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Kim and Jared had a house. A house.

My hands gripped the steering wheel as we drew up behind Kim's sturdy truck. For some bizarre reason I had expected to end up at her childhood home, the one I had stayed at on many occasions. Clearly in my mind I could still picture the faded blue colour of her bedroom walls and the cracked mirror that hung beside her wardrobe. I could see the photo frame filled with a photo of Jared and her on her bedside table. The burnt smell of her mother's cooking was fresh in memory. If I tried hard enough I could even remember the sound of our laughter bouncing off of the halls. I missed it all. I had missed her.

"Quaint. Isn't it?"

Alex tossed her sunglasses in the back seat as she peered critically at the house in front of us. To her it probably seemed rundown and in need of a paint job. To me, however, it seemed like a magical little diamond in the rough. The paint had obviously faded in the sunlight and the crooked sign above the door seemed so Kim like. A porch seemed to wrap around the entire house and I could almost imagine the entire pack lounging around drinking beers. All that was missing was the white, picket fence. It was everything Kim had ever dreamed of and more.

Gnawing on my bottom lip I tried to push down the jealousy that had unexpectedly reared it's ugly head. La Push was my past, I had to remember that. Kim was my past. She was just doing a favour for an old friend. I let out a high pitched shriek as she rapped gently on my car window. Her beautiful baby lay asleep in her other arm.

"Come on," she stage whispered, "I have home made lemonade inside."

I tried desperately to contain my laughter as she turned on her heel and stumbled up the porch steps. She was so domesticated. In some ways Kim didn't seem to have changed at all but I could already tell that she was almost a different person from the teenager I had known. She had curves that had never existed before and I saw a new determination in her eyes that had been dormant when I had known her. She seemed stronger somehow, more fierce.

"I think I'm going to like Kim," Alex mused as she reached for the door handle. Panic seized me as I reached out to stop her from exiting the car. Seth or Emily or Colin or even Paul could be just around the corner. Bumping into Kim had been enough to set my heart racing, I wasn't sure if I could handle much else.

"I-I'm not sure I can do this," I hissed tightening my grip on her arm, "Can't we just go home?" Alex raised her eyebrows at me while Kim paused in the doorway to look back at us, I could see the frown painted upon her face. Expectations seemed to weigh me down from every corner. All I wanted was to shut myself in an imaginary world for a day or two so I could get my head straight. That was all.

"You know as well as I do that LA has never been home to you," Alex smiled slightly as she easily untangled herself from my grip, "You need to face up to your fears at some point if you want any chance of a happy future. Besides, I know you're dying to see your sister."

Breathing heavily I watched in astonishment as she jumped out of the car before I had time to protest. She grabbed some of the shopping bags from Kim's truck before making her way into the house as if she belonged. My palms were slippery with sweat as I glared accusingly at the invitation lying on the dashboard, Alex had pieced it back together with tape after she had told me to tear it up into a thousand tiny pieces. I smirked at the memory. If only I had never opened the damn thing.

I don't know how long I sat in the car before I finally decided to move. It might have been five minutes. It could have been twenty minutes. At some point I managed to regulate my breathing enough to remove my hands from the steering wheel. Every two seconds the curtains at the front of the house was twitch and I would see Alex's accusing stare. She was challenging me.

My footstep sounded too loud as I walked through the front door. I felt like it was becoming too late to turn back. Alex sat in the lounge glancing casually at her nails.

"Kim is just putting Kiera to bed for a nap," she spoke quietly as if telling me some great secret. I fell into the seat beside her as she pulled me into her side. At times she may have tested me and pushed me beyond my boundaries but she was always there for me when I needed her.

"She has a baby," I murmured as I glanced at all of the photos lining the walls and the pile of textbooks piled up in the corner, "And a house. And a family. I expected things to have changed. I just-"

"Hey. Hey," she took on a disapproving tone as she tucked a loose strand of my hair behind my ear, "You have an amazing apartment in a place where the sun always shines. You have me which is the equivalent of a family," I laughed, "You're even a world famous author and have a mini cooper. A thousand girls would kill to have your life."

"You're right," I sniffed as I hastily wiped at my eyes. I was being an over emotional wreck. Having Alex beside me made me feel a thousand times better in an instant.

"I'm always right," she flicked her hair dramatically over her shoulder as she stood up, "And these small town folks do have more taste than I thought." I followed her line of sight to a small painting hanging on one of the walls. It looked as if an artist had spilled tubs of paint continuously on his canvas but somehow it seemed to work. The colours seemed so vibrant and alive just like Kim's personality.

"I bought it at a street market in Paris." I turned to see Kim standing in the doorway with her arms crossed. Her feet were bare and the several bangles on her arms jingled as she walked further into the room. I was envious of how at ease she seemed in her own body. Although, I guess that was the outcome when you were showered with compliments from the love of your life. I was a little bitter.

"You went to Paris?" I couldn't stop the question spilling from my mouth. Once upon time we had dreamed about going travelling together and trying new things. Kim smiled as she glanced at the painting Alex had been looking at.

"Jared and I went a trip around Europe a couple of years ago. He had to come back for some pack business but I stayed in Paris for a couple of extra weeks." Her casual tone shocked me more than it should have. Kim had always been an independent thinker but when he was with Jared she would rather have agreed with him than cause any upset. Somehow I had a feeling that she was not afraid to argue any longer.

"He left you alone in Paris?" I gasped.

"It was either that or he would have had an empty house and a very pissed off wife," she placed her hands on her hips as she turned her attention back to me, "But the real question is where the hell have you been? I have missed you."

"I moved to live with my Dad in Los Angeles," I shrugged as if it was no big deal, "I needed a change of scenery."

"No," she shook her head as she sat down beside me, "You ran away. I must admit the sun has done wonders for your skin but you made me so angry. You were supposed to be my Maid of Honour at my wedding. You were supposed to be Keira's Godmother-"

"She was like a zombie for months," Alex cut in, "It took me almost a year to see her smile, never mind talk about her past."

"Alex," I hissed as I turned to glare at her. She simply shrugged.

"You hurt a lot of people when you left," Kim told me, "but I'm pretty sure I would have done exactly the same in your position. It doesn't matter now though, everyone will be so happy to see you."

I gulped. I wasn't so sure about that.

"Are you sure Jared will be alright with us staying here?" My leg bounced up and down with nerves as my eyes flickered towards the front door. Rain started to fall outside and Alex moved to the window to watch the raindrops with a smile.

"He has always felt terrible about the way he spoke to you that day," I winced as I remembered the screaming match that had taken place on the street, "and for the record, so am I. I should have come after you."

"I called you pathetic," I reminded her, "I expected you to punch me in the supermarket, not hug me." Kim's easy laughter shocked me yet again and my body went suddenly rigid as she sat down beside me.

"I needed to hear that," she shrugged like it was no big deal, "You were right, I was pathetic. I needed to grow up."

"Well, you've certainly grown up," I noted. My eyes glanced around the room once again. Everything from the ornaments to the rugs belonged to her. I thought of my laptop lying in the back of my car and the feeble pile of clothes I had collected during my time in Los Angeles. Our apartment was filled with Alex's junk but I tried to think of one picture or pillow that I had ever bought and drew up blank. No wonder I had too much money lying unused. I had no life.

"So have you," Kim insisted, "Although I see you still can't go anywhere without your converse and-"

"Kim. Are you home?" a voice interrupted us. My mouth went suddenly dry as the front door slammed shut. I would have known that voice anywhere. Alex was beside me in an instant as I looked at Kim in desperation.

"I-I'm sorry," Kim looked flustered as she turned to look at me, "I forgot we had arranged to have dinner tonight."

My whole body shook as a familiar face rounded the corner. She looked thinner than I remembered. As always it was like looking in a mirror. Her hair was shorter than mine though as if she had recently cut it and the casual dress she wore seemed to flatter her in a way that I would never have been able to pay off.

"Lily," she dropped the bags she had been holding as she stared at me. My head began to pound and I prayed that she was alone.

"Holy shit," Alex muttered from beside me, "You never told me that you were twins."

Thoughts?