CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

The party was held in the wide yard at the back of her house. The summer sun was still setting with an orange hue, the same bright, overwhelming colour of the fire that was being kindled in the stone pit of which her father gathered around with his friends. But Violet could feel the coming of winter. Maybe it was the foolishness of being in teenage years, maybe it was the truth, but the briskness of the air was settling in, the wetness of the rain turning to ice and snow. Violet could feel the end drawing near. The end of summer, the end of youth. It was a scary thought to endure.

Celia didn't seem to take it the same way. She was staying in Forks with her family, where she could write the greatest book the world would ever see and make enough money to travel the globe. She could feel her friend's excitement for the future by just standing with her. Celia's smile seemed brighter, warmer, and dazzling like a star.

It felt fitting. Violet wanted to pause the moment there and then. To take a picture of it. To live in it for the rest of her life.

Her father, still younger than most, with his greying hair but still modern clothing. Their friends with their kids still at home. Violet was the first to go, but she knew the others would follow. Leah would not wait long to leave the memory of Sam behind. Bella had left once before. It was only a matter of time before everything would change.

She wondered if her hair would darken as her mother's had, from what she'd seen in pictures. If the signs of age would dampen her spirits and tame her edge. If the passion she felt for life itself could exhaust. 

Yet beneath it all, Violet was excited to see what the future had in store for her. She wondered when in the past few months she'd stopped moving, stopped craving something different, stopped yearning for the world outside Forks. But Violet knew the answer. Rosalie. She didn't want to leave the comfort of her company. For once in her life, Violet could find comfort in the mundane. The easiness of their shared silence could not be replicated with another. But it didn't matter. They'd agreed on a summer and the summer was gone. 

There was a spotlight hanging over her, Violet knew. Billy handed her a beer with no complaint; Bella smiled and asked what her first plans were at college; and even Jake had tamed his teasing jokes at her expense. Despite how nice it all was, it felt wrong. A shadow created by a real picture.

Celia appeared by her side, sitting down on the log, facing the fire. The shadows danced against her face, making her dark eyes glow. 

"Rosalie still not here?"

"No," Violet said, shaking her head and taking a drink from the glass bottle.

"Maybe she's just running late?"

"Yeah, maybe," she said quietly, shrugging her shoulders and pushing herself to her feet. 

But two hours later with still no show, Violet knew she wasn't coming. 

She didn't want to be sad about the fact. Their relationship- whatever it could be called- had always remained separate from the rest of her life. Now that it had run its course, there was no reason for this day to be different. But Violet had hoped...

In distraction, she spent the rest of the evening talking and laughing. Jake stayed by her side, talking to her more in one night than he had in months. She teased him about his truck which was still unfinished in his dad's garage. Jacob let her. He was the closest she had to a brother. 

Young Seth Clearwater left his side for a period of time to talk to the girls. Leah eventually joined, leaving when a certain man came into sight. Even Sam Uley had arrived, leaving Emily at home. Jacob stood as he approached, eyebrows knotted. Sam's hair was short now. He almost looked like a different person. But when he joined them by the fire, he forced a smile to his face- one that Violet couldn't quite reciprocate. 

"Are you looking forward to New York?"

"Yeah, it's exciting," she said, trying not to narrow her eyes. Something about the interaction felt hollow. From the corner of her eye, she could see Bella watching, interest painted on her face. 

"Well, it's good you're leaving now," he said, nodding his head before he turned to leave. She wondered if his words were meant to be a test. Violet had the feeling she'd failed.

"What was that about?" Violet asked as she turned to Jake. The younger boy was still watching him leave. 

"They've been acting weird, lately," he said, and the shrugged to wake himself up. "I wouldn't worry about it. Come on, your dad's packing up and my dad won't forgive me if he doesn't get to give you a proper goodbye."

Violet smiled and let him lead her away. Billy was kind as they said goodbye, almost acting as she knew her father would. But then she'd always seen Jake's dad as one of her own. She watched as they left, arms folded, the fire dwindling behind, the light against his truck fading until it was gone down the road and through the shadows. 

Her dad placed a hand on her shoulder, the attention making her turn to look at him. The smile that was on his face was sad, but she could tell by the wide, sureness in his eyes that he was hopeful.

"Promise me no matter how far you go, you'll always come home," Robbie said, placing a hand on the side of her face. 

"Always."

The knocking on the window woke her suddenly. It was a hollow sound, sporadic and desperate, small pebbles hitting the glass. When she eventually stumbled out of bed and pushed open the window to peer out, she already knew what to expect at the bottom. Rosalie stared back at her, eyes dark and fluttering between the ground and her face. She stood sideways with her fists clenched together. 

For a moment, they didn't speak. 

"Climb up," Violet said, before retreating from the window to lean against her bed. 

The stream of moonlight that flooded through the open glass was the only thing to light the room. When a dark shadow fell against her feet, Violet looked up finally, finding Rosalie standing in front of her with the same, guarded stance. She looked tense, worried- Violet wanted to tell her that there was no need for it, but she couldn't. 

She let her eyes scan her face- the dark and unusual amber of her eyes; the way her hair fell in thick blonde waves against her forehead; and the soft curve of her jaw, connected to a long, pale neck. Violet committed the image to memory and wondered if that was the only place that Rosalie would exist after the night was ended... her thoughts. 

When she looked up again, Rose was smiling, striding toward her to place a hand on her face. There was only the briefest of pauses, and then Rosalie was kissing her as if it was their first. Kissing her because it was their last.

Violet pulled away, panting. "You didn't come, I thought-"

"I'm sorry," Rosalie said before kissing her again, hands taking her face in a soft cradle, back pushing against the wall. "I'm sorry."

Violet leaned into her, pushing into her. Rosalie let her lead them back again, hands in her hair, behind her neck, along her shoulders. When Violet's knees hit the side of the bed, she fell backwards with an exhale, letting Rose loom over her for a minute, watching and waiting. 

In the darkness, her skin seemed paler, her golden hair luminescent, her smile bright. Violet thought she looked like an angel. When she voiced such though, Rosalie laughed and shook her head and said, "Far from it." Violet didn't believe her. They lay down together, close and comfortable, and Violet was sure that in a past life, she'd done something heroic to be blessed with her time with Rosalie. 

Violet's head lay against her shoulder. The locket Rosalie had given her- the one which she never took off- fell in the space between them, resting against her arm. 

"You're cold," she whispered into the night. 

"Everything about you feels warm," Rosalie muttered. She seemed sad. 

Violet let out a girlish laugh. "Why do you say that like it's a bad thing?"

Rosalie didn't say anything, just turned her head to nuzzle further against Violet's neck, her hair the only thing between nose and skin. Violet wanted to stay like that forever. She knew she would miss Rosalie. But their summer had ended. 

I struggled SO hard with this chapter omg and still ended up with barely any words 

I considered changing the scene but I needed something to link into the next section ugh!

I'm sorry about all the waiting but I've been so unmotivated with this story currently, but I'm aiming to be a bit quicker with the next section soon!