A/N: Chapter 8!

Thank you to all my readers! I know it takes me a while to write these new chapters, but I thank you for sticking by. Also, idealskeptic? Even when I ramble on about all my ideas for this story, you still say you'll help.

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, need I say more?


Chapter Eight: Old Friends

Jasper.

I tried not to think about him; I tried to occupy my mind with other things. But there just wasn't anything. There was nothing at all. Right now, my life was very predictable. I followed the same routine – get up, go to work, come home again, sleep. Throw in a couple of meals, and you'd have a full day.

But when he'd come back, he'd put a block in my routine, changed it, and for two weeks, he became a part of my day, in some way or another. Now that he'd gone, he'd taken that part with him, and the gaping hole he'd left was hard to fill again.

I knew it wasn't always going to be like this. He'd been gone for just over a week, and while I knew I was going to miss him, I knew the infatuation wouldn't last. I'd move on, pack him away into a box in my mind and leave him there.

That was my rational side kicking in, telling me that he wasn't going to come back. It was just a way of protecting myself from it all. He'd been here two weeks, which was nothing compared to what he was going home to. But right now, none of that was relevant. I was still battling through the first stages, where it felt like he'd been here all my life, and I was wondering how I was going to carry on.

Pathetic? Probably; but right now, I didn't particularly care. I was cutting off from everyone again, just as I had the first time they'd left. I distanced myself from the few people I had left so that I could wallow on my own. That was why I happened to be sitting in the park, coat wrapped up around me, as I watched people walk by.

I didn't want to think about what I looked like to passers by. Probably like someone suffering with something far worse than it really was. What was I calling this, anyway? A broken heart?

I snorted, catching the attention of a female walking her dog. I looked away from her and she kept walking. I was being melodramatic; this wasn't what a broken heart felt like. For it to be that, it had to entail so much more than the situation provided.

I just missed him, that's all. I missed the guy that made it feel important to know the secret he and his family kept. I missed the guy that told me I wasn't just the girl that no one paid attention to. With him, I felt somewhat important, and for a moment there, he'd needed me.

Shaking my head, I knew I needed to do something before I lost myself in self wallowing. I might not have had anyone – human, at least – to go home to, but at least there were more things to occupy my mind with than out here.

On the way back, I nipped into the fast food joint and bought something for dinner. Though I was tempted to fall back into that particular routine, I skipped going to the rental shop. I couldn't face seeing them right now. As nice as they were, seeing them so happy with each other was a little too much sometimes.

Aurora was pleased to see me when I walked in and shut the door behind me. She followed me as I ventured into the kitchen to look for a plate. I served up my food and went back into the main room.

As I went to flick the TV on, I noticed I had a new message on the answering machine. Feeling curious, I got up and pressed play.

"Hi, Angela…this is Angela Weber, right? I hope this is still your number…" My eyebrows rose in surprise as the voice of my old friend, Jessica Stanley, rang out. "I'm just calling to say that Mike and I are in town for two days. Urbana is where you live, right? Anyway, I was just wondering if we could meet each other and catch up. It's been a long time since we saw you, so…just call me back if you're going to be free tomorrow afternoon. See you!"

For a minute after she finished, I merely stood there staring at the machine. I replayed the message, not quite believing my ears. Her and Mike were in town? I was guessing that meant they were still a together. They had been such an on and off couple back in high school, that it honestly surprised me they hadn't gone their separate ways.

The last I'd heard, Mike had come into some money after his grandfather had passed, and he'd decided to travel. Obviously he'd taken Jessica with him. It was brave of him to do such a thing, but then again, Mike had always been one to try and please her as best he could. Taking her around Europe most surely ranked quite high on her list.

Shaking my head, I went back to my food, deciding to leave the TV off. Once I finished, I knew I'd have to call her and set an arrangement for the following day. Though I'd barely heard from them, I still classed them as my friends, albeit distant ones.

When I finally called her back, she was her typical cheery self, and at first, I found it a bit of a struggle to muster the enthusiasm to talk to her. But once the initial feeling died down, I found myself enjoying hearing the familiar voice.

By the time I'd cut the call, we'd decided to meet near this restaurant just up town from here, and go for lunch. Surprisingly, I was quite looking forward to it, and when I crawled into bed that night, I wondered whether any other people from my past were going to crop up.


As I was getting ready, I decided to make a real effort to look nice. Though it was just the two of them, I still wanted to turn up and show them that I was looking after myself, and not being all tired and drawn.

I was kind of nervous as I waited for them to arrive. I was certain conversation wouldn't dry up with Jessica here, but I still worried that I wouldn't have anything to say to her.

When they finally approached, I relaxed a little, feeling glad that I hadn't declined their offer. Mike held the biggest difference, appearance wise. He was taller, and had a bigger build, as if he'd been working out a lot more. His hair was darker, too, but his face was exactly the same as I remembered.

Both were quite tanned, so I knew they have been travelling someplace warm not too long ago. Jessica looked much the same, the only real difference was her hair – it was shorter than the last time I saw her.

I was certain I looked exactly the same.

"Angela!" Jessica exclaimed excitedly, as she came forward and hugged me tightly. "It's so good to see you again!"

"I know, it's been so long," I replied as I turned to embrace Mike. Once our initial greeting was out the way, we went inside and found a table. At first, things were quiet as we ordered our food and drink. But once the menus had been taken away, Jessica filled the silence.

She prattled on, as I always remembered her to, and told me about where they'd been. France, Germany, Italy – all the places I'd only seen on the map. She even talked about the attractions they seen, with Mike pitching into the conversation every now and again.

She even flashed her engagement ring. I shouldn't have been surprise to see that he'd proposed. Though a part of me thought we were all a little too young to get engaged, I didn't find it hard to become accustomed to the idea.

He'd proposed in Paris, the most romantic capital in the world.

Though a part of me wanted to hear all about their travels, I only half listened, hoping she would keep talking and not ask me to add something. But the dreaded question came a moment after she realised I'd barely said a word since we sat down.

"So, what about you, then?" she asked. "What have you been getting up to since we last saw each other?"

What about me? I wanted to ask. What was there to say? The most exciting thing that happened to me was moving to Illinois. They both knew about my parents, so it wasn't as if I could have broken the news to them.

There was just Jasper. Jasper Hale, the vampire, the one who was here, with me, only a week ago. I could have told them. "Jasper?" they'd have said, and maybe taken a moment to cotton on, and then they'd give me that look. The one that said why would he be here? With you? Boring Angela, don't kid yourself.

So I shrugged, instead. "Nothing much, really. Went to college for a year, now I'm kinda taking a break from that. Earning some money, you know."

Jessica nodded and gave me a version of the look I was waiting for. Is that all? I could see it in her eyes, as plain as day. She didn't mean it in a spiteful way; she might have had the tendency to be nasty in high school – all Lauren's doing, of course, but she wasn't like that with me. She just couldn't hide her opinions; if she had an aversion to something, it read clearly on her face.

I could tell she didn't know what to say.

"I heard Ben is studying to become a lawyer," Mike added, almost as if he thought I'd want to hear what my ex was doing. Building a life for himself, like most people did. Unlike me, just sitting, waiting for something that wasn't coming.

"I always imagined Bella doing something like that," Jessica mused absently.

My eyes flashed towards her at the mention of Bella Swan. "Bella?"

"Yeah, you know, Bella Swan." She shared a glance with Mike. "She's probably dead now…poor thing."

"She's not dead," I blurted out, knowing it was a mistake almost straight away. Jessica stared at me with a serious expression for a moment, as if she was seeing that I knew something she didn't. Then she seemed to shake the thought from her mind.

"You don't know that. Unless you've seen her recently?"

I shook my head because it wasn't technically a lie. I hadn't seen her; I was just going by what Jasper had told me. But I couldn't tell them that.

"The Cullens weren't murderers, Jess," Mike murmured, not knowing how close he really was to the truth. They weren't murderers in the sense he was referring to, but they were vampires, and though they seemed different to what most people had in mind, they still drank blood.

Did that make them murderers?

It was my turn to shake a thought from my mind.

Jessica let out a quick laugh and looked away, as if she didn't quite believe what he'd said. "You heard what Charlie said. Bella told him she'd be back later, Edward takes her to the house, and Charlie never hears or sees from her again. Doesn't take a genius to work out that something happened to make them all disappear off the face of the earth in one evening."

"Just give it a rest." Mike sighed. "If the detectives couldn't work out where the hell she went, I doubt you will."

Jessica huffed, but didn't say anything more.

"It's been three years, I'm sure wherever she is, she's happy." I said it more to comfort myself than for Jessica's sake.

I didn't for a minute think that I'd made the wrong choice by not telling anyone and exposing the Cullens' age old secret. That wasn't something I ever wanted to do. But sometimes, I found myself wishing I hadn't been there that day.

Like now, for instance.

Thankfully, the food arrived and distracted them both from the topic of Bella and the Cullens. Even though I did feel slightly exhilarated to talk about it with someone who knew them, I didn't feel up to really getting into it. It didn't feel right now that Jasper had been back.

If the two of them had arrived a few months ago, I wouldn't have a problem with it…as much.

Somehow, the topic of conversation got back onto their engagement and what they were planning on doing next. For the rest of the meal, they told me that they were going back to Forks, and then planning to study at Seattle University for a few years.

They were going to wait to get married, not wanting to be the kind of people to get married at a young age and be branded with the statistics of divorce in young married couples.

It was sensible; more sensible than I expected them to be. But I didn't say that to them, of course.

Apparently I was going to be invited. I smiled at that, as it reminded me of being younger, and telling someone they were going to be coming to your birthday party.

I was sure I would make the trip back to Forks when the time came. I hadn't been there for so long, but I was sure it would be good to see my hometown once again.

Luckily, that was still years away from now. I had a lot of time to get used to the idea.

Before we called for the bill, Mike got up and went to the toilet. Jessica watched him walk away before turning back to me with a glint in her eyes. I knew that look well.

"So, are there any guys you haven't told me about?"

I laughed. Typical Jessica. As I thought about my response, I didn't want to fall into the cliché of saying not right now, which would make the one asking know there really wasn't any men in my life at all.

Instead, I said, "No boyfriends, if that's what you were referring to."

She seemed disappointed by that, which didn't surprise me. Jessica was always craving to hear something juicy.

"I did go on a date the other week, though," I added as an afterthought, not knowing why I was mentioning Danny. That had been a total disaster, and wasn't worth talking about.

Jessica perked up. "Really? How'd that go?" I winced dramatically, making her laugh. "That bad, huh? Was he a complete tool?"

"You could say that," I muttered, remembering the bet he'd made with his friends. I ignored what happened after the meal – the kiss and Jasper. "I don't think I'll be seeing him again anytime soon."

I bit back a smile at the thought. I wouldn't see him again? What a shame. I guess Jasper's threat to stay away from me would work on just about anyone. At the thought of Jasper, again, I sunk back into my chair a little.

Thankfully, Mike returned soon after, and neither of them noticed. After some deliberation, we split the bill, and made our way outside. I had been expecting them to say they had to go back to their hotel to get ready for their flight. But they surprised me by saying they still had a couple more hours before they had to leave.

I decided to take them back to my apartment. It was the only thing I could show them that proved I'd actually moved forward with my life. They seemed impressed with the place, and while Jessica took to playing with Aurora, Mike checked out my DVD collection.

"You like vampire movies, huh?" he asked as he bent down and studied each title. I blushed faintly, suddenly feeling as if an obsession with vampire movies wasn't something to boast about.

"Yeah…" I paused, rubbing at the back of my neck slightly. "I like seeing the variations different directors make with each movie."

Mike nodded as if he understood. "Makes you wonder what real vampires are like though, doesn't it."

I choked slightly, but masked it with a laugh. I didn't respond to that, I couldn't. If I did, I'd end up picturing Jasper, and describing his attributes. Pale white, icy stare, gorgeous…

Besides, he was only joking.

Jessica jumped in, then, and told me about a village in France that had a lot of vampire myths and legends. Apparently there had been a vampire, centuries ago, who murdered a member of the royal family. Whether it was actually true, nobody would know, but once again, I couldn't help but think of the Cullens.

Were there more than just their family?

What was I saying? There must have been. I shivered slightly at that reflection, and wondered if the vampires in Jessica's story had been the same, what…breed? I knew the Cullens were older than they looked, but just how long could they live for?

It was a hard notion to digest, so I pushed it to the back of my mind. I couldn't dwell on it now, not while Jessica and Mike were still here. When they'd gone, I'd have the chance to think about it as much as I wanted.

After a while, Mike moved away from the DVDs, and we all settled on the couch, Aurora still sitting on Jessica's lap.

"Do you miss Forks?" Mike asked absent-mindedly. "I mean, while we were away, I kinda missed the place, but I always knew I was coming back at some point, so it wasn't so bad."

While they waited for me to answer, I really thought about my response. Did I miss Forks? Maybe, but I missed the memories, the past I'd had there with my parents and friends, more.

Unlike the two of them, I didn't really have anything left there anymore. Any relatives I was in contact with lived in different states, and any friends I had…well, Jessica and Mike were the only two left from Forks High that I had any desire to talk to. Maybe Eric and Tyler…definitely not Lauren, but even then, I hadn't talked to either of those since leaving Forks.

"Sometimes," I finally answered, choosing my words carefully. "But I don't dream about moving back, or anything. I haven't really got anything left there anymore, you know?"

In the end, that was all it boiled down to. Now that my parents had passed, nothing was pulling me back, apart from where they were buried, and even that wasn't a place I wanted to see anytime soon.

Jessica nodded and looked down, obviously thinking about my parents, too. But Mike didn't back away.

"You have us," he said softly, trying to lighten the sudden tension. I smiled gently, feeling glad that I'd seen them. Right now, it was exactly what I needed, and I wouldn't have known that until I'd actually seen them.

For the last half hour before they had to leave, we reminisced about our childhood and all the silly little memories we'd shared. It was a bittersweet moment. Fun because we got to talk about the things I was sure we'd all but forgotten, but hard, as well, to think that those days were gone.

When it came time for them to leave, I didn't want them to go.

"We'll talk again on the phone, okay?" Jessica said as she embraced me. "You can keep me updated on all that goes on here."

Then, in my ear, she whispered, "And any dates you go on, you can tell me about those, too."

I laughed and agreed, watching as they gave me one last wave before walking away. I watched them go out of sight, and then made my way back up to my now silent apartment.

"You liked those guests, didn't you?" I said to Aurora as she padded over and circled my legs. She let out a purr and moved off to jump on the couch. I left her to it, and fetched a drink before heading to my room.

I snagged my book from the side and curled up in bed. I was due to be in work all day tomorrow, so I wanted to relax and enjoy the rest of the evening. I had thought about calling Carla. We hadn't properly talked since last week, and I felt bad for keeping her in the dark.

But, in the end, I decided to leave it until tomorrow, when I'd see her at work. We would have plenty of time to catch up then.

It was weird how, meeting with Jessica and Mike, had taken my mind off things, or more precisely, taken my mind off Jasper. Like I'd thought earlier, it really was what I needed.

I managed to read a couple more pages before I heard a knock at the door. My first instinct was that Jessica and Mike were back because they'd forgotten something. But when I checked my watch, I saw that it was too late for them to be here without missing their connecting flight to Seattle.

So, as I pulled myself from the bed, I assumed it was Carla coming to visit. She sometimes dropped by when Robbie was working night shifts, so it wasn't all that hard to believe.

When I went to the door, Aurora came pelting passed me, disappearing into my room. I chuckled at her craziness, and pulled the latch on the door.

My heart leapt into my throat as I saw who was standing on the other side.


A/N: Who could it be at her door? I wonder, I wonder. Idealskeptic first suggested about including Jessica and Mike. I'm so glad she did. This chapter would have taken ten times longer to write if he hadn't. Also, I managed to address a couple of things I wouldn't have if J/M weren't there.