I forgot that this site doesn't let you edit the author notes separately. So when I updated all of the chapters before this one, they were updated without the author's notes. Whoops. Well, it's been over a year since the last update. Sorry about that, lol. 2020 was just way worse than what I expected, and I've been pretty busy this year, but I'm getting back into the swing of things.

Thank you to everyone who left a review, followed, or favorited. I appreciate yall.

- Note: This chapter is basically all filler for the most part. I'm warning yall. So it's not the most exciting, and it's pretty boring. But after this chapter, oh boy, does it go downhill fast.

All mistakes are my own.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Twilight.

Trigger Warning: The F word. It's only said once, and you'll see by who.


On Sunday evening, Edward found himself bored.

Alice and Rose had gone out. Probably shopping again.

Jasper was nowhere to be seen, and if he was, he wasn't going to be around Edward. He wasn't going to pretend everything was okay between them. There was tension, a weird unease, and even though Jasper could control emotions, Edward concluded that Jasper just didn't want to be around him.

Emmett was out hunting. Edward had picked up from his thoughts that the hunt he went on the other day wasn't really fulfilling. So, he was out giving it another try.

Carlisle was working late at the hospital as usual, and Esme was having a busy night as well.

Edward was home. Holed up in his room. With the ballade completed, there wasn't much to do since his projects tended to be all-consuming. He didn't stop until it was perfect, and it was. It was also much longer than anything he's created in a while. So much more intimate too, but that was the whole point of a ballade.

It still didn't have a name, and the names he came up with didn't seem right. Edward thought that maybe Harrison could do the honors. If he ever got around to apologizing and if he executed his plan correctly, that is.

Edward was angry. Not at Harrison but at himself. He allowed himself to get wrapped up in all of this. Bella was already enough drama and entertainment for his life, he didn't need anymore, but he just couldn't stop himself, could he?

Edward had underestimated Harrison. He thought he could get away with treating him the same way he treated Bella. Bella hated his mood swings, but she dealt with them because she loved him. Harrison did not owe him a thing. So, his tactics were futile. With Bella, it was different. All he had to do was smile at her, and she was like putty in his hands. She was stubborn; he'll give her that, but she was vulnerable to manipulation, and as terrible as that sounded, it was true.

When they first met, she asked him if he had a mood disorder since his extreme shift of emotions was confusing to her, but they were far more confusing to Edward. He was feeling things he never felt before. What was worse was that he was feeling it for a human. Want. Jealousy. He ached for her, and he didn't know why. He was so content with spending his eternity alone until she came along and ruined everything. Drawn to her like a moth to alight. Befriending her was idiotic. Falling for her was that too.

Now he had Bella right where he wanted her to be. She hasn't even hung out with the wolves lately. Alice has been monitoring her future. Edward wanted her to distance herself from Jacob, and she did, but now, even that mutt had a better relationship with Harrison than him.

Unbelievable.

Edward didn't know he was playing with fire, but he sure did now. It made him think about when a child puts their hand on a hot stove and gets burned. Now that child knows not to do it again if they don't want to get hurt again.

In this situation: Edward was the child, and Harrison was the stove.

Even though Edward got burned the first time, he finds himself not caring about whether or not he gets burned the second time. He thinks he can handle it. He hoped he could handle it. He didn't know if he could. He didn't know what he was doing, and that's what scared him the most. But, on the other hand, the danger of it all had him wanting more.

How did Harrison push him without touching him? Did he have powers too? And if that was the case, did that mean that Harrison wasn't human? If he wasn't human, then what was he?

Edward wouldn't dare tell a soul what happened that day. He wouldn't betray Harrison's trust like that even though he didn't have his trust to begin with. So why didn't Harrison want to be friends with him?

Was Edward not friend material?

"I could be if I tried hard enough." Edward paused, baffled by his own thoughts and even more disturbed since he said it out loud. And to think he had the nerve to ask Jasper if he knew the definition of friendship when Edward himself hasn't had an honest and true friend in over a century.

Jasper was different, his brother had skills he didn't have, and maybe that's why Harrison liked him more.

And well, that just wasn't fair.

Fed up with himself, Edward stood up from his piano, abruptly deciding that being in the house all day was getting to him. So, he ran deep into the woods, trying to track Emmett's scent while also trying to listen out for his thoughts. Emmet's mind was like a freshwater lake, crystal clear. He found it strangely refreshing.

Edward eventually found Emmett a few miles out, wrestling with a grizzly bear. He was on higher ground, and Emmett was far too invested in noticing his presence.

"Come on, is that all you've got?" Emmett said, taunting the animal.

"Still playing with your food, I see," Edward called out after a few seconds.

Emmett whipped around, surprised to see him but happy, nonetheless. "Oh, hey, Eddie!" he shouted back jovially, grinning and waving at him.

The bear took advantage of his distraction and raked its heavy paw across Emmett's chest. The sharp claws shredded through his shirt and squealed across his skin like knives across steel. The bear bellowed at the high-pitched noise.

'Aw, hell, Rose gave me this shirt!'

Emmett let the bear try to take his head off with another swipe of the paw, laughing as the blow bounced off and sent the beast staggering back. The bear roared, and Emmett roared through his laughter. Next, he launched himself at the animal, and their bodies fell to the ground tangled up together, taking down a tree or two with them. The bear's growls cut off with a gurgle.

A few minutes later, Emmett jogged over to where Edward was waiting for him. His shirt was destroyed, torn and bloodied, sticky with sap, and covered in fur. His dark curly hair wasn't in much better shape. "That was fun," he said, grinning.

Fondly, he quipped, "You're such a child, Emmett."

Emmett eyed his brother's smooth, clean white button-down. "Did you come out here to judge me, or did you come out here to hunt?"

"Neither. Maybe I just came out to spend time with you."

"Oh, you wanted to spend time with your big bro? Eddie, I missed you too."

Edward smiled, feeling better already. "I wouldn't say that I missed you."

Emmett laughed, and the echoes made the birds nearby scatter. "Don't hurt my feelings, or I'll be forced to tell Esme."

"It's a shame that you need your mother to fight your battles, and here I thought I could take you one-on-one."

Emmett was always complaining about not being able to fight him. Play fight that is. Since Edward could read minds, Emmett considered that cheating and Alice could see the future, so she could also cheat. Rosalie didn't like to play fight because she never wanted to mess up her outfit or hair. Typically, if Emmett wanted a fight, he and Jasper would go. They refrained from doing it often since Esme didn't like when they got too rough with each other. It was all fun and games, but she didn't like it when they fought.

Emmett beamed, shifting his weight a bit so that he was suddenly poised to take charge. "There he is. All bark but no bite."

"Oh, I'll show you bite," Edward said before tackling him into the lower ground. The clash of their bodies sounded like thunder, and Emmett whooped in excitement, going with the motion and letting them fall back into the dirt.

They didn't stay prone for long, and Edward was up and off of him within seconds. Then, with a respectable space between them, Emmett crouched looking like a cheetah ready to pounce, grin feral. 'Try not to cheat, man. It takes away all the fun.'

Edward's white shirt was streaked with dirt and blood now that he tackled Emmett. He gave his brother a feral grin of his own and said, "No promises."

Edward couldn't remember the last time he felt this at ease. He didn't think about anything at all. Not Bella. Not Harrison. He just let himself be the immortal that he was. Emmett was stronger than he was naturally and even more so since he had fresh animal blood running through his system, but Edward always had the upper hand anyway. It felt good to let some of his anger out.

After their play fight, Edward tracked down a mountain lion to quell any hunger that may arise during the week and just for the fun of it since he was in the mood now. Satisfied with his meal, he took a seat on one of the nearby boulders. Minutes later, Emmett joined him and sat on the one beside him. "So, you gonna tell me what's up?"

As quick as that, Edward's good mood vanished. "I don't know what you mean." He didn't want to have this conversation. Of course, he loved his brother, but they both knew deep conversations were not his forte.

Emmett was having none of that today and mentally yelled. 'That's bullshit!'

"Eddie, this woe is me crap is getting old. When you got in your feelings about Bella, we all understood that you were going through some things. But now you've got her, and you're ignoring her! Now she's bothering us! She really might just fling herself off another cliff, man, if you keep it up. I don't think she can take anymore."

Bella had proven to be slightly unpredictable when it came to her hobbies; he didn't know what extreme sport would catch her eye next. The mental image of her jumping off another cliff made Edward wince, and he sighed, "Em, I really don't want to talk about this."

"Well, tough shit." Emmett griped, nudging him with his elbow. "All I'm saying is that history is repeating itself. You're doing it again. You're getting all moody, you're distancing yourself away from us, and you're staying cooped up in your piano room. What is your deal?"

Edward only shook his head, figuring that it was best to say nothing about this situation. He knew exactly how he looked, but this time he didn't have an excuse. Everything that Emmett said was true. Just like everything Jasper told him was true. Both his brothers were calling him out on his shit, and he didn't like it. At least Emmett was more affable about it, though.

"Oh, come on," Emmett whined. "No one ever tells me anything, and it's not fair."

Edward in turn, resorted, "Life's not fair." A sentiment he could relate to at the moment.

Emmett made a face. "Jasper's being weird too, but he's always been a little weird. So, it's not like I could go and ask him. I know something is going on."

'Ten bucks says it has something to do with this Harrison kid.'

Edward tried very hard not to react to that particular thought; he really did, but he hasn't been himself lately, so could you blame him? And Emmett could be so annoyingly perceptive when he wanted to be. Edward's clenched jaw was a dead giveaway.

"So you're still all moody because you can't read his mind either?" Emmett teased, chuckling, and it infuriated him because there was nothing funny about the situation; Edward gritted his teeth to get a grip of the anger swelling inside him. Emmett didn't know what it was like. He couldn't understand Edward's frustration because he didn't have any special abilities.

"Eddie, you gotta let that go." Emmett insisted unhelpfully. "That's old news."

Ha. As if it were that simple. If he could let it go. He would. But he couldn't, and he didn't want to.

Years ago, Edward had asked him how he was so carefree. Emmett told him that there was no point in being upset about anything, especially since they would live forever. What was the point? And really, that was the question.

What was the point?

In Emmett's mind, he had all that he could ever ask for. A family, a soulmate, and eternal life. He never went through the stages of grief when he found out that this life was forever. Instead, he accepted it fairly quickly.

Edward admired Emmett's dedication to Rosalie. She was selfish; he would know since he's been inside of her head. She would give up anything and everything, even Emmett, to become human again. When Edward was struggling with his control around Bella, he saw in her mind that she didn't care whether or not he killed her because she was more concerned with the fact that he found a human more attractive than her.

That aside, Edward was glad Emmett wasn't thinking what he was thinking. His thought process surrounding the Harrison situation was different. Sometimes Edward forgot that he was the only one that could read minds. He typically had more pieces to the puzzle than the average vampire.

"I mean, I still don't get why you guys were defending him," Emmett mused, and Edward saw that he was thinking of reasons, but none of them were making any sense. He shrugged, dismissing his thoughts with a. "But I guess it's none of my business."

"Everything is fine," Edward grumbled, parroting Esme's words to him from the other day. "Everything will be fine."

"Yeah, that's the spirit," Emmett said, clapping him on the back. "I heard that speaking things into existence helps. I read that in one of Rose's Cosmopolitan Magazine's."

"Look, Eddie, hear me out," Emmett said suddenly, bringing his hands together like a plea. "Could you maybe cool it with the music?"

"No," Edward stated simply.

"You're driving Rose crazy." Emmett pouted exaggeratedly, and Edward rolled his eyes.

"I know." A small smile carved at his lips. It was always fun getting Rose worked up. Mostly since she let the tiniest things affect her. Especially since no one else minded. It wasn't like he was smashing his fingers against the keys; he's been playing piano almost all of his life. He would like to think that he sounded nice.

"At least get with the time's man and invest in a keyboard with a headphone jack."

Seeing very clearly that his brother wasn't going to let this go, he compromised and responded, "I'll think about it."

Satisfied with that, the pair sat in silence, just listening to the sounds of nature around them.

Until Emmett interrupted that sweet, sweet silence.

"Who's it for?"

"What do you mean?"

"The new song that you composed. Is it for Bella too?"

Edward frowned and muttered, "No."

"Then who's it for?"

"Why does it have to be for anyone?"

"Because you burned it to a CD."

Edward went still, confused as to how Emmett knew that tiny sliver of information. He was quick about, strategic, one would say. He left the computer downstairs unattended for at most ten seconds, which is ample time to snoop, yes, but he thought his siblings weren't paying attention to him. He thought wrong, apparently.

"When you left the window open, I snuck a peek," Emmett admitted with a sheepish smile, hands already raised in a placating gesture. "I didn't mean to snoop; I was just curious."

Edward was well aware of his brother's intentions, knowing they only came from a good place. "It's just for my private collection."

Lie.

"Oh, so you've done that with your other pieces?"

"Yes."

That was also a lie, but who was gonna check him? Yeah, that's right. No one.

"Well, I think the song is beautiful." Despite his wife's thoughts about his music, Emmett didn't hide his appreciation for it.

"Thanks, Em."

Edward's thoughts drifted to the boy that's been invading his mind lately. He wished that Harrison could know just how sorry he was for his actions. He thought that if Harrison heard the song, heard just how sorry he was, he would perhaps be forgiven. Or maybe not. And he was willing to take that chance. He was willing to do a lot just to make things right.

"You know Esme is not going to cover for you anymore when Bella calls the house, right?"

Edward sighed unnecessarily, miffed at the mere mention of her name. "Yes, I know. She spoke to me."

"You have to stop ditching your girlfriend."

"I know, Emmett."

"Seriously, though. You can't just shake Bella off. She's the human that you wanted, remember. You wanted this. You wanted her."

Edward just repeated, "I know," and his brother shoved at his shoulder, frustrated, and said. "Well, if you know so much, then maybe you should be applying your knowledge."

Edward was planning on going over to Bella's tonight; he knows for a fact that her window will be open. When he apologized for his actions the other day, he made sure to butter her up with extra kisses, and she melted just like he expected.

Emmett was watching him with a blank face and a clear mind. "You are such a weirdo."

"You love me," Edward said sweetly, giving him a charming smile.

Emmett snorted and hooked an arm over his shoulder to bring him in for a hug. "Race you back home?"

Like the cheat he was, Edward took off without replying, leaving Emmett in his dust.


Edward couldn't hide his disappointment when Harrison wasn't at school on Monday. His plan wasn't completely ruined, but it just meant he had to improvise, and he was good at that.


Harry couldn't get in his car quick enough after that ordeal, and Jacob's house was quickly becoming a small red dot in his rearview mirror as he promptly started to freak out.

"Jacob Black just kissed me," Harry announced to the emptiness of his car; he touched his lips, partly in awe and partly in horror. "What the actual bloody fuck?" He hasn't been kissed in years. A little over two years, to be exact. Before he left for New York, he had kissed Ginny goodbye. But, since that day, there's been no one.

Harry one-handed the steering wheel to fish for his cigarettes in the armrest. Once one was between his lips and lit, he inhaled as deep as he could and expelled slowly, kind of wishing it was a nice fat joint instead. That would calm his frayed nerves right down.

"Can you believe this?" Harry asked, glancing at the empty passenger seat, chuckling like a nutter.

What made matters worse was that he didn't even get the information he went there for. The situation just went downhill so fast, Harry didn't know what the hell was going on. He shouldn't have let this happen. He should've never let his guard down.

Now Harry was just going to have to take Jacob's word for everything. Embry liked Andrew, and perhaps it was just that simple. If it wasn't, then Harry would find out eventually. He just wanted Andrew to have fun on his date, and he still had to figure out a way that could happen without his parents interfering.

Harry was cruising for about ten minutes when suddenly there were police sirens and flashing red and blue lights behind him, forcing him to slow down abruptly.

"Please just go around me," Harry begged, praying that the universe would have mercy on him, but he should've known better. Instead of going around him, the cop car followed closely behind, flagging him to pull over.

"Oh, bloody hell!" Harry groaned as he skidded over on the side of the road, just mere minutes from his home. He stubbed out the rest of this cigarette and noticed in the mirrors that his eyes were bloodshot from crying. Fan-fucking-tastic.

The officer stalking towards his car looked mean, like someone pissed in his cheerios or something. This was just Harry's luck.

Harry was suddenly undoubtedly grateful that the cigarette he stubbed out wasn't weed. That would've made this situation a whole lot worse. The officer stopped inches away from his window and peered down at Harry through pitch-black aviators. "Do you know why I pulled you over, son?"

"No, sir."

"You were going thirty over the speed limit."

Harry's eyes went wide. Damn, he didn't think he was going that fast. All Harry could say to that was, "Oh."

"Yeah. Oh." The officer swiped his glasses off to tuck them in his collar, and they revealed a pair of strangely familiar brown eyes. "License and registration, please."

Harry ducked over to the passenger side to retrieve his documents from the glove compartment and handed them over. The officer glared at them and then back at him for a minute before asking, "Where were you headed?"

Harry's only ever been pulled over once, back in New York for running a red light, and the cop had only given him a warning then sent him on his way. He glanced up at the officer, surprised by the question, and said, "Just back home, sir."

"Hmm," The officer hummed, clicking his tongue and asking, "Shouldn't you be in school?"

Harry didn't know the police cared about things like that; it wasn't any of their business, to be honest. "Pardon me, sir?"

"Shouldn't you be in class with my son Andrew?"

Harry's brain did a little skip and jump at the mention of his friend. His eyes then landed on the very clear name on the officer's chest. D.C. Mitchell.

Oh, so this was Andrew's father? Fuckin' hell.

"I guess––," Harry stuttered out, but he was cut off rather swiftly.

"It's one fifteen, which means its fifth period, which means Andrew has trigonometry at this time. That's a class he has with you, right?"

Harry stared openly at the man in partial shock. No wonder Andrew was so reluctant about skipping class. His father knew his schedule better than he did.

"Uh, yeah. But um––I've been," Harry blinked. "I've been sick, sir."

"Yes, I've heard from my wife," Deputy Chief Mitchell affirmed. "But not sick enough to be outside your house and speeding."

Harry was honestly stumped. "Uh, I guess you're right about that, sir."

"Of course, I am." Chief Deputy Mitchell drawled. They lapsed into a very uncomfortable silence as he wrote out his ticket.

Harry tapped his fingers aimlessly against his steering wheel, wanting to die. This was a terrible first impression, probably one of his worst.

"These are yours," Chief Deputy Mitchell said, handing back Harry's license and registration. Then he handed over the ticket. "And this is for you."

"Now, a ticket for this offense is normally about three hundred dollars, but since you're a friend of my son and just a kid, this ticket is only for a hundred." He placed his hand on the edge of Harry's window, and he ducked in close to establish the importance of his following statement. "But if I catch you speeding again, I will charge you the full penalty next time. Do you understand?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Good, now go home and get some rest. You look like you need it, son." Deputy Mitchell demanded as he slid his aviators back on. "You have a nice day now, Harrison."

"You too, sir," Harry replied, even though he kind of felt that he didn't deserve it.

Then he backed away and released the window, giving Harry permission to drive off. Harry was tempted to floor it, but he eased away from the side of the road slowly. He was driving at a nice and easy speed to place some distance between them.

When he was far enough, Harry screamed at the top of his lungs.

It didn't do anything about the situation, but it did make him feel better.


Andrew, on the other hand, was feeling pretty accomplished right now. He knew he aced the exam he just took, and he completed his mission for Harrison.

Andrew was one of the first to finish the exam, so he started his English homework so he wouldn't have to do it at home. Mrs. Lee even asked him to get her copies from Ms. Farris, who was a couple of halls over. He reached her door far too quickly, knocking when he worked up the courage to do so.

"Andy!" Ms. Farris said brightly, and the nickname made him cringe. His mum and Ms. Farris were friends, and he never understood how since she was almost everything, his mother was not. "You've come for Mrs. Lee's copies, yes?"

"Um—yeah?" It comes out as more of a question, but Ms. Farris still beckoned him inside and shut the door after him. Andrew tried to make himself small under all the attention. Most of the class was staring at him, and Andrew didn't blame them or anything because he was the one who interrupted their lesson. But jeez. He kept his eyes on Ms. Farris, not wanting to look anyone else but her in the eye.

Ms. Farris plucked a stack of papers off her desk. "Her copies got mixed with mine in the copy room," she explained as she handed them over with a smile. "Everything's there."

"Okay. Thank you," Andrew mumbled and made a move to leave, but she stopped him and picked up another stack of papers from her desk.

"Wait, these are for Harrison." She handed over a small stack of papers held together by a silver paper clip. "Courtesy of Mr. Cullen."

"Cullen?" Andrew asked by accident. It just rolled off his tongue, and his brain barely had any chance to catch up. He couldn't help but scan the room now.

"Yes. Edward was nice enough to copy down an extra set of notes for his classmate. So, everything that he's missed is right here."

Andrew noticed him then. Looking poised and utterly perfect sitting in the back of the class next to Bella Swan. Edward was looking dead at him, and his face was a mask of polite impasse.

Usually, Andrew would look away and blush but not today. Today he was angry on behalf of his friend. He suddenly couldn't stop thinking of Harrison's face as the tears rolled down his cheeks. The tears that Edward technically caused.

Andrew knew it wasn't that simple but placing the blame on Edward for causing his only friend to not come to school and hideaway felt justifiable.

If Edward would've just left Harrison alone, this wouldn't be happening. Andrew wouldn't have to go from teacher to teacher and retrieve notes and assignments. Not that he had a problem with it. It's just that Harrison would be here if it weren't for him.

'You stupid git.' Andrew thought scathingly. Edward's mask broke then; it was quick too, barely noticeable. It was just a flash of a grimace, but it made Andrew look away in panic. 'Relax. It's not like he can hear you.'

"That's —um—very nice of him," Andrew said, stumbling over his words as if saying them physically pained him. He really was a terrible liar, and he couldn't even get those words out with a straight face. "Well, I should get back to class," he made a motion to leave, awkward and jerky with his movements.

"Wait," Ms. Farris pulled him aside near the door, lowering her voice as she did so. "I understand that you're friends with Mister Peverell. Yes?"

"Yeah?"

"How is he?"

"He uh—he's doing much better. I think he might be back this week." That was pushing it, though. Harrison said he needed time, but Andrew was talking about the best-case scenario.

"I had lunch with Sue the other day, and she let me know of his unfortunate circumstances." His mother's motor mouth strikes again, so it seems. Although, it did seem like Ms. Farris genuinely showed an interest in Harrison's wellbeing. But if she knew, then how many other teachers knew? Andrew didn't know what was discussed during those teacher meetings in the conference room.

"He hasn't been here long, and he isn't much of a talker, but he was engaged. His presence is missed. I wish him a speedy recovery."

"Yeah," Andrew muttered sadly. "I do too."

As he shuffled out of the class, his anxiety settled quickly, and he welcomed the emptiness of the hallway with a sigh of content. Then he started on his journey back to Mrs. Lee's classroom.

He started skipping the steps to make it fun, careful not to step on the cracks in the vinyl tile. 'Step on a crack, and you break your mother's back.'

"Wait! Andrew!"

At the sound of his name, Andrew stumbled, stepping on the cracks he was so carefully avoiding. 'Whelp. Sorry, Ma.' He turned around so quickly he nearly gave himself whiplash.

At the sight he was beholding, his mouth fell open in shock. This was turning out to be a daily occurrence.

Edward Cullen was calling his name. His name! This honestly couldn't be happening. Andrew pinched himself just to make sure. 'Ow! Well, I guess this really isn't a dream.'

Now Andrew was kind of convinced that there was some sort of glitch in the matrix. Edward was walking towards him. Why the fuck was Edward walking toward him? There was no fathomable reason as to why Edward could possibly want anything to do with Andrew.

Unless.

Andrew's entire body flooded with dread, and he immediately thought the worst. 'He's on to you. He knows you snitched.'

At first, Andrew thought about making a run for it, but then he remembered he said that he would defend Harrison's honor, but he really hoped it didn't come to that. He's never been in a fight, and he is fragile. He tried to banish all panicky thoughts and hold his own. But Edward up close was intimidating, and Andrew shrunk in on himself, staring at Edward's collarbone instead of his face. His face was so perfect it was physically making him uncomfortable.

"Yes?" Andrew ground out, surprised at how strong his voice sounded despite feeling caged. Edward didn't reply immediately, and they stood in a moment of awkward silence. Well, probably only uncomfortable on Andrew's part. The expression on Edward's face was making everything worse. He just couldn't place it.

"Could you tell Harrison that I'm sorry?"

Surprised, Andrew lifted his eyes to Edward's, shocked at his tone and even more perplexed by his expression. "Please," Edward demanded, his eyebrows furrowing, the hardness in his face lessening. "I never meant to hurt him."

"Um, okay." Andrew nodded slowly. He looked at Edward suspiciously as if he questioned if his words were genuine.

"Could you give this to him?" The object in question was a CD, and Andrew stared at it dumbly, mouth agape, just wondering how this was his life and also wondering how it suddenly came to this.

Exchanging envelopes with Jasper and now CDs with Edward. What was next? Love letters?

Andrew's reluctance was evident, and it was clear that he needed some sort of explanation. So, Edward did just that. "I would give it to him myself, but I cannot, and that is my fault entirely. I made a mistake, and I'm trying my best to rectify it."

'This is the most I think I've heard him speak.' Andrew thought faintly. He thought Edward sounded strange.

However, although it was nice that Edward was taking accountability, there was a small part of him that just wasn't convinced. Edward approaching him just made him feel all icky. This was even more off-putting and, somehow, even more uncomfortable. Andrew's anxiety was rising by the second; he wanted to get away and fast. He took a step back, ready to make a run for it.

But then Edward stepped forward cautiously and whispered, "Please," he hesitated for a moment, and a peculiar tone entered his voice. "I really never meant to hurt him, Andrew."

"Um," Andrew mumbled, unsure, looking away again.

"Please," Edward repeated again this time, his voice nearly inaudible, ducking for eye contact. Andrew got trapped in his amber gaze, and he wasn't sure if he could handle such intensity, but he found himself nodding and, in the same motion, outstretched his empty hand so Edward could place the CD inside of it.

"Yeah, okay. Sure," Andrew mumbled, dazed. Then Edward smiled, and he felt his breath being taken away. Wow. What was this even about again? He couldn't recall. Edward just had such a beautiful smile.

"Thank you, Andrew," And with that, Edward was walking away. Then it was just Andrew standing in the empty hall with a stack of papers for Mrs. Lee, Edward's perfect-looking notes, and one CD with the words 'I'm sorry' scribbled on the cover.

Oh. My. God.

Edward just handed him an apology mixtape. What was life?

"What the hell just happened?" Andrew whispered to himself, thoroughly confused and still dazed from the whole ordeal.

...

The rest of Andrew's day just passed on by without any other disturbances. He was just so confused by it all. It was weird being on the Cullen family radar. There was definitely less pressure on him when he didn't exist. On top of that, his date with Embry was tomorrow. He was going on his first date tomorrow and didn't know what to wear. Most importantly, he didn't know what he would tell his parents when they asked.

Andrew didn't want to go home. He didn't want to deal with them. So, after school, he stayed behind and spent time in the library, just so he wouldn't have to be in the house.

Harrison wasn't answering his phone, which meant he was probably sleeping already, and if he wasn't, he was going to find out. He had to drop the notes and the CD off anyway.

Andrew was just going to stop at home to get a few things and then drive over to Harrison's. But to his surprise, not one car but both cars were in the driveway when he pulled up. His mom's Honda and his dad's Cruiser. His dad was home early.

Why was his dad home early?

After letting himself in, Andrew was immediately drawn to the sound of his mother's off-tune singing from the living room. His mother was spraying down the coffee table with disinfectant while wearing that god-awful neon apron. His father was sitting on the Lazy Boy, beer in his hand, sports on the TV.

"Andy!" she said once she noticed her son creeping in the corner. "Where have you been, love? Aaron just called us, and he wanted to talk to you."

"Aaron wanted to speak to me?" Andrew asked, screwing up his face. He's glad he dodged that bullet then. His mother noticed his grimace, and her hackles rose. Here came the nonsense.

"Oh, don't be like that." Suzanne scolded, placing her hands on her hips. "He loves you."

Andrew blinked, frowning now. "Sure."

"He got a promotion at work," Mitch said, the pride making his voice rich and glowing.

"We're very happy for him," Suzanne supplemented.

"Oh, yeah?" Andrew asked, his voice weak. "Well–––that's nice."

"It's fantastic," Mitch said with a laugh. "It just amazes me how nothing is a challenge for him. First, he said he wanted to get into Stanford, so he did. Graduated in the top ten, then breezed through law school. Now look, he's a top dog at the firm calling all of the shots."

His dad wasn't done. "Sophie started at the new firm as well. Isn't that great?"

That was Andrew's sister-in-law. He met her once when he was in middle school at the wedding. She was pretty, traditional, and fluent in kiss ass. She had tons of accomplishments and accolades to her name, and of course, those all mattered. They mattered far more than Andrew ever would. They were just a perfect couple with their perfect jobs and perfect lives.

Aaron was just so perfect, and Andrew was the ugly duckling. The child, their parents, should've never had. Even though Andrew was the planned one, he always felt like an accident.

Aaron wasn't a loser in high school. He played on the varsity basketball team and graduated salutatorian. He would've never gotten bullied; he's always had loads of friends.

Aaron was always everything Andrew was not.

These thoughts triggered Andrew deeply, and, very much against his will, he started to cry. It made his nose run, and although he snorted quietly, his mother heard it.

"Oh—," she said softly, putting her cleaning supplies down and coming to his aid. "What's wrong?"

' I have a date with a boy that I really like tomorrow, and I think he really likes me. I'm gay, and I'm not confused. Today was bizarre, and I wish Harrison was back at school so it wouldn't completely suck anymore. I wish I was the son you wanted and I'm sorry for being such a failure,' was exactly what he was planning to say, and it was poised on the tip of his tongue, but something arrested it before it could find its voice and what he ended up saying was, "I had a bad day."

The hand that Suzanne was extending to soothe him slowly retracted, and she said weakly, "Oh…." Like she knew that statement would cause an uproar. She wasn't wrong. It was his first mistake.

Mr. Mitchell's sharp eyes were on him as he barked out, "That ain't nothing to be crying about!"

"Yeah, I know," Andrew said, ashamed of his own tears compounding the issue.

"We never had this problem with Aaron. He never came home crying. Man up, Andrew!"

"I'm sorry," Andrew sniffled.

"Of course, you're sorry," his father said, dropping the tv remote he was holding with some vehemence onto the sofa. "Coming into my house crying because you had a bad day! You don't know what a bad day is! We should have sent you to military school! It's not too late for that, Andrew! Is that what you want!?"

Andrew watched the tears splatter across the floor and his shoes as they fell from his face. "No," it came out wobbly.

"Then stop crying! Be a man! Stop acting like a fucking faggot!" Both mother and son flinched at the language.

For a moment, anguish flared up in Andrew so acutely, he thought it might tear him in two, but something in him emerged, making everything in his body go still and numb. From this place of system shutdown, he managed to wipe his face and keep it dry. This wasn't anything new. He had to remember that.

Mitch was circling the sofa, huffing and grumbling to himself while his wife stood between them, uncertain which man she should support or how to do it.

Andrew was done with this; he just wanted to get a few things from his room and head over to Harrison's place like he had planned. He started backing away, hoping his father would just let him and let this go.

That was his second mistake.

Eventually, Mitch seemed to get a hold of himself, and with an intimidating throw of the hands and intense headshake, he said, "I think it's time for some changes around here. I think it's time to start charging you rent."

"What?"

"You heard me! This whole time you've had it easy. Now I think it's time for you to experience some hardships in this world since your life is so hard. Learn some responsibility. So, I'm going to need rent."

"That's not fair! In another year and a half, I'll be out of the house! I'll be in college."

"This is my house! So, it's my rules, and if you don't like it, you can get the fuck out all the more sooner!"

"Anthony!" Suzanne gasped in outrage, and it's the first time Andrew heard his father's actual name in a while.

"You'd like that wouldn't you!" Andrew yelled before tearing past his mother, who had finally decided to comfort her son, but it was too late because he was now tearing up the stairs and barricading himself in his room.

The grating sound of his parents fighting downstairs filled him with dread. He didn't need this. He didn't deserve this. He didn't want to be here, so he wasn't going to stay here. Finally, Andrew would assert himself and demand that the world treat him fairly.

Andrew gathered the things he needed from his room invigorated with a new purpose. He stormed out of his room and charged down the stairs, past his bickering parents. He didn't stop when they called his name and slammed the front door shut.

"Not today," he chanted to himself as his car sputtered to life. "Not today."


Nighttime rolled around so quickly Jacob barely even noticed. Time moved differently when staring into space and questioning life choices.

"Hey, Sue dropped off some lasagna earlier; it's reheating in the oven. It'll be ready soon."

Jacob didn't even look at his father, who was in the doorway. Instead, he turned over on his side, legs hanging off the edge of his twin bed. "I'm not hungry."

Billy never expected to hear those words coming from his son's mouth. Ever since he's phased, there wasn't a moment where his son wasn't hungry. His grocery bills could attest to that. "Everything alright, son?"

Jacob shook his head and mumbled, "No," since he didn't have it in him to lie, and also since his therapist always used to tell him to be upfront about his feelings with his father because that's what he struggled with most of the time.

"Want to talk about it?" Billy asked tentatively.

"No."

Billy wasn't easily swayed. "You sure?"

"Yeah," Jacob said flatly, indicating he just wanted to be left alone right now. His dad made no indication of moving, and Jacob sighed heavily, sitting up in bed. He hated moping in his room anyway.

He moved quickly, grabbing his shirt, ratty old shoes, and cell phone, tossing them out his window. "I'll be in the garage if you need me then," he said before following suit.

Jacob pretended he didn't hear his father's disappointed sigh and jogged over to the garage barefoot, items in hand.

So, what was his problem?

The problem was that Harrison ran away from him.

Probably would've run away screaming if given a chance. Now the questions were, what did he do, and why did he feel so shitty right now? He thought they were good. He thought everything would be fine. He told Harrison that nothing had to change.

So what changed?

Jacob didn't understand what he did wrong. He needed some insight, and the only person he could think of to provide that was Embry. So, he shot Embry an SOS text, and to his surprise, his pack brother answered back almost immediately. It must've been a miracle since Embry normally took forever.

'You dying?'

'No'

'Leave me alone then.'

'I'll give you some lasagna if you come over rn.'

It was radio silence for ten minutes after that. Jacob was nearly convinced that for the first time in a long time, Embry was ignoring him.

Thirty seconds went by.

Another thirty.

Then two more minutes until Jacob received a text.

'I'll be there in five.'

Jacob let out a snort, relieved. He should've known Embry was never the one to do anything for free on his day off. Plus, Embry's mom didn't know about the pack or about her son's recent biological changes. So, she wasn't quick to accommodate Embry's increase in appetite. He would never turn down free food.

Jacob jogged back over to the house, and it's perfect timing since the lasagna was already out of the oven. Billy gave him a knowing smile when he entered the kitchen. "You change your mind?"

"Uh––yeah."

Billy squared away a portion for himself and slid the dish towards his son. "It's all yours then."

"Thanks."

Jacob didn't linger; he snatched up the still-hot oven-safe dish and went back to where he came. And to think that just a few months ago, he wouldn't have been able to pick up the disk without giving himself first-degree burns.

Sometimes.

Just sometimes. Being a wolf wasn't so bad.

Not even maybe a minute later, Embry was poking his head through his garage doors. He slinked over to pluck the dish from Jake's hands. "So, what's up,"

"You might want to sit down," Jacob advised, gesturing towards one of his stools. Embry did as he was told, and Jacob explained the situation from the top, and Embry listened while he ate, waiting until he was done entirely to give his two cents.

His best friend crammed down a mouthful of cheese and pasta, red sauce trapped at the corners of his mouth. "Well, that was a lot."

"It was," Jake conceded.

"So, just to be clear, there was no mention of my imprinting, right?"

"What! No man. That's not my information to tell. You know that."

"Good because I'm still coming to terms with it," Embry smiled, dopey, his mind clearly a million miles away, on his new imprint. "Andrew is just so sweet and cute–– and perfect."

Jacob rolled his eyes as Embry prattled on. "Did you know he reads William Blake? He reads poetry for fun just like me."

The fact that Embry imprinted on an outsider raised many questions, and the elders didn't have the answers. And there was the undeniable fact that Andrew was a guy. So, all of their theories surrounding imprinting were thrown out of the window.

Jacob had to hand it to Embry for not freaking out the night of the bonfire. He imprinted right then and there, but he kept it cool. That's just how Embry was. So cool, calm, and collected, even when finding his literal soulmate.

The elders gave Embry strict rules since Andrew was an outsider. Even though imprinting couldn't be reversed, Embry wanted to make sure that Andrew didn't feel forced into anything, and he wanted their relationship to progress as usual. Hell, if Andrew just wanted to be friends, Embry would take it.

Embry was sure that if he just dropped all of this soulmate shit on Andrew, he'd probably run for the hills. Just as any sane person would. He also wanted to give Andrew a choice to have any relationship with him even though he didn't have one himself, which was an action Jacob would expect from Embry. Embry was always in tune with his emotions. That's also why Jacob thinks he took imprinting so well.

Before they knew the legends were true, back when it was just Jake, Embry, and Quil. A three-man team. Both Jake and Quil thought Embry was the most sensitive one, and not much has changed since he became part of the pack. But, of course, it took Jacob joining the pack to see that. He just hid behind snide jokes and secret smiles, but deep down, Embry was still the same bookworm who could quote philosophers and obscure poets. Still shy and reserved. So, if Andrew was anything like Embry, then it would be a match made in heaven.

"Dude. Focus." Jacob snapped, waving a hand in front of Embry's face. He was happy for his pack brother, but that's not why he called him over here. "Help me."

"Wait, you really called me over because you don't know what you did wrong?" There was something in Embry's tone that didn't sit right with Jake. Was he supposed to know what he did wrong? If he did, he wouldn't have called Embry over. Surely his pack brother knew that.

"Uh–yeah?" Jacob admitted cautiously.

"That whole recount was a red flag!" Embry barked with more force than Jacob was anticipating.

"Explain," Jacob demanded, a little taken back. "Because I don't see how."

Well, if Embry was going to be one thing, he was going, to be honest. So, got up from the stool, walked over, looked straight into Jake's eyes, and said very calmly, "You shouldn't have kissed him. That's really where you went wrong."

"But he kissed me back."

"Did he say you could kiss him?"

"No."

"Then you didn't have his consent."

"But he kissed me back," Jacob repeated as dense as ever.

"It doesn't work like that," Embry spoke slowly, hoping the words seeped through his best friend's thick skull. "At any point did he try to push you away?"

Jacob thought back, appalled. "Maybe," he whispered.

"You practically threw yourself at him. Jake, no wonder he ran away from you."

"I thought he was into it!"

"Geez," Embry sniffed in what looked like disgust. "Red flag, Jake. You've got to watch people's body language. You gotta read the room. You know this! C'mon!"

Jacob did, in fact, know that. He just wasn't thinking about anybody but himself in that situation. "So, what should I do!?"

"It's simple, dude," Embry answered evenly. "You crossed a boundary, so you have to acknowledge that you were in the wrong and apologize for crossing it. Then never do it again."

Jacob snorted, and it was an ugly sound. "He'll probably tell me to shove my apology up my ass."

"Serves you, right man." Embry snickered. "A kick in the balls would probably be better, though."

"Hey!" Jacob squawked.

Embry shrugged unabashedly, polishing off the last bit of the lasagna and making sure to swallow before he spoke. "I mean, he told you he just wanted to be friends at the bonfire, and you still went and kissed him anyway? You deserve a punch in the face and a kick in the balls. That's not cool."

Jacob was immediately on the defense because Embry was making a lot of sense. "How do you know about that?"

"You were standing like six feet away. Did you forget that we're wolves with supernatural hearing? We definitely all heard."

Groaning, Jacob put his head in his hands, embarrassed and ashamed. "Oh no."

"That's the least of your problems. Let's talk about the fact that consent is key, and you chose to ignore that. You can't just go around kissing people. What's wrong with you?"

"Alright. Man, I get it." Jacob grumbled, not lifting his head. "I messed up."

"Yeah." Embry chirped. "You violated something he made very clear, and you took advantage of his emotional state too."

Jacob cringed at that particular choice of wording, jerking his head up to look over at his pack brother. "Words, like violated and taking advantage, sounds a bit harsh, don't you think?"

"No. It sounds about right." Embry said flatly. "You used his weakened emotional state to swoop in and stake some sort of claim." Jacob opened his mouth to defend his actions, but Embry was having none of it. "Before you say, 'he didn't say no, or he didn't stop me.' It's still wrong. If he didn't say you could kiss him or give you any signal to do so, you did not have his consent."

"Okay, I get that, but what do you mean about his emotional state? After he cried, he seemed fine."

"Dude, you just told me that he broke down in front of you. Say he didn't have an emotional breakdown in front of you. Do you still think you would have been able to kiss him? What made you think that kissing him at that moment could be okay?"

"I mean— we were—," Jacob floundered for the right words that didn't make him look like a complete asshole, but it was slim pickings. "I opened up to him about my dad and about pack stuff—and I just—I thought we connected."

"So, despite him having an emotional breakdown, you decided that it was okay to dump all of your stuff on him too?"

"What?! No—I just—he had finished crying, and then he was leaving, and I didn't want him to go."

"So then after you dumped all your shit on him, you kissed him because you didn't want him to leave?"

"No––," Jacob grounded out, anger creeping upon him. He turned away from his pack brother, hands clenched into fists. "Look, after Harrison broke down, I could tell he was feeling embarrassed about it. So, I opened up to him to show him that he didn't have to be embarrassed. Y'know, to connect with him."

"I still don't know where you saw it was okay to kiss him, Jake."

Jacob turned back towards Embry, his expression horrified. The anger drained from his body, and he scrubbed a hand down his face. "I'm a terrible person."

"Nah, dude. You were just thinking with your dick instead of your brain."

"Embry," Jacob groaned. "I––I really like him."

"Well, that sounds like a personal problem." Embry placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "It's better to have him as a friend than as nothing at all. He told you that he wasn't ready for a relationship, and you told him that you understood that. So now how is he supposed to feel comfortable around you knowing that you don't want to be just his friend?"

"What do you mean?" Jacob asked, genuinely confused. "I still wanna be his friend. I already told him that nothing has to change. "

"You see, Jake, everything already has changed. That's the thing about crossing boundaries; once they are crossed, there's no going back."

Jacob's silence was enough of an answer.

"Actions have consequences. You have to realize that."

Jacob couldn't even imagine what Harrison was probably thinking of him. What he was feeling. Hell, if Harrison decided to give him the silent treatment, Jacob knew he deserved it. He deserved much worse. He'll give it a couple of days before reaching out again. It would give him some time to formulate the perfect apology to express just how sorry he was for crossing a line Harrison made clear.

"Fuck," Jacob grumbled. "Man, how do you know so much about this stuff?"

"You're not the only one who's been to therapy."

Oh yeah, Embry's got issues too. He almost forgot.

Embry was quick to get them back on topic. Prompting Jake with a crucial question. "So, what's your next move?"

"I dunno," Jacob ran a hand through his hair, visibly distressed. "It's a work in progress."

Jake didn't want to mess everything up even more. Or fuck up anything to the point of no return. That would crush him. Jacob meant every single word he said to Harrison too. When Jacob first saw him on the beach that day. He knew he was different; he just didn't know in what way. Jacob was attracted to him right from the beginning; that's why he flirted so heavily.

There was a long pause of silence until Jacob realized he had to be the one to break it. "Thanks, man," he said, hoping he could convey just how grateful he was with only a look.

Embry shrugged, nonchalant as always. "Thanks for the food."

"Oh, you're welcome."

"So, you know how I'm the greatest best friend ever and how you would probably be lost without me?"

Jacob knew where this was going and peered at Embry from the corner of his eye suspiciously. "What do you want?"

Embry gave him a cheeky grin, ready to voice his demands. "I need to borrow your car tomorrow."

"What for?"

Jacob was there to witness the color rise to his best friend's cheeks as he smiled almost shyly and said, "I've got a date."


So, there you have it. It was a lot of Andrew in this chapter, but that's only because his point of view dwindles as we move forward and because he was a factor in Edward's plan. And now that we're in the double digits, the homewrecking will soon commence, and there will be actual magic as well. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I promise it won't take another year for the next update lol.