3.

Drip. Drip. Drip.
It's raining again. Third time this week.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Each drip burns at the gaping hole in my chest, making the damn thing bigger. With each drip the faces of the innocent people I killed, flash before my eyes. I tried to stay in the forest, I tried to sway from human blood. But each time someone walked by, I failed.
So, I ran. Far, far away. Now for the past week, I've been living in a cave high in the mountains. I've not fed in eight days. I refuse to feed.
But I am so very hungry; the flames in my throat are becoming uncomfortable. I roared. Why did I have to start thinking about blood? I turned to the cave wall and started to carve again. Carving messages of a crazed man. Man? I'm no man; I've not been a man for a month and half now.
Once again, her face flashed before my eyes. The girl with emerald eyes dying in my arms. I was never an artist, but my sub-conscious had drawn her face on the wall. Great, she's in my head and now around me.
I walked to the front of the cave and stood in the rain, letting it soak me. Standing there in the rain, I felt my horrors and emotions wash away from me. It's nice from a break from them, but I knew as soon as I stepped back into the cave everything would come back. And the face on the wall would stare at me.
I need to run. That's exactly what I did. I ran. Miles and miles without tiring, without needed to drink, without losing my breath.

I was somewhere in Virginia when I finally stopped, I had been running for only a few hours. I did stop to feed though, and I was happy for the first time in a month and half. I fed off a mountain lion; it was tastier than a deer, but nowhere near as good as human blood.

I sat on a nearby rock in the forest, just breathing in the forest smells. Then suddenly the thick grey clouds cracked apart and the sun beamed out. I've not seen the sun in so long, not bathed in its warmth. I could see the sun on top of the trees, but no sun was getting through. I noticed a patch of sun to the east of me, so I ran to it.

I stopped before it; Simon said my skin was like stone. What if I can't feel heat anymore? My still heart ached, I loved the sun.

Without telling it too, my hand reached for the sun. I jumped back when the beam of light hit my hand.

What the hell? My hand shimmered like a diamond. I reached my hand out again and watched as my skin reflected like a diamond scattering rainbows all over the trees.

"It's like we've made of tiny bits of diamonds." I roared and jumped into a crouch. The silk voice spoke again. "Come now, there is nothing to be frightened off." I focused on the voice and saw the person whose voice it was.

He was tall, lean and muscular, just not as much as me. His skin was snow white, his features angular, his hair messy and a strange bronze colour. His eyes golden. The sight of his eyes shocked me out of my crouch and into a tree.

"What's the matter?" He asked walking slowly towards me, his face worried. I fell to the ground.

"You're eyes. I've not seen some in a while." I blurted. He stopped where he was as his face straightened out. He smiled a crooked smile.

"You know what I am?"

"Of course I do!" What the hell is this guy about? He chuckled.

"It's just that the last newborn I met thought I was human, tried to eat me. Only then did he realize I had no heartbeat." He chuckled again. I just nodded, this guy is weird. His face went a bit sad.

"Sorry, I've only been able to talk to my parents and my sister. What's your name?"

"Erm...Emmett. Emmett McCarthy." He smiled and held his hand out to me.

"Hello Emmett." I shook his hand, he winced. "My name is Edward Cullen." I smiled back to him. "Have you eaten?"

"I had a mountain lion about an hour back." I thought his eyes were going to pop out of his head.

"You're a vegetarian?" What the hell? This guy has lost it. Edward chuckled.

"That's what we call ourselves, because we only live on animal blood." That makes sense now, I guess. "How long have you been a newborn?" His face really confused. Just before I spoke his face the confusion disappeared.

"A month and half. I've been trying really hard. But I'm struggling." Once again, the girl with emerald eyes popped into my head. Edward's face saddened.

"I'm sorry. I struggled myself. The only person I know who has never killed a human is Carlisle."

"Who's Carlisle?" I asked. A vampire being able to stay away from human blood. Woah, that's incredible.

"He's my father. He is also a doctor." It was my turn for my eyes to pop out of my head.

"A doctor? Don't they work around blood?" This is probably the most amazing and craziest thing I've ever heard. Edward chuckled again.

"Yes, it is amazing. Yes, he does work with blood. He's been a vampire for nearly 300 years, so he's had enough time to find an aversion to human blood." Wow, that's amazing. I wish I could have an aversion to human blood. "Why don't you join our family? We can help you stick to animal blood."

"As much as I would like company, I think I need some time on my own." Edward nodded as I smiled apologetically.

"Well, do you mind if I go with you? I need a break from my family; Rose is getting on my nerves."

"Erm...Sure." Edward beamed.

"Let's hunt." I laughed, I mean really laughed. It felt so good to be happy and not so gloomy.

After hunting we really got talking, I've only ever been able to talk to someone like this once, Abby, but talking to Edward was like talking to an older brother, he's experienced what I'm going through, so he could explain to me what to expect. Sat high on the Smokey Mountains, I asked about Edward's family.

"Carlisle is the beginning of my family; he was born in London, England sometime in the 1640's. He was the son of an Anglican pastor who hunted witches, werewolves and vampires. No he didn't hunt Carlisle; Carlisle took over his father's role when he was in his twenties and one time he was hunting a vampire and the vampire attacked him, leaving Carlisle for dead in the street. Carlisle obviously knew what he was becoming and hid himself until his transformation was complete. He hated himself and tried to commit suicide too many times, he finally realized that he could not die. But he wouldn't feed, until his thirst became too much and he attacked a wandering deer. From then on, he committed to resisting the lure of human blood." I was astonished. Carlisle became the thing he hunted, hating himself, trying to kill himself. Did Edward say something about Carlisle being a doctor? "Yes, Carlisle is a doctor." My thoughts blanked, I didn't say that out loud did I? I stared at Edward who stared out at the view. I shook my head, that grizzle's getting to you.

"Did Carlisle change you and the rest of family?"

"Yes, I was the first one he changed, then Esme and lastly Rosalie." He looked back to me.

"Why did he change you?

"I was dying of Spanish influenza. It was Chicago, 1918 and I was dying, my mother couldn't be saved and my father was already dead. My mother's dying wish she asked Carlisle to save me they way another doctor couldn't. And that's exactly what he did, he turned me. Before me, Carlisle was alone for centuries so he also turned me for some company."

"Why didn't he find a companion sooner then?" I've been alone for a month and half and I can't stand it, if I was alone for centuries I would have drove myself crazy.

"It's hard to find vampires who are willing to stay away from human blood. He never thought of creating a companion, until the day he changed me." I nodded understandingly, human blood is so amazing. If I didn't have a conscience I wouldn't want to stick to animal blood. I noticed the side of Edward's lips twitch.

"Why did he change the other two?" I asked, I was interested in their stories, interested in a group of, what Edward calls himself, 'vegetarian' vampires.

"In 1921, Esme had a son but sadly he died days later. She felt she had no reason to live and jumped off a cliff, trying to commit suicide. She was brought to the morgue announced dead, Carlisle was working that night and heard her heartbeat and when he saw her he recognised her. He had treated her many years earlier, and so knowing she was dying he took from the morgue and changed her. Esme fell in love with Carlisle and they got married. She loves me and Rosalie like we were her own children; she can love those around her passionately." I could tell by his words, that Esme's change saddens him. "She yearns for her own child, you see. But vampires are a fixed point in time, we're frozen. So vampires can't have children, which pains both Esme and Rosalie." Edward's face saddened, being able to live forever and never being able to have children, must be torture.

"Rosalie certainly thinks so. She hates being a vampire, and makes my life misery in the process. Rosalie wishes she could be under a headstone, when Carlisle changed her he wished that she would be to me, like he is to Esme."

"But you weren't that much is obvious." Edward chuckled.

"Is it that obvious? Rose wishes she was still human, she thought she had the love of a man, her beauty was envied by all, and she was bought pretty dresses and taken to parties. All she wanted was to marry her fiancée and have children. But the man, who could have given her all of that, was the one to take all that from her as well." I had noticed how he said 'she thought she had the love'.

"You noticed did you? In 1933, she had been visiting her friend, Vera who had a child and a husband. Rose wondered why Royce didn't look at her the way her friend's husband looked at Vera; she shook that thought out of her as she walked home. Only to be stopped by a drunken Royce and his friends, Royce was bragging to his friends about Rose's beauty. Royce and his friends beat and raped her, leaving her bleeding in the streets." His voice thick with pure venomous anger. I felt hot anger flowing through my veins; I wanted to kill these men who did that to Rosalie. "Carlisle smelled her blood and found her, he picked her up and brought her back to where we were living and changed her. The only thing that makes her happy is that she is even more beautiful than when she was a human. After she was fully changed, she killed all those men that left her for dead. Leaving Royce for last. She donned on a wedding gown and found him cowering in a locked room. She slowly tortured him to death. She also hasn't drunk human blood." Now, I was confused. Edward chuckled. "She never spilled their blood." I nodded.

I stared out of the Smokey Mountains, which lives up to its name, and for the first time in a month and half thought about my family. I wonder how everyone is. Is my mother's holding up? Have they given up looking for my body? How did my 'death' affect everyone? Would I be able to see them?

"You can't go and see your family." Edward stated. I jumped up and turned on him.

"Excuse me? Who are you to say..." I didn't say that out loud. What the hell? "I was thinking of my family." I just stared at him in disbelief; he just stared back with a defeated look. It was silent for a few minutes, until Edward broke the silence.

"I should explain."

"Oh yeah. I think you should." I glared at him. Edward sat down on a rock.

"Some vampires have extra powers apart from the strength and speed, mine is that I can read minds." I gasped, and then laughed. That's the silliest thing I've ever heard! "It may be silly, but it's true." Edward said. I stopped laughing and just stared at him again. What the hell! He can read minds! Edward chuckled.

"You've been able to read my mind all day?" I had so many questions flying through my head.

"Yeah, ever before we actually met. To your other questions, Carlisle believes it because all our senses are intensified when we change, so I had some physic ability of some sort when I was human and it was intensified to the point where I can hear people's thoughts. No, no one else in my family has extra powers. By the looks of you and watching you today, you probably have more strength than most vampires. I have met one other person with power like mine, a vampire in Italy who by touching his hand he could see all the thoughts you have ever had. And yes, it does annoy everyone in my family." All I could do was blink at him; he had picked out all the questions in my head and answered them, without me speaking. Vampires are freaky. Edward chuckled.

"Very freaky." I laughed. Can you stop reading people's minds?

"No, but I can ignore thoughts. You know, blank them out." I nodded. Can you blank mine out for a bit? He smiled respectfully.

"I'll try. But, before you go back to thinking of your family, I can't let you see them yet." This saddened me. Why?

"Well, for one. You're eyes are still red, you still struggle with your appetite. You might do something you'll regret for the life of your existence." My mother's innocent, pink cheeked face popped into my head, and then the same face drained of colour and blood, her normally bright grey eyes dulled and lifeless. I sunk my head in my hands, and once again I mourned for my human life. The lump of sadness rose in my throat and heard the tearless sobs echo in the air. Edward gave my shoulder a squeeze and fled, leaving me in my tortured silence. My still stone heart ached for my mother touch, though if she just looked at me she'd be running for the hills before I could even open my mouth. I could never explain to her what I've become; I chuckled at the thought of that.

Hello mother, guess what? You son, who you thought was dead, isn't dead, but technically is dead. Why's that? Well my heart doesn't beat, I don't have blood running through my veins but I need to drink blood to survive. What am I? I'm a blood sucking monster, I shine like a diamond, and I have skin like hard granite. I'm a vampire mother dearest.

Yeah, that would go down well. My sarcastic thoughts cheered my up slightly, but they didn't stop me from missing my family. I know I can't go and talk to them, but he never said anything about seeing them from afar. With that thought, I was running down the mountain.

Running footsteps echoed behind me, Edward was following me. Eventually he caught up with me.

"Emmett! You can't do this!" He shouted at me.

"Try and stop me." I dared him, I knew he could stop me but I wasn't going to go down without a fight.

"I will fight you, if that's what you want." Edward leapt at me, but I was ready. I caught him and flung as far as I could throw. I didn't stop running, even when I heard trees snapping in the distance.

You can't stop me Edward; I need to see my family.

Once again, Edward caught up. But this time he stayed at least a mile behind me.

Thank you.

I just hope they aren't completely distraught, I thought as my mind wandered to happier times.