A/N: This story will probably not go along with the plot of the Twilight series, since I haven't read them in years and I have no interest in re-reading them. To the best of my ability, I will try to keep it somewhere between Eclipse/Breaking Dawn (the movies aren't on Netflix either so I really am screwed for canon - sorry!). I was just bummed about how Meyer ended Jacob's story - I do not believe that, as a werewolf, he could possibly imprint on Renesmee, so this is what I would prefer to happen. I will most likely Bella-bash, so my apologies. I have rated this "M" due to mature language and possible sexual themes later on.

DISCLAIMER: the summary quote is from the song "You're in Love" by Taylor Swift, which I just thought really went along well with what I have been thinking about plot-wise for this story. All due respect and rights to her, of course. Also, I clearly do not own the Twilight series... or things would have been exceedingly different. Stephanie Meyer is the author behind a select number of characters, and also the back-stories, etc. The events in this story will be (mostly) mine, unless I somehow manage to stick to canon for certain aspects.

I would appreciate any feedback you have, and I am completely open to CONSTRUCTIVE criticism (i.e. don't be a tool about it). So, without further ado... Enjoy!


Chapter One - Forks

Inhale through the nose, slowly.

The sharp, crisp scent of autumn invaded my nostrils. The distinctive pine trees, the earthy smell of moss and soil, and the barely noticeable aroma of crab-apples. The fragrances brought a smile to my face.

Exhale through the mouth, slowly.

The moss underneath my body, the crunch of the leaves beneath my left arm, and the cool shade from the boulder to my right blessed me with their textures.

Inhale through the nose, slowly.

The sound of slowly trickling water, of small insects roaming through the brush, and the occasional call of a native bird assaulted my ears.

This bullshit is not going to get me through the first day of school. I can't exactly just lay down in the middle of the classroom and "attune myself to my surroundings." That's a sure-fire way to get my ass kicked, not to calm me down.

Sighing deeply, I stood up and brushed my shirt and jeans off, checking the silver watch on my wrist as I did. It's nearly a quarter to three and I have not done a single thing Virginia has asked me to do. At least I had two hours to get back to my sister's "new house" and try to get some of the chores done that she had left for me. A hastily scribbled note on top of an unpacked box in the kitchen had demanded that I unpack at least five boxes and finish getting my bedroom organized (the five boxes did not count if they are my own – how is that even fair?).

I began the trek back to Virginia's house, following the deer-trail I had discovered on our first day as residents of Forks, Washington. The trail led neatly into the back lawn of the small, one-storey home that had been left to Virginia in our father's will. I say father without too much warmth – I hadn't seen the man since I was ten years old. Neither Virginia nor I had even known that he was dying. He had made no effort to contact either of us.

Our grandmother had raised Virginia and I since our father left. Virginia's mom was around a lot too, but she had never been able to afford to keep Virginia with her at all times. Virginia's mom had only been sixteen when she had given birth, and her parents had kicked her out at the tender age of twenty. So, Grammie Agatha had taken Virginia in for her mother when she was four years old. Agatha was our father's mother, she was the kind of woman who was always willing to help other people, no matter what the cost to herself. Our father, or Wilson as we normally refer to him, was around sparingly. He normally was never sober enough to parent us. When he finally disappeared, I don't think Virginia missed him any more than I did.

The trail wound through some of the most beautiful foliage I had ever seen, and coming from a small province in Canada, I had seen some true beauty. The trees were gigantic, the forest virtually untouched by humans. This place reminds me so much of home, and I am truly thankful for it. I thought, allowing myself a smile. Though I had made the choice to move to this tiny little town by the ocean, I knew it was really the only decision I could make. Virginia knew just as well as I that the only reason this move had happened was because Virginia wanted a "new beginning," and she knew that I would never forgive myself if I just let her go by herself.

And so, I find myself in an entirely different country, in a town named after a dinner utensil, in the home that my drug-addict father had lived in, with nobody except for my sister. What a splendid idea, really a top-notch plan you had when you agreed to move down here.

The walk back to the house took longer than I thought it would, and I arrived at the house – at home, I suppose – at three o'clock sharp. I entered through the screen-door at the rear of the one-story, which had nothing but a tiny set of stairs leading to the door and a few slabs of stone forming a square-shape around said stairs. Virginia had been so excited when she saw that there was "a place for a barbeque!"

The screen door led straight into a small porch area, which housed the washing machine and drier, and also a small shelf for shoes and a line of hangers for coats. I slipped out of my sneakers and set them on the shelf, then entered the house proper through a dark-green door. The kitchen was to my left and a small bathroom to my right. If I kept following the small hallway, it would lead to the living room, then break right into another hallway. This was where the main bathroom and the two bedrooms were. I had chosen the bedroom that faced the backyard, so I could have a nice view of the trees. Virginia hadn't minded, she liked being able to look out her windows and see the street-light that stood vigilant at the bottom of the driveway.

I turned right and walked into the kitchen, where I decided I might as well unpack the remaining three boxes. Though I had protested that the kitchen be the first to be unpacked, Virginia simply hated structure. She had flitted from one room to the next, unpacking willy-nilly, until she got bored and moved on to another room.

Thankfully, Virginia had landed a job at the nearby grocery store. It was full-time too, which was even more amazing. She had flown down, thanks to the aide of Agatha and the church Agatha had belonged to since the beginning of time, and gone on a mad hunt for a job so she could sustain us living in the house before we packed up and moved. What was more surprising was that Wilson had paid the mortgage off on the house, so that was one bill we luckily did not have to worry about.

I sorted through the first box I found, not looking forward to the next two hours if all it included were cheese graters and coffee mugs. I had already unpacked the vast majority of the odds and ends we had collected just before we moved. Once again, Agatha and her church-going fellows had pulled through for us and found us all of the necessities we would need to move into a home. Most of our things were hand-me-downs or products of the dollar stores and flea markets. I didn't mind in the slightest – I was grateful that we were able to gain all of these things with such ease.

The hours passed by slowly, as I agonizingly placed and cleaned all of the remaining items that would belong in the kitchen. I had just started working on the main bathroom when I heard, rather than saw, Virginia blow into the house. I finished placing the cleaner under the sink, then turned to face the wrath that would be my sister. I exited the bathroom and stood within view of the front door.

"Lucy!" Virginia cried as she hopped on one foot, trying vainly to pull her shoe off the foot in the air. "My first day went great!" She was beaming as she finally ripped her shoe off and threw it to the floor by the door. The front door opened up to a mat that I had placed there earlier in the day that I had found in one of the "miscellaneous" boxes that had been donated to us by the church. It pictured a little birdhouse with a blue jay, and the word "welcome" emblazoned across it.

"That's awesome," I replied as I leaned against the wall. Maybe if she keeps talking, she won't notice that I didn't finish everything on her damn list. "I'm glad you're enjoying it." I waited for her response, knowing that I would not have to say much and she would open up about what was so fantastic. Probably a boy that brought this bout of happiness around, I thought to myself, as Virginia never went too long without some suitor or another trying to impress her.

The only thing that Virginia and I had in common physically was our hair color. Her dark brown locks hung straight and perfect, a little past her shoulders. She wore dark-rimmed glasses which framed her big brown eyes gorgeously. Virginia had big hips and a tiny waist, with the chest to go along with it. In my eyes, she's pretty much perfect when compared to me. My dark brown hair may go to the middle of my back, but it had unruly curls that had a mind of their own. Where she was tall and curvaceous, I was short and willowy.

"Well," she began dramatically as she ushered me into the living room, "I'm not really sure how to explain it. Everyone around here is just so nice to me!" I grinned at her, thinking that it was probably more the fact that she was sexy than the people around here being nice.

"That's good," I responded, not entirely sure if she even needed a reply as her gaze seemed to be locked on something far over my shoulder.

She seemed to snap out of it with a smile, "I hope your first day of school tomorrow goes just as well as my first day of work did. I saw a few boys that looked your age, and let me just say –"

"Yeah, how about you do not say and that way you won't sound like a pedophile?" I smiled brightly at her, attempting to end this thread of conversation before it began.

"Oh, shut up," she frowned. "They may be too young for me, but that doesn't mean I can't tell if they aren't handsome." She raised one eyebrow, a coy look spreading across her face. "Plus, the older guys are lookers too. Some of the girls at work were telling me about a family called the Cullins, I guess they are to die for. Apparently the younger ones attend the same school you're going to start tomorrow."

"That's nice," I said, feigning a yawn. This was where Virginia and I differed the most. I had only ever been in one serious relationship, whereas Virginia made it a life's ambition to find her soul mate – which usually meant "testing out" every guy she came into contact with. Not that I found my sister promiscuous, she was just a little too… out there for me. I preferred friendships over relationships. I was not convinced that true love existed, as my sister was, and I definitely had no interest in finding it at my age regardless.

Virginia shook her head, "this place is a start-over for us, Luce. Just give it a try will you, and actually put some effort in maybe? Your friends are long ways away now, and you'll get tired of my company eventually."

I smiled softly at her, "I will try tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that…" I looked down at the hardwood floors. "But it's going to take some time before I start making friends, you know."

Virginia grinned mischievously, "we'll see about that."