Cliff Diver || Paul Lahote•Jacob Black/Twilight Fanfiction

Chapter 25

In under two minutes, Renata had arrived to the mountains, all she had to do was climb... only to fall back to the ground. She looked down at her feet and laughed, she was wearing her Adidas... not the best shoes for hiking, she thought. She pushed the thought away and put her hands in the cold rock of the cliff. How long would it take her to get to the top? Long enough for someone to notice she's missing? It didn't matter, she had made her choice. Once she was gone, Leah would have full access to her powers, she understood the culture, she would be better for the pack than Renata ever was, just for the fact she is Quileute herself, Leah had a stronger spiritual connection with the land and the tribe. Renata decided to put all of her thoughts aside, they were just slowing the inevitable. Ding! Renata sighed and tried to ignore the message she had just received, but her curiosity got the best of her.

I heard what happened today at school. I'm here if you want to talk.

The air got caught at her throat and tears blurred her vision. She choked down a sob and looked at her free hand, holding on to the rock of the cliff. It was like a bucket of cold water, she took her hand off the cliff and took a step away from it, eyeing said cliff up and down in disbelief at what she was about to do. She couldn't do it, she wouldn't put her friends -no, not friends, that word was too small to describe them, they were part of her- her family, she wouldn't put her family through the pain of death. Had the text be sent two minutes later, it wouldn't have mattered, no one would be there to read it, but it came in the precise moment. So without another thought, Renata turned around and ran to the Cullen household, the air drying her tears as she ran.

When she arrived, she was received by a very angry Rosalie, and a worried Edward. Edward read her mind, and seemed lost of words, he opened and closed his mouth a couple times but he didn't seem to find the right words. That's when Jasper entered the room, he must have sensed Edward's and Renata's emotions. Renata turned to him and walked straight at him, hugging him without a warning, he seemed fazed at first but he felt her emotions, and started sending calming waves at her.

Renata felt so selfish, using Jasper to feel better, but it was not only his power, Jasper actually calmed her down because of who he was. Jasper held Renata too, he was unsure at first, he wasn't used to physical contact with a human, and was afraid to accidentally crush her ribs, but slowly he put his arms around her and let her stay there until she was calmer. Once she felt better, she stood up straight and she followed Rosalie to her room so she could change for the party, thankfully -not really- she had arrived on time, her little detour had just only taken a couple minutes off the makeup routine Rosalie had planned, which Renata thanked. After they left, Edward took Jasper outside and told him what he had seen in Renata's mind, told him how worried he was about her.

"I know I don't have powers like yours and I cannot see the future like Alice, but I have a feeling she will not do it again. I sensed fear, sadness, anger, despair and above all, I felt regret. And I don't think it was regret of not doing it, but regret of thinking about doing it" Jasper told Edward, who nodded, but still didn't feel better about Renata.

After a while, Renata came down with Rosalie, wearing a black slip on long dress with a white sweater on top of it. The most shocking part was that Rosalie had somehow convinced Renata to wear heels, they were a pair of black stilettos with an ankle strap. The Hispanic girl seemed as afraid as if she was in a tightrope across lava. Renata was sure she would fall at any second.

"If I fall, I'm throwing the heel at you" Renata warned Rsalie, who just laughed and skipped away in a pair of black flats, "why are you not wearing heels? Me voy a cambiar, I look stupid" Renata said and turned around to go up the stairs again but that's when the bell rang. Bella had finally arrived by what Renata could smell. With much effort to not fall, Renata walked to the living room and sat down while Edward took Bella to his room so she could change, meanwhile, Emmet and Jasper went to install a sound system to Bella's truck.

Some minutes later, Bella was at the feet of the stairs, she looked good in the outfit she and Alice had constructed for her. Now, if only she could smile a little or look less miserable. Seriously, Renata thought, she was in a house with vampires and Bella was the only one that looked like a walking corpse. Esme walked up to hug Bella, Renata could see that Bella didn't really like physical contact but accepted the woman's embrace.

"There is cake, too" Alice pointed out, the cake really did look tasty, Renata just hoped it wasn't chocolate cake... she loved chocolate but there was something about chocolate cake that she didn't find appetizing.

"But you guys don't even eat" Bella pointed out. Renata was about to say she could easily wolf down half of the cake on her own but was interrupted before she even spoke.

"Dating an older woman" Emmet told Edward, "hot" Emmet said it so sincerely and unexpectedly that Renata couldn't help but burst out laughing and then looking apologetically at Edward, who was giving her dirty looks. Alice went around gathering the presents. She gave Rosalie a small box for her to give it to Bella.

"It's a necklace. I thought you'd like it" Rosalie told Bella without any emotion whatsoever, Renata couldn't tell if Rosalie had actually chosen the necklace or if Alice bought it and told Rosalie to give it to her. Bella didn't even have the chance to open the necklace when Alice was already shoving a bigger package into her hands.

"This one is from Emmet" Alice said as she kept walking, searching for Carlisle and Esme's gift. Bella shook the box and gave Emmet a questioning look.

"It's already installed in your truck, a sound system. Time to give that old thing a proper burial" Enmet joked and Bella actually smiled, the first time in the evening that Renata had seen her smile.

"Hey, don't hate on the van"  Bella told him with the biggest smile Renata had seen in her face. Finally, Alice found the envelope with Carlisle and Esme's gift and gave it to Bella.

"From Carlisle and Esme"

"We thought you were looking a little pale" Esme told Bella with a kind and loving smile. Bella, on the other hand, pursed her lips in an attempt to smile, but compared to the one Renata had seen when Emmet mentioned her truck, this seemed really forced and inauthentic.

The next thing that happened turned their whole world around.