Sunrise

1

"Jacob?" Kari called out. She walked around the corner of the garage and smiled when she saw the boy working on the engine of the old red truck. Her tone turned to teasing. "Aren't you done with that yet?"

"Hey, you try rebuilding the entire engine," Jacob shot back with a smile. "It's not as easy as I make it look."

Kari rolled her eyes. "Right. Well, Charlie went to pick up Bella this morning. So you should get it done before they get back."

"Relax," Jacob said. He pretended to straighten out his shirt. "And watch the master."

The girl snorted and leaned over the side of the truck to take in the engine and all its workings. Jacob picked up a wrench and somehow managed to get his big hands in the small opening near the valve he was working on. When he pulled back, he gave her a smug look. "Oh wise Jacob, master of auto mechanics, please accept the sincerest apology of a lowly beginner such as myself."

The fake bow was enough to set them both off, laughing loudly. They almost missed Billy calling them from the house. Jacob wiped his hands on a grease rag. "Come on, Charlie might've called."

The two teenagers walked up to the house, laughing and joking, before reaching the doorway. Billy looked up from adjusting his jacket. "Charlie called. He and Bella just got to the house. Said to come any time. How's that truck?"

"Fit as a fiddle," Jacob said teasingly. It was a saying Billy often used. "Double pump the clutch and it'll work perfectly."

Billy nodded and turned his attention to the teenage girl. "You coming, Kar?"

Kari's expression betrayed her. "I'm not so sure that's a great idea, Billy. I may get along better with Jacob than Rebecca and Rachel, but Bella and I never really..."

"Nonsense," Billy said. He cracked a grin. "You're coming. Just don't crash my truck on the way."

Kari blinked, barely catching the keys to the newer blue truck that belonged to the Black family. "You want me to drive? Alone? Billy, I don't have a license."

"We need a way back home," was all Billy said as he wheeled away.

Kari heaved a sigh and checked she had her permit in her pocket. She'd rather be stopped with it than without. By the time she was outside, Jacob had pulled the thundering red truck from the garage and was helping his father in. He flashed her a blinding smile before tossing the wheelchair into the bed of the truck and climbing into the driver seat. He seemed fearless, but that was pretty easy to do when your dad looked at you as more of a friend than a child.

Kari got into the truck and gingerly started it, silently grateful it was quieter than the one they were about to give Bella. She clicked the seatbelt in place and followed Jacob to Forks, growing more nervous as they left the reservation. She said a silent prayer of gratitude to whatever greater being there was out there after parking on the street in front of the familiar house. It wasn't raining outside, which made life a little easier considering she hadn't thought to grab a jacket before leaving home. By the time she was out of the truck, Charlie and a girl were outside talking with Billy through the window of the truck. The girl had long brown hair, a bit lighter than Kari or Jacob's, and was quite pale. Jacob and Charlie quickly helped Billy from the truck, Jacob's hair loose rather than in the bundle at the nape of his neck as it had been earlier.

"Don't think I didn't see you behind the wheel," Charlie was teasing when she walked up to the small group. "You too, Kari."

"It's good to see you, Charlie," Kari greeted. She rested a hand on a handle of Billy's wheelchair for comfort. "I told them not to let me drive."