"Hey, have you been waiting here long?" I asked Quil as I hurriedly approached him. The teacher had kept me after class to clarify a few things, and I was a bit nervous about being late. Quil waved it off and smiled. "Nah, I've only been here for a few minutes. No stress." With a confident stride, he set off for home, and I followed him.
"How's your mom doing, by the way? I haven't seen her in a while," I asked, genuinely interested as we walked through the familiar streets. Mrs. Ateara was a warm-hearted woman who often went for walks or worked in the garden. But I hadn't seen her in the last few days.
"She had a cold, but sheâs doing better now," Quil replied, his face brightening. "She'll be happy to hear that you asked about her. Sheâs been adoring you ever since you started baking chocolate cake." He grinned at me, and I couldn't help but laugh.
It was trueâI had started baking cakes on a whim at some point. At first, my parents loved it, but after weeks of being overwhelmed with cakes, their enthusiasm quickly waned. So, I began distributing the cakes to our neighbors, and Mrs. Ateara was always thrilled when I brought her a few pieces.
"I should make the chocolate cake again," I said, laughing as I let thoughts of the ingredients swirl through my mind. "You don't happen to have a few eggs for me, do you?"
Quil shook his head with a grin. "You really canât be stopped, can you? I can already picture you supplying the whole neighborhood with your baking skills."
"Hey, that's a good idea! Maybe I should start a little business," I replied, laughing. As we continued walking, I felt more at ease and enjoyed the lightness of our conversation. It was nice to just chat and momentarily leave behind the thoughts of everyday life.
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Unfortunately, I had to postpone baking until the weekend because I still had some homework to finish. Mom always said that you can't bake well when you're stressed, and I definitely didn't want to risk that.
It was already late afternoon when I finally finished my homework. I threw on a jacket and packed a book to read at the beach. Since the beach was so close to our house, I often went there when the weather allowed. And since the sun rarely shone, there were usually only a few people on the beach, which gave me the peace I was looking for.
The only ones undeterred by the unpredictable weather were Quil and his friends. The boys seemed to jump into the water at any time of day or night. When I arrived at the beach today, I saw Paul Lahote and Jacob Black just coming out of the water. The thought of how cold the water must be sent a shiver down my spine. Quil, Seth, and a few others I couldn't recognize from a distance were standing half-naked on the cliffs, clearly having a great time.
Other girls might have worried about the boys in that situation, but I had lived in La Push my whole life and was used to it. Quil noticed me and waved cheerfully before taking a running jump into the waves.
A smile spread across my face and I turned to find a log to sit on. Absorbed in my book, I didn't notice that the boys were getting closer, mischief written all over their faces. I only became aware when they lifted me up and carried me toward the sea.
"Wait!" I screamed, trying to wriggle out of their grasp. Their laughter echoed around me, and I couldn't help but grin as I imagined how I must have looked.
"What's wrong, little one? Are you begging for mercy to not get wet?" Paul teased, directing his gaze at the sparkling water.
"No," I replied. "Can someone put my book somewhere dry? I wanted to finish the story." I glanced at the novel I was still holding. It was frustrating not to know the ending of a story.
Seth, looking puzzled, took the book from me and carefully placed it on the beach. Paul shrugged, then ran toward the sea and threw me in.
Gasping, I resurfaced and positioned myself in front of him ready to splash him back. However, my attempts were only moderately successful, as he had already retreated to dry land, laughing at me.
Shortly after, I made my way out of the water, shivering. My suspicion was confirmed: the water was freezing cold. However, the boys didn't seem to mind it. To make matters worse, it started to drizzle lightly, which finally led me to decide that I had had enough fresh air for today.
The boys were so engrossed in their antics that they only noticed my departure when I was packing my things and heading home. They only caught on because I quickly called out a farewell over my shoulder.
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Thursday passed relatively uneventfully for me. My school day dragged on until 4:30 PM, and the hours were filled with the usual routine. Communication with my classmates was limited to group work and superficial small talkânothing I hadn't experienced countless times before.
However, today I noticed a small detail that slightly brightened the monotony: the LaPush Gang had not shown up for class. Their absence did not go unnoticed, and the conversations quickly turned to the question of where the boys were. I observed the situation with a certain interest. After all, they had spent the entire afternoon yesterday in the cold water, and I could easily imagine that they were now dealing with colds. While it was unusual for all of them to be absent at the same time, given their lifestyle, it seemed almost inevitable. Their immune systems were not exactly the strongest, and it wasnât the first time several of them had been sick at once.
In a small village like LaPush, the teachers knew exactly where everyone lived. So, I was tasked with bringing Quil his worksheets and papers. And since I was already on my way, I thought I might as well deliver the other members of the LaPush Gang their materials as well.
The size of the village made it easy for me to put this plan into action. It was a slight detour, but only ten minutes longer than my usual route home.