CHAPTER EIGHT.
( piercing screams. )

  THERE WAS A RESTLESSNESS burying itself into Shadow Swan.

Her eyes were closed, brow furrowed as she tried to will herself to sleep. Two hours had passed since she'd jolted awake, sweat beading at her forehead. Night was bleeding into day now.

  The Swan girl groaned, giving in despite her exhaustion. She stared up at her ceiling, discomfort slowly easing over her. It was like a weighted rock holding her in place. She didn't feel well, but it wasn't in the sense that she felt sick.

  Everything was odd. Her body either felt too cold or too hot, and lying there, doing nothing, made her feel strange. As if there was something more important going on, something that she was supposed to contribute to. But, for the life of her, Shadow couldn't figure out what it was.

  Her throat and voice bothered her, too. It felt as though there was a cough taunting at her. It wasn't necessarily painful, but it was irritating enough to keep her attention. She was too distracted trying to clear herself up to fall back asleep.

Shadow figured it was probably the beginnings of a cold, but the knowledge did little to make her feel better.

  Shadow thumped an aggravated fist against her bed. She longed for something of comfort. A cup of tea, or a hug from her father as he wrapped her in blankets. She closed her eyes with memory, wallowing just for a second in her grief.

"Shadow, it's time for school!" Bella called out, and the stolen moment was over. Likely for the better.

  Shadow lifted herself from the bed with no desire to cling to her weariness. As she gathered her things and got dressed, she couldn't help but feel as if everything were moving in slow motion. Her movements felt sluggish and her body continued to feel cold even after she'd put a coat on.

The elder Swan sucked in a deep breath of air. She hoped that the day would end quickly, so that she could return to bed. Or get ahead of this oncoming illness. Whichever came first.

  Shadow made her way downstairs and into the kitchen. From where Bella resided by the coffee pot, she shot her cousin a smile. Shadow's exhaustion must have been apparent as the younger Swan slid a coffee mug towards her.

"You don't look well," she pointed out as she quickly offered Shadow a piece of toast.

  Shadow shrugged as she accepted the offer. "Yeah, I don't feel it either," she replied. Charlie cut a glance towards her. "But, it's no big deal, it'll probably pass."

Shadow kept her eyes on her coffee, trying to ignore the concerned look Charlie was pinning her with. She knew that his intentions were good, but Shadow didn't want him to worry. Besides, she was likely just tired. Nothing Bella's coffee couldn't fix.

  "Shadow—" Charlie's lecture was cut short with the abrupt knock from the front entrance and Shadow couldn't help her relief.

She looked over at Bella, inquiring with her gaze. However, her cousin merely shrugged before continuing to sip from her coffee cup. Shadow rolled her eyes before reluctantly making her way out of the kitchen.

  It was clear that no one else was going to answer.

  Shadow didn't dare to imagine it was Jasper. After how the night before had gone, she severely doubted she landed anywhere close to his good-list. In his shoes, she would have wanted space. Time to process. That much was understandable.

  However, as Shadow opened the door, she found herself stunned into silence. Jasper was grinning, almost brazen with his confident smile. Her lips parted in shock.

  "You know, the surprise on your face never stops being funny," he told her.

  Shadow abruptly closed her mouth. "Yeah, well, you certainly know how to make an entrance." She tilted her head. "What's up?"

  In truth, the question was redundant. Shadow already knew why the Hale boy might be at her door. It had something to do with the two previous mornings she'd found him on the porch.

"I came to ask if you wanted a ride to school."

  Shadow unsuccessfully fought back a grin. So predictable. "Ok," she told him softly. Jasper nodded, his attention warming Shadow's skin.

  She turned on her heel and walked back into the house, grabbing her bag from where she left it in the kitchen. "Who was at the door?" Bella asked, watching Shadow with careful suspicion.

"Maybe you'd know if you answered it," Shadow replied, shooting her cousin a cheeky wink. Bella retorted with her tongue poking out at her cousin.

Shadow left quickly, so not as to leave her generous chauffeur waiting. The door closed gently behind the Swan girl as she smiled up at Jasper. He reciprocated with an almost-fond expression, saying nothing as he led her towards the car.

  Though, just as he opened the door for her, Bella exited the house. Shadow looked up, amused by her younger cousin's shock. Shadow lifted her hand to wave before disappearing into the back of the vehicle.

  Shadow closed the door behind her, coming to sit beside Alice. "Morning, Shadow." The sound of Alice's voice sent a shiver running down the Swan girl's back. She buried the urge to grimace.

It wasn't that Alice's voice wasn't beautiful, because it was. Everything about Shadow's senses just seemed to be on sensitive today. Her stomach turned as the car began to move.

"Hey," Shadow said, mustering the energy to smile as the uncomfortable feeling returned. Shadow shivered, wondering what the hell was wrong with her. She clipped on her seatbelt, clutching to it like an anchor.

  Shadow certainly didn't feel sick, but if that was the case, then she wanted to get it over quickly. She hated this feeling. It made her long for home and soup and blanket-hugs she could no longer have. Shadow gripped the seatbelt tighter. There wasn't necessarily anything serious about getting sick, colds were common enough.

  So, why was it so hard to ignore what was happening to her?

  The ginger bit down on the inside of her cheek. She couldn't deal with her constant need to overanalyze things right now. It was an issue that never led to anything more than a headache.

  She cracked her knuckles to pull her focus back to something other than her thoughts. It wasn't long after that the group arrived at school. Shadow stepped out of the Cullen family's vehicle, meeting stares with daring. There was a mixture of confusion and jealousy in their eyes, but Shadow chose not to pay it mind.

  As her friendship with the Cullen family grew, Shadow was familiarizing herself with the attention that accompanied them. As reluctant as everyone was to admit it, there was something alluring about the Cullen's that was hard to ignore. So, naturally, attention was drawn to them; in rapture or in envy.

  Shadow couldn't exactly blame people for paying them that attention, though. As contrastingly different each of the Cullen's were from one another, all of them shared the same kind of intrigue. It was their estrangement from others that made Shadow most curious.

  That and the fact that they were all astoundingly beautiful.

  Shadow smiled softly at her thoughts before turning to the blond boy at her side. "Mind if I join you for lunch again? I don't feel comfortable at Bella's table. I think Eric's a little hurt that I never used the number he gave me." Shadow winced with the recollection, alongside the memory of Eric's longing stares.

  Her words drew a chuckle from Jasper. "Don't worry, I'd never leave you to the wolves," he said, overly sarcastic.

Shadow stuck her tongue out at him before the pair parted ways. "See you later," Jasper called over his shoulder before he disappeared among the crowded halls.

The Swan girl kept her expression pleasantly disinterested as her feet carried her to the nearest bathroom. After ensuring it was empty, she threw up into the toilets. Shadow clung to the walls of her stall, disgust making her dry heave once more.

She wiped at the sides of her mouth and groaned. Her skin was clammy and cold. Shadow left the stall, scrubbing her hands at the sink until they were almost raw and all her nose could smell was disgusting, generic hand soap.

The rest of the day went by without event. Shadow had no classes with the Cullen family or Bella. Her sudden sickness even seemed to ease until, finally, lunch arrived.

And, in true Shadow fashion, she wasted no time in getting to her food. After heaving up breakfast up, Shadow was ravished. She filled her tray with items of comfort. If she was going to end up sick, then she was going to indulge to her hearts content.

For good measure, Shadow grabbed a bowl of soup before paying the lunch lady. Upon getting her change, she turned, barely avoiding Jasper's own tray once again.

  Shadow reacted fast, gripping tightly to her food and steering it away from the Hale boy. This was the second time she'd nearly lost her lunch on his clothes. At this point, Shadow could only hope he wasn't doing it deliberately.

"I swear, it's like you want to wear my food." She told him, looking up at him.

He looked at her tray, "I don't think that counts as food." He was scrutinizing her selection. Which, indeed, consisted mostly of snacks.

  "If you want a food fight, Jasper Hale, just say the word and I'll gladly comply," she taunted him, receiving a sour expression from the blond.

He quickly shook his head. "I lost my favourite shirt in the crossfire last time, so no thanks." He stepped closer and Shadow felt a jolt of shock as he wrapped an arm around her.

  They continued walking as if nothing had happened, but Shadow could feel her heart stuttering in its cage. Her cheeks were already flushed, yet she couldn't bring herself to pull away from his embrace. Her stomach gave an involuntary flip that Shadow tried to smother.

His arm around her was so gentle that Shadow could almost forget that it was all happening too fast. Almost.

Her mind brought this thought screaming to the forefront of her attention. Less than three days had passed since they first met, what was she thinking? Shadow stomped out the fast-beat of her heart.

After how hectic her life had become, she deserved a sense or peace and security in her life— but, not like this. She wanted to feel good and whole again, but not by getting completely lost in another person. This wasn't right.

The Swan girl shook her head. "Uh, not so fast," she breathed out. She twisted gently out of Jasper's hold. The blond paused, looking at her in confusion.

Her face was flooded with warmth. "I'm..." Shadow lost her nerve before she could explain. She was probably misinterpreting this, but she couldn't take any chances.

Shadow closed her still-open mouth. Instead of answering, she turned towards the Cullen's table without so much as a backwards glance at Jasper.

  Shadow had no idea what she was doing at this point. But, as the rest of the Cullen family came into sight, she was glad that someone seemed to be enjoying her distress. Emmett reached up to give her a high-five as she took her seat.

  Before she could shake her head, Rosalie intervened and slapped his hand away. "Don't do that," she seethed as Jasper appeared.

The Swan girl bit her lip, curving into herself as Alice launched rapidly into a conversation with Emmett. Though, it was mostly herself speaking. Shadow wanted to bang her head against the table.

  As the conversation relaxed into a natural flow, she glanced over at Jasper. With the table distracted, Shadow gave him a nudge with her shoulder.

He didn't look upset, or embarrassed. He seemed simply... unfocused. He met her gaze with a question in his eyes, but said nothing.

Shadow shifted in her seat to face him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make it weird," she whispered. Her hand reached out to gently touch his arm; a reaction so natural.

Jasper smiled, though it was half-hearted. "I'm pretty sure it wasn't you who made it weird," he chuckled.

  Shadow softly shook her head, "I should've said something."

Jasper shrugged. "I don't blame you for setting boundaries," he told her, and his smile was a little more genuine. "But, I should be the one apologizing. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

  Shadow frowned at the misunderstanding. "No, it wasn't because I was uncomfortable," she explained. "It was because I was too comfortable." Shadow knew it sounded ridiculous before she even said it. She hid her face in her hands.

  "I'm afraid I'm not following."

  Shadow fixed her posture. "I would explain," she started, taking note of the way silence had fallen over the table. "But, your family is really bad at eavesdropping."

The ginger turned to give Emmett a pointed look. His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Hey, my ears aren't big for nothing," he said, leaning back with his hands raised in defence.

Rosalie punched his arm, but she couldn't meet Shadow's eyes either. The Swan girl laughed. Alice didn't seem to mind being caught, though. The brunette simply shrugged as Shadow gave her a meaningful stare.

  The table broke back into conversation. Shadow felt relaxed as both she and the group talked amongst one another. It was nice to make conversation so easily. After pushing her old friends away, Shadow had almost forgotten how comforting they could be.

  When the lunch bell rang, Shadow was almost reluctant to get up and leave. But, she rose from her chair anyways, smile content. She made her way towards the trashcans with the rest of the group and, at first, her thoughts were preoccupied with how well she and the Cullen's were getting along.

  When Shadow had entered Forks High, her plans were simply to graduate and leave behind this sleepy little town. She didn't want or need distractions. But, with the Cullen's, it was different. They were different— and as this thought struck Shadow, she was immediately lost.

  For a split second, she wondered if she even knew the half of it.

Almost involuntarily, Shadow found her gaze travelling up to Jasper's face. Her fingers were turning white as she clutched the tray in her hands. Jade eyes studied every inch of his features, as if they were trying to point out some sort of flaw.

  But, there was nothing. His skin was smooth, albeit pale and unblemished. But, there was no crookedness to his features and every bit of him seemed to align in perfect symmetry. It was so strange. Good genetics hardly seemed like a plausible explanation for it all.

Shadow had never met or seen anyone like him and, for some odd reason, it seemed to strike her in a way she wasn't quite comfortable with.

  Her gaze then landed on his eyes and, in that moment, she sucked in a sharp breath of air. When Shadow had first saw them, she ignored it, brushing off the honey-gold as coloured contacts. It was a logical explanation to disarm her body's natural instincts to say, 'What the hell?'

There were a few instances when Shadow had noticed his eyes shifting to a deep, pitch black. She thought it was simply his natural colour. Now, Shadow was almost delirious in her confusion.

  Jasper looked at her then and Shadow was suddenly aware that his eyes were incredibly vibrant and so very, truly real. Not contacts, but something else entirely. Something not meant for her to understand.

Shadow's stomach sank. Sharp pain tore through her head and, suddenly, her arms were too weak to carry. Her tray clattered to the floor with a crash.

  Her knees were the next to nearly give out. Shadow gripped the edge of a nearby chair to keep herself up. She wanted to weep. Her stomach was curling and unfolding with the same unease from that morning.

"Hey, are you alright?" Alice asked her, concerned as she looked the ginger over. The Swan girl lifted her eyes to look up at Alice, only to have her gaze stop on the tray in her hand.

  It was still full, but it had been pondered over. Like eating was simply an afterthought. The fork was used and the food was flattened; pushed around. But, Shadow was acutely aware of the fact that nothing had been eaten. Not from Alice's plate and— as she glanced around at the group— she realized nothing had been touched from anyone else's either.

  There was a sudden chill at her shoulder and Shadow gasped, turning sharply. Jasper stepped back in surprise. His hand moved with him, away from where he'd just held her.

"Shadow, what's wrong?" He demanded, worry written over every edge of his perfect face.

Shadow felt sudden annoyance course through her. She opened her mouth to snap back a reply about how ironic it was for him to ask that, but couldn't form the words. She could barely breath.

Shadow inhaled deeply and, with her breath, dread seamed to seep into her lungs. Shadow wanted to brush it off, walk away. But, no matter how much she tried to ignore it, she couldn't.

  Something about this wasn't normal, it wasn't right.

  The chill on Shadow's shoulder didn't leave. Instead, it spread through every inch of her body. Her feet felt suddenly rooted to the spot, frozen as she trembled. Her throat ached to release something familiar. Something deadly.

  Within the next instant, Shadow was running. She didn't know where she was going or why she was running in the first place, but she had to leave. She needed to get out.

"Shadow!" The sound of Jasper calling after her was a faint noise. She ignored him, feet urging her faster and further until she found herself in an empty hallway.

  She was so cold.

Shadow couldn't help but whimper as pinpricks of ice bit at her skin. Her head was pounding. She fell to her knees, teeth grinding together in an attempt to hold back the sound crawling its way up her throat.

Another jolt of pain coursed through Shadow, lasting longer, more painful than the last.

  Her breaths were short and shallow as panic begin to set in. "Please," Shadow begged, desperate as she fell to her knees.

She clutched at her head, struggling to hold back the only thing that could truly strike fear in her heart. Not here, not now, she pleaded with herself, tears falling. Her chest was on fire.

  Then, the pain stopped with such suddenness it left her gasping. In its place, horror pooled in Shadow's stomach. Calm before storm.

And then she sucked in her breath, the fast inhale giving way to a horrifying, screeching exhale.

The scream was piercing and terrifying all at once. She shut her eyes. As the sound tore throughout the hall, an amalgamation of things swarmed the Swan girl's mind; beast, monster, vampire, run.

  Shadow's throat was on fire, there was a burning in her veins and fear radiated throughout her entire body. Flashes of red eyes, blood, and other horrible images whirled in her thoughts. She wanted to stop, but she couldn't. She didn't know how.

Her mind was in a state of panic and her heart raced inside her chest, threatening to burst.

  And then a hand; gentle, soft, and cold touched hers. The pain and the scream faded out and Shadow's tired eyes blinked open in shock, catching a glimpse of Jasper's features before even her sight began to fade.

  With her vision dotted black, Shadow couldn't be sure of what she was seeing. But, there— just beneath Jasper's cheekbone— were dark lines gaping at her. Shadow tried to lift her hand to trace the apparent wound, but exhaustion was a weight pulling her under and Shadow collapsed in his arms with one thought still circling; RUN.

Edited 02/09/2016 @3:39 AM
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