Disclaimer: I only claim to own the plot and Adam and Alley. I would love to own Twilight though. :(

A/N: Edward and Bella are appearing in Chapter 3 I think... they're shy. D:

Quiddity

CHAPTER ONE

Jesse McCartney's voice droned in my head. I had no idea why that song affected me that much. It was just another pop song, right? I rolled about on my bed, a hand groping for my cell phone, which was blaring the offensive song, which meant I had a new message. Weird, I didn't remember setting this song as my message tone.

"I shouldn't love you, but I want to."

"I just can't turn away."

"I shouldn't see you, but I can't move."

"I can't look away."

I narrowed my eyes at the screen, sighing in relief as the song stopped. I had a message from... Adam? I blinked, rubbing my eyes. Adam? I lept out of bed, chewing on my nails while sitting on the edge of my bed. My phone was in other palm, looking every bit as abhorrent as a dead rat. I swallowed, hands trembling ever so slightly as I clicked "Show" to read the contents of the message. Each word I read jumped out of the screen and forced themselves into my pupils, etching themselves into my brain.

"I'm back. Meet me at the usual spot at 5pm today?"

Back? Tears started to well up in my eyes, the searing pain which was so familiar, yet as painful as the first time I'd experienced it, returned. My chest hurts, bad. It was as though someone was using an invisible hammer to rip my heart out, from the inside. I thought I would grow immune to the pain, but no, I never did get use to the pain, never did get used to the grief. My body heaved, and I collapsed onto the bed, shaking with inconsolable grief as the tears starting flowing, the pain continuing; my sobs smothered by my pillow. I had no idea how long I lay there, not that I had anything to do. The holidays were already in full swing, yet I felt no joy. Just...the same emptiness which filled me.

How does emptiness fill someone, even? My pillow was tear-soaked, and smelt salty, probably did taste salty. My sobs earlier on had been subdued, but the tears did not stop, neither did the pain. I curled up into a ball, arms clutching my knees to my chest, wanting to close up the hole the invisible hammer had created, trying to hold myself together. It helped, a little, just like I knew it would. I stayed in that fetal position, snuggling under the blanket, attempting to create a womb for myself; to protect myself.

The tears stopped; the pain stopped. I was breathing heavily now, shoulders heaving. I uncurled, throwing my blanket off. I was drenched in sweat; I sweat far too easily, maybe I should get a more potent deodorant. I glanced at the clock, and froze. 3.49pm. Had I really been in bed that long? A book fell heavily to the ground, landing spine first. I remember now, I had been reading that book all night, and probably morning. I couldn't remember when I fell asleep, or which page I stopped at.

Kicking the book aside, I rushed into the bathroom and ran a comb through my short auburn hair, cussing each time I hit a tangle, which was pretty much the whole time, then washed my face and brushed my teeth, before washing my face another time. I made a face, a finger poking at my puffed up lids.

"Ugh," I grimaced, looking at my forlorn reflection. I changed into a pair of black slacks and a long sleeved white sweater, almost forgetting about my agenda for changing. My phone started blaring the song once more and I cussed all the way till I reached my phone, punching the button to read whatever message I'd received hard.

"5pm, at the usual spot. Please come, Alley..."

It sounded so...desperate. I scowled at my phone, biting on my lower lip.

Everything was moving quickly afterwards, I vaguely remember walking out through the door, leaving a note on the fridge to tell my mom where I'd been. She'd probably be home soon, so I decided to leave the keys at home.

I walked the way to our spot, where Adam and I had first met. It was not exactly a pleasant experience. I slowed down a little more, knowing I would reach there in fifteen minutes. A gentle wind started blowing, just like on the day we met...

I was checking the stuff in my bag, a really bad idea, now that I thought of it. But the street was empty, so I probably will not collide with anyone. Or so I thought. I looked up, satisfied that I had everything in place, just in time to meet the astonished eyes of a boy. I barely had time to yell before my bike crashed hard into him. The sound of the crash probably drowned my yell.

"Oh my gosh!" I staggered to my feet, dragging my feet out from under my bicycle. The boy was sitting down; I hoped it was a good sign. "Are you alright? I mean, are you seeing two of me?" I was blubbering out nonsense, I had to stop. I bit on my tongue, and waited for him to respond. He groaned softly, a hand massaging his temples. "I'm fine...you hit the lamppost and I fell down while jumping out of the way."

Only then I realised my bicycle's front wheel was in front of a lamppost, and it looked pretty wrecked. I picked it up and let it rest against the lamppost, scrutinizing it for extensive damage. I relaxed slightly, shoulders slumping after I realised it only sustained scratches. I turned to the boy, and held out an arm, "Let me help you..." my voice faltered away at the end, eyes staring at the gash on my elbow.

The guy looked up, and I could tell that he was older than me, much too old to be called a boy. He raised his eyebrows at my bleeding elbow, "You seem to be in a worst state than I am." he commented lightly, a hand holding my elbow gently. I nodded, holding my breath and looking away from the gash, attempting to focus on his face.

He had amazing eyes, it was grey, with the slightest tint of blue. It was very hypnotic, I couldn't quite tear myself away. I think I forgot to breathe. Taking a deep breath, however, was a big, big mistake. My stomach lurched as I smelled blood, the mixture of rust and salt with a weird tang infiltrated my nostrils, causing them to flare involuntarily. The pavement before me swayed, and I held on to the lamppost for support.

"Hey! Are you alright?" his voice reached my ears. I felt my head shaking in response, then winced as the action caused the concrete pavement to shake as well. I felt something cold and wet dabbing at my elbow, then a warm bandage was wrapped tightly around it. "Here, do you feel better now?" I breathed in and out slowly, my head turned towards the general direction of the grass. It worked, my head cleared as the earthy smell comforted me, settling my stomach.

"Thanks..." I managed to croak. We sat under the oak tree nearby, resting after our collision, talking as though we were best friends. By the time he was walking me to my house, we knew each other's friends as though they were our own. We left our numbers with each other, promising to call or text often. I smiled to myself, shivering as a sudden gust of wind blew. I tucked my hands into my arms, folding them tightly across my chest as I rounded the corner to walk towards the oak tree a few metres down.

(to be continued...duh)