Have you guys read Midnight Sun? I admit I haven't yet due to me moving, but it is sitting on a dresser just tempting me to open it and boy am I tempted.

Disclaimer: As I forgot to mention it earlier, I don't own these characters nor the show that inspired this story, but the words are all my own.

CHAPTER TWO

Marie watched as the face that mirrored hers turn alarmingly grey, which was a bit concerning considering how they shared the same porcelain toned skin. She kept her eyes on the road as the woman continued to gasp and figured that her heart was probably pounding just as fast as hers was.

"What is this? My face…you…you have my face." Bella babbled breathlessly.

"And you have mine. I know this must be freaking you out." Marie tried to reassure, briefly glancing at Ness in the rearview mirror to see that she was still asleep despite the woman's current freak out.

"Freaking out cannot describe how I feel right now. Why do you look like me?" Bella continued to pant and seemed to be on the brink of hyperventilating. Marie tried to calm her down but she seemed to be beyond listening at the moment.

"God, I have to get out of here." Bella continued, trying to take off her seatbelt. Marie hit the lock, which seemed to make her freak out even more.

"Can you please keep it down? My daughter is asleep in the back." Marie quietly chastised, earning her an incredulous glare, but Bella lowered her voice.

"Are you serious right now? Excuse me for freaking out when I'm basically being kidnapped by a stranger." Bella gasped out.

"Last time I checked, you willingly got into my car. And as we both can see, we aren't that strange to one another." Marie said pointedly, rolling her eyes as she focused on the road.

"Look, just because you have my face does not make us that familiar." Bella snarled.

"Please calm down." Marie pushed.

"No, you do not get to tell me to calm down. Do you not realize how strange this is?" Bella panted, her face turning a bright shade of red.

Marie sighed and slowed the car down, pulling off to the side of the road and turning off the ignition. She briefly worried about oncoming traffic but realized no one in their right mind would be on this road at this hour…well besides them.

Marie unlocked the doors and rested her hands on the steering wheel, waiting for her to say something. After a few moments of silence, Marie leaned over and opened the door for her to get out.

"Here's your out. You're free to leave." She pushed in a quiet tone. Marie wanted to say so much more; that it was ultimately fate that brought the pair together, but she knew now was not the time. Those secrets were meant to stay her own…for now.

Bella stared back and they both looked at each other in silence; brown meeting brown.

"Come on, if you're going to get out then please hurry up. I'd like to get home before my daughter wakes up."

"We're in the middle of nowhere," Bella added quietly.

"Weren't you just walking down this road alone? Running away from whatever it was in that town? If you want to go back to that, then be my guest." Marie griped. Bella said nothing but slowly loosened her grip on the door handle and slouched back down in the seat.

"Are you getting out or not?" Marie asked, but Bella just shook her head.

"No. I guess not." Bella pulled the door closed.

"See that wasn't hard, now was it?" Marie asked turning back on the ignition. Bella began scrubbing her face with her hands.

"Look as disturbing as this is, and trust me this is disturbing. I rather momentarily deal with this than go back. I really am grateful for the ride. Can you please just drop me off at the bus station and I'll be out of your hair." She pleaded. "This is too much for me right now."

Marie let out a deep breath, knowing that this woman wanted to get far away from her instead of bearing some of the burdens of the secrets Marie knew. Shaking her head, Marie looked over at the woman who was a reflection of her.

"Done. I'll drop you off at the bus station." Marie replied dejectedly.

"Thank you."

"Well at least if we're going to be riding together, we can at least introduce ourselves." Marie greeted reaching out a hand.

"Marie Higginbotham. That's my daughter Vanessa". She introduced, gesturing to the back seat. Bella grabbed her hand with a gentleness she wasn't expecting.

"Isabella Swan."

"Isabella? That's a pretty name." Marie smiled pulling back onto the road.

"I prefer Bella." She replied. Marie tried to make small talk but Bella seemed hesitant to talk, preferring to look out the window instead. After a while, Marie gave up, preferring the sound of the soft rain on the windshield to ease her racing thoughts. After a few minutes of silence, Bella whispered.

"How do you know I was running?" She asked quietly as Marie kept her eyes on the road. Marie pondered her words for a moment and figured a little honesty would be welcome instead of the lies she normally told.

"The fear in your eyes. It's a look I know a little too well and looking back at my own experiences, wished someone would have done the same for me if I were ever in your situation." Marie admitted darkly and albeit vaguely.

Bella said nothing but seemed to relax more; her posture less tense than before. Marie at first feared she had scared her off with her answer but the small smile Bella offered her, gave Marie the impression that maybe they were more alike than just in appearance alone.

...

They drove for several minutes, making good time when a small light on the dashboard illuminated the darkness, causing Marie to let out a curse under her breath. She growled as she eyed the gas meter signaling that she was close to E and needed to stop soon if they were to make it to their destination. Bella looked at her in confusion as Marie pointed to the dashboard.

"Stupid car. It cost me an arm and a leg to get and it just guzzles gas. I literally just filled it up." Marie sighed. Letting out another curse under her breath, Marie types something into the car's gps and begins to take a detour down a side road, causing Bella to become extremely fidgety.

"This isn't the way to the bus station. Why are we going this way?" Bella asked loudly, causing Ness to let out a soft whimper that signaled she was close to waking up. Less than a minute later, those soft whimpers turned into cries as Vanessa woke up.

"First, thanks for waking my daughter up. That's just perfect." She replied sarcastically. And second, why are you so jumpy? I need to get gas and my gps says there a gas station nearby."

"Do you have to go to that one? You can't go to one a little further out?" Bella questioned. She seemed to be biting her nails in nervousness.

"Not unless you want us both stranded out here. Is there a problem?" Marie asked. Bella shook her head. She needed to calm down before Marie became suspicious of her behavior.

"No. I'm sorry. I'm just a bit jittery, that's all. Getting gas there is fine." Bella replied quietly but Marie could tell that she was still a bit frazzled.

The silence between them continued, only interrupted by Ness' soft whimpers of "Out, mommy, out". Ten minutes later, Marie pulled into the parking lot of a gas station that had seen better days. The oddly large lot was empty save for the lone car she figured belonged to the employee inside.

Marie pulled alongside one of the gas pumps and fought the urge to scream when she saw there wasn't a card reader. Was this town really that archaic?

"Out mommy out"! Ness continued to babble. Marie sighed knowing she'd have to go inside and figured it would be fine to pull her out momentarily. Marie got out and pulled Ness from her car seat, briefly wrinkling her nose at the smelly gift Ness had left in her diaper.

Kissing her baby's cheek, Marie grabbed her diaper bag and stood. She turned to look at Bella, not realizing she has gotten out as well and was once again fidgeting around nervously.

"Again, are you okay?" Bella nodded her head.

"Look I have to go inside and pay for the pump and change her diaper." She gestured to Ness who was eyeing them both confusedly.

Bella smiles wryly at the both of them and nods her head.

"Yeah, that's fine. In fact, I'll pump for you while you're inside."

"You don't have to do that." Marie assured, but Bella shrugged her shoulders.

"It's fine. The sooner we get out of here the better." She replied, brushing a finger against Ness' cheek causing her to giggle.

Marie gave a passing glance at Bella noticing the brief but pained look in her eyes and hiked Vanessa higher up on her hip. Bella turned towards the pump without another word and Marie headed inside the gas station.

She gave the teenage cashier a sheepish glance as she made a beeline towards the restroom. Marie attempted to quickly change Ness's dirty diaper but her baby girl was a big ball of energy, making the ordeal longer than necessary.

Once she had calmed down, Marie changed her and sat her on the changing table as she quickly finished her own business. Picking Ness back up, Marie smiles at the faint sleep lines on her baby girl's face and kissed her chubby cheek.

God she wished she could be a better person for her daughter.

Giving her one more kiss on her neck that made her squeal into giggles, they headed out the bathroom. Ness suddenly babbled out that she was hungry, so Marie began picking up a few snacks. She grabbed a few cans of sodas, a bag of chips for Bella and her to share, and then a juice box and a travel-sized cup of cheerios for Ness. It wasn't the most ideal snack for her to consume given the hour, but she couldn't be picky. Marie had to keep her occupied so that she and Bella could talk.

As she headed to the register she tried to see if Bella was doing okay, but a large lumber truck obscured her view with a man leaning against its side smoking a cigarette.

Marie turned back to the cashier who now seemed to be a little too preoccupied talking to a scantily clad older woman who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. The two seemed to be immersed in a very inappropriate conversation so Marie cleared her throat loudly, taking a step back when she noticed the pimply-faced teen's lingering glance on her own body and the irritated sneer from the woman.

The cashier slowly rang up her items as she asked for gas on the pump. He continued to leer at her while the woman appeared annoyed at being interrupted. Pulling Ness close, when he finally told her the total, she quickly took out a twenty and threw it on the counter, not caring about her change as long as she got away from his impending gaze.

Grabbing her stuff, Marie headed out the door and towards the car but was met with nothing but empty space of where her car should have been.

Maybe Bella had difficulty at the pump and pulled the car forward for her. Marie put Ness down, grabbing her hand and looked around the vacant lot but Bella and her car were nowhere to be found.

"That bitch stole my car!" Were the first words that fell through her lips as she continued looking around the gas station.

This couldn't be happening.

This had to be a joke.

She was so fucking stupid.

Despite their resemblance and the brief commonality shared between them earlier in the car, Marie shouldn't have been so trusting to leave a stranger with her car. Fuck! She'd even left her phone and purse in the car with her.

Now she and her daughter were stranded at a gas station that resembled something out of a horror movie.

Fighting the building tears in her eyes, Marie picked Ness back up and turned around and headed back towards the gas station in hopes of using a phone.

Maybe if she were lucky, she could call her partner to come pick her up...that is if he weren't still angry at her about the numerous lies she'd told him and the pending investigation surrounding them both.

Hell, if she weren't such a bitch all the time to her neighbor Alice then maybe she could have called her.

Shit, maybe she could call a cab, but who knew how long that could take?

Marie in her angry haste, stopped in her tracks as the truck driver who was once leaning against its side was now smirking creepily at her.

"How are you doing tonight?" He said in a gruff voice. Marie spared him a quick glance, noticing his tall sinewy frame and graying ponytail. He stubbed out his cigarette with his boot-clad foot and smiled at her, revealing tobacco-stained teeth. Marie ignored him and clutched Vanessa tighter.

She continued to walk towards the door that now seemed to be a mile away but he got in her way.

"Hey! I know you hear me talking to you! No need to be rude. I just want to talk." The man seemed to be walking towards her.

Marie was practically running now; Vanessa's whimpers loud in her ear at the tenseness of the situation. Marie pushed with all her strength against the door but was met with resistance when she noticed that the door was now locked.

Marie grimaced as she noticed the pimply-faced cashier from earlier with his back turned, the woman from earlier now on her knees in front of him. That perverted bastard.

Marie knocked again but the bastard didn't move, too involved in his own ecstasy to get a glimpse of the situation occurring right outside the door.

Marie turned back around to face the man. She wasn't going to go down without a fight and she wished she had her mace or even her gun on her. The man stood a few feet from her with his hands in the air and a coy smile on his face.

"Relax. I just wanted to talk to you." Ugh, his voice made her skin crawl.

"Well, I don't want to talk to you." Marie loudly admonished.

"Wow, you're being pretty rude to an old friend".

"Friend? I have no clue who you are so leave me alone."

"It's me Waylon. I know your boyfriend Paul. Don't you remember me Bella?" He grinned again, taking a step closer.

Shit, he thought she was Bella.

"You have the wrong person. I'm not Bella."

"Well you sure do look like her although I'm not sure when you popped out a kid." Another step.

"I told you I'm not her, now leave me alone."

"Okay, 'not Bella'. Be sure to tell that 'not boyfriend' of yours he still owes me money. I'm not transporting all his shit for free." Waylon's smile became menacing as he licked his lips, taking the few remaining steps to get near her. Marie pressed Ness's head against her shoulder as he approached. She could smell the pungent sweat and alcohol on his skin and fought the urge not to vomit.

"In fact, I might just lower his debt, if you come take a 'trip' with me to the back of my truck. That spiny bitch Lauren isn't good for nothing. Besides, Paul did mention that pretty mouth of yours. We can leave the kid in the front seat. I'll even lock the doors." he taunted.

Marie was sick at the insinuation of his words. What kind of stuff was Bella into?

Waylon reaches out a hand to touch her and before Marie knew it, she had swung the bag in her hand as hard as she could against his groin. Waylon buckled to his knees and stepped around him in the opposite direction.

"You dumb bitch. I'll get you!" He shrieked. Somehow recovering quickly, he blindly grabbed out towards her; catching the edge of the diaper bag. He nearly pulled them both down when headlights suddenly blinded them both.

Marie barely managed to let out a scream, as the telltale sound of wheels screeching against the pavement echoed loudly. Her car suddenly came into view, causing them both to stagger back.

She watched as the door opened and Bella screamed at them both to get in. Marie looked at her dumbly still clutching Vanessa as Waylon continued his wailing. She stumbled to her feet, running towards the door, Waylon still hot on her tail.

Marie practically jumped in, screaming as Waylon appeared in front of them, pounding on the hood of the car. Bella and Marie screamed as he hit the side mirror causing it to fall off. Vanessa was hysterically crying as he tried to open the door.

"You stupid bitch, I'll kill you!" Bella suddenly reversed causing him to stumble some more but he continued to come towards the car. Yelling at them both to put on a seatbelt, Bella put the car into drive and hit the gas.

Surging forward, Waylon had no time to move as she clipped him, hearing a loud thump as he hit the windshield and fell to the ground clutching his leg. Bella didn't spare him a second glance as she continued forward, making wild turns onto the road. Vanessa continued to cry as Marie tried to console her. Marie looked accusingly at Bella whose hands were so tight on the wheel; her fingers were white.

"Stop the car now!" She demanded.

"I can't, I will soon, but not right now." Bella checked the rearview mirror anxiously; suddenly expecting red and blue lights to come flashing their way.

"My daughter..." Marie breathed clutching her tightly. Bella looked over at Vanessa whose cries were now soft whimpers and her expression softened. She felt her own eyes well with tears.

"Please just hold her for a little bit longer. I promise to let you kick me out? Scream at me, whatever. Hell, maybe even call the cops, but I just need to get far away from this town."

"And why should I do that? That man almost killed us all. And you stole my car!" Marie gasped, rocking slightly in her seat.

"I promise it's not what it looked like." Bella apologized. Marie gave her a skeptical look.

"Then what was it?" Bella let out a shaky breath.

"Please just give me a moment. Let us get away from here please." Marie suddenly noticing how unstable Bella had become relented, putting the safety of her daughter first.

"Fine, but I don't understand how far you expect us to get, with little to no gas, and a cracked windshield," Marie added.

Fuck, she was right. They'd be lucky if they made it another mile and that was on hope, faith, and a prayer.

Bella was at a loss for a second about what to do next. Her plans of leaving were now diminished by this damaged car.

Ignoring Marie's agitated glare, Bella turned down another side road towards the only person who could help her at a time like this.

Emmett McCarty.

Thoughts? Leave it in a Review!

Why do you think Bella left? Any guesses?

I also made a banner for this story, which took a ridiculous amount of time to make, but I won't post it yet as to avoid spoilers as it reveals the big plot unless you guys have already figured it out lol.

This will be a BxE centric story but he won't be making an appearance for several chapters so just stay with me.

Need something to read? Check out any story from iambeagle whose stories I've obsessively read through over the past three days. (The Cellar, Kiss Me you Idiot, and Don't Delete the Kisses). Amazing writer!

Xoxo Sylvia Cullen