A/N: Thanks so much for all your reviews and adding my story to your favorites! Well, here is the next installment, so enjoy the read. I didn't want Remy and Jasper to be in a situation where they were suddenly in love with one another; I want them to have to find each other, so that's what I'm aiming for here. Now remember, REVIEW, REVIEW :)

Chapter Two: Cole

Do not seek the because - in love there is no because, no reason, no explanation, no solutions.

- Anais Nin

March 7th, 2005.

The Cullens weren't in school today. At lunch, I overheard Jessica telling Bella that the Cullens were pulled out of school all the time by their foster parents, so it wasn't unusual.

Five days ago, after I left lunch early due to being glared at by that jerk, Jasper Hale, I had desperately tried to stay away from him.

Unfortunately, it was difficult to do so when Alice refused to leave me alone. Not that I minded. She was very…eccentric.

But in a good way.

The problem with Alice was the company she kept. Jasper was always around her.

Were they dating?

It was hard to tell with him. He isn't exactly the most expressive individual I've ever met. Mostly, he would stand to the side whenever I saw Alice.

He would always be silent and avoid looking in our direction as we talked. I had tried to be nice and include him in the conversation, but he would just ignore me.

After the first three attempts, I gave up. I would simply say hello, but even then he still wouldn't acknowledge me.

He would only talk to Alice, most of the time to tell her they needed to go to class.

It didn't help things when I had him in two consecutive classes with him.

I had yet to actually meet Emmett or Rosalie, but had somewhat met Edward as he's Bella's lab partner.

He seemed okay, I guess. I mean he would sometimes look at me with interest for some reason, but I didn't know why.

But not the way Jasper looked at me; no, Jasper would look at me as if he was waiting for me to do something to him.

Edward just looked at me with curiosity.

The school day went by pretty fast and I took the bus home with loathing. I had yet to get my license. I know, I'm seventeen and I don't have a driver's license; I'm pathetic.

Once home, I found Grandma Elsa talking on the phone, a bright smile on her face. She waved to me from the kitchen as I walked around the counter to kiss her cheek, mouthing the words hi grandma as I dropped my backpack on to the table.

"Don't eat anything, Remy"

I looked up from peering into the refrigerator to ask why.

Covering the receiver, Grandma Elsa said, "We're having company over tonight. I'm cooking your favorite; Fried chicken. So don't be filling up that belly of yours."

I closed the frig and circled around the counter and grabbed my bag to head upstairs to start on my homework.

My room was located upstairs at the back of the house where I had a view of the deep forest that surrounded our home.

Opening my door, I was met with rays of sunlight and winced as the brightness hit my eyes.

I flopped on to my bed and unzipped my backpack to pull out my English Homework. I had already finished reading Much To Do About Nothing, but wanted to get a head start on A Midsummer Night's Dream.

"Remy.."

Looking up from the yet to be read pages, I saw Grandma Elsa standing in the doorway, wiping her papery hands together.

"Yeah Grandma?"

She rested her hand against the doorframe and said, "Be downstairs in an hour, alright? Our guests will be here by then."

Scooting myself back against the pillows on my bed, I asked, "Who's coming again?"

"Oh you don't know them, sweetheart. They were old friends of your fathers and I thought it might be nice to see them again."

Friends of my dads?

"So they could tell me some things about Mom and Dad?"

The smile fell slightly, but she seemed to force it back on her face, "Of course they can, but let's save that for another visit, okay?"

She turned and walked from view and a few seconds later, I could hear her walking down the steps quickly.

I don't know why she doesn't like to talk about my parents. They died in a fire when I was nine; it was an accident. I had been at a slumber party that night, ironically.

My grandparents had me ever since.

All I really knew about my parents was that their names were Benjamin and Heather Turner and that my dad was Grandma Elsa and Grandpa Will's son. I knew that they had met while at college and had me just after graduating.

I had a photo album of them that had a permanent place in the drawer of my nightstand.

From these photos, I found that I had my mother's mossy green eyes and my father's coppery colored hair and his chin. I had my mom's short stature and her pale complexion.

She was extremely beautiful; everyone told me I inherited her prettiness but I don't see it.

Forcing myself out of my daydreaming, I began flipping the pages to the beginning of A Midsummer Night's Dream.

I eventually heard voices coming form downstairs and knew our mystery guests had arrived.

I looked at myself in the mirror and ran my fingers through my hair, trying to manage the wild curls before venturing downstairs.

"Remy!"

Walking out of my room, I slowly walked downstairs to see Grandma Elsa standing next to a couple who looked like they were in their thirties or early forties.

"Remy this is Roger and Wendy Doyle,"

I smiled and shook Mr. Doyle's outstretched hand and hugged Mrs. Doyle with discomfort as she opened her arms wide.

Mr. Doyle was tall with graying dark hair and slight wrinkles around his sharp, inspecting blue eyes. He was slightly chubby and had a ruddy complexion.

Mrs. Doyle was skinny and pale-ish and wore heavy makeup. Her blonde hair was styled into elaborate curls that were topped on the top of her head. Her brown eyes were hidden behind a pair of wide glasses that gave her a bug-eyed look.

Her voice was high and somewhat childish, "Oh my goodness! You've gotten so big; hasn't she Roger?"

Mr. Roger nodded and said, "Of course she has Wendy; how old are you now Remy? Sixteen?"

"Seventeen."

He merely nodded and turned to Grandma Elsa, "Cole's on his way, Mrs. Turner. He should be here any minute."

Turning to me, where I stood next to the stairs, Mr. Doyle said, "Cole's our son; he's about your age. You two used to take baths together when you were little."

I crossed my arms and offered a timid smile; I really didn't want to know that.

I followed everyone into the kitchen where I sat down at the table as Mr. and Mrs. Doyle stood around the counter as Grandma Elsa finished flowering chicken drumsticks.

After a while, Mrs. Doyle sat down next to me and started asking me how I was adjusting to Forks.

"It's alright I guess. I mean it's not Albuquerque, but I like the cooler weather"

She nodded and turned to her husband, "Your mother liked the cold too. She always enjoyed when it snowed."

Cocking my head, I asked, "So, how did you know my parents?"

Mr. Doyle leaned against the counter, munching on a carrot stick, "We went to the same university in Seattle. I was dating my beautiful girl over here,"

He paused to brush his fingers across Mrs. Doyle's blushing cheek before returning to me, "and one day, we all met in a study group. We were friends ever since."

The doorbell rang suddenly, causing Grandma Elsa to turn to me to ask, "Can you get that sweetie? It's probably Cole."

I rose to my feet, the chair scrapping across the wooden floor. Walking down the hallway, I could make out a tall figure standing on the other side of the glass door, the form distorted due to the misty texture of the door.

Opening the door allowed me to see the backside of our additional visitor. It definitely was a male figure as his hair was cropped short and was a chocolate brown. He was broad shouldered and seemed muscular by the way his shirt was snug against him.

He turned to reveal the face of a boy no older than myself, with high cheekbones and a strong jaw. A bit of stubble was around his chin, giving him a twelve o'clock shadow.

He had dark brown eyes that stared down at me and a smile that made me turn to goop.

He scratched the back of his neck as he looked behind me into the house, "Um, this is the Turner house, right?"

I nodded, "It is. Are you Cole?"

He smiled and said, "That I am and you are definitely Remy. I'd remember those pretty green eyes anywhere."

He surprised me when he stepped forward and wrapped me up in a hug, swaying me side to side.

His breathe tickled my ear as he said, "It's so good to see you again."

Pulling back, the sound of heels clicking across the floor caused me to look behind me. Mrs. Doyle was walking towards us, a huge grin on her face.

"I see you two are getting reacquainted. Isn't Remy pretty, Cole?"

I stuffed my hands in the back pockets of my jeans, interested in the floorboards all of a sudden.

As Mrs. Doyle walked back into the kitchen, Cole leaned down as we followed, whispering, "Sorry about her. She can get…"

"Excited?"

He chuckled, "We'll go with that."

As we entered the kitchen, I nearly knocked Cole over when we both went to walk through the doorway. Our shoulders bumped and I stumbled forward.

Cole caught me by the elbow and as I regained my balance, I could feel his hand on the lower part of my back, one of his fingers brushing the skin that was exposed as my camisole rode up from my fall.

"Sorry!"

Allowing me to enter before him, Cole said, "No need to apologize Rem."

He took the large plate of chicken from my grandmother, kissing her cheek as he did. Grandma Elsa patted his well-defined cheek before following him to the table with a pitcher of lemonade.

I took the bowl containing the salad and set it in the center of the table, next to the chicken and macaroni and cheese.

Grandma Elsa turned to me, "Remy, why don't you sit next to Cole. I'm sure you don't want to listen to us grown folk talking about the weather."

I gave her a look of annoyance, knowing she just wanted me to not ask the Doyle's anything about my parents.

"Sure Grandma."

Cole took the seat near the window and pulled mine out for me from where he sat. As we began to eat, Cole's parents fell into a conversation with Grandma Elsa about visiting someplace called First Beach.

Turning to Cole, I asked, "What's First Beach?"

Swallowing a large piece of chicken, Cole coughed before saying, "It's the name of the beach on the La Push reservation. It's a pretty popular place for teenagers, even from Forks."

As he took a bite of my grandmother's macaroni and cheese, what appeared to be a moving blur, caught my eye.

Looking out the window, I saw nothing, but had a strong feeling of being watched. Cole saw that I was looking for something outside and turned his head to see out into the darkness.

"Whatcha looking at?"

I shook my head and turned back to my plate, "Nothing. I thought I saw something."

The bench swayed as Cole rocked us back and forth. Crickets were chirping loudly as they lay hidden in the foliage that surrounded the porch.

Inside, Grandma Elsa was still talking with Mr. and Mrs. Doyle, about what I don't know, but she had somehow convinced me to go outside with Cole to "catch up."

"So…I'm sorry about your grandpa…."l

I blinked and refocused on Cole who was giving me a sympathetic smile. He sat up and leaned forward until he was resting his elbows on his knees and turned his head sideways to look at me.

I sat up as well, uncurling my legs from sitting Indian style and copied Cole's posture, leaning on to my knees with my elbows, my chin resting in the palm of my hand.

"So, Cole, how come I haven't seen you around school?"

He smiled and said, "I'm home-schooled. Mom went psycho; afraid that some nut-crazy freak would shoot up the school. But, if you want me around I think I can do something about it."

He was grinning in a way that was almost flirty, which made me slightly uncomfortable.

Scooting away slightly, I cleared my throat and stood up. I leaned against the banister and looked out into the dark night before me.

I could hear Cole standing and could hear the thuds of his steps as me moved to stand beside me. He leaned back until his back met the banister and crossed his arms as he looked down at me.

"Are you alright, Remy? You seem distracted."

To be honest, I was distracted. It was like my mind was stuck on repeat as Jasper kept popping up in my head.

I didn't know why.

"Can I ask you something?"

His voice was soft and I could feel him moving closer. Looking up, I saw that he was looking at me with curiosity and contemplation.

"Uh sure."

He rubbed his chin as he leaned forward, that smirk etching itself on to his face. "Well…would you like to, uh, to go a movie or something with me this weekend?"

I arched an eyebrow at his question. He seemed to notice because he straitened his once relaxed posture and said quickly, "Not like that! It's just that I want to spend more time with you is all."

He took a step closer as I turned to face him fully, running a finger over the wood of the banister.

"Okay. Is Saturday alright?"

His face broke into a smile and shook his head up and down rapidly. "Of course!"

The front door opened and the Mr. and Mrs. Doyle walked out, Grandma Elsa leaning against the doorframe.

"Sweetheart, the Doyle's are leaving now, so why don't you say goodbye to Cole and head up to bed. It's a school night and it's late."

"Okay Grandma."

Turning to Cole, I shifted my weight, unsure if I should hug him or just say goodnight.

Mrs. Cole patted my shoulder as she passed me down the stairs and Mr. Doyle honked the horn and waved.

I returned it before turning back to Cole. As I opened my mouth to say goodbye, he wrapped his arms around me once again and enveloped me into a bear hug.

I winced as he clutched me to him, nearly causing me to loose my breathe. When he let go, he smiled and said, "I'll see you on Saturday then."

He kissed Grandma Elsa's cheek before jogging down the steps and to the hummer that was waiting for him.

I watched as they disappeared on to the empty highway before placing my own kiss on Grandma Elsa's cheek, declaring I was going to bed.

She wished me goodnight from downstairs as I reached my room and closed my door. A sudden gust of chilly night air brushed across my skin, surprising me.

Turning on my light, I saw that one of my windows were open. That was funny because I thought I had closed my windows earlier before going downstairs.

Walking over, I looked outside and nearly screamed when I saw a large shadowy figure perched in the tree close to my window.

Stepping back, I held my breathe as the shadow vanished before I could blink. I poked my head out of the window to see if I could follow the path of the shadow, but saw nothing.

With shaky fingers, I pushed the window down and locked them before closing the curtains.

No, there was nothing there Remy. Nothing at all.

I sat down on my bed and started undressing, pulling my camisole over my head and scooting out of my jeans. I grabbed the tank top and shorts that hung over the footboard and leisurely put them on before climbing into bed.

I laid there in the dark, thinking of the thing I "didn't" see, wondering why I felt such dread. I couldn't make anything out or recognize if it was an animal or a person, but the one thing I could make out, was the eyes.

They were storm swirling pools of red.

A/N: Thanks so much for reading. Now that you've come to the end of the chapter, follow the little review button at the bottom and leave me some feedback.