Author's note: Okay, so I am going to keep pushing on with this story. There are some people interested, I think. 3

Chapter 2:

The tension in the vehicle was palpable. Nikki stared at her hands and twisted them nervously on her lap. Joshua Call was a clean man based on the lack of dust on the interior of the old truck. On occasion, she glanced over at him and took in his side profile in quiet spurts to not draw his attention. She imagined he must have been quite a handsome man in his youth when he and her mother first met. He was handsome enough now but the strain of life made its mark on his appearance. Her thoughts lingered on those thoughts to distract her from the real issue at hand. Soon, she would be in a new house with a new family and she was somehow supposed to make this whole thing work.

For seventeen years, her life had not changed much. She and her mother lived a fairly normal life despite being a single-parent home. Her mother lied to her about the identity of her father, claiming he passed away shortly after she was born. She used to dream of having siblings not realizing she had a younger brother. Things were happening far too quickly. Was she spiteful because of those lies her mother told her? She didn't think she had enough energy to have those types of feeling towards a ghost.

"We are almost there," Joshua spoke up in his gravelly voice to break the silence between them.

"How long have you lived in La Push?" She shocked herself with the quiet question she posed. She found herself genuinely curious about this man who seduced her free-spirited mother.

He thought about it briefly. Maybe he wasn't thinking about the question itself but something more in-depth because his answer came out easily. "My whole life."

She was unable to bring herself to ask any further questions. She felt the red tint of anxiety inch up her pale, russet-colored skin. She wasn't much for small talk but even more so, she wasn't sure how to act around this man. It seemed like he was just as nervous to speak to her as well. She cast her gaze to the window to stare at her surroundings passing by. It was a break they both desperately needed from the tension building between them. She discreetly wiped her sweaty palms against the rough denim of her old jeans while the forest around them faded to what she assumed was La Push.

The small reservation had a mixture of dirt trails and paved roads weaving its way around clumps of well-built homes. Trucks and four-wheelers littered with freshly packed dirt sat in driveways while people chattered happily with one another on their front lawns. Some curious stares found their way to Joshua's truck and to her. She moved her eyes away unable to stare back at those curious neighbors craning to get a look at the new girl.

"The beaches here are beautiful this time of year."

Small talk. God, this was painful. She didn't make it hard on him, or at least she was trying not to. She spoke up, "I am not the best swimmer."

It was the first time she heard him chuckle. Even though it was short and soft, the sound was pleasant to her ears. "That is something you share with your mother if I am now mistaken."

At the mention of her mom, she felt a solid stab of grief hit her in the stomach. She pushed down the pain from the fresh wound and gave the man beside her a soft smile. "Yeah, I think she told me once that she didn't trust the fish in the ocean or something like that."

"She told you that? I think she was even younger than you are now when she took a dip in the ocean and that fish took a dip in her swimsuit. She screamed so loud, I am certain the good folks in Forks heard it. She called all fish shifty and untrustworthy from then on…"

He trailed off and even she picked up the shift in his eyes. The distant look made her think he was reliving an old memory of his time with her mother, Amelia. She was shocked to hear this story. Her mother was pretty secretive about her past. She didn't know much at all about her life as a teenager. The urge to press him for more stories about her late mother was overwhelming. She had to clasp her hands together and squeeze tightly to distract her from the question poised on her lips. She would ask more about her mom with time. Having a breakdown in front of this man was not on the to-do list of things she needed to do to get settled in.

They pulled up to a small homemade of dark, cedarwood and grey shingles. It was a simple, one-story cabin without much cluttering up the front yard. There was one patch of land next to the porch surrounded by thick bricks formed in a square. She guessed this was a garden but no flowers or vegetables were blooming. It was overgrown with weeds and thick grass. She wasn't much for car rides, something about being in a tight space for any period of time sent her on edge. She reached for the door handle but paused when Joshua cleared his throat. She looked over to him and clearly he had something to say to her. She settled back in her seat after removing the seat belt from her lap.

"Nikki…" His tone was solemn and full of pity. She braced herself for the impact of his words. "I know this is hard for you. I don't want to cause you any more stress or pain, so please, please tell me anyway I can help you."

Her breath hitched and her eyes widened with her unblinking stare. She watched as his image blurred around the edges and she realized her eyes were filling with unshed tears. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from sobbing in front of this stranger. She didn't trust her words so she simply nodded her head. His eyes softened and she could have sworn she saw some deep emotions move in his chestnut-colored eyes. Before he could say anything, the front door of the cabin swung open and a form stepped through the doorway.

Her little brother? Ha! He was tall, over six feet for sure, and as broad as a barn. It was almost comical to watch his large frame squeeze out of the small front door. Her attention moved from the barn-like human to the man by her side. He was already getting out of the truck to speak to the boy lovingly referred to as Embry.

"Embry, boy, hurry up and help me carry in Nikki's luggage."

Embry moved quickly with his long-legged stride to his father's side as they pulled out her bags from the back of the truck. She sat there for a moment, blinking dumbfoundedly. Her half brother looked a lot like their father. His skin was dark like this, sunkissed from labor outside no doubt. His cropped hair was black and eyes a chestnut brown color like her own. Her own hair was long and thickly braided down her back. The thick waves of silky locks were a honey brown color like her mother but the three of them shared the dark depths of their eye color. He was taller than Joshua by a little and certainly had more muscle mass than the older man. Still, she didn't doubt that he looked a lot like her father did when he was sixteen.

Nikki pushed open the heavy passenger-side door of the chevy and hopped out. Their neighbors discreetly were looking their way with curious side-eyed stares. In one of his hands, Embry carried her suitcase filled with the only possessions she had left of her old life. It seemed feather-light in his grasp but she knew it was rather on the heavy side. He adjusted the weight to his other hand before stepping forward to offer a handshake, just as his father had. The action caused a smile to once again form on her face and she grabbed his hand in a firm grasp. His hands were calloused and large but the most shocking thing was how warm his hand was compared to hers. Her palms seemed slick with nervous sweat but his hand felt like hot coals.

"I'm Embry. Follow me, I will show you to your room."

Nikki nodded and followed after him. Should she make small talk? Introduce herself despite knowing he knew her name at the very least. She could mention she was a libra destined for a life of cats. This caused her to snicker softly under her breath. He gave her a glance with an upturned eyebrow and quizzical stare. She was surprised he even heard the soft noise but pushed that thought away as they entered the home.

It was a quaint home. The living room had a modern television and a few well-broken into furniture. The faded plaid couch was torn in a few places that aged it. The coffee table hand cup rings from cups sitting on it in a few places but the dark wood shined like it was freshly wiped down. The home itself lacked the personal touch of her mother often brought into their home back in Seattle. There were only two or three pictures on the wall, all photos of young Embry before puberty gave him a smackdown. How did someone who was so tiny grow into a tree?

He showed her to the small kitchen area and the unusually large size dining table nearby. The bathroom was small and there was only one between the three of them. He gestured to his room but didn't make a move to open the door. She respected his privacy in such a small place. But oddly, the area in front of his room had a different smell to it. The house smelled very masculine, much like the pickup, but his doorway had something more, like a wet dog smell. She didn't like dogs very much but decided she would ask about it later. The last stop on the tour was deemed her bedroom.

She pushed open the creaky door and her heart plummeted to the floor. The space was small, the large queen-sized bed took the majority of the space. The yellow comforter was a stark difference from the minimalist blues and greys of the rest of the house. The walls were bare and the few shelves she had remained empty but dusted. A rectangular gift was on the thick, plush pillows cased in the same yellow as the blanket. The wrapping paper was black with congratulations and red graduation caps all over it. Her eyebrow lifted and the tall boy next to her flushed a bit under her curious stare.

"It was the only paper we had laying around," he muttered softly. He shoved his hands in his jean pockets, clearly out of sorts in her bedroom.

She was uncomfortable with the idea of her new family giving her a gift. It was a weird feeling- like, sorry your mom died, here if a present. But she forced herself to smile as she grabbed the present. She opened it and the air left her lungs as the picture in the frame came into sight. The pink handlebars of her first bicycle had a green ribbon still attached. The basket secured to the front had a stuffed cat half falling out of it. Nikki's smile has missing teeth but was wide in the candid photo. Next to her holding the bike upright was the slender form of her mother sporting her painting overalls splattered with random colors from previous projects. Her skin was normally a pale russet color like Nikki's was now but in the picture, she clearly was outside more often because the tan was much darker. She was smiling wide in her normal easy grin despite the wind blowing her short hair into her sparkling hazel eyes.

Water droplets fell on the glass plane and rolled down the length of the frame. She realized the water came from her eyes after a moment. With a sniff, she pushed her palm against her cheek to wipe away the stray tears that fell from her eyes. She lifted those glossy eyes to Embry who looked like he would have rather disappeared into the bare walls of her bedroom.

"Thank you," she whispered in a thick, hushed voice. She couldn't say more than that because she was already choking on the lump of emotion that formed inside her throat.

Her half-brother scratched the back of his neck before speaking up. He was clearly unsure of what to do, which was more enduring than he could have known. "Uh, dad got a few pictures of you growing up. He remembered how much Amelia didn't like photos, so…"

She nodded to show him she understood what he meant. Her mother was the kind of person who opposed pictures and technology. She often urged her to 'live in the moment and make your memories more special'. Still, this picture meant a lot to her and she suspected it meant a lot of Joshua as well.

"I will- uh- give you some space. I will come to get you when dinner is ready." An easy out. She was surprised by how fast he disappeared from her space. Belatedly, she wondered if Joshua asked Embry to show her to her room so they could bond.

Sighing, Nikki plopped down on her new bed. The pleasant spring caused her to bounce a few times before she settled in. A lot had happened within the last two hours and she couldn't seem to wrap her mind around it all. Joshua and Embry seemed like decent men who willingly turned their lives upside down to allow her to live with them. It wasn't comforting, however. She felt like a virus invading an alien body except the white blood cells weren't fighting her. The lonely ping in her heart grew considerably. She felt her resolve collapse without warning and the few trickles of tears that fell earlier turned into a full, guttural sob. She wanted so desperately to be okay but nothing was filling the hole her mother took with her after death. Her father and half-brother were nice but they were not her. All the times she was a selfish, bratty child filled her with regret and anger towards herself for taking advantage of their short time together. All the hugs and kisses they share seemed like a fading memory on her skin.

Was this her new normal? Function on the surface but one photo away from breaking down completely. She heard the screen door in the front of the house echo as it slammed shut. The quiet filled the space with the exception of her occasional sniffling. They gave her space, she realized. Space to mourn and adapt. A new sob rocked her body. She was tired of being alone but wasn't strong enough to share her pain. There was so much to do still. She needed to unpack her belongings and get to know the Call family. But maybe… Maybe she could cry just a little bit longer in the quiet of this wooden cabin.

Author's note: Double authors note to stick with my roots! I hope this chapter was Bueno! I am finding this rewriting to be relaxing at the very least. I actually have some people looking into this and following the story! I am so happy. (There are also people looking at the old story and may I say- noooo it is so bad lol) Feel free to share your opinions on the story so far! Let me leave you with a question: what would you as a reader like to see happen?