I was lost.

I had been driving for almost four hours now and I'm tired and hungry and thirsty and pretty sure I made a wrong turn about a mile back, but I kept on, nonetheless. My phone's map wont refresh thanks to the stupid, crappy service up here in the middle of nowhere so I made no move to reroute just yet. It seems even the superior cell service my dad pays for can't penetrate through all these trees.

I was really starting to regret this. Coming to Forks for the first time on my own wasn't such a great idea as I had originally thought. Maybe if our Thanksgiving plans hadn't gotten ruined, then I would be driving down in sunny Florida instead of traipsing through the forest looking for Grandpa Charlie's house in the rain.

Grandma Renee caught a nasty flu this week and had to cancel our annual Thanksgiving plans with her and Phil. She insisted that she was fine, but my mom and dad went down to Jacksonville anyways to visit and make sure she was ok. I wanted to go too, but my parents thought it best for me to stay away in case I catch whatever she has. It was extremely unlikely, but still possible; a risk they were not willing to take.

So, instead of going south to visit Grandma Renee, I decided to spend Thanksgiving with Grandpa Charlie. I knew he usually spent it with a couple of close friends, but since the rest of my vampire family doesn't really celebrate Thanksgiving and I had no other plans, I wanted to come to Forks. I haven't been here since I was born, 19 years ago. I barely have any memories of my birth town, so I thought it would be nice to visit.

Wrong.

This trip was starting on a bad note. First, I didn't have enough time to get off campus and hunt, so I was uncomfortably thirsty, my flight from Chicago was delayed an hour, then my connecting flight to Port Angeles got canceled, the line to rent a car in the airport took forever, and now I was lost. I kept looking down at my phone as I drove, something my mom always reprimands me for. I know my track record for driving hasn't exactly been perfect but not all my accidents were my fault.

Finally, the map reloaded, recalculating my route and telling me to turn around. I groaned, looking up right as a deer decided to cross in front of my car. I screamed, swerving from left to right, pressing hard on the brakes. My little rent-a-car veered off the road and straight into a ditch, abruptly stopping. I sat clenching the steering wheel for a couple of seconds, breathing in an out. My heart felt like it was pounding 300 miles a minute.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. Slowly, I tried to reverse the car, but it seemed it was stuck, the front tires rolling uselessly in the mud.

What do I do?

It's the middle of the afternoon and there were no other cars around. I could try pushing it out myself, but I really didn't feel like getting soaked and covered in mud right now. Besides, if someone saw a small woman pushing a full-sized car out of a ditch by herself, that would look awfully suspicious. I was so frustrated, of course this would happen to me.

My first instinct is to call my dad. He always knew what to do when I got myself into these types of situations. He would undoubtably be angry at me for driving recklessly and putting myself and others in danger. He and the rest of my family were already very hesitant about "letting" me come to Forks. Especially my mom. I thought they were being ridiculous, no one in Forks had ever met me before, they wouldn't recognize me or think anything different but either way I had agreed to keep a low profile.

Calling him or any of the Cullens was out of the question. I'm sure if I did, they would overreact and offer to come get me as soon as possible. No thank you.

Should I call Grandpa Charlie? He was probably still at work and would come running if I called, but I didn't want to bother him. Plus, then he would know that his granddaughter was a complete idiot who got herself stuck in ditches and should get her license revoked.

I sighed and googled the closest tow truck service. Maybe they were quick about it, I could make it to Grandpa's before he gets off work. It seems that I was somewhere in-between Forks and La Push and the only place that offered tow trucks was a small mechanic shop just a couple miles ahead in La Push. I quickly called to request one and got comfortable, turning up the radio while I waited for my savior.

It took about 30 minutes for them to arrive. I hopped out of the car, using my jacket to shield me from the cold rain as the driver pulled up right behind my car. When I saw him step out of the truck, I didn't know what I expected, but he wasn't it. He was young and very tall, about Uncle Emmet's height. And very cute. He smiled at me, quickly jogging over.

"Hey, I'm Embry. I see you need some help." He teased, motioning to the car as he began hooking it up to the truck. "How'd this happen if you don't mind me asking."

I laughed awkwardly, not wanting to sound like a complete idiot in front of the cute tow-truck man. "I um- I got lost and tried to make a U-turn and I guess I didn't see the ditch until it was too late." I shrugged my shoulders, feeling my face flush completely red.

He chuckled, glancing up at me with a grin, "Well, don't worry, it doesn't look like there's any damage to the front bumper. Why don't you wait in the cab while I finish up?"

I thanked him and hurried out of the rain, grateful to catch my breath while he finished outside. Once he was done, he hopped in and started the short drive back to the garage shop.

I discreetly sniffed the air. Something was off. His scent was… different. I hadn't hunted in a week and was cautious about being in such a confined space with a human, but for some reason his smell wasn't appetizing to me. It wasn't necessarily bad, just different. The cab was very warm, and he seemed to radiate heat. I noticed he only had a t-shirt and jeans on even though it was about 40 degrees outside and raining. Strange. Even I felt the chill in the air.

"So, uh… Miss…?" He looked at me blankly, waiting for my name.

"Renesmee! Just call me Renesmee."

"Oh, uh, Renesmee," He chuckled awkwardly, clearly caught off guard by my name. "You're not from around here, are you? I would remember if I've seen you before."

"No," I blushed again. "I'm visiting some family for Thanksgiving. It's actually my first time here." I played with the zipper of my jacket. Not exactly true, but close enough.

His eyebrows shot up. "Really? Well, welcome to La Push. Or should I say Forks. I doubt you have any family on the Rez." He laughed.

"Thanks." I giggled.

"Where are you from?" He asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Well, I go to school in Chicago, the University of Chicago." I explained, not sure how much information I should be giving out about my vampire family. I know they used to live here, but that was almost 20 years ago. "But the rest of my family lives in Michigan."

"Oh, cool, what are you studying?"

"I'm majoring in Pre-Law, I'm a sophomore."

"A Lawyer, that's cool. Maybe I'll need your number in case I ever get in any trouble." He winked. I laughed a little too enthusiastically. Men like it when you laugh at their jokes, right?

We pulled into the small garage shop, and he quickly got to work unhooking my car. "I'm just going to check out that everything's good with your car before you leave. You can go inside and pay while you wait."

"Alright, thanks!" I hurried inside where it was warm and dry. My hair was thoroughly damp now, sticking to my clothes. I paid with the lady behind the desk, who suspiciously looked a lot like Embry, making sure to leave a large tip, and sat in the only chair in the tiny lobby. I mindlessly scrolled through my phone, checking to see if my professor posted our test grades yet and texting my roommate when I heard a deep voice approaching from the back.

My breath hitched as the largest man I've ever seen entered the lobby. He had to be at least 6 and a half feet tall, his large muscles clearly defined through his t-shirt. He was looking down, wiping his hands on a dirty rag as he crossed through the lobby. I got goosebumps as he passed me, not even looking up. His scent was different as well, like Embry's but better. It didn't give me the urge to feed from him like other humans, but something about it called to me. He cleared the room in two large strides and was out the front door as I stared after him, dazed.

Wow.

He was hot.

I blushed deeply when the receptionist cleared her throat, calling my attention. She asked if I wanted some water, and I politely declined, hunching down in my seat. After a few awkward minutes Embry came back, giving my car the all clear. As he walked me outside, I looked around to see if I could spot the other guy, but it seems like he must have left.

"Sorry if this is unprofessional but I just couldn't let you leave without at least asking." Embry turned to look at me, a slight blush on his cheeks. "I thought since you're new here, if you have no plans, a few of my friends and I are going to be at the sports bar tonight. It'd be great if you could come, eat some food, have a couple of drinks, and I could get to know you more."

Oh wow, was he asking me out? I didn't have too much experience with dating boys, between my mind-reading, overprotective, vampire father and the fact that I was a hybrid human vampire freak, a lot of boys were too intimidated to approach and ask me on dates. I know that this isn't technically a real date, but still, I felt flattered. In the back of my mind, I was also hoping his coworker from the garage would be there too.

"Um, sure, I might be able to go. No promises though." I guess it all depends on what Grandpa Charlie has planned for tonight.

"Awesome!" His face lit up, "No problem, here, give me your number and I'll text you, alright?"

"Alright, cool." We exchanged numbers and I thanked him again before leaving.

When I finally got to Grandpa's house it was empty. I took in the house, trying to imagine Mom living here as a human. It was small and quaint, the green forest a picturesque backdrop. I breathed in the air, very crisp and wet compared to the windy, polluted chill in Chicago. I dialed Grandpa Charlie's number; he must still be at work even though it was already past seven o' clock.

"Hey kiddo." He greeted me, "How was the flight?"

"Hi Grandpa. It was fine, I actually just got into Forks and was wondering when you were coming home."

I heard him grumble. "I'm really sorry kiddo, but I'm stuck at the station for a few more hours. You think you can get dinner on your own? You can get the spare key from the neighbors and let yourself in the house, get comfortable. I'm really sorry-"

"It's ok, don't worry! I'll see you later and we have all weekend to catch up. Duty calls." He apologized a couple more times before hanging up. I retrieved the house key from the neighbors and let myself inside.

After I unpacked and explored the little house, I sat down on the couch wondering what I should do for dinner. I could go visit my family's old house and hunt a little before Grandpa gets back. I could try making dinner but there wasn't much to work with in the kitchen. Or… I could go hang out with Embry and his friends.

The restaurant wasn't very far. I could go for a couple of hours and be back in no time. I took my time fixing my hair and putting together a cute outfit that Alice would be proud of. It was still raining outside so I rifled through my mom's old closet and found a decent raincoat.

Once I was ready, I texted Embry that I was on my way. I felt giddy with excitement. I can't explain why, but I knew that something really good was going to happen tonight. When I pulled in front of the only sports bar in town, I noticed how packed the lot was. For a small, sleepy town like Forks, there was quite a few people at the bar. Embry jumped up from his seat when I walked in, ushering me towards their table. It was packed with 6-foot-tall men. All of them in their mid to late 20's, Quileute, and very, very muscular.

Woah.

"Hey everyone, this is Renesmee, the girl I was talking about earlier. Renesmee, this is everyone." Most of them raised their hands or glasses and greeted me, I waved back, my face pink at all the attention I was receiving. I noticed that Embry's coworker was here, sitting in the back in an intimate conversation with a woman. Something pierced my heart at the way he was looking at her, an unpleasant feeling rising up my throat.

"I'll introduce you later, one by one." Embry whispered, "I can get you a drink at the bar if you want. I know the owner."

"Oh, sure, thanks." Technically I was still underage, even though I hadn't aged in over a year and never would again.

He ordered us a couple of beers and I held my tongue about hating the taste of beer. Don't screw this up Renesmee, he's being really nice to you.

He paid and we sat down with his friends, making small talk with them. I learned that Seth and Leah were siblings, and the hot guy, Jacob, owned the mechanics shop with his dad. Embry, Quil, and Jacob were best friends since childhood and Embry was helping him at the shop while he got his own startup off the ground.

Most of the guys had their girlfriends with them. I met Claire, who was dating Quil. She was super sweet and very pretty. She was much friendlier than Leah who wasn't exactly chatty with me. Jacob spent the entire time in a one-on-one conversation with his girlfriend, Lorene, barely paying anyone else any attention. I don't understand why it annoyed me so much, but I couldn't help but keep glancing at him, hoping to catch his attention.

Embry noticed that I'd hardly touched my beer and offered to buy me a different drink. I politely declined and got up to use the restroom, planning on ordering a glass of wine or something to get the bitter taste of hops out of my mouth on the way back. I passed the bartender my card as I sipped my glass, checking the time. I would have to leave soon to beat Grandpa Charlie home.

"Here you go, Miss Cullen, would you like to close your tab?"

"Yes, please." I was signing the check when I heard several chairs push back and someone approached me from behind.

"Hey." The deep bass echoed around the room. "The Cullens aren't welcome here." Before I had the chance to turn, an arm pulled me around, forcing me to face him.

And that's when I looked into Jacob's eyes for the first time.