Disclaimer: I do not own twilight

Chapter 2

BPOV

Eventually I fell back asleep. Luckily I only had one other dream and it wasn't scary. I was in a dark room and I was vaguely aware that someone else was with me. I couldn't see anything but I knew I wasn't alone. I called out and though I didn't get a verbal response, right in front of me appeared a pair of truly frightened green eyes that were just staring back at me.

I got out of bed and went straight for the shower. I let the hot water pour down on my back as it loosened up the tightened muscles. As I was drying off I heard my answering machine. I listened intently to the message being left until I realized it was my mother. I already knew what she wanted and I had planned to call her later on that day.

As I was making breakfast I hit the play button on my machine. "Hi honey, its mom again. Can you call me back right away I need your decision if Phil and I will be staying with you while were in town or if it would be easier for us to get a hotel. Call me, love you." I hit the delete button before sitting down to eat.

Lucky for me I worked mostly from home, at least my writing. I was almost finished with my current book and I was going to be taking a break from it for a while. The local college had been after me to start my lectures again as they were getting more and more requests.

I didn't mind doing them; for the most part I really liked it. It was nice to find other people who had an interest in the paranormal. There was a time where I talked more freely about my ability but I quickly learned not to bring up the subject first. A lot of people didn't share in the belief and thought I was either a liar or insane.

Heck when I first discovered my ability to see 'dead people' I thought I was insane myself once I realized that I was the only one that could see them. It didn't help that my step-father Phil agreed with the negative views.

After having arrived back home after my venture to Forks when I was seven and discovered my 'gift' Phil got very uncomfortable around me. At first I didn't even understand it. I honestly thought everyone could see them too. Why wouldn't they?

I couldn't tell the difference most of the time. They looked the same as everyone else. Not an apparition but like a solid person most of the time. Unless they were bloody or hurt in some way like the 'bleeding man' I saw that first night.

We would be at the park or walking down the street and someone would stop me and say hi or try and talk with me. Apparently that is when my mom and step-dad found out because I would be having conversations with people they couldn't see. Phil would get so angry with me and would starting yelling at me to stop. He was either scared, thought I was just some bratty kid trying to make him mad, or truly insane.

I used to hear my mom and him fighting about it after they thought I was asleep. My mom would defend me at first but then as it continued she started to get just as worried. Her worry was more about 'what would the neighbors think'. Things were getting a little stressed around the house so my mom suggested that I should spend that spring break back in Forks with Charlie.

It turned out to be for the best. Charlie didn't act so uncomfortable around me and while he didn't understand it he didn't treat me like the freak other people did. He never made me feel uncomfortable even though I could tell he was a little nervous sometimes he acted just like normal.

His friend Billy invited us for a BBQ while I was there. He pulled me aside and broached the subject. He explained to me that he thought of it as a gift and that his grandfather had the same ability. It made me feel better because having the ability itself was quite unnerving as a child but to have to deal with parents who didn't want to be around you because of it made it very difficult.

By the time I was twelve Phil had had enough and Renee of course sided with her husband and that's when I moved in with Charlie full time. I hung out at the Black's house a lot. I felt normal there because they truly did understand. Jacob quickly became by best friend.

I would still see Renee and Phil for summer breaks or every other holiday but it never went back to the way it was before. When I graduated high school I moved to Seattle for college. I was an English lit major and minored in parapsychology.

Jake teased me about that a lot until I became friends with another girl who did the same thing. Her name was Leah. I introduced them and they hit it off immediately. She and Jake recently got married and Leah is now pregnant with their first child with the promise that if it was a girl she would be named after me since I got them together.

I had met Rose in one of my parapsychology classes. She didn't have an 'ability' so to speak but she was always interested in the paranormal. She grew up in a house she believed was haunted and was always curious. We became best friends after that.

As I sat down at my desk my phone rang again. "Hello?" I said not having looked at the caller id. "Hey Bella, what are you doing?"

"That depends…. Is this Rose my publisher or Rose my best friend?" she laughed a little. "Well both, Rose your publisher wants to know how the last few chapters are going and Rose your friend wants to know if you want to meet for lunch today?"

"Well since you put it like that, I am on my final chapter and yes lunch sounds great." "How about the taco house at 1:00?" I loved it there it was my favorite restaurant. "See you then."

I worked on my book most of the morning and at 12:30 I grabbed my purse and headed out the door. As I looked down my drive way I saw a young boy about 6 years old, blond hair and blue eyes. He was wearing jean shorts and a white T-shirt. Only the shirt was covered in dirt and was ripped a little. His legs were also dirty like he had been rolling around in the mud.

I have been seeing him on and off for the past few weeks. I would see him at the grocery store, the bank, restaurants, the mall, and more recently outside my window. He would always just stare at me and never attempt to communicate. He never came closer than about 20 feet away.

After getting in my truck and backing out I noticed he was gone. When I got to the restaurant Rose was already waiting. She was munching on chips and salsa and had ordered us margaritas.

"Hey, you started without me." I whined as I sat down taking a drink. "Yeah, I had to get out of the office." She seemed a little upset. "What's going on?" I asked taking a couple chips. "It's Royce." "Uh oh" Rose took a deep breath.

"Yeah, I think there's something going on with him. He is becoming more and more distant and I keep seeing him coming and going out of Kate's office a lot lately. Not to mention he keeps making up excuses about having to stay late for work. And when he does he smells like cigarettes and you know he doesn't smoke. I mean, does he think I'm stupid?" she asked downing the rest of her drink.

The waitress came over and took our order and quickly came back with another margarita for Rose. "We work together, does he not get that I would know if he was that busy he had to stay late that often?"

"I'm sorry Rose, what are you going to do?" she sighed. "Well I think I am going to confront him tonight." Our lunch arrived and but neither of were eating much. "Will you call me tonight and let me know what happens?"

"Of course I will. Enough of my crappy life what's going on with you?" she asked. "Well Renee called and she and Phil are coming to town. I guess Phil has some sort of conference. She keeps asking me if they can stay with me but I'd rather they just got a hotel but I feel bad for turning her down." I said while taking a bit of my taco salad.

"How long will they be here?" she asked finishing her second drink. "A few days. I do miss my mom but Phil and I are just not comfortable with each other still and I'm sure he would rather they stayed in a hotel too."

"Just tell them I'm staying with you, it might be true after tonight anyway." She said slightly dejected. "I'll be right back, I have to go to the bathroom." I told Rose. As I was finished and was washing my hands I looked up into the mirror.

I screamed when I saw the boy standing right behind me. He had never gotten this close before. I just stared at him through the reflection in the mirror. This time he opened his mouth to say something and dirt came pouring out of his mouth. Tears started falling from my eyes as I just watched massive amounts of dirt pile onto the floor. I turned around to look at him and he was gone.

I walked back to our booth. Rose noticed right away something wasn't right. "What happened Bella? What's wrong?"

I couldn't speak at the moment so she told me to go out front and get some fresh air while she paid the bill. I leaned up against my truck while I waited. After only a couple minutes she came outside.

"Bella, what happened?" I told her the story of the little boy I had been seeing recently and about the scene that just occurred in the bathroom. She gasped but quickly hugged me. "Are you going to be okay?" I took a deep breath. "Yeah I am it just took me by surprise, he hasn't gotten that close before and it scared me."

"Do you want me to come over? I can take the rest of the day off?" she asked. "No Rose, I'll be fine, I always am but thanks for the offer."

"If you're sure?" "I am, go back to work and call me later." Luckily she only worked 2 blocks away and I was glad that she walked over especially after the 3 margaritas. I drove home still a little unsettled.

When I got in I decided to call Renee. I got her machine and I was glad. "Hi mom, sorry to take so long to get back to you. So anyway I think it would work out best if you and Phil got a hotel while you're here. Rose may be in need of a place to stay soon and I need to have room available for her. So I guess call me when you get into town."

Later that night I heard a knock on my door. It was about 11:00pm and when I opened it I found that Rose was standing there in tears. It seems that Royce was cheating on her and when she confronted him about it he simply admitted it and asked when she could move out.

Of course the next day she took off of work and we both went over to Royce's to pack her stuff. We had been moving most of the day and I didn't get much sleep the night before. Once we got her things moved into the extra bedroom she took a nap and I opted for a bath.

Steam filled the room as I let the hot water fill up the tub. I had my bath pillow and eye mask I relaxed the best I could. I heard the bathroom door open but Rose didn't say anything. She must have thought I was asleep. After the water started to get cold, I unplugged the drain and grabbed my towel. As I climbed out of the tub I noticed two small handprints on the fogged up mirror.

EPOV

"Are you sure you want to do this honey?" my mom asked me again for what seemed like the 100th time. "Yes of course I'm sure, come on mom it's not like I'm moving across the country or anything." She sighed deeply. "I know but first Alice and now you?"

"Esme, Seattle is only a few hours drive, it's not like we aren't going to be seeing him again. Besides Alice has been living there for a year now and you managed to get over that." My dad tried to help me out.

"But it's not the same as having him in Spokane." She said looking down. "What am I? Chopped liver?" Emmett whined. "Of course not Emmett, I know I am being over emotional and I'm sorry. I know this is a great opportunity for you Edward and I promise to stop making you feel guilty."

"Thank you mom" I said as I gave her a hug. "So are you ready Emmett?" I asked. "Yep, let's go." I was going to drive the U-haul pulling my car while Emmett followed me in his car so he could drive back home. We stopped off at a rest stop to take a break. "Thanks for helping me out with this Em."

"No problem little brother, though I am going to miss having you around." I was going to miss him too, we were very close. "You know you could move out too." I tried to convince him. "Yeah mom would just love that, though the thought has crossed my mind with both you and Alice out there. But I don't see it happening in the near future."

As we were pulling into Seattle I called Alice. "We just got into town, and we're going to put my stuff in storage and then head over." The plan was for me to stay with Alice until I could find my own place. When I had applied for my new job I didn't realize that they would want me to start so soon and I hadn't had time to get one yet. "I can't wait! See you soon."

We got to Alice's and we were exhausted. At least I was, the drive was stressful with that big load and then putting most of my things in storage. "Hey little sis" I said as I pulled Alice in for a hug. "Ew, you stink Edward." I just hugged her tighter. "Both of you do." She added after hugging Emmett.

"You guys can take a shower, there is the main bathroom and I have one in connecting to my bedroom. Take your pick." After we both showered and changed our clothes Alice ordered pizza. Emmett planned on staying the weekend with us and it was nice to have the three of us together again.

"Tomorrow you guys can meet my boyfriend Jasper he has to work but will be over for dinner." Mom mentioned something about her meeting someone about a month ago. "Good, I'm looking forward to it." I said. "Hmmm, yeah so am I" Emmett said with a smirk.

The next day Jasper came over and he turned out to be a really cool guy, even Emmett didn't give him too bad of a time. I hated to see Emmett go but he had to work Monday and so did I. I was really excited about my new job. I was going to be starting my residency at the hospital near where Alice lived.

I had been working extremely long hours and practically no days off. I hadn't had time to look for a place yet and it had been almost 3 weeks and I knew it was past time. Alice never complained and said I was welcome to stay as long as I needed. But I really wanted to get my own place.

When our grandmother died she had left the three of us a sizable inheritance and so buying a house wouldn't be a problem, though after I buy one it will be pretty much used up. I figured real estate was a good investment so I didn't have a problem spending it all on a house. I called a realtor and told her what I was looking for and she said she would come up with a few different options and get back to me.

Within the week she found me 5 different places that had potential. My next day off was the following Saturday. Alice wanted to go with me of course. The real estate agent met us at Alice's house so we could all ride together.

"Hi, I'm Jessica, nice to meet you Mr. Cullen." She extended her hand to me. "Please call me Edward, and this is my sister Alice." "Nice to meet you both." She smiled warmly. "So you're new to the area?" Jessica asked.

"Yes, I just moved here from Spokane, though Alice has been here for a little over a year." I said as we drove off down the street. "Oh really? My husband's family is from Spokane. They live over off of Manito Blvd. near the park."

We had pulled up to the first house at that point. It was really nice, but the back yard was pretty much non existent but we were off to a nice start. "I think you are going to really like this one." Jessica had said as we pulled up to the last house. As we got out of the car her phone rang. "Jessica Newton" she said into the phone.

She opened up the door for us while she finished her phone call. Alice and I looked around. It was a big house with a lot of room and a huge yard. We looked through all the rooms at least twice. It was my favorite by far.

"Obviously it needs a little fixing up as you can see but it has great potential and it is closest to the hospital. As well as the best view." Jessica smiled.

"What do you think Alice?" I could tell she liked it by the sparkle in her eye or it could be just that she sees the redecorating possibilities.

"I love it Edward and think of what we could do to this place." She beamed. "Yeah I was thinking the same thing." I turned to Jessica. "I would like to make an offer."