The next day, I woke up still feeling exhausted. My body felt heavy as I dragged myself out of bed and made my way to the kitchen. Only my mom was there, deliberately chopping vegetables with normal human speed. She always does that, saying it reminds her of her human days.

"Morning, sweetheart."

"Morning, mom."

I opened the fridge and poured a glass of milk for myself. The house was quieter than usual. I strained my ears, and realized I couldn't hear the usual noise that was made by Rose's tinkering, Emmett's gaming station or Alice's favourite show.

"Where is everyone?" I asked, my voice quieter than I intended.

My mom's smile was careful, almost too careful. "Carlisle and your dad are at the hospital. Jasper and Alice are hunting, Esme's running an errand, and Emmett and Rosalie aren't back yet."

I nodded, my back turned to her as I took a sip of the milk. The weight of her words hit me harder than I expected. They weren't here. Mom was only here because she has the ability to shield.

Okay, I hated it when my family hovered and breathed down my neck, but I didn't want them to avoid me like a plague either.

The tears welled up before I could stop them, blurring my vision as I set the glass down on the counter with a soft clink.

"Sweetheart?" Mom's voice was gentle, full of concern.

I bit my lip hard, trying to stifle the sob building in my chest, but it escaped anyway. My shoulders shook as the tears spilled over, and I couldn't stop them. My mom was at my side in an instant, scooping me up into her icy arms and sat us on the couch. I buried my face in her shoulder, letting the sobs come.

"They're… scared… of me," I choked out, my voice breaking between sobs.

Mom held me tightly, rocking me back and forth as she smoothed my hair with her cool fingers. "Shhh, sweetheart. We love you, no matter what. It's just… it takes time for them to adjust to your new ability. With time, I'm sure everything will go back to normal."

"But… how long…" I said between sobs. "Alice… can't see me…" I hiccupped. "Maybe… there's something… wrong with me!…Maybe… I have… no future!"

My mom gasped and held my face between her hands. She stared at me intently. "Don't you ever say something like that ever again. You have a future, always will, always have been. I'll do whatever I can to make sure of that. We're here to protect you. Do you understand?" She said sternly. I nodded and buried my head in her chest.

My tears subdued after a few minutes. "Are you okay now?" I nodded. "Is it okay if I went back to cooking? The chicken is about to be done." I nodded again.

The timer went off and mom went to take the chicken out of the oven. I turned on the TV to search for something to watch. A few minutes later mom placed a breakfast tray in front of me and I ate while watching a show about a genius kid. I chuckled at the character's antics and found myself in a better mood. Mom visibly relaxed as she saw me smile.

I spent the day lounging on the couch and checking social media, taking advantage of the summer holiday, though I wasn't sure if my family ever wanted to continue my education in Cullen University.

Carlisle and my dad came home from work, Rose and Emmett in tow. I stood and started walking to my room, still feeling guilty about yesterday's incident, but Rose's soft voice stopped me.

"Renesmee, wait. I'm sorry for overreacting, it wasn't your fault, you were training and Emmett volunteered, well, Carlisle volunteered him but he didn't have any problem about it and he's fine now, so, will you forgive me?" She said it so sincerely that my heart melted and I crossed the room to hug her. As if the day can't get any better, my dad announced that we're going to visit the Amazon coven right after my birthday which is next month.

I squealed and launched myself at his arms and he caught me, even though he flinched the tiniest bit. I didn't let it bother me, I was too happy to be out of this place.

"We think her talent works the same way as yours, and she agreed to teach you what she knows." Dad said as he put me down. "We'll go to the airport together as a family, and then go our separate ways." Just when I thought I was at the top of this world, sadness and disappointment creeped inside my heart.

"We think it's time for you to learn a thing or two about independence, and what better ways than to learn it first hand? Isn't it what you have always wanted? Zafrina will be a perfect mentor for you and you'll be free from our helicopter parenting." I chuckled despite myself and the sadness evaporated.

"Besides, Jasper has been wanting to visit his old friends, Rose and Emmett are going to tour the world and write a book about it, and your mom and I are going on our second honeymoon." Mom looked down as if to hide her blush and smiled shyly. "And you, Carlisle and Esme will go to Brazil together."