CW - Mention of sexual assault

She could hear a feminine scream, a blood curdling noise in the distance. The room was pitch black, but she knew she had to help this girl, whoever she was. She began running.

"Alaina," a voice echoed in the distance, startling her. She picked up her pace and ran even faster towards the screaming, which was growing in intensity.

She couldn't make out where she was or why she was running, with only shadows passing by her.

"Alaina," the voice whispered again, more urgently this time. Hearing the voice confused her even more. She started sprinting towards the screaming girl once again, but also away from the voice. She finally reached the source of the noise; a lifeless body now lay on the ground, covered with bright red blood. She wildly looked around to see what happened, and the only thing she could see were two bright red eyes staring dangerously at her.

"Alaina!"

Her eyes fluttered open and she could feel herself gasping for breath. The kind eyes of her father were filled with worry as he looked down at his daughter. "Sweetheart, I think you were having a nightmare," he said cautiously. "It was just a dream."

Alaina tried to calm her breathing and her heart rate down. She sat up in her bed and realized she was sweating, her sheets soaked with her perspiration. "Just a dream," she repeated, but didn't quite believe it. It felt so real. It looked so real. And she couldn't shake the feeling that she recognized that body that was covered with blood.

"It's time to get up, Alaina," her dad said, standing up from her bed and turning all of her bedroom lights on. Her eyes fluttered from the bright lights. Instead of leaving the room to allow her time to get ready, he sat back down on the bed next to her and looked at her seriously.

"Bella isn't coming," he said sadly, watching his daughter for a reaction. Alaina sat there frozen.

"Wait, what? What do you mean she isn't coming? She already has her plane ticket!"

"Your mother called Charlie this morning to see if Bella needed a ride to the airport, and Charlie said she is driving to Arizona."

Alaina's eyes shot open. "To Arizona? And she left last night? In her truck?" This didn't seem right to Alaina but the memory of yesterday immediately flooded her mind. She knew something was wrong. "Did Charlie say why Bella was going to Arizona?" Alaina tried to keep her voice level, but she was feeling more paranoid by the second.

"Charlie told us that Bella broke up with Edward and she wanted to go home to her mom, the poor thing."

Alaina quietly scoffed. There is no way Bella would have broken up with Edward. She knew at once that Bella was lying; something big must have happened for her to cover up with such a ridiculous lie. Even though she knew there was a reason for her to miss going back home with Alaina, she couldn't help but feel incredibly hurt. Tears began welling in her eyes as she searched for something to say to her dad.

"I know." Sensing her emotions, he dad gently squeezed her shoulder for comfort. "Try to be downstairs in ten minutes. Breakfast is on the table and we needed to get going." He stood up and left Alaina in her room, alone with her thoughts that were now spiraling out of control.

She threw off her blankets and reached for her phone. Her heart sank when she saw that she had no missed calls or texts. She quickly pulled up Bella's number and shot off a test:

Bella for the love of God, please tell me what's going on. I know you didn't break up with Edward. Text me as soon as you get this.

Alaina felt numb as she was getting ready, anxiety pulsing through her body. Putting on the outfit she layed out for herself last night, she felt herself fumble with the buttons on her jeans. Her hands her shaking with nerves and she didn't know if it was due to the radio silence of her friends or the fact that she was going back to the hometown that hurt her so much.

She floated downstairs, barely even registering what was happening. Her parents tried to make small talk at the breakfast table to try to give the day some sort of normalcy, but Alaina was staring off in the distance. She no longer remembered what it felt like to feel "normal," the stress of the future causing her heart to race.

Before she knew it, she was sitting in the back seat of her parents car as they drove to the local airport. She watched the lush green forests out of the window, condensation on the window from her breath. She was taken back to her very first day of school in Forks; she sat in the front near the driver, her forehead against the cool glass of the bus, trying to steady her breath and not let her carsickness get the best of her.

She wanted to laugh at how strange her life had become. Having Bella as a friend was the best thing that could have happened to her. She was smart, loyal, and was always there for her when she needed her to be. Except today, Alaina thought bitterly, absentmindedly checking her phone, already knowing there would be no notifications.

And then there were the Cullens. Although she wasn't as close to them as she was to Bella, they all had a bond that she could deny. Even though she knew in her bones that Edward only cared about Alaina because of Bella, she knew that he would do anything to protect her. Alice, although she was closer to Bella as well, she loved the pixie like girl with her positive attitude and sense of humor. Their parents, Carlise and Esme, were constant sources of support for her.

Alaina always looked forward to seeing the stoic Jasper in English class, gladly accepting his emotional manipulation and his small smirks when she said something clever in class or sassy to Jessica. She knew how hard it was for him to be around humans, but she could tell he tried a little extra hard to be around her. And then Rosalie, with her beautiful face and spicy personality, gave her hints that she respected her, although she never would know if they would actually be close. It was unfortunate that they had to bond over something so terrible, but she was glad to have her by her side.

And then there was Emmett. Emmett. The boy that she loved and would die for. Even thinking that thought scared her; she didn't realize how real their relationship was until that thought. She shuddered and quickly shoved him out of her mind. It hurt too much to think about him and she had more important things to worry about… or so she told herself.

She could feel the car shifting into park. WIthout saying any words to each other, they all left the car and walked in silence to the airport. They quickly made it through security and walked towards their gate, the weight of the world on their shoulders.

"Mom," she said as they found seats near their gate. "I'm going to walk around if you don't mind. I need to be by myself for a minute."

Her mom nodded in understanding as she walked away from the gate. She wandered around the small airport, the sweet smell of roasted almonds filling her nose. She watched the people walking aimlessly around, just like her, either trying to stumble upon their gate or avoiding the inevitable. After a few minutes she walked back to her parents, put her headphones in and tried to get a few minutes of sleep.

"Alaina, wake up," she heard, jolting her out of her sleep. Her eyes fluttered open to see her father waking her up. "Just like this morning!" He said, trying to break the tension.

"You go ahead," she said to her parents. "I'm going to put my headphones away." Her parents nodded and walked towards the attendant.

"Group three, please make your way to the gate to board the plane. Have your ticket out so we may scan it before your departure." The bored voice of the gate attendant droned over the intercom. The crowd began lurching forward towards the gate, her parents included.

Fumbling with her phone, she unlocked it and began to dial the familiar number of Emmett. She could hear her mother calling her name, desperate to board the plane. "One second, mom!" She mouthed, placing the phone up to her ear. The phone rang several times and unsurprisingly went to voicemail.

"Emmett," she said, rubbing her temples in annoyance. "This is your… this is Alaina. This is my last voicemail. I honestly don't even know if I want you to call at this point. I'm - I'm so confused. If you get this, please let me know if you're alive. And please let me know if you've heard from Bella. She never came with me. Just text me, I guess. Okay… I guess this is goodbye."

She hung up the phone and immediately placed it on airplane mode. She jogged over to her mother, who looked a little annoyed. "I'm sorry mom. I just wanted to try Emmett one last time. Let's get this over with."

Alaina and her mother, closely followed by her father, made it up to the gate. The attendant scanned their tickets and they followed the crowd of people towards the door of the plane. They boarded the plane, found their seats, and placed their suitcases in the overhead compartment. Alaina took the window seat, with her mother sitting beside her in the middle and her father sitting closest to the aisle.

The plane took off a few moments later, and Alaina closed her eyes. She let her mind wander as the plane bounce in and out of turbulence. Several hours passed, and her mind was overwhelmed with worry, unsurprisingly. A voice on the intercom shook her out of her thoughts.

"Thank you for choosing Delta! We are about 15 minutes out from your destination. The local time is 2:31 PM and the weather is partly sunny at 74 degrees fahrenheit. If this is your final destination, welcome home."

Alaina placed her forehead on the window. The cool temperature caused shivers to run up and down her spine. She watched the abundance of gorgeous foliage and fauna underneath her as the plane solely descended towards the tarmac of the Detroit Metropolitan Airport. The wheels of the plane caused her seat to shake as they came out from the floor, and soon thereafter, the plane skidded down the runway, losing speed as they landed. Her mother grabbed her hand and gave it a small squeeze.

The reality of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks. The moments with Bella and her boyfriend, Emmett, seemed all like silly, young problems. Alaina was about to face the biggest moment of her life; she was about to go up in court and face the person who sexually assaulted her. Everything back in Forks seemed so far away, and when she checked her phone, she felt nothing when she saw no missed calls and no new voicemails. Turning her phone off, she stood up from her seat, grabber her suitcase, and and began walking down the aisle of the small plane. Reaching the door, the stewardess politely wished her a good day. Alaina sighed, resolved. She felt powerful, in a way, not shying away from the pain that was going to inflict her over the next few days. She was going to do this; there was no turning back now. At that moment, Alaina knew her life would never be the same.