Time Won't Heal This Damage

She was reading the same book. It’s been a week since he imprinted on Eliana and so far he’s been good at keeping away but not at not looking. Whenever Quil or Embry were too busy to notice he would look over at her.

He noticed she would mumble some of the music she would listen to. Everything she did was fascinating to him. The way she threw her long black hair when it was in her way. Her eyes that scanned everywhere without actually letting anyone know she was looking at them.

The bell rang and it was time for English.

Mr. Cook took attendance to himself and once again Jacob found himself looking over to Eliana.

“Now class, we are having a group project.” Everyone in the class whined. Jacob did too. The girls here were getting kind of clingy. At lunch he had to hide from them and so did Quil and Embry. It was really annoying to them. “Yeah, yeah life’s cruel. But here’s a good thing… I’ll let you pick your partners.”

Immediately people started yelling for each other across the room. Before he knew it everyone was taken. The girls stuck with their friends, but Jacob didn’t have any friends here.

“All right it seems Ms. Forest and Mr. Black lack partners, you two do the math.” Mr. Cook clapped his hands.

She raised her hand. Mr. Cook sighed.

“Yes, Ms. Forest?”

“Um, do I have to? I’m fine just working by myself I don’t need a partner.”

Ouch. That actually hurt Jacob’s ego.

“Ms. Forest it is called a GROUP project.”

“Yes but--”

“That’s it, Ms. Forest now you will work with Mr. Black no excuses!”

She gives the teacher a death glare.

“Now go sit next to Mr. Black.”

She picked up her things and walked towards Jacob but instead walked out of the classroom. Jacob looked at the door she walked out of and felt a little pissed off. He hadn’t done anything to her, why was she being such a… bitch?

Jacob took the paper with the assignment and pretended to read it when he was actually thinking how badly Eliana reacted to being partners with him.

In his next class, which was math, he took the empty seat--that was always empty because people were too scared to sit next to her--besides her and handed her the paper.

She took off one of the ear buds and looked at him.

“My house after school. The sooner we start the sooner we finish.” Jacob said with a blank tone.

She shrugs and puts back the ear bud.

Eliana watched Jacob during lunch. She was pretending to reading ‘The Giver’, but she was truly watching Jacob with his friends. She felt a little bad for being such a bitch during English and all the time.

He’s sure changed a lot. She thought. Not just physically because physically he’s really fine. He’s just different.

Eliana looked down at her book when he looked at her. She scolded herself for getting caught.

Her next class in pottery went by too slow.

By the end of the day she was so glad, but then Jacob was waiting by her bike. He had longer legs, so he got there before her.

“You can follow me to my house,” he had his arms crossed across his chest.

“I know where you live.” She said with a bored tone.

“Oh, okay then.”

When she was a foot away from him she felt his heat. She noticed that he was only wearing a shirt and jeans and everyone else was wearing coats because the cold was here. She glanced to Quil and Embry his friends they too wore only shirts jeans.

She watched as Jacob walked to his car.

Wait, is that his rabbit? He finally finished it. She smiled internally at this. She had helped him get a stereo for it, but that was too long ago.

She was a different girl back then and not the same. She wasn’t the same Eliana Forest from three years ago.

She kept to herself now. She was anti-social. She isolated herself. She used to be popular, she used to be friendly and smile. But that old Eliana was dead.

She got on her beat up motorcycle. Like always it had trouble starting up but she managed. She followed Jacob from behind him. He parked in his drive way and Eliana turned off her motorcycle.

“Ever thought of wearing a helmet?” Jacob’s voice came too close to her. She turned around not entirely, but just to look at him.

“Where’s the fun in that?”

“Oh I don’t know, in case you have an accident.”

She laughed at him. “Like you care.” She took her messenger bag and turned to him. “So, are we going to do this or not? I really don’t have all day.”

“Too busy cutting yourself.” He muttered.

She laughed again mockingly. “That old rumor.”

“You don’t cut yourself?” Jacob glances at her and she gives him a blank look.

“Do I look like a cutter? Never mind, don’t answer that.” She said and he laughed.

His laugh was sincere unlike hers which was almost sarcastic.

Jacob began to walk to his house, and with hands in her pockets, she followed him, apprehensively. It had been so long since she was in his home.

“I’m home, dad!” Jacob called out when they were inside of the house.

Eliana cringed at the word ‘dad’. She looked around. She hadn’t been here since she was a child. It still looked the same as it had.

Billy Black came and smiled at the sight of Eliana.

“Is that you Eliana?” he chuckled.

Eliana nodded.

“You look much older.”

“Sort of happens with time, you know… people get old.” She stopped herself before she would say ‘You should know’. She had nothing against him.

“We’re here to do a project we’ll be in the living room,” Jacob wanted to get it done as soon as possible. He didn’t like being around her so much.

Billy Black nodded his head and went back to his room. Eliana and Jacob went to the living room.

“What’s the project about?” She asked.

Jacob looks at her. “You haven’t read the paper?”

“I have better things to do, Jakey.”

He frowns. “Don’t call me that.”

She grins. “Does it bother you?”

“Yes, it does.” He said. Bella used to call him that.

“All right, Jakey.”

He sighed. He should’ve known.

“Do you ever get tired of being such a bitch?” He couldn’t believe he just insulted his imprint.

She shrugged. “Ever get tired of being a jerk.”

“I’m not a jerk.”

“Sure you are.”

“How so?”

“Ever since I came back, you have not spoken a single word to me.”

“You were gone a whole year and a half and you weren’t being exactly Ms. Social either.”

“Fuck you, you don’t know shit… look let’s just get this over with.” Her phone vibrated in her pocket.

She took it out. It was a text message.

U+me+1stbeach=makeout

She replied. ‘Ten min.’

“I have to go.” She got up.

“We just got here.”

“Look, I’ll do the poster board and you can do the essay.”

“So you did read the assignment,” he said, annoyed that she lied to him.

She grinned evilly. “I like to see you irritated.”

“You know how to get me there.”

“I know, best talent I have.”

“Piss people off?” Jacob raised an eyebrow.

“Hey, it takes serious skills.”

Jacob couldn’t help but smile at this. “Fine, you can go.”

“Like I needed your permission, Jakey.” She winked at him. “Bye Mr. Black!”

“Bye, Eliana,” Billy called out.