to Sam. "We're heading home in about an hour. Don't go too far, you hear me?"
Sam nodded with an easy smile. "Yes sir, no problem. Don't worry, I promise that as soon as we're finished straightening this whole mess out we'll have Bella back safe and sound."
Bella understood the underlying threat in his words, but what could she do? She wouldn't let herself risk the other humans here, and it wasn't the first time she would slip away from safety to face down a supernatural creature possibly vying for her death. She only hoped she could lose Jacob along the way so he didn't get caught up in everything. Bella stood up, leaning over to give Charlie a tight hug that she hadn't been able to give him the last time she'd left while her life was on the line. He seemed agitated by the attention but returned the hug with a side-arm grip before letting her go.
Bella and Jacob both followed Sam as his gang took up positions around them as they headed down the beach a ways. Strangely enough, Bella was distinctly aware of Leah the whole walk, her powerful presence almost intoxicating this close as the woman remained close to the human girl. Jacob, of course, couldn't keep his mouth shut for long and soon enough, he began puffing up his false bravado on Bella's behalf.
"What the hell, Sam?" he groused, glaring at the man's back as they continued what Bella was coming to understand was an 'armed' escort of sorts. "You are not roping the Police Chief's daughter into whatever illegal bullshit you have going on down here!"
Sam ignored Jacob, so Bella did so as well as she began her own negotiations. "Does Jacob have to be a part of this? You could let him leave and no one will be the wiser."
"It's too late for that," Sam growled, his voice deepening into a frightening register that called to long-silent self-preservation instincts in Bella. "He's still too young, but you, leech-lover, have forced my hand. He stays."
Bella sighed, wondering if she could distract the wolves long enough to allow Jacob to escape, when they suddenly came upon a house in the middle of the woods. It was rustic, with a large porch and even larger drive where a few trucks were parked. Sam stopped at the porch and turned, the rest of the group following to his side until two of the young men stood to his left, with the other standing up his right, Leah standing a bit farther away while staring off into the distance as if bored of the whole situation. Bella couldn't understand why the woman's disinterest upset her so bad, but she had bigger problems to face than her weird reactions to the standoffish woman.
"Bella Swan," Sam intoned, voice grave as he crossed his thick arms over his barrel chest. "You have brought to light certain truths you were to remain ignorant of. I have but one question: Which of the Cullens revealed our Pack to you?"
Bella's eyes widened as she realized where this was actually going. "What?! Neither of them revealed a thing about you being wolves. You confirmed that yourselves by overhearing a single word and overreacting!"
Sam's glare intensified, his body taking a threatening step forward, causing Bella's heart to jump into her throat. "Do not toy with me, leech-lover. We have a pact with the Cullens to never reveal our natures to anyone. So long as they also continue to abstain from human feeding, then we will let them live. Any break in that treaty is grounds for their immediate termination!"
Bella's head snapped back at the vicious rage she could practically feel rolling off the man in waves. "If you're looking for a reason to go to war with the Cullens, you're barking up the wrong tree, pun intended. I figured out what the Cullens were because Jacob told me your tribal stories of the Cold Ones and the Cullens. I figured out what you are because you morons literally were growling like animals because of what Jacob said at dinner!"
"Goddammit, Jacob!" one of the young guys to Sam's left exclaimed, sighing irritably. "You couldn't keep your little crush under control, could you? No, let's go give away tribe secrets to the Pale Face you want to bang."
When Bella finally turned to look at the boy, she realized he'd been far too quiet the whole time. To say he didn't look good was an understatement. His face was flushed, his body trembling where he stood clutching his abdomen. He didn't even react to the ribbing his former friend was giving him, his eyes actually looked pretty glazed.
"Jacob-" Bella began, reaching out to her friend, her voice cut off abruptly when a warm body literally tackled her out of the way, landing in a tangle of limbs several feet from where Jacob once stood. As soon as Bella got a clear view, she stopped fighting the body trying to hold her down as she took in the sight of a massive sandy-brown wolf with shaggy fur laying on its stomach with a confused whimper.
Bella swallowed hard, her heart pounding out a staccato rhythm as she realized Jacob wasn't the only wolf in the clearing now. Sam and three other wolves of varying sizes and colors now formed a protective half circle around Jacob. This gave Bella pause to take in her captor, her heart speeding up once again as she began to take stock of soft, overheated skin and an athletic, toned body. Her gaze slowly traveled from the sun-kissed arms pinning her by the waist, eventually coming to rest on the intensely beautiful face of Leah Clearwater.
"Damn, you're hot," she whispered, flinching as she realized what she'd said, turning away before Leah's gaze snapped her way. "I mean do you have a fever or something because you're burning up?"
Nice save, Swan, she berated herself. Bella wondered, not for the first time, what was going on with her. Sure, she was questioning her relationship with Edward and what that meant for her future, but when did that suddenly equate to questioning her sexuality? Because holy crap, from the moment she'd noticed Leah, the woman hadn't been far from Bella's thoughts. Now here she was with said woman practically draped over her and she couldn't seem to think straight.
"Glad at least someone notices my undeniable sex appeal," came a warm, husky voice whispered into Bella's ear and she couldn't help the gasp that left her throat at the raw sensuality of Leah Clearwater hitting on her. Or at least Bella thought she was being hit on-hoped she was being hit on with a sudden desire.
Deciding to play along while ignoring the growls and irritable noises coming from the nearby murder dogs, Bella playfully shoved at Leah's shoulders-only to be distracted when her hands encountered those toned, tight muscles for the first time. Bella's hormones seemed to have a mind of their own as she squeezed and basically massaged the power she suddenly found beneath her fingertips.
A heated chuckle had Bella blushing when she realized what she'd been doing, her hands jerking away with embarrassment. "Not that I mind a softer touch, but at least buy me dinner first."
Oh this cocky wolf! Bella forced herself to sit up, or at least she tried to. But the moment she was eye-level with the woman, everything in Bella's world suddenly changed. Leah was suddenly staring into Bella's eyes with a wide-eyed intensity that seemed to shake the woman to her very foundation. If not for the puff of air ghosting so close to Bella's own lips, she would have thought the woman stopped breathing altogether. Bella couldn't bring herself to look away, her focus narrowing to a pair of the most beautiful eyes she'd ever seen. She could easily pick out a deep, whiskey brown color buried around the darkness of her pupils. Those eyes made Bella think of sleepless nights laid out amongst the stars, of hot cocoa in the cold winter months, of tossing logs on a fire as two bodies held one another so close as to become one.
A vicious growl from nearby had Leah's head snapping up, Bella's gaze following only to find Jacob's massive snout only a few feet away being held back by the other wolves. Leah's eyes had turned from that smoky brown to a shining gold in seconds, but Bella felt no fear in the face of her inhuman features. "Get him away from my imprint or Billy buries a son." Okay, so maybe the guttural rumble in her voice should have had Bella a little terrified, but all Bella could feel in that moment was an inappropriate amount of arousal.
A massive black body tackled Jacob suddenly, sending him flying through the air with a loud cracking noise that Bella suspected was his ribs fracturing. When he landed, he stayed down, whimpering. Bella fought to get up and go to her friend, but Leah held her in place without much effort, her voice growling into Bella's ear bringing her struggles to a standstill.
"He'll be fine, Isabella." Bella couldn't hold back a tremble at the husky cadence practically being projected into her body. "We wolves heal even faster than those bloodsuckers. His body will heal in minutes. Please...don't leave me right now."
The sudden vulnerability in her voice had Bella turning back to the wolf, finding and holding the woman's gaze as she was once again caught in the beauty of...dare she say her wolf? "What is an imprint?" she found herself asking.
Leah's worried gaze softened, one of her hands leaving Bella's shoulders to gently cup Bella's cheek in a loving gesture. "We wolves mate for life. We call them imprints, one single person the Spirits have chosen as the match for our soul. The moment we lock eyes with our imprint after our first shift, an unbreakable bond forms where gravity no longer holds the wolf to the earth anymore. Our imprint holds us tethered to the world while we become whatever she wants of us: a sister, a best friend...a lover."
Bella felt her heart stutter at the impassioned description of what equated to soulmates in her mind. It sounded beautiful and described exactly how she'd been feeling from the moment Leah had appeared on the scene, amplified a hundred fold after their eyes had finally met. The options she'd listed for them only had one real answer in Bella's heart, and she felt said organ leap at the thought of loving this goddess of a woman.
Except there was only one problem and he was currently waiting for her at what she now realized was a territory border. "I want this," she began gently, voice soft as she raised her own hand to cup Leah's cheek, the heated skin of her wolf warming her to her core. "I can't deny that I feel the same depth of this bond that you do. But," she cringed, fearing what was to come, "I need to break up with Edward properly before you and I can be together. I want to end that chapter of my life before we begin ours, you understand?"
Leah's eyes flickered with emotions, both in their shifting of colors and the way her brows furrowed and her lips pursed in a frown. But eventually she nodded, sitting up while pulling Bella along with her until the human was practically sitting her lap, a perpetual blush tinting her cheeks at the comforting position. "I understand, trust me. Sam tried to deny his imprint bond with Emily while he was still with me and it nearly tore him apart until he lost control and hurt his imprint. Did you see her scars?" Bella nodded, frowning at Leah's story but not wanting to interrupt. "He did that, and now we all live with his guilt in our shared thoughts we call the packmind."
Bella couldn't resist reaching up to cup Leah's cheeks, her thumbs tracing proud cheekbones as she gazed deeply into her wolf's eyes. "I came here today to get away from him, actually. I needed time to think about our relationship after-" Bella clamped her mouth shut, but she was already too late as Leah's gaze narrowed. And so she quickly recounted the events of the baseball game, from James hunting her to him luring her out with the threat against her mother. She tried to skim on the details but the look in Leah's eyes broached no room for argument and so she explained how he'd tortured her, ending with her being bitten.
When she explained how Edward had sucked the venom out rather than let her turn into a vampire, Leah seemed to relax. At least until she saw the hesitance in Bella's gaze, her voice strained as she spoke. "What happened, Bella?"
She swallowed past the lump in her throat as she slowly raised her left wrist, baring the twin scars she wore there. "Edward has always been drawn to my blood, more so than any other human he's ever come across apparently. He almost couldn't bring himself to stop and nearly killed me pulling the venom out of me."
A pair of strong hands suddenly grabbed Bella under her arms and snatched her away from Leah just as the trembling woman burst into the most beautiful wolf Bella had ever seen. Silver furred with a slender body and powerful jowls, Leah was a sight to behold as she stood there growling the most fearsome sound Bella had ever heard. Bella only barely noticed Sam walking in front of her, the sounds from Leah increasing as the man blocked Leah's view from Bella. "Leah, calm down! Don't repeat my mistakes, dammit!"
The impact of his words after what Leah had just told Bella seemed enough to bring her back to her senses. Unfortunately, Bella noticed the tattered remains of Leah's clothing littering the ground and she had to fight a blush at the thought of the woman shifting back without a stitch of clothing. Not now, hormones!
Luckily, Sam seemed to understand as he stepped aside. "Unfortunately, we couldn't help but overhear with our heightened senses. While Leah goes home to retrieve herself a new set of clothing, I suggest you go rid yourself of that leech before Leah takes care of him for you. He's lucky we don't consider his biting you a violation of the treaty, but considering he originally did so to save you from that curse, we are willing to overlook it."
Bella wanted to retort, if only to complain about the unfounded hatred they all seemed to have for the Cullens, but she held her tongue. She had a lot to learn about the lines drawn between these two species of supernaturals and she wasn't going to start it off with a baseless argument. Nodding, she turned to Leah who was simply staring at her with sad eyes. Smiling, Bella walked confidently right up to her wolf and embraced her around her neck, nuzzling her face into the soft fur of Leah's wolfy cheek.
"I'll be back before you know it," she whispered against Leah's head, her heart breaking at the idea of leaving her wolf behind for any length of time. "Wait for me, okay, my wolf?"
She pulled away to see a canine grin on Leah's face as the wolf yipped happily. Taking that as confirmation, Bella pulled away and began walking back the way they had come, Sam following 'as an escort so Charlie doesn't get suspicious'. Bella was sure he just wanted an excuse to return to his own imprint. "I expect a proper explanation when I get back, without the heavy-handed bullshit," she found herself muttering to the man the closer they got to the gathering.
She could only just make out Sam's smirk at she fought to keep up with his long-legged pace. "I'm certain Leah will be more than happy to explain anything you ask of her, in whatever detail you want." He turned a wink on the blushing human. "You'll find the real power of a wolf lies in his or her imprint. I can't wait to see Leah get taken down a peg or two by a little human."
Bella wanted to be angry at the man for talking about her wolf in such a way, but she was suddenly struck with the image of having all of that toned power at her mercy. Calm the hell down, hormones! We just met the girl...of our dreams, but still!
Soon enough they were back at her dad's side with Sam and Bella grinning and waving Charlie's worry off. "Everything is cool," she told her father, hoping he would take her news well enough to not question her wanting to return to the Rez later. "In fact, I have good news. Thanks to Sam's group, more specifically, Leah Clearwater, I need to head over to the Cullens so I can break up with Edward."
Charlie's jaw dropped, his gaze flickering to Sam who had just left to go join his imprint who was gathering up used dishes and cleaning up after the gathering. "You're not leaving him for one of those boys, are you? 'Cause I don't think that's a good idea-"
"Charlie!" Bella quickly interrupted with a laugh, placing a hand on the man's shoulder to stop his awkward 'dad-speak'. "I came here tonight to get away from Edward, to think. After meeting everyone here, talking with Sam's group and having them include me and Jake in their friendship, I realized what I was missing by limiting myself to Edward." That was as close to admitting she was 'gay' to Charlie, because she wasn't a hundred percent sure how he'd take that news.
Charlie seemed to consider his daughter for several moments before he nodded, a smile slowly working its way onto his bushy face. "Alright, if you're sure, I won't hold you back. I always felt like that Edward boy was a little too strange for his own good anyway. Do you have your pepper-spray?"
Bella had to hold back a snort as she nodded, ever the dutiful daughter as she held up her keychain with the canister attached. "I'll be home before you know it!"
Feeling lighter than she had in ages, Bella quickly found her way off of the Rez and on the road heading towards the Cullens. She was nervous about how Edward would take the news, but she was sure that with the rest of the family around that she would be perfectly fine. Alice, of all people, would see her coming and plan accordingly.
What she didn't expect was for the cab of her truck to explode inward from the passenger side, glass shards slashing at her face as an inhuman snarl filled the truck. The vehicle swerved off the road, coming to a crashing halt as she ran headlong into a tree. Every part of her hurt, from the various cuts all over her body to what she suspected was a serious concussion from her head bashing the driver's side window.
The last thing she expected, above the accident or falling for a wolf and her willingness to leave Edward, was to find said vampire staring down at her from the passenger seat, eyes onyx-black as he glared death at her. "You think you can leave me, for one of those mutts?!" he snarled, his voice so deep as to put demons to shame. "Well let's just see how much she wants you when you become the very thing she despises!"
He lifted her left arm across her body, her sluggish mind slow to keep up with his words. "Wh-What are you doing? L-Let me go, Edward!"
His grin was a terrifying sight as he leaned over her scarred wrist. "Why, Bella, I'm finally giving you what you wanted." His teeth glinted in the strange light coming in from the fractured windshield. "Forever."
And then he bit her. It didn't take long before the memory of vampire venom became reality again, only this time Edward managed to pull away as soon as the fiery substance entered her veins. "Don't worry," he murmured quietly, that soft gentleness entering his voice that she'd always found so beautiful. "I took off Alice's head before she could tell anyone about her vision. No one will get to you in time to suck out the venom. I'll see you in three days, my Bella."
Three days of agony and a soul-deep pain was all Bella knew. Edward had hidden her body deep in the woods, far from any hope of salvation where she was left to scream her throat raw. She could sense them around her, a raw scent of animal that sat like vomit on the back of her tongue. Except one stood out the moment the fire abated and her heart beat its last. It was woodsmoke and leather, floral musk that whetted Bella's palate like never before. Leah was there, waiting with the others...waiting to kill her for what she had become.
A warm body suddenly encased Bella's now-cold one, holding her close while running fingers through her hair. A familiar voice, just as loving as the moment their eyes first locked, rumbled into her sensitive ears. "Open your eyes and stay with me...forever."