...who you are is falling over me...
Exhausted from my day of traveling, I slept peacefully for a few hours. It was all I usually banked in a night, even before the nightmares and death of my parents. It was early, nearing five, and I stood, stretching. I wondered vaguely if the absence of the usual dreams was significant because I'd seen other ones, other vampires, and they hadn't jumped at the opportunity to rip the throats out of any humans.
This was a lie, though. I knew inside that it had nothing to do with vampires in general, and everything to do with the muscular, dimpled boy in particular. He looked like he could only be a year or two older than me at the most, as did the blond boy. The girl was harder to place, because she was so tiny. The man and woman were no older than their mid-twenties, I was sure.
I wondered if I'd ever see them again. Sea-Tac was the major airport, so it could be that they were going anywhere, really. I felt a slight pang in my chest at the idea of never seeing that smile again. I pushed those thoughts out of my mind; I had other things at hand to worry about.
I sighed as I ran my hand along my sharp hip, knowing that if I lifted my shirt, my ribs would be all-too visible. It was shameful, really, and I couldn't wait to start gaining weight again. I'd been a competitive cross-country runner since I was thirteen, and I'd certainly been no stranger to strength training and high calorie diets. Visible bones meant weakness, frailty, and I hated being those things. I vowed to eat second helpings at every meal I could and I was going to start that very day to get back into some semblance of a running routine. I yearned for the blood pumping in my ears, for the strain of my feet against hills and dirt and concrete, for the clean, fresh pines towering above me. It'd been far too long since I'd felt that kind of peaceful.
I grabbed a pair of sweats and my beloved ipod, then headed to the kitchen for a power breakfast.
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Emmett POV
My sister was dead. It hadn't taken long for her to crack under my interrogation on the way back to Forks, and she'd pretty much spilled the beans on the visions she'd had of this girl and me. I guess I was just too shocked that there was even a chance of another girl in my life. Don't get me wrong, I'd been with plenty as a human, but as a vampire my world had been all about Rose. And Alice's visions weren't exactly G-rated, if you know what I mean, so it wasn't as if this girl and I were just going to be chums, or that I'd think of her that I did Alice and Esme. So a chance of something after Rose was almost unheard of, at least to me.
That was painful in ways I'd never experienced, and that just sucked. But I was dealing. I knew what Rose wanted more than anything-more than me, obviously-was a kid. So she'd gone to run around the world looking for one. I loved her enough that I wanted her to just be happy, and if I wasn't cutting it anymore, well, more power to her, or that's how I tried to look at it anyway.
No matter what, I still had my family. Rose couldn't change that, and though in the beginning I felt like there was definitely something missing, a hole somewhere inside of me maybe, time was easing that. I guess knowing you had the support of those around you could pretty much get you through anything.
I didn't want to think that seeing that startled, knowing gaze of the girl at the airport had anything to do with making life easier to face.
What I didn't want to do didn't matter. Nothing else but her seemed to right now.
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Esme POV
I didn't pretend to know what was going on in Rosalie's mind. I'd felt the same yearnings for my own children that she did, but I'd been able to find happiness with Carlisle, with my surrogate sons and daughters. I'd love her the same, of course, but I didn't know that I'd ever be able to forgive her for hurting Emmett the way she had.
In the beginning, she had called nearly every day to check in. That soon turned to every other day, then every few weeks, and so continuing until it'd been nearly three months since any of us had heard from her. Alice had tried to glimpse Rosalie's future, but she'd given up ages ago, mostly out of contempt and anger.
"If she doesn't want us, then we don't want her, either." Alice had sniffed, trying to cover her hurt feelings with indifference. Jasper shot her a small smile, knowing that he wasn't the only one in the room who sensed this.
But I tried to carry on as normally as I could. It might be that Rosalie would return to us, someday. For my family, time was immaterial. And I still had the rest of my children, and my husband, my other half. It certainly could have been a lot worse.
I suppose the worst part was that I harbored an enormous amount of guilt, wishing that there could be someone out there, human or vampire, for my loud, sweet, raucous son that would appreciate and need only him.
oooo
Maureen was very sweet, and though I had never, before now, experienced this first-hand, my mother had always said so of her half sister. It was this trait, perhaps, that had caused her to shoulder her way through two difficult marriages, the second one ending only a short time after Angela was born. Maureen was single now, and seemed cheerful enough to work at the one salon in town. She hadn't said much about her past on the way home from Seattle, and I hadn't pushed her. I had too much experience trying to keep people in blissful ignorance, and I knew when to keep my mouth shut. If she wanted to tell me, then she would, and that was pretty much what I told inquisitive people about myself.
Per my aunt's instruction, I tried to make myself feel as at home as I could, and started with what used to be my standard breakfast; two over easy eggs, two slices of whole grain toast smothered with jam and a tall protein shake. I found everything but the protein mix, deciding I'd have to venture into town later that day. If there was thing runners lived by, it was routine, and any break in the cycle, which hadn't failed me or my competitions for years, could be a huge step backward, especially when training, like I deemed myself to be.
After eating I rinsed my dishes and put them in the dishwasher, wiping the counters and stove down before jotting a note to Maureen and Angela about a jog around the neighborhood. Honestly Forks wasn't that large, and it was almost impossible to get lost here, but I figured I'd better stick close by and get a feel of things before I ventured any farther. I was quiet keen to go into the woods, where Angela had mentioned bike paths and hiking trails, both of which were a cross-country runner's dream.
I stretched quickly, anxious for the familiar feel of my feet against ground, for the out-of-breath satisfaction that came with each passing stride. I pulled up my old workout play list on my ipod, hearing the heavy metal and deep bass of my favorite Godsmack song. I counted along with the beats in the first verse, and then I was blissfully off.
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Emmett POV
I couldn't get that girl out of my head. I hadn't even said anything to her, and I didn't even know her name. But you know how it is, the second you decide to not think about something, BAM there it is, pounding against your skull. I didn't know what it was about her that drew me in. She wasn't pretty - okay, screw that. She was pretty, very much so, but not in your usual, 36-24-36, blonde-hair-to-her-waist kind of way.
In other words, not like Rose.
She was something different, something else entirely, and I found myself curious about her. What had made her so lonely? Where was her family, anyway? What state did she move from? What bugged me most of all was that I was sure, in the instant that our eyes had met, she knew exactly what I was, and what my family was. And she hadn't run screaming into the night, hadn't cringed away from our presence like any other human would.
Personally, I loved being a vampire. It was kick ass on levels you couldn't even wet dream about, and I'd never once regretted Rose's decision to have Carlisle turn me. I'd never had to wonder about the walls that were naturally there between myself and human girls, because I'd never cared to look at one close enough until now. Rose had been my everything, the only knowledge of partnership in this immortal world I had. It wasn't until she'd left that I realized there was so much to do, so much to experience in the human world I hadn't been a part of for decades. And she wasn't the only important thing to me anymore. So if anything, I guess I was a little grateful to her for that.
And holy shit, did that girl smell amazing. Vampires smell like just what they are to other vampires-alive, but not living, their scents cold and like that of the world they surrounded themselves in. Sometimes they smelled like blood, if they'd recently fed, or they smelled like dirt and sap, if they'd been traveling in the woods, trying to avoid detection until they were ready to hunt for humans.
But her...she smelled like peeled oranges and freshly cut cedar, and it left my mouth watering. Of course there was the animal inside of me who wanted nothing more than to rip at her throat, at her wrists, drain every drop of blood from her body, but on top of that was a guy who'd just sniffed the hair of the girl he not only wanted to get lucky with, but happened to care deeply about.
Which was retarded because I didn't even know her. How could you love somebody you'd never even said two words to?
"It happens." Alice had said with a wink, as Jasper draped his arm over her shoulder. She was right, I guess. She'd been having visions of Jasper years before they'd met, and she'd loved him with every ounce of her tiny being before the day she'd found him. So it wasn't impossible, obviously.
I'd never let anything stop me from being the straight forward, go get em guy I'd always been. So I decided after I hunted the next day, I'd see what this girl was all about.
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The sleeping pills I'd been prescribed months ago were not helping. I slept off and on, fitful bursts of unconsciousness that my nightmares crept into. I did manage one decent dream, though I wasn't sure I should view it as such. Surely it was another sign that I was losing any sanity I had left.
I woke up with a deep gasp, my body sheened in sweat. I'd seen her again, of course. Her feral eyes, crimson, lips dripping with blood, hands enclosed around my mother...I shuddered, my breathing increasing. I needed to do something, to get out. It was much too hot in here, I needed to sit outside or take a cold shower or-
I must've fallen back asleep, because I felt, then, two strong, cool arms enclose me, and this surely could only happen in the fantasy-like realms of a dream. I knew immediately, instinctively, who it was. With just his nearness, I felt more relaxed. I inhaled, the most amazing scent filling the air. He smelled like the forest, like pine trees and rain and it was so...zen, really. I eased into him, the curve of my body fitting perfectly against his. I felt his breath at the top of my head, and I reached out, grasping his hands. Their coldness saturated me, and I reveled in the feeling.
"It's okay," He said, his voice deep and low and it had a strong calming effect on me. My skin tingled at the sound of it. This was really pathetic. I'd only seen him once, never spoken to him, never introduced myself, and yet here I was, all-but obsessed with him. I doubted if he even, in real life, lived anywhere near here.
"I don't...I'm sorry. I don't even know your name." I whispered.
He chuckled, a pleasant rumbling sound that reverberated through our bodies. "Emmett."
His hand was pushing its way, gently, under my shirt, down my back...this time, I shuddered in pleasure. I heard him swallow deeply, then he continued to move his hand down my side, grasping gently at my protruding hip. He made a noise in the back of his throat of slight disappointment.
I sighed sleepily, my breathing becoming steady and even as I began to drift off. "I know, I look like a refugee..."
He chuckled again. "And he's supposed to be the only one who can read minds." He muttered.
"Emmett." I murmured, enjoying the way his name sounded on my tongue, and then his lips were at the back of my neck, and even though I knew it was most certainly not a good idea for this dream to continue-after all, vampire's hardly left human necks unscathed, especially in my dreams-my desperation for this man outweighed anything else, and I felt his lips, icy at first then slightly warm, kiss my tender skin.
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