Hello again,

Again, I have much more important things that I should be doing right now (ie. studying, homework, updating…), but I just can't ignore this one. Ever since I posted the first chapter, plot-lines have been erupting forwards in my mind. And I was about to go insane. So, to cure my insanity, as well as satiate what pleases me as hunger for more from this fan-fiction, here I am, writing up another chapter.

Before I continue, I wanted to remind the especially ignorant (now, I don't even know if there are any ignorant people reading this… but just in case…), this story does NOT involve the Volturi, it does NOT include the Cullens (ANY of them) leaving, and it is DEFINETLY not one of those ever-occurring "what if Edward never came back and . . ." stories. This is a simple, normal story about the good AND bad, the ups and downs, of being a vampire. THAT'S IT. So, now that the ignorants have been warned (whether they will listen is another story completely…), I am pleased to present the second chapter of It's Not That Simple . . .

Chapter Two: Bloodlust

"Now," Alice instructed as we hid conspicuously behind a bush. "You want to remain very… still…"

"Very still," I echoed, meeting her gaze. I was sure that, had I a heart, it would be racing. But then again, had I a heart, I wouldn't be hiding behind a bush in a forest, hunting for blood…

"If you concentrate," Alice continued, "you will smell an animal. Let your instincts take over then, and find the animal. After that, you won't need my help. All you need to do… is smell it."

"Right…" I muttered.

How was I supposed to just… smell it? Was there some way to heighten our senses? I didn't know…

I closed my eyes, not at all sure what I was doing. I was concentrating, I supposed, on finding some way to heighten my sense of smell, so that I could find, could smell the animals.

I took a deep breath. In. Out. In. Out. In…

There. There, on the wind, I could smell it. And I knew what it was, though I had never smelt it before. It was a deer. I could smell it. I could smell its blood. And I knew exactly where it was coming from, too. A few miles north of here. There were two of them. Females.

Before I consciously knew what I was doing, a feral growl ripped from my throat, deep, low. A red haze fell over my eyes, tinting my vision. I was sure that the color would hurt my vision, that I wouldn't be able to find the deer now, but just the opposite occurred. I could see better, and, before I realized that I had even moved, the deer were less than ten feet away.

Venom pooled in my mouth, and I knew that my thirst would soon be satiated. The first deer would be the lucky one, I knew. That one would not see death coming. But the other one… I was sure that Alice would get it, even if it escaped me. I almost felt sorry for them. But, before I had even finished with that thought, the first deer was down, its neck broken.

The other deer let out a startled cry, and turned to flee. But of course it wasn't fast enough. Alice was on top of it, and then it, too, was dead. She glanced at me for a moment, judging my reaction to what had just occurred. I had never seen her like that before, I had never even known that the expression that was in her eyes just before she struck, one that I was sure on my face as well, existed. Pleasure, disgust, and an unknown, and yet completely frightening, expression, all in one.

Before I could form a say anything, a drop of blood oozed from the deer. Just a drop. But it was plenty enough for the red haze to return. I was immediately leaning over the deer, drinking from it.

The blood was hot in my mouth, exactly perfect for what I yearned for. The wound that I had inflicted was, indeed, not the identical holes, as the stories claimed, nor was it the crescent-shaped scar that still existed on my hand. It was a tear, leading, thankfully, right to a main vein. And the blood tasted delicious.

But, eventually, the deer was drained, and I pulled away, the red haze gone. I turned to Alice, who pulled away from her deer soon after I did. She met my gaze, and I saw two emotions in her eyes, fighting for dominance. The first emotion showed that she was pleased, somewhat, that I had found 'food' so quickly. The second emotion was a little harder to decipher. There was sadness in her eyes, and, as I tried to comprehend why, I heard something.

Footsteps. Less than ten miles away.

Alice turned towards the sound, before looking back at me. Her expression showed nothing at what, or who, was coming. I turned back towards the sound, trying to figure out what it was.

Again, a scent hit me, sending emotion through me, so strong that it sent me running towards it. I reached it in mere seconds, and I was grinning the instant that I was close enough to be within sight range. I ran up so that I was mere inches away, before throwing myself forwards, determined to close that space that was between us.

Edward.

(((A/N: Yay! Edward is here! Finally! But honestly, I really want your opinions on my version of how Bella hunted her first time. I wasn't really sure how anything worked in that field, since I've read about a hundred different versions of how it would happen. I tried to take a little from all of them, and also add my own, more 'realistic' bits to it. I hope I wrote it okay. I'm not at all sure about this chapter, but the next one is definitely better. Please review!!! I'm DYING to know what you think of this chapter!)))