On the surface, Katie Swan appears to be an average girl. She's pretty, athletic, and abnormally intuitive. But when her parents are suddenly murdered, she is sent to Forks, WA to live with her uncle Charlie and his shy daughter Bella.
Soon, Katie l...
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BELLA'S POV March 16th
As soon as Katie set the phone back down, she turned on her heels to leave again. I knew she was keeping a grudge against Alice that I was too weak to uphold.
I wanted her to stay, but I wanted Alice to stay more. Alice being here was like a dream or a nightmare or both. It hit me, as soon as I saw her, how much I missed them. And no matter how much I loved Katie, how much she had done to protect me... they had protected me first. And Katie had Jacob and the pack now. She had to understand.
Charlie came home, and I watched as Katie quietly hugged him and started preparing him dinner. They were just out of earshot— but I saw her point to me on the couch, and Charlie's eyes didn't so much as widen.
"Alice Cullen? Is that you?" His voice was lifeless.
"Yes, it's me. I was in the neighborhood..." she trailed off in her bubbly Alice way. "Unfortunate timing, I'm afraid. I'm sorry about Harry."
"She can stay here, can't she? I already asked her," I pleaded with him. I knew how pathetic it was.
"Of course," Charlie said mechanically. "We'd love to have you. It'll be nice... so these two aren't alone while I'm in and out with the Clearwaters."
"Thank you," Alice said genuinely. "Eat, Charlie. Really."
Charlie grumbled something unintelligible and went back to the kitchen, where I watched Katie spoon something out of a pan onto his plate. A pancake, actually. She told me they were her favorite to make because it was the food she had perfected.
Alice rested my head on her shoulder. "You look tired."
"Yeah," I shrugged, trying to change the subject. "What does Carlisle think of you being here?"
Alice cringed. "He doesn't know, yet. I'll hear from him in a few days, when he gets back from hunting with Esme."
I blinked slowly, dreading the feeling spreading through my mind. "You won't tell... him, though, right? When he checks in?" The feeling of Edward hearing what had happened made me dance and panic and choke on my own words.
"No. Not on purpose, anyways. He'd bite my head off," Alice grimaced.
I laughed, something like relief and... sadness settling in my gut.
I didn't want to sleep, to go to bed, because I couldn't fight the feeling that when I woke Alice would be gone. Why would she stay? I had Katie. I had Charlie. I hadn't died. It was a false alarm. Edward and Carlisle would be mad she came. It would be the perfect opportunity for her to run.
