~When she glanced at him again her eyes were twinkling with amusement, as if she told an inside joke.~

CHAPTER II - SHARED SECRETS

MAIA HAD ALL BUT COLLAPSED when she got back from work, thanking Izzy as she was handed her bowl of food.

The women settled on their couch, both relaxed as Izzy asked about her first day at the hospital.

"Oh my god, Izzy. There's this hot ass doctor there that is totally my type." Maia came to life as she remembered the pale blonde doctor before sighing wistfully, "If only he were a few years older…"

"When has that ever stopped you before?" Izzy teased with a cheshire grin.

Maia's foot landed against Izzy's side, the impact doing nothing to the redhead. She barely felt the 'hit', it being more like the tickle of a feather.

Maia huffed, "Just so you know he's married. All the good ones always are."

"Didn't you reject a proposal from that guy Ted or whatever seven years ago?" Izzy laughed in amusement, remembering Maia's panic of some man trying to 'tie her down'.

Maia narrowed her eyes, "His name was Fred. And he was just…too nice."

"Too nice?" Izzy nodded, as if that made sense.

"Yes! My man needs some backbone." Maia declared with determination.

Izzy giggled, "You don't even have a man."

Maia pointed her fork at her, "Yet."

Izzy rolled her eyes as she picked up her cup and slurped the thick liquid through her opaque straw. Maia was already chattering about the 'hot ass doctor' that had all the female nurses drooling.

"I'm telling you, it should be illegal to be that good looking. What if a nurse makes a mistake because she's too busy dreamily staring at his face?" Maia ranted, but Izzy could tell she was happy to have some eye candy nearby.

Maia was fairly worried about wilting away from lack of male companionship. Izzy had been quick to assure her there were always the eligible bachelors of Seattle they could meet. And she did mean they. Because if Isolde went to Seattle to help Maia find someone, she was damn sure going to get laid as a reward.

"Well, how about your day?" Maia asked excitedly.

She was always so invested when Isolde played a teenager and was forced to go to school. Maia often told her that Isolde's information about up-to-date things is what kept her youthful. Isolde thinks Maia is just a young at heart woman.

Izzy thought of the school day, "I made some friends. They were nice girls."

Maia threw herself over the smaller woman, "That's good! As long as they don't replace me, of course."

Izzy laughed before getting sentimental, "No one can ever replace you, Maia."

The women soon bid each other goodnight before going to their respective rooms. Both knowing they could talk more tomorrow.

A week passed in a blur for Izzy. Time was often fleeting to one as old as herself, but with the company of Kim and Clara, the school days zoomed by.

The only hiccup in her days was Paul. The boy was still trying to get into her pants and it's gotten to the point where he even started to pull out cheesy pickup lines.

He was even trailing behind her as she made her way home! That was stalking.

"I'm not ever going to go out with you, Paul. So you can stop following me and displaying your strange knowledge of all pickup lines in existence." She growled, mouth slightly downturned.

Paul gave her a provocative grin, "We don't need to go out. We can skip right to the fun stuff."

She spun to face him, effectively stopping his steps as her eyes glared icily at him, "We will never be doing anything of the sort."

"What, do you have a boyfriend or something?" He grunted, looking genuinely agitated that nothing was working against the girl he was chasing all week.

Paul Lahote did not chase. The girls chased him. The fact he was doing something so out of character and she was still rejecting him was beginning to piss him off.

Izzy scoffed, "No. But that doesn't change the fact I'm not interested."

Paul loved seeing her getting all hot and bothered, but he decisively didn't love getting hot and bothered himself. And she was always successful in riling him up.

"Then what?" He growled, getting angrier that she was rejecting him. Paul didn't handle rejection well. Never had.

Izzy sighed, looking genuinely fed up with him, "A real man would have accepted that answer and that's what keeps you being a boy."

Her words stung as if she had slapped him and he could feel his ire boiling over as she continued, "You're not my type. That's all. Let it go."

"Fine. You're not even that hot anyway." He snarled before storming away.

Izzy merely watched as he left, uncaring of the eyes that were watching the interaction.

Paul Lahote was annoying, but he wasn't the worst mortal she's ever had to deal with. She only hoped he pulled his head from his ass before he entered the real world.

At least there were still good mortals around.

That weekend, she found herself in Kim's bedroom with the two girls. Kim and Clara were ranting about Paul's less than desirable attitude problems when Clara grunted, "He's just so infuriating! How are you not seething, Izzy?"

Izzy shrugged as she painted her last nail—a deep burgundy color that Kim already had—before she casually said, "I've dealt with worse."

Clara and Kim's jaw dropped as Clara shook her head, "You poor girl."

Izzy agreed. They'll hopefully never experience worse like she had. Not that the encounters ever lasted long, but they often ended in more bloodshed than she enjoyed dealing with.

"I'm sorry you're dealing with this when you just moved here, Izzy." Kim apologized.

Izzy shook her head, "You don't have to apologize for anything, Kim. But thank you."

Kim sighed longingly, "I wish Jared would just look at me with even a quarter of the fever Paul is chasing after you with."

"Kim! That's rude. Izzy is being harassed!" Clara reprimanded her friend, but Izzy wasn't offended.

"It's alright." Izzy reassured the girls as the two continued to paint their toes.

Clara frowned, "Gather your courage, Kim! Prom is only a few months away and then it's summer break! Who knows when you'll get to see him during that time!"

"I don't think I can…what if he thinks I'm weird?" Kim chewed on her lip nervously.

"Then he doesn't deserve you." Izzy declared, causing Clara to nod aggressively in agreement.

The rest of the night, Clara and Izzy were encouraging Kim to make a move on Jared. Even if it was just saying hello more than she did now—which was nearly never.

She left around noon the following day, saying goodbye to the girls and then Kim's parents. They were ecstatic their daughter brought home a friend other than Clara and were very welcoming the entire time.

Izzy was happy to see that Kim's family was just as warm and inviting as the girl herself. It was those small interactions that helped uplift her spirits after living for so long in a disheartening world.

She was walking home when she decided to detour to the beach, only having stopped by there twice with Maia so far.

Izzy was not surprised to find the beach empty. It was the end of February and the middle of the day. But the emptiness didn't bother her, in fact she delighted in it.

Her feet came to a stop as she stood far enough back to avoid the lapping water. The harsh winds blowing off the sea that would normally be stinging a mortal's skin painfully left her unaffected.

She always felt so at peace when she could enjoy a serene moment in nature like this. Perhaps that was due to her genetics. From what she remembered, her mother had practically been one with the earth and sky.

As she inhaled the salty sea air, she paused and tilted her head before drawing a deeper breath.

Ah.

She knew that smell.

Izzy whimsically followed the scent, strolling along a path heading up the cliffside.

There he was. Paul. Looking forlorn and downhearted.

Her steps were so light that the boy sitting on the edge of the cliff didn't hear her until she spoke up, "I don't think this is the weather to be cliff diving in."

She gestured to the obvious rough water below crashing into the cliffside.

Paul jumped so high in fright Izzy was afraid he was going to careen off the edge, but he steadied himself as he turned with a hand over his heart and breathing heavily.

"You can't just do that!" He cried in alarm, eyes still wide from nearly having his soul scared out of him.

Izzy simply sat down with him, her legs dangling dangerously—if she were a mortal—over the edge similar to his own.

She cocked her head at him, "What are you doing out here? Alone?"

"Me? What about you? Aren't you cold? Why are you so quiet? You need a bell or something." He rapidly fired the questions before ending in a grumble, but all she did was look down at her outfit confused. It seemed normal enough. He was dressed very similarly after all.

Her only response was a shrug.

The two sat in silence and it was comfortable. They didn't feel the need to speak and Izzy feared if Paul opened his mouth it would just piss her off and make her leave.

But the view was pretty from there and she didn't want to leave. The ocean seemed endless and part of her wanted to dive in. Alas, she could not do that in front of Paul. A mortal.

"I got into it with my old man." Paul broke the silence first.

Izzy nodded, "About what?"

Paul glanced at her before he huffed, "Promise you won't laugh?"

"Do I really seem that mean to you?" She raised an eyebrow before gesturing for him to continue.

He took a deep breath, "I want to apprentice at the auto shop I'm working at."

"Your dad doesn't approve?" She asked, eyes watching the waves below.

"Is it crazy? Maybe. I just-I've never been good at school. But I'm great with my hands."

Her snicker made him throw his hands up in defense as he chuckled, "Not like that!"

"Mm."

"Anyway, I've been working part time at the auto shop and my boss said I could stay on the team. Even do the study guide to get certified if I was seriously interested in a permanent position." Paul sighed, clearly struggling with the decision.

Izzy hummed, "I think you should do whatever will make you happy. Not your father. Not your teachers. Not your peers. Not your friends. You."

Her eyes caught his chocolate brown as he stared at her with incredulity, "That is surprisingly supportive of you, Red."

Her small smile fell quickly at the nickname, eyes narrowing before rolling and looking away from him.

"Well, you only have one life to live after all." Her soft words carried in the wind, her burning hair fluttering with the breeze. When she glanced at him again her eyes were twinkling with amusement, as if she told an inside joke.

Paul couldn't help but watch the girl that came into his life like a wildfire. She exasperated him while also being able to calm the raging storm in his mind.

It was on the edge of that cliff that a very strange friendship was born.

At school on Monday, Paul greeted Izzy with something akin to respect. Jaws were dropped and texts were sent in rapid succession.

People were more surprised that she returned the gesture instead of lashing out like a tigress ready for battle.

Of course, this entire small interaction had everyone speculating what could have happened to change the dynamic?

Was Paul changing his angle? Did the fearless redhead reform him? Or were there dirtier secrets to uncover?

Izzy ignored all the whispers with an internal eye roll. The only people she acknowledged were Kim and Clara who were very much wondering what happened in such a short time period.

"I think he's more than some 'bad boy'." Is all she said and Clara made her promise that Paul didn't get into her head.

It caused Izzy to laugh wholeheartedly before promising that she was not under some spell, nor was she doing anything unsavory with him.

Midway through the week the short greetings turned into Paul telling her he decided to take the offer from his boss and would be busier after graduation.

"I think that's good, Paul. Sometimes we just need time to figure it out. I mean look at Maia. She literally left for twenty years. But she came back, didn't she?" Izzy's smile was soft and warm as she talked about Maia.

The duo walked away from the school together, still in their conversation.

Paul glanced at her before asking, "Do you like it here so far?"

Izzy didn't mind La Push. It was a nice change to the city life and it wasn't often she got to experience such a welcoming community. Of course, if anyone ever found out what she was she doubted they'd still be as amiable.

"It's nice. Tranquil." She replied, eyes gazing up at the perpetual clouds.

She could do with more sunlight though. And she could make that happen, but it would be rather suspicious for this time of the year. So instead she suffered under the constant overcast skies.

He followed her gaze and chuckled, "Even with the constant state of gloom?"

"It could be worse."

He agreed with that.

The cliff's edge became a new spot for the two unlikely friends to hang out.

They talked about Izzy's life before moving to La Push—what she could tell him anyway—and he talked about his relationships—or lack thereof.

"You have commitment issues." She determined, twirling a lock of hair as she leaned back on her other arm.

Paul scoffed, "No." She stared at him pointedly before he sighed, "Okay. Maybe."

"Well, it's not the worst trait you could have." She shrugged.

He watched her fiddle with her hair as he grumbled, "It's just easier to leave before they leave you."

"Oh, I know." Izzy may have been a seventeen year old junior, but Isolde—or whatever she went by at the time—was a man-eating renegade.

Isolde had long since accepted her fate to never find true love. She'd never find her mate the way her father did.

She didn't want to.

Mortals died.

And vampires were too unpredictable.

Moreover, finding someone like herself was highly unlikely.

If she found love in a mortal, she wouldn't want to subject someone to immortality, despite having the ability with the accursed venom coursing through her body ready to be used at any time. Not when there were so many dangers that came with eternally walking the earth.

Isolde wasn't fond of the idea of her heart breaking from watching someone she loved die either. She already felt the small cracks in her heart preparing her for Maia's inevitable ending.

So her times with mortal men were fleeting and fun. Besides, she liked her lifestyle well enough, not ever wanting more.

Vampires were an entirely different beast to think about.

She tried to stay away from vampires at all costs, despite them sharing the same immortal fate as her since they might be able to sense her beating heart and pulsing blood.

While she had the appetizing allure of blood in her veins, her sweet tree sap scent she inherited from her father was just sweet enough to keep the blood from being overwhelming while her pumping blood was just enough to dilute the sweetness of the tree sap.

A perfect balance to blend in amongst humans, but also a perfect way to make her stand out next to a vampire.

Izzy was almost certain her scent didn't call to them the same way a human's did—being told by her father, so many centuries ago, that she smelled of a wonderful blend of both her mother and him—and the two vampires she did associate with, however rarely, never seemed to want to sink their teeth into her.

Meeting a new vampire wasn't a risk she was willing to take, for more reasons than just the scent. The few she ran into rarely lived to tell the tale of her existence, most of them being nomads out of control. And the few who lived, never loitered. Trust was hard earned and even if not meant to, can be broken. And with those still in power, she was not tempted to take a chance.

But it wasn't like she could disclose any of that to Paul. Hell, she hadn't even told Maia everything about her life. Believing it was better for the woman to be left in the dark about some things. She didn't want to traumatize her.

So, Izzy went with a more simple half truth at his curious look, "I don't trust easily, why give my heart to someone who could change their mind in a mere moment? It's easier to live with a little excitement and then go your separate ways."

She had watched Maia's own heartbreaks over the years. Holding the woman in her arms as she sobbed over some loser who cheated on her. Held her hair back when she got shit faced just to forget said loser. Helped destroy a prized car of another loser who dared raise his hand at her.

Lust may have been fleeting, but love was an even more fragile little thing that could go away as fast a candle flame could be blown out.

Paul stared at her as if he understood her a bit better. And maybe he did. She was finding this strange friendship with Paul comforting. Not as comforting as Maia's company, but it was peaceful.

The end of the week had the entire school in an uproar. It was Valentine's Day tomorrow.

Clara and Kim were practically fluttering about in excitement. She wasn't even sure why as none of the three of them even had a relationship.

The two rattled on the entirety of lunch about how they just love to see love. Izzy didn't have the heart to tell them that most high school relationships were doomed.

As someone who lived in the moment herself, perhaps the feeling of falling was splendid—she just never wanted to feel slammed back into bitter reality at the bottom of the fall.

It seemed like girls all over the school were eagerly awaiting a grand gesture from their partner while others were tearfully watching the backs of those they couldn't have.

Izzy already had plans with Maia for the festive weekend.

They were going to Seattle.

The clubs and bars would no doubt be full of other unattached individuals looking to have a fun time with no string attached.

Maia and Izzy were excited to let loose for the first time since coming to La Push, having spent the entire night prior picking their outfits out. The women weren't party animals or anything, but they enjoyed a girls night out every once in a while.

Izzy couldn't wait to be Natalia—her alias for the weekend—while Maia was even joining her as Veronica.

It was an old tradition they often did when they went out 'hunting' as Maia called it. Changing their names and finding a man to take home, except this time they couldn't bring some guy all the way to La Push, so they rented their own hotel rooms at some pricey place. And since Isolde had enough money to last her a lifetime and Maia was paid a handsome salary during her time as a travel nurse, having saved most of it, they didn't even blink at the price.

Kim and Clara were upset she'd be away for the weekend, both Maia and her telling everyone that they were taking a family weekend away to Portland. It wasn't smart to tell them Seattle, just in case.

Izzy was using this excuse of going to Portland to pull out more of her iconic wardrobe and say Maia and her went on a shopping spree.

She loved fashion and she loved staying up to date with the trends. But trying to blend in at school meant she was unable to wear most of her beloved pieces. She decided she would start reintroducing the clothing items slowly.

Kim and Clara waved goodbye to her, telling her they'd text her if anything exciting happened while she was gone—though that was unlikely.

As she turned away, she spotted Paul separating from his friends and walking towards her. She so graciously waited for him, once again ignoring the annoying buzzing in her ears and eyes piercing her back.

When he got close enough she smiled, "You don't have to ditch your friends for me, you know."

Paul glanced at his usual group, all guys who gave that similar 'bad boy' air, "Oh, those guys? Nah, they're fine."

The pair started walking, the silence comfortable before Paul asked, "Any plans this weekend?"

"Mm. Maia and I are going out of town."

Paul nods before volunteering, "I'm not doing anything. I have a shift at the auto shop tomorrow and Sunday."

She mocked gasp, "Paul Lahote? The one girls throw themselves at has no plans on Valentine's Day?"

He shoved her playfully and she let her body move with motion, "Shut up."

Isolde stood in front of the mirror in her hotel, fluffing her hair before applying a coat of her signature red lip she loved so much in the prior city.

She stepped back to admire the sparkly red dress hugging her frame. It was new and what better day to wear it than Valentine's Day?

A thin silk red choker with a real diamond heart charm hanging in the center was tied around her neck and she paired the entire outfit with a pair of red heels.

Grabbing her purse, she waltzed into the hallway to wait for Maia. The woman didn't take long and they both grinned wickedly at each other.

"Are you ready, Natalia?"

"Born ready, Veronica."

Izzy held her hand out and Maia grabbed it with ease, the women setting off into the night hand in hand.

The clubs were busy, but they loved every minute of it. They had started off the night with two shots—even though the alcohol did nothing for Isolde—then found themselves on the dance floor together.

It wasn't long before they were getting drinks for free and ensnaring their prey for the night.

As Veronica led a man back to her hotel room, she winked at Natalia who was only steps behind her with her arm in the ravishing man she captured.