Shine

Deep Thinking

"Have you found a ride home?" Edward asked in Biology.

"Eh? Oh yeah, Ang is gonna take me." Since Edward's family wanted to go hunting directly after school, I'd said he shouldn't make them wait, and I'd carpool. Forks is not a rich or inherently snobby town by any means, but this generation does tend to have its own transportation, so I knew I was likely to find someone to hitch with.

Unfortunately, Angela wasn't actually taking me home, but I was careful not to think about that during school hours, and I'd called Angela the day before to ask her, and hoped she wouldn't think about my request while Edward was around. I also hoped Alice's visions focused on more important things than how I spent my afternoons, and if she did see me, she would politely keep them to herself.

"Have fun," I said to Edward as the class bell rang and we gathered our things to leave.

Angela caught up to me breathlessly after class. "Sorry, had to talk to Ms. Elliot about a project."

"No worries girl. What've you got planned for the weekend?"

"Not too much. Babysitting tonight, but only for a couple hours while Mom and Dad are out. You?"

"Nothing planned for the moment. Might bake something. Draw a bit." I slid sideways into her passenger seat and she folded and stowed my chair.

"I'm not sure the La Push kids get out as early as we do," she said uncertainly as we pulled through the quiet, red-gravel streets of the reservation town. "You sure he said three?"

"I may have been mistaken," I mused, gazing out the windows to help her search for the right address. "Oh it's this one. But that's okay, I'll wait. You've got stuff to do too."

"Yeah but.... Is anyone even home?"

I opened my door. "I think he said his dad was. Ah see!" His dad had come to the front window to see who'd pulled into his driveway and was staring at us, eyebrows raised.

"You wanna just hang out then?" Angela guessed, hand resting on the handle of her door.

"Yup. I actually wanted to ask Mr. Black about some local history. Personal project."

She shrugged and opened her door. "All right then." She retrieved my chair for me and shook it out, and I switched seats, balancing my backpack on my lap since I wasn't going far. "Call me when you need a ride back?"

"Will do, hon! Thanks so much!" I waved her off and rolled up the ramp to the front door, knocking.

Mr. Black opened the door with one eyebrow still raised. "Sethlyn Young, isn't it? Jake isn't out of school for another hour."

"Yeah, sorry about that, Mr. Black. I willfully misheard him so I could come say hi to you. I brought churros." I reached into my bag and pulled out the plastic-wrapped dish, inside which two dozen churros haphazardly lay. "Do you mind if I'm early? I can go chill by the beach too if you're busy, we can talk another time."

The corner of his mouth pulled up and he shook his head. "No, come right on in." He left the door open and backed down the hallway, shifting chairs at the small dining room table to make room for another wheeled person.

I shut the door behind me and slid the dish onto the table, throwing my backpack back over my handles. "So I know about the treaty that you and the Cullens have—not that they've been slack-jawed about it, I needled—and I know the basic ins and outs of what they are and their situation, so the vast majority of why I came by is to let you know that I'm not an ignorant bystander. I do understand the risks of associating with the Cullen family."