"You look like a puddle."

"Leave your sister alone, Genny."

We were sitting around the long forgotten game in the Black's living room, my dad and Billy discussing whether to take my soaking wet sister to the hospital. The boys—Jake, Quil, and Paul—were in a corner glaring at each other as they chomped through Jacob's birthday cake. Isabella had taken a shower and was now wearing dry clothes that we had borrowed from our giant friend Jacob. I was sitting on the floor in front of the couch and had also changed into a sweatshirt of his, pulling at the soft sleeves so that they were tucked in around my chilled hands. My gaze was moving constantly between my sister—who had endangered herself yet again—and Paul—who I was still trying to convince myself probably only had a fever or at least had some other normal reason for feeling burning hot after crawling out of an icy pond.

"Genny."

"What." I demanded, turning away from my sister to frown up at Billy.

"Your dad's going to take Bells up to Forks." He told me. I started to look for my dad and then took a quick glance around the room: he was no longer there. "How do you feel about staying for a bit longer? Jacob can drive you back."

"Uhhhh..."

"I'm fine." Isabella spoke up. She started to throw off the blankets as she got up, tripped, and—sometime between the time I started to stand and the time I looked back to her—was caught by the ever scowling Paul. "Really. I don't need it. Nothing happened."

I looked at her suspiciously: I could tell she wasn't injured... so why was she lying?

"Better safe than sorry." Billy said apologetically. He wheeled around and headed over to the cake.

"You sure you didn't..." I frowned, thinking back to the weird look she'd had on her face... but that was before she fell. I glanced up at the sound of Billy scolding the boys for eating too much and found Isabella and Paul watching me and waiting for an answer. "Uhhh..."

"Yeah, you already said that," Paul grumbled. He glared down at Bella and then turned abruptly to go fetch another piece of cake.

I grinned as Billy—who had turned his back for a second only to look back and find yet another cake-thief—sighed deeply. "You guys saving any for us?"

"I'll make you another." Paul joked grumpily.

I blinked at him. "Okaaaay. Except..."

"Bella! Ready to go?" My dad came bouncing in, hands in his jacket pockets as he stood awkwardly in the open door way. Everyone else was glaring at him as the cold air poured into the house.

Bella sighed deeply and dropped the rest of the blankets. Tucking her hands in the giant sweatshirt pocket, she followed my dad out the door, leaving me frowning after them. So much for this outing being good for my recluse sister. I started to wonder if her accident would make her even more reluctant to leave the house... then again, she hadn't had any problem after the vampire attack.

Of course that train of thought led to me taking a long moment to close my eyes, bite my lip, and fight for control. When I opened them again, the door was closed and the boys had gathered around the tv to complain about the game. The three of them were all tense, not really seeming to think about the words they were saying, just trying to distract themselves. Meanwhile, I'm worrying about vampires.

Ugh.

"Hey," I looked up at the couch, eyes glancing across until they found Jake. "Could you give me a ride up to the hospital?" I asked quietly.

Jake opened his mouth to reply and then frowned as Paul butted in.

"Sure."

"What?"

"I'll take you." Paul said.

"You... Paul, what the-." I glanced back and found Billy just entering from the kitchen. "Uhhh...."

"Is that your new catchphrase?" Paul snapped, getting up and heading for the door. "Come on."

I exchanged a confused, slightly helpless look with Jacob. Then I shrugged: what difference did it make? And what could I say? 'No! I can't go with Paul! He's hot!'? Yeah. That'd go well.

Jacob sighed and leaded back into the couch with a disheartened fwumph.

"Just make sure to eat something first, k, Genevieve?" He said tiredly.

I opened my mouth, meaning to argue or apologize. I was interrupted by my stomach growling loudly and turned the words into a comical pout. "Jaaaaaake..."

"Come on, Gen." Paul called, throwing open the door to let in a gust of snow and wind.

"Gaaaa!" I yelled. No one else had even reacted. "Shut up, Lahote. You can stand me eating one piece of freaking cake."

"You've had all the time in the world to—"

"Paul..." Jacob groaned. "I can take her."

"I want to take her!" Paul snapped.

Sensing an opportunity, I left them to argue and loaded a plate with the largest piece of cake I could find. When I got back Jacob gave me a sympathetic glance and Paul frowned, waving emphatically in the direction of the door.

"Happy birthday, Jake," I said drily, stopping to give him a half-hearted wave good-bye. He started to get up but I waved him off, seeing Paul start to narrow his eyes. "I'll see you soon, k, Jacob?"

"Yeah." He fell back against the couch again and gave me an equally pathetic wave. "Bye, Gen."

"Bye."

And so I walked out the door and down the street to my ex-boyfriend's car.

Ugh.

"You don't have to look so annoyed." Paul grumbled as he unlocked the doors. "I'm doing you a favor."

"Yeah, well, I—" I'd wanted Jacob. "Yeah, thanks, Paul." I clambered into the car and scowled viciously at the dial for the heat: he didn't even have it set to on. The heck?

Noticing my staring, Paul turned on the car and then messed around with the dials so that soon enough a steady flow of hot air was blasting across my feet. I glanced at him curiously but he had turned around to check for cars and when he turned back the look on his face forbid all conversation.

I took it until we were about half way to Forks before I decided that a moment more of silence was going to kill me. I checked Paul's face and decided he'd calmed down enough for music but not for talking. Fine. I reached out and flipped on the radio.

"Ew, punk." I grumbled, shoving the sleeves of Jacob's sweatshirt off my hand so I could mess with the stations. "You still like that?"

"There's nothing wrong with—don't change it." He took a hand off the wheel to wave me away from the controls. "Dang it, Gen."

He started flipping back through the stations, trying to find the one I'd left and keeping one eye barely on the road in front of us. I watched him irritably before finally laughing at the familiar look on his face.

"This road... Just like old times, huh?" I said, half smiling.

"You need to get over that." Paul said flatly. I stared at him as he slammed a hand against the power button and engulfed us in silence. "Not going to happen again, k, Gen?"

I gaped.

He ignored me, eyes fixed angrily on the world outside.

I gaped some more.

Then, finally....

"You. Asshole!"

"Well, it's not—"

"I'm not trying to—ass!" I was fuming, garbling words together. "I just want—friends—and Jac—you ass—I just trying to—"

"What?"

"You're an asshole!" I accused again.

"I'm just being honest!" He snarled back, offended. "Old times are gone."

"I... Oh my freaking..." I waved a fist at him for a second before I turned and slammed it against the dash.

"Hey!"

"Shut up." I muttered.

And so the second half of the ride past in a silence ten times as uncomfortable as the first. When we reached the hospital, I read the text my dad had finally sent me and clambered out of the car. Then I turned to glare at Paul as he easily climbed out of the driver's side.

"What are you doing?"

He stared at me, confused again. "Coming in to see if Bella is ok?"

I scowled. Then I stormed off, not bothering to see if he followed. But of course he caught up with me in seconds, already seeming to have forgotten that I had any reason to be ticked at him. We reached Bella and my dad without saying one word to each other.

They'd apparently stuck Isabella in a room while they ran all the possible tests and stared at x-rays, probably nodding their heads and stroking their beards in unison: Forks is a place where nothing ever happens and apparently that applies doubly so for hospitals. When my dad went off with two nurses to fill out insurance crap, Isabella fell asleep and I realized that my piece of cake was... where had that ended up?

"Ugh." I groaned.

"What now?" I'd forgotten Paul.

I frowned at him and then stood, pulling my hair from the collar of my sweatshirt so that I had a reason not to look at him. "I'm going to run and get some food."

"Don't get lost." He said, going back to the piece of candy wrapper he'd been playing with.

"What's that supposed—" I cut myself off. I had enough issues with the giant Paul right now, without adding becoming easily offended to the list. Well... more easily offended. "I'll be right back." I finished and then I stalked out of the room.

Why had I come back here? I hate hospitals. And now I was sitting in one, flashing back to all the bored nights I had in them when I was a little kid. And I had been free. Ugh. Why did I do this? I had to fight to keep my face straight as I walked down to the cafeteria, mentally berating myself. Guilt is such a stupid feeling.

Luckily, the cafeteria had the cure: ice cream sandwiches.

I made my way back through the hospital with a bag of chips stuffed in my purse and ice cream dripping down my hands as I failed to lick it away fast enough. The staff, most of whom knew me at least a little by virtue of living in the tiniest, most boring town on earth, ignored me and let me walk past without a word. I made it back to the room eventually and walked in quietly, hoping not to wake up my sister.

Reeeeeally wish I'd been a little louder.

As I glanced up from my ice cream sandwich the first thing I saw was that Paul had moved to stand beside the bed, his face slightly puzzled. I opened my mouth, not sure what to say, when my eyes focused and found his hand. I squinted, trying to understand: it looked like he was reaching down... like he was reaching for her hand? But... Quickly, I took another step, purposely squeaking my boot against the floor as I did so.

Paul looked up, eyes wide and startled. "Gen?"

"What are you doing?" I asked calmly. I took another lick of ice cream as it dribbled from between the chocolate cookies.

"I..." He glanced down at his reaching hand and then frowned up at me. "I dropped something."

"Oh." I nodded but kept staring at him, nibbling at the chocolate part of my sandwich. "Yeah?"

He scratched as his short black hair and looked around awkwardly before meeting my eyes. "Yeah."

"Ok." I took another bite of the ice cream sandwich. "What?"

"What?"

"What did you drop?" I asked, widening my eyes in innocent curiousity and trying not to laugh at the look on his face.

"My... that little bit of foil." He waved around at the area where he'd been looking earlier. "I threw it and it... Yeah."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

We exchanged the longest, most awkward, most semi-confrontational look ever experienced.

Then I shrugged, walked out, and went to find a sink to wash my hands so that I could text Jacob.