Falling for Autumn | Jacob Black

Chapter 5 [edited]

"What do you mean, he can read anyone's mind except yours?" I asked in disbelief. Bella threw her arms up in a shrug.

"I don't know! We were sitting at the table and he could read the other people's minds. But for some reason, he can't read mine."

I chewed on my bottom lip as I listened to her, the memory of seeing him smirk at Jessica on our first day coming to mind. It made sense; somehow I knew he was telling Bella the truth.

"Okay, so what do we do now?" I asked, crossing my legs on the bed. Bella handed me her laptop.

"We're going to use Google."

"And what are we asking Google today?"

"We're going to research vampires."

She turned back to the desktop computer and began frantically typing on the keyboard. Sighing, I opened a web browser and Googled "Quileute legends the cold ones," scrolling through the results.

It was close to 2 am when Bella abruptly pushed her chair away from the desk and stood up, stretching.

"You hungry?" She peered at me as she rubbed her neck.

"Yeah, a little." I admitted, looking away from the screen.

"I'll go get a snack and then we'll compare notes."

A few minutes later, Bella came back with apple slices and caramel dip, balancing water bottles under her arm. I grabbed the bottles so she could sit down next to me. As we munched on our snack, we traded our notes and pointed out similarities we had found.

"Whoa," I mumbled, scanning through the papers. "So, that means..."

"Yup." Bella flopped back onto her bed and stared at the ceiling. "The Cullens are vampires."

"You know we won't be able to tell anyone, right?" I glanced at her and she slowly nodded.

"I know," she sighed. "Even though I know the truth, it doesn't change my feelings about him. Does that make me crazy?"

"Of course." I teased. "No, it doesn't make you crazy. It just means... you're human. So, what are we going to do now?"

She giggled at my bad pun before groaning at the question. Throwing a pillow over her face, Bella muffled her scream. When she was done, she positioned the pillow under her head.

"I'm going to confront him on Monday."

"Yeah, because that'll go real smoothly in front of the student body," I said sarcastically. Bella stuck her tongue out at me.

"Not in school, you dork," she laughed. "There's a trail in the woods by the school. I'll make sure he follows me after final bell."

"Just be careful, okay? I don't want you getting hurt. Vampire or not, he's still a guy." I pointed out.

"Yeah, I know. Thanks for believing me, and not thinking I'm totally insane." Bella smiled at me, her vulnerability showing.

"You're welcome." I yawned. "I think it's time for me to go home. All this vampire stuff is exhausting."

"Good night, Leaf."

"Good night, Bells."

I made my way back home the same way I went to Bella's, softly closing our back door behind me and making sure it was locked. Going upstairs, I took off my hoodie and curled up into bed, not caring I was still in my sweats and tank top. Soon, sleep overpowered me and I fell into a fitful slumber, dreaming of vampires and dark chocolate eyes.