Chapter One

Charlie's Point of View

"Charlie it's for you" Jacob calls from the kitchen, phone in hand. When did the phone ring?

"Who is it" Jacob shruggs handing the phone over. "Hello?" I ask into the receiver.

"Dad, it's me Bella."

"Oh hey Bells, how's Arizona?" What on earth did she want; she never calls me except when her mother forces her to on my birthday, or hers.

"Muggy, hey I was wondering if I could maybe move up there, you know to Forks?" So that's what she wants, as far as I was concerned she hated this place, which is why she always would dragged me to California for a few weeks' vacation every year.

"Um yea sure honey, but you remember I live with Billy and his son Jacob right?"

"Oh yea... that's right... on the Reservation"

"I will ask if you can live here with us, if that's what you really want"

"Yes, this is what I really want, I actually like Forks" I could hear the distaste in her voice at the word Forks.

"Hold on then" Setting the phone down on the counter I walk back into the living room where Billy was on the couch sucked into the game. "Billy"

"Yea one more minute" his eyes never leave the screen. "Yea Charlie" he finally asks once the commercials come on.

"Bella's on the phone, she wants to know if she can move up here"

"Well she's your daughter, what do you say"

"It's your house Billy; I'd love for my daughter to come live with us."

"Well it is a bit small but you and Jake can build on to it before she arrives" Great more work to do, if that old man wasn't in a wheel chair... Nodding at whatever came out of his mouth I walk back into the kitchen.

"Bells you still there?" I ask into the quiet phone.

"Yea dad I'm here. What did he say?"

"He said yes. When will you be coming" I really hope we can finish this before she shows up I don't even know where she would sleep, if I already have the couch.

"About a month?" she asks me still unsure. "Mom doesn't know yet, so I will need time to break it too her, and get my stuff together." She confesses.

"You haven't told your mother yet?" I ask shocked; they usually tell each other everything.

"Not yet, but you know how mom gets" Yes, yes I did know how Renee was, longingness washes over me, why did she have to leave me, and move that far away. And then marry that... BOY... wasn't I manly enough for her, so what if I lived in a small town, that the sun hardly showed his face. But that's no excuse, we made a pack, and together until death do us part. For sickness and in heal... "DAD, are you even listening to me!"

"Oh yea, Call me after you tell your mother, I got to go Billy needs the phone" I hang up the phone before she could give me any other excuse or answer. My life was about to get harder.

"What do I need the phone for Charlie?" Billy asked wheeling himself into the kitchen, a smug grin pressed through the wrinkles of age on his face.

"Oh huh nothing I was just... uh... Bella will be here in a month; do you want me to draw up a plan for the house?"

"Nothing uh, um yea I will go get Jacob so he can help you" He said wheeling himself back into the living room and through the hall towards Jacobs's room. "Jake, will you come out here please"

"What now old man can't reach the cereal?" He laughs.

"Jacob you will be helping Charlie with the plans to make this house bigger"

"What? Why? Dad come on, we don't need it bigger"

"Jacob, Bella is coming to live with us, and she will need her own room, and so will Charlie, I really don't wanna keep wiping up his slobber from the couch cushions every morning" I don't slobber in my sleep. At least I think I don't hmp. "Please Jacob, if you do this I will give you that money you want for the parts to your rabbit, and we'll give Bella the truck" He pondered it for a moment, he couldn't pass this deal up, he defiantly wasn't old enough to get a job though I doubt he could get one anyways, with a town as small as this. Plus he's been hounding the hell out of Billy for months, and I can't keep pretending to loose against him in poker, its making me look like wuss.

"You got yourself a deal old man. Come on Charlie we should get to work on those plans before Bella gets here" Right like that's the reason he wants to get started, im not even sure he remembers her, they were just kids after all. I walk over to the counter grabbing the pen and note book, and then sat down next to Jacob at the table to begin. "I think we should make it a four bedroom, if either of my sisters comes to visit i can always move on to the couch, Also should open up the living room by busting down these walls here" He had already drawn out a square with lines for the walls. It was probably off, but i doubt I could draw any better.

"We should make an upstairs, you know put the rooms up there, and maybe a guest bedroom down here, turn your room back into the Laundry room; Im running out of quarters anyways." I added my notes to the side of the page, grabbing another sheet to draw the upstairs on; which just as i suspected, was almost as bad as his.

"We could put the stair case right were the couch is so that it will be in the middle of the upstairs, and then position each room around it, like so" he drew it out with shaking hands. "So each room can have a balcony and lots of windows"

"A balcony, seriously Jake, what kind of idea is that. Balconies are for sitting in the sun, do you see sun here?" Billy wheels himself up to the table, gawking at our sketch. "Wow you certainly got your art skills from your mother didn't you" He smiled grabbing the pen out of my hands, and the note book from Jake, "Here let me do it for you." Jacob tried to object, but Billy wouldn't have it, his mind was made up. He drew out a better looking sketch then either of us could have done if we spent a week on it. "So uh, what does that say?" he pointed to a word I had scratched down on the paper.

"Smash" It looked perfectly fine to me, maybe he needed glasses.

"Jacob will you get the phone?" Billy asked. I seriously didn't hear a phone ringing, there was a light buzzing noise but I had assumed it was the clock on the football game.

"It's for you again Charlie, sounds like a giiirrlll" He teased handing me the phone, which i tore from his fingers.

"Hello?" I grumbled into the phone.

"Hey dad, I just told mom." Why did she sound panicked.

"Yeah? How'd it go?"

"She totally freaked out; do you think I could come two weeks early? I really need to get out of this house; it's starting to feel really crowded here. PLEASE"

"Uh well okay, I'll see you then"

"Ok Dad, uh... Love you" she clicked off the phone, awkwardness filled her voice. I turn around to find Jacob's raised eyebrows dancing all over his face.

"Sooo Charlie, who was that giiirrlll? Huh your girrrrrrrlfrrrrrriend" He grin.

"It was my daughter Bella" That shut him up, making him go red.

"Oh" his smile vanished as he turned back to his father, who was now laughing hysterically, leaning so far back it looked like he would tip over.

"So what did Bella want" Billy asked, when he was finally done laughing.

"She wants to come two weeks early, which means we need to get this done, by the 17th." I guess glancing at the calendar on the wall.

"Oh, uh. Jake can you miss school for a few weeks so we can get this done?"

"Did you really just ask me to play hooky?"

"Don't give me lip son, I'll call up your school tomorrow morning and tell them something important has come up and you need to stay home for two weeks, Ill blame it on my legs."

"Uh yea. Let me just fill in Embry and Quil in case someone asks them" He took out his phone, and punched the small buttons vigorously. I could never understand kids these days, or electronics.

"Are you filling them in with the story, or with the truth?" Billy asks.

"The story I told them id explain in a few weeks" Billy nods at this, clearly proud of his son. "So we can knock down the walls to your room and mine, leaving the bath room?" he asks once he slid his phone back into the pocket on his jeans.

"Uh yea that sounds about right, would open up the living room area, then we can put the stairs here, to break up the dining room kitchen area from the living room. Might need some support beams"

"You could always build book shelves against the walls to strengthen them up a bit more." I suggested pointing at the spots where it looked the weakest. "Put pictures or something on them, since neither of you read" They nodded as Billy wrote BS next to an X representing a weak point. "Bella might read" I say quietly not really knowing for sure. They just look at me for a moment then back to the plans.

"We'll camp out in a tent outside while the construction is going on, and put all the stuff in the garage; maybe put a guest apartment over it or something. You know since it's detached from the house and all." Billy added notes to the paper.

"Dad it doesn't have the beams to support that" Jacob argues; his voice a little whiny.

"That's why we're building on to it Jake, hey how about those friends of yours, can they make themselves useful" he suggests, as Jake got another text. "They could come by after school"

"They don't need to be dragged into this Dad" but it was no use, the thought was already in his head. Sighing Jacob called up his friends, handing the phone over to Billy's waiting hand.

"Hello? Oh yes hello Quil, how would you like to help Jacob, Charlie and I after school for two weeks?" He listened intently to the other person on the other side. "Great we'll see you here tomorrow after school"

"Did you even wait for him to say something" Jake asks looking at his father with raised eyebrows.

"Of course I did, what kind of man do you think I am? Now call up Embry, i have no idea how to work this contraption" He threw the phone back into his sons lap. Jake hit a few more buttons before handing it over. "Hello is this Embry?" he waited. "Yes this is Billy, look son I was wondering if you would like to help Jake, Charlie and I after school for two weeks?" he waited again, an ecstatic voice came from the other side, forcing Billy to hold the phone away from his ear. "That would be wonderful, see you bright and early tomorrow morning say six ish?" What on earth happened there?

"What did you do dad?" He asks clicking off his phone.

"Embry is such a nice lad, offering to skip school to help out this old man. If only one of your other friends what just as generous, Oh well" Billy faked a sigh, giving Jake the guilt trip.

"I'll ask him if that's what you want." Jake sighs turning his phone back on.