Full Moon

La Push was a short drive away. The bikes sat in my truck bed, squealing at every dump. I wondered if they'd fallen into a pile of rust and bolts by the time I'd arrived. 

I rolled up to the Black house, already mentally wondering if it was too late to chicken out. I'd seen them about four times in my comatose state; about once a month, Charlie's attempt to pump life back into me. Seeing them did help for a while. Returning to ask for favors seemed rude. 

The thunderous roar of my truck must have been my calling card, because Julie Black poked her head out of the front door. There was a grin forming across her cheeks. She darted out of the house, able to reach the truck in just seconds. I hopped out of the truck, my arms held out in anticipation.

"Bella! Where the hell have you been, loca?"

She hugged me tight, spinning me in the process. I couldn't resist the smile that broke across my face. Jules was infectious in that way.

"I did something crazy," I admitted as she set me down. I peeled the tarp back enough to show her a bit of the bikes.

"Aww, scrap metal. For me? You shouldn't have. You get me the nicest things." Her voice was flat as she raised a brow at the dilapidated bikes.

"They could be a project," I suggested weakly as she gave them a once over. "And you can have one. Mechanic's choice." 

She didn't look amused. I started babbling. "I know it's a lot, but I figured you did so great with my truck that maybe you would know how to fix these as well..." 

Hands on her hips, Julie chewed on her bottom lip. She looked between me and the hunks of metal in the bed of my truck.

"Since when do you even have an interest in motorcycles? Any time I've ridden in a car with you, you've barely even hit the speed limit."

"I'm on a bit of an adrenaline kick lately," I admitted. No use in telling her that watching a drunkard get smeared was the reason for my intrigue. 

"Huh." Her face was solemn. "This is a really bad idea. Horrible, actually."

My stomach dropped.

"When are we starting?"

I grinned. "Now? We can't tell Charlie."

"Our little secret. C'mon, go say hi to my Dad while I hide these in the garage. Tell him it was making that weird knocking sound again."

"Oh, they're actually really... heavy..." My eyebrows raised as she lifted them with relative ease. It had taken all of my strength and about an hour of straining to get them into the back of my truck from the parking lot. 

"Wow, alright muscles. When did you get so jacked?"

"You should eat more protein," she suggested. "Now go distract him before he comes out to say hi."

Talking with Billie was always easy; he seemed genuinely happy to see me. The weather had shifted into a mist as I talked with him.

"Are you staying for dinner?" Billy asked excitedly. "Might take Jules a while to fix your truck."

"Oh, I need to get home and feed Charlie..." I said absently as I looked out the window.

I could see the hood of my truck; Jules lifting it to pretend to care about what was going on inside. She even grabbed wrenches for extra measure. I couldn't help but grin as she animatedly looked at the truck, yelling at it. She kicked the wheel at one point. I coughed to avoid laughing. 

"I'll call him," Billy volunteered before wheeling himself to the phone. "The more the merrier. Spaghetti sound good to you? Family recipe."

"Sounds perfect," I said softly. 

I sat on their old leather couch, feeling able to fully breathe for once. Their house was old; it vaguely resembled a barn from the outside, with the red paint and narrow windows. They were watching football before I arrived. It still played on the television. 

Jules came in a few minutes later, citing some car lingo as the source for the nonexistent knocking.

"Should be good now," she said with a shrug. "Wanna see my car?"

"Sure," I said with an easy smile. "Nice seeing you, Billy."

"You too, Bella. I'll call you in when dinner is ready." 

The rain was pouring now. Jules grabbed my hand, guiding me uphill to the garage. Thankfully, it was hidden by a dense wall of trees. Perfectly concealed. The structure wasn't much, but it was shockingly large on the inside. Jules had converted it into her own little hide-away.

Once inside, she grabbed some towels from a cabinet and handed one to me. I dried my hair carefully, thankful that it was at least warm in the shed. It had to have been heated. 

I hadn't taken the time to notice earlier, but Jules had hardened a bit in the past few months. High cheekbones, all lanky muscle like she worked out regularly. Not bulky, but certainly defined. Her hair, jet black and pin-straight, fell nearly to her waist. Her shirt, soaked from the rain, was white and showed off her black sports bra underneath. I swear I could see abs through the cloth.

She looked great.

"Did you get taller?" I blurted out.

She grinned. "Five-eleven. I'm taller than half of the guys in my grade." 

I'd noticed she was taller when she hugged me but wow. Even her teeth were perfect; commercial-grade white and straight, a vivid contrast to the beautiful russet color of her skin.

I coughed and looked around the garage, wandering as she folded her hair into the towel.

"Since when do you have a car?" I asked as I looked over the vehicle. It was nice, antique. I recognized the symbol on the front as a Voltswagon. It was raised on concrete blocks but looked perfectly driveable to me.

"Dad made good on his promise, I've been fixing it up for the past few months. Little by little."

Ah yes. The promise where Julie had visited my Prom to bear a warning; beware the Cullens, and that I'll be watched after. Her reward was a vehicle. She looked so awkward, wearing a cute dress that wasn't quite Prom-worthy but had shown a genuine effort to not stand out as she said her empty threat. 

Jules skirted around the topic quickly. "Anyway, it's an '86 Rabbit. The frame was beautiful, just had to change the guts of it."

"Can you even drive? Legally? When's your birthday?" 

"The fourteenth, I'm seventeen now. You just missed it." She gave me a sideways glance.

I winced. "Sorry about forgetting your birthday." 

"No worries, I missed yours too. We can throw a joint party and have the bikes as our presents." 

"It's a date." 

Julie grinned at me. She walked over to the couch sitting against the wall, sitting down. She patted the seat beside her. "Good news, they're not as bad off as they look. I gave them a peek when I took them in. One's even going to be worth some money when it's done."

"Then you can have that one." 

"Really?" 

"Absolutely. How much do you want in exchange for your services?" 

Jules' brows furrowed. "Nothing. I get a bike out of it. Call it even. I'd do it for free anyway. Downside though, we're gonna have to save up money for some new parts." 

"I've got some money saved up." Working at Newton's was going to be worth it. Who needs a college fund anyway? 

She frowned. "I would feel bad."

"You're doing all the labor for it, I foot the bill. Seems even to me." I paused. "And Billy can't make it up here to see them? I don't need Charlie having an aneurysm." 

"Nah, the wheelchair can't handle the uneven ground."

I stood and looked at the two bikes dripping onto the concrete. "So when are we getting started?" 

Talking with Jules was the easiest thing in the world. She disassembled the red one first, siting that mine should be repaired first. I moved often; between sitting on the couch, sitting inside of the Rabbit, or just walking around the garage and inspecting the space. 

My world was pretty empty. I couldn't site much of what was going on aside from the bare bones of it. 

Julie picked up my slack. She asked questions, providing her own stories about school and her life. It wasn't like talking with Jessica, who dominated most conversations. Jules was easy; she had this sort of sunshine about her that radiated into everything she did. It was hard to be down around her. I found myself smiling through most of the conversation. 

We were mostly dry now, towels hanging on the coat rack near the door. The rain slowly stopped outside, revealing the sun had dropped low in the sky. 

At one point, I reached to hand her a tool and her hand grazed mine. 

"Your fingers are freezing," she pointed out.

She moved away from the bike and held her hands out expectantly. I placed my hands in hers shyly. 

They were warm, a little calloused. They felt nice. 

"That's me, the cold girl," I said lamely.

Julie cut me a look, cupping her hands around mine and blowing hot air into them. 

"Seriously, here. I have a jacket. You should have told me you were cold."

"I'm always cold." 

She handed me the hoodie, watching as a slid it over my head. "I'm going to get your a heated blanket or something, jeez." 

Jules looked to the door. "Dad's calling for us. Charlie is here. C'mon." 

She helped me up, reaching to flick off the light before guiding me out. Hands clasped, she led me down the hill in the dark. At one point, I tripped into her, the two of us nearly stumbling down the hill. It sent us both into a fit of giggles. 

Billy and Charlie were already inside eating, the two of them turning when we walked in giggling. Charlie looked like he was going to have a heart attack at the sound of my laughter. He looked so hopeful. Scared.

I felt a pang of pain. I didn't know my mental state had been haunting him to such a degree. 

Jules and I ate standing in the kitchen while the men watched sports in the living room. We secured plans for me coming over the next day, start writing down what was needed for the motorcycles. 

After, I waved Billy and Julie goodbye before driving back to the house, Charlie driving ahead of me. 

I pressed my fingers to my cheeks, frowning at how sore they felt. I stretched my jaw and figured it would go away eventually. My throat hurt.

Charlie seemed jovial when I got home shortly after him. He asked about my day at work, after with Julie. 

"Billy says she's growing like a weed, none of her sister's clothes even fit her anymore." 

"Maybe she and I could go for a shopping trip sometime," I suggested. I tried to remember the twins, last I recalled they weren't much taller than me. Compared to Jules the beanstalk. 

"Sounds fun," Charlie said with an eye-crinkling smile. He looked ready to cry. 

The sunshine of Jules couldn't stay with me for long. I felt the dread rising as I trudged up the stairs, mentally readying myself for the shower. 

I turned the water dial up a little higher. Not hot, but somewhere in the warm category. It felt good, my muscles relaxing. I massaged my face and took extra time to shave and scrub thoroughly before heading to bed. 

Staring at the mattress and blankets made me anxious. I sighed and closed the bedroom window before sliding between the sheets. I curled onto my side, preparing for the pain to pierce through me.