Okay guys, I give you chapter 8! this is pretty long and I edited everything I could catch, I'm mostly just worried about not having italicized all of Alice's thoughts, but I really hope I got them all. thanks for everything and all the support. Love you all! Enjoy and happy reading!

I'm going to Seattle with Jasper next Friday.

I'm going to Seattle with Jasper next Friday.

I'm going to Seattle with Jasper next Friday.

The same words kept playing in her mind, her thoughts running in the same direction over and over again, yet she could hardly believe it.

He was like a light switch. Sometimes he was on and sometimes he was off. One day he'd ignore her and the next he was calling them friends.

Alice couldn't make sense of it all, but she had decided to just go with it.

Sometimes after school had ended that day, she had received a phone call from Jessica, asking whether or not she had decided to go to the dance

"I did think about it for a little bit, but I'm actually going to Seattle that day. I've got some errands to run and... Just some shopping I'm going to try and catch up on."

Alice really had no idea what her and Jasper would be doing, but since she was of the firm belief that telling Jessica she was going to be with Jasper that day was a terrible idea, she went with what was probably a lie.

"Oh, we were so hoping you'd be going. That stinks! But if you want, Angela and I are going to Port Angeles this weekend to get dresses. I know, we're so late, but we'd love if you came!"

Alice could hear Angela's voice of agreement in the background.

Alice smiled, what she definitely needed was a girl's day. No boys, no Jasper, no teachers, no school.

"Yes! I think that'd be great! We'll find the perfect dresses for you guys!"

A thought stuck Alice, and she continued.

"Hey, I'm not sure how you guys would feel about this, and it's not like I've asked her, but would you two mind if I invited Bella?"

There was a pause on the other end of the line and Alice waited nervously, barely refraining from chewing on her thumb nail.

Jessica spoke suddenly,

"Like, Bella Hale?"

Alice laughed nervously.

"Uh, yeah. She's really cool. I think you guys would like her if you got to know her."

Another pause, "well, I didn't realize you guys were that close, but if she wants to come she's more than welcome."

Alice wasn't completely sure how genuine that response seemed, but she just knew that Jessica and Angela would love Bella if they got the chance to get to know her.

"Great! I'll ask her if she wants to come and let you guys know! Regardless, I'll go with you on Saturday!"

"Awesome! See you tomorrow Alice!" She heard Angela yell, she must have been on speaker phone.

Alice laughed loudly,

"Alright, guys, have a good night."

After the call, Alice rung Bella. She had never called Bella before and for some reason she was a little nervous. Not bad nervous, but excited.

"Hello, Alice."

Alice swallowed, not sure why she was so surprised by Bella's formal greeting. The Cullen's were all that way. So formal and polite.

"Hey, Bella. How are you?"

"I'm fine, thanks. How are you doing?"

She heard Bella's voice get lower,

"Anymore weird visions."

"Uh, nope, none to speak of."

She didn't regret telling Bella, but she really didn't want to talk about her visions at the moment.

"I was actually just calling to see if you wanted to go to Port Angeles this Saturday with me. Well, really me and Angela and Jessica, sort of a girls day. It'd be so fun if you came!"

Bella didn't speak for a moment and when she finally did, Alice could practically see the smirk on her face.

"Do Angela and Jessica want me to go?"

Alice waved her hand through the air, even though Bella couldn't see her, "what? Yes, they were so excited when I asked them if you could come. You should have heard them, they can't wait to get to know you better."

There was a silence between them, she knew Bella must know she was exaggerating a bit, but she really did think it was a great idea.

"This Saturday you said?"

"Yes! I'm not sure when we'd be leaving, I forgot to ask, but I think we're going to get dinner."

She heard Bella laugh on the other end of the line. "Yeah, that sounds nice, I'll be there."

Alice practically jumped out of her skin she was so ecstatic.

"Oh, yes! We're going to have the best day, I just know it!"

They hung up shortly after and Alice couldn't stop smiling. Things just seemed to be working out.

Jasper was warming up to her, and they were going on a "friend date" as she'd taken to calling it in her mind.

She was going to have a great day on Saturday, just hanging out with the girls.

Maybe I'll even talk them into getting pedicures!

The possibilities swarmed around in her mind.

"Hey, short, you home?" Alice heard Charlie call from the kitchen entrance.

She hadn't thought about the vision from earlier that day since her talk with Bella and now that her dad was home, her mind forced her to confront it.

The moments of complete peace and happiness never seem to last.

"Yeah dad, I'm in the living room," she called back weakly.

There was no scenario she could come up with that would lead to the conversation she and Charlie had in her vision.

It just makes no sense.

Why would I lie to him? Why would I call Jasper after?

She turned back to her dad, realizing he had said something.

"What?"

"You okay, Al? You kinda zoned out for a second there."

Alice smiled, small and timid.

"Dad?"

Charlie frowned, it wasn't like Alice to be so quiet and reserved and to look so sad.

"What's wrong, are you okay? Did someone hurt-,"

"No, dad, nothing happened. It's okay. But... I just want you to know that I love you. And no matter what, I'll always be your little girl."

Charlie stood a few feet away from where she was sitting, awkwardly tapping his right hand against his left fist.

"Uh, yeah, I love you too, Al..."

Alice laughed at his apparent discomfort and jumped up to give him a hug. It was quick and hardly reciprocated, but she squeezed tight nevertheless.

When she pulled away she could almost hear his sigh of relief.

They stood there just staring at each other until Alice spoke again.

"Hey, are there any of those games you like to watch on? Ya know, basketball or baseball or whatever. We can watch one together."

Charlie paused, Alice never asked about sports, and she never wanted to watch them together.

"You sure you're okay, short?"

Alice rolled her eyes, "yes, I'm fine."

She collapsed onto the couch and held the remote out to Charlie, "just pick something."

He got the hint, took the remote, and turn on the television. He knew she hated sports, and as he sat down next to his girl, he handed the remote back to her.

"You pick."

Alice looked at his outstretched hand and grasped the device offered to her.

"You shouldn't have said that," she sang in a teasing voice.

Charlie stretched his arm along the back of the couch and Alice relaxed next to her dad.

She flipped the channel until she got to a specific program and then settled.

"So, what is this?"

"Dad, it's only the greatest show ever! These two brothers drive around the country and kill supernatural creatures! They have an angel best friend and a love/hate relationship with the king of hell..."

Charlie stopped listening, but let her continue, content that things, at least for the moment, were working out.

xxxxx

As Alice climbed into bed that night she was filled with such conflicting emotions.

Happy for the good in her life, and confused by everything else.

The idea of hurting her dad was too hard to think about.

I can't talk to anyone because no one even knows anything, even me. What good are visions if they don't help solve problems?

Alice pulled the covers up to her chin, feeling like crawling into a shell and hiding from the future.

xxxxx

The rest of the week passed uneventfully, Jasper was his usual self, quiet and polite. She hadn't spoken to Bella more than a few sentences and with the constant chatter of Angela and Jessica it was easy to forget about her visions and take her mind off her excitement for the following Friday.

"Hey, Alice. We're going to La Push beach tonight for a bonfire the locals have every couple of months if you wanna go."

Alice glanced up at Eric, who appeared to be the one to have spoken.

She glanced around her at the students milling around the parking lot, heading to their cars to go home. Her friends were looking at her expectantly, waiting for her answer.

"That actually works perfect, because my dad's going out-of-town on a fishing trip and so I'll be alone tonight anyway."

Angela and Jessica seemed pleased, as did Mike, who wasn't as good at hiding his excitement.

"Great! I can pick you up and drive you over to my parent's store where we're meeting."

Alice could almost see the steam coming out of Jessica's ears.

Stupid, stupid, stupid...

"Uh, that's okay Mike, I'll just drive over there and meet you guys. What time?"

Xxxxx

By seven Alice was in her car, on her way over to mikes parents store. Despite the cloudy sky, it hadn't rained since that morning, but it was still fairly cold out and Alice knew it would only get colder.

She had put on a warm parka (an extremely cute, warm parka) and jeans with warm socks.

Alice had called Charlie after she'd gotten home, telling him her plans to head to the reservation that night. He'd been surprisingly calm about it and had even told her to have fun, and that's just what she planned to do.

As she pulled into the parking lot of the store, she noted all of her friends were already piled in Tyler's van, ready to go and waiting for her.

She hurried out of her little car and ran over to them as Tyler blared the horn teasingly, causing raucous laughter from all of her friends. She had a good feeling about the night.

Xxxxx

As they arrived at the beach, Alice noticed all of the people already walking around. Most of them clearly lived on the reservation as she didn't recognized the kids around her age from school, that and they all had the same beautiful, russet skin and black hair.

She did happen to spot a few people from town and from her school that she recognized, which calmed her nerves about intruding on the locals bonfire.

As they parked and got out of the van she realized they must have done this before, her friends. They were all laughing and taking their shoes off, getting ready to walk on the sand barefoot despite the dropping temperature. Alice did the same, taking her first step onto the cold sand and squishing it between her toes.

"Alice, let's go! They're gonna eat all the food!" She looked up and realized all her friends had taken off, running towards the tables and tables and tables of food lined up along the perimeter of the bonfire, which was already blazing and high in the sky.

Alice laughed as she followed them, her short legs taking her much longer to reach the tables.

Ten minutes later their plates were piled high, their cups filled with different sodas, and they were sitting on a few blankets Mike had thought to bring.

Alice looked around her at the people surrounding her and realized she hadn't had so much fun in a long time, even if she'd only been there a short period of time.

The locals were all laughing, and for the most part, up 'till then, hadn't interacted much with her or the other. But as they finished their food and threw their plates away in one of the many trashcans hanging around, a drum started beating.

Bum, Bum, Bum…

It was steady and rhythmic, seeming to match the beat of Alice's own heart. Suddenly a group of beautiful women started to dance. To Alice, it looked to be a traditional dance of some kind. Their shadows fell over the enchanted faces of onlookers and they swayed to the beat of the drum. A flute of some kind had started to play, only adding to the beauty of the dancers.

Alice looked around her and all the people she could see had similar looks of wonder and star struck expressions on their faces. They were admiring the dancers, completely transfixed with their smooth movements.

With a final, loud beat of the drum the dancers ended their enchantment and instead of clapping, everyone cheered loudly. Raising cups filled with amber liquid before taking deep gulps, letting some of it dribble down their chins.

She was in wonderment of these people, their fires, their food, their dancing, and their people.

"Alice, we're going to play ultimate Frisbee. You coming?"

Usually, Alice was okay with playing sports and she even enjoyed them most of the time. But in sports like ultimate Frisbee, when nearly everyone was at least half a foot taller than her, she chose to stay on the sidelines.

"Uhm, that's okay, you guys go ahead. I'll just watch!"

She planted herself on a blanket she had dragged over to get a closer look. Eric, mike, Jessica, Angela, and Tyler had all decided to play, leaving Alice alone, which she didn't really mind.

"Hey, I don't think I've seen you around before."

Alice glanced up at the face of a boy a few feet away. His russet skin was illuminated by the fire light.

"Uh, yeah, I live in town. Moved here a few months ago to live with my dad."

"Oh, that explains it. I don't go into town much, but I usually recognize most people. Not a lot of newcomers."

Alice smiled, 'It's all the rain."

The boy, who appeared to be a few years younger than Alice, laughed loudly.

"You're probably right. Damn clouds just don't relent."

Alice extended her hand up to the boy, "I'm Alice."

"It's nice to meet you Alice." He shook her hand, "I'm Jacob."

"It's nice to meet you, too."

A comfortable silence enveloped them as he sat down next to her. "Didn't want to play Frisbee?" Alice asked.

"Well, I was going to, but I happened to look over and see a girl sitting alone. Figured I'd go talk to her."

Alice chuckled at his joke, "Well, I'm sure she's grateful."

They continued to chat for a few minutes. Making insignificant conversation, when suddenly Mike, who had been running quickly towards them, leapt through the air and caught a Frisbee. He rolled through the sand and finally got up, laughing.

He glanced over at Alice and Jacob. He seemed to look jealous for s moment, but after sizing up Jacob and taking note of his youth, gave a friendly smile.

"Hey, man, I'm Mike."

"Hey, it's Jacob." They fist bumped, as Jacob was on the ground and mike was standing.

"You all good here, Alice?"

"Yeah, Mike, thanks. We're just talking." She smiled at him, but hoped the message was clear.

She wasn't his to worry about.

"Well, I'm glad. I thought for sure you'd invite Bella, since I know you invited her to go with you and Jess and Angela tomorrow, but you didn't so it's good you're not lonely."

There was zero hostility in his voice, and nothing that gave him away as being malicious in his intent, so Alice just smiled at him.

"Yeah, I just didn't think to ask her I guess. Decided I just wanted to hang with you guys tonight."

Only Alice had thought about inviting Bella, but decided not to at the last moment.

"It was good meeting you, man." Mike waved with the Frisbee as he turned, threw it towards a local boy, and ran in that direction.

Jacob had simply waved after mike, his attention turning back to Alice.

"Did he say Bella? As in Isabella Hale?" Jacobs's eyes searched hers questioningly and Alice smirked curiously.

"Yeah, do you know her?"

"I've heard about the Cullen's, but I've never met them, they're not supposed to come down here, or something like that."

Alice drew back, but Jacob didn't seem to notice.

What a weird thing to say.

"Wait... What does that mean?"

Jacob glanced at her, look a little guilty.

"What does what mean?"

Alice rolled her eyes,

"Don't play that game. You said they aren't supposed to come here. That's not exactly a normal thing to say. So, explain. Why aren't they allowed?"

Jacob looks at the ground, his finger tracing a pattern into the sand a few feet in front of them.

"It's nothing, really. Just the stuff of old legend from members of the res that are probably just as old. I don't even believe it anyway. It's kind of crazy. Don't worry about it."

Alice wasn't prepared to let this go, and she realized she might need to change tactics.

She bumped her shoulder against his, giggling.

"C'mon. I love legends and stuff like that. It can't be true, so just go ahead and tell me. Sounds like a fun story."

Jacob looked sideways at her, seeming to think through before giving in.

"Yeah... Yeah, okay. Well, it's like this. Our people have been here for centuries. We've always lived on the reservation, and when the white men came to the area, their exchanges were peaceful. They helped each over.

"I don't know exactly the entire story, but at some point a family came to the area, and locals were going missing. The family was blamed for it, and members of the reservation set out to catch the family. I know there was a lot of bloodshed, and a treaty was made: the Cullen's aren't supposed to come to the reservation."

"Wait, but you said that was like centuries ago. How come the treaty is still viable? Why not just get rid of it?"

Jacob ran a hand through his hair,

"You know, I'm really not supposed to tell anyone this."

"It's okay, who am I gonna tell? It's not like it's a big deal. I mean, so they've got murderers for ancestors, what's the big deal?"

Alice thought for a moment, her brow creasing.

"Wait... If the Cullen's are adopted... None of this makes sense."

Jacob sighed, "You're getting way too deep."

"You can't stop now. Just keep going."

She wasn't even sweet anymore, she needed to know the rest.

"Alright, fine. I've already told you this much, might as well."

He took a deep breath.

"They weren't just murderers... They were, according the legends, demons. They didn't just kill the locals, they fed on them. They were what we presently call vampires."

Alice paused, and broke out into hysterical laughter.

"What did you just say to me?"

"I told you it's crazy, I don't even believe it. So basically, the members of the reservation hunted them down and a treaty was made, they don't come here and we don't bother them. Pretty simple."

Alice had started to calm down from her hysterical laughter. Her face grew serious, something about all of this was hitting her more seriously now that shed thought about it.

This can't be true, but what is the truth? They have a secret, or at least Jasper does, and he won't tell me. They aren't allowed on the reservation, but how can that be true, unless the story is, as well?

"So... How do you explain their adoption? And he fact that they're all so young?"

Jacob smirked sideways at her, "you'll love this next part. They haven't changed, and the treaty is still in effect, because their ancestors aren't their ancestors. 'They' are them..."

After a dramatic pause Jacob burst into laughter, clutching his sides at how ridiculous it all was.

Alice played along, but she felt a pang in her chest, something felt off. Like maybe, just maybe, there was some truth to all of this.

"You think about it too much, it's really all just stories and legends. It's silly."

Alice smiled at him, a look of false agreement on her face. "Of course, I'd be crazy to think it was true."

But the legends collided with her visions and the mystery surrounding it all.

Could it be true? Could they really be...?

Alice shook her head and took a sip of her Cola. It was getting chilly and late, the reservation had quieted down and most of the people still around had taken to sitting on the ground, huddled together and relaxing.

Alice looked up as her friends made their way over to her and Jacob.

"Hey, we were thinking about heading back. You ready?"

Alice smiled up at Angela, "yeah, we were just talking. Plus, I'm getting tired."

Alice stood as did Jacob. They began to shake out and fold the blankets surrounding them.

"Thanks for keeping me company, I really appreciate it."

Jacob smiled at her, "it's no big deal, I'm happy to keep pretty girls company."

Alice chuckled at his puppy-dog like manners. He was a sweet kid.

"I'll see you around, thanks again for telling me all about the legends, that stuff is pretty interesting."

Jacob rolled his eyes,

"Yeah, total BS, but I'm not really supposed to talk about it, so try not to tell people I told you."

Alice smiled sincerely.

"Yeah, of course, my lips are sealed."

They exchanged simple goodbyes before Alice headed over to the van, where her friends were almost done packing and getting ready to head back.

"Who was that? He seemed cute."

Coming from Jessica, with a wink.

Alice yawned, but still managed a laugh,

"He's like 14, I'm definitely not interested, but he was nice."

"I'm just sayin..."

Came Jessica's reply as they all piled into the van.

xxxxx

The ride back to mikes parents store was quiet, filled with Eric's low snores, yawns and sleepy eyes. Alice was exhausted, yet wide awake. She couldn't stop thinking about what Jacob had told her.

Logically, she knew it was crazy. There was no way the Cullen's were vampire... And yet, it made sense. It better explained her visions, or at least the first two, the third was still a mystery.

It explained why Jasper was so reluctant to be around her.

How am I even still thinking about it? Considering it? I'm not crazy... Well, maybe a little, but I'm not irrational. It's just... It's madness.

Yet deep down, in her heart, it made as much sense as it didn't.

There were unanswered questions that she now had an answer for, or at least as close to one as she'd come so far.

But do I really believed all of this? I've never believed in this stuff before... But, I have visions, don't I? And Bella did say some people have abilities beyond that of normal people... Is this what she was talking about?

xxxxx

After arriving back at Mike's parent's store, Alice drove home. The drive was even quieter than in the van and have her ample time to think.

She knew she'd see Bella tomorrow, and she wasn't sure if that would be weird or not.

She didn't know if she could be around Bella, act normal, fun even, and on the inside be thinking continuously about all this nonsense.

God, I can't even say the word. I literally cannot force myself to say it.

Every time she thought the word, it seemed more and more impossible, and each time she thought it, it became more and more likely.

She had no idea what she believed at this point, but a bigger issue was pressing her mind.

How he hell am I going to figure it out?

xxxx

When Alice's alarm rang the next morning at seven for her to wake up for the girls day, her eyes were glazed and her head hurt.

She felt awful. But, she wouldn't bail.

Alice hauled herself out of bed and made her way to the shower, grabbing her towel on the way.

She went through the motions of getting ready in a haze, only half paying attention to the tasks. Her phone beeped and she looked at a text she'd just received from Jessica:

Hey, Angela and I will be at your house in like 10 min! See ya soon

Alice stifled a yawn as she sent Bella a text.

Hey, just letting you know that Angela and Jess are in their way and should be here in like 10 minutes, so we'll leave when you get here.

Then, she dialed Charlie's number, but wasn't surprised to find she got his voice mail.

The phone beeped and she spoke.

"Hey, dad. I'm just calling to let you know Jessica and Angela should be picking me up soon. We'll probably be gone most of the day, so I'll just text you when I get home. Remember, all you have to do is swipe right on the message alert and t should take you directly to the message, and then you can respond. Hope you have a good day fishing, bye dad. Love you!"

Alice pressed send just as the doorbell downstairs rang.

She grabbed her purse, checked for her wallet, and hooked her fingers into the rubber loops on her rain boots. It was raining fairly hard at the moment and she figured she'd need them.

Alice swept down the stairs, grabbed a granola bar, and made her way to the front door. She opened it, expecting to see Jess and Angela, but before her, beautiful as always, stood Bella.

"Hey, Alice. You mentioned that Jessica and Angela would be here sooner, so I stepped on it."

Alice still hadn't figured out how she would respond to Bella when she saw her, but the idea of Bella saying something as informal as "step on it" made Alice start laughing.

Low at first, but eventually growing louder and louder, until she was clutching her sides.

"Was it something I said?"

This only made her laugh harder. She wasn't sure why, but she just count stop.

Suddenly, a louder horn blared from the road. Alice and Bella turned to find Jessica waving from the driver's seat of a white Honda, then gesturing for them to 'come on.'

Alice sobered up enough to slip her boots on, grab her keys, and lock the door before saying "let's go" to Bella. And then they were in Jessica's car on their way to Port Angeles.

Xxxx

"Jess, I love you, but yellow really isn't your color. The dress fits great, but the yellows gotta go."

Alice had promised to be as honest as possible with them while they tried on their dresses. Angela had tried on several, and was stuck between which she wanted. A blue strapless with silver beads, or an emerald chiffon sweetheart top dress.

Jessica, on the other hand, had tried on at least 45 different dresses, and none of them were "the one."

Alice's fashion sense was impeccable, and she had picked out numerous dresses that had looked great on Jessica, but they all had at least one problem.

"This ones too long."

"This ones too short."

"What kind of material is this? Tin foil?"

"No."

The list went on and on. Alice was sure at this point they wouldn't find anything.

Bella had been a god-send and a great idea. She and Edward weren't going to the dance, so she spent the whole day searching for the perfect dress for Jessica.

Blues, reds, greens, purple, cheetah... They tried every color and every fabric imaginable. And still, none prevailed.

Finally, three shops, three coffees, three restroom stops, and a million sighs later, Jessica stood in front of a wall of mirrors. She was wearing a red halter dress, empire wasted, silky, and absolutely beautiful.

They could tell she was looking for one thing, anything to be wrong with it.

She's very good at that.

Alice decided.

Just as Jessica had apparently found her problem with the dress, Bella spoke up.

"Really Jessica, I can't imagine anyone wearing something so fitting to their personality. It looks beautiful. Plus, the low-cut top does wonders for your cleavage."

Jessica looked at Bella, really looked, and her eyes sparkled with excitement. All it had taken were a couple of kind words from gorgeous Bella Hale and for the rest of the day, Jessica wouldn't shut up about how perfect the dress was for her.

The day passed quickly after that, running to a few different shops in a local strip mall in search of shoes and jewelry.

Alice checked her phone and realized it was almost five in the evening, probably time for them to start thinking about getting dinner.

"What are you guys thinking in terms of what you wanna eat for dinner?"

Angela responded quickly and confidently,

"We have to go to Castiglias! It's this fantastic Italian restaurant a few miles up the road. Their food is to die for!"

Alice's confirmation was a loudly grumbling stomach, which caused all the girls to laugh loudly.

As they made their way to Jessica's car, Alice noticed Bella was oddly quiet. She didn't say much in general, but she hadn't said a word since they had decided upon a restaurant.

Alice fell behind to talk to her.

"Hey, you feeling alright?"

Bella looked at Alice gratefully. "Actually, my stomach is feeling a bit weird. I might come in with you all, but I'm not sure I'll order anything."

She's not eating. Is it because she doesn't eat food?

Immediately Alice shook the thought away. Now was not the time.

"Oh... Okay. Do you need anything?"

Bella smiled appreciatively,

"Thanks, Alice, you're a good friend. But I think I'll be okay."

Alice smiled back, and they both got into the back of the car.

Xxxxx

As soon as they got to the restaurant, they went inside and were seated almost immediately.

"We're so lucky," Angela whispered.

"Usually they're packed with people and sometimes it takes like twenty minutes before you can get a table."

Alice was more than pleased with the slow business at the moment.

The smell of fresh bread, garlic, and rich sauces filled her nose and made her mouth water.

"I'm so starving, I could probably eat them out of business."

Jessica snorted, "Yeah, right, Alice. Like your tiny body could hold much food."

"I think you'd be surprised. When I'm hungry, I can definitely eat."

Echoes of agreement met her as they ordered their drinks and made last-minute decisions on their entrees. Bella, like she had said, wasn't planning to order any food, but she had ordered a glass of water.

The hardly counts for anything. If I didn't need to eat or drink normal food, but I wanted to fit in, I'd definitely go with water... Ugh, Alice, you don't even know if they can eat regular food or not, stop assuming.

...

Actually. Just stop thinking about what they may or may not be. What they probably aren't, because you're a logical person and... And... Oh good, here comes the bread.

"Alright ladies, here is some complimentary bread for you, and here's some butter. This one is garlic and herb butter, this is honey butter, and this one is regular. Do you have any questions about the menu?"

Jessica began asking a questions about a substitution for red sauce instead of Alfredo, when a loud crash sounded from behind them.

Alice immediately turned in her seat and spotted two waiters on the ground, who most likely ran into each other. One of them was already attempting to stand up, but the other was just sitting not the ground, and he appeared to be inspecting his hand.

"Uh, if you'll excuse me, I'm just going to go help them."

They didn't respond as their waitress rushed over to the waiter still on the floor. She took a look at his hand and Alice saw a stream of blood rushing down his forearm, and a piece of glass stuck deep into the palm of his hand.

"Ugh, how unprofessional," Muttered Jessica, but Alice's attention had, once again, shifted.

She looked to her left, towards Bella, who was staring intently at the man's bloody hand.

Alice swallowed. She wasn't sure what was going to happen next. She knew she may overreact, maybe it was the feeling in the pit of her stomach, or maybe she was getting some vision of some kind, but instead of images, it was a feeling thing. Regardless, she knew she had to try and stop whatever might be about to happen.

"Bella."

She said her name once, low and confident.

Slowly. So slowly it was painful to watch, Bella turned towards Alice. Their eyes locked, and in that moment, she knew. She didn't need clarification or any more answers.

Bella was... She was...

Bella's a friend.

The thought struck Alice's mind like a violent slap. She blinked once.

"Leave."

Bella made no movement nor did she answer. She just a sat there, still staring at Alice. She was still as a statue.

Alice cleared her throat.

"Guys, just excuse us. I think Bella needs to go to the bathroom and I'm just gonna go with her."

She immediately stood up and grabbed Bella's arm.

It was hard as stone and Alice knew she couldn't make the other girl budge an inch, but she didn't need to.

Bella stood up quickly, and immediately made her way towards an emergency exit door that lead to an alley behind the restaurant.

Alice didn't hesitate to follow her.

She barely heard Angela call out that the bathrooms were in the opposite direction before she was in a dark, secluded alley that stretched on in both directions at least a hundred feet.

"Bella? Are you out here? It's okay, it's just Alice. Bella? Where are you?"

She couldn't see the other girl, but to be fair, she couldn't see anything very clearly.

She called out to Bella a few times before giving up and pulling her cellphone out. She dialed Bella's number and held her phone up to her ear.

The phone rang a few times before, only a few feet behind her, she heard a cell phone ringing.

Alice slowly turned, and found herself staring at Bella, who was clutching her sides, her face bent towards he ground.

Alice lowered her cell phone before ending the call and putting it back in her pocket.

"Bella? Are you okay?"

She was met with silence.

Slowly, Alice stepped towards her and reached out a hand. She carefully placed it on Bella's arm.

"Hey, Bella, did you hear me?"

Finally, Bella met Alice's gaze.

"Alice. I'm... I'm fine... I just... He got cut, I thought it was okay, but then... You know... What do you know?"

Bella looked at her intently with sharp, accusing eyes.

Alice took a deep breath. She wasn't sure how she could possibly explain this. There was still a very good chance it was all a big misunderstanding and she'd talk to Bella and they'd laugh at how stupid she'd been.

But, she knew that probably wouldn't happen. This was the real deal, and this was happening.

As she opened her mouth to respond, a man stepped into the alley they were in, and he'd come out of the same door as them.

He was holding a bandaged hand and a cell phone in the other, and he was talking to someone on the other end.

"-yeah, I'm just going to head over to the hospital. It's a clean cut so I'm sure they'll put a few stitches. I didn't want an ambulance or anything, those bills are too much, man."

Alice stopped listening, and turned back to face Bella, whose eyes were now glued, once again, to the man's bandaged hand.

"Bella, Bella... Look at me... Bella, ow!"

Bella had grasped Alice's hand and removed it from her arm.

Alice cradled her hand which she was sure was fine, but ached nonetheless.

Before she even blinked, Bella had rushed over to the man and pinned him against the building.

She threw his phone to the ground and stomped on it once, crushing it into nothing.

Alice was panicking, she wanted to go home and be in her bed. She wanted to run away, be anywhere but here. She wasn't strong, she wasn't fast, she wasn't even normal sized. She was tiny and weak.

Her voice caught in her throat. She couldn't speak or even make a squeak, her feet were rooted to the spot.

Oh, God. Oh, God, I'm about to watch a man be killed, and by my own friend. This cannot happen, dear god. This cannot happen, this cannot happen, this cannot happen...

She kept repeating that to herself as she watched Bella's silhouette holding the struggling man to the wall. She hadn't made a move yet, but she wasn't backing down. It was like she was having an internal fight with herself.

Suddenly, a voice called out from behind Alice. As she went to turn, she barely glimpsed a talk figure approach unbelievably fast. It stopped next to her and sidestepped in front of her, effectively putting her behind them.

She glanced at the back of what was obviously a man's head. It had dark blonde curls and it was longish.

I know those curls...

It was Jasper. Jasper was there, and he was standing in front of her, and he was trying to talk Bella out of what she was about to do.

"Listen, I can't get closer Bella. I don't have the strength. But you've always been a natural. Let him go. You've done nothing wrong, yet. Just let him go and run home as fast as you can. Nothing you've done so far can't be undone... Just... Let him live."

Alice saw Bella's head droop to the ground. Her hand was still on the man's throat, but she seemed to have given up.

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, she let the man go. He fell to the ground, immediately got to his feet and scrambled away.

Alice let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

Bella didn't say a word to neither Jasper nor Alice as she started in the direction Jasper had come from.

Alice's blood was pounding through her veins, she couldn't feel her extremities.

When it was just me in my thoughts I thought I could handle this, but I'm not sure, this is too real, this is too much. I'm not sure I can handle this.

"Alice."

She sharply looked up to see Jasper Hale standing tall and in all of his glory.

"Jasper."

She didn't know what else to say. She didn't know what she could say.

Jasper ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "You weren't supposed to see that. You shouldn't be here in this alley. Bella shouldn't have come with you all… this is bad. Dammit."

Alice realized he wasn't speaking to her as he paced back and forth; he was panicking.

Suddenly, he whirled, turning to face her.

"Did you see what happened?"

She slowly nodded her head.

"Do you understand what just happened?"

She nodded her head again, this time opening her mouth to speak.

"I... I... I think I know. I'm sure I know. I just... I'm having trouble computing that this is real. I had my suspicions before, but this is just too real. I just-"

Jasper cut her off,

"Wait, what do you mean you've had suspicions? Do you really understand what's happening?"

She took a deep breath.

"I know what just happened, I already told you that. But, I'm confused, and shaken, and even though I know I'm right, I really want to be wrong."

"You're not wrong, Alice. This is very real and this is happening."

Jasper took several steps towards Alice, but she didn't back up. It wasn't because she was or was not scared. That hadn't even crossed her mind. She was in complete shock.

"Alice, what do you mean by 'you've had suspicions'?"

Alice didn't answer, she just stared wide-eyed at Jasper.

He bent down towards her, until his mouth was at her ear, and whispered "we need to talk."

And with four little words, Alice's life changed forever.

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Olivia