Disclaimer: I do not own the Twilight books. I'm only borrowing the characters and will return them mostly unharmed.

A/N Hey everyone! I know the story was supposed to be a oneshot but it kind of just… exploded in my mind. This is how it will go: each chapter will have Claire asking one question as she grows up. Italics are Quil's thoughts.

Quil slid out from under the car he was working on in the garage. Still not looking at the newcomer, he reached for a towel and wiped off his sweaty face. After wiping off his wrench and slapping the dust from his cut off jeans, he finally fixed his impassive eyes on the young girl.

"Quil-"

"Where have you been, Claire?" She flinched at his too-calm tone, knowing that his paranoid over-protectiveness was boiling under the surface. He had quite the temper when he was upset. She just hoped she wouldn't have to deal with it today.

"Just around," she shrugged, hoping that he would drop the subject. He made a murmuring sound and nodded his head.

"Around. I see. And why would a twelve year old need to be 'around' exactly?" he asked lightly. "You were supposed to come over here right after school. I've been waiting for over an hour, wondering if you had been kidnapped or something."

"I was just taking a walk."

"Oh, a walk. Alright," he answered sarcastically, falling silent and mentally fuming. Claire could tell he was upset even though he had seemingly dropped the subject. Quil would never yell at her, but his clenched jaw and tense shoulders revealed his annoyance. As she scanned his body and further probed his mood, she was suddenly struck by the sheer size of the man. He was much taller than average, with broad shoulders, powerful legs, and a strong torso. The remembrance of her best friend Melanie's words from today hit her, and she realized with a pang of pain that Melanie may have been right. Though Claire was slightly embarrassed about the conversation, she knew that Quil would understand and answer her question. Hopefully he wouldn't be offended.

"Quil… Melanie said something at school today…" Hearing Claire's unsure mumble and not wanting to make her more uncomfortable, Quil turned to face her and relaxed slightly. He couldn't stay angry at her for long, so he just nodded to show he was listening.

"She said that you shouldn't be hanging out with me."

Quil felt a strange urge to laugh, but instead pressed his lips together and asked, "What makes her say that?" The nerve of that girl! He also wondered if he should feel insulted.

"She says you are too old to hang out with a sixth grader so much." Claire paused. "She says it's not normal." Quil almost had to stuff his fist in his mouth to stifle the laughter that fought to escape. If only they knew how "not normal" his relationship with Claire was! How do you explain imprints and werewolves to a pair of preteens? His amused thoughts were interrupted by Claire's question.

"Quil, why do you hang out with me?" He froze, panicking for a moment. What a question! How do I explain this? He instead settled for evasion

"Does it bother you that we hang out?" Claire rolled her eyes and stuck her hands on her hips at Quil's obvious attempts to distract her. Arching an eyebrow at him, she asked "What do you think?" Feeling like a child who had gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar, he looked down and shuffled his feet. It was moments like these that he forgot that Claire was only twelve and that he was the adult here.

"Quil, answer the question."

"It's a silly question."

"Then just answer it."

"You know the answer already."

"Do I?"

"Yes."

"QUIL!"

He flashed a boyish grin at Claire. In some perverse way, he loved to annoy her. He loved how her eyes would flash and a tiny crinkle would appear in between her eyebrows. Trying to get one more shot at her, he asked, "Is this the reason behind your long walk today?" Already knowing that the answer was yes and afraid that she would do him bodily harm, he sighed dramatically and began:

"Claire, I've known you since you were two." Seeing a scowl begin to form on her face at his inadequate response, he continued. "Ever since your toddler self waddled over to me, we've been friends. What a smart little baby you were," he teased. "Even when you could barely talk, you realized what an amazing person I was," he finished with a smug grin.

"Oh, really?" she asked with a cocked eyebrow. "So you hang out with me because you are an amazing person?"

"Yep."

"Oh, good to know," she huffed, crossing her arms tightly. Chuckling out loud at her slightly annoyed expression, he slung a heavy arm over her shoulders and pulled her to his side. Her spine tingled at his unusually warm touch.

"Can't an ooooold man watch out for his wittle baby Claire-bear?" he asked as he tugged on her ponytail lightly. Rolling her eyes yet again and trying to hide her silly smile, she shrugged his arm off and said "You aren't that old. Stop being dramatic." With that, she spun around and started tidying up the messy garage. Standing still for a moment and watching her move around, Quil thought about how Claire had grown in the past few years. As a child, she was quiet, introverted, and afraid of displeasing him. Now, a saucy little almost-young-lady stood in front of him, dishing out attitude and standing up to him. Yes, he was physically older than her, but she was mentally catching up to him at a rate that almost scared him. His chest swelled with an unnameable feeling as he thought of the years to come and their future together. God help me when she becomes a teenager. I don't stand a chance!

Alright guys, I hope you enjoyed this second chapter. The question for this one was "Why do you hang out with me?" Feel free to share any questions you would like Claire to ask Quil and we'll see how it goes!