Chapter 12: Challenge

Alice and I ran through the forest together to hunt, wind whipping at our faces and trees flying past us. There was nothing quite like the adrenaline rush that came with hunting for a meal.

I'd only been in Forks for about a week and I felt like I'd completely adjusted to it already. The Cullens provided much needed safety while spending time with Paul was as easy as breathing and made me feel completely secure. In the back of my mind, I knew that something would happen to ruin the quiet perfection that I'd found in Forks, but I couldn't allow myself to think about that.

If I thought about it for too long, I'd slowly begin to spiral and likely freak out and leave Forks sooner than I wanted or needed to. The Volturi had no idea where I was, so as long as they stayed away I had no reason to worry.

I was sure that Alice knew something was wrong, but she didn't mention it. We fed from a small herd of elk and when we were done, I sat on a riverbank and gazed at the rushing water.

"Have you seen anything else about the newborns?" I asked as Alice joined me.

She shook her head. "The killings and disappearances are still happening, but from what I've seen they haven't gotten any closer over the past week. I'm honestly surprised that the Volturi hasn't stepped in yet. I'm sure they know what's going on."

I stiffened. "I'd rather they not get that close."

"We would protect you if they came here," she promised.

I laughed humourlessly. "Yeah, Paul said the same thing. He doesn't understand what they'd do to him if…"

"If?"

"If they knew how much I cared about him," I said tightly. "Jane and Alec tortured Will right in front of me to try and get me to join them but he wouldn't let me. If they went after Paul to get to me I'd never forgive myself."

"You're going to leave, aren't you?" she asked quietly.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "If they find out that I'm here, I don't know what other choice I'd have. They'd kill him, Alice. They wouldn't even hesitate."

"Well, it takes a lot for them to actually leave Italy," she said. "Let's hope they don't try to intervene on the newborns. Paul wouldn't be the only one you'd upset if you left."

"We can only hope," I muttered.

Alice and I left the forest and parted ways—she went in the direction of the Cullens' house and I began to walk towards La Push. Paul had been patrolling with the pack during the day, but he'd asked me if I wanted to stay over for the weekend since Jared would be spending the weekend at Kim's.

I'd spent the night at his apartment a few more times over the course of the past week, luckily avoiding having to spend any time with Jared. I wanted him to be okay with me, but I knew that it would take a lot of time and effort on both of our parts to get there, so for now it was easier to just avoid any messy situations.

I knew Paul could sense the tension between us and he'd done everything he could to assure me that it was just something that Jared was going to have to get used to. He didn't like talking about Jared very much and it lead me to believe that Jared had said things about me that upset him.

I shook my head at myself as I walked, trying to clear it. I didn't want to think about that; instead, I needed to think about the weekend ahead of me. Paul hadn't mentioned any big plans for our weekend, but I knew that he only had to patrol on Saturday during the day. A few days ago when I'd stayed over, I'd brought my duffel bag with some clothes in it so I didn't have to worry about going back and forth between Forks and La Push.

I was about to press the buzzer to be let into his building when I hesitated, hearing the low rumble of Paul's voice through the walls. I furrowed my brow and focused my hearing, trying to make out his words. There were too many floors and the walls were too thick for me to actually hear what he was saying, so I exited the foyer of the building and climbed the fire escape until I got to his floor, pressing my ear against his bedroom window.

"I don't have an issue when Kim stays over, so I don't see what the big deal is," Paul said. He sounded angry and I closed my eyes, my gut telling me that this wasn't a conversation that I wanted to hear.

"Yeah, but when my girlfriend stays over, you don't have to worry that she's going to kill you in your sleep!" Jared snapped.

"And you don't have to worry about that with Natalie either!"

Jared laughed humourlessly. "Sure I don't. Has she told you how many people she's killed yet?"

"Out of line, Jared," Paul growled.

"Well maybe it'll talk some sense into you!" Jared replied, exasperation in his tone. "You couldn't have just stayed with Rachel, could you? Instead you had to go and imprint on the enemy. I can't believe you'd put the whole tribe at risk like that."

"Natalie isn't a threat to us," Paul said tightly. "She isn't going to hurt any of us."

"She'll hurt you," Jared said, making it feel like a knife had been twisted in my chest. "One day, she's going to leave you. She'll get tired of staying in one place and pretending that she's a normal person and she'll break your heart. You're imprinted on her, not the other way around."

"Fuck off, Jared," Paul snapped. "She's different than the other ones and I know you don't get it, but I can't help how I feel. You know how an imprint feels. I'm not gonna sit here and try to convince you to be her best friend, but you don't need to be a dick about it."

"Whatever, man," Jared said. "Don't say I didn't warn you, though."

I listened to Jared hefting his bag over his shoulder and then exiting the apartment, trudging down the hallway and into the elevator.

I sat on the fire escape, pinching the bridge of my nose and exhaling deeply. I knew that Jared wasn't my biggest fan, but to hear him say that about me to Paul hit me harder than I'd expected it to.

Perhaps it was hitting me as hard as it was because I knew that Jared was correct. I'd inevitably hurt Paul and ultimately break his heart. Hadn't Alice and I just talked about that in the forest earlier?

I climbed down the fire escape and began to walk away, cutting through the forest and letting my feet guide me, Jared's words making my mind reel. I broke into a run, wanting to avoid crossing paths with any angry wolves and needing to get away from La Push.

I felt a twinge of remorse as I ran, part of me wishing that I'd crawled into Paul's apartment through his window and hid under the blankets on his bed until he found me, but the other part of me kept running.

I only slowed when my surroundings became familiar again. For a moment, I thought that I'd somehow circled back to where Alice and I had gone hunting, but I soon realized that I was incorrect and felt my stomach tighten anxiously as I figured out where I was.

The Olympic National Park.

Memories of that day with Paul flooded into my mind—how perfect every minute of it had been until we'd found the injured man. If I looked hard enough, I was sure I'd be able to find the exact spot where his blood had soaked into the ground.

Instead, I followed the trail that Paul and I had taken on our hike, searching for the clearing where I'd shown him my glittering skin. It didn't take me very long—it hadn't been a very complex hike and I had the advantage of my perfect memory helping me return. I pushed my way through the trees and sat in the middle of the clearing, closing my eyes and taking deep breaths.

The sun was slowly beginning to set, illuminating the clearing with a warm, golden glow. I pulled off my jacket and lay in the grass, feeling the warmth from the sun on my icy skin.

I couldn't stop thinking about what Jared had said to Paul. Was that what the entire pack thought about me? I hadn't even seen or spoken to any of the rest of them since that first day in the forest with Sam.

Sam had seemed civil enough with me—as much as he disliked vampires, he must have grown used to dealing with the Cullens and perhaps the fact that Paul was imprinted on me had softened his feelings towards me a little bit.

Had Jared shared his dislike for me with the other pack members? Surely the rest of them would hear that Paul had imprinted on a vampire and have the same immediate reaction—confusion and hostility.

My phone rang in my jacket pocket and I pulled it out, feeling a pang of guilt as I ignored Paul's call. I was too upset to pretend that I was okay and I knew that he'd be able to tell that something was wrong just from the tone of my voice. I wanted nothing more than to run back to his apartment and throw myself into his arms and to have him quietly assure me that Jared's opinion didn't matter.

But…it did matter.

How could I accept that Paul's best friend and roommate hated me? It wasn't sustainable in the long run for his girlfriend and roommate to constantly be at each other's throats. It wasn't fair to Paul.

"You broke your promise."

It had been half an hour since I'd ignored Paul's call and I turned towards the sound of his voice. He stood shirtless and wearing a pair of shorts at the edge of the clearing, eyeing me wearily.

"What promise?" I asked.

"To only come out here if I was with you."

"I guess I should've gone somewhere a little less obvious," I said. "How'd you find me?"

"I got worried when you didn't show up at my place because I could feel that you were upset," he began to explain, approaching me and sitting on the ground next to me. "When I called you and you didn't pick up, I knew something was wrong. And then when I left my building, your scent was strong and I realized what must have happened."

"Is that what they all think of me?" I asked, voice barely above a whisper.

"Of course not," he said. "It's a little weird for them, but once they meet you they'll get it. It also helps that whenever we phase together they have a direct line into my head—they get to see the real you."

"But not Jared."

"Jared is…a different story," Paul admitted. "He…struggles the most out of all of us with what we are and what you are. He's come to terms with what he is and understands that it's his duty, but it took him a long time to accept that. With you and what you are…he's having an even harder time accepting it. I think in his mind he's come to terms with what he is because he knows that it's his job to protect humans from what you are.

"He also hates the idea of imprinting," he continued. "We all kind-of do. As happy as we are with our respective partners, it feels too much like we're trying to 'claim' that person. It's why I made it clear to you that I didn't want to force you into anything. Jared was lucky he imprinted on Kim—they've been dating since high school so all those feelings were already established."

"What he said…about me breaking your heart—"

"Don't worry about that," he said immediately. "He was just angry."

"He's right, though," I whispered. "It's who I am; it's what I do. I did it to Will and it's just a matter of time before I do it to you, too."

"You can't get rid of me that easily," he chuckled. "I'd come after you—no matter how bad our argument was."

"You're not that good of a tracker," I said, teasing in my tone. I needed to lighten the mood a bit.

"I found you today, didn't I?" he asked.

"It wasn't best hiding place, to be fair," I said.

"Honestly, I got off easy—I thought I'd have to buy a plane ticket to Paris and meet you on the Eiffel Tower."

"It was tempting, trust me," I murmured.

Paul and I stayed in the clearing for another hour or so before he pulled me to my feet and we began to trek through the forest to get back to his apartment. We walked along the trail together and I approached where I was sure he would've had to park his car, but only saw empty concrete in front of me.

"You walked all the way here?" I asked.

"I phased and ran," he said. "Easier to track you down that way."

"That was…fast," I noted.

He chuckled. "I'll race you back if you'd like."

"Think you can beat me without phasing?" I challenged.

"Oh, I'm sure I can," he said with a laugh.

"You're on."

We took off through the forest and at first I was holding back, just to get a feel for how quickly he could move, but when he passed me I knew that I had to go at my full speed.

I couldn't let him win.

I increased my speed and shot past him. I only heard his sharp intake of surprised breath for a moment before he was completely out of earshot. I hadn't expected to have to go at my top speed since he wasn't going to phase, but it wasn't difficult to maintain it.

Before long, I was back at his apartment and I climbed the fire escape, prying his bedroom window open and slipping inside. I went into the living room and lounged on the couch, awaiting his arrival.

"Show off," he muttered when he arrived seven minutes after I had. "Next time I'm phasing."

I laughed. "I'd still beat you."

"Doubtful," he teased, joining me on the couch and wrapping his arms around me. "I was thinking…maybe tomorrow you could meet Emily, Sam's fiancée."

My stomach tightened anxiously. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Yes," he said without missing a beat. "She's been bugging me to meet you."

"And she knows that I'm…?"

"Of course," he said. "She'll love you, I promise."

I could only hope that he was right.