Falling To The Sun | B. Swan + E. Cullen

trente-six

So here's the thing: Roman was a great test taker. It was like her brain flipped itself on and she was suddenly a genius because she was ready to go. There was not a single ounce of stress or doubt in her as she sat in the deathly silent room.

She either knew the answer or didn't and that was as much as she was going to waste on that. Why worry herself when she knew she didn't know? So yeah, she was a great test taker because she was suddenly in the zone

And as she was leaving the school earlier than Bella that Friday afternoon with Alice at her side, she didn't worry about it in the slightest. She had passed, that much she knew (the vampire may or may not have promised her that) and as she was supposed to spend the day with her anyway, they just decided to leave.

Edward was going hunting and Bella was spending the day with Jacob. Being babysat, with her permission, was a lot more like hanging out which was something she could handle easily.

They had a lot planned, anyway, so it was a good thing they had Jasper and Emmett there to help.

Walking into Marnie's small apartment was like entering an alternate universe. Everything was foreign to her now, untouchable like antiques in a museum of a time long since past. These weren't her things anymore. They weren't anyone's things anymore.

And it was time to clean up.

The boys were already there when she walked in. Emmett was poking around everything with a childlike curiosity that made her snicker despite the stabbing pain in her heart.

This has been the only home she had growing up. From the minute she was taken home from the hospital to the tragic end, this was her home and every inch was crawling with the echoes of bittersweet memories that would haunt her after this day. It wasn't her place to try and erase them or replace them with something happier, healthier — that would come on its own. It was too late for that now.

Everything has to go.

"What did you want to do with all the living room furniture?" Alices asks, no doubt already knowing what was to be done but having the heart to ask anyway.

Roman looks over the dust-covered surfaces. "I don't need any of it. We can just get rid of it all."

Emmett moves first, easily lifting the sofa and moving it out the front door. Jasper followed with the small kitchen table.

She had carved little animals on the wooden legs when she was ten. She wasn't sure if Marnie ever noticed.

The girls went to the larger bedroom. Not a master, it was too small of an apartment for any big difference in size, but it was slightly bigger and that was enough if a distinction.

It was bare for the most part. The clothes were cleared away, packed in suitcases that were still out in the hall. There were only a few things that needed to be dealt with, little things that would be donated or tossed. The room was taken apart much too quickly for her liking, furniture left bare as if it was just another room.

Working with vampires was quick that way, she supposed. She should have really known it would be this easy, but somehow she didn't imagine it to be so simple to just wrap up over eighteen years of memories.

The living room and kitchen are basically empty when she steps out, boxes she hadn't thought to bring filled and placed neatly to the side. Roman was just going to throw most of it directly in the garbage. She didn't consider that there would be much worth saving but since she wasn't doing it herself, it was good Alice had thought to look ahead for her.

She peeked inside one of them, brow furrowing at all the cooking appliances and pots and plans that they had hardly ever used before set away nicely. They were all practically new still -- Roman only cooked in bulk so there would be leftovers for days. Marnie didn't cook much.