𝐁𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐒, emmett cullen

6 - LITTLE RUMOURS ✓

CHAPTER 6 || FAMILIAR FACES

BROOKE IS ONLY A TINY BIT BITTER THAT HER SISTER HAD STOPPED HER TRIPS TO FORKS SO LONG AGO. Though, the resentment only welled in her chest whenever she recalls all the lonely flights to Seattle with her anxiety clawing the back of her throat, she remembers the little mistakes she made that should've been deterred by her older sisters voice of reason and Brooke recollects when she would descend the stairs in the middle of the night to find her father hunched across the kitchen table, with his head in his hands and teary eyes that Bella shared and a photograph between his fingers; Renée, Bella, Brooke and Charlie's beaming faces in the image, younger than now but happy...they were happy. It's been a long time since Brooke has found herself being begrudging toward her sister but as she finds herself seated in the spluttering truck that Sam Uley treasures so dearly. The vehicle is in much better shape than her sisters, Brooke notes, as she finds herself gnawing barbarically on her nails with her hickory eyes set on the rushing scenery beyond the smeared window-pane. Sam eyes the Swan at his side, soil brown eyes flicking across her features in complete understanding as he rolls his shoulders with a huff, reaching forward to click the radio off into silence. Brooke's head snaps to face him when the music stops, even the rustling of the ancient stereo.

Both pause, neither speaking for a moment as the sage colored sign zips past them. Brooke clenches her jaw at the paling white lettering: Welcome to La Push, Reservation! Enjoy your stay! She winces at the enthusiasm, before rolling her neck to face the older male with a huff.

"I'm sorry that Jared told him you were coming over. I'm sure he meant no harm." Sam says, sighing before he laughs breathily at the Swan's eyebrow arch. She punches the bridge of her nose.

She grinds her teeth in remembrance that Bella was not at her side the last time she visited, that she wasn't there last Christmas whenever the Swan's were at Billy Black's house, when the teenagers were forced outside and they'd weaved through the trees for one of the Reservations parties; this time with a touch of Christmas chill in the air. Honestly, Brooke knows she shouldn't blame Bella that she had gotten drunk at the dumb age of fifteen-years-old and slept with La Push's sixteen-year-old renowned hothead, Paul Lahote, but here she is, blaming her older sister because she didn't want to come; an idiotic excuse, she knows. The fury in Brooke's chest only builds whenever Brooke recalls the call she'd had with Leah Clearwater following her return home after that very Christmas, the call in which Leah had informed her that Paul was bragging to damn near everyone at school that he'd slept with the youngest Swan sister. Sam sighs, veering left down the gravely roads of La Push with both hands sternly on the wheel.

"It's Jared, of course he meant it." She says simply.

Oftentimes, people found it peculiar how the younger Swan had closer relations with the older young people of the Reservation, while her older sister had taken to the younger ones such as Jacob Black, Embry Call and a couple more —even if she had only met Embry and the others once or twice when she was smaller. But, Brooke had taken to Jared Cameron during her childhood in Forks, each visit to La Push with her father during every school break, Brooke would spend it rushing from Billy Black's house to the Cameron household. Additionally, Brooke had met Leah Clearwater whenever Charlie Swan had offhandedly mentioned needing a babysitter for his young daughter during a summer break when she was eight-years-0ld to his friend, Harry Clearwater, and the mans wife had jumped for their daughter to take the job; being four years older than the young Swan. Then, Leah had began to date Sam Uley and they'd met a few short years after when Brooke was the young twelve-years-old to Leah's sixteen and Sam's seventeen. The rest was history. Well, apart from the most recent history of Brooke drunkenly losing her virginity to the arrogant asshole that is Paul Lahote.

The tension in Brooke's spine slightly uncoils at the sight of Emily Young's house —Leah's cousin which Brooke had met even before Sam whenever the girl had visited when Leah was begrudgingly but kindly babysitting her. To be frank, Brooke didn't understand what had happened between the trio. She didn't understand how Sam could abandon Leah after all the times that she had witnessed between them, she didn't understand how Emily could leave Leah so quickly and she didn't understand how Leah could loathe her cousin so easily given that Emily seems to have not a foul bone in her body; well, if one excludes the stealing ones cousins fiancé. But, as Charlie Swan had firmly told her whenever they'd first found out, it's none of her business to intervene. Brooke clambers from the vehicle, smiling softly at the cheerful appearance of the tiny home all due to the line of orange and yellow marigolds in the little box beneath the petite and only window at the front of the once gray home beside the weathered blue door. The aforementioned door swings largely ajar with her arrival, Emily rushing from the home toward her with a bright, vibrant smile across her marred but beautiful features as she wraps her arms around the younger female. Emily squeals slightly as Brooke hugs her in return, a broad grin plastered onto her mouth as she breathes a confident: Hello, to you too, Em.

When Brooke glances at the door once more, Jared Cameron is barrelling from the home with as little grace as possible, his chest bare and a half-eaten muffin in both his hand and across his face as he scoops her smaller frame into his arms whenever she's released from Emily's hold. Brooke doesn't notice the grimace across his features when a sickly scent brushes his senses, nor does she see as Jared connects pointed gazes with Sam Uley because of such a thing.

"Sam, you owe me five bucks...she's not wearing glasses." Jared chortles, and Sam arches an eyebrow as he encircles Emily's waist.

"I distinctly refused to bet about this." Sam claims with a shake of his head before another muscled figure is landing in the doorway.

Paul Lahote screams arrogance, and it makes Brooke's stomach flip with distaste as she rolls her eyes coldly. He all but flexes the muscles in his arms as he waltzes forwards, saluting cockily in greeting as Brooke eyes him strangely.

"What are you doing?" She asks. Jared laughs loudly beside her, folding over in amusement as Paul deflates ever-so-slightly before shrugging off his initial embarrassment to lean against the bannister of Emily's porch.
"Okay—" Brooke trails off before she rounds on her childhood friend with a pretty grin.

But, then: "You reek." Paul blurts and everyone seems to freeze. Even Jared, whom would usually just begin to wheeze with laughter, allows his jaw to slack in amazement, shock and slight horror as Brooke turns to face him with wide eyes. Paul's face is upturned in distaste. A sickly sweet scent cloys his senses and clogs the material of her clothes; Sam having picked her up from Charlie's straight after school after she'd departed from Alice Cullen as the pair had been sitting in the library to add the finish touches to their essay before the reveal on Friday.

"You suck." Brooke says wittily. Now, Jared laughs, snorting unattractively as it became clear just what Brooke believes Paul sucks at. Paul is stunned, smile wiped from his features as even Sam snorts, Emily batting his arm despite herself.

"You're not the first girl to tell him that." Jared muses before the pair of them were entering Emily's home with Sam and his fiancé in tow.

Though, Sam left briskly afterwards and Paul never did return that day. Strange, Brooke notes, I wanted to torture him some more.