By Monday morning, the snow had melted into gray slush and puddles that reflected the pale sky. Forks had finally stopped talking about the accident… well, almost.
I pulled up outside Tyler's house, engine idling, the radio murmuring low. His mom's SUV was gone, probably already at work, and the Crowleys' mailbox was still half-buried in a pile of old snow.
A minute later, the front door opened, and Tyler hobbled out on his crutches, his backpack slung over one shoulder. His cast was plaster-white, signed all over with Get well soon! messages and a few questionable doodles.
"Morning, man!" he called, grinning like someone who'd missed the spotlight.
"Morning, invalid," I said, getting out to help him down the steps. "You sure you're up for school already?"
He smirked. "Dude, I've been stuck in bed for six days. I'd go insane if I had to watch another daytime talk show. Besides, I'm basically a celebrity now."
"Yeah, Forks' biggest headline in years," I said. "Local teen survives freak car crash, somehow charms every nurse in the county."
"Guilty," he said, laughing as he eased into the passenger seat. "You'd be surprised how many of them like a guy with a tragic backstory and a broken leg."
I shook my head, grinning. "Even the older ones?"
"Especially the older ones," he said proudly. "They were into it. I think one slipped me extra Jell-O."
We both laughed, and for a second, it felt normal again.
As I drove toward school, though, my thoughts drifted.
The past week had been a blur of whispers, rumors, and exaggerated retellings. Everyone at Forks High had a different version of what happened in that parking lot, some said I tackled Bella out of the way like an action hero, others claimed Tyler's van flipped twice, or that Edward Cullen had appeared out of nowhere.
And through it all, the Cullens had been watching me with unnerving intensity.
I'd catch Edward's eyes on me across the cafeteria or in the halls, calm but unblinking, like a cat waiting for a mouse to do something interesting. So I'd developed a defense mechanism: mental noise.
The moment I spotted him, I'd crank up the volume in my head, singing whatever came to mind, usually badly. Sometimes "Barbie Girl." Sometimes "Bohemian Rhapsody." But my personal favorite? "Nyan Cat."
That last one seemed to drive him crazy and worked like a charm. Edward's expression whenever it started was priceless, like he'd bitten into something sour but couldn't spit it out.
Tyler was talking about something, probably basketball, but I only half-heard him. My mind kept circling back to the Cullens, to Edward's unreadable stare, to how the timeline had bent itself around that parking lot.
One tiny change, and everything was different.
And the more I thought about it, the more I wondered, if fate could be rewritten that easily, what else was waiting to unravel?
…
When we pulled into the school parking lot, it was like stepping into a live-action news report. Half the student body was already there, and as soon as people spotted Tyler hobbling out on his crutches, heads turned.
"Dude, I told you," Tyler muttered under his breath, smirking. "Celebrity."
Lauren Mallory and Jessica Stanley hurried over before we even made it halfway across the lot.
"Tyler!" Jessica squealed. "Oh my god, you're walking! Well… kind of."
"Barely," Lauren added, eyeing his cast. "So, like, what actually happened? People are saying your van flipped."
Tyler leaned on his crutches like a rockstar with a mic stand. "Ah, you know how rumors are. One second you hit a patch of ice, the next you're doing stunts for Fast & Furious."
They giggled, and I rolled my eyes. "He's milking it for all it's worth," I muttered.
"You're just jealous I have fan mail," Tyler shot back. Inside, things weren't much better. Every few feet, someone stopped him to ask about the crash or sign his cast. Even some teachers gave him the poor kid look. By the time the first bell rang, he'd told the story four different ways.
Through all of it, I could feel the Cullens' eyes now and then, especially Edward's. They blended in with practiced ease, but there was a weight to that gaze. Watching, measuring, waiting.
I pretended not to notice and hummed Barbie Girl under my breath just in case.
By lunchtime, the cafeteria buzz had died down a little, replaced with the usual low chatter and clatter of trays. Tyler sat at our table, still holding court with Jessica and Eric, retelling the crash for the fifth time.
Then Bella walked up, tray in hand, looking a bit hesitant.
"Mind if I sit here?" she asked.
"Sure," I said quickly, scooting over. "VIP seating for near-death survivors only."
She gave me a small, amused smile. "Guess I qualify then."
Tyler grinned. "You're welcome for not flattening you, by the way."
Bella rolled her eyes. "You're so lucky that my truck is built like a tank, or else I'd be asking you for compensation."
I chuckled. "Yeah, seriously. Next time, you should probably park somewhere without a clear path for van-sized bowling balls."
She laughed, then picked at her sandwich. "Edward's still acting weird," she said quietly, almost to herself.
I raised an eyebrow. "You mean weirder than usual?"
She bit back a smile. "He keeps talking to me like everything's fine, then goes totally silent. It's confusing."
"Mixed signals, huh?" I said, grinning. "Classic Cullen move. Guy looks at you like you're the most fascinating thing in the universe, then broods in silence for dramatic effect."
Bella snorted. "That's… oddly accurate."
"Yeah, well," I said, leaning back, "I've seen the movie before."
Her brow furrowed. "What movie?"
"Never mind," I said quickly, waving it off.
Across the room, I caught Edward staring, again. His expression unreadable, but his eyes locked right on me, sharp and probing.
'Oh no, not this again,' I thought.
And then I grinned.
'Boom, boom, boom, boom, I want you in my room~'
The Vengaboys hit full blast inside my head, and I imagined the most obnoxious disco lights possible to go with it.
Edward's face went still for a moment… then twitched, like he'd just heard nails on a chalkboard.
Perfect.
I kept singing internally, louder, and when he turned away sharply, I almost burst out laughing.
Across the cafeteria, at the Cullens' table, Emmett was the first to notice.
"Okay, I gotta ask," he said, leaning toward his brother. "What is it this time? You've got the look."
Edward closed his eyes briefly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You don't want to know."
"Oh, I definitely want to know," Emmett said eagerly. "C'mon, what's he blasting in that weird brain of his?"
Edward's voice was low, pained. "...'Boom Boom Boom Boom,' by the Vengaboys."
For a second, there was silence, then Emmett exploded with laughter so loud that Jasper winced and Rosalie rolled her eyes.
"You're kidding!" Emmett howled. "The 'I want you in my room' song?! Oh man, that's gold! He's trolling you, dude!"
Edward glared, which only made Emmett laugh harder.
Alice smiled faintly, though her tone was uneasy. "At least he's… creative."
"Or unhinged," Rosalie muttered.
Edward didn't respond. His gaze drifted back toward Mike Newton, the corner of his mouth tightening.
If Mike was doing this on purpose, and clearly he was, then one thing was certain.
This human was becoming far more of a mystery than any of them had expected.
…
The afternoon sun barely broke through the clouds when the Cullens gathered in their living room. The wide glass walls bathed the space in a dull gray glow, making the forest beyond look like a frozen painting.
Edward sat apart from the others, elbows resting on his knees, eyes distant. His fingers tapped against his chin, a rare sign of distraction for him.
"So…" Emmett began, lounging on the couch with a grin that promised trouble. "Are we finally going to talk about him?"
Rosalie crossed her arms, rolling her eyes. "If you mean the idiot who sings pop songs in his head every time Edward looks at him, yes, let's."
Emmett barked out a laugh. "Vengaboys? Seriously? That one's gonna stick with me for decades."
Edward's lips twitched. "You try focusing when someone's blaring 'Boom boom boom boom' in their head at full volume."
Alice, sitting cross-legged on the armrest beside Jasper, smirked. "He's definitely doing it on purpose now. He's found your weakness, Eddie."
Edward sighed, rubbing his temples. "He's not… normal. I keep trying to read him, but it's like he's learned how to block me. Sometimes I catch fragments of odd, random things, but the rest of it is noise. Deliberate noise."
Carlisle, seated in his favorite chair, looked thoughtful. "He's aware of what you can do, then?"
"Very much so," Edward replied, voice low. "And he's playing with it."
For a moment, silence filled the room, the kind that felt heavier than words.
Jasper frowned. "He knows too much. The way he looks at us, it's not just curiosity. It's like he's measuring something. Testing."
Rosalie huffed. "Then why don't we stop pretending? He knows what we are. He's getting stronger by the day. Let's just kill him and be done with it."
The words cut through the air like glass.
Carlisle turned toward her, his calm expression cracking into disappointment. "Rosalie."
"What?" she shot back, lifting her chin. "You're all thinking it. You've seen how big he's gotten. He's not just some dumb teenager anymore. He's… changing."
Esme's voice, soft but firm, broke the tension. "That doesn't mean we lose our humanity, Rosalie. He hasn't harmed anyone."
"Yet," Rosalie muttered under her breath.
Alice's eyes glazed for half a second, the faint shimmer of a vision crossing her expression. When she blinked back to the present, her lips pressed into a line.
"Well?" Edward asked.
Alice hesitated. "I can't see it clearly. The closer he gets to any of us… the fuzzier it gets. Like something's shielding him. The only time I lose sight of Bella is when she's near him, too."
That earned everyone's attention.
Carlisle leaned forward slightly. "You mean the same interference applies to Bella as well?"
Alice nodded slowly. "It's not her. It's him. He's somehow… blurring the threads."
Jasper looked between them all, unease creeping into his tone. "If he's part of the supernatural world, that might explain it. But if he's not…" He let the sentence hang.
Emmett leaned back, folding his arms behind his head. "Well, I don't know what he is, but I kind of like the guy. He's the first human who's managed to annoy Edward and make him speechless."
Edward glared at him, but Emmett's grin only widened.
"Still," Carlisle said, his voice regaining its calm authority, "we watch him. Closely. But without hostility. If he's aware of us and means no harm, we owe him at least that courtesy."
Esme nodded approvingly. "Agreed."
Rosalie, however, didn't seem convinced. Her eyes flicked toward the forest outside, her reflection in the glass a pale, angry echo.
"Mark my words," she said quietly. "Something about that boy isn't right. And when it finally breaks loose… don't say I didn't warn you."
Edward's gaze sharpened suddenly, as if a light had gone off behind his eyes.
He sat up straighter. "Wait."
The rest of them turned toward him.
"Could he be related to the wolves?" he said, the words cutting through the quiet like a crack of ice.
Carlisle's expression grew thoughtful, fingertips brushing his chin. "You mean the Quileute? Hmm… hard to say."
"He doesn't look like them," Rosalie pointed out flatly, her tone skeptical. "He's pale. And his scent is nothing like theirs."
"Maybe," Carlisle continued, "he has an ancestor from the tribe. Some long-dormant bloodline. Stranger things have happened."
Jasper frowned. "Would that explain the… strength? The way he's changing?"
"Possibly," Carlisle said. "We don't know much about them, or how their transformation works. If some fragment of it carried forward in him, it might be surfacing now."
Alice nodded slowly, her face a mix of intrigue and concern. "And it would explain why I can't see him, I can't see the wolves either."
Esme's brow creased softly. "But if he's truly connected to them, shouldn't the tribe know? Wouldn't they feel something, see him as one of their own?"
"Not if they don't know what he is yet," Carlisle replied. "Or if he doesn't. It could be instinctive. Dormant."
Rosalie scoffed, crossing her arms tighter. "Wonderful. So he's either some sort of late-blooming dog or something else entirely. And we're just sitting here watching it unfold like it's a movie."
"Rosalie," Esme said quietly, her tone edged with disapproval again.
Edward's eyes drifted toward the window, watching the fading gray sky. "If he is connected to them," he murmured, "that could be dangerous, for Bella."
Alice's voice was faint. "Or… for all of us."
For a moment, the only sound was the faint hum of the refrigerator in the adjoining kitchen. Then Carlisle exhaled softly, closing the medical journal he'd been idly holding.
"Speculation won't give us answers," he said. "We'll watch him. Carefully. But no interference unless necessary."
"Agreed," Edward said, though his tone carried no relief. His eyes stayed fixed on the treeline, where mist rolled over the forest like a living thing.
Emmett grinned, trying to break the heavy air. "So basically, keep an eye on the possibly-superpowered teenager who sings 'Boom Boom Boom Boom' at vampires. Sounds fun."
Even Alice cracked a small smile, but the unease lingered.
Carlisle looked at each of them, his calm voice firm. "Remember who we are. Whatever he is, we don't act out of fear."
Rosalie muttered something under her breath that no one acknowledged, and Edward stayed silent, his thoughts churning behind eyes that glowed faintly gold in the fading light.
Feeling the dark mood, Emmett looked at Rosalie with a grin that was equal parts mischief and provocation.
"Come on, babe," he crooned, suddenly breaking into song, his deep voice booming through the quiet room. "I want you in my room~"
Rosalie's expression froze mid-scowl. "Emmett," she hissed, glaring at him like she was two seconds from throwing him through a wall.
Alice snorted, hiding her laugh behind her hand. "You're impossible," she said, eyes sparkling.
Edward groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Of all the songs to choose…" he muttered in disgust.
Jasper actually cracked a smile. "You've got to admit," he drawled, "the timing's impeccable."
Carlisle exhaled slowly, a faint, helpless smile tugging at the corner of his lips despite himself. "Perhaps," he said mildly, "we should all take a moment to… cool down."
Esme gave Emmett a look that was equal parts fond and exasperated. "Maybe next time, dear, you could pick something less… suggestive."
Emmett only shrugged, unabashed. "What? It's a classic."
…