Author's Note: I promise the story will start to pick up after this. I just wanted to get a few things out of the way before then, and kind of set up the characters. Let me know what you think and if you have any comments or suggestions, PLEASE leave them for me. Thanks and enjoy!

Chapter 2

For most of the drive to Forks, we caught up on everything that had been going on in each other's lives. Raindrops pattered the roof and windshield of the car as we reminisced, carefully skirting the subject of my addiction. I didn't like telling people about it in fear of them judging me and instantly writing me off as a junkie. I knew Ben more than likely would have still accepted me as I was, but it would be an awkward moment no doubt, and I'd rather skip that.

"I've got to work tomorrow early in the morning," Ben explained to me, "but I'm sure you will be able to find your way around town if you need to for any reason."

"Leaving me to my own devices so early huh?" I said. "I'm sure there's all kinds of trouble I can get into in a small town without a vehicle." I chuckled to myself, caught up in a mixture of excitement, wonder, and the fear of dying of boredom. I'd never lived in a town that was as small as Forks, but I'd definitely visited some, and they always seemed to make it feel as if time itself slowed to a crawl.

Ben peered at me from the corner of his eye, a smile suddenly growing on his face.

"Well actually I kind of had my old bike fixed up last week so you'd having something to get around on." At first I didn't understand what he had meant, picturing an old bicycle in my head, but then, like a slap to the face, it hit me.

"You mean your 1970 Honda Scrambler?" I made no attempt to hide my enthusiasm and couldn't control the silly grin that stretched across my face. When Ben had lived in Florida, he'd bought the motorcycle after he saw it sitting on someone's lawn with a "for sale" sign taped to it. In all honesty, the bike looked like a piece of junk at first sight. But he spent every free hour he had fixing it up and making it look somewhat presentable, and I'd always been a little envious after seeing him ride it around and pick up girls so easily.

"Yeah man," he responded, "It was just sitting in the shed for a couple years. And after you told me that you were coming here, I took it and got it back in working order."

I felt relief flood through my body, not only because I wouldn't have to walk everywhere, but also because I was planning on talking him into letting me borrow his car while I was here. And I knew I would have been successful, because I had the uncanny ability to influence people to do the things that I asked. I used my charm and way with words to get them to do things for my benefit. Not that I was particularly happy about being able to do this, but it was a skill that I had to develop in order to feed my ever-growing habit back home.

I wanted to tell him how much I appreciated the fact that he'd thought of me and spent his own money on fixing the bike up, but all I managed was a quiet "Thanks" as I slipped farther into the nightmare of my memories. Ben seemed to noticed my sudden detachment, so he simply nodded and stayed silent for the remainder of the drive.

After what seemed like the longest three and a half hours of my life, we were finally entering Forks. We drove through the middle of town, which consisted of a few shops, a diner, and one streetlight. It certainly leaves a lot to be desired, I thought to myself as we continued heading to Ben's house. I gazed out the window as we sped down the road, staring in awe at the lush vegetation that seemed to thrive everywhere. This was definitely unlike anything I'd ever seen, since I was born and raised in the same southwestern Florida town, and had rarely ever left. Huge trees towered on both sides of the street creating a canopy above the wet asphalt road.

Ben turned right off the main road, onto a small dirt road that seemed to be rarely used. After another five minutes driving deeper into the dark green forest, we finally came upon a stone driveway that led up to an old, white Victorian style house. Both sides of it were hugged by trees and bushes, as if nature meant to swallow it into the endless woods.

"This is it," Ben said with a smile on his face, as if he were enjoying a private joke. "What do you think?" Without waiting for me to answer, he quickly got out of the car and popped the trunk.

"Let's hurry up and get you settled inside. I'm taking you out tonight." He grabbed one of my bags and made his way to the front door.

I started to protest, but thought better of it. Grabbing the rest of my luggage, I trudged towards my new home.