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SKIN & BONES
iv. NEW HOBBIES╚══════════════════╝
"YOU'RE FUCKING INSANE, BELLA," Lorelai grumbled to herself, her hands gripping the steering wheel of her sister's truck. She scoffed like she couldn't believe what was going on. "Motorcycles. My sister, my boring baby sister, wants to fuck around with motorcycles." She shook her head, shooting Bella a look. "You know, when I said pick up a hobby, I meant knitting or pottery or... or somethin'."
Bella stared out the window, watching the clouds as they guided her. "I needed to get out of the house. You said it yourself. Plus, I haven't seen Jake in a while."
"You really expect me to believe that's the only reason you wanna hop on a death machine?" interrogated Lorelai. "Seriously, does Dad even know about this?"
"No, and it's gonna stay that way," Bella replied. "It's nothing, Rory. I just think motorcycles are cool." What a fucking liar.
"Uh huh..." trailed off Lorelai. It was clear that she was unconvinced.
"What? I'm serious."
"Yeah? I don't believe you."
Bella scoffed. "I'm not lying, Rory."
"Yeah, okay."
"Good... because I'm not lying."
"Mhm...."
Silence.
"When I was with Jessica, I got on a motorcycle with a random guy."
Lorelai's eyes widened. She whipped her head around, nearly swerving into the dirt as she did so. "Are you out of your fucking mind!?" shouted Lorelai. "Do you know how fucking dangerous that is!? Jesus, it's like you have some kind of death wish! And I'm the anorexic one, for fuck's sake!"
"Calm down! That's not even the half of it," Bella snapped. "When I got on the motorcycle... I saw Edward."
Lorelai shot her a worried glance. "Bella, babe, have you ever heard of schizophrenia?"
"Jesus, Rory, I don't have schizophrenia!"
"Well, Edward's gone, so it sounds like you were hallucinating!" Lorelai argued. "None of them are coming back. They left to protect us, not to let us die from stupid motorcycle accidents. Seriously, die in a more interesting way, at least! I'm gonna cringe every time I say you died on a motorcycle. It doesn't even sound realistic."
Bella sank into her seat, shaking her head. "But... I saw him. I heard him. He told me to turn around and leave before I really got hurt." She chewed on her lower lip. "Don't you have that with Jasper?"
"B, I mean this with all the love, but fuck no."
"You swear?"
"I swear," Lorelai said. "Sure, I think about him every day, but I don't hallucinate. I have a lot of shit wrong with me, but that's definitely not one of them."
"So you miss them?"
Lorelai scoffed. "Of course I do. I miss them all the time, especially Carlisle and Jasper," revealed Lorelai. "Carlisle was like a father to me, and Jasper was my best friend. Hell, maybe I even loved Jasper more than just a best friend. I don't know. He left before I could even begin to explore that idea." She smiled bitterly to herself. She hadn't exactly spoken about him aloud in a long time. "Sure, I miss them, but I'm not going to throw my entire life away because they left. No offense, Bella, but I'm on the road to recovery. I'm so close to being me again. Jasper made me feel like me again, but he's gone. I have to do this with or without them. Soon, you'll understand that you do, too."
As Lorelai pulled into Jacob and Billy Black's driveway, she gave her little sister a small smile. "Look, B, I promise you you're going to get through this. I'll make sure of it, even if it ends up getting me killed," she joked, causing Bella to smile softly.
Hopping out of the vehicle, Jacob Black immediately came into view. Lorelai wasn't sure what it was about Jacob, but he made her smile. He was the personified form of radiance. He was exactly the kind of person the two girls needed in their lives. Lorelai had been spending more time with Jacob as the months went by. She enjoyed his company and his sickening optimism, even if sometimes it made her want to slap him.
"Hey guys," Jacob greeted. He hugged Bella, surprising the girl. Lorelai had nearly forgotten about Jacob's undying love for Bella. She wasn't sure how. Bella was all Jacob ever talked most days. "Where the hell have you been, loca?"
"I brought you something." Bella walked over to the bed of the truck, pulling the tarp off the two rusting motorcycles.
Jacob stared at the motorcycles, puzzled. "Wow. Scrap metal. You shouldn't have."
"I rescued them from the junkyard," Bella said. "They'll probably cost more to fix than they're worth, but I was thinking if I had a mechanic friend to help me out..."
"Me being the mechanic-type friend?" Jacob queried. "Since when are you into motorcycles?" He glanced at Lorelai. "How long has this been going on?"
Lorelai held her hands up in the air. "If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me what's wrong with my sister—"
"Since now," Bella interrupted, rolling her eyes. "I get that you think it's really stupid and reckless."
"It is completely stupid and reckless," agreed the male teenager. "When do we start?"
Bella stared at Jacob, colored with surprise. "Now, please." The girls observed as he walked over to retrieve the motorcycles. "Be careful. They're really—" She was interrupted by Jacob pulling out the motorcycle without so much as breaking a sweat. "Whoa... Jake, you're, like, really buff. When did that happen? You're, like, sixteen. I don't understand."
"Age is just a number, baby," Jacob teased, beginning to wheel the motorcycle into the garage. "Aren't you, like, forty now?" He glanced at Lorelai. "And what about you, granny? Just reaching your 70's?"
"You won't be laughing when you can't go anywhere without people asking if you want the kid's menu at restaurants," Lorelai countered.
The trio just laughed. Lorelai looked over to Bella, who held the shadow of a smile on her face. This was a stupid idea. A very stupid idea. But... maybe that was what Bella needed. She'd befriended vampires, and that was beyond stupid, but she was happy because of it. Lorelai could only hope that Jacob could brighten Bella's life, even if it's just a little bit.
Then again, how far could hope get someone?
Even now, Lorelai wasn't sure.
Revised: January 6th, 2020
Revised: October 31st, 2024
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Skin & Bones ↠ Jasper Hale ✓
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