I DO NOT OWN THE TWILIGHT SAGA

"That's some Maury type shit," Archer tells me as I help him make up the pullout couch. I pull the clean sheet over the bed.

"I know. I'm honestly in shock, still. I just can't believe she kept this big secret from me." Archer sighs as he throws a blanket and a couple of pillows on the bed.

"So what are you gonna do now?" I shrug as I flop down on the mattress.

"I guess I'm gonna have to start looking for her." I look at myself in the reflection of the tv. Big hazel eyes sit in a square-shaped face. Uneven lips are chapped because I lost my chap stick the other day. And I know that if I were to smile, dimples would appear, the one on my left cheek deeper than the one on my right. My pale olive complexion is blemished by a zit the size of Texas on my jaw that's bothering the hell out of me. And my thick, dark brown hair flows to the small of my back.

Looking at myself now that I know about Tabitha, all I can see is my sister. I wonder what she's like. Does she like Harry Potter? Does she know that she's a twin? If so, does she think of me?

"But where do I even start?" I ask no one in particular.

"Did the letter you found have an envelope with an address on it?" I shake my head. "Well, maybe your mom knows." I narrow my eyes.

"Absolutely not. I'm not talking to her."

"But—"

"No buts, Archer. It's been, like, thirty-two minutes since everything happened. I can't look at her without remembering that she lied to me all these years." A knock at the front door draws us out of the conversation. I wonder who it could be since Marnie is babysitting and Jade working, so it can't be anybody Archer knows.

Archer opens the door, and I spot Paul on the other side. my eyebrows rise in surprise. What the hell? How did he even find me here?

"Paul! What are you doing here?" I question as I stand up.

"Yeah, and how do you know where I live?" Archer cuts in.

"I went by your house but your mom said that you had gone to Archer's apartment. So I called Marnie and she gave me an address." I approach the door and Archer goes to his bedroom to give us privacy, but I have a better idea. I don't want Archer to feel like he has to hide in his own place.

"Do you want to take a walk?" A cute little smile appears on his face.

"Yeah, I'd—I'd love to." I flash him a wide smile.

"You're cute when you're flustered." It's true. For some reason, whenever he looks at me, a child-like smile forms on his face. And for some reason, every time he does that, my heart flutters in my chest. I've never had anyone look at me like that before, not even Embry when we conceived little peanut.

"And you're cute when you smile. I have a thing for dimples." A laugh gets stuck in my throat, as per usual whenever I get a complement.

"Oh! Um… uh…" I've never been great at receiving complements. I always feel awkward when getting them and I have no idea what to say in return. Like "Hey you're pretty," and then I reply "Thanks!" while winking with both eyes.

"Look at who's flustered now," Paul retorts lightheartedly. My nerves calm down as I roll my eyes.

"Let's just go, okay?" I grab my jacket and we head out into the wet, cold temperatures of Washington. And as we walk, I take a moment to appreciate everything that Paul has done. He's stuck around and has been nice to me even though I'm pregnant with another guy's baby, and it could be a while before I could ever say that I loved him. He gives me faith that not all guys are like Mark and Embry. And I could honestly see myself getting to know him better.

"So, what happened?" he questions when we're a few blocks from Archer's apartment building. I give him a look. He just dives right in, doesn't he?

"What do you mean?" Now it's his turn to give me a look.

"Well, you're not at your mom's house and you're staying with a coworker. That kinda screams that something happened, right?" I sigh and shake my head.

"After everyone left and my mom had gotten some sleep, I had decided that I needed to confront her then…about the whole possible twin thing."

"What'd she say?"

"Nothing. That's the thing. I found a letter that was from the adoptive family, and I gave my mom one last chance to tell me the truth before I found out for myself. But she didn't. And I read the letter." Paul looks at me with a face that I can't read. I can't tell if he's appalled or angry or sad.

"What did the letter say?" he questions.

"It was just an update about my identical twin sister. How she's doing and how happy her family was to have her. And it also stated that Jessica and Connor Mori, the adoptive parents, would have been more than happy to have an open adoption so that my sister and I could have grown up together. But my mom said no."

"Wow…that—that's tough. I can't believe your mom would do something like that. Keep that hidden for so long." He lets out a long breath and I can tell there's a "but" coming. "But she was only sixteen when it happened, Auttie. Younger than us both, still a kid. Can you really blame her for making a mistake when she was just a scared kid?" I stop abruptly and turn to face him. We're on the side of the road, not a car to be seen but I can hear the rustling of leaves behind me as deer and squirrels run about.

"Sure. I can forgive something that she did when she was a kid, Paul. But she had eighteen years to fix this and she didn't. She just kept lying." I turn back and continue walking, and after a moment, Paul does the same.

"What's her name?" Even though he doesn't say the word "sister" I automatically know who he means.

"Tabitha," I answer. "Tabitha Hope Mori." We walk in silence for a while, neither of us knowing what to say or how to say it. But I'm glad for that. The silence helps me calm down and puts me in a better mood. And the cold air that almost hurts when you breathe in is the only reminder that Spring is still months away. A lot of the snow having melted in a recent "heat" wave and rain storm. More like the temperature raised above fifty-five for about a week, but it's back to freezing cold climates now.

By the time we reach any form of civilization, I'm starving and tired, and it almost feels like fate when I see a diner just a few yards from us. "You wanna get something to eat?" Paul questions. My stomach gurgles in response, and his lips twitch slightly. "I'll take that as a yes." We arrive at the diner, and are seated within ten minutes, and by the time my burrito arrives, I'm salivating at the delicious aromas. I take a huge bite and then, all of a sudden, half of my burrito is gone. Jesus. I'm gonna be the size of an elephant by the time this baby comes.

When I look up to see why Paul's being so quiet, I find that he's looking at me in amusement.

"What?" I question. He shakes his head.

"Nothing. It's just the only other girl I've seen eat like that is Leah, and she's, ya know…" A wolf. I grimace at the fact that's comparing me to someone who turns into a wolf.

"Are you calling me an animal?" His eyes widen as he realizes what he said.

"No! Not at all, I was just…" I let out a breath.

"It's fine, I guess. It's not like it's not true. I literally look like a cow right now." And I honestly mean that. Over the last couple of weeks my stomach has gotten bigger. And while it's definitely not huge, it's still noticeable.

"You look beautiful." Startled, my gaze meets his for a split second before I look away, heat filling my cheeks. Him calling me beautiful sends my heart aflutter, as for some reason it means more coming from him than Embry or even my mother. Even though I know he's lying, it's still sweet.

"I don't. But thanks for saying it anyway." All of a sudden, Paul's hand reaches across the table to grip mine, and by how warm my cheeks feel, I know that I'm blushing. I don't think a boy has ever held my hand before, which is pathetic, I know. But I'm demiromantic. It's on the aromantic spectrum, and I've never really been interested in romantic relationships before. I'm not sure if I am, still. I mean…to me, relationships seem like a lot of work, but from what Hannah used to tell me, they can also be rewarding. Plus, I like Paul. He's nice and sweet and patient. And I really enjoy being with him. But, I dunno if I want it because I actually like him, or because of all the stuff going on with my mom. And I don't want to hurt him.

"What are you thinking about?" he asks. I shake my head and let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"I'm just grateful to have you around," I tell him. He cracks a smile, and I do the same, and I flash back to when I kissed him last night. I liked how his lips felt on mine. Even though it was just a quick peck, I still get butterflies thinking about it. And then I remember that he had to leave early.

"So why did you have to leave last night?" His smile automatically disappears and his face gets this exhausted look, like he's worked double overtime and just wants to go home.

"Quil caught scent of a vampire. It hasn't made any contact with us yet and we haven't found any human bodies as of yet, but Sam increased our patrol time just in case." My jaw drops to the floor as I take in what he said. What in the actual fuck? Did I hear him right?

"Did you just say vampires?" I manage to get out, trying to keep my voice down as I spot several people near our table. Paul automatically understands why I'm surprised.

"Oh yeah, I forgot you don't know. You would have found out if the bonfire hadn't been canceled back in November. Either Billy or Old Quil would have told the legends of our tribe. How vampires are a part of it." Holy crap. This is a lot to take in.

"So…vampires exist. What are they like? How would I spot one?" He sits back in his seat, his hand slipping from mine to run through his hair.

"For one, they don't burn in the sun, like vampires you read about in the books. Garlic, holy water, and silver stakes don't bother them either. Their skin is usually pale white, and is as hard as diamonds. Their skin sparkles in the sunlight like diamonds as well, which might explain why humans came up with the whole 'bursting into flames at the mere touch of sunlight' thing. Their eyes are also blood red, and they are extremely beautiful, which helps draw in prey. They're fast and strong, and no human would stand a chance against one." I can only start breathing again after Paul finishes. "Most of them drink human blood, but there are a few who drink animal blood instead so that they can blend in and live among humans. But our job, the reason why shapeshifters exist is to kill vampires. To protect humans. Which is why I'm probably gonna have to patrol a lot from now on…until either the vampire leaves or we kill it." I nod my head.

"Okay. I understand. You have to make sure we're safe. I just wish you could tell me the legends. They sound like they'd be really interesting." He smiles. "Maybe we could have dinner sometime…and you could tell me then?" it comes out as a question, cause I just took a huge leap of faith and I'm not sure how he's gonna react. I really hope he takes the hint.

He stares at me for a moment before his smile widens. "Are you asking me—" I shrug.

"I told you that I'm demiromantic, and that's true…I mean, I think it is. I've never felt any romantic feelings towards anyone before. I've never had a crush before, and I'm not saying that I have a crush on you. But…I like the way I feel when I'm around you. You make me happy and you give me butterflies in a good way. I like being around you, and…I want to take it slow. Get to know each other more before we decide to define any sort of relationship." I expect him to tell me that he's not interested in taking it slow. That he wants the whole thing and thinks that taking it slow is just a waste of his time. But that never comes. Instead, he says,

"Okay." And once again, my heart flutters in my chest, as I feel truly happy for the first time all day.

A/N: What did you guys think? So I stayed up until three in the morning writing this because I wanted to get a chapter out before February, as I promised I'd get a chapter out at least once a month. And I had originally imagined this chapter ending in a very different way, but I thought it was getting too long for my taste, so I've decided go at it from a different angle. I just have to put here that I already know how this book is going to end. I have nearly everything planned out, and I already know what the sequel is gonna be about. I have a lot in store for this story and these characters and I can't wait for you guys to read it.

On another note, in an earlier chapter, I stated that Autumn is demiromantic, and I stick to that. But as I was writing this, I realized that not everybody knows their sexuality straight away. They might think they're one thing for years, and then one day, they find out they're something else. And I feel like this description fits Autumn, who has never really explored her sexuality and is still trying to figure it out.

Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!

~Gina