That night after Marie had finished eating and gone to bed, Evelyn paced around her room feeling like her entire body was on fire. It had taken everything in her to act normally when Marie came home; she had almost burned herself twice on the casserole dish as she made dinner. Luckily, her aunt had been so exhausted from a long day sorting through genealogy records and working at her restaurant that she paid no attention to Evelyn's odd behavior, instead choosing to chatter on about Brenda and the customers. Evelyn answered as best as she could while she could feel the outline of the photograph in her back pocket, the edges feeling like they were burning a hole through her jeans.

As soon as Marie bade Evelyn a good night and shut her door, Evelyn launched herself off of the couch and flew up the steps, thus beginning her frantic pacing as soon as her bedroom door was closed.

There was absolutely no way it could be him. The picture was taken a century ago, for crying out loud. She pulled the picture out of her pocket and looked again. Sure enough, the sharp gaze of Edward Cullen stared right back up at her, frozen in the year 1917.

The boy in the photo was not as dazzlingly handsome as the Edward she knew. His face was softer, his body less angular and sharp. She could tell there was color in his cheeks, even in the black and white photograph. This Edward also looked more human than her English partner, more normal. They couldn't possibly be the same, could they?

And yet, Evelyn had this sinking feeling that she knew they were the same. Somehow, she knew that she was just kidding herself if she thought otherwise. They were too similar not to be the same person.

Then, she remembered that day in English, when she had first met him. She recalled the way he had bristled when he had seen the way her name was spelt after she had corrected him. He had looked alarmed, as if he had recognized it. Evelyn realized that all this time, he had known. Or at least had a suspicion. He wouldn't have reacted that way if he hadn't at least known something.

So if the Edward Cullen she knew was, in fact, the Edward Masen in the photo, what did that mean about him? How was it possible? What did it mean about the rest of his family? Why was this picture buried in her grandfather's family history? What about Jasper? Her heart beat faster as she thought of the blond boy that invaded her thoughts regularly, never quite leaving her mind completely. Despite her confusion and anger at him, she couldn't help the softness she felt towards him. She couldn't help but think of him, even in a time such as this.

She collapsed on her bed in a heap, staring blankly up at the ceiling with her brows furrowed as she considered the Cullen family. She had always known there was something strange about them, their quirks more obvious to her than most of the people in Forks. The way their unnaturally pale skin was too bright, their unusual and mesmerizing golden eyes that mysteriously darkened over time before returning to their clear topaz shade. They were too poised, moving with a grace and fluidity that defied all known laws of physics and human nature. Their voices were like music, their appearances so devastatingly beautiful it almost hurt to look at them.

Of course, there was also their abilities. Evelyn had witnessed both Jasper and Edward race across the parking lot to stop a moving car with their bare hands, saving both her and Bella from certain death. No matter how hard Jasper tried to convince her otherwise, she knew exactly what she had seen. She recalled how hard Jasper's body felt as it crashed into hers, the very memory of his chilled skin sending a shiver down her spine. He was hard and cold, his lean body reminiscent of pure white marble.

Suddenly, her eyes widened. He was cold. Jasper was always cold. The words that Bella had spoken on the phone earlier flickered in her mind's eye.

Cold Ones.

And then, with a shudder:

Vampire.

Evelyn felt crazy for even thinking such a thing, but the more she considered it, the more she thought about Bella's story, the more it seemed to make sense. Their inhuman strength and speed, their appearance, the temperature of his skin, the photograph of Edward that lay innocently in her open palm. It was impossible; clear-headed, logical Evelyn couldn't even fathom the possibility that such creatures could exist. They were myths, stories made up to scare children about the things that go bump in the night.

But then she remembered the second part of what Bella had told her. She had said that the Quileute tribe believed that the Cullens living in Forks today were the same ones from the original legend, making them immortal.

Every rational bone in her body screamed that she was wrong; vampires and werewolves couldn't possibly be living in this tiny town, of all places. But as she considered the evidence, both physical and what she had seen with her own eyes, suddenly the idea didn't seem so far-fetched.

The memory of her first encounter with Jasper Hale entered her mind. She remembered his stone-cold stiffness and attitude. She remembered the way his muscles had strained as he sat perfectly still and the way he seemed to stop breathing. But most of all, she recalled the deathly glare he had given her, along with the murderous fury she had felt emanating off of him in waves. She remembered feeling like he was a predator, and she was his prey; a helpless doe staring straight into the eyes of her hunter.

Vampire. Monster.

Evelyn felt the hot tears come before she realized that she was crying. For the first time since the death of her parents, she was truly afraid.

***

School the next three days was agony. She didn't dare tell Bella about the revelation she had had over the weekend, so she was left to stew over this new information in silence. It was all consuming; she couldn't get it out of her head. Not to say that she hadn't tried. She turned to drawing to try and take her mind off of things, but recently all she could find herself sketching was the same pair of bloodthirsty eyes that now haunted her dreams every night. There was dozens of crumpled up sketchbook pages on the floor of her bedroom as evidence.

It didn't help that the Cullens were conveniently missing from school. The weather had turned pleasant for once in contrast to Evelyn's dark mood, the sun shining bright in a cloudless sky. Their absence only made her anxiety grow, making her unable to fully enjoy the nice weather. She remembered Bella asking why on the first day that the family had mysteriously disappeared.

"Whenever the weather's nice the Cullens disappear. Dr. and Mrs. Cullen yank them out for hiking and camping and stuff. Tried that out on my parents, not even close."

Of course they do, Evelyn thought weakly, adding yet another piece of information to the pile of evidence in her head. Jessica's complaints seemed trivial compared to the emotional hurricane raging inside Evelyn's mind, but she did her best to seem uninterested.

That was the day that Angela had finally asked Eric to prom, and Evelyn couldn't help but feel proud of her demure friend despite her constant fear. Bella was insistent that she wasn't going; as for Evelyn, she hadn't decided yet. Unwilling to take no for an answer, Jessica and Angela convinced both Bella and Evelyn to accompany them to go dress shopping in Port Angeles that weekend. She was grateful for the distraction, hoping that something so mundane as prom dress shopping would chase the fear from her chest, if only for a little while.

Thursday finally arrived, bringing with it the now familiar blanket of clouds and constant drizzle of rain. She knew that she would have to see them today; there was no sun to protect her any longer. She was anxious the whole morning, shuffling through her first two classes in a fog. No teacher dared call on her, no student dared to speak to her. Bella had voiced her concern in the car that morning, but Evelyn had reassured her that she was simply missing her parents. That wasn't entirely a lie, but it was enough to ease her friend's suspicions and to get her to leave her in peace.

As she walked to English, she fought to keep her whole body from shaking uncontrollably. Fear gripped her chest, threatening to cripple her at the slightest trigger. She didn't know what would happen when she saw him. She wondered briefly if her teacher would allow her to switch seats, but then she would have to provide a reason, and she was not prepared to do that. So instead, she mustered up all of her remaining courage and marched right into the classroom.

She tried as hard as she could to resist the temptation to look right at Edward when she entered, but it was no use. Her eyes flickered to him in the back of the room almost automatically. Immediately, she pictured the photograph that she had safely tucked in a folder in her bag, focusing on Edward Masen's face as she examined his for similarities. There was no doubt in her mind now: Edward Masen and Edward Cullen were the same person.

His head immediately snapped up as he heard her thoughts, a look of horror spreading on his features as he heard what she was thinking. He clearly saw the photograph of him and his family in her mind's eye, along with her memories of the night she had put all the puzzle pieces together. She knew. He internally cursed himself for being so careless. He had been too engrossed in Bella Swan that he had failed to see how much she had paid attention.

He knew she was afraid when she sat down, not even needing to hear her thoughts; she was trembling all over, and he could see the sweat breaking out into her skin. She was terrified that he would hurt her if he had found out that she knew. If only Bella was smart enough to be afraid, he thought bitterly, although a part of him was glad it wasn't so.

Through the whole class, Evelyn didn't dare look at her partner. She was shaking, unable to hold her pencil steady as she completed her assignment. By Edward's stiffness and constant side glances, she was almost positive that he was aware that she knew what he was.

When the bell rang, Evelyn gathered her things as quickly as possible, doing her best to ignore the boy staring at her in the seat beside her.

"Evelyn, I need you to listen carefully. It's not like what you're thinking."

"Please don't." Her voice was a quiet whisper, giving away her fear and uncertainty.

"I know you're afraid, but I need to speak with you – to clear things up. We're not what you think we are."

"I don't know what I'm supposed to think. How do you explain everything that's happened? How do explain this?" She hissed, pulling out the photograph from her folder and showing him. His grimace told her all she needed to know.

"Stay away from me, and you sure as hell better stay away from Bella." Without another word, she launched herself out of the chair and almost ran from the room, ignoring the looks that her teacher and her fellow students gave her. She walked briskly towards the cafeteria, desperate for any sort of distraction from her thoughts. Edward had all but confirmed her suspicions, and she needed time to fully process the situation.

Evelyn didn't notice Alice Cullen waiting at the cafeteria door. She had seen Evelyn's realization and her decision to stay away from her and her family. Alas, she couldn't let that happen. Evelyn didn't realize it yet, and honestly, neither did Jasper, but the human girl was going to be play a major role in the lives of her family.  Alice had seen it a month before she arrived. It was only a flicker of a future, still foggy and in the mist, but the picture was clear. She had seen Jasper, her best and closest friend (besides Edward, of course) laying on a bed in an unfamiliar room with Evelyn asleep on his chest. She knew that this was his chance to be truly happy, and she was going to do everything in her power to make sure that it happened.

Right now, that meant making sure Evelyn didn't decide to run away screaming.

Alice had already seen that this conversation would go one of two ways: either she would ease the poor girl's fears, allowing Jasper to redeem himself in her eyes, or she would be too stubborn to listen, and she would be lost to them for good. The exact outcome was unclear, for Evelyn had yet to make her decision. Alice was fairly sure that the former would be the outcome; she could see it was seventy percent to thirty percent, at least, but she knew she would have to make absolutely sure this went according to her vision.

"Evelyn."

Alice's tinkling voice pulled Evelyn from her thoughts. Her heartbeat increased, her stomach turning.

"Alice." She had meant to sound strong, but her voice came out hoarse, trembling in uncertainty.

The pixie-like girl held out her hand to Evelyn expectantly. "I was hoping I could speak to you, if that's alright. Just us, at our own table. Don't worry, we will be in plain sight of everyone in the school."

Evelyn eyed her, unsure of what to do. She didn't feel threatened by Alice at all, only by what she thought she was. The fact that she would be in sight of all of the students eased her fears, too. Still, knowing that they all somehow knew about her knowledge of them already made her apprehensive.

"Please don't be afraid," Alice soothed. "I would never, ever hurt you."

Although she was still hesitant, she took Alice's cold hand, allowing herself to be lead into the cafeteria. She had no clue what would happen next, no inkling of what was to come, but one thing was clear.

Evelyn Masen sensed that her life was at a crossroads; after today, whatever happened, there would be no going back.

**********

Hey guys! This one is kind of a filler, kind of not, but I tried really hard to give more of a look into Evelyn's mind to show how she is processing this. Jasper is playing a major role in the next couple chapters and I am so excited ahhh I love him.

Also has anyone read Midnight Sun yet? LOVED IT. The insight into Edward and the Cullens was so helpful and so fun to read. What did you guys think?