✓ | 𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍, j. hale [1]

V. Puzzle Pieces

By the time the weekend rolled around, Evelyn had settled into somewhat of a routine in her new life.
She would ride to and from school with Bella, and in the evenings after she had completed her homework she would go to the café with Marie and help manage the restaurant. The stability and safety of her new life provided a sense of calm; she could tell her anxiety had begun to fade as the sun rose behind the clouds each morning in the sleepy town of Forks.

The fact that Jasper Hale had not come back to school had also helped tremendously.

After what Bella had told her about Edward's behavior and ultimate disappearance, she was not surprised when there were only three people sitting at the Cullen's usual table on her second day of school. Unlike her friend, who would gaze longingly at the table everyday when she thought no one was looking, Evelyn was quite unbothered by Jasper's absence; there was just something unnatural about the Cullen family. They were too perfect, too poised, and too closed off to blend in with the other students. Everyone else seemed to brush them off, and Evelyn felt like her and Bella were the only two people at Forks High School who could see through their carefully woven façade.

The weekend came and went, Evelyn spending the time with Marie fixing up the house and her signature yellow car, as well as working at the restaurant to earn some money. She wanted so desperately to go to Seattle or Port Angeles to go shopping; she had taken the easy access to stores and malls in Chicago for granted. Surprisingly, she also loved working there. Since she had played sports almost constantly, there was never any time for her to have a job in the first place. It was refreshing for Evelyn to feel needed and useful, even though it was in such a small way.

As Evelyn climbed into the rusty orange truck on Monday, Bella seemed like she was lost in thought.

"Bells? Everything okay?"

Bella kept her eyes on the road as she spoke. "There was an animal attack this weekend in Mason County at some warehouse. The security guard was killed, Charlie," she paused, "I mean, my dad is going down there to check it out. I'm just worried, I guess."

"An animal attack in a warehouse? What kind of animal could even do that?"

"I don't know. I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks it sounds kinda weird, though."

Evelyn offered her friend an encouraging smile. "I'm sure your dad will be okay. It's gonna be the middle of the day when he's there and he'll be surrounded by their authorities too."

"You're probably right, Ev." Her eyes were still far away.

"I always am." Evelyn's grin made Bella roll her eyes, and the mysterious tension in the atmosphere evaporated just as quickly as it had come.

***

Evelyn looked forward to the solitude of her English class. She didn't mind not having a partner, since she knew no one in the class appreciated the literature the same way she did. It was a relief to have one period where she could just be herself and enjoy the classic books she had read over and over again. This week they were starting their study on Jane Eyre, one of Evelyn's favorites.

Her joyful mood was dampened when she walked into the classroom and noticed someone occupying the usually empty seat next to hers.

He was gorgeous; that, Evelyn couldn't deny. His metallic bronze hair appeared perfectly windswept, an effortlessly unkempt look that she had never seen pulled off so well before. As she approached him, she noticed the token golden eyes of the Cullen family. He, like his adopted siblings, had clear porcelain skin and unnaturally perfect features that simultaneously drew in and pushed people away. She knew who he was immediately from Bella's descriptions of him.