I don't own Twilight or Remember Me. They simply mesmerized me.

A big thank you to my wonderful beta, anicacullen!

Chapter 2

After we'd bought a few more things at Hollister, I let Alice lead us to our next destination while we chatted happily. I loved the big city and I liked to observe the many different people who could be seen here. As a human, I grew up in Phoenix, AZ, but after my transformation to a vampire, my new family and I always lived in small towns, it was easier.

I followed Alice who was in charge of these shopping sprees. I didn't care about what stores we visited as long as I got to go to the city because of them.

I looked at the sky, thankful for the thin layer of clouds that covered the sun. Sure, it was a myth that we burned under sun, but we couldn't go out to direct sunlight since our rock hard, crystal-like skin reflected the rays and we sparkled blindingly, and we couldn't afford that. It was a nice day without sun, however, especially for the middle of September. But there was something in the air, something I couldn't put my finger on.

I have to admit, without my sister I would get lost in Manhattan, so I gladly went where she wanted to in the Big Apple's downtown. The only landmark I could recognize was the World Trade Center, which was about two streets down.

The streets were busy, full of people who rushed to school or work or wherever they wanted. We turned to Cortland street where Alice wanted to visit a place called Century 21 (according to her, for I never in my life had heard about it before).

I wanted to make a comment on a girl to Alice – she was dressed awfully, that much was clear even with my sense of fashion. But when I looked at her, my breath caught in my throat and I stopped dead in my tracks. Her face was blank, her eyes glassy, looking at things I couldn't imagine, no one could. I knew this face all too well, it meant she was having a vision. I knew something was going to happen, a little panicked voice said in my head. I had the feeling that Alice's vision wasn't a nice one. She came back from the vision but still looked like someone who just saw a ghost.

"Alice? What the hell did you see? Alice? Alice! Do you hear me?" I screamed at her, but she didn't need to answer.

I understood her horrified face. Everything happened so quickly. I heard a thunderous boom and a deafening crash and looked at the World Trade Center just in time to see the most terrifying thing in my life. Watching the airplane full with people crashing into the tower also full with people was like watching some kind of sick movie. Completely and utterly unrealistic.

A moment passed and everyone started screaming and crying and running for their lives or to help. I just stood there, my feet rooted to the ground. I wanted to run, as quick as possible, but my other half wanted to do something for those poor people, even though I knew they had no chance. They were all sentenced to death. My superior vampire nose was filled with strong scents, like smoke, dust and blood. There was blood everywhere, so I thanked the heavens that Jasper wasn't there with us. His control was the worst, even though I was younger than him, and the last thing we needed was a bloodthirsty vampire hunting.

A gentle tug on my forearm ripped me out of my reverie.

"Let's go" Alice said.

I knew this all upset her just like me.

"Okay" I whispered, not trusting my own voice.

We were walking down the street side by side, when suddenly a fabulous scent reached me. I just wanted to know who it was.

"I will be right back." I murmured to my confused sister, and took off the in the scent's way.

"What do you think you are going?" she asked icily.

"I want to see something, I will be back" I repeated.

"Are you sure? It's too dangerous" she warned.

"Please, Alice, we are immortals. Besides, I'm a big girl, and I can take care of myself"

"But the tower is currently burning down and collapsing and you might get caught in it."

"I won't. See you soon."

With this, I left her and started running, not caring about the human charade. In this chaos, a whole mothership of aliens wouldn't have drawn any one's attention, let alone a single vampire, so nobody cared about me and I didn't care about them. I cared about the scent only, as if I was drawn by magnet. It was my good luck that I could handle blood better than your average 3 years old vampire, maybe because I got pretty sick upon smelling and seeing it as a human. With this thought I arrived to the collapsing World Trade Center and the smell got more and more prominent. I walked where my nose told me, and soon I found the source of the sweetest scent of the world.

The source was, I found out, a young man, about 21-22 years old. He was barely alive, halfway buried under debris, struggling and whimpering with pain, then he went still. He fell unconscious and the sight of him suffering made me forget about the other victims whom I wanted to help so desperately a few moments ago. He made my non-beating heart ache. He was beautiful even on the very edge of death. He was far more tempting than those children who were proclaimed as "idols" on the covers of various magazines. And a thousand times better than many males my family wished I paid attention to throughout the years. Now their dream came true. I paid attention to the guy, the only problem was that he happened to be a human, on top of that, a dying human. Just my luck, I thought bitterly, however I was used to this kind of bad fortune. If something ever came easy to me, I would be surprised.

I fixed my eyes on him as I walked closer, studying his features. He was wearing a torn, bloodstained button-down shirt, which was maybe green plaid once upon a time, and jeans, also covered in blood, a huge cut running up on his right leg, revealing a horrible wound. He had light brown, tousled hair, stuck together with blood. I desperately wanted to see his eyes, but they were shut tight, and there was a good chance they would never reopen. His skin was fair but flushed, covered with a gazillion of cuts and he must not have shaven for at least 2 days, but this didn't make him look like a caveman, it just made him even more lovely and masculine, and I could tell he was a smoker by the faint scent. I found this fact rather odd, usually, smoking people's blood was repulsive and unappetizing to me, but not his. His wasn't affected by it at all.

As I was watching him I didn't feel merely sorry for him. I felt something stronger, as if I had known him for a lifetime or he was my close relative. I wanted him to live, more than anything. Such a handsome young man just couldn't die such a horrific way. It would be wrong. Nobody should die just because some people, some human predators thought they could do anything.

I had to admit, he had an effect on me. He made me forget the other victims (whom I was so very desperate to save two minutes ago). Now I was desperate to save him at any price. He was the only one that mattered, laying there bloody and broken and vulnerable. I should have been surprised with that, but the last thing in my mind was analyzing the issues. Then a sudden idea struck me. I could save his life…

He looked a couple of years older than me (I mean when I was changed), and he was, for goodness' sake, a man, but I felt oddly protective of him. He must live. I knew that he had to be incredibly strong, it was the miracle itself he was still alive after a terrorist attack like this. I wished I had been as strong as him, or at least strong enough to bite him.

I glanced back at him. He became paler. His heartbeat was getting slower. He had seconds at most, if we were lucky enough. I couldn't bear the thought of him dying.

I saw the image clearly with my mind's eye: him, lying there, white as a ghost, motionless, still. Dead. He would never open his eyes again, I would never find out his name, get to know him. Meanwhile, his pulse got dangerously slow. I had to decide. His heart almost stopped beating, his face was so calm as if he hadn't felt any pain. I can't let him pass away, I decided.

I slowly, ever so slowly leaned closer, inhaling his sweet scent. I stopped when our faces were only inches apart. Concentrate, I told myself. You can do it. For him. I imagined his blood was raspberry syrup, and gathered all my strength and willpower. I moved my lips to his throat. Now or never, I thought as I sank my venom-coated, razor-sharp teeth into his flesh.

I had never bitten a human before, so I underestimated the situation. I expected it was going to be hard, but I wasn't prepared for this rage. I drank and drank his blood, without thinking or feeling anything. Kind of like an animal. I forgot who I was. Where I was. Nothing could reach me. Or maybe could? A blood-curling, agonized scream pierced through the haze. It came from the boy whom I was draining. Whom I wanted to live so wildly.

I quickly ripped myself from his neck. Luckily, he didn't lost that much blood. He would heal.

Unfortunately, I heard other things as well, like hurried footsteps, shouting and heartbeats which weren't as erratic as the boy's from the venom rushing through his bloodstream. Those hearts were merely worried and strained. They belonged to the rescue team, I suppose. Of course, I wasn't a fool so I didn't wait long enough to find it out. There was no way that these people could see us like this, my suddenly red eyes, and the suffering man. I picked him up and ran.

After a mile or so, we reached a dead-end street which seemed deserted enough to be safe. I placed him carefully on the ground, sniffing the air and listening to see if we were indeed safe. We were, so I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed Alice's number. God bless her, she picked it up almost immediately.

"Bella! Is everything okay? Where are you? What happened? I…"

I cut her off.

"Listen, Alice, " I started, probably sounding like a blackmailer from a bad action movie.

Honestly, it felt like an action movie.

"We don't have the time for a small talk, you have to come here right now!" I told her. "You saw everything, right?"

"No, there's too much to see right now, so I tried my best to turn my gift out." She answered apologetically.

"Too bad, I have no idea were I am, plus I have some explanation to do when we meet."

"Stop panicking, sis, I can find you by scent. It may take time, but I will be there" She soothed me.

I did the most I could in the moment. I hoped for the best.