I don't own Twilight

He approached as I sat in the corner of my booth counting the days takings. After paying the stall fee and buying a way over priced lunch (with discount) I'd made a months taking. As he browsed I made a mental note to exhibit more conventions. The popular rise in Steampunk had boosted my online revenue by half causing me to upgrade from my dad's tool shed to an actual workshop around the corner. He'd even painted Rebel in Rubies on a sign above the door but I'd taken it down this morning and brought it with me. I added another mental note; get dad to make another.
"Do these actually work?" The depth of his voice was surprising compared to the scrawny teenager before me. The suffocating jeans, band t-shirt and red streaked long black hair that screamed emo matched most of today's attendees. Green eyes and a crooked nose peaked out of the shadow from a top hat a size too big. One of my necklaces dangled from his gauntlet covered hand. The piece came from my vampire wards collection. Amethyst and silver marbled together in the shape of a stake. I held and identical one away from my neck so he could see.

"Never been bitten once." I laughed allowing it to fall back against my chest. Although he said nothing I saw a smile ghost his lips "They're three for two if you'd like to test it. you have to promise to let me know if it works though."
"Oh I will." He promised passionately handing me a selection on my jewellery. I wrapped them in bubblewrap and popped them into a brown paper bag I'd had my logo printed on.
"Can I take your name? All the items come with a three month guarantee." Not that I'd had any returned so far. In the early days many had broken but I put that down to my skills more than quality. Jewellery and creativity hadn't always been my thing. Instead it had became an outlet for my grief and now my income.
"Lenard Dade." Scribbling his name down I counted his change and passed the top copy back.
"If anything goes wrong pop it in the post. My name and address is on the left hand side of the receipt. Just make it clear if you want a replacement or refund." Lenard studied the paper wordlessly as I held the bag and his change out to him. They hung in the air for a few moments before he seemed to snap out of the daze he was in. He smiled politely before leaving, tucking the paper delicately into his cloak pocket looking back at me once. Slightly weirded out I took that as my time to pack up.

On the way I home I deposited the cash at the bank before heading to Aldi. As I parked, cold suddenly seeped into my bones and I felt as if someone was watching. I turned my head sharply to look through the back window to be greeted by nothing but dark woodland. As quick as it came, the feeling left me I put it down to my last sale at the convention; that guy unnerved me. I grabbed my shopping bags and headed in but even on a Thursday night people crowded the aisles. I found myself twisting out of the path of screaming baby filled prams and shopping trolleys out of control. Clambering over bargain hunters and squeezing between people that seemed to have escaped the local zoo, I made it to the meat section in one piece.

"Hey Bella." A deep voice smiled, to my right Jacob reached for the same pork joint as me. Like the gentleman he'd always been, he dropped the joint into my basket. Most would assume him the opposite of a gentleman standing at 6 foot four in his motorcycle gear. Underneath, his muscular body pressed against the leathers making him look like a body builder but in reality he wasn't so boldly defined and that suited him "I'll take a guess that's for tomorrow night?"
"Apple sauce pulled pork." I nodded "Edward's favourite. I got the sweet potatoes fries and you some cheese too you weirdo. Who puts cheese on apple sauce"
His wide grin accentuated the lines around his dark brown eyes "You're too good to me."
"I shouldn't be encouraging your crazy habits, Edward did enough of that."
"We were a bad influence on each other, I did get him addicted to that Jamaican rum."
"I think I still have a bottle maybe we should crack that out tomorrow too." I offered. They'd grown up in an orphanage together, never leaving each others sides and solidifying their status as brothers without the blood.
"I'll bring you some coke or you'll just throw it back up." He laughed following me to the check out.

Jacob and I decided on 8 pm before going our separate ways. His car was parked on the opposite side of the lot and I almost wished he's escorted me to mine. The feeling of being watched prickled at the back of my neck again as I approached it. In front of me a chorus of voices filled the car park as shoppers headed to their own cars. Behind me the woods were silent and foreboding in contrast. I got into the car swiftly putting the bags on the passenger seat. The brief look in my mirrors as I pulled out revealed nothing.
"Stop being such a baby." I reprimanded myself heading home, luckily the feeling ebbed as I got closer.

I thanked my parents for putting the heating on timer as I rushed into the house's warmth. I stuffed the food into the small gaps between the abundance of food my mother had bought for me before they went away. On the fridge door, clipped to a picture of Edward, Alice and I, was a list emergency instructions and 'help'. I started to ponder how incapable of looking after myself she thought I was. My sister Alice had only been at college three months but she'd been bailed out several times by our parents. Despite me having seven years on her, they still felt the need to coddle me. I did however heat up the chilli she'd left for me because it was easier. Or so I told myself anyway. Like every year on the eve of Edward's anniversary, I went to bed early so I could prepare myself for the next day. Usually the air would be filled with sympathy from my family, this year I was relieved to have the house to myself. They obviously finally felt I was coping with the situation and in fact, I looked forward to celebrating Edward's life with Jacob this year. I just hoped I'd feel the same way every year from now on.