A couple of seconds after the discussion, Carlisle and Esme appeared in a blur of motion – they were already in the covering of the nearby forest.
Thankfully, Forks had no shortage of large, shaded trees and cloudy weather.
“He gave us a lot to think about,” Carlisle muttered.
Esme nodded her head.
“Should we share this information with the kids?” Esme questioned.
“Not yet,” Carlisle decided. “We have to wait until Edward comes back. With any luck, it should be in a week or two.”
“Rosalie will be anxious,” Esme added.
“We can explain the situation to them,” Carlisle stated. “Rosalie is not anxious about answers, but merely to know that there will be answers. Ultimately, she has a detective inside of her.”
“He is strange – strange smell, strange heartbeat, strange energy surrounding his body, though it is more comforting than the smell of the wolves,” Esme commented. “And he introduced us to a new brand of wine. How could he be so certain that we would be able to taste it?”
“I suspect he has met many of our kind before,” Carlisle replied, examining the bottle of wine in his arms. “And if he has, the Volturi will have some records. It would seem that I will need to head over there for some time.”
“Maybe not so soon,” Esme voiced. “He implied there is danger coming towards us.”
“He implied many dangers coming.”
“But to us specifically and very soon – sooner than the rest of Humanity if I interpreted his statement correctly.”
Carlisle mused. “I believe you did. I have the feeling he was talking to you specifically when he mentioned that part.”
“A lot to consider,” Esme sighed. “Let’s just take it one step at a time.” She paused for a second to ask. “The video footage from his home?”
“The cameras were turned off prior to us being there,” Carlisle responded. “And I have the inkling he will destroy and replace those cameras personally. He seems even more paranoid than we are.”
Carlisle nodded, and both he and Esme blurred into the thick of the forest.
۞۞۞
JANUARY 20th 2005 - THURSDAY
CHARLIE’S HOUSE
Bella’s eyes fluttered open to another uninteresting morning.
The first day of school had been a time to remember all that happened, but the past two days were as uninteresting as a day could be.
But this was fine – wasn’t normality what she wanted?
Bella was at war within her mind – fighting the instinct to be too curious about things that didn’t involve her. Charlie had not mentioned it, but Bella knew her father wanted to say his piece.
Xavier hadn’t been to school in two days.
Of course, Bella knew he was taken to the station after the fight, but there wasn’t much information after that. She couldn’t get information from Jessie – the girl was troublesome on her best days.
Ron, the kid taken to the station with Xavier, avoided the name as if a plague of world-ending proportions. Angela hadn’t said anything, but then again, things were tense around the table.
Jessica seemed defensive, especially toward Angela.
Eric and Mike still hovered around Bella, but they were much subtler in their demands for her time. Of course, Tyler had joined the fray, and he seemed the only person capable of mentioning Xavier’s name.
“But all the information I need is downstairs,” Bella groaned, rolling in her bed.
A single question that she knew Charlie would eagerly answer.
She rolled out of her bed in a zombie-like state, performing the morning routine – brushing her teeth, showering, fixing her hair, scouring the closet for warm clothes, and heading down to get breakfast.
-----------
“Morning…” Charlie slipped a plate of eggs across the table.
“Morning,” Bella replied, receiving the plate and immediately reaching for the salt.
Silence…
An awkward silence…
“Listen, dad—”
“Bella about—”
Both father and daughter opened their mouths to speak at the same time but chose not to speak when they notice their words would clash.
“Uhm, let me go first,” Charlie voiced.
He rose from the table, grabbed his workbag from the couch, retrieved a file that he brought back to the table, and slid in front of Bella.
“This is?” She was confused.
“This morning, Xavier asked me if you would give him a ride to school. He says you never got his number, so you’ve probably been unable to reach each other,” Charlie chose his words very carefully. “I told him I would let you decide, but I rather you have all the facts first.”
“And these files have something to do with that?” Bella furrowed her brows. “I mean, I haven’t seen him in school for two days and I have been concerned. He is my first friend in Forks.”
“And that’s why I would like you to know why he hasn’t been to school, but he’s your friend. I want you to make the decision. Just know, he has mistakes in his past.”
Bella stared at the files on the table for a couple of seconds before sliding them toward Charlie – a clear refusal to read them.
“If I am his friend, I will wait for him to talk to me – if he ever feels so comfortable,” Bella explained. “I would never go behind someone’s back like this.”
“And I am proud of you for that,” Charlie breathed a sigh of relief. “Just know, be careful. Xavier has had a rough time in New York – stuff like that doesn’t just go away.”
Bella stuffed a strip of bacon into her mouth, and hopped out of her seat, barely managing to steady herself before an epic fall could take place.
Charlie stared at his daughter concernedly.
“So, where does Xavier want me to pick him up from?” Bella inquired.
“Oh, he’s already here,” Charlie gestured to the person standing perfectly still by the door. “He’s actually the one that insisted I show you the file. He was gonna explain it anyway, and I packed pepper spray into your bag just in case.”
Bella froze and slowly turned to see Xavier’s bright, partially golden eyes staring at her in curiosity. The bacon strip fell from her mouth, but thankfully, The Eternal was there to spare the food.
Xavier caught the strip mid-fall.
“Shall we get going?” He inquired, taking a bite out of the strip.
Bella’s face flushed, her heartbeat sped to inhuman levels, and her body tensed just to keep her legs from giving out. For some reason, all of Xavier’s actions always seemed so sexual to her.
COUGH
COUGH
Bella was startled out of her embarrassment and rather graphic thoughts by Charlie’s well-timed cough, and the next thing she knew, her hand had grabbed Xavier by the wrist, pulling him through the door.
----------------
The ride to school was awkward.
“Are you going to talk to me or—”
“I am focusing on the road,” Bella interrupted Xavier’s question.
It was the same answer she had given the dozen other times Xavier had tried to initiate conversation in the car.
“So, I got thrown in jail after that fight,” Xavier explained and suddenly smirked. “I heard you panicked for the fight, even threw your tambourine at one of the football team’s guys.”
Bella blushed.
“I thought they were going to kill you and Jessie,” She justified. “I don’t see many fights in Arizona. I was scared to a shade paler than I already am.”
“Nah, it just meant you have my back,” Xavier’s eyes softened considerably. “You don’t know how much that means to me. You’re weak but you stood up for me, so how can I – who is strong – not stand up for other people?”
“I didn’t help much,” Bella cleared the hair from her forehead for the first time. “I wish I could have done more, but those guys were so big – even Eric and Mike took a couple of steps back.”
“They don’t like you enough to die for you,” Xavier snorted. “Never date a guy who isn’t willing to die for you.”
“I think you have a twisted sense of relationships,” Bella rolled her eyes. “The dying for you thing shouldn’t come until marriage – if you’re so lucky.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Xavier forcibly, but gently, gripped Bella’s chin, forcing her to face him as he placed one hand on the steering wheel to keep the car steady. “If a guy is interested in you, he should be ready to protect you at the cost of his life, and if he wants to marry you, he should be able to kill for you.”
When her chin was free from Xavier’s grip, she spent a couple of seconds completely lost, wondering what had just happened.
“You should be driving,” Xavier added.
“Oh, shit!” Bella swerved the steering wheel right, barely avoiding the more frost-covered side of the road. “Okay, a new rule in the car – you never touch me without a prior written request.”
Xavier smiled and stared at Bella.
“And stop looking at me like that!” Bella continued to put her foot down.
“Like what?”
“Like, I’m a snack or something,” She complained. “I am not edibles!”
“Fine, I’ll write,” Xavier joked.
“What?”
“You said I can’t touch you without a prior written request,” Xavier shrugged as if it was obvious. “I’ll write you every time I intend to touch you.”
CRRRRKKKK
The truck abruptly stopped on the frost-covered road. Bella’s angry gaze bombarded Xavier’s nonchalant expression.
“Fine,” The Eternal broke first. “I’ll stop messing with you to get cute reactions. Though, I am building up your tolerance to what Mike and Eric might try.”
“I can handle Mike and Eric,” Bella muttered, re-starting the car as she added in her mind. ‘I just can’t handle you.’
A couple of minutes of casual conversation.
Then, Bella asked the question that had been burning in the back of her mind. “What were those files that—”
“I am not too sure, myself,” Xavier answered before she could even finish, already prepared for the question. “Her name is redacted, but I was still able to find out that her name was Rebecca.”
“Find out?” Bella questioned. “Not remember?”
“Yeah… I don’t remember much about my life before coming to Forks. I was shipped here due to medical issues, legal issues, and mental issues,” Xavier admitted. “From what I understand. I tried to kill her after we had sex – so, they wrote it down as attempted rape. I would never rape anyone, but I can see myself trying to kill someone.”
“That doesn’t make me exactly comforted,” Bella voiced.
“You want comfort or do you want the truth about who you let in your car?” Xavier pressed.
“Truth…”
“Then, truth it is,” Xavier confirmed and continued. “She was in a coma for a few months, and I was sent to jail. She woke up in the end so I got a legal slap on the wrist, community service, and my very rich parents sent me to the edge of nowhere. That’s basically the story.”
“All of it?”
“I dated Rebecca for three years or so – I think there was an engagement involved,” Xavier mused, connecting the dots. “I know there was cheating involved, but that was mostly on my part. I am as curious about you as to why I tried to kill her, but some things are better left unanswered.”
“I’ll tell you what I never thought I’d be doing,” Bella slowed the car as they pulled into the school. “I never thought I’d be discussing attempted murder in my sweet new car with a friend I’ve only known for three days.”
Xavier chuckled. “The things like throws at us, huh?”
Bella chuckled. “Yeah.”
They had found common ground.
As they exited the vehicle, Xavier could pick up the hushed whisperings from a dozen feet away. Surprisingly, the discussion wasn’t as much about he and Bella as it was about Angela’s good mood.
Bella’s eyes consciously and subconsciously drifted to the car parked across the parking lot, where The Cullens usually gathered – only, this time, there was one less Cullen.
As her eyes scanned for Edward, Xavier took notice of how uncomfortable The Cullens felt – it was a rare moment where they showed genuine human reactions.
“Looking for someone?” Xavier interrupted.
“No…” Bella hesitated and replied dismissively. “It’s just something been on my mind.”
“Edward Cullen,” Xavier mentioned, causing Bella to panic. “It’s fine… He’s a complicated person, and you tend to want to figure things out – I could imagine him being the ultimate mystery.”
“I just…” Bella was uncertain about how she felt. “He made me pretty mad two days ago. I mean, I know I don’t smell that bad. I am pretty sure he hates me.”
Xavier shrugged. “Better hated and alive, than loved and dead. Though, it is best to be loved and live long enough to indulge in the love.”
“I think that’s the profoundly deepest thing you have ever said,” Bella joked.
“I am here every Thursday,” Xavier bowed, and suddenly asked. “Would like to meet them?”
“Who?”
“The Cullens?”
Bella thought for a couple of seconds and shook her head. “No,” She decided. “I am not the only one who notices how they avoid my eyes, except the blonde one – she looks like she wants to kill me.”
“Don’t worry,” Xavier hummed, leading the long walk to his and Bella’s first class. “If she kills you, I will just kill her to balance the scales.”
Rosalie, halfway across the parking lot, narrowed her eyes, meeting Xavier’s gaze the moment a flicker of cosmic brilliance flashed in his retinas.
“Serial killer, much?” Bella groaned.
The duo disappeared into the crowd of students, heading to their respective classrooms.
---------------
“He threatened us,” Rosalie voiced sourly.
“Because you wanted to kill Bella,” Alice sighed in frustration. “Leave the girl be, and Xavier will not be so hostile toward you.”
“She is the reason Edward left,” Rosalie argued.
“That guy is dangerous,” Jasper opened his mouth. “I would rather not confront him in an open environment. And his emotions are deeply suppressed – he is gonna explode eventually and when that happens, he may eliminate himself for us.”
“So, wait and see?” Emmett shrugged.
“Wait and see,” Alice nodded, though she could already see. “Oh,” Alice suddenly remembered something and turned to Rosalie. “You should start drawing designs in your notebooks again – we are gonna need it later.”
With that said, Alice skipped away with Jasper in tow, leaving behind a confused Rosalie, and a nonchalant Emmett.
