Hey, guys! Thanks for waiting. A lot of crazy, awesome things have been going on since I last updated! My original work has been featured on Wattpad and is on a list with fourteen other books that are put in front of 65 MILLION users! I'm so humbled by the experience and the book's reception online so far! It's been incredibly inspiring!

It also doesn't help that I've been watching a lot of teenage dramas on Netflix, including a movie called "The Kissing Booth." Have you guys heard of it? It's actually based on a popular Wattpad-novel! I'm not wild about the story's characters, but it did put me in the mood to write this, so I guess it had some positives, right?

Hope you guys enjoy this next installment!

23. FALTERING

My alarm clock blared. The noise was like a lance to my skull.

I groaned and rolled over onto my stomach. My arm swung out, feeling feebly along my nightstand for the offending device so I could shut it off. I sighed in relief as soon as silence filled the room again. Memories of last night swept up to meet me –

Jasper Hale.

My eyes opened, widening to see through the darkness of the room.

I sat up, my fingers curling tightly into my comforter, as I stared. "J – Jasper?" I whispered.

Nothing.

I glanced at the clock, squinting at the neon bright lights that read six-thirty, then back around the room again. My eyes adjusted to the dim light, exposing the room for what it was: empty.

I sighed –

My phone started vibrating, the grating buzzing noise along my nightstand making me jump. I grabbed it, relieved at the name displayed on the caller ID, and answered it.

"Bella," I said, my voice rough from sleep.

"Hey, Bee," Bella said, her voice hushed. My brow furrowed. "Um… did I wake you up?"

"No," I replied, running a hand through my hair to push it out of my face. "Are you okay? You're okay, right? Bells, I'm so sorry about last night, I should have stayed –"

"No, no," Bella said. "It's okay. I'm fine. Are you okay?"

No. Not even a little bit. I rubbed my eyes with my free fingers as pressure built in my skull. Vampires were real and they were hunting me. Waylon's death was my fault. Nothing about my life right now was okay.

"Fine," I said, clearing my throat. "I'm fine. Jasper took me home."

"I know," she said. "Edward told me."

Edward. Right. The other issue. Wait. Bella, my best friend, who knew… she…

"Do you know?" I asked.

"Know what?" Bella echoed, but I could hear the words she was trying not to say build up behind the catch in her breath.

"Do you…" my fingers picked at a loose thread in my blankets. I glanced around the room again, my gaze lingering on the dark doorway of my closet. I was never afraid of monsters when I was little, but now I'd never been more terrified. "Do you know what they are?"

Bella's breath was shaky on the other end of the line. "Yes."

I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting between sheer panic and relief. I wasn't alone, but she knew. She was in just as much danger as me.

"When did you find out?" she asked.

"The day Waylon died," I said, fighting past the lump in my throat. "He thought some disappearances in Port Angeles – the animal attack at Grisham Mill – he thought it was the Cullens."

"But it isn't," Bella said quickly. "It's not."

"No," I said. "They didn't. Another one did."

I decided I wouldn't tell her Waylon died because of me. That I was the one the other vampire – or vampires – was looking for. Or maybe I should –

"When did you find out?" I asked, repeating her question.

"The same night," she said. "Jacob Black told me stories at the beach, but I knew something was different before… Before everything."

Before everything. Before the van, before the beach, on my first day of school. Bella asked if I saw something different in the Cullens. Of course I noticed, but me, like everyone else in this stupid town, didn't have the guts to ask like her. Why didn't I ask? Maybe if I did, Waylon would still be alive.

I couldn't even be mad at her. She tried to tell me, but I didn't listen. "Oh," I said.

"We – We can talk more on the way to school," Bella said. "I can pick you up in ten, if you want. Unless you need more time to get ready –"

"No, I'm fine," I said. "I'll see you in a bit."

I hung up and set my phone on the nightstand before reaching for my bedside lamp. I blinked at the low light filling the room and stood up, then grimaced when I realized I was still wearing the same clothes I had on last night. I stripped them off, then started picking through my haphazard collection of clothes spread all over my room. I pulled out a pair of clean distressed jeans and a Forks High Spartans T-shirt. I wouldn't have time to shower, so I slipped the clothes on and decided to shower after school.

I snuck out of my room and into the bathroom, quickly brushing my teeth and running a brush through the knots and gnarls of my hair. I threw it back in a high ponytail before spritzing myself with my mom's vanilla-scented body spray. Even as I wiped my face with a makeup-remover to freshen my skin, it still looked dead and dull under the harsh bathroom light. Well, maybe not dead, I knew what that looked like…

Someone knocked on the bathroom door. "Blaire?" my mom's voice was soft and muffled.

I reached out and unlocked the door before pulling it open. My mom stood on the other side, rumpled in her sweatpants and ratty T-shirt. Her hair was just as messy as mine had been this morning. When she wasn't dressed in her impressive power-suits or professor-clothes, we looked alike.

"What are you doing up so early?" she asked.

"Bella called," I said. "She needed to pick me up early because she has a meeting with her English teacher. Something about… extra credit work, or whatever."

I was getting better at lying. It was scary.

"Oh…" she said, brows furrowing.

"Yeah," I said, shifting past her. "I just… I have to get my shoes."

"We need to talk about last night," she said, making me tense. I turned back around to face her in the hallway. "I'm still not happy about you leaving last night, but I get where you're coming from, honey, I really do. With the divorce, and now this… I'm worried about how you're handling things."

My mind, for the first time this week, was an empty slate. "Handling things…?"

"We can talk later," she said. Oddly, that didn't make me relax. "Get ready for school. How does spaghetti for dinner sound?"

Probably better than the dread currently sitting in my stomach. "Um. Fine."

She smiled and nodded. "Good. Go get ready."

She disappeared in her room. I pushed into mine, grabbed my shoes and backpack, and started walking downstairs.

I hopped on one foot as I put on my socks and slipped on my white Vans, keeping my eyes down as I moved past Waylon's door. The smell of coffee filled the kitchen, and I frowned when I saw my dad moving around the tiny space, already dressed in freshly-pressed slacks and a polo. When our eyes met, he blanched.

"M – Morning, kiddo," he said. He gestured to the percolating machine in the back corner of the kitchen. "Coffee? We went to the store last night on our way back. Got that creamer you like."

"Sure." I said, slowly making my way toward the room while my dad pulled down a travel thermos from one of the cupboards. He set it down on the counter before he wheeled back around and opened the fridge, pulling out a bottle of my favorite caramel-flavored creamer. In a flourish, I watched him untwist the cap and peel of the protective foil, then twist the cap back on. My stomach turned. He put the bottle to the side and reached for the coffee pot, glancing uneasily at me in the process.

My dad used to be a bartender. He told me that was how he paid his way through college. He was really good, working at some of the best bars in Seattle. He said that was how he got my mom to date him. He still used his tricks whenever he could because it would make my mom and I laugh. But that was before… before everything.

My dad poured coffee into the thermos, lifting it high into the air to exaggerate the pour. It felt like a punch to the gut. He set it aside and grabbed the creamer, twirling the bottle in his hands and shaking it like he was making a martini. Then he twirled the bottle and popped its cap before making another exaggerated pour in the cup.

By the time he set the thermos in front of me, twisting its lid in place, I felt like I was standing in the wake of the apocalypse. In the wreckage. Broken.

"Why'd you do it?" I asked as the first tears fell.

My dad pulled me into him, wrapping his arms securely around my shoulders. "I'm so sorry, Bee," he whispered into my hair.

Sorry didn't even come close to covering it – it didn't come close to solving anything. He seemed to know it too, with how tightly he held me against him. I thought the embrace would give me comfort, just like it did when I scraped my knees or when I got my driver's license. Instead it felt foreign. This man was a stranger now, he ruined my life. How could my mom just… be fine with him here?

"Why?" I asked again. "This isn't fair."

My dad didn't say anything. He just pulled me closer. I felt his nose crush into the top of my head. His chest heaved with a labored breath. No. He didn't have the right to be sad. This was all his fault.

Knock, knock, knock.

It must've been Bella. It had to be, but it was weird for her to knock on the door. Did I not hear her honk the truck's horn? She usually did that first if I was running late, then knock on the door.

"I have to go," I said as I pulled away from my dad and grabbed the thermos off the counter, scrubbing the tears off my face and out of my eyes.

"Blaire, wait, please –"

I walked to the door, not even looking back. I grabbed the handle and twisted it open –

Only to find Jasper Hale looming in the doorway. He was dressed softer than last night – his leather jacket replaced with a soft-looking gray one made of sweater-material. His eyes, still a bright golden color, scanned me over before they cut further into the house, to my dad. "Everything all right?" he asked, voice thick with his drawl.

"What are you doing here?" I asked instead.

He looked back down at me. "Edward and myself wanted to offer you and Bella a ride to school."

"Then where's Bella?" my dad asked sharply. My hand tightened on the doorknob as anger simmered under my skin.

"In the car," Jasper said. "I thought I would spare her from the cold and come to the door myself. She's quite attached to the Volvo's vents at present."

Of course she would be. The truck, as awesome as it was, was a literal ice box in the mornings. It took forever for it to even reach room temperature. I pulled the strap of my backpack further up my shoulder and decided I wouldn't question anything else. Jasper was offering a way out of this house and I would take it.

"My name is Jasper Hale," Jasper went on, to my horror. "I go to school with Blaire. We have honor's history together."

"Brian Holcomb," my dad said. "I'm Blaire's father."

"Okay," I said, stepping past Jasper and out the door. In the same move, the weight of my backpack was plucked off my back and settled in Jasper's hand. I glared at him. He shrugged, as if helpless. "Thanks," the word came out more like a growl.

"Of course," his retort was infuriatingly polite.

"We're going to school," I said without turning around. "Bye."

The sky lightened considerably since I woke up. It was now a dull gray, and fog drifted low across the neighborhood, chilling me to the bone. I realized too late I forgot a jacket. I clutched my thermos as I walked as fast as I could through the front yard, as if I could draw out the cup's heat and let it spread through my body. Today was going to royally suck, I could tell.

Ahead of us, stationed in front of the house, was the Cullens' silver Volvo. Its trunk popped open as we neared it. Jasper's long arm reached around me and opened the back door for me. I was immediately greeted by a hot stream of air, and Bella's face craning around the front seat. "Uh, hey, Bee," she said, her face tinged red. The trunk behind us shut with a thunk.

"Hey, Bee," I returned while sliding into the back seat, right behind the back of Edward's copper head. Just as I sat down, the door shut and the one on the other side opened not even a second later, with Jasper sliding in close beside me. My breath caught at him being so close, especially when he seemed to know how uncomfortable it made me. When his eyes met mine, he flashed me a too-smug smirk that made me back into the door. "I can walk," I warned him.

Edward scoffed. "Don't be absurd," he said as he shifted the car in drive.

The only thing absurd here was his obsession with that word.

Edward's hands flexed against the steering wheel, letting me know full well that he heard me.

And that was… strangely that as we drove through Forks to get to the high school. I sat as far away from Jasper as I could, but the feeling seemed to be mutual as he leaned against his door. I sipped my coffee and looked out the window, just to do something. I jumped when they all suddenly opened a crack, making cold air spill into the car. I finally risked a glance at Jasper, who pointedly didn't look at me. The simple act reminded me of how dangerous even simply getting in a car with him was.

"What?" Edward said, suddenly breaking the silence. "No twenty questions today?"

I glanced at Bella, but her eyes were on him. "Do my questions bother you?" she asked.

"Not as much as your reactions do," he replied easily. I couldn't tell if he was trying to be sarcastic or not. Despite the hot air coursing out of the vents, the air streaming in from the outside made its way to the backseat first, forcing me to shiver.

Bella grimaced. "Do I react badly?"

"Don't you have a jacket?" Jasper asked quietly.

"I left it at home," I answered.

"No. That's the problem," Edward said, both he and Bella oblivious to our conversation. "You take everything so coolly – it's unnatural. It makes me wonder what you're really thinking."

"I always tell you what I'm thinking," Bella said.

I arched a brow.

"You edit," Edward replied.

"Not very much."

"Enough to drive me insane."

"You don't want to hear it," she murmured.

I choked, my eyes watering as scalding hot coffee caught in my throat. I coughed the drink down while Bella's face turned scarlet.

"Not like that!" Bella exclaimed.

"Are you all right?" Jasper asked. Why was he so annoyingly attentive?

I waved him off and took another swig of my coffee. "Fine," I grumbled. I wasn't fine.

Edward's eyes briefly met mine in his rearview window. I glowered back. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, something fuzzy and gray pushed against my side. I looked down, eyes widening at a gray jacket settled next to me. I looked up at Jasper, now only wearing a white shirt with sleeves that clung to his biceps –

"Where's the rest of your family?" Bella asked.

"I don't need this," I told Jasper.

"Humor me," he said.

"They took Rosalie's car," Edward replied as we finally, finally pulled into the school parking lot. He pulled in next to a bright red sports car – a BMW, I realized, after noticing the car's insignia as we drove closer – I'd never seen in this parking lot before. Cars like that belonged in Seattle, not in quiet towns like Forks. "Ostentatious, isn't it?"

"That's Rosalie's car?" I asked, gaping.

"If she has that, why does she ride with you?" Bella asked.

"Like I said, it's ostentatious," Edward explained as he put the car in park. "We try to blend in."

Bella laughed. It was a weird sound considering the circumstances. You know, carpooling with vampires as they talked about how they hid among humans in plain sight. "You don't succeed," she said before letting herself out of the car. I didn't like the way Edward watched her for a moment before he got out as well. Which left Jasper and I alone in the backseat. I scrambled for my door.

"I thought you were trying to kill vampires," Jasper said as I fumbled for the door handle. "You can't be in the same space as one for five seconds?"

"Ha, good one," I muttered. Suddenly, the door opened in front of me. I wasn't sure if I finally remembered how to work doors or not, but I hauled out anyway, only to almost smack into Jasper's white-clad chest. I reeled backward, positive I was going to fall back into the backseat, but my back hit the closed door of the Volvo. Jasper rested an arm on the side of the car, his thumb only inches away from my shoulder, as he leaned in.

"Have you changed your mind?" he asked. "Do you now understand the full extent of what you're trying to do?"

His arm braced me in on one side, but left the other completely free. If I wanted to, I could turn and walk away. I knew he wouldn't stop me. And that was the point.

I met his eyes. "I knew what I was getting into the second I walked out of that restaurant," I said. "I'm not changing my mind."

I hated the way he looked at me. It put him in the very center of my world and made everything else blur out of focus until it wasn't even there at all. All that mattered was him, and how badly I wanted to prove him wrong. Did he really think it would be that easy for me to change my mind? I relaxed against the car more as I tried to gauge him, tried to figure out how little this stupid monster thought of me. I would change his mind. I'd make him regret even doubting me for a second.

The corner of his mouth lifted by a fraction. "I like your stubbornness," he admitted, his voice a low murmur that sent waves of pride through me. Damn right, he did.

"Um… guys?"

I looked up, meeting Bella's concerned gaze. I risked a glance at Edward, who only had eyes for Jasper, and he looked pissed.

"C – Class is starting soon," Bella explained, her face reddening.

A cold breeze cut past us, making me shiver. Jasper looked down, effectively breaking the hold he had on me. "Take it," he said, pushing his stupid gray sweater toward me.

I grabbed it without a word, shoving my arms through the too-long sleeves while he walked past me to the Volvo's trunk. He pulled out our backpacks and handed mine over while he slung his over his shoulder. "A little hypocritical, aren't we, brother?" he asked Edward slyly.

Hypocritical? What did that –

Edward rolled his eyes, but started walking to the school with Bella on his heels. I frowned after her. We always walked to first period together…

"Are you sure about the sweater?" I asked Jasper. "I'll be fine, really –"

"So will I," Jasper said. "Lunch?"

"What about it?" I said without thinking. I was rewarded with a smirk that made me feel like a total moron.

"We could have it together," he said, shrugging. "Edward's going to ask Bella. I could answer more of your questions –"

"No."

His good-natured expression flattened. He arched a brow.

"No," I said. "I think it's better to act like nothing weird is happening. We should keep this out of school, especially since everyone's so nosy here. It'll just be easier. Act like nothing… unusual is happening."

"I see…" he said. He looked amused. "Fair enough, Holcomb. I'll see you in fifth period."

My heart fluttered when he said my last name with that weird, competitive edge in his tone, but I stomped it down. I didn't have time for my heart to flutter at stupid things. I had vampires to kill.

"See you in fifth," I said, walking quickly toward the pod holding my English class. The sooner I got there, the better.

Miraculously, Bella beat me to Mister Mason's class. She was already in her seat, looking grateful to see me around Mike Newton's head. He perked up when he followed Bella's gaze, but his smile quickly disappeared. "Hey, Blaire," he said. "New jacket?"

I wanted to smack my head into the nearest, hardest surface.

V

This was probably super filler-ie and I apologize, but everything felt so incredibly necessary that I didn't want to leave anything out! Originally, I was just going to have Blaire's dad be a douche-canoe throughout this story, but now I kind of want some kind of redemption for him.

And JASPER. Holy moly. I wasn't ready.

See you soon!