+++++
A whole week went by and not one Cullen showed at school. Rumours started to spread around about where they could have all gone. Magnolia was worried. She got no word from Alice, Rosalie or even Carlisle on what was going on.
That Saturday morning was a slow one. Magnolia had slept in till noon; very unlike her. Both her mom and dad had taken Elton out for brunch. Her mom left a very sweet note on the kitchen counter, along with a tub of oatmeal made.
Magnolia ate sloppily on her couch as she watched the morning news, with nothing eventful going on, like always. A ring at the doorbell snapped her attention away from the t.v. "Coming!" She shouted, placing her food down and wiping the rouge oatmeal that was dripping down her chin.
Adjusting her sweater, she opened the door. "Alice! Oh my god, it's so good to see you," She hugged the vampire without a second thought. "How is everyone?"
Alice stood solemnly. "Magnolia...I hate to be the one to tell you this. May I come in?"
Magnolia nodded feverishly. "Yeah, of course," She sat across from Alice on the couch, watching nervously. "What is it you have to tell me, Alice?"
Alice sighed, looking away from Magnolia. "Maggie...I'm really not sure how to tell you this, but...we're leaving. Tonight."
The words didn't compute with Magnolia. She stared blankly at Alice, the words just spoke swimming through her mind. "Leaving?" She said slowly. "What do you mean leaving? Like leaving Forks?" Alice nodded sadly. Magnolia shook her head. "Only for a little, right? Like a little getaway for Jazz?"
Alice shook her head, sighing. "No, Maggie. We're leaving leaving. For good."
"Oh," Magnolia went numb. She couldn't shake the face of him from her mind. "Will Jasper be coming to say goodbye?"
If vampires could cry, Alice would be doing so right now. "Maggie...I'm so sorry but he's already left, along with Rosalie and Emmett. Carlisle and Esme are waiting for Edward. I just stayed to tell you the news."
"Get out," Magnolia stood up, moving away from Alice. "Get out of my house now."
Alice stood up, inching herself closer to Magnolia. "One last hug?"
Magnolia was shaking with anger. "Get out of my house, bloodsucker! Get out..." She trailed off, dropping to the floor, silent tears falling down her face. She listened as Alice's heels walked off, and finally, the door shut softly.
•
Magnolia had not moved from her spot on the living room floor until Elton and her parents got home. The world moved in a blur around her as her mother comforted her. She didn't remember crying, but when she moved to go upstairs, she noticed the large stain on her mother's grey shirt.
The whole weekend, she stayed in her room. Every few hours her mother would bring up food, which Magnolia barely ate. She listened as she laid on her bed to her father's yelling and pacing, and she was glad she was up in her room rather than down there. He was beyond angry about the Cullen's move, just as he was warming up to them, for Magnolia's sake.
On Monday morning, Magnolia woke early; 5:30. She didn't mind, she wasn't tired anyway. Slowly and lazily she got dressed, and she made sure to be extra quiet when leaving her room to go to the washroom.
She stared blankly at her face as she brushed her hair. She hadn't noticed the bags under her eyes becoming larger, and her skin had turned a sickly green. Maybe she hadn't eaten enough. Shaking off the eerie feeling, Magnolia finished up and headed quietly downstairs. To her surprise, the t.v was on. She was sure her parents were still asleep.
Slowly, she crept around the corner, only to see a tuft of red hair. She sighed with relief. Elton was much better about this whole Cullen thing. He wasn't sorry or pitiful toward Magnolia, he was just normal, treating it as if she was only a little sad; normal. "Morning." She said groggily as she passed behind him.
He turned from the t.v, watching her as she opened the fridge. "Oh, morning. You're up early."
Magnolia closed the fridge, unscrewing the cap of the smoothie she pulled out. "So are you," She pointed out, taking a long sip of her drink. She moved back to the living room, sitting on the chair next to the couch. "Couldn't sleep?"
Elton shook his head, chuckling. "I'm still getting used to it here. Ariana and Tim have been so generous, you too. I'm sorry about Saturday, I wish I was there with you."
Magnolia shook her head. "Don't. It's over now. I don't want pity. They left, he left. They don't deserve my tears."
Elton chuckled. "Amen sister."
The silence they sat in was comfortable. They watched the morning news until Ariana came downstairs, dressed to perfection. She kissed both their heads. "Morning you two. How long have you been up?"
Magnolia shrugged. "Not long." She didn't want to worry her mother more.
Ariana nodded happily, and made her way to the kitchen, fixing herself a cup of tea. "I'll drive you kids to school today," She noticed the worry that flashed across her daughter's face. "Bella won't be coming in this week. Charlie called last night."
"Oh," Magnolia had forgotten Bella was left behind too. "What did he do to her?" She was referring to Edward. A surge of anger flared through her.
Elton scoffed. "Asshole left her in the woods. Sam Uley found her nearly freezing to death."
Magnolia jumped up. "Excuse me!?" She turned away from Elton. Her eyes had turned dark, and a spark crackled within her palm. Ariana rushed over
"Calm down, Magnolia. Calm down," She took her daughter by the wrist, forcing her eyes to meet her own. "Now is not the time to get angry."
Magnolia nodded, sighing shakily. She pulled her arm free from her mothers' grip. "Right...sorry mom." She sat back down. Elton gave her a concerned look. She shook her head. 'Don't ask.' She mouthed. Elton nodded, smiling lightly.
•
Elton and Magnolia parted ways with Ariana once they reached the main entrance of the school. "So...pizza after school?" Elton quipped, smiling down at Magnolia.
"Really?" Magnolia laughed. "Like what we were gonna do before a blew you off for weeks?"
Elton laughed too, shrugging. "I guess. I thought it would be funny. You down or nah?"
Magnolia punched his arm lightly. "Of course, idiot."
The first bell rang. "I'll see you in English." Elton smiled, punching her arm back as they separated at the fork in the hall. Magnolia waved goodbye to him, and the whole way down the hall, she was smiling. She felt like it had been years since she last smiled, but having Elton in her life again made all the anger and pain go away just as easily as Jasper's powers could.
Calculus class was slow, as usual. Mr. Alexander's low monotone voice bored Magnolia to death. She lazily took her notes, which took up the whole class, so the lesson would have to be stretched into tomorrow's class.
When the bell for second period rang, relief flooded through Magnolia. She happily dropped her pen, not listening to the last minute lesson Mr. Alexander was trying to get in as she packed her things up and left. There was almost a spring in her step as she walked down to English.
She waved happily to Angela as she walked in, noticing the girl's look of shock on her face. The whole town knew about the Cullen's leaving, and about Bella's incident, so Angela must have assumed Magnolia would be the same. Elton gave her a fist bump as she passed.
The class went by fast. Magnolia and Elton were near getting sent to the office for almost six "disturbances" in class. For the first time in a while, Magnolia felt really herself. Most of the jokes she would make with Elton wouldn't make sense to the Cullen's, so she never said them in front of them, though she knew they'd be polite about it no matter what. "Maybe that's why Edward didn't like me," She chuckled to herself.
"Earth to Magnolia?" Elton's voice snapped her out of her daydream. "You good?"
Magnolia shot him a quick smile, nodding. "Of course. Never better."
Elton rolled his eyes, taking her arm to sit at an empty lunch table. "Are you sure?" He leaned closer to her, nearly whispering.
Magnolia raised her eyebrow, confused. "Am I sure? Yes, I'm sure!" She laughed, moving to pull her lunch from her bag. Elton stopped her, forcing her to look back at him.
"Maggie, I mean it. I don't want you suppressing all your feelings about the Cullen's for them to all come exploding out later." His eyes and voice were soft.
Magnolia huffed, looking away from him. "I'm not...suppressing anything, Elton. I'm fine. I'm over it, over h-him." Her voice cracked. Elton sighed.
"You're not. And that's okay. People will understand if you're sad, it's healthy." Magnolia moved away from him, grabbing her lunch bag in the process.
She glared intensely at an apple when a sudden memory from the summer caught her off guard.
•
"Where are we even going, Jazz? We've been hiking for like three hours." Magnolia complained as she trudged behind Jasper.
He chuckled from ahead of her. "You're the one that didn't want a lift," She huffed in annoyance. "And I'm not telling, it'll ruin the surprise. Besides, we're here."
Magnolia squinted, looking further into the forest. She could just make out a faint light, a clearing where the trees diverted around. She picked up her pace, trying to walk in time with Jasper's long strides. He took her hand softly as she made her way to his side, keeping her steady. They stopped at the edge of the clearing. Throughout it, Magnolia could see four or five trees sprinkled within it. As she stepped forward, Jasper's hand fell from hers. She moved into the clearing, the rare rays of the sun warming her skin nicely, like a blanket on a cold night.
She smiled contently. "It's beautiful," She sighed, turning herself all around to look. She gasped when she noticed what were on the trees. "Apples?" She moved toward one. On its branches hung large, shining red apples. "I didn't know wild apples grew in Forks."
The light in the clearing seemed to become brighter. "They don't. Carlisle planted these with Esme when they first arrived. It's was an anniversary gift to her." Jasper's smooth voice calmed Magnolia greatly. As she felt his hand find hers, she looked down and gasped.
"Jasper...y-your glowing!" She moved to the side, getting a good look at him. It was almost god-like, with his skin glittered in the sun. She'd never experienced the shine of vampires for herself, and it was shockingly beautiful.
Jasper watched her intently. He was waiting for the shout of fear, the scream of horror...but none came. Magnolia tenderly touched his hand, then his arm, till finally his face. She smiled warmly. "You're beautiful, Jazz. Absolutely beautiful."
He chuckled, shaking his head. "You're not scared?"
Magnolia laughed loudly. "Scared? I thought you knew me better than to be scared of a mere vampire." She moved closer to him, hand still on his face.
"I apologize, ma'am. I should've had more faith in you," His eyes darkened ever so slightly. "How could I ever repay you?"
"Oh, I think you know." Magnolia smiled smugly.
Jasper wasted no time closing the distance between them.