Author's Note - I finally found some inspiration to keep this story going =] Apologies for the very long wait.

Chapter Two

I breathed in the sweet scent of dampened cedar tree bark that was permeating the fresh morning air. While the skies were still a devastatingly murky hue of grey, the clouds had thinned slightly, letting in some light from the sun to signify the beginning of this new day. Fortunately enough, the rain had stopped.

I moved away from my opened window and began to expertly make my way through the 'organised chaos' that had become my bedroom floor. It wasn't so much that I was a messy person, it was more likely that I could be considered a busy person - at least in the past month or so. The start of my junior year at high school had prompted this influx of disordered living. I had never been so inundated with schoolwork at such a rate before, and was only slowly getting used to working around this frenzied schedule.

I slipped on my dressing gown and padded around my room, eventually retrieving my camera and sitting down on my bed to inspect the photographs I had taken yesterday. Within minutes, I heard the heavy steps of Quil make the floorboards creak as he walked up the stairs, obviously not taking the care he took earlier that morning now that it was daylight. I held up my camera. "Say 'cheese!'" I exclaimed to the unsuspecting Quil making his way through my doorframe.

"Ha, ha," he remarked sarcastically, "like you haven't done that one before."
"Yes, but I haven't been able to do it for a while," I said smiling. "You've barely been here lately." Quil's face dropped a little.

"You know I don't-" he started.

"I know," I finished. He let out a sigh and ran his fingers through his cropped hair.

"You don't understand how much I want to tell you everything Claire," he said.

"I know. I get it, Quil. If there's one thing I do know, is that whatever this is, I'm not supposed to know."

"You will know."

"I know that too," I continued. I hated seeing his brooding face. And to think that I had caused that expression hurt me more. I resolved to just give in.

"Seriously Quil, don't worry about it," I said, trying to inject a perkiness into my voice. "Sometimes secrets are not ours to tell, sometimes they're better left unsaid for the moment…" I relented vaguely. "Anyways, I get it," I finished, mustering up my best smile. Quil seemed satisfied for the moment, but I never was. It tore me up inside to know that my best friend kept such a big part of his life hidden from me. The rational part of me justified the secrecy but the teenage girl inside of me, hated the very thought of it.

I left Quil sitting on my bed as I walked around my room again, gathering my things for the day ahead.

"Have you got any work due soon, Claire?"

"In a couple weeks," I responded.

"Are you sure?" he pressed on. I groaned. "Don't you think I'm capable of keeping track of the dates Quil?"

His eyes scanned over the mess of my room and came back to focus on me.

"I do Claire, you know I'm just looking out for you. And anyways, how do you keep track of anything in this room?"

"It's fine Quil. I just haven't had the time to clean lately." I pored over the papers in my hands. "Is it this one or this one?" I thought to myself. I resolved in putting them both into my binder.

"If you haven't had time to even clean your room, then how do you expect to find time to do this job you've applied for?"

I rolled my eyes at this. Ever since I put in that stupid application at a diner in Forks, he's been telling me I shouldn't have done it.

"Seriously, Quil – I haven't even gotten the job yet, so don't be so concerned about it."

"Of course I'll worry about it Claire. I worry about you." That pained look came back to his face. "What if your grades suffer? What if you get harassed by customers?"

"Who doesn't get harassed by customers Quil? I'm sure unreasonable people working at Jake's garage have verbally attacked you before. Things like that are meant to happen. It's the circle of life, my friend. " I grabbed my backpack from my chair and put my camera inside.

"But it shouldn't happen to you Claire."

Silence hung in the air, as I didn't bother continuing this argument.

"What do you want to eat for breakfast?" I asked him.

"It's okay, I already ate this morning."

"Huh? That's weird, " I countered.

"We had a meeting at your Aunt Emily's before I came here."

Even breakfast wasn't a safe topic this morning. Everything today reminded me of Quil's distance, making me remember that the dull ache in my heart was still there. I couldn't understand why we were so out of sync today.

"Oh well, I guess you don't need to stay then. Bye Quil," I said, without thinking.

I turned around to get cereal out of cupboard. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Quil's eyes droop to the floor.

"Why do I have to be so harsh?!" I scalded silently. I didn't understand my reactions at all today. Everything in my head seemed more off-kilter than usual.

Quil left, and I went through the rest of my routine. Eating, showering, dressing - after the events of this morning, the small pleasures I usually relished seemed to lack lustre. I was soon off to another day of school.

While my La Push School was comparatively small to others in the area, the same social dynamic existed everywhere. There would always be "popular," people at the top of some social hierarchy, scaring the cliques below them into submission. I didn't have many friends, but I definitely wasn't a loner. Quil had always been my closest friend, and so I found it hard to replicate that relationship with anyone else at school. He filled the space completely, so I was left with a social group, but no one else in particular who I was especially close to.

The first morning bell resounded throughout the building, as I was finishing up at my locker. First period was art class, which I seemed to enjoy the most. I wasn't really much of a painter or drawer or sculptor, but art class let me explore my photography and filmmaking. The room was buzzing with students streaming in through the multicoloured studio and moving into the more traditional classroom part of the room. It was Friday, and the relief that it was the end of the school week was transmitted through the increase in excited noise. Chatter filled the room, books and binders were smacked onto desks and chairs slided over the floor.

"Finally! The rain has stopped!" my friend Lana exclaimed as she dropped her belongings on the desk to the right of me.

"I know, I can finally get a start on my short film now," I responded happily.

"Exactly, " she continued. " Do you know what your concept is yet?"

"I know I want it to be shot mainly outside, but I honestly have no idea what I'm trying to get out of this. I just feel this urge to do something very earthy and natural," I said thoughtfully. "Have you started your project yet?" I queried.

"Yeah, I started painting my first canvas the other day, but somehow, something just lacks. I can't pinpoint what is going wrong, " Lana said regretfully.

With that, our teacher walked in and commanded attention from the class. While I usually paid attention to Ms. Lott's classes, today my mind was roaming. I needed to determine a concept for my short film, I needed to apologise to Quil. "Gosh, I really need to clean my room!" I thought, as my mind wandered over to visions of the chaotic lifestyle I had been unable to straighten out. Something had really thrown a spanner into the works, so to speak. The pressure was looming over me, ready to bring me down if I didn't take control of all these aspects of my life ready to spiral off path.