You guys must think I've forgotten about you. Well the truth is, I've been insanely sick. I've had the same cold that everyone's been having, but it got really bad for me and trashed my immune system. I had to stay in the hospital for a while because of it. It was really scary and gross. I'm going to assume that you are here to read a romance story and not listen to everything that happened to me, so I'll spare you the disgusting details. It was horrible, but I'm getting better. It's back to a normal cold now and I'm taking these giant pills for it. They look like fucking horse pills. I promised myself that I'd finish this before New Year's, so after a month, here is update four!

Chapter 4: Masquerade

I never could figure out whether or not the strange events that I had experience had actually happened. As real as it all felt, it also felt very fabricated at the same time. Those 'memories' had the weird, mindless feel that dreams had though. There was no evidence to suggest that anything out of the ordinary had happened. The morning after the alleged events had occurred, I found that not one door was locked. The gutter, which I never moved, clung to the side of the house in the same way that it always had.

Over the next couple of months, many things changed. My adoptive father was called to serve in Afghanistan. With Gerard gone, Nicole simmered down a lot. Her temper had dramatically died down. She was a lot more normal. She was almost enjoyable to be around. She had a bit of a creative side that I had never seen. If she hadn't left such deep scars, I'd have probably liked her.

My relationship with the Cullens was different now. Rosalie, who used to have a simple attitude problem, now radiated an air of hatred towards me. Jasper, who used to just be quiet, now ignored me all together. Alice and Emmett were the only of them that still talked to me, and even they felt distant. When I was talking to them, it felt like I was practicing my lines for a play with the cast.

I hung out in the art room a lot. I worked hard in there, and even managed to make a few friends. Halloween passed by without much attention being paid. Thanksgiving was pleasant. Before I knew it, Christmas was over too. The days almost seemed to blend together. Everything seemed to continue in such a routine until it was time for New Year's.

Nicole's heels clicked as she emerged from her room. "I'm going out with some friends for a few hours," she told me as she checked her make-up in the hallway mirror and put her hair up into a black claw. "You got some mail. It's on the table."

"Thanks, Nicole," I said, making my way to the dining room.

"You know," she sighed, "You don't have to call me Nicole."

"Nikki then?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'll see you later."

I sifted through the envelopes silently until I found the one meant for me. Nicole eventually huffed and went out the front door. Her lime Ford Escape pulled out of the driveway as I carefully ripped the envelope open. Inside was an elegantly decorated piece of white paper, folded and sealed with scarlet wax. I gently peeled off the seal from the bottom so that I didn't destroy it. I found the emblem interesting.

You have been invited to celebrate New Year's with me and my family at our home. We'd be honored to have you be there the first time anyone outside of the family has entered our home. It will be an invite only event, so please bring this invitation with you. We will be having a formal masquerade ball. Many people will be there so I hope that you will do your best to pull together and outfit. You outfit, while creative, should not be outrageous. Ladies can wear any formal floor-length dress, gentlemen can wear any formal two-piece or three-piece suit.

We ask that you put your own creativity and effort into creating your own mask, but we do realize that due to the short notice that creating something it such a short time window may not be possible for everyone. If you cannot make a mask in time, call the number below before the twenty-ninth and one will be delivered to your home. Any later and there is no guarantee that the mask will be delivered. Anyone without a mask or appropriate clothing will be turned away even if they have an invitation with them.

Please make your masks as elaborate as possible. We hope to see some true works of art. Be prepared for a night full of dancing! My family and I are eager to see you there.

Sincerely,

Alice Cullen

Alice? I was glad that she had made contact with me outside of school, as she hadn't done that in quite a long while. It had been months. I was slightly offended that the invitation was so impersonal, but I suppose that she must have just printed up the same one. At least she invited me. I was excited to finally be able to see the inside of that house that I had spent so many afternoons staring at from the beach. The idea of attending such a theatric, yet formal event was somewhat intimidating, but I started up my car anyways. It was the twenty-seventh and I had no time to waste if I wanted to finish a mask worthy of a masquerade before the party.

It took me about twenty minutes to get to Sandusky. The traffic was fairly reasonable since Cedar Point season was over. I picked up almost anything in the craft store I thought that I might use. I had many paints, trimmings, and beads, most of which I would never use.I found a table and spread my items on one side. The other side was taken up by a woman in her mid-twenties. I began to sift through the materials, deciding what exactly I was going to make.

As I set aside some lace and silver paint to keep, the woman across from me spoke up.

"It looks like you're planning quite the project," she said. Her voice was very smooth. "Are you making a mask?"

I nodded. "I'm going to a masquerade for New Year's."

"That sounds lovely. Are you excited?" she asked.

"I am, but..." I shrugged, slightly put off by her outgoing small talk. "I probably shouldn't bother you with my worries."

"No, it's okay," he said, pulling her burgundy lips into a smile. "After all, if something's bothering you, why not talk it out with someone that you'll never see again?"

"I suppose that makes sense," I replied, sorting assorted gold decorations into a pile to put back. "I'm really nervous about it."

"Why would you be nervous?"

"I'm not really sure," I shrugged, "It's just that I thought the people who invited me didn't like me."

She frowned. "Why would you think that?" She asked, cutting a large stripe of smooth-looking black fabric.

"It's just that they used to talk to me everyday, but it seems like they've been avoiding me these past few months."

"Maybe there's a family problem that they don't feel comfortable talking about?"

"Maybe. They are a pretty strange bunch after all." I chose to put back the red beads and maybe spend some extra money on nicer ones somewhere else. This fucking mask was probably going to end up costing me more than the suit.

"How are they strange?" She asked, putting a couple rolls of sky blue ribbon into a basket. She began measuring out matching silky fabric.

"Well I hate to gossip," sighed, tossing the silver glitter into the return pile. "I don't really understand it all myself."

"That's okay. You're not being mean or anything, so it's fine."

Normally I would probably not talk about people behind their back, but I needed a second opinion. "Well for one, they've never eaten in front of me."

"That's certainly notable." she commented, making small ticks in the fabric.

"And I spent an entire day. When I got food, they would just sit there. They always leave during lunch. Always."

"Maybe they have special dietary restrictions that run in the family?"

"But they aren't related, which is strange considering how similar they all are," I chose to use the mask with the covered nose over the open-nosed one. "And they're all cold."

I heard a light clink as something hit the ground. I instinctually bent down to pick it up. My fingers found an ornate silver butterfly.

"I'm so clumsy," she giggled, accepting the piece. "Thank you."

"Anytime," I smiled. "So what do you think of these people? Personally, it's been driving me insane."

"I think that you should go to this party," she replied, "I bet they'd be more than willing to clear things up if you're honest with them. I'm sure that you guys could talk it out."

"True. They seem nice enough," I laughed, "Except for the blonde one."

"Is she mean?"

"Not so much mean as very rude and arrogant," I smirked, "But it's whatever. Her boyfriend likes me enough that I bet it annoys the hell out of her."

The woman laughed. "Who's her boyfriend?"

"Now that's a long story that I won't even begin to tell," I replied with a chuckle. I began to fill up the two baskets I had, one with stuff to buy and the other with stuff the put back on the shelves.

"Well I hope you have fun," she said, slicing of a large piece of the fabric, "Personally, I have a dress to make. I hope everything works out for you."

"Thank you," I smiled back at her. "You were right about talking, by the way. I feel much better."

"Glad I could help," she said with a warm smile before heading up front to check out.

By the time I had everything I didn't want put back and was ready to check-out, she was gone.

I ended up buying the crimson beads from a glass jewelry store. After having to search many stores for the beads, I had the masks design all planned out. It would be a black mask with a hint of black glitter, but not enough to draw much attention. I would paint the lace silver and arrange it symmetrically on the mask. I would sew the beads so that they looked like they were part of the lace. I was very excited about my elaborate plans and began working the moment I got home.

I went straight to my room, working on my desk. At some point Nicole got home, but she said nothing to me and instead sat on the couch watching her various reality television shows. After a few hours, my mask was completed.

Over the next couple of days, I chose a suit and some new dress shoes. All too soon, I found myself in front of the Cullen home. I stood outside the front door like an idiot, too nervous to ring the doorbell. Another guest that arrived after me had to do it.

"Please, come in," greeted a blonde gentleman in his mid-twenties. "Thank you for coming."

I stuck close to the other guest on the way in, but broke free from him as soon as I was far enough through the door to be out of the way. The house was gorgeous! Everything was decorated accordingly. Everything. A bouncy girl, obviously Alice, flitted down the stairs in a raspberry dress and a matching latticed mask. She greeted me quickly before joining a gentleman with a white and gold mask in the large ballroom that they had prepared. I assumed the man to be Jasper, but I could be wrong.

"Glad you could make it," came a familiar voice.

I turned around to face the owner of the voice. It was unmistakably Emmett. The small mask was almost comical with his large build.

"Thanks for inviting me," I said shaking his hand. It was still just as cold as I remembered.

"He didn't," said the beautiful blonde woman in red next to him, "Alice was the one who sent the invitation."

Blatantly ignoring her, I continued. "This home is a lot different then I ever imagined it would be. From the outside it looks so different."

"Thank you. Esme is especially fond of this home."

"Esme?" I asked.

"She's out mother."

"I've never met her," I stated, "Will she be here tonight?"

"She will be later."

"I can't wait to meet her."

"She'll like you. Have a great time, Matthew!"

Thanks, Emmett."

I watched them walk into the ballroom and chose to follow them. The room was stunning. The modern walls had been decorated to give the room a more classical atmosphere. The only wall left untouched was the large wall of glass that faced the beach. I had no idea that anything in this dreary little town could be so elegant and beautiful. I found a small empty table to sit at.

Everyone seemed to be so great at dancing. I couldn't recognize anyone, but I suppose that was the point of a masquerade. It was captivating. Everyone seemed so happy. I was particularly captivated by two women, one in jade and one in burgundy, dancing gracefully together. They circled the floor, honey and chestnut hair bouncing in formal curls.

"They aren't going to make it."

I looked up at the voice, smooth and refined like quality champagne, yet devilishly husky. Hiding behind his simple white mask adorned with expertly manipulated golden wire were dazzling citrine eyes.

"Do you mind if I sit with you?" he asked, resting his hand on the back of the chair across from me.

"Sure."

He pulled out the chair and sat down, propping an elbow on the table as his rested in the nook between his jaw and his neck.

"So what did you mean?" I asked curiously.

"About what?"

"You said that they wouldn't make it."

"Oh, them?" he chuckled, "Their minds aren't pure enough to last together."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Their minds are tainted."

"Tainted?" I asked, humoring him. "Tainted by what?"

"Vanity."

"There's nothing wrong with being just a little bit vain," I added.

"True, but these women are comparing themselves to each other the entire time," he sighed, "This whole dance, they've been jealous of how much prettier they think the other is."

"That's ridiculous," I said, "They're both beautiful." And they were. They both looked like they were pulled straight from a fashion magazine and given masks.

"But they don't know that. They tried so hard to be beautiful tonight in vain attempts to be prettier than each other."

I raised an eyebrow. "How do you know?"

"I can read their minds," he replied, pulling his lips into a crooked smile.

"Okay," I laughed, "What about me? Is my mind tainted?" He was entertaining, so I what harm could there be in playing along?

"Not tainted," he said, "Just troubled."

"Troubled?" I could feel myself getting more interested. "How so?"

"You're mental tired. Life's worn you out."

"Why would I be worn out?" I asked. "In case you can't tell, Vermilion isn't exactly an overwhelming place."

"But you haven't lived in this quiet town long enough for that matter," he said, deepening his gaze.

"What?" The air felt somewhat thicker.

"You're tired from moving around so much," he said with solid conviction.

"How do you-?" I began, but was cut off.

"That's why your exhausted." He dropped his hands down so that his arms laid crossed on the table.

He was seriously disturbing me now. "You seriously need to explain how you-"

"Moving around between so many family took it's toll on you."

I pursed my lips to prevent myself from saying anything. How could he know so much about me? The only people that I had let in on my life since coming here were Alice and Emmett, and I didn't remember telling them my story. Regardless, this man was obviously not Emmett. After a long, uncomfortable silence, I gave up my search for an appropriate response and stood up.

I had been looking forward to tonight because I was excited to see Alice and Emmett again, but now I just wanted to go home. Home? Ha! Like I could call it that. I wordlessly made my way to the door, doing my best to keep a good pokerface so that I didn't disrupt the party. The door swung open easily, allowing me to run out into the night where the cold air was waiting for me. I dug for my car keys in my pocket, finding nothing.

"You forgot these."

I turned around to see the man from the party swinging my keys on his finger by the ring. I went to grab them, but he jerked his hand away.

"Give them back," I growled angrily.

"Only if you hear me out."

"What's there to say?" I snapped back. "You know way too much about me. What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Just let me explain," he pleaded.

"I'd really love to see you try," I replied with an angry chuckle.

"When Alice was inviting you, I thought your name looked familiar. I did some research and found details on your families."

"Why would you-"

"I'm sorry," he apologized, "I should have been more considerate."

I sighed. "Okay, I heard you out. Now can I have my keys back?"

"Actually-"

"No. Not 'actually' anything," I stamped. "Give them to me now."

"Won't you stay?"

"Why would I want to stay?" I demanded.

"Because I know Emmett will understand, but Alice will be upset when she realizes your gone."

How the hell did he know about my relationship with Alice and Emmett?

"Again with knowing way too much about me!" I reached for my keys again, only to find myself grasping into emptiness. His arm wrapped around my waist to prevent me from falling, but I pushed him away. "What the fuck is your deal?"

"Alice and Emmett are my siblings," he revealed.

What? I faintly remembered Emmett saying something about hanging out with his brothers, indicating more than Jasper, but I had always assumed it was a slip.

"I'm seriously sorry for freaking you out," he all but groveled. "Will you please come back inside?"

I sighed, realizing that he wasn't giving me me my keys. "I suppose it's warmer inside anyways."

"Thanks," he said with a cheesy grin.

As soon as he got me through the front door, he gave me my keys and broke away back into the ballroom. I thought about turning around and leaving now that I had my keys back, but he was right about Alice. She would be disappointed if I left.

"C'mon, Matthew!" demanded a female voice as a gloved hand grabbed mine, spinning me around to face Alice. "You can't come to party and not dance." Without waiting for a response, she dragged me into the ballroom.

"Sorry," I apologized, barely avoiding stepping on her shoe again. "I'm not much of a dancer."

"Don't worry," she giggled, "You'll learn faster than you might think."

And she was right. I came quickly after I made my fair share of mistakes.

"Alice?" I asked, continuing when she raised her eyebrow as a signal for me to continue, "Do you have a brother?"

"Of course!" She giggled. "I have multiple brothers. You met Jasper a while ago and you talk to Emmett almost every day at school. Where did that come from?"

"I know Jasper and Emmett," I rolled my eyes playfully. "I was asking if you had any other brothers."

She sighed and pulled her mouth into a smirk. "You met Edward, didn't you?"

"So his name's Edward?"

"I can tell by your face what you're thinking," she said with a smile.

"You can?"

She nodded. "He is pretty perceptive."

"Alice..." I sighed. "He knew I was adopted."

"Oh," she frowned. "I never told you."

"Told me what?"

"We were Googling people and stumbled across you."

"I'm Googlable?" I laughed. "I had no idea. Well that certainly clears it up a lot. And here I thought he was creeping on me."

She giggled before continuing. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I didn't want to embarrass you. I didn't even consider that Edward might say anything."

"I'm the one who should be sorry," I sighed.

"Why's that?" she asked, somewhat concerned.

"I was kind of rude to him."

She shrugged. "Just be sure to talk to him later and he'll be fine."

"To be honest, I almost left the party he was freaking me out so much."

"Matthew!" she play-slapped me. "You can't leave the party! After all, where else would I be able to get away with this in front of so many people?"

"Get away with wh-?" I began, but was interrupted by her violently spinning me outward before spinning me back in and ducking me. Damn, she was strong!

"Aren't you glad you stayed?"

"There's no rose in your mouth, Alice," I scolded. "How unprofessional!"

"Sorry if I'm not the man you bargained for," she huffed jokingly.

"Well you're certainly strong like one," I laughed. "You popped every bone in my arm."

She flexed her bicep, kissing the muscle that bulged from her skin. "Runs in the family."

I laughed, stopping when I noticed a peculiar man watching from the side. "I think you're getting checked out," I said, nodding towards him.

"Oh, that's just Jasper," she said, looking over her shoulder. "He's probably being polite and letting you dance with me, but he's a true romantic at heart. Do you think you could find another dance partner for a bit?"

"Dancing with you brother? How scandalous!" I joked.

Taking the hint, she laughed and began a quick pace towards him, turning back only to mouth a 'thank you'.

I danced with many other people that night. At one point, we started doing this thing where we'd trade off partners after so long. This led to many strange pairs and made for a rather comical evening. At one point I ended up dancing with Emmett. He was hilarious. When it came time to switch again, we were next to two women dancing together. One held her hand out to Emmett, only to earn a wink as he swept the other giggling woman away.

Without much thought, I took the rejected woman's hand. I heard a growl as a snake my arm around the woman's waist and began dancing.

"You okay there?"

You see. The thing about masquerades is that just because you can't tell who is on the other side of a mask doesn't necessarily mean that they don't recognize you.

"I think I'd rather just sit this one out." Rosalie.

"Oh, no you don't!" chimed Alice cheerfully as she twirled past us, dancing with an elderly gentleman.

Rosalie sighed. "Dammit."

"You know what?" I sighed. "I think I'd rather sit this one out."

"What?" demanded Rosalie. "Why?"

"Think about it." I rolled my eyes at her. "You've never been anything but mean and rude towards me. Why would I want to dance with you?"

Her rose pink, perfect fucking little mouth gaped open.

"Why would anyone want to be near someone like you?"

And with that, I turned around and left her one the floor alone.

I was almost back to my seat when an arm wrapped around the small of my back.

"Oh, no you don't," came a familiar voice.

I was spun around to face a familiar white mask with citrine eyes gazing out from underneath it. "Edward?"

"Who told you my name?" he asked with a smile.

"Alice," I replied.

He nodded, wordlessly sweeping me back out to the ballroom floor. I was confident that I was a decent dancer, but Edward was obviously better.

"I wanted to apologize for be rude earlier."

He smiled. "Don't worry about it. When a stranger come up and tells you a bunch of personal detail about you, how else would you react?" He laughed. "Personally, I'd have called the police."

I laughed, choosing not to say anything and just be happy that there were no apparent hard feelings. The way he danced was almost disorientating. I had trouble focusing on anything. I didn't back too it until he started talking again. "What did you do to Rosalie?"

"Hm?"

"I saw you talking to her. Whatever you said really upset her."

Fucking great. I couldn't go one minute at this party without having someone upset. "I should go talk to her."

He swept me in another circle. "She'll be fine," he promised. "I only get a little bit longer to dance with you. This songs almost over."

"As much as I'd love that, I'd rather talk to her before she talks to Emmett. He's not exactly someone I want to hate me."

"I'll let you go under one condition."

I rolled my eyes with a smirk. "What's that?"

"You owe me a dance."

My cheeks flushed with that, but my speech stayed fluid. "I promise."

"She's probably in her room. It's up the stairs and to the left, second door on the right."

"In her room? Didn't know she'd be that upset..." I sighed, turning to make my way to her room. "I'll be back."

As I left the ballroom, the music became somewhat muffled. I felt unsure of myself going up and empty staircase into a more private section of the home, but I didn't want any of the Cullens to decide they didn't like me because of Rosalie. Once I was to the door, I knocked gently.

"What do you want?" came Rosalie's voice from the other side of the door.

"I wanted to talk."

"Relax. I won't tell Emmett anything so you don't have to worry. Just go away."

How the fuck? "Rosalie, please."

The door clicked and swung in as she quickly turned around around sat down on the edge of her bed. "Why couldn't you just go away?"

"I wanted to apologize for upsetting you, but..." I sighed. "I don't know. I just don't understand."

"Don't understand what?"

"You!" I exclaimed, doing my best not to yell. "Since day one you've been nothing but mean to me. Why?"

"Do you think I want to be the bitch?" she chuckled, "Maybe one day I'll be able to tell you."

"There's no reason that you have to be mean, Rosalie," I tried to reason, "I bet we could get along if we tried."

"We'd be an awesome team," she agreed, "But today isn't the day. One day I may be able to stop being like this, but until then, I don't want you anywhere near me."

"What has to change?" I asked.

"That's not my place."

"What?"

She sighed. "Just get out of my room."

After rolling my options around in my head for a bit, I eventually gave up. There really wasn't much I could do. "Under one condition."

She rolled her eyes at me. "What?"

"You have to come back down."

After a pause, she nodded and followed me back down to the party. She split off as soon as we reached the bottom of the stairs. I made my way back into the ballroom too find that the dancing had stopped. Everyone was seated. I quickly made my way back to my chair, which Edward had saved for me.

"What's going on?" I asked quietly.

"It 11:58," he told me. "It's time for the countdown."

As 11:59 hit, the lights dimmed into darkness and a projector dropped down form the ceiling, displaying a live feed from New York.

"You know," Edward said, grabbing my attention, "I never got to see this live where I lived. It was always delayed a couple of hours."

"Where did you live?"

"We moved here from Los Angeles."

I laughed at that one. "You seriously moved here from LA? It so dreary here though! I'd trade this place for the California sunshine any day."

"You'd think," he chuckled. "And another thing."

I cocked my head slightly, signaling him to continue.

"You still owe me a dance."

(Since I've been gone for so long, this closing 'statement' is going to be a fucking letter. Don't take off your sexy little reading glasses quite yet!)

Happy New Year everybody! My updates are usually only two, maybe three, thousand words. I chose to go for four thousand words this time since it's been so long since I've updated. I somehow ended up typing over five thousand words! I always feel like I'm rushing when I type dialog, but I never know what to do to remedy that. Nobody from this site got me anything for Christmas, so what I want as a delayed gift is a beta to help me improve my writing. As a beta, I would let you in on any ideas I have and even share the occasionally drawing with you. Please let me know if you are interested.

I know I'm trying not to use page break lines, but I felt it necessary for Alice's letter. I couldn't find any other way to separate it from the surrounding text without making a bunch of spaces. I may begin to use the page break tool again, but I will not use it as much as I have in the past. I will only use it when transitioning any other way would be damaging.

You might be wondering about my change in username. It has come to my attention that JudasForever may not be the most memorable username, so I changed it to TheBadRomantic. It stays true to my Gaga nature, but is a lot more memorable in my opinion.

Also, I want to thank metzlogan. He/she (there is no bio on their profile so I have no clue which it is) left the sweetest review that I have ever read. They left it on my other story, Equilibrium, in case you want to read it. The review basically said that they were search for specifically my story for hours and that their account only exists because of me. I love all reviews, but that one especially encouraged me. This chapter is definitely dedicated to you, metzlogan. If you're reading, thank you for leaving me such a heartwarming review!

I have many things planned for the new year, including a new secret story idea for when I complete the two that I have yet to finish. You may have noticed that I took down Your Biggest Fan. The reasoning is that not many people seemed to enjoy that one as much and I had no idea what to do with it. It was a fun idea, but a very half-baked story at that. WickedSlashAngel once told me that any good artist is happy to scrap any of their work if it means working towards improvement. I'm pretty sure that works with writing too. I hope your new year is a good one!

I am also considering writing a oneshot. It doesn't have to be romantic. I prefer to do Twilight, but a crossover is also possibly in the cards. I want to hear what you guys want! Consider it a late Christmas present to you. When you leave your review, please be sure to attach what kind of oneshot you want me to write.

Damn. This author's note is a little over a tenth as long as the update. It took up an entire page in NeoOffice. I must really like you guys! To extinguish the very real threat that my author's note might swallow my story, I need to stop typing now. Love you!

Finally Shutting Up,

~TheBadRomantic