LET DOWN

seventeen.          vampires

▬ "YOU SUCK!" Cori shouted, throwing a pillow at Jasper, who simply leaned to the side to dodge it before smirking at the girl. "How do you always win?"

"I'm amazing." He stated like it was a simple fact of life.

"Shortcake, it's Mario Kart, you don't have to get this worked-" He trailed off the moment her glare turned towards him.

"I don't understand why you keep playing with him if you know the outcome." Rosalie shifted on the couch, leaning against her husband's chest as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"Because I will win one day and it will be the greatest day of my life." She declared, raising her fist in the air dramatically, which made Travis and Emmett laugh.

"Wanna go again?" Jasper asked, a teasing smirk pulling at the corner of his lips as the girl turned towards him, her eyes narrowed. He could feel the frustration rolling off of her in waves, the longer they played, the angrier she got and the more sloppily she played. It was entertaining.

"No." Esme stepped into the room, her smile kind and warm as always. "You're helping me with dinner. Bella's coming over."

Cori shifted a little, letting her head hang forward. She and her sister hadn't really talked since their argument. Bella was always with Edward and Cori was usually attached to Emmett's lips. But even at home, Cori wasn't sure how to approach her sister, especially now that she was confused. One minute she was calling them weird and asking questions and the next she and Edward were an item.

Emmett placed his hand on the small of her back, leaning forward to press a kiss to her temple which made her smile as she turned towards him. "Wanna be the taste-tester?"

Her smile grew wide as she sat up a little straighter. "Always." He chuckled as she pushed herself up, her hand out towards him and when he took it she tugged but he didn't budge until he pushed himself up. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, his legs wide as they walked haphazardly down the hall, both laughing.

It wasn't long before they were in the kitchen, the human sat on the counter next to Emmett as he chopped up some peppers. Esme was to his left grating cheese while Carlisle worked the stove. Travis and Rosalie put together the salad. And Alice had dragged Jasper with her to pick some flowers, though it was more like he followed her helplessly and less like she was forcing him.

Cori giggled a little when Emmett held up a small piece of a green pepper then she leaned forward and took it from his hand, her teeth lightly grazing his cold fingers. He took a needless breath, his pupils going wide as he looked at the girl, seemingly unable to look away from her.

"Watch what you're doing." She pointed at the knife in his hands and he looked down, letting out another breath as he went back to chopping. "So, what's with the creepy ass doll in the window?" She asked, pointing towards the doll that had on a white bonnet and matching dress.

"It's an antique." Carlisle chuckled, looking over his shoulder for a brief moment.

"It's watching me." Cori mumbled, leaning side to side to see if the eyes followed her.

"You're adorable." Emmett hummed, drawing her attention from the doll and she smiled as she met his gaze, her cheeks a light pink. "And I was right." Her eyebrows creased a little. "You do look really good in my sweater."

Her cheeks darkened. "Emmett, not in front of your family." She muttered, clearly embarrassed, especially since he didn't even try to whisper.

"It's true." He insisted, leaning forward to capture her lips in a quick kiss. Esme smiled at the couple before going back to grating cheese, Carlisle glanced at the two, a smile also pulling at his lips. They were both happy to see Emmett so happy, and the house had never been so full of laughter before Cori came around.

"Is she even Italian?" Rosalie huffed, seemingly annoyed that Bella was joining them.

"Her name is Bella." Emmett stated.

"And my name is Coraline, what does that tell you?"

"That you're gorgeous." He smirked and she rolled her eyes, swinging her feet out a little as a smile pulled at her lips, but he could tell it was forced. "Hey, wanna go upstairs with me?" He asked, his voice hushed a little as he put the knife down and placed his hands on either side of her.

"Okay." She hummed and he pressed a kiss to her cheek before grabbing her waist and lifting her off the counter. He put her on her feet and she laced her fingers through his before they left the room, the girl waving as they went.

Not even an hour later, the two were still in Emmett's room avoiding Bella and Edward. "Enjoying yourself?" He asked from his spot on the edge of his bed, his eyes on the girl that sat on the floor, her legs crossed as she went through a few of his books.

"Your organization system is all wrong." She shook her head, laying a book on the stack to her right. "You got mystery with science-fiction and the horror mixed into the romance – I think it's so hot that you read romance. Anyways, it's a disaster."

"And how do you organize your books?" He asked, his eyebrow raised. He had seen her bookshelves a few times and he even browsed through them a little but he was curious as to why they were placed the way they were.

"By genre." She mumbled. "Then by size. And after size it's by favorite. For the ones I haven't read, I put them at the end of the genre – if the size allows – and put a little pink star on the spine."

"You're a freak." He laughed, leaning back, his palms flat against his mattress.

"I am not. I just have a system." She shrugged, but all he could do was laugh and she couldn't help it when she joined him. "Shut up." She huffed, still laughing lightly with him. "I like my books to be organized. Is that so bad?"

"Bad? No. Odd? Definitely." He nodded and she tossed the closet book at him – a thick copy of all of Edger Allen Poe's works – but he caught it, still very amused as she sat there reorganizing his books.

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▬ CORI SAT AT HER DESK, her legs crossed under her in her desk chair. She chewed on her lip as she looked over the Spanish flashcards Jasper had written up for her. He had even written out different ways for her to remember what the word meant in English, sometimes drawing small pictures. She really appreciated him – when he wasn't crushing her at Mario Kart.

She jumped a little when a knock came at her door. "Come in!" She called out, looking up from the little drawing of a flower in the corner of the flashcard. She heard the stairs creak and she turned to see Bella standing there, her hands behind her back.

"Can we talk?"

"Yeah, of course." She dropped her legs and laid the cards down before turning towards her older sister as she made her way farther into the room before sitting on the bed. "What's up?"

"I wanted to apologize for the other day. The fight we had. Um, I know you were just protecting their secret."

"What secret?" Cori's eyebrows pinched.

"It's okay, Cor, I know that they're vampires." Bella told her, thinking her confusion was all an act. "Edward told me. Err, well, I figured it out and when I confronted him, he told me everything. I know they don't feed on people, they feed on animals. They're vegetarian vampires." She chuckled a little, shaking her head.

"This isn't funny, Bella." Cori huffed. "What the hell is this? A sick joke? That psycho put you up to it?"

"Come on, Cor." Bella huffed, not getting why she was still playing dumb. "I know. It's okay. We can talk about it. I don't know how you kept it from me for so-"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cori pushed herself up. "Vampires? But that's not... they aren't..." She stopped, everything running through her brain at a pace she could barely understand.

"You didn't know." Bella stated, her face falling upon the realization that she had just told her everything.

"I don't even-" She was cut off by a knock on the front door, but neither made a move.

"Emmett." They heard Charlie greet the boy and Cori looked at her sister once again, her face pale and her breathing out of time.

They heard rushed mumbles before Charlie agreed to let the boy up, then heavy footsteps echoed through the house before Emmett stood right in front of the two Swans. His eyes frantically jumped from Bella to Cori, but she wouldn't look at him.

"I-I-I'm sorry." Bella rushed out, pushing herself onto her feet. "I thought she knew." When Emmett didn't respond, she left the room, closing the door behind her.

"Cori."

"What the hell is she talking about?" She asked, her voice shaky. "Vampires? I don't..."

"It's true. We're vampires. Me and my family." He told her, keeping his voice calm and she shook her head. "It's true. That's how Edward stopped the van from crushing Bella. That's why we don't eat at school. That's why we don't come to school when the sun is out." She shook her head, tears filling her eyes. "Why we're always cold to the touch. Why we don't usually socialize outside of the family."

"Stop."

"Shortcake-"

"No." She looked up at him, tears running down her cheeks and it absolutely killed him. "Vampires aren't real." Without even thinking he moved so he was closer to her, using his speed to do so, and she gasped as she jumped back, putting distance between them.

"It's true." He repeated, taking a step but she took another step back and he stopped. "We would never hurt you. I would never hurt you."

"You shouldn't exist."

"The wolves exist." He stated and her eyes went wide.

"Y-You know about-"

"Yes."

"Oh, God. Paul. He was- He knew. He warned me about you. All of you. And I... I didn't listen. I defended you!"

"Cori, please-"

"I lost my best friend because of you!" She cried, pushing her hair out of her face. "Because I chose you. I-I-I told him you were nice people."

"We are."

"No, Emmett, you're vampires." She shook her head, wiping her nose with the back of her hand.

He wasn't sure what to say. He couldn't help the fact that he was a vampire. He didn't choose this for himself, he didn't exactly hate it either, but he didn't make the choice.

"You lied to me. For months."

"I wanted to tell you but-"

"But what?" She asked, sniffling a little. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I wasn't sure how you'd react. And after you found out about the wolves, I knew it wasn't gonna be easy."

She stopped, her brows creased a little as tears still rolled down her cheeks. "How'd you know when I found out about Paul?"

"Edward. He can read minds. He knew the day you came back to school after the accident." He told her. "Look, Shortcake-"

"Don't call me that."

"I'm still me." He took a step, holding his hand to his chest as his heart broke – he hated that she was scared of him. "We're still the same people-"

"You're not people."

He sighed, getting slightly frustrated. "Cori, let me talk. Please."

She stopped for a moment, her head down and tears falling from her eyes onto the carpet. It was all too much. She couldn't wrap her head around it, not entirely.

She did grasp two things completely though: one, he was a vampire. And two, he had lied to her.

"No." She told him, her voice small. The next words were gonna hurt, she knew that because even if it hadn't been very long since they met, she loved him. She loved every moment they spent together, even if it was a lie. "Go."

"What?" The word sounded broken.

"Please, leave." Her voice cracked a little with a sob. "I... I never want to see you again." He took a step back, the words hitting him like an anvil, right in his chest.

"Cori, please." He begged, unshed tears filling his eyes.

"Go!" She shouted, looking up at him, tears rolling down her cheeks and an anger he had never seen before taking over her blue iris. And he nodded his head. "And tell the others... I don't wanna... see them either. Any of them." He nodded his head again before leaving, though he was reluctant as he did so. The moment he closed her bedroom door he heard her break down in uncontrollable sobs. Then he heard a thud as she fell to the floor, her legs giving out underneath her.

"I really thought she knew." Bella mumbled once she saw him and he just looked at her, she had never seen him look so hollow before. He just looked at her for a moment, no readable emotion on his face, before he left her standing in the hallway as he made his way down the stairs and out of the house.