Ch 2: Candles Burn in the Rain

We drove in silence. Alice pulled into the garage and shut the car off.

"I'm going to let dad know we are here. Why don't you guys head up to my room and Ill be there in a minute," Alice offered gently.

We both looked at Rose. She was pale and looked absolutely exhausted with her eyes closed curled up in the backseat. There was no use in trying to find out what happened back there. Rose wouldn't talk until she was ready and pushing her would just make things worse. The problem was, we had no clue exactly what it was Rose needed.

Getting Rose upstairs wasn't too difficult. She trudged along which bothered me. A lot. Rose didn't 'trudge', she had long sinewy legs and her hips had an obvious seductive sway. She always held herself straight, shoulders back. She was a knock out on any given day. Reaching Alice's room Rose lay down on the bed and closed her puffy red eyes.

"Sometimes I wonder if I'm losing my mind." Her throat was dry and hoarse and she spoke at a whisper.

"You aren't crazy, Rose," I stated.

She lay there for a bit before she spoke again, eyes still closed. "Have you ever seen something or known something or thought you knew something….." she trailed off.

Alice slipped through the door and closed it quietly behind her; her eyes questioning at me as she motioned towards the resting body on the bed. I shrugged not knowing what to say or do next. Sighing, Alice slid gingerly down beside Rose and began to stroke her hair. Silence. I felt awkward just standing there so I sat on the edge of the bed with my legs dangling off the edge. I laid back and closed my eyes.

Soon, Rose was sleeping and giving out little baby snores. Alice and I crept carefully off the bed as not to disturb her and left the room heading for the kitchen. Alice poured us each tall glasses of lemonade and we sat at the counter.

"Did she say anything?" Alice asked breaking the silence. She was pulling at a dark curl that rested behind her ear. No one could wear their hair like that and pull it off like she could. When I learned her 'style' was a 'pixie-cut' I remember thinking how fitting that sounded coming from the mouth of a pixie herself. Alice was so tiny and full of energy if she had wings she probably would fly. '..and all we need is a little pixie dust…' I imagined her saying, as she would grab my hand and attempt to fly out a window with me in tow. I suppressed a giggle and turned my focus back to the present.

"She said something about going crazy and maybe mentioned something about something she saw or heard. I don't know. Maybe we should call her Aunt? Maybe something happened at home?"

It seemed unlikely if anything did happen that Rose's Aunt would know anything about it. They were good surrogate parents to her but they were never close. Rose always kept to herself and when she did need someone to talk to she would come to me or Alice. Usually she went to Alice because she gives good advice and tends to be right a lot but sometimes she would come to me when she just needed to talk or someone to hang out with. Rose never asked much of me. I was the observant, quiet one, Rose is our bombshell mechanic, sarcastic and moody but loyal as could be and Alice is the big hearted, intuitive pixie who dominates most conversations and seems to thrive on high energy and being positive.

"I don't know," Alice said tapping her temple with her index finger while resting her chin on her palm. "She seemed alright this morning. I don't know what could have possibly happened at school though. I don't know what we should do except let her rest and see how she is when she wakes up."

We were both at a loss. Rose was a loud, sometimes obnoxious but very strong and independent person. She never appeared fragile or broken. The girl sleeping in Alice's bed was shaken and vulnerable. What do you do when in some aspect of your life, everything as you know it, becomes something else?

I nodded in agreement with Alice.

"Did she ever say why she and Emmett were fighting? Obviously something he did made her flip."

"What like walking in to the lunch room?" I responded sarcastically immediately feeling bad for saying it. Alice's face was drained and there was no taking it back. We were both worried for our friend and we were both just as clueless. I'm sorry Ali, its confusing trying to sort through this, you know?" I didn't mean to take my frustration out on Alice but how the hell am I supposed to be a good supportive friend when I have no clue what is going on?

"I understand," she sighed. "I'm frustrated too." She hummed, "Him showing up today definitely triggered whatever the hell it was that DID happen back there." She pursed her lips. "Have you ever seen that guy with Emmett before?"

I thought back to the bronze haired guy who managed to strong arm Emmett like Emmett wasn't twice his size. "Nope, he doesn't go to our school unless he is new.. as in new like today new." Thinking back to those moments when we were standing there dumbstruck right before we fled the cafeteria after Rose, I could still see him clear as day, pale skin and hair that seemed to move of it own accord. He was wearing jeans and from a distance what appeared to be a leather jacket. He never looked at anyone except Emmett so I didn't get a good look at his face. He was tall, almost as tall as Emmett and lean but appeared built well. He would have to be to hold Emmett down, I thought.

"So maybe at school tomorrow we will see if we can find out more about him. He may be important and he obviously knows something." Alice chewed her lip in contemplation.

Oh boy, here we go, I thought. Once Alice gets it in her mind to put something together or find something out she doesn't stop till she is happy. One thing was for sure, Id be a lot happier when whatever got to Rose was dealt with and behind us. I was ready for this day to be over, that is assuming I could wake up tomorrow and have everything back to normal again. Including Rose.

"I'll keep my ears open and let you know if I hear anything." She seemed satisfied with this and I was glad. I felt the onslaught of a headache and I really didn't need that after today. Grabbing my purse I popped a couple of Tylenol under the watchful eye of Detective Ali. "Headache." I mumbled and she nodded.

Alice refilled our glasses and retrieved us some cookies. Moving to the large sofas that adorned the large open den Alice flipped on the television and started going thru channels. We didn't watch anything. I suppose it was something to do. There had never been awkward silence between any of us before so this was all uncharted territory. I had a feeling Alice was just as lost as I was if not more so.

"So, this weekend…. " I glanced at Alice and saw a glint of excitement amidst the anxiousness that filled her huge saucer eyes.

"Oh, I'm so sorry about that Bella, I know we had plans but I've wanted this for so long I hope you aren't terribly upset with me for bailing out on you. You are still going to stay all weekend though, right? I can make it up to you, I promise!"

I laughed. Alice was peering up at me with those apologetic damn eyes and I couldn't help myself. Here I was trying to lighten the mood and de-stress my friend and I had compounded her worry about Rose with guilt towards me. Way to go Bella, I thought.

"Don't even," I teased her smiling, "I knew he was going to ask you I was just hoping the poor guy didn't have a heart attack in the middle of doing so. And, I was sure he had wet himself when you said 'yes,' I added. This set us both to giggling.

The afternoon dragged on. Alice prattled about her upcoming date and I decided to do some research for school on her laptop since all of my things had been left abandoned in my locker. I called my dad to tell him Rose had an emergency and we had to take her home. I had to hear a bit of grumbling about attendance but it wasn't too bad. Dad knew I was responsible and my grades were spot on. He couldn't do much anyways since we had already left and he didn't question me after I dropped the phrase 'woman trouble' into the conversation. I'm pretty sure there were things dad just didn't want to know.

It was getting on dinner time and Rose was still fast asleep. Something had gotten under her skin and she needed to avoid reality for a bit I guess. I have been there so I understood that. Greg came into the living room and announced he needed to run to town and offered to give me a ride home. Since Alice's car was still at the school Alice suggested that he drop me there and I could pick her up in the morning and we could switch off then. A hug later with promises to call if anything changed with Rose I left for Forks High with Greg.

It wasn't a long drive.. Alice's house was about 2 miles from mine and we were both about 20 minutes from the school. We lived half way between the Quileute Indian Reservation and the school which set on the edge of town. The forest surrounding us was a lush green and seemed to ward off obnoxious sounds. Large trees stretching too far to see the tops often looked as if they were trying to touch the stars on clear nights. Sometimes, I would lay in the small grove in the back yard on clear starry nights, which were unusual for Forks, and I would stare up at the sky. Laying on the plush mossy ferns I found this was a good place to think. Or, clear my mind. It was peaceful and quiet.

We arrived at the school and I quickly thanked Alice's dad and hopped out of his car.
I unlocked the door to Alice's shiny little electric blue VW and giving a final wave Greg drove away. I smirked. I didn't get along with this car. It was so touchy. I didn't know much about the whole project or cars at all for that matter but I knew that Alice had been absolutely elated when her dad agreed to let her buy a new engine for her project. A six- thousand dollar Porsche engine. My thoughts flickered to my old truck. I should go for a ride soon. I missed my old beast as I rode most everywhere with Alice. Maybe next weekend, I pondered.

The little blue pixie-mobile's engine purred to life. I groaned. Giving the engine a little gas I did my best to slide through the gears as smoothly as possible. I mentioned this car was touchy, right? I fished my phone out of my pocket without much trouble and called my dad to tell him I was on my way home.

I liked to drive and this car handled very well. Once I got it into fourth and had exited town I didn't need to shift anymore so I was able to relax a bit. I knew of this great little pull off about a mile from the house where I could discretely leave the road and take a toke before going home. I smoked marijuana occasionally. It was rather fitting and ironic considering that I was the sheriff's daughter.

Every once in a while I would get some from the Res. It was plentiful up there and I knew a few people. I had seen my dad smoke it with his best friend Billy before but that was when I was young and on rare occasion. Dad didn't know I smoked. Or maybe he did but was afraid of being called a hypocrite if he confronted me. Either way, I wasn't a strung out junkie like some of the kids at school who loved to grind and sniff pills they would find in their parents cabinets. Yeah, no thanks.

Wherever the sun was, it wasn't in Forks today. It was getting late and the trees cast dark shadows across the road. There was no sunset to speak of, only a darkness setting in and the wet mists that hovered inches off the ground. I parked the car in the familiar spot and got out. Lighting up the joint I had stashed in my purse I leaned on the car and let the sounds of night envelop me. I enjoyed this time of the day. Most people would shy from the darkness, the shadows of the forest and whatever may be lurking there. I found solitude here. It was a place for me to hide.

I drew in another deep hit. Maybe I didn't come here to hide. Maybe I was here because the darkness suited me. The dark cloak consumed me and with me the empty dark whole inside me that I always pushed to the back of my mind. I didn't like to think about things I was lacking. That deep down, there was something missing. I stayed focused on what I had and what I should be grateful for and I was. Dismissing that line of thought, I tossed the roach to the forest gods and climbing back in the pixie-mobile made it safely to my driveway.

"Hey dad," I called to him as I walked through the door. Dad was sitting on the couch watching the sports channel. I noticed he had reheated leftovers and I did the same for myself. That was a killer lasagna I made a few days ago.

"Going to tell me what happened today?" The television went silent but I knew he didn't turn it off. He often hit the mute button so he wouldn't have to raise his voice to speak if I was in the other room.

I paused. I hadn't thought of what I was going to tell him. I wasn't sure what even happened myself. "Like I said on the phone dad, Rose is just going through some stuff and she needed to not be at school. Alice and I helped her this afternoon and it shouldn't happen again." I bit my lip. I hope, I thought to myself. I don't know how much crazy I can handle and today was definitely nuts.

I heard a distinctive grunt from the living room and the television volume went back up. I breathed in relief and headed upstairs with my food.

Dad never said much and he hadn't had to put his foot down with me much because I never ask for anything really.

It had been almost two years since the last time I was grounded. I grimaced. Fuzzy memories of drinking heavily and having a great time on the beach flooded back to me. I remembered waking up around noon with a raging hangover. When I made it downstairs I found a garbage bag with a note attached. 'Do not leave this house and have these clean I need them for tomorrow.' Opening the bag I gagged and had to run for the bathroom. Apparently, when I had been delivered home by a stranger I later came to know as Mike, I puked all over my dad coming through the doorway. My dad's dress uniform to be exact. He didn't wear it a lot but when there was a special service or dinner, like he had the following night, he wore his dress uniform. I don't know why he had it on that night and with the trouble I was in I was not about to ask. I was grounded for a month and never let it happen again.

I tried to read but just couldn't stay focused and my eyes roamed the words never connecting them. Putting my book down I laid on my bed and stared at the ceiling.
Emmett had something to do with Rose's break down but what part did he play? What role was his? Anyone who observed what happened today in the cafeteria would probably assume that Emmett and Rose had a bad fight and maybe he assaulted her. But, that was out of the question if you knew Rose. Her height in combination with her athletic bombshell build and aggressive temperament made Rose a force to be reckoned with.

I smiled remembering the last time a guy had tried to grope Rose after she told him no. She had busted his nose in 2 places and left a nice cut needing stitches on his brow not to mention the bruised ribs. Rose had taken several self defense classes over the years and she could definitely take care of herself.

She had been dating Emmett for a few months now. He had gone out with us a few times and he was always the gentleman. He was cute and funny and Alice and I had hoped he and Rose hit it off as well as it appeared. They seemed to really like each other. He was good looking and built like a brick wall. He had dark creamy skin and thick broad shoulders He even had a few inches on Rose in her heels which was unusual considering her height. He was muscled all to hell but even still it wouldn't have stopped Rose from at least scratching the guy and he didn't have a mark on him.

None of this made sense. What could he have possibly done?

What was it Rose had said? Something about something she heard or had seen. I grabbed my phone and swore out loud when I saw the battery had gone dead. I hate it when that happens. I plugged it in and waited for it to come to life.

One message. Shit. I missed a call from Alice.

*Call me so I know you made it home okay. Rose went home but didn't say anything. Call me.*

I rolled over on my stomach and sent her a text back.

*Home safe. Really tired. Will tty in AM*

*K ILY GN* was the response.

I scooted up to my pillow and wriggling of my bra and jeans I fell asleep without ever making it to the bathroom to brush my teeth.

Falling into the shadows. Welcoming the darkness. Running. Falling. Getting up and running again. Into the shadows that beckoned me. I was searching for something there. Something was waiting for me and I wanted to find it.

A loud thud and a sharp pain in my left hip awoke me abruptly. I was on the floor. Somehow, I fell out of bed. What. The. Fuck. Seriously berating myself, I hobbled to the bathroom. I hadn't fallen out of bed since I was a small child I was sure. This day couldn't get any stranger. Just when everything in my life was moving along just fine at a nice even speed the powers of the universe thought it would be a great time to throw some chaos into my life. What a bite in the ass.

After going pee and brushing my teeth I glanced at the clock beside my bed. Two-thirty. Yuck. I could hear the wind moving through the trees just outside and I opened my curtains and cracked the window in hopes of maybe releasing the restless energies in my room to the wind. The breeze felt nice against my skin and it reacted accordingly giving me slight goose bumps.

Snuggling back in to bed I lay in the dark. Listening to the wind. It sounded like the trees were whispering.

As I fell asleep the last thing I remember was the darkness closing in and the contentment it brought with it. Almost completely lost in the swaddling pitch of night, I welcomed the blackness. Too tired to care I observed a light from somewhere playing tricks on my window pane. It was as if two tapered candles were set side by side flickering gently in the breeze behind a water stained window. And, just as a candle burning in the wind and rain the light was snuffed out as quickly as it came. When I looked for it again it was gone. My deceitful eyes became heavier and the dark drew closer. It was so close. Closer and more real than I could possibly know. Rain fell softly and I did too. Into the darkness that was sleep. Wrapped in darkness that is night. And watched by the darkness that I had yet to meet.

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Twilight is Stephenie Meyer's.