Moonrise | Paul Lahote

10

"Hey, wolf girl."

"Morning," Jenna returned Emmett's greeting, sliding into her seat beside Rosalie. At the lack of acknowledgement from the female, she paused, turning to face her.

Rosalie was sitting hunched over, arms tightly crossed over her chest, glaring in the direction of the whiteboard so fiercely that Jenna was surprised it didn't burst into flames.

"Uh, everything ok?" she asked cautiously.

"No," Rosalie said flatly.

"Edward wants to take Bella to meet our family," Emmett leaned across the table to supply in a whisper. "Rosie's not happy about that."

"I can hear you, idiot."

Emmett just shrugged his massive shoulders, his lips twitching. "I don't get why you hate that girl so much," he said casually. "She makes Edward less of an ass."

"She's also putting our entire family at risk," Rosalie snapped, finally tearing her gaze away from the board to fix it on the male. "You can't actually believe that 'mate' bullshit! It rarely ever happens between vampires, and it sure as hell never happens with a human!"

"Do you really think he's making it up?" Jenna interjected to save Emmett before he could try to joke his way through again.

"Yes. No. I don't know," the girl huffed, irritably flicking her blond locks over a shoulder. "It just doesn't make sense."

Rosalie leaned back in her chair, pressing her lips together as if struggling to find the correct words to express her feelings. "I mean, he's never even looked at anyone the way he looks at her. That part I can't deny," Rosalie admitted, voice quieter now. "He really does think she's the one. But what if it's just because she's different? Because she didn't run away screaming when she realized what we are? Because she makes him feel human?"

"How do mates even work, exactly?" Jenna asked after a few beats of silence.

Rosalie shrugged. "I wouldn't know."

"You and Emmett aren't?"

"Like I said, it only happens to a few very lucky ones. Not that I love you any less," she turned to Emmett.

Emmett smiled. "I love you too, bunny."

Jenna mimicked gagging, and they both laughed. "Still," Rosalie spoke again once it had died down. "Even if they do love each other now, there's a big problem: we're immortal. Either he's going to get bored of her and break her heart, or he's going to turn her." Rosalie glanced down at the desk, tracing a pattern in the wood with her perfectly manicured nails. "If he does, it's over. She'll have to leave everything behind– her family, her friends, and so will we. And then we'll have willingly dragged another person into our mess."

She paused and then glanced at Jenna with searching eyes. "I promise you, I'm not being mean just because I'm jealous of her. It's just that everything we've built, everything we've worked so hard to protect is at risk now because Edward's convinced that a human can – impossibly – be his mate."

"I get it," Jenna said softly.

"I just don't want my family to get burned." Rosalie looked away, arms tightening around herself. "Even if he's somehow right, it's still going to end badly. That's just what these things do."

The weight of her words was so heavy that Jenna couldn't fully absorb them. It felt as though Rosalie was speaking of something much greater than she could understand, than she had ever experienced. All she could do was wordlessly take her slim, icy hand and give it a comforting squeeze. It felt like squeezing a block of marble, but it was worth it for the grateful smile she received in return.