Envy and Evelyn || The Twilight Saga

Chapter Two: Visitors

Bella and I were unpacking our bags upstairs. Dad had gotten us two twin-beds, and we had a shared dresser and desk, as well as new purple bedding fit for teenagers. I smiled, inhaling the familiar scents of dust, wood, and Dad's detergent. It was a small room for the two of us to share, but I didn't mind it. I finished packing away my wardrobe and collapsed on my bed, the comforter puffing up around me.

    Bella turned. "Settling in?"

    I nodded. "Missed it."

    And I had. I'd missed Forks deeply, intensely, with a longing I felt in my hair and my bones.

    She chuckled, placing her tiny cactus strategically on the desk so she wouldn't bump into it later. Then, she went off to the bathroom.

    I stood up, closing the door quietly before I went to the closet. I opened it, heart thumping in my chest. I sighed in pain. It was right where I left it– Jacob's red and blue flannel, crumpled up by the door, where I'd shoved it after that night on the beach.

    I picked it up, holding it in my hands. It'd been left there for six months, but it still smelled like rain and him. I lifted it to my nose, smelling it, tears pricking my eyes at the fifteen-year-long friendship I'd ruined, all for the sake of one stupid kiss and my own cowardice.

    I heard Bella coming down the hall, and I quickly threw the flannel under my bed.

    "Thought I left the door open," she muttered as she came in, running a hand through her hair.

    "Nope." I shook my head. "You definitely shut it."

    She eyed me curiously, but said nothing more.

    It was no more than a few minutes when I heard a car pull over the old gravel in the driveway. I went to the window, looking out at a beat-up red truck– and Jacob.

    He and his dad were in the driveway, talking to Charlie. My stomach twisted, wondering if Jacob had told Billy about how I broke his heart.

    "What's going on?" Bella asked.

    "Um, company downstairs," I muttered. "Go tell Dad I'm feeling sick."

    Bella furrowed her eyebrows. "Evie?"

    I shook my head. "Don't worry about it, just go."

    Bella shrugged and went downstairs. I watched from the window as the door opened and she went out to the truck in the driveway. Dad told her something, and she started smiling like a little kid. Then, she got to talking to Jacob. His eyes lit up at the sight of her, making me sick.

    Jacob, as if on cue, glanced up at my window. I hid behind my curtain, watching as he eventually ignored me.

    I sighed. I was such a bad person. I wanted to say sorry. I wanted to tell him that I didn't mean to run away; that I was just screwed up in the head. I wanted to tell him that he didn't want me. He couldn't possibly want me. I'd just hurt him, which I already did.

    I had a bad habit of ruining everything. When something starts going right, I sabotage myself. Jacob was an unfortunate casualty of the war between me and myself.

    To tell the truth, it'd be better for him if he were with Bella. She was kind. Smart. She allowed people to love her. She allowed people to get close enough to love her.

    I couldn't give Jacob that, no matter how much I cared about him.

    I sighed and flopped down on my bed, now actually feeling sick.

    After a while, a knock rapped against my door.

    "Come in," I muttered into my pillow.

    "Bells said you felt sick," Dad said as he walked in. He crossed the room to sit on the edge of my bed. "We ordered in. Pizza. Thought you might want some."

    I looked up at him, taking the pizza gratefully as my stomach rumbled. "Thanks, Dad."

    He smiled, the edges of his mustache curling up with his lips. He sighed. "I can't remember the last time I had you and Bella here at the same time. I missed it. House was too empty without the both of you."

    I chuckled, taking a bite of pizza. "You'll get sick of not having the bachelor pad to yourself."

    He snorted. "Yeah. Bachelor pad."

    I smiled, swallowing another bite. "Um, Dad... when Mom left, did you ever think you could forgive her?"

    Dad considered it for a minute, smiling softly before he shrugged. "I guess," he muttered. "Mostly, at first, I wish she hadn't. But... I'm alright now. I've got my girls, and the station... fishing... why?"

    I shrugged, but I knew why. I was wondering if Jacob could ever forgive me. "I don't know."

    "This wouldn't have something to do with Jacob, would it?" he asked, furrowing an eyebrow.

    I flushed, nearly choking on my pizza. "W-what?"

    "C'mon, Eve," he said softly. "You don't think I know nothing, do you? I had my suspicions, but you not coming down to visit was the... nail in the coffin, I guess."

    I sighed. "I was a jerk to him."

    "If there's one thing I know about you and Jake," he said softly, "it's that nothing can keep you two separated long. And... if you really were a jerk to him, an apology goes a long way."

    I frowned. "I'm scared he's gonna hate me."

    "You won't know unless you talk to him," Dad said. He ruffled my hair. "Don't worry about it too much tonight, you've got school in the morning."

    I swallowed. "Right. That."

    I finished the last bite of my pizza and handed him the empty plate. He took it, cracking a joke under his breath about how the duchess had already taken over the house, and then left the room. I smiled. If nothing else, I was glad to be back with him.

    I picked up one of the notebooks that had been meant for school and sat at the desk, drafting an apology for Jacob.