Chapter 11: The boy

Bree looked through her window. The morning sun rose from the horizon, lighting the forest on fire. It woke the small birds outside, making them chirp happily in honour of another day.

She had not fixed her paint-ridden clothes yet. Alice and Jasper had not returned from their hunting trip, calming her down a little. She didn't bother changing her clothes before she was sure they were starting to return to the contemporary house.

Her fingers played with the window's corners, swiping themselves across the wooden frames. Their delicate touch rubbed its edges desperately, like trying to get rid of the nonexistent paint on her fingers.

She had arrived at her room a couple of hours ago and looked through the huge mirror placed in one of its unfortunate corners. She pitied that specific corner. She disliked staring in its direction simply because of the mirror lurching in its short shadows.

Her clothes had indeed been very paint-ridden, just like the caramel-haired Cullen had told her. Her face was not as bad, but still not in great shape. Four lines went over her cheeks unevenly. She wasn't sure how they had gotten there. Had the paint teleported to her face? She was sure she had not touched it at any point when she had been painting. Her clothes, however, were her own fault. She had been very aware of how some of the paint had splashed from her paintbrush onto them, tattering them rudely.

Now she was forced to soon change into a new expensive outfit. She hated how pricey all of the clothes in her wardrobe were. It made her feel bad when they got tattered with something. How was she supposed to exist, knowing she had ruined yet another set of clothes? But then again, Alice did not let anyone use the same clothes twice. It was annoying. The yellow-eyes were wasting money, like it would have been growing on trees. Sometimes the young teen wondered how much was exactly in their bank accounts. The expensive-looking furniture, the house, and the constant usage of new clothes suggested the amount was huge.

It was a mystery how they had acquired all of it. She had come to the conclusion that the reason for their wealth could be pinpointed to Alice's visions and how long they had lived. If Carlisle, the leader who had been born in the 1600s, was the oldest, there was quite some time between now and then for the money to slowly build up.

Her ears picked up a car's engine sounds, which undoubtedly belonged to the doctor. He had gone to the night shift to help the hospital with a sudden epidemic of accidents.

Humans were silly. Why did they get into accidents so often? Couldn't they keep their bodies safe? It wasn't like vampires were a problem for the Forks residents. They were safe from her kind. Protected by the shapeshifters and the Cullens. They were the luckiest mammals of the human species she had seen so far.

The clank of a car door made her legs start walking towards her door on their own accord. She wanted to go feed before changing her clothes. It wouldn't be wise to change the clothes and ruin them again with the disgusting animal blood. She did not like the taste of it, nor was she used to it, but she had to deal with it. If she had been able to dream, she would have seen dreams about juicy humans with their delicious hot blood running in their veins.

She could almost hear one of their hearts. It was coming closer—more real, too real. How did it sound so vivid? She didn't know her imagination could do tricks like that. Could she attempt to daydream about hunting humans? Would their blood taste as delicious in her mind as in real life if she were capable of hearing the fake heart's nervous bounding so well?

Nervous? Why did it sound nervous? Bree's eyes thrust open. She had not even known they were closed. She had been so encaptured by the heart's sound that-.

But she could still hear it. It pumped deliciously in the distance, coming closer to the yellow-eyes' residence.

She had to get to it before anyone would stop her.

Her throat scorched as she flew out of her room. She went past the many doors of the house, fleeing like a cougar. No one was going to stop her from drinking the yummy, hot red liquid. She needed it. Suddenly, she didn't care anymore if she died while attempting to get to the heavenly blood. She only wanted it, and nothing else. The stupid animal blood meant nothing to her. Its revolting taste lingered in her mouth as she recalled its taste from the last time. She would never drink it again; she only wanted the red liquid coming closer to her.

In a hurry, she ran out of the front door, leaving it hanging open. She was surprised that none of the Cullens had tried to stop her. Or maybe they were too weak and knew that. They could have given up on her, accepting that she was not meant to drink their disgusting food.

A smell rushed to her nostrils as the outside air hit her. It was the most vile thing she had smelled. Like a wet dog, but a hundred times worse.

Carlisle's hands stopped her in her tracks. They wrapped her tightly against his chest, not letting go of her.

She hissed at the action, not moving anymore. Her mind was clearing from the bloodlust as fast as it had started, the stench taking all the appeal out of the pumping heart. It was enough to make her body shiver, which shouldn't be possible. She couldn't shiver. It was impossible for vampires to do so.

"Seth is here." The blond man announced, turning his focus from the girl to his coven members inside their house.

Seth? Who was Seth? Was he another human friend of the Cullens? A realisation dawned on the newborn's horror-stricken expression. He had to be one of the Quileutes. He surely smelled the part. The violent stench of shapeshifters rotated in the air, making her scrunch her nose in disgust. Why did she have to endure two horrible smells in under twenty four hours? It was unfair. What did the world have against her? Had she done something to anger it?

The heartbeat came closer. A young boy with short black hair showed himself. He walked from the woods, studying the front yard anxiously, his gaze first going to Bree and then to the leader. He was maybe around fourteen, two years younger than her.

"Hi, Doctor Cullen!"

"Hello Seth. It's a pleasure to see you! What brings you here?" The blond man responded politely.

It was odd to see the shapeshifter. Had the teen missed something? Why was the boy standing in the yellow-eyes' yard? Did he know about the treaty? He had to. There was no way he didn't. She wondered if there was an emergency on the other side of the border. Did the Quileutes need help?

"Umm…well I know that I broke the treaty…and I'm very sorry about that, but Dr. . Cullen, I really wanted to see the newborn."

The boy's reason made the brown-haired young vampire snicker. A smile formed on her face as a couple of chuckles cracked out of her lips. Why on earth did the Quileute want to see her? She thought they knew she was a bloodthirsty, crazy newborn. Why would he risk coming here? Sure, she didn't like the smell of the shapeshifters and, in turn, did not crave their blood that much when in proximity to their scents, but that did not mean she was safe to be around. It was dumb how she was thinking about the boy's safety. She wasn't supposed to do so. She had a feeling it had to do with how he was younger than her. Everyone around her was developmentally older than she.

Carlisle looked surprised by his words. He gave him a gentle smile. "Oh, that's fine…I suppose. You could have alarmed us of your desire to meet Bree, and I'm sure we could have met up on the border."

"You're right. I'm sorry." Seth whined. He was suddenly embarrassed. "Why didn't I think about that?"

"Not all of the options always come to mind when you need them. There is nothing to worry about. It would be ridiculous to break the treaty from an innocent mistake," the amber-eyed vampire smiled.

The boy seemed to calm down a notch, his body relaxing. "Thanks. You're so wise, Doctor Cullen."

"I simply have many centuries behind me. There are no minds that stay untouched by new experiences as time goes forward. And call me Carlisle; I feel we are familiar enough with each other for you to call me by my first name." Carlisle said.

"Thanks, Dr. Cul- Carlisle." Seth struggled to speak. His hands shaked slightly, nervous from being near vampires. Or maybe he was anxious to have broken the treaty. The girl wasn't sure which one was the reason for his emotions.

The blond man smiled warmly, making the boy grin shyly. "So, Carlisle, can I maybe speak with Bree alone?" He continued looking at him pleadingly. "I'd really appreciate it to interview her in peace, if that's okay."

Interview? Bree raised one of her eyebrows, finding the boy's choice of words weird. She suppressed her urge to let out a new group of chuckles. She wanted to know what was going on inside his head and what his thought process was like. It had to be cool based on the way he spoke.

"Do you think you can handle being around Seth without attacking?" Carlisle asked her silently. His eyes bore into the newborn's soul, causing discomfort to flare in her chest.

Her gaze flickered to the shapeshifter and then back to the leader. He didn't seem to have noticed Cullen's question to her. Instead, he stared patiently, looking at the two, completely unaware of the words. She doubted he had heard anything. The words said to her had been too silent to be heard by anyone who wasn't standing thirty centimetres away from her.

"Maybe." She responded after pondering for the blink of an eye.

The older vampire narrowed his eyes. "Bree, you need to be completely sure. I cannot let you go if you will endanger our treaty."

She gulped, turning to stare at the black-haired boy for a longer time. She inhaled the air around them deeply, testing whether it was going to send her over the edge. The vile, strong smell entered her nose. Its revolting scent pierced her nostrils and made her feel like she had inhaled acid.

With a mighty frown, she let out a gag.

"I will take that as a yes," Carlisle sighed, squeezing her shoulders encouragingly. "You will have an hour to talk to him. If you don't come back by then, we will come searching for you. Do you understand?"

The young teen nodded, alarmed by the change in the leader's voice. It warned her against trying to escape. Told her that if she were to try to do so, she would not like the outcome. Her eyes drifted to the ground as the blond doctor let go of her.

He gave her a sharp look before nodding politely to Seth and turning to go inside.

The soft forest floor bounced beneath Bree's rushing footsteps. Nature was doing its morning routine. Birds chirped in the trees. Animals rustled in their nests, unaware of the dangerous predator walking by. Nevertheless, despite the beautiful waking woods, she felt nervous. It crippled inside of her sneakily, like a cobra. She couldn't get the amber-eyed vampire's words out of her head. They taunted her, ruining her peaceful moment.

The boy behind her strolled more relaxedly, not seeming as anxious as before. Seth's bouncy heart pumped his veins full of blood. Circulated the delicious red liquid in them and left her to crave the life-giving fluid going through him.

She felt venom pool in her mouth. Its sweet familiar taste urged her to take a sip from the Quileute. However, she couldn't. No matter how frustrated the idea made her.

She wanted to taste the blood so badly. The desire was so strong that she constantly had to turn her head away from him. Unfortunately, her gaze seemed to pop right back to him when she desperately looked away.

The wind picked on her paint-tattered clothes. It tugged at their corners, trying to rip pieces from them. She didn't like the wind today.

"So, your Bree, right?" Seth broke the tense silence.

The newborn turned to look at him. Her head tilted slightly from the strengthening smell of his blood. "Yes."

"It's nice to meet you! I'm Seth Clearwater," the black-haired boy introduced himself. He jumped in front of her, stopping the girl in her tracks.

She stiffened in response, withholding a growl nearly escaping from her chest. It wouldn't have helped to growl at the Quileute. In the worst-case scenario where she would have done so, she would have been attacked by a huge wolf. Gotten ripped apart and been killed on the spot.

That was definitely not on her list today.

The young teen had forgotten the danger of him in her nerve-cracking state. She needed to be careful around Seth. He was a shapeshifter, after all. She couldn't risk doing something triggering to him.

Her gaze flew to the dirt beneath her boots. Her eyelids closed and then opened up again as she redirected her focus on the Quileute. The other teenager didn't seem threatening. In fact, the wide smile on his face told her how excited he was. He really had to want to interview her.

Seth ruffled his short black hair. "So…umm…how strange it is to be a vampire? Do you miss eating popcorn?" His curious tone added, "I really want to know."

"I don't remember how popcorn tasted like…or any other human food in the matter." Bree confessed. Her human memories were too dim for her to remember the individual tastes of food. It was depressing. She hoped to put human foods into her mouth and enjoy the flavours of them fully. But it wasn't possible, not anymore.

"That's sad." The boy sighed, looking gloomy for a minute. His eyes started to glimmer. "Do you miss sleeping?"

She raised one of her eyebrows. Why were the questions from the shapeshifter so weird? Didn't he have any other smarter questions to ask? He could have asked her about how she was doing. Or how she was adjusting to being a vampire. The answer would have been boring and perhaps a bit saddening, but still better than the things he was asking her currently about. "I can't remember what sleeping felt like either, but I bet it would be nice to be able to do so."

"Oh." Seth gasped. "Wait, so you can't really remember your human life?"

The newborn glanced uncomfortably towards a butterfly. Its wings flapped in the air, creating a small wind from them. She felt it as clearly as she was able to feel the bumping pain from her old memories. "I can, but a lot of the details are too dim to be recalled."

The boy looked at her, confused.

She swung her hand under her chin, trying to figure out a way to make the meaning behind her words clearer. "It's like my memories would have been dipped in mud and never cleaned, so they are forever tattered in the filth."

"That must suck." Seth's smile faded. He suddenly looked sorrowful. "It has to be hard to lose your memories. I wouldn't know what to do if that were to happen to me. I'm sorry."

She didn't bother correcting the shapeshifter's small mistake of claiming she had lost her memories. She technically hadn't, but the detail wasn't important. Instead, she nodded. "I guess it is."

The mood in the forest lightened as Seth let out a chuckle. "Hang on… I said it 'must suck'". His laughter became louder as he giggled at his own unintentional joke.

It wasn't funny, but nevertheless, the contagious happiness brought a smile to the girl's face. She did have to say the wording had been at very least interesting. It was a tiny bit ironic how he had used the word suck in front of a vampire.

A soft whimper left her body as her brain registered the strengthening scent of blood. Her throat throbbed, its hard surface feeling like it had been set on fire. She swore she was almost able to distinguish smoke coming from it. Her feverish eyes searched frantically for the reason for the worsening burn, but her scan left her with nothing. There were no clues anywhere near her as to where the odd sensation could have come from. The urge to leave the area washed over her. Her mind was telling her to run back to the contemporary house. She wanted to have nothing to do with the strengthening scent of red liquid.

Her legs squirmed impantiently, her gaze fixated on Seth.

"How have you liked living with the Cullens?" he asked innocently, not knowing about her rising inner turmoil.

"I don't know." She answered quickly. Her breath hitched as she looked away from the Quileute.

The yellow-eyes were scary, except for the leader and the matriarch. Esme had not seemed as daunting as before after her painting session with her yesterday. She didn't prefer to admit it, but maybe she even liked the woman. She seemed nice. Carlisle was weirdly helpful and, to be honest, the most trustful of her capturers. She still didn't want to trust neither of the two mentioned Cullens fully, but with time, she could very well warm up to them. They felt the safest. Bree could imagine starting to enjoy spending time with them if they truly didn't have any plans to hurt her.

"Are you okay? You look distracted."

The young teen returned her hazy concentration to the black-haired boy, her posture going from relaxed to agitated in milliseconds. "I want to go back."

"But we haven't even talked—oh. Your eyes are dark, almost pitch black. I remember Sam telling me how that means a vampire is hungry. Do you need to feed?" Seth babbled. He wore a concerned expression, stepping closer to inspect her face.

The well meaning action caused her to jump backwards, her instincts ready to attack the fourteen-year-old. She couldn't handle his scent anymore. It was too strong and delicious, and most importantly, right in front of her. His heavenly life pumping blood was flowing inside of him, calling her to bite the boy invitingly.

The revolting smell of a shapeshifter had moved to the background in the face of her thirst. She didn't mind it as much anymore. She wanted to sink her teeth into Seth.

With all the restraint she had gathered, the newborn turned around and fled. It was her only option. She couldn't risk hurting the Quileute. She couldn't kill him. Her brain reminded her of the danger of him, regardless of how harmless his appearance was. He could easily shred her to pieces. She could have enough newborn strength to fight him off for a while, but eventually she would succumb to her bloodlust and become reckless with her fighting moves.

The grass beneath her bent from the force of her feet. The brown boots thrummed on the ground as they carried her towards the house, deemed to be somewhat safe in her mind.

Its rectangle shape came into view. The modern outerform rose from the forest like the protector in her human dreams.

Jasper bolted outside, sensing her distress. His eyes locked onto hers as he let out a growl.

"Jazz!" Alice's form appeared next to him.

Bree's face paled. She hadn't even known it could get even paler. The surprise and horror of seeing the scary pixie made her drop to a crouch. She was doomed. Truly, doomed. There was no saving her.

The yellow-eyed monster must have seen her. The thought created shivers in her back.

Her paint-ridden clothes laughed at her. Their colourful stains winked at her playfully, enjoying the show forming in front of them.

The newborn closed her eyes.

A gasp cut the air. "Why on earth haven't you changed? You should know better than to walk around in those atrocious clothes, Bree!"