𝐊𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐄𝐑, paul lahote ✓

𝐒𝐈𝐗

"Is she even Italian?" Rosalie grumbled out, watching as Emmett placed the makings of a salad into the bowl she was holding. Augustine got an earful from the blonde last night about how reckless this whole situation was, and her grumpiness clearly showed by the way she held the bowl with a vice grip.

The vampire in question snickered. "Her name is Bella... she's Italian," he pointed out, as if the fact was obvious.  He then looked pointedly at the youngest one among them, "unless you lied to me."

Augustine's hands were thrown up in the air. "It said so on the internet," she offered, dodging a stray piece of lettuce that the older boy threw in her direction with a laugh.

Her laugh was abruptly cut off by the distinct smell of human that wafted through the air. The girl's stomach churned, watching as the others also lifted their heads at the sudden smell. Their guest had clearly arrived, and Augustine instinctually wrapped her arms around her torso.

"Here comes the human," Rosalie teased, salad bowl still in hand as Esme dropped what she was doing with an eager smile on her face.

Augustine watched as Edward and a brunette girl timidly entered the space, the smell virtually intensifying the closer they got. Still, she wasn't about to ruin this for Edward, so she plastered on a smile that almost looked like a grimace if you stared at her too long.

Esme took charge immediately, approaching the girl with a warm smile. "Bella, we're making Italiano for you."

Edward quickly introduced Esme as his mother 'for all intents and purposes' first, given that Bella had already met almost everyone. The two exchanged brief words in Italian, much to Esme's amusement, before Edward locked eyes with the younger vampire sitting rather rigid on the counter. "And that's Augustine, our 'foster sister from Alaska'," he added, supplying air quotations as he said the phrase.

Edward had already given Bella the rundown of the younger vampire's situation when he first told her about his family, so seeing a completely new, yet teenage face in the home wasn't all that alarming.

But Augustine could tell that Bella felt just as awkward as she did, for an entirely different reason she supposed, but the timidness was clear as day. Through gritted teeth, the girl leaned forward with a, "apparently Bella means beautiful in Italian. I think I read that somewhere."

At the oddity of the phrase, Bella simply gave a small smile before Carlisle reached towards the dark haired vampire and squeezed her knee to applaud her efforts. "You've given us another excuse to use the kitchen again," he told the human girl.

Esme quickly added, "I hope you're hungry."

Bella was even quicker with a response, nodding. "Yeah, absolutely—"

"She already ate—"

At Edward's words, the glass bowl in Rosalie's grasp shattered almost instantly and the shards of glass hitting the floor echoed around the room. The noise was incredibly loud, making Augustine's head jerk away from the sound that seemed to reverberate painfully in her skull. She was already putting on such a brave face, but she was actively getting overstimulated by the sheer smell and the repetitive sound of Bella's heart pumping since the moment they arrived.

Jumping down from the kitchen counter, Augustine mumbled a small, excuse me, before leaving the room with quick footsteps that almost seemed like she was fully sprinting from the vicinity.

She made a mental note to apologize to Edward later, but she knew he must've heard it already, given the soft nod he sent in her direction that she saw from her peripheral.

The vampire just needed space to breath because that was a large baby step she took by just being in the room with the girl. Her feet had a mind of their own as she tried to wrangle herself together, leading her to a familiar place she hadn't been to in weeks.

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[ wyn's note ]

bella's met the cullens, and our girl augustine really and truly tried her best. this'll be a double update, so by the time you see this, the next chap will be out. and spoiler: our two mains are meeting face to face woop woop!)

all love! xx