Cold Water | Jacob Black

two | the disappearance of Edward

Freya placed the freshly baked, decorated cakes on the display counter of the cafe she worked at. These were some of her best — bread pudding that the customers adored and vanilla cupcakes. The children loved the cupcakes after their swimming lessons. Icing sugar now coated her apron, but Freya didn't care. While baking, Freya was usually covered in everything.

Baking had always been her pastime like Alison's had been with swimming (though Alison was more competitive). Her friend was now currently speaking to her old swim maters that were sat within the cafe that the two worked at. The two had taken the job opportunity before they were mermaids with Alison eager for the discounted swimming and Freya wanting a job that involved baking. Only now Alison spent her working hours coming up with excuses as to why she quit the swim team.

It wasn't long before Alison came back into the kitchen with a frown stitched upon her face. Feeling bad for her friend, Freya opened her arms wide for a hug.

"Your gloves are a little wet," Alison pointed out.

"Right," Freya smiled, removing the long yellow gloves from her arms, while being careful not to touch any skin. It was a little risky working within an environment that contained water, but why should they give it up?

"Is that all the dishes?" Alison questioned. "I'd like to leave on time today. The cakes look great, by the way."

"Yeah, they're all in and just need to be dried," Freya mumbled, hating the dishwasher even more now with the thought that one slip-up could lead to the two revealing their mermaid selves. If other co-workers were here, they wouldn't take well to a tail.

"And mopping," Alison remembered. "I hate mopping."

"I'll do it," Freya offered.

When they worked the weekends, their manager never questioned the sudden preference of gloves. The two tended to escape the dishwasher, but tonight it was just them working with their manager coming back to close once they had finished (she was working in the office). They were incredibly cautious at work with neither having an accident as of yet.

"Fancy a swim after this?" Alison asked Freya, while she was currently filling the bucket up slowly with water. She was already in her 'waterproof' gear.

"No," she answered like always.

"You're missing out," Allison told her for the thousandth time. "It's incredible out there. I — we — can swim so fast."

"I like my bath time with my tail," Freya said. "It's a lot safer."

"It's more boring," Alison muttered.

A heavy breath flowed through Freya, fingers tightening on the bucket. The sea angered her — why did it have to become a part of her life when she didn't want it to? Why would she be the one to be a mermaid? Freya hated the sea, mainly because you never knew what lurked within the ocean and then the water was never-ending. How was that safe? And all that wasn't even including what had happened...

Freya had put too much water in the bucket now since she was lost in her thoughts of the sea. She turned off the tap, struggling to leave the bucket as she poured too much water out at once. Water splashed back as it hit the sink; droplets falling against her skin as she gasped. She turned towards Alison with wide eyes, shocked as her body changed, and she fell with her legs turning into the familiar golden-orange tail.

The bucket had fallen into the sink, creating a mess as more water splashed within the tiny kitchen. Alison lifted her hand, where she froze the droplets before they had a chance of hitting her. She stepped back, eyeing Freya, who was on the floor, in horror.

"Move back from the door," Alison hissed urgently.

Gritting her teeth, Freya pulled herself across the kitchen floor of the cafe in an attempt to hide herself away from the door and any prying eyes of customers in the cafe. She turned around, her tail responding as it slapped against the tiles. Freya looked towards Alison once more, pleading for help.

Alison threw her a tea-towel, disappearing from the kitchen to serve a customer, assuring them that everything was fine -- that Freya had just been clumsy once more and dropped the bucket, making a mess.

Freya pulled herself further down, groaning as she reached for the plug to turn the fan on. The cold air blew at her, hair whirling around as she shivered. Picking up the tea-towel, she began scrubbing at her tail — pleading silently for it to disappear as quickly as it had come.

By the time Alison came back in, her tail had vanished to Alison's relief with the two of them letting out a small, nervous laugh at the close call.

☾

The front door opened before Freya had even stepped out of Alison's mom's car, which confused her. The terror in her parent's eyes alarmed her to that something had happened. For a second she paused, eyes searching for Nancy. Not again. Not again.

"Why haven't you been answering your phone?" Her mother asked her as Freya walked up the drive towards them.

"I was working," Freya told them. "What's happened?"

"Bella went missing," her dad said, placing a hand on his daughter's back as he led her into their home. Behind her, the front door closed. Freya looked up at him in question, but he lifted a hand to stop her panicked questions. "She's fine and home now. We've been searching all evening for her."

"Where was she?" Freya asked.

"In the woods," her mom shook her head. "The boy — Edward — left town so they broke up, of course. Bella got herself into a state and ended up lost in the woods."

"Some boy found her," her dad continued. "Sam, I think it was? She's a little shaken up, but back home now."

"Wait, what?" Freya looked between them both, shocked at everything that had happened. "Edward left town? Without Bella?"

"Charlie tried ringing their house. Apparently, they've just packed up and left," he told her, sitting down in the sitting room. He placed his head in his hand as the night's events have taken a toll on him.

"How is Bella?" Freya questioned. "And Charlie?"

"I've never seen Charlie in such a state," her mother commented. "Not since..."

"He was a mess when Bella had ran off not too long ago," her dad added, eager to keep the conversation moving and away from what the family had previously been through. "Called me not knowing what to do. It's probably a good thing the boy left."

"She'll be fine though, getting over your first heartbreak is hard, but she'll get there," her mom smiled at Freya as if it was a hint to when she'd have her first heartbreak. "Perhaps you should go see her over the weekend."

"Maybe," Freya said, but she knew Bella preferred being alone.

"And Charlie will be fine," her dad sighed. "Now that she's safe."

Freya was quiet as she went to her room, being careful not to wake up Nancy. She threw her bag by her desk, turning on her phone. A lot of phone calls and texts buzzed through, where she saw that they were all about Bella and them needing her help. Guilt twisted inside her as she wished that she had kept her phone turned on while at work.

The last text caught her attention that was from an unknown number that she clicked on.

Please look after Bella - Edward.

☾

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'm glad everyone is liking/enjoying the story. It'll start going fast-paced during Bella's distant period. Jacob shall come in again shortly.

REWRITTEN.