Then

Ordinarily, Forks High School had a reputation for being rather dull. It was a small blip in a small town, in a state that rarely kicked up much of a fuss, and was therefore also considered dull. And ordinarily, the inhabitants might think that unfortunate. They had vast beautiful forests, the pace was slower than a city where people rarely appreciated the things they were fortunate to have. So to hear they were considered dull or not considered at all, used to be a sore point. Yet in the last year, the town and cities surrounding it were considered something far far worse than dull.

Dangerous.

In that time those vast forests were not sought out. The relaxed streets were seldom traveled. Indoor activities, once frowned upon, were suddenly seen as the only way to pass time. For posters warned of animal attacks in the beloved woods and mountains. Gossip fueled of teenagers gathering in odd clusters. And worse, the news stations reported murders in the surrounding cities. All at once these dangers flooded the state of Washington more frequently than the rain.

So when the hush of fall also brought a hush to the troubles, the town of Forks collectively breathed a sigh of gratitude at the return of dull and ordinary. Even on the bus ride to the middle and high schools, the teens might have whispered still, but those whispers were also relieved.

On that bus, Caroline Southgate would have heard those whispers, if she hadn't been floating. Her freckled face beamed with a smile all for herself as it tipped towards the window. At sixteen she was tall for her age and leggy, wearing her long dark brown hair down her back. She may have felt a little dressed up as she looked around the bus, but today was too special to Caroline for her not to dress to match.

She and her parents had moved to Forks at the beginning of the summer, and this was the first time she was going to school. Or at least in a long while. Her mother was in the army, and when she started her tours, Caroline's father elected to homeschool rather than have her bounce from school to school as well as town to town. It had become habit enough that even when they settled in Forks, Caroline stayed home. But now her parents believed she needed to branch out, and it wasn't until that bus ride that Caroline felt so too. She'd been in fifth grade the last time she'd been in school, and she knew plenty changed since then. It didn't bother her in the least.

As Ethan turned his car past the school bus and towards Main, he felt bothered. Looking over at Cole, who was absently tugging a loose thread from his backpack, Ethan knew that was on Cole's behalf. He'd finished their sophomore year at Ethan's house, having a tutor come in and taking his tests remotely. Frankly all of them still worried about him going back for the first time since his parent's deaths last spring. But Cole said he needed to, and these days what Cole needed came first in all their books.

Once parked, Ethan rolled his eyes as he saw Anna Jane climbing down one of the staircases that clung to the side of the hotel, ducking anytime she passed a window. She wore a low ponytail with that mass of brown waves draped over one shoulder. Ethan suspected so she wouldn't be as easy to spot.

"Sounds about right." Cole observed as he spotted her as well. "Think she'll make it?"

Automatically checking the front for signs of a bursting Philip, Ethan nodded. "This year, probably. But next? First day of senior year, he won't let her leave without a performance."

"He'll probably take her himself." Cole snorted as Anna slid down the final banister and dashed towards the car.

Ethan got out of the driver's seat and wordlessly tossed her the keys before getting into the back. His parent's had gotten the car on his sixteenth birthday but the understanding was the three of them got use of it. In a town as small as theirs, they rarely needed a car, but he suspected it was their way of keeping them from traveling alone as much as possible. With the added perk of the adults not having to transport them. He had hoped Cole would want to drive them in on their first day, but as he had the least practice being a year younger and only holding a permit, he showed a bit of a dislike for driving. Admittedly Anna was the best at it, though Ethan and Cole had a silent bet that she'd be the first to get a speeding ticket.

For now she eased out of the side lot, still not speaking until they were clear of the building.

"So close." She let her head fall back against the seat. "Brance saw me for sure, but he'd never snitch. Least not to Papa. But a guest who's trying to seduce him was drawing her curtains just as I was diving past."

"Trying to seduce Brance, or Philip? Either way I'm disturbed." Ethan lounged in the backseat.

"Philip. She just checked in, I think she's under the impression he's the director at the theatre."

'Probably because he let her."

"Most definitely. She's not seen thirty yet so I'm interested on how she imagines this plays out."

"He's staring at eighty!" Cole shook his head. "Man, even Ethan will probably retire by then."

"Don't count on it." Anna grinned in the rearview when Ethan kicked her chair. "Mary will step on the guest seed before it takes root anyways."

As she rounded the hillside into the schools lot, Anna disregarded the brakes and with a wheel spin managed to whip the car around a startled pack of seniors, turn into a 180, and park without having to do the hand over the back of the passenger seat move. As one of the seniors clapped, she did a shoulder shimmy. "That ought to get me a date."

The boys rolled their eyes as they all got out, taking a few minutes to do what most of the upperclassmen tended to, and hang out by the cars. They made a handsome group. Ethan waved or called out whenever his various football or cheerleader friends arrived. His hair appeared carelessly tousled and took him a few minutes of mirror time to achieve. He's started a stubble look that the girls were already noticing. They also appeared to be noticing how Cole had shot up a few inches over the summer. At sixteen, you could still tell he was a year behind but the contrast of his sharp eyes and slow smile never failed him. And while Anna joked, she tended to be unobservant when it came to boys noticing her. While her face remained cherub like with round cheeks and her big grey eyes, her body was a full grown woman's, and a built one at that. She may have preferred baggy torn jeans and a loose tee, but the radar of teenage boys still zeroed in on the curves.

It wasn't just their looks that drew eyes as the three of them lingered by the car. In seven years they'd never wavered or had a falling out. Arguments were normal but never left lasting damage. To the teenagers of their class it was a foreign thing to witness, and an opportunity to throw in snide remarks.

Yet, they were just kids then. The innocent air their age gave off was still there, though hindered by last year. Collectively they were putting in an effort to keep their days light.

In that spirit, at a jerk of Ethan's head Anna laughed and tossed Cole the keys as she pushed off the car.

"No. C'mon."

"Practice is necessary my guy." Ethan clapped him on the back and together they walked towards the building.

In the time before first period most of the school was gossiping but luckily not about the previous year. Instead the news was of Bella Swan and Edward Cullen's marriage the month prior. Not many students got hitched right after graduation these days, so it had caused the gossip mill to pump a bit louder. Especially given their closeness with the Quileute's over at La Push. Specifically a group of teens the town liked to label a cult. Being two years their senior; Ethan, Anna, and Cole hadn't given the Cullen's much thought, but the topic was welcome after all the bad news they'd gotten used to.

And even more welcome was the sight Ethan caught as they passed the main office. Standing in the corner was a girl he guessed to be their age, looking pensive as she flipped through what he recognized as a map of their small school. New student, he had thought and couldn't help but smile at her as the others paused to try and fix Cole's rusted combination lock. At the time he thought the smile was from his appreciation of the way her yellow dress whispered against her knees, or how her hair looked like velvet. Later he could acknowledge the pull he felt in her direction. How the smile felt like an "aha" and a gut punch all in one. How his skin got hot when she looked up, and smiled right back.

At first Caroline's smile was an automatic greeting to match the one she caught aimed at her. As she took in the dark jeans and dark tshirt and frank appraisal she wondered if this was the class bad boy. Judging by his company, she determined not. After a few seconds though she knew she was smiling out of more than friendliness. The heat of it might have bothered her as the morning bell hadn't even rung, but she was too surprised to worry. And wasn't that the damndest thing, Caroline thought as she turned her attention back to her map and class schedule.

"This damned thing." Cole finally got it open and noticed Ethan. "What are we looking at?"

"Ooooooooo…..barracuda." Anna sang as she caught what held Ethan's gaze.

"Can't blame a guy for looking." But he knew when to stop before the others teased him dry.

"If you stop at looking I will start going to church." Anna hip bumped him.

Ethan caught himself a moment before retorting as he saw Anna stiffen when they turned towards their lockers. She hadn't looked at him, but Ethan knew just as Cole would that it was from the boy leaning against his locker on the other side of the hall.

He stood a few inches taller than Ethan's proud six feet, and looked like he spent most of the summer in the weight room. His usual band of friends stood with him in a loose circle, none moving towards classes. The quip died on Ethan's tongue as he saw Anna hesitate a moment before she reached up to tighten her hair tie and swing over to their row. Ethan met Cole's worried eyes and shook his head.

"What's our first class together? Cole asked though he would have already known.

"You have Chem with Fabio here don't you?" Anna smiled at a passing freshman girl that goggled at Ethan and Cole. "Poor babies." She murmured.

"And I have History with Shine." Ethan nodded as he slipped his combination lock on his locker. "The three of us have Gym, which will be interesting."

"That's right, when's the last time we had Gym together?" Anna turned her back against her locker after closing it with a laugh.

"I think I was wearing a Space Jam tshirt." Cole checked his watch. "I'm going to head over."

"Brainiac has to brain." Anna ran a hand down his arm. "I'm sure I'll wander around at some point so give me a signal if I'm needed."

"First day and she's going to skip her Math class I bet." Cole rolled his eyes. "See you in Chem." He said to Ethan and walked off.

"Think he's ok?" She looked up at Ethan.

"Seems it. He can't get away with much, so I'm sure we'll notice. You don't have to go wandering you know."

"I can't just sit in seven classrooms all day either. Consider it my version of the Simone Gypsy Feet."

"Then why don't you use them to walk down that hall." Ethan jerked his chin towards where Anna refused to look.

"What for? Sylas Bruan doesn't know who I am or care to." Her voice on his name had the same vibe as running her hand over Cole's arm.

"You could try."

"Kelly."

Her tone clipped in a way that never deterred Ethan from an argument, but her eyes didn't match it. And they're what Ethan listened to. "Fine, then go break the heart of Aaron Galser, he's been staring at you for three minutes straight."

"At me or the assets?"

"Does it matter?"

She once again bumped hips with Ethan before adding some jaunt in her steps through the passing crowd. Only Ethan saw how Sylas waited until she had turned to look over at her, his easy smile fading as his shoulders lowered with his breath. Before anyone else could catch it he turned his attention back towards his friends, a mask back in place.

Ethan cast his eyes to the ceiling in frustration once before turning towards his own class. First period French was his easy ace since Anna had been teaching them since middle school, but the class got a lot less boring when he saw the girl in the yellow dress sitting in a middle seat. His smile came back as he sauntered over and slid into the desk in front of hers. After dropping his backpack he draped one arm around the back of his seat as he leaned his back against the bar that attached the chair to the desk.

"Hi, you're new here aren't you?"

"Here that is." Her smile was soft and sweet, a stark contrast to her sly eyes. "I'm Caroline Southgate, former homeschool-e. You're Ethan Kelly right? I've met your mother."

"Everyone has somehow. Happy to meet you Caroline." Though he usually wasn't formal, Ethan reached out a hand for the excuse to hold hers. He may have expected a zap of heat from the touch of a pretty girl but he was not ready for how the contact made him want to haul her closer.

"Well." Caroline's smile turned to a sardonic grin as she took back her hand. "Hello Ethan."

"Do you know anyone here?"

"In our grade? Not really. We moved here when all those animal attacks were happening so I haven't been out as much. Just to the diner or the theatre sometimes."

"The Grand? You may know Anna Jane Simone then, she's one of my best friends."

"Of the big hair." Caroline nodded. "Who was the other you were with this morning?"

"Cole Masen." When Caroline's smile saddened Ethan fought the sigh. Everyone would know of course.

"Well I haven't met Anna Jane formally but I've seen her scurrying around a time or two there. She seems like a fun girl."

"Have lunch with me." Ethan nearly coughed at his own outburst. He was usually much smoother about this. "I mean, since you don't know any…hah." As the bell rang he pointed to it. "Saved." After facing forward Ethan lectured himself as he cast his eyes to the ceiling.

Caroline hid her laughing smile in her hand as other students rushed in ahead of a tiny woman moving faster than safety allowed in high heels. She was already speaking French with rapid English translation following. Making sure she was properly camouflaged Caroline tore a corner of paper out of her binder and giddily scrawled a quick message, thrilled at the opportunity to do a thing she saw so many teens do in movies. However her delivery didn't match the covertness of the movie scenes as she tossed her note over Ethan's shoulder. The paper nearly fell off the front of desk so he had to slap a hand to keep it in place, the sound disrupting the small classroom.

Now Caroline had to hide her face into the crook of her arm to stifle the snorting laugh that nearly bubbled out. Ethan's shoulders shook from holding in his own. Under the teachers glare he kept his expression blank. Once she'd turned back to handing out textbooks, Ethan unfolded the paper.

I'll see you then.

Ethan felt his cheeks rise and turned his head slightly, only to have her kick his chair in a warning a second too late as Ms. Fenlin slapped a book down on his desk. For the rest of his class he kept his attention on verb usage.

By the end of class two of the girls sitting in their row had shanghaied Caroline to get the scoop on the new girl and see if she needed showing around. Ethan didn't catch sight of Anna in the halls, but he and Cole were free from third period Chem, he told him about Caroline. Cole showed no surprise until Ethan said he'd asked her to lunch and was thinking Cole and Anna should join.

"Been a while since we've attempted that."

Ethan shrugged. "We haven't had a new student in our grade in a while."

"The grapevine is already buzzing that she's been homeschooled til now." Cole smirked. "Not your usual brand."

"A pretty girl is a pretty girl my friend. But if she's been cooped up in homeschooling maybe she needs friends."

Now Cole stopped so they shuffled off to the side of the hall. "Not your usual thought process. Who are you?"

"Shove it." Ethan moved back towards his next class. "Fine then, I'll round up some of my merry band of populars as you two call them. Caroline and I will have lunch with them and she'll have a circle by the end of the week."

"It'll statistically improve your chances with her." Cole grinned and went in the opposite direction.

Two periods later Ethan didn't include his other jock friends in lunch, but did sit at the far end of their table so they wouldn't be separate from that crowd. He noticed Anna glide out the door to the courtyard and knew she'd sneak her way down to the stream for the break. Cole was tucked in a corner with some of the yearbook committee. When Caroline roamed over, he saw nothing else.

"School lunches got better since the last time I had one." She slid to the bench and looked around with a happy sigh. "Though there's a lot less students to feed here than in my last school.

"That's a perk I've never thought about. How have your classes been so far?"

"I don't think much of Econ."

"I wouldn't understand you if you did." He cut the brownie that came with his lunch in half and passed it to her. "You finding your way alright? I didn't think of that until after the Ashley's swiped you."

"They were characters for sure. Actually, I was turned around after fourth period, but someone in my class helped out. You grow them kind here."

"For the most part. Could be because we value eccentrics."

"I am not."

"Homeschooled."

"It's the 2000's, being homeschooled isn't eccentric anymore."

"Of course not, but word has it you were homeschooled because you've moved all the time. Gypsy's are eccentric, ask Anna."

"She's an eccentric expert?"

"She's a gypsy."

"Ah." Caroline gestured with her juice bottle. "Where are they anyways?"

Ethan jerked his chin. "Cole's over there with his photo nerds and Anna is creekside."

"Creekside? You can go outside for lunch?!" Caroline looked out at the open doors.

"Well yeah, Ro." Ethan grinned at her excitement. "Not many do, if they leave it's the seniors hitting the diner."

"I'll have to remember that for tomorrow."

"Bored of me already?"

"I strongly suspect you'll follow."

"And if it's raining?"

"Ohhhh." Caroline waved her hands. "I'm not falling for that trick."

"Just wondering how much the summer here has taught you."

For the rest of the period they talked about their families and interests. Her laugh was as quick as his, though soon he'd cut his short to hear the sound of hers. He'd been attracted to many girls and dated his fair share. But this was a new experience. He didn't think of his next move or a flirting strategy. There was just her. The sharp mind and humor that struck a chord with his. How her eyes, caught between an amber brown and a dark green, traced over his face. The curtain of her hair falling forward when she gestured. The way her voice had a husky quality. All the pieces he was meeting seemed to fill him. And he wasn't bothered one bit.

Now

Ethan broke off and shook his head. "I'm not telling this right."

"I beg to differ." Hayley let out a sigh. "I've never been one to believe in teen romances but that one is off to a convincing start."

"Hah." Ethan ran a hand through his hair. "Well that was never our problem. Being together was as easy as breathing for us. We just flowed along." Ethan's hand came down to run a line on the back of the couch.

"So you believe in soul mates, I know that. Love at first sight?"

"What is it Cole told you? He believed in things he's seen? I guess I'm the same, and I've seen love at first…well technically second sight so, yes. But it wasn't for me, and it wasn't for Caroline. Our love was there waiting but we didn't see it off the bat."

Hayley curled up again. "Then it was Anna."

"That's why I'm not telling this right. Maybe I want to get my part over but my part can't really begin without hers. Anna knew Sylas before I knew Ro. Hell she knew Sylas before she knew Cole or I."

"Sylas? The boy you mentioned? She said he didn't know her."

"At that point she didn't know." Ethan stopped, his jaw tight. "She didn't know he remembered her. She didn't know that for a long while."