I walked down the side of the road going away from her house. The sky overhead loomed menacingly, which made it all the more perfect. I was mad. Edward just couldn't keep some things to himself, and it was really starting to bother me that his entire family knew everything I told him. Not that I didn't like the Cullens, but I really didn't need them to know absolutely-freaking-everything.

"Bella!" A familiar voice yelled. I heard Jacob's feet pounding as he ran down the road towards me.

"Bella, I heard that you were out alone. I wanted to see if you were okay, Edward said-"

"Edward said?" I cut him off, my blood boiling. Jacob took a step back.

"Well, yeah... He was worried. Not that I really care"

I turned on my heel and began to walk down the road.

"HEY! Bella..." Jacob called.

"Jacob..." I said, turning to him as I walked away. "Go home"

I didn't stick around to see his hurt face.

I walked on until the road dead-ended at the trees, continuing on a path recently made for hikers. Overhead the sky darkened, and I could smell the impending storm. Dad would throw a fit.

As I walked, I thought about what I was doing. There were many ways to justify it; A break, a meditation, a thought provoking walk. A tantrum.

Someone was probably shadowing me, vampire or wolf, so I was most likely relatively safe. Relatively.

As I walked through the endless greenery, I began to relax. Maybe I just needed to get out of the realm of testosterone-crazy boys. Which, was a bit of an odd thought. I wondered if Edward still possessed any of the seventeen year old hormones deep down inside. I Decided not to follow that train of thought.

My relationship was far from a normal one... Vampire boyfriend and second family, and a werewolf pack as my friends. Both of them banded together to make sure I didn't get hurt or make my own decisions. Which, with me... I never got one without the other.

Vaguely, I wondered what it would have been like if I had gone out with someone normal... Someone that I could be with and not have bloodthirsty evil vampires after me.

Try as I might, I could never match up to Edward in any way. My pitiful human existence made it impossible for me to do anything of my own and have it be astonishing.

The Cullens, having been on this Earth for many years, had the time to assimilate all the knowledge there was. Everytime I was talked to, I was almost given the feeling they were talking down to me, which was understandable, yet... hurtful.

I felt pitifully inferior.

The trail ended, and I sat down on a log, not tempting fate by leaving the safety of the path. I would prove that if I needed space, I could take it without getting into a sticky situation.

Raindrops began to fall, and I felt my agitation wash away with them. The light sounds in the forest as the rain fell relaxed me.

Taking it as my cue to leave, I began back along the path. I wasn't really ready to go, but I would trust common sense this time. I could bang my head against the shower all I liked once I got home.

The road began to come into sight, and I sifted through what I had learned. I was feeling inferior, useless, and slow. I sighed, things would sort out soon enough. Meanwhile, hiking was the best way to relieve my stress.

Suddenly, the sky opened more and buckets of rain dumped on me. I pulled the hood of my jacket over my headand quickened my pace down the wet road.

Edward was no doubt out looking for me, thinking that I had gone too far as usual. I almost laughed when I thought about him coming in to my house, finding me perfectly fine. It would be the first time.

The houses became visible through the downpour, and I suddenly got an outrageous idea. I began to run, my hood dropping off and letting my hair soak up the rain.

I laughed and ran as fast as I could, keeping mindful of the slick pavement beneath me. Soon I was gasping for air, but still I pushed on. I flew by the houses, letting the rain fall on every inch of me.

Edward would have sternly told me to get back inside before I got sick, but this thought was overridden by my sudden feelings of giddiness. I was in control of what I was doing, and I felt good.

I imagined that the rain was stripping me of all my awkwardness and uncertainty. All my doubts too. I would wash all my bad feelings away, and try to build some confidence for myself.

I slowed to a skip, still laughing. Then I did a grapevine, surprised when I didn't end up on the pavement. I became bold and tried a turn, landing gracefully. This furthered my happiness.

I was happy and shocked, this magical dancing in the rain so unlike me. It was so not... Bella.

I ran some more, seeing the outline of my house. A tempting puddle was nearby, so I leapt over it then circled around to jump in it, soaking my ankles effectively.

With that, I continued to the steps of my house, stopping on the porch and looking back at the downpour. Time seemed to slow.

I felt alive and energetic, as well as eager to make things work for myself. I could be happy in Forks, I could deal with Edward, and I could sure as heck develop some skills.

A quote from a movie I had seen a long time ago filled my mind. I had never given it much thought, because of it's religious base. I wasn't particularly inclined, but now it seemed to fit.

"God is in the rain" I whispered, smiling. In the movie, it had given transformation to the characters, and now it was giving me a transformation of my own.

With that last happy thought, I turned and walked into the tempest I knew was waiting for me inside.

I felt the overwhelming urge to sing.