"I would advise for you to dispose of any feelings your harbor for the foul-smelling teenage boy, dear child."
"nah, i like my boyfriend. he buys me pop tarts without having to ask and likes the same baseball team i do. that's love in my book."
{in...
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JULIETTE YAWNED LOUDLY IN the otherwise silent room from where she sat with Bella on the couch. Bella looked shaken up, and Juliette was trying to comfort her, but she was just so exhausted.
"Juliette, go to bed, you're tired," Carlisle said, worrying about his daughter. He knew that she hadn't been sleeping well for months, and needed it as much as she could get it. Juliette waved him off.
"I'm fine, Pops. This is—" She yawned loudly again, and covered her mouth with the back of her hand. Bella shifted and patted her lap, putting a pillow on it. "You can stay awake, just lay down. Okay?"
Juliette reluctantly laid down and closed her eyes, but was intent on staying awake to participate in the conversation. Once Emmett and Jasper got back, they'd know where this guy was heading.
"Who was it? Someone we know?" Alice asked Edward—and the pipsqueak fairy looked very worried and stressed out. She paced back and forth, needing the consistency of something to keep her stabilized.
Juliette saw this and held her hand out. She knew that her sister got overwhelmed a lot, and she needed someone to calm her. Usually, it was Jasper, but he wasn't there. Alice sighed and took her baby sister's hand, and she felt as calm—as calm as when Jasper was there.
"Just a stranger. I didn't recognize his scent," Edward said frustratedly. He hated how he couldn't protect Bella, and how she was caught up in the middle of everything.
"Just a nomad passing through?" Esme asked, hoping for the best, because she feared the worst. The worst would be if Victoria was up to something. And they all knew that Victoria only wanted one thing—Juliette dead.
Bella dying is a bonus for her.
But Rose was a realist, and only saw the worst. "A passer-by wouldn't have left Bella's father alive." Juliette could feel Bella shudder at the thought, and she looked up to see fear painting her face.
"Calm down, Bellaboo, we'll figure this out," she murmured. Bella looked down at the beautiful blonde and sighed. "How are you so calm? If this is Victoria, then you're in danger." Juliette shrugged.
"This chick runs with vampires, babe." Bella smiled, but her good mood dampened when the door burst open, and Emmett and Jasper entered. Jasper expected everyone to feel worried, but Bella and Alice were perfectly calm.
He suspected that Juliette had something to do with that.
"His scent disappeared about five miles south of Bella's house," Jasper said and felt disappointed in himself. He wasn't able to protect his family—specifically his baby sister, who was just so pure and innocent that he wouldn't let anyone hurt her.
"Someone's orchestrating this."
"Victoria?" Someone asked, but Juliette could barely remember who it was as she lulled in and out of sleep. She was just so tired, and it was just so late.
