1. First Sight, pt 2

I only had one other bag to unload. Most of my Arizona clothes were too permeable for the Washington weather - doubly so for the unending drizzle of unpleasantness that was Forks. My mom and I had pooled resources for winter clothes, but I still had little enough that it could all fit easily into the trunk of the cruiser.

"I found a good car for you, really cheap." he announced when we were strapped in. This was not unexpected. When I told Charlie I was coming I had made it abundantly clear that I would not be chauffeured around town in a vehicle with red and blue lights on the top, and even if he had the ability to lend it to me to drive on my own I wouldn't have. Nothing slows down traffic like a cop car.

"What kind of car?" I said, immediately suspicious. A good car "for me" was probably something other than a good car, considering the amount of money I actually had to purchase one.

"Well, it's a truck, actually. A Chevy."

"Where did you find it?"

"Do you remember Billy Black, down at La Push?"

"La Push?"

"Ech... He used to go fishing with us during the summer?"

"..."

"He's in a wheelchair now. So, he can't drive anymore. He offered to sell me his truck, cheap."

"What year is the truck?"

"Well, Billy's done a lot of work on the engine - so the important parts only a few years old, really."

"Uh huh. And what year did he buy it?"

"He bought it in 1984, I think."

Not so bad. Wait. "...Did he buy it new?"

"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixties. Or late fifties. At the earliest."

"Ch - Dad... I don't really know anything about cars. I couldn't fix it if anything went wrong, and I can't afford to hire a mechanic..."

"Really, Bella, the thing runs great! They don't build them like that anymore."

"And how cheap is 'The Thing?'" I said, making a mental note to keep calling it that.

"Well, honey, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift." He peeked sideways at me, a hopeful expression on his face.

Wow. Free.

"You didn't need to do that, Dad. I was going to buy myself a car."

"Really, I don't mind. I want you to be happy here." He had his eyes fixed on the road again, now, so I did the same.

Be happy? I could never be happy in Forks. It was an impossibility.

"That's... really nice, Dad. Thanks. I really appreciate it."

"Well now, you're welcome," he mumbled, embarrassed by my gratitude. I was still a terrible liar - but for some reason, Charlie had always believed me.