I blinked, my mind scrambling to make sense of what was happening. Here he was, the vampire boy, in front of me. I had thought that he had just been a dream, nowhere near being a real person.

"V-Vampire." I pointed at him, taking a cautious step back. My body was shaking and somewhere in the back of my mind I heard the voice babbling something about vampires. The vampire boy had been looking at me strangely up until I had spoken, but once I had his eyes widened.

"Who are you, what are you doing here?" He asked. His body had gone completely still, almost like a statue.

"I'm no one special. So uh...I'll just be going." I turned around and started down the steps. My thoughts were in an uproar, I didn't know what was going on anymore.

Stop!

I stopped. He was there, in front of me. It was as if he had materialized from the air. I stood as still as a statue, just as he had been before. My breath was coming in ragged gasps as my instincts told me to run but something else told me to stay.

"I will say it again, who are you and what business do you have here?" He stopped and seemed to make the slightest motion, tilting his head to the side like he was trying to hear something. His voice sounded empty and soulless.

"My n-name is Jenny, I'm just trying to find a grocery store but I got lost and ended up here and then it started raining and I saw the house, well not the house but the light, and then I saw the house and I parked my car and I was going to ask for directions but then- but then I recognized you!" I had just done what I like to call verbal vomit where the only thing coming out of my mouth is words and I don't even think about what I'm saying.

He cocked an eyebrow. "You recognized me?" His voice sounded sarcastic, almost like he was making fun of me. In fact I was pretty sure he was trying to make fun of me. But the important word there is trying, he knew I knew and I knew he knew that I knew. And what I knew was that he was a vampire.

"Yes I recognized you. I dream about you, all the time. Don't look at me like that!" He was trying to act casual, his face a mask of perfect not caring. "You. Are. A. Vampire." I pronounced each word clearly, driving my point home. I wasn't afraid of him like I had been earlier, I was going to be proven right or…or…or something that I hadn't figured out yet!

I walked closer to him, staring up into his face. He wasn't as tall as Jacob but he was still taller than my 5' 8" so I had to look up to meet him eye to eye. Are faces were now only separated by inches and as I stood there, full of defiance, he suddenly jumped back with a burst of super human speed.

"You…" He was standing near the car now. I had forgotten that it was pouring rain outside and as he stood, facing away from me, he quickly became drenched in rain. His voice floated to my ears even though there was a large distance between us.

"I what?" His reaction had shocked me. After I had spoken he slowly turned around, his now rain drenched hair flopping into his golden eyes. Then, just as quickly as he had jumped away from me he was now standing not five inches from me.



"You smell like her. Why do you smell like her!?" His voice boomed across the small porch and I cringed away from him.

"Her?! I don't know what you're talking about!" I sidled backwards a bit, hoping to press myself against the wall of the house so I could have some hard surface to hold onto. He took one long stride and closed the distance that I had tried to make between us. He grabbed my shoulders and brought his face to mine.

"Bella, you smell like Bella!" When he spoke the name I felt something break free inside me.

LET GO!

He suddenly let go of my shoulders and took a step back.

"What was that?" He asked. I had covered my ears against the scream that had ripped through my head. He surveyed me with those soul piercing eyes.

"What do you mean what was that?" I lowered my hands and placed them at my sides.

"That yell, what was that?" He looked at me curiously and once again tilted his head slightly to the side.

"How could you have heard that, that was in my head…?" My mouth dropped open as I abruptly realized what was going on here. "You! You can read minds!" He smirked this lopsided smirk and looked down at me once more, almost as if I were a child.

"I'm a vampire aren't I? I can do more things than that mind of yours can comprehend." He was getting all high and mighty with me. Let me tell you, I can't stand it when people get all high and mighty with me.

"So if you can read minds," I started, placing a hand on my hip, "What am I thinking right now?" I closed my eyes tight and concentrated on one image. The first image that popped into my head was of Jacob, glorious Jacob, wonderful Jacob. He wasn't a meany like this-this vampire, he was a nice and normal teenager.

I watched as Edward furrowed his brow and looked like he was trying to concentrate. I could see he was just putting on a show though. I looked him up and down in the seconds when he was silent, taking everything in. I, of course, already knew what he looked like from my dreams. But there was something different about this vampire than the one in my dreams. It was like this one was wearing a mask, covering who he really was and how he felt. The one in my dreams was different. The vampire was haunted and hollow, as if underneath a dark cloud that never left him. I guess you could say that there was something that he couldn't let go and that something had taken a part of him with it. He was an actor on a stage with no lights and no audience to watch him struggle alone in the dark.

"Well?" I asked, both hands now firmly planted on my hips. His expression changed from one of mock concentration to real concentration, and finally to confusion.

"I…I don't know." He frowned and took a step back away from me. I smiled triumphantly and walked around him to the end of the porch.

"Since you must have a lot to think about seeing as how your 'vampire powers' aren't working, I'll just be going now." I took the steps off the porch two at a time and hurried to Jake's car. I was afraid he 

would turn around and yell for me to stop, to turn back and talk to him. I think I wanted him to, deep down. There was some sort of carnal attraction to this vampire that I didn't feel with Jake. What I felt for Jake was tender, more like we were destined for each other. I guess you could say it was Love versus Lust.

Then I thought to myself, "Why, when you are trying desperately to get away from a vampire that could very well kill you, are you thinking of matters of love?"

I hopped into the driver's seat and started the engine. I breathed a sigh of relief when there was no call to stop. I smoothly switched the car into reverse, turned around to watch behind me as I backed up, and-

"HOLY SHNIEKYS!" My foot slammed into the pedal and the car went careening backwards. Vampire boy, who had appeared in the back passenger seat and caused my loud outburst, smoothly lifted me out of the driver's seat and dropped me onto the passenger seat. All within a split second. I sat stunned in the passenger seat as the car slowly came to a stop.

"Don't think you're getting away that easily." He turned to face me from where he now sat in the driver's seat. I stared open mouthed at him and started to form a response when his face turned into a mask of disgust. "This is his car."

"If be 'his' you mean Jacob Black, then yes. This is his car." I crossed my arms and glared at him. Outside the rain hit against the car as hard as ever, masking my suddenly fast heart beat and breathing.

Slowly, deliberately, he opened the driver's side door and lowered himself out of the car. His face was an ugly mixture of disgust and pretentiousness. A soon as he was clear I lifted myself back into the driver's seat and put my hand out to close the door. The vampire snaked his hand out and grabbed my arm before I was able shut the door.

"Stop." I stopped. I couldn't help myself. "Look at me." Once again his compelling voice bid me do as he pleased.

"Tell that dog," He said, spitting the last word out like a curse, "That Edward Cullen said hello." Edward locked me into his gaze and with one swift movement met my lips to his, slammed to door shut, and was back into the house.

I touched a finger to my lips, swollen from a stolen kiss. I was in a trance, the surprise and shock had hit me hard. I backed the car up and turned around. Somehow finding my way back to the rode, I drove off through the pouring rain and found my way back to La Push and the safety of Jake's home.

When I pulled into his driveway the door to his house was flung open and out came Bree. She ran at me with speed that I never thought she was capable of, slamming her body against the car door and flinging it open. It wasn't the first time that day that I felt sorry for Jake's car, being manhandled by such uncaring people.

"Bree! What are you doing here?!" Her face was a mask of horror and sadness. Instantly I knew something was wrong, very wrong. I only became even more worried when Jake stepped out of his house and walked up with a look of absolute pity on his face.

"Jenny, I'm so sorry, but…your mom. Your mom is dead!" Bree choked out the last word with effort.



"What? My mom, dead? No. No it can't be. She's just joking right?" I looked at Jake but he slowly shook his head. "You're lying! Please tell me you're lying!" I broke down. I started sobbing and just repeating no over and over again. Jake and Bree just watched, helpless. After awhile Jake walked up to me and lifted me out of the seat. I looked at him through the tears hoping to see a comforting face, but instead his nose was crinkled, like he smelled something terrible. His eyes were also full of confusion.

Jake took me into his house and set me on the couch. I was now to a point beyond tears, sitting quietly and staring into space. I felt a huge void opening inside me. I remembered how we had last talked, I never got to say goodbye, or to tell her I love her.

I glanced up to see Jake staring at me. "What is it?" I asked.

"Where are the groceries? I thought you went to get them." He said, his voice held an underlying tone of suspicion. I was wondering why he was worried about groceries. I mean my mom had just died for goodness sake!

"I got lost." He raised an eyebrow at me. It would have been funny if not for what was now weighing on my mind. "Oh, I almost forgot, Edward Cullen says hello." I had just remembered the message given to me by vampire boy, Edward. Once I had said the name Jake let out a fierce snarl and swept from the room. Once he was out in the pouring rain he soon disappeared.

"I tried calling your cell phone when you didn't show up at the beach but it said you were out of service range. I called your house and no one answered." Bree's voice drifted to my ears and I looked up to see her staring out the window. "The cops said she probably went out looking for you. Her car was found rammed into a tree off the side of the road. They think she hit an animal and that caused her to swerve and lose control. "

"An animal?" I asked.

"Yeah, there was a large body shaped dent on the side of the car. There weren't any animal carcasses or anything like that around though. The cops are still trying to figure out what she hit."

"You said the side of the car." She looked at me, startled.

"What about it?"

"Wouldn't it have hit her instead of her hitting it? I mean, it's hard to hit something with the side of your car when you're going in a straight line." Maybe I was in denial, but something wasn't adding up.

"I don't know, the cops will sort it out. You should probably call your dad, though," Bree said. I gasped and realized she was right. My dad, who was going to be in Italy for the next three months for his job, would have to know. And there was the matter of who I was going to stay with, and the funeral arrangements had to be made. It was all my fault; I was the reason why my mother had died. If I hadn't snuck out of the house she wouldn't have gone to look for me.

"I'll call him right now." I stood up and found Jake's telephone, vaguely wondering where he had run off to.

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"Well?" Bree asked as I hung up the phone.



"Well…I don't know. All he told me was that there is plenty of money in our bank accounts to pay for the funeral and I'd just have to stay with a friend until he came home. He also said, 'It would be best if you no longer go to school. I will arrange for you to take home school courses wherever you are staying'. Whatever that means." I walked over to Bree and sat down next to her on the couch. "I'm worried, he didn't sound right."

"Like how?" She asked.

"He wasn't as shocked by the news as I thought he was going to be. And he sounded weird, like a different person almost. Maybe it's just the long distance connection though." I sighed and felt tears starting to well up again.

"Hey Jenny, do you want to stay with me? I'm sure it would be all right with my parents. I can take you home right now if you want." She put a sympathetic arm around my shoulder as I felt the tears starting to run down my cheeks.

"No." We both turned our heads and looked to see Jake standing, without a shirt and drenched, in the doorway to his house.

"No?" I asked, astonished at his reaction.

"You're going to stay here, with me. That is, if that's all right with you." It was all right with me. It was more than all right with me. I had only known him for a day but already it felt like a lifetime. I looked apologetically at Bree, it was nothing personal. I just needed a place of peace and quiet. If I was staying with her happy family it would only be a reminder of what I didn't have. Jake, on the other hand, had no mother or siblings. He understood, I know he did.

"I'd love to stay with you, Jacob."

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Well hello there everyone! It's been awhile hasn't it? I'm oh so very excited to post this new chapter for all of you lovely people to read! I apologize for the delay but some authors have lives you know. I was in a musical at a local theatre the past few months, that coupled with school added to lots of craziness! I know it's a short chapter but bear with me. I would have made it longer but what's coming up next is gonna be a long chapter so I thought instead of waiting another long while to post, I might as well post now.

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Review! I'm telling you people, all you gotta do is review and all your problems will be solved, well maybe not all of them…but still!

You're fabulous, and crazily busy

Ari

p.s. for all of you who are shouting at me "STUPID ARI! EDWARD IS SUPPOSED TO BE WITH BELLA!" I know, I know. This is an Edward/Bella pairing story, but the kiss had to be done for an important reason! And no I will not tell you what that is! You'll just have to wait and see….



I do not own Twilight or Edward Cullen/Jacob Black, though I wish I did.