Sorry I took so late. I don't own Twilight.

"How was school?" Emily called from the kitchen the moment I walked in the door. I could hear the pack following me inside and I tried to avoid the oncoming stampede by dropping my backpack off by the front door. I scurried into the kitchen and sought out relative safety with Emily. I could hear them stomping around in the livingroom, roughhousing as they fought over who got the T.V. remote. Emily seemed unphased by the mess they were most likely creating, and she continued to flatten some dough with a rolling pin.

She was covered with a speckling of flour, her hair up in a messy bun, and she wore a lovely blue dress. Everything about her was homey and soft, and I was once again reminded of how naturally beautiful she was. I imagined that whenever Sam looked at her, he saw what I did right then. I distantly wondered if she wanted children, and I believed she would. She would be a wonderful mother too, strong and nurturing, but also soft and kind. In my mind I could see her with a dozen children running around her, causing a havoc that didn't seem to phase her. She'd look frazzled, and still completely put together.

I thought of how different she'd be from my own mother.

I shook myself mentally, getting rid of my thoughts. "It was okay," I hedged, not sure if I was supposed to complain or sugar coat anything. She shot me a look as I sat myself onto a stool, my arms leaning on the counter as my feet swung back and forth. I smiled at her and she returned to her baking.

"I need more details than that," she scolded lightly, not looking from the dough. She reached over and grabbed another handful of flour, sprinkling it over the counter and slapping another piece of dough on it.

"They made me take gym," I grumbled, and I saw her lips turn up into a smile. "I know someone in each of my classes, which is nice, and I have Paul in a majority of them." Something about my tone must have been funny, because she began to laugh lightly. It wasn't quite a giggle -her voice was too low and too smooth for that- but it sounded nice. "Its like the universe is conspiring against me!" I exclaimed in a joking, woe-is-me voice. "Oh, to be harassed daily by he and his words, how am I to survive!"

She put the pin down and turn to me, "Poor Lilly," she mocked. "First day of school and you already have an admirer."

I choked a bit on my own saliva, then let out a strangled laugh. "I don't know how you would describe Paul, but admirer is not a word I would use!" We both laughed for a minute, her slowly returning to her work as I fiddled with the hem of my sweatshirt. "But Kim is in two of my classes, and I never realized how alike we are." I thought about that for a moment, resting my head on my hand. "Mostly because Jared hogs her all the time," I pouted, much to Emily's amusement.

She made a sound of agreement, examining the plethora of cookie cutters she had in one of her drawers. "I'm glad you get along so well, I was worried about you for a while." She finally decided on one and began using it on the dough.

I frowned. She really shouldn't have to worry about me, but I supposed I was a bit flattered. I hadn't known Emily long, but I do really like her, and it makes me happy that she thinks of me, but I was also a bit upset she thought I wouldn't find friends. Not that I really had any at home, but still. I had friends here, some forced upon me by how often they are at Emily's house, but I could make a friend that isn't connected to where I live.

I thought about that for a moment. Could I really make a friend on my own? Even Kim was connected to the pact, and thus Emily and Sam. Does that mean I can't make my own friends? That thought made me sad. Yeah, I'm a bit awkward with people, and I don't like small talk, but that doesn't mean I can't make a friend. I thought about today, I didn't make an effort to get to know anyone outside of the pact and their circle, but no one outside of them made an effort either. I suppose friends don't make themselves, so it stands to reason that I would have to approach someone in order to befriend them, but it was a bit disheartening that no one else made an effort either.

In fact, no one really made an effort to get to know me.

Kim -bless her heart- asked about my relationship with Paul, and despite the fact that we spent a lot of time together today, she never asked a single personal question. I learned that she was in love with Jared for far longer than he knew she existed, I knew that she enjoyed reading, but not to the same extent as me, and that her favorite color was a brown-green. The same color as Jared's eyes. The pack joked around with me, often teasing me, but I never really got to know any of them, or they me. When I really thought about it, only two people here have ever asked about me, Emily and Paul. I scowled to myself as I thought about that, Emily I could understand, but why him?

"What's wrong now?" Emily piped up and broke me from my thoughts.

"Nothing, why would you ask?"

"You are scowling to yourself," she chastised, "Don't think I didn't notice."

I pouted at her, "In order to sit next to Kim at lunch, I have to deal with her lovey-dovey mush that always spews out when she talks to Jared." Emily laughed and dropped her concerns, returning to her baking.

I decided to brave the worst of it and get my backpack, then hopefully retreat to my room for some relaxation. I stood from my stool gracefully, rubbing my hands on my jeans as I watched Emily for a second. I smiled as I realized I was glad that I ended up with her and Sam, they are nice people and I'm sure things would've been far less fun without them. I shook my head slightly, dispelling my thoughts and wondering where all of this introspection came from.

My footsteps made little noise as I crossed from the linoleum kitchen to the carpeted living room. I heard the pack talking and I brushed it off, at least, until I heard my name.

"-Lily just needs some time," Jared said.

"What do I need time for?" I asked curiously, a bit concerned. The pask whipped their heads in my direction in unison, then turned to stare at Paul. I frowned slightly, growing concerned at their silence. "Guys?"

"Uh," Sam started, looking hilariously like a startled deer. If I wasn't so worried about why they were talking about me, I may have laughed. "To settle in to school," he offered, then nodded to himself as if he was agreeing with what he had just said.

"Alrighty," I spoke slowly, drawing the word out as I looked over each of them. Many of them refused to meet my eyes, and I decided I probably didn't want to know. "I'm just going to pretend you all aren't acting so weird, and go." I grabbed my backpack off the floor in awkward silence, none of the guys even looking at eachother. The moment I was halfway up the stairs, I heard them whispering urgently to each other, as though arguing in low tones.

Once I was upstairs I began to feel as if someone was watching me, my paranoia growing as I thought about the pack arguing about whatever it was that somehow involved me. With a heavy heart -and a light stomach- I decided to skip dinner and avoid the people downstairs until tomorrow. I sat on my bed and pulled out my books, deciding that homework would be a well enough distraction.

I woke with a start, my heart beating quickly and cold sweat making my hair stick to my forehead. I sat upright quickly and flinched as my books all tumbled to the ground with a loud clunk. The moon shone brightly through my open window, and I furrowed my brow in thought as I tried to remember when I had opened it. Cool air drifted from outside and I shivered lightly. My feet were cold on the wooden floor as I slid off my bed, walking to the window and peering out of it.

There, at the edge of the woods, was a wolf. It seemed as though it was looking right at me, meeting my eyes from across the small field. It felt like an eternity that we stood, eyes locked and bodies unmoving. The wind blew through my window again, and when I shivered it seemed to break the moment, the wolf turning and running into the trees. I stared after it for a while, but could not wrap my mind around the strange encounter. When I can back to my sense, I shook all the questions from my mind and decided I was still tired and a bit out of it. I tried to close my window, but something was blocking it. I pushed the sill back up and found a button wedged into the frame. Curious, I looked down, and saw a pair of torn shorts right below my window.

Mystified and more than a little confused, I reminded myself that I was exhausted, and probably was imagining this all. I put the button on my end table and put away my books, crawling back into bed for the last time that night.

Please review! This one wasn't too long, but I want the next part to be all in one chapter.