Everybody was sitting tensely in the dining room, waiting for Edward and Alice to get home. What Edward had done today had risked us all, and it was my turn to set him straight. I would not let him ruin our peaceful existence in the town of Forks.
We all heard the graceful purr of the car at the same time, announcing his arrival home. I stood up quickly; Esme pushed me back down.
"It'll be fine, Rosalie," she assured me in soft, rushed whispers. I growled under my breath, but sat down as she wished.
I could see everyone's expressions as Edward walked in. Carlisle pursed his lips and Esme's face was overflowing with unspoken concern. I on the other hand, held no sympathy for Edward.
My eyes never wavered as Edward sat down next to Carlisle. The whole family was divided down the middle, according to their decisions. Emmett, Jasper, and I were on the western side of the room, while Esme, Carlisle, and Edward sat on the other side. Alice walked in last, rubbing her temples as if she had a headache, and sat down next to Esme.
My sister was looking deep into the future, making her choice according to the winning side. I practically hissed at her, but held my tongue. Jasper twitched as he took in Alice's decision. I swore he almost stood up, but he held his ground.
Edward took a deep breath, preparing to give us the explanation we so desperately needed. "I'm sorry," he told us, looking at me first. His eyes traveled over Emmett and Jasper, too. "I didn't mean to put any of you at risk." What?! Then why did he risk our cover for that insolent, human girl? I honestly didn't care if he heard my thoughts, and I glared balefully at him, hatred radiating off me in waves.
"It was thoughtless," he continued, "and I take full responsibility for my hasty action."
"What do you mean, 'take full responsibility'?" A scowl took place on my face. "Are you going to fix it?" I demanded.
He struggled on the inside—I could see it—trying not to lose his temper. "Not the way you mean. I'm willing to leave now, if that makes things better." I smiled smugly. Yes, I thought, that's good. I refused to let him put us in danger anymore. This was the first time Edward had done so, but it was riskier than any of the other times we had had to move.
"No. No, Edward," Esme whispered, begging. He patted her hand gently, consoling her.
"It's just a few years," he told her, trying to lighten the mood.
Then my husband spoke up, something I wasn't expecting. Emmett usually sat back and observed family meetings. "Esme's right, though," he voiced thoughtfully. "you can't go anywhere now. That would be the opposite of helpful. We have to know what people are thinking, now more than ever."
Edward's forehead creased, realizing Emmett had a point. Stupid fool, I shot at him mentally. He ignored my comment, focusing only on Emmett's statement, understanding now just how much his decision had affected us.
He shook his head, a subtle movement I barely managed to catch. "Alice will catch anything major." He was clinging to this for dear life.
I could see that Carlisle disagreed based on the look on his face. "I think Emmett is right, Edward. The girl will be more likely to talk if you disappear. It's all of us leave, or none of us."
I was ready to explode—Edward messed up everything!!!
"She won't say anything," he spoke, his voice rushed, and he glanced at me. The statement was directed toward me, too, I could tell that much.
"You don't know her mind," Carlisle pointed out gently, but made sure his voice sounded firm. He cared about his son, but he was making this difficult for all of us.
"I know this much," he insisted. "Alice, back me up."
She looked up at him, taking a break from rubbing her temples. "I can't see what will happen if we just ignore this." She shot a look at me and Jasper.
I was tired of Edward's aversion to the obvious solution. My palm smacked against the table inbetween the two groups—hard. "We can't allow the human a chance to say anything. Carlisle, you must see that. Even if we decided to all disappear, it's not safe to leave stories behind us. We live so differently from the rest of our kind—you know there are those who would love an excuse to point fingers. We have to be more careful than anyone else!" I shouted, demanding attention. Carlisle had to comprehend this! I didn't care how much he cared about Edward; he had to care about all of us—our safety!
Edward's eyes hardened as he turned his head toward me. "We've left rumors behind us before."
I threw my hands up in the air, exasperated. "Just rumors and suspicions, Edward. Not eyewitnesses and evidence!"
"Evidence!" he scoffed.
I was relieved when Jasper backed me up, agreeing with me by nodding his head. The only reason Jasper was on our side was because he wouldn't let Alice be in the slightest bit of danger. Anything that was even remotely risky was a good enough reason to do so.
"Rose—" Carlisle started.
I shook my head, interrupting him. "Let me finish, Carlisle. It doesn't have to be any big production. The girl hit her head today. So maybe that injury turns out to be more serious that it looked. Every mortal goes to sleep with the chance of never waking up. The others would expect us to clean up after ourselves. Technically, that would make it Edward's job, but this is obviously beyond him." My brother made a sound in the back of his throat at my reasoning. I shook it off. I wanted to get this out while Carlisle was still focused on me. "You know I'm capable of control. I would leave no evidence behind me." I shot a smirk at Edward, who was livid, his eyes turning black as he realized what I was getting at.
"Yes, Rosalie, we all know how proficient an assassin you are," he snarled at me. How dare he bring that up! I hissed at him, my eyes turning just as black as his.
"Edward, please," Carlisle pleaded, trying to be the peacemaker. He then turned to me. "Rosalie, I looked the other way in Rochester because I felt that you were owed your justice. The men you killed had wronged you monstrously. This is not the same situation. The Swan girl is an innocent."
I bared my teeth at my creator. The one who had stole my humanity. "It's not personal, Carlisle," I said, trying to keep my cool, and just barely managing. Edward had partially calmed down by now, but his eyes were still tense. His mouth twitched up in a grin.
"It's to protect us all," I finished, the statement mostly directed towards my brother.
Carlisle nodded, acknowledging my point. My eyes lit up. Finally! Someone saw the light! Hallelujah, I thought sarcastically.
But the words that spewed out of his mouth next made me shake with anger.
"I know you mean well, Rosalie, but...I'd like very much for our family to be worth protecting. The occasional...accident or lapse in control is a regrettable part of who we are. To murder a blameless child in cold blood is another thing entirely. I believe the risk she presents, whether she speaks her suspicions or not, is nothing to the greater risk. If we make exceptions to protect ourselves, we risk something much more important. We risk losing the essence of who we are."
I snarled, and saw Edward holding back a his silly little grin. "It's just being responsible," I shot back, both to him and to Carlisle.
"It's being callous," he corrected me. "Every life is precious."
I was about to argue, but the last sentence left me choked up. I nodded my head, which was suddenly heavy. I couldn't disagree with that.
Emmett patted me gently. "It'll be fine, Rose," he assured me.
Carlisle cleared his throat, demanding attention once again. My head snapped back up. "The question is whether we should move on?"
"No," I disagreed strongly, able to speak again. "We just got settled. I don't want to start on my sophomore year in high school again!" This place—Forks—was a place where we didn't have to hide as much. Finding another town like this was very hard. It wasn't like we could move back to Denali, either, just after we had moved away three years ago.
"You could keep your present age, of course," Carlisle assured me gently. I didn't want assuring; I wanted to stay!
"And have to move again that much sooner?" I asked.
He just shrugged, not knowing what to say.
"I like it here!" Well, that's a first. "There's so little sun, we get to be almost normal." Almost human, I silently added.
I thought that was a reasonable excuse. I leaned back into the couch, waiting for his response.
"Well, we certainly don't have to decide now. We can wait and see if it becomes necessary. Edward seems certain of the Swan girl's silence."
I snorted. Sure, Edward was 'certain of the Swan girl's silence'. Then why were we having this conversation?
Somehow, in the split second I had made my response, the attention had shifted to the person beside me. Jasper.
He stood his ground. "Jasper," Edward said. He met his gaze, his face expressionless.
I was glad that Jasper was the one to talk now. If it was about his wife, he wouldn't be deterred into this foolish idea that everyone thought would actually work.
"She won't pay for my mistake. I won't allow that," Edward continued. We all knew he was talking about Alice.
"She benefits from it, then? She should have died today, Edward. I would only set that right," he countered evenly. I had to side with Jasper; if anyone wouldn't waver, it was him.
"I will not allow it," Edward repeated, emphasizing each word. I was stunned into silence. He was sticking up for the girl now?
Jasper was certainly not expecting this reaction, either. Once he recovered, though, he shook his head. "I won't let Alice live in danger, even a slight danger. You don't feel about anyone the way I feel about her, Edward, and you haven't lived through what I've lived through, whether you've seen my memories or not. You don't understand."
He had a point. Edward was the only one who hadn't found love. He shouldn't risk his sister, either. His favorite sister, I quietly amended.
We all knew he didn't like me.
I turned my attention back to the conversation between my two brothers.
"I'm not disputing that, Jasper. But I'm telling you now, I won't allow you to hurt Isabella Swan." This would be interesting. They were both firm about their decisions.
There was silence. They measured each other's expressions, trying to determine the outcome.
"Jazz," Alice piped up, for once entering the conversation.
"Don't bother telling me you can protect yourself, Alice. I already know that. I've still got to—" He was cut off by her.
"That's not what I'm going to say. I was going to ask you for a favor."
A favor? In this situation? Of all the random things she did....
Edward's mouth fell open, a gasp spilling out of it. We know looked at him suspiciously. What could he have seen that would jolt this kind of reaction out of him?
I pursed my lips, knowing Alice must have seen something that Edward didn't like. I leaned in on the conversation now, knowing that if I paid attention to each facial expression and each word that came out of their mouths, I could find out what they were conversing about.
"I know you love me," Alice continued, focusing on Jasper. "Thanks. But I would really appreciate it if you didn't try to kill Bella. First of all, Edward's serious and I don't want you two fighting. Secondly, she's my friend. At least, she's going to be."
The Swan girl? Alice's friend? How?
"But...Alice..." Jasper tried. She shook her head, refusing to waver from her words in the slightest.
"I'm going to love her someday, Jazz. I'll be very put out with you if you don't let her be." Alice's expression relaxed as Jasper's future shimmered and changed.
So much for siding with him.
"Ah," she sighed as a new future for him was set in place. "See? Bella's not going to say anything. There's nothing to worry about."
The problem with Alice was that she was usually very optimistic; very cheery. She needed a cold dose of reality.
Back to the matter at hand, though.
There was something about the way she said the Swan girl's name...but I couldn't put my finger on it....
"Alice." Edward choked on her name. "What...does this...?"
Her face hardened, trying very hard not to think of something. "I told you there was a change coming. I don't know, Edward."
Edward recognized this. "What, Alice? What are you hiding?" I wanted her to voice the vision out loud. I was tired of being left out, too.
Emmett grumbled behind me, not pleased that they were having their 'silent conversations' again.
Alice shook her head.
"Is it about the girl? Is it about Bella?" Edward asked tensely.
Alice gritted her teeth together, but she slipped when Edward said her name.
The next reaction I was not expecting, nor do I think anyone else was. Edward lost his temper very easily, but was not one to let it out physically.
This was an exception. One we all saw.
"NO!" Edward roared, flinging his chair to the floor as he stood up in a flash.
Carlisle jumped to his feet, trying to put a restraining hand on his son's shoulder. "Edward!"
At this point even I was concerned. Had Edward gone mad? What could have Alice seen that made Edward so upset? He was normally very good about controlling his anger toward us.
Alice looked down at her tiny hands, which were wringing together. "It's solidifying. Every minute you're more decided. They're really only two ways left for her. It's one or the other, Edward."
My eyes were probably the blackest you could get. Edward was going to do something to the Swan girl—Bella—I just knew it.
"No," Edward said blankly. Suddenly weak, he leaned against the table for support. Support? Edward? The two didn't mix. I would have laughed, but I was concerned. My anger evaporated into thin air. Quite unlike me.
Emmett grumbled again. "Will somebody please let the rest of us in on the mystery?"
Edward ignored Emmett's request. He looked past us, seeing something the rest of us weren't. "I have to leave," he whispered.
"Edward, we've already been over that," Emmett reminded him. "That's the best way to start the girl talking. Besides, if you take off, we won't know for sure if she's talking or not. You have to stay and deal with this."
"I don't see you going anywhere, Edward," Alice murmured. "I don't know if you can leave anymore." What on Earth were they talking about? Edward could always leave! No one was holding him back!
But a pained look washed over Edward's face—just for a second—and that scared me.
Edward was apathetic, I liked to think. Maybe a zombie instead of a vampire. Pain wasn't a usual expression on him.
"I don't hear that," he responded to one of Alice's unspoken questions. Just get on with it.
A moment passed. "Why are you doing this to me?" he asked in agony. His head fell into his hands, helpless.
I carefully composed the hard mask I wore back on, shifting back into the former Rosalie, the one who didn't feel sympathy for her brother.
Tick tock, tick tock.... I thought wryly.
"Love her, too?" he whispered, stunned.
I sat there, my face frozen in shock. No, no, NO! This wasn't happening! I would not allow it! Edward would not ruin my life like this.
He shook his head in response to Alice's thoughts. "No," he said firmly, but his words were hollow. They held no meaning behind them. "I don't have to follow that course. I'll leave. I will change the future."
Alice looked at him doubtfully. "You can try...."
Love? Try? Change? How did this all relate to the—Bella?
A sudden comprehension dawned on my face. No.
Behind me, Emmett exploded. "Oh, come on!" he yelled. My husband was not one to be patient. I would have comforted him, but he was interrupting my train of thought.
"Pay attention!" I commanded. That shut him up. "Alice sees him falling for a human! How classically Edward!"
"What?" Emmett let out a booming laugh, which echoed across the room. "Is that what's been going on?" he chortled. "Tough break, Edward."
"Fall for a human?" Esme repeated, shocked. She looked at Edward for conformation, but received none. She turned back, looking down at the floor in disbelief. "For the girl he saved today? Fall in love with her?" The stunned look on her face was quickly followed by compassion. Happiness.
Jasper had turned to a stiff statue beside me. "What do you see, Alice? Exactly," he demanded in a clipped tone.
"It all depends on whether he is strong enough or not. Either he'll kill her himself," she said turning towards the focus of the meeting, "which would really irritate me, Edward, not to mention what it would do to you—" she faced Jasper once again, "or she'll be come of us someday."
I gasped. This was impossible. In one day, my life had been turned upside down.
The room was suddenly quiet as everybody stared at my brother.
Carlisle broke the silence first. "Well, this...complicates things." Damn right it did!
Emmett was about to lose control of his laughter. "I'll say." He patted Edward roughly on the shoulder. What was this? Some kind of congratulations?
"I suppose the plans remain the same, though," Carlisle agreed. "We'll stay, and watch. Obviously, no one will...hurt the girl."
Edward stayed still, numb. I didn't think he was hearing us.
"No," Jasper murmured to all of us. "I can agree to that. If Alice sees only two ways—" He trailed off.
"No!" Edward cried, turning to face us again, broken out of his trance. "No!"
I was disgusted. How could he fall in love with a girl whose blood he longed to drink? It would never work. Incomprehensible. This was utterly disgusting. A human....
Edward walked out of the room, where he broke into a sprint, running far away from us, into the comforting darkness of the forest.
It stayed quiet for the rest of the night. Everybody went back to what they were doing after we had come home. It was almost as if nothing had happened. Except for the fact that Edward wasn't here, or that there was a subtle reminder hanging in the air.
But I stayed on the couch. I was lost in my thoughts, and I had no idea when I might resurface.
There was only one thing going through my mind the whole time.
A human, I thought with contempt.