The garage was my sanctuary. The steady rhythm of tools clanking against metal, the hum of the engine under my fingers—it was the one place where everything made sense. Today, though, there was something different in the air, a sense of anticipation that I couldn't quite shake.
I tightened the last bolt on the 1953 Chevy Pickup, stepping back to admire the work. The old truck had been a wreck when it first rolled into our garage—rusted, broken down, and forgotten. But over the past few weeks, it had slowly come back to life under my hands, piece by piece. It wasn't just a job; it was a labor of love.
"Almost done?" my dad, Billy, asked from where he sat in his wheelchair near the garage door. He was sipping on a mug of coffee, watching me with that familiar look of quiet pride.
"Yeah, just about," I replied, wiping the sweat from my brow with the back of my hand. The truck's cherry-red paint gleamed under the dim garage lights, the engine now purring like a contented cat. "She's ready to hit the road."
"Charlie's going to be thrilled," Billy said, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "And Bella... well, I hope this truck helps her feel more at home here."
Bella Swan. The name had been floating around the house for weeks, ever since Charlie had mentioned she was moving back to Forks. I hadn't seen her in years—maybe once or twice when we were kids, but those memories were fuzzy at best. She was just a girl from Charlie's old life, a life far removed from the rainy, gray days of La Push.
"So, what's she like?" I asked, trying to sound casual as I adjusted the rearview mirror. "I mean, you've heard more about her than I have."
Billy shrugged, wheeling himself closer to the truck. "She's a lot like her mom, from what Charlie says. Independent, smart, not too fond of small towns. Can't really blame her for that, though. Forks isn't exactly a thrill ride."
"Yeah," I muttered, though my mind was already elsewhere. I kept picturing Bella in my head—a pale, ghostlike figure with dark hair and sad eyes. The kind of girl who'd probably hate everything about this town. "Why's she coming back here, anyway?"
"Her mom's traveling with her new husband," Billy explained. "Bella didn't want to tag along, so she's moving in with Charlie for a while. Maybe longer. Charlie's hoping she'll stay."
I nodded, trying to imagine what it would be like to leave a place like Arizona and move to the damp, cold corner of the world we called home. It didn't seem like the kind of move anyone would make willingly.
But then again, maybe Bella was different. Maybe there was more to her than I was giving her credit for. After all, not many people could handle life in Forks. The constant rain, the endless gray—it wasn't for everyone.
"She'll be here tomorrow," Billy added, breaking into my thoughts. "We'll take the truck over to Charlie's in the morning, give them some time to settle in before she arrives."
"Sounds good," I said, though there was a strange knot forming in my stomach. It wasn't nerves, exactly—more like curiosity. What was this girl like? Would she even remember me? Or was I just another face from her forgotten past?
That night, I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about the truck, about Bella, about everything that was about to change. I wasn't sure why it mattered so much. Maybe it was because this town didn't change often. People came and went, but life in La Push stayed the same. The idea of something—or someone—new coming into our lives was unsettling, but also exciting in a way I hadn't expected.
YOU ARE READING
Twilight Midnight Moon
Kurt AdamJacob Black never expected his life to change when Bella Swan moved back to Forks. He was just an ordinary teen, spending his days working on cars and hanging out with his dad in the rainy, quiet town of La Push. But when his childhood friend return...
